"Thirteen," Snape said heavily to his bed hangings upon waking on the
thirteenth day of his probation period. He still knew nothing about
Dumbledore's weaknesses, if in fact he had any.
"Today is the day I am going to die," Snape said aloud, and felt utterly alone.
That day the Headmaster called the teachers one by one to his office for the annual report on the fifth-years' progress for the O.W.L.'s. Snape entered the office and found Bella Figg and Minerva McGonagall already there, indulging in a glass of parsnip wine with Dumbledore.
"Severus! Come in," Dumbledore said pleasantly, drawing Snape a chair as Bella poured him a glass of the wine.
"Do you really think you should be drinking in the middle of the day in a school?" Snape asked severely.
"My nerves are shot," Professor McGonagall sighed. "This is a trying time, isn't it? Hermione Granger asks me questions every fifteen seconds, Neville Longbottom doesn't know the answers to the questions I ask him, and Harry Potter knows everything already, thank you very much Bella."
"He's a fast learner," Bella said. "Drink with us, Severus."
Snape shrugged and took the glass. Just then a fat snowy owl flew in backwards through the open window and perched on one of Dumbledore's astrolabes.
"Ouzelum!" Dumbledore exclaimed, putting down his wine to untie a note rolled round the owl's leg.
"Whose backwards bird is that?" asked Bella.
"Ouzelum belongs to my brother Aberforth," Dumbledore answered absently as he read the note. "He's a strange breed- the owl, not my brother. Flies backwards because he likes to see where he came from... What's Aberforth want now, I wonder? Unfortunately Aberforth frequently engages in wagers on Quidditch matches, and more often than not he loses; but he hasn't much money of his own... Another fifteen Galleons? Aberforth seems to go through money like our mother went through hats."
He hunted through his desk and found a little satchel of money, which he attached to the owl's leg. "There you are; now off with you, you retrospective rascal!" Ouzelum flew out the window, backwards naturally. Dumbledore sighed. "There go fifteen Galleons, literally flying out the window."
"Why don't you refuse him the money?" Minerva said.
"Not lend a hand to my brother, only living relative?" Dumbledore said. "I can't turn down Aberforth. He's my dearest, oldest friend and relation."
Snape dropped his glass. The horror of Dumbledore's ill-timed declaration was too much for him. He fainted dead away on the floor.
That night Snape was called to Lord Voldemort's side and tortured, and the knowledge forced out of him with a strong Veritaserum. Then he was released, to return to Hogwarts in shame and disgrace, and Voldemort began to plot.
* * * * *
A week later Hermione was brought the Daily Prophet at breakfast. She unfolded the newspaper and held it up to read the headline as she raised her goblet of pumpkin juice to her lips. But suddenly she seemed to completely forget what she was doing and missed her mouth entirely, pouring pumpkin juice all over her shoulder.
"Hermione!" Ron jumped up to mop up the sticky orange liquid in her hair. But Hermione hardly noticed the juice soaking her entire right side, so dumbstruck was she. Ron and Harry stared at her, amazed. Then Ron grabbed the Daily Prophet and scanned the headline, and let out a yelp of surprise and dismay.
"Show me," demanded Harry. Ron mutely handed him the paper.
'WIZARD DUMBLEDORE ACCUSED OF PRACTICING DARK MAGIC
Yesterday the Ministry of Magic arrested the eminent wizard Aberforth Dumbledore on the charge of using the Unforgivable Curses. According to eyewitnesses, at approximately 1 p.m. Dumbledore Apparated in the middle of a busy Muggle street in London and began casting hexes randomly about himself. Wizard and Muggle bystanders say that when a group of Ministry wizards approached Dumbledore, the 125-year-old wizard simply laughed and used the Cruciatus Curse on one of the wizards. Cruciatus is, of course, strictly forbidden by the Ministry. Dumbledore was quickly subdued by Ministry Hit Wizards and taken into custody to await trial. Aberforth is the younger brother of the famed wizard Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Professor Dumbledore refused to comment on his brother's appalling conduct.'
"I don't understand," said Hermione. "Why would Professor Dumbledore's brother do this?"
"Professor Dumbledore isn't here," Harry said, suddenly noticing that fact. "He must have gone to see his brother, wherever the Ministry's keeping him."
Professor McGonagall entered from the door behind the teachers' table, hurried to her seat and called for their attention. "I expect you've all seen the headlines by now. The Headmaster has gone to sort out his brother's affairs. He will return shortly. During his absence, as the deputy Headmistress, I will keep order here. Classes will continue as usual."
"It's a ploy," Bella Figg said that night at an emergency meeting of the Order of the Phoenix. "Obviously Voldemort managed to put Aberforth under Imperius and forced him to perform all those contemptible spells."
"I agree that it's the most likely solution," said Quentin Trimble, "but you know how difficult it is to prove that a wizard is or isn't under Imperius. And I've found out that that miserable Lucius Malfoy is pressing for the Dementor's Kiss- probably to keep Dumbledore occupied while Malfoy's master does as he pleases. We need a good defence for Aberforth, and fast."
"Think harder, everyone," pleaded Minerva McGonagall. "We must figure out a plausible argument to get Aberforth out so that Albus can come back to Hogwarts. We're lost without him, but he's determined to get his brother released."
"Where are they keeping Aberforth anyway?" asked Remus Lupin.
"You'll never believe it- in Gringotts' bank," said young Quintius Croaker, who worked at the Ministry. "It's brilliant: no one gets in or out of the high-security vaults without the goblins' say-so, and they're not so corruptible as the Dementors, they answer to Albus, bless his soul."
Minerva nodded. "Has anyone heard from Fletch?"
"He's hiding out in Berlin somewhere," said the sagacious Auror Cassius Egg. "Perdita's death hurt him terribly. I don't know that he'll soon recover... He was so in love, the poor man. Will he ever come back to the Order, do you think?"
"Without a doubt," said Lupin. "Fletch is a believer in the correctness of vengeance. He will return, if only to see Emily Clemens and Maldora Lestrange convicted for their crimes and probably to punish them himself."
"Will you be all right here without Albus?" Trimble asked Minerva.
"Of course," said Professor McGonagall. "But in case I'm not, everyone get back to thinking! The Imperius defence may not stand on its own."
* * * * *
With only thirty days before the O.W.L.'s, the fifth-years were practically living in the library, studying in every spare minute that they weren't sleeping, eating or in class. At the moment it was a regular midweek morning and the students and staff did happen to all be eating breakfast in the Great Hall, save three.
Severus Snape was pacing in his office in the dungeons, thinking dark thoughts about life in general. Dumbledore had been gone a week already since his brother had been Imperius'ed- at least, that was Snape's private feeling. He had no concrete evidence. He could try to snoop around with the Death Eaters to find out who had executed the kidnapping and the actual cursing, but he doubted they would tell him anything. He was also debating whether to tell the Order that he knew where Lord Voldemort was hiding, having been tortured there several times by the Dark Lord himself. But ultimately he made the wrong choice, and kept the information to himself.
Marcus McCabe had noticed that Harry Potter was more wiry than he was, and had resolved to diet. He had skipped breakfast and gone to the library, because he had also noticed that Harry was top of his class in nearly every subject, while Marcus was about fifteenth in his class.
In the library, however, he encountered Alberta Goyle, Gregory Goyle's first-year sister. She jumped when Marcus found her pacing in the Potions section, muttering to herself, but relaxed when she recognized him.
"Oh, it's just you, Marcus. I nearly thought it was Harry Potter."
"Thanks," Marcus said delightedly. He sat on a sofa nearby and Alberta joined him, after a moment of hesitation.
"Why did you do that?" Marcus asked curiously. "Look round before sitting down?"
Alberta shrugged. "You're Gryffindor, I'm Slytherin. It looks unnatural for us to be chatting."
"You didn't use to think that."
"That's true- but my brother told me not to associate with Gryffindors." She bit her lip and looked at the floor. "But I just can't seem to stay away."
"Did I interrupt you?" Marcus asked. "You looked like you were practising something."
Alberta reddened. "I was- only- it's something that I don't think I can go through with anymore. I could really use some of that Gryffindor courage now."
"Ask Malcolm Baddock," Marcus replied with a wistful grin. "He's a lot braver than I am. I saw Malfoy and his pack in the hall, taunting him and picking on him because he won't join their campaign against Harry. I could never stand up to them like that, especially to Malfoy- he looks like a really experienced wizard and everyone says he's more advanced than all the other fifth-years, except maybe Hermione and Harry. Plus Malfoy and Malcolm's dads are cousins- imagine going against your own blood to defend what you believe in. Malcolm's got more Gryffindor courage than I ever could."
"But you're the Harry Potter clone! He's positively oozing with bravery and daring."
"But I'm not like the real him!" Marcus wailed. "The best I can do is look like him. Look at this," he tugged at his hair, "this hair, dyed black and cut like his! These glasses with flat lenses- I really have perfect vision. And my eyes are naturally brown- I made them green with magic! Even this scar, I penned it on with red ink! I'm a worthless imitator, Alberta. I used to want to be him, but now that I've met him, I see that I could never be anything like the real thing. For one thing, we think too differently. We have divergent political opinions. He has so many friends- I only seem to be able to alienate people, like my supposed best friends Darius and Niamh. And he always wants to do boring things like help people and visit that shifty-looking Hagrid in hospital."
"There are some aspects of Harry that are inimitable," conceded Alberta soothingly. "But Marcus McCabe is unique too. There's no one else who could be like you."
"Who would want to?" Marcus asked listlessly.
The library door swung open and two tall black-cloaked figures slipped in and Stunned Madam Pince; but the two first-years were oblivious to the intrusion.
"My point is," Marcus was saying, as the two figures moved silently up behind him, "I once idolized him, and now I barely respect him. He's- hey!"
Alberta screamed as the burlier masked figure grabbed Marcus, Stunned him and shoved him unceremoniously into a sack. The taller figure Stunned her and crammed her in the sack after Marcus. Then the two figures made a swift and stealthy exit.
They ran down the corridors silently and descended to the dungeons. There they found the office of the Potions master. Snape gave a cry of shock when they burst into his office. "What do you want?" he cried hoarsely. "Get out!"
Both figures drew their wands and levelled them at Snape. "Come on," growled the burlier one, disguising his voice. "The Dark Lord wants to see you. Immediately."
The tall figure took the sack and the burly one grabbed Snape rougly, pinning his arms to his sides. "No," Snape gasped weakly, straining against his captor's strong grip. "I won't go. I want out!"
Both of the hooded wizards laughed. "Once you're in," said the tall one, "you can never get out. The only alternative is death."
"Kill me then," said Snape, reaching for his wand in his pocket. "I deserve only death."
But the burly one reached out one hand and Snape's wand flew out of his pocket and into the other wizard's hand. "Ah ah ah! Hey, there's some Veritaserum on the shelf, shall we take it?"
The tall wizard nodded and the big one stuck out his hand and did the same wandless trick to summon the little glass jar. Snape began to protest, but the tall one Stunned him. Then they fled down the halls, and were close to their secret egress when a witch fluttered round a corner, out of breath from her frenetic race from her classroom on the seventh floor.
"Professor Dumbledore! Professor Dumbledore!" Professor Trelawney called excitedly. "I have seen a vision in my crystal ball! The Inner Eye has revealed to me that the Death Eaters are near!" She gasped, seeing the two masked figures. "What-? Who are you?"
She screamed when she realized her vision had been accurate. The taller wizard acted quickly. He raised his wand and uttered, "Avada Kedavra!"
Sybil Trelawney's scream was abruptly cut short as she crumpled to the floor, dead.
"Lestrange! Did you really have to kill her?" demanded Vincent Crabbe, Sr., pulling up his mask with his beefy hand. "Couldn't you have just Stunned her?"
Derrick Lestrange pulled off his mask as well. "I remembered her from my time here. Bloody fool- she was a complete fraud." He smirked. "Bet she didn't see that one in her bloody tea leaves."
"This is supposed to be a stealth kidnapping!" Crabbe hissed. "You'll get us caught!"
"Shut up, Crabbe! I should never have brought you, you'll mess everything up."
"I will not! You're the one who messed it up. This girl you snatched with Harry Potter- she's one of Goyle's daughters, Alice or Abigail or something. He's going to kill us if he finds out we kidnapped her too! What are we going to do with her, Lestrange?"
"What were we supposed to do, leave a witness right there in the middle of the castle? Lucius will tell us what to do. Come on, we have everything we came for. Let's stash this charlatan psychic in that broom cupboard and get out of here quick."
They locked Professor Trelawney's body in the cupboard and fled with their three unconscious hostages.
None of them, unfortunately, was immediately missed. No one was looking for Marcus or Alberta; Professor Snape was thought to be ill and still depressed about Perdita Clemens' death; and Professor Trelawney's absence was ascribed to clairvoyance-related woes.
"Maybe her Inner Eye has cataracts," Ron said when Professor Trelawney failed to show up for Divination. The other boys snickered while Lavender and Parvati looked annoyed.
Later, much later, Ron would regret his crass and ill-timed remark, and the others would regret having laughed. But for now they only knew that they had a spare period, and they all went to the library to study again for the O.W.L.'s. Harry and Ron were quietly reading about Mandrake Restorative Draughts when Gregory Goyle lurched round the corner and growled, "Weasley!"
He grabbed Ron by the front of his robes and slammed him against the wall. Harry was instantly on his feet with his wand levelled at Goyle.
"Drop him, Goyle," Harry ordered.
Goyle ignored him. "Where is she?" he demanded of Ron.
"Where is- agh- who?" squeaked Ron, clawing in vain at Goyle's hand on his throat.
"Alberta!" Goyle grunted. "Where is she? What did you say to her this morning?"
"Who's Alberta?" gasped Ron.
"Your sister?" Harry asked Goyle. The face of the pretty, prim Slytherin girl with raven hair leaped to mind and then more images flooded in- a pale delicate face lifting up in panic as he found her reading a forbidden book, raven hair flying out behind a small fleeing figure- and then he finally made the connection. "Oh no! Your sister Alberta is Ron's Secret Admirer?"
"Yeah," Goyle said, turning red and looking ashamed. "I warned her against you, Weasley, but she kept sending you presents and sweets, and Malfoy was helping her- and you know him, he's Malfoy. I can't stop Malfoy... Then this morning Alberta said she was going to find you and tell you she was your Secret Admirer..." He frowned slowly. "But- didn't she do it?"
"We haven't seen her in ages!" Harry said. "Put Ron down!"
Goyle released Ron, who slumped against the wall, wheezing. "Where could she be then?" Goyle asked Harry. "She wasn't at breakfast this morning. I thought she was talking to Weasley. But no one's seen her all day. I thought Weasley upset her and she ran off to cry or something. You- you really haven't seen her today?"
"No, and that's the truth," Harry said as he helped Ron to his feet.
"Get out of here, you walking pain in the neck," Ron gasped crossly. Goyle glowered and walked away.
"So Goyle's sister was my Secret Admirer?" Ron said when he'd recovered. "Wild!"
"We should tell Hermione," Harry said with a frown. "And Malfoy was helping her?"
"I've never had a girl brew a Love Potion just to make me notice her," Ron remarked.
"You git," Harry said to Ron, "Alberta Goyle's a first year. Draco Malfoy brewed the Love Potion."
Ron frowned. "Ugh! Malfoy fancied me?"
Harry sighed but let it pass. "Ron, aren't you the least bit curious about where Alberta Goyle's gone?"
"Probably lost her nerve at the last minute and ran off to cry in the girls' toilet," Ron answered dismissively. "Are you really going to tell Hermione? I don't want Alberta to get in trouble. She did it because she was in love with me."
"You're in love with yourself," Harry said wearily. "Alberta was obsessed. Wonder where she is."
At lunch they told Hermione about the incident with Goyle. She was predictably triumphant. "I knew she'd slip up sooner or later! Now I've got her, that sneaky little witch! A few detentions, maybe take away twenty-five house points-"
"Miss Granger," said Professor McGonagall, hurrying up. "Miss Granger, would you kindly come with me? I urgently need the help of all the prefects."
"Of course," said Hermione, jumping up immediately. The two witches walked away, conversing quietly, and Harry saw Hermione gasp and quickly glance down the Gryffindor table. It was then that he realized that another first- year was missing from the Great Hall: Marcus McCabe, the other Harry.
While the other students were at lunch, a search party was being assembled. The whole affair had to be resolved quickly, before the Ministry heard about it and sent bureaucrats to muddle everything up. As there were not enough Phoenixes to cover the entire castle and property, the prefects were detailed to assist them. Hermione was in a group led by Arabella Figg. They were searching the upper floors at the farthest end of the castle. Hermione and Sally-Anne Perks, who was a prefect of Hufflepuff house, scoured the lavish prefect bathroom by the statue of Boris the Bewildered.
"Nothing's happened round here since the last search," the coquettish mermaid in a painting on the wall said to the girls.
"What last search?" Sally asked.
"The one at Christmas- don't you remember?" said the mermaid. "And I'd like to know, are these enquiries going to be a semi-annual routine? They're so exhausting on my nerves, darlings." Hermione and Sally exchanged worried glances.
Meanwhile, prefect Cho Chang entered the library. "Madam Pince, are you in?"
"Perhaps she was at breakfast," said Remus Lupin, coming in after Cho. "Madam Pince? Hello?"
Cho went behind the front desk and gasped. "Sir- she's here on the floor!"
Lupin rushed over and knelt by the librarian. "Thank heavens, she's only been Stunned... Miss Chang, run and fetch Quentin Trimble- he's on the third floor." Cho ran off. "Enervate!" Madam Pince stirred. "Irma, who did this?"
"Oh..." murmured Madam Pince, dazed. "Wizards... tall, wearing black cloaks..."
"Who were they?" urged Lupin.
"Masks," said Madam Pince, waving her hand vaguely in front of her face. "Death Eater masks."
"Oh no!" cried Remus Lupin.
Bella Figg left the Charms classroom she had been searching on the fifth floor and slammed the door. Her anxiety was making her frustrated. How could the Death Eaters have waltzed right into the school and made off with two students? she asked herself angrily.
She knew what a close shave this was, having Marcus McCabe kidnapped. They had thought they were taking Harry Potter. When they found out their mistake they would be very disappointed... and probably very angry. McCabe could be killed- Alberta Goyle too. What had that Slytherin girl been doing that would make them take her, too? She was the daughter of the Death Eater Goyle, Bella remembered. Perhaps she'd been with McCabe when he was snatched, and they'd taken her because she was a witness...
But how had they gotten in? she wondered for the trillionth time as she started towards the North tower. She doubted that silly Sybil Trelawney had heard or seen anything, but everyone had to be questioned. In her haste and outrage Bella nearly ripped down a rich tapestry that concealed her course, the shortcut stairway to the sixth floor. She stumbled halfway up and lost her glasses in the vanishing step, and cursed. She glanced round, wondering wryly what her children would say if they heard her swearing for only falling on a stair. Bella stood up, smoothing her robes and trying to calm herself, and continued on her way.
Professor Trelawney was not in her classroom. Bella slid testily down the silvery ladder- and then was hit by belated comprehension so fast she nearly fell over upon landing. "Of course!" she whispered, her mind racing.
She knew now beyond a shadow of a doubt how the Death Eaters were getting in. It was brilliant- she herself was surprised she had figured it out so soon.
She weighed her options. She could alert Minerva- but they'd need Ministry Hit Wizards and that would mean entangling Fudge in the affair, and he'd mess it up. Also, she realized, she didn't know how many Death Eaters were lying in wait, preparing to ambush the castle- if she drew them out now she would be endangering all the students and staff. Or she could try to go in herself and surprise them.
Why was she debating this? she asked herself suddenly. The right thing to do was to fetch Minerva, the deputy Headmistress. But Bella was trying to justify a solo mission to herself. Why? It was because of Maldora- it was always Maldora, Bella thought furiously. Now Bella had this single chance to catch her traitorous disowned daughter- she couldn't let bureaucracy and hard choices stand in her way. She drew her wand and returned to the secret entrance of the Death Eaters. Then she took a deep breath and stepped in.
"Today is the day I am going to die," Snape said aloud, and felt utterly alone.
That day the Headmaster called the teachers one by one to his office for the annual report on the fifth-years' progress for the O.W.L.'s. Snape entered the office and found Bella Figg and Minerva McGonagall already there, indulging in a glass of parsnip wine with Dumbledore.
"Severus! Come in," Dumbledore said pleasantly, drawing Snape a chair as Bella poured him a glass of the wine.
"Do you really think you should be drinking in the middle of the day in a school?" Snape asked severely.
"My nerves are shot," Professor McGonagall sighed. "This is a trying time, isn't it? Hermione Granger asks me questions every fifteen seconds, Neville Longbottom doesn't know the answers to the questions I ask him, and Harry Potter knows everything already, thank you very much Bella."
"He's a fast learner," Bella said. "Drink with us, Severus."
Snape shrugged and took the glass. Just then a fat snowy owl flew in backwards through the open window and perched on one of Dumbledore's astrolabes.
"Ouzelum!" Dumbledore exclaimed, putting down his wine to untie a note rolled round the owl's leg.
"Whose backwards bird is that?" asked Bella.
"Ouzelum belongs to my brother Aberforth," Dumbledore answered absently as he read the note. "He's a strange breed- the owl, not my brother. Flies backwards because he likes to see where he came from... What's Aberforth want now, I wonder? Unfortunately Aberforth frequently engages in wagers on Quidditch matches, and more often than not he loses; but he hasn't much money of his own... Another fifteen Galleons? Aberforth seems to go through money like our mother went through hats."
He hunted through his desk and found a little satchel of money, which he attached to the owl's leg. "There you are; now off with you, you retrospective rascal!" Ouzelum flew out the window, backwards naturally. Dumbledore sighed. "There go fifteen Galleons, literally flying out the window."
"Why don't you refuse him the money?" Minerva said.
"Not lend a hand to my brother, only living relative?" Dumbledore said. "I can't turn down Aberforth. He's my dearest, oldest friend and relation."
Snape dropped his glass. The horror of Dumbledore's ill-timed declaration was too much for him. He fainted dead away on the floor.
That night Snape was called to Lord Voldemort's side and tortured, and the knowledge forced out of him with a strong Veritaserum. Then he was released, to return to Hogwarts in shame and disgrace, and Voldemort began to plot.
* * * * *
A week later Hermione was brought the Daily Prophet at breakfast. She unfolded the newspaper and held it up to read the headline as she raised her goblet of pumpkin juice to her lips. But suddenly she seemed to completely forget what she was doing and missed her mouth entirely, pouring pumpkin juice all over her shoulder.
"Hermione!" Ron jumped up to mop up the sticky orange liquid in her hair. But Hermione hardly noticed the juice soaking her entire right side, so dumbstruck was she. Ron and Harry stared at her, amazed. Then Ron grabbed the Daily Prophet and scanned the headline, and let out a yelp of surprise and dismay.
"Show me," demanded Harry. Ron mutely handed him the paper.
'WIZARD DUMBLEDORE ACCUSED OF PRACTICING DARK MAGIC
Yesterday the Ministry of Magic arrested the eminent wizard Aberforth Dumbledore on the charge of using the Unforgivable Curses. According to eyewitnesses, at approximately 1 p.m. Dumbledore Apparated in the middle of a busy Muggle street in London and began casting hexes randomly about himself. Wizard and Muggle bystanders say that when a group of Ministry wizards approached Dumbledore, the 125-year-old wizard simply laughed and used the Cruciatus Curse on one of the wizards. Cruciatus is, of course, strictly forbidden by the Ministry. Dumbledore was quickly subdued by Ministry Hit Wizards and taken into custody to await trial. Aberforth is the younger brother of the famed wizard Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Professor Dumbledore refused to comment on his brother's appalling conduct.'
"I don't understand," said Hermione. "Why would Professor Dumbledore's brother do this?"
"Professor Dumbledore isn't here," Harry said, suddenly noticing that fact. "He must have gone to see his brother, wherever the Ministry's keeping him."
Professor McGonagall entered from the door behind the teachers' table, hurried to her seat and called for their attention. "I expect you've all seen the headlines by now. The Headmaster has gone to sort out his brother's affairs. He will return shortly. During his absence, as the deputy Headmistress, I will keep order here. Classes will continue as usual."
"It's a ploy," Bella Figg said that night at an emergency meeting of the Order of the Phoenix. "Obviously Voldemort managed to put Aberforth under Imperius and forced him to perform all those contemptible spells."
"I agree that it's the most likely solution," said Quentin Trimble, "but you know how difficult it is to prove that a wizard is or isn't under Imperius. And I've found out that that miserable Lucius Malfoy is pressing for the Dementor's Kiss- probably to keep Dumbledore occupied while Malfoy's master does as he pleases. We need a good defence for Aberforth, and fast."
"Think harder, everyone," pleaded Minerva McGonagall. "We must figure out a plausible argument to get Aberforth out so that Albus can come back to Hogwarts. We're lost without him, but he's determined to get his brother released."
"Where are they keeping Aberforth anyway?" asked Remus Lupin.
"You'll never believe it- in Gringotts' bank," said young Quintius Croaker, who worked at the Ministry. "It's brilliant: no one gets in or out of the high-security vaults without the goblins' say-so, and they're not so corruptible as the Dementors, they answer to Albus, bless his soul."
Minerva nodded. "Has anyone heard from Fletch?"
"He's hiding out in Berlin somewhere," said the sagacious Auror Cassius Egg. "Perdita's death hurt him terribly. I don't know that he'll soon recover... He was so in love, the poor man. Will he ever come back to the Order, do you think?"
"Without a doubt," said Lupin. "Fletch is a believer in the correctness of vengeance. He will return, if only to see Emily Clemens and Maldora Lestrange convicted for their crimes and probably to punish them himself."
"Will you be all right here without Albus?" Trimble asked Minerva.
"Of course," said Professor McGonagall. "But in case I'm not, everyone get back to thinking! The Imperius defence may not stand on its own."
* * * * *
With only thirty days before the O.W.L.'s, the fifth-years were practically living in the library, studying in every spare minute that they weren't sleeping, eating or in class. At the moment it was a regular midweek morning and the students and staff did happen to all be eating breakfast in the Great Hall, save three.
Severus Snape was pacing in his office in the dungeons, thinking dark thoughts about life in general. Dumbledore had been gone a week already since his brother had been Imperius'ed- at least, that was Snape's private feeling. He had no concrete evidence. He could try to snoop around with the Death Eaters to find out who had executed the kidnapping and the actual cursing, but he doubted they would tell him anything. He was also debating whether to tell the Order that he knew where Lord Voldemort was hiding, having been tortured there several times by the Dark Lord himself. But ultimately he made the wrong choice, and kept the information to himself.
Marcus McCabe had noticed that Harry Potter was more wiry than he was, and had resolved to diet. He had skipped breakfast and gone to the library, because he had also noticed that Harry was top of his class in nearly every subject, while Marcus was about fifteenth in his class.
In the library, however, he encountered Alberta Goyle, Gregory Goyle's first-year sister. She jumped when Marcus found her pacing in the Potions section, muttering to herself, but relaxed when she recognized him.
"Oh, it's just you, Marcus. I nearly thought it was Harry Potter."
"Thanks," Marcus said delightedly. He sat on a sofa nearby and Alberta joined him, after a moment of hesitation.
"Why did you do that?" Marcus asked curiously. "Look round before sitting down?"
Alberta shrugged. "You're Gryffindor, I'm Slytherin. It looks unnatural for us to be chatting."
"You didn't use to think that."
"That's true- but my brother told me not to associate with Gryffindors." She bit her lip and looked at the floor. "But I just can't seem to stay away."
"Did I interrupt you?" Marcus asked. "You looked like you were practising something."
Alberta reddened. "I was- only- it's something that I don't think I can go through with anymore. I could really use some of that Gryffindor courage now."
"Ask Malcolm Baddock," Marcus replied with a wistful grin. "He's a lot braver than I am. I saw Malfoy and his pack in the hall, taunting him and picking on him because he won't join their campaign against Harry. I could never stand up to them like that, especially to Malfoy- he looks like a really experienced wizard and everyone says he's more advanced than all the other fifth-years, except maybe Hermione and Harry. Plus Malfoy and Malcolm's dads are cousins- imagine going against your own blood to defend what you believe in. Malcolm's got more Gryffindor courage than I ever could."
"But you're the Harry Potter clone! He's positively oozing with bravery and daring."
"But I'm not like the real him!" Marcus wailed. "The best I can do is look like him. Look at this," he tugged at his hair, "this hair, dyed black and cut like his! These glasses with flat lenses- I really have perfect vision. And my eyes are naturally brown- I made them green with magic! Even this scar, I penned it on with red ink! I'm a worthless imitator, Alberta. I used to want to be him, but now that I've met him, I see that I could never be anything like the real thing. For one thing, we think too differently. We have divergent political opinions. He has so many friends- I only seem to be able to alienate people, like my supposed best friends Darius and Niamh. And he always wants to do boring things like help people and visit that shifty-looking Hagrid in hospital."
"There are some aspects of Harry that are inimitable," conceded Alberta soothingly. "But Marcus McCabe is unique too. There's no one else who could be like you."
"Who would want to?" Marcus asked listlessly.
The library door swung open and two tall black-cloaked figures slipped in and Stunned Madam Pince; but the two first-years were oblivious to the intrusion.
"My point is," Marcus was saying, as the two figures moved silently up behind him, "I once idolized him, and now I barely respect him. He's- hey!"
Alberta screamed as the burlier masked figure grabbed Marcus, Stunned him and shoved him unceremoniously into a sack. The taller figure Stunned her and crammed her in the sack after Marcus. Then the two figures made a swift and stealthy exit.
They ran down the corridors silently and descended to the dungeons. There they found the office of the Potions master. Snape gave a cry of shock when they burst into his office. "What do you want?" he cried hoarsely. "Get out!"
Both figures drew their wands and levelled them at Snape. "Come on," growled the burlier one, disguising his voice. "The Dark Lord wants to see you. Immediately."
The tall figure took the sack and the burly one grabbed Snape rougly, pinning his arms to his sides. "No," Snape gasped weakly, straining against his captor's strong grip. "I won't go. I want out!"
Both of the hooded wizards laughed. "Once you're in," said the tall one, "you can never get out. The only alternative is death."
"Kill me then," said Snape, reaching for his wand in his pocket. "I deserve only death."
But the burly one reached out one hand and Snape's wand flew out of his pocket and into the other wizard's hand. "Ah ah ah! Hey, there's some Veritaserum on the shelf, shall we take it?"
The tall wizard nodded and the big one stuck out his hand and did the same wandless trick to summon the little glass jar. Snape began to protest, but the tall one Stunned him. Then they fled down the halls, and were close to their secret egress when a witch fluttered round a corner, out of breath from her frenetic race from her classroom on the seventh floor.
"Professor Dumbledore! Professor Dumbledore!" Professor Trelawney called excitedly. "I have seen a vision in my crystal ball! The Inner Eye has revealed to me that the Death Eaters are near!" She gasped, seeing the two masked figures. "What-? Who are you?"
She screamed when she realized her vision had been accurate. The taller wizard acted quickly. He raised his wand and uttered, "Avada Kedavra!"
Sybil Trelawney's scream was abruptly cut short as she crumpled to the floor, dead.
"Lestrange! Did you really have to kill her?" demanded Vincent Crabbe, Sr., pulling up his mask with his beefy hand. "Couldn't you have just Stunned her?"
Derrick Lestrange pulled off his mask as well. "I remembered her from my time here. Bloody fool- she was a complete fraud." He smirked. "Bet she didn't see that one in her bloody tea leaves."
"This is supposed to be a stealth kidnapping!" Crabbe hissed. "You'll get us caught!"
"Shut up, Crabbe! I should never have brought you, you'll mess everything up."
"I will not! You're the one who messed it up. This girl you snatched with Harry Potter- she's one of Goyle's daughters, Alice or Abigail or something. He's going to kill us if he finds out we kidnapped her too! What are we going to do with her, Lestrange?"
"What were we supposed to do, leave a witness right there in the middle of the castle? Lucius will tell us what to do. Come on, we have everything we came for. Let's stash this charlatan psychic in that broom cupboard and get out of here quick."
They locked Professor Trelawney's body in the cupboard and fled with their three unconscious hostages.
None of them, unfortunately, was immediately missed. No one was looking for Marcus or Alberta; Professor Snape was thought to be ill and still depressed about Perdita Clemens' death; and Professor Trelawney's absence was ascribed to clairvoyance-related woes.
"Maybe her Inner Eye has cataracts," Ron said when Professor Trelawney failed to show up for Divination. The other boys snickered while Lavender and Parvati looked annoyed.
Later, much later, Ron would regret his crass and ill-timed remark, and the others would regret having laughed. But for now they only knew that they had a spare period, and they all went to the library to study again for the O.W.L.'s. Harry and Ron were quietly reading about Mandrake Restorative Draughts when Gregory Goyle lurched round the corner and growled, "Weasley!"
He grabbed Ron by the front of his robes and slammed him against the wall. Harry was instantly on his feet with his wand levelled at Goyle.
"Drop him, Goyle," Harry ordered.
Goyle ignored him. "Where is she?" he demanded of Ron.
"Where is- agh- who?" squeaked Ron, clawing in vain at Goyle's hand on his throat.
"Alberta!" Goyle grunted. "Where is she? What did you say to her this morning?"
"Who's Alberta?" gasped Ron.
"Your sister?" Harry asked Goyle. The face of the pretty, prim Slytherin girl with raven hair leaped to mind and then more images flooded in- a pale delicate face lifting up in panic as he found her reading a forbidden book, raven hair flying out behind a small fleeing figure- and then he finally made the connection. "Oh no! Your sister Alberta is Ron's Secret Admirer?"
"Yeah," Goyle said, turning red and looking ashamed. "I warned her against you, Weasley, but she kept sending you presents and sweets, and Malfoy was helping her- and you know him, he's Malfoy. I can't stop Malfoy... Then this morning Alberta said she was going to find you and tell you she was your Secret Admirer..." He frowned slowly. "But- didn't she do it?"
"We haven't seen her in ages!" Harry said. "Put Ron down!"
Goyle released Ron, who slumped against the wall, wheezing. "Where could she be then?" Goyle asked Harry. "She wasn't at breakfast this morning. I thought she was talking to Weasley. But no one's seen her all day. I thought Weasley upset her and she ran off to cry or something. You- you really haven't seen her today?"
"No, and that's the truth," Harry said as he helped Ron to his feet.
"Get out of here, you walking pain in the neck," Ron gasped crossly. Goyle glowered and walked away.
"So Goyle's sister was my Secret Admirer?" Ron said when he'd recovered. "Wild!"
"We should tell Hermione," Harry said with a frown. "And Malfoy was helping her?"
"I've never had a girl brew a Love Potion just to make me notice her," Ron remarked.
"You git," Harry said to Ron, "Alberta Goyle's a first year. Draco Malfoy brewed the Love Potion."
Ron frowned. "Ugh! Malfoy fancied me?"
Harry sighed but let it pass. "Ron, aren't you the least bit curious about where Alberta Goyle's gone?"
"Probably lost her nerve at the last minute and ran off to cry in the girls' toilet," Ron answered dismissively. "Are you really going to tell Hermione? I don't want Alberta to get in trouble. She did it because she was in love with me."
"You're in love with yourself," Harry said wearily. "Alberta was obsessed. Wonder where she is."
At lunch they told Hermione about the incident with Goyle. She was predictably triumphant. "I knew she'd slip up sooner or later! Now I've got her, that sneaky little witch! A few detentions, maybe take away twenty-five house points-"
"Miss Granger," said Professor McGonagall, hurrying up. "Miss Granger, would you kindly come with me? I urgently need the help of all the prefects."
"Of course," said Hermione, jumping up immediately. The two witches walked away, conversing quietly, and Harry saw Hermione gasp and quickly glance down the Gryffindor table. It was then that he realized that another first- year was missing from the Great Hall: Marcus McCabe, the other Harry.
While the other students were at lunch, a search party was being assembled. The whole affair had to be resolved quickly, before the Ministry heard about it and sent bureaucrats to muddle everything up. As there were not enough Phoenixes to cover the entire castle and property, the prefects were detailed to assist them. Hermione was in a group led by Arabella Figg. They were searching the upper floors at the farthest end of the castle. Hermione and Sally-Anne Perks, who was a prefect of Hufflepuff house, scoured the lavish prefect bathroom by the statue of Boris the Bewildered.
"Nothing's happened round here since the last search," the coquettish mermaid in a painting on the wall said to the girls.
"What last search?" Sally asked.
"The one at Christmas- don't you remember?" said the mermaid. "And I'd like to know, are these enquiries going to be a semi-annual routine? They're so exhausting on my nerves, darlings." Hermione and Sally exchanged worried glances.
Meanwhile, prefect Cho Chang entered the library. "Madam Pince, are you in?"
"Perhaps she was at breakfast," said Remus Lupin, coming in after Cho. "Madam Pince? Hello?"
Cho went behind the front desk and gasped. "Sir- she's here on the floor!"
Lupin rushed over and knelt by the librarian. "Thank heavens, she's only been Stunned... Miss Chang, run and fetch Quentin Trimble- he's on the third floor." Cho ran off. "Enervate!" Madam Pince stirred. "Irma, who did this?"
"Oh..." murmured Madam Pince, dazed. "Wizards... tall, wearing black cloaks..."
"Who were they?" urged Lupin.
"Masks," said Madam Pince, waving her hand vaguely in front of her face. "Death Eater masks."
"Oh no!" cried Remus Lupin.
Bella Figg left the Charms classroom she had been searching on the fifth floor and slammed the door. Her anxiety was making her frustrated. How could the Death Eaters have waltzed right into the school and made off with two students? she asked herself angrily.
She knew what a close shave this was, having Marcus McCabe kidnapped. They had thought they were taking Harry Potter. When they found out their mistake they would be very disappointed... and probably very angry. McCabe could be killed- Alberta Goyle too. What had that Slytherin girl been doing that would make them take her, too? She was the daughter of the Death Eater Goyle, Bella remembered. Perhaps she'd been with McCabe when he was snatched, and they'd taken her because she was a witness...
But how had they gotten in? she wondered for the trillionth time as she started towards the North tower. She doubted that silly Sybil Trelawney had heard or seen anything, but everyone had to be questioned. In her haste and outrage Bella nearly ripped down a rich tapestry that concealed her course, the shortcut stairway to the sixth floor. She stumbled halfway up and lost her glasses in the vanishing step, and cursed. She glanced round, wondering wryly what her children would say if they heard her swearing for only falling on a stair. Bella stood up, smoothing her robes and trying to calm herself, and continued on her way.
Professor Trelawney was not in her classroom. Bella slid testily down the silvery ladder- and then was hit by belated comprehension so fast she nearly fell over upon landing. "Of course!" she whispered, her mind racing.
She knew now beyond a shadow of a doubt how the Death Eaters were getting in. It was brilliant- she herself was surprised she had figured it out so soon.
She weighed her options. She could alert Minerva- but they'd need Ministry Hit Wizards and that would mean entangling Fudge in the affair, and he'd mess it up. Also, she realized, she didn't know how many Death Eaters were lying in wait, preparing to ambush the castle- if she drew them out now she would be endangering all the students and staff. Or she could try to go in herself and surprise them.
Why was she debating this? she asked herself suddenly. The right thing to do was to fetch Minerva, the deputy Headmistress. But Bella was trying to justify a solo mission to herself. Why? It was because of Maldora- it was always Maldora, Bella thought furiously. Now Bella had this single chance to catch her traitorous disowned daughter- she couldn't let bureaucracy and hard choices stand in her way. She drew her wand and returned to the secret entrance of the Death Eaters. Then she took a deep breath and stepped in.
