The Snake Within

by arkkitehti

During the Christmas holidays of his fifth year Harry realizes that he should do something to keep things from spinning completely out of his control. He proceeds to make new allies and embraces his more Slytherin side to make use of his considerable resources.

21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

-o0oOo0o-

"Welcome everyone to this term's first meeting of the Defence Association!" Harry announced as the members were gathered outside. White snow covered the ground and the surface of the frozen lake reflected the shining sun with almost blinding brightness. The January air was pleasantly cold, but not freezing, and woollen cloaks kept the light breeze away from the students.

"Last term's competition was a huge success, and before we start this term I think it is time to award prizes to the winners. For the first prize my friends at Weasley Wizarding Wheezes have agreed to give out four gift certificates valued at ten galleons each, while the second prize is four gift certificates of five galleons. Would the winners please join me up front; Neville Longbottom, Hannah Abbot, Susan Bones and Luna Lovegood, and the second place team Timothy Morcott, Lilith McManaman, Horatio Pershore and Andrea Kegworth!"

The eight students walked to the front and climbed to the low podium where Harry was waiting with the prizes. With a loud bang a trio of Weasley Whizzbang fireworks rose to the sky, and exploded into a shower of huge, multi-coloured snowflakes that floated over the students and disappeared as they touched the ground. "Let's give a round of applause for the winners!" Harry yelled when the last of the certificates were given.

"Now that the first round of the competition is properly finished, I think it is time to move on towards the next one," Harry continued. "I think we can all agree that our skill in defending a house against attackers has increased since September, so I thought we should change the rules a bit, and move to more straight forward, open air battles. This also reflects what happened in Hogsmeade before Christmas."

There were grim faces among the gathered students; almost everyone had friends who had either been killed, injured or kidnapped during the attack, and no one wanted be caught unprepared should there be a next time.

"There will be a new arena, and the battles will be fought with four teams, two on each side," Harry continued. "Madam Pomfrey will also be happy to hear that this term we'll be using Fred and George's Battle Simulation Shield Hats, that have been developed in cooperation with the training department of the Auror Office. They will keep things safer in the battles.

"As we still need some time to prepare our playing field for the competition, we will start next week. During this time we encourage you to shake up the teams – to accommodate the new members that wish to join us, and to make more friends. So, until then!"

Harry stepped down from the low podium with Neville and his team. Susan and Luna headed to the crowd, while Neville and Hannah joined Harry as he walked towards Daphne who was talking with Hermione close by.

"So, have you already thought about your team, Harry?" Neville asked. "Susan is talking about joining with Justin and I think she'll take Luna with her, so Hannah and I are free at the moment."

"Daphne and I talked about this yesterday, and she said Tracey is going to try and rope Blaise in and create her own team," Harry said. "What about you, Hermione?"

"I was thinking about maybe skipping it this time," Hermione said. "Fighting doesn't really suit me, it's too disorganized. I think I'll try to convince Pomfrey to expand the healing class she's been giving."

Harry looked at Daphne who shrugged with a smile, and turned back to Neville. "Well, it seems we have the same situation as you two," he said.

"So Hannah and I with you and Daphne?" Neville asked as they started to walk towards the castle.

Harry nodded. "Sounds good."

"Yes it does," Daphne agreed.

"I'm fine with it, too," Hannah said. "We'll be unstoppable with you and Neville in our team, Harry."

"Yeah, should be pretty good," Harry agreed with a small smile.

The five students walked to the entrance hall in companionable silence, where Hannah kissed Neville goodbye and left for the Hufflepuff common room.

"Are we ready to make the move on Malfoy yet?" Neville asked when the four conspirators were alone, checking over his shoulder that no one was around to overhear them.

"Hedwig delivered the package from Tonks this morning, but I'll still need to go see Slughorn for the potion," Harry answered. "But otherwise we're good to go. I already checked the map after lunch, and Malfoy was heading to the seventh floor. He should be working on the cabinet as we speak."

"So we're doing it tonight?"

"Yes. No need to give him any more time, even if Hermione said his notes are totally wrong."

"That's good," Daphne said. "The Slytherin dorms will be a better place to live without Death Eaters walking freely."

"I'll also be able to sleep better with Malfoy properly leashed," Harry agreed.

"So you'll go see Slughorn, and we'll get ready to ambush Draco?" Neville asked for confirmation.

"Yeah, that sounds about right. I'll come there as soon as I can."

- O -

The seventh floor corridor was as empty and peaceful as always. It wasn't too close to any of the four common rooms, and all of the professors preferred to have their offices and classrooms closer to the ground floor and the Great Hall. Add that it was Saturday evening and there were even fewer people walking around the halls, the students preferring to relax in their common rooms, or in the case of Ravenclaws, study in the library.

The only indication that the corridor wasn't quite as deserted as it looked to be was the candles that illuminated the school. Instead of the minimal light they provided to empty parts of the castle, the candles were burning brightly, casting flickering shadows to the far corners of the corridors. Not that many would know to look for signs like this; as the candles adjusted themselves even before anyone got close to them, the true nature of their function wasn't widely known even among the professors.

If one was to pay very careful attention to the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy trying to teach trolls to dance ballet, one might have noticed the slight distortion in the air caused by four invisible students sitting on an invisible sofa. And should the careful observer have stepped through the silencing barrier that was around said sofa, they would have heard the conversation these four students were having.

"Did Slughorn give you any trouble?" Daphne asked.

"No," Harry answered. "Of course he's not happy with the situation, but I think he's Slytherin enough to try to work it to his advantage. I'd bet that in his head he's thinking this all was his idea, and is patting himself on the back for a job well done."

One could almost hear the frown on Hermione's face. "I still don't think that blackmailing teachers is what we should be doing," she huffed.

"Hermione, you've read Riddle's journal. Riddle gave Slughorn a box of candy and got the recipe for Horcruxes in return. I don't reveal Slughorn's dirty little secrets and got veritaserum in return. Blackmail isn't really all that different from bribery."

"Are you sure you want to use Voldemort as a benchmark for what is right and what is wrong?"

"No, but we are talking about Slughorn here. If he's fine with bribery, he should be fine with blackmail, too. But if you feel it's wrong, you can always oust Slughorn by yourself. You haven't promised him your silence."

"You know Harry's right, Hermione," Neville said. "And you know Harry could get the potion from the Minister, too. This is just safer and faster, so everyone wins."

Hermione harrumphed, but didn't say anything.

Time passed and each of the four friends were delving into their own thoughts. Daphne was leaning against Harry's invisible shoulder, and he was playing with her hair. The pair were simply enjoying the quiet time together.

Hermione was going through McGonagall's latest lecture on human transfiguration in her head.

Neville daydreamed about Hannah, his cheeks blushing unnoticed at the memory of their latest rendezvous in greenhouse number four. Professor Sprout kept the plants there that weren't especially interesting magically, but that were pretty to look at and couldn't survive the Scottish winter.

They were so deep in their thoughts that they almost missed the door of the Room of Requirement forming in the wall. Draco peeked out in both directions, stepped out and started walking down the corridor.

"Hey," Hermione whispered, and nudged Harry's shoulder. "Malfoy's leaving."

Harry jerked up, waking Daphne who had fallen asleep against his shoulder. "Right."

Harry stood up, whipped out his wand and with one continuing smooth movement threw a stunner at Draco's back. The blonde boy fell to the floor, unconscious.

"Almost too easy," Harry commented, and dispelled the disillusionment and silencing charms that were keeping them hidden.

- O -

Draco woke up sitting on a chair in the middle of a room. His hands were tied behind his back, and his feet to the legs of the chair. His robe and wand were on a table close by, and the sleeves of his shirt were rolled up, baring his arms. He tried to struggle against the restraints, but they were tight and wouldn't budge.

A voice stopped his futile attempts. "Should I be insulted that you don't want to be my guest for any longer?" Harry asked.

"Potter! Release me at once, or I —"

"Or you'll what? Go tell daddy? Daddy's not fighting your battles any more, Malfoy."

"I will kill you myself if you don't release me at once, Potter!" Draco yelled, struggling a little more.

"I doubt you could do it, Draco, but I have no intentions of letting you try," Harry said. "I might have once been foolish enough to go to the trophy room for an honest fight when you challenged me, but now I'm more than happy to just destroy you if I feel like it. But first I think we should talk for a while."

"I'm not going to tell you anything Potter! Go to Hell!"

"I'm not expecting you to tell me anything voluntarily, Draco," Harry explained and showed the small vial full of clear liquid. "That's what I have this for."

Harry waved his wand and Draco felt his mouth open as if forced by invisible hands. He calmly let three drops of veritaserum fall onto Draco's tongue, and another gesture of Harry's wand closed the boy's mouth. Walking to the table, he took a roll of parchment from the pocket of his robes and positioned an elegant, white quill on it. The quill hovered at the top left corner of the parchment, ready to write.

"A friend of mine was nice enough to provide me with this legal grade charmed parchment and dicta-quill. It's the same that aurors use when they are interrogating criminals. Your confession will be all nice and legal, should we need to take it to the DMLE."

Harry tapped the quill with his wand, and it flashed briefly with golden light.

"This is the interrogation of Draco Malfoy, on the nineteenth of January, nineteen ninety seven, in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," Harry dictated, and watched as the quill danced on the paper writing everything he said in a beautiful, clear script.

"Interrogator Special Agent Lord Harry Potter; witnesses Neville Longbottom of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom, Daphne Greengrass and Hermione Granger. The subject has been given three drops of veritaserum.

"Draco Malfoy, I can see that you don't have the Dark Mark on your arm. Are you a follower of the Dark Lord known as Voldemort?"

"Yes I am," Draco answered in a monotonous voice, forced by the potion.

"Is there a reason why you don't have the mark?"

"The Dark Lord felt that it would be too much of a risk to give me the dark mark, given what happened to Nott before Christmas. I will be marked when my mission is complete."

"We have discovered a vanishing cabinet here in Hogwarts that you have been trying to repair. What is your mission?"

"My mission is to repair the vanishing cabinet, and open the connection to the other cabinet when the Dark Lord gives me a signal."

"And what will happen after that?"

"The Dark Lord will destroy Dumbledore's resistance here in Hogwarts, and the Ministry will fall soon after."

"And when is this attack going to happen?"

"I don't know."

"Do you have a time limit for repairing the cabinet?"

"I have until Easter."

"Have you participated in any Death Eater activity?"

"No I haven't. I was supposed to create chaos inside the Hogwarts Express when it was attacked, but the aurors forced me to leave before it happened."

"Did you have knowledge of the attack in Hogsmeade before Christmas?"

"No, I didn't."

"Where is Voldemort's headquarters?"

"I can't say."

"You don't know or you can't say?"

"I can't say."

"Are there any other students in Hogwarts with a mission from Voldemort?"

"Not that I know of."

Harry looked at the answers written on the parchment and a list of questions they had prepared beforehand. There wasn't anything else they wanted to have on the official paper, and the fact that Draco was clearly a part of a conspiracy to overthrow the government was enough to get him a life sentence for treason. Harry tapped the parchment with his wand, and after another brief flash of gold, the quill floated to the side and below the transcription four lines appeared. Harry signed his name on the first line, and handed the parchment and the quill to the others. Then he turned to face Malfoy, who was beginning to recover from the effects of the potion.

"Well, it looks like someone has been a naughty boy," he said, gesturing at the parchment that was currently in Hermione's hands. "You do know that that parchment could see you locked up for the rest of your life?"

"Shut up!" Draco shouted. "The Dark Lord will free me!"

"And why would he do that?" Harry asked. "You've just failed your mission, and from what I've heard you don't even have all that much money left in your vaults. Face it, you are of no use to him any more."

"But... But I'm a Malfoy!"

"And so what? Do you really think a half-blood like Voldemort really cared about your family? Look at what he did to your father. And stop that bloody twitching! You chose to serve the monster and still you cower at the mention of his name!"

"You don't know what he's like! You don't say no to the Dark Lord. He would kill me, and my mother."

"I don't know what he's like? I have said no to him, and my mother said no to him. You're just too much of a coward to stand up for yourself."

"But what else could I have done? Not even Dumbledore could protect me and my mother from the Ministry and the Dark Lord."

"Ah, now we are getting somewhere," Harry said, smiling. "Dumbledore can't, but I can. Do as I say, and that pesky parchment can go away."

"You? How could you protect me?"

"Well, obviously I'm the one who holds your secret, so that's the Ministry covered. And I will kill Voldemort."

"But the Dark Lord will kill my mother if he finds out."

Harry shrugged. "I don't see how you have a choice in this. He will kill her anyway if you fail your mission, and I don't see how you could manage to not to fail it now that I know what you are doing."

Draco hung his head down in defeat, all bluster gone. "What happens now?" he asked in a small voice.

"Now you will make an unbreakable vow," Harry stated plainly. "I don't trust you, and I don't plan on starting any time soon. After that you will finish your mission to repair the cabinet, and I will take care of the rest."

- O -

Half an hour and one unbreakable vow bound by Daphne later, a subdued Draco had departed leaving Harry, Daphne, Neville and Hermione in the Room of Requirement. The Room had transformed itself into the comfortable sitting room the friends had used in their meetings before. Harry was sitting on a sofa, leaning back with his eyes shut, emotionally exhausted from the interrogation.

"Are you going to tell us about your plan now, Harry?" Daphne asked, sitting down next to him. "About what you're doing with the cabinet?"

Harry drew a deep breath. "Right," he said, opening his eyes and straightening up. "I think it would be best if we did this in the right room so I can show you."

Harry stood up and motioned the others to stand closer. "I don't know if the room can change this much with us inside, so better safe than sorry."

Harry clenched his forehead in fierce concentration, and the room around them started to change. The walls disappeared into the distance and the roof shot up, pillars growing down from it. Mountains of discarded objects appeared from nowhere filling the empty space where the sofa and chairs had been a moment ago. A thick layer of dust appeared on the floor, with Draco's footprints showing the direction to the cabinet.

Harry opened his eyes, and released a breath he hadn't noticed he was holding. "Well, let's go," he said, leading the group along the trail of prints in the dust.

"Now, our plan is to destroy Voldemort's mind and soul, as killing the body won't be enough, right?" Harry asked.

"That's right," Hermione agreed, and Daphne and Neville nodded.

"And to do that, we'll need to capture him alive, right?"

"Right."

"And that, I think, is the problem," Harry said. "You see, every time he has been cornered, he has managed to escape. For example last year when I had the vision during the history exam? Dumbledore had Voldemort cornered in the Ministry atrium, but still he escaped taking Lucius and Bellatrix with him. But what does Hogwarts, a History say about the castle, Hermione?"

Hermione frowned at the sudden question, going through her favorite book in her head, until her expression suddenly brightened. "You can't apparate inside Hogwarts!"

"That's right," Harry smiled. "The castle has the best anti-transportation wards in the world, or at least in Britain. If we manage to corner Voldemort in here, there's no way he can just escape."

"And this place is just perfect for ambush," Neville added, looking at the towering piles of stuff with new appreciation when they arrived at the small clearing that housed the vanishing cabinet. "You could hide an army in here."

"Exactly. I was thinking about building fortified positions up in the piles around the cabinet. Transfigured stone for protection, brooms for escape, the whole nine yards."

"We could open the fight by dropping a mountain of junk on top of Voldemort and whoever is with him," Neville continued Harry's thought. "We'll have cover and the high ground, they won't even have proper footing."

Daphne was nodding approvingly. "No mercy, using everything you have for your advantage. I like your plan. But how can you be sure Voldemort himself will come here?"

"He will," Harry said, sounding more confident than he necessarily felt. "Hogwarts is the Grand Prize for him. This is the most magical place in Britain, and he thinks of himself as Slytherin's heir. He's an orphan and he thinks of Hogwarts as his home. And he wouldn't trust his minions for this, there's too many times they have failed him before."

"Were you thinking about asking the DA to help you with this?" Hermione asked.

"I was, yes," Harry said, and raised his hand before Hermione had time to protest. "But I'd rather have aurors doing the fighting. I don't want to see any more of my friends getting hurt. I'll have to be there, but no one else who's not professional should have to. We'll just have to find some way to keep the ambush from reaching Voldemort's ears."

"I wasn't going to say you shouldn't," Hermione said softly. "Merlin knows you would rather do everything alone and get yourself killed than put anyone in risk, you really should learn to accept help. But I'm coming with you; you're my friend, and I'll follow you as I have followed you before."

Harry was about to protest, but Neville beat him to it.

"And I'll come, too," he stated firmly. "Gran would never forgive me if I let you fight Voldemort, and probably the Lestranges too, without offering my help."

"I'll be there, too. I might not be much use, but I'm not going to let you go alone," Daphne said. "And I think we could make it even less dangerous for us: we could fill all this junk with all kinds of traps."

"Good idea," Hermione said. "Harry should write Fred and George and ask them to come up with something. We might even look into the muggle side for ideas. But first let's go get some dinner. I'm starved."

Daphne took hold of Harry's arm and guided him towards the door, any protest Harry might have had against his friends fighting with him falling on deaf ears.

- O -

A year or two ago if someone had suggested that a Slytherin should eat at the Gryffindor table, the idea would have been laughable. It was a testament to Harry's role as a leader that no one as much as raised an eyebrow when Daphne once again headed towards the end of said table with Harry, Hermione and Neville for lunch on Tuesday. Neither did anyone comment when Harry drew his wand and wove a privacy charm around their part of the table, keeping eavesdroppers away. Even Parvati and Lavender had stepped down when Daphne had quite forcefully stated that whatever happened between her and Harry wasn't for public consumption.

Not that it had reduced the amount of rumours around them.

The four of them settled down and Hermione reached for the smashed potatoes. "You really should make more effort on your school work, Harry," she said, loading her plate with a generous helping before turning towards the stew. "I saw that essay McGonagall returned today. I mean, I know your practical work is really good, but practical isn't even half of the NEWT-exams. You really should try to get at least EE's from your assignments."

Harry put away the beans and reached for the roasted beef. "It's just that..." he started. "I just have so much other stuff going on that I don't really see the point in writing essays. And I don't have time for it either. I have to fight Voldemort, remember?"

"Harry, there's more to life than fighting Voldemort, and NEWTs are very important when you try to get a job," Hermione lectured. "And it's not like you have all that much work to do. You only attend two NEWT-level courses."

"And even if I win against him, it's not like I could ever get a normal job," Harry continued, ignoring Hermione. "I mean, think about it. The Boy-Who-Lived thing is bad enough, but what would I be after? 'The-Man-Who-Conquered'?" Harry grimaced at the thought.

"You know Hermione's right, Harry," Daphne said, placing her hand on his shoulder. "There is life after the war. And you need the formal qualifications if for nothing else than for the sake of themselves. Winning the war isn't enough, we still need to win the peace after it. There has to be changes made, and you being as young as you are is bad enough when you try to make them happen. You don't want to give the old geezers in the Wizengamot the opportunity to call you stupid too just because you didn't see the point in reading about the theory of inorganic transfiguration."

Harry sighed. "Alright, you win," he said. "But can't we see this through to Easter first? I'll have the whole summer and the seventh year to study if we win then."

"When we win, Harry," Daphne corrected. "And I think that'll be enough," she said, giving Hermione a pointed look.

"I guess so," the bookish girl sighed acceptance. "I'll have a study schedule ready for you then."

Harry groaned, and focused back on his plate. "Have any of you got any new ideas about the ambush?" he asked. "I'll go meet with Fred and George tomorrow."

"Well," Neville started. "I was thinking about what Malfoy said about his mother. He seemed very close to her, and I wonder if she might be to him, too. She could be a very useful ally to have."

"That's a great idea!" Harry said, happy to have a new topic that didn't have anything to do with his grades. "If Voldemort is using the Malfoy home as we think he is, she could have access to all sorts of information."

"But how do we contact her?" Daphne asked. "If the house is under the fidelius, owls won't be able to find her."

Harry frowned. "Not to mention it's not safe. I certainly wouldn't send Hedwig to Voldemort's lair," he frowned.

"I thought about that, too," Neville said. "And I think there might be a way. If Draco's grandfather, Abraxas Malfoy was as vain as Draco and Lucius, he's bound to have portraits out there somewhere. And as he was an ally of our families, he would probably help us out, especially if we explained Draco's situation and how the Malfoy family would disappear if he failed."

"That's brilliant, Neville," Harry praised. "I could ask Charlus if he knows anything about Abraxas' portraits. I'm already going to London tomorrow, so it's no problem to pop by at home while I'm at it."

- O -

The peace of the summer house Harry had been calling home was disturbed by a crack of apparition shortly before noon on Wednesday. Even though Harry hadn't visited the place since the end of the Christmas holidays, no signs of lack of use was to be seen. The walkway was clear of snow, and Dobby had even polished Sirius' old motorcycle which was standing under a roof next to the entrance.

Harry entered the house, hung his grey cloak in the foyer and walked to the living room. He plopped down on a sofa facing the wall where Charlus was currently snoozing peacefully in his frame.

"You're not a very good guard, are you?" he asked, lifting his feet on the low table in front of him.

Charlus woke up with a jerk. "What..? Oh, Harry, good to see you. And you would be bored, too, if you had to just hang around in an empty house. That elf of yours isn't much of a conversationalist, you know. He only wants to talk about you, but when I ask him something he just says, and I quote, 'Dobby will not tell the secrets of the Great Wizard Harry Potter Sir. Dobby is a good elf.'"

"Well, Dobby is a bit special that way," Harry agreed, smiling.

"I've noticed," Charlus replied with a wry grin. "But shouldn't you be at school?"

"No, not really. I had arithmancy in the morning, but I have business in London so I decided to drop by and say hello."

"Just like your father," Charlus' grin widened. "He was always sneaking out of school, too. So, how are you doing? Everything okay with Daphne? I remember her birthday is coming, do you already have a present for her?"

"No, it's still over a month away. I'll think of something later."

"Harry! You don't just 'think' of something at the last moment. Especially as it's her 17th birthday. A lady like her will expect something special, especially if you're serious about her," Charlus said with authority. "You clearly still have a lot to learn, my boy."

"Oh. Well, what should I get her?"

"I can't tell you that," Charlus stated indignantly. "It has to be personal. She knows you're rich enough to buy her anything, and that's just going to make it even harder."

"Why are you doing this to me?" Harry complained. "I was happy with how things were, and now you've made me worry about Daphne's birthday."

"I promise you'll thank me later, when you come up with the perfect idea," Charlus said. "But I don't think you came just say 'hello'. What can I help you with?"

"No, I didn't," Harry answered, and shifted himself to a more business-like position. "You see, we have this plan about how to defeat Voldemort, and we have Draco Malfoy helping us with it," he explained. "Not voluntarily, mind you; we've got him under an unbreakable vow. But then Neville came up with an idea that maybe we should try to get Draco's mother working for us, as Draco seemed to be genuinely worried about her. As a spy, you know."

Charlus nodded. "Sounds good so far. I didn't have much to do with Cygnus — Narcissa's father — but I did meet her a couple of times. She seemed a decent enough girl. So what's my part in the plan?"

"Well, we think that Malfoy's home is currently under the fidelius charm or something similar, and that makes contacting her a bit difficult," Harry explained. "So we thought that maybe Abraxas had multiple portraits, and maybe we could get him to deliver messages for us. And that maybe you might know where to find such portraits."

Charlus scratched his chin. "Abe did have a few portraits," he said after a while. "But I'm not sure if they are in any place where we could get to them. He had one at his home, sure, and another at his office in the Wizengamot. Those are definitely out of our reach. I'm pretty sure he gave one to his wife's family, the Montagues, but as far as I know they were Death Eaters, and I don't see how you could ask them to give it to you without raising suspicion. And you don't want that, right?" Charlus asked.

"No, definitely not," Harry answered.

"Then there was a fourth one that I know of in the Daily Prophet boardroom," Charlus mused. "But Lucius had it taken down soon after Abe's death. That might still be stored somewhere in the company's archives."

"So how do I get it out of there?"

"You can't. The Prophet's Archives are some of the best protected collections in the country, and they are in constant use. Even with the family invisibility cloak you couldn't sneak the portrait out of there without raising alerts all over."

Harry sighed, and slumped down on the sofa. "So it's back to square one, then?"

"Not necessarily," Charlus answered, his eyes shining brightly. "I think it might be time for me to re-enter the world of journalism. You get me hanging in the offices of the Prophet, and I'll talk them into locating Abe for me and hanging him next to me when you're away. They wouldn't deny an old man from seeing an old friend, and it shouldn't raise any suspicion if I asked to see him."

"So you would be in constant contact with Abraxas and handle the messages for us? But how would you get them to me? I can't come to London all the time, and you couldn't even call Dobby there. Especially as he's an old Malfoy elf."

"I don't think that should be much of an problem," Charlus said. "There was an old shop near the end of Diagon Alley that's specialized in magical paintings, and I don't see why it wouldn't be there still. You could buy me a spare frame that I could travel to if needed."

"Oh, that should do it," Harry smiled. "Well, I'm going to the Alley anyway, should I take you there now?"

- O -

Harry found Leonardo's Fine Arts Shoppe in the far end of the Diagon Alley just as Charlus had described. The walls of the small shop were full of uninhabited paintings depicting different scenes, ranging from idyllic landscapes cheerfully lit by bright sunshine to dark and dreary dungeons. The smell of turpentine and paint permeated the air as Harry walked through the cramped space towards the counter in the back of the shop.

A portrait of a grey-haired man sitting in his atelier that was hanging over the counter greeted him. "Good day, good sir. I'm sorry but my grandson seems to be neglecting his duty again. Feel free to look around as I go and get him."

"Thanks," Harry nodded. The old artist disappeared from the painting, leaving Harry alone in the quiet room.

After a while an almost equally grey-haired man with similar facial features to the man in the portrait emerged from the back of the shop wearing paint-stained artist's robes.

"Hello, young sir," he greeted. "How can I help you?"

"Hi," Harry greeted. "I have a portrait of my grandfather, and he's getting a bit bored staying in the house while I'm in school," he continued and dug Charlus up from his bag. "I'd like to get him a spare frame so he can move around a bit."

"Hello, Michael," Charlus said, when Harry had resized the painting to it's normal size.

"Oh, Charlus! It's been a long time!" Michael said enthusiastically, before turning to Harry. "And you must be Harry Potter! I'm sorry I didn't recognize you."

"No worries, actually it's nice to not be recognized immediately every once in awhile."

"But still! The Boy-Who-Lived in my shop! And looking for a frame for my old friend Charlus," the shopkeeper continued, reaching for the painting. "Here, let me put you on this easel here, so you can browse the different choices yourself," he said to Charlus.

Harry watched as Michael placed the portrait on an empty easel covered with runes, and waved his wand above it. After a small flash of light he told Charlus that he was now able to move freely between all the paintings in the shop, and Charlus immediately disappeared off the left side of his frame.

"So, how does this work?" Harry asked the shopkeeper as Charlus appeared in a scene with a massive feast laid on a table and tasted one of the pastries.

"Ah, it's very simple, Mr. Potter," Michael said. "After Charlus finds a scene he likes, I can charm the frame to be connected to the original. It's a simple charm, really, but I'm afraid it's a family secret."

"And then he can move from one painting to another freely?"

"Yes, precisely. You wouldn't believe how many old portraits get bored of their frames and want some variety. But mostly people just connect old frames together instead of buying new ones. I can do that, too, but they often lack the originality of my new ones," Michael stated, clearly upset that his craft wasn't appreciated more.

Harry was about to ask more about the paintings, when Charlus interrupted them from a huge painting of a library.

"Hey! Why are all these books blank?" he asked.

"Ah, well, that level of detail is beyond even my capabilities," Michael admitted. "But I assure you that the inkwell on the desk is quite functional! You will never run out of space if you decide to write an autobiography."

Charlus closed the book he was holding, and looked at the desk with the inkwell, clearly unimpressed. "Do you have anything else?"

Michael stroked his short beard. "I think I have exactly what you'd want," he finally announced, "if you come this way, this is one of my finest works."

The artist lead Harry and Charlus to a painting that depicted a moderately sized but tastefully decorated study with a sturdy mahogany desk in the middle. "I made this in cooperation with the Daily Prophet. It is directly linked to their presses, and you'll get the daily newspaper immediately delivered to the desk first thing in the morning. It of course costs extra for the subscription, but I think that is easily justified for a distinguished gentleman such as yourself."

Harry and Charlus looked at each other. This was absolutely perfect, and as the painting was going to hang in the offices of the paper, it was thematically suitable as well. "We'll take it, when can you have it ready?"

- O -

The spellwork didn't take long, and just half an hour later Harry was again back in Diagon Alley, the door to the Daily Prophet offices closing behind him. Getting Charlus hanging in the Daily Prophet offices had been a walk in a park. With Harry as the biggest shareholder and Charlus a somewhat legendary figure who had helped to make the paper what it is, the portrait was hanging in the boardroom in no time at all. As Charlus would breach the subject of Abraxas with the staff later when it wouldn't raise suspicion, Harry was free to continue with the real reason of coming to London today: meeting Fred and George.

The weekdays of January clearly weren't among the busiest for the Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes. There was only one customer browsing the wares when Harry entered the shop.

"Harry!" Fred greeted him enthusiastically and stepped forward from behind the counter.

George, alerted by the shout, peeked from the back room and waved at Harry. "What can we do for our favourite investor?" he asked as his brother enthusiastically shook Harry's hand.

"Have you two jokers found someone else stupid enough to give you their money?" Harry asked, grinning.

"Nah, but you're still our favourite," Fred said. "And business is booming! You'll make a healthy return for your investment."

"Although there has been some interest in investing in us," George said. "But we'd rather keep the business in the family."

Harry shrugged. "It's your business, you do what you like with it. But do you think you could spare me a moment? There's something I'd like to talk to you about."

The twins looked around. The only other customer had left soon after Harry had arrived, and the shop was empty.

"Sure," Fred nodded as George waved his wand towards the entrance. The door closed and a plush monkey dropped from the ceiling hanging from it's tail. Harry saw that the monkey was holding a plaque declaring that the shop was now closed.

"Thursdays are always slow days," Fred continued.

The twins showed Harry to the back room, and sat down on bright yellow armchairs that clashed spectacularly with the purple suits they were wearing.

"So how are you, Harry?" George asked, after Harry had settled himself in. "Mum was right upset that you didn't visit us during Christmas."

"But that was nothing compared to her reaction when Tonks told us that you were staying with the Greengrasses," Fred added. "She really doesn't trust anyone who's associated with Slytherin in any way."

Harry winced. He had heard enough of Molly's rants to know it wasn't a joking matter when she was upset. "Sorry about that, guys."

"Not a problem Harry. We can relate with a bloke who would rather stay with his stunning girlfriend."

"And mum really was more angry at Ron and Ginny for 'letting that hussy corrupt sweet Harry'," George squaked, in imitation of Molly's voice. "We managed to avoid most of it."

"None the less, you didn't deserve it," Harry frowned.

Fred waved the apology away. "I'm pretty sure we indeed deserved it," he grinned.

"There's always something that we got away with," George finished with a matching grin.

"Fine then," Harry relented. "So Tonks visited the Burrow?"

"Yeah, mum insisted that the Order should use her kitchen for the meetings ever since, well, you know," Fred replied.

Harry nodded. "And what's the Order doing?"

"We really haven't been in many meetings," George shrugged. "The shop takes all our time."

"But they're not doing anything much," Fred continued. "Tonks can't say what the Ministry is doing because of some new regulations with the aurors, Snape doesn't have any new information anymore so he mostly stays silently in the corner, and the rest just seem to be happy that the Ministry is actually doing it's job and that there isn't much for the Order to do."

"But that's really a good thing, isn't it?" Harry asked. "No news is good news."

"Yeah, I guess it is," Fred answered. "So, what did you come to talk with us about? Sneaking all the way to London to do so."

"Well, I need your help with a plan."

The twins perked up. "A plan?" George asked.

"Are you finally getting into the noble art of pranking and need to come to the experts for help?" Fred added.

"It's not a prank," Harry stated. "We have uncovered a plan to smuggle Death Eaters through the wards of Hogwarts, and we want to ambush the attackers. I need your help with the ambush."

"So it is a prank," George insisted.

"It's always best to consider all plans as pranks," Fred explained. "It keeps your options open and mind away from the obvious. What kind of ambush are you talking about?"

Harry shook his head in amusement. "We have a sort of portal in the Room of Requirement, surrounded with centuries worth of junk. Draco Malfoy is repairing it under our supervision, and we hope that Voldemort will come through himself when he attacks."

"You hope that Voldemort will come himself?" Fred asked, eyes wide open. "Who would hope for that?"

Harry sighed. "There is a prophecy that says that I have to be the one to take care of Voldemort. And as you probably have noticed, Voldemort doesn't want to stay dead. We have a plan to take care of that, but we need to capture him alive for it to work. Ambushing him at Hogwarts is probably the best chance we'll ever get to do so."

Fred and George sat back in their chairs, stunned.

"So not only do you need to kill Voldemort, but you need to capture him alive first to do so?" Fred asked. "I knew you lived an interesting life, but I had no idea just how interesting it was."

"Yeah, what my brother said," George added. "We might need some time to come up with a suitable plan."

"Well, Draco has until Easter to get the cabinet ready, so the ambush should be in place preferably before that," Harry explained. "But it doesn't need to be anything too fancy. I'm mostly worried about what reinforcements Voldemort will bring with him. It should be something to help neutralize his lackeys, and it should destroy the cabinet, to cut off his escape route."

"What it this cabinet you're talking about?" George asked.

"It's called a Vanishing cabinet," Harry explained. "It's the portal Draco's repairing. It's made of wood and is about that size," he continued and pointed at a storage cabinet in the corner of the room.

"Alright then," Fred stood up. "We'll get to work, and you'll have the greatest Dark Lord ambushing prank ever made delivered before Easter."

"And don't be a stranger and come visit again," George shook Harry's hand as they rose. "It's always good for business to have the Boy-Who-Lived shopping at our store," he finished with a wink.

"Thanks guys," Harry answered, and shook Fred's hand. "I'll see if I can find time to visit."

Harry was about to leave, when he remembered something Charlus had said.

"Umm, guys," he paused. "You wouldn't have any ideas what I should get for Daphne for a birthday present?"

"Daphne, hmm?" Fred asked, wagging his eyebrows suggestively.

"Yeah, her birthday is still over a month away, but Charlus said I really should have an idea for her present already," Harry said and shrugged, ignoring the innuendo.

"Well, we have some interesting things in our WonderWitch collection," George said, guiding Harry through the shop. "Like these edible underwear," he continued, pulling a package of bright red panties and bra from a shelf.

"We also have underwear that eats you," Fred said, ignoring Harry's blush. "Got to keep the balance, you know?"

"Then we have the Patented Daydream Charms," George said, showing Harry the next display. "We wouldn't normally recommend buying your girlfriend one, but the Harry Potter themed ones are some of our best selling products."

"What?" Harry exclaimed. "Your selling stuff with me in it?"

"Sure. I mean, girls are daydreaming about you in any case, why not get your cut out of it?" Fred reasoned.

"But I don't need to know about it," Harry whined.

"And you have nothing to be ashamed about them. We had Alicia helping us out with those, and she said it was great," Fred continued, not bothered by Harry's complaints. "Although they might be a bit outdated," he continued, giving Harry a once-over. "It's been almost a year since our last Quidditch game together, you know."

Harry groaned. "Don't you guys have any class?"

"Class?" Fred asked, turning to George. "Do we have any class?"

"I don't think so," George answered. "Though Angelina asked about it not so long ago. Maybe we should look into it?"

"Let's add it to the to-do list," Fred said nodding, and turned back to Harry. "I'm sorry, we're all out of class at the moment, sir. Please come back another time and check in on our progress though," he finished with a professional sales voice.

Harry covered his face with his hands. "Why did I even ask?"

"The only one with class we know of is probably Bill," George continued, ignoring Harry's outburst. "That Fleur, now there is one classy lady."

"Right," Harry shook his head. "Well, you do what we talked about, and I'll handle my own problems. And I don't want to see any more products with my name on them!"

- O -

The Saturday afternoon sun sparkled in the frozen dust hanging in the air as Harry sprinted across the street. He was shielding himself against spellfire coming from the opponents who had entrenched themselves at the end of the street. It seemed they were happy enough to hold their ground instead of going for more points by capturing ground.

'But then again,' Harry thought as he impacted against the wall on the other side and took cover behind a corner of a building, '— I might have done so too if was faced with opponents like us.' Harry took a deep breath, and leaned out of the cover to launch a furious assault of spells against the defenders, keeping them down for Neville to cross over.

In their first match a week ago Harry and Neville had utterly obliterated. their opponents, and Hannah and Daphne were great in their support roles too. The team fighting alongside them on this battle were no slouches either: Susan and Luna had been in the winning team on the autumn term, and Justin had shown his skills in Hogsmeade. Astoria wasn't bad either, and the fourth year Ravenclaw had gained a lot confidence in the short time she had been part of the DA.

"A bit too easy, don't you think?" Neville asked, as he arrived next to Harry. "I would have expected more from those Slytherins."

Harry shrugged. "I have no problems with easy," he said. "Three seventh year Slytherins with one Ravenclaw are only half of them. The other team is all fourth years."

The elves had once again pulled through with the construction of the Defence Association battle arena. An area almost the size of the quidditch pitch was covered with seven foot tall walls made of wood and stone, forming an outline of a small village with a main street in the middle and smaller alleys and squares on the sides.

The rules of the DA battles had changed slightly from the autumn competition. Points were still given for team members standing when time was up; but instead of a fixed objective inside a house, there were multiple markers scattered across the battlefield that changed colour when tapped with a wand, and were each worth one point. Harry was rather proud of the new rules, as they provided interesting strategic options: should one prepare defensive positions and try to keep safe until time was up, or take the risk of getting hit by moving out to capture the markers?

"Do you know when we'll meet with Narcissa?" Neville asked while Harry was transfiguring a low wall on the street to give both him and Neville some cover to shoot from. Daphne and Hannah would cross the street next, while Susan and Justin would advance along the other side of the street. Luna and Astoria would hold up the rear, and keep an eye out for anyone who might try to outflank them from behind.

Harry finished the transfiguration with an audible grunt. "I think so," he replied as he scanned ahead. "I talked with Charlus yesterday, and he said he's got Abraxas' portrait hanging next to him already. He's still feeling things out at the moment, but Charlus thinks Abe will help."

"So when do you think he'll be ready?"

"I was thinking of delivering the message tomorrow. We can sneak out of the castle to have the meeting Tuesday evening. There shouldn't be anything happening with school then, and the sooner we get Narcissa spying for us the better."

"Alright," Neville agreed, "sounds like a plan."

Before Harry had time to say anything more, Hannah arrived on their side of the street. "Are you two just chatting in here?" she asked. "I could have done with some help over there."

"Sorry," Neville said sheepishly, and moved out to give covering fire for Daphne, who was also preparing for her sprint across. Once again the air over the street was full of colourful light as Daphne ran over the open ground, casting a cushioning charm on the wall before slamming next to Hannah.

"Alright," Harry said as the team was gathered together. "Next stop is that marker in the corner. Same drill: I'll go first, Neville follows, Hannah and Daphne cover for us and follow when we're there. Ready?"

The other members of the team nodded and Harry was just about to make his dash forward when a blast from behind made them turn as one. The team whose inactivity Neville had wondered about had managed to slip behind them using the side streets of the arena, and were firing spells against Luna. Astoria was lying immobile in the street, hurled there by the blast.

"Astoria!" Daphne shrieked as she saw her sister down. Without thinking she ran back across the street, not caring about the spellfire flying around her.

"Daphne!" Harry shouted as one particularly nasty looking curse narrowly missed her. Their trap sprung, the previously pinned defenders were also throwing spells down the street faster than before. "Damn it," Harry growled. "Neville! Cover me!"

Neville nodded and opened fire towards the other team's position, forcing them to take cover behind their fortifications. Harry took the opportunity to sprint after Daphne, a thick cloud of white smoke erupting from his wand as he ran.

"Daphne, snap out of it," Harry urged, shaking her shoulder as he reached her, while casting a shield to cover them from the flanking force. Daphne was on her knees, holding an unconscious Astoria to her chest. Harry's smoke cover was already starting to dissipate in the wind conjured by the opposition, leaving them in the open.

"Daphne, she's alright, she's just stunned," Harry said again, as Daphne didn't seem to respond. "The shield hats, remember? That's why we have them, so that no one gets injured too badly."

Harry looked up. The seventh years' spells packed a punch, but they just weren't as good at protecting themselves as those that had been in the DA from the beginning. Two of the four were already down, and the rest were hiding behind a corner, unable to do much of anything because of the steady stream of curses and jinxes from Susan, Neville and Luna. Harry glanced once more at Daphne, and went on the offensive.

Heavy bludgeoning curses and stunning spells hammered the shield the two opponents were using to protect themselves, causing it to buckle under the onslaught. Seeing the hopelessness of the situation, the two of them threw their wands to the ground and raised their hands in surrender. Harry had just summoned their wands to him and was about to conjure ropes to hold them down when a loud gong reverberated in the air, marking the end of the battle.

Harry turned back to his girlfriend, who was still rocking her sister on her lap. "Daphne?" he asked softly. "Daphne, are you alright?"

Daphne looked up at Harry with puffy eyes and shook her head.

"Daphne, Astoria is just fine," Harry comforted as Madam Pomfrey's student healers rushed to the scene and levitated Astoria onto a conjured stretcher. They quickly cast diagnostic charms, and the hat's clever charm-work provided them with a simulated list of injuries.

Harry helped Daphne up from the ground and hugged her tightly. "It's all part of the game, Daphne. She'll be just fine after the stunning spell wears off."

Daphne said nothing and just kept holding onto Harry.

Harry sighed. "Neville!" he called. "You take charge here, I'll take Daphne back to the castle."

- O -

Harry helped Daphne down on a sofa in the Room of Requirement, and sat down next to her. Two steaming mugs of hot chocolate appeared on a table in front of them, and Harry silently thanked Dobby for the help.

Rubbing his girlfriend's back, Harry spoke gently as he looked into her eyes. "Daphne?" he asked. "Are you alright?"

Daphne sniffed. "I'm useless," she said in a small voice. "I just froze and couldn't do anything."

"Daphne, you're not useless," Harry assured the girl and hugged her against his side. "I don't know what I would do without you."

Daphne barked a sarcastic laugh. "You'd do just fine without me," she said bitterly. "You have Hermione doing the research, Neville can fight, Charlus knows the traditions, Amelia and Augusta are all the contacts you'd ever want. What would you need me for?"

Harry hugged the miserable girl tighter. "Daphne, don't be like that," he spoke urgently. "Your role is more important than simple research or combat. You, – you are the reason I have to fight for, Daphne. You showed me that there might be a future for me that doesn't involve fighting a Dark Lord. I – I love you Daphne."

The two teens sat together in silence, Daphne still hanging her head, her dark brown hair shielding her face from view.

"It wasn't supposed to go like this, you know," Daphne murmured quietly. "We were never supposed to become this close, and my family was never supposed to be on the front lines. I was supposed to follow you safely from behind, and then Dumbledore was supposed to kill Voldemort with you following him. That was the plan."

Daphne paused for a while, and relaxed a little in Harry's arms.

"Then there was the prophecy, and Dumbledore's passivity. And then you invited me to your home for the summer and made me breakfast."

Daphne laughed at the memory. "I think that was what changed it all," she glanced up at him, then back down. "Suddenly you weren't a means to an end any more, but something more."

Looking up, she met his eyes, her voice quiet, but calm. "I love you too, Harry," she held his gaze for a moment, then dropped her eyes to their entwined hands.

"But I'm scared. When Astoria was hit today, I couldn't help but remember what happened before Christmas. I'd feel better if she wasn't part of this."

"Astoria needs to do this," Harry responded. "She needs to know that if she's ever attacked again, she won't be helpless. I know what it feels like to be helpless. The summer after fourth year I had watched Cedric die and Voldemort being resurrected, and I couldn't do anything. I couldn't practice any spells, I had no information, and Dumbledore had even forbidden Hermione and Ron from writing anything important to me. All I could do was to listen to the muggle news and wonder if some of the incidents were in fact caused by Voldemort and the Death Eaters. All because it was 'for my own good'. It was making me insane.

"Astoria doesn't need protection from the outside, she needs to have confidence in herself. And being able to do things in the DA will give her that confidence."

"I guess you're right," Daphne admitted with a sigh. "But that doesn't mean I have to like it."

There was a knock on the door, that caused Harry to raise his head. Neville was peeking from the opening, and Harry could see Astoria standing behind him. Harry nudged Daphne in the shoulder, and she looked at the door.

Before Harry had time to say anything, Daphne jumped up and rushed to the door. "Astoria!" she shouted, and engulfed her sister in a hug.

Harry followed Daphne to the door and raised a questioning eyebrow at Neville, who just shrugged.

"Astoria was insistent that she needed to be taken to her sister," Neville said. "I know how you feel about telling people about this room, but I thought it was for the best."

Harry looked at the two sisters who had moved to the small couch and were holding each other with tears in their eyes. "Yeah, you did the right thing," he said.

The two boys stood in silence while the girls murmured and held one another before Harry spoke again.

"I think we should leave them alone," he motioned towards the sisters. "Daphne took Astoria being knocked out badly; they need some time with one another."

Neville nodded, and the two Gryffindors left the room. Harry watched as the door moulded itself back into the wall and sighed, before squaring his shoulders. Daphne would be fine, and he had a message to compose. It was time to confront Narcissa Malfoy.

-o0oOo0o-

A/N: Well, that took quite a bit longer than anticipated... But don't worry, the story is nearing the end, and quite a bit of the remaining is already written (let's say 60%). I'm not going to promise anything, but i will be disappointed myself if I can't finish this before the end of the summer. So there.

Also thanks to everybody who has read and reviewed my story, and also to my beta Majerus who had the patience to wait for me.