After the Dawn
Chapter Two: Worries
Albus Dumbledore paced his study, feeling worried. He'd just gotten an owl from Arabella Figg, saying that she'd gone around to the Dursley's house, but had seen no sign of Harry…
There was a knock on the door. "Minerva! Come in!" Albus called, his cheerful voice not betraying his anxiety.
The door opened and Minerva McGonagall, the Transfiguration professor walked into the room. She looked stiff and formal as she nodded a greeting to him, and Albus was pretty sure this was because he hadn't agreed with her the night before about little Harry Potter.
"You called, Albus?" she asked, voice clipped.
"Indeed I did. I have just gotten disturbing news from Arabella Figg. She went to visit Harry's aunt and uncle, but saw no sign of him there this morning … I want you to and check – discreetly – that the boy is alright," Albus replied. "If anything is wrong with him there – do not act. Return here and let me know. I will decide the appropriate measure to be take."
Minerva's eyes narrowed slightly, but she nodded. "Very well Albus. I should be back in the next few hours, before dark, at the latest." She turned and walked out of the office.
Albus sighed softly and looked back at the letter in his hands. "Ah, Fawkes, I hope I have made the right decision," he murmured to his phoenix.
Fawkes gave a soft, sleepy trill.
Albus sighed and rose. "Well, I can't stay here all day. Its lunchtime, I suppose I'd best go and join the rest of the school," he remarked to no one in particular.
Fawkes trilled again.
***
Remus Lupin was seated at his kitchen table. He had been for the past seven hours, crying. He'd gotten word that Lily and James were dead.
"Sirius, how could you?" he asked. He didn't want to think that it had been Sirius who had betrayed Lily and James, but who else could it be?
For a while, he'd entertained the idea of finding that Sirius was innocent, that it had been someone else … Or that Sirius had died rather than give up the information or something.
But that idea was quickly nipped in the bud, thanks to the mornings newspaper. Rita Skeeter had reported that Sirius had cornered Peter Pettigrew and killed him in a street full of Muggles.
Now he was alone. The last Marauder. Peter dead. James dead. Sirius turned to the Dark side. He remembered the pact that they'd made together, when they became the Marauders, back in their third year at Hogwarts.
"No Marauder may turn to the dark side and remain a Marauder," had been the top qualification. They'd all laughed then – why would any of them turn to the dark? But one of them had.
If Remus had had to chose who would turn to the dark side, he would have chosen Peter Pettigrew, but it was Peter that had been one of the bravest of them.
"Peter, I'm sorry that I ever doubted your loyalty to the light," Remus murmured. He never saw or smelt the rat on the windowsill, looking down at him.
Peter sniggered to himself. Good, his old 'friend' did not suspect him. Remus was convinced that it was Sirius who was the bad guy here. He turned and scuttled down the side of the wall, heading out again. He had to find a place to wait and listen for word of Lord Voldemorts return.
***
Minerva Aparated in Mrs. Figg's house. The old lady herself appeared to be out, so Minerva simply transformed into a cat and slipped out of the cat flap into the back garden, and jumped over the fence, heading for number four, Privet Drive, where she had been not all that long ago.
She paused, then changed back to a woman when she saw that no one was watching, and cast a chameleon charm on herself before returning to her cat form.
She saw that a window was open in the kitchen, and jumped up quickly, looking around. There was no one in the kitchen. She prowled through the downstairs of the house, but saw no one there.
She headed upstairs, and found the woman, Petunia, cooing over her fat son, who was screaming at the top of his lungs for sweets. There was no other baby in the room.
It didn't take long for Minerva to realise that Harry Potter wasn't here any more. With a cat sigh, she disaparated away, knowing that it would cause a loud noise, and startle the Muggle woman, but she didn't care. She wanted to find out what had happened to Harry Potter, but she'd promised to go back to Albus first.
***
Sirius headed back to Grimmauld Place, he couldn't think of any other place that he could go. Parking his bike out the back, he headed inside, Harry held carefully to his chest.
The boy was awake now, and was gurgling happily. "Oot!" he was saying.
"That's right mate, Padfoot's here, and he isn't gonna leave you," Sirius said, smiling down at Harry.
"Oot!" Harry agreed happily.
Suddenly there was a scuffle outside, and Kreacher appeared. "Traitor," he squeaked disapprovingly at Sirius.
"I'm staying here for awhile," Sirius informed Kreacher sternly. "You are not to let anyone inside this building without my express permission. You are not to leave this building without my express permission. Now, go and warm up some milk. Don't make it hot enough to burn, but don't let it be cold either."
"What does the blood traitor want milk for?" Kreacher squeaked, glaring at Sirius.
"You will no longer refer to me as the blood traitor. I am Sirius, or Master Black," Sirius replied. "I need the milk for my godson, Lily and James's son, Harry."
Kreacher stood on tiptoes, trying to see the baby in Sirius's arms. Sirius knelt with a faint sigh. "Don't touch him," he warned Kreacher, who didn't seem to be paying attention to him.
Kreacher peered into Harry's face, the baby's green eyes were wide open and innocent as he looked up at the house elf. Sirius felt as thought something had happened, but he couldn't tell what.
"Kreacher will get milk for Master Harry," Kreacher murmured suddenly, and turned, hurrying away into the kitchen.
"What was that about?" Sirius wondered, but Harry just gurgled and said, "Oot!" again.
Suddenly Kreacher appeared out the kitchen with a babies bottle full of milk in his hand. "Master Harry's milk, Mr. Black," he said, bobbing in a slight bow that Sirius couldn't help but think was aimed at Harry rather than himself.
Sirius offered Harry the bottle, and his godson immediately grabbed it, sucking at the teat hungrily. He wouldn't have eaten since the night before. "Poor kid, you must be starving," Sirius murmured, forgetting about Kreacher completely.
"Master Harry will want something richer than just milk, Kreacher is thinking," the house elf piped up suddenly. "Needs more food! Kreacher will see what he can do …"
The house elf was gone before Sirius could say anything. "Well, kiddo, you seem to have worked a change in Kreacher. A good one, at that," he remarked to his godson.
***
Back in Hogwarts, Minerva had told Albus of what she had seen. "As far as I can tell, they either didn't get Harry in the first place, or they got rid of him," she said, angry.
"Well, I shall have to go and find out. You and Severus will accompany me," Albus said, standing. For a moment, Minerva contemplated arguing against the inclusion of the Potions Master, then decided it wasn't worth it.
"Very well," she said. A moment later, Severus Snape himself appeared in the office.
"We are going to Privet Drive. Harry Potter seems to have disappeared," Albus stated. Severus looked as though he would like to protest being involved, but Albus didn't give him the chance. "Bring some Veritaserum with you," he added, sweeping from the room.
Severus sighed, his hand touching a leather pouch tucked into a pocket. He never went anywhere without Veritaserum these days – it was in that high a demand.
He and Minerva followed the headmaster out of the room and off the grounds to Aparate to Little Whinging.
***
"Where is Harry Potter?" Albus Dumbledore demanded of the fat, moustached who answered the door.
"I don't know what you're talking about," the man informed him, going to close the door, but he did not meet the eyes of the people in front of him.
"Your nephew, Mr. Dursley, was left on your doorstep last night. Where is he?" Albus said, putting his hand on the door to prevent it being closed.
"I'm telling you, I don't know what you're talking about!" the man said, an edge of panic in his voice now.
"Oh, I think you do, Mr. Dursley," Severus Snape stepped forward, glaring into Vernon Dursley's face. "Why don't you let us in, so we can discuss this like civilized human beings."
Vernon Dursley spluttered and tried to protest, but the two wizards and the witch easily forced him aside and entered the house. "Don't even think of calling those police men," Minerva added, nodding to the telephone sternly.
Petunia Dursley was in the kitchen, fixing lunch when her husband backed into the room, still trying to get the things to leave the house. "We don't want anything to do with your kind," she informed Albus sourly. "Go away."
"I'm afraid I can't do that until I find out what happened to your sisters son, Harry. He was left here last night, but does not seem to be here now."
"He isn't there, and I don't know where he is, or what you are talking about," Petunia replied, her voice slightly shrill, as she set a cup of tea in front of Vernon, and another on the table as she sat down, which she took a sip of.
Albus signalled Snape quickly. He did not see the Veritaserum leave Severus, nor did he see any difference in the tea that Petunia and her husband were drinking.
But he quickly saw the effect the potion had on the two Muggles. "Who are you?" he asked them.
"Vernon Dursley," the man replied, his voice a monotone, and his wife replied in like form a second later.
"Where is Harry Potter?"
"In London," there was a slightly triumphant note in Vernon's voice.
"How did he get there?"
"I took it there. Couldn't have a wizard in the house … Horrible things. Took it to London and left it there. Hope the thing dies," Vernon replied.
"Where in London did you leave Harry Potter?" Albus asked, his voice shaking with fury.
"Some back alleyway. The rats will probably eat it," Vernon replied, a slight sneer in his tone.
Albus took one last look at the two Muggles, then stood up, his two professors following suit. He strode out the house without a backward glance, his whole body shaking with intense fury.
"I told you that the boy should not have been left there," Minerva said, but her voice betrayed that she was not annoyed, she was both worried and sad.
"I should have listened," Albus replied tiredly. "I know that now … but we must go to the Ministry now. They will have to commence a search for Harry, for we will have to return to Hogwarts to teach the students…"
"Really, should such a fuss be made over the boy?" Severus Snape spoke up for the first time.
"You know what the prophesy says, Severus. That boy is needed."
"But … The Dark Lord is gone. Surely that means that the prophesy has been fulfilled?"
"No, Severus. The boy has been marked. The final battle yet waits. Harry Potter must be found, before it is to late. Sirius Black is still out there, and he will need to be caught. If he finds the boy …" Albus did not have to finish his sentence.
"I will meet you back at the school, Headmaster. I would rather avoid the Ministry at this present time. You will understand, I'm sure. If the boy must be found, so be it. I would rather not have anything to do with him." The Potion Master disaparated.
"Minerva?" Dumbledore asked.
"I'll go back to the school too, I have a detention to oversee," Minerva replied, and followed the Potion Masters example, leaving Dumbledore alone for a moment, before he disaparated, with London in his mind.
***
Finis Chapter Two.
I know that if you use a proper timeline of events, Mrs. Black – Sirius's mum – didn't die until 1985, and this story is set in 1981, but it's AU and therefore she is dead already, but only died about a year before the story takes place, so Kreacher isn't quite so batty as he should be …
Wow! I'm getting a really good response to this story! 85 reviews for only two chapters! Next chapter dedicated to reviewer number 100! I'll see you in two days with an update!
~WolfMoon~