Author's note: Lots of thank you-s and a lot of hugs to Seldes Katne for beta-reading Hearts and Hourglasses before it's posted on Sugar Quill! She's a wonderful person and a fantastic beta-reader!

Reminder: Godric's alias is Godfrey Gloucester. Salazar's is Sextus Scaevola. Rowena's is Rachel Regius. Helga's is Hannah Hawthorn. Rowena cast a spell so that everyone who hears them will hear them referring to each other by their aliases, but to their own ears, they hear each other's real names. It's a complicated spell.

Hearts and Hourglasses
Chapter 30: Dark Rising

Father, mother, wake up! He grabbed his father's sleeve and pulled hard. He shouted again, futilely trying to wake up his parents. They can't be dead! He refused to believe they were dead.

Salazar! Someone lifted him, breaking his hold on his father's sleeve. No! Salazar screamed as his grandfather took him away from them.

Salazar woke up with a gasp of pain, his throat burned as if he had just been screaming. Tears filled already blurred eyes, which he shut closed and tightly. He refused to shed them.

***

"Cornelius is being stubborn," Dumbledore said softly. He was standing behind his desk. Minerva was standing beside him, and Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff were on the other side of the table. Fawkes was perched on his shoulder.

Ravenclaw took a step forward and asked, "He won't release Sextus?" Her blue eyes were bright; the light that trembled in them was softened by pain. Dumbledore found himself unable to answer her and simply nodded once.

"Why?" demanded Hufflepuff. Dumbledore found it easier to talk to her instead of Ravenclaw, and he turned towards her saying, "To preserve the image of his office." It was difficult to keep rancor from his tone. "Lord Slytherin refuses to denounce the Dark side, and Cornelius cannot release him without appearing to have given in to a Dark wizard."

"And Sextus is too stubborn to give in," said Gryffindor in a voice marked with great concern and just the slightest touch of exasperation.

Hufflepuff shook her head. "We can expect no less from him."

"It's been three days," said Ravenclaw. "The Source will be fading soon."

All looked towards Gryffindor who squared his shoulders back as if a heavy weight was upon them. He tensed when Ravenclaw pleaded softly, "Please Godfrey, we cannot leave it this way."

Hufflepuff remained silent, but her dark eyes were saying the same thing to Gryffindor, whose jaw and throat tightened.

"Give me the Sorting Hat," Gryffindor finally said to Dumbledore after a long while. Dumbledore nodded, and Minerva went and took the old dilapidated hat from its usual spot on the shelf behind him.

Curiously enough, the Hat glowed as soon as Gryffindor received it. Everyone watched attentively as he turned it over, and they were all surprised when Gryffindor removed a small white crystal from the Hat. It was glowing.

"Salazar refers to this as a Crysalis," Gryffindor told Dumbledore and McGonagall. "This is what holds our memories," he explained.

Hufflepuff peered at it and frowned at Godric. "I thought only Salazar could take that thing out," she said.

Gryffindor nodded and said, "Yes, but last week, as a sign of good faith, he gave me the ability to remove the Crysalis from the Hat."

Ravenclaw's eyes widened, and suddenly she grabbed Gryffindor's hand and turned it, his palm facing upward. On his wrist was a thin finger-length scar.

Hufflepuff breathed in sharply, and Ravenclaw murmured, "A Blood Compact." Dumbledore's eyes widened. A Blood Compact was a bonding ritual, which required blood letting and sharing. In essence, it meant that Slytherin's blood now ran in Gryffindor's veins as well.

Gryffindor pulled his hand free from Ravenclaw, who was staring at him. Dumbledore couldn't quite interpret the emotion in her eyes. It seemed like envy; then his musing broke when she glanced towards him sharply. Dumbledore remembered that Ravenclaw could read minds and carefully kept his mind blank.

Hufflepuff was furious. "You morons!" she shouted at Gryffindor, who flinched as she continued, "Blood Compacts are dangerous! Why didn't you tell us?! We should have been present! If anything had gone wrong, you two could have bled to death!"

"Helga." Gryffindor looked flustered, but his eyes remained steady as he said, "If you two knew, it would never have been done, and then I wouldn't be able to recharge the Source." The embarrassment in his expression cleared, and his face turned determined to match the hard look in his brown eyes.

Hufflepuff was taken aback, and Ravenclaw asked curiously, "It is necessary to take the Crysalis from the Hat in order to recharge it?"

Gryffindor nodded and then looked uncomfortable. "I thought as well that simply placing more of Fawkes' feathers into the Hat could recharge the Source, but Sextus told me last week that the Crysalis must be removed from the Hat before it can be recharged. It must be opened first as he had done when Harry dropped Fawkes' feather into the Hat."

He held out the Crysalis, and they all watched carefully as the crystal glowed brighter. Then it melted and morphed into a shape they all recognized as that of a phoenix feather. Fawkes suddenly trilled softly, and the crystal feather floated up a few inches from Gryffindor's palm and began to shimmer. Rainbow lights scattered across its delicate facets. Again, Fawkes trilled, and the crystal phoenix feather lowered back into Gryffindor's hand, its inner light becoming subdued.

"We still have time," said Gryffindor, breaking the silence that followed. His hand closed over the crystal feather and as he placed it back into the Sorting Hat, the Crysalis turned back into its diminutive form.

As he handed the Hat back to Dumbledore, he said, "Tell us about this place where they have taken Sextus."

***

Fudge watched the prisoner sleeping on the cot in his cell. He was watching Scaevola on a small round mirror the Dementors had provided for him on request. The mirror allowed Fudge to see the prisoners in Azkaban without him having to be in the wizard prison.

Fudge had requested the mirror after his second encounter with the Dark wizard.

"Did you really think Dementors can control me?"

Midnight green eyes stared at him with dangerous intent. Fudge had barely kept himself from backing away from the bars of Scaevola's holding cell. The Dark wizard was standing on the other side of the bars, and he held himself loosely, his stature relaxed. Yet, Fudge had known that were it not for the prison bars, Scaevola would have attacked him even though Fudge was accompanied by several Aurors. There was that much hatred in the Dark wizard's face.

Fudge had opened his mouth to question Scaevola, but no words were spoken. They died unvoiced in his throat, which tightened as he swallowed reflexively when the Dark wizard took a step closer to the bars separating them. Scaevola had bend down slightly to look at Fudge in the eye. This time, the Minister did back away, and Scaevola laughed harsh and short.

"Dementors take away happiness," Scaevola murmured as his hands moved to grip the bars. He leaned forward, closer towards them and towards Fudge, who couldn't tear his eyes away from him. The Dark wizard smiled malevolently.

"Unfortunately for you, that is only what they are interested in."

"... W-what?" Fudge had mumbled.

Scaevola's fingers tightened around the bars, and he said, "Dementors are only interested in happy human emotions." His tone turned scholarly as he continued, "They cannot produce their own happiness, their own peace nor their own pleasure, so they steal from us. They are not interested in the rest of our emotions."

His expression turned shrewd. "Fear, anger, want, pain, hate. Dementors leave these behind, for they have too much of them already." He glanced to the Aurors with Fudge, smiled slightly and said silkily, "You'll need more guards to protect you." His eyes fastened on Fudge again, and he murmured, "I do hope you don't mind dying in excruciating pain."

Fudge had left immediately after ordering the Aurors to take the Dark wizard to Azkaban.

***

After dinner on Tuesday evening, Harry, Ron and Hermione headed for the nearest Portkey point, which they were certain would be deserted. There were a score of areas in Hogwarts, which would bring them to Wvelte. For now, they chose to go to the library, which they knew would be closed and empty at this time.

It had been chaotic in Hogwarts for the last three days with Aurors everywhere, searching for the other Founders. Harry had feared that Dumbledore would be forced to resign, but Fudge hadn't returned since. Only more Aurors came to find nothing. By the second school day of the week, things had settled down in Hogwarts. Classes had resumed, and the rooms and hallways were full of talk of what had happened to Professor Scaevola and of speculation of where his companions had gone off to.

"Do you think you can bring us up there, Hermione?" Harry asked her as they entered the library.

Hermione nodded. "I should be able to," she said.

Suddenly, somebody called them from behind, and they turned to see Draco running towards them. Harry was surprised to see the other boy. They hadn't seen him since last Saturday, after Salazar had been taken away.

Ron gave Draco a suspicious look, and Hermione shushed him before he could say anything.

"Let me go with you," Draco said to them, and Harry was surprised by the desperation in Draco's voice. Hermione suddenly said, "Draco, are you all right? You don't look so well." Indeed, Draco looked whiter than usual. His hair was unkempt, and his robes looked as though he had slept in them.

The other boy flushed at Hermione's words and looked ready to snap at her, then he paused, shook his head slightly and repeated his request, adding, "I've been trying to get up there from the dungeons, but that damn blasted Pentacle thing keeps on sending me back down!"

"Good," commented Ron, and Draco glared at him. Again, he opened his mouth to retort and once again, he stopped with a slightly awkward expression on his face. Harry then realized that Draco was trying to be nice so that they would let him come along with them. He was desperate to get to Wvelte.

"It's okay," Harry told Draco. "Of course, you can come with us." Ron gave Harry an incredulous look while Hermione looked as though she had expected him to say that. Draco was startled, but he regained his composure quickly and actually said thank you to Harry. This startled the trio.

The other Founders had been absent since Salazar had been arrested, and Harry and the others hadn't seen them since. They hadn't dared try to contact them while Aurors were still searching Hogwarts. The hit-wizards only left the school when Fudge had Salazar transferred to Azkaban from the holding cells in the Ministry.

When the trio and Draco arrived in Wvelte, they immediately split up to search for Godric, Rowena and Helga.

"They're not here," Ron said with worry when they all met again in the main hall. Hermione's brows furrowed then she looked alarmed. "Do you think they left already?"

Harry shook his head. "The Source still has a week or two left," he said. "I don't think they would have left Hogwarts."

"Maybe they went after Slytherin," suggested Ron.

"No, they didn't," Draco countered sharply. "No one came forward for Lord Slytherin." His voice suddenly pitched high. "No one tried to help him!"

Harry flinched at this and kept quiet, but Ron and Hermione turned defensive. "We couldn't do anything," said Ron in a tone as sharp as Draco's. Hermione tried a more tactful approach. "We saw you tried to help him, Draco, but the situation would have turned for the worse if you told who he really was."

"You mean worse for the other Founders," said Draco angrily, "You just didn't want Gryffindor to wind up in Azkaban!"

"We don't want Lord Slytherin to be in Azkaban either, Draco," said Harry softly before his friends could say anything to counter Draco's accusation.

Draco sneered. "Forget it, Potter," he said cuttingly. "You make a bad liar." Whatever else Draco had planned to say was left unsaid when the Pentacle underneath their feet glowed, and Godric, Rowena and Helga appeared. They were surprised to see the four of them.

Godric frowned. "Why are you four here?" Harry immediately went to him. "We want to help, Sir," he said, but Godric's frown deepened, and he shook his head, saying, "This is our problem. No one else should be involved."

Harry felt hurt by the dismissal in Godric's words, and Rowena must have felt it, because she said gently, "We know you all want to help get Sextus back, but it would be best if we do this by ourselves."

Helga nodded and added, "We were waiting for this Minister of Magic to release Sextus on his own accord before we took action ourselves. However, since he has turned Sextus over to the Dementors completely," she paused then said simply, "we will now go after him."

Godric turned to Draco, saying, "We need the serpent pin Sextus gave to you, Draco. It will take us to him."

Draco froze, and he turned paler. "... I don't have it," he whispered, and everyone turned to him quickly. Godric was alarmed as was Rowena and Helga.

"What? What do you mean you don't have it?" Helga demanded.

Draco looked shameful, and he lowered his head as if unable to meet the Founders' eyes. Harry stared at him. He'd never seen Draco this way before.

"I lost it," said Draco haltingly. "When Professor Snape dragged me down to the dungeons, it must have fallen off my robes." Harry's eyes lowered to Draco's chest. There was a small rip in his robes.

He could see the muscles in Draco's throat tighten as he swallowed before continuing, "I looked for it everywhere I thought it might have fallen off, but I couldn't find it."

Harry's eyes widened, and he said, "Snape might have taken it."

All eyes locked on him, and Godric asked curiously, "Why would a Hogwarts teacher take it, Harry?"

After a long uncomfortable pause, Harry, Ron and Hermione explained to the Founders that Snape used to be a Death Eater. Here, they also had to explain to them what a Death Eater was and also tell them about Voldemort.

"Professor Dumbledore seems to trust Snape," said Harry, "but we're really not sure where his true loyalties lie."

Ron nodded, saying, "For all we know, he might be spying for You-Know-Who." There was a curious reaction from the Founders when Ron said this, and Helga said sharply, "So this Voldemort is the one who murdered one of my Hufflepuffs!"

The trio jumped; startled that she knew about Cedric, and they found themselves being confronted by an angry Helga who demanded that they tell her everything they knew about Voldemort.

It took what seemed like forever to Harry to tell them everything. He was the one who spoke the most. He told them what had happened in his first year. He found himself avoiding Godric's eyes when he told them what had happened in the Chamber of Secrets in his second year. The hardest to tell was what had happened at the end of the Triwizard Tournament last year. Harry stopped often, unable to continue, and Ron and Hermione filled up the gaps of his story for him. When he finally finished, Helga whirled away from them and marched to the center of the Pentacle, which glowed before Helga vanished.

Godric glanced to Rowena, who nodded at him, saying, "If Severus is working for Voldemort, I will know." Then the Pentacle glowed once again, and she disappeared. Godric turned to Harry, who found himself tensing when Godric considered him thoughtfully. It was clear he was reassessing his opinion of Harry.

Harry relaxed slightly when an amusement came over Godric's face. Then, older wizard said, "Things do seem to happen to you, don't they?"

"They do," Ron agreed immediately. Hermione nodded. "Yes, they do," she said. Draco looked irritated and just jerked his head once. Then, he looked worried and said in a quiet tone to Godric, "What will you do if Lord Slytherin's pin isn't found?"

Godric froze momentarily, his eyes closed for an instant and opened to reveal determination in their depths. "No matter. We will get him back," he told them softly, certainty rang in every word.

Harry hesitated, then said, "Azkaban, where they've taken Lord Slytherin to, is full of Dementors."

Godric nodded slowly. "Yes, your Headmaster told us." His brown eyes darkened. "Which is why we have to go after him before he is lost completely."

... He'll go insane... Harry remembered the fear in Salazar's eyes when he saw the Dementors surrounding him. He hadn't expected that Salazar Slytherin would be afraid of Dementors. But then... Dementors are the most horrid creatures.

***

... What is taking them so long? His chest was tight. His throat was dry. Salazar licked his lips, finding them cracked and peeling. He chuckled weakly, but barely had he felt the light emotion of amusement before it was taken away, leaving only pain and anger. How utterly boring. Salazar found himself wishing the Dementors would take his boredom as well.

He sat up slowly on the slab of wood that was his bed and looked around his cell. Three walls of stone and mortar and bars holding him in. There was a toilet against one wall with a wash sink beside it. There was even a small mirror above the sink. Salazar could see himself from where he was in the cell. It bothered him.

Seconds later, he was cleaning the bloody knuckles of his left hand in the sink while the shattered mirror showed nothing more than a meaningless myriad of reflections.

***

It was past midnight. Draco almost missed the gargoyle statue blocking the way to the Headmaster's office. Moments later, he was inside and on the circular moving staircase. Unbelievably enough, the password was still the same, Fizzing Whizbees. But Draco didn't waste time or thought to be disgusted by the lack of security.

Dumbledore's office was already lit when Draco entered it. Wary, he looked around carefully to make sure no one was there. His eyes alighted on the Sorting Hat on the shelf behind the Headmaster's desk. Immediately, he went to it and took down the Hat. A soft trill made him whirl around, and he stiffened when he saw Dumbledore's phoenix on a golden bird perch beside the door.

He eyed the firebird carefully, and it considered him just as intently. Slowly, he inched his hand into his pocket and took out a small dragon shaped medallion. If Fawkes sounded an alarm, he would immediately activate the Portkey his father had sent him. But the phoenix merely tilted its head and did nothing more than regard Draco with seemingly wise eyes.

Draco's fingers tightened around the medallion. He had the Sorting Hat now. He should leave Hogwarts and leave everything up to Voldemort, who had promised to rescue Lord Slytherin from Azkaban if Draco brought him the Sorting Hat. Draco had asked him why he wanted the Hat, and Voldemort had explained to him that it would be useless to rescue Lord Slytherin if the Source would still be exhausted. They had to secure the Sorting Hat first.

Draco's throat tightened at what he had done. He had broken his promise to Lord Slytherin when he owled his father about the Founders having returned to Hogwarts. He was desperate, and he didn't trust Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff to rescue Lord Slytherin.

They had done nothing to help him. They weren't even there when he was arrested. Dumbledore and the other professors had been present, and they let Fudge and his Aurors arrest Lord Slytherin. When Draco's friends told him that Dementors had took Professor Scaevola away, he hated Dumbledore and his teachers so much that he went to Snape's office and called his House Head a traitor for betraying Lord Slytherin.

"How could you let them take him away?!"

"Draco, there was nothing we could do." Snape stood up slowly and walked around his desk to Draco, who was so angry he barely heard what Snape said next.

"They made us swear, Draco, to never reveal who they were. Lord Slytherin even took me aside and asked me to promise to him that it would never be revealed who they were."

"Why?" Draco had asked Snape in a tight voice he barely recognized as his own. "Why is it still important to keep his identity a secret. They arrested him!"

"Out of curiosity, I asked him why as well, Draco. He was so insistent that their return be kept a secret that I had to ask him. He told me that names are extremely important in any time, and that only one person deserved to be known as Salazar Slytherin. He said that one person lived and died over a thousand years ago. He then told me that he was only a shadow of the real Salazar Slytherin and that no matter what would happen to him, he must never tarnish the memory of the one who created him nor do anything that would destroy the legacy Salazar Slytherin had left behind."

Then Snape told Draco that everything would be fine. He told him not to worry and assured him that Lord Slytherin would be released. Draco left Snape's office, feeling a little reassured. Then later, he discovered that he had lost the serpent pin Lord Slytherin had given to him.

How could I lose it?! Draco admonished himself silently. If he had not lost the serpent pin, he could have rescued Lord Slytherin himself. The palm of his hand clamped around the dragon medallion was starting to sweat, and suddenly, he sneezed thrice in a row and had to wipe at his nose with the back of hand. The dusty dirty Sorting Hat was making him sneeze.

Fawkes trilled again, drawing Draco's attention back to it. Once again, he hesitated in using the Portkey. Voldemort had reassured him that he could recharge the Source in the Hat without having to ask for more feathers from Fawkes. But Draco wasn't a hundred percent confident that Voldemort knew what he was talking about. He clearly remembered Lord Slytherin saying that only more feathers from Fawkes could recharge the Source in the Sorting Hat.

So, hesitantly, Draco approached the phoenix and stood in front of it with one hand clutching the Sorting Hat while the other held the Portkey. He stared straight at Fawkes' bright beady eyes and asked for a feather.

Draco felt utterly foolish when the firebird tilted its head slightly and seemed to be considering his request. He suddenly had the wild urge to yell at Fawkes and demand that it give him a feather. He opened his mouth to do so and jumped when the phoenix spread out its wings and vanished with a soft wavering trill.

Automatically, Draco lifted his left hand to activate the Portkey, knowing that Fawkes must have gone off to warn Dumbledore. But a glitter distracted him, and Draco found himself starting at a phoenix feather, which was floating down lazily in front of his eyes. He put the Hat down quickly and grabbed the feather. Then he yelled with delight when he found that there were two more phoenix feathers on the floor.

To be continued.

http://pub79.ezboard.com/fschnooglethebestofharrypotterfanfictionfrm165