A/N: The first thing you may note about this chapter is that it has no title.
You might, if you are that bored, ask why.
Well, the point is this. When I gave this chapter a name, it was solely as a guidepost for myself. And in that, I gave it a name that told me exactly what was in the chapter so I didn't have to keep opening the file and looking.
As you know, I do not rename chapters. Once I name it, that's it. The chapter is stuck with that name. Little PAR quirk.
Well, I thought 'When he Tells Her' was a stupid name for the chapter, so I decided to just leave it un-named rather than spoil it for you right off the bat.
Also, you will likely not get anything more from me until after Christmas. Very busy time of the year for PAR. So, Merry Christmas, everyone. Have a safe and happy one.
My Christmas present to you is a nasty little cliffhanger (well, not much of one, really).
And as always,
Enjoy.
Disclaimer: As I sit here before my computer screen on this cold Winter night, I fervently wish I had JK Rowling's millions. But as it is, I am not her, and I can prove it. It's been 28 chapters, by my count, and absolutely NO ONE has died. So there! I am simply plagiarizing the snokkers out of JK Rowling's setting. However, I am making no money from this, and I work for the government. So there is really no point in suing me.
CHAPTER 28
Secrets.
That was what things boiled down to.
Too many secrets.
Orion sat in one of the many rooms of his family's estate, staring at the fireplace as the flames dances over the logs. The room was bathed in the soft orange glow, casting shadows about the room. Most of them danced about as animatedly as the flames in the fireplace. All except for one, which stood silently in the corner, making no move at all.
For a long time Orion took no notice of the shadow, concentrating all of his attention on the fire before him. bBut finally he closed his eyes as he laid his head back against the sofa.
"What is it, Bo?" He asked in a voice that reflected how tired he felt.
The boggart slowly came forward moving as silently as the shadows around it until it came to stand before the man on the sofa.
"Well?" Orion asked.
The black robed figure went through a series of gestures with an almost disinterested mannerism, its gaze never leaving the man before it.
"That's it?" Orion asked in an irritated tone when Bo had finished. "You came all the way in here just to tell me everything's quiet?"
The boggart stood for a few seconds, its robe covered arms folded loosely in front of it. But finally it raised one of its hands and made a small gesture in the air.
Orion sighed and turned his attention back to the fire. "Nothing's wrong." He answered the boggart's silent inquiry.
The boggart repeated the gesture.
"I said nothing." Orion answered again.
The boggart paused, then carefully moved its position until it stood between Orion and the object of his attention, which was currently the fire.
Orion shifted his gaze to the figure before him. "Now you're just being an irritant." He told it.
The boggart held its position.
Orion quickly produced his wand. "I'm really not in the mood today, Bo." He informed it. "Move it or loose it."
Abruptly the shape before Orion shimmered slightly, then shifted until it became a small, black-haired child of about eight.
Orion frowned at the eager face before him, waving his wand at it. "Right. I won't talk to you, but you think I'm going to talk to my brother? And an eight year old version of him at that?"
The child promptly bolted for the sofa and launched himself up on it, coming to a perfect landing next to Orion. Two crystal blue eyes met the hard stare with an equally disarming smile.
Orion couldn't help but smile back at the small child. Sirius had been a handful when they were at school. Always getting into something that ultimately came back to Orion with the words "He's your brother. Can't you control him any better than this?" Orion had heard those words from everyone from classmates to teachers. And Orion had done his best to curb his younger brother's propensity for getting into trouble. But in the end, Sirius was Sirius, and that's just the way it was.
Hardly the shy eleven year old who had started at Hogwarts. In the beginning, Orion remembered hardly being able to pry his frightened younger brother off his robes to go to classes. The whole situation was to big and to new for Sirius to be comfortable in. And Orion was a reminder of the safety of home with all of its familiar surroundings. But shortly Sirius had begun making friends with another Gryffindor boy, and soon days would go by that Orion wouldn't see so much as the passing of his brother in the common room.
But he heard enough to keep him company.
An owl flying down the table at early morning breakfast was surely headed for Sirius. Too often Orion could hear the low, resounding tone of his father's voice as, in its usual calm, but firm tone, it admonished the younger boy over some transgression that had been reported to the elder Black.
Always planning. Always in trouble. Always entertaining. That was how Orion viewed his younger brother.
Until the day a tall, plain, mousy-haired young girl entered their lives.
She had absolutely enchanted Orion. Even though she was younger than him, she carried herself with a sophistication of someone several years older. Bright, dancing blue eyes had absolutely adored him. A quiet, reassuring voice had always been there to sooth away the failures. And two comforting arms always welcomed him into their embrace.
Until the eyes found someone new, and the voice spoke someone else's name, and the arms wrapped themselves about another's shoulders.
Orion quickly shook off the memory as it began to form the picture of his younger brother standing in the embrace of his one-time steady girlfriend. The tall, plain, mousy-haired Arabella Figg.
Orion turned his attention back to the small child sitting next to him. "Oh, just sod off, will you?" He stated, giving the child's hair a gentle ruffling. "Seven years of you around every corner were enough."
The child gave him a slight frown, then jumped down off the sofa and turned back to face him. A few seconds later the tall, black-robed figure took its place.
"You too." Orion told him. "You're not getting anything out of me, so you might as well go chase something else."
The boggart studied him for a moment, then abruptly it vanished without a sound.
The truth was, Orion had already made up his mind about how to handle what was currently on his mind.
Secrets.
Voldemort had been controlling Katlin for years with them. Feeding her his version of things. His truths. His lies. His twisted view of things. All in an effort to control her.
It was time to bring that control to an end.
"Now, Love, I need you to just listen to me. What I'm going to tell you is not going to be easy for you to accept."
Katlin sat on the sofa facing her lover, a mixture of curiosity and anxiety ruling her emotions.
She wasn't sure what it was he had wanted to talk to her about, but when she had arrived home that evening after several days away on a mission, she had expected his usual enthusiastic greeting. Instead she had met with a very pensive look and been directed into one of the back rooms where Orion had seated her on the sofa as he sat next to her.
Katlin looked carefully over Orion's face, taking in every aspect of his features. She was looking for something, anything that would tell her the smallest hint of what he felt was so important. It surely couldn't be anything to do with his proposal. Orion was never one for revisiting subjects that ended in a manner less than what he had anticipated. And from his actions, she felt fairly certain he had expected her to say 'yes'. But the matter was done and over with.
So this had to be something new.
"Orion, you're frightening me." She said softly. "Whatever this is...., just tell me."
Orion took a deep breath. "Katlin, the story you told me....about your parents, the village where you lived, the man who came there........I did some checking into all of it."
Katlin's head shot up. "What?! Why?" Out of everything he could have brought up, this was the last thing she expected. For what reason? But a sudden thought struck her as she narrowed her eyes at him. "Surely you don't........you think I made that up?! Something that horrible? For what reason?"
Orion tried to calm her down. "No, Love. I didn't check into it because I didn't believe you. It was........the story seemed unfinished...for you. Your parents were killed by someone you never even knew the name of. Don't you want to know his name? The man who turned the villagers against your family? Who destroyed your world? Don't you want your revenge for that?"
Katlin felt something stir within her she had thought long dead. Something that she thought had left her the day Voldemort had showed her the remains of her village. The one he had destroyed to appease her need for revenge.
So why did she still feel that same need rising up again at the thought of what had happened to her so long ago?
Katlin studied him for a minute. "And you found out who this man is?" She asked, her voice suddenly low and cold.
Orion nodded to her slowly. "Yes, Love. I found out who he is."
"You say 'is'." Katlin asked slowly. "He is still alive?"
"Yes."
The words drove a chill through her. Someone who should have been dealt with as the rest of them had. His very name wiped from existence. He survived?
Katlin's voice hardened. "He won't be for long. Tell me what his name is, so I will be able to carve it on his gravestone."
Orion paused for a moment. "I sent out some feelers, Katlin. One of them hooked onto a man who claimed he was a Deatheater all those years ago. A high ranking one."
"A Deatheater?" Katlin asked in surprise. "You're telling me a Deatheater did that to my family?"
"Katlin, just listen. Please."
Katlin settled back on the cushions. "Fine. It won't matter if the man was a Deatheater. An Auror. I couldn't care if he were an Elite. He will still be just as dead."
Orion fixed a solid stare on her, holding tightly to her gaze with his own. "Katlin, the man who came to your village, who turned the people against your parents and had them killed........was Voldemort."
Katlin was out of her seat so quickly Orion felt she was going to toppled the whole sofa over behind her. "What?!!!"
"Katlin, the man was......"
""It was not!" Katlin nearly screamed at him. "Have you lost your mind to say such a thing to me. It was not him! I would have known!"
"How?" Orion shot back. "You had never met the man before."
"I would have known it after the fact. When I got to know him. I would have remembered."
"Katlin, listen to me."
"No!"
Orion grabbed her arm, stopping her from storming out of the room. He had to make her listen to him. He had to make her believe him. "Katlin, Voldemort had found out about you. About a very powerful young witch living in a small English village. You, Katlin. And the only things that stood between him and you were your parents. They already knew of him and what he was. They knew what he would do to you. And they tried to stop him."
Katlin pulled sharply against his hold to no avail. "No! You are lying!!!" She screamed back at him.
"Katlin, your parents gave their lives trying to keep you from becoming the very thing you are!"
Katlin pulled sharply away from him, breaking his grip on her arm as she turned about to face him, her face now streamed with tears. "You're wrong!" She screamed at him again. "You're lying. This.....this person....., your informant.......they're wrong! It's a lie! A horrible lie!"
Orion slowly shook his head. "No, Katlin. The man had no reason to lie to me. He had no idea why I wanted the information in the first place. To him it was just a story. Just repeating facts."
"They are not facts! They are lies! All of them. Voldemort......he would never have done such a thing. He loves me."
"Katlin," Orion said very slowly, holding her gaze as firmly as he held her arm still, "listen to me, Love. This man, my informant, gave me a piece of information. Something about you I'll wager very few people know. Likely only you and Voldemort. Anyone else who would have known is dead."
Katlin pulled hard against his grip, but Orion didn't let go. A cold fear seized her at his words. She only knew one secret she held that closely. One thing only two people knew. "What information?" She spat at him in a low, uncontrolled voice.
"Your name." Orion replied. "Before Voldemort took you from your village, your name was Hekren, not Griss. Griss was the name Voldemort gave you to keep anyone from finding you who might look."
Orion could feel the muscles under his grip loosen as the tension went out of them. Which was the last reaction he had expected to his news. He expected her to become angry. Even deny it. But not for the revelation to be a relief.
"Is that all?" Katlin stated formally. "My name?"
"It's not common knowledge, Katlin. If it was, you would have told me."
"You know nothing." Katlin spat back at him. "Nothing about me. Nothing about my master. You have been played for a fool. The fool you have always been to Voldemort. The only difference is now you are someone else's fool as well."
"Katlin, Voldemort wanted you because of your power."
Katlin gave a short, derisive laugh through her tears, shaking his hold finally off of her arm. "Power? What power? I wasn't a powerful witch, Orion. I was fourteen years old. I could heal cows."
"But you were growing up. You were getting stronger."
"Stronger? What? So I could heal bigger cows?"
"Katlin, your power was increasing. Voldemort could see the potential in you even if you couldn't."
Katlin shook her head, "No. You are wrong. You're lying. Voldemort could not have done such a thing. Not to me."
"Katlin, my informant had no reason to lie,"
"He did just the same."
"All right. You don't believe me? Go and ask Voldemort, Katlin. Go and ask him what happened in that village. Ask him if he killed your parents. You'll know if he's telling the truth."
Katlin started to say something, but stopped short. And for the first time, through the pain and confusion, Orion felt he was seeing the person beneath the hard, course exterior for the first time. A small glimpse of the little girl who use to delight so much in stopping the hail from destroying a neighbor's crop, or healing a friend's broken arm, or curing a sick cow.
But the look quickly shifted as the fear and confusion shut it out.
Katlin slowly shook her head again as more tears brimmed over and cascaded down her cheeks.
Orion reached out to her, wanting nothing more than to take her in his arms and comfort her.
But Katlin jumped back from his touch. A hand struck out and connected solidly with the side of his face.
"No!" She stated in a low, harsh voice. "Stay away from me."
"Katlin?"
But Katlin took another step back. "Stay away." Her voice took on a cold, dangerous tone.
With one last warning look, she turned and hurried out of the room.
The last thing Orion heard was the slamming of the front door.
Katlin apparated away as quickly as she could. Her concentration was so off she ended up several miles still from her apartment, materializing practically right on the street and nearly into a wall.
Getting her bearings, she quickly headed for her apartment. She didn't stop running until she was inside her private sanctuary, with the door closed and bolted.
She never imagined she would ever use her old apartment for the very thing Orion allowed her to keep it as. A safe place to run to. A comfortable, familiar place where she could shut out the world.
But that was exactly what she was using it for.
Curled up in the corner furthest from the door, she sat staring into the darkness. She had slammed the door closed behind her and placed more wards and charms on it than she even kept count of, finishing off with placing a silencing spell around the entire apartment. Her final attempt to shut out the world. If she couldn't see it, it couldn't intrude, And if she couldn't hear it, maybe she could just pretend it didn't exist.
Pretend that he didn't exist.
This was a lie. A nightmare. Some sick and twisted story Orion had come up with.
Voldemort hadn't killed her parents. He didn't turn the whole village against her family. He had not abducted her.
He loved her. He had rescued her. He punished those responsible for killing her parents.
He took care of her. He raised her. He protected her.
He loved her.
He would never have done such a thing. He would never had lied to her about it.
She wasn't a great witch. Her mother had even told her so. She was average at best. She had never had any formal training at that time. Surely she couldn't have done anything that attracted Voldemort's attention.
But if she had.........Katlin's thoughts took a sudden turn down an even more disturbing route. If she had.......then she was responsible for what happened. She was responsible for her parents deaths. She was responsible for her friends dieing. She was responsible for the annihilation of an entire village. Of her home.
No!
Those were his words. His lies. They weren't true. They weren't right. He had lied.
She had not killed her parents. She had not killed her friends. She had not brought the evil to their village. It had not come for her.
Katlin wrapped her arms as tightly about her knees as she could, burying her head in her arms and trying as hard as she could to shut the world out.
But try as she might, she couldn't shut out the thoughts. They chased themselves around in her head so fast that she failed to even notice the sun when it came streaming in her window. Or as it crept slowly across the floor. Or when it finally slipped back out the window and disappeared.
Slowly the room crept back into darkness, leaving her sitting just where she had been for nearly an entire day. Unmoving.
Katlin suddenly started as the clock on the wall chimed nine o'clock. She looked around the tiny room for a few moments as though she were unsure of where she was. But finally she buried her head back in her arms, pulling her body tighter into a ball.
How could he have done such a thing?
Why?
He claimed it was only to help her. That he had meant no harm by it. He only wanted to show her the truth.
The truth.
Katlin scoffed at the thought. His truth. And they were all lies.
Or were they?
The idea came creeping back into her thoughts even as she fought to shut it out for the hundredth time.
What if they weren't lies? What if everything Orion had told her was the truth? What if Voldemort had killed her parents?
What if, by his manipulation, she had become the very thing her parents died trying to save her from?
Lies!
Katlin firmly shook the thoughts off.
They were lies. Voldemort did not kill her parents. He did not steal her from her family.
He loved her. Protected her. Raised her. Taught her.
Made her what she was.
What he wanted her to be.
It wasn't true! It couldn't be true! He would never have done such a thing!
He couldn't.
Katlin stared at the wall opposite her through tear stained eyes. She watched as the moon's light crept slowly across the floor before her.
Someone had to know the truth. Somewhere in the whole of the world, surely there had to be one person who knew the truth.
She just had to think of who.
Katlin watched the moonlight through her window continue it's slow trek across her floor.
But who?
Who would be impartial enough to listen to her and tell her what she wanted to know without her trying to decipher what the person might stand to gain from telling her their version of things?
Who in the world would have nothing to gain or lose from the truth?
Voldemort had mentioned a wizard to her once. A man who, even in his opinion, thought misguided, was a wise man.
Currently he was a headmaster at a wizarding school.
An old man her protector had called 'Dumbledore'.
Q&A
Sailor Sol: Heehee. Every now and then PAR comes up with a good line.
Well, I kinda blew everything you were hoping for out of the water here, Dear. He did tell her the 'truth'. It did create tension. And she is not likely to marry him in the near future.
PAR apologizes.
Still, have a merry Christmas, Dear.
Sweets: I'm still enjoying that trailer, by the way, Dear.
I am desperately trying to give Mr. Oldman the benefit of the doubt. But it is very hard. However, three weeks into the movie, I'll likely fall to the will of the movie mongrels and see no one else in the part but Gary Oldman.
Well, Voldemort doesn't have to keep winning, Dear. Orion pretty much just took himself out of the race, don'tcha think?
Resent her? Why should he resent her? Just because she turned him down? If anything, that'll just make him try all that much harder.
'Or if Harry meets her in the next story'. Now just STOP it. Right now! What have you done? Hacked into my computer? (Good trick, as that I am not on the internet.) So just.....just stop it! No more guessing out of you!
I doubt that Orion is high on Katlin's Christmas card list right now. Maybe on her 'to do' list.......but anyway.
Feel free to ramble away, Dear. Doesn't bother me at all.
And Merry Christmas.
Silverfox: Why would you have been able to be convinced until the fifth book? Aside from the fact I don't put in random 'incidents' for no good reason aside from shock value.
Charly as best man? That would remain to be seen. Wouldn't you think more Orion would choose his brother over his best friend? Charly might get second in line, but this is a tradition thing.
Voldemort give Katlin away? Nah. (Sell her maybe.)
Interesting mental picture though. A wedding hall filled with Deatheaters and Aurors there for a wedding.
I never really thought of Katlin as the Elites 'boss'. I just think of her as the highest ranking officer among the troops. But I guess that works.
And, of course, Treaks just thinks of her as that roadblock on his highway to advancement.
Yes, indeed, Charly and Treaks could do the introductions.
Bo in the kitchen? Interesting thought. But I think he would more likely be among the honored guests if he didn't beat Sirius out as best man.
Nope. Not halved. The Power, as it resides in Bo, is still in tact as a single entity. Orion's father had planned to see that it was split between his son's on his death, when the Power had to go to a new host. But in the meantime, old Hershal came up with a better idea and........viola! Bo.
Boggarts under the bed? Cool! However, my cats still like to sleep under mine, so I'm pretty sure I don't have any. But given the choice, I'd take Bo.
Merry Christmas.
Skahducky: Poor Orion is destined to be childless for quite some time. Five kids don't come up until after Family Relations.
Well, it may be nice, dear. But at the present time it doesn't seem very likely.
Have a merry Christmas, dear.
All reviews are as of 12212003.
Happy winter solstice.
And remember;
Be naughty.
Save Santa a trip.