Disclaimer: I own nothing of Harry Potter and everything recognizable belongs to J K Rowling.
TO KNOW YOUR ENEMY,
by blaugrana-al-vent
Chapter 12: Backup
Neville watched in shock how Harry was stunned easily from behind by his brother. Attacking him while he's wandless! So much for Gryffindor bravery and chivalry! thought Neville. He helplessly watched Karl's shoe impact in the mirror and then the connection was broken. Neville cursed loudly and didn't notice the Potions Master coming in. Neville's cries had distracted him from his essays.
"What's the meaning of this Longbottom!" he hissed while picking up the empty mirror. "Who were you talking to?" Neville remained shocked for a few seconds and didn't say a word. Then he made a decision.
"It was Harry! He's just been attacked by his brother!" he told Snape. The Potions Master's face switched from anger to determination. He didn't particularly like Harry, like he didn't particularly like any other student, but Karl Potter was an entirely different matter. Snape hated Karl Potter with a passion. If Harry had been attacked by one of his Slytherins he wouldn't lift a finger to help him, but this was Karl Potter, James Potter's foolish Gryffindor brat they were talking about.
"Follow me Longbottom." he said leaving the Potions lab with his dark robes billowing behind. "Where was he attacked?"
"First floor!" Neville said rapidly as he followed him down the corridor. "He was heading to the library!"
Snape led him through a large number of secret passageways which Neville already knew about thanks to Harry's Map. He had to resort to some short runs to keep up with the Slytherin Head of House, who was walking at a faster pace than him due to his larger stride.
A few minutes later they arrived at the site where the attack had presumably taken place. Presumably, because there was no sign or evidence of such attack. Neville looked around frantically, looking for any indication, fearing that Snape would punish him further for making him lose his time.
"Is this it, Longbottom?" asked Snape looking around.
"Yes Sir. This is it. I swear it was here. I know it is because of that painting over there, the one with the Mimbulus Mimbletonia." said Neville anxiously.
"Your friend was also carrying one of those two-way mirrors, was he not?"
"Yes Sir. That was how I saw the attack take place." he answered in a firm tone. He thought Snape was starting to doubt the attack had ever happened at all.
Snape didn't answer and he merely raised his hand for fifth year to see and then pointed downwards with his index finger. Neville looked down and spotted a few glass shards that undoubtedly had once been part of Harry's mirror. Unfortunately the mirror was nowhere to be seen. He looked upwards and he saw Snape signaling him to shut up with the same finger with which he had pointed out the shards.
Neville remained silent and listened, as the Professor was doing. Their own breaths and his accelerated pulse was the only thing that he could hear. Nevertheless, Snape seemed to be hearing something. Neville wondered if Snape was an Animagus himself and used his form's abilities to enhance his hearing. Of course! His wolf form! He could enhance his hearing too thanks to the wolf. He did not waste time and not a second later, dozens of scents and noises he hadn't been able to pick up a moment ago flooded his senses.
Some seconds of absolute concentration later, Neville recognized the same scent that he had followed that morning. He turned to Snape and tentatively, he pointed down the corridor. Snape nodded in agreement and regarded his student with a mix of suspicion and approval. Neville's instincts were proven right when among the plentiful conversations, footsteps, books and doors opening and closing that Neville's hearing could pick up, even if they originated from the other side of the castle, he distinguished Karl's voice in a classroom in the corridor they were currently in. Professor Potter's voice was also heard and the fact that he wasn't hearing Harry's voice worried Neville. He knew he was there as he could smell four different human beings behind that door. One was surely Harry and the other one; he feared it might be Dumbledore, as it was undoubtedly the same mysterious scent from that morning. Another nod from Snape confirmed him that the Potions Master had also picked up the conversation.
"Step aside, Longbottom." he said while checking the door for spells with his wand. "What a poor warding job!" he hissed to himself.
He took two steps backwards and pointed his wand to the keyhole. The Alohomora charm made it glow and the door clicked open. The conversation between the two Potters was still going on. They had not noticed them.
Snape pushed the half-closed door open in a rather violent manner and barged in interrupting the two arrogant prats' conversation. Instantly James was on Snape's face. The potions master rivaled James' murderous look with a deep trademark scowl, and soon after that their wands were out. They exchanged insults, threats, taunts and unpleasantries while Karl remained in the background, occasionally backing up his father.
Neville didn't discern their heated words because as soon as he caught a glimpse of the room after Snape ran in, his blood ran cold. Near the door the adults were having their umpteenth argument, but at the other side of the room he saw Harry lying on a table, a few empty potion vials beside him, and Dumbledore leaning over him with his eyes closed. He was oblivious to what was happening around him and his hands were on Harry's temples.
In that precise moment, Neville did something that shocked all the occupants of the room, including himself. He had not changed back into his human mind form after having located his missing friend, and as a consequence, the wolf's rage and instincts flared when Neville saw his friend's mind being raped and with the obvious consent of his own father. He growled ferociously and ran towards the Headmaster. The room succumbed to absolute silence when Neville tackled Dumbledore, throwing them both to the ground thus breaking the link with Harry's mind.
Harry regained consciousness that instant with a head splitting headache. He cried loudly and clutched his head with his hands while Dumbledore remained on the floor, barely conscious. It was then when Neville realized what he had done. If anyone asked Neville, he would say it was the wolf that made him attack the Headmaster, but deep down, he knew that even without the wolf; he would have acted the same way without a second's thought.
"What have you done you fool!" cried James, grabbing Neville and pushing him out of his way to help Dumbledore up.
"I knew you could stoop low Potter, very low in fact. But this is beyond imagination! Letting people meddle in your son's mind without control! What's this?" said Snape while tending to Harry and picking one of the empty vials. "Veritaserum?"
"Shut up Snivellus!" James yelled angrily, knocking the vial out of Snape's hand. "This has nothing to do with you!"
"Yes it has Potter! It has since the moment you decided to get the Longbottom boy away from your path using me to keep an eye on him! Longbottom, get your housemate to the Infirmary. Tell Madam Pompfrey that his mind has been intruded violently and a dose of Veritaserum might be inside his body."
"You're going to let him walk after what he's done? He attacked the Headmaster! He should be expelled at the very least!" James said heatedly. Snape paused and then looked at Neville.
"Very well. Longbottom, you are to serve daily detentions with me until summer. Your Hogsmeade privileges are hereby revoked until further notice, your curfew is shortened by two hours and three hundred points will be taken from your house! Get him to Madam Pompfrey."
"That's not enough!" yelled James, making Neville stop once more.
"Longbottom, I will not repeat myself! Leave!" Snape barked. "Any punishment worse than this should involve suspension or expulsion Potter. Only the Headmaster of the school, along with the Board of Governors' approbation, has the authority to enforce such disciplinary measure."
"Well, you wait until he wakes up. We'll see what he has to say then!"
"We'll see what the Board of Governors has to say about the both of you scheming to rape your own son's mind." Snape countered. James fell silent. "That'd be quite a curriculum. Suspended from the DMLE and sacked from Hogwarts." Then he left with a sneer on his face.
"Wait!" James cried after him. "Aren't you going to help me get him to the Infirmary?"
"No. Since he's so high up in your priorities I'll let you to deal with him while I go check on your son. He took the worse part, in case you hadn't noticed."
"Go fuck yourself Snivellus!" James cried after him.
.o0o.
Neville helped Harry walk to the Hospital Wing, but halfway through, Harry's walking became more and more erratic. He was barely conscious and nearly tripped over a couple of times, so Neville helped him lay on the floor and then he levitated him. When they arrived at the Hospital Wing, Neville placed him on an empty bed while calling for Madam Pompfrey with a desperate tone.
"What happened this time?" asked Madam Pompfrey appearing beside them.
"His mind has been intruded violently and he was fed forcefully a dose of Veritaserum." Madam Pompfrey's face turned into a serious and determined one when she heard it. She started working on him at once. She sedated him first and then started with basic mind diagnosis spells. After some seconds, the matron frowned and Neville realized that she was repeating some spells over and over again. It looked like as if she was confused.
"What's wrong?" asked Neville.
"There is something else here… People do not react like this to a mind intrusion! He is showing other symptoms, not the usual symptoms related with a mind rape."
"The mind link, it was cut short when I tackled... the guy doing it." Neville told her avoiding Dumbledore's name. He didn't need her berating her right now.
"Who was it Longbottom? Who was doing this to him?"
"I'd rather not say." He replied. The nurse looked pointedly at him. "Okay. It was the Headmaster."
"Dumbledore? Dumbledore was doing this?" she asked horrified.
"Yes." he replied.
"What in Merlin's name was he thinking! He should know better! And what possessed you to do interrupt a process like that? Are you not aware that people can go nuts or even die if you do so?" she reprimanded harshly.
"What?" Neville whispered, his face losing all of its color. "Is he gonna be okay?" he asked hysterically.
"I don't know Longbottom! Let me do my job." shot back Madam Pompfrey.
"Help him! Madam Pompfrey! Please!" said Neville, totally nervous. He could have killed his best friend without really intending to.
"Longbottom get away from here! I can't have you here in this state. If you want to help go fetch Professor Sprout and bring her here. When I'm finished you'll be able to come back in!"
That moment Harry started convulsing heavily. Neville had already started to walk towards the door when it happened and he just stood rooted to the ground, staring at him. Panic of losing his only friend overwhelmed him. Almost instantly the school nurse was waving her wand over Harry.
"Longbottom I told you to leave!" yelled the nurse in a commanding tone without even looking up from her patient.
Neville snapped out of it and started to walk backwards, eyes fixed on his friend. Another urging cry of the matron later, he broke into a full sprint towards the green houses, where his Head of House, and occasional assistant of Madam Pompfrey, was bound to be. In his way down he crossed Snape, and a few moments later, Professor Potter and Dumbledore. The Headmaster looked as if he had recovered as he was walking unassisted but rather slowly and with guarded steps. They were surely heading to the Hospital wing to have him checked out. Neville ignored Snape's and Potter's questions and remarks when their paths met. The huge amount of adrenalin in his body allowed him to get to the green houses in record time without even losing his breath.
When he and Professor Sprout arrived to the Hospital Wing, the teachers didn't allow Neville to go back in. The brief moment the doors were opened to allow Professor Sprout in, Neville saw Snape helping Madam Pompfrey with Harry while Dumbledore lay on a nearby bed waiting to be attended. He was watching with a worried look how Harry was faring. Even though he had ignored the boy for most of his life and thought rather lowly of him, he was one of his students and he was in this situation partly because of him, not to mention that he could very well lose his job for this, despite having James' permission. Harry's father was standing next to Dumbledore, and was also looking worried. Neville wondered if he really cared about him. He had always favored Karl over him, ever since that fateful night. Maybe he only cared about him because he was his first born, heir to the Potter line. That would mean that he cared as much about him as Lucius Malfoy cared about his son, which quite frankly wasn't much.
Neville transfigured a nearby suit of armor into a comfortable couch, and sat just outside the door waiting for any developments. Seconds became minutes, and minutes became hours. For nearly two and a half hours he sat on the armchair, paced around nervously, tried meditating and even knocked a couple of times to see if he could come in. The first time he did, Snape opened it and told him that he couldn't come in. Neville saw a new occupant in the room when he looked over the potion's master shoulder trying to see how Harry was. It was a middle aged witch, in her early forties. Neville didn't miss the St. Mungo's emblem sewn on her white robes. He knew that emblem all too well. The day after Karl defeated Voldemort, his parents had been tortured into insanity by the Lestranges. Every year he would visit them in several occasions with her gran, and since a couple of years ago, Harry. He seriously hoped they weren't transporting him there. Only in the worst of cases Madam Pompfrey would transfer one of her patients to St. Mungo's.
.o0o.
After the four Hufflepuffs had waited a long time for Harry to show up, they had thought that he wasn't going to come. He had never been very sociable before, especially with his brother around, so they thought that he had changed his mind. They thought it was strange, especially after he had assured them that he would be joining them, but they didn't worry about it and continued with their studies.
Two hours later, they had already left the library with the majority of their assignments completed and now Justin and Hannah were hanging out in the Hufflepuff armchairs while Ernie and Susan had disappeared somewhere. Justin and her had a pool about how much time it would take before they got 'officially' together.
Supposedly Neville had finished his detention an hour ago, and as Harry, he too had agreed to meet the four Hufflepuffs, but neither one of them had returned from wherever they were yet. Hannah was the most anxious to see them, Justin noticed it with a sad smile but decided not to make any comment about it.
Some minutes before curfew they decided they should go and look for them. Justin would check Professor's Snape office while Hannah would go and see their Head of House. It was decided that they would meet at their common room at curfew time.
Hannah headed to the first floor, where Professor's Sprout was located. After a few unanswered knocks she opened the door and found the office deserted, so she proceeded to check the second most likely place to find Sprout, the green houses. She wasn't there either. From there she decided to check the Quidditch Pitch. She knew Harry had made it into the team and perhaps they were practicing a little bit. She started making her way there when she spotted the Weasley twins. Maybe they knew were Harry was.
"Hey, Weasleys?" she yelled at them. They both turned immediately as if their moves were synchronized with each other's.
"Yes? Abbott right?" asked one of them as she approached them.
"Yeah, that's right." she replied.
"So what can we…"
"…do for you?" asked the twins.
"I'm looking for Harry and Neville. I wondered if you have seen them lately."
"No we haven't since dinnertime." Fred told her.
"Anything wrong?" added George.
"Well, they were supposed to meet us. Harry after dinner and Neville after detention with Snape, but they haven't showed up." The twins exchanged a glance, as if asking each other something and then nodded. Hannah wondered what that was about.
"Okay Abbott. Come with us." said Fred, guiding her back to the green house she had just checked.
"We're gonna help you, but you'll have to promise that you won't say anything about what you're about to see." George explained closing the door behind him, allowing them some privacy.
Fred took out a blank piece of parchment of his pocket and Hannah looked at it and the redhead with a questioning glance.
"Karl Potter is the biggest prat ever." said George placing his wand on Fred's piece of parchment. Hannah stayed there, surprised for a few seconds before saying something.
"I know that but-" she stopped when she saw a Map of Hogwarts was appearing in the previously blank piece of parchment.
"That was only the password to activate it. Courtesy of one Harry Potter." explained Fred with a grin.
"Now, this Map shows every person within the castle, and unless Harry and Neville have moved out, which is highly improbable but recommended, given the excessive amount of gits that live here, we will find them." George explained to her.
"Let's see. Locate Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom."
The ink in the Map rearranged himself to show both names. Neville seemed to be outside a big room while Harry was inside, with Snape, James Potter and Headmaster Dumbledore around him. Hannah didn't recognize the room but when Madam Pompfrey appeared at the edge of the Map, she realised that the room that was shown was indeed the Hospital Wing. None of them needed to be told that Harry wouldn't like to be around any of those people in his own. Fred pocketed the Map and the three of them ran to the Hospital Wing.
They arrived there and saw Neville pacing impatiently in front of the door.
.o0o.
When Dumbledore and James entered the Hospital Wing they found Harry lying in a bed, seemingly sleeping and with Madam Pompfrey, and Professor Sprout working on him. Snape was at one side talking to someone from St. Mungo's. James sat Dumbledore in one of the beds and remained at his side but following his son's progress. After a while, when they finally finished working on Harry and the Healer from St. Mungo's was gone, Madam Pompfrey came to tend to the Headmaster.
"Albus, I am most disappointed in you! You should know better than to play with people's minds."
"What has been done, had to be done Poppy." he told her in his soft and convincing tone.
"What's wrong with my son?" asked James.
"His mind was severely damaged when the mind link was interrupted. We've had a tough time healing it. More than it is normal."
"Why is that?" asked Dumbledore.
"I don't know for sure, but I felt as if there was Dark Magic influencing the healing."
"Dark magic? Are you sure?" asked James bewildered.
"There is only one way we can make sure. I'll check his Aura and see if there's any darkness in it." Dumbledore said at once.
"Potter? Going dark? There's no way that is possible. His obvious weakness and lack of power wouldn't let him perform even the simplest dark spell." said Snape, sneering at everyone. Not surprisingly, James did not defend his son. Had this been about Karl, probably he would already be duelling Snape.
"Besides, you would have surely noticed by now if the boy was going dark, wouldn't you Albus?" Sprout said, coming in defence of her student.
"Not necessarily. You see Pomona, Aura reading is an extremely slow activity to do. I only use this gift on seldom occasions as I often need some minutes to do it. Now you'll understand why I don't check everyone's Aura daily." he said with a kind smile. "But as I suspect that Poppy here will want to retain me here for some time, I am willing to check Harry's Aura now."
Dumbledore rose from his bed and staggered a little bit when he was standing on his feet. He approached the sleeping Hufflepuff and started to wave his wand over him. For some minutes nothing happened, but Dumbledore's wand waving did not stop. He began sweating profusely, but even then, he did not stop.
The occupants of the room observed the old man work, ready to help him at any time, as this was a trying activity and he had just suffered a broken Occlumency link. After a while, Dumbledore pocketed his wand and his face started to switch between different expressions. Surprise, fear and preoccupation. When his knees started buckling under him Snape and Pomona Sprout got him and carried him back to the bed. They didn't know what to be more afraid of, the Headmaster's health or his evident worry in his face.
"Are you feeling all right Albus?" asked the matron. Her first concern was her patient's health.
"Yes, yes. I'm only feeling a bit tired." he said, his eyes not meeting anyone's as he was deep in thought.
"What did you see?" urged James.
"James, I fear that your son has indeed gone Dark, James. Very dark I must say." James paled while Madam Pompfrey and Pomona Sprout gasped and Snape stood there surprised. "He has darkness as I've never seen before in a boy his age. Not even Grindelwald had his Aura so shadowed."
"What do you mean?" asked Snape.
"I fear that Harry's Aura could even match Voldemort's."
.o0o.
There you go! Another chapter done. Hope you didn't mind much the small cliffie.
Any thoughts about what could be causing Harry's Aura to be so dark? :)
