Chapter Thirty Two: The Secret Ingredient
June 12th
9:37pm
Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire
Voldemort
"Welcome back my slippery friend," he greeted in a sharp voice. The man he referred to was on his knees snivelling and curled up in a ball, not an unlikely sight all things considering.
"M-milord how g-good it is to be returned h-home," the man said from his prone position. Light snickering tittered in the crowd behind him, masked men and women indulging in the torment of one of their more pathetic comrades.
"Home?" the Dark Lord questioned from his throne, "one would think the sewers you so eagerly ran back to would be what you call home."
"Milord?" the confused sniffle came in reply.
"Do not worry yourself Wormtail," Lord Voldemort said in consolation, "your cowardice is your greatest asset, one I intend to use to its fullest very soon…"
June 14th
5:22pm
Hogwarts, Scotland
Harry
"What about the rest of the castle?" Remus asked from inside the larger mirror set up in the room of requirement. Beside him sat Sirius, Damien and the newest additions, Hestia and Bill Weasley who all nodded wondering the same thing too. Each group had a map of Hogwarts in front of them, not live like the Marauders version but detailed enough to draw up proper plans.
"Unless we can secure the help of the rest of the Order of the Phoenix then we're going to have to focus on the main point of entry here," he said pointing to the hall outside of the Room of Requirement, lighting up the connected map at the chateau. "Anyone we can spare, as well as Neville, Luna, Hermione and Blaise, will be patrolling the halls."
"They know to call either Dobby or Kreacher if they encounter a second group," Daphne informed the others. "If we get flanked, we should know about it well before they get close to us."
"If we do get attacked from behind we'll pull back down the stairs towards the East Wing where we'll have room to move and cover both our flanks," Harry detailed. "When we're in the middle of the fighting you listen for my voice, Daphne's, Remus' or Madeye's, we'll call the retreat if need be."
"Are there any defences we could set up in the East Wing before the battle, just in case?" Bill asked from down the table. "You know… wards, something from the twins maybe?"
Harry shared a look with Daphne and they both silently agreed that Bill was already an asset, critical thinking such as what he displayed was a good sign and a good first impression. "Yes," Harry agreed, "the twins should be consulted, could you get the word to them Bill?"
With Bill's nod of the affirmative, Daphne picked up where Harry left off. "On the subject of wards however," she began and pointed to the room of protection on the other side of the castle, "all offensive and defensive warding is run through the ward stones in this room, only accessible by the headmaster of the school."
That little tidbit of information was sourced from Dumbledore's notebook, along with an apology in saying he wouldn't allow anyone to tamper with the wards whilst he lived. 'That's fine,' Harry had thought when he read it, 'we know our limits then and the enemy does not. They'll be in for a shock if they try to erect any nasty traps for us or the students'
"That doesn't mean you're completely defenceless though," Damien pointed out, "stone barricades enchanted to be hardened could be effective as cover."
"That's true," Sirius agreed, "as the enemy follows us around the corner we can catch them in the open of the corridor and be safe behind our cover."
"Good idea Damien, Sirius," Harry complimented. Where Damien curtly nodded, Sirius managed a smile before turning his attention back to the map. "We can't prepare anything on the ground yet though, this ambush only works if no one suspects that we know an attack is coming."
Daphne leaned over the map and Harry watched her eyes dart around. She noticed his gaze and at his curious expression she let forth what she was thinking. "I think we have enough wands to make this trap more elaborate and decisive."
"How so?"
She pressed her finger on the staircase down from the seventh floor, "if we retreat back into the East Wing we run the risk of them no longer chasing us and instead going to the lower floors to wreak havoc." The others looked at what she was highlighting with troubled expressions but she had more to say. "We need a way to funnel them towards us and away from the rest of the castle."
They all stared at the map, trialling plans in their heads before voiding them aloud, although no one had said anything meaning that they were coming up short.
"What about us?" Harry suggested before elaborating, "Daphne and I would be on the fifth floor and if one or more of them try to use the stairs we'll take them down."
"A good plan," Hestia agreed, "it also allows us flexibility for where we trap them." She stood and leaned over the map and placed a finger on the East Wing, "here we have the advantage of cover and Harry and Daphne flanking them." She moved to the stairs, "here we have the advantage of bottlenecking them in the stairwell as well as pincering them between both teams."
Sounds of agreement went up all round, each satisfied with the plan but still carefully analysing it for holes. Harry was quite pleased with the result himself. 'Bill and Hestia so far have been model examples of why Remus' task was so important, they both have a mind for these kinds of things and were wasted under Dumbledore.'
"A solid plan then," Harry stated, "now we just need to know how many wands we'll have behind us, Remus?"
Remus nodded and leaned back in his chair, "the process is slow but for good reason," he informed them. "Damien, Sirius and I all sit with each candidate and question them on their beliefs, capabilities and reason for wanting to be part of this."
Damien jumped in next and turned to Harry, "so far many of our interviews have gone exceptionally well."
"Names?" Harry questioned, curious who else had flocked to his side the second Dumbledore resigned. Not that he had anything against them but if it were people who hadn't even met him before he'd be hesitant to welcome them with open arms.
Sirius cleared his throat and answered for Damien, "Bill's fiancé; Fleur Delacour, Elphias Doge and Sturgis Podmore."
"Fighters?" Daphne asked with a hint of doubt in her voice, already suspecting the answer.
"Fleur is," Bill answered her, coming to the defence of his fiancé, "Elphias and Sturgis were more interested in the administrative side."
Harry looked at Remus for confirmation and the greying man nodded. "That's okay, their help would be appreciated if they pass the interviews."
"We've got five wands here with us," Daphne said doing some mental maths and then moving six small figurines onto the map in front of her, placing them outside the room of requirement, "and three wands with the aurors who are absent," she said whilst placing two figurines outside the staircase on the gift floor.
"Perfectly doable," Harry remarked, nodding to himself.
"We've done much more with much less," Remus noted, optimism creeping into his voice. "I'll get the plan to the others."
"Thank you," Harry said before addressing the rest of them, "thank all of you, your insight was invaluable today. We'll meet again at least once more before the day to go over any last minute changes, hear back from the twins and remind ourselves of the plan."
The meeting dissolved quickly after that, no one having anything else left to say besides farewells and well wishes. Harry watched the interactive points on the map fade away as the mirror call did the same leaving only Daphne and himself in the room of requirement.
"It's a good plan," he heard Daphne say to his right and he nodded his agreement.
"It is," he said, "I only worry it's all for naught. We're basing our defence off the word of Draco Malfoy a known death eater and all round melon."
"True but if he betrays us we know where he sleeps and he knows that we'll not forgive it easily," she reasoned.
"Even with a piece of him inside me, I doubt I can inspire the same fear as Voldemort can," Harry retorted.
Daphne walked over and leaned her chin on his head and hugged his back. "Then we'll show him just how wrong he was to underestimate us."
Harry leaned into the calming embrace and closed his eyes, not willing to argue anymore and not able to for he also knew the consequences of Draco's betrayal would be severe, no matter who he decided to forsake.
June 16th
5:03am
Caerphilly, South Wales
Daphne
The reason for the absence of the aurors at the meeting became abundantly clear when Moody's face appeared on her mirror shouting at her to get up. The ministry had been responding to a distress call at Azkaban and when they had arrived with a force of aurors they discovered the entire prison had been emptied of dementors. For the past forty-eight hours aurors had been going up and down the country searching for the nightmare beasts in every dark hovel and damp crevice.
There was no need though, for at four-thirty in the morning, black cloaks were spotted flying across the British sky. They were too high to be attacking, that meant they were either migrating or mobilising. The leading theory for their departure was that Voldemort had once again swayed them to his side, with favours or offers unknown to the populace. When the first sightings of the creatures swooping on a muggle family became known to the ministry, their fears were confirmed.
There wasn't even time enough for a briefing like usual, the dementors were already indiscriminately sucking the souls out of unsuspecting muggles across the entire island. As such when Harry, Daphne, Remus, Sirius, Bill and Hestia arrived at the auror HQ, Scrimengour took one look at them and assigned them a region to protect.
She took one look at the apparition point photo and, with Harry's confirmation, they apparated to the place shown. They had arrived outside a bakery when the all consuming cold settled in, an effect she hadn't felt since their third year.
"Remind me to bring chocolate next time," Harry quipped to her right. It was an attempt to cheer them both up but it fell short because she had no idea what he was talking about.
"Chocolate?" she asked as she scanned the street of small local businesses and the odd motor vehicle.
"Yeah, you didn't–"
Harry's explanation was cut short at the sound of a scream down the street. Harry burst into a sprint in the direction with Daphne hot on his heels, Harry was quicker to react but she was faster overall and so they arrived at a narrow street that veered off to the right at the same time.
The origin of the scream was apparent as the two of them rapidly made sense of the situation. A man, looking to be in his mid thirties, was hoisted up in the air against the wall of the shop on the other side of the alley. Whilst it would look and feel like he had been vaulted into the air by nothing on his end, the culprit was plain to see for the pair. A tall skeletal figure was floating unnaturally in the air, its ragged cloak swaying in the still morning air and one of its bony arms holding the man in place.
The creature noticed their presence immediately and Daphne could hear faint hooves in the recesses of her mind. The almost ghost-like features of the being shocked her into realising she had never faced a dementor before and wasn't entirely sure if her patronus would work in its presence. Doubt creeped into her mind and her hold on her wand loosened.
She flicked her eyes to Harry, thoughts of retreat forming into words in her mouth. Those words turned to ash however when she saw him clasping the side of his own head with his free hand, her despair turned to concern faster than she knew possible and she was next to him in a flash.
"Harry," she urgently said, "what's going on?"
"The horcrux," he gritted out, falling to a knee, "it's feeding on the negative memories."
Daphne's eyes widened and she tried to run through her options but the sound of galloping hooves and heavy breathing was fogging her mind up. A loud thud caused her to look up and see the man had been dropped from the wall, his eyes lifeless and his body slumped in an impossible position. More urgently the dementor now stared at them with what she understood to be an insatiable hunger.
It descended slowly, and she could see it felt as though they were already beaten, tauntingly swaying side to side as it came closer. The frustration and genuine fear that was rising in her finally exploded and in an attempt to show strength she screamed and thought 'incendio,' summoning a torrent of flame at the soulless form.
The creature shrieked for a moment before quickly swooping to the left and back around, charging her in the side and knocking her to the floor. With her mind already confused, the disorienting effect of being thrown around only added to her sluggish movements and mental capabilities. She half expected the dementor to follow through and continue its assault on her but it swooped around and hovered just above Harry's sight.
It looked to be analysing Harry as though he were an enigma. The distance seemed to displease the dementor as it swiftly dived down and grabbed Harry by the throat before he could even react. Harry's wand clattered to the ground as he was thrown up against a storefront window. She rolled over and her whole body groaned in protest but she ignored it, getting on her hands and knees and dragging herself towards them desperately. It felt as if she was underwater and every movement she made was contested with a slightly weaker opposing force.
Daphne raised her head and saw Harry thrashing in the dementor's grip, fortunately for him the creature seemed more intent on looking at Harry for the moment. The idea it would leave them alone forever was a foolish one though and Harry seemed to understand that as he stopped thrashing and instead used the last vestiges of his energy to turn his head so he could meet her eyes.
Emerald green met stormy grey and the whole world seemed to slow to a crawl as the two of them gazed at one another. Images flashed in her mind, a small gesture on the side of a cliff, a brush of his thumb on the nape of her neck as he healed her and finally their first embrace as lovers.
The fraction of a second that passed for these memories to play was enough to ignite a single ray of light in the middle of the foggy expanse that was her mind. The light reinvigorated her, the limbs that barely recognised her commands a moment ago eagerly got her back on her feet. With the fond memories in a firm grasp, she raised her wand and triumphantly proclaimed, "expecto patronum!"
Her wand rumbled in her hand and for a moment nothing happened, then, a brilliant white light exploded from the tip and crashed into the dementor holding Harry. This time the creature shrieked so loudly she had half a mind to cover her ears but the other half was entirely focused on expelling the offending beast from her vicinity. The creature rose up trying to escape the light but found it couldn't as the light bent around it herding it further and further away. The dementor seemed to get the message and flew down the street, shrieking the nature way with her patrons hit on its heels.
When the creature was far enough she recalled the magic to herself and turned to help Harry who was crouched with a hand on his knee for support. She walked over and guided him to sit on the sidewalk where he could catch his breath. She crouched in front of him and lifted his head up to inspect his neck but hissed quietly when she saw the damage. The skin was bruised heavily with patches of purple and yellow marring what used to be very fair skin.
"Can you talk?' she asked, aiming her wand at his neck and sweeping it across slowly, applying soothing charms and healing charms as she went.
He flicked his eyes downward and made a confused face. She realised he wasn't looking at her and she too turned downward and saw that her patronus was still active and, for the first time ever, corporeal. Looking up at Harry was a Fox, of what breed she didn't know but interestingly it seemed as concerned as she was for Harry's well-being.
She could feel the positive waves rolling off of the emotion made magic and decided it would do well to keep it close, especially with the notion that more dementors could be in the area.
"Well done," Harry hoarsely whispered in congratulations with a small smile on his face.
She returned the gesture and went back to focusing on healing his neck. The angry purple and yellow bruises had begun to deflate but there were still marks on his neck and there would be until she could get some salve from somewhere.
"Thank you," he muttered quietly, his neck still in pain. She nodded and helped him stand, following him as he walked a couple paces to retrieve his fallen wand.
"Fall back?" she petitioned him, "if you are going to collapse at the sight of a dementor then I hesitate to think what'll happen with several."
"No need," was the quiet reply, "not with this little guy around." With an attempt at a grin he pointed his wand outwards and whispered, "expecto patronum." Just as hers did, Harry's wand was bathed in a white light but his started to form immediately. Front and hind legs, a long body, a snout and tail, the form of a wolf stood tall and proud in front of the two of them. Harry made a confused noise and whispered, "that's new."
He looked more troubled than she thought he ought to be but saved that conversation for a later date for just over the lines of suburban homes she saw a dark cloud rolling in. Not just any cloud either, pure pitch black and much lower than a natural cloud should be.
"Get ready," she told him and saw him step forward with his wolf snarling at his side. She looked down and saw her Fox prancing on the spot as if impatiently waiting for the confrontation. "Herd them?"
"Then trap them," Harry replied, understanding the plan. The cloud was close now, and less formless than it was a moment ago. Now the dementors could be seen clambering over each other in flight to reach the pair, and their protectors, first.
Without a word the two animals leapt into action, closing the distance then encircling the group of dementors in tandem forcing the beasts to clump together like a pack of sardines. The trails of light they left in their wake as they ran in circles completely enclosed the dementors, allowing for no horizontal escape. When the group tried to fly upwards, just like the first one did, the animals followed, keeping them as bunched up as possible.
"Bring them down," she ordered and in tandem they lowered the wands, forcing the animals to direct the dementors to the floor. The dementors clawed at each other attempting to break free from the burning pain they suffered. Their misery had no effect on the two who, in sync, forced the large group of dementors to the floor.
'Now the tricky part,' Daphne thought as a way to brace herself and form the image of her desire in her mind. With her intent clear she spoke, "ready… now!"
As one the animals morphed back into their solid light form, erecting a tight dome over the wardens of Azkaban. The dementors, huddled so closely together that nary a pin could fit in between them, struggled against their new cage. The struggle was mimicked on the other side though as Harry and Daphne fought to contain the foul beings as well as hold on to the happy memories fuelling the effort. Their wand arms began to shake and their hands began to burn. But the magic kept coming and they had no desire to let those things free before they learnt to fear the consequences of unchecked feasts.
Daphne felt a weight on her shoulder and for a moment she was worried that a dementor had gotten free but when she turned to see who it was she was glad. Harry had come to rest a hand on her shoulder and seemingly drew strength from her presence. The sight gave her her own boost and to go out with a bang she increased the power directed out of her wand and forced the dementors into the pavement eliciting the loudest shrieks of the entire ordeal.
Harry gave her shoulder a squeeze to indicate that they had done enough and she directed her magic back but intentionally kept her Fox corporeal this time just in case. Harry followed her lead and his wolf sat patiently waiting to defend its master. The dementors, now released from their prison, spread out and floated barely ten metres from them, likely evaluating the possibility of revenge.
"Leave!" she called out, knowing they understood to an extent what she would say, "leave or we will contain you under the same spell for as long as it takes for you to starve!"
The dementor in the middle, the same one from the start she could tell from the scorch marks on its cloak, was the first to fly up and away, with the rest following suit soon after. 'Thank the Three mothers that worked,' she thought, falling backwards on her arse to catch her breath. Harry joined her on the pavement, sitting down with a groan and inspecting his wolf silently.
A loud pop interrupted their reverie as they both turned and trained their wands on the sound.
"I see you're not doing much better," Rufus Scrimengour remarked as he strode towards them. Their wands lowered as she took in the minister. He was haggard, his wild mane more unkempt than usual, and he looked more sullen than ever before. Whether they were the effects of the dementors or office, she wouldn't be surprised if it was either or both. "Been indulging in some post battle revelries have we?"
The question was directed at Harry and the way Scrimengour coyly said it made Daphne realise exactly what he was talking about. "Not the fun kind of kiss unfortunately," she answered for Harry, unsure of how well his vocals were.
The minister hummed his disdain with the situation and asked, "the dementors?"
"Gone," she replied simply.
"Good," he nodded, "that's good." He straightened his suit and continued, "I'm receiving reports all over the country of auror groups repelling the threat but… not without significant loss of life, magical and muggle"
"Where did we get hit the worst?" Harry asked, his voice still rough and scratchy.
Scrimengour frowned and answered, "as far as I know, Hogsmeade had it the worst. Teachers came down to the school to assist the aurors but by the time they had arrived twelve adult wizards and witches had been kissed." A muttered expletive escaped Harry's mouth, she didn't hear it but knew how he was. "That's not all," the minister cautioned quietly, flicking his eyes side to side conspiratorially and stepping closer. "I investigated your claims of betrayal," he admitted before continuing angrily, "you were right! Important documents stolen, ministry personnel tipping off targets and defectors all the way up to the department heads."
Troubling news to be sure but not something they didn't already know. She wasn't proud that the leader of their nation was only just now noticing the stench around him but he was a good man and a good fighter, he could be valuable to them. She cast a sideways glance at Harry and he caught her meaning and nodded.
"Minister," she began carefully, not entirely sure how to approach the proud man, "it is our belief that Voldemort is organising a coup. Already agents are moving into place to make your disappearance so swift that, to the populace, it would go unnoticed."
"Not to worry, I'll have the traitors in chains before they realise they've been caught," Scrimengour proclaimed.
"Do not fool yourself," Harry roughly interjected, coughing to clear his throat of imagined debris. "If the ministry is attacked you will find yourself in the centre of spies and double agents who will be out for your blood."
Scrimengour stood straighter and eyed Harry carefully, "what are you saying?"
"We're offering you refuge, you and your family," Daphne explained quickly, hoping to appeal to the man's family values. Daphne had forgotten for a moment too long though, how Moody described the man almost a year ago, 'a fool who would go down with the sinking ship rather than abandon his post.'
"I could not," Scrimengour refused with a regretful expression, "the moment I tuck tail and run is the moment wizarding Britain loses faith in the government for a long time."
Harry nodded but still offered, "your family then, we can provide a room or two for them. At least that way-"
Harry's words were drowned out by Daphne as something caught her eye. In the sewerage drain a lone rat had poked its head out and turned it upwards as if trying to hear better. She squinted her eyes at it and in that moment it shifted so that it was facing the trio in the street. Beady eyes met her own and the rat went incredibly still, heightening her suspicion. This sighting of the rodent wouldn't have been special if she hadn't noticed how the morning sunlight reflected off of its tiny silver paw, a commodity in the possession of only one rat she could think of.
"Whilst I appreciate the offer-"
"Accio," she said, interrupting the minister's response. The rat clung to the grate but was eventually sailing through the air towards the three but what he did next surprised all of them. Whilst in the air, the tiny rat transformed into the huge form of Peter Pettigrew, barreling the two men over and landing on top of her. Daphne would describe herself as a fairly strong person, she does weight training and makes a real effort to keep herself fit, Pettigrew did not, as such, the lard of a man was simply too heavy. So when he crashed into her she fell to the ground and smacked her head on the road.
For the second time that day, Daphne was dealing with a cloudy mind but this time was solely because of the concussion. She could feel more than see him fumbling with something in his jacket and the flash of steel brought her quickly back to reality. Frantically she brought her hands to bare, trying to gain control of his meaty limbs but he was, ironically, too fast and had already positioned the knife in a reverse grip. She flung her arms upwards and gripped his wrists as he brought the blade down, initially stalling the potion knife's descent to a halt.
He was heavier though, and from his position on top of her he had all the leverage. Slowly, Pettigrew inched the knife closer as her arms gave way. His intention became clear by the second, aiming the blade towards her left eye and leaned as much of his body over her as he could to push down with more force. The knife was close now, so close she could've swore she felt the cold touch of steel on her eyelashes and she thought the final thing she'd see was the pinched face of Peter Pettigrew.
She closed her eyes and prepared herself for the worst but then she felt the great weight on her body lift, allowing her arms to sag to the floor. With her eyes opened she saw Harry pulling the disgraced marauder up and roughly throwing him to the asphalt. Pettigrew tried to stand but Harry was on him before he could get off of his knees. A kick to the stomach sent the big man down but didn't stop him as he tried to crawl away.
"Oh no you're not getting away again," Harry told him. He picked up the fallen knife and sat on the man's back before plunging it into his good hand, pinning him to the ground. Pettigrew screamed whilst Harry stepped back to admire his handiwork. "That's just the beginning," he continued, brandishing his wand and pointing it at his legs. Sickly yellow curses spewed forth and connected with each leg eliciting another pained scream from the rat turned human.
"Harry," Daphne warned, "that's enough." Over Pettigrew's cries it was a wonder he heard her but one look was all he needed to step away and let Daphne handle the rest. Like she did with the other prisoners from the forest, she burnt any portkeys and magic devices found on Pettigrew's person then wrapped the broken man in chains.
"Is that…" Scrimengour trailed off.
"Peter Pettigrew, wanted for all of Sirius Black's crimes and will answer for them soon enough," Harry supplied aggressively. She gave him another warning look which helped to take the edge off. The day had been trying and having to resort to violence didn't help matters either.
"Yes well, we can take him in and conduct a public trial–"
"A bad idea considering you just told us the ministry has holes in it," Daphne countered, realising the significance of their capture of Pettigrew. "We can hold him and question him and relay any important information to you."
Scrimengour looked torn, the integrity of the ministry was tied to his own self worth so to truly admit to himself that the ministry can't be trusted visibly stalled him.
To nail the point home, Harry spoke, "surely you trust us by now?"
Scrimengour looked at him imperceptibly before straightening his back and slicking back his hair. An air of superiority rose around him and he regarded them both with a politician's smile. "Of course I do," he said first, answering Harry's question, "take him, I have to return to the ministry anyway."
Without a goodbye the minister twisted and disapparated. Daphne saw Harry burning with hate at the sight of Pettigrew and thought to herself, 'this'll do quite nicely,' enjoying the fact she was one step closer to securing his continued survival.
A/N: Yeah so I basically no lifed this cause I'm excited for the finale and I'm procrastinating an essay. I then got wrapped up in work and the essay so I didn't end up finishing the author's note which meant the chapter sat finished for like a week and a half… whoops.
So for the first part with Harry and the gang I basically had a map up of all the floors of Hogwarts and was actually planning how an ambush could be done which was heaps of fun. I look forward to actually writing the chapter with the action.
For the order members, I was surprised how little people they had that were named. The Weasley's basically make up half of their combat ready members. Just goes to show how ineffectual they were in even gaining members which limited everything else operations wise.
The dementors have joined the terrorist, it was only a matter of time really. It was interesting to showcase the dementor's power against someone who isn't really prepared for it. How can you prepare for that feeling? I doubt any confundus charm could come close to emulating forced hopelessness. Even someone as mentally fortified as Daphne slipped up. Harry's complication strikes again but for how long will it remain with Pettigrew's capture….
I changed his patronus because it didn't feel right to have his spirit protector be the same when he's surpassed his parent's protection in this. Harry is his own person now and a leader of people, a wolf felt right in this case as they're extremely pack oriented and ferocious.
Next chapter: Fighting evilness with slightly less, but still very much, evilness.
I hope you all enjoyed :)
Socials in my author profile when I get around to it.