Author's notes:
Standard disclaimer. It all belongs to JKR. Thank you for letting us play with your toys.
I will continue to use the occasional song lyric in the story and will give credit at the time when needed.
This is the seventh book in my Slytherin Harry series and covers Harry's sixth year at Hogwarts.
Book 1: Harry Potter and the Muggle's Daughter
Book 2: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
Book 3: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Book 4: Harry Potter and the Blood Traitor's Daughter
Book 5: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Book 6: Harry Potter; Flesh, Blood and Bone
Book 7: Harry Potter and the Lady of the Lake
If you haven't read books 1-6 you won't know what's going on. But the bonus is you've got six completed books before you even get to this one!
Fair warning, this story will continue to be dark and have mature language and situations in it.
Harry Potter and the Lady of the Lake
Chapter XXXV
She Was Dragon
Ministry Strikes
In a statement released just before press time Minister Amelia Bones announced ministry forces had moved against the island prison of Azkaban.
"Working in tandem with our American and Canadian allies," the Minister said, "we employed a new weapon against the terrorist Tom Marvolo Riddle and his followers. I can report the prison of Azkaban is now nothing more than a smoking pile of rocks. Further, while having failed to kill our ultimate target in Tom Riddle, we estimate having eliminated better than 98% of all of his followers. This number may go up as more information is gathered. Zero casualties or even injuries to forces of the Light were recorded. Unfortunately Tom Riddle remains at large and while the Ministry encourages witches and wizards everywhere to go about their business as normal, caution should still be exercised."
Minister Bones took no questions and with little time before copy went to press we can only speculate as to what this new weapon was or even what this all means.
Is the War Over
With the elimination of his support, the question on everyone's mind is what does this all mean? No one expects the Dark Lord will capitulate or even turn himself in for trial and prosecution but with his support now near nonexistent how and where will he react?
Muggle Weaponry
Quoting sources only willing to speak off record the Daily Prophet can report the inspiration behind the new secret weapon employed in the attack on Azkaban Island has its origins in the bombs Muggles use to fight their wars. When asked, Minister Bones refused to confirm or deny the information but did say, "Whatever weapons the ministry has employed to fight this war, you can be certain they were used only after great deliberation and with the intent of saving every innocent life possible."
Regardless of Minister Bone's assurances the spectre of Muggle weaponry and the damage it can cause is not so old all witches and wizards have forgotten. "I was alive during the war with Grindelwald," Dedalus Diggle, proprietor of Diggle's Spirits House in Diagon Alley, said. "The Muggles fought their war right alongside it. Those planes of theirs would come and those bombs would fall like giant black hailstones so thick you'd think you could walk across them. They'd hit and the ground would shake for miles. The sky would fill with smoke tinged orange from the flames. And the next day you'd go look at the damage and entire blocks, bigger even than the Ministry itself would just be rubble; barely a single stone left atop another. I tell you, it was terrifying."
Attacks Mount
In a troubling escalation Ministry forces were called to the scene of yet another attack by suspected remnants of the Dark Lord's forces. Once again aurors arrived on scene in time to prevent any deaths but it is one more family to have lost their home in the conflict.
And so it went for the next three weeks, and while he'd often wished for a different life, Harry was eternally grateful he was not Minister Bones, or really any of the adults in the Order for that matter. Nearly all of them, but especially those who actually held ministry positions looked like they hadn't slept but a few hours in the days since the bombing of Azkaban. No, Harry was quite glad to be a student with only the unenviable fate of the prophecy to be concerned with.
"One more week," Daphne said. "I can hardly wait." She and Harry were making their second to last patrols for the year.
"Five days," Harry corrected. They might not be under the stress of his elders, but he was tired. It had been near ten months of very long days and he just wanted to escape for the summer. "I'm going to sleep for a week before I even think about training again."
"Agreed," Daphne said. The two stopped in the entry hall. "I feel like I can't get away from here fast enough."
Harry leaned against the wall as they looked out on the castle lawns. "Tell me about it." He'd been growing ever more antsy as the year wound down.
"I'm not the only one who feels like my head is on the chopping block, am I?" Daphne asked.
"You too?" Harry asked. Daphne shrugged. Even if she hadn't been friends with Harry from the off, the end of every school year since she'd started Hogwarts was marked by something horrific happening to him or Ginny and she really was desperate to get out of there before history repeated. Harry slipped an arm around her and she rested her head on his shoulder.
It was about ten minutes later Daphne said. "She's late."
"I know." He pulled her along with him.
"Where are we going?"
"I'm hoping I'll run into her on the way down to the gate and the feeling in my stomach will go away a minute faster."
"Good point," she agreed. They hurried down the steps to the lawn and the path to the front gate. About fifty meters away from the gate 'snitch-eyes', as Harry and Ginny called them, caused Harry to break into a sprint even as his stomach dropped to somewhere near China.
"Potter, stop!" Monica shouted at him. Harry ignored her and grabbed the pair of ballet shoes hanging from the gate. The head of his detail was only a step behind him and she knocked them from his hand. "God Damnit, Potter," she shouted at him. "I thought you were smarter than that." A bit of rolled up parchment and a silvery ribbon of material spilled out of the shoes as they hit the ground. Monica hip checked Harry away as he reached for the items. She drew her wand and quickly checked if they were portkeys. The shoes and parchment were clean though and she quickly snatched the parchment up. "Don't touch any of it!" she barked at Daphne.
"Harry already touched them," Daphne said. But she withdrew anyway. "And we already know which one is the portkey."
"Are you really willing to take the chance I didn't make a mistake?" Monica asked.
Harry held his hand out. "Give it to me," he said, his voice low and dangerous.
"What's going on?" Ginny asked, racing up to them. Hermione, Luna, Neville and their details were all just a few paces behind her. She skidded to a stop. "Are those…" she trailed off.
"Isla's ballet shoes," Daphne said, "yes. Another bond feeling?"
Ginny nodded. "Yes."
"Either give it to me," Harry said, "or I'm going to take it from you."
"Potter," Monica said, "we need to—" The wave of magic spilled across the lawn, locking all of the protection agents in place. Harry snatched the parchment from Monica's hands.
Ginny didn't need to read the note to know what it said. Nor was there a question in her mind what Harry would do. Just as he had on platform 9 ¾ when he had tried to ransom himself for Astoria his eyes found hers. There was one choice for him.… And only one choice for her. She gave him a single nod. "Daph," he said, never taking his eyes from Ginny. "You're the best of us at Charms."
Hermione let out choked sob and turned into Luna's arms. "Shush," the blonde soothed, "we'll get them back.
Daphne glanced to Ginny, who nodded again. Drawing her wand she went about setting the Tracking Charms on Harry. "Done," she said.
Harry bent and picked up the silvery object resting near Isla's ballet shoes. Holding it out to Ginny, he said, "I need you to put it on." She stepped to him, reaching to affix the cuff on his wrist. He handed her his wands before saying, "Seal it." Ginny raised his hand and pressed her lips to the silvery mesh before using her wand to seal the inhibitor cuff in place on his wrist. At the same instant his magic retreated Harry felt the snag of a portkey in his belly.
"I'll come for you," Ginny whispered to empty space.
There was a moment of silence before Neville was freeing the protection agents from Harry's spell. "Come on!" He grabbed Daphne and they ran for the castle.
Mad with rage, vengeance and simple madness, Narcissa Malfoy paced back and forth across a polished marble floor. She and Draco had not been on Azkaban Island when the ministry attack had come and killed every living thing on it. Orion, though, had. Her son had been murdered! Killed by cowards using filthy Muggle weapons; and, she was finished. She had nothing left. No husband, no title, no lands, no funds, nothing. Nothing but Draco, and he was poor comfort indeed. Though she did admire his handiwork with the girl. He was capable of simple tasks. The screams of the girl and the family they had taken this home from had been music to her revenge-ravaged mind. And she would have her vengeance; against Potter and him. Oh yes, the Dark Lord would pay for his false and broken promises. The first blow would be Potter himself. The redhead bitch would follow. Their deaths at her hand where the Dark Lord had failed would bring the last of his supporters to her feet and she would ascend to the mantle of Dark Queen herself. That had always been the mistake. She saw it now. She was a Malfoy; and a Black before that, and neither was meant to kneel and call another Master like they were some filthy house elf. She would strike the Dark Lord down and then set about the vision of wizarding dominion over the world herself. The second agent had been introduced only yesterday. The first deaths were mere days away. Six months from now they would number in the millions. In a year there wouldn't be but a handful of Muggles left.
Draco Malfoy paced the dark alley impatiently. The world had changed drastically in only moments. Where before he bowed and scraped to that horrifying wreck of a man – how had his father or mother ever thought to serve him, for that matter how had they thought to serve anyone – he now answered only to his mother. She'd forced the vow on him in return for the pledge he would serve at her right hand; to ascend the throne in her place when the time came. The redheaded bitch was also sworn to him.
How he wished it had been her screams instead of the stupid whore they'd taken earlier… How he wished he'd had more than the few hours he'd been given with her. He didn't understand why they needed to move so quickly in capturing Potter; surely they could have waited a day or two and given him more time with the girl. Though with more time he might not have been so inspired in his treatment of her. He was brought from his thoughts by a warning tone coming from the large cage set on the ground. He couldn't help smirking. How very prompt of Potter to not keep him waiting too very long. He stepped to the cage eagerly; wanting to see Potter's reaction on realizing just who had captured him.
Harry landed in a crouch, body tensed to move at a moment's notice. A quick glance was all he needed to know now wasn't the time. Outside of his cage a pair of feet and legs caught his attention. He schooled his face to one of disinterest and straightened. "Well, well, if it isn't little Draco Malfoy." Draco glowered at him. "What's the matter Drac?" Harry asked. "Not the fear on my face you hoped to see?"
"Crucio!" Draco snarled.
Amid the frantic activity within the command center Mr Granger and Tonks had set up within the castle Ginny suddenly went still in shrugging into her bodysuit. "Ginevra?" Luna asked.
"Something's happened," she said. "He's in pain… I think they're torturing him."
"Got him," David said. "57.0897° N, 2.6592° W"
"Thank the goddess for you and your Muggle technology," Andi said.
"Plotting it," Bill said. "Just northeast of Kincardine ONeil."
"That's got to be right near Kincardine Castle," Mali said.
"You've been there?" Lily asked.
"Just before Harry and Hermione met," she answered. If I remember correct, it was just about a mile from the village."
"The village then," David said. He checked the slide on his handgun before slamming the clip in. "We'll hop a half mile closer from there and then hoof it."
"Agreed," Bill said.
David turned to the assembled teams of protection agents. "Protection detail is over. We're in war mode."
He got, "Sirs," and nods of heads in return.
"Com, check," Tonks said.
Harry screamed and dropped to the ground writhing in agony. He was held under the curse only a few moments before being stunned. When he came to again, it was while screaming in agony with the Cruciatus once more. The curse was lifted and Harry lay there panting. He'd barely stopped his hands from twitching when he was hit with the curse again.
Ginny stood in the middle of the command center trembling with rage. "We need to go!" she shouted over the last minute din of Mr Granger and Tonks' instructions.
"Just a second—"
"NOW!" Ginny thundered. "HE'S BEING TORTURED NOW!"
Mr Granger stepped forward and grabbed her by the shoulders, giving her a shake. "You need to function," he said harshly. "Or I'm leaving you behind."
Ginny's lip twitched but she said nothing. "We're ready," Daphne said, handing Ginny the end of a length of rope. She silently took it.
"Good, Soldier," Mr Granger said. He grabbed hold of the rope with her.
"Activation in three… two… one," Tonks said.
The protection agents, Ginny and her four closest friends, Mr Granger, Bill, and Lily all landed in a carpark on the edge of Kincardine O'Neil. Thankfully it was just gone half ten and no non-magicals were about. Three more squads of aurors landed on compass points surrounding the target.
"Alpha in position," Mr Granger said. "Confirm objective remains in place. Repeat, objective remains in place."
"Bravo in place," came the first response.
"Charlie in place."
"Delta in place."
"Copy Bravo, Charlie, Delta in place," Mr Granger acknowledged. "Proceed to second checkpoints."
"Copy that, Alpha. Bravo moving."
"Charlie moving."
"Delta moving."
Alpha dispersed to their next checkpoints, with half the sextet's security detail going to a point south by southeast and the other half south by southwest exactly a half mile from Kincardine castle while Mr Granger and his team went to a point exactly south and a half mile distant from the castle. With Bravo, Charlie and Delta spreading out on north, east and west they now had the castle completely surrounded.
"Alpha one in place," Bill said.
"Alpha two in place," came the response.
"Alpha three in place."
"Confirm all Alpha in place," Bill said. All around the countryside the same process was repeated through Bravo, Charlie and Delta teams with each team checking in with their squad leader and then the squad leader checking in with Mr Granger.
"Roger Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta in place," David said. "Engage Disillusionment and Marker Charms, proceed to next checkpoint and hold." Bill quickly passed the command down to the other two Alpha teams. Charms were engaged and they set off at a quick jog. The quarter mile to the gates and surrounding castle wall were covered in just more than ninety seconds and they were all in place.
"Luna," Mr Granger said, "you're up."
"Yes, Sir." She took Cinder from her shoulder and held the dragon in front of her so they were eye to eye. "You understand, yes?" The little dragon dipped her head while growling angrily. "Yes, no mercy." Cinder's lip curled menacingly. "Go on then," Luna said. Cinder took wing and flashed away in search of the ward stone. Luna transformed and followed along on humming wings.
"Bill?" Mr Granger asked.
"Coming online… now," Bill answered. A palpable thrum hummed through the air, indicating the anti-apparation and portkey ward was up and functioning. "Seventy percent," Bill said. "Eighty… Ninety… Ninety-five… and… they're locked in."
"You sure they'd didn't feel that?"
"No," Bill answered. "David grimaced and hoped for the best.
Cinder made a beeline for a window on the main floor. There was a lot of magic in the air, but she was quite certain this source was the one she wanted. It smelt and tasted the same as the stones Bill hid for her to find. Though it did seem much stronger than those. Some of those weren't much bigger than the scales on her foreleg. They barely constituted treasure at all. Not that she was going to turn her nose up at them of course. This though, she suspected, would be much larger and she hoped she might be allowed to keep it. Her Luna had already promised her an entire cow if she were to find it and help them to rescue Luna's Harry and the Spinning Girl.
Her Luna had been very upset about what had happened. She was a brave human, her Luna was, and well she would have to be. No dragon would have chosen a coward, would she? No, of course not. Her Luna tried to hide her hurt and be brave and strong for her Hermione, but Cinder had known. Her Luna couldn't hide things like that. She was very frightened for her Harry and the Spinning Girl and her Hermione and Ginny. Cinder very much disliked when her Luna was upset or angry. Nobody should do that to her Luna. She was perfect and should always get to be happy and it made Cinder so very, very angry; angry enough her Flame raged and it was all she could do not to Fire the person responsible. Her Luna had said she was never to Fire a person though. Not unless she specifically said so. Cinder didn't understand that very well. She was Dragon. To Fire that which angered her was at the very heart of being Dragon. Her Luna though had a soft heart; softer Cinder thought than any other Dragon might. She was very wise too. Again, Cinder thought, wiser than any other Dragon might be. She seemed always to know just when to be ferocious and when not. That was something all Dragons struggled with.
Today though, Cinder didn't need her Luna to tell her it was time to be as ferocious as any Dragon to have ever unleashed her Flame on the world. Today was a day to be as terrible as the great flaming mountains from which Dragons first arose. Hurtling at the window Cinder could sense no specific source of magic on the other side. That was good. She was about to make much noise and for it to go unnoticed would be much preferred. She aligned her spine from her nose to the very tip of her tail, tensed every muscle in her body and smashed straight into the window. She was through in a crash of shattering glass and winging down the hallway in blink and it really didn't even hurt but a little bit. Well it did some, but not so much that she would complain. She was Dragon after all and Dragons, even if they were smaller than most, were the strongest of all creatures alive. She was far too proud to complain about a little bump.
Author's notes:
And you knew it was coming… If you didn't, then you've not been paying attention the last 7 books.
And next week's torture: Chapter 36, Little Bird