Chapter 11: More Than Meets the Eye
The three men didn't move, their eyes wide with surprise.
"Draco?" Snape asked quietly, a pained look in his eyes.
Draco burst into tears. They weren't the angry tears that had appeared in his eyes earlier, but ones that you would only expect to come from a child. He wailed as, Harry was sure, he had never wailed before. Sirius stormed up to him angrily, picking him up by his collar. Draco looked confused at first, then his eyes widened.
"Sirius Black!" he exclaimed, trying desperately to get out of the man's grip.
"Let him go, Black!" Snape ordered.
Sirius looked at the man with nothing but contempt.
"Let him go, Sirius," Dumbledore said calmly but firmly.
Sirius dropped Draco heavily, and then paced around behind the other three. His glaring eyes never left Draco. Draco was breathing heavily and looking around with panic on his face.
"Should we…?" Dumbledore questioned the other men.
"Yes," Sirius answered, "Best to get the truth first, rather than lies."
Snape glared at Sirius, but then removed a small vile from his cloak. He knelt next to Draco, talking to him gently.
"We want to find out what happened, Draco. If you just take a drink of this, then you'll be able to remember things you normally wouldn't. Will you take a drink?"
Draco nodded, his eyes wide. He took a gulp of the liquid.
"Okay, Draco," Dumbledore began, "Tell us what happened the night Ginny Weasley died."
"I had been told that day to find a student who knew much about the resistance and take them to the woods an hour after sun set. I at once decided one of the Weasleys, as their family was part of the ministry. I had planned on taking Ron, but just as I was looking for him, Ginny happened along. I figured I'd better just take her and get it over with."
"How did you get her to come with you?"
"I told her that I had found Harry Potter unconscious in the forest and was afraid that if I went to a teacher, they would blame me. It took some convincing, but she eventually agreed to help. As soon as we reached the meeting place, the person I was meeting came out and put Ginny in a trance-like state. He asked her the customary questions, such as the next move of the resistance, and-"
"Yes, yes," Dumbledore interrupted, "What happened after the questioning?"
"I thought that I would just take Ginny back to the castle, but the Death Eater said, "Avada Kedavra" and there was a green light. Ginny fell. She looked like she had just been surprised. He told me to take her back to the castle and pretend I found her and pretend to cry. However, I did begin to cry as I carried the girl back. She hadn't deserved this. I burst through the doors and a large group of people was there, going to dinner. They stopped when they saw me and gathered around."
"Who is the Death Eater that you met?" Dumbledore asked, his eyes intense.
"I don't know. My father told me that there was a strong and loyal Death Eater at Hogwarts that had a very important mission. He told me to help the best I could."
"What did this Death Eater look like?"
"I didn't see him. He had on a cloak and stayed in the
shadows. He was very short,
though. And he kept his voice in a low,
raspy whisper. I'm sure I couldn't
recognize it."
"Okay, that is enough, Mr.
Malfoy."
Draco's head lolled to one side, then he woke up, a little surprised.
"Professor, I want to help. I could be a spy; I could give you information."
"No need, Mr. Malfoy. We already have someone on the other side," replied Dumbledore, glancing at Snape.
All was silent a moment, then Dumbledore spoke up again. "Severus, I suggest you keep a close eye on Mr. Malfoy. Don't let him out of your sight." In a whisper, he added, "And modify his memory about this meeting. It would be foolish to let him know of Sirius and your spying."
Snape nodded, guiding Draco out of the room. Dumbledore turned to the remaining group. "Sirius, you ought to go. Why don't you escort Mr. Potter and Miss Granger to their common room? Mr. Weasley, I wish to speak with you."
Sirius transformed into a dog, then led Harry and Hermione out the door. They gave Ron one final glance, then followed.
****
"You were awesome, Harry!" Azar exclaimed, catching up with the boy.
"You played really well," Cho added.
"Thanks," Harry said, blushing.
"The way you dove like that! Whoosh!" Azar made a diving motion with her hand, "That Malfoy ought to learn that it hurts to crash into the ground."
"What about us?" Fred pouted.
"Oh, how hard is it to whack a ball with a stick?" Azar grinned.
"Hard!" George exclaimed.
"Is that why you guys managed to miss them each time?"
"Oh, now you're gonna get it!" Fred yelled, jumping on her back.
Azar quickly bent over and flipped Fred off of her. He landed on the ground with a THUMP!.
"Remember, Freddie boy. I was raised as a muggle. My parents taught me well in self defense."
She walked off with Cho, laughing to herself. Fred lay on the ground a moment, dazed. Then he smiled and spoke in a dreamy sort of way.
"Catch me, George. I think I'm falling in love."
George shook his head, smiling. "Too late, bro. She's already toppled you."
The Gryffindor common room was a mess of noise that night as they celebrated a tremendous win over Slytherin.
"One more, Harry!" Katie Bell yelled over the noise, "One more and we have the Quidditch and House Cup!"
"It's in the bag!" Fred cried, creating a great cheer to rise through the crowd, "Ravenclaw is going down!"
Professor McGonagall managed to end the party before midnight. Harry and the boys in his dormitory stayed up late, talking about the year.
"Just a few more weeks, and the year is over," Dean sighed, "It's gone by so quick."
"Not fast enough," Seamus grinned.
"I'm going to die during exams!" Neville exclaimed.
"Oh, you'll get through, Neville. We always do," Harry reassured him.
"Easy for you to say, Mr. Prefect," Ron laughed.
Harry smiled, blushing. They finally got to sleep as the sky began to lighten.
~*~*~
A/N: Man, I had to force this chapter out! The next two ought to be easier, though.
Even the title's all wrong
Thanks for reviewing, all!
-Ady
