AN:
Well, the summer is nearly officially over for me, and the aim was to finish this story finished over the summer, and I effectively have. Apologies for the delay in updating, I had hoped to do a mass update before I went away for two weeks, but didn't manage, so here it is, Chapters 28-32. I am really pleased with how they turned out, please let me know if you feel the same way.
Chapter 28
James shivered in fear as he and the other students were lined up in a plain room in an unknown location. Their wands and belongings had been taken, then they had been hearded like cattle into this nondescript room.
He glanced over at Victoire and Teddy, though he was too afraid to speak. His overriding feeling, however, was of confusion. Has his father betrayed him – betrayed them all? Perhaps, yet he had seen his father try to stop them leaving as well...stop them from leaving with him? Was it polyjuice? Was it an imposter? Heck – was it his father's evil twin, angry at being spurned as the boy who lived?
Probably not…he concluded, it must be an imposter, Dad wouldn't do that.
Yet, James couldn't help but think: How do I know? How long have I honestly known him. Hell, I have known him as the Duke for longer than I have as my Dad.
James' thoughts were interrupted by the door opening and two dumpy looking people entering.
Surely not…James thought, vaguely recognising the two.
"Alright you lot!" spat the man. "I want boys on this side of the room, girls on this side."
"And if any of you try anything, even whisper" growled the ugly women, "out of turn. Then it is straight to the Headmistress for punishment!"
Headmistress...wait, I know where we are! James realised, Hogwarts! That's the Carrows! And the headmistress must be Bellatrix Lestrange…oh no.
The students separated out, though not up to the standards of the Carrow siblings; on second year girl, almost paralysed with fear, tried to stay by her older brother's side.
"Move it!" snapped Alecto Carrow, kicking out at the girl knocking her over.
"Get off her!" shouted her brother, moving forward, lunging at Alecto. He was intercepted by Amycus, who sent a skin burning hex at the boy. He fell to the ground in pain, whereupon both Carrows set about kicking and hexing him.
"Stop it!" shouted another voice – this time from Ryan Jones, fulfilling his role as unofficial head boy. He jumped at Amycus grabbing his wand hand, dragging it away from its position pointing at the girl's brother. This unbalanced the male Carrow, who fell to the ground.
"Crucio!" shouted Alecto, launching the unforgivable at Jones. He fell to the ground, screaming. "We warned you! Prefects!"
Two large students in robes emblazed with green, both wearing silver badges entered the room.
"Yes Professor Carrow?" asked one of the boys.
"Take these two" she indicated Jones and the other boy, "to the Headmistress."
The two grinned morbidly. The next generation of Empire flunkies, thought James wryly.
"The rest of you," began Amycus rising to his feet, "Are blood traitors! Worse than mudbloods. The Emperor is showing mercy you by allowing you to live. You have been given a false education up until now. You are now at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the finest centre of education the world knows."
"Usually you would be sorted into houses – however, we all know that you scum are Gryffindors. You will be taught things here at Hogwarts; namely, your place. You will shown your dormitories, whereupon the other students of your level shall tell you about your duties and how things work around here." Alecto continued.
"If you should break the rules, there will be punishment. And it will hurt." Grinned Amycus. "And do not think that there is one standard set or rules; Slytherin students have a different set of rules to adhere to, because quite simply, they are better than you. They are the cream of the Empire."
"As my brother so rightly says, they are better than you. Because of this, not only do they have different rules to follow, they also have privileges. They, like us teachers, monitor the rules – and therefore, if they find you to be breaking them can punish you. There are also Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students; they are better than you, though they are also inferior to Slytherin students." Alecto explained.
"You have been educated prior to this in an unsuitable environment; the rebellion were criminals. The rebellion, however is over. Our glorious Emperor has captured all of the rebels, thus putting an end to all resistance. As students of the rebels you are acomplices to a crime; you are lucky you aren't being treated like the criminals you really are. Headmistress Lestrange and the Emperor have granted you a second chance, which is more than you deserve." He continued.
"There will be no questions. Follow us. And remember; we are just looking for an excuse to punish you."
The lines of boys and girls were led silently out of the doors into the sad, once glorious corridors of Hogwarts. James and Victoire glanced at each other sheepishly, the overriding emotions on both their faces; fear and hopelessness.
XX
Harry ran. He ran from Grimmauld Place. From the memories held there. From Voldemort. From the Order. From himself. Where could he run to?
Nowhere was safe. He couldn't go anywhere. Sometimes though, safety wasn't what it was about. The safest place he could go was 4 Privet Drive like he had warned Jones to do, but whilst he may be safe, he was not welcome and did not want to be there. He didn't belong there.
He didn't belong at Grimmauld Place – too many memories of the kidnapping and of Sirius.
He had once called Hogwarts home, yet that had been taken from him by Voldemort.
There was only one other place he could go – somewhere he had briefly called home.
Harry apparated, leaving behind the painful memories of London. He arrived at his destination; building known as The Burrow.
The sight that greeted him was not what he remembered the Burrow to be. It had been ransacked; the building still stood, but the windows were smashed. The flower beds had been torn up. The walls covered in graffiti. Inside the furniture was smashed, crockery broken. The homely feel that one couldn't help but feel at The Burrow was all but gone.
What happened here? Harry thought looking around, shocked. He was confused. He was sad. But most of all he was angry. Then he remembered;
It was me. After he had infiltrated The Burrow as The Duke he had ordered it to be searched for information by the Death Eaters; they had done this on his orders.
Harry lost it.
"ARRRGH!" he screamed, picking up one of the few non broken chairs, aiming it at the wall. He pulled his wand out, sending blasting curses around the room; he wanted to destroy everything. He wanted the people who had done this to be punished, to feel his wrath.
"I should kill them! I will kill them! They will feel the pain I have felt!" Harry was unleashing his darker side once again. "When I get my hands on them…"
"Listen to yourself Harry…" came a voice from the where the front door had once stood. Harry spun around.
"Albus!" he spluttered, shocked. Dumbledore stood at the door. "How did you…I thought you were captured?"
"I was, but I have escaped." He said, simply.
"Well then…we have to go! We need to save everyone – Ginny, James – the whole order are in danger!"
"Quite frankly, Harry, the person most in need of saving at the moment, is yourself. You are in the most danger."
"Danger – from who?" asked Harry, confused.
"From yourself."
"You mean…the imposter who captured you and took James?"
"No, Harry. I mean the man standing in front of me now. The man who is giving in to his own dark side. The one he has barely managed to escape from."
"What does it matter? When I give in to my dark side I am more powerful…I can control it."
"No Harry, it controls you. You sounded like your former self there – like the Duke. Like Voldemort."
"No, Albus. I am in control of my anger and my dark side."
"I don't believe you are. The reason Voldemort gained such a powerful servant when he had you was because you cannot control your dark side, and believe me Harry, you quite the sizeable dark side due to your past and the horrors that lay in it. From your parents death, to the Dursleys and I regret to say, some of my own mistakes this created a lot of anger. Pent up anger that manifested itself through the Duke. It controlled you and you cannot control it."
"Even if I could control it…I can't just let my anger go."
"You can Harry. You must find a sense of inner peace!"
"HOW?" shouted Harry in frustration. "How can I, Albus, everyone who has ever helped me has been taken from me. My parents…Sirius…now he has Ginny."
"I once had such a conundrum, Harry. It took me a long time to realize that, perhaps it was not about others helping me, rather, me helping them. I dedicated my life to teaching, and cultivating young minds. Through my helping them, they helped me. And there is someone who can help you. Someone who needs you." Dumbledore waved his wand; a tin box came rattling down the stairs. It was the same tin box that Ginny hid beneath her bed – the same box James had found Harry's old wand in.
"I have seen the contents of this box only once. It gave me hope for the future. Something that was extremely rare during the dark times at the height of the Empire." He handed Harry the box.
Inside were several pieces of paper; photos, letters.
Pictures of each of Ginny's brothers, her parents, a family photo, a ticket stub from a Holyhead Harpies game, a few birthday cards – her Hogwarts acceptance letter. Then Harry saw it. In an untidy, childlike scrawl was a letter;
Dear Santa,
I haven't written to you before, but Aunt Hermione was just telling me all about you and your rein deer – which I think are Hippogriffs.
She said that I should tell you what I want for Christmas this year. There is only one thing I want; a dad.
If I had a Dad it would make me really happy – I would get to play Quidditch with him and have fun like Teddy and Vic do with their Dads. But most important, it would make my mummy really happy. She is always so sad, and I think it is because she is lonely, so a Dad would mean that she wasn't lonely any more.
So that is pretty much it Santa. Please can I have a Dad?
Thank you,
James Weasley (Aged 6 ½)
As Harry read this letter tears flowed from his eyes. He picked up the final photo from the box; a picture of a happy, smiling, bouncing toddler sitting on a grinning Ginny's lap.
"My family…" Harry murmured. His anger and bloodlust dissipated almost instantly.
"Albus…I am so sorry. I need to control my dark side…for James. I missed his entire childhood…and I am not going to miss anything else. I am going to get him back. And Ginny. And everyone. I am going to get my family back." Harry resolved.
"You are ready for this Harry. The prophecy still needs to be fulfilled." Said Dumbledore, sagely.
"Where are they, Albus? Where is he holding them?" asked Harry.
"At Hogwarts. That is how I escaped. I cannot be a prisoner in the school that I am still Headmaster of." Albus explained.
"So that's how you escaped! Well, we can do it! We can break them out together!" Harry smiled, inspired.
"No, I must return to the School. I shall try to protect the children, and I cannot blow my cover."
"Right. Keep James and Ginny safe."
"Of course." Smiled Dumbledore, eyes twinkling, "There is, however, one last thing…something extremely important. Listen closely…"
XX
The students were led down into the depth of the Castle, staircase after staircase, until finally they reached a door labelled 'Gryffindor'.
They entered into what seemed like a Muggle Victorian classroom; wooden benches were lined up behind rows of long desks; this was the common room. Not a place for relaxation or rest, this was for work. Upon the whitewashed walls was a list of rules similar to that they had just been told by the Carrows. There were also a set of bells with small labels underneath; one said Slytherin, the others had a list of various teachers names.
"What are they?" murmured Teddy to James.
"No idea mate…"
"They're the service bells. When they ring we have to go see what the person ringing them wants. You must be the new folks the Slytherin students were bragging about."
"Yeah…we just got captured. All of us. I'm James, James Weasley."
"Weasley? I think my parents know your family. I'm Grant – Grant Boot."
The various introductions were made between the Gryffindors and the new arrivals.
"It isn't a great existence to be honest. But it's only a matter of time now before the resistance make their move and we are all free!" Grant shouted, raising a cheer from the other students.
James, Teddy and Victoire looked at each other sheepishly. Ryan Jones was the first to speak up.
"Its over." He spat, "there is no rebellion anymore. They were captured just like us. There is no hope left." He shook his head.
"The Empire is in charge now, and nobody is going to do anything about it."
The brief moment of hope and cheer that he mention of the rebellion had brought dissipated immediately.
"What? What do you mean?" asked one of the older students nervously.
"The Carrows were just showing off…the members of the rebellion that we lived with, they were out on a mission when we were captured. There is no way that they could get access to Headquarters unless they had been captured…or betrayed." Explained Victoire, she nervously glanced toward James, who remained stoic.
"For all we know they could be lying to us…besides there is at least one member of the Order still free – my Dad." He said. "If there is anyone who can help us it is him."
James just hoped he was right.
XX
Ginny was roughly thrown into a cell, still blindfolded. She heard more people being thrown into the cell behind her, before the clicking of a door locking. She moved her hands up to her eyes, removing the blindfold. She looked around her; the other members of the Order that had been at the attempted rescue. She ran over to her parents, and hugged them, afterwards locating each and every member of her family.
"Where is Ron?" asked Molly, worry etched upon her face, "And Hermione – Harry too?"
I don't know…I know Harry got away. He went to rescue James and the others."
"What do you mean?" asked Molly in shock; she didn't know that the children were in any danger.
"The trap…it wasn't just to capture us, whist we were distracted You-Know-Who was making a move on Headquarters. He was going to capture the children…"said Ginny, the fear evident in her voice.
"Vicrtoire…James…"gasped Molly, sitting down heavily at the thought of her Grandchildren in any danger.
"If anyone has laid a hand on my family. ONE FINGER!" shouted Arthur, momentarily losing his cool.
"Arthur?" came a voice out of the relative darkness.
"Remus – is that you?" Bill said.
"BILL!" Remus shouted back in shock. "What the hell happened – how did you get captured?"
"We went to rescue you! But it was a trap…" replied Bill, shame in his voice.
"How many of you did they get?" This was McGonagall's voice now.
"All of us…how could I be so stupid…"grumbled Bill.
"Don't be so over dramatic, Weasley." Snapped Moody, "Potter, Ron and Granger are all, yet unaccounted for."
"Well then," came the voice of Albus Dumbledore; you could almost hear the twinkle in his eye, "it appears that we are in very capable hands then."
XX
Harry apparated back to Grimmauld Place with a new sense of resolve running through him. Even if the place had been infiltrated by the enemy, this was not enemy territory and Harry would protect it.
He arrived and listened, he heard a distant thumping coming from the kitchen. He pulled out the Elder Wand, ready for a fight; this could well be the imposter that had been sneaking around as Harry. He approached the door. Taking a deep breath he stepped around wand pointed.
Only to be met with two wands pointed in his face.
"Harry!"
"Ron, Hermione! How did you…you escaped?"
"We got away shortly after you did. You brought the wards down."
"Well…where did you go then?"
"Our flat…where are the kids Harry? Where did you move them to?"
"I…I didn't move them. They were taken." Ron and Hermione gasped in shock.
"The guy running around as The Duke…he was here when I got back. He took them, they must have gone with him – he was polyjuiced to look like me I guess."
"Well…where are they – and everyone else? We have to get them back." said Hermione
"Hogwarts…they're at Hogwarts."
"How the hell do we get in there!" said Ron, exasperated.
"We'll figure out a way, Ron." Smiled Harry, placing his hand on Ron's shoulder.
"We always do." Smiled Hermione, putting her arms around her husband and friend's shoulders, before Ron grinning said, wryly,
"Well, looks like it's down to the three of us, as usual. The golden trio rides again!"
