Chapter Ten; Calm Before The Storm

'Isn't this sort of risky?' Ron asked as they entered the village. 'I mean, if someone recognises either of them ...' He left the sentence hanging.

Harry was having similar worrying thoughts. As much as he loved and admired his godfather, Harry couldn't help but feel that Sirius was taking too high a risk staying close to Hogsmeade. If any of the villagers or students saw Sirius, he was quite likely to be captured or killed on sight.

Harry feared that Remus would have a similar reception. Werewolves were not often met with open arms and welcomed in the wizarding world. Would any of the villagers recognise him from teaching at Hogwarts a few years ago?

Hermione was a good deal calmer than the boys. She constantly reminded them that Sirius and Remus were both fully qualified wizards and certainly not stupid enough to enter the village without making some sort of effort to disguise themselves.

It was the morning of the long awaited Hogsmeade visit. Remus had sent a note informing the three of them that he and Sirius would meet them in the Three Broomsticks pub.

The village pub was often full with Hogwarts students, local villagers and assorted tourists, even in the winter months. You could usually find a wide variety of dwarfs, goblins, hags, warlocks and plenty of other beings in the crowd. But how, in a crowd like that, were you supposed to find one werewolf and one wanted criminal Animagus, both of whom were likely to be in disguise?

They went to Honeydukes first so that Harry could settle his bet with Ron and for the sake of buying enough chocolate to last them until Christmas.

Hermione then insisted on going to the post office so she could send a letter to Viktor. While Hermione paid for the owl, Harry stared out of the window to the pub down the street. Impatiently he checked his watch. It was nearly ten.

Once outside he casually suggested going to The Three Broomsticks for Butterbeers. Ron and Hermione weren't fooled; he just wanted to see his godfather as soon as possible.

Upon entering The Three Broomsticks they discovered that a larger crowd than normal had gathered, forcing them to squeeze very slowly and carefully through the throng, saying 'excuse me' and 'pardon me, coming through' every five seconds. They finally made it to the bar and ordered some Butterbeers from Madam Rosmerta, the landlady.

'Why is it so crowded in here?' Ron said, looking around the room. 'Is there free chocolate no one told us about?'

Madam Rosmerta chuckled.

'No freebies I'm afraid,' she said, reaching under the bar for some clean tankards. 'Just a bit of entertainment. You might like to stay awhile, it'll start again in a moment.'

No sooner where the words out of her mouth that a round of applause broke out. Most of the pubs customers where now focusing their attention on a young man of about twenty years old, dressed in forest-green robes, who was seated on a stool in the bay of the pub windows.

Silence fell as he raised a flute to his lips and began to play.

It was the most beautiful piece of music Harry had ever heard. Soft and haunting, the scale of notes rose and fell gently and smoothly. No one made a sound. A sense of calm washed over the captive audience, every one of them perfectly still, a look of dreamy contentment on their faces.

Harry felt very relaxed, a smile settling on his face as the music filled his ears. It sounded oddly familiar.

The sound of the flute was having a soothing and uplifting effect on everyone. All eyes were on the young musician who kept his own eyes closed, intently focused on his playing and nothing else.

Harry suddenly recalled where he'd heard a very similar piece of music. He had only ever heard it twice before in his life; the eerie and beautiful song of the phoenix.

The musician was skilfully echoing Harry's memories of the wondrous sound. Although not perfect, there was an incredible parallel within the melody.

As the final note shimmered through the air, the spell on the crowd broke and they applauded with delight. The musician seemed to come back to himself suddenly, as if he'd only just realised where he was. He opened his eyes, revealing a pair of bright blue irises. Scanning the room, his gaze flicked over to where Harry, Ron and Hermione were standing. A small smile passed over his face before he turned his attention back to his instrument.

As the new song filled the room Harry was struck by a sudden thought; a realisation that he knew the wizard. Harry grinned. Bella had been right. The show of talent was what gave him away.

After the music had come to an end, the young musician politely excused himself as the crowd applauded once more. He slipped through the crowd and approached the bar. He passed Harry by without looking at him and ordered a Butterbeer. Madam Rosmerta gave him a dazzling smile, complimenting his performance. He smiled embarrassedly, thanked her, turned and promptly bumped into Harry.

'Oh, I'm very sorry,' he said, 'Didn't see you there.'

He smiled and jerked his head slightly towards the back of the pub. Next moment, he'd disappeared into the crowd.

Harry waited a few seconds, gestured to the others and followed. Hermione and Ron exchanged clueless looks before hurrying after him.

As if to confirm Harry's suspicions of the musician's identity, a large black dog emerged from under one of the tables at the very back of the pub. The man sat down, put his flute away in its case, fed the dog a piece of chocolate and glanced expectantly over at Harry.

Harry smiled and sat down opposite the musician. Ron and Hermione followed suit, a little thrown by his actions; until they noticed the large dog lying at the musician's feet.

'Hi, Remus,' said Harry quietly. 'Hey, Snuffles,' he patted the dog which sat up and laid its head on Harry's lap.

Ron's eyes widened. 'Cool! We didn't even recognise you!'

'That would be the point of a disguise, Ron,' said Hermione, rolling her eyes, but she was visibly impressed. 'What did you use? Polyjuice potion?'

Remus shook his head.

'No, just some Alteration Charms. They'll wear off in about an hour I'm afraid, so we don't have long.'

'But – ' Harry began, but he broke off as Madam Rosmerta appeared with their Butterbeers.

'So are you two staying here at the inn?' asked Hermione, once Madam Rosmerta had returned to the bar.

'Yes, Dumbledore kindly made some arrangements with Rosmerta. So long as we can contribute something to the running of the inn, she's quite happy to have us here for as long as necessary.' He took a drink from his tankard and continued. 'And in case I'm needed elsewhere, Rosie has offered to 'pet-sit'.'

The dog gave a low bark, wagging his tail.

'Does she know … um … about Snuffles?' asked Harry.

'She does,' said Remus, smiling reassuringly. 'She was quite relieved to learn the truth from Dumbledore. She knows how important it is to keep quiet about this so I wouldn't worry about that, Harry.'

'Okay, but I really need to talk to Snuffles,' he said firmly. He looked down at the dog. 'It's sort of important.'

Sirius looked up at him, then at Remus. Remus raised an eyebrow. 'What's happened?' Sirius gave a low but impatient bark. 'Okay then, let's go somewhere less crowded.' Remus amended cautiously. 'Walls have ears.'

Casually, the group finished their drinks as quickly as possible and then left the pub. Sirius was kept on a collar and lead to avoid the attention of any villagers who might object to a stray dog wandering the streets. They made their way up the hill and Remus stopped just outside the Shrieking Shack.

Ron looked apprehensive.

'Please, don't tell me we're going in there!'

Remus smiled. 'Do you happen to know of a better place for a private conversation, Ron? If so, please let me know.'

Ron huffed and followed the group as they made their way through the rusted old gate, up the weed and moss covered path to the old derelict building. After a moment, Ron spoke up again. 'How are we supposed to get inside? My brothers have tried loads of times and never found an entrance.'

Sirius barked and gestured towards the Shack with his muzzle.

Ron glowered at him.

'What's that supposed to mean?'

'That your brothers probably didn't think to try the front door like normal people.' said Remus with a sly smile that just confused Ron even more.

Harry looked to the front of the house and couldn't help but point out the obvious. The front door was barely visible behind a dense growth of thick vines covered with some nasty looking thorns. The same went for the front windows that weren't boarded up. Remus didn't seem to think it was a problem. He stepped up onto the porch and pulled out his wand. With a sweep of his hand, the vines covering the wall to the left of the door drew back, exposing the brickwork. Harry would have mentioned that the front door was right beside them, when he realised that that door was probably a fake. You wouldn't want a werewolf to be able to knock a door off its hinges and escape, so why give it a door to knock down in the first place?

Sirius kept his back to them, watching the road, ready to warn them if anyone came near enough to see what they were doing.

With practised ease, Remus used his wand to draw a large circle onto the wall and tapped the centre of it sharply.

'Creare Portala!'

The edges of the circle glowed electric blue and the wall within the circle suddenly vanished.

Remus stepped back. 'Ladies first.' he said politely, offering a hand to Hermione, which she took and he helped her through the open portal. Ron scrambled through, followed by Harry and Remus. Sirius took a running leap and jumped through the hole as it closed sharply behind him.

The hallway was dark and thick with dust. Sirius bounded up the creaking, rickety staircase, leaving a trail of paw-prints in the grey dust. In silence, the others followed. Sirius led them into one of the bedrooms and transformed back into human form as they caught up.

He didn't waste any time with pleasantries.

'What's so urgent, Harry? Has something happened?'

Harry opened his mouth to speak but felt extremely awkward all of a sudden. He had been waiting ages to talk to his godfather and now he had the chance, he wasn't sure what to say.

Hermione and Ron couldn't help him out. They hung back, waiting for Harry to speak first. Remus was watching him, looking concerned.

Where to start?

Harry reached a hand down his neck and pulled out the talisman.

'I wanted to know a bit more about this,' he said carefully. 'Like where you got it from.'

Sirius looked a little confused but answered the question anyway.

'From a friend of ours – you know Arabella Figg, don't you?'

Harry nodded.

'She's been working on this talisman since the end of June. She only finished it a few weeks ago which is why you didn't get it sooner. Arabella's an artisan of protective devices such as talismans, amulets, charms –'

'What about rings?' Harry asked.

An odd expression flicked over Sirius' face.

'Rings?'

'Is it possible to do the same with a ring?'

Sirius and Remus exchanged a look.

'Yes,' said Sirius slowly. 'Why do you ask?'

Harry took a deep breath.

'Do either of you know a Professor Torr? Because I've seen her wearing a ring that looks exactly like this talisman you gave me.'

Sirius and Remus glanced at each other, and unless Harry was very much mistaken, he noticed that Remus was giving his friend a pointed 'I told you so' kind of look. Sirius' face appeared to darken slightly but Harry dismissed it as a trick of the light as his godfather turned back to him with a reassuring smile.

'Harry, Professor Dumbledore has informed the Hogwarts staff about me. They needed to learn the truth sooner rather than later, now that the Dark Lord has returned. Granted, some didn't take it very well –'

'Three guesses who,' muttered Ron from behind Harry.

'But they all trust Dumbledore to know what he's doing so no one is likely to start screaming for the Ministry if I'm summoned into the castle. Not that that makes any difference to Snape's low opinion of me, but then I was hardly expecting a miracle.' He allowed himself a grim smile. 'Professor Torr took it really well and kindly offered her assistance. She made the initial suggestion of the talisman to help protect you, and between Dumbledore, Remus, Arabella and I, that is one powerful object. I don't doubt it's proficiency for a minute.'

Sirius' dark eyes held Harry's gaze, a sense of fear and grave concern somehow making itself very apparent to Harry.

'We're taking every precaution possible to keep you safe from Voldemort – you're undeniably his main target. No one has ever escaped from him alive and you've accomplished that four times. Apart from giving his followers a reason to cast doubts on the true extent of his powers, I'd say he's royally pissed off and has murdering you as his top priority.'

'But what about the ring?' asked Harry, returning to his original query.

'Professor Torr requested that a counterpart to the talisman be made in the form of a ring. They are bound together with a tracking spell. If the talisman reacts to danger, it will send a distress signal to Professor Torr instantly so that way she will be able to Apparate to your location immediately and help you. Does that answer your question?'

Harry hesitated. He knew he ought to feel grateful at the very least for everyone's concern about him, so he felt a nasty squirm of guilt as he cautiously asked, 'Sirius, are you sure – I mean … how can we be sure that we can trust her?'

Sirius frowned, his eyes narrowing slightly.

'Harry, I've met with Professor Torr,' he said sternly. 'and I find her to be a very sincere and honest young woman. She's already assisting in fortifying the wards on the castle with Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall. I see no reason not to trust her.'

'Apart from the fact that I don't even know her,' said Harry. 'It's just that … after last year … Dumbledore trusted Professor Moody and he – he turned out to be …'

Harry really didn't want to finish that sentence; in any case, Sirius interrupted him.

'Harry, don't say things like that,' he snapped, so sharply that everyone in the room stared at him in surprise. 'What happened last year isn't relevant; I don't want you thinking that Professor Torr is someone we can't rely on. She's made it very clear that she's on our side.'

Harry took a small step backwards, rather taken aback. What had he said wrong to make his godfather angry?

'I – I just thought –'

'I think it's very unfair of you to pass judgement on someone you don't even know-'

'Padfoot,' Remus was staring at Sirius, clearly shocked at his friends' reaction. 'I think that would be Harry's point. He doesn't know Professor Torr. I don't blame him for being cautious; in fact I'd be glad of it. We can't be too careful these days but there is no need to get worked up about it,' he said evenly. 'I'm sure Harry didn't mean to imply that Professor Torr can't be trusted.'

Sirius blinked slowly, his gaze wandering, slowly moving back to Harry's crestfallen face, a child-like confusion in his emerald eyes. Taking a shaky breath, Sirius raised a hand to his head, rubbing it absentmindedly.

'I'm sorry,' he said, his voice carrying none of its previous anger. 'I - I haven't been getting a lot of sleep lately.'

Harry, still a little unnerved, nodded slowly, graciously decided to let the outburst slide. On closer inspection Sirius did appear more strained that when Harry had seen him last. Sirius closed his eyes, wincing a little.

'Sirius, are you okay?' asked Harry tentatively.

'What?' Sirius glanced up, his expression vague. 'Oh, it's just a headache,' he said. 'I'm fine.'

Not sure if Sirius was being completely truthful, Harry decided to just drop the subject, tucking the glittering talisman away down the front of his robes.

In an attempt to ease the atmosphere a little, Hermione brought up their next concern with their former professor, who had just transformed back into his normal form now that the Charms had worn off.

'Professor Lupin - er, Remus,' she amended awkwardly, 'we've been wondering what's been going on since the Dark Lord returned. The Daily Prophet hasn't reported anything and we'd appreciate knowing what's going on.'

'Wouldn't we all.' said Remus, sombrely. He motioned for the three teenagers to sit. They sat down on the only bed in the room, Harry next to Sirius. Remus leant against the wall and looked out of the murky window.

'The reason why nothing has been reported is because nothing has happened.' said Remus.

Silence.

'What? Nothing?' said Ron incredulously at last.

'Not a thing.' Sirius muttered. He looked distracted.

'Since June, Professor Dumbledore has alerted as many people as possible to the fact that the Dark Lord has returned. Everyone's been tense and nervous, waiting for something to happen. Attacks, murders, disappearances.' Remus shook his head. 'Hasn't happened. Fudge won't admit that He's back and people are starting to doubt whether Voldemort has returned at all. They seem to want proof, so unless something happens soon, they won't believe it.'

Harry stared in utter disbelief. 'They want proof? Why?'

'People believe what they can see, Harry.' said Sirius. 'If there were attacks and the Daily Prophet reported them, then people would take notice, they'd listen and prepare themselves.'

'Those that do believe that Voldemort is back, are doing what they can, your parents included, Ron.'

Ron swelled slightly out of pride, yet he also looked really worried.

'It's far too quiet,' Sirius said, pacing the room. 'Something should have happened by now. Why has he gone back into hiding all of a sudden?'

Remus shifted uncomfortably. 'Well, I hate to say this ... but maybe he hasn't.'

'What do you mean, Moony?'

'I think he's just giving the illusion that nothing's happened. Voldemort's got something planned, he's just not letting on just yet.'

'So, the Death Eaters are laying low for the time being?' Hermione added, half hopeful, half nervous.

'I should think so,' Remus said. 'If they stay hidden long enough ...'

'The community will let its guard down.' Sirius finished grimly.

They didn't have to say anymore. It was very clear. The moment everyone ceased to be vigilant, the Dark Lord would strike.

'During the first war, a quiet spell was always a bad sign,' said Remus softly, his eyes reflecting the memories of the hardships of the war that he and Sirius had lived through not so long ago. 'Something was going to happen and we knew it wasn't going to be pleasant; no point trying to pretend otherwise. We knew it was coming, it was a question of where, when and how much damage would be caused … how many lives lost.'

Harry's stomach dropped unpleasantly. 'But where would they attack first?' he asked.

Remus thought it over. 'Well, the Ministry in London is the most likely place. If they fall, then it's really only a matter of time before the rest of England falls as well.'

'What about Hogwarts?' Harry persisted.

'As long as Dumbledore's there, I doubt that Voldemort would dare try and take the school. It's too well protected against attacks so don't worry, you'll be safe there.' Sirius gave Harry a reassuring hug. Harry returned it only half-heartedly.

'You'd all best be getting back to the castle,' said Remus. 'Try to stay out of trouble, won't you?' he added, looking pacifically at Harry.

'You come and find us at the Three Broomsticks if you need us. Rosmerta let us charm the door for access.' said Sirius. 'Room 5, password's 'cervus', but try to keep it to actual emergencies, alright? I'm sure you can cope with Transfiguration homework without my help.'

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To Be Continued

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All comments and constructive criticism are appreciated.

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Authors Notes

Christy – Well, Harry can't be great at everything, can he?  Plus I wanted to show Ron doing well at something for a change.  ^_^

Elbereth94 – That sentence made perfect sense to me and thank you very much for saying so.  Some praise really has to be bestowed to my lovely Beta Lil Lupin, she's positively worked magic with my silly mistakes!  And I'm on your fav list?  Ooh, thanks!  Hunky dory, I've always thought that was a very weird phrase but in a good way. 

Lil Lupin – I'm in room I-19  on the third floor.  (The 'I' stands for 'Insanity level', of course)  You get all sorts of people on this floor; Professor Lockhart is just down the corridor!  He's not a bad housemate but do make sure you get to the bathroom before he does; he won't stay away from the mirror and he leaves toothpaste all over the sink!  Grrr!  By the way, if you do snore, I will tip the bed so that you roll out the window.  ^_^

Von – Screamingly agonised, huh?  *evil cackle*  Yes, it is a completed fic, all the chapters are ready for posting, but I have no intention of posting more than two a week.  Tuesdays and Fridays, and that's it!  See, I fully intend to post regularly, that please you?  Okay, I do love getting reviews, what author doesn't??   

Evil spapple pie – You have my sympathy.  Homework is horrible, isn't it?  If I may make a suggestion?  Never, ever take your eyes off it; homework has a nasty habit of multiplying when people aren't looking.  At least mine did, when I had it.

MorganD – Yep, re-named the snake to Neonate, which is actually the correct term for a baby snake, did you know?  It just sounded more appropriate.  I had to seriously re-think the whole amulet/ring thing after you wrote to me, but everything makes more sense now, I'm pleased to say.  ^_^

Evol norgara – Welcome back!  I'm glad I don't have any Mary Sues either!  I can't say I hate them, but they do sound extremely dull so if I'll avoid them where possible.  Sorry, but there aren't any words that rhyme with 'orange'.  Not in the English language anyway.  Maybe there's a French word.  Spanish?  German?  Latin perhaps?  There must be one somewhere!  Don't bother looking up the French word for orange, it's exactly the same!  Hey, maybe if you just pronounced it with a French accent, would that count?  Great, that's going to bug me all weekend …