Author's Note: Once again, I have utilized my snow days to create a new chapter. It is still Thursday, so the power is still out. I hope that it is back on tomorrow so that I can post this stuff.
This is it. You finally find out who broke the Carrows out of Azkaban, who is responsible for the capture of Narcissa.
Disclaimer: I still don't own Harry Potter.
Guess what? It is Tuesday now, and my internet is back! I hope this chapter was worth the wait.
These Past Shadows
Chapter 13
My Family Secrets
I am not disappointed. Draco Malfoy is not the sharpest knife in the drawer, as the Americans say. Oh well.
"Need advice?" I ask cockily. He glares up at me.
"What advice could you give me?" He snaps.
"None if you keep that attitude up," I respond. He sighs.
"Fine. Give me the damn advice."
"I can tell you all the dirty little secrets about the estates that my family has. I know everything there is to know about them. Diaries are helpful." He nods appreciably
"And the others?" he asks. I roll my eyes.
"So impatient. For Parkinson, you could probably seduce Pansy into giving up those secrets. But the Rosier secrets will be hard to get. But first, we need to figure out if Parkinson and Rosier are still in Azkaban. I know that Alec Greengrass isn't. My family managed to escape imprisonment, though I assure you that I disagree with the decision. My father should serve his time and man up, as the Americans say."
He nods. "I don't give you enough credit, Greengrass," he admits. "You're smarter than I thought that you were."
"Thanks," I say sarcastically. But inside I am slightly happy to have impressed him. That's slightly scary. I take a deep breath before plunging over a cliff in my mind. "You aren't so bad yourself, Malfoy."
He smirks at me before turning away.
"Seems as though we need to pay a visit to the Ministry of Magic," he says mockingly. I smirk and nod.
"Fun," I say sarcastically. He throws some floo powder into the fire and steps inside, shouting his destination and leaving me alone. I quickly follow suit.
I fall out of the fireplace in the ministry. I look up to see Draco smirking from above. I shoot him a withering glare before pushing myself back onto my feet.
We walk around before we get to the floor with the Magical Law Enforcement Department on it. I turn to Draco.
"Let me do the talking. You'll just piss them off and then they won't tell us what we need to know." He glares at me but nods, seeing that it makes sense.
I knock on the door of Harry Potter's office, taking a deep breath. He sees me and smiles warmly, motioning for me to come in. Being Ginny Potter's friend has its advantages. When he sees Draco, he turns to me in shock.
"Why are with that prat?" He asks me. I shrug.
"Long story."
"Well you can both explain it to me over a pot of tea. Ginny's here too," he adds with a pointed look at me. That explains the tea.
When Ginny comes into the room, I explain everything to Harry, getting "help" from Draco. Luckily they don't pay any attention to him.
"We're here because we need to know if Parkinson and Rosier are still in Azkaban. I know that the Carrows are not. I saw Amycus." Potter nods.
"I will arrange for you and only you to take a portkey to Azkaban and find out. Sorry, but I just don't trust Draco. I haven't heard anything, but I hadn't heard that the Carrows were running around kidnapping people like the lunatics they are either." I nod my thanks, standing.
"Oh, and Tori?" I turn to face him.
"Yes?"
"If you need any help, the auror department would be happy to assist on your quest. We want those lunatics imprisoned just as badly as you do." I smile.
"Thanks for the offer, but we don't need anything right now. But later on we might." He nods, understanding.
"Why did you tell Pothead that we might let him help?" Draco snaps at me as he appears back in the fireplace at the Manor. I roll my eyes, not answering him.
"Do you want my information or not?" I snap. He nods, sitting in the armchair across from me.
I go through all the estates we have, detailing the wards and protective spells that surround them, explaining exactly what they do. I also go into detail on spells that could get through the wards to monitor the people inside.
"If my father is the one supporting them, they would most likely be hidden in the Irish villa or the Italian manor. No one except the immediate family knows about them. Hell, I wasn't even supposed to know about them since I wasn't the perfect pureblood daughter they wanted. The wards are also the strongest and hardest to break. The estates will pose a real challenge to slip into. I do not believe that the wards will let me in. My father will have ordered them not to let me inside. If they are in one of them, you will be on your own inside. I would recommend entering through the vents once you are inside the gates. From there you can work on getting me inside. Unless you want to do it on your own."
An idea suddenly occurs to me.
"I could let them to capture me. Then I would already be in their custody. I could send you notes about where we are and how to get inside."
He nods, soaking in everything I just said.
"We'll figure out what we need to do once we know who is supporting them." He says.
The next morning I wake up in my flat and check the time. I will have two hours with Daphne if I hurry. Then I have to get to the ministry so that I can take a portkey to Azkaban.
I slip into robes and run a brush through my hair before apparating to St. Mungos.
The two hours go way too fast. Soon I am with Harry, grabbing onto an old shred of fabric. I feel a hook behind my navel as we travel to Azkaban.
We walk through the walls, looking inside each cell that is supposed to be occupied. According to the schedule, all cells should be full.
I walk by the empty cells of the Carrows before moving onto Rosier's cell. He is there. I breathe a sigh of relief. His information would have been the hardest to get. We move to Parkinson's cell.
He is still there, I notice with disbelief. My father is the only one supporting them. Harry seems to realize the same thing, because he shoots me a sympathetic glance. I attempt a smile back, but even I know it failed.
I return to the Manor, determined not to let Malfoy know how badly I am affected by this newest betrayal. He walks into the sitting room where I sit covered in soot from the floo. But obviously I didn't do a good job hiding my feelings, because his face changes immediately when he sees me.
"Who is it?" he asks. I get the feeling that he already knows.
"My father," I whisper, trying my damndest to hold back the tears. But some still escape and I wipe them away, furious with myself for letting them fall. We sit there just staring at each other for what feels like hours.