Written for The Houses Competition
House Hufflepuff
Category: Themed(Security)
Prompt: Aurors
Word count: 1,702
Beta: Dark Angel of Sorrow Returns
Warning: Contains mentions of torture and character death
"Can a person ever be entirely sure of their own safety? Or is it simply wilful naivety that makes us feel certain we are safe? These are some of the questions you should ask as you make out your way through the training to become a security blanket that the general public has learned to rely on. Welcome to Auror training."
Applause rang out as the speaker bowed his head in thanks and stepped back. His place was taken by Minister Kingsley Shacklebolt, "Thank you, Harry. Now, onto business. There are several classes in Auror training and several different teachers. Each teacher…"
Harry Potter tuned out Kingsley's speech as he sat on the chair provided for him on the little stage they used for assemblies within the Auror department. It was a strategic placement, as always. He was there to give support to the minister and therefore, had to be seen alongside or just behind him whenever he and Kingsley were in the same room.
Even though Harry had stopped being an Auror a few years after he had been officially inducted, he was still the Saviour of the Wizarding World and still as famous as he had been during his Hogwarts years. More famous, even, due to the fact that he had succeeded in ridding the world of Voldemort once and for all.
He had spent those few years as an Auror trying to catch the Death Eaters that had escaped after the Battle of Hogwarts but had eventually realised that it would be impossible to catch all of them. Even with the Dark Lord dead, there were still people who believed in his ways and converted others to supporting Voldemort as well. The sects had begun popping up more and more until Harry had had enough and thrown his badge upon Kingsley's desk before storming out.
Surprisingly enough, once he had retired the number of new sects died down. Maybe they felt that with Harry no longer taking an active part in society, they didn't need to try so hard to keep Voldemort alive in spirit and memory. Harry didn't know, but he was just glad they had stopped.
Harry Potter was now quite content with his life. He had married Ginny and had three wonderful children. Yes, every now and again, Kingsley demanded his presence for this or that, and yes, he had to attend the Ministry Balls that were held for the end of the war but all in all he had a pretty good life.
Harry inhaled deeply as he stepped into the little house he shared with his family, the air was rich with the scent of freshly baked biscuits and he could hear the giggles coming from the kitchen. He grinned at the sight of his beautiful wife and daughter, both of them covered in flour as their masterpieces sat cooling on the bench.
They looked up as he entered the kitchen and Lily ran towards him full pelt and threw herself into his arms, consequently covering him in flour. "Daddy, we made biscuits!"
"I can see that, lovely. Did you have fun?" he settled his daughter on his hip as he made his way to Ginny and gave her a quick kiss in greeting."
Lily giggled, "Yup! Me and Mum had a flour fight! I won."
"Did you now? I don't suppose Daddy's allowed to taste test your creations?"
"Course you can, Daddy! I'll get you one that I made." With that, the young girl slipped down and ran to the tray of biscuits where she proceeded to look them over very seriously as she decided which one to give her father.
Harry slipped an arm around Ginny's waist as she leaned against him, "Good day?"
"Yes, the boys are working on their Hogwarts prep work that Hermione gave them. Lily and I decided to make biscuits for when you came home and I'm sure James and Albus won't mind helping demolish them."
"Here you are, Dad!" Lily held up a singular biscuit and beamed up at him.
He grinned at her and took it. Nibbling a bit off, he pretended he was a biscuit connoisseur while Lily giggled and Ginny looked on fondly. "Hmm, I detect a slight hint of cinnamon. The texture is just right, light and crispy on the outside while the inside is still slightly gooey. I do say that this is one of the best biscuits I have ever tasted!"
The biscuits were plated up and taken into the living room where James and Albus were working on the things Hermione had sent. "Biscuits are ready, boys! And look who it is, Dad's back from work!"
The two boys immediately cheered and abandoned their work as they each hugged their father and grabbed a biscuit. The family of five all settled around the unlit fireplace and caught up with each other. It was a tradition of theirs to do this every time Harry had to go out, either for his freelancing work in the muggle world or his duties as the Saviour.
That night Harry woke with the feeling that something was wrong. He didn't often get these feelings, generally only when he was dealing with Voldemort or his followers, and he hadn't had one ever since he had retired from the Auror forces. The fact that, right now, that feeling was making itself known was worrying.
Cautiously, he slipped out of bed and picked up his wand from the nightstand. A glance at Ginny told him she was still asleep, and he let her be. He didn't want to wake her up for no reason. He padded silently down the hall, peeking into the children's rooms as he passed them. There was nothing out of place; the house was still, yet the feeling of wrong didn't fade. In fact, it grew stronger as he continued his patrol.
A force hit his back and Harry fell forwards; the Petrificus Totalus making sure that he wouldn't be getting up anytime soon. He felt a foot nudge his side and roll him over. He was greeted with the masked form of his attacker. They were wearing a Death Eater mask, and Harry was instantly filled with fear for his family.
"Hello, Saviour," the masked attacker mocked. "Do you want to know why I'm here?"
Harry could say nothing so he settled for glaring at what he presumed to be a male, judging by their voice.
"Oh, I forgot, you can't speak. Well, I'll tell you anyway. I'm here to get some retribution for myself and my family. I have been waiting years for this chance and it has finally arrived." The attacker twirled his wand and continued, "See, I was on your side once. I was a good citizen who had nothing to do with the Dark Arts or You-Know-Who. But You-Know-Who had something to do with me and you didn't stop it!"
Harry was now staring in confusion at the clearly deranged person who had broken into his house and petrified him. "Ahem, sorry, I tend to lose control of my emotions when talking about this subject. As I was saying, You-Know-Who sought me out and offered me a deal. Me, being the good citizen that I was, refused even as he tortured me."
"After a week of staying in his dungeons, I managed to escape and I thought that would be the end of it. The war was heating up and it seemed as if all the Dark Lord was interested in was killing you, but no, You-Know-Who wasn't done with me."
"He came into my home, petrified me and then killed my family in front of me while I was helpless to stop him. He was about to kill me too but then he said some of his followers had caught the Boy-Who-Lived and left me there, staring at the dead bodies of my family! And do you know what? If you had just killed him when you were a baby like everyone said you had, it wouldn't have happened at all!"
"It's all your fault, Hero, and now I'm going to do to you what he did to me. And I'm all dressed for the occasion. I think it's time you introduced me to your family, don't you?"
Harry let out a muffled yell as he tried his hardest to break the spell, he would not let this madman kill his family in some twisted form of revenge. The attacker chuckled and gave him a little wave before slinking off in the direction of the bedrooms.
Try as he might, Harry could not break the petrification placed on him and soon enough his wife and children were walking placidly into the living room. He could tell from the glazed eyes that they had been placed under the Imperius Curse. He watched helplessly as each one was tied up with an Incarcerous and released from the Imperius as soon as they were tightly bound.
Ginny realised what was going on almost immediately and worked on keeping their children from panicking too much. Harry fell in love with her even more as he saw how she dealt with the situation at hand; she was so strong even when she was tied up and helpless.
He screamed when she did as the sudden Crucio hit her, "There is no comfort to be offered to your children, little missy! They will die, no matter what you try to do to save them."
A barrage of spells began, and Harry watched in horror as all types of Dark spells were directed towards his loving family. He couldn't move, couldn't close his eyes or jump in to save them. When the self-appointed Death Eater had finished their work, they grinned at Harry and swiftly made their escape, disappearing through the wards that should have kept them out.
Harry was left staring at his family until the binds of the petrifying spell had worn off. Slowly, he crawled towards Ginny and gathered her in his arms, rocking back and forth. As he sat there, cradling his dead wife and surrounded by his dead children, one thought echoed through his mind.
Where were the Aurors?
