Chapter Thirteen: Traitor or Betrayed
The morning of the first quidditch match found Harry feeling nervous, but not for himself. He was wondering how Ron and Ginny were going to perform in front of a crowd, and he was concerned for the other three new players. He had never played on a team with so many new people on it, and he was not sure how this was going to pan out. One thing he was sure of, though, was that the quicker he could catch the snitch, the less he'd have to worry about his teammates. He stole another glance at Malfoy and his Slytherin team across the Great Hall, who as usual were smiling, laughing and throwing taunts toward the Gryffindor table. Malfoy smiled and nodded now and then at his teammates, but the odd thing was that he was otherwise silent. He seemed preoccupied somehow, as though the whole of his strength were necessary to just keep himself at the table. His breakfast sat untouched in front of him, and his eyes darted back and forth between the back of Parvati's head and his own pale hands that were folded in his lap. Once Malfoy looked up and caught Harry's stare, and returned it with a sneer, and Harry had actually felt a measure of relief then, having retrieved a sense of normalcy from that sneer. But the next time Harry looked over, Malfoy had returned to staring at the back of Parvati's head. It had been several weeks since the abduction incident, and no one knew but Harry and his friends and Parvati and Malfoy. True to their word, they had not breathed a word of it to a single soul, mostly out of respect for Parvati. Parvati's friends thought she had been unfortunate enough to come down with a bout of the stomach flu on the same day as Draco Malfoy and had for a week or so commiserated such a dreadful fate with her. But Harry had noticed the slight hesitation, the refusal to say anything malicious about Malfoy, and he wondered how Parvati really felt about the whole thing.
A blanket of quiet settled over the room, jarring Harry out of his thoughts, and his eyes away from Malfoy. The Slytherin team had begun standing and Malfoy had not risen with them. Adrian Pucey was standing with his arms crossed in front of himself, one toe tapping the floor in a very Hermione-like fashion.
"Is our captain going to join us on the pitch, or is he too busy studying the table to play quidditch today?" Pucey spat venomously.
"Don't get your knickers in a twist," Malfoy responded, almost automatically. "I'm coming. I just haven't finished eating yet."
Pucey pursed his lips and made a disbelieving sound, but said no more as Malfoy took a single bite, declared himself full, smacked his stomach once, and then left with the rest of the team. Harry turned to Ginny and Ron who were sitting to his right, and gave them a questioning look. Ron, who had watched the whole last bit of Malfoy's act, along with the rest of the school, just shrugged his shoulders and turned back to his own breakfast.
"Don't you think it was odd, though?" Harry asked Ron as the Gryffindor team made their way toward the pitch just minutes after the Slytherins had gone. "I mean, he was acting strangely all through breakfast."
"He's probably just nervous like anyone else before a big game. He's noticed our new team and he's not sure if he can win against us," Ron replied, but Harry didn't buy it.
"He's never thought he wouldn't win, ever, in all the years we've known him. Whatever the contest, he always comes into it believing he'll come out on top."
"Maybe we've just skunked him enough times to make him change his mind," Ron said as they entered the Gryffindor locker room. Harry was still skeptical, but he allowed the subject to drop as Ron was obviously gearing up for the pre-game speech. He sat on the benches with the rest of the team and looked up at Ron's towering form.
"All right everyone. I think we've got this game in the bag!" Ron shouted, and the team cheered. "The Slytherin team won't know what hit them. They're already scared of us, and we'll make them sure to stay that way! Euan, Ginny, and Katie, we're counting on you to score as much as you can and get us the early lead in points. Harry, catch that snitch in record time. As for you two," Ron indicated Dearborn and Portman, "just do as you did in practice. Let's get out there!"
The team cheered again, stood, and walked out toward the pitch. Harry was worried that Ron was a little over confident, but he thought it was at least better than last year when Ron's lack of confidence kept him from performing. They walked out onto the pitch to the deafening roar from the stands and the captains shook hands. Brooms were mounted and the quaffle, bludgers, and snitch released. Harry realized that he did not recognize the commentator's voice. Lee Jordan had graduated last year. Harry looked toward the announcer's box and saw a young Ravenclaw boy. He recognized his face from the first D.A. meeting at the Shrieking Shack, but couldn't recall his name. He saw the boy's lips begin to move and a booming sound began calling out the moves of the players.
"…And it's Pucey with the quaffle, he's charging toward the goal posts, but here comes Weasley. She steals the quaffle and tosses to Abercrombie. Look at his speed, that's amazing…"
Harry tuned out the announcer and scanned the pitch for the golden flutter he hoped to see. It seemed for a moment as though the tiny ball had left the stadium, though Harry knew this couldn't be the case. There was just no sign of it anywhere. A bludger whizzed past Harry's head and Harry turned to see Crabbe smiling wickedly at him. Another Bludger came from the other side and barely missed Harry's leg. Harry shook his head and laughed at the miserable aim of Crabbe and Goyle and ducked down to get up some speed. He circled the pitch a few times, and then noticed Malfoy tailing him observantly. He dove suddenly and Malfoy followed. Harry pulled gracefully out of the dive just inches from the ground, but Malfoy wasn't so lucky.
"OH! And a brilliant Wronski feint by Potter. And here comes Weasley again, quaffle in hand, Pucey tries to block her but she ducks under him. She drops the quaffle, but Abercrombie is just below her. He shoots, he scores! And it's forty to ten for Gryffindor!" The stands erupted in cheers on the Gryffindor end, boos and hisses from the Slytherins.
And then it happened. A stray bludger, sent in the wrong direction by Goyle, was heading toward the Gryffindor stands. There was nothing in its path to stop it, and it didn't seem to want to change its direction. It was headed into the stands, sure to collide with a spectator's head. Malfoy was speeding in the direction of the bludger, and at first, Harry thought he had seen the snitch and not seen the bludger. Harry peered in the direction Malfoy was moving and began to go the same way, but the snitch was not there. The bludger had nearly reached the stands, and Malfoy had nearly reached the bludger.
WHAM!
The bludger hit Malfoy square in the side and nearly knocked him from his broom. Parvati, who Harry now noticed had been directly in the line of fire, was screaming, "Somebody help him!" Harry heard Madame Hooch's whistle and the game paused while she tended to Malfoy. His right arm hung at an odd angle at his side, and he was wincing as he clutched tightly to his broom with his left. Harry saw him shake his head no, and assumed it meant he did not want to be taken out of the game. Madame Hooch's whistle signaled for the game to recommence and Harry took off in search of the snitch once more. He felt bad for Malfoy's apparent accident, but he still intended to win. Malfoy had used the sympathy tactic before.
Finally the snitch showed itself skimming under Ginny's right foot. Harry threw her a message with his mind and she looked down just in time to see Harry, closely followed by Malfoy, streaking by directly beneath her. Harry closed his left hand around the snitch and pulled up on his broom. He hovered right next to Ginny and she smiled broadly at him. The stands erupted in cheers and applause, and Harry barely noticed the dejected form of Malfoy slumping off toward the changing rooms before the rest of his team had even landed. Harry felt a twinge of guilt, but the pats on the back from his teammates and the roaring approval from the spectators soon caused him to forget his opponent's behavior, and he followed his team happily back to the Gryffindor changing rooms.
The party in the Gryffindor Common Room lasted until two in the morning. The newest team members were given ample praise, and everyone enjoyed themselves immensely. At one point though, Harry noticed Parvati speaking in hushed whispers to Lavender, and then saw them leave together and return again half an hour later. Parvati seemed very upset about something, and Lavender looked bewildered and concerned. Harry watched the two girls climb the steps to the dormitories, and wondered what could be bothering them. He thought it probably had something to do with Malfoy. He determined to ask Parvati about it some time, and turned back to Ron, Hermione, and Ginny who were laughing and joking about the "dropped" quaffle that had fooled the Slytherin Keeper into letting Euan score.
Time flew by, and before anyone knew it, November had come and gone and Christmas was approaching. Harry and his friends were planning to spend Christmas at Grimmauld Place. Hermione's parents were still living there, and Harry had surmised by now that the Order was trying to protect them. Harry realized gloomily that it was indeed wise for the Order to protect the families of his two best friends, as Voldemort would undoubtedly seek his vengeance against him on them if he could. He wondered if the attack in London had not been as random as the Daily Prophet had assumed, and if the Order had known something about it in advance and had invited the Grangers to stay for that purpose. Still no word came about their efforts to rescue Percy, and having not dreamt about it in ages, Harry wondered what had happened to his best mate's prudish brother.
Harry's assistant teaching assignment was coming along smoothly. He had been enjoying it more and more as the days wore on. He even found himself gleefully assigning homework to his groaning students to be done over the holidays. D.A. meetings were being held in three classrooms on the third floor, near the corridor where he and his friends had first met Fluffy in his first year, and memories of Quirrell with Voldemort's face poking out of the back of his head helped spur Harry to push the members to train well. The advanced group that he and Hermione were leading was doing very well. Ginny and Ron's mid-level group was excelling enough that they kept transferring members into Harry and Hermione's group. And Neville and Luna seemed the perfect pair leading the beginners. They too had members advancing into higher level groups, and new members showed up on a regular basis, approaching Harry or one of his friends in the halls or at meal times to ask for a galleon and a room number. The group had grown to nearly a hundred members, now, and Harry was astounded that it just kept growing. He would have to ask Dumbledore for more rooms soon. The most amazing thing to Harry was that there was an even split of students from all four houses in attendance at D.A. meetings, indicating that there were just as many Slytherins as any other house who genuinely wanted to protect themselves and their loved ones from Voldemort.
The day before the train was to depart from Hogsmeade to Kings Cross Station, Harry, Ron and Neville were in their dorm room packing and discussing the latest events.
"This potions essay is going to give me fits," Neville complained. "I don't know if I'm going to make it in that class."
"Well, you did great on the Polyjuice Potion," Harry reminded him, "and the unit on the uses of Bezoars as well. Don't give up too fast."
"I only did well on the Polyjuice because you three already knew how to make it. Don't think I'm not grateful. I just wonder if I'll choke when it comes time for exams at the end of the year."
"You'll do fine, Neville," Ron encouraged. "You get better at it all the time."
Neville sighed, and Harry felt it was time for a change of subject. "You know, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff play each other just after we all get back. If Ravenclaw wins, and we're sure to beat Ravenclaw, we'll be in the runnings for the quidditch house cup again."
"Too right!" Ron exclaimed enthusiastically. "Slytherin was like a house full of apes in that game against us. You would think it was Malfoy's first time on a broom, running right into that bludger like that! When will he learn to pay attention to what he's doing instead of just watching Harry for a sign of the snitch?"
"You know," said Neville thoughtfully, "Parvati was sure upset about his injuries. She seemed to think it was her fault somehow."
"Her fault?" Ron asked incredulously. "She wasn't even playing in the game. How could she think it was her fault?"
"She said that Goyle sent that bludger toward her on purpose, and Malfoy got in the way so that it wouldn't hit her," Neville explained. "She was all worried about Malfoy, hoping he was OK, and she said something about his Dad getting angry. I don't know what that was about, but I think Malfoy really has a thing for Parvati!"
"That would be the day, wouldn't it, Neville? Malfoy having a thing for a Gryffindor?!" Ron laughed.
"No kidding! Just knowing they're friends with each other is weird enough." Neville agreed. "So what are you all doing for the Holiday?"
"Oh, we're going to spend it with Ron's family," Harry said. "Hermione and her parents are coming as well. What about you?"
Neville blushed, smiled, and then blushed deeper. "Gran gave me permission to go to the Lovegoods for the whole holiday. I have to go with her to see my folks at St. Mungo's, and I'm supposed to bring Luna with me to introduce her to them. I'd have wanted to do that anyway. I just wish Gran didn't have to come along."
Harry and Ron chuckled at the memory of Neville's grandmother. They all finished their packing and went down to the Great Hall for dinner. The school was decorated in dream-like fashion. Garlands, streamers, fairy lights, and ornaments of all shapes and sizes hung from every corridor and in every classroom. Even Filch's office had a small tree sitting on the desk, and Snape had allowed the Slytherin house students to decorate his room with a few neatly placed candles, giving the dungeon classroom an almost eerie glow. Down in the Great Hall, the students were milling about, some humming carols as they passed, others chatting merrily about heading home in the morning. A few who would be staying at the castle over the two week break were lined up to sign their names to the clipboard that hung near the teacher's table. Harry noticed Parvati and Padma Patil standing in line, and Malfoy had just signed and was returning to his seat at the Slytherin table. Harry wondered what would keep Malfoy from going to Christmas with his family. He wondered if it had anything to do with Parvati. But he turned his attention away when Ginny ran up to him, planted a kiss on his cheek, and threw her arms around his neck.
"What was that for?" Harry asked.
"Do I need a reason?" Ginny laughed. Harry smiled and brushed her lips gently with his own, but the sparks that flew even from that little bit of physical contact caused him to pull back, blushing, and settle for holding her hand. They proceeded toward the Gryffindor table and enjoyed a wonderful feast before heading back to their Common Room for the night. Neville stayed behind to sit with Luna in the Great Hall. Harry, Ron, Ginny and Hermione found their favorite spots by the Gryffindor fireplace, and sat in comfortable silence, staring at the fire. Ginny snuggled closer to Harry and began a silent conversation with him.
How do you think Mum's going to take it when she notices us together? She's going to figure it out sooner or later.
'I'm sure she will. Perhaps it's best to tell her right off. We don't want her thinking we're keeping something from her.'
I suppose you're right. Should we tell her about the bond? Only, I think she'll freak out about that. She'll think we've been doing stuff we shouldn't be.
Harry blushed in spite of himself and looked anxiously over at Ron and Hermione to see if they had noticed anything. They were too wrapped up in each other, though, to have seen anything, so he turned his attention back to Ginny and thought, 'We better not tell her then. Imagine what your brothers would do to me if they caught wind that your mum thought I was…well, you know what I mean.'
Ginny giggled, and this time Ron did look over at them. "Oi, hands up where I can see them, please," he called. Harry rolled his eyes and showed Ron his guiltless hands, and Ginny scowled at her brother.
"You keep your mind on how you're going to explain to mum where your hands have been lately!" Ginny hissed quietly, and Ron turned a deeper scarlet than Harry had ever seen him go.
Ron cast an accusing look at Hermione, who quickly returned with a scandalized, "What?"
'What have they been up to, Gin?' Harry asked her through the mind link.
Trust me, you don't want to know!
Harry turned a sickly green at the thought of what that might mean, and Ginny, still listening to his thoughts said, No, nothing that bad. But really, don't ask.
It was just as Harry and his friends were finishing their dinner that Harry's interest in Filch was again kindled. Luna was just sauntering over to sit beside Neville for a few minutes when Harry could no longer contain his curiosity.
"No Mrs. Norris again," he said as he glanced toward the double doors of the Great Hall. Filch stood to the side a few meters and seemed uncharacteristically nervous to Harry. "He normally stands stalk still, barely blinking," Harry pointed out to the others. "But now he's shifting from side to side, twitching, wringing his hands, and glancing at the doors every few minutes."
"He keeps rubbing his right thumb and forefinger together as though itching to pull a wand," Hermione observed.
"But, Harry, didn't we find out he's a squib when we got caught flying Dad's car second year?" Ron reminded.
"Yes, so why would a squib itch for a wand?" Harry agreed.
"Maybe he's taken up smoking muggle cigarettes," Luna chimed in from beside Neville.
"I doubt he even knows what they are," Hermione shook her head to emphasize her response.
"What are they?" Neville asked.
"A substance more addicting than sugar quills," Hermione explained, "and far more disgusting. We'd be able to smell it on him if he was doing that!"
"What are you cooking up in that head of yours?" Ginny asked Harry pointedly. She could feel the stir in his thoughts even without focusing on them. More so, he had that gleam in his eye he always got when he was planning something.
"I think we should find out what's going on with Mr. Filch," Harry said.
Ten minutes later all six students were quietly and cautiously following a now almost panicky Filch. The caretaker wrung his hands again in a manner that reminded Harry of someone, though he could not place who. When Filch led them to his own office, Ron spoke for most of the others when he said, "Well, looks like he's not going anywhere special."
"Wait," Harry commanded, "let's see if he comes out again." Sure enough, a few anxiously long minutes later, Filch exited the office, patted his left robe pocket contentedly and moved swiftly toward a staircase at the end of the corridor. Two things were immediately apparent to Harry. Filch was far more agile than Harry ever remembered the crotchety old man being, and the staircase was the one that led directly to the corridor that housed Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.
Ron obviously noticed some of this too. "Maybe," Ron said slowly, "maybe Mrs. Norris died or something – No, wait for it," he added at the sight of their skeptical faces. "Maybe she died and he's gone to memorialize the place where she was petrified. Maybe he's setting up a shrine or something."
"Well, it's a possibility," Hermione said kindly, and Ron glowed a bit. "I mean, he could have put flowers or a greeting card or a picture in his pocket, and it would explain the distracted behavior and the missing cat."
"There's only one way to find out," Harry said nodding toward the staircase. They ascended the steps silently and Harry quickly caught site of the caretaker as he rounded the bend in the corridor. If Ron was correct, Filch would likely stop just outside Myrtle's door and leave some memento. But when Harry peered around the bend, he saw that Filch never even paused or spared a glance toward the wall where the threatening messages had been written and Mrs. Norris had been found hanging from her tail in 1992. He instead pushed open Myrtle's door, stepped quietly inside, and glanced back over his shoulder as though checking for something before he closed the bathroom door behind him.
"What now?" Neville asked. Harry looked at Luna.
"Do you know a way we can see inside there without going in or being seen in any way ourselves?" he asked her.
"Hmm," Luna seemed to contemplate a long time. "We could use your cloak," she finally suggested.
"By the time we got it and came back, Filch could have finished his business here and left," Ron reproved her.
"Well…there's the window from the outside," she said serenely.
"Again, it would take too long to get brooms and fly up to the window. And Hermione doesn't fly," Harry said impatiently. He knew from something he had found in Ginny's memories that Luna was trying not to reveal something to the others. "Luna please," Harry encouraged her, "I know you can do this, and no one is going to think less of you for it. You're not a fraud."
Luna looked from Harry to Ginny and back to Harry again. She frowned but finally relented. "All right, but you all have to swear not to tell anyone I can do this."
They all swore a solemn pledge, and Luna pulled the wand from behind her ear. Neville watched his girlfriend anxiously, and Harry suddenly realized she had not even told him yet. He was feeling a little guilty for pushing her to share her secret like this, until he was distracted by the crystal ball she had just produced, as though from thin air. Her left hand was held at an odd angle over the ball while her right was pointed at Myrtle's bathroom door. The five Gryffindors stepped closer to look into the Ball.
An image of Filch showed in the crystal ball. He was pulling a wand out of his left pocket. He began to speak. Harry was not the only one who noticed he was standing between Myrtle's toilet and the sink that had never worked, the one Harry knew bore the crudely carved replica of a snake. Neville and Hermione gasped, but Ginny, Harry, and Ron were not at all surprised when the sink suddenly sank into the floor revealing an open tunnel below. Harry and Ron exchanged a knowing look.
"Should we follow him down, or go notify Dumbledore?" Ron asked, suddenly understanding the gravity of the situation. Harry knew Ron was thinking along the same lines as him: If this Filch was no squib, could speak parseltongue, and knew where to find the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets, then where was the real Filch, and how did this imposter get a lock of his hair?
"I can't think of anything more foolish than following him down that hole," Hermione complained as she took in the mischievous looks on her two best friends faces. Ron and Harry had locked gazes, and Ron smiled a crooked sort of smile.
"Hermione, if we take the time to go get a teacher, we could miss finding out what he's up to," Harry said. "He could be gone by the time we can convince someone to come down here. We have to find out what he's doing down in the Chamber of Secrets."
"Let's go," Harry said determinedly. "You all don't have to come along. In fact, someone should stay here to keep a look out, and someone else should be prepared to inform a teacher if we don't come back in twenty minutes or so."
"Luna and I will stay here," Neville said, "We can watch you in the crystal ball. If anything happens, we'll go to Dumbledore straight away."
"Sounds good to me," Ron agreed.
"Why can't we watch the Filch imposter through the crystal?" Hermione asked wisely. "That would be a lot safer."
"I won't be able to see any of you once you enter the Chamber," Luna informed her. "I tried in my first year when people were getting petrified. I tried to find the Chamber using the crystal. But I couldn't reach that far. My ability may have increased some since then, but I can't guarantee it."
Hermione set her jaw and crossed her arms. "Well, if we must go down, I'm going with you," she insisted. "There could be another Devil's Snare down there or something."
"Ginny, what about you, are you up to this?" Harry knew the Chamber held some dark and frightening memories for his girlfriend.
"This could be good therapy for me," she replied. "Maybe I can get over my fear of heights if I go back to the place where that fear first started."
"You're afraid of heights?" Neville asked incredulously. "How, then, do you play quidditch so well?"
"If I go fast enough, I forget to be afraid because I can't see the ground," Ginny responded. "I think I could really improve my game, though, if I could concentrate more on the quaffle than on keeping up my speed and ignoring the panic."
"Well, he's been down there five minutes or so already," Harry said, bringing the attention back to the opened entrance to the Chamber. "Are we all ready?"
"What if he catches us?" Hermione asked nervously. "How will we keep from getting killed? That could be one of Vold..demort's most powerful followers down there, for all we know."
"We'll have to keep out of sight," Harry said. "I've been working on the disillusionment charm. I planned on teaching it to the D.A. soon. I think I can manage it on all of us."
"O.K., but be careful," Hermione warned, knowing the dangers of the spell.
"Here goes," Harry said, pointing the wand at himself first. When he had successfully disillusioned himself, he cast the spell on Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. They whispered their goodbyes to Neville and Luna, and entered Myrtle's domain as quietly as they could.
"Who's there?" Myrtle asked as she saw and heard the door open and close. "Is someone here? I don't like people sneaking up on me!" She seemed to be getting a little too excited.
"It's just me," Harry said.
"Harry? Why can't I see you?" Myrtle asked.
"Nevermind that," Harry said. "We have to get into the Chamber. That man who went down there, do you know who he is?"
"I thought it was that nasty old Mr. Filch, but then he pulled out a wand. I don't know who it was. Are you going down to find him?" Myrtle seemed extraordinarily happy all of a sudden.
"Yes, but I have no intention of dying, so don't get your hopes up." Harry stood on the edge of the open tunnel, took Ginny's invisible hand in his own, and counted, "One, two, three!" They jumped on three. They slid down the tube hand in hand. Moments later they heard Ron and Hermione slide down as well.
"You boys weren't kidding when you said this place was disgusting. At least the Basilisk is dead now," Hermione commented in a hoarse whisper.
"Here's where the ceiling caved in when Lockhart tried to Obliviate our memories," Harry said, indicating the pile and the small hole at the top.
"Let's secure that into a solid rock wall with a slightly larger hole before we climb through. We don't need it coming down on us as soon as we get to the other side." Hermione, Harry thought, always knew just what to do.
As soon as Hermione had secured the wall, the four of them climbed through to the other side. Harry found himself passing through some very familiar, very foreboding passages as they approached the entrance to the chamber. He hissed a command to the chamber's main doors, and the friends stepped into what Harry considered Salazar Slytherin's private throne room. Ginny suddenly froze, staring at the giant statue of old Slytherin.
"Are you O.K, Gin?" Harry asked worriedly.
"It's…it's just…."
"It's all right to be afraid," Harry comforted her. He felt her squeeze his hand, and wished he could see her expression.
"Where did the imposter go?" Ginny suddenly changed the subject.
"I don't know," Harry said, "I was sure we'd find him in here."
"Maybe he heard us following him and pulled on an invisibility cloak or used the disillusionment charm," Ron suggested.
"Be absolutely silent," Harry said. "We'll wait behind this snake statue for him to come out so he doesn't try to walk right through us when he leaves the Chamber. He's probably gone into the tunnels or something."
Just then, a very familiar looking rat with one very silvery front foot came scurrying out from behind the statue of Slytherin. The rat ran right past the four hidden students and transformed back into the Filch imposter just before climbing through the still open door of the Chamber. As soon as he had gone and closed the door behind him, Harry removed the disillusionment charm from himself and his friends.
"That had to have been Petigrew using Polyjuice potion," Harry said, his eyes betraying both the fear and the anger he felt.
"That explains why he wasn't on the map," Hermione surmised. "He would know better than anyone that you have it, Harry. He must have made himself unplottable so you'd never see his name and know he was here."
"But why is he here?" Harry asked, "What is he up to? And how is he able to speak parseltongue?"
"The same way I could," Ginny reminded Harry. "He probably allowed Voldemort access to his mind so he could speak through him."
"He came from behind that statue," Ron pointed out. "If we go back there, maybe we can find out what he was doing."
"And maybe you can all explain what you're doing," the sneering, malicious voice of their potions master spoke from the doorway of the Chamber. Harry whipped around to face Snape. But he knew he had no defense. He and his friends had been caught red handed.
"Headmasters office, all of you, immediately!" Snape ordered. "You're lookout team is already there by now."
"Professor Snape, it's Petigrew, he's impersonating Filch!" Harry tried desperately to make their efforts bear some fruit.
"Not another word, Potter, or I shall silence you myself. It seems you have not learned your lesson since your trip to the Ministry last spring. You're still charging off, thoughtless of the consequences, endangering others in the process." Snape seemed to be enjoying this far too much. Harry and his friends followed Snape back to the stone wall Hermione had secured, and stopped just under the pipe that led back up to the bathroom. Snape levitated Ron, Hermione, and then Ginny up to the top. He had just turned his wand toward Harry when a sudden explosion of pain caused Harry to collapse to the floor, hands clasped to his forehead.
"Potter, close your mind! Do you hear me? Close it immediately!" Snape's voice betrayed the terror he felt. Harry barely registered that his connection to Voldemort was about to give Snape's loyalties away before the hissing, nearly screaming voice of his enemy filled his mind and blocked out all reality. In that moment, it was just Harry and Voldemort surrounded by a void of timeless space.
"Return to me, young Potter. Return to me! Come and face me if you dare! Come and join me if you wish to live."
"NEVER!" Harry cried out. "I will destroy you, Voldemort. I will not let you continue your reign of terror."
"I could kill you now," Voldemort hissed. "I could destroy you in this very instant!"
"If you could," Harry reasoned, "You'd have already done it! GET OUT, GET OUT OF MY MIND!" Harry struggled to force his enemy out of his mind. All his power was focused on the effort. When he finally succeeded, he blinked open his eyes and discovered he was no longer laying on the bone strewn floor of the Chamber's entrance, but in a bed in the hospital wing. Ginny sat in a chair by his side running her hands through her very messy hair, her face smudged with grime from the Chamber.
"Ginny," Harry whispered, his voice hoarse.
"Harry," she squealed and flung herself on top of him. "Harry, I was so worried! I thought he was going to kill you!"
"He certainly wanted to," Harry croaked. "How much trouble are we in?"
"Loads! Dumbledore says we have to serve a month of detentions each when we get back from holiday. I've never seen him so angry. But I had a feeling he wasn't as mad at us as he was at the situation. Petigrew has been right here under his nose since the beginning of the year, and even he didn't know. They're going to seal up the Chamber entrance in Myrtle's bathroom."
"No, they can't do that," Harry exclaimed sitting up too quickly and finding out the hard way that he was sporting a wicked headache. He leaned back again before continuing weakly, "They have to find out what that rat was up to first. They have to go down there and stop whatever plans have been set into motion already."
"That's what Ron and I said, too. But Dumbledore and Snape both seemed to think that Voldemort would be best thwarted if he were denied access to the school from the Chamber."
"There are other ways to get in here," Harry told her. "The map shows them all. Some are caved in, but you can still get into Hogwarts from Honeydukes and from the Shrieking Shack. Entry isn't Voldemort's aim. There's something else he's after."
"You mean besides you?" Ginny chided him.
"He asked me to join him again," Harry said.
"I know."
"He needs me."
"What?"
"He must think there is something only I can do, like getting the Prophecy for him, but something else. He thinks he needs me for something. He should have killed me down there, but he didn't. There has to be a reason why he asked me to join him instead of just wanting me dead as he's wanted in the past."
"That's crazy, Harry," Ginny argued. "He was just trying to trick you."
"Maybe, but I still should tell Dumbledore about this."
"Tell me about what, Harry?" Dumbledore asked as he entered the hospital wing and approached Harry's bed.
"Professor," Harry said, relief and fear washing over him in turn. "I'm sorry sir. I know I shouldn't have gone down there."
"You would have done better to have contacted a member of the Order, that is for certain. Voldemort is now aware that we know he's been using the Chamber. He will most assuredly move his operation elsewhere, now, and we will have to search him out again."
"You mean, the Order knew he was using the Chamber?" Harry was astounded, and beginning to feel a little foolish.
"Yes, and no. We knew he was planning something that had to do with the Chamber, but we were not aware that he had planted Mr. Petigrew here in Mr. Filch's place. I am quite grateful to you to have discovered that piece of information. Members of the Order can now be alerted to Mr. Filch's disappearance and begin to search for him." Dumbledore paused for a few seconds and then asked, "What was it you were anxious to tell me, then?"
"Voldemort, when he invaded my mind, he asked me to join him. He said he had the power to kill me through the mind link and would unless I joined him. The last time we met, he wanted nothing more than to kill me. If you hadn't shown up when you did, he would have. Now he wants to bargain with me. Why does he need me alive now? What does he want with me."
"I would wager what he wants is not you, but the body you inhabit. He would probably like to lure you to him, destroy you, and possess your body as his own. The one he created in the cauldron is flawed, you see. It's starting to deteriorate. Many sources tell us that he grows physically weaker by the day. A simple 'kiss' and he could simply discard his own makeshift body and inhabit your young, soulless one."
"Why mine?" Harry asked. "He could have any of the young death eaters at his command kissed and take their bodies. Why does he want mine?"
"Because yours is already connected to his spirit through that scar. He would become infinitely more powerful if he could fulfill the prophecy and take your body for his own in the process." Dumbledore explained further. "I should congratulate you on your excellent mastery of Occlumency, by the way. You managed first to block his view of your physical surroundings, and then to cast him out entirely. That was really rather impressive."
Harry smiled at the praise. "Professor, I don't think you should seal up the Chamber, at least not yet. Someone from the Order should go down and investigate what Petigrew was doing down there."
"Perhaps you're right, Harry. But once the investigation has been completed, I fully intend to seal that Chamber. It has been the cause of enough trouble for this school already. I had thought that knowing where it was, we'd be able to secure it with guard duties," Harry reflected that this was probably what Snape had been doing when he came across Neville and Luna and the open Chamber entrance. "But now it is clear to me that this is insufficient. The entrance will have to be permanently sealed."
It was with heavy hearts and guilty consciences that Harry and his friends boarded the Hogwarts Express the next morning.
"I'm sorry I got us into so much trouble," Harry said to Ron and Hermione as they were stepping off the train at Kings Cross Station.
"Well," Ron sighed, "detentions I can live with. It's mum that worries me. If she got wind of this from Dumbledore, I'm a dead man!"
"I won't let you shoulder that load alone," Harry returned. "This was my idea. Snape was right. I took no thought for our safety."
"You were thinking of the safety of the rest of the wizarding world," Ginny said. "We all were. If we had to do it again, I doubt we'd do anything differently."
"We were all in on it together, Harry," Hermione said.
"No, I convinced you to come. You told me not to do it."
"If we hadn't gone down, no one would know that Mr. Filch was being impersonated by Petigrew. Snape would never have looked twice at a rat scurrying across the floor."
"Let's just hope Mum doesn't know," Ginny said, having just spotted her mother in the crowd.
"She doesn't look too happy," Ron commented. The four of them walked over to where Molly Weasley stood with Mrs. Granger.
"So nice to see you dears," Mrs. Weasley said smiling at them. "How was your term?"
"Um…" Ron looked down at his mum. Despite his being quite a few inches taller than her, it was plainly obvious he was still deathly afraid of her.
"It was fine, mum," Ginny answered quickly.
"Really, well I'm glad for that. But it seems a month of detentions wasn't enough. Perhaps clean up duties at the house will help you all remember why you'll be getting those detentions."
Ron and Ginny walked sulkily all the way to Mrs. Granger's vehicle which was waiting in the parking lot to take them all back to Grimmauld Place. Harry and Hermione exchanged a few worried glances, but otherwise remained silent.
Back at Grimmauld Place, though they were all put to work almost immediately, no one seemed to pay any further attention to them. The Order members shuffled in and out at such an alarming pace, the four friends wondered what on earth was going on and whether the commotion had anything to do with Percy or Mr. Filch. Aside from the initial greeting they received from Mrs. Weasley and Mrs. Granger, no one seemed to have time to notice what the four were up to. They worked in the drawing room, dusting and sweeping, and related to Hermione the tale of Ginny's Billywig sting. Their laughter seemed to ease the burden of the work. Lupin stopped to say hi for a moment, but was gone again as quickly as he had come. Harry was extremely grateful for the pleasant distraction Ginny created for him, as his thoughts often turned toward Christmas a year ago, with Sirius there and Mr. Weasley in St. Mungo's. It had been the best and the worst Christmas Harry had ever experienced. It was certainly a memorable one.
On Christmas Eve, Ron and Hermione sat snuggled together by the fire in the kitchen while Harry and Ginny wrapped a few more presents at the table. Harry had decided to put a picture of Sirius that had been taken last year next to the stockings on the mantle. The smiling, waving image made Harry feel almost as if his godfather were still in the house. But it also made him miss him all the more. Harry sighed and looked away from the picture, and Ginny reached out for his hand.
"We can take it down if it hurts you."
"No, I don't want him to go away completely, yet. It will be all right. Let's make some Christmas cookies or something."
"Great idea," Hermione called to them. "I'll get the flour and sugar."
"I'll get the eggs and vanilla," Ginny piped in.
"I'll get a bowl," said Ron.
"I'll stir," came a quiet voice from the doorway. They all turned around to see who had spoken.
"PERCY!" Ginny squealed, and ran over to him. She threw her arms around him and squeezed as hard as she could. He winced and staggered, and she backed off, keeping a steadying hand on his elbow. Ron came over and helped Percy sit down, smiling happily. Dumbledore, Snape, and Lupin came in behind Percy, looking grave.
"Mr. Weasley, Remus will show you to your room so you can rest. We will have a healer in shortly to look at your injuries," Dumbledore said. Harry could not understand why they all looked so upset if the mission to rescue Percy had finally been a success. Still, he did not entertain any notion that Dumbledore would explain it. It was sure to be something Order related.
"What's wrong?" Ginny asked, ignoring Hermione and Harry's quelling looks. "Did everyone return from Malfoy Manor safely?"
"Yes, Miss Weasley, they did," Dumbledore smiled sadly at her. "I am afraid, though, that I cannot explain any further."
'Just as I expected,' Harry thought.
Well, as long as everyone is all right.
Percy was ushered out of the room and up the stairs to the room where Phineas Nigellus' portrait hung. After he had gone the three Order members grabbed some drinks and a bite to eat before heading back out of the kitchen and into the Study to begin another meeting. Fred and George popped in through the fire, then, and mumbled hellos to the four before walking across the kitchen toward the door into the hall. Fred stopped just short of opening it, though, and tossed four flesh colored balls at them. "Merry Christmas," he spat gloomily, and he and George crossed the threshold and entered the meeting. Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione stared at the gifts a moment before looking warily at one another.
"Dare we use them?" Hermione asked.
"I think that was their intention," Ron replied, "though I'm not sure we should go along with it."
"I wonder what they want us to know about," Harry said thoughtfully. "It would have to be big for them to risk their status in the Order for our sakes."
"It's probably about Percy and the rescue mission," Ginny surmised. Curiosity got the better of them, then, and they unraveled the extendable ears and listened in on the meeting.
"…and he's not even been harmed that much." Snape was saying. "It just seems suspicious. The Dark Lord has used the Imperious Curse to ruin reputations before, but never has he given someone the Dark Mark unless that person has proven he is loyal to nothing but Him. It has only been my ability as an Occlumens that has kept him from destroying me thus far."
"Percy insists it was done to make us believe he had joined them," Mrs. Weasley retorted. "He would never join the Death Eaters. I for one believe his story."
"What about the Dementors at Diagon Alley?" George asked. "We know Percy sent them."
"And Mr. Filch, it was Percy who put him under the Imperious Curse so that You-Know-Who could replace him with a spy," said Fred.
"It was Percy who concocted the Polyjuice Potion for Filch's replacement," said George.
"Filch himself testified to it," Fred added.
Mrs. Weasley's muffled sob could be heard, and Mr. Weasley sounded sickened when he spoke. "We should give him one more opportunity to prove he was forced to do all that. If he remains loyal to the Order, we should believe him. If not, he has no idea of our whereabouts, due to the precautions we've already taken. If necessary, he will be expelled."
"I agree with you, Arthur," Dumbledore replied. "But, how shall we test his loyalty?"
"Give him enough rope to hang himself," Fred said.
"What do you mean, Mr. Weasley?" Dumbledore asked.
"Send him on a mission he thinks is really important to the Order," Fred responded.
"But is really just a cover," George added.
"Assign him to deliver a vital message to the right person," said Fred.
"If the message gets back to the Death Eaters, Snape will know, and Percy's loyalty will be tarnished." George surmised.
"If the message stays with those in the Order, then he can be trusted," Fred concluded.
"So it shall be," Dumbledore agreed. And Order business turned to the latest raids and destruction caused by the Death Eaters.
Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione looked at one another in astonishment.
"They think Percy's a spy for Vol…Voldemort?" Hermione voiced the question they were all asking themselves.
"Wow!" Ron said breathlessly, and Ginny's face fell into a frown. Harry hoped for the sake of all the Weasleys that the Order members would be able to prove Percy's loyalty accurately. He thought it was better to know, one way or the other, than to keep the family torn on the issue. He was sure the twins believed Percy to be guilty. He didn't think Ginny agreed. And Ron was very obviously undecided.
Christmas morning was a simple, but pleasant affair. Lupin, Tonks, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, and the four Hogwarts students gathered around the tree in the drawing room. Harry had given Ginny a gold chain with a Griffin pendant which she wore adoringly the rest of the day. He had received from her a polished black stone set into a handsome ring. The stone would turn red if a person with malicious intent was near. Such stones were often carried by the best aurors, according to Tonks, and Harry looked admiringly at the ring. He placed it on his middle finger and determined to wear it constantly. Hermione had given him a book entitled, The Gifted Teacher, Instructions for the Instructor. And Ron had given him a special edition copy of Quidditch Weekly, a newer magazine describing the best teams in the world and detailing those that were likely to be in the runnings for the Quidditch World Cup this year. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had given him another jumper, green, with a large 'H' on the front, and an assortment of homemade pies and candies. There was a package of treacle tarts from Hagrid, and Harry noted with satisfaction that they had been purchased at Honeydukes. Hagrid had apparently been too busy with Order work to make them himself.
Dinner was enormous, and most of the Order came by to share in a bite of it, though most came and went again without staying long. Harry saw Mrs. Weasley overfill a plate and sneak up the stairs with it, presumably to take it to Percy, who had not emerged from his room since his arrival.
Four days later, when the frantic pace of the Order and the hushed tones of the Weasleys began to get on Harry's nerves, Percy finally emerged from the room. He was wearing slippers and a dark blue bathrobe, and he seemed a mess. Harry could just make out the edge of the skull tattoo under Percy's sleeve, and the sight of it gave him the chills. Percy slunk into the bathroom and emerged again nearly an hour later. His business-like, well groomed appearance back in place, Harry could almost forget about the mark he had seen on his arm. When Percy joined the others for breakfast, the room went quiet and a shadow of doubt mingled with worry crept over the occupants. Percy sat down, smiled wanly, and helped himself to a plateful of pancakes. As he reached for the syrup, his sleeve fell back, fully revealing the mark, and relieving Ron and Ginny of the burden of keeping their knowledge of the matter a secret. Ginny gasped, Ron looked ashen, and Percy froze, mid-reach as they stared at his arm. He pulled it back quickly and asked Ron to pass the syrup to him, apparently hoping to avoid the explanation a little longer. But Ron's stare simply moved from Percy's arm to his face.
"What's this then?" Ron asked bluntly.
"Ron," Percy sighed, but Ron cut him off.
"Have you joined them then? Are you here as a spy for the other side?"
"No, and no. I am here because Dumbledore and the others brought me here. They wouldn't do that if they thought me guilty of anything related to the Death Eaters. It is my intention to join the Order and do what I can to defeat the Dark Lord."
"You called him the Dark Lord. Only Death Eaters do that," Ron accused.
"Snape calls him that," Hermione interjected.
"All right, Death Eaters and former Death Eaters, then. Which are you Percy?" Ron went on mercilessly.
"Ron, please. You don't really think I have ever, would ever…" But it was clear to anyone that this was exactly what Ron thought. He was not alone either. The twins were watching this conversation unfold as though it were a muggle film they had wanted to see for ages. Percy's face fell and he pushed his plate away from himself.
"I see. Even my own family doubts my loyalty. I have been tortured and imprisoned by the Dark Lord, kept without adequate food for weeks on end, and been rescued by the Order, only to have my family turn against me."
"Percy, dear," Mrs. Weasley began, "you can't blame them for asking. Just tell them what you told us."
"No, Mother, I can blame them. I was a Gryffindor, a brother, a friend to these people," Percy indicated the twins, Ron, Ginny, Hermione, and Harry with a single sweeping motion, "But when I need them the most, they accuse me of wrongdoing. It's not my fault. But, I can see that they will not accept that. I am sorry to have burdened you all with my presence." Percy turned and walked back up the stairs. They heard clunking and scraping sounds and Percy reemerged from the room, his trunk packed and his wand in hand.
"Mother, may I have your permission to use the Burrow until I can find lodgings of my own?"
"Of course, dear, but won't you please reconsider leaving us?"
"Mother, my presence here only causes strife. If and when you have all come to the conclusion that I am not a spy for the Death Eaters, come and see me. Until then, Happy Christmas." And with that said, Percy stepped over to the fire, grabbed a handful of floo powder, stepped in, and was gone. Those who were left looked sadly around at each other, and Ginny and Ron looked determinedly toward their mother for an explanation.
"He told us he was forced to take the mark. He said You-Know-Who wanted to make us think he was a Death Eater so we would throw him out. He says You-Know-Who is just waiting for us to reject him so he can use Percy for his plans. He thought you would know him better than that." Mrs. Weasley looked saddened and disappointed. A tear escaped her eye, and she turned away from the table and left the kitchen.
"Well," said Fred after his Mum was gone, "It's always been the same, hasn't it?"
"Too right, bro," George replied, "Perfect Percy can do no wrong, even the Dark Mark on his arm is disputable evidence of his character."
"Do you really think he's a spy, though?" Ron asked.
"It's altogether possible," Fred answered.
"It was much too easy, the rescue I mean," George added.
"It was as though You-Know-Who wanted us to take him in so he could get a glimpse of Headquarters and possibly have someone in the Order who could help him succeed against us," Fred explained.
"But," and Harry was unsure how to say this, "I…I don't think he wants to be a Death Eater. I saw him. They tortured him. He refused to do Voldemort's bidding, even wished for death at one point." Harry stopped when he saw their disbelieving expressions. "What?" he asked.
"No offense, Harry," said Fred, "But You-Know-Who has planted false visions with you before."
"How can you be sure he wasn't doing that again?" asked George.
Harry fought to control his temper. These were, after all, accurate observations. But Voldemort had seemed surprised by his and Ginny's intrusion that night. How could he have planted the vision if he was surprised when Harry received it? But perhaps he had only been surprised at Ginny's entrance into it. Harry sighed and took one last stab on Percy's behalf, "We'll just have to see, won't we. He'll prove himself eventually, one way or the other. I, though, will not give up hope for him until I'm convinced beyond doubt that he really has joined the other side."
Ginny gave Harry a grateful smile, and Ron looked as though he was willing to go along with this. Fred and George looked knowingly at each other and George finished off the conversation at last by saying, "We'll see his true colors in a day or two then, won't we."
The next seventy two hours were the longest Harry thought he had ever endured. But when the news finally came, it was even worse than anyone ever expected. Mr. Weasley came into the house through the front door, his face contorted with rage, singe marks in his thinning hair.
"Well, we have our answer about Percy," he said, and everyone's attention was immediately upon him. Mr. Weasley held up a small wooden sign, burnt around the edges, still smoldering in one spot. "He burned the whole place to the ground. Nothing is left. I'm sorry Molly." A tear escaped the usually jovial man's eye, and Harry saw the word Burrow inscribed on the wooden sign. An inscription below said simply, "the spy," leaving little doubt as to who had burned the Burrow to the ground. Mrs. Weasley crumpled and the twins just caught her before she hit the ground.