Hullo!
Its me again here bringing you the best of VH1. No, really, its just Harry Potter. But WHAT a Harry Potter, eh? I'd like to first off give my thanks to all of my wonderful reviewers. You inspire me to not be lazy ::tears up::.Secondly, ALOT happens in this fic. So, be mindful cause several clues pop up throughout it. Other than that, I guess I'm done. Onto the replies and, of course, the chapter!!
TheNash: Haha, a leaky cauldron, huh? Don't worry, it happens to the best of us. As for Jimmy/Draco...what can I say? I LOVE 'em! They're my boys. And yes, they get a whole ton accomplished. (A/N: Just a fun bit of trivia for you. Jimmy was actually supposed to be a Slytherin. His personality-studious, clever, sneaky, mischievous and manipulative- is more inclined to Slytherin, but since Harry is, well, HARRY, he got plopped in Gryffindor instead) . LoL! I'm glad you enjoyed that little scare, but no worries. I would NEVER hurt Jimmy...Intentionally...::looks around:: ANYWAYS! Keep the reviews coming!
I'm not the weakest link: Thanks. =)
Harry snatched up a blueberry muffin as Jimmy yawned widely across from him. Looking over at his brother, Harry tore the top of the muffin off and handed him the bottom half. Jimmy took it and started to munch on it, eyes half closed.
"Geez, did you get ANY sleep last night?"
Jimmy grunted and shrugged. If his appearance was any indicator, no he didn't. Jimmy's usually styled spikes were non-existent this morning, and in their place were an array of messy, wild raven locks. Now he truly looked like a Potter.
"You know, if you put on your glasses, you two really WOULD look like twins," Ron commented through a mouthful of pancakes.
Jimmy gave another lazy grunt as he laid his forehead against the table.
"Why don't you just skip classes today?" Harry suggested, taking a sip of his orange juice.
"I can't," Jimmy groaned." Snape'll have my hide if I don't make up for yesterday's screw up."
"Well, Snape's just a jerk," Ron grumbled.
"Seriously. Take the day off, Jim. You need the rest. You'll be perfectly safe in our dorm and we can keep an eye on Skye just in case. If she skips also, it'd look too suspicious," Harry said, staring at the top of his twin's head.
The brunette merely grunted once more, the sound muffled from the interference by the tabletop and his arms.
Harry couldn't help but smile and reached over to tousle Jimmy's already chaotic hair. The boy jerked up and shot him an annoyed look before attempting to flatten his hair back down.
"Trust me mate, you're fighting a losing battle there," Seamus commented through a grin.
Jimmy scowled as the boys chuckled in his expense.
Harry eyed his brother and saw the warning signs that his brutal tongue was seconds away from stabbing the laughing Gryffindors," Hey Jimmy, 'member that vamp we met up in L.A.?"
Jimmy looked at the boy and rose his eyebrow skeptically," Yeeees..."
"You met a vampire? An ACTUAL vampire?" Seamus asked incredulously.
Harry saw a smile lighten Jimmy's features. Crisis averted.
"Yeah. Me and Harry were patrolling this park by the La Brea Tar Pits when we came across this guy hiding behind a tree, wearing the craziest outfit I've ever seen," Jimmy started, obviously pleased that he could brag about something to take the focus off his wild hair.
"-It was like something out of Muggle fashion in the 80's.-" Harry added on with a smile.
"-Multi-colored Mohawk, pierced nose, black trench coat, BIG ass boots-" Jimmy went on, enjoying telling the story.
"-We thought he was just some homeless guy, but as we got closer, turns out he was watching this couple walking towards us. He had his fangs out and ready and it took us only a few seconds to realize he was gonna suck those two dry-"
"So, I start to say we should alert the couple when Harry goes charging at him!"
Harry blushed a bit as the group both laughed heartily and gasped at his clear stupidity," Well? It was a crisis and I had to act quickly."
"Yeah, by charging at him like some idiot out of a medieval movie," Jimmy remarked with a smirk." So, needless to say, the guy wasn't having any of it. They duked it out for a bit, just long enough for me to tell the Muggles to run for it. When I finally came over, Mr. Mohawk had Harry pinned about a foot from the ground against this tree-"
Harry rubbed his neck at the memory," -Ugh, I remember that. He had this jagged ring on his thumb and it was slicing into my neck-"
"So, I performed a simple Immobulous charm on the vamp and the crisis was over," Jimmy finished with a grin.
"Maybe for you," Harry said with a scowl. Turning to the rest of the eager Gryffindors, he explained," The guy still had a clump of my cloak in his hands and this vice-like grip on my throat. So, I was stuck like that on the ground until Jimmy reversed the spell."
"No one told you to go storming the castle single-handedly," Jimmy retorted, taking a bite out of his muffin-bottom.
"No one told you to not back me up," Harry snapped back.
"Hey, I think before I act. I don't just go jumping into a dangerous situation before I have a plan."
Ron chuckled," So that's where that gene went."
Everyone cracked up as Harry simmered indignantly.
"So what happened?" Neville pressed on, anxious to hear the conclusion.
"Well," Jimmy started, licking his lips after a drink of apple juice." I used a binding spell to immobilize the vamp then reversed the Immobulous charm. You should've seen Harry, he dropped like a sack of potatoes."
"Had you warned me, I wouldn't have fallen," Harry stated simply, his blush betraying the forced calm tone.
"Anyways," Jimmy said with a smile." We found out the vamp's name was Blayne Weaver and that he had just been sired-"
"-That's why he was hunting so publicly-" Harry put in.
"-And why Harry wasn't killed when he pounced him-" Jimmy added on.
"Yeah, anyways," Harry said brushing off the statement." We eventually talked him into an allegiance with the Order and he agreed to pass the word onto other freshly sired vampires."
"So, you actually got vampires on our side?" Ron couldn't help but ask with a look of awe on his face.
"Yep," The brothers said in unison.
"Wow." The others breathed.
"He was a pretty nice guy too," Jimmy commented as an after thought.
"You're bloody crazy," Ron said with a laugh just as a flurry of wings and gentle hoots began to filter their way through the long windows of the Great Hall.
Owls swooped inside in every color, dropping packages and letters to their owners. A big tawny owl and Hedwig plopped two packages in front of Jimmy, who looked more startled than anything. Ron snatched Pig from the air as he hooted madly, darting every which way, and stuffed him in his pocket, then picked up the letter Pig had deposited there.
Jimmy was in the process of plucking his own letter from the rack of toast when a slender barn owl swooped down in front of him. Tied to its ankle was a rolled up paper and on the other, a tiny pouch. Jimmy stared at the expectant bird confused. The bird stuck its leg out at him, hooting as if annoyed. The flustered brunette took the paper and paused as the owl continued to wait.
"What? Go away already."
The owl nipped angrily at his thumb, making Jimmy yelp," Hey! What was that for?"
"Over here you nut!" Ron yelled at the bird. Reaching over, he slipped a few coins into the pouch and finally the owl flew off. "Sorry 'bout that, Jimmy. Some of these Daily Prophet owls need to retire."
Jimmy nursed a stinging thumb as he opened the rolled up parchment," This is the Daily Prophet?"
"Yeah, you can read it if you want," Ron said, then went back to reading his own mail.
Jimmy set aside the paper then reached for his letter again.
"Who's it from?" Harry inquired, obviously suspicious.
Jimmy turned the letter over, frowning," Doesn't say. "
"Well, be careful when you open it. Who knows who could've sent it," Harry warned, drumming his fingers nervously on Jimmy's box.
Jimmy nodded and opened the letter. He found it was just barely four sentences scribbled as if the writer were in a great hurry. After he finished reading it, he looked up with wide eyes at his brother.
Harry tensed," What does it say?"
He took the letter from Jimmy's out stretched hand and read it for himself. 'R. of R. Midnight. Bring Harry. I want to help. -S.R.'
Jimmy met with his brother's eyes as a silent agreement passed between them. Almost absentmindedly, Jimmy pulled the package towards him and started to open it. What welcomed him was a vast contrast to the ominous note. Jimmy picked up the little note lying atop the box full of sweets and pies and cakes and read it aloud,
" Dear Jimmy & Harry,
I'm sorry I haven't written in awhile, we've been busy tracking a lead. We think there might be a spy among you, so, be wary. I heard about your accident Jimmy, are you all right? I'm glad to hear that you both are back to being civil. It's not the time for childish bickering. You both need to keep your heads, especially at a time like this'."
"What does he mean 'especially at a time like this'?" Harry questioned with a frown.
Jimmy shrugged and continued on hoping to find the answer,
" 'Read today's paper.
Sincerely,
Lupin
P.S. I got bored and helped Mrs. Weasley make these sweets for you the other day... Be careful you two. Be very careful.' "
Jimmy looked back up at his brother as he set aside Lupin's letter. Harry had immediately snatched the Daily Prophet from in front of Jimmy and no sooner had he flattened it out than he gasped. Jimmy quickly leaned over with a concerned frown as Harry scanned the front page, mouthing silently what his eyes were reading.
"What? What does it say?" Jimmy asked, trying to keep the panic down in his voice.
By this time, the others' attentions were brought back to the twins. Ron furrowed his brow at the brothers' worried expressions.
Harry paused as he finished and slowly looked up at Jimmy.
"What?" Jimmy urged, growing impatient.
Ron and the others leaned over, growing anxious at the look of pure dread on Harry's face.
Harry looked at Ron, then Jimmy and mumbled," The Veil in the Department of Mysteries was...stolen."
//----
"Honestly, I still don't think its such a good idea to go meeting some S.R. in the middle of the night after what we read in the paper today," Harry mumbled into Jimmy's ear.
Jimmy elbowed his brother in the side to gain a few inches of personal space. Harry elbowed him right back. The two slowly made their way down the last flight of stairs, and peered down the clearly empty hallway that would lead them to the Room of Requirement. It had been Harry's idea to use the Invisibility Cloak just to check the location out first before disclosing that they were there. Walking fractions away from another person for such a long range was very irritating, especially since both boys had long limbs and chaotic hair that, mashed down by the cloak, got into their eyes. Needless to say, Jimmy was rather grumpy by the time they reached the corridor.
"You're like a broken record sometimes...We have to know who this is, Harry. They said they could help us."
"Or trap us," Harry muttered in response, looking over his shoulder as they continued down the hall.
Jimmy swallowed down hard, trying to fight back the nagging voice of rationality in his head that agreed with Harry. He tightened his grip on his wand as they closed in on the desired door.
Harry reached up and clutched Jimmy's arm firmly, almost protectively, as he saw the door was already opened a few inches.
"I don't like this, Jim," He whispered, glancing about them cautiously.
"I don't either, but we gotta find out..." He whispered back and lightly prodded the door open a little more with the tip of his wand.
It took a few moments for their eyes to adjust to the brightness of the room after their long trek in close to darkness. Jimmy stepped in first, keeping Harry close by his side. The room was all but empty spare three small couches, a rug in the center of them and an odd statue in the corner. Once they were sure they were alone, Jimmy reached up and pulled the cloak from them.
"Keep it close, we may need to put it back on," Harry said quietly, his wand still clutched in his fist.
Jimmy nodded and draped the cloak over his arm. Making his way over to the couches, he perched himself atop the armrest.
"Guess all we do is wait now."
Harry gave an anxious glance at his watch. They were actually a few minutes late, so whoever it was that meant to meet them was running late as well. "You'd think if it was so important, they'd at least be punctual."
"I was. I just wanted to make sure you were alone."
Harry and Jimmy spun around to see the statue in the corner come to life. The marble-esque quality melted away to reveal black robes and human flesh on the visible hands. The voice seemed muffled and rough, making it hard to tell whether the person was male or female.
"Well...We are. Are you?" Jimmy inquired, his body rigid and readily defensive.
"Yes. If you would, lock the door." The person said to Harry.
Harry hesitated.
"I don't want to chance being interrupted by any Prefects or Professors."
"Why? Want a clean getaway after you kill us?" Harry snapped.
The cloaked figure sighed," I expected your apprehension. I'd be shocked if you weren't. Trust that I mean no harm. I just want to help."
"Why should we trust you?" Harry asked, trying to keep the unease out of his tone.
"Because..." They said turning to look at Jimmy." You made me a promise and... I want to breathe."
Jimmy's eyebrows knitted together," ...Skye?"
Slowly, the hood was brought down to reveal the Slytherin in question. She looked steadily at Jimmy," I know if I help, I will be able to breathe."
Harry glanced between the two, confusion making him even more nervous.
"Lock the door, Harry," Jimmy said quietly.
Harry faltered looking questioningly at his brother, but locked the door with a flick of his wand nonetheless.
"What is it that you can do for us?" Jimmy inquired, crossing his arms as he eyed the girl skeptically.
"I can give you information. Information I know will be vital in your battle against the Dark Lord," Skye explained.
"And what information is that?" Harry asked as he walked back over to flank his twin.
"The Dark Lord's headquarters."
The two boys exchanged a look then turned back to Skye.
"You mean, you're willing to just GIVE us Voldemort's location? Just like that?" Harry questioned suspiciously.
"Anything worth having comes with a challenge. Seeing as I cannot consciously tell you his location since I've been put under a spell recently, restricting me from doing so, you will have to find another means.Its his insurance that I don't do what I'm doing now," She replied
"So, he knew you would tell someone? Why?" Harry went on. Seeing Skye's eyes immediately flicker over to Jimmy made his instincts twist.
"I'm not...sure exactly. I suppose I became a liability after I failed to kill him," Skye said, motioning to Jimmy.
Jimmy nodded a bit, his hand tightening its clutch on the cloak," So, you're risking him killing you, just to help us?"
Skye kept her eyes trained on the unflintching Potter," Yes."
Jimmy looked down briefly to gather himself as Harry shifted besides him.
"So, what do we have to do to get his location?" Harry asked, deciding it best to ignore the underlying emotion coursing through the other two.
"I've learned you know Legilimency. Is that right?"
Harry paused, glancing at Jimmy. This wasn't the sort of crucial fact he wanted to divulge to the enemy. "Well..."
"Why do you want to know?"
"If you can enter my mind, you can find the information for yourselves. Since I willingly offer my thoughts to you, hopefully it'll make it that much easier to find what you need without probing too deep," She explained.
"We both know Legilimency, as well as Occulmency. So don't think you can catch us off guard," Harry remarked, attempting to shrug off the concern he had for the whole situation.
" I won't even try. Here, you can even hold my wand if it makes you feel any better," Skye replied, holding out her wand.
Harry looked at it skeptically before Jimmy took it and tucked it in his pocket.
"Lets do this before someone notices I'm gone," She muttered and sat down on one of the couches.
The brothers frowned at each other, reading the other's worries and fears. But nonetheless, the prospect of having a one-up on Voldemort was much too appealing. So, Jimmy and Harry positioned themselves on either side of the girl.
"If we do this together, we can increase the range of thoughts we cross." Jimmy said pulling out his wand.
Harry nodded slightly, unsure whether his own Legilimency skills were enough to even scrape the surface of the Slytherin's mind. Would she or Jimmy know that he wasn't spectacular in this field? If only this was OCCULMENCY. Even Harry knew he could wipe the floor with his genius brother in THAT department.
"On three," Jimmy mumbled, taking a step back to fully extend his arm.
Harry mirrored him, slowly psyching himself up for what was to come.
"One."
Skye closed her eyes and forced herself to focus solely on the Dark Lord's cavernous headquarters.
"Two."
Harry gripped his wand tighter, hoping against all hopes he could do this.
"Legilimens!" The boys cried in unison.
A flurry of snow whipped past their vision; Memories of cold nights and dark houses; Small hands covering an even smaller face in hopes of hiding from a lurking shadow; Spindly arms enclosing a weeping little girl with dark hair as she cowered in a corner; Red eyes as cruel and merciless as the purest evil; A curvaceous girl collapsing as another girl with bushy brown hair screamed, wand outstretched; Two boys with the greenest of green eyes.
Jimmy furrowed his brow as memory after memory bombarded his attention. She had so many, how would he be able to find what he wanted? A brief feeling of intense sorrow whizzed past his heart as a scene of Skye standing poised besides a long window, staring out at the black night, flashed before his eyes.
Even more memories flooded him and Harry. Suddenly, they were both looking at the clearest picture of Voldemort either of them had ever seen. He stood perfectly erect, glowering down at someone on the floor, deep mirth flickering in his bloody eyes. Jimmy quickly grasped the thought before it plunged back into the sea of memories. He forced it still and focused. He could feel Harry doing the same from somewhere along the edge of his awareness.
The memory played as if in reverse. The person leapt from the ground and stood as if never touched. Then the form was leaving what the boys barely realized was a bare room and back into a hallway. They finally saw that the figure was Skye herself, fear clearly scrawled all over her pallid features. Jimmy quickened the memory backwards, fearing if he attempted to let it go long enough to examine it from beginning to end, he'd lose it. Already he could feel his strength slipping from him, as well as the memory, even with Harry's help.
The vision played out, letting them see a great deal of the building Skye had ventured through to get to Voldemort. Just as she was about to approach what was obviously the main entrance, Jimmy and Harry were thrown from the Slytherin's mind.
Jimmy groaned, keeping his eyes closed to regain his center of balance and composure. Harry reached up and rubbed the back of his neck, slowly realizing he had hit the couch behind him. Carefully, the two boys sat up, surprised that they had ended up on the ground.
Skye was turned around in her chair, watching them worriedly," I'm so sorry. I don't know what happened."
"I couldn't hold it any longer," Harry said guiltily as he looked at his brother. " I'm sorry."
Jimmy wiped the beads of sweat that had gathered on his forehead and shook his head," Don't be."
"Why not? We didn't get a chance to see what we came for," Harry said with a frown.
"Not necessarily. Just before we got booted, I got a rush of recognition as Skye got to that door," Jimmy replied, getting to his feet and finding his head whirled.
"What good will recognition do us?" Harry asked, letting Jimmy help him up as well.
To Harry's complete surprise, his brother grinned.
"In order to recognize something, you had to have been there before, right?" Jimmy asked, not intending on his twin to answer." Well, since we were tapped into SKYE'S memories, I found out all I needed to from that little burst of emotion."
"You mean to tell me, you know Voldemort's headquarters JUST from some emotions?" Harry inquired doubtfully.
"Yes." Jimmy answered simply, his face slack with exhaustion but clearly happy with himself.
"Then? Where is he?" Harry pressed.
"Greenland."
The two looked to Skye for confirmation. Her pleased smile told them all they needed.
Harry and Jimmy enjoyed a relieved hug before Harry broke away," I need to tell The Order A.S.A.P."
Jimmy watched as his brother sprinted from the room. Turning, he found himself nose to nose with Skye. Her smile widened as their eyes met.
"Thank you," She murmured, her hand lightly brushing against his.
Jimmy swallowed down a lump forming in his throat," For?"
"Helping me," She answered.
"I hardly did anything."
"Perhaps, but I know my path now. I know what I must do to finally break free of this life."
Jimmy shifted his weight into her," And what's that?"
"I must do all I can to help you."
" You mean The Order?" He asked quietly, taking in a lungful of her delicate perfume. It singed his senses like wonderfully warm fire.
"No...I don't," She whispered, gazing up at him. " My wand?"
Jimmy slipped her wand from his pocket and handed it to her, unable to break their stare. She smiled and in an instant, their connection was broken and she was walking out the door. Jimmy watched after her, releasing a breath he didn't know he had been holding.
"Thanks for the help S.R." He mumbled before exiting the room himself.