Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters.
Web of Lies
The silence in the office was again broken by running footsteps. Dumbledore, who had just finished writing the letter to Sirius and Remus, looked up expectantly, while Harry kept his attention trained towards his food. He knew the headmaster wouldn't allow him to leave until he had finished eating, so he started to eat more quickly; wishing he didn't have to be there when they came in, and fearing that he would give something away. It was just as he started to drink his soup that several people ran into the room. Snape, McGonagall, Hagrid, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, all stopped short when they saw the young boy sitting next to the headmaster. Hagrid and both Weasleys looked at the child in confusion while Snape just scowled at the boy with his usual sneer firmly kept in place.
Harry ignored them all and finished gulping the soup down. Immediately upon finishing, he felt himself getting drowsy. He tried to get up but his limbs were too tired to obey him. Dumbledore, seeing the trouble the boy was in, gently wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him to his chest.
"Go to sleep, Alec."
Harry just buried his head in the man's shoulder without hesitation and fell asleep.
Once Dumbledore was sure the boy was sleeping, he turned towards his silent visitors. "Hagrid, could you please pick him up and put him in the bed back in the room behind me?"
The half giant nodded and approached them silently. "Of course, sir."
He gently gathered the boy in his arms and disappeared into the room. Dumbledore turned his attention to the people gathered in his office, his face grim and his eyes serious. "Well?"
Everyone turned to him, trying to hold back their questions about the mysterious boy. Minerva was the first one to speak. "Nothing. We haven't found anything. His Aunt and Uncle say that they think he disappeared three days ago, however, they don't know for sure because they kept the boy locked up in his room and they think it could have been longer." Her face was a mask of disgust at the thought of those 'muggles'. "After threatening those muggles, they allowed me to look through the house. Can you believe they made him keep his things in a cupboard? But I didn't find anything, all his things were gone. It seems like he left on his own free will, and I wouldn't really blame him. The room he was in was filthy. His cousin told me they gave him food once a day and let him out of the room for only ten minutes to go to the bathroom, so he wouldn't smell. The small whale was even gloating about it." Her face was starting to get flushed with indignation.
Dumbledore quickly tried to get her mind away from the muggles, promising himself he would pay them a visit personally once things had calmed down. "Could Harry have left on his own?"
Minerva looked sad again. "We don't know; there was no report on him using magic and his wand was locked up in a cupboard. But there's also no signs of struggle and the muggles didn't hear anything."
Mr. Weasley spoke. "He didn't necessarily have to use magic. I think Fred and George taught him how to pick locks the muggle way after they saw him locked up in his room the year they went to pick him up. I don't know for sure, but there are ways to do this without magic."
Everyone nodded, conceding that the man had a good point. Dumbledore looked pensively towards Snape, who hadn't said anything yet. "Does Voldemort know anything about this?"
The Potions Master shook his head. "No, he believes Potter is still in the house; and the plans for the raid tomorrow will go ahead, just as I said earlier."
Dumbledore nodded, somewhat relieved; he'd hoped they would be able to catch some important Death Eaters tomorrow. "What do you think, Severus, did Harry leave on his own?"
The Potions Master looked pensive. "I have not been at the house, so I don't know how bad it really was, but if there's one thing I do know about the boy, it's that he respects your judgement and wouldn't go against your wishes. So, no, unless it was extremely bad, I don't think he would leave. Then again, if it was that bad, there's still the question of whether or not he was in a good enough shape to leave."
Dumbledore grimaced, his sense of guilt returning full force. Severus picked on it and quickly tried to apologise. "I didn't mean to say it was your fault, Albus, I just."
The Headmaster raised his hand. "I know, Severus. However, we both know that it's mostly my fault; I should have checked on him, but there's nothing we can do now besides finding him as quickly as possible." Dumbledore paused for a moment; now he didn't only feel guilty about Harry and the shoddy treatment the boy had received, but also about lying to these people, who trusted him blindly. Sighing slightly, he reminded himself that Harry's safety was the most important thing, and hoped that the others would be able to forgive him when everything came out. Turning towards the Weasleys, he spoke in a tired voice. "What about Ron and Hermione? Do they know anything about this?"
Molly shook her head. "They sent him several letters during the last two weeks, but they didn't receive any answers. They were worried that Harry was not able to reply to them, as it has happened before."
Hagrid, who had returned from the room a while ago, added, "He didn't answer any of my letters either."
Everyone stayed silent for a few moments and then McGonagall spoke. "What should we do now, Albus?"
Dumbledore sighed and rubbed his eyes under the glasses. "The question is more, what can we do. I have written to Sirius and Remus. I expect they will be here by tomorrow evening. Tomorrow, after the raid, we will inform the ministry and question any Death Eaters we capture. If Harry left on his own free will, we'll have to check out the most likely places for him to go; Diagon Alley, the Burrow, Ms. Granger's house, even Hogsmeade and Hogwarts." He paused for a moment and then added, "Does anyone know if he has any muggle friends?" Since he didn't receive an answer, he continued. "If you have the time, you should ask those relatives of his, he may have gone to one of them."
Minerva was frowning. "I'm not sure about that one, Albus. You know Harry hates bringing anyone in danger. To go to a muggle house would be dangerous and Harry knows it."
Snape sneered. "Oh, please, Minerva, the boy doesn't care about safety, his or anyone else's."
The deputy-headmistress glared at him but she didn't have a chance to answer, because Dumbledore spoke sternly to them. "Minerva, Severus, please, we're trying to find a missing child that could be in danger." Both apologised quietly. "And, Minerva, we will simply have to make sure. I know Harry wouldn't put anyone in danger if he could help it, but we have to rule out the possibilities."
The woman nodded and sat back into her chair. Dumbledore looked around. "Does anyone have any more suggestions?" Everyone shook his or her heads. "In that case, there's nothing we can do anymore now but wait."
Everyone nodded and remained quietly in their places. Dumbledore closed his eyes tiredly; he was getting too old for this.
"Albus?"
He opened his eyes and looked at Minerva. "Yes?"
"Are you feeling well? You look a bit pale."
"I'm fine, Minerva, just a bit tired. Nothing to worry about."
The deputy-headmistress looked towards the closed door that led to Harry's room and sighed softly. "I'm sorry, Albus."
The Headmaster looked at her in confusion. "Why?"
Minerva returned her attention back towards the older man. "We are dumping all this on you, and you already have a child to take care of."
Albus blinked, a bit taken aback by her words. "Minerva, it's ok. Alec sleeps most of the time now that he is ill, so he isn't much trouble."
Minerva nodded, still very unsure, and stood up. "Since there's nothing else we can do tonight, we're going to leave you to rest, it's late."
Everyone nodded and stood up, wished him goodnight, then left. Dumbledore sighed and relaxed against his chair, genuinely happy that they had finally gone. Standing up, he went to Harry's room to make sure the boy was still sleeping peacefully and then went to his room to catch a few hours of sleep after asking Twinkle to keep an eye on Harry.
To be continued.
A/N: Thanks for all reviews, and thanks to my wonderful betas, Tanya and Vinnie.
To AnNa M'alegro de veure que hi ha un altre català per aquí, i m'alegro de que t'agradi el meu fic. Si ets de Tarragona, vivim molt aprop, ja que jo soc de Reus, casualitat, oi? ^.^
To Khari: Bueno, si vols la historia es teva, clar k primer hauras d'acabar perills en el passat i en cara et falta una mica. Per cert, m'han encantat els dos últims capítols que has publicat, la gent es posara feta una fera si no publiques aviat ^^ Ben fet.
Web of Lies
The silence in the office was again broken by running footsteps. Dumbledore, who had just finished writing the letter to Sirius and Remus, looked up expectantly, while Harry kept his attention trained towards his food. He knew the headmaster wouldn't allow him to leave until he had finished eating, so he started to eat more quickly; wishing he didn't have to be there when they came in, and fearing that he would give something away. It was just as he started to drink his soup that several people ran into the room. Snape, McGonagall, Hagrid, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, all stopped short when they saw the young boy sitting next to the headmaster. Hagrid and both Weasleys looked at the child in confusion while Snape just scowled at the boy with his usual sneer firmly kept in place.
Harry ignored them all and finished gulping the soup down. Immediately upon finishing, he felt himself getting drowsy. He tried to get up but his limbs were too tired to obey him. Dumbledore, seeing the trouble the boy was in, gently wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him to his chest.
"Go to sleep, Alec."
Harry just buried his head in the man's shoulder without hesitation and fell asleep.
Once Dumbledore was sure the boy was sleeping, he turned towards his silent visitors. "Hagrid, could you please pick him up and put him in the bed back in the room behind me?"
The half giant nodded and approached them silently. "Of course, sir."
He gently gathered the boy in his arms and disappeared into the room. Dumbledore turned his attention to the people gathered in his office, his face grim and his eyes serious. "Well?"
Everyone turned to him, trying to hold back their questions about the mysterious boy. Minerva was the first one to speak. "Nothing. We haven't found anything. His Aunt and Uncle say that they think he disappeared three days ago, however, they don't know for sure because they kept the boy locked up in his room and they think it could have been longer." Her face was a mask of disgust at the thought of those 'muggles'. "After threatening those muggles, they allowed me to look through the house. Can you believe they made him keep his things in a cupboard? But I didn't find anything, all his things were gone. It seems like he left on his own free will, and I wouldn't really blame him. The room he was in was filthy. His cousin told me they gave him food once a day and let him out of the room for only ten minutes to go to the bathroom, so he wouldn't smell. The small whale was even gloating about it." Her face was starting to get flushed with indignation.
Dumbledore quickly tried to get her mind away from the muggles, promising himself he would pay them a visit personally once things had calmed down. "Could Harry have left on his own?"
Minerva looked sad again. "We don't know; there was no report on him using magic and his wand was locked up in a cupboard. But there's also no signs of struggle and the muggles didn't hear anything."
Mr. Weasley spoke. "He didn't necessarily have to use magic. I think Fred and George taught him how to pick locks the muggle way after they saw him locked up in his room the year they went to pick him up. I don't know for sure, but there are ways to do this without magic."
Everyone nodded, conceding that the man had a good point. Dumbledore looked pensively towards Snape, who hadn't said anything yet. "Does Voldemort know anything about this?"
The Potions Master shook his head. "No, he believes Potter is still in the house; and the plans for the raid tomorrow will go ahead, just as I said earlier."
Dumbledore nodded, somewhat relieved; he'd hoped they would be able to catch some important Death Eaters tomorrow. "What do you think, Severus, did Harry leave on his own?"
The Potions Master looked pensive. "I have not been at the house, so I don't know how bad it really was, but if there's one thing I do know about the boy, it's that he respects your judgement and wouldn't go against your wishes. So, no, unless it was extremely bad, I don't think he would leave. Then again, if it was that bad, there's still the question of whether or not he was in a good enough shape to leave."
Dumbledore grimaced, his sense of guilt returning full force. Severus picked on it and quickly tried to apologise. "I didn't mean to say it was your fault, Albus, I just."
The Headmaster raised his hand. "I know, Severus. However, we both know that it's mostly my fault; I should have checked on him, but there's nothing we can do now besides finding him as quickly as possible." Dumbledore paused for a moment; now he didn't only feel guilty about Harry and the shoddy treatment the boy had received, but also about lying to these people, who trusted him blindly. Sighing slightly, he reminded himself that Harry's safety was the most important thing, and hoped that the others would be able to forgive him when everything came out. Turning towards the Weasleys, he spoke in a tired voice. "What about Ron and Hermione? Do they know anything about this?"
Molly shook her head. "They sent him several letters during the last two weeks, but they didn't receive any answers. They were worried that Harry was not able to reply to them, as it has happened before."
Hagrid, who had returned from the room a while ago, added, "He didn't answer any of my letters either."
Everyone stayed silent for a few moments and then McGonagall spoke. "What should we do now, Albus?"
Dumbledore sighed and rubbed his eyes under the glasses. "The question is more, what can we do. I have written to Sirius and Remus. I expect they will be here by tomorrow evening. Tomorrow, after the raid, we will inform the ministry and question any Death Eaters we capture. If Harry left on his own free will, we'll have to check out the most likely places for him to go; Diagon Alley, the Burrow, Ms. Granger's house, even Hogsmeade and Hogwarts." He paused for a moment and then added, "Does anyone know if he has any muggle friends?" Since he didn't receive an answer, he continued. "If you have the time, you should ask those relatives of his, he may have gone to one of them."
Minerva was frowning. "I'm not sure about that one, Albus. You know Harry hates bringing anyone in danger. To go to a muggle house would be dangerous and Harry knows it."
Snape sneered. "Oh, please, Minerva, the boy doesn't care about safety, his or anyone else's."
The deputy-headmistress glared at him but she didn't have a chance to answer, because Dumbledore spoke sternly to them. "Minerva, Severus, please, we're trying to find a missing child that could be in danger." Both apologised quietly. "And, Minerva, we will simply have to make sure. I know Harry wouldn't put anyone in danger if he could help it, but we have to rule out the possibilities."
The woman nodded and sat back into her chair. Dumbledore looked around. "Does anyone have any more suggestions?" Everyone shook his or her heads. "In that case, there's nothing we can do anymore now but wait."
Everyone nodded and remained quietly in their places. Dumbledore closed his eyes tiredly; he was getting too old for this.
"Albus?"
He opened his eyes and looked at Minerva. "Yes?"
"Are you feeling well? You look a bit pale."
"I'm fine, Minerva, just a bit tired. Nothing to worry about."
The deputy-headmistress looked towards the closed door that led to Harry's room and sighed softly. "I'm sorry, Albus."
The Headmaster looked at her in confusion. "Why?"
Minerva returned her attention back towards the older man. "We are dumping all this on you, and you already have a child to take care of."
Albus blinked, a bit taken aback by her words. "Minerva, it's ok. Alec sleeps most of the time now that he is ill, so he isn't much trouble."
Minerva nodded, still very unsure, and stood up. "Since there's nothing else we can do tonight, we're going to leave you to rest, it's late."
Everyone nodded and stood up, wished him goodnight, then left. Dumbledore sighed and relaxed against his chair, genuinely happy that they had finally gone. Standing up, he went to Harry's room to make sure the boy was still sleeping peacefully and then went to his room to catch a few hours of sleep after asking Twinkle to keep an eye on Harry.
To be continued.
A/N: Thanks for all reviews, and thanks to my wonderful betas, Tanya and Vinnie.
To AnNa M'alegro de veure que hi ha un altre català per aquí, i m'alegro de que t'agradi el meu fic. Si ets de Tarragona, vivim molt aprop, ja que jo soc de Reus, casualitat, oi? ^.^
To Khari: Bueno, si vols la historia es teva, clar k primer hauras d'acabar perills en el passat i en cara et falta una mica. Per cert, m'han encantat els dos últims capítols que has publicat, la gent es posara feta una fera si no publiques aviat ^^ Ben fet.