Susan Bones figures something out and Harry finds himself a VERY unexpected ally. Also, don't make Goyle angry, you won't like him when he's angry...


Harry woke the next morning to a soft prodding of his shoulder, he opened sleep blurred eyes to peer at Dobby. "Master Harry needs to be getting up now," Dobby whispered. Harry yawned and nodded at the elf, stretching he felt Blaise shift behind him. Harry rolled over to look at the darker boy in the scant light that the small brazier in their room threw. Harry's mind turned to the recurring dream he'd been having, trying to figure out what was important. Blaise's eyes opened minutely to squint at Harry.

"Hey," he said softly.

"Hi," returned Harry, "I didn't mean to wake you, I'm about to get up though. Hospital Wing."

Blaise nodded and stifled a yawn in the pillow, "mmm, you okay? You sound off." Harry shrugged, Blaise's eyes opened a little wider to peer at Harry's face, "you had that dream again?" Harry made a small noise of assent. Blaise frowned and slipped an arm around Harry. "I hope you figure it out soon, I don't like that you aren't sleeping properly, especially as you're working so hard at the moment. I don't want you to get sick too," he said worriedly.

Harry gave him a smile, "I'll be okay, Blaise," he said confidently. Leaning in he brushed his lips against the other boys, slightly thrilled he got to wake up like this. He pulled back, a bigger smile on his face that Blaise returned sleepily. "Now go back to sleep, you've got hours before you need to be up." Blaise yawned and nodded, closing his eyes Harry watched for a moment as sleep quickly returned to the Slytherin. Shaking his head in light amusement he slipped out of Blaise's hold and summoning some clothes, hit the shower.


Harry was walking quickly down the corridor eating the last few bites of a bacon sandwich Dobby had made for him. Just as he was turning into the main corridor he saw Susan who was coming up the stairs, obviously having just come from the Great Hall. "Morning, Susan," he said before he popped the last bite into his mouth.

"Morning, Harry!" she said brightly, Susan was the very definition of a morning person, she was always bright and bubbly first thing. Harry couldn't help but smile back. Especially as that warm feeling from this morning had yet to leave his chest. Susan's eyes narrowed inquisitively at his smile, then went wide upon realisation, "so Harry," she began in a teasing tone, "who's the lucky girl then?"

Harry startled as they fell into step, "er, I dunno what you mean Susan," Harry said trying to be casual.

Susan laughed and bumped her shoulder into his, "it's written all over your face Harry."

Harry stopped and brought a hand up to rub his cheek, confused, "what is?"

Susan rolled her eyes and laughed again, "oh Harry," she said shaking her head. Her twin braids slapping her shoulders as she did. "You don't have to tell me who you're seeing, but I'm glad that you have someone that makes you that happy."

Harry just stared at her, how did she just know? Was she a seer too? "er, thanks, Susan," he said lamely, looking down a little embarrassed.

She nudged him again as they started walking, "have you been seeing each other long?"

Harry shrugged, "I dunno, we just sort of started hanging out this year and now it sort of feels like we've been together for a lot longer than that."

Susan gave him a pleased look, "that's really wonderful Harry. How many dates have you been on?"

Harry bit his lip as he realised the answer to that question, "uh, none, actually, it's um, well it's hard to explain.."

Susan gave him an understanding glance, "no it's not Harry, I think I can guess how hard it must be for you to find someone who doesn't want to be with you just for your fame, as fickle as that is. And why you want to stay out of the public eye." The corner of Harry's mouth dimpled wryly at that, they were silent for a moment as Susan picked up on Harry's now more morose mood. Suddenly Susan made a noise of excitement. Harry looked at her with his eyebrows raised, he really was picking up some habits from Blaise. "What about the Room of Requirement?" she said.

"What about it?" Harry said cautiously.

"You could ask it to set up a date spot for you! I'm sure it does more than just turn into a duelling room!" she said enthusiastically. Harry chuckled and listened as she went on to describe various things he could ask for. They were rounding the last corner and Susan was still going, "oh! And what about a table on the Eiffel Tower? You know Paris is so romantic, or maybe you could ask it to turn into a field of flowers for a picnic!" she said as she clapped her hands together in excitement.

"Okay, okay, Susan, calm down." Harry laughed, Susan laughed with him and Harry felt that warm feeling he associated with Blaise returned as he contemplated some of Susan's ideas. Some he discarded right away as they were too girly and he shuddered at the thought of a replica of Madame Puddifoots, but others had merit. Though his mind did keep straying to one in particular.

Susan was watching the look on Harry's face turn thoughtful and happy, she was really pleased for her friend and hoped that whoever this mystery girl was, was good enough for Harry. He'd certainly had enough bad things happen in his life, with all the stuff that went down at Hogwarts every year. "Oh and Harry?" she said, Harry looked back at her, "your secret is safe with me."

He gave her a genuine smile then, "I know, thanks, Susan," and with that, the two friends entered the Hospital Wing and got a start on their busy day.


Harry leant back against the wall in the office for a minute, just taking a short breather, he'd been going non-stop since he walked through the doors with Susan this morning. Soon he would have to start the lunch rounds, which meant more arguing with the patients. In his haste for a few moments of peace he hadn't noticed Poppy standing by the cabinets looking over their stocks and at his large sigh, she chuckled softly, startling him. "I recognise that look," she said with a smile when she had his attention. "That's the 'how many more times do I have to tell a patient the same thing' look."

Harry grinned back at her, "except when that thought was running through my head, there were a few more colourful word choices." She laughed again with Harry joining her. Healer Spleen walked in at that moment, glancing between the two of them with an amused look on his face.

"I was just teaching Harry that you have to enjoy all the funny moments you can when you're a Healer," Poppy said with a twinkle in her eye.

"Oh, absolutely!" agreed Helbert, "actually I heard a rather good joke the other day, it was about a troll who walked into a bar and do you know what he said?"

"What?" asked Harry.

"OUCH!" exclaimed Helbert.

Harry snorted, "that's terrible," he said with a grin.

"Ah! But you smiled! So, therefore, it's a good joke!" Helbert grinned back. Shaking his head Harry stood off the wall and went back into the main ward to start administering the lunchtime routines.


Harry had almost come to the end of his row when he pulled back the curtain to see little Stewart Ackerley. "Hey Stewart, how are you feeling today?" Harry asked as he approached the bedside. The boy just shrugged despondently as Harry started the standard diagnostics. He rolled up the bedcovers and Stewarts trouser bottoms to check the progression of the rash, it had spread to just above his ankles now. Putting everything back in place Harry called for Flimbo and the lunchtime potions and meal. "Are the bandages working?" Harry asked, "are you itching at all?"

Stewart downed the first potion Harry handed him and then shook his head. Harry frowned at the boy. "You know this isn't your fault right?" he questioned the boy.

Stewart looked up and burst out, "but it is! If I hadn't have gone on the holiday and fallen in dragon dung then I wouldn't sick! And then no-one else would be sick!" he told Harry as his lower lip trembled.

Harry put his hand on the young boy's shoulder to comfort him, "Stewart, what were you supposed to have done? Not go on your family vacation just because you might get sick? You weren't to know that this was going to happen. You can't blame yourself for this, no-one else does."

Stewart looked at Harry, "are you sure? I would if I was them, people are going to die because of me," his eyes started to spill over as he said this.

"Hey now," Harry said soothingly giving the boys shoulder a squeeze, "do you think Madame Pomfrey or I will let that happen? Or Healer Spleen or Healer Strout? We are going to do everything in our power to make sure that doesn't happen okay?"

Stewart looked slightly cheered by this and he nodded, he reached for his lunch and brought a forkful to his mouth, "thanks, Apprentice Harry," he said before he started eating.

"No worries Stewart, you just focus on getting better okay? And I'll focus on everyone else." Stewart nodded a looked slightly cheered by their conversation. Harry left Stewart to his lunch as he moved onto his last patient for his lunch hour checks. He nodded to Healer Spleen as they passed each other. The man had been very helpful, giving Harry all his notes that he made over the years about things that seemed to work and not work against the disease, they had spent many hours discussing various theories and Harry had been trying to come up with a cure. He'd sent Fred & George into the muggle world to bring him lab equipment and all the medical journals they could find on similar muggle diseases.

Harry opened the curtain and drew up short, his last patient was Gregory Goyle and Harry suddenly knew the reason behind the recurring nightmare.


Goyle looked up at Harry's sharp intake of breath, "what?" he grunted.

Harry shook his head to clear it, "n-nothing, sorry I, I'll just get to it yeah?" Goyle gave another grunt and Harry performed the spells, casting questioning looks at Goyle as he did so. When the results came back the same as they had that morning, he called for Goyle's lunch. Giving the big Slytherin another look as he made sure he swallowed the potions.

"What?" demanded Goyle again, "have I got something on my face?"

Harry was slightly stunned though he didn't show it, it was the most he had ever heard Goyle say in one go. "Er, no. No, I, well I just wanted to say I'm sorry." Goyle looked at him like he was crazy, "about your mum," Harry clarified, "I- well I know what happened to her and I'm sorry she died like that."

The expression that crossed the bulky boy's face was scary, Harry rather thought that he was going to get hit, but instead, Goyle just sneered an ugly sneer, "and how would you know what happened to her?" He said menacingly.

Harry swallowed, he had a chance here, to get some answers he thought and he didn't think it would take much on his behalf to get them. He quickly threw up some privacy spells and summoned a chair to Goyle's bedside, listening to his gut he threw caution to the wind. "I saw it, I saw what they did to her."

Goyle blinked stupidly at him for a moment before sneering again, "impossible you couldn't have been there, hardly anyone was there."

"Voldemort was angry with her, I think she said something that undermined or second guessed his power? He called her forward and called her a blood traitor. He crucioed her for ages before he let Bellatrix and the Lestrange brothers have their 'fun'. Bellatrix used a knife, the brothers…" Harry could barely think it let alone say it, he saw Goyle's face go pale even as the fury mounted in his eyes. "And then her husband, your Dad…"

"go on Marcus, you should have the dubious honour of killing your blood traitor of a wife." Came the sibilant tones of Lord Voldemort. As the bearded man looked down at the mess of a person that his fellow Death Eaters had left, he showed no emotion in his eyes as the two most fatal words in Wizarding history came out of his mouth.

Goyle's face was hard as he stared at Harry, "how do you know this," he hissed.

"It's not really a secret, but it's not exactly well known either. Voldemort can send me visions, he sent me that one over the summer," Harry told him. It didn't really matter if Goyle was a Death Eater or Death Eater in training, Harry wasn't telling him something that Voldemort didn't know already.

Goyle sat there silently, minutes passed as both just stared at each other, "I don't know what you expect me to say, Potter," Goyle said finally.

"Nothing I suppose," Harry allowed, "I just, there's something I wanted to ask you." Goyle looked at him and then nodded, grunting his assent. "How can you follow them? Be involved with that? When they did that to your mum?" Harry asked confusion written all over his face.

Goyle snorted, darkly amused, "the world isn't as black and white as you think it is Saint Potter."

"Would you explain it to me then? Because after what they did I can't understand why you haven't exacted revenge."

Goyle looked at Harry, "what can I do Potter? My fathers involved my family with the Dark Lord, I can't remain neutral now. I won't go to the light side because I don't agree with their stance on things. If I tried to remain neutral my father would kill me or hurt me until I complied anyway. I don't want what happens to Th- others to happen to me and I'm working on my revenge."

Harry was quiet for a moment, "can I ask what's so bad about the light side? I mean I know the hate speech that Lord Voldemort preaches, but why are you against it? What are the reasons exactly, and spare me the slurs."

"Primarily," Harry started slightly, he didn't think Goyle had it in him to be so articulate, Merlin some Slytherins really were sneaky, "the way they want to change the wizarding world to suit Muggleborns at the exclusion of wizarding tradition."

Harry frowned, "how so?" he asked.

"Of course you wouldn't know, you were raised by muggles," Goyle sneered, "but to give you an example, Samhain, is now Halloween," Goyle spat the word as if it left a nasty taste in his mouth. "Instead of celebrating life, family and the rites of communing with our dead, we now have to endure a feast of candy that makes a mockery of our traditions. People, muggles, dress up in offensive costumes and make witches and wizards out to be the bad guys. They dress as trolls and vampires and other magical races that ridicules their heritage and the way they live. All to appease a group of people who weren't born into our culture. They come along and don't try to understand or assimilate and they stomp all over the way we do things because they think their way is 'better'."

Harry looked a little stunned, he had never thought of how the muggle Halloween had begun in the wizarding world, and really if you looked at it from that point of view you could see how the people who supported Voldemort were swayed to his side. Goyle continued, "for another, those muggleborns who come in thinking they know how our world should be run or changed for the 'better' like your friend Granger, they don't look deep enough. They see something they don't like and try to change it without trying to understand any deeper meaning or comprehension." Harry was reminded painfully of Hermione's SPEW campaign. "Do you know how often a muggleborn has approached the Wizengamot or the sitting Minister or the Department of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and tried to free House-elves? They refuse to believe that House-elves are bound because they need to live off our magic."

"Okay," said Harry, "I can see your point and I can even agree on those things, but what about those laws that do need changing? Like some of the laws against werewolves that make it hard for them to find work? Or how about instigating laws for the proper treatment of house-elves so they can't be abused?"

Goyle looked at Harry appraisingly, "the world isn't perfect Potter."

"and you said it's not black and white either, why can't there be a middle ground? A grey area? I would hasten to bet that those same muggleborns wouldn't have fought so hard for house-elf freedom had they been educated and some laws protecting house-elves were passed and it's obvious we need muggleborns, to help point out those areas of injustice that the wizarding world has overlooked or missed."

Goyle inclined his head, "perhaps, but how do you propose to educate them?"

Harry spread his hands and looked around them, "right here, you said it yourself, I'm muggle-raised, but I have no idea about the wizarding traditions. How am I supposed to learn about them? I didn't know anything about Samhain until you told me, now that I know there's something I actually wouldn't mind finding out more. But if we had never spoken how was I supposed to know? History of Magic is a joke, and there aren't any classes on wizarding traditions. Muggleborns aren't even given introductory books on integrating into this society. How can you expect them to respect something they don't understand or even know about?"

Goyle blinked at him stupidly for a moment before doing something that shocked Harry to his core, he laughed. Well, it was more of a chuckle but still, "you make it sound so simple Potter."

"Well, why can't it be? Why can't we compromise on these issues? Instead of just saying no to each other all the time and letting it fester to a point someone like Voldemort can come in and use that bigotry and hate to put himself in power. Perhaps if we were more focused on helping each other and integration then these things wouldn't happen," Harry pointed out reasonably.

"What would you do Potter? You'll be Lord Potter someday and sit on the Wizengamot, what will you do?" Goyle asked interestedly.

Harry rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "well as we already talked about I'd like to be able to introduce laws that protect and help magical creatures. Another thing would be to start the integration of muggleborn students earlier. Hogwarts is able to identify students when they show their first bout of accidental magic, why can't we have introductory packages sent out to help raise them as future witches and wizards? Give them books on how our world works and I dunno, wizarding fairytales or something. Books on wizarding traditions if they are as important as you say. Yearly visits to Hogwarts, and trips into Diagon Alley and the like."

"You seem to have given this some thought Potter," Goyle said.

Harry shrugged, "I only recently found out about my Lordship since then I've done quite a bit of thinking."

"And how do you propose to not come up with the same half-baked ideas of previous muggle-borns?" Goyle asked scathingly.

"I have good people around me, people who wouldn't let me. A lot of them are purebloods too." Harry told him as he leant back in the chair, placing his ankle on his knee.

"What, the Weasley family? A bunch of muggle-loving Light wizards?" Goyle snorted scornfully.

Harry inclined his head, "yes, but they aren't the only ones." Goyle raised his eyebrows at Harry, waiting for Harry to divulge who they were, Harry smirked back at him. "I don't have to tell you who they are, just know they wouldn't let me look a fool."

Goyle grunted and looked away from Harry for a moment, "do you think you can do it?" he asked quietly.

Harry didn't have to ask what he meant, he knew the other boy was talking about Voldemort. He also felt it was important to answer Goyle truthfully, he couldn't say why it was just this feeling in his gut and Harry had long stopped questioning it. "Honestly? I don't know, I do know that whatever happens I'll face him one day, and on that day I will do everything in my power to stop him."

Goyle's eyes searched Harry's face and he nodded at the determination he saw there, "who stands with you when you do?" he asked.

Harry frowned, "if I had it my way, no-one. I don't want people to get hurt because of me, I don't want people to die because of me. But," he sighed, "I know my friends will demand to be there. Like they did at the Ministry last year, I think I spent more time arguing with them about not coming than we did getting to the Ministry from Hogwarts."

Goyle snorted, "you wouldn't ask them to come with you? Even if it might mean that you die for sure?"

Harry shook his head, "I sometimes think about stunning them all and locking them up under a fidelus somewhere." He said smiling a little at Goyle to invite him to share the joke, which the Slytherin did if the twitch of his lips was anything to go by. "But I know that if I did that and managed to survive Voldemort, they'd kill me." Goyle snorted again.

The big Slytherin sighed, "Do you know what I think about Potter?" Harry shook his head, he'd never thought Goyle had thoughts, which was pretty mean of him really, and unfair as they'd been having a pretty interesting conversation so far. "I think about what I want my life to be, I want a good home, someone to love, a few kids and the freedom to do what I want. I want to live on my family's property and just, do what Goyle's are supposed to do. I don't want to be involved in politics or agendas. I really don't want to be involved in a war, but I think that's unavoidable at this point."

Harry nodded, "what does your family do? I don't think I've ever been told."

Goyle shrugged, "we raise many different kinds of magical creatures and collect material from them to sell on to apothecaries, stationary stores and potions masters." At Harry's cautious look he replied, "we don't hurt them, Potter, we collect what's discarded like feathers, or we milk venom from Ashwinders and the like. We only sell on organs and stuff when there's a death." Harry must have looked relieved because Goyle gave him a disgruntled look.

"Sorry, I just, well I didn't know and you and your family don't exactly have the best reputation," Harry stated apologetically.

Goyle just nodded with a grunt, "we used to you know, there was a time when people first heard our name that they thought of superior potions ingredients. They didn't think 'thug' or 'dark wizards' even though we have never exactly been light."

"Is that why you like CoMC so much?" Harry asked hoping to make the conversation lighter, "I had noticed that was you seem to pay more attention in that class."

Goyle grunted, "yeah, I particularly liked the class on Crups last year, I have a breeding pair at home now, that I want to try my hand at."

"That sounds like a nice future," Harry replied. Picturing what Goyle had in mind, they were silent for a few minutes.

"Would you help me achieve it?" Goyle asked startling Harry out of his mini daydream.

"What?" said a shocked Harry.

"If I swear the fealty to House Goyle to House Potter, would you do everything you can to defeat the Dark Lord and help me secure that future?"

Harry looked at him stunned for a minute, "er, I'm going to do that anyway," he said truthfully. Unsure as to what Goyle was getting at.

Goyle chuckled and plucked his wand from the bedside table, Harry giving it a wary look, "perhaps you should have been in Slytherin, alright Potter, I, Lord Gregory Henry Goyle, of the Ancient and Noble House of Goyle, swear the fealty of my House, the wand, the word and the confidentiality of my House, to the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter. So long as the House of Potter keeps faith with the House of Goyle. So mote it be."

Harry saw the tip of Goyle's wand flair and a strange sensation in his chest as his mouth opened and he responded, "I Lord Harry James Potter, of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter, accept the oath as it has been put forth by the House of Goyle. I swear to keep the faith and honour the duties of Liege Lord to the House of Goyle." Harry's own wand flared and he blinked at the rush of magic that flowed through him. "Er…."

"First time accepting an Oath of Fealty, Potter? Or are you just surprised it was me?" Goyle asked with a sly grin.

"Er… both?" Harry offered, "what, uh, what just happened? And how did you do it? How are you Lord and how am I?"

Goyle shrugged, "there is a loophole in the Goyle family which my father obviously forgot about, the Heir can attain Lordship if the current Lord has been legally declared insane or mentally incompetent. I used my memories of certain acts committed by my father to have a Healer and a Lawyer declare him as such. I stole the Lord ring," here he held up his hand to flash it at Harry before it disappeared again, "and replaced it with a fake. My father will never know the difference," he snorted. "As for you, I don't know, magic obviously see's you as Lord Potter otherwise you would have accepted as the Heir."

"Right, okay," Harry said still a little stunned and uncertain about what had just happened but unwillingly to show such things to Goyle. "So now what?"

"Now, you do your best to see me through this illness and we discuss whatever else later." Goyle told him with a shrug, "I'll stand with you against V- the Dark Lord, when the time comes, be it with my wand or Wizengamot vote they are both yours."

Harry shook his head, "I won't ask you to fight for me."

"That's why I will," Goyle told him as he settled back against the pillows, "because you give me a choice, besides if I stand with you I'll have a better shot of avenging my mother." He said with a vicious smile.

Harry nodded, "okay, well, thank you."

Goyle shrugged, "you've given me a lot to think about, and the most hope I've had in a long time and perhaps this way, even if we lose, I can somewhat redeem the family name." Goyle told Harry, Harry offered him a small smile. "Come and speak to me again tomorrow, I think I've taken up enough of your time today." Harry cast a tempus charm and saw Goyle was right, he winced, they'd been speaking for nearly an hour.

"Shit, yeah I better get back to work. Er, thanks, I suppose, for the chat and well, everything."

Goyle grunted in acknowledgement and Harry left.


Later that afternoon Harry was in the Room of Requirement in the main room that he shared with his friends. He was lying on his stomach in front of the fire, trying to study the books that had arrived for him today from the twins, they had managed to procure the items he had asked them for. Though he wasn't sure he wanted to know how much they had spent on the microscope, or if they had brought it all. It was far too good a quality to have been available at any standard scientific/medicinal supplier. His concentration wasn't very good though, and the notes he had managed to take were sporadic at best. The conversation with Goyle kept bouncing to the forefront of his mind. He was frowning so hard at the books that he didn't even notice when Blaise and the girls entered the room. He jumped slightly when Blaise sat down on the floor next to him.

"Hello Harry, what are you studying?" Blaise asked with a warm smile.

Harry returned Blaise's smile with a faint one of his own, "I'm trying to look through these books the twins got for me."

"No luck?" asked Blaise.

Harry shrugged, "I dunno, I can't concentrate."

"Something on your mind?" Harry hummed and looked back at the books, flicking back a couple of pages when he realised he had no idea what this chapter was talking about. Blaise squeezed his hand, "I'm here if you want to talk." Harry nodded absently and Blaise got up to join the girls at one of the tables and work on his Transfiguration essay. He couldn't work comfortably on the floor like Harry seemed to be able to. It made him frown to think about why Harry might be so comfortable down there, shaking his head to dispel those thoughts he set to work.

It was hours later and nearing dinner time and Harry had yet to move an inch from his spot on the floor. Blaise was starting to get a little worried about him as Harry had barely made a sound apart from the odd scratching of his quill. Ron, Neville and Luna entered the room noisily and Harry didn't even acknowledge their presence. Ron took one look at Harry and flopped onto a beanbag, he craned his head backwards to look at Blaise, "well, something weird has happened today. How longs he been like this?"

"A few hours at least, he hasn't moved since we returned from our last lesson," Blaise told the redhead.

"Ah," replied Ron, settling into a beanbag more comfortably. "Chess anyone?"

"You're not worried?" Blaise asked, moving to sit on the couch that the others were coming to think of Harry and Blaise's.

"Nah, not yet," Ron said confidently pulling the chessboard in front of him, "game?" he asked the Slytherin with a hopeful look.

Blaise took another look at Harry and then nodded, "does he do this often?" Blaise asked, feeling weird for talking about Harry when he was quite literally, only a few feet away.

Ron shook his head, "no, but I've seen him do it often enough not to be worried. He'll snap out of it eventually and ask some random question or tell us about something weird he saw or found out."

Blaise nodded and threw glances at Harry throughout the match, paying more attention to his mate than to the game itself. Though he paid it sufficient enough attention, that he only narrowly lost to Ron. "Good game," Ron said as he packed the board up, "perhaps if you looked at the board more instead of Harry's arse you might've won."

Blaise startled at Ron's lewd comment, "I.."

Ron smirked and was about to speak again, when they both heard, "what was that about my arse, Ron?"

"Nothing," Ron said innocently, "just that Blaise seems to find it fascinating,"

Blaise and Harry both darkened at Ron's words and sent the other a fleeting, flushed look, "that's not what I was doing and you know it," Blaise told the ginger haired Gryffindor.

Ron just grinned and then turned to Harry, "so what's up?"

Harry leant back on his hands and sighed, "I dunno, I just, I had a weird conversation with Goyle today."

Ron's eyebrows shot into his hairline and he exclaimed, "GOYLE? You had a conversation with GOYLE?!"

The rest of the group perked up and came over to the sitting area, "what's this about Gregory I hear?" asked Tracey.

"Gregory?!" Ron repeated looking at the brunette stunned.

Neville sat in an armchair and pulled Luna into his lap, "the conversation might go better if you stop repeating everything Ron." he teased.

Ron stuck his finger up at Neville and looked back at Harry, "well?"

"Er, right, well, I'd just finished my lunch rounds and we got to talking. About lots of different things, know that I think about it, it's like he was interviewing me." Harry said, looking down at his jumper, he picked some non-existent lint off.

"Interviewing you?" asked Ron and Tracey at the same time.

Blaise, Daphne and Neville exchanged looks, as Harry went on. "Yeah so anyway, we er, well we talked about his mum," Harry said with a quick look at Blaise whose eyes widened slightly at the connection he made, "and about laws and Voldemort and what he wants out of life and then er.."

Blaise leant forward, "he swore fealty to you didn't he?" he asked Harry and Harry nodded.

"WHAT?!" Ron exclaimed loudly.

"How though?" asked Neville, "as far as I know his father is still alive, how did he succeed him?"

"There's an insanity clause in the Lordship for the House of Goyle," Daphne told them. They all looked at her, "I overheard Gregory and Theodore talking about it once. I didn't think anything of it then, but that's what he did didn't he?" She asked Harry.

Harry nodded, "yeah but he hasn't told anyone except me, his father isn't even aware of it, Goyle made a fake ring and is tricking his father, for now, apparently, only Goyle and a Healer know about it, and now us apparently."

"I would think Theo knows too," Tracey said thoughtfully, "those two are very close."

"Really?" asked Ron, "we never see Goyle without Malfoy or Crabbe."

"The Slytherin Common Room is very different to our public faces, Ron." Tracey told him, "we are generally a little more relaxed in there. Theo and Greg grew up together, they are best friends."

Harry was replaying some of his conversation with Goyle in his head. Was it Nott that Goyle had almost let slip that got physically abused. Harry tried to think about what he knew about the straw-haired boy and he could only really think of the relief that had shown on his face when he got sick. Was that why? Blaise interrupted Harry's thoughts before they could go any deeper. "What exactly did he swear Harry?"

"Er, he swore the family's fealty, wand, words and confidentiality," Harry replied.

Neville whistled, "that's pretty serious, Harry."

"How come?" he asked adjusting himself so he was sitting cross legged.

Blaise answered, "he swore to you that the Goyle family would be faithful to you and you alone, he swore that their wands would fight with you, that his votes on the Wizengamot would be yours and that he would keep your secrets. Most Houses only swear to one of those."

"Exactly Harry," Daphne spoke up, "the Greengrass Oath to House Potter is considered unusual because we only swore fealty and confidentiality. Which means we can choose to fight if there was a need, and we can choose what to do with our votes. Even though I think we have nearly always voted with the Potters."

"Oh," replied Harry eyes wide, realising now the extent of what Goyle had done. He'd essentially given Harry complete control of him.

Ron was the next one to speak up, "and Harry, the scary thing is, if Goyle Senior ever lifts his wand on you. Magic will kill him and magic does bad things to Oathbreakers."

Harry's mouth dropped as he realised that Goyle had also just given his father a death sentence.


AN: Hey, sooooooo... what did you think? Did anyone see that coming?

Also looking for ideas on pairings can be background or main. Obviously, Ron is going to get with Tracey when he finally figures it out, and I have a couple of things bouncing in my head, but I am open to other ideas! Let me know if there is something in particular you would like to see and if I can make it work, then I'll probably do it.

Much love
Ariel
xxx