Chapter 11 – Mister Malfoy

Ron came running out of the woods, carrying Hermione in his arms. "Harry! Ginny! Someone – Help me!" Ron yelled, looking around. But he soon realised that something wasn't quite right. All the lights had come back on and there was a small crowd gathering around someone, or something, in the centre of the dance floor. Then it suddenly dawned on him what was going on… Harry!

He pushed his way through the concerned onlookers, still carrying Hermione in his arms, until he finally reached the centre, where he set Hermione down beside Harry, who was obviously having another one of his visions.

"Ron!" Ginny exclaimed, throwing her arms around her brother "Harry… he's…"

"I know" he said hesitantly and gestured towards Hermione "Look"

"Oh no! This can't be happening again!" Ginny squealed "What should we do?"

Ron got up and quickly scanned the crowd "Seamus!" he called, summoning him "can you find Dumbledore? Quick…"

"No need Mr Weasley – I'm already here" Dumbledore's voice thundered over the anxious whispers. Everyone quickly turned their attention to Dumbledore, who was now wading his way through the gathering.

"Mr Weasley – can you tell me briefly what happened?"

"Yes Sir… Hermione and I went for a walk into those woods over there" he pointed "and then Malfoy pitched up and started saying all this stuff about how he planted the book in the library but he was quite happy to let me know it wasn't him behind the trances…" Ron paused, eyeing his fellow classmates nervously and lowered his voice slightly "He implied that it was Voldermort who was behind Hermione's trances…" Ron paused again as the crowd around him gasped in disbelief "Then we got into a fight and he told me to look over at Hermione… and I found her like this!" Ron was rambling but Dumbledore was listening intently.

"Mmmm… and then what happened?"

"Well – Malfoy said something about 'doing what he was sent to do' or something and then he ran off deeper into the woods!"

"Really…" Dumbledore said pensively. And then he rose suddenly, pointed his wand at the trees and chanted "Divulgio!"

The whole forest around the hall began to dissolve until all that was left was a sort of fairy dust, which lingered in the air for a moment before disappearing altogether. And then suddenly - THUD! A rather stunned Malfoy, who had speedily been running deeper and deeper into the 'forest', suddenly collided with the cold, hard West wall of the Great Hall. Although the forest had been bewitched to seem much bigger than the Great Hall, it suddenly became quite amusing at how long Malfoy must have been running for, only to land up a few metres away from everybody else. And then to crash into a wall! It wasn't long before loud bursts of laughter erupted from the spectators.

"Go Malfoy!" someone scoffed

"Brilliant Malfoy! I didn't know you were providing the entertainment for tonight!"

Even Ron, who up until now had been worried sick, could not help laughing and he secretly thought to himself how Harry and Hermione would've loved to be there to witness this momentous event – Malfoy, finally getting what he deserved! This thought spurred him into action – he quickly strode over to where Malfoy lay groaning but Dumbledore got there first. By this stage, Professor McGonagall had started rounding up the majority of the seventh-years, telling them that the Ball was over and they should return to the safety of their dormitories until further instruction. She allowed Ginny and Ron to remain behind - Ginny stayed with Harry and Hermione, while Ron watched eagerly as Dumbledore began to interrogate Malfoy.

"Sit up, Mr Malfoy" Dumbledore ordered sternly

While Malfoy never usually did what he was told, there was something in Dumbledore's voice that frightened him just enough to obey the instruction. Ron had never seen Dumbledore so angry, and he felt a bit unsettled himself.

"Now – Tell me exactly what is going on here" Dumbledore continued in the same gruff manner

"I will not!" Malfoy said defiantly

"You will not?" Dumbledore thundered, taking out his wand and aiming it at Malfoy's throat.

"I mean, I can't" he said slightly more timidly. Dumbledore glared at him.

"Mister Malfoy, my patience with you is growing thin. For years, you have disregarded our rules; been nothing but arrogant and rude to your superiors and your peers; and although we've always suspected your allegiance to Voldermort, we've never been able to prove it. If it was not for your father's generous contributions to this school, and the minister for magic's insistence that we have you here, I would personally have removed you from this school years ago!"

Ron stood in absolute amazement at Dumbledore's shocking words – he had never seen Dumbledore lose his cool like that- had Dumbledore finally had enough? Ginny had also made her way over to them now, completely mesmerised by Dumbledore's rage and curious about what would happen next.

"Now - " Dumbledore continued firmly "Must I go and get some Veritaserum or are you going to tell me the truth right now?" he still had his wand pointed at Malfoy's neck.

Malfoy squirmed uncomfortably. He knew that if he told Dumbledore anything, Voldermort would surely have his head on a platter!

"Bring on the truth potion!" he spat. At least, that way, he could tell Voldermort he'd been forced to tell. They had tied him down and forced the Veritaserum down his throat! Yes, that's what he'd say.

"Professor?" a weak voice drifted through the air.

"Harry!" Ginny shrieked and ran over to him. Dumbledore and Ron turned to see Harry sitting up.

"Need to speak… Dumbledore" he mumbled, stumbling to his feet and rubbing his head "My glasses…"

"Here" Ginny quickly gave them to Harry.

"Thanks" he said, looking around hesitantly, before finally finding what he was after "Professor Dumbledore!" he yelled, quickly running up to him.

"Harry – are you quite alright?" Dumbledore said, his demeanour suddenly quite different.

"Yes, I'm fine! But Professor – Hermione! I know! My vision – I saw!" he exclaimed excitedly

"Harry – calm down" Dumbledore instructed "Tell me slowly"

"Voldermort. I know where he's keeping Hermione!" he said triumphantly but then paused "the only thing is – I don't know how to get there…"

"Ah…" said Dumbledore, turning back to Malfoy "Well, perhaps Mr Malfoy can help us out there…"

Malfoy just smirked.

"Ron, Ginny" Dumbledore said "Please go and fetch Professor Snape – he's still in the dungeon, I believe. And tell him to bring some Veritaserum with him"

"But Sir…" Ron objected

"Mr Weasley – I assure you Miss Granger is not going anywhere. Harry and I are here to watch over her. And I do not feel it is safe to send your sister off into the castle alone – so please – go!"

"Yes Sir" he replied quickly and the two of them hastily scuttled off to the dungeon.

"Stupefy!" Dumbledore yelled suddenly and Malfoy instantly fell into a deep sleep. Harry raised his eyebrows in questioning – "Professor?"

"Harry" Dumbledore continued earnestly "there's something I must to tell you" he said "and I do not want Mr Malfoy to overhear our conversation"

"Okay" Harry said, an ominous feeling rising inside his chest.

"Harry – I can't tell you how I know it but there is something about tonight – I can feel it. You must go and fight Voldermort, Harry, tonight."

"I know Professor"

"No, Harry – I don't think you quite understand. I think tonight is THE night. After tonight, if you succeed, the war could be over"

"You mean…"

"Yes, tonight is the night you and Voldermort must go up against each other, Harry – and only one of you can win"

"Yes, I know the Prophecy Professor…" Harry said calmly

"You must understand Harry - I cannot go with you. This is something you have to face alone – you must fight him, alone"

"I understand Professor"

"There's one more thing, Harry – Ron cannot go with you either. He will want to – and he will try to – but it is absolutely imperative that he stays behind"

"But I don't understand Professor, I thought you said he was the only one who could bring Hermione back…"

"Yes Harry, but you see, true love transcends the physical – his love for Hermione is strong enough to save her, but not in the way he thinks. He needs to stay here, with her, so that when Hermione's soul is set free again, his love can summon it back to where it belongs. He cannot do that if he is helping to fight Voldermort with you – and I don't want to imagine what will happen to Hermione's soul then! She will be lost, forever!"

"But how? Ron will never let me go without him…"

"Don't worry about that Harry. I will take care of everything. Now, when I said you must go alone, I did not mean totally alone. I will send the Order after you, to fight the Death Eaters, but that is all they can do for you Harry. You alone must fight Voldermort. If you defeat him, Harry, the war will be over and Hermione will be set free. If you fail, however… well, I'm sure you know the cost. Are you ready, Harry?"

"I was born ready!" Harry exclaimed "I've been waiting for this moment for a long time, Sir. It's time Voldermort paid… for my parents… for Sirius… It's time!" Harry declared angrily

Dumbledore knew that Harry was still harbouring feelings of anger and resentment over Sirius's death – and while he realised it wasn't good for Harry to lose control, he also knew that that very anger might just be what Harry needed to encourage him not to give up in his fight against Voldermort. Yes, the time had come – Harry was ready.

"Good. Now…" Dumbledore pointed his wand back at Malfoy "Enervate!"

Malfoy came back to life abruptly "Where am… Oh" he looked at Dumbledore who was still towering over him. Dumbledore was staring at him intensely and Harry suddenly clicked - Dumbledore didn't need Veritaserum to find out what Malfoy was hiding – he was a Legimens - he could read Malfoy's thoughts!

"Professor – Ron, and Ginny – you didn't actually send them to go fetch Veritaserum, did you?" Harry said, suddenly comprehending Dumbledore's plan "you just sent them on a wild goose chase to get rid of them…"

"Yes, I'm sorry, Harry - but they wouldn't understand why you have to go alone. Not straight away. It will be easier for you to leave without them here" he said, turning back to Malfoy. He pointed his wand at Malfoy but did not utter a word. Instead he closed his eyes and began to mumble something under his breath. Malfoy face contorted, as if in terrible pain, and Harry suddenly felt a bit sorry for him – he remembered exactly how he'd felt when he'd tried to stop Professor Snape from reading his mind during Occlumency lessons – it was torture.

"The more you fight, the worse it's going to be" he commented to Malfoy, before he even realised what he'd said.

Malfoy just snorted in rebellion and glared at Dumbledore "Is that the best you can do?" he taunted

Dumbledore straightened out and began to chant louder. Suddenly Malfoy cried out in anguish and his whole body twitched uncontrollably. Finally, Dumbledore stopped what he was doing and exclaimed "Aha! I suspected as much! Thank you, Mister Malfoy. I'm sorry I had to resort to this but we had no other choice – there's no time"

Malfoy just lay there, motionless, unable to speak. Harry looked at Dumbledore anxiously.

"Don't worry, Harry – he'll be alright, he's just in shock. I'll get Hagrid to see to him – we don't want him running off to warn Voldermort, now do we?"

Harry still looked unsure.

"Ah sweet, Potter's worried about me" Malfoy suddenly blurted out, although he still hadn't moved.

Harry suddenly felt a lot better "And to think I actually felt sorry for you, you git" he said angrily "but thanks – I feel a lot better now – knowing you got exactly what you deserved! And I can't wait to see what Voldermort does with you, once he finds out you betrayed him…"

"That's enough" Dumbledore intervened "Harry… it's a portkey. Malfoy's been using a portkey to travel back and forth from Voldermort's hideout"

"It won't work, you know – he's expecting you to come! He's expecting you to try and save the Mudblood!" Malfoy taunted.

"Yes, it is likely that Voldermort will be expecting Harry. But he will not be expecting you, Mr Malfoy!"

"What?" Malfoy looked concerned

"You see, I figured Harry could use a bit of an advantage, since Voldermort has been one step ahead of us this whole time. So I took extra precautions. I've been brewing a potion of my own. And with a little help from Professor Snape's Brew-fast powder, I would say it's just about ready, and almost complete…" Dumbledore withdrew a small container from his robes and opened the lid – the aroma started wafting through the air "All except for one ingredient, that is" he said, looking at Malfoy expectantly.

"Urgh!" Malfoy blurted out "that's disgusting – what is it… Ouch!" Dumbledore had reached over and pulled a single blond hair from Malfoy's head "There we go! Potion complete." He stated calmly, winking at Harry. Malfoy looked on in horror as he, too, realised what the potion was.

"Polyjuice potion!" Harry blurted out, without thinking.

"Yes, Harry" Dumbledore's eyes twinkled "I believe you're familiar with it?"

Harry just nodded sheepishly, remembering the incident back in Second year that had left poor Hermione with the face and tail of a cat. You see, Polyjuice potion enabled its drinker to temporarily impersonate someone else, so long as something that belonged to that particular person, for example, a hair off their head, was added to the potion. Poor Hermione had unknowingly ended up with a cat's hair, and found out the hard way that it was not wise to mess around with potions, however harmless they may seem. Harry had not thought much about it before, but he realised now that Dumbledore probably knew about all their little 'adventures' and he wondered why Dumbledore had never said anything about them…

"Harry" Dumbledore smiled, bringing him back to reality "You'll have one hour only but I think you know the drill" he winked at Harry and motioned for him to take the container.

"You want me to become Malfoy?" Harry asked slowly

"Yes Harry, don't you see, he'll never see it coming"

Harry grinned at this thought, and gave Malfoy one of his best smirks.

"C'mon, Harry, drink up… they'll be back soon" Dumbledore urged. Harry took a swig of the vile-smelling potion and resisted the urge to regurgitate it – it really made his stomach turn. But he soon forgot how terrible the potion tasted - he was sprouting blond hair all over his head! He screwed his face up in disgust – "I'm… I'm Malfoy!" he exclaimed, not liking the fact at all. Malfoy shot him a dirty look, but Harry could see the anxiousness creeping into Malfoy's eyes.

"Quick Harry, over here" Dumbledore gestured "The portkey is in the library – it's a book called 'Evil Will Rise Again' in the restricted section, under Dark Arts. It's in the 7th aisle on the left-hand side… Go now… you don't have much time"

"But Professor, I haven't told you where to send the Order…"

"No need Harry – Mr Malfoy helped in that area already…"

"So then you know… he's at…"

"Godric's Hollow?" Dumbledore completed "yes, I know, Harry. I don't think it is a mere co-incidence either. He chose that place, because it has special significance to you, Harry. So be careful"

"I will Professor" Harry said, realising suddenly that this could be the last time he might see Dumbledore, and he instinctively turned to give him a hug.

"Professor – please – tell Ginny I love her. She's everything to me… And Ron, and Hermione, please tell them…"

"Tell them yourself, Harry, when you return" Dumbledore smiled, not allowing him to think that this was goodbye "Now go – before it's too late! Good luck, Harry – I've done all I can to help – now the rest is up to you…"

Harry turned and quickly set off to the library, hoping against all hope that he would not run into Ron and Ginny on his way out.