Woohoo! It didn't take 2 months for my next update! I wanted to get this one out quickly (but not too quickly) just to let you know that I'm still committed to this story. Also, a little side note, I noticed that my first story, New Leaf to Turn, has almost received 100,000 hits. That's huge for me, so I'm excited. And a big sorry to Persephone Wolfe, who also answered correctly, but whom i forgot to add to my list. Sorry and happy reading!
And to those who didn't get why I gave Bellatrix the Black Mamba name, go watch Kill Bill (unless you're too young). It made sense to me, Beatrix, Bellatrix? Anybody? Oh well, it made me giggle.
Someone asked why I make my chapters around 3,000 words and not longer. The reason I do this is because while in a real book where chapters are much longer, this is an online story, and I don't want to spend hours in front of the screen reading tiny words. I think around 3,000 words is a nice sized chapter, not so short that there's little to know plot flow, but not so long that you're begging for it to be over.
Now that I'm done ranting, onto chapter 8 of Savior's Calling!
[Back in Canonverse]
To say that Neville Longbottom had outgrown all expectations set before him would have been an understatement. From the time that he was young, his family expected him to be just as brave and just as strong as his parents were. And for many of his earily years, he had been nothing but a worthless disappointment. He hadn't even the strength to believe in himself.
Until he met Harry that is. Sure the changes were small, like earning 10 points for Gryffindor their first year and securing the house cup, but they were there. By their fifth year, Harry had opened a door to Neville that Neville wasn't even sure would ever be open to him. Under Harry's teaching in Dumbledore's Army, Neville's confidence grew, and along with that, so did his magic. By the time Harry left with Ron and Hermione to hunt down Horcruxes, Neville was ready to step up and take Harry's place as leader of Dumbledore's Army. Even when Voldemort himself had tried to make an example of him by setting the Sorting Hat on fire, he stood strong.
"You would have been proud of me, Mum." Neville smiled kindly to his mother as he told her the story for the millionth time. "I got to wield the Sword of Gryffindor and I even slayed Nagini. You should have seen the look on Voldemort's face, Dad. It was priceless." He chuckled lightheartedly. Frank and Alice Longbottom weren't listening to Neville's story. They never did, but Neville didn't mind. He just enjoyed spending time with his parents.
Neville suddenly felt something warm in his pocket, and reached into his pocket curiously. Today was his day off, what could Ron possibly have that was so important that he would interrupt his visit with his parents, and contact him through his DA coin? He took out the gold Galleon that was in his pocket and looked at the edge, wondering what his partner found so urgent.
12 Grimmauld ASAP
Oh. That would be important, especially to Ron, and Neville for that matter. Ever since Ron had gotten them assigned to the Potter case (though Neville abhorred referring to Harry's disappearance as such), he was investigating nonstop. And now he was probably waiting impatiently waiting for Neville to show up to search Harry's house. With a sigh, Neville got up and smoothed out the wrinkles in his slacks.
"I've got to go now, Mum, Dad. I'll be back next week." Neville smiled softly before living his parents' room at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.
"Well it's about time you got here." Ron huffed, sitting on the front porch with his arms crossed.
Neville rolled his eyes, "Sorry, I was visiting my parents." He looked up at the house before them, "I can't believe that Harry still lives here."
Ron nodded as he stood up, "It looks much nicer on the inside, Harry fixed it up after the war."
"No doubt he did," Neville muttered, "Why did you wait outside for me? Didn't Harry give you a key to this place?"
Ron opened his mouth to respond, then shut it again when he realized that Neville was right. "…Stuff it." He grumbled, already getting his key out to unlock the front door. Once the door was open, the two observed the state of the door, "Well obviously no one came through the front door…it was still locked."
Neville nodded, "Plus, anyone that would have used the front door would have had to have gotten through Harry's Fidelius charm." The auror mad his way through the doorway, "Awfully paranoid of Harry to still use a Fidelius charm after the war's over, isn't it?"
As Ron shut the door, he shook his head, "Harry's not paranoid, he's just private." He muttered, inspecting a coat rack.
It made sense to Neville, after all, Harry was the Savior of the Wizarding World, he probably didn't want everyone and their aunt to know where he lived. Who knew how many requests for interviews or autographs he would get if they knew?
"His cloak is missing." Ron stated, pointing to the coat rack.
"Which cloak?" Neville asked curiously, "The cloak?"
Ron rolled his eyes, "Of course his Invisibility Cloak Neville, I really wouldn't care if his best winter cloak was missing."
Neville sighed. He was used to Ron's outbursts, especially now with his best friend missing. "Well if it was just a normal cloak missing, it would have meant that perhaps Harry simply left without telling anyone."
Ron shook his head stubbornly, "Harry isn't the type to run off without telling anyone."
At this, Neville just stared at Ron, "…What are you talking about? Harry's been the type to run off since he was 11, you have been too." Ignoring Ron's protests, Neville went upstairs to Harry's room to double check and see if anything was missing.
Not that he would have been able to know if anything was missing from the bedroom. Harry's room reflected what his trunk always looked like at Hogwarts: a mess. Cloths were everywhere, drawers were left open and the bed was a disaster. 'Typical Harry…' Neville mused as he pawed though the items on the floor.
He wasn't sure how long he had been searching for clues, but Neville had been so enthralled with the task at hand that he hadn't heard Ron come into the bedroom.
"The map is missing."
Neville jumped a bit, surprised by the sudden noise, before standing up straight and looking at Ron, "What map?"
Ron shook his head, "His father map of Hogwarts…" Seeing Neville's curious expression, he elaborated, "It was enchanted…It's how we were able to sneak around Hogwarts without getting caught."
'Well that makes sense.' Neville mused at the secret of Harry's sneaking ability. "So Harry was going to Hogwarts when he was abducted?"
"Or whoever abducted him wanted Harry to get him into Hogwarts." Ron added, looking around the room, "No…Harry's coat is missing, he was getting ready to leave when he was abducted."
"How…" Neville shook his head, deciding not to ask how Ron knew that Harry's coat was missing from the mess of cloths on the floor. He would just chalk that up to Ron being Harry's best friend. "Nevermind. Should we check the study?"
Before Ron could answer, a third voice was heard from downstairs.
"Ron! I need some help!" Hermione shouted, bouncing a very fussy Teddy in her arms and his bag slung over a shoulder.
Ron groaned as Neville shook his head, "You should tell Hermione that this isn't Hogwarts anymore, she can't come barging onto crime scenes like this." Both Ron and Neville knew that the warning was empty, that Neville was just teasing.
None the less, Ron made his way downstairs. "Hermione, I told you I had to work today…" Ron groaned in frustration.
Hermione rolled her eyes, "I know, but he won't stop crying. Could you hold him for a minute Ron, he likes you." She pleaded while Teddy continued his crying rampage.
Neville watched as Ron's will crumbled under Hermione's pleading gaze. Finally, he took Teddy in his arms. "Just until he falls asleep…" He grumbled. Teddy looked up at Ron's hair and, in a fit of giggles, sported a tuft of bright red hair.
"I told you he likes you…" Hermione muttered, looking around the house, "So what have you guys found out?"
With a chuckle, Neville followed Hermione, "Not much, although Ron's pointed out that Harry's cloak and some map are missing…"
Hermione stopped, crossing her arms as she pondered, "Not many people know about the map…either someone knows about the map or-"
"Or Harry was on his way to Hogwarts before he was abducted. Ron already came up with that idea." Neville chuckled as he went into the study, only to immediately fight the urge to sneeze. "I'm guessing that Harry doesn't use this room much?"
Nodding, Hermione moved forward into the room, obviously not affected by the dust, "Harry doesn't work, so he doesn't have much need for a study, now does he?" She chuckled as she looked around the room, even getting down on all fours to look under the desk.
Neville cleared his throat, "Uh, Hermione? I know you have a knack for investigating, but maybe you should let-"
"RON!"
Neville almost jumped out of his skin at Hermione's suddenly raised voice. Soon he could hear Ron taking the stairs two at a time before rushing into the study, with Teddy in his arms.
"Do you have to yell Hermione? Teddy was almost asleep…" Ron almost whined, rocking Teddy and trying to calm him back down. Teddy seemed more interested with Ron's hair than going to sleep.
Hermione sighed, "Trust me, this is important…" She replied as she reached under the desk, pulling out a small mirror.
Neville raised an eyebrow. A mirror? What could possibly be so important about a-
"…Is that…?"
Hermione nodded, "Its Harry's mirror."
"Could one of you fill me in on what you two are on about?" Neville sighed, "I wasn't exactly blessed with inside knowledge of what goes on in your heads." He loved Ron and Hermione, and Harry too, but sometimes it was hard to get a grasp of what went on in their little microcosm.
Ron shifted Teddy to one arm while he took the mirror from Hermione, "This mirror is one in a set of two two-way mirrors. The other belonged to Sirius…after he died, Harry smashed the mirror into pieces, but kept the shards with him at all times afterward…" Ron trailed off as he examined the mirror in his hand.
"Harry must have repaired it after the war…" Hermione trailed off, getting up from the floor. "Harry would have had to have been taken by force if he left this behind."
Neville shook his head, "That doesn't make sense. If Harry was leaving, why is the mirror in the study? And if Harry was taken by force, wouldn't there be a sign of a struggle? The dust hardly looks disturbed in here…" He did have a point. The thin layer of dust everywhere was a dead giveaway that nothing had happened in the room.
Hermione crossed her arms, her eyebrows knit together in deep thought, "There has to be an explanation…"
"This isn't Harry's mirror."
Shaken from her thoughts, Hermione looked at Ron in confusion, "What are you talking about? Of course it's Harry's."
Ron only shook his head, showing the back of the mirror to Hermione and Neville.
Sirius Black
"So…this is Sirius' mirror?" Neville guessed, trying his best to catch up with Ron and Hermione's maze of inside information.
Ron nodded, "Aberforth must have given it back to Harry after the war…"
"Why did…you know what? I don't care," Neville threw up his hands in surrender, "I'm not going to try and understand, just tell me what it means."
Hermione snatched the mirror from Ron's hand, "If this is Sirius' mirror-"
"Then Harry still has his mirror." Ron finished, "And if Harry still has his mirror-"
"Then we can contact Harry!" Hermione finished for Ron, almost beaming at the possibility. Neville noted that even Hermione wasn't immune to the call of a possible adventure.
Ron nodded as he swayed with Teddy in his arms, "…But how do we use it?"
Hermione's face dropped into a very concentrated look, tapping her finger against her chin. Neville couldn't help but notice how, despite hose close the trio was, they each still had their own secrets, and how Harry's secrets always kept others from helping him.
"Maybe there's a spell needed to use it…" Ron muttered, although to Neville, it sounded more like his partner was thinking out loud to Hermione, who was nodding absentmindedly, lost in her own thoughts.
"Do you remember Harry ever using his mirror?" Neville hoped that he could jog his friends' memory. Neither of them replied, simply staring at the mirror in Hermione's hand. Even Teddy turned his attention from Ron's red hair to the tiny mirror. 'Great, even the baby understands this better than I do…'
"Harry only used it once that I know of…" Ron sighed, stroking Teddy's hair.
Hermione nodded, "And all he really did was talk to it…more like yelled at it…" She stared at the mirror for another moment.
"Should we just yell at the mirror?" Ron asked, before raising his voice, "OI! HARRY! ARE YOU THERE?"
"Ron, really, I think Harry only yelled at the mirror because we were in danger." Hermione rolled her eyes as she looked at the mirror, "Harry, if you can hear us, we would really like it if you would let us know you're alright…"
The mirror did nothing, much to the frustration of everyone in the room.
Neville sighed, "Maybe we should try something-"
"DAMNIT HARRY!" Neville jumped at Hermione's sudden cursing. Even Ron covered Teddy's ears, "DO YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO GET INTO TROUBLE WHEN WE AREN'T WATCHING YOU? IF YOU GET HURT OR WE HAVE TO COME AFTER YOU, SO HELP ME HARRY JAMES POTTER-"
Hermione's rant was cut off when the mirror's surface suddenly went black. Neville stared in shock. To be honest, he hadn't expected the mirror to work at all, serves him right for not trusting the word of Harry's right hand man and woman.
Ron stared at the black mirror, "…Harry?"
There was no response from Harry, but they all could hear some rustling on the other side of the mirror.
Neville raised his eyebrow, "…Its in his pocket…"
Ron and Hermione nodded, "He can't hear-"
"Hermione."
Hermione almost jumped, "Harry? Harry, I'm right here. Where are you?"
"What?" It wasn't Harry that spoke this time. Instead, it sounded more like…
"What is Harry doing with Bill and Charlie?" Ron raised an eyebrow, "Charlie is back in Romania and Bill should be with Fleur, shouldn't he?"
Hermione shook her head, "It doesn't make sense…"
"That's Ron's girlfriend's name: Hermione Granger."
Neville blinked, "Why wouldn't your brothers know you were dating Hermione?"
"They do…" Ron replied, growing more and more confused, "Harry's acting weird…"
"Wicked…" The three (plus Teddy) jumped at the sound of Ron's voice in the mirror.
"What in Merlin's name-"
"Not as wicked as Bill marrying a veela."
Hermione shook her head again, as if trying to shake the confusion out of her head, "Why wouldn't you know that Bill married Fleur, you were there?"
"Forget about the details Hermione," Ron almost shouted, "Harry thinks he's with me!"
Neville nodded, "Whoever has him has Harry thinking that he's not in danger, so Harry's not going to try and leave…not without our help."
[Darkverse]
"A diary?" Lily asked, staring at the book in Harry's hand. It didn't make much sense to her, but from the look on Harry's face, the book held some untold meaning.
Harry nodded grimly, turning the book over in his hands.
"What's so special about a diary?" Moody grunted from his spot next to Dumbledore. Lily could tell that Moody was having a hard time trusting Harry, and she didn't blame him. Harry was supposed to be her son, and she was scared of him for some reason. He knew things no man his age should have ever known…
Dumbledore cleared his throat, "I must agree with Alastor, Harry. Perhaps if you could explain to the rest of us what this book meant in your world, we could better understand…"
It surprised Lily at Harry's lack of respect for Dumbledore, the way he casually sat himself on his desk, not taking his eyes off the book that Tonks had accidently stolen. She watched with the rest of the Order in silence as Harry opened the book and leafed through its pages.
Finally, Harry looked back up at the rest of the Order, "This is not just any diary, it's the diary that Tom Riddle himself kept while he was in Hogwarts." No one in the Order responded much to that information except for the occasional glance at one another and some murmurs rippling through one another. Harry noticed this and sighed, "It's also the first Horcrux I destroyed."
Lily took a step back out of instinct. That book held a portion of the Serpent King's soul? And Harry just held it as if it was no different from any other novel of reference book. In her musings, Lily had bumped into James' chest. In response, her husband wrapped his arms around her and held her close. "It's unreal…" she whispered.
James nodded, "It is a bit scary isn't it?" he whispered back. Lily didn't answer, just staring at Harry. This was supposed to be the son she never had… "Lily, the spell wouldn't have brought him here if he wasn't going to save us." He reassured her quietly, hugging her close to himself. Lily knew that James was right, she was just scared of what Harry had in mind…
"This is interesting to say the least," Dumbledore mused, watching Harry, "Now do you suppose that the Horcruxes are all the same as in your world Harry?"
Harry nodded, "If the only thing that's different in this world is that I was never born, then all but one Horcrux should be the same, they were all made before I was born…This one was made when Tom was 16."
Even Moody looked shocked at the revelation, "Are you trying to suggest that the Serpent King started killing while he was a student?"
Harry didn't flinch at Moody's rough behavior, "How would you explain Moaning Myrtle?"
Alice raised an eyebrow, "You mean that ghost that used to haunt the girls toilet?"
"The very same," Harry nodded, "That was more than 50 years ago, wasn't it Dumbledore? Her death almost caused Hogwarts to shut down" He looked straight at Dumbledore, "And Tom was about 16 when it happened, wasn't he?"
Dumbledore nodded slowly, "I was suspicious of Tom at the time…but I had no proof that Tom was behind her death…"
"Well either way, we have one of the seven Horcruxes, and that's a start." Harry muttered.
"We should destroy it now and be done with it!" Charlie Weasley urged, wary of the small book. Moody even drew his wand to do the job.
Harry shook his head, "It takes a lot more than a spell to destroy a Horcrux."
James took the opportunity to speak up, "How did you destroy it in your world Harry?"
At the simple question, Harry paused, not saying anything. To Lily he looked like he was thinking of a lie, but she didn't say anything. The boy deserved to have some privacy…provided that it didn't endanger them…
"A very strong poison." Harry responded shortly, looking at the blank pages, "Now I'll need some help with research, I need to know everything about this world's Voldemort as I can before we can find the other Horcruxes."
"Shouldn't we find a way to destroy this one before we look for the other Horcruxes?" Ron asked curiously.
"No. Not until we have all the Horcruxes." Harry replied curtly, "If we destroy one Horcrux at a time, Voldemort will know what we're up to."
Bill Weasley looked confused, "How could he possibly know?"
"Wouldn't you feel it if part of your soul died?" Lily shivered at the serious tone in Harry's voice. She had no doubt that he could save them, but she was frightened by what Harry was hiding.
'The rebels are more crafty than I had first believed…' The Serpent King sat in his throne room, what was once the Great Hall, musing on what the rebels could have possibly have planned.
"Your majesty, I highly doubt that the rebels will be able to do anything with the book they have stolen." Lucius Malfoy commented from his position at the right side of the throne, "Knowing the knowledge those filth possess, it's more likely that those fools will blow themselves up."
The King turned his attention to his General, his right hand man. Lucius was everything that his empire stood for: pure blood, capable intelligence, Slytherin cunning and fierce loyalty. Although Lucius did have a tendency of being more arrogant than Tom would prefer, he was a nearly perfect follower.
"It is best not to underestimate one's opponent Lucius. That is how wars are lost." Tom took a drink of wine from his cup, going back to his thoughts of the rebels. 'How did they even know that the diary was a Horcrux? Not even my inner circle knows about them…no one knows…They must have stolen it on accident…that must be what happened...'
A hand moved across his shoulder, causing Tom to look over at Bellatrix, "We all know that those rebels wouldn't do anything with real power, they're too frightened to use anything they deem dark." She cooed, sitting on one of the arms of the King's throne. "Especially that fool Dumbledore."
Tom noted that she did have a point, but it wasn't the spell book he was worried about.
"Regardless of they are capable or not of doing anything will become obvious in time." Draco replied from his seat at the King's feet, resting his chin on Tom's knee, "If there is one thing that the rebels can always be counted on, it's saving those they believe are in need." The smaller blonde folded his hands over Tom's lap, "They will easily reveal themselves and their motives in a time of need."
The Serpent King felt a smile tug on the corner of his mouth. If Lucius was what his empire stood for, then Draco was the crowning jewel of Slytherin. While Lucius had moments of arrogance, Draco was a perfectly molded heir, submissive enough to ease Tom's mind of any revolts, yet still more cunning than the rest of his followers combined, including Lucius.
Tom ran a hand through Draco's hair, making his heir lean to his touch, "An excellent point Draco. You are learning well."
Draco hummed contently, "I've learned from the best." He murmured.
Lucius didn't flinch at Tom's adoration of his son, in fact he gave no reaction at all while Bellatrix barely bit back a sneer at the young Malfoy.
Before either could say anything, the Serpent King spoke again, "You heard the prince. Perhaps we should cause a little chaos for the rebels to reveal themselves."
Teehee, I had to go back to Canonverse for the sake of the plot, but I know how you guys like Darkverse so much, so I gave you a little of both.
And what is with Dark Draco and The Serpent King? Let's make that the question for today's post: What do you think their relationship is?
You guys know how I love to hear your feedback, your reviews are my crack.
Until next post!
slavetothepen
ps: I've just heard that the story that inspired me to write this 'Light in the Shadows' was deleted by the author. I do not know the author, A Brighter Dawn, nor do I know why this story was deleted. I just thought I should let you know.
