The Devil in Me
Hide What We've Become
A/N: The chapter title is from the song:
Dangerous Night by Thirty Seconds to Mars.
After a few days of Harry and Daphne being stupidly happy and irritating the rest of Slytherin house, Draco snapped.
"Could you just tone down the happiness a bit?"
Harry looked up at Draco in surprise, "What?"
"You're so happy; it's infuriating!" Draco exclaimed.
Harry snorted, "I reckon you're just jealous because Sadie still doesn't seem to give much of a shit about you."
"I'm not in love with Sadie, and I think you're annoyingly happy too," Blaise remarked from the other side of the sofa.
"What do you think, Trace?"
"Stupidly in love, it's sickening."
"It is," Sadie agreed, "And could you all quit talking about how in love with me Draco is when I'm right here?"
"Yeah, especially because it's not true," Draco said.
A general round of snorts and laughter went around the friend group at this.
"Yeah, completely untrue," Blaise said dryly.
Draco glared at his friend, "I'm not in the mood for this shit. I'll curse you."
"I'd like to see you try," Blaise remarked.
Draco pulled his wand out, and Harry rolled his eyes, "Ladies, please. Look, I get that you're pissed off with my happiness, but frankly, I like being happy. It's a new feeling, and I'm kinda enjoying it, so fuck you, with respect, Draco."
"Do you fuck Daphne with respect?" Blaise retorted.
"To quote my good pal here, do you want to be cursed, Blaise?" Harry asked, any hint of jest having left his voice now.
Blaise raised his hands, "Yeah, I took that too far – my bad."
Tracey shook her head in disbelief, "You're a brute – good luck finding someone to marry you, Blaise."
"I don't need anyone, Tracey; I'm not an heir," Blaise said with a smirk, "And I'm quite happy about that."
"I don't need anyone either," Tracey pointed out.
"No, but your girlfriend does-"
"Blaise – could you stop being a little shit for five minutes?" Daphne's voice asked as she entered the common room.
"That would be difficult; he's been doing it for a lifetime, after all," Draco muttered irritably.
Tracey threw a lazy curse at Blaise, but he deflected it and grinned at her.
"You know who else needs to marry someone but doesn't want to?" Harry said, looking at Tracey, "Felix Rosier – he's in love with Charlie Weasley, but he needs an heir, and so does Susan. Maybe you guys should get together sometime, discuss an arranged marriage which would make all parties happy."
Tracey frowned and looked up, "I can't tell if you're being thoughtful or sarcastic right now."
Harry frowned too, "Yeah…neither can I," he admitted.
Daphne clipped him over the back of the head lazily, drawing him back to his original line of thought.
"Anyway, as I was saying – Draco, you're pissed off that I'm happy because you're miserable," Harry said.
"And Sadie – stop being an idiot, you have feelings for Draco, anyone with eyes can see it, and Merlin knows we can feel the sexual tension when you two start yelling at each other across the common room."
Tracey and Daphne nodded their agreement.
"So just," Harry made a hand motion, "I don't know, do something, anything about it, please, for all of our sakes."
"You expect me to take relationship advice from you?" Sadie asked Harry sceptically.
"I'm the one who nabbed an heiress, remember? I think you lot forget that you know," Harry remarked.
Daphne shot Harry an exasperated look, but Sadie frowned as she contemplated the truth in that, "Yes….but, you are also kind of evil, no offence."
"None taken," Harry said with a wave of his hand, "Just give him a chance, yeah? He does deserve it, and Merlin knows he needs one."
Draco glared at Harry, "Thanks, mate, what a great wingman you make."
Sadie sighed and looked over at Draco, "Fine. I will accept your offer from a few weeks ago and be your date for Imbolc."
Draco's jaw dropped, and Sadie stalked off without another word.
"Might want to take back that comment about Harry being a shit wingman, mate."
"Shut up, Blaise!" Several voices echoed.
"Tom's in a bad mood. I would avoid him if I were you."
Harry raised an eyebrow at Lily. She had cornered him in the library, "Hi Lily, how are you? Nice weather today, isn't it?"
She gave him an irritated look, "I'm serious."
"I know he's pissed off. I can feel his emotions, remember?"
"I do forget that quite a lot, actually," Lily said, putting a book back on the shelf, "Can you feel him all the time?"
"I can feel his emotions a lot," Harry admitted, "More these days than ever. I thought I was getting better at Legilimency, but I'm starting to wonder if he's just starting to feel more."
"I think you're right there," Lily whispered.
"I don't hear his thoughts unless he's losing his shit or intentionally projecting, though," Harry added, "But I have picked up on general discontent lately. I can only presume it's because the Lestrange brothers are still at large?"
"Exactly," Lily said darkly, "And he won't say it in such terms, but he's scared for Amalthea. They killed her mother. What's to say they won't try and kill the Dark Lords heir too, you know?"
"I get it," Harry promised, "And I also know why they haven't been caught yet. The Death Eaters treated his offer of treasure like pirates would – they all want it, and they all want it for themselves. They are sabotaging each other trying to get the Lestrange's when in reality, if they just worked together, it would be easier – I won't say easy because I know how good those two are."
"Are you suggesting we form a taskforce?" Lily asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Maybe, but the first thing I'm proposing is that you stay the hell away from this," Harry said, looking at her sternly, "You're the reason Bellatrix fell from favour as far as the Lestrange brothers are concerned. Obviously, it goes deeper than that but being a good soldier doesn't necessarily mean that they are that smart."
"They are smart; that's the problem," Lily argued, "And you need someone smart to help you get them."
"I have lots of other smart people I can call to my imaginary taskforce," Harry said, "Tom only has one you, and if you die doing something for me, he won't just kill me, he will brutally destroy me, so I'm telling you, you're not a part of this. Just like Daphne can't be a part of this, do you hear me?"
"I hear you, but I'm pissed off with your dumb idea," Lily muttered irritably.
"You're also not fighting it because you know I'm right," Harry pointed out.
Lily glared at him in response, which just confirmed Harry's hunch.
"And I'll take Gus," Harry continued, "Since you think I'm a stupid, rash Gryffindor-"
"You are a stupid, rash Gryffindor," Lily corrected him dryly.
"I know," Harry said, shooting her a fond smile, "But I'll probably get Bill onto it too, so don't worry. I'll have my chaperones, and I'll be fine. I've done way more dangerous things than this before and survived."
"That is true," Lily admitted, "Can't I at least sit in on your taskforce meeting?"
Harry gave her an amused look.
"Is that a no or a maybe?"
"It's a no. Bugger off; I've got a taskforce meeting to plan."
Harry strode into Rookwood Hall and called upstairs, "Gus! Come down here; we're holding a taskforce meeting!"
"The Death Eaters have a taskforce now?" A voice asked from the great hall.
Harry ducked his head in and smiled at Johanna, "Not exactly. This is a taskforce that you're going to be very interested in, I'm sure."
Footsteps sounded on the stairs, and Gus stepped into view, "Since when do we do taskforces?"
Harry grinned, "Can you unlock the floo? I've got a few taskforce members coming over."
"Oh, you do, do you?" Gus asked sarcastically, "Just making yourself at home, I see."
"Well, Potter Manor is still in a state of disrepair, and I haven't had time to do much to it," Harry answered evasively.
"What about the houses you've got in Essex and London?"
"Well…yeah, I could have used them, but this place was convenient and trust me, you're going to want to hear this," Harry promised his mentor.
Gus sighed and unlocked the floo, "You had better be right, or I will curse you."
"I know you will," Harry said, throwing himself into a seat by the fire as it roared green.
Gus crossed his arms and watched Bill, Samson, Charlie, Felix, Fred, George and Hermione step out of the fireplace.
"We're hosting a Weasley family reunion, I see," Gus said dryly.
Harry grinned and clapped his hands together, "Welcome to the first meeting of our 'Let's Kill the Lestrange Brother's' taskforce fella's, oh and lady – sorry, Hermione."
Hermione raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
"Okay," Gus said, sitting down by the fire, "You have my attention – continue."
Harry got up and smiled around at the group.
"When the Dark Lord put a price on the Lestrange brothers heads, he made sure that any Death Eater who wanted more land or power would hunt them. The problem is that those Death Eaters are sabotaging each other by trying to find the brothers when really, what we need is a team assembled for that very purpose."
Harry motioned at Charlie and Felix, "To find them, we need a tracker, and what better trackers than two skilled wizards on two skilled tracking dragons?"
Charlie nodded in agreement.
"When we find their hide-out, likely an old Lestrange property, we're going to need a curse-breaker to get us in there," He motioned at Bill, "And a skilled wizard to have that curse breakers back, someone such as an Auror," he gestured at Samson.
"Then, when we find them, we're going to need two skilled duellists to take them down," Harry motioned between himself and Gus.
"A couple of werewolves for added speed and manpower to make sure that we outnumber two of the strongest duellists amongst the Dark Lords ranks," he motioned at Fred and George.
"And lastly, but most importantly, one of the smartest witches I know to make sure we all get out alive," he motioned at Hermione.
"So you're not asking much of us then, Harry," George joked.
"And as the token Slytherin in this family, I'm going to ask – what's in it for us?" Samson pointed out.
Harry chuckled, "I'm glad you asked because that's the thing – if we do this, we do it together, and we stick together once the deed is done. That is why the majority of the people on this task force are Weasley's," he said to Gus, "Because family don't betray each other."
"You've never been a part of a pureblood family," Gus said, giving Harry an amused look.
"There's no honour amongst thieves," Johanna agreed.
"But there is honour amongst Death Eaters," Harry said, "We're a brotherhood, all with the same end goal. The Lestrange estate is vast – if we all work together, we can make sure that everybody gets something out of it."
Bill crossed his arms over his chest, "I want Chateau Lestrange in Brittany."
"Course you do," Harry said, "It's bigger and better than anything that the Delacour's have. Fleur will want to get one up on her older brother; after all, her not being the heir to anything."
Bill raised an eyebrow, "I didn't know you knew about Marcel."
"I do my research these days," Harry smirked.
"That's right, you're bad and smart now," Hermione said sarcastically, "But don't get too cocky. What could Fred, George or I possibly want out of this? I'm the heir to the Crouch estate, remember?"
"Yes, but Fred and George are entitled to nothing," Harry pointed out, "And your Dad was young when you were born, Katherine. He's going to be knocking about for a while. Do you want to live in Crouch House with him and your wolves forever?"
Hermione narrowed her eyes, "That's not my name," she said irritably.
"Check your birth certificate," Harry said in a sing-song voice, "I'm pretty sure it is."
Fred took her hand, "He's got a point about us needing somewhere to live, Hermione."
George nodded, "I don't fancy living with your Dad forever."
"The Lestrange's have a nice big castle in Yorkshire," Harry said with a smirk, "It's rural, and it has a magic-proof dungeon where you could lock the wolves up every full moon. It would be perfect for the three of you."
Hermione said nothing, but she glanced over at Fred and George, who she could tell were considering the offer.
Samson chuckled, "I want the townhouse they've got in Mayfair. The one area that my family have never been able to branch out into is London."
Harry nodded, and he looked over at Gus with an amused smile, "Gus?"
"I want the castle, Harry," Gus said with a smirk, "I want Castle Lestrange."
"I know you do, Gus," Harry said in amusement, "And as the Head of the Department of Mysteries, you're one of the few people capable of getting into it and clearing it out, so you're welcome to it."
Gus gave Johanna a knowing look, and she smiled. Harry supposed it was his way of saying, 'See? I told you taking his kid under my wing was a good idea.'
"What about us, then?" Charlie asked, raising an eyebrow at Harry, "Why would we want anything? Felix has the entire Rosier estate; it's already more than either of us need or want."
"And what if I told you about a remote castle in Galway where wild dragons roam?" Harry asked.
Charlie and Felix shared a look, and Harry laughed.
"So, you see? Everyone gets something they want out of this-"
"No," Hermione cut in, "What about you?"
"I don't want any of their estate," Harry said offhandedly, "I've got enough."
"Then why are you doing this?" Hermione asked, narrowing her eyes at him.
"Because while the Lestrange's are alive, Amalthea is under threat, and I don't want the Dark Lord to lose his heir," Harry said honestly.
Gus smiled slightly and spoke quietly so that only Harry and Johanna could hear him, "You're loyal to a fault, kid. No wonder the Dark Lord is so fond of you."
"Where do you suggest we start then? Since this is your grand plan," Hermione said, and Harry thought she sounded at least a little bit bitter about that.
"With our trackers," Harry replied, looking over at Charlie and Felix, "If I give you a list of their known properties, do you think you would be able to find them?"
"We'd certainly be able to spot any wards," Charlie answered, "The dragons don't like them. They become unsettled, like when a dog sees an unfriendly dog on the street."
"And you know how to tell who cast those wards, don't you? That's what the Dark Lord has had you doing these past few weeks," Harry said.
Felix nodded, "We can't get an exact lock on who cast the wards, but wards do emit magical signatures, so we would be able to tie them to a family."
"And right now, that's all we need," Harry said.
Charlie sighed but said nothing.
At his side, Felix murmured, "This is what you wanted, Charlie – to track down bad guys, not innocent people. If we get these two, we'll be making a difference."
"I know," Charlie said, giving a slight nod.
"You're in then?" Harry asked.
"We're in," Charlie assured him, "Stay on guard, and we'll let you know as soon as we find anything."
Harry nodded and looked around at the others, "Everybody, stay alert for the call to arms. We might have to act quickly to make sure they don't get away."
The others all nodded, having had their marching orders as it were, and they all disappeared through the fireplace once more.
In the end, only Harry, Gus and Johanna remained.
"That is not the way I expected my evening to go," Johanna remarked matter of factly.
"No," Gus agreed, looking over at Harry, "But with any luck, we'll be able to trade this up for a castle soon."
"A castle full of booby traps and dark magic. I don't know why you want it so badly, to be honest," Harry remarked.
"Because there are things in that castle that the Department of Mysteries have been after for a long time," Johanna said, her eyes on her husband.
"The Lestrange's are an ancient, very dark family who has hoarded items that they should never have gotten their hands on in the first place."
"Jo, that's enough," Gus said firmly.
Johnna gave him a long look, "I didn't tell him anything, Augustus."
"Well, hopefully, I'll be an Unspeakable soon enough anyway," Harry said, holstering his wand and heading for the door, "I'll call you when I need you. Hopefully, it's before Imbolc."
"With any luck, it will be," Gus said.
Harry nodded and smiled politely, "Goodnight Gus, goodnight Johanna."
"Have a safe trip back to the castle, Harry," Johanna said on a parting note as Harry took his leave.
"You haven't thanked me for setting up your date yet," Harry whispered to Draco as they sat side by side in Defensive Magic.
"I'm pissed off with you," Draco muttered.
Harry nudged him in the ribs, "Pissed off that I got you a date with the girl you've had a crush on since you were 12?"
Draco shot him an irritated look, "No, pissed off because you overlooked me for your secret taskforce."
"How do you know about my secret taskforce?" Harry whispered back.
"Because you and Lily were talking about it in the library, which is a public place," Draco remarked.
"I'm an idiot."
"Finally, something we agree on," Draco drawled.
"Oh, come on, Draco, don't be like that," Harry whispered, leaning in closer, "It's not because I don't think you're good enough. It's because you don't need anything from it, and other people do."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Draco hissed.
Harry sighed and looked up, but Bill was distracted with another student, "Look, it's a hit team."
Draco's eyes widened, "You're going after the-"
Harry clamped his hand over Draco's mouth and glared at him.
Bill looked up and raised an eyebrow, "Boys, everything okay over there?"
"Yes, sir, just shutting Draco's big mouth for him before he says something he regrets," Harry quipped.
Draco glared right back at him and pried Harry's hand off of his mouth to sniggers from some of their other classmates.
Bill watched them suspiciously as Harry whacked Draco around the back of the head, "Yes," he whispered, "A secret hit team, so shut your mouth."
Draco shot him a glare, "And why am I not included in your little 'A-team' then?"
"Draco, you don't even understand that reference," Harry said in disbelief, "You can't use references that you don't understand."
"Boys," Bill said again, a little more sternly, "Do I need to remove you from my class?"
"No, sir," Harry said.
Draco shook his head too, "No, sir."
Bill gave them a nod, a knowing nod and sat back down behind his desk.
"So he's in on it?"
"Of course, he is. He's a curse breaker," Harry hissed, "I told you, the reason you are omitted has nothing to do with your ability. It's because whoever brings them in gets their estate, and your family already own half of England, you don't need anything but the likes of Bill and his Weasley brethren do."
At this, Draco relaxed slightly, "Well…yes, that makes sense but still, do you know how dangerous they are?"
"Of course I know how dangerous they are. Why else would I assemble a hit team?"
"What the hell even is that?"
"Are you for real? It's not even a muggle reference, it just-"
"That's enough," Bill snapped, "Malfoy, Potter – out!"
Harry rolled his eyes, "Are you serious, Bill?"
"Professor," Bill corrected.
"There's no need to call me 'professor', sir," Harry retorted.
Bill drew his wand, "Would you like to demonstrate how we use defensive magic to shield against dark curses?"
Harry made a face, "Not really, no."
"Then get out of this classroom, now," Bill said.
Harry got to his feet with another roll of his eyes and stalked out with Draco on his heels.
"Now, where was I?" Bill continued while their classmates sniggered.
The moment they got to the corridor outside, Draco burst out laughing, "You might be the Dark Lords favourite, but you still got kicked out of class by a Weasley."
"Which was your fault, might I add?" Harry pointed out, "What kind of dumbass doesn't know what a hit team is? I mean, we even have Hit Wizards, like, come on, Draco."
Draco glared at him, "You are really testing my patience right now, and I don't care whose bitch you are; I will curse you."
"First off, I'm nobody's bitch, I'm the Dark Lords right-hand man, and I'm pretty sure there's still a protection order on me," Harry remarked.
"I don't give a shit about the protection order, I'll-"
"Good afternoon, Professor Riddle," Harry interjected cheerfully.
Draco froze in horror
Harry grinned.
"You were saying, Draco?" Tom's voice asked as he walked into view.
Draco paled and fumbled for words, "I…uh…I was about to tell Harry that I would jinx him in a non-lethal or harmful way."
Tom smirked at this, "Indeed. Please do; I find Harry's antics as tiresome as I am sure you do."
Harry made a face but said nothing.
Tom turned to look at him, "Harry, do I gather that you are assembling a hit team to bring me the Lestrange brothers?"
"Yes," Harry replied, "For some reason, everyone seems to think that you want one person to bring you their heads but am I right to assume that if I a team of people do so, the rewards will be shared out?"
"That was always my intention," Tom agreed, "One man cannot take down two wizards as skilled as the Lestrange brothers. I would congratulate you for being the first of my followers to work that out, but I have a feeling that Lilith may have done so."
"Well…no, it was mostly my idea," Harry argued, "Lily helped a little."
Tom raised an eyebrow, "Then why is she not on your team?"
"Because…" Harry looked at Draco then finished answering that question in his head because whether you are willing to admit it or not, she matters to you, and I don't like to think about what you would do to me if she got hurt on my watch.
Tom gave Harry a penetrating look, then he nodded, "Very well," he said, walking away from them in the other direction.
"What did you say to him?" Draco asked in disbelief.
Harry frowned as he watched Tom go, "Nothing much," he answered honestly.
But the cogs in his head were whirring madly. Was Tom falling in love with Lily, or was Harry starting to go mad?
It didn't take long for Charlie and Felix to track down the Lestrange brothers – they called them to arms less than two days after the initial "committee" meeting.
They all met at the co-ordinates Charlie had provided them with. As such, they all gathered on a hillside just over the Welsh border.
"You got them?" Harry asked.
Charlie nodded and motioned at a ruined house in the valley below, "It's not a Lestrange property, it's an old safe house from the last war, but it's heavily warded with notice-me-not charms, that's why it looks like a ruin."
"Lennox spotted it from a mile off and zoned in on this valley," Felix added, stroking Lennox's head proudly.
"Peruvians always were better trackers than horntails," Charlie said with a smile, "Sarris is more of a fighter than a tracker."
"When she feels like it," Felix quipped.
Harry chuckled and looked over at Gus, "You're the seasoned veteran here, Gus. What's our next move?"
Gus had been ignoring the conversation about the dragons. He was too busy staring down at the little house in the valley. His eyes were narrowed as if his focus was entirely on something far in the distance.
"They know we're here," Gus said.
Before Harry, or anyone else could question that, a colossal ball of fiendfyre was hurled at them.
The two who were best equipped to act quickly were Gus and Harry.
"Protego!"
"Finite Dura!"
Gus had cast the shield charm, and Harry had strengthened it, but they both knew it would have little effect so, while Gus held the powered-up shield charm, Harry yelled, "Ventus Duo!"
The spell whipped up an intense wind which meant that between them, Harry and Gus were able to push the ball of fiendfyre back into the house, where it immediately obliterated the wards.
"Let's go!" Harry yelled, rushing down the hillside.
"What's the plan?" Hermione asked as she dashed after him.
"There is no plan! You know this, Hermione, our plans always go to shit!"
Hermione couldn't argue with that one, even if she had wanted to.
The fiendfyre had forced the Lestrange's out of the house, and they were just preparing to disapparate when Gus put up strong anti-apparition and anti-disapparition wards around the perimeter.
"You've just trapped us all in here with raging fiendfyre!" Hermione exclaimed.
"Don't worry about it, kiddo," Samson said as he threw a cutting curse at a Lestrange brother and immediately adopted a back to back duelling stance with Bill, "We've got the one guy this side of the north sea whose good enough with the counter-curse to use it."
"Offensive or defensive, Sam?" Bill asked.
"Defensive," Samson answered.
Bill threw a violent, dark curse at one of the brothers while Samson held up a powerful shield charm over them both.
"Well, put it out then, Bill!" Hermione exclaimed.
"Not yet, let's keep the heat on them a bit longer," Bill called back.
While this small argument was going on, Harry and Gus were trying to separate the brothers because they knew they all stood more of a chance against them if they were fighting alone.
"Charlie!" Harry called while holding up a shield charm for Gus, "Use the dragons!"
Charlie nodded, and he brought his fingers to his lips, whistling loudly. By his side, Felix did the same.
The two dragons flew over the burning cottage and sucked in breaths.
"Shields up!" Harry yelled.
They all put up the strongest shield charms they could as two balls of fire hit the Lestrange's, breaking their shield charms and forcing them apart.
Harry and Gus closed in on Rodolphus while Bill and Samson closed in on Rabastan.
The fiendfyre roared violently behind them, and tendrils began to snake out of the house.
Hermione tried her best to fight it back, but fire extinguishing spells only did so much against magical fire.
"Bill needs to get that fire out," Hermione said, attempting to push it back again – they were trapped inside the wards until Gus brought them down, and it was pushing them closer to the edge.
"We'll do what we can from above," Charlie said, mounting Sarris and digging his heel into her side, "Come on, girl."
She took off, and Felix jumped onto Lennox, following suit. They managed to get the dragons to blow the fire into the other direction, but it wasn't a long-term solution.
"Bill can't do anything while he's duelling the Lestrange brothers," Fred said.
"And you two are not powerful enough to take them on," Hermione warned Fred.
"Not in this form, anyway," Fred mused. He caught his brother's eye.
"You thinking what I'm thinking, Freddie?" George asked.
"I'm thinking its time to try out our new trick," Fred said.
Hermione looked over her shoulder at them, "If you two are going to do what I think you are, just be careful! You don't want to hurt the people you love."
"Don't worry, we took wolfsbane just in case," Fred said.
"And we remember what you taught us about focus," George added as Fred pulled him away from Hermione.
Hermione watched them nervously as she kept trying to keep the fiendfyre at bay.
Fred and George forced themselves into wolf form – within seconds, two large wolves with thick auburn fur ran at Hermione, and she ducked, knowing what they were about to do. They pounced over her head gracefully, and their amber eyes gleamed, almost playfully.
"Bill, Samson – on your left!" Hermione called.
The two elder Weasley's turned, saw the wolves and immediately backed off.
Rabastan's eyes widened when the two large creatures launched themselves at him.
"The fiendfyre?" Hermione asked, more than a little sarcastically.
"Since when could they do that at will?" Bill asked, moving his wand in a circular motion and focusing straight ahead.
"They don't call me the smartest witch of my generation for nothing, you know?" Hermione said, shooting Bill a smirk, "Once you learn how the wolves use the moon to harness their power, you can teach them how to do it at will."
"Huh," Samson mused, "And here was me thinking you were a bookworm."
"She is a bookworm," Bill said, closing his eyes and whispering an enchantment in a language that even Hermione didn't understand, "She's just a bad-ass one."
Hermione smirked, but she and Samson fell silent and watched in awe as Bill sped up his wand movements – he moved his wand in a circular motion at speed and sucked all the fiendfyre into a wormhole that he had created in mid-air. Once it was all swirling above them, he opened his eyes and thrust his wand forward, vanishing the fiendfyre and closing the wormhole.
"Did you just…" Hermione said in awe.
"Temporal magic," Samson said, hitting Bill on the back, "You sent it into another plane, didn't you?"
"Damn sight easier than the counter-curse," Bill said, wiping the sweat from his forehead.
"That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen," Hermione admitted.
Bill smirked but then took a step back as one of the wolves approached them.
"Ugh," Samson said as the wolf dropped the head of Rabastan Lestrange at Hermione's feet.
Hermione wrinkled her nose up and ran her hand through the wolf's fur, "You did a good job, Fred," she murmured, "I get it if you don't want to transform here. I'll meet you both outside Malfoy Manor when you're ready."
The other wolf bowed its head and nudged Hermione in the leg. She reached down and ran her hand through its fur too, "I know he'll struggle to come to terms with it, George, but Rabastan Lestrange wasn't a nice guy."
Both the wolves bowed their heads and then bounded off towards the woods.
Hermione looked up, surprised to find Bill, Samson, Charlie and Felix all watching her intently.
"What?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Nothing, it's just…" Bill trailed off, "It's unconventional, isn't it?"
Hermione cast her eyes upwards, "You two get it, don't you?"
"I've had more rewarding friendships with dragons than people, so yeah, Mione, I get it," Charlie said, his smile was an amused one, "But I mean, you gotta cut Harry a break for calling them your pets."
"I would curse you if you weren't on a dragon right now," Hermione warned him.
Samson chuckled, "Reckon we should help Gus and Harry?"
They all turned to the ongoing battle that Gus and Harry were having with Rodolphus Lestrange.
It was apparent that, for the most part, Gus was the offensive dueller while Harry was the defensive one, but against someone like Rodolphus Lestrange, it required both of them to duel aggressively.
The younger man and his mentor seemed to be rather enjoying themselves as they teamed up and threw powered up dark spells at Rodolphus; it genuinely didn't look like they needed any help.
"Nah, I think they've got this," Bill replied.
Hermione bagged up Rabastan's head and lazily muttered, "Incendio!" throwing it at the body, which lit up instantly.
"Want a ride back to the Manor?" Charlie asked her.
Hermione looked up, warily, "How long does it take to get to Wiltshire via dragon?"
"From here? Less than half an hour," Charlie replied.
"You know I don't like flying, Charlie," Hermione said.
"I'll take it easy," Charlie promised as he flew closer to the ground and offered her his hand.
Hermione sighed, "Give me a hand up then, Bill."
Bill shot Charlie an amused look and helped Hermione clamber onto Sarris, "You'd better fly safely. You know how much our little brothers love her."
"I'll fly like our grandma," Charlie said, winking at Bill and patting Sarris on the side, "Hold on tight, Mione!"
As the dragon took off, Hermione squealed in alarm, and Bill snorted.
"He's not talking about Granny Celia, is he?" Samson asked
"Yeah, he is," Bill said, grinning at his cousin.
"How did she fly?" Felix asked curiously.
"Like a lunatic till she fell off a broom and broke her leg on her 50th birthday," Bill replied.
Felix laughed and dug his foot into Lennox's side, "Better go and make sure he doesn't kill his future sister-in-law then. See you at the manor, boys."
Without another word, Felix shot off.
Bill shoved his hands into his pockets and turned his attention back to the duel between Harry, Gus and Rodolphus once more.
Rodolphus was losing both his stamina and his patience.
"The Dark Lord cannot even do his own bidding!" Rodolphus was shouting, "He sends his lapdog to do it?"
"That's how unimportant you are to him, Rodolphus," Harry said, "Sectumsempra!"
Rodolphus ducked, but Harry continued, "He doesn't even feel like he needs to murder you personally because while you succeeded in killing the mother of his child, you didn't manage to kill his heir."
Rodolphus hissed, "Orbis!"
The ground beneath Harry tried to swallow him up, but he jumped up, and Gus conjured a disc of air for him to stand on.
"So congratulations, you killed your wife, but that's all you did," Harry said, "And let's face it, you're just pissed that Bella managed to have a child by the Dark Lord when she could never do so for you."
This was the final straw that made Rodolphus snap. He yelled and got to his feet, glowing green balls forming in each hand.
"Now!" Gus said.
While he powered up the lethal spell, he left himself open to attack.
"Sectumsempra!"
"Diffindo!"
The two spells cut through the air and sliced through Rodolphus's neck, severing his head in one easy movement.
"Remember when you told me that my sharp tongue was gonna get me killed one day?" Harry asked, wiping the sweat from his face and gripping the house's charred stone for support.
"Yeah, kid," Gus said breathlessly, "It's also bloody useful at times."
"I knew mentioning his impotence would be enough to make him lose his shit," Harry said with a grin.
Gus patted him on the back and sat down on the charred wall to catch his breath.
Harry looked over at Bill and Samson, "Where's the rest of the entourage?"
"Charlie's flying Hermione to the manor with Rabastan's head, and Felix is supervising to make sure he flies safely," Bill began, "And the twins are running off some frustration in the woods."
"Thought I saw a couple of wolves out of the corner of my eye, I thought only Greyback could transform without the full moon?"
"Well, they have Hermione Granger's brains on their side," Bill pointed out, "She found a way to harness the power of the moon all month round."
"Course she did; she's brilliant," Harry said with a small smile, "Who killed Rabastan?"
"Fred," Samson replied, "He bit his head off."
"Literally," Bill added.
"Nice."
Gus snorted and got to his feet, "Come on. Let's get back to the manor. The Dark Lord is going to be eager to see the back of these two."
Harry nodded and held out his hand, "Need a hand, old man?"
"How many times did I save your arse in that duel, boy?" Gus quipped.
Harry chuckled and bagged Rodolphus's head, "Quite a few times – thanks, Gus."
Gus just gave him an amused smile and threw an "Incendio" at Rodolphus's body.
"That went a lot better than I expected when I saw that ball of fiendfyre coming for us," Samson confessed as they took down the anti-apparition and anti-disapparition wards.
"Yeah, where did that go?" Harry asked curiously. He glanced at the charred remains of the safehouse the brothers had been staying in.
"Another dimension," Samson replied.
Gus looked up in surprise, "You used temporal magic?"
"I didn't," Samson said, "Bill did."
Gus looked at Bill, "That's difficult magic."
"I know," Bill said with a slightly amused smile, "Handy when you're a curse breaker though. Sometimes you have to face the fact you can't destroy a curse, so the only way to get rid of the danger is to throw it into a different plane."
"Are we talking alternate universes or a different plane as in a different plane of time?" Harry asked curiously.
"Both, and neither, I suppose," Bill replied.
"Temporal magic is complicated," Gus agreed, giving Harry a knowing look.
Harry nodded and dropped the subject.
"Right then, good work, guys," Harry said, getting back on track, "Let's head back to Malfoy Manor to give the boss the good news."
Harry and his gang got to Malfoy Manor before the dragon riders or the wolves. Harry let them into the manor because he could do so now that Lucius had changed the wards.
As they walked through the entrance hall, Harry sent a thought to Tom, Malfoy Manor, as soon as you can. I've got a gift for you.
This had better be worth it, Tom thought back instantly.
Harry smirked and strode into the drawing-room, "Evening, Lucius."
Lucius looked up and raised an eyebrow, "I let you in on the wards, and the first thing you do is elect to fill my house with Weasley's?"
Harry snorted and dropped the sack onto the floor with a loud thump, "This is only two Weasley's. There are more on their way. Where's Narcissa?"
"At Peverell Court," Lucius replied, "Amalthea has a cold and will not settle for anyone else."
Harry smiled slightly, "Figures. It's a shame you didn't have anymore. She loves kids."
"I am aware of that," Lucius said, his eyes flickering from the two Weasley's to the bag on the ground, "What is in the bag?"
A knock sounded on the door, and Harry grinned. He unlocked the door with a wave of his hand, and the remainder of their little hit team walked in.
Lucius looked at them disdainfully, "More Weasley's and a-", he cut himself off.
Hermione dropped a bag at his feet, "A what, Lucius?"
"The Crouch heir is what I believe you were about to say," Harry said, his eyes glinting playfully, "Eh, Lucius?"
Lucius gave Harry an amused look, "Of course," he said smoothly, "Now, the bags – what is inside them?"
"The Lestrange brothers, or their heads anyway," Harry said, looking over at Fred, "How did Rabastan taste, by the way?"
"Disgusting," Fred said dryly.
"And I tell you what, that little trick might have worked, but man, it makes you hungry," George added.
"We can put everyone up for supper, can't we, Lucius?"
"Must we?" Lucius remarked.
"Of course," Harry chirped, "It is the only way to treat one's fellow Death Eaters, after all."
"Indeed," Lucius said, "And I am sure we can find some bowls for the dogs to drink out of."
Fred rolled his eyes, "I literally just ripped this guys head off; you know the guy who murdered your sister-in-law?"
"You assume that I was fond of my sister-in-law," Lucius said, clicking his fingers lazily.
An elf appeared and bowed lowly, "Yes, master Lucius, sir?"
"Prepare supper, promptly," Lucius drawled.
"Yes, of course, sir," The elf said quickly, disappearing with a loud crack.
Lucius motioned to the dining room, and they all traipsed through, looking a right state covered in soot and, in some cases – blood. But they all sat around the mahogany dining table digging in while Lucius ate nothing and sat back in a chair, surveying the scene.
Gus, likewise, was less interested in food.
Harry threw a grape into his mouth, "You ever going to fix the dent Charity Burbage made?" he asked, gesturing to the table.
"Do you know how difficult mahogany is to repair properly?" Lucius asked irritably, "The wood used to make this table is a thousand years old, you know?"
"Hm, as important to you as your peacocks are then, Lucius?" Gus remarked slyly.
Lucius slammed his fist onto the table, "They are not my peacocks! My father introduced them, and I cannot get rid of the bloody things! If one more person makes a remark based on those darned birds, I will kill them where they stand."
"Is that so?" Tom's high, cold voice asked.
They all turned to the doorway.
"Because they are rather pretentious, Lucius."
Harry choked back laughter at the look of horror on Lucius's face.
"Now, Harry – I believe you have something for me?" Tom said, getting straight down to business.
"Yes, we do," Harry said, motioning to the two bags by the fireplace.
Tom looked inside them and gave a satisfied nod, "Indeed. Most efficient work, whose work is this?"
"Fred killed Rabastan and Gus and I killed Rodolphus," Harry answered, "But we all worked together to find and kill them – apart from Lucius, his house was just a convenient meeting spot."
Lucius scoffed at that.
"It makes a change from it being my house," Gus pointed out, giving Harry a long look.
Tom surveyed those at the table, "Then I presume you all want something?"
"They all do," Harry agreed, "Bill and his French wife quite fancy themselves Château Lestrange in Brittany. Gus wants Castle Lestrange, obviously. Charlie and Felix want the castle in Galway because of its proximity to dragons. Samson wants the townhouse in London, and the Crouch heir and her wolves want the castle in Yorkshire."
"Leaving you the manor house in Norfolk," Tom said, his eyes on Harry.
Harry shrugged, "I don't want anything. I didn't do it because I wanted something."
"Why did you do it then?" Tom asked, narrowing his eyes at Harry.
"Because they posed a threat not just to you, or me, but to all of us," Harry answered, "And especially to Amalthea."
Tom raised an eyebrow, "You did all of this? Assembled a team to kill the Lestrange brothers, to protect my daughter?"
This sparked Harry's attention – it was the first time he had heard Tom refer to Amalthea as his daughter rather than as his heir. Tom's eyes flashed as if he had just realised the slip-up.
Harry nodded, "Pretty much, yeah."
Tom kept his gaze on Harry for a moment, then he looked away, "Even if that is so, you will still be gifted the manor. You must see how it would look to my other followers if you were the only person on this team who received nothing?"
Harry shrugged, "If you must, I'll accept it."
Tom looked around at the others. He bowed his head, "Your requests are all granted. Harry, a word in private, if you would?"
Harry got up and patted Lucius on the back, "Have fun entertaining," he said as he followed Tom out of the room and upstairs to his wing of the house.
When they walked into the study, and Tom shut the door behind them, Harry began to feel a little wary.
"There is no need, Harry," Tom assured him. He sat by the fire and motioned for Harry to take the seat opposite.
Harry did so, "When you ask to speak with me in private, it's usually because I've done something wrong."
"It does not always have to be that way. On occasion, I just wish a little privacy," Tom said, surveying Harry through his knowing blue eyes, "I am impressed with the initiative you showed, Harry. Even more so that the motley group you brought together managed to pull it off."
Harry chuckled, "Well, I like to think that's why you put me in charge of recruitment, my lord. I know people, I know their strengths and weaknesses, and I knew the Weasley brothers wouldn't betray each other, so they seemed a good team."
"Indeed," Tom said, his eyes sparkling with amusement, "The Lestrange brothers heads will be placed on the gates before Imbolc, and we shall thank nature for delivering them to us. Did you perform the necessary checks before you killed them?"
"I did," Harry answered, "It was difficult to get a full lock on them with Legilimency while we were duelling, but I did what I could. There was no evidence in their minds that they went to the Order or the Army of the Phoenix."
"I did not think they would," Tom confessed, "They are too proud and too smart. They know that either group would kill them on sight before they gave them the benefit of the doubt."
"Well, thankfully, that worked in our favour," Harry said, offering Tom a small smile, "We can all rest a little easier now."
"Yes," Tom said, his gaze not wavering, "About that. Do you truly expect me to believe that you risked your own life to bring me the Lestrange brothers when you wished nothing from it?"
"I told you the truth, it was to protect all of us, but especially Amalthea," Harry replied, "You unofficially named me as her godfather, and I take that very seriously. If anything happened to her, I would consider it to be on my head."
Tom said nothing for a moment. He just looked into the fire and sighed, "Lilith had a strop because you did not take her along for the ride. I ignored her foolish behaviour, of course, as I tend to when she acts like a silly little girl."
Harry grimaced, "Well, at the risk of getting crucio-ed, I feel I should point out that she is a silly little girl. She's only 17."
"I am well aware of that, Harry," Tom said coolly, "And I have told her multiple times that there can never be a truly equal relationship between us, but still, she does not listen."
"She's stubborn," Harry agreed, "And in love with you."
Tom rolled his eyes, "Another sign of her foolishness. She knows I can never return her feelings, so why does she insist on staying?"
"Because she sees the good in you," Harry answered honestly, "The good that I don't think even you see, Tom. I see it too, you know? It's why I keep telling you to consider putting your soul back together."
Tom sighed and nodded, "Yes, about that."
Harry looked up sharply. This was the first time Tom hadn't gotten angry about him bringing that up.
"You must not tell anyone, especially Lilith, what I am about to tell you," Tom warned, his eyes flashing dangerously, "Do you understand?"
"Yes," Harry promised.
"I have been researching what it might take to put my soul back together and the likelihood that I would survive the ordeal," Tom confessed.
"I know the spell, and I know that to initiate the process, I must experience a moment of genuine remorse. Under normal circumstances, I believe I would not survive the ordeal, but my title of 'Master of Death' changes things."
"Of course," Harry breathed, "You could strike a deal with death, couldn't you? Convince him to let you come back with your soul intact?"
"Potentially," Tom agreed, "But as this is all theoretical, there is no guarantee. As such, Lilith feels uneasy about the idea because she does not want me to perish."
"She doesn't want to lose you because she loves you," Harry corrected.
Tom sighed once more and nodded, "Indeed."
"So you've found the door, and you know how to open it," Harry said, his eyes meeting Tom's, "But you don't know if you can open it."
"Correct," Tom said. He got to his feet before Harry could push the issue any further.
"I have business to attend to at Hogwarts. I will leave you to dish out the rewards of your troubles to your motley crew," Tom continued as he walked towards the door.
"Will I see you for Imbolc?" Harry asked cautiously, "Or will you spend it with Lily at Peverell Court?"
Tom paused – the significance of the question was not lost on him. Imbolc was a family holiday, and by asking Daphne to spend it with him, Harry showed how committed he was to their engagement. If Tom spent it with Lily at Peverell Court, it would be all but a commitment to their relationship.
"No," Tom answered evenly, "Amalthea is more content with Narcissa, so Lilith and I shall attend Imbolc together, but we will do so here with our…"
Harry's eyes widened. There was no way Tom was going to use the word Harry thought he was…
"…family," Tom finished.
Harry smiled warmly and nodded, "In that case, I look forward to it."
Tom returned the smile, "Good evening, Harry."
"Good evening, Tom."
* TBC *