Disclaimer: Anything familiar to JKR's books probably comes from there and is hers not mine. Also, Harry Potter, Hogwarts, the Wizarding World, and anything else that has to do with it belongs to the lovely JK Rowling, not me. I'm just playing in her sandbox and building my own Hogwarts in it.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
"So you're saying that He created six Horcruxes, and you've all been searching for them for over a year without telling us?" Hermione demanded, and the four teens who had known about the pieces of soul nodded, unabashed.
"Why did you keep it a secret?" Theo demanded, and Harry felt Tracey wince slightly next to him, so he gave Theo a sharp look that made him at least look embarrassed and a bit shameful for his words, even if they all knew he had good reason for saying them.
"Isn't it obvious?" Luna asked, and everyone turned to face the blond Ravenclaw. "If they had told you before now, then the blatnikof might have heard!"
"What's a blatnikof?" Astoria asked for the group, though Harry had an idea of what Luna was trying to say and was beginning to feel relieved.
"Not a blatnikof, the blatnikof," Luna replied. "They're a group of tiny little creatures so small that they can't be seen, but they hear things others aren't supposed to know and pass on the secrets really quickly, making it so that the secret isn't a secret anymore."
Harry had to smile a bit as it was Luna's roundabout way to remind the others that they had kept the secret to themselves because, if they hadn't and it had been overheard even in passing, others might have found out and that would have been really bad.
"We told the kids not to tell you," Samuel added from the doorway, surprising most of the group but Harry and Tracey, who had expected the adults to listen in from the other room.
"I want you all to tell us something and be completely truthful about it," Remus continued as the adults entered the room, giving the rest of the group of teens a neutral look. "Tell us that you would have been able to handle this information two years ago, even a year ago."
"I would have," Draco and Theo said immediately in sync, and Remus gave them both a long look, obviously thinking it over.
"Yes, you out of everyone probably would have been able to handle it," he admitted, and the adults looked a little ashamed about keeping it from them as they thought about it, "but you did not know Occlumency at the time, and we don't know if you fathers wouldn't have gotten the information from you in some way."
Draco and Theo looked at the ground. It was obvious to anyone looking, especially Harry, that they realized Remus was correct about their fathers. Harry knew how hard it was for them to live in their fathers' shadows, in a way, but there was nothing they could do about it but live with the problem.
"We'd have rather kept this all from Daphne and Astoria," Samantha said, and the mentioned girls gave their mother identical annoyed looks, "but they were here when Daniel and I realized the truth. Of course, Harry would also need more help than just Tracey, so we didn't stop them from learning what they could."
"Plus, we'd have done research on our own if they had forbidden us," Astoria muttered under her breath from Harry's left, and he chuckled silently as Daphne added to her sister's mutterings.
"It's not like we don't already know more about the Dark Arts than basically anyone in the group besides Draco, Theo, and Harry."
Luckily for the two girls, no one besides Harry and Tracey heard their murmurs, though Harry had a hard time keeping a straight face at Astoria's line, though Daphne did that immediately. He hadn't realized she had noticed his reading in the Room of Requirement when he hadn't been practicing for anything. Tracey and Ginny had, but only because he had wanted to explain that the reasoning behind it was to know as much of what Voldemort and his followers might use against him to better protect himself.
"The only person we gave them permission to tell was Ginny," Sirius added, breaking Harry from his thoughts. "If anyone earned the truth, it had to be the girl possessed by a Horcrux herself."
None of the others had any response to that fact as it wasn't something even they could deny, despite their annoyance at being out of the loop for so long.
"Besides, it's not like we were doing any research or anything," Harry spoke up, reminding his friends that the four of them were still there, listening. "Our job was mainly to keep an eye out for something that might belong to Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw around the school, nothing more."
"The lost diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw," Luna said as she looked up at the ceiling, smiling slightly.
"Yes, that's why I looked at the statue that one time," Harry admitted, smiling at his friend. "Thank you for informing me about it as we found the diadem. Your story made it easier for me to recognize it."
Luna only nodded, but Harry recognized the response to his gratitude and turned away from her to face the rest.
"More than once we nagged the adults to let us tell you, but they always said no, the time wasn't right to tell you," Harry sighed. "Now I realize they wanted it to be something you could handle, and most of you wouldn't have been able to handle this before…" Harry hesitated for a moment before finishing the sentence, "before the Third Task. At least, you wouldn't have been able to handle all of it."
Harry watched as his friends digested everything they had been told, and as some slumped their shoulders in defeat and others softened, he knew that they had won this round. It had been lucky that the adults had finally come in and admitted their part in the secret keeping, for the others wouldn't have believed them completely when he and the other three told them the truth.
"There's only one more left, right?" Susan asked, and all four nodded.
"Do you have any idea where it might be?" Blaise almost demanded, and Daphne glared at him, making him stumble back a step in shock and fear.
"We will be continuing the search while you're all at school," Daniel said, saving Harry from having to answer. "This final one will most likely be the hardest as we don't have much of an idea for where to search."
"Maybe he gave it to someone else to hide," Natalie guessed, and all of those previously knowledgeable turned to look at her. Harry felt shock running through his veins as he realized the possibilities of that. "It was just an idea," Natalie said a bit defensively, and Harry realized they were just staring at her.
"We're not staring at you because it's a bad idea, Natalie, but because it's a really good one that we hadn't thought of," Astoria told her friend, and the twelve-year-old blinked before grinning.
"So I helped?" she asked hopefully, and Harry's lips grew into a grin as he nodded.
"You definitely helped, Natalie," he stated.
"Voldemort gave the Diary to my father," Draco said softly, "so he might have given that Cup of Hufflepuff you mentioned to another of his closest, most loyal followers."
"I'd say Lestrange," Neville hissed, his eyes narrowing at the thought of her.
"It could also be Theo's father, though – sorry Theo," Maya reminded the angry Gryffindor as Theo nodded in understanding. "There's also that Avery you saw at the graveyard, Harry, or any of the Inner Circle, really."
"All very good points," Samuel said, "and we'll take all of these suggestions as leads to follow. Thank you all for the ideas. If you get anymore, please, don't hesitate to tell us as long as no one else can overhear you, though that's only if you're at Hogwarts when you think of it."
They all nodded in understanding. Harry then tried to figure out a way to get their minds off the dark thoughts Horcruxes brought to any decent person's mind, especially Voldemort's Horcruxes.
"Last one to the Quidditch Pitch while transformed has to do the dishes!" he called out, taking off towards the doorway, transforming and hitting the ground on four legs the moment he passed through. Behind him, his friends were yelling at him "Not fair!" before transforming and following him themselves.
With his sensitive ears, Harry almost swore he heard the adults chuckling before he was out of hearing range, panting with his tongue hanging from his mouth as he pounded away at the ground.
…
Fleur Delacour walked into the Leaky Cauldron during her lunch break at Gringotts. She had told Bill that she would meet him after work because a friend from her year at Hogwarts wanted to have lunch. It wasn't exactly a lie, but it also wasn't the truth.
Harry had written to her and asked her to meet his Secret Keeper here sometime in the afternoon, so she had given him the time of her lunch and made plans to eat here.
Looking around, she finally spotted a blond woman that reminded her of Harry's two friends Daphne and Astoria, so Fleur gathered she was their mother.
Weaving in and out of tables, Fleur slid into the booth across from the woman, who smiled and nodded at her before offering a plate of fish and chips to Fleur, who smiled back and gratefully took the meal, famished after hours of working.
"You are Daphne and Astoria's mozer, no?" Fleur asked, and the woman nodded.
"Samantha Greengrass," she replied, holding out her hand, which Fleur shook politely. "The kids told me about the Tournament; you did well."
"Zank you, but 'Arry and Cedric did better than me," Fleur said, shaking her head sadly to rid herself of the memories of Cedric. She knew that she, Viktor, and Harry had been hit hardest by his death outside of his closest friends with how much time they spent together, but knowing that still didn't help one get over the pain.
"But you were still chosen out of all of those from Beauxbatons, and you survived the Tournament," Samantha stated. "That alone shows you've got talent." The woman shook her head. "We're not here to talk about the Tournament, though, but your wish to fight against Riddle."
Fleur understood who Riddle was and why Harry's friend wished to use that name rather than Voldemort. The Daily Prophet was doing much to discredit Harry, Dumbledore, and Voldemort's return, so speaking of it in public, even in the corner of a pub under a spell, was not something one did.
"'E killed Cedric," Fleur said in a monotone, unwilling to show her emotion at the fact. "Zere needs to be somezing I can do to 'elp against ze man – no, ze monster – zat did zis to a great man. I want to fight to stop 'im from doing zis again if I can."
"Would you be willing to train and help the other kids that train with Harry?" Samantha asked, and Fleur nodded without hesitation. "While working at Gringotts, would you listen for anything that might help us in the long run as long as it won't get you in trouble? We won't ask you to try to get the goblins on our side as you have your job to worry about, but any gossip you hear, we'd like to know about."
"All of zat I can do easily," Fleur said. "And if you need anyzing more of me, please, just ask."
"We will," Samantha stated while reaching a hand into her robe pocket. "Do not read this in here, and burn it the moment you've memorized it."
Fleur took the folded slip of parchment that was slid across the table, placing it into her own pocket before finishing her meal in silence, only now beginning to realize that Harry friend's would allow her to help without asking much of her. It was something she was willing to do, even glad to do.
"Zank you for ze meal," Fleur said as she stood, her lunch break almost over. "Please, pass on my zanks to Harry and ze others."
"You're quite welcome," Samantha said softly, smiling a bit. Fleur turned to go but turned around again just inside the charms around their booth.
"If you wish it, I am willing to join ze Order to keep an eye on it," she whispered, just loud enough for Harry's friend to hear.
"I'll pass on the idea," Samantha said, nodding in acknowledgement.
Fleur then left the Leaky Cauldron, not touching the parchment until she returned home that evening after spending dinner with Bill.
Harry Potter lives at Marauder Manor
Smiling a little in recognition of the nickname that Tracey had told her Harry's father and his friends had once had, she burned the note, understanding that it was a Floo address for her to use if she wished.
It seemed Fleur was on the third side of the war, but she hadn't yet found anything to complain about.
…
Harry sat in his room the night of his fifteenth birthday, staring at the gifts spread out on his bed.
It had been a day of Quidditch, Animagus fights, and gifts. Overall, it was the chance for everyone to relax from training without any of the unwanted tension caused by Harry's being stuck with the Order. He had been glad to witness it, and his friends had been relieved to experience it.
Now, though, he was a bit shocked as he held a sword not unlike the ones his friends all had: an emerald in the hilt, a snake carved into the handle, and a lion, an eagle, and a badger almost burned into the blade except it was perfectly smooth.
The difference was that he had the ability to hold his new blade in one hand and Godric Gryffindor's sword in the other and see very few differences between them, and all they did was show he used a slightly different blade from the man himself for they both felt perfectly balanced in his hand.
Sirius had finally gotten him a custom-made sword – the one which Harry had been expecting for Christmas but never got or commented upon as he wasn't supposed to know about it before now.
It fit into the same sheathe as Gryffindor's sword, so he now could put either one into the new sheathe, though he'd only use his own sword in it for now. Still, it was a nice thing to know.
His other gifts had ranged from new Quidditch gloves and pads to novels and textbooks to pranking supplies. Sirius had been the only one to get him anything used for training, but Harry also didn't need anything more, so it made sense.
Ankh slithered from his place on Harry's shoulder to his knee, licking Harry's neck as he passed.
"You're very quiet," Ankh hissed, and Harry nodded. "Is there something wrong?"
"No, nothing's wrong," Harry replied. "I'm just thinking."
"About?" the snake asked, and Harry grinned slightly as he realized his friend was trying to get him out of his slight mood.
"About how the reason I have these textbooks, my new sword, and all of my other weapons is because of Voldemort," Harry sighed. "I'm going to have to fight him, Ankh, and I'm not sure I'm ready to, not after last month in the graveyard."
"That is why you are going to train and not fight him right now, but only when you're ready," Ankh hissed, "correct?"
"That's right," Harry admitted, realizing where Ankh was going with this.
"Then do not think about the fight that has yet to come. Just concentrate on preparing, and you'll be ready when the time comes."
"Thanks Ankh. I think I needed to hear that from a new source other than Ginny and Tracey."
"You're welcome, Harry. Now, get some sleep."
Grinning, Harry moved Ankh to where Hedwig was perched, ready to take off for the night to hunt. Then, he put his gifts away where they belonged before changing and getting into bed, his mind calmer than it had been even an hour before.
…
Blindfolded, Harry ducked beneath the wave of energy that was an unknown spell, though he was pretty sure only Stinging Hexes were being thrown at him.
Samuel, Sirius, Daniel, and Remus had asked him and his friends how they had prepared him for the Tournament in general, but most specifically the final Task. They had commended the group in thinking up such creative training methods, and then proceeded to use them on all of the teens.
Harry had to wonder if the others, especially Hermione, didn't regret using these on him during the school year. At least he was used to them and could go through the motions easier during the first few days of training; the rest were almost complete novices at the tasks and had a much harder time at it.
As Harry thought, he dodged left, right, down, and even jumped off the ground. There were times when he was forced to hit the ground and roll away, jumping back up to his feet immediately, just to escape a wave of silent attacks from more than one adult.
Panting quietly and dripping sweat, Harry was forced through a large amount of time spent just dodging spells by instinct, longer than any of the others were able to last. Finally, though, Harry felt his body slowing so much that he was just unable to move very much.
That was the time that he finally allowed himself to fall to the ground, knowing he would be hit a few times by stray spells before the adults could stop firing at him. All he could do was try his best to regain his breath while on his hands and knees, the black blindfold still around his head.
"Very well done, Harry," Daniel complimented, but Harry had no energy to do anything but regain his lost breath. "That was over half an hour this time."
Internally, Harry was grinning, even if his face remained only a mask of pain and exhaustion. Thirty minutes – the longest he had managed so far in the past two weeks since his birthday, which was when they had begun training them all with earnest.
Then he felt Tracey's hands pulling off the cloth from his face before helping him to a couch along the wall of the training room where he saw Daphne waiting with a water bottle once he was given his glasses.
"Thanks," he gasped after taking a long draught of the precious water.
"Hard to believe you were blindfolded," Theo said, and Harry looked around at his friends to see a little awe on their faces. "You were moving as if you could see the spells, not just sense them."
"Practice, lots and lots of practice," Harry replied, making a face as he remembered hours spent just training on dodging both with and without his sight.
"Something to look forward to," Justin muttered, and Harry choked out a tired laugh.
"Neville, it's your turn," Sirius called, holding up a fresh blindfold for the fifteen-year-old Gryffindor, who groaned but walked over there with his grandmother's eyes following him from her seat in a corner of the basement where the other non-participating adults sat watching.
Harry grinned at his friends and turned to watch his friend take his turn at one of the toughest training sessions they had had so far.
…
Harry woke up screaming silently again, a few tears in his eyes as he took in gasping breaths, sitting upright as he covered his terrified emerald green eyes with his tanned hands.
"Harry?" Tracey asked softly, and he turned, lifting his head from his hands, to see that she was in his doorway again, just as she had been every single time he woke up from a nightmare. The pair had asked her father to charm his room to send her a signal whenever he got close to waking up from a restless sleep so that she could be there just as he woke up.
The teen only gestured for his friend to join him on his bed, scooting over to make room as she slipped beneath the blankets next to him.
"The graveyard again?" she whispered, and he grimaced, nodding in acknowledgement. "What was it about this time?"
"Voldemort… he hit me with the Killing Curse because my Stunner didn't hit his curse in the middle," Harry muttered, but Tracey heard him flawlessly in the empty room.
"Harry, it's not going to happen," she said firmly but quietly, turning to face him and look him in the eye. "No one is going to allow it; not Ginny, not me, not my parents, not our friends, and most especially, not you."
"I know," he sighed, "it's just… I can't help thinking about how it's a possibility if I don't train enough or don't fight well enough."
"It's not going to happen, Harry," Tracey ground out between clenched teeth, and Harry knew it was only worry for him that allowed such a lapse of her usual calm. "You're going to beat that monster and live."
"Yes, but what if others die while I train and leave him alone?" Harry asked softly. He had asked this before but needed reassurance again at the deeply internal pain fighting to overtake him. "What if it's viewed as my fault?"
"If anyone thinks it's your fault – and I'm including you in this, Harry! – then that person is an idiot," Tracey hissed quietly. "You are fifteen and shouldn't even have to be thinking about this or like this, even if he is back. This isn't the sort of pressure you should be feeling, Harry, but I know you are so I think you should funnel this into your training, not into your worrying. What happens will happen just as what comes will come. All you can do is try your best and survive."
Harry sighed and ran a hand through his hair, recognizing the truth ringing in his almost-twin's words. This was what he needed to be reminded of at times, and Tracey understood the need, even if it was obvious she had a dislike for it.
"Please, stop thinking like this, Harry," she whispered, but Harry heard the plea in that low sentence. "You're destroying yourself from the inside by doing this."
"I know," Harry said softly, reaching out to grab her hand. "I'll try, I really will, Trace, but it's something all of us will have to deal with until this is over."
Tracey nodded and moved to wrap her arms around him, and Harry completed the hug, resting his head on hers. They stayed like that until both were asleep, each with their own side of Harry's bed.
…
In three different bedrooms of the same floor as Harry's room, four different adults sighed before heading down to the ground floor and the living room to speak in.
"It's eating him up inside," Sirius said, a pained look gracing his face as he put his head in his hands and shook it back and forth.
"This is most likely why Dumbledore has yet to inform him that the Prophecy even exists, let alone its wording," Remus stated, he too looking upset, but more calm that his longtime friend.
"I still believe it was the best thing to do, though," Samuel sighed, and the other three nodded in agreement.
"It was," Remus said. "I was just making an observation. We know Harry can handle this with the help of his friends; he has been handling it for a while now, even. There will be hard times ahead, though, especially when it is a known fact that Voldemort is back, and that is when Harry's friends will need to be there the most."
"They all will be," Daniella said, "especially Ginny and our Tracey. Those three are closer than I think any of us expected them to be."
"Unfortunately, they have a lot in common," Sirius whispered just loud enough to hear. "The darkness surrounding them will get darker as time goes on, but it will also be what holds them together."
"All we can do is try our best to help them when we can," Samuel sighed, and all four adults fell silent as they dove into thoughts they would rather not have.
So, yeah… I've begun to realize that I honestly don't have much to comment on when it comes to the summer chapters most of the time. My main comment would be that the "blatnikof" Luna spoke of was named after the very random word that had no meaning my English teacher gave us last year to write about just to see how creative we could get with it. It was a very amusing day, and I felt it would fit Luna.
Right now I've been home all day because I wasn't feeling my best, and honestly, today was a much better day to miss school than most. However, I'm not feeling quite as iffy now, so hopefully the sleep I got helped. Other than that, well, I just hope you enjoyed the chapter. See you lot on Sunday.
Posted: 11/2/11