Disclaimer: J

Disclaimer: J.K.Rowling and Scholastic own the characters and settings and all that. I just own what I made up.

A/N: Okay, here's Part Six (finally)! It's been a month exactly since I've posted a chapter, and I'm so, so sorry! I've just been so busy lately that I haven't had the time to write much. Hopefully I'll write my next chapter faster, but you never know. My writer's block isn't completely over, but it is just about finished. That's why this chapter isn't as long as my other chapters (the last one NOT included!). It's only a few pages shorter, though, so it's not a big deal. Anyway, about the chapter - it's a transitional one, so there's not much action. There is, though, a little bit of explaining and a little bit more mystery. Enjoy, and please review! Thanks for reading!

Harry Potter and the Prism of Light

Chapter Six

Draco rolled his eyes. "Potter, now is not the time to joke."

Harry sighed. "I'm not joking."

Ron's ears began turning a fiery shade of scarlet. "Harry, stop it. Just tell the truth."

Ginny bit her lip. "Yes, Harry, please. You're scaring me."

"I'm not lying!" Harry said, exasperated. "Your dad was with Voldemort!"

Dumbledore spoke. "Harry, you do realize that this is a very serious accusation. If what you are saying is true, Arthur could get in very much trouble," he said gravely.

"I know what I saw, and it was Mr. Weasley. I wish it wasn't, but it was, and I'm just telling you the truth," Harry said, looking at Ron and Ginny.

McGonagall spoke. "Perhaps we could use a mild truth potion on Harry to be sure before we report this," she suggested.

Ron slammed his fist down on the table he was sitting at. "Why are you even thinking about believing him? Can't you see that he's lying? Why, of all people, would my father be working with Voldemort?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "To that question I have no answer."

There was a minute's pause. "So what do we do now?" Ginny asked timidly. She was trembling and close to tears.

Dumbledore sighed and exchanged glances with Figg. "Harry," he said. "We must give you a Truth Potion."

Harry's eyes widened. "What?"

Ron grinned triumphantly. "See? He's afraid to be put under the Truth Potion! He's lying!"

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows. "You have nothing to worry about if you are telling the truth, Harry. We will only ask you the one question - whether or not you actually saw Mr. Weasley."

Harry breathed a sigh of relief. "All right, then, when will we do this?" He wanted to get this over with. He wanted Ron to believe him. Most of all, he wanted to know why Mr. Weasley was with Voldemort.

Figg shrugged. "Now would be as good a time as any."

Dumbledore nodded. "Miss Granger, please go get a medium strength truth potion from Professor Delacour. Mr. and Miss Malfoy, please go back to your dormitories and get some rest; you need it. Mr. and Miss Weasley, please go wait by my office. I would like to speak with you in a few minutes. Harry, stay here. I want to talk to you."

Everyone left the room, and Harry turned to Dumbledore. "I'm telling the truth, really, I am! Mr. Weasley was with Voldemort!"

Dumbledore seemed to be peering into Harry's mind over his half-moon spectacles. "I believe you, Harry. But when you do take this Truth Potion, and the truth comes out, your friend Ron most definitely will not be pleased. I just want you to be aware of that."

Harry sighed. "I know, but... what was I supposed to do?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "You did the right thing. Sometimes people only listen to what they want to hear, and I'm afraid that's what happened. Even if the Truth Potion says that you aren't lying, it might take awhile for Ron to believe and forgive you."

Harry nodded. "I know." A few minutes later, there was a knock at the door.

"It's me," Hermione said, entering the room hesitantly. She handed a small glass bottle filled with a vivid, bright blue liquid inside to Dumbledore. "Should I leave?" she asked.

"You may stay if you like," Dumbledore said. He opened the bottle carefully and took a goblet from Madam Pomfrey's closet. He poured a small amount of the potion in the goblet, and it crackled, shooting small gold sparks into the air.

Harry took the goblet from Dumbledore. He drank the entire thing and suddenly felt a strange pressure on his head. It was sort of as though someone was squeezing it, and he couldn't move or say anything. He just sat, staring straight ahead at Dumbledore's beard, not really seeing it.

Harry heard Dumbledore's voice. "Harry? Can you hear me?"

"Yes," Harry automatically replied. He didn't even think about what he was saying; something inside of him seemed to automatically speak for him.

"All right, we'll ask something simple for a test," Dumbledore said. "What color sneakers are you wearing?"

"Red," Harry said. He held out one foot, where there was indeed a red sneaker.

"Good," Dumbledore said. "Now, did you see Mr. Arthur Weasley with Voldemort on the Marauder's Map today?"

"Yes," Harry replied, nodding.

Dumbledore sighed and sat back in his chair, rubbing his forehead. He shook his head and stood up reluctantly, heading towards the door.

"I'm going to speak with Ron and Ginny," Dumbledore said. "Do either of you need anything before I go?"

"Yes, I really need to use the bathroom," Harry said. "And I need to change my socks. I've worn the same ones three days in a row."

Hermione wrinkled her nose in distaste. "Headmaster, I think we should take the spell off Harry now."

Dumbledore smiled faintly. "Yes, I suppose we should," he said, and muttered, "Finite Incantatum." Harry suddenly felt normal again.

Dumbledore left, and Hermione and Harry were quiet. Suddenly, Hermione burst into tears.

"Oh, I can't believe Mr. Weasley would do such a thing!" she exclaimed, tears flowing freely from her eyes.

Harry hugged her awkwardly, patting her back. "Er, there, there, Hermione, it's all right. Er, I'm sure there's some explanation for this. I don't really think Mr. Weasley would become a Dark wizard."

Hermione sniveled, wiping her nose. "Oh, but Ron must be feeling horrible right now! And Ginny! Poor, poor Ginny! She's so sensitive, and, now this!"

Harry sighed. "What are we going to do?"

Hermione thought for a moment, then shrugged helplessly. "I haven't a clue. Why don't we talk to Aurora and Draco and see if they have any ideas?"

Harry nodded, but secretly doubted that the two Malfoys, both insensitive and rude, would be of any help.

They decided to wait until the next day; that one had been far too strenuous, and neither wanted to talk any more about the subject. They quietly dragged themselves to the Gryffindor common room, where the entire house sat silent and wide-eyed.

"What happened?" a third year asked.

"Has Voldemort come?" a sixth year asked hysterically.

"How does everyone know?" Harry whispered.

George Weasley explained. "McGonagall came in and said that everyone was to stay here. She said something has happened, but she can't release the details. And all classes, Quidditch practices, and everything else for the next entire week are canceled. What could be that important, that classes have to be canceled?"

Hermione and Harry looked at each other. "Fred, George," Hermione said. "There are a few things we've got to tell you."

***

"Dad?" Fred whispered hoarsely.

"But... why?" George asked.

They were sitting in the dim hallway, just before it branched off into the girls' section and the boys'. It was the only empty place in Gryffindor Tower, and, since Hermione and Harry didn't want anyone else to hear what they had to say to Fred and George, it was the only place they could go.

"I have no idea," Harry said, his eyes cast downward.

Suddenly, a seventh year entered the hallway. "Fred? George? Is that you?"

"Yes," George said weakly.

"Dumbledore wants to see you in his office. He says it's important."

Fred and George stumbled off, dazed, leaving Hermione and Harry mulling over the day's events in their heads. Harry soon found himself very tired and, looking at his watch, saw that it was "Time to sleep". He muttered a quick "G'night," to Hermione and staggered off to his dormitory. No one was there, and Harry collapsed on the bed and fell asleep immediately.

***

The next morning, the Great Hall was abuzz with rumors about what had happened. Harry heard a Ravenclaw second year say something about a Flobberworm with rabies, and a Slytherin sixth year was ranting about a secret Mudblood society.

When Hermione sat down at the table, she was furious. "Honestly! Did you hear Felicia Burnstrome? She was positively shouting that Dumbledore had gone mad and was going to boil us all and eat us for dinner! Where do these people get these ideas?"

Harry shrugged. "I have no idea."

Hermione bit her lip. "Did Ron come back to your dormitory last night?"

Harry shook his head. "No, I don't think so. He wasn't there when I went to sleep, and he wasn't there when I woke up, either."

Hermione sighed. "I wish we could talk to him."

"He would talk to you. He hates me," Harry said glumly.

Hermione picked up a fork. "I know, Harry. But wouldn't you be mad at him if the tables were turned? It's not your fault, but he just doesn't know what to do about his feelings, so he is using you as a scapegoat."

"It's not fair," Harry said.

"I know," Hermione said. Just then, the owls came swooping in. A Daily Prophet owl dropped a newspaper on Hermione's lap, and she hesitantly picked it up.

"I wonder if there's anything about Mr. Weasley-" she said, then stopped. "No, it wouldn't have hit the papers. How would they know?"

Harry shrugged. "The only way to find out is to open it."

Hermione nodded and unrolled the paper. She took one look at the headline and dropped the paper into her scrambled eggs. "Oh no," she murmured, closing her eyes and wincing.

Harry's jaw dropped. He grabbed the paper, brushed off the scrambled eggs, and stared at the paper in horror.

Arthur Weasley Found With You-Know-Who

Ministry of Magic Worker Turns to the Dark Arts

Hermione looked at Harry. "Read it out loud."

Harry nodded, took a deep breath, and began to read. "Arthur Weasley, head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts branch of the Ministry of Magic, was found yesterday with the most evil Dark Arts wizard of all time - You-Know-Who.

It was discovered by inside sources at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry that Weasley, along with You-Know-Who and another unknown henchman, was prowling around the Forbidden Forest, which is dense woodland near Hogwarts. The three Dark wizards were approached by a number of Hogwarts students sent to capture them, but all were Stunned. The three Dark wizards escaped, Weasley included.

Arthur Weasley has seven children, all who attended or are currently attending Hogwarts. He has a wife, Molly, and has never been accused of the Dark Arts before. In fact, he worked against them when You-Know-Who's reign was at its peak. Why he would turn to You-Know-Who now is a mystery, as he is very weak, and many believe he is not alive at all, though we reported that he has made his return (reported in issues of early summer). This is just another story of a good wizard gone bad."

Hermione groaned. "I don't believe it! How on earth did they find out? Who wrote the article?"

"It... doesn't say," Harry said, puzzled.

Hermione thought for a minute, and then turned to Harry with serious eyes. "You know what that means," she said.

"No, what?" Harry asked.

"There's a spy at Hogwarts."

***

"...So now we think someone is spying. Someone close to the school," Hermione said. She was explaining everything that had happened from the time that Aurora and Draco had left the hospital wing to the present.

Harry, Hermione, Draco, and Aurora sat in the back of the library, pretending to read (so Madam Pince wouldn't get suspicious). Really, they were discussing their situation and trying to think of what to do next.

"So now what?" Aurora said. "Do we search for the spy, or do we try to find Ron and Ginny to talk to them?"

Draco spoke first. "I think we should find the spy. Those Weasleys- I mean, Ron and Ginny - can fend for themselves. I mean, what are we going to say? 'Sorry about your dad becoming an evil wizard who's best friends with a murderer'? Really, what can we say to make them feel any better? "

Hermione shook her head. "We should at least be there to show we care! We should be there to support them when they need it most. That's now - after all, how would you like it if all the papers blasted your father for being a Dark wizard?" She looked around the table expectantly.

"It's already happened to me," Draco said.

"Yeah, and I don't care," Aurora added.

Harry shrugged and looked down. "I don't have a father."

Hermione blushed. "Oops. Sorry, all of you."

Aurora nodded. "It's all right. So what are we doing?"

Hermione blinked. "I don't know. Let's take a vote - majority rules. All in favor of finding Ron and Ginny?"

Hermione, Harry, and Aurora raised their hands. Draco groaned. "Oh, great," he said.

Hermione glared at him. Her ears turned as red as Ron's did when he was angry, and her hands were planted firmly on her hips. "Well excuse me, Mr. I - Don' t- Care - How - Anyone - Else - Feels - So - I'm - Just - Going- To - Complain! We need to help them, whether your selfish pride allows it or not!"

Draco got even paler than usual. His silvery-gray eyes became dark. "We don't need to help them," he said coldly.

"Whose side are you on, anyway?" Hermione asked. "You haven't helped at all since this entire Prism thing began! Do you even want to be here? Do you want to be part of the Prism?"

"Of course I do," Draco said quietly.

"Well then ACT LIKE IT! Have you ever head that saying 'If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem'?" Hermione said.

Draco nodded.

"Well right now, you're not being part of the solution, so that makes you part of the problem!"

Just then, something strange happened to Draco. His cheeks were turning pink... he was blushing. Draco Malfoy was... embarrassed?

"Sorry," he said quietly. "Let's go."

They set off for Dumbledore's office. Before they even knocked, the door opened. Dumbledore stood behind it, smiling. "I was expecting you," he said.

Aurora raised her eyebrows. "Really? Well, anyway, we were just looking for Ginny and Ron."

Dumbledore sighed. "Yes, I know."

"Can you tell us where they are?" Hermione asked politely. "Please?"

Dumbledore nodded. "Of course, but you cannot speak to them."

"Why?" Harry asked.

Dumbledore took off his glasses and wiped them on his robes. He put them back on before beginning to speak. "Ginny and Ron, as well as Fred and George, have been sent home."

Hermione gasped. "Home? But what about Mr. Weasley? Isn't that... dangerous?"

Dumbledore sighed. "I have spoken with Mr. Weasley. I have one hundred percent faith in his explanation of why he was with Voldemort."

All four students jaws dropped. "What? What did he say?" Harry asked.

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "He said..."

A/N: Hee hee hee... cliffhanger! Tune in next time to find out why Arthur Weasley was actually with Voldemort! Oh yeah, and please review! Thanks for reading the chapter!