Chapter 44: Back in the War
July 31st, 1996
Harry's sixteenth birthday was not a huge event. Harry and Hermione had lunch with Sirius, and Ginny, Daphne and Tracey came over for dinner, but that was it. No big party, no big fuss. Part of it was the war, part of it was that Daphne and Ron didn't really want to speak to each other right now. Ron had sent a present and a letter with Ginny. Luna was now on holiday with her father, but she had also sent a present. Blaise had sent a letter as well.
All in all though, Harry didn't mind that it wasn't a big deal. He preferred this. The truth was, that now that he was more or less independent, Harry didn't want the limelight. What he wanted was a semblance of normalcy. And for the first time, he was starting to have it.
Playing house is right, thought Harry that night, This is just me trying to get back the thing I thought I might never have. It's every bit as artificial as the normalcy the Dursley's lived. I still have a war to fight.
"So, can I move in with you?" asked Hermione.
"You already live in my house," said Harry.
Hermione stamped her foot. "That is not what I mean, and you know it," she said crossly.
"It's a big step," said Harry, not at all certain how he felt about this.
"Okay, I get that, but here's how I feel," said Hermione, "I think that there is a good chance that one or both of us isn't surviving this war. I think we very nearly lost each other this summer. I think that if there wasn't a war on right now I'd be trying to marry you. So I want to spend my nights with you, even if sleeping is all that we are doing. Because I don't want to miss out on a single day or night with you - because this may be all we have."
"We are going to survive this war," said Harry, "last I checked, we were winning."
"That can change in a heartbeat," warned Hermione.
Harry sat quietly for a moment. He couldn't deny that what Hermione said was true.
"Okay," said Harry, "If we're going to do this together, let's do this together."
Hermione smiled and hugged Harry. "There's the man I love talking."
XXXXX
August 2nd, 1996
Narcissa wasn't happy. The numbers the various mercenary groups had quoted them were much higher than she had anticipated. The Death Eaters would be able to afford it, but there would be no room for error. But perhaps Clarise could help there.
Things had been nightmarish for Narcissa since Bella's death. She was the only member of Lord Voldemort's inner circle who wasn't a marked Death Eater. Indeed, she was surprised that the Dark Lord hadn't insisted that she be marked, but he hadn't. Even Draco was marked these days. Narcissa should have been proud, but instead it felt like she was losing her son. This war was likely to claim him. Hell, his rivalry with Harry Potter was likely to get him killed at this point. Potter was dangerous.
All of the other Death Eaters still treated her like garbage, and it wasn't solely because she wasn't marked, though that didn't help. Rookwood thought she was soft, Nott thought she was naive and the Carrows… well the Carrows hated the rich Death Eaters on principle. The only person in the inner circle who was sympathetic to Narcissa was Severus. She would have gone insane without him. But when school started, he'd be gone along with Draco. For the first time, she'd be alone. Merlin, Narcissa hoped Clarise was a regular fixture here by then.
Even worse, Narcissa was beginning to feel doubts about the righteousness of the Dark Lord's cause. Narcissa was an excellent Occlumens, so she'd kept things well under wraps, but Voldemort's obsession with killing these children was disheartening. Worse, in following that obsession he'd created some of his worst enemies. Rookwood and Snape were by no means convinced that the Triumvirate was Potter yet, but Harry was clearly aligned with them.
But, hopefully things would start turning around today.
Narcissa made her way to the dining room, where the Dark Lord was holding court. Clarise should be arriving shortly, and hopefully she would have good news.
Clarise Zabini arrived exactly on time. She walked into the dining room confidently, but Narcissa saw a hint of doubt in her face. Something was up, but the Dark Lord would find out what it was.
"Clarise, it is good to see you again," said the Dark Lord.
"I am grateful to have been given the chance to serve you, My Lord," said Clarise, "I hear that things have been difficult recently. I hope to alleviate any difficulties with my resources."
"That is my hope as well," said the Dark Lord, "We are growing short on manpower, and we want to hire mercenaries, but the price has gone up."
"There, I can definitely help you," said Clarise, "First, I can donate some extra money to your cause. However, if I do so, I will need sanctuary. My finances are being watched. So once I do this, I will need to go into hiding until we can take over the country."
"Will you still have access to your resources on the run?" asked Rookwood.
"My legitimate resources are largely a front," said Clarise, "I can easily roll them into my criminal enterprises, and those are not easily tracked by the Ministry. But one of the conditions for my release was that I am not allowed to hide my finances. Still, if given protection I am willing to oblige."
"Fantastic," said the Dark Lord.
"The second thing I can do to help your manpower shortage, is have some of my own people help you," said Clarise, "Most of them are just thugs or crooks, but they are bodies able to fill in for some lower priority work."
"Now that is useful," said Narcissa, "that will mean that we can hire a smaller group of skilled mercenaries rather than have to constantly hire low level mercenaries. We'll probably save at least a million galleons all told."
"Yet I sense an issue," said the Dark Lord, "You seem troubled Clarise."
Clarise shook her head. "It is a small matter, my lord. I have had some business setbacks. I have lost my foothold in Northern Ireland. The truth is, I am currently involved in a large turf war with my Irish counterpart, Danny O'Keefe. But that is not entirely unrelated. Our relationship broke down in the first place because of my support for you and your ideals. If I was not here, he would be causing trouble for you anyways, so really, we are fighting the same war."
"Is it possible that this O'Keefe is behind the Triumvirate?" asked Snape.
"Maybe," said Clarise, "My son Blaise has been working with him, so he has a direct line to Potter if he needs it."
"As to your son..." said the Dark Lord.
"My son will either submit or die," said Clarise, "There are no other options." Narcissa could hear the agony in Clarise's voice. It was clear that she had not seen things proceeding as they had.
"I'm glad that you understand that," said the Dark Lord.
Clarise tried to put on a brave face, but to Narcissa it was all a sham. This was a woman who was cornered. She hoped she was able to save her son. Merlin knew Narcissa had failed there as well.
XXXXX
August 10th, 1996
"Cedric!" said Harry as he welcomed Cedric into his home, "Good to see you again!"
"Well, I'm ready to help however I can," said Cedric as he walked inside the house.
"Good," said Harry, "I'll introduce you to the people you will be working with. I think you will see some familiar faces."
Harry led Cedric into the sitting room. Fred, George and Angelina were already there, as were Bill and Fleur. Ginny was sitting next to Hermione in the center of it all.
"Fleur!" said Cedric, perhaps a bit too excitedly.
"Cedric," said Fleur who ran over and gave Cedric an enthusiastic hug. "You remember Bill Weasley, I am sure? He is my fiance."
"Well congratulations!" said Cedric happily.
A few moments later, Sirius entered with Krum in tow.
"Viktor Krum," said Cedric nervously.
"Good to see you Cedric," said Krum slowly, "It is good that you have joined us."
"No hard feelings about me stunning you?" asked Cedric.
"You vere Imperiused," said Krum simply.
"All right, we're all here except Remus and Tonks," said Harry, "whom most of you know anyway. They are acting as our spies in the Order, along with Sirius, but Dumbledore has been sidelining Sirius recently."
"We've called this meeting to get everyone on the same page," said Ginny, "We've decided that each of you will be part of the Army of the Triumvirate proper, if you weren't already, as you all can be trusted."
Krum nodded. After some soul searching, he'd decided to join the AoT instead of working with Gustav's mercenaries. As such, his role was simple.
"Krum here will be our go between with the mercenaries we've hired," said Hermione.
"Fred and George will keep an eye on Diagon Alley, as will Angelina when she is available," said Harry.
"Cedric has an internship in the DMLE, he will be our man in Amelia Bones' office," said Hermione.
"And Bill and Fleur will start off liaising with Gringotts." said Ginny.
"What? That wasn't what we thought was going on," said Bill.
"But is it what Mr. Potter requires of you," said a voice from the other room. Brokgut walked in, completely self-assuredly. "There is an issue that needs to be dealt with."
"When Bellatrix Lestrange died, she didn't leave a will," said Harry, "This means that her entire fortune, including her Gringotts vault, reverted to the Black family estate. Which, if you aren't aware, I happen to control."
"Oh," said Bill.
"She has left a vault, but one that is trapped by many fiendish traps. Her death has caused many more traps to activate on the vault. Opening it will be an incredible challenge for any curse breaker," said Brokgut.
"Ah, so my first job…" said Bill.
"You and Fleur will untrap the Lestrange vault, and shall do so under the authority of Gringotts," said Brokgut, "Harry Potter is the rightful owner of that vault, and you will get him into it."
"It contains a horcrux, Bill," said Harry, "I know I don't have to tell you to be careful with one of those."
"We are trying to avoid tipping off Voldemort before we are ready to face him," said Ginny, "So we must destroy this horcrux before Voldemort realizes it is in danger. Once it is gone, we will be able to move on and destroy his most exposed Horcrux, and after that we will have to figure out how to destroy his snake Nagini. But we are getting close."
"You think Voldemort 'as a way through the defense of the Lestrange vault?" asked Fleur.
"I do," said Hermione, "Most likely a password of some sort to disable them. Bellatrix was supposed to tell him what it was, but she never did."
"At least she never did before his first fall," corrected Harry, "She almost certainly told him when she was rescued."
"Cedric, just so you are aware, Percy Weasley is our man in the Minister's office," said Harry, "He might be able to help you, if you aren't certain about your course of action."
"Thanks," said Cedric.
"Sirius has given me this," said Harry, holding up a mirror, "This allows me to contact Sirius at will, without using the floo. So if you need to contact the Triumvirate, Sirius can put you in contact with us."
Everybody nodded.
"The time to take the battle to the Death Eaters is coming," said Harry, "Once we get things moving at school, we'll make our final plans to find the locations we need to strike."
"And once we do, we'll bring the Death Eaters to their knees," said Hermione.
"If we keep the Death Eaters weak, we can hold off Voldemort until we can finally make him mortal and kill him," said Ginny.
"So let's get to work!" said Harry.
XXXXX
Everyone had left except Ginny and Fleur. Bill had to go to work, but Fleur was off today. Ginny was rather cagey, but she seemed to think there was something that needed to be discussed.
"Molly has been trying," said Fleur, "She does not like me. She 'as been intimating that I might cheat on Bill with other men. Bill 'as been resistant to setting a date for our wedding as a result. I was 'oping next summer, but it will not be happening I think."
"That's rather petty," said Hermione.
"It is worse," said Fleur, "I think that Molly has been trying to imply that I am in love with 'Arry. And that I am using my allure to seduce him."
"Well, I'm very flattered Fleur…" joked Harry only to be shut up by a volley of slaps from both Hermione and Ginny.
"Stop, I was only joking, for Merlin's sake," said Harry.
"Harry is completely immune to my allure, so the whole thing is ludicrous, but I think that there is something odd about this," said Fleur.
"You think someone is playing with Molly's head?" asked Harry.
"It makes sense," said Ginny, "now that we know that someone did the same thing to McGonagall and Hermione's parents. I haven't said anything before, but I bet this was how they got Mum to sign the marriage contract. And it would make sense that they would try to spread a rumour to break you and Hermione up, Harry."
"Why?" asked Harry.
"Because if you were actually still bound by the contract and the two of you did have sex, well, you'd know pretty quick something was up. I think someone is trying to keep you from finding out about the contract," said Ginny.
"Are you suggesting it's Dumbledore?" asked Harry, "I have to wonder, is he in on it or being controlled himself?"
"He does seem to have the most clear motive," said Hermione.
"I think it's Snape who's pulling the strings," said Ginny, "He's always been weird around me."
"Luna did think it might be a potion effect," admitted Hermione.
"Ugh, every time something like this happens it's the same conversation," said an exasperated Harry. "For once I'd like the two of them to try to manipulate me separately, so I can figure out who is doing what."
"That's what I said," replied Hermione cryptically.
September 1st, 1996
September 1st finally came, but for once Harry didn't have to get up early to catch the train. He and Hermione would be able to apparate to King's Cross, so he was able to sleep in a bit.
The previous day they had gone to Diagon Alley to pick up their school supplies. Harry had even checked in on Fred and George, whose joke shop was doing quite well. Harry hadn't even told Hermione that he had given the twins the money to start the shop, but she seemed to have known anyway. He supposed he had mentioned that he might do it one time. Harry couldn't remember.
"Mmmm," said Hermione as she began to wake up. Harry wasn't sure what was going to happen at school in regards to their living arrangements. But whatever happened, he knew that things between Hermione and himself would not be the same. He'd considered asking her to marry him, but he'd decided that it might be a bit premature. Better to wait until the war was over. What they were doing now was more than enough.
"It's nice to not have to rush," said Hermione.
"I agree," said Harry kissing her cheek, "It is very nice. I'm going to miss this."
"You act like things will be different at school," said Hermione, "Let me tell you, we are going to make the most of this year."
Harry grinned. That was exactly what he wanted to hear.
XXXXX
As the prefects meeting got out, a very annoyed Ginny came up to Harry and Hermione.
"Our Head Boy and Girl do not inspire confidence this year," said Ginny.
"Oh don't you start with that," said Hermione, "It isn't their fault that it was a thoroughly uninspired year for prefects."
"Actually, it kind of is," noted Harry, "since they were the prefects."
"And I still don't get to see Justin," said Ginny.
"Oh, boo hoo," said Harry, "you have the first patrol."
"You could have said no to being a prefect," noted Hermione.
"I guess I'm feeling all responsible since Harry saddled me with helping head up the you-know-what," said Ginny.
"Just try not to tell any first years to go fuck themselves," said Harry.
"No promises," said Ginny.
"Also, stay away from Malfoy," said Hermione quietly, "The last thing we need is for him to figure out that you killed his father."
"I will," said Ginny, drawing an imaginary X over her chest, "Cross my heart and hope to die."
"Not funny," said Hermione.
"Oh, like I wouldn't crush Malfoy like a bug," said Ginny.
"I'm not afraid of what he'd do to you!" said Hermione, "But he's dangerous enough to hurt one of our friends, like Luna or Daphne, or some random muggleborn."
"Okay, okay, I'll be careful," said Ginny.
Hermione turned to Harry and shook her head as Ginny went to join her fellow Slytherin prefect. "She's still too damn reckless," said Hermione as soon as Ginny was out of earshot.
"She's feeling confined," said Harry, "I understand it. I felt the same way until I broke free this year. It's worse with Ginny, because she can't leave. She loves her mother too much. She can't run away with Justin either. His parents would not take her in."
"So is she trying to get in trouble then?" asked Hermione.
"We'll see," said Harry, "I don't think she's hit critical mass yet."
As they made their way to their compartment, they were suddenly stopped by Malfoy. Goyle was behind him, but Crabbe wasn't. Harry had heard a rumour that Crabbe had transferred to Durmstrang after the death of his father, which was apparently true. Still Malfoy looked angrier than ever. There was something about him, a dangerousness.
"Did you kill my father, Potter?" demanded Malfoy.
Harry looked him directly in the eyes. "No." Technically, it was true. Ginny had killed him.
Malfoy stepped back, then shook his head. "Doesn't matter. You set him up to die." It was clear that Malfoy didn't believe him.
"Yeah funny how that works," said Harry, "I mean it wasn't like he intended to kill me, now was it? Oh, wait, he was planning that wasn't he? I'm sorry you lost your dad Malfoy, but he's the one who started this."
Malfoy snarled and pulled out his wand.
And before he knew what was happening he was frozen in place.
"Don't," said Hermione, her wand now pointed at Draco "We're completely out of your league. Seriously, we're done playing with you Malfoy."
"If we find you've taken the Dark Mark, the kid gloves are coming off," said Harry.
Both of them continued on their way.
XXXXX
The big ruckus came at the sorting when a muggleborn girl, "Case, Amy," was sorted into Slytherin.
The entire Great Hall was whispering about it, of course. But Hermione kept her cool and motioned for the girl to sit between her and Harry.
"What is going on?" asked the girl.
"Did the hat say anything to you about why he sorted you into Slytherin?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, he said that I wanted to go far, and that Slytherin would be the best place to do that. He said something about it being safe now too, but I don't know what he meant," said Amy.
Harry nodded. "Well, if you have big ambitions, then Slytherin is absolutely the place for you. There are some people who will say differently, but there are a lot less of them than there used to be."
"Some people in the magical world think that people who don't have magical parents aren't as good as other witches or wizards," said Hermione, "But they're wrong."
"You don't think like that?" asked Amy.
"I'm a muggleborn myself," said Hermione, "The first one in Slytherin house in years. You may face some troubles, but if you do, come and get help from Harry and myself or our friend Ginny over there. We're all prefects, so we'll be able to deal with the situation."
"We will make sure no one mistreats you," said Ginny.
"And I will personally make sure… well, that you are taken care of," said Hermione.
Harry hung his head. He knew the sacrifice that they were about to make. And he was proud to make it. Still, he felt as if he was going to miss his roommate. But it wasn't worth this girl's discomfort.
XXXXX
"Headmistress McGonagall," said Harry, "We need to talk about Amy." They had come up to the head table as everyone else was leaving.
"Are you going to try and argue that she was sorted into the wrong house as well?" asked Snape.
"No," said Hermione, "She's in the right house. But the house has a problem that needs to be addressed now. As long as I was the only muggleborn in Slytherin, Harry and I had things under control. But the moment another muggleborn got sorted into the house, we had to take action. You know we did."
"You know what this means for the two of you, correct?" said Snape.
"Yes," said Harry, "We don't care. Honestly, we should have done this ages ago, but we were comfortable enough with things the way they were."
"What is this about?" asked McGonagall.
"Slytherin doesn't have combined dorm rooms," said Harry, "Not like the other houses. They have rooms for two people. It's because Slytherin House is in the dungeons. But part of Slytherin's magic is that there are protections on those rooms that prevent theft and unauthorized entry to people who have not been allowed into those rooms."
It had actually taken Harry a bit of effort to say that. Which made sense, Draco hadn't been able to say it at all according to Daphne. But Harry's will was made of stronger stuff.
"That all sounds perfectly within the rules," said McGonagall, "In fact, I was aware of all of it."
Harry should have guessed that it wasn't as big a secret as he'd been told. The idea that no one outside Slytherin knew about the Slytherin dormitories was another lie designed to keep the Slytherins paranoid about the other Houses.
"Those protections do not activate if there is a lone muggleborn in the room," said Hermione, "The very first night I was here, Draco Malfoy broke into my room and terrorized me."
"WHAT?!" demanded McGonagall.
"Draco was punished," said Snape defensively.
"With two weeks detention!" fumed McGonagall angrily, "Three if you count the week you gave him for backtalk. That is not sufficient for such a serious offense!"
Harry and Hermione both nodded in agreement.
"How have you managed to deal with this Miss Granger?" asked McGonagall.
Harry and Hermione both let out a sigh. "We were hoping you weren't going to ask us that question Headmistress," admitted Harry.
"It is immaterial," said Snape, but Harry cut him off.
"Oh no! You don't get to escape from this one Professor," said Harry, "We protected Hermione by having a half-blood move in with her. Specifically, me."
"Wait, you have been rooming with Miss Granger since your first year?" demanded McGonagall.
Harry nodded.
"Severus, did you know?" McGonagall asked, her eyes boring into his skull.
Snape sneered. "Of course I knew. Everyone in Slytherin knows."
McGonagall turned to Harry and Hermione, "The school rules…"
"Say that boys can't enter the girl's dormitories," said Harry, "Slytherin doesn't have separate dormitories for girls and boys."
McGonagall suddenly laughed. "Of course. Of course you did this within the rules. How would I expect anything less of you? The two of you have behaved yourselves, haven't you?"
"More or less," said Hermione.
"Well, I guess I should expect that answer," said McGonagall, "All right, we are going to fix this problem with the Slytherin House wards Severus. Tonight."
"Of course, Headmistress," said Snape.
"And we will be closing that hole in the rules for Slytherin House," said McGonagall.
Harry sighed internally. He'd known this would happen.
"However," said McGonagall, "This year's rules are already in effect, so we will change them for next year. You two need to behave yourselves. Do you understand me?"
"Wait, what?" asked Hermione, not believing what she was hearing.
"The two of you are both sixteen," said the Headmistress, "if you want to do certain things, it is not my place to stop you. But you are also prefects, so you will set a good example for the rest of the school. Am I clear?"
"Of course," said Harry, flabbergasted, "We wouldn't even think of doing anything public."
"Good," said Minerva, "I'd hate to have to punish my front runners for Head Boy and Girl. You are dismissed. Now Severus, we need to talk about Slytherin House for a bit…"
Harry and Hermione both beat a hasty retreat. Neither of them had expected THAT.
XXXXX
In fact, everyone was completely surprised by what had happened.
"The level of trust McGonagall has just put in you is massive," said Daphne, "That's crazy."
"I'm thinking that McGonagall didn't want to punish us for doing the right thing," mused Hermione, "She probably isn't all that comfortable with our situation, but at this point she doesn't have a lot of choices. And Harry and I are old enough to get married in Scotland, if we wanted to."
"She was pretty suspicious of you last year," said Ginny, "She knew you were behind Umbridge's ouster."
"She had to publicly disapprove of that though," said Daphne, "Even if she didn't want to."
"I think that once Harry made it clear that he didn't expect McGonagall to punish anyone other than Umbridge, she realized that he was just trying to protect the school," said Hermione.
"Actually, what convinced the headmistress was simple," said Snape, who had just entered the common room, "Mr. Nott told her that Umbridge's next move was going to be reinstituting corporal punishment at Hogwarts. Once she learned that, she realized that Umbridge was going to actively use the Inquisitorial Squad to harm students, if she hadn't already. Viewed from that perspective, she decided that any action designed to prevent that would be justified, so long as you didn't try to harm anyone else."
"Professor!" said Harry anxiously.
"Harry, Hermione, I will speak to you in a moment," said Snape, "I need to speak to the first years first."
Snape quickly gave his opening speech. Harry noticed that all the parts about special rules for Slytherin were gone. About time.
Snape motioned Harry and Hermione with him, and they followed him to his office. Once there, he motioned for them to be seated.
"The headmistress wasn't pleased with me," said Snape, "I may not be Head of Slytherin House next year. But that is on me. I should have done something five years ago, not just let what was happening continue. I am sorry for that. And I am glad that you both had the courage to do what you thought was right, even though you were certain it would cost you significantly."
"Professor?" asked Harry, "Pardon me saying so, but this is very uncharacteristic of you."
Snape gave a grim smile. "Yes, it is. In truth I have more to apologize to you for. When I walked in on the two of you in bed last year, the truth is that I panicked. I should have brought that to McGonagall immediately. Instead, I only thought of losing my job and I told Dumbledore. His subsequent actions are all my fault. The entire fiasco in Australia is my fault. I am sorry, Hermione. I put you and your parents at risk."
Hermione nodded, "Well thank you for saying it. I'd relay your apology to my parents, but I think you understand that I can't right now."
"You hid them quite well," said Snape, "The Dark Lord has all but given up trying to find them."
"Are you saying that Dumbledore was behind sending Hermione to Australia?" asked Harry.
"It was his plan," said Snape, "I am very… troubled by the way he handled this. I believe… well he seems to always think the worst of you Potter. Now you know that I am not your biggest fan…"
"That's an understatement," said Harry.
"...but I have always tried to protect you from the Dark Lord, if I could. I owe your mother no less," Snape shook his head, as if trying to clear it, "Dumbledore keeps trying to treat you as if you are a threat."
"I've noticed," said Harry dryly.
"The time may come when I have to break confidence with Dumbledore, just be aware that he may be trying to control you," said Snape.
Back in the Slytherin dorms, Ginny was waiting for them. Harry and Hermione quickly went over everything Snape had said to her.
"I don't trust Snape," said Ginny firmly.
"I don't trust him either, but do I trust him less than Dumbledore?" asked Harry.
"I say Dumbledore is the one behind all this," said Hermione, "It makes sense! He keeps trying to find new ways to control you and they all keep failing."
"I'm not ready to commit to either extreme," said Harry, "For all I know they're both lying to me."
XXXXX
September 2nd, 1996
"I'd like a moment with you Potter," said Professor Sprout after Herbology.
Harry nodded to Hermione, who picked up her things and left. Harry wasn't sure what this was about, but he knew that Sprout was one of his few detractors on the staff these days.
Once everyone was gone, Professor Sprout bowed her head slightly. "I want to apologize to you, Harry. I've been very unfair to you during your time here. You have been an extraordinary help to so many of my 'Puffs. But I must confess, the fact that you were in Slytherin gave me pause."
"What made you come around?" asked Harry.
"What you did for Amy," admitted Sprout, "She was vulnerable, and you sacrificed to help her. It couldn't have been easy."
"You aren't upset that Hermione and I were sharing a room?" asked Harry.
Professor Sprout laughed. "Hufflepuffs tend to have less hangups about that sort of thing. Let's just say that what I don't see I don't have to deal with."
"Seems smart to me," said Harry.
XXXXX
September 3rd, 1996
Dumbledore was a very good teacher, Harry had to admit. N.E.W.T. level Transfiguration was horrendously difficult (though not necessarily for Harry and Hermione, who had Tom Riddle's memories in their heads), but Dumbledore's simple and fun instructions made it seem easy. He was good natured and seemed to have infinite patience even with the slowest student. Harry was a bit ashamed to realize that he had wanted Dumbledore to be a bad teacher, as it would have made turning on him easier.
Transfiguration was one of the classes Harry had kept. He'd stayed in Potions, Charms, Herbology, Arithmancy, Defense, and Runes as well. It was a heavy course load, but it wasn't all that difficult, given his advantages.
"Harry," said Dumbledore after their first class was over, "I would like to speak with you sometime this week. I would like to share with you some information I have collected in my years of following Tom Riddle."
This was intriguing to Harry. Dumbledore's perspective on Voldemort might indeed be very revealing. As long as this wasn't a trick.
"Well, I would be more than glad to accommodate you," said Harry, "Say, Thursday night?"
"Exactly what I was thinking," said Dumbledore, "I will see you then."
XXXXX
September 4th, 1996
Tuesday night was the first meeting of the Army of the Triumvirate.
"Our goal this year is simple," said Harry, "We will destroy the Death Eaters' financial empire. To that end, we need full lists of everything we can find that the Death Eaters own."
"A lot of us have access to some of that information," said Ernie, "But getting all of it would be a challenge."
"Yet we have to get as much of it as possible," said Justin.
"It won't be easy," said a voice. A voice no one had expected to hear.
Theodore Nott had entered the Room of Requirement.
Everyone immediately pulled out their wands. Everyone but Nott.
"I'm not here to hurt you," said Nott.
"That has to be true, Harry," said Neville, "I specifically told the room to keep out anyone who meant us harm."
"How did you find us?" demanded Ginny.
Nott shrugged. "You weren't meeting in a classroom. So I asked the house elves. They led me right to this place. I've been waiting here the whole time. I'm not your enemy though."
"Oh really?" asked Daphne.
Nott hung his head. "I thought that there was no way that anyone could defeat the Dark Lord. Then someone goes and kills most of his most loyal Death Eaters. And funny thing, it happens right at the same time Harry and friends form a secret army. You've been clever, but not clever enough to hide it from me."
"So what do you want?" asked Hermione.
"I want the killing to stop!" shouted Nott, "I want things to go back to how they were before the war. I want someone to put a boot in the Dark Lord's arse and keep it there. I don't want to be forced to join the Death Eaters when I graduate Hogwarts! I want to be my own man!"
There was silence for a long time. Finally, Tracey stepped forward.
"Okay then," she said, "So what do you want to do to help then? You understand that you can't join us, right? We can't give you our secrets. So what do you want?"
"I want to stay out of it," said Nott, "But I can't. So I'll help you instead. The treasurer and accountant for the Death Eaters is Narcissa Malfoy. She will have copies of everything."
"Malfoy Manor is the most heavily guarded Death Eater stronghold," said Ron, "How will we get in there?"
"I have no fucking clue," said Nott, "But that is not my problem, it's yours."
And with that, Nott walked out. Ginny and Justin took one look at each other and followed.
XXXXX
"What was that about?" demanded Ginny, "Are you trying to win me over by joining us now?"
"No!" said Nott angrily, "I just… I like you, Ginny, I won't lie about that, but I understand why you are with Justin. What he has that I don't. It took me a long time, but I get it. This isn't about winning you though. It's about what kind of person I want to be. Because even if you aren't available, I think that you are wonderful. And I want to be the sort of person who you could like, or who someone like you could like. And I'm not. So that's all it is. I'm sorry if that's awkward for you."
And Nott walked away.
"Are you alright Ginny?" asked Justin.
"No," said Ginny angrily, "I am not! The last thing I need is Nott fetishizing me."
Which was exactly what was happening. Nott had created a perfect Ginny in his head that he wanted to like him. And so he was going to do anything he could to please her. But that girl wasn't real! She was just a figment of Nott's imagination.
"I'm sorry," said Justin as he put his arm around her, "you don't need this right now."
"No, I don't," said Ginny, "But we're going to have to deal with it, because we need Nott's information."
XXXXX
September 5th, 1996
Harry's meeting with Dumbledore went better than he had thought it would. Indeed, Harry was shocked at how helpful and honest Dumbledore was. He wasn't getting ahead of himself, or discussing the horcruxes yet, but he was clearly leading Harry towards something. Harry was disappointed in the lack of confidence Dumbledore was showing him by not outright telling him what he wanted to say, but he also realized that the information he was getting might be useful in itself, but maybe not in the way Dumbledore intended.
This time, Dumbledore had shown Harry a memory of Voldemort's mother and her family. It had been a wretched scene, and more. He had told Harry the story of how Merope Gaunt had seduced Tom Riddle Sr. using potions, then had been abandoned by him as she was about to give birth. Merope had died of grief, and Tom Riddle Jr. had been orphaned.
And Harry finally had to admit, what he had said to Luna this last summer seemed even more poignant. Riddle hadn't known love ever. He'd been alone his whole life. Once again, Harry pitied him. And suddenly, Harry saw one of the things that Dumbledore feared about him.
"No one loved him," said Harry, "Even his mother cared more about losing the man she violated than about Tom Riddle Jr. No one ever loved him."
"Yes," said Dumbledore sadly, "Is it any wonder he grew up to be so bereft of compassion, having never known any himself?"
"There are some similarities between myself and Riddle," said Harry, "My relatives didn't treat me with love either. But my parents did. My mother died for me. She left a mark on me, and on my very blood." Harry put his hand on his scar. He'd long seen it as a sign of what Riddle had done to him. But now…
Now he saw it as a sign of his mother's love for him. He saw it as the one thing that had been seared on his soul and left there to protect him. It was a genuine miracle, and he'd been the recipient.
"My aunt and uncle were scared of me," said Harry, "They didn't understand me. And they didn't show me love. Yet, my aunt, she did love my mother. Underneath all the bitterness and anger, she did. And that's why they kept me. That's why they protected me. They did a really shit job of it, but they did it."
"Very good Harry," said Dumbledore.
"I'm not like him," said Harry, "I'm not like Riddle at all. He only used people. I… admit I will sometimes use people, but I don't like it. And I don't do it to the people I love. And I do love. Riddle, he doesn't. He can't love. He can't comprehend it. It actually hurts him, because it's absence cuts so much that he can't bear to be reminded of what he can't have."
"How do you know this Harry?" asked Dumbledore.
Harry smiled and pointed at his scar.
"Harry, venturing into Lord Voldemort's mind is dangerous," warned Dumbledore.
"I know," said Harry, "He would lay traps for me if he could. But he can't."
"What do you mean?" asked Dumbledore.
Harry smiled. "Don't you know? Can't you see? Is this the limit of the great Albus Dumbledore?"
Harry shook his head. "Do you know why my mind is connected with Riddle's?"
Dumbledore nodded. "I do."
"Do you intend to tell me why?" asked Harry.
"I have told you…" started Dumbledore.
"You have told me part of what happened," said Harry, "But only part. Listen, I'm not angry now. But if you aren't ready to tell me why I'm connected to Riddle, I can't tell you why I feel safe looking into his mind."
"I will try to do so, as part of the lessons I am teaching you now," said Dumbledore, "But not until the end certainly. I do not believe you are ready."
"What next, are you going to show me the life of Tom Riddle through your eyes? Show his fall and his destructive rise to power? I know all that. I know what he is, what makes him tick. And I pity him," Harry hung his head, his mind not quite ready to admit what he already truly knew.
"He's detestable and horrible, and I pity him," said Harry, "Because he will never dry the tears of a crying friend, hold a lover in his arms and know for just that moment, everything is good, or look at a friend and feel pride for what they have accomplished. He is lost. And there is nothing I can do to fix that. The chance to save him was lost long ago."
"Does that mean we shouldn't try?" asked Dumbledore.
Harry looked at Dumbledore, and then started to laugh. He just laughed and laughed, until his sides started to hurt. Finally he managed to get control over himself.
"Only you would ask that silly question," said Harry, "And that is the only reason I'll be coming back. Because I agree. We still have to try. Not because we owe it to him, but because we owe it to ourselves. I think I'd started to forget that."
"Then this lesson has served its purpose," said Dumbledore, a smile now adorning his face.
Harry went back to his room sure of one thing. His choice of whether to trust Dumbledore or Snape had just become far more complicated.
Author's Note: So, two things. First, McGonagall's reaction to Harry and Hermione rooming together. Let me put it this way: McGonagall is the Headmistress of Hogwarts. She knows a lot more about what is going on at school than she lets on, just like Dumbledore did when he was Headmaster. She is not trying to make life more difficult for Harry and Hermione right now. This will be made explicit in a later chapter, but for now just know that McGonagall isn't as clueless as you might think from her behavior.
One thing that was brought up in a review that was a very good point was that Harry and friends should still be wary of being potioned. Realistically, that should still be a threat to some degree. However, it is worth pointing out that if Snape is using potions on all these people, he has to realise that Harry is starting to get suspicious. The fact is that the whole thing came out because Harry suspects Snape used potions on four people in short succession. Right now, any potion use would be dangerous for him.
On top of that, it would be difficult to dose Harry or his friends, who eat from the common dishes in the Great Hall. It seems to me the only way to actually dose them would be to administer the potion to everyone at Hogwarts. Which would probably not escape notice. Snape could figure out a way around this if he really wanted to, but does he want to?
Next Time: Harry launches his plan to take down the Death Eaters. Will he take them out? (Hint: There are 15 more chapters and an epilogue left in this story.)