THAT SUMMER, Chapter 16
By Reija Linn
Bill
Without much delay, the other participants of this private meeting arrived in Dumbledore's office. Most of the assembled I knew, McGonagall, Sprout, Flitwick, Madam Hooch and Hagrid had all been around during my time at Hogwarts, and Hermione Granger, Harry's and Ron's friend from school, I had met before. Sirius Black I recognised from the time he had been in all wizard newspapers, though he looked much better now than he had in the pictures (of course, thirteen years of Azkaban would not release a person that would look very respectable). I deduced that the man next to him had to be Remus Lupin from what Harry had told me about him, and knowing he was Sirius Black's lover - those two were certainly close.
They'd actually been in their last year of Hogwart's when I'd started my first, but had changed so much since then I couldn't recognise them from this alone. It did, however, remind me of the vast age difference between Harry and me - looking back, I realized that I had actually went to school with his father, even though I'd been a first year and he an almost-graduate.
I could not spot Professor Snape or Madame Pomfrey anywhere, but I knew that they were working undercover as spies, and probably couldn't take place at the meeting without the risk of being discovered.
When all of us were finally introduced and seated (and after Harry had exchanged long embraces with Sirius, Remus and Hermione and I had greeted the teachers), we moved to business pretty fast. Dumbledore, who sat in his seat with an unusually grim expression, his fingertips touching as he spread his fingers beneath his chin, started to talk.
"Finally, we're all together again. Harry, as you all know, has been undergoing very advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons in Egypt, which is also where Mr. Weasley here comes from - most of you will still remember him.
"To put it bluntly, we're not facing rosy times now - not that we did anytime there past years, and especially in the last two months. I guess you've all come to the conclusion - this is the time, now, the time we've been waiting for since Voldemort" - I could see a couple of people still flinch at the mention of the name - "has risen again. This is the time we strike back. This is the time for the final battle. In the nearest future, all will be decided - we will either win, or loose, both the battle and our lives, as I hope all of you are very aware of.
"This said, I have to ask of all of you to make their final decision - if you stay, it is at great risk to your life, please consider this. If any of you wants to leave, and take refugee wither here at Hogwarts, in a muggle settlement, or abroad, state this now, and no one will blame you for this."
He looked around, catching each of us in the eye, but none said a word or stood up to leave. The former headmaster sighed.
"Well, then. So it shall be. Before it may be too late - I want to thank all of you for what you have done already, and what you will still do. Now, I think, it is time for our last guests to show themselves."
His voice had risen slightly at this, and suddenly a door (that probably lead to Dumbledore's private rooms) opened at the back of the room. Three people, all looking very haggard and weary, emerged. Professor Snape, Madam Pomfrey, Hogwart's former nurse, and... Draco Malfoy. I could hear Harry gasp at my side, and couldn't hide my own confusion, either. After all, Lucius Malfoy, who had been my father's enemy since they had went to school together, was one of the most prominent Death Eaters. I also noticed the suspicious glances that passed between Sirius Black and Professor Snape, but did not know enough about their past back then to understand.
"Severus," the headmaster continued, "and Madam Pomfrey, whom you both all know, have been spying for the resistance, at great personal risk, I might add. Well, at least this subject is closed - with their coming here, their cover has no officially been blown, I have no doubt the Death Eater's are very well informed about their return to us. All of you know Mr. Malfoy?"
Draco took a seat, stone faced. He looked worse even than Snape and Madam Pomfrey, pale, his eyes deep-set from obvious lack of sleep.
"Mr. Malfoy has agreed to come to this meeting. I haven't told anyone about this, but before he was taken from school by his father, I had a long discussion with him about the Dark Side, and he decided to work for us, also. This may surprise a few of you" - he was now noticeably regarding Harry and me - "but be assured I have the utmost confidence in his trustworthiness. Draco," he said this last word more softly, "would you kindly tell of what has happened in time you were parted from us?"
And Draco Malfoy, whom I had first met as a cruel boy when he was fourteen, recounted the tale of his stay with the Death Eaters. Apparently, his father had trimmed him towards the Dark Arts from early age on, and at first, the boy had felt such hero worship and fear of and for his father that he had always obliged. However, there had come a point when he had realized some of the wrongness of those ways, and when Dumbledore had asked him to join the resistance, he agreed to leave with his father - as a spy.
Of course, with Lucius Malfoy in such a high position, he had learned of many of the Death Eater's plans, yet I could only imagine the horrors this boy had to have gone through. And worse, what he would still have to go through, as he was the only one of the three spies whose cover had not been blown.
Through the combined work of Snape, Pomfrey and Draco, we finally knew where Voldemort's hiding place was situated - an inconspicuous Muggle village at the end of nowhere.
After this had been said, Harry and I made our reports, including the information that Charlie and his friends were in France, waiting for their sign to come through.
Plans were laid out and rejected, laid out and rejected, until we finally settled on one course of action that promised at least a vast chance of survival.
Draco Malfoy was to return to the Death Eaters, securing his confidentiality to them by revealing he had followed Severus Snape, and had defeated the traitor - at the same time, a false letter by Dumbledore to Harry would be sent out, telling of Snape's death. A letter that would be sent by means that were quite secure at first glance, but that surely would be intercepted by the Death Eaters - by Draco's information, we knew of a former Ministry member who was said to have found refugee in Germany, but who was actually a spy for Voldemort, and Dumbledore would send his letter to this man, asking him as an old friend to deliver it to Harry at his supposed hiding place.
Of course, as soon as the Death Eater's would catch this letter, they would intercept this hiding place - and find traces of Harry's return to Hogwart's.
The castle, in the meantime, would be evacuated of all refugees, who would, for the time, find shelter in the dungeon's of Gringott's - that still was one of the secure places these days, since the Goblin's had no interest in turning to the Dark side, knowing well enough that they would not be recognized as human beings once the Dark had won, and would be enslaved.
The final battle would then take place at Hogwarts itself.
There were so many loopholes in this plan that none of us left the meeting with a light heart, but we hadn't been able to find a better one, and thus it was set.
By Reija Linn
Bill
Without much delay, the other participants of this private meeting arrived in Dumbledore's office. Most of the assembled I knew, McGonagall, Sprout, Flitwick, Madam Hooch and Hagrid had all been around during my time at Hogwarts, and Hermione Granger, Harry's and Ron's friend from school, I had met before. Sirius Black I recognised from the time he had been in all wizard newspapers, though he looked much better now than he had in the pictures (of course, thirteen years of Azkaban would not release a person that would look very respectable). I deduced that the man next to him had to be Remus Lupin from what Harry had told me about him, and knowing he was Sirius Black's lover - those two were certainly close.
They'd actually been in their last year of Hogwart's when I'd started my first, but had changed so much since then I couldn't recognise them from this alone. It did, however, remind me of the vast age difference between Harry and me - looking back, I realized that I had actually went to school with his father, even though I'd been a first year and he an almost-graduate.
I could not spot Professor Snape or Madame Pomfrey anywhere, but I knew that they were working undercover as spies, and probably couldn't take place at the meeting without the risk of being discovered.
When all of us were finally introduced and seated (and after Harry had exchanged long embraces with Sirius, Remus and Hermione and I had greeted the teachers), we moved to business pretty fast. Dumbledore, who sat in his seat with an unusually grim expression, his fingertips touching as he spread his fingers beneath his chin, started to talk.
"Finally, we're all together again. Harry, as you all know, has been undergoing very advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons in Egypt, which is also where Mr. Weasley here comes from - most of you will still remember him.
"To put it bluntly, we're not facing rosy times now - not that we did anytime there past years, and especially in the last two months. I guess you've all come to the conclusion - this is the time, now, the time we've been waiting for since Voldemort" - I could see a couple of people still flinch at the mention of the name - "has risen again. This is the time we strike back. This is the time for the final battle. In the nearest future, all will be decided - we will either win, or loose, both the battle and our lives, as I hope all of you are very aware of.
"This said, I have to ask of all of you to make their final decision - if you stay, it is at great risk to your life, please consider this. If any of you wants to leave, and take refugee wither here at Hogwarts, in a muggle settlement, or abroad, state this now, and no one will blame you for this."
He looked around, catching each of us in the eye, but none said a word or stood up to leave. The former headmaster sighed.
"Well, then. So it shall be. Before it may be too late - I want to thank all of you for what you have done already, and what you will still do. Now, I think, it is time for our last guests to show themselves."
His voice had risen slightly at this, and suddenly a door (that probably lead to Dumbledore's private rooms) opened at the back of the room. Three people, all looking very haggard and weary, emerged. Professor Snape, Madam Pomfrey, Hogwart's former nurse, and... Draco Malfoy. I could hear Harry gasp at my side, and couldn't hide my own confusion, either. After all, Lucius Malfoy, who had been my father's enemy since they had went to school together, was one of the most prominent Death Eaters. I also noticed the suspicious glances that passed between Sirius Black and Professor Snape, but did not know enough about their past back then to understand.
"Severus," the headmaster continued, "and Madam Pomfrey, whom you both all know, have been spying for the resistance, at great personal risk, I might add. Well, at least this subject is closed - with their coming here, their cover has no officially been blown, I have no doubt the Death Eater's are very well informed about their return to us. All of you know Mr. Malfoy?"
Draco took a seat, stone faced. He looked worse even than Snape and Madam Pomfrey, pale, his eyes deep-set from obvious lack of sleep.
"Mr. Malfoy has agreed to come to this meeting. I haven't told anyone about this, but before he was taken from school by his father, I had a long discussion with him about the Dark Side, and he decided to work for us, also. This may surprise a few of you" - he was now noticeably regarding Harry and me - "but be assured I have the utmost confidence in his trustworthiness. Draco," he said this last word more softly, "would you kindly tell of what has happened in time you were parted from us?"
And Draco Malfoy, whom I had first met as a cruel boy when he was fourteen, recounted the tale of his stay with the Death Eaters. Apparently, his father had trimmed him towards the Dark Arts from early age on, and at first, the boy had felt such hero worship and fear of and for his father that he had always obliged. However, there had come a point when he had realized some of the wrongness of those ways, and when Dumbledore had asked him to join the resistance, he agreed to leave with his father - as a spy.
Of course, with Lucius Malfoy in such a high position, he had learned of many of the Death Eater's plans, yet I could only imagine the horrors this boy had to have gone through. And worse, what he would still have to go through, as he was the only one of the three spies whose cover had not been blown.
Through the combined work of Snape, Pomfrey and Draco, we finally knew where Voldemort's hiding place was situated - an inconspicuous Muggle village at the end of nowhere.
After this had been said, Harry and I made our reports, including the information that Charlie and his friends were in France, waiting for their sign to come through.
Plans were laid out and rejected, laid out and rejected, until we finally settled on one course of action that promised at least a vast chance of survival.
Draco Malfoy was to return to the Death Eaters, securing his confidentiality to them by revealing he had followed Severus Snape, and had defeated the traitor - at the same time, a false letter by Dumbledore to Harry would be sent out, telling of Snape's death. A letter that would be sent by means that were quite secure at first glance, but that surely would be intercepted by the Death Eaters - by Draco's information, we knew of a former Ministry member who was said to have found refugee in Germany, but who was actually a spy for Voldemort, and Dumbledore would send his letter to this man, asking him as an old friend to deliver it to Harry at his supposed hiding place.
Of course, as soon as the Death Eater's would catch this letter, they would intercept this hiding place - and find traces of Harry's return to Hogwart's.
The castle, in the meantime, would be evacuated of all refugees, who would, for the time, find shelter in the dungeon's of Gringott's - that still was one of the secure places these days, since the Goblin's had no interest in turning to the Dark side, knowing well enough that they would not be recognized as human beings once the Dark had won, and would be enslaved.
The final battle would then take place at Hogwarts itself.
There were so many loopholes in this plan that none of us left the meeting with a light heart, but we hadn't been able to find a better one, and thus it was set.