Chapter 10

To Artemis' relief, Narcissa didn't attempt to dissuade him any further. She hardly spoke to him the next morning at breakfast, and she didn't stay to see him off on the Hogwarts Express. He was able to slip his extra equipment into the trunk containing his school robes and ditch the backpack in a trash bin.

Artemis was inclined not to worry about the Dumbledore assassination plot. He would free Holly and get out quickly, leaving the real Draco to deal with it. Why should he take sides? This wasn't his world. From what he had read, the Ministry of Magic was a corrupt bureaucracy; perhaps they deserved to be overthrown.

He found a train compartment with several of Draco's Slytherin friends: Blaise Zabini, Pansy Parkinson, Gregory Goyle, and Vincent Crabbe.

Pansy Parkinson smiled invitingly and patted the seat beside her. "Come over here, Draco," she said. "I missed you. You've been so busy this summer I hardly got to see you. Come on, rest your head in my lap."

Artemis felt an urge to do it, but he knew it was his teenage hormones talking. He couldn't afford to get involved with Draco's girlfriend. His inexperience would give him away.

"I'm still going to be busy," he told her, taking a seat on the other side of the compartment. "I think we should cool it for a while."

Pansy stared across at him. "You're breaking up with me? You met someone else this summer? Who was it?"

"Nothing like that," Artemis said. "I have something important to do and I can't be distracted."

"I can't be distracted," mocked Pansy angrily, "You sound like Potter, who thinks he's the 'Chosen One'. I'm gone. It's starting to stink in here."

She jumped to her feet and barged out of the compartment.

"Is that for real, Draco?" Goyle asked. "Are you chosen for a special mission by the Dark Lord?"

"If I were, I couldn't talk about it," Artemis replied.

"I think you're just making it up because you're tired of Pansy," Blaise said. "What could you do that He would want?"

"You may find out someday," said Artemis mysteriously. The real Draco would be the one to fulfill that, one way or another.

A younger student opened the compartment door nervously. "I have a message for Blaise Zabini."

Blaise unrolled the scroll. "Well, well. It seems I'm invited to lunch with our new teacher, Horace Slughorn. It might be interesting... check you later."

Blaise left the compartment, leaving Artemis alone with Crabbe and Goyle.

"Draco, if you've got a mission for the Dark Lord I want to help," said Goyle.

"Me too," said Crabbe.

They weren't the brightest of minions but he knew they were completely loyal to Malfoy. Perhaps he could make use of that.

"I'll let you know," said Artemis.

"What could Slughorn want with Blaise?" Crabbe asked.

"I dunno," said Goyle.

"What's he going to be teaching, do you know?" Artemis asked. The dossier hadn't gone into detail about potential teachers and he wasn't sure who Slughorn was.

"Probably Defense against the Dark Arts," said Goyle. "He'd better watch out for the jinx."

Artemis knew there had been a new DADA teacher each year, but he doubted the jinx. He decided to say nothing, and the conversation languished.

"Looking forward to the new Quiddich season?" asked Crabbe.

"Yeah," said Artemis. "We'll beat Gryffindor this year for sure." Actually, he was planning feign injury and duck Quiddich, since there was no way his broomstick athletics would be up to standards.

When Blaise came back, for some reason he had trouble closing the door. He reported that Slughorn was sucking up to important people who might do him favors. He was steering clear of Death Eaters, and that was probably why he didn't invite Draco.

Artemis reacted based on what he knew of Draco's pride. "I don't care about Slughorn, he's just a teacher anyway. When the Dark Lord takes over he'll reward people based on their service, not their education."

"What service can you do when you're not fully qualified yet?" asked Blaise.

"I can't tell you that," said Artemis. "The walls have ears."

He had noticed a glimpse of what looked like a sock right after Blaise finally got the door closed. He suspected someone was eavesdropping, probably Draco's enemy Harry Potter in an invisibility cloak. There was another confirmation when Goyle got his bag from the luggage rack and Artemis heard a muffled cry of pain.

When the train reached Hogwarts, Artemis made an excuse and went back into the compartment. The last thing he needed was one of Draco's enemies tailing him.

Unknown to the fairies he had not just stolen magic books. He had been practicing simple spells with a stolen wand. Now it was time to put his skills to the test. "Petrificus Totalis!" he cried, pointing Draco's wand where he knew the intruder was hiding. If it didn't work, he could follow up with a stun dart.

It worked: Harry Potter came crashing stiffly to the floor.

"I knew you were there, Potter," he said. "I didn't let you overhear anything important, but I'm going to teach you a lesson for following me. I'll just get you out of the way so nobody trips over you. Wingardium Leviosa!"

Artemis used the second spell to lift Harry Potter off the floor and back into the luggage rack. He tucked Potter's invisibility cloak around him.

"With luck they won't find you until you get back to London," said Artemis. "Have a pleasant journey... not!"

Artemis left the train and boarded the carriage for Hogwarts.