Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Trollhunters, nor anything else recognizable. No profit is coming from this, and I merely am playing in their sandbox.
Welcome back to the story everyone! Sorry about the slight delay, I was going to post this yesterday, but FanFiction wasn't letting me upload this chapter. Anyways, I hope you enjoy!
Lets get right into the story!
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Harry Potter and the Glory of Merlin
Chapter 7: Enter the Order
Another couple days had passed in quiet routine before anything else out of the ordinary happened in Harry's life. Currently he was sitting on his bed, stroking Hedwig, who had made herself at home on his shoulder.
All throughout the past few days, Harry had had the house almost entirely to himself. Dudley was still in the hospital in recovery and both Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon— who had even taken the time off of work— spent every waking moment by his side.
The doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong with him, but figured the attack had been caused by some sort of hazing or prank gone wrong. The police had even been informed to keep on the lookout for any older boys acting suspicious. Despite their not being able to pin point the problem, the doctors were still able to pronounce that Dudley was in fact improving, albeit slowly.
Not for the first time, Harry was tempted to tell them that Dudley would be able to recover far faster than what his doctors were predicting if only he ate a nice helping of chocolate. He figured that since the doctors didn't know what was actually wrong with him, they were probably keeping him in quarantine and regulating his diet pretty heavily, just to be safe. Nevertheless, Harry held his tongue, knowing that even if he actually did try and help, the Dursleys would only try and blame him for the walrus of a boy's condition.
Besides, he reminded himself, if he told, then his relatives would also know that Stricklander was somehow involved. After all, it was him that originally came up with the lie.
A loud bang from downstairs echoed around the otherwise silent house, ripping Harry from his thoughts. He quickly stood and put Hedwig back on her cage, before moving over to his desk where he had left both the Amulet of Daylight and the black knife. He slipped both into the deep pockets of his jeans, before throwing on a dark colored jacket in order to hide the slightly protruding handle of the knife from view.
Now armed, Harry cautiously made his way to the door and cracked it open. As he crept closer to the stairs, he could distinctly hear muffled voices and shuffling feet. With narrowed eyes, Harry soundlessly made his way down the stairs and wrapped his right hand around the hilt of the knife.
He doubted whoever was in the house with him were trolls. Trolls, at least the ones he had met, were far better at sneaking around than this. In fact, if they were burglars, Harry almost felt bad for them. It wouldn't be long till they were caught at this rate.
Another crash came from the kitchen.
"Tonks!" a familiar voice hissed. "Be quiet!"
Harry smiled good-naturedly and released his grip on the knife. Yup. Wizards. He'd called it.
They really needed to learn how to sneak.
At a slightly faster pace, Harry continued down the stairs and flicked the light switch on.
The sight that greeted him nearly had Harry breaking out into large guffaws of laughter.
Remus Lupin, the one whose voice Harry had recognized was leaning over a young woman who appeared to have tripped over a kitchen chair. Said woman had somehow managed to get herself underneath the kitchen table with one of her feet stuck in the legs of a knocked over chair. Her hot pink hair fell in every direction, completely obscuring her face. Across the room, Mad-eye Moody was peering around the room in suspicion, beyond those three, other wizards were sprinkled at random around the kitchen. One, Harry noted, was even peering— and possibly stealing something from the fridge.
"Er— Hello." Harry was unable to keep the amusement out of his voice. He leaned casually against the entry way into the kitchen as he watched them all jolt at his sudden voice. All of them had deer in the headlights expressions on their faces as they turned to look at Harry.
"Harry!" Came the response. Lupin seemed to break out of his trance the quickest and, after finally helping the woman free her foot from the assaulted chair, quickly stepped over to Harry to give him a hug.
After a moment Lupin stepped back and gestured to the others standing behind him. "The young woman behind me is Nymphadora Tonks, who I'd advise you simply call Tonks. I am sure you recognize Moody…" He continued on with the introductions, of which, Harry was only half paying attention to as he took in all the newcomers.
"Wotcher Harry!" Pink hair chirped cheerfully, "We're here to rescue you of course!"
Harry grinned back at her, however the moment was broken when Mad-Eye pushed his way past Remus to stand directly in front of Harry.
Mad-Eye narrowed his real eye. "How are you sure it's him, Lupin, and not an imposter?"
"I think if either of us have any reason to doubt the other, it's me. Professor." Harry retorted.
From behind Moody, the young woman snorted. "He's got you there, Mad-Eye!"
Ignoring them, Lupin stared hard at Harry. "Who is Snuffles?" he asked.
"My dogfather." Harry replied easily with a grin.
"Good enough for me." Lupin declared before continuing, "Where are your relatives, Harry? We were trying to be quiet to sneak past them, but now—" he cut himself off with a helpless shrug.
'Trying to be quiet? Please.' Harry barely held in the snort. If the Dursleys actually had been home, there was no way they wouldn't have heard the wizards. Out loud he simply stated, "They are out. Are we going to be leaving, or..?"
Lupin nodded. "Yes; momentarily. I am just waiting on the signal for the all clear. How about you go and gather your things, so we will be ready."
Shrugging, Harry made his way back up to his room. He was unsurprised to see that both Tonks and Mad-Eye were following him. Upon entering his room, Harry went directly over to where Hedwig still sat on top of her cage.
Picking her up, he walked her over to the window. "Go hunt for a little while, and then come find me, okay girl?" As he released her, Harry inconspicuously gave her a small note, which she clutched in her right talon. Harry had already briefed her on where to take that particular note days ago. Not for the first time, Harry felt blessed that he had been given such a smart and loyal familiar.
The note was the one he had planned to send to Stricklander, in case a situation such as the one he was now dealing with were to arise. On the note was a single word:
Departed.
Harry turned back to face his two escorts. Tonks was busy having a look around his room, Mad-Eye however, was staring directly at him, his eye narrowed. Whether or not he had noticed the slipped note, he didn't comment. Instead, he opened his mouth and asked Harry a question.
"Where is your wand?"
"In my trunk. The trunk's already packed by the way."
"Well get it out!" Moody snarled, "Are you a wizard, or aren't you? And get out your broom while you are at it! We are going to be flying to our destination."
With a slight roll of his eyes, Harry pulled out both of the aforementioned items, and refastened the lid.
"And where exactly is our destination?" He asked over his shoulder. "I assumed we were just going to the Burrow, but that seems kinda far to go by broom."
"The Weasley's house?" Tonks butted in, finally coming to stand beside Harry as she finished inspecting the room. "Oh no. We are going to go someplace far safer. It's—"
"Enough, Tonks. We are not discussing anything here." Moody growled. "Now. If you are already packed, we should probably get back downstairs."
With that, Moody spun around and stalked out of the room. Harry was pretty sure that his magical eye was still watching him, however. He stifled a shudder and turned to watch as Tonks swiftly charmed his Trunk to hover and then proceeded to follow it out the room. Harry picked up Hedwig's cage and fell into step behind her.
Lupin was waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs. Seeing Harry, he opened the front door. "Good. I see you have got your broom. Everyone else is already waiting outside. Come along."
Harry stepped out into the cooling evening and made his way to where the rest of the party had huddled together. Off in the distance, Harry saw a series of green sparks light up the sky.
"Now. There's the signal. Everyone know's the plan, so let's get going." Lupin stated, coming up behind Harry. "Harry, I am going to disillusion you. I need you to stay directly behind Tonks while we are in the air. That way, if we are attacked, you will be surrounded by us, and even disillusioned, we will all know exactly where you are."
Tonks shot him a grin over her shoulder before getting on her broom. All around him, Harry could see the wizards doing the same. Lupin cast the disillusionment charm before turning back to his own broom. As one, they all lifted off the ground and took to the sky.
~x~
After what felt like hours in the cold sky, the flock of wizards finally began to their decent. By this point, Harry was unsure if he would be able to remove his hands from his broom due to their half frozen state.
As they landed, Harry took a moment to take in his surroundings. The first thing Harry noted was that he had never been to this location before. They were standing in what seemed to be a rather unassuming neighborhood, with houses lining one side of the street, and a park on the other. Slightly confused, Harry turned to Remus.
"Read this." a gruff voice sounded behind him. Harry had only a moments notice before Moody shoved a small slip of paper into his frozen hands.
On the note was a single sentence. Harry barely had a second to actually read it before Moody had snatched back the note, and set it on fire.
"I don't—" Harry started, confused.
"Just think about what you have read," Lupin said quietly from his side. He released the disillusionment charm, he had placed on Harry. "All will become clear in a moment."
Furrowing his brows, Harry was surprised to see an old house seem to squeeze itself between the two newer ones on either side. 'Huh. That's different' Harry mused.
"Enough dawdling. Everyone inside!" Moody ordered, moving towards the newly formed house.
With the door shutting behind them, Harry was engulfed in utter darkness. Only the sound of breathing let him know that he was still surrounded by the wizards who had accompanied him thus far. Suddenly the lamps adorning the walls flicked on, giving Harry his first look at the inside of the house.
He was not impressed. If he had thought that the outside was bad, the inside was far worse. The house wasn't just old; it gave off the image of being abandoned. The walls were a peeling yellow, which only looked worse in the flickering light. Everything his eyes could see, including the floor was covered in cobwebs, dust and grime. Worse still, the entire place reeked with the smell of mold.
"Come along" Lupin murmured quietly, as though he might disturb some unknown entity.
Shivering, Harry followed closely behind, slightly relieved when they made their way to a more lived in part of the house. Lupin led him into a rather large eating room, which was already filled with many folks seated.
As they entered, Harry felt all their eyes turn onto him, and he resisted the need to squirm under the attention. Out of the crowd Harry was able to pick out a few familiar faces, including Dumbledore, Sirius, and the Weasleys—the latter two of which sent him small grins and waves. He could also see both Professor McGonagall and Snape standing in the background. The wizards that had accompanied him on the journey from Little Whinging, pushed into the room behind him.
"Have a seat, Harry." Lupin murmured to him from his left.
After everyone had settled into their seats around the, by comparison, small table, they all seemed to hold their breaths. Harry glanced around uneasily; he could feel every single person's eyes still staring unabashedly at him in that moment.
"What happened?" A voice finally piped up, one Harry didn't recognize. It seemed to break the trance. Harry was quick to answer, unwilling to go back to the stifling silence.
"What do you mean?"
"He means your spell." Mad-Eye elaborated impatiently. "What caused you to cast the Stupefy, boy?"
Oh… That.
Harry supposed he should have expected the wizards to want to interrogate him as soon as he stepped through the door.
Harry flicked his eyes downward and mentally took a breath, mentally preparing himself. He and Stricklander had prepared a story that he could tell the wizards. That way, they would remain none the wiser of the trolls' existence, but even with the story on the forefront of his mind, Harry couldn't help but worry that he'd somehow jumble it up. Besides, he hadn't expected to have to tell it in front of such a large group. He almost felt that he were already at the trial.
"I'd been getting this feeling of being followed all day, you see…" He started, speaking slowly. "and well, as the day went on, I could feel myself getting edgier and edgier. Finally, on my way back to the house, I heard something.I had ducked into a tunnel, hoping that I could either lose whatever was following me, or if it came to it, defend myself without being scene by wizards. I honestly don't know how long I ended up standing in the tunnel. At one point, I heard a rustling at the edge of the tunnel. I cast the Stupefy without even thinking. I didn't actually hit anything either."
As Harry trailed off, he glanced back at his hands. The stifling silence was back, and he could feel their judging eyes still on him. He resisted the desire to look up.
"Very well, my boy." Dumbledore said at last with a twinkle in his eyes. "Why don't you go upstairs and rejoin your friends. We will call you back down after the meeting is over."
Harry felt rage bubble in his chest, but he pushed it down as best he could and mutely stood and left the room. Of course they weren't going to actually let him stay for whatever meeting they had all gathered for! Why would they actually decide to give him any new information regarding Voldemort?— for he supposed that that was in fact what they were all hear to discuss— It's not like he wasn't trying to kill him or anything!
After the month he had spent under Stricklander's watch, Harry had quickly relaxed into the notion that he was an equal. Returning to the wizards treating him like a child was a rather had pill to swallow. He was determined, however to not act like the child they perceived him as, which was why he had offered no spoken protest when he had been asked to leave.
'Besides', he promised himself. 'I can just pester Sirius later.' If anyone was going to give him information, it would probably be him.
Harry was not prepared for the sight that greeted him upon his arrival upstairs.
Ron, Hermione, Ginny and the twins were all huddled around a strange contraption that seemed to be a large ear attached to a string which was hung over the edge of the staircase. When she noticed him, Hermione gave him a large smile and beckoned him over. Intrigued, Harry joined them.
As he got closer, Harry could hear a voice coming from the ear. "Do you think that it was just us, he felt following him?"
Huh. Harry mused, It seemed that they had found a way to listen in. Harry supposed he shouldn't be surprised. After all, this was one of the tamer things that he had seen the twins with.
"No. That was the evening that Dung was supposed to be on duty. We already know that he skipped out."
"I still think the boy was pulling a stunt for attention, just like his father!" That could only be Snape's deep tenor voice.
After that, a handful of voices all piped up at once, making it difficult to hear what was being said through the ear.
"Silence!" Came Dumbledore's booming voice after a few minutes of the arguing. "It is clear to me that we don't have the whole story. Unfortunately, I believe that Harry has told us all he knows. That said, we must—"
The words seemed to just cut off. The large ear going instantly silent.
"Damn." Fred— or was it George?— muttered. "Someone put up an Imperturbable Charm again."
The other twin nodded sagely. "So it seems, brother mine, so it seems. Oh well. I suppose that is all we are going to get to hear tonight." As one, the two twins popped away. Ginny— her face painted with a slight blush— left as well, after a quick hello to Harry.
"They have been doing that all summer." Ron groaned as he stood and stretched. "They got their apparition licenses. Bloody show offs, if you ask me. Hey, Harry! Good ta see you mate!"
"Language, Ronald." Hermione grounded out before turning to Harry and engulfing him in a hug. "Harry! Oh it's so good to finally see you! We've been worried sick, you see. Nobody knew why you had had to cast the stupefy. Dung had been supposed to follow you, and he'd skipped out—It wasn't the only time either! Supposedly he did it again!— Dumbledore was so—"
"Wait." Harry broke in, "You knew I was being followed? How long have you and Ron been here?" Of course, Harry had also known that he was being followed, however it still bothered him to think that his friends had been told more regarding him than he had.
"A few weeks now," Hermione easily replied. "With me being a muggleborn and a friend of yours, Dumbledore thought it safer— this is Sirius' ancestral home, you see, and it is under the Fidelius Charm. That way none of the Death Eaters can find it, let alone get in— And Ron's parents are members of the Order, and are helping clean this place up a bit."
"If it is so safe, then why was I left with my relatives? And what's the Order?" Harry asked, his voice deceptively calm.
"The Order of the Phoenix. It's Dumbledore's group which worked to stop Voldemort in the first war. They reformed and this is their headquarters." Harry supposed that explained the meeting downstairs. Hermione shrugged before continuing, "and you'd have to ask Dumbledore. I have been wanting to know the same thing, but Dumbledore was quite clear that you were safest there…"
Yeah. Except for the trolls finding him, not to mention the dementors. At least the trolls turned out to be friendly. It seemed to Harry, that the wizards didn't even know that he had had to fight off dementors a few nights ago, and of course, he was keeping his training with the trolls a secret. He briefly considered bringing it up, if only to rub in his point about being 'safe', but then thought better of it. He couldn't exactly explain how he had managed to fight them off without a wand.
Harry wanted to tell his two friends about the Amulet, however he held back. He was still rather miffed at them for the lack of contact. Maybe after they had regained his trust. Maybe.
"…It's why when you cast the stupefy, we were so alarmed! I'm so glad to hear that it turned out to be nothing!"
And it seemed Hermione had still been talking… He glanced over at Ron, who also seemed to have tuned her out as some point.
"Well. If you guys had such good information here. Why didn't you even try to let me know what was going on?" Both Ron and Hermione cringed.
"We wanted to mate!" Surprisingly, it was Ron who spoke up first.
Hermione cut in a moment later, "Dumbledore made us promise not to! He said it was too risky to be passing information. Besides, we are not exactly allowed to sit in on meetings."
"It's why we have been using the Extendable Ear." Ron again. "Mum knows we have it of course. So we rarely actually get to hear anything important before she remembers to put up a Imperturbable Charm. Today was the most we had heard in a while!"
Harry sighed, turning around and pinching his nose. "I just don't understand why Dumbledore wants to keep me in the dark! And don't try and give me the safety crap! I know he could find a way to pass information safely if he really wanted to. And you guys are supposed to be my friends!"
"We're sorry—"
"Sorry doesn't cut it!" Harry snapped back, cutting Hermione off. "You two left me in the dark, with only the relatives who hate me for company. I had just seen Cedric die, for Merlin's sake! I've been pitted against Voldemort more times than I can count— Especially after I started at Hogwarts. Doesn't that deserve at least a little respect?! I am so tired of being kept in the dark for my own sake! Have I not been through enough to be able to decide for myself whether I should know something or not? I was practically begging you guys to at the very least keep me somewhat up to date this summer!"
Harry stopped his rant to take a breath. Both Ron and Hermione were looking down at the floor by this point. Hermione, he noticed, seemed to be close to tears.
"We are so sorry Harry…" Hermione tried again, her voice barely a whisper.
Harry just huffed. "So what's up anyways?"
Hermione blinked. "Pardon?"
"Voldemort."
"Oh! Well we really don't know much— none of the adults are willing to give us much to go off of— but from what we have been able to gather, he is keeping quiet. The Order thinks he is trying to rebuild his forces… Have you been reading the Daily Prophet?"
No. He had stopped after he had begun training with Stricklander due to being far too busy. He glanced at the covers occasionally, but nothing ever popped out as that important. "Not really. Why?"
Hermione took a deep breath, but it was Ron who answered first. "You see, mate, the Ministry of Magic is refusing to believe Dumbledore that V-voldemort is back. They have been slandering him— and you to an extent— all summer! Dumbledore even lost his position on the Wizengamot!"
Serves him right, a little voice thought vindictively in the back of his head. Logically, however, he realized just how serious this was.
"Anyways. We really are sorry, mate. It was stupid of us to listen to Dumbledore after we had been through so much." Ron paused for a moment, before continuing, "Come on, I'll show you where we are sleeping. Since the majority of the rooms here are still uninhabitable, we are bunking together."
With that, Ron set off confidently over the old creaky flooring with Hermione and Harry following closely behind. Ron turned the corner in the hallway and opened the second door on the left. "This is us, mate. A few doors down is where Hermione and Ginny are sleeping, and beyond them is where the adults all have their rooms. Unfortunately, Fred and George are directly across the hall, so make sure to guard your belongings. They have been going crazy with pranks lately."
Harry took in the room— It really wasn't much. Besides the small window in the back of the room, the bedroom's walls were strikingly bare, and painted a deep mahogany. Two beds laid on the floor of the room, but other than them, a small desk and their trunks, the room was empty.
"That's your bed over there." Ron gestured to the bed on the left before making his way towards his own. He jumped onto of his bed landing on his knees, before turning back towards Harry and continuing hesitantly, "Do you want to play a game or something..? I've got chess, exploding snap..?"
"I think I just want to call it an early night," Harry muttered wearily. He still hadn't quite warmed up from the long flight in the freezing air. All he really wanted to do was curl up into a ball under the warm looking blankets that adorned his bed.
"Well, in that case, I think I am going to retire to my own room," Harry twisted his head to see Hermione standing at the entrance of the door. "Night Harry; Ron."
"Good night." Ron replied. Harry remained silent, and simply opened his trunk. He pulled out his night clothes and carefully slipped the knife that was still in his pocket, and the Amulet in-between his clothes.
Wearily, he slipped into bed. He had had a long day.
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AN: Whew! That was a long one. Not much Trollhunter parts either unfortunately… Next chapter we jump into the trial and then things really pick up with a return to Hogwarts! yea!
Till next time,
~Dawn
