THE LAST PRINCE (T; MYSTERY/ ROMANCE; SS/ HP)

Summary: see Chapter 20

Disclaimer: See Part I: Prologue.

Warnings: See Part I: Prologue.

Legend: "Dialogue/ Speech" 'Thoughts' Flashback Notes

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A/N: HAPPY 2014, everyone! Here's Chapter 31! We see what caused such a reaction from Severus the last time in this action-packed chapter. Feel free to leave a comment after you're done reading. –C.

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The Last Prince II

The Pact and a Prophecy

By: C.M. Oliver

© 2013

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CHAPTER 31: The First Move

To the Highest Lord and His Noblest Prince

.

Formally consider this as my first move.

.

Sincerely,

A Long-Forgotten Foe

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The pain was unbearable when Tristan woke up from his forced slumber. He slowly felt for his wand in the holster he kept strapped against his thigh as he gathered himself to take in his surroundings. While still lying on the dirt, he was able to deduce that (a) he was bruised in several places and most likely bleeding from a cut on his left shoulder, (b) whatever caused his predicament was also the one that incited panic and chaos among the public, (c) the worst has come to pass as no one was screaming bloody murder and he thought he could hear auror clean-up squads from a distance dousing fires and clearing up smoke, (d) his glamour was still in place, seeing as no one was either flocking up to gawk at him (or help him up for that matter) and (e) most importantly, his present for Severus was ruined. IT was turning out to be a really long day. He closed his eyes, willing the pain to go away.

'Damn, what am I going to do for Severus' present?'

Then, darkness consumed him again.

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It was seven o'clock on the dot. An Emergency Wizengamot Session was in order. Power-wise (by means of number of votes), Severus, as Lord Prince was second-in-command in the absence of the High Lord. But as he was yet to be formally presented, he personally thought it prudent to let Lady Augusta Longbottom, third in line, to conduct the meeting.

"This meeting is on the attack on Diagon Alley early this afternoon, possible breaches in Ministry Security and subsequent attempts to discredit one of our number, and the most pressing disappearance of our most esteemed High Lord," the dowager began. "As the most senior member for his venerable Court, I hereby call it to order. Lord Severus Prince may now have the floor."

"Thank you, Madame Convener." Severus half-bowed at her as he stood up. "Lords and Ladies, I propose we send out a dedicated search party to secure the whereabouts of the High Lord. I'm sure you will agree that the attack in Diagon Alley, while merely lasting a few minutes and resulting in a couple of deaths alone, could not be brushed off as a mere coincidence. Not with Secretary Bones' testimony of a rather sketchy character delivering a questionable missive and subsequently disapparating out of the Ministry Building. We must look at the bigger picture." Severus' tone was calm, and his expression, collected. But deep within, he was rattled to the core. Only years of his experience as a consummate spy could afford him to look as dignified as he did in front of the Court of Wizengamot.

"What are you suggesting, Lord Prince?" Lord Greengrass asked. "That all of the events today are co-related somehow?"

"Precisely," Severus nodded. "I personally believe that this and the previously mentioned attempt to discredit my Seat in the papers collectively constitute an attack to his august body." Several gaps rang out.

"And you have further support to your claims?" Lord Parkinson sneered. "Maybe the High Lord just went out for a walk and forgot the time. Maybe Lord Prince here just has family issues. Maybe the attack on the Alley was just a random terrorist. And maybe Secretary Bones just needs a few more hours of sleep. I personally think you are all blowing this out of proportion."

Severus frowned at the tall man, but before he could formulate a retort, Lucius came to his defense.

"Permission to take over, Lord Prince?" The blonde asked. Lucius had sensed his friend's distress and had wanted to deny him further frustration of having to deal with an arse like Parkinson. Severus had been on the edge since learning of Corvus Prince's disappearance. When Tristan Peverell was nowhere to be found as well, he was already at his wit's end. Severus read his old friend's thoughts and sighed. Maybe it would be more prudent to let Lucius present their case.

"Granted, Lord Malfoy," the onyx-eyed man took his seat as Lucius replaced him on the floor

"As we all know, complacency is what got us almost killed in the last war. We thought maybe the Dark Lord was gone for good, maybe the Ministry was enough to do the job, maybe Harry Potter would save us all," the blonde aristocrat sneered. "Maybe it's all over. Well, what if it is not? The fall of one Dark Lord does not mean that there are no threats of another. Now, I am not all for doomsayers, but I will not have another catastrophe bearing down on us just because we refuse to get off our arses and let another Boy Wonder fight our battles for us." Lucius stared Severus in the eye. The dark-haired wizard had, under much stress, told him of the Fiama Prophecy, and subsequently, out of much worry, and with Gareth's advisement, of Tristan Peverell's real identity. Lucius Malfoy could not believe it at first, but he was a noble Lord. He knew what was at stake should the information fall into the wrong hands. His youth's folly would no longer be repeated. He swore an Unbreakable Vow not to divulge his knowledge of Tristan Peverell's identity. He had meant it when he said that the House of Malfoy would be in aid of the House of Peverell –no matter who held the Seat. Not that he minded that it was a Potter –the same Potter who pleaded his and his son's case before this same Court of which, he was now a good part of.

Severus nodded at him. Lucius went on.

"Our esteemed High Lord has just been restored to us, and with him, he brought a lot of beneficial changes for the majority. Benevolent as it may sound, I am loath to admit the fact that not everyone may be happy with his influence." Here, he caught Lord Parkinson's eye. "Traditionalists, for instance, deem his methods too forward and radical." To this, the said nobleman frowned.

"I still see no reason to launch a search party, Lord Malfoy." Parkinson scoffed. "One man missing for merely four hours, could not constitute as a crisis requiring an action of the magnitude you speak of. Not even if said man is the venerable High Lord. Unless, there is something you are not telling this Court."

Lucius, with his years of perfecting the cool, calm and composed Malfoy façade, showed no change of emotion at the accusation. Severus was impressed at his friend, who went on as if nothing was amiss.

"Madame Convener, I have presented our case in its entirety." Lucius addressed Lady Longbottom. "In summation, we have a missing High Lord, whose last known location was with questionable surety. We have an attack coinciding with his disappearance. We have a breach in our security wards and an attempt to discredit a member of our Body duly reinstated by said missing High Lord, who, by the way, does not please everybody contrary to popular belief. Said High Lord went out alone, unescorted, possibly glamored and has not been seen since half-past two, a mere hour before the attack at Diagon Alley commenced. Minutes later, a dodgy character delivers a cryptic message labeling the sender as a 'long-forgotten foe'. Did I miss anything of importance, Lord Prince?" When the man shook his head, Lucius faced the Chambers. "If THOSE things add up and are mere coincidences blown out of proportion, Lords and Ladies, you be the judge of it."

Lady Longbottom sighed meaningfully. "Thank you Lord Malfoy, Lord Prince. I believe it is time to put this into a vote."

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While the Lords and Ladies of Wizengamot were in the middle of a vote, a party of three could be seen leaving the fortress of Azkaban without much fanfare. The Auror-Trainee (A/T) Connor Jordan dutifully searched the two men and one woman before letting them pass. His scan logged their magical signatures as Senior Auror (S/A) Gaston Dinkle and Auror-Trainees Brent Wellington and Amanda Putney. Dinkle had just passed by him earlier, not ten minutes ago, alone to check his trainees inside the prison facility. Apparently, the old man was escorting the two out now.

'Lucky them,' Jordan thought.

"Alright there, lad?" Dinkle nodded to the young man. Jordan nodded back.

"A-okay, sir."

Dinkle winked at him before motioning for his two trainees to follow him out of the security checkpoint area without another word. Connor Jordan only watched as the three left and eventually disappeared off to the mainland. The young Auror-Trainee sighed. It was late already and sleep was almost a-creeping.

However, he would not be able to sleep for long –not after he realizes, about 30 minutes later, that the British Ministry of Magic did not have Auror Trainees by the names of Brent Wellington and Amanda Putney. His growing doubt and curiosity would further move him to find out that said A/Ts were New Zealand natives who were on vacation in London and were subsequently killed in that blast earlier that day in Diagon Alley. Mounting suspicions would further move Connor Jordan to inspect the prison cells S/A Dinkle had been into, and find two prisoners missing. And while A/T Jordan floo-calls HQ to report the lapse in security, he would by then remember that S/A Dinkle had died –not a month ago –out of Wizard Pox. Jordan even went to the funeral.

Oh, drat.

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Junior Auror (J/A) Terrence Higgs was manning the front desk that night. As J/As they were more like muggle policemen as opposed to S/As who were like SWAT or Hit Wizards who were like the FBI. They handled the mundane stuff: petty criminals, minor disturbances and procedural work. Not really an exciting job, but someone's got to do it. He was about to yawn for the nth time out of boredom when the floo behind his desk flared up.

"This is A/T Connor Jordan on Azkaban Dispatch (AD)! We have a CODE-RED! I repeat, we have a CODE –RED! Request for back-up!" Said the disembodied head. Higgs was off his seat and on his knees in no time in front of the fire.

"Jordan! Higgs on Night Desk (ND) here! What is your situation?"

"Breach, sir! We have two missing prisoners we believe to have been assisted by an outsider –" Jordan hesitated. "We believe Polyjuice, but the scans did not detect any anomaly as they went through procedural inspection. It was too clean –"

Higgs raised an eyebrow. The new wards around Azkaban SHOULD detect Polyjuice. There may be something more sinister behind this. "Who knows of this breach?"

"A/T Perkins –my partner and I, sir. Aside from us, you."

Higgs nodded at the clearly distraught young man.

"Tell no one else. Gather all A/Ts and secure the fortress. I will need to speak with Head Auror Robards to secure a lockdown order and send in back-up. Tell me, who escaped?"

Jordan gulped.

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Head Auror Gawain Robards was just about to sit down for dinner when the Chief of DMLE's head appeared in his fireplace.

"Robards! CODE –BLUE FALCON!"

"Madame Bones?" Robards frowned. Code Blue-Falcon was a legit Auror Code, but it hasn't been used since about 200 years ago when Nile Peverell had mysteriously disappeared, only to be found dead by his own hand in his Manor. Code-Blue was short hand for Search and Rescue/ Retrieval. Falcon was the modern Auror-Code for the High Lord of Wizengamot- (it used to be HI-LOW before the last Lord Peverell's time).

"The Wizengamot has declared the High Lord missing. We fear that this day's disturbance at Diagon Alley had something to do with it."

Merlin!

Robards was now in full-Auror mode, his dinner of roasted pheasants, forgotten.

"I had assigned Jones on that –they never mentioned anything regarding the High Lord! I was under impression that the Diagon Alley incident had been under control since five this afternoon."

"This is a recent development." Madame Bones told him. "Lord Prince and Lord Malfoy came to me not a couple of hours ago with disturbing details –I'll brief you the best I can, but I need you here ASAP! The High Lord may be in serious danger!"

"Bloody –what happened to his escorts?" Robards was now busy strapping on his wand holster, all the while, running through the names of those responsible for Falcon Sec-Det. The High Lord had just returned. Circe be damned if something happened to the man while Robards was in charge of his security. Madame Bones sighed deeply.

"Apparently, he had managed to mislead them with a glamour and a golem. His escorts must've followed his golem to Peverell Manor while the real him escaped to Merlin knows where." Robards winced.

"Meriwether and Olsen are fired."

"Mow is not the time to lay blame, Gawain," the formidable DMLE Head admonished him. "This is the High Lord we are talking about. He could fool anybody if he so wanted. And besides, we weren't expecting something like this –not after the defeat of You-Know-Who." She shook her head. "Just find him, okay? Let us just hope that he went on a trip somewhere and forgot the time."

Her head vanished in the emerald flames. Robards slapped his forehead. What a fiasco. He immediately dispatched a tiger Patronus to his elite squad with express orders for secrecy. He was about to leave himself when his floo activated again.

"Great, what now? The Minister is missing too?" The Head Auror mused out loud. The disembodied head in the fire flinched.

"Higgs on ND, sir. A/T Jordan called in CODE-RED. Two fugitives from Maximum Security. Permission for lock-down, sir!"

"What!" If Robards wasn't already out of his wits a minute ago, he was now. "WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?" Higgs shrank in his spot.

"Outside interference is suspected, sir. And well –"

"Spit it out, Higgs! Trust me, this day cannot get any worse than what it already is!"

"Well, it is not the current Minister that is missing, sir," the Junior Auror hesitated. "It's ex-Minister Fudge and Madame Umbridge –they were the escapees."

Robards grabbed the nearest thing to him, which was a wine glass, and threw it at the flames where it crashed and shattered.

"Issue a lockdown! Get Montgomery on Manhunt! Find me those two –OR DIE TRYING! NOW!"

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"The Aurors are on it. ON top of the investigation in the attack, we have issued CODE –BLUE FALCON." Madame Bones reported back to the two remaining gentlemen in the Wizengamot Chambers with her. The rest left for the night. There was nothing to do but wait anyway. The taller of the two sighed deeply.

"What on earth was he thinking?" It was Severus. The elder one sat beside his comrade with a huff. "Well, he isn't Gryffindor's heir for nothing," said Lucius quietly before turning to the only witch in the room. "Lady Bones, I shall consult with other operatives who would be willing and able to help. I wish to be appraised of any development as it happens though."

"Of course, Lord Malfoy."

Severus stood up from his seat. "I will need to get back at Hogwarts and inform Minerva of this –I, too, wish a timely update."

"You shall receive it, Lord Prince." Madame Bones assured him. "I will be at my office should you need me. Unlike Lord Parkinson, I do not think of this as a mere coincidence. I have lost much due to a false sense of security. Rest assured that this will be taken seriously by the DMLE." She left the room. Lucius turned to his friend.

"I should tell you not to worry, but –"

"Don't," Severus cut him off. "Just don't." Lucius sighed.

"Fine, I won't. But all resources are being explored as we speak. All we could do is wait and hope for the best."

"You know what this entails, Lucius, so forgive me if I cannot do as you say." Severus began to walk away. Lucius followed his friend with worried eyes.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to find Harry."

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Two hooded, cloaked male figures were talking in hushed voices, covered by shadows in the corner of a locked, unplottable room.

"That does not look like him!"

"But it IS him! I'd know that magical signature anywhere!"

"What are the odds of the High Lord of Wizengamot walking around Diagon Alley in broad daylight, unescorted and glamored? Did you take Felix Felicis? Because that is the only wa I would believe that THAT unconscious man is indeed him, Cuth!"

"But Joe, it IS him!"

"And you are sure of that –because?"

"Okay, I might have a teeny tiny knowledge of detecting and identifying magical signatures from my days in the Corps –"

"Oh, you mean before they sacked you for accepting bribes?"

"Shut up! The thing is I do KNOW what the High Lord's magical signature feels like –not many wizards are of that caliber. Once you get a read of it, it is quite hard to forget. And may I also remind you, that you too were sacked for being incompetent!"

"That's not the point! We need to be sure that THAT is HIM! Fudge and Umbridge should be here soon with Mr. Port –and we cannot afford a mistake – you know what they said the Grandmaster does to incompetent fools!"

"I know, but –"

The rest of the man called 'Cuth's' words never left his mouth though, as the door to the room creaked open, permitting entrance to three other cloaked figures. The tall one in the lead pulled his hood off and smiled.

"Gentlemen, what pleasant surprise is this?"

'Joe' and 'Cuth' looked at each other before answering the smiling man before them.

"We have captured the High Lord, Mr. Port."

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-END OF CHAPTER 31-

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***TLP-VERSE NOTES:

THE WIZENGAMOT HIERARCHY

As we all know, the Wizengamot is an independent governing body that works like a Parliament. IN my AU, the Minister acts more like am executive liaison and the Wizengamot is the legislative/ judiciary, but the High Lord is more of like a 'King', if you may. And since the conception of the said Seat of Power, the Peverells have held the position.

When I mention 'hierarchy' in the Wizengamot, this only pertains to the legislative and judiciary assembly of its members, and in no way is this applicable to the line of succession to the Seat of the High Lord. Only a Peverell heir can succeed the current holder of the said title. I have devised below a little list of which Lords and Ladies govern which House. They are arranged by order of number of votes they have firstly, then by order of seniority (how long their Houses have been members of the Court). Remember the premise though, that in calculating the number of votes, the Five Founding Houses gets 3 on top of everything else. Every other House included gets one. The Five Finding Houses are Gryffindor, Slytherin, Black, Prince and Peverell. *See Chapter 5 for more information.*

*Lord Harry James Tristan Peverell Potter-Black

-House of Peverell

-House of Gryffindor (merged with House of Peverell in 934 c.e.)

-House of Potter

And

-House of Black –by adoption through Sirius Black

-House of Slytherin –Gaunt (reverted in 1016 c.e.) –by adoption through Sirius Black

(total number of votes: 17)

*Lord Severus Tobias Snape-Prince

-House of Prince

-House of Ravenclaw (merged in 1024 c.e. with House of Prince)

-Hose of Cresswell (acquired by right of conquest, 1753 c.e.)

(total number of votes: 6)

*Lady Augusta Elmina Longbottom (Heir –Apparent: Neville Francis Longbottom)

-House of Longbottom

-House of Hufflepuff

-House of Smythe

-House of Selwyn

(total number of votes: 4)

*Lord Lucius Abraxas Malfoy (Heir –Apparent: Draco Lucius Malfoy)

-House of Malfoy

-House of Lennox

-House of Wiltshire

(total number of votes: 3)

*Lady Amelia Liliana Bones (Heir –Apparent: Susan Amelia Bones through the late Edgar Desmond Bones)

-House of Bones

-House of Rivers

-House of Devonshire

(total number of votes: 3)

*Lord Arnold Lancelot Parkinson

-House of Parkinson

-House of McLeod

-House of Sparrow

(total number of votes: 3)

*Lord Geoffrey Michael Greengrass

-House of Greengrass

-House of Lowe

(total number of votes: 2)

*Lord Percival Gawain Abbot

-House of Abbot

-House of Sutton

(total number of votes: 2)

*Lord Andrew Perseus Boot (Heir-Apparent Terry Michael Boot)

-House of Boot

-House of Jones-Carmichael

(total number of votes: 2)

*Lord William Arthur Weasley –Prewitt

-House of Prewitt

-House of McKinnon

(total number of votes: 2)

*Lord Roger Timothy Davies

-House of Davies

-House of Elsmere

(total number of votes: 2)

The one mentioned first are the 12 Ruling Houses which have been mentioned in Chapter 5. Basically, these are the ones that carry weight in the Wizengamot. The others are just Compounded Houses or add-ons resulting from merges and acquisitions by right of conquest. There are other Houses in my AU but these do not belong to the nobility. Good examples would be the Houses of Weasley and Umbridge.

SHORTHANDS

This refers to codes used to pertain to a certain individual or entity. It was mentioned that before Nile Peverell's time, the HIgh Lord Of Wizengamot was referred to as HI-LOW (notice letters in bold). In his time, it was changed to FALCON to show the preference of his House when it came to couriers. Other examples of shorthands in this AU would be ROYAL, which would eventually be used to refer to Lord Prince and VOLVO for the Vanquisher Of Lord VOldermort (for Harry Potter). This would mostly come up in Auror-speak.

OFFICE OF THE HIGH LORD

Gareth Ironfist is the current High Lord's Head Liaison. It has been a tradition since the Founding of the Court that a goblin held this position (the First Liaison was Gaston Pickaxe). This is only for the High Lord's personal affairs and is no way interfering with the on-goings of the actual Wizengamot. Same goes with the mentioned Secretary, Susan Bones who IS the one in canon. She chose not to return for another year at Hogwarts like many of her classmates belonging to the nobility.

WHO KNOWS WHAT

To clear things up, here's a list: (AS OF THIS CHAPTER)

Tristan is Harry: Gareth, Minerva, Severus, Remus, Ron, Hermione, Lucius, and another unknown person (See Chapter 22/23).

Fiama Prophecy: Gareth, Severus, Lucius, Minerva, and possibly the still unnamed 'Grandmaster'

The Pact: Severus, Gareth, Lucius, possibly the still unnamed 'Grandmaster', Remus, Minerva, Ron, Hermione, and Corvus

*I do encourage people to send in questions or requests for more information regarding the story itself or the world I have created in here. I will answer as long as it does not give away the plot.

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End A/N: A lot has happened in this chapter. Was Harry really captured by enemies? Who is behind the trio of Fudge, Corvus and Umbridge? Will the Aurors find the missing High Lord in time? Up Next: Chapter 32: Chaos - Don't miss it! By the way, you can also check me and my stuff out at:

FACEBOOK: C.M. Oliver is Eastwoodgirl

FFNet: C.M. Oliver is Eastwoodgirl

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Until next time! Love, C.