A/N - Concurrently with this chapter, I am publishing a short, one-part sequel to this story called Public Service. It is a little fluffy and may contain spoilers - although probably nothing most readers haven't figured out - but if you wish to read it, I'll leave the timing to your discretion. All seventeen chapters of The Stone House Cats are largely complete and only need polishing, so I expect to continue posting a new chapter every few days if you're wondering how long it will take to wrap this one up.
****
"Professor?" Hermione said a few minutes later, buttering her toast as Hestia excused herself. Miss Clare had gone to return the trunk she used in the ceremony, so Hestia's departure left the three of them alone in the breakfast room.
"Yes?" He had been gazing absentmindedly into space until Hermione recalled his attention.
"You said you were going to explain," she reminded him.
"Oh, yes. Well, the ritual you just witnessed is the traditional one used to transfer house-elves between households. The Office of House-Elf Relocation is of fairly recent creation, and this type of a ceremony is still a much more common way to handle it."
"Was that why she gave him that dress?" Harry asked. "And what was all that business about spilling water on Mr. Weasley's robes?" Hermione took a large bite of toast, looking dissatisfied.
"It may help to think of it as a sort of a code," their former teacher told them. "Knoggin came to Miss Clare and told her that he had spilled a drop of water on Mr. Weasley's robes. That was Knoggin's way of telling her that he would like to go live with them. She then has a few different options. She could tell him to forget about it, she could punish him herself, or she could do exactly what she did, which was to ask Arthur if he noticed it."
"What did that mean?" Harry said hurriedly, noticing that Hermione was looking increasingly irritated.
"She was asking Arthur if he wanted Knoggin as his house-elf." Remus looked rather amused for a moment. "His saying he noticed the spot meant that he did."
"So she didn't really fire him until she knew he could get another position?" Harry asked, sorting out this new information.
"In a manner of speaking," Remus agreed. "It would be terrible for Knoggin to be given clothes otherwise. The clothes he received in the ritual are symbolic of both his value to the Clares and the value of their relationship with the Weasleys." Their former professor looked rather thoughtful. "I'm not sure what the significance was of the specific garment she gave him, but the house-elves themselves would know, of course."
"Why didn't she just say what she was doing?" Hermione evidently couldn't keep quiet any longer. "And why should she and Mr. Weasley be arranging Knoggin's life for him? If Knoggin were free, he could just go work for whomever he wanted! And if house-elves were paid a decent wage – "
"Hermione, you're not listening," Remus told her sharply. "Knoggin did have a say in this. He told Catherine he wanted to go into service with the Weasleys. He may not have said it the way you would have, but he isn't you."
"He wouldn't have to if he had the fundamental freedom he deserves, if Miss Clare weren't keeping slaves in this ridiculous, antiquated – " Harry knew instantly that Hermione had gone too far.
"The only thing Miss Clare is guilty of is being free from the incredible arrogance of assuming that everyone else in the world is exactly like her!" Professor Lupin's voice was harsher than Harry had ever heard it. "Why can't you understand that treating others as they do wish to be treated rather than as you wish to be treated is a higher level of courtesy? You persist in believing that every other creature wants what you want and ignore any evidence to the contrary!"
Hermione flushed painfully, and silence fell at the table as she absorbed the rebuke. After several moments, she said in a very small voice, "I'm sorry, Professor."
"It's all right, Hermione. I should apologize myself. I shouldn't have spoken to you so harshly." Hermione managed a small smile, tinged with embarrassment.
"I'm not sure I'd have gotten the message if you hadn't," she admitted.
Remus smiled apologetically at her. "I'm sure you would have in time. You've got a very good heart, Hermione," he told her. "And that's a rare gift. There aren't many in the wizarding world who trouble themselves with the plight of house-elves. Most wizards do treat them like part of the furniture, and that is wrong. It's just that – " Remus broke off. "I guess the slavery remark rather hit a nerve." Another suspicion crossed Harry's mind, but he prudently chose not to voice it.
"I really am sorry about that," Hermione said, still rather abashed.
"It may be true in some cases, but it isn't true here," Professor Lupin assured her. "I suspect that Catherine Clare could easily afford to free all the house-elves and pay humans to do their work. I wouldn't even be surprised to hear that she thought about doing just that. She is an American, and slavery is still a rather sensitive subject there."
"Do you know – " Hermione hesitated. "Do you have any idea why she didn't?"
"It would have made them terribly unhappy, and I'm sure she doesn't want to hurt them. No matter how she tried to explain it, the house-elves themselves would still have seen it as a dreadful disgrace. The transfer to the Weasleys was something that they understood." His face softened.
"I think that's why she asked Knoggin to take special care of the Weasleys in the first place, to give him a chance to see if he liked them," he confided. "Even with visitors, there just isn't enough work here to keep all the house-elves happy, and it's worse for them when she's alone. Knoggin is a young, active house-elf, and he deserved a family of his own to care for. I really don't think that Arthur or Molly are at all likely to mistreat him."
"So Knoggin is happy, the Weasleys are happy, and it isn't really my place to criticize," Hermione concluded, somewhat sardonically.
"I'm not saying the system couldn't be improved. The treatment of house-elves shouldn't depend entirely on the character and kindness of those they serve. It's very commendable of you to try to change things," Remus told her. "Although not by ruining what was a very special moment for Knoggin and the Weasleys."
The former professor regarded her with sympathy, and some concern. "I really didn't think that, if you understood the situation, you would have wanted to damage your relationship with the Weasleys over this. If I was wrong, I owe you an apology."
"I don't think you were wrong, Professor, I just – " Hermione hesitated. Then she said simply, "You've given me a lot to think about."
****
Harry thought it wiser not to bring up the subject of Knoggin in front of Hermione, so he waited until he and Ron were alone before mentioning the house-elf. His opportunity came some days later as they were trudging down from the house to the clearing they had been using for Quidditch practice.
"So how are things going with Knoggin?" he asked. Ron grinned at him.
"It's great. Mum went out to The Burrow when Snape was off at that meeting yesterday. I think she wanted to give him instructions about what she wanted done, but when she got there he had already done it! She was so happy when she told Dad about the house she was almost crying. Then she started talking about getting a job when school starts again."
"A job?" Harry repeated. The thought of Mrs. Weasley working was a strange one. Not that she hadn't always been busy, but Harry always pictured her being busy at The Burrow.
"Yeah, it was a little weird when I first thought about it, but it kinda makes sense," Ron mused. "Ginny's in her sixth year already, and Knoggin being there will help a lot and - " Ron hesitated a bit. "I guess I never thought about her doing anything else. I mean, she's always been Mum, you know? But she really likes this potion stuff - even with Snape. And if he gives her a recommendation, she could probably get a good job even though she hasn't worked in a long time. Everyone knows what he's like."
"If they've met him," Harry agreed, leaving unspoken the thought that the additional income would be welcome at The Burrow if Mrs. Weasley was able to get a job. "I hadn't thought about it, but you're right. It makes sense."
Ron's ears reddened slightly, and he glanced over at Harry, a little shamefaced. "I didn't think of it either," he confessed. "Bill's the one who pointed that stuff out to me."
"You're lucky to have him around," Harry said quietly, mounting his broom. "Ready?"
Ron wanted to work on Double Eight Loops, which was a little difficult with none of the trees in exactly the right position to simulate the goal posts he was supposed to be protecting. They found two specimens that would work if they were able to imagine the third, so they tried that for a while and then switched to basic passing work at which they became increasingly lazy as time passed.
They were no longer really practicing, but just flying around on their brooms tossing the Quaffle back and forth when Harry spotted it.
"What's that?" he asked Ron, hovering for a moment.
"What?"
"Over there, by that tree." There was an odd shadow moving along the tree line that surrounding the clearing which they were using for practice.
"Dunno," Ron answered. He and Harry exchanged glances. "Have a look?" The two of them landed and started walking over toward where Harry thought he had seen something.
Harry hadn't realized how dark it was getting until he squinted into the shadows. Then he saw something that made him stop abruptly, reaching out to grab Ron's arm and pull him to a halt as well.
There were two large golden eyes peering at them from under the tree.
Harry started to grope for his wand, then remembered that he had left it on the table in his room when he was changing. He hadn't expected to have to defend himself in Quidditch practice with Ron! He cursed his stupidity, hearing echoes of Moody's voice shouting "Constant vigilance!" in his brain, but it was too late to worry about that now.
"Ron, did you bring - " Harry trailed off, wondering if the creature could understand them.
Ron gulped. "No."
Harry thought for a moment. "Let's just back away from it slowly," he suggested, and moved one foot tentatively behind him.
An ominous growl issued from the area of the tree, and Harry froze again.
"I don't think it liked that," Ron said, sounding very nervous.
"Well, we have to do something, we can't just stand here all night!"
"Someone would come and look for us, it wouldn't be all night," Ron pointed out.
"If it weren't between us and the house, we might have a chance at making it back," Harry mused aloud.
The growling stopped. The golden eyes blinked once, and then started circling away and around behind them.
"Do you think it heard you?"
"Let's just try walking up toward the house and see what happens." They set off for the house, trying to walk very casually. "At least we've got our brooms," Harry said, wishing he had thought of that before.
"What if it can fly?"
Harry risked a glance back. He could make out a dark shape stalking along the ground some distance behind them.
"I think it's following us," he told Ron. Ron looked back too.
"It looks sort of like a cat," he said.
"That thing is a lot bigger than Crookshanks," Harry pointed out grimly. It looked like it was bigger than either of them, even though it was hard to tell as long as it was prowling along low to the ground.
"Why don't we pick up the pace a little," Harry suggested very quietly. Ron nodded, and they started walking a bit faster, still trying to look nonchalant. Harry looked back again. It was matching their speed, maintaining the same distance behind them. Harry had a sinking feeling from its easy, predatory stride that they were not going to be able to outrun it.
"I can see the pool," Ron told him a few moments later, sounding very relieved.
Once they made it to the edge of the pool, the two boys looked at each other and by common consent bolted for the back door. Just before they reached it, the door swung open. Harry and Ron entered the hall at a run and the door slammed shut behind them.
Molly Weasley, looking irritated, observed them come in and quickly crossed to the door through which they had just entered and tried unsuccessfully to re-open it. When it remained stubbornly shut, she pulled out her wand and said "Alohomora" with some irritation. It had no effect.
"How did you get the door open?" she demanded, turning to Harry and Ron. Ron looked puzzled.
"It just opened when we got here," he told her. "We were trying to get away from that – thing outside." His mother looked at him very sharply, then strode over to the central area closer to where the halls crossed.
"Arthur! Alastor! Get in here," she called out very loudly before turning back to the boys.
"What did you see outside?" she demanded as people started arriving. In addition to her husband and the white-haired former Auror who was his friend, Remus Lupin arrived with her second son, Charlie, followed shortly by Professors Snape and McGonagall. The Head of Gryffindor House seemed rather perturbed.
"What's going on here?" she demanded very tartly.
"The boys could get into the house, but we can't get out," Molly Weasley informed her concisely. "They said there's something out there." She looked at her son expectantly while Snape, looking deeply suspicious, tried himself to open the front doors. He had the same lack of success as Mrs. Weasley.
"It was some sort of – of cat thing," Ron told the assemblage, a little embarrassed. "It was just really big, that's all. It didn't actually do anything except growl at us."
"It stopped growling when we started back to the house," Harry added. He looked at Lupin, who was frowning, his wand out, and then another sound shattered the silence. The statue of a large cat at the top of the fountain growled – a deep rumbling so powerful that Harry could feel the stones beneath his feet vibrating in response.
As she growled – oddly, it didn't occur to Harry to wonder how he knew this was a female cat – she rose to a standing position, shaking herself vigorously. When she did, gray stone rippled away, and she was revealed as a large black panther. Harry backed instinctively away, unaware that he did so. She looked rather angry.
Then she roared, and this time Harry felt not just the floor, but his very bones vibrating. All the adults had their wands out now, moving to circle the fountain on which the large cat stood. But now the other felines around the fountain were awakening as well, shaking themselves into life.
The large, kingly lion was, not unexpectedly, a golden-sand color, but turned out to have a large black mane. There were animals he recognized, like the dramatically striped tiger and the tabby housecat, and others he didn't, like the large, shaggy gray cat that somehow looked slightly wolfish or another that reminded him oddly of a weasel.
Harry wished desperately that he had not left his wand in his room. He looked instinctively toward the first floor, where Ginny and Hermione, both looking startled, were emerging from the hallway that led to their bedrooms.
"Ginny," he called loudly, but he couldn't make himself heard properly over the din. Their eyes met.
"Wand!" he mouthed frantically, gesturing with his empty hands. Ginny nodded in comprehension and immediately wheeled around, pulling Hermione back into the corridor with her.
By now, Kingsley Shaklebolt and Hestia Jones were hurrying to join the circle around the fountain. Arabella Figg, who was unable to do magic, stopped several feet away. Harry noticed that the water had stopped flowing. Silence fell.
Nothing was happening. The panther, still standing alertly at the top of the fountain, did not move, although her tail swished angrily back and forth. She seemed to be waiting for something, but Harry had no idea what it could be.
The girls' footsteps rushing back were now unnaturally loud in the silence, and Harry felt a moment of panic as Ginny and Hermione ran to the upper landing and tossed Harry and Ron their wands. To his great relief, the enormous black cat ignored them, and he felt much better as soon as he caught his wand in his hand. At least he was no longer defenseless.
"Anyone know what the hell is going on?" Moody growled. His magical eye was whirling in all directions, although his real eye was fixed on the feline above him.
When something happened just at that moment, it was not what Harry expected. The large black panther hissed, crouching in anger, but she was facing upward, looking through the glass dome above the central fountain and into the sky –
– where a green skull and crossbones was forming above the house.
The Dark Mark.
The sign of Voldemort and his Death Eaters.
Hestia Jones whimpered, "No! Oh, no!" in a voice that trembled.
"Steady," Moody told them, his magical eye swiveling frantically. "I don't see any – There!" he shouted, turning abruptly away from the fountain and facing the pool lawn. "They're coming in on broomsticks!"
"How many?" Remus asked calmly.
"A half-dozen or so," Moody told him. "You two, get down!" he barked at Hermione and Ginny. Hermione ran for the stairs on the western side of the hall, while Ginny moved in the opposite direction, diving into a roll from which she somehow emerged already running.
Outside, a bolt of green light burst out of the sky, briefly illuminating its source – a Death Eater, robed and masked in black shooting through the sky on a broomstick only feet away from the window. The spell jetted toward the first floor walkway Ginny and Hermione had just vacated, but it ricocheted off the glass.
"What was that?" Ron asked hoarsely, his freckles vivid against his skin.
Moody shouted, "Stupefy," and red light shot from his wand just before another bolt of green light arrowed toward the center of the hall. Moody's spell seemed to dissipate, the red light washing over the window before being absorbed, although the attackers' spells continued to ricochet.
"'Fraid of that," he announced, unsurprised. "Protective spells are useful, but this one's a little too well sealed."
Minerva McGonagall had two dark red spots on her cheeks.
"Are ye' saying we cannae fight back?" she demanded, sounding very Scottish. "That we're trapped in here while they zoom around outside just as they please?"
"Not exactly," Moody chuckled, his magical eye pausing momentarily as it surveyed the roof line. "One of 'em flew too close to the parapet, and the nice little kitty cat swiped him right off his broom," he informed them.
The former Auror turned to look back at the panther with his normal eye. "You wouldn't have anything to do with that, would you?" he inquired approvingly. The large cat spared him a glance, but her only answer was a flick of her tail before she turned away, her attention apparently elsewhere.
Severus Snape's voice hissed softly as he inserted himself into the conversation. "I do not wish to rely on protective spells and a bunch of cats to do my fighting for me." He spoke as though deeply offended. The panther ignored him, but Remus Lupin, looking both worried and strangely amused, added his agreement.
"Severus is right," he said firmly, and the large feline atop the fountain turned to regard him gravely. "We need to find a way to get at least some of us out of the house to fight back. Otherwise, they've effectively trapped us here." The panther had stopped swishing her tail and tilted her head attentively as Lupin spoke. Behind her, a barrage of spells jetted into the large glass windows with increasing fury but no apparent effect. Then, with a feline shrug, the panther settled herself on her haunches on one side of the uppermost platform, curling her tail neatly around her.
The fountain began to collapse into itself, the top section falling smoothly down until it was only a single step above the middle tier, which lowered itself in turn. The panther, now looking more like a housecat afflicted by an Engorgement Charm than a predator, waited in place, her eyes firmly fixed on Lupin.
"Well, climb up, boy," Moody barked at him, his magical eye still whirling in all directions. Minerva McGonagall was the first to move, placing one foot on the base level of the fountain, her wand hand outstretched, but the dust-colored lynx that was perched there rose and hissed a warning. The professor's mouth opened in shock.
The sleek blue-black feline two levels above her had swiveled her head in the direction of the Transfiguration Professor and was regarding her through slitted eyes.
"Don't you take that attitude with me!" Minerva sputtered. "Remus, you tell her I get to go!" she ordered, obviously outraged.
Harry felt a strange bubble of laughter welling inside him, despite the danger they were in. He looked over at Ginny and saw that she had pressed her lips together very firmly in an effort not to smile.
"Severus, Charlie, Kingsley, and Minerva, I'd like you with me," Lupin said calmly. Four of the larger cats on the middle tier promptly leapt down into the hall, including the black-maned lion and a vibrantly striped tiger. The remaining felines re-settled themselves so that four open spaces remained, equi-distant around the circle, and the cats on the lowest level moved aside in front of three of the four spots.
The dust-colored lynx remained squarely placed in front of Professor McGonagall.
"I think you've offended her," Arabella Figg observed, as the others began to climb up on the fountain.
"Oh, for heaven's sake," the Transfiguration Professor sputtered, still sounding very Scottish. The sleek black panther was no longer looking at her – the cat seemed to be deliberately looking away – but the tip of her tail had started to twitch and she was sitting very erectly, with her ears forward.
"Very well," Professor McGonagall said, withdrawing her foot from the fountain and folding both her hands in front of her, one still clutching her wand. She was looking away from the cat and seemed to be quite put out. "I – apologize," she said, somewhat sarcastically. The panther sniffed at this, but the lynx did move aside to allow her to clamber up the fountain where the others were already standing in position.
The moment both her feet had touched the second level, the two upper tiers launched themselves skyward with a jerk, causing her to stumble slightly before she caught her balance. The black she-cat snorted in huffy satisfaction.
The fountain continued to rise toward the glass ceiling dome, which obligingly opened in time to prevent a collision. It stopped moving as the second tier slotted into place in the newly-made opening above them. With the stone fountain now replacing a large portion of the glass dome, the occupants of the hall lost sight of the fighters above.
Harry now appreciated the benefits of having Moody remain with them in the hall, for his magical eye was able to see what was going on when none of the rest of them could, and he provided a little running commentary on the battle taking place outside. "Good job, boy! Remus just stunned one of the fliers. Minerva's making nice use of her – down! – Charlie ducked in time, boy's got good instincts, Arthur. What the – no, don't do that – ouch! Snape's going to regret that one." He continued on in this vein as the fight continued out of reach above them.
In some ways, it was more than a little annoying, for it was a reminder that he, Harry, was stuck in here when he really wanted to be doing something. He was already of age, he only had one more year of school left, and he was still being treated like a child. It was particularly unnerving to be stuck there just listening when the commentary concerned Lupin, for it reminded him of how quickly life could end. He felt his throat tighten and once again saw the image of Sirius, the expression on his face as he fell through the veil.
If anything happened to Remus, there would be no one left.
"Do they really need to do that?" Ron was asking in an undertone, his eyes on the tiger prowling the hall only feet from where they were standing. Harry looked around and saw that the lion and a cheetah had gone upstairs and were pacing back and forth on the first floor landings. He was uncomfortably aware of how easy it would be for one of the great cats to spring at them from their new positions.
"Do you want to argue with it?" Hermione asked. "I was in front of the stairs when the lion decided to go up, and frankly, all I did was get out of its way. Quickly."
"Good point."
When the surprisingly short battle was over, the fountain descended and Harry was able to see for himself how everyone had fared. Lupin looked somewhat tired, and there were new scorch marks on his robes, but Harry was very relieved to see that he seemed to be basically unhurt, as did Professor McGonagall and Charlie Weasley. Kingsley Shaklebolt's left arm was hanging limply at his side, but that seemed to be the worst of the injuries. The front of Snape's robes had been shredded, however apart from some shallow scratches on his arms, he appeared to be otherwise unhurt.
The Potions Master appeared to be in a very bad mood, glowering fiercely around him as though daring anyone to comment. The other four fighters were carefully avoiding his eyes, but the cat next to him on the fountain ledge was not so restrained. It kept pausing from grooming its reddish-brown fur to glare indignantly at the Head of Slytherin.
Above them, a golden light in the shape of a phoenix shot through the Dark Mark in the sky, destroying it. "Albus!" Professor McGonagall cried out, obviously relieved. She looked down and saw the Headmaster was just opening the front door, his wand still in his other hand.
"I should have thought of that myself," the Head of Gryffindor told the Headmaster apologetically, the fountain slowing as it approached the floor of the hall. Dumbledore was regarding Remus Lupin and the majestic black cat descending together with an unreadable expression in his light eyes.
"Symbolism is very important in magic, you know," he responded. "Is everyone all right?" he asked, his eyes sweeping the hall.
"Missed a good fight," Moody grunted, hobbling over to him.
Charlie Weasley spoke briefly to the cat next to him before he stepped down to allow his parents to reassure themselves that he was safe. Minerva McGonagall addressed herself to the largest black cat in the center of the fountain, thanking it with great formality before she strode over to speak with the Headmaster. Sturgis Podmore was helping the stately black Auror down from the fountain, but Harry noted that Kingsley paused to pat the calico housecat on the lowest level affectionately.
Severus Snape stalked down from his position on the middle tier without a word, turning to glower at the rust-colored cat one last time. When he turned back, he found himself only inches from the black-maned lion which had descended swiftly to meet him. Snape yelped and stumbled back.
"There's no need to be rude," Mrs. Figg told him shortly.
"I fail to see why – " Snape seemed to be forcing the words out through clenched teeth, but Arabella cut him off.
"Courtesy is very important to cats," she told him firmly.
Snape eyed the lion in front of him. It was very large, and an ominous rumbling seemed to be coming from its throat.
"I – thank you," Snape told it, with obvious reluctance and more than a little disdain. The Potions Master was still glaring at the enormous predator with a sort of angry contempt when the lion sprang forward. Snape ducked quickly to the floor, and the lion landed neatly in the open space on the middle tier of the fountain. When the infuriated wizard regained his feet and spun around, wand outstretched, the lion was reclining in place, regarding him with lazy insolence.
"Severus," Dumbledore said, an obvious warning. The Potions Master lowered his wand and walked over to join the Headmaster, the heels of his boots clicking angrily on the floor.
Remus Lupin was still standing at the top of the fountain. The black panther was regarding him expectantly. Harry noticed that she was between Remus and what was, now that most of the other cats had returned to the fountain, the only remaining path down.
"Arabella?" he asked, "What am I supposed to – ?"
"Just pat her and tell her what a good girl she is," the older woman replied calmly. Remus looked at her doubtfully.
"You want me to pat – "
"Well, she is still a cat," Arabella Figg pointed out. "And she did do a very nice job." The panther's whiskers twitched. Remus was watching her dubiously.
"Well, don't take all day about it," Arabella prompted impatiently. "After fighting off a gang of Death Eaters, I'm sure you can manage to pat a cat!"
Remus swallowed visibly before tentatively extending his hand. When he reached the spot between and behind the panther's ears, she closed her eyes and started to purr very faintly. Lupin relaxed.
"You were very helpful just now," he told her approvingly, his hand stroking the blue-black fur rhythmically, "and remarkably clever." She wriggled in satisfaction and then lowered her head to rub her cheek across his knees. Remus, bracing himself, managed to keep his balance as the enormous cat twined around his legs, purring, and then nudged him gently toward the edge of the platform. She seemed to be quite pleased with herself.
When Remus reached the floor, the cheetah sprang neatly back into position and the fountain returned to its original height. The panther curled herself up on the top platform and then everything was as it was before. The water began running again, and all the cats froze into gray stone.
Even frozen in stone, the panther managed to look rather smug.