Disclaimer: This story is based on the world of J.K. Rowling, anything you recognize belongs to that wonderful woman.
A.N.: Hello my readers!
You may notice that I really like Flitwick, and I have many reasons for that. First is that he did not join the order of the Phoenix yet he fought for the light. I really like the fact that he was his own man. Another reason is that during the time that the ministry fell and Voldemort controlled Hogwarts he was one of the teachers that stayed to protect the students. Flitwick was a halfbreed, why was he allowed to stay? Why didn't the death eaters killed him? I believe it was because despite of this fact they were somehow either scared of him or respected the man. The only possible way of this being possible is if he was a powerful warrior. They did not confront him because they knew it would come at a hefty price or respected the man enough kept the man in his position because he would be able to teach the future generations.
Anyway, these are just my thoughts. A little thing, I will no longer be able to answer as frequently as I once did. I am short of time and it is kind of hard to dedicate the little free moments I have to writing but I will do my best. I hope you enjoy the chapter!
Harry Potter and his friends were having breakfast in their usual place when he felt once again the gaze of Remus Lupin on him. He tried to ignore it, but after days of being watched, he was beginning to lose his patience. Though he was surprised the headmaster was not doing the same, perhaps there was still the diminutive possibility of the man not being absolutely loyal and devoted to Dumbledore. The cries of dozens of owls that flew in the great hall interrupted his thoughts; he recognized the owls belonging to his newspaper because of their distinctive harness, which also functioned as a protection for the birds. He was pleased to see that most of the hall was receiving their newspaper, including most of the professors and he had to smile, it seemed the Prophet would be out of circulation soon.
"Harry," Luna said calling his attention. "Today you and the others have to be the last of the line," she advised with that dreamy smile.
"We will," he promised.
"We also need to find a boggart, I am sure Mister Filch will know," she said taking a sip of her drink and they looked at each other confused.
"Why do we need a boggart?" Blaise asked bewildered at the unusual request.
"To know how deep we have fallen," she said with an abnormal serious expression. "I have to get going, the walk to the greenhouses is long," she said and left the room with a jump in her steps.
"I guess we need a boggart," Daphne sighed massaging her temples.
"I am confused, but Luna knows best, so who will get the boggart?" Theo asked.
"I will ask Mister Filch and then ask a school elf to retrieve it if he can, if not I'm dragging Adrian with me," Terrence sulked while stabbing his breakfast.
"We can solve that later, now we have classes with Lupin and I am curious to see whether the man is a good teacher or not," Harry said and they nodded.
The group walked to the defence against the dark arts classroom, when they arrived they noticed all the desk and seats were pushed against the wall, at the front of the classroom there was a simple closet. They looked at each other and shrugged, deciding to wait in the entrance in order to follow Luna's advice and at the same time trying to ignore the intense gaze of the professor. Once all the students arrived Lupin spoke.
"Good morning class, my name is Remus Lupin. The way this class will work is the following, read the theory in advance and we will do the practical side in classes and also I will answer any questions you may have. I will give little homework but the times I do I expect it to be done," he said and most students nodded. "Very well, can someone tell me what is a boggart?" he asked and a bushy-haired girl's hand flew up and the professor nodded at her.
"A Boggart is a shape-shifting creature that will assume the form of whatever most frightens the person who encounters it," she answered in a hurried breath and then glared at the back of the classroom, or better said the people at the back.
"Good, today you will confront one. So the boggart sitting in the darkness within has not yet assumed a form. He does not yet know what will frighten the person on the other side of the door. Nobody knows what a boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will immediately become whatever each of us most fears. The spell for it is riddikulus, repeat with me riddikulus. Excellent, don't forget that its worst weakness is laughter, so imagine something funny at the moment of casting the spell. Now, form a line to see and we will start!" the man exclaimed and Gryffindors fought to be the first ones.
"So this is why Luna said we should be the last ones on the line," Draco mussed with a smirk.
"I guess this is the same reason she asked for a boggart," Blaise nodded impressed.
Harry observed his fellow year mates as they confronted their fears and he catalogued it for later, in case they needed to know for future reference. Some fears were deep, such as the one of a Gryffindor boy, whose greatest fear was a man that looked similar to him, but the cold expression of his face promised pain. Other fears were plainly ridiculous, such as the twin's youngest brother who was afraid of spiders or a girl who was frightened of insects. One in particular was amusing to him; it belonged to the Granger girl. When she approached the boggart it changed until it looked like a replica of him, being honest he was flummoxed at being the greatest fear of a girl he had talked to once years ago. Though he took the opportunity to appreciate himself without the need of a mirror. He had grown much taller, feat he was proud of, the rigorous training professor Flitwick forced on them ensured his figure was aesthetically delightful, another thing he was proud of. His hair and skin were perfect as always and his eyes enticed anyone who looked at them, he was indeed pleased.
"Oh my, little Granger. Once again I was the first in the year... No surprises there, though I am offended you dared to think you could one day surpass me. All the professors love me, you know? No matter how hard you try to earn their favour they would never choose you above me, I am, after all, everything you want to be. Let's be honest, I have more magic talent than you could ever dream to possess, I have loyal friends and you have none, I have the looks that would make a model envious and you dear, you are nothing especial. Let's admit it, Hermione, you will never be able to surpass me, much less be able to reach my level. You are nothing compared to me," his replica said with such a gentle voice that dripped persuasion to the point that many others nodded in agreement.
Granger burst into tears and ran away; he had to fight with himself to control a smirk that threatened to appear. All the class looked at him and he composed his best confused expression in return, many started to whisper and Lupin was looking at him. Daphne noticed the situation; if it was not treated with delicacy it could create problems for the Guild.
"You know? After talking to her once in first year and she being the one who got in problems for accusing you of something false, also while we were first years, you would think she got over her inferiority complex," she said out loud in an indignant huff.
"Well, she is always trying to murder Harry by sheer force of will, but I am still surprised," Blaise agreed with a nod.
"It does not matter, we can only hope that she matures in a future, she must be embarrassed enough as it is, let's pretend this did not happen," Harry ordered and they nodded.
The class was reassumed but many people kept whispering to each other, Daphne had been brilliant to ensure no damage was caused and Harry nodded at her with pride. At last their turn arrived and she was the next one to confront the boggart. Before the professor could release it she spoke with that regal air of hers that pleased him so much.
"Excuse me professor Lupin, but the only way I am willing to do this is with everyone leaving the classroom," she said in a serious expression, leaving the man speechless. "The reasons are quite simple, I am heiress of the Noble house of Greengrass, and I am not allowed to give away anything that will cause strife to my family," she stated and many students understood. "Heirs and heiress are not seen in the same light as other students, while we have many benefits we have more responsibilities. We are not allowed to make any kind of mistake because it will be reflected in our families. I personally envy other students way of life because the worst that a bad grade will cause them is a reprimand while on my case, if I dared to score any lower than exceeds expectation I will be severely punished because it reflects on my house and my family," she announced in a clear voice that conveyed clear regret, the few ones who were about to complain shut up, noticing the truth of her words.
"Very well," the professor sighed, defeated at the logic and knowing how true it was, he was about to signal the next when he noticed only Harry's friends remained. All children who would one day inherit powerful positions in a future and he sighed again. "Class dismissed, though the ones who did not confront the boggart need to write a foot length essay about them."
Remus watched as his students left the classroom, having the strange need to rub his forehead. It seemed that his position had turned many times harder, and yet he craved to challenge those kids. He desired to see how far they would go if he gave them the necessary tools. Remembering his meeting with the headmaster he groaned, taking a deep breath, he began walking to his office.
Albus Dumbledore was nursing a migraine; Griselda Marchbanks had sent him a notice. The Board of Education would be doing random inspections in the school, if they found a teacher not doing an appropriate job, they would be dismissed. He sighed and began thinking on new prospects to fill the history position; it was obvious Binns would not be staying much longer.
This brought to mind the root of all his recent problems, which was that bloody new newspaper and Rita Skeeter. He had not managed to find the minimum amount of information about the newspaper's owners; he had not even been able to contact Skeeter with the promise of an exclusive interview. Few would understand his reasons to hide information and even less would support him. History was dangerous in extreme, the traditions of the magical world were dark, they were the reason blood purity existed and the reason Tom had become dark. The kinds of magic that had been restricted centuries ago presented an utmost threat; no one should have access to that information. It was quite convenient he forgot he did have access to information about what the Ministry considered dark magic, and had even used blood magic himself in a ritual that was considered evil by most in order to create a devise that tracked Harry Potter years ago.
His musings were interrupted by the wards alerting him of Remus coming and he composed himself. It was good Argus had conveniently found a boggart, and that third years were advancing that same creature. He needed to know what Harry's greatest fear was to have an idea on how to sway him to his side. Tom was gaining strength day by day and he had no idea on how to counter him. The order was beginning to move but it was not enough, Hagrid had left the school and he had no way of contacting him to come back, thus his link with the giants was gone. He sighed once again and composed a cordial smile for Remus.
"Good morning, I hope you enjoyed your class," he greeted the man who was entering.
"It was different," he said and took a seatt, waiting for him to talk.
"I see... How did your class do with the boggart?"
"Most did well enough, though a few had problems. May I ask what problem does Miss Granger has with Harry?" he asked and the old man tried not to grimace.
"It seemed they had a confrontation during first year, Miss Granger felt it was necessary to involve the teachers. Minerva got angry with the girl for her... let's say enthusiasm, while telling her side of her story and not considering the others perspective on the event," he explained without explaining.
"I guess I will have to ask McGonagall then," the young man said and he sighed.
"I don't think that will be necessary my boy, it was a children's quarrel and I am sure none of them remembers it by now," he tried to appease with his grandfather persona.
"Miss Granger still remembers it, so it must have been something important," the man affirmed with narrowed eyes and he gave up on the matter.
"If you must, though I must ask you how Harry and his friends did."
"They did not, confront the boggart I mean," the man informed him and he frowned.
"I know you have a soft spot for the boy, but you should not allow him this kind of privileges," he admonished with obvious disapproval, to his surprise Remus did not even react.
"It was not favouritism, it was simple logic. Miss Greengrass called to my attention that as heirs of notable families they were not allowed to do that kind of public demonstration," he explained, closing his eyes.
"Still Remus, they are students and it is your responsibility-."
"They are not only students, if their parents were to know, most will receive terrible punishments and you know that," the man interrupted him with obvious anger.
"Indeed, you are right, but Harry would have not been punished."
"No, he would not, but I am sure many feuds would have been declared against me if I dared," he sighed once again, anger forgotten.
"I am sure you are exaggerating Remus, Sirius would not have declared a feud over something as a classroom assignment," the old man said with a smile.
"I am not so sure, Sirius and I have distanced. The few times we meet we end up fighting and I have no relationship whatsoever with Harry, he would not have doubted. Nor his friends, they have a pack mentality, so if I made one feel threatened the others would have retaliated," Remus stated and rubbed his face in frustration, he did not notice the defeated face of Dumbledore.
"I am sure that this year you will be able to get close to the boy," the old man consoled with somewhat empty words.
"I would not hold my breath," the younger male sighed and left the room.
Albus pulled his hair in frustration, Remus was escaping his grasp little by little and no matter what he did, he could not win him back. Sirius was a lost case, he had been from a young age, always far too loyal to his friends. Nothing was going the way he wished or planned, not even Alastor, who was an old friend of his, was joining the order this time. He said last war was terrible and he joined wherever he could help, but this time they would be prepared. The DMLE was better equipped than ever and he knew unnecessary carnage would be unavoidable. If that was not enough, Severus had been distant ever since he visited Lucius Malfoy, he did not know what happened and the only answer he had received was a cold 'it's personal'. Filius had never been loyal to him, but until the moment he had no problems with the man because he had fought for the light. During last war, he had not joined the order and neither did he this time, but he was close to Harry, something he needed at the moment.
He needed to find another way of swaying people to the right path; the problem was that he had no idea how.
Minerva McGonagall was correcting essays in her office, reading one with particular satisfaction. Harry Potter was the most talented student she had ever taught, she was sure James' talent paled compared to the one his son owned. The child was not only bright, but also generous in extreme, always helping his classmates and had even managed to correct the Weasley twins. Somehow he had managed to influence his house and now they set a high standard of conduct. Yes, she was proud of her favourite student. She eyed her fountain pen with a smile, it had engraved her name and a tabby cat, Harry had given her that last year and she had to smile at his sense of humour. No matter how similar he was to Lily, the boy possessed that unique spark that had once belonged to James. Someone knocked on the door and she composed her serious expression and flicked her wand to open it.
"Remus, it is a surprise to see you here" she greeted the man.
"Hello professor, may I have a short talk with you?"
"Of course, come in and close the door. Call me Minerva, we are colleagues after all," she said at the man with a gentle smile. "Want some tea?"
"No thank you professor... I don't think you understand how much I cannot call you that" he said with a small smile.
"If you say so, take a seat."
"Thank you, I wanted to ask you what Miss Granger's problem with Harry is."
"Ah, I see she has not gotten over it though I had some suspicions. She came to me a few days after they arrived in first year, she accused Harry of bullying her during the train ride. I was sceptical but I still called him to my office, the version he gave me was different from the girl's so I ended up calling another boy that had been present. He confirmed Harry had been nothing but polite while she had been rude in extreme. It was also curious that she came to tell me after so long had passed, which coincided with the day Filius gave Harry more advanced work. I punished her with the exact same punishment she requested for the boy. A shame because that girl was so promising, but she got blinded by her desires to be the best in everything and loses her focus when someone does better," the woman explained with a pronounced scowl.
"So the girl is jealous," Remus concluded.
"I am afraid she is more than jealous... Harry possesses a talent for magic I have never seen before, all his transformations are made in his first try, second at most. Then he creates marvellous works of art, let me show you," the woman muttered and took out a beautiful ornate chest from a drawer. "I keep all his works, everything inside including the chest was made by him, I think James and Lily would be proud," she informed him.
His eyes grew wide at her last phrase, the box was what most artisans would consider a work of art, inside there were many pieces that caught his attention. A bronze needle so exquisite he would have sworn Minerva was trying to prank him in revenge, until he saw his initials emblazoned in every single piece.
"He must be even better than James," he said still surprised.
"He is, no matter the subject he is always excelling. Though, to my great regret, the area that interests him the most is not transfiguration but charms. He and Filius are close as they can be, the last thing that he told me is that they are working on the fifth year curriculum," she commented once again taking him by surprise. "He has taken after Lily; he is also training in duelling. He told me he was planning to compete in a professional level like his mother once did," she said with obvious pride and a beaming smile.
"I had no idea that Lily duelled," he muttered in shock.
"How do you think she managed to curse the four of you when you got on her nerves? Or why none of the older girls ever tried to bother her? Or why Slytherins were wary around her? She competed on an international level, though she stopped when the war began," Minerva sighed, reminiscing one of the most brilliant students that had grazed the school.
"I see, I had never thought of it, but now that you mention it... Did you know that in the werewolf's camps during the war everyone called her the red devil? She was never called by her name... James was a lucky man," he mused with a smile.
"Both were," she agreed.
"Thank you for your time professor, have a good day," he told the woman and she smiled at him, going back to her work.
Remus had learned more in one day about his best friend's son than he had all these years and he was Harry. Every time he talked with Dumbledore made it sound as if Harry was some kind of troublemaker that needed to be watched... Now though, he had realized there were possibilities of it not being true. He would have gone to speak with professor Flitwick, but being honest the jovial man almost always made him feel as he was looking at his soul. He was a bit intimidated because of that, but also because the short man had no qualm on delivering the truth as it was. The seeds of doubt were steadily growing and never before had so many questions plagued him.
"Lupin was looking at us again during lunch," Hestia sighed.
"To be honest, the man is getting on my nerves," Theo confessed.
Harry nodded in agreement, two weeks had passed since the boggart incident and they had their own waiting in an abandoned classroom but were waiting for an appropriate day to confront it. This meant they were waiting for Luna to say it was time.
"Harry today would be good for you to speak with him. Remus Lupin is confused, but he is starting to see the reality, now he needs one more push, go to him," Luna encouraged him and he nodded in agreement.
"It is our free evening, I will go to his office now," he said and everyone nodded.
"Please do that, we will be waiting for you. We should also confront the boggart when you come back," she said and everyone agreed. "I am sure Tubby or Ella can pop Marcus in."
Harry left the room while Luna planned, the little girl said it was necessary, he had no idea why and neither did the others but everyone agreed with her. He was sure it was going to be important, but now he concentrated on the conversation he needed to have with his godfather's friend. He walked with decided steps towards the man's office, planning on how to phrase the truth in order for the man to at least consider listening to him. He arrived at his office and knocked the door, it was opened soon after by a tired-looking man who widened his eyes in surprise at seeing him.
"Good evening professor, I need to speak with you," he told the man and he nodded.
"Of course, come in and take a seat," the man agreed, they walked to his desk and sat on opposite sides of it.
"I need to ask you something and I need to know the truth," he said with a serious expression that put Remus on edge.
"If I were to trust you with something would you go to Dumbledore and tell him?" he asked, making him choke in surprise.
"I... Well, he is a wise man," he whispered.
"That is not what I asked but it is an answer in itself. That is the same reason I do not rust you and neither does Sirius," the boy stated with a slight frown.
"You don't understand! He is the man that gave a chance when no one else did," he exclaimed in frustration, all the confusion that had wrecked havoc in his mind pouring out, the cold looked he received in return helped him to control himself.
"Now that we are being honest I have a few things to say. Have you ever asked yourself why you were the only werewolf to attend Hogwarts? If Dumbledore wants to help so much why does he not accept more? I can assure that there is no lack of children who suffer lycanthropy," he stated and Remus' face slacked in surprise, having never considered the idea. "He is an important and influential man in society, if he wanted to he could have ensure more receive education, but why doesn't he? He is the Chief Warlock, his signature was needed to imprison Sirius without a trial. Either he is irresponsible enough to sign a blank paper or he was aware he sent my godfather to Azkaban without a trial. He is a master's leglimence, why did he not ensure that the order had no spies? Why did he offered a death eater a steady job and he forgot about your existence until he needed you? Why did he send me to a household where he knew I would be treated as less than trash? Why did he seal my parents will after they died? Many other guardians were named by them, in that way I would not have grown in an orphanage" he demanded with stony expression and ire shining in his eyes.
"I will tell you why, he is a collector. However, unlike any other, he collects outcasts. He offers them an opportunity to belong but as exchange, he asks for their undying loyalty. You would have died and killed for the man, my parents went into hiding taking his advice instead of leaving the country as my mother wished, Hagrid defended the man with vehemence, and even Sirius did not try to escape the prison because he believed Dumbledore would get him out. If I had grown with the Dursley's as he wished I would have become an outcast as the others. Are you so blind that you do not see the pattern? I will say this once and only once Remus, you are either with us and against him or with him and against us. I will no longer tolerate having a spy near, it is your decision," he stated and left the office in barely controlled anger.
Remus Lupin screamed in rage, it could not be true. Dumbledore had helped him, but then why no other werewolves could say the same? During the war, he had taken the most dangerous assignments, ones that send him to the enemy lines and every day of survival was either a blessing or a curse. He had not told his friends why he kept leaving, or why he looked tired, he knew that was the reason Sirius believed he was the spy in the order. And yet he had not spoken because Dumbledore asked him to. He tried to find ways of telling himself that what Harry had said was not real, but he could find no arguments. Deep understanding struck him and hysterical laughter broke the room's silence.
He remembered James being placed as head boy, though it was against the rules to have two people belonging to the same house as head boy and girl. Not to forget the fact that he was not an example of behaviour and was not even a prefect. He remembered James complaining about it because it was unfair and he had done nothing to earn the position. He remembered Lily being furious at the situation and both of them drafting a letter to the headmaster; nevertheless, they were dismissed. Did he want both of them together? He had asked himself at the moment but dismissed the idea as ridiculous. They had reached a truce in sixth year after James discovered she was dating someone, he had apologized for pursuing her when she has no interest in him and since that day they had been cordial to each other.
However, he would never forget the teacher's worry at the idea of losing a powerful witch like Lily if she ever left the country, as she was planning to do until she broke up with her boyfriend for unknown reasons. That was in seventh year, when the war began turning more violent. Was Dumbledore planning on keeping Lily by making her fall in love? He had always wondered but never dared to think about. Now though, he could remember small things similar to this one and his blood froze. The man was indeed a collector; he searched for the most powerful pieces and tried to gain their allegiance one way or another. Furious he walked towards the man's office.
Albus Dumbledore was doing paperwork, the terrible bane of his existence. He had not had the best of the days. Madam Marchbanks had come to school, professor Binns had been giving classes when they entered his classroom and he winced at the sight. Most students were sleeping while the few who were awake were doing some kind of homework or playing with each other. Cuthbert had been asked to retire by a polite curse breaker, the ghost smiled and said: "Took them long to find my replacement, I have wanted to investigate that war some talk about before resting." With that response the ghost dug a deep hole for Dumbledore, now he had infractions for not asking the man a simple question that never occurred to him, he had also lost his opportunity to find a replacement.
Now, the new history professor was an old curse breaker who had wanted a tranquil retirement, but had always loved teaching. The students would be in for a shock because as old as the man was, he was strict and demanded nothing less than excellence. They had supervised potions classes and he had been on edge for a whole hour, at the end nothing wrong happened but he almost wished it would. The moving stairs were deemed dangerous and seeing they had no gamekeeper he was ordered to place a barrier on the forest or suffer another infraction. He was ordered to hire new teachers for either the first two years or the last two; if he did not find anyone they would place someone. If that was not bad enough an audit was ordered and he had needed to submit many things he would have liked forgotten and never looked to.
He sighed and buried his face in his arms, Madam Marchbanks had been ruthless and he was sure more would follow. He looked to the side and almost screamed in frustration, his inkpot was turned and all his hours of hard work were now naught, all his paperwork was drenched in ink. He sighed once again and vanish it; he grimaced when he saw blank parchment. The wards alerted him of someone coming and he groaned in frustration. An angry-looking Remus barged in his office and walked in front of his desk, maybe it was indeed time to retire.
"What can I do for you Remus? You must have something important to say if you barged in my office that way," he admonished.
"I do; many things actually. The first is why you sent Sirius to Azkaban?" he asked and he sagged in his seat, the following conversation was not one he wanted to have.
"I did not know he was innocent and-."
"I am smarter than that," the man growled and he closed his eyes in frustration.
"I believed he was the traitor."
"You are a leglimence, why didn't you ask to see him? Or grant him the rightful trial? You were Chief Warlock; people would have listened to you."
"It was a mistake on my part but at the time I believed it was necessary."
"As sealing the Potters will? I was informed there were other guardians for Harry," he demanded.
"Harry would have grown being famous, he would have become arrogant. I believed that Petunia would raise him better," he tried to explain.
"And she sent him to an orphanage! Why were you not monitoring him?"
"I admit that was also a mistake," the man sighed, the weight of guilt constricting his chest.
"Was it also a mistake to make James head boy?" he asked, surprising the old man. "I remember teachers whispering about how the bright Lily had plans of leaving Britain. Did you plan on forcing her stay by making her fall in love with James?" Remus demanded and he winced.
He indeed remembered being amazed by how powerful Lily Evans had been. He remembered that she had taken the ICW standardized test during her sixth year in preparation to leave. He had known a war was coming; he could not afford to lose such a powerful warrior. For a time he had played with the idea of love potions, but she had the makings of a potion mistress and already she checked everything she consumed as training. He had dismissed the idea and named James Potter head boy, somehow his plans had worked and they had fallen in love and conceived one of the most powerful children in existence... It seemed his silence lasted too long, because Remus took it as a confirmation.
"I had my doubts at the moment, but I dismissed them. You know what made them close? It was their mutual dislike over you," he informed and he flinched at the unnecessary information. "They only began trusting you when they joined the order, but I see we all made a mistake. I trusted you when you said Harry was being raised by a loving family, I trusted you when you implied he was some kind of trouble maker that needed constant vigilance and I told you everything I knew about him. Even though I am thankful for your help I now see you are neither worth my trust nor loyalty," Remus said and left his office.
He buried his face in his hands... This was not supposed to happen. He had always wanted to protect his people; hence he shielded them away from the harsh reality. They did not need to know how many were sacrificed to ensure their safety, they did not need to know how dangerous was allowing them to take their own decisions, especially if they were powerful. He carried terrible weights on his shoulders for the heinous things he had sacrificed to protect his people... But at the end of the day he was a leader, and a leader's duty was to do what was necessary, no matter how terrible. It was his duty and although it was harsh he would continue assuming it.
Harry Potter arrived at the Guild's headquarters fuming, he took deep breaths to calm himself when Luna approached him, not willing to lose his temper. With no words, she hugged him and he hugged the girl back, she always knew what he needed and she reminded him so much of Elizabeth it was hard to remain angry. Once he was calm she led him to where a portable wardrobe was and the others were lined.
"Are we in classes?" he teased.
"We will go in the order that we arrived," she said, signalling the others and he raised an eyebrow at Marcus, he shrugged and he had to smile.
"She ordered my elf to kidnap me so here I am, I am glad though, Tubby is better doing paperwork," Marcus explained with a sheepish smile.
"I guess it is my turn then," Harry announced but Luna pulled him back by his sleeve before he could open the wardrobe.
"Not yet, you will be last and Theo first," she told him and he nodded.
Luna opened the wardrobe and a replica of him emerged. The eyes of his replica were cold and his face conveyed fury, it walked towards Theo.
"Mmm, why did I even give you a chance? I don't even know why I wasted my time with you, Theodore. You are useless," his replica sneered.
Harry looked at the boy, he was taking hurried breaths and his hands were shaking. He walked towards him and placed a hand on his trembling ones. When Theo looked at him he gave him a small smile, trying to communicate without words how valuable he was.
"Riddikulus!" he exclaimed and his replica's clothing became something the headmaster would approve of.
The boy smiled but still looked perturbed by what had happened. The next one was Daphne, who was looking even colder than normal. The boggart, much to his surprise was once again him, but this time he looked older, a disdainful sneer curled his lips.
"Ah, Daphne, after all this time you have proved me wrong, your father was right. You are a female; hence you are not powerful enough. Look at the others! They are doing great things for me and you... You dear, are nothing," it announced.
Daphne did not react in any notable way, but her shoulders were tense and her hands in tight fists. The way he did with Theo he placed a hand in hers, drawing lazy circles in her fingers, she looked at him at last and he nodded.
"Riddikulus," she whispered with a shaky voice, his doppelganger hair turned hot pink.
One by one the members of the Guild took their turns with the boggart, much to his bewilderment he turned out to be their greatest fear. Marcus' boggart was him being expelled of the Guild for some terrible mistake that had harmed them. Draco's boggart appeared as him in the border of death because the boy had failed him and Blaise's was him sneering at the boy for being unable to perform at the standards he desired. The youngest twins fear was him punishing them, the same way their father and aunt once did, he understood the depth of both girls suffering when it started sprouting heinous threats.
Fred's greatest fear was him dismissing him as yet another Weasley and George's was to fail the Guild. Terrence was frightened of not being useful enough in the future and Adrian's fear was Harry being disappointed because he had turned the way his father always wanted. Luna's deepest fear was to not belong anymore and Neville's was being not good enough to continue being a member of the Guild. One way or another, their deepest fear centred on them disappointing him... Until that moment he did not understand how deep the impact of his acceptance was in his friends, but he did now. They were loyal to him and he swore to himself to be loyal to them in exchange. He was the last one to confront the boggart; strangely enough, his look-alike emerged, he was surprised at him being his own fear.
However, the person that walked out of the closet was not him. His hair lacked those red highlights he loved and inherited from his mother, his features were not as perfect as his own... And its eyes were a dull emerald instead of his blazing ones. It did not speak and he, at last, understood what his fear was and a silvery laugh erupted from the depths of his chest.
"My greatest fear is to be normal," he announced to the others with a smile. "I think we all have learned something today, that our worst fears are ridiculous because they will never happen," he told the others with a smirk and he looked at Luna.
"It is true, they will never happen because no matter what we do Harry will accept us, we are the Guild and we are family," Luna said, in one of her rare serious moments, but then she began giggling in delight and hugged Marcus, much to his bewilderment.
That was the day the members of the Guild understood how deep their bond was, it was the day they understood they would always be accepted in their strange group of misfits that somehow fitted together in a perfect way. That was the day their tacit pact of loyalty was sealed.
Remus Lupin was having an existential crisis while he nursed a bottle of cheap firewhisky. For the first time in his life, he dared to confront the man that for so long he had considered a hero, while he talked he noticed how blind he had been. It was obvious that Harry had told him nothing else than the harsh truth that for so long he refused to see. Now though, everything had changed in a few hours. He would send a letter to Sirius in order to apologize and talk with Harry tomorrow... Maybe he needed to speak with professor Flitwick, he remembered the man had not joined the order during the last war, he had judged the man harshly until he had seen him fighting at their side. He should ask him why had he not joined, it was time to hear the things he had ignored for so long. But that could wait until tomorrow; first, he planned on nursing his firewhisky and if possible take care of a hangover next morning.
He was awoken next morning by an elf that was muttering about 'drunken masters and their lack of respect towards Lady Hogwarts'. He groaned; the last thing he needed was to be scolded by a disapproving house-elf, the elf scowled at him when he noticed he was awake and popped out of the room. Remus sighed, the last day's events were still present in his mind, thus instead of procrastinating he began writing a letter to Sirius. Today he had to give classes most of the day, he would ask Harry to meet him after dinner, it was time to apologize and beg forgiveness. He decided to make himself presentable and speak with Flitwick before classes.
Filius Flitwick was enjoying a fascinating book about muggle physics when someone knocked his door, curious on who may be visiting this early he flicked his wand for it to open.
"Remus! It is a surprise to see you here," the man squeaked at one of his ex students.
"Good morning, I hope I am not interrupting."
"Not at all, come on in! Do you want something to eat or drink?" he offered with a kind smile.
"No, I am fine professor. I wanted to ask you a few things if you do not mind," the young man requested looking anxious.
"Of course, go ahead, but please call me Filius," the man said with a smile.
"I cannot do that; it would be too strange... What do you think of Harry?" he asked after taking a deep calming breath.
"Harry is one of my best students, like his mother he advances as much as you allow him to. During his first year I had to give him more advanced material because he was bored during my classes. I gave the same opportunity to all his year mates, but the few who took it dropped it before the week was over when they noticed how complicated it would be. The chance I gave him is not free, he is working hard to earn his extra lessons," he explained with a smile.
"So he is more Lily's son than James'," he stated with a small smile.
"I did not know James on a personal level so I have no idea, but he takes after Lily on many things. You know how intelligent she was, plus her work ethic she turned into one of the most successful women I have ever met."
"Yeah, I remember how many offers for apprenticeships she had during our last years of school."
"Indeed Remus, now why don't you tell me the real reason you are here?" he asked with a gentle voice and the man in front of him sagged.
"I wanted to ask why you did not join the order?" he asked in a small voice looking at his lap.
"Ah, I see. You know I am old man, right? As a matter of fact, I met Albus when I was eighty years old; he was quite a supercilious young man. During his life he has overcome that particular trait; however other even less sensible ones were cemented. I have no doubt Albus tries to be a good man, but he believes he knows what is the best and tends to forget that the ones surrounding him are not chess pieces, but people," he explained with a benign expression.
"I realized some things that are hard to accept," the younger man sighed, looking far too tired for his age and Filius smiled, one did not stop being a teacher because your students grew up.
"You realized he is a simple human; therefore, he is capable of committing mistakes," he said and the other man nodded. He opened his drawer and took out his especial chest and opened it, the captivating scent of chocolate filled his office and the young man looked up in child-like curiosity. "I have these special treats for students who come to seek my help, if you want me to I can also animate it to imitate Albus," he suggested and the other male chuckled.
"I don't think that will be necessary," he said with mirth in his eyes.
"Shame, I enjoy doing that, impressions are my speciality," he said handing him the small chocolate treat. "Now that you noticed Albus is human, ask forgiveness to the ones you have harmed believing he was a god. I would not blame you for resenting the man, but do not forget that the only one that would end up losing in that situation is you."
"I will, thank you for the advice professor," Remus said with a wide smile.
"No problem, maybe next time you will want to see one of my impersonations," the man chuckled.
"Maybe next time, have a good day!" he told the man and left the office with raised spirits.
He went to his office and composed another lengthy letter at his best friend and a short one to Harry, to ask whether they could meet that day after dinner.
Harry Potter walked to Remus' office, if he was honest he confessed being curious about why had the man asked him to come. However, no matter how curious he was he took all the necessary previsions in case the man decided to attack him to protect the honour of the headmaster. He knocked on the door and waited a little before it was opened.
"Harry, come in," the man said, he did not know what changed but something was different about him, a fact that put him on edge.
"Remus," he said as greeting and took a seat.
"I thought about what you told me yesterday... You are right, until the moment I had the man in a pedestal, but not anymore. I already apologized to Sirius through a letter; we are meeting this weekend in Hogsmeade. I wanted to apologize to you; it is true that I told Dumbledore everything I knew about you. If it serves as consolation, he made you sound like a troublemaker, like a younger James if you would. I am glad you are more your mother's son," he said, his apology sounded sincere but it would take more than that to trust the man.
"You are forgiven for now Remus, I hope you won't make me regret it," he told the man, he thought for a small moment on ignoring the man's apology, but something his mother had written stopped him. In her journal, she wrote about one of her biggest regrets, and that was not giving a second chance or trying harder to reconcile with her sister and her last boyfriend, who had been a friend longer than her partner. He understood what a heavy burden was to carry a grudge.
"I swear you won't... I spoke with Flitwick and McGonagall, they tell me that you are an excellent student," he inquired.
"I try to, mother was the best of her generation, and I want to be like her," he explained.
"Lily was a great woman. When we were young your father fancied her from the moment he saw her at the sorting, he tried to ask her out ever since. In third-year, when he insulted her best friend, who at the time was Snape, she did not react but we had the worst week at school. Sirius' hair was full of split ends and he was about to go crazy, Peter tripped so much he was afraid to walk, I was unable to find any chocolate in school. But the funniest was your father, for a whole week he could tell nothing but the truth, never before he accumulated so many weeks of detention nor been almost mobbed by most girls in school," he reminisced with a smile.
"You have never talked about my parents."
"I know... I am sorry, Dumbledore asked me not to and as I fool I obeyed," he sighed.
At the end of the meeting, Remus was smiling from ear to ear, remembering a time where the worst of his problems was lycanthropy. A time when James and Sirius were the biggest idiots in existence and earned the ire of Lily, who as gentle as she was, had a terrible temper if angered. Now that he remembered he noticed their particular bad luck in most occasions happened after one of the idiots insulted Snape. Thinking about the man he sighed, he needed to find a way of apologizing for the part he took on the man's torment while they were students. It seemed the day would be marked by apologies.
Severus Snape was in his private quarters sulking. Ever since he had talked with Lucius he could not stop wondering about the possibilities, what if he joined no one this war? He snorted, as if he would be allowed to remain neutral. He had been a stupid teenager with delusions of grandeur when he joined, motivated by the idea of destroying Potter and impressing Lily. It did not take long for him to see the reality was not what they were promised. They had been sent to the carnage in order weed out the weak ones, which was a day he would never forget. He remembered Lily fighting against his group; he remembered Flitwick and a few other classmates... The only reason he had escaped with his life that day was because the professor had recognized him, never before he had felt so ashamed at the deep disappointment of the man, who disarmed him and fought the others. That was the day he understood he had no taken the right decision, because if he had fought Lily he had no doubt she would have killed him to protect her friends and that he was not among them. And yet he had remained loyal to the Dark Lord because he saw no other option to continue living.
That was until he heard the prophecy, instead of doing the right thing and telling Lily and her family for them to leave the country he had gone to his Lord in hopes of finally getting her. He understood how terrible his mistake had been when the man promised to forgive her life if she did not interfere; he knew the woman and she would not back down. However he still hoped to have her for him, thus he had gone to Dumbledore. Yet another terrible mistake because while one demanded servitude the other demanded eternal loyalty. Lily had still died and he knew it was his fault, he may not be the one who cast the killing curse, but he was the one who sent the egomaniac after them. That day he had not only lost her, but he had lost the last wisps of freedom he owned.
Days like these he wondered what had happened if he had been a better man. What if he had not insulted Lily when they were on fifth-year? What if he had gotten over his crush? What if he had accepted to go to the Mayan Empire to pursue his mastery? He did not know, but sometimes he dared to wonder and daydream.
Today had been harsh. He had spoken with Draco and it had not been what he wanted. His godson had indeed chosen a different path than him or his father and he could not deny he was proud. However, there were things that unsettled him more than a little. The way the Carrow twins looked at Potter was too close to Bellatrix expression when she looked at the Dark Lord, pure devotion and utter veneration. Draco and the others were more subtle about it, but the sheer fanaticism shining in their eyes unsettled him more than he was willing to admit. He had tried to talk with his godson about his unhealthy relationship with his friends and the only thing he received in response was cruel rebuttals about how they were not death eaters, unlike other people. The only thing he obtained from that conversation was further disdain.
Someone knocked on the door and he ignored it, but whoever was outside was quite insistent, with a scowl he walked to the door to kick out the moron that kept disturbing him... He did know who was expecting, but Lupin was not it.
"Goodnight Snape, I need to speak with you, may I come in?" the man asked looking nervous.
"No, anything you need to say can be told here," he said with a sneer.
"Very well, I wanted to apologize for helping James and Sirius to bully you. I should have done that long ago but I did not have the guts, I am sorry," he apologized with honesty; Severus was too astounded to react so he took a little while to compose himself.
"Why now?" he asked in bewilderment.
"It seems right, I have waited too long," he explained.
"I don't know what to say, but I appreciate it," he said at last and the man nodded.
"Have a restful night," he said and left the place.
Severus closed the door and proceeded to get drunk. The day had not only stressful and frustrating, now one of the persons he had loathed the most had the nerve to apologize, turning the already awful day into a bizarre one.
Lord Voldemort had once been a great wizard, but now he was reduced to this deplorable state. Bartemious Junior had searched for him the moment he had managed to escape his father. He had been on the gates of death, with no unicorn blood or body for him to possess. Barty had taken desperate measure and found a muggle baby for him to take and survive. Afterwards, he had searched for a ritual but he had few of the elements and trying to get them would cost him his only follower at the moment. Therefore he settled for a basic ritual with a weak wizard as the main ingredient, for a time it had worked but now it was beginning to fail. It did not matter though, he could wait for a new body and he had more important things to plan. His loyal death eaters were being nursed back to health; once they were ready he would call the others, the ones who had denied him... He would punish them and ensure they did not doubt his power, maybe he would even allow Bellatrix to have her fun.
He would make sure the world trembled at his feet, once his death eaters were ready he would announce to the vermin that inhabited magical Britain of his return. His glorious purpose would be accomplished, the ones who had been loyal would be rewarded and the ones who had dared to oppose him would perish a painful death. Yes, yes, that was right. Soon the world would know he was back and he would attack where it hurt the most.
Harry Potter still was astonished by the way his relationship with his friends had improved since the day they confronted the boggart. It was marvellous the way they could trust each other. Few things had happened ever since; however, there was a particular event that made pure wrath bubble under his calm demeanour.
He and his friends were walking to their headquarters after a hearty breakfast on a Sunday; on the surface, everything was normal, however, for some strange reason Luna looked uneasy and jumped at any sound. This put the whole Guild on edge, thing that he still believes ensured none of them resulted injured. He felt the curses coming before he saw them; on instinct, he created a powerful shield around them. From the corners of his eyes, he saw many people surrounding them, older students who belonged to his house and others as well.
"You Potter are a filthy mudblood and your friends are all disgusting blood traitors. We allowed you to rule our house for too long, not anymore!" one of the Slytherins hissed.
"Our Lord is back and soon our world will be cleaned of filth, we were promised his mark, but we will give him a gift and we will be rewarded!" another exclaimed with heavy breaths.
He analyzed the situation; he did not think he could take them all out in once. However this time he was not alone, this time he had people to rely on. After this stunt, they had the nerve to pull he would punish them one by one for daring to endanger or even threaten the Guild.
"Stun them all, but do not be afraid to cause any harm, either way, they will be punished," he ordered his Guild, his eyes blazing in ire.
What followed few would consider it a battle; a more appropriate term would be carnage. Twelve people had the audacity to try to go against them; they expected to fight unprepared children not trained students. While the members of the Guild were no professional duellists, they had trained to the point of collapsing in exhaustion to protect each other. Daphne sent powerful curses that never missed her target, Blaise was unable to be detected until it was too late, Theo created the best shields and along with Draco they covered everyone so no harm could be caused. The twins, true to their reputation were devils when paired together, one defended and the other attacked, all in perfect synchrony. Terrence and Adrian had excellent teamwork and few would be able to escape them. To everyone's surprise little Luna and gentle Neville were ruthless in battle, not a single curse missed, not a single curse sent caused just mild pain. Harry observed with satisfaction as the others took care of the threats while he Accio the wands from the ones who were defeated. Far too soon the conflict ended.
"Each of you levitate one to our common room, except you Theo. I want to call all the Slytherins to be present, please, also bring Marcus," he ordered and the boy nodded.
The group strode to the room, an undeniable aura of power surrounding them. The door flew open and the ones who were lounging in the sitting places jumped when the group entered, many bodies were floating behind them. No one talked, there was no need, and everyone understood someone had defied the Guild... They would be punished and it was going to be a public affair. People walked in with caution, eyes widening at the pile of bodies in the centre of the room. No one spoke; the place was submerged in a sepulchral silence that turned the atmosphere even more nerve-wracking. At last Theo entered with a serious-looking Marcus by his side, the few missing Slytherins following with unsure steps, meekly they joined their house to witness what no one doubted would be a brutal punishment.
"Marcus, good to see you," Harry greeted with no inflexion.
"So that is the vermin," the older boy sneered.
"It is, now that we are complete, incarcerate them and revive them," the boy ordered and the others nodded, following his instructions with precise actions.
The witnesses observed as the people we surrounded by magical ropes and awaken with a spell. They observed their confusion and understanding, they had tried to rebel and lost. The Slytherins, having witnessed the kind of punishment the Guild granted were beginning to panic, knowing that soon pain would come. The ones who did not belong to the house looked confused and while understanding downed rage seemed to dominate them.
"You cowards! Untie us and I will show you why you filth should bow to us," the only Hufflepuff in the group shouted and the witnesses paled.
"Oh my, since when is attacking from behind an act of bravery?" Daphne asked with a saccharine voice and condescending smile.
"If we were to tell the headmaster, what do you think it would happen?" Flora asked with a gentle smile that ensured the boy shut up.
"After all, you attacked many heirs today, and if that was not enough you also attacked the boy-who-lived," Hestia said in faux surprise.
For the first time, the older students noticed the amount of trouble they were in, their family names would do nothing to protect them this time because names that are even more powerful were on the other side. No amount of money would be enough to save them and even if the Dark Lord accepted them, what use could they have? They understood how much this would affect their future... If the kids spoke, they would be expelled from school and prosecuted as the adults they were.
"Voldemort will not help you," Neville whispered to them with mirth, it seemed the kindest people could be the most cruel while protecting the ones they loved.
"You must understand that punishing you do not cause us pleasure," Luna said and looked around. "Well, perhaps it does, but that is not the reason you will be. If we do not show the others how following a man that enjoys rewarding his followers with a crucio will only end up ruin you, many will commit the same mistakes," she said looking at Harry, who nodded in response.
"If I wish to I can destroy your lives to the point you will beg for death, but I will be lenient this time," he said in a honeyed tone that put them on edge. "I hope you all remember that the Guild can be kind in extreme and offer you amazing benefits, but it is our duty to punish you. Do not dare to defy any of us again," he ordered looking around. "The first and second years will only observe the first part, and then you are to leave to your rooms. The others pay attention, because that is the fate you will avoid if you take the right decision."
Harry approached the Hufflepuff boy, who was still looking angry. The boy began screaming in agony, he convulsed and contorted, he yelled until his throat was raw, yet the torture did not stop. One by one they followed, once everyone had their turns the youngest fled to their rooms. Some had unshed tears; others trembled to the point older students needed to help them. The lesson was engraved in their memory, never defy the Guild.
"Fred, please call a few school elves to attend the children. Adrian, there are enough potions in our room if they are needed, do show them where they are," Harry said and both boys nodded, leaving the room.
"Please, no more," begged a Ravenclaw girl in a strangled voice.
"I would have not, but you forced me to. We could have avoided this if you had followed our simple rules and come to us for help, but it seems your adoration for Voldemort interfered with your rational thinking," he stated. "I know which families are housing death eaters, I know which of you were promised the dark mark, I can name person for person... But that is not my problem, if you believe him that is yours, but if you attack anyone under my protection you will regret it. Another rule has been added to Slytherin, no one is allowed to have the dark mark, if you do... Look at them and remember that sight, you will wish for the same fate," he promised, everyone nodded, once again screams filled the room.
That was a day no Slytherin would ever forget, it was the day they understood that while the Dark Lord promised the Guild fulfilled. It is true that they had benefits no other student in Hogwarts enjoyed, but they had forgotten the nature of the ones who ruled the house. Giving yet ruthless, their leader had offered them a chance and many would take it. After all, how dangerous could the Dark Lord be if he had been defeated by a toddler, a baby that had grown up to be even more powerful than him. That was the day many loyalties swayed and others were cemented, that was the day Slytherin changed...
Severus Snape had a terrible night, for some reason an illogical uneasiness took hold of him. He sneered at his breakfast with as much hatred as he could muster; he sighed and looked around the hall. Something had changed, a few older students in Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff looked scared, beyond frightened would be a more appropriate description. He looked at his house and paled, the youngest students looked scared, but behind their transparent expressions, he could see undiluted awe. The older students were no different; however, the unmistakable respect and dare he say reverence with which a few were eyeing Potter and his friends filled him with dread. He did not know what had happened and no one would tell, but he had a few ideas.
The Dark Lord had called them at last; he could see many that had avoided Azkaban among them. It had been a brutal punishment, but once again they all swore allegiance to the man, most had offered their children as future servants. Children that would have been marked during Yule, children that today seemed to be scared of their own shadows...
Potter had done something to them, he was sure. Much to his chagrin, there were no other proofs than his observations, no one would believe in him and they would not talk even if their lives depended on it. He had to do something but he did not know what, he felt helpless and frustrated. His only satisfaction in life was helping and protecting his snakes, but it seemed he could not even do that now. He could not protect them from the Dark Lord or a boy who promised to be just as cruel.
Harry Potter and his friends were ready to go to Hogsmeade before leaving for the Yule holidays, the last months had been better than expected in many ways. First was that Remus seemed to really have seen the light, but he remained wary in case it was all an act. The members of the Guild were advancing in leaps and bounds in their extra training. The older member's pet project had been to create target practices based on runes that could tell the efficacy of a spell, which meant it told whether it was under or overpowered. With a bit of help from aunt Eleadora they had managed to create them, they served to practice a spell to perfection, to the point you controlled its power with nothing else than a whim.
"Harry, did you tell them to be alert?" asked Luna looking around.
"I did, the Alley could not be more protected. Ragnok took care of giving all the protection he can to his outer guards, but I have guards near," he appeased the girl who still looked uneasy.
Since yesterday Luna had been on edge, she had ordered him to make sure all the guards were ready for today, both in the Alley and in Hogsmeade. Now that they knew of her gift he followed all her recommendations. He even went looking for professor Flitwick, who swore an unbreakable vow to keep the girl safe and was accompanying them today to their trip, ready for battle. Draco led them to the sweets shop, where he bought many bars of chocolate, as per Luna's instructions. Hours went by and they relaxed, they even entered the café and were enjoying their time there.
An unnatural gelid air permeated the village, a feeling they were now familiar with overtook them. The group ran outside when screams began filling the air, death eaters were beginning to attack and the dementors were helping them. Looking at each other they nodded, after all, Luna was always right and they were prepared.
"Expecto Patronus!" the group announced and multiple silvery animals emerged, the most notable being an enormous basilisk. After the dementor attacked him during the train ride, he began practicing the charm he had ignored for so long.
Filius Flitwick ran to the children to force them to leave for the castle and take the other students. But then he saw them conjuring the patronus and fighting death eaters curse for curse, a resistance none of the attackers was expecting. He saw the school elves popping in and leaving with a few students each, relieved about their safety he joined the fight. It was good he had begun training again.
Bellatrix was ecstatic, today was the day they were announcing her Lord's comeback. They arrived at the village and she smiled at the terrified screams that emerged, while the others were wreaking havoc in the Alley, she and her group were in charge of harming their most precious jewels, their children. A group of brats emerged and she was ready to crucio them when they conjured corporeal patronus, her eyes widened in surprise. It was not possible, seeing her back up gone, she attacked with fury. Each one of her curses was avoided and she ended up duelling two look-alike red-haired brats, they dared to try to curse her! No matter how hard she tried she was unable to hit them, and unlike others, she had fought during the last war, they were firing dark curses that could not be blocked with a shield so she kept avoiding them. It would be shameful if brats killed her by sheer good luck.
The inhabitants of Hogsmeade had been terrified when they recognized the familiar figures, the death eaters were back. No one had tried to fight because they were too occupied running, now they observed in awe as school children fought against their tormentors. Two small twin girls battled two older men, while they did not seem to be powerful everyone could recognize the green of the killing curse being sent at the girls and yet they did not flinch. Another two twins, who reminded many of the terrible Fabian and Gideon Prewett, were fighting Bellatrix Lestrange.
A small blond girl and a mocha skin boy fought Rabastan Lestrange and a beautiful blond girl fought his brother along with another boy her age, matching the man. Two young boys were fighting a still masked death eater while two older ones were duelling another two criminals. What took their breath away was an angelic young boy fighting Dolohov, one of the most feared death eaters during last war and not faltering against his opponent. Even Professor Flitwick was fighting three at the same time while other two were unconscious, recognizable opponents were Bartemious Crouch Junior and Corban Yaxley, another one fell against the man and the battle continued. All around them were people they had never seen before but were not Aurors, fighting to protect them and casting patronus to keep the dementors away.
If children were fighting to protect them, why they were not? With an enraged shout, an old man joined the battle; many looked at each other and followed his example. The attackers were expecting carnage, not a battle and they were being pushed back.
"Retreat!" an enraged Bellatrix shouted.
They began leaving the battle in dark smoke, a few retrieving their fallen comrades. They had won this one and for the first time, people understood they could fight. They were not defenceless. Many of the strangers began aiding their own comrades with healing spells. It had not been a massacre, and yet, lives were lost. On their side, there were four dead and many injured, along with six dead attackers, they did not how many were injured but they had damaged their ranks. They could fight and they would fight next time.
Once the death eaters left most of the children collapsed in exhaustion, professor Flitwick ran to them. After diagnostic spells and healing minor injuries he smiled. The children he had met years ago had grown, it hurt him to see warriors so young, but it was the path they had chosen to ensure others safety and he was proud.
"You all did a marvellous job," he congratulated them.
A few tired looking Aurors arrived, wearing determined expressions that morphed to surprise when they saw no death eaters. The battle at the Alley had been brutal, no one expected the attack. It was good that many workers had stepped up and began fighting against the death eaters because even when they were better equipped, they lacked the numbers that the others did. The worst part was probably the atrocity that declared itself as Voldemort; people had lost their courage and began fleeing. But they would not forget the ones who had fought, workers indeed, but also werewolves and vampires. Silver scars and chalky skin betraying their secret along with amber and scarlet eyes, they fought to protect the people who had shunned then because one person had given them the chance to belong. Never would they allow their judgement to be clouded, a deep respect for them was created that they and they would not allow others to forget.
They had been expecting a massacre and been ready to give their lives, to their surprise the battle had ended before they arrived. They saw a group of people mourning their fallen and adopted solemn expressions, no victory came free. Many had been killed that day, but it had not been in vain, people understood that they made the difference. It was a day that would go down in history as the day where people fought.
Harry Potter looked at his friends; they had risked their lives for each other. He looked at the people he worked with and felt a sharp pain, three had fallen and the others were mourning. He approached the group, controlling the emotions that were rampaging inside him. Three of his people and one villager were murdered; he swore to himself their deaths had not been in vain.
They had known Voldemort was back, now they needed to find a way of fighting him. Luna held his hand and began weeping while Blaise hugged her. Fred was leaning on Adrian and Daphne was helping Theo. They were a family, and they would ensure each other's safety. He did not know how, but he would kill that man for daring to harm the ones he loved.
The group was taken back to Hogwarts after speaking with the Aurors, the carriages pulled by thestrals that had never been noticed until the moment, was boarded. Filius observed with a heavy heart as his children petted the animals, that battle had cost their side something that could never be retrieved: innocence. He led the children to the great hall in order to check on the students that had fled and eerie quietude descended on the room. Most of the students who had gone to Hogsmeade that morning had watched the beginning of the battle, they had watched their fellow students fight against death eaters, fear shone in their eyes at the power the group had shown. A teary-eyed Gryffindor girl began applauding, because even if she was scared they had saved many lives, including hers. Others followed and soon after the hall was filled with tumultuous applause, Madam Pomfrey did not waste time and began checking the children, a pale Minerva who seemed in the border of tears and a relieved Remus followed. A grave Albus was not far behind, beside a crying Pomona, and a concerned Irma. The other professors were watching the children with pride, smiling at the young warriors.
"What you did today was dangerous and you could have paid with your lives. I expected better from all of you, and you Filius, why did you not send them back?" the headmaster asked, his angry expression giving most of the hall an idea of how he had survived two wars.
"We know we could have died, but we did not. You say we should have fled and leave professor Flitwick fighting more than a dozen death eaters with little help. We all decided to stay, because even if we were only distractions they would not look for the other students while we kept the occupied," Harry answered with no inflexion, but his eyes gave the old man an ominous feeling.
"At least we have an idea on how to defend ourselves, and not thanks to the education this school has provided. We decided to stay back and protect as many as we could," Daphne said, even with her messy hair and dirty clothes she managed to keep her regal aura.
"Albus, I am not speaking here as a teacher, I am speaking as a man who has seen three wars and survived. I am no child, if your memory fails you; I am sixty years older than you are. The reason I did not send them back, even if I wished to is because they would not have left. Last war, people like these children were the ones who saved the most lives. I still regret the fact that they are only young in age, for each of them has lived far too much for their years. Unlike you, not everyone seeks glory on a battle, there are people who fight in spite of it and it is time you understand that," the man admonished and Albus sighed, remembering why he avoided confrontations of any kind with the short male.
"I need to speak with all of you, follow me-."
"They will be resting today; if you need to speak with them they can visit your office tomorrow before the train leaves the station. I will be with them if there is any need, don't bother them," the man said, no threats needed to be spoken because Albus knew better than to provoke the ire of a gentle man.
"Very well, I wish to see you at seven," he announced and left the hall.
Minerva hugged with all her might the most troublesome and yet the bravest Weasleys she had the honour to teach. Remus hugged Harry, relieved to see the boy alive. All the professors and many students approached the group with different emotions shining in their eyes.
"Fifty points, to each of you for bravery and sheer dumb luck. Now go to rest," Minerva ordered, many groups of students left, some still frightened, others relieved, but mostly tired.
"They are so young," Pomona whispered looking at the heroes of the day.
"Indeed they are, but even if I don't like it there is no way for us to keep calling them children," Filius said with tears glistening in his eyes, portraying the deep regret that he felt for the price they had to pay today. "It has been a long day, I need some food and to take a nap," he said and walked out of the hall.
It had been a long day indeed, but Albus Dumbledore was unable to rest, the day's events present on his mind. When elves began bringing scared students to the hall he almost panicked, especially after one said death eaters were attacking the village and Filius was fighting them along with a few students. Minerva did not wait and floo the Aurors to tell them about the emergency, he considered the idea of going but decided he was helping more from inside the school. That was until he noticed none of Harry's friends or the boy himself were in the hall, which was the moment he panicked. The boy could not die, he was too important for the future, but he had already announced he would stay to protect the school. The hall waited in silence for them to arrive, much to his surprise none of the children was injured, not even Filius. He had tried to admonish them and convey his disappointment, but he had forgotten about an important detail. Filius could see behind any of his masks, he could reprimand him as if he was a mischievous child because in the eyes of the man, he was. He had been chastised with nothing else than the truth, therefore he had backed down before his pride could suffer any other hits.
Harry Potter was powerful, more than either Tom or he had been at that age. The boy's power would only grow and he could become dangerous if he was not guided through the proper path. Until the moment, none of his tactics had been effective against the boy; he needed to find another way. Perhaps appealing to that side of him that seemed to want to protect, yes that was it. The boy was not lost yet, he could guide him and he would not fall under the same delusions, nor did he would commit the same mistakes.
The next day the Guild walked to the headmaster's office, with professor Flitwick leading the way. The gargoyle opened and they went up the stairs. Dumbledore was waiting for them in the sitting area of his office, wearing a jovial smile.
"Please take a seat, first of all, I wish to apologize for the way I reacted yesterday. The worry I felt for my students blinded me, today after cooling down I noticed the great service you did the school. Thus I will award each of you," he announced with a smile.
"No thank you, headmaster. Yesterday professor McGonagall awarded us points, considering that most of us belong to one house it will be unfair if any more were given," Harry stated.
"Yes, however, I wanted to give another thing. Seeing your prowess in duelling, I offer to teach you myself," he told the group, many looked at each other and they reached a decision.
"I will decline," Daphne said, not even gracing the man with a glance, one by one rejected the offer until only Harry was left.
"I will also have to decline, though I did not know you were a duelling champion headmaster," the boy inquired with honest curiosity and Albus almost cursed himself.
"Well, I am not, but I think my reputation talks about my abilities, many have asked me to teach them," he explained, trying to avoid Filius' penetrating gaze.
"I see, however, I do not like to bother. Besides, I already have a teacher, thank you for the offer though," he said with a gentle smile.
"Very well, I will be seeing you during the holidays, off you go," the man said and they left his office and walked towards the great hall.
"What did he want?" Blaise mused looking at the others.
"The most probable thing is that he wished to see the extent of our abilities," Daphne said after a short while.
"Indeed, curiosity is one of Albus' greatest flaws," Filius nodded in agreement and they kept walking until they arrived.
"Thank you professor," they said in unison and the man smiled at them.
The whole group walked to the Slytherin table and took their usual place at their table. They ignored all the glances and began eating with gusto, the chirp of the owls coming in the hall called their attention. Birds flew in leaving the mail and newspaper, Hedwig and Charon carried the newspaper and a short letter from his aunt. He read the letter first and sighed.
"Aunt Eleadora is informing us that we are all grounded for daring to risk our lives the way we did. However she is proud, Elizabeth is furious for missing the action... Terrence you deal with her" he said rubbing his face.
"Why me? She is your sister!" he demanded with a scowl.
"Rita is looking for a raise, and if she keeps working this way I will have to agree," Daphne interrupted them, passing him the newspaper.
ATTACK IN DIAGON ALLEY AND HOGSMEADE!
HARRY POTTER SAVES THE DAY!
By Rita Skeeter
My dear readers, yesterday our world was victim of a terrible attack! At midday, Diagon Alley was full of life as people ran errands before the children arrive from Hogwarts. What no one expected was the brutal attack we suffered. From one moment to the other death eaters filled the Alley, they began attacking people with lethal curses. However, unlike last time, they were not allowed free reign.
The workers of many new businesses began fighting back with fierceness! Those monsters tried to attack the day-care, where most of parents leave their youngsters to do the shopping, but they encountered resistance. People started emerging and fighting back, putting themselves as shields to protect our beloved children. Everything seemed to be going to our favour when a mistake of nature proclaimed to be the defeated Dark Lord appeared! Many people started fleeing, but our heroes did not back down and kept fighting despite that disgusting creature's interference. The Aurors arrived and the attackers were driven back. There were nine death attackers; however, eleven of our mysterious heroes lost their lives, not counting the casualties in Hogsmeade (see page 4 for the list of deceased).
I interviewed the Aurors to ask them about the attack but none was available. They had received an emergency call from Hogsmeade, informing them that the village was under attack! Similar to the situation in the Alley, many workers put themselves as shields to protect the students who were visiting the place. However, a particularly valiant group of students decided not to flee, but fight back. According to many villagers, it is something no one expected to see. Children were fighting against death eaters spell by spell, teaming against the strongest ones like Bellatrix Lestrange. Yes my dear readers, our children decided to fight back! I had the opportunity to speak with Graham Thicknesse, a man who has lived in the village for eighty years.
RS: Thank you for agreeing to speak with me, Mister Thicknesse.
GT: I have no problems and I felt people should know what happened.
RS: Very well, then would you tell me what happened yesterday?
GT: Of course, it was a normal day by all means. That was until the unnatural aura of suffocating sadness invaded the village, dementors arrived alongside death eaters, but instead of capturing them, they were attacking us. People started fleeing, few are able to cast even the wisps of a patronus and we were scared. Out of the blue a group of thirteen students remained standing, they did not run... I will never forget their determination. They all produced corporeal patronus, they drove the dementors away and started fighting the death eaters. I remembered that at the moment I believed they would meet their early deaths for trying to be heroes, to my surprise they engaged them as equals. Little girls fought like seasoned warriors, all to protect us. Many of the workers from the new businesses joined the battle while the others kept the dementors away casting constant patronus. A Hogwarts teacher was also fighting, a short man that engaged five death eaters at the same time alone and came out on top. It was amazing... Shame filled me because I was seeing children that could be my grandchild risking their lives for a coward old man. I jumped into battle and began fighting back. We pushed those monsters back, we did.
RS: (At this story you must understand my surprise, the tale seemed more fiction than reality, but if you had seen the man you would have understood how real his words were.) I am surprised, do you know who were these students?
GT: I recognized a few, Malfoy's son, Arthur Weasley's twins, though the one that impressed me the most was Harry Potter.
RS: You mean the boy-who-lived?
GT: Yes, the only Potter I know of. He looked like a warrior, he was fighting Dolohov...
RS: But, I apologize, that sounds too unreal (I said bewildered, but I hope you understand my incredulity, my readers).
GT: I would not have believed it either if I had not seen it with my own eyes. That boy is indeed our saviour, but not because of what happened more than a decade ago, but because he inspired us to fight back.
RS: Thank you for answering my questions, is there anything you wish to tell the people?
GT: Yes, there is. During the last war we believed them to be invincible and we run away instead of fighting. Today I was proven that they are humans, powerful ones indeed, but what they have in power we have in numbers. I will not back down ever again, last war they intimidated us to submission, not this time. We overwhelm them in numbers and this time we are ready, let's fight back and protect our families.
RS: I understand and I agree, thank you Mister Thicknesse.
This solemn announcement filled me with determination and inspired me to fight back, I realized that during the last war we forgot that we also had magic and reacted like muggles to the situation. Not this time! I will fight back to protect my loved ones, the same way the Hogwarts Heroes did, and the same way the Worker Heroes did! We can make a difference my dear witches and wizards and I will join the movement! May Mother Magic guide us all!
"I think she may earn that raise," he smiled.
They were ready to go home for the holidays, ready to rest because they knew that the situation was only beginning and they had an easy time until the moment. Last night many Slytherins had requested protection, most of them were children who had death eaters as parents. The Guild would indeed ensure their protection; it was their duty and honour to grant it.
Pained screams permeated a dilapidated dark room in an isolated house. Severus Snape did his best to bock the sound and conserve his composure, the Dark Lord was furious because of their failure and they were paying the price. He had managed to stay in the man's good graces by the article Skeeter had written about him. Though he had been punished, it had not been as severe as the others.
Another reason the man was furious was because Lucius had not answered his call, he had lost one of his most powerful pieces in the Ministry. The attacks were planned taking into account little opposition from the few Aurors available; no one had expected what happened. If he was honest he was satisfied by the way people had reacted, he had joined the group that attacked Hogsmeade in order to spare as many students as possible. He had not expected Potter's group to fight back, though he admitted being impressed by their prowess. A sigh threatened to escape when he thought on the confrontation, because of fate's cruel sense of humour he had somehow ended up duelling his own godson. He was proud to admit he had not held back; however proud of Draco's determination he was, the fact that the child would have taken his life with no hesitation still hurt him.
More screams filled the room and he closed his eyes, it would take days for the man to calm down. Which meant it would take days for him to stop using a crucio for everyone who spoke to him. He did not enjoy his life but it was the one he had to live.