Disclaimer: It's in the first nine chapters, if you really want to read it.
Chapter Ten: Living Dementor
Groaning, Harry dragged himself out of bed and into the shower, noticing that Severus was already gone, probably to grab a quick breakfast before finishing up his lesson plans for the school year, or making some more potions for the Hospital Wing.
Harry wasn't sure whether or not the fact that it was a Saturday was good or bad. He did appreciate that the starting feast at Hogwarts had actually been on a Friday this year, to allow both professors and students an entire weekend to adjust and welcome the first years before classes started, but he really didn't want to face the student body today. Unfortunately, he could think of no way to avoid it outside of staying in bed all day, and with Severus for a roommate, that just wasn't an option.
As the hot water beat down on him, serving to both soothe his sore muscles and to wake him up, Harry thought about everything that had happened. He had destroyed Voldemort once and for all, he had taught Vernon a much-needed lesson, he had brought Sirius back from beyond the Veil, and now he was getting ready to marry his lifemate.
He couldn't have been happier, but something was weighing him down, an invisible heaviness that couldn't be seen and wasn't really felt. It was just…there. Almost as if everything was too good to be true, and was inevitably going to come crashing down on his head.
Harry shivered at the depressing train of thought as he stepped out of the shower and spell-dried his hair. He briefly debated leaving it to fall in waves to the middle of his back, but then decided that it would only get in the way, so he braided it and wove a brown leather string through it, letting it flop around behind his back like a tail.
With Sal wrapped around his wrist under his robes, Harry left the relative safety of his quarters and headed upstairs to the Great Hall, intent on checking for his bonded and making sure they were faring all right. Sure enough, Severus and Remus were already seated at the Head Table, and Draco was just walking in. Catching the other boy's attention, Harry led him over to the Gryffindor table, and they started eating. The whole time, Harry couldn't shake the unnerving feeling that there was something he should be noticing, something different, but he just couldn't figure out what it was.
Ron unwittingly solved it for him when he looked at his friend, concerned, and asked, "Does the scar still bother you even though he's gone, mate?" Harry froze, realizing that his hand was rubbing his scar in an instinctive gesture. It was the same motion he had made when Voldemort was up to something, and it had often served as a warning for both himself and the Order.
Frowning, Harry just shook his head and reassured Ron that he was fine. He saw Draco looking at him through narrowed eyes, clearly not believing a word, but he didn't respond to the look, instead turning back to his breakfast. When he was done, he made his excuses and walked out of the Great Hall, Draco following. On the way to Dumbledore's office, he opened the mind-link and contacted Severus.
Sev, would you, Remus, Sirius, and Professor Dumbledore please come up to the Headmaster's office? I have something that I need to tell you all he asked quietly. Upon receiving confirmation from Severus that they'd be there in about ten minutes, Harry headed for the owlery. Spotting Hedwig, he called softly to her. Summoning parchment and a quill, Harry jotted down a quick note and sent it off with the snowy owl.
Draco looked at him, an obvious question in his eyes, but Harry ignored it. He'd explain when they reached Dumbledore's office and not before. He very purposely ignored the agitated way Salazar was tightening his grip around his wrist.
When they arrived, Severus was there waiting for them. He spoke the password 'Bolt' and headed up the stairs. Harry frowned, asking, "Bolt?" Severus smirked and told him that the Headmaster had apparently decided to honor Harry by using a word related to him instead of his usual candy password. At this, Draco snickered and Harry rolled his eyes.
Upon reaching the top of the stairs, they were ushered inside and offered seats, tea, and lemon drops. After they had each accepted—or declined, depending on who was asked and what was offered—Harry decided to get right to business. "When I woke up this morning, I had the feeling that something bad was happening, but I couldn't figure out what it was. It was just outside my reach."
"Then, at breakfast," he continued, "Ron mentioned something that startled me, and I was able to figure out what had been bothering me all morning. He asked if my scar was still bothering me even though Voldemort is dead, and I realized that I was rubbing my scar, and that it was itching. Is this normal? Or is it as I suspect and someone else is trying to take over in the absence of the Dark Lord?"
At this suggestion, the room fell silent and the faces turned startled, then contemplative. Dumbledore's twinkle had dimmed considerably as he pondered these words. "I do not know, Harry. I have not heard of any Dark activity lately, but that might only be true because they're lying low at the moment, following Voldemort's fall. I no longer have any way to find out whether or not a new Dark Lord has risen." Harry knew what he meant—Severus had been exposed as a spy and a traitor, and now Albus no longer had access to that sort of information he needed.
Draco stared at Harry, and the raven-haired boy lifted an eyebrow, already having a pretty good guess about what Draco was going to ask him. "That letter that you sent out, who did it go to?"
Noticing that he now had everyone's attention, he shrugged, "I sent it to your father, Draco."
"Harry, why would you do that?" asked Dumbledore seriously. "Informing him that you suspect a new Dark Lord, no matter how you received the information, is very dangerous."
Harry looked at his Headmaster appraisingly for a few moments before nodding in satisfaction and answering him. "Because of the nature of this bond, I can tell that Lucius is loyal to me by reaching through Draco to him. I share a bond with Draco, as does Lucius, although his is that of a parent to a child rather than the sibling bond that I have with Draco. He will not betray us, but he is in the most…advantageous position to aid us in gathering information."
Dumbledore nodded, but this time it was Sirius who cut in. "What happens if he gets caught? He no longer has the Dark Mark on his forearm, so they'll know that he's a traitor. Won't they?" he asked anxiously.
Harry nearly laughed, but managed to contain himself. It was funny seeing Sirius so concerned for Lucius, when before he had disappeared in the Ministry, he hated him with a passion. It also pleased him immensely, because he knew that his godfather was trying to accept the people in his life now, to not force him to make a choice, or to be torn.
"No, because I sent him an explanation for that as well, in the event that such an occasion arose. He is very influential within the Ministry, and his son is bonded to me. I offered to remove the Dark Mark in exchange for his loyalty. What better way to get close to us than to swear loyalty? He'll be the spy this time around, if there is a new Dark Lord. Besides, having no Mark allows him to go where those with the Dark Mark can't, and it gains him entrance into Hogwarts."
Turning to Dumbledore, Harry frowned. "The wards were changed to keep anyone with the Dark Mark out, right?"
The Headmaster nodded, replying, "Yes, since there was no longer any need for exceptions now that Severus' own Mark has been removed, the Wards were rewoven to keep all Death Eaters out."
Harry frowned. "What about other Dark factions?" he asked. When he just got a blank look in return, he opened his mouth to clarify when there was a sudden tapping at the window. Hedwig had come back, and she was carrying a letter, tied to her foot and sealed with the Malfoy crest.
Letting Hedwig in, he relieved her of her burden and sent her to the owlery for food and rest. Opening the letter, he scanned the contents, and the others watched the emotions pass over his face, fleeting images merging to create a whole picture. They had a fairly good idea of what the letter said, and it was confirmed when Harry summarized it.
"Lucius says that there is indeed a new Dark One rising, although he is not sure yet whether it is male or female, as he has not yet met this individual. Their mark is actually the Talisman Mark, similar to what I bore for a short while, but he does not yet know where it is to be placed. His loyalties were indeed questioned, but he answered as I instructed and has been invited to join them. He asked for one week to make a final decision since, should he accept, his decision will be irrevocable. He wishes to know what we would have him do, and has offered to be a spy. He has the qualifications for it, I think," he concluded, glancing around the room for a consensus.
When the others nodded their consent, Harry nodded and turned to Draco. "Draco, I want you to invite your father here within the next week. I need to talk to him face to face and make sure that he's willing to do this. I will not order him into it." Draco nodded, smiling gratefully at his bond-brother. He knew how much his father hated being ordered around, and felt that this just might be the event that cinched his loyalty to the Light.
Harry glanced around the room. "Is there anything else that needs to be discussed?" When everybody shook their heads, he grinned and clapped his hands together. "Good then, let's go! It's beautiful outside and we should—" he cut his statement off abruptly with a gasp of pain as he double over, collapsing to the ground and pressing his hands to his forehead. Acting on instinct, Severus threw open the mind-link and all three bonded were pulled into Harry's vision, leaving only Sirius and Albus out.
Vision
They were in a long hallway, which Harry seemed to recognize, because he growled low in his throat before turning around immediately and walking through the door across the room, motioning for the others to follow. Staying close to Harry, they entered into a round chamber made of stone. There were few furnishings, but in the center of a room was a throne, empty at the moment.
Sighing, Harry moved over against the wall and sat down so that he had a clear view of the throne, his feet stretched out in front of him. The others mimicked his movements, and he offered them a reassuring smile, informing them that nobody could see them here.
Severus wondered idly if Harry came here a lot, and Harry nodded, sending images through their minds, horrific images of torture and rape and murder, of cackling laughter and the cruel crack of a whip, the rattling of chains and the screams of those without hope. All three wizards shuddered at the memories, but Harry just smiled grimly, shrugging. He had lived through that for years, more so after Voldemort had risen again with the help of his blood, so he had been a bit desensitized, much like Severus and Lucius had been when they were Death Eaters.
It was these true visions, they realized, that had sent Harry running after Sirius and straight into Voldemort's trap back in fifth year. Suddenly, Severus had a new perspective of Harry's seemingly foolish actions. He had the unsettling feeling that, had he been forced to endure those kinds of dreams every night, without having mastery over Occlumency, he'd believe the fake dreams as well, seeing as that they probably all appeared to be the same to Harry.
Severus was disrupted from his line of thinking as the door burst open and a figure dressed all in black robes strode in. The person, who they all assumed was the newest Dark Tyrant, had a hood up over their hair, and wore a black mask that covered most of their face. They still had no idea of the person's gender. It was of average height for most males, a bit tall for a woman, but the robes were so loose that no distinguishing features could be made out. A second person followed behind the first, and the observers guessed that he'd probably be the first one to do the new person's bidding.
As they watched, around two dozen former Death Eaters that had managed to elude the Ministry filed into the room, bowing to the ground in front of their new master, kissing the hem of the figure's robes. The Dark One then bid the Death Eaters to rise and move forward one by one, shedding their masks. Harry started ticking them off slowly as he watched the proceedings. Macnair, Nott, Sanderson, Hewitt, Smith, Thompson, Davis, Johnston, and several others that he didn't recognize by face were present at the meeting. Severus did, however, and he labeled the rest, while Harry put the familiar names with the unfamiliar faces and committed them to memory for future reference.
As each Death Eater stood in front of their master, the Dark One placed a hand over their heart and murmured a series of incantations. The men and women cried out as the Talisman Mark was burned into their flesh. Once all the Marks had been completed, they were called forth once more. This time, the Dark One marked them all in a different place, such as the shoulder, arm, back, neck, waist, hip, stomach, thigh, or ankle.
Harry rose silently and crept closer, trying to get a better look at the smaller design. It was a skull, like the Dark Mark, but without the serpent. Harry looked up from his exploration when the Dark One spoke for the first time. "The former Dark Lord was nothing more than a filthy mudblood, who has gotten the punishment he deserved. Now, it is time for the genuine purebloods to rule, and this time, no mere child is going to stop us. After all, he's not a killer and never will be, and he can't turn a true pureblood into a pathetic muggle. This time, it is we who will be victorious!"
Cheers rang throughout the chamber as the Dark Lady's—for the person was indeed female, and sounded awfully familiar to Harry—speech ended. Frowning, Harry wondered if her followers were still called Death Eaters. Deciding that nothing more was to be gained from the Dark Lady now that she had dismissed her servants, he followed them out, his family following behind him.
Two of them were talking, "Skullbearers, huh? I suppose it could've been worse."
The other man nodded in agreement, adding quietly, "And did you hear the Lady's nicknames? The Queen of Nightmares, and the Living Dementor. I wonder what they mean."
The first man shrugged and the two continued on their way. Harry looked at the others wide-eyed. "I wasn't expecting to receive so many answers so quickly." The others nodded in agreement as they felt themselves being pulled out of the vision.
End Vision
The four wizards groaned as they opened their eyes, aware that they had all collapsed onto the floor at some point. Both Sirius and Albus were watching them worriedly from their seats. Harry just shook his head and stood up, settling back into his chair. The others took a bit longer to reorient themselves and find their seats.
Once they were settled, they noticed Harry smirking at them and scowled when he asked sweetly, "Are you three all right? That wasn't too distracting, was it? I do hope that you now understand how I felt all these years, with a Dark Lord running rampant in my head," he finished seriously.
The other three just nodded and Remus sighed, "You knew when we kept things from you, didn't you? Even if it didn't have to do with you directly."
Harry nodded. "I often saw attacks as they occurred. At the beginning, Voldemort had to be there for me to see anything. After I became a were-Jachyra, I was able to see them without him being present. In addition, I often saw the attacks before they actually happened, or heard the plans for them. You all never even thought to ask me if I could be your spy. You didn't ask then, and you haven't asked now."
Dumbledore sighed, and looked at the other three wizards. Severus inclined his head slightly, and Harry watched the interaction, puzzled. Then Albus turned to him, his eyes somber as he spoke. "Harry, I was aware that you felt you were being treated unfairly when we failed to inform you of certain…events and pieces of information. I did not realize that your visions allowed you to see the actual events with such clarity that a brief sketch might do more good than harm. For that, I apologize."
"I truly am unaware of what might be happening right now, but I want to assure you that you will not be kept in the dark this time around. We made that mistake once, but we will not repeat it."
Harry nodded in acceptance of his apology, but smirked at the Headmaster. "Apology accepted, not that it matters much anyway. Lucius' loyalty, as well as the loyalty of all those in this room belongs to me first before it belongs to you. I highly doubt that you will ever have much more information than I do. I am, however, willing to share what information I gather with you, provided that you extend the same courtesy to me."
Dumbledore nodded in agreement, and they were dismissed for the time being. Harry walked down the stairs and out of the castle, a bounce in his step. There may be a new Dark Lady attempting to rise to power in Voldemort's wake, but with Harry's resources, she wouldn't stand a chance. Now he just had to wait. In the meantime, however, there was always Quidditch!