This chapter is dedicated to Storyspindler who did in fact update "Prophecy of the Phoenix" before this got up. More than a month before.
Chapter 21
The Broken Oath
David didn't get much sleep that night and ended up pacing in front of the fireplace around 1 AM. Albus had known. He had assumed that at this point he would safely be an unknown entity. He had simply gone to Albus in order to get some answers, but had ended up with more questions.
He quietly snuck in to Courtney's room and retrieved the invisibility cloak. Then he moved out of the suite and silently through the hallways to the library.
He had some research to do.
Wan rays of morning light crept across the main room and found David sitting up reading with a scroll full of notes beside him. He had not slept at all that night. He was trying to figure out what Albus had meant about releasing him from the oath. His gut told him that Albus would not ask it without reason and so he had to find the reason—not to mention how to do it if he felt it necessary.
He scratched another note and closed the book he had been reading and picked up the next one. Opening it to the chapter on Oaths he started reading.
There is an ancient saying- a wizard's word is as good as his wand. This is in reference to what is formally called a wizard's promise. When a wizard makes a promise it is traditional for him to swear by his wand. It is a sign of good faith, signifying that he takes the promise seriously. However, it is up to the wizard's own integrity to keep the promise, and, if broken, there are no consequences, other than the danger of the other wizard outraged at the broken promise.
On the other hand, a Wizard's Oath is much more powerful. When a wizard makes an oath he swears by his magic. This makes a Wizard's Oath stronger than a Wizard's Debt (see Chapter 9) and equal in strength to a Wizard's Sacrifice (see chapter 17). They are all inherently strong because the magic of the parties involved are literally bound together. Magic is an integral part of a wizard's body and to remove the magic from a magical being, and leave the poor soul alive, is impossible (with one exception, see Chapter 30). This is why any type of magical bond cannot be broken without consequence.
What makes an Oath stronger than a Debt is the fact that an Oath must be agreed to by both parties participating. A Debt can be formed without the consent of one party. A Sacrifice, though it can, and often does, occur without the consent of one party, is as strong as an Oath because of the nature of the power transfer that takes place (see Chapter 17).
When an Oath is sworn it magically binds both contractors to the terms of the Oath and both are subject to consequences of breaking the Oath in any manner. You cannot knowingly break the terms of the Oath without suffering serious consequences because your own magic will exact a price.
David skimmed through the next few pages, becoming frustrated because the information did not pertain to the situation at hand. He almost closed the book and reached for another as he saw it went into detail about Fidelity Oaths and their consequences. However, he flipped the page anyway and saw to his relief that it had returned to more useful information.
In rare cases, an Oath can be a binding promise in which one of the two parties swears to do something for the other party and the other party has no obligation to the party swearing the Oath. This is sometimes referred to as a Debt Oath because the sworn party usually makes the Oath in order to fulfill a debt to the other party. However, both parties must still accept the Oath. Even if a debt is owed, the party to whom it is owed must still agree to it. An individual cannot simply decide to swear an Oath with out the consent of the party to whom it is sworn.
In these cases, broken Oaths have much harsher consequences, and have been known to result in the death of the bound party. The only way for an individual to survive a serious breech of the Oath is for the Oath to be cancelled and the trespass forgiven. The indebted party, once sworn to the Oath has no control over when or if the Oath is released. Only the party it is sworn to can make that choice.
David continued reading on the Debt Oath for another hour until Courtney came into the room and Michael got up. Courtney quietly greeted her father and then went to the Great Hall for breakfast to see her friends' parents off. The presentations had ended the day before and today the rest of the parents would be leaving after a breakfast feast. Minerva McGonagall had extended an invitation to the Barnes' to remain at the castle while the investigation surrounding Kathryn's death was in progress. A few others involved in the investigation would be remaining as well, but mostly the castle would be back to normal.
A little while later a house-elf arrived with food for David and, at his request, found someone to watch Michael for a little while. After finishing breakfast, David left the suite and approached the infirmary, only to find it crowded with staff members.
"…and last night he slipped into a coma. The specialists don't think he'll live much longer," the nurse said in a choking voice.
Silence filled the room for a moment and then David heard Bill Weasley's somber voice say, "I suggest we take shifts to watch over him." There was a murmur of assent. A few moments later the members of the faculty emerged from the infirmary, all looking depressed. David retreated around the corner, though still listening to them.
Courtney didn't eat a lot, nor did she say much at breakfast, but no one bothered her much, especially after Professor McGonagall had come in and announced that the Headmaster was in a coma. She left the table before Angela and Caleb (who had been shadowing her ever since she emerged from the suite she was sharing with her family) finished eating and headed out of the Great Hall.
She was crossing the entrance hall and about to go up the stairs when someone called her name. She turned around and found herself face to face with a girl she vaguely recalled seeing playing Beater on the Slytherin quidditch team. She had short light brown hair and was herself only a little taller than Courtney, though she looked to be about fourth or fifth year.
"I'm Amelia Morgan," the girl said and stuck out her hand for Courtney to shake. Wondering what she wanted, Courtney shook her hand and looked at her expectantly, only to find, to her surprise, the girl was unaccountably nervous.
"I…I really don't know if this is a tactful time for this, but I just had to ask you, where did you find out all that stuff about Harry Potter? I've been trying for years to fill in the gaps, but the professors always refused to answer my questions or told me the Ministry lies even when I had clear evidence regarding the truth."
This was not what Courtney had been expecting at all. She had had an inkling that maybe this girl would offer her condolences or something, like the Ravenclaw third year whose father had died four years previously. But this was completely unexpected.
Amelia still looked nervous. Courtney gaped for a moment and then simply said, "Why?"
Amelia looked so uncomfortable that she almost squirmed, as she looked away from Courtney. She opened her mouth to answer, but right then a voice called out, "Courtney!"
Both girls turned around to find David Barnes approaching. David stared at Amelia for a moment as though trying to remember where he had seen her before. Then he shook himself and asked the both of them, "Did they tell you about the headmaster?"
Courtney nodded, "they said he was in a coma."
David nodded distractedly and said rather abruptly, "They don't think he'll live."
Courtney quickly looked down and blinked back the tears that threatened to fall. Amelia choked back her own dismay. They knew he was in bad shape but to have it stated so bluntly was upsetting. David saw this and immediately felt bad for having said it. He put his arm around his daughter and said "Sorry, could you come back to the rooms with me?"
Courtney looked at him strangely for a moment, wondering what this was about.
"I…I really should go to class," she finally said.
Amelia felt distinctly uncomfortable at the moment. She felt she was intruding, but it had been David who interrupted her. David sighed and nodded, acknowledging Courtney's statement and then asked her to come to him at lunch. Courtney nodded and David left. The younger girl shook her head in distraction and the turned back to Amelia, "Why do you want to know about Harry Potter?"
"Um…" Amelia began, wishing now for David Barnes to be back and interrupting, "Well, it's kind of…personal."
Courtney's eyes narrowed, she had become even more protective of 'Harry' himself since the ministry had started asking questions. She didn't mind telling them that he had written to her, but then they would always demand an explanation as to why Harry Potter would be writing to her.
Amelia saw this wasn't the best way to approach the subject and so she decided to tell Courtney exactly why she was interested in the Boy-who-lived.
David paced his room anxiously. It was almost lunch time and Courtney was supposed to be coming any minute now. The thought that Albus Dumbledore might die weighed heavily on his mind. He knew that he was the only one who could heal him or help him, yet something deep inside him made him hesitate. A small part of him was telling him that he should just let him die. Albus had done enough to him in the past that it would be so easy to just pretend he could do nothing. None of the wizards knew that he could help and so nobody would blame him. However, Courtney did know, and if she was unaware at the moment of how her father could help, the truth would certainly be elucidated at some point in the future.
The door opened and Courtney came in, but she was not alone. The girl who had been with her that morning followed her. David threw a questioning look at Courtney.
"Dad, this is Amelia Morgan. She's a fifth year Slytherin." David nodded but was still completely confused as to why Courtney had brought her.
"Mr. Barnes, I'm sorry to interrupt your plans, but Courtney insisted I come. I'm not sure why."
They both looked at Courtney expectantly. She sighed, "Amelia, tell him the story you told me."
Amelia's eyes widened in surprise, "But…" she stammered, "but…why?"
David sat down waiting for whatever was coming to come, he really didn't feel like listening at the moment, but it seemed Courtney was determined.
Courtney sat down and Amelia hesitated for a moment before following her example.
"Amelia stopped me this morning and asked me how I found out so much about Harry Potter. I asked her why and so she told me her story. I think you should hear it."
Amelia looked a little startled at the commanding tone in the eleven-year-old's voice. But David Barnes was now looking at her, waiting.
Amelia sighed and started speaking, "I have two older brothers and neither of them is magical. I never even knew magic existed until I got my Hogwarts letter. My parents, especially my Dad, were furious. Evidently, he knew magic existed and hated it."
David groaned inwardly. He was afraid now that he knew where this was going. Courtney was more upset than she let on about his previous non-support of her at Hogwarts. However, he continued to listen.
"My parents completely disowned me. They didn't even give me a choice between coming to Hogwarts and being disowned, or ignoring my magic and remaining a part of their household. I haven't seen them since then. I haven't wanted to really. I had my last name changed and am currently a ward of Hogwarts, with the headmaster as my primary guardian. I stayed here at Hogwarts for a month after I got my letter and my parents turned me out. I've spent each summer since then with a different staff member. I spent the summer after my first year Sirius and his wife Arabella, second with Bill and Kara, third with Hermione and Ron, and this past summer I lived with Minerva."
David was growing impatient. He didn't see how this related to the question of why she was interested in Harry Potter. Amelia seemed to read his mind, or at least his expression, and hurried on.
"The reason I am so interested in Harry Potter is because I know things about him but the teachers won't tell me more. You see, after I got my Hogwarts letter, my Dad started ranting and raving about 'freaks' and he went up to the attic and came down with a box that had some magical items in it and he gave it to me, demanding that I, and the box of 'freakish' things get out. From what I can piece together, my Dad was too afraid to burn the magical items so he put them in the attic, but looking at them, I came to the conclusion that Harry Potter grew up in my house."
David was breathing hard at this point. Now, he understood why Courtney had brought Amelia here. He also remembered where he had seen her before—she resembled her mother a lot and he had seen her when having dinner with Vernon Dursley and his family (including his son's family) almost ten years ago. (This was, of course, before he bought out the company and ruined Vernon, and by extension Dudley.)
He stood and walked to the window so neither child would see his face. He opened his mouth to confirm that Amelia was, in fact, a Dursley, but an entirely different question came out, "Have you made peace with it?"
Amelia, who was still unsure why it had been so important to Courtney that her father know his story, thought for a moment and then answered, "In a way, I guess you could say I have. They betrayed me. My own parents said they didn't love me anymore and I hated them for it, but, now…I guess I don't hate them anymore. I…don't feel anything for them anymore. I forgave them because it didn't matter anymore, they didn't matter anymore, and I could let go of the anger."
Amelia couldn't tell what this man was thinking because he was still facing away from them. Courtney had a hopeful look on her face, like she wanted to know if her father had made a decision.
Suddenly David Barnes turned around, there was determination in his eyes. He looked at Amelia, "Amelia, I would like to extend the invitation to you to spend next summer with my family, indeed I would like you to spend every summer with us and make it your home.
Courtney's eyes widened as much as Amelia's at this unexpected turn of events.
"B…what? But…the Headmaster…my guardian." Amelia couldn't think straight.
Courtney, understanding slightly why her father might have offered this, said slowly "but that would mean the headmaster would have to relinquish custody and he is in no shape at the moment. If he….Professor McGonagall would probably become headmistress and be Amelia's guardian."
"The headmaster will give me custody." He said shortly and marched out of the room.
Amelia looked at Courtney, "What just happened?"
David hurried down the hall. He didn't know what had come over him to even think of allowing someone to die who he had the power to heal. He was a doctor. Even though others of his profession might find it archaic, he still swore to the Hippocratic Oath. Not, he surmised, as a Wizard's Oath, but as a matter of honor in his profession. Something in the conversation had triggered this, though he wasn't sure what. Perhaps just another matter to discuss with the old man had kicked his mind into gear.
He swept into the infirmary to find it empty, which was a good thing. He continued through to the private room and walked in unannounced. To his surprise he found Severus Snape beside the bed, taking, he assumed, his turn at the vigil. He stood at the abrupt entrance, alert, but relaxed when he saw who it was.
"Are you lost Mr. Barnes?"
"No. I want to speak to Albus Dumbledore."
Snape raised an eyebrow, had the man come completely unhinged in the last few days? Did he not realize he couldn't talk to Albus? He opened his mouth to gently, well, gently for him, explain that he was in a coma, when David Barnes pulled his wand out.
Completely ignoring Severus now, David pointed it at Albus.
"I Harry Potter release Albus Dumbledore from all terms of the binding wizard's oath which he entered into sixteen years ago, and forgive all trespasses against the oath."
Severus' eyes widened in shock. He gripped the armrest of the chair and slowly sat down, staring at the man before him. A moment later he was even more surprised to feel a surge of power go through the room. The other man in the room continued to ignore him as he then opened the shirt of the Headmaster and placed his hands on the aged skin right where his heart was. He closed his eyes and started muttering under his breath. Severus listened carefully and heard him saying things that seemed to be derived from healing charms, but weren't quite what he knew. Then just as suddenly as he had come, David Barnes left the room, leaving Severus to wonder if he had just imagined everything. However, as testimony to the strange events that had just happened, Albus Dumbledore slowly opened his eyes.
Hermione hurried from lunch to the infirmary to relieve Severus from his watch so that he could teach his class. She entered the room and stopped dead in her tracks at the sight that greeted her. Three specialists from St. Mungo's and Madam Pomfrey surrounded the bed and Severus stood to the side looking completely stunned.
Hermione feared the worst as she slowly approached and her mind registered the words being spoken.
"…unexpected. I've never seen anything like it." Said a woman she recognized as one of the top cardiologists at St. Mungo's.
"Mr. Snape, it would help a great deal if you would tell us what happened, one man said impatiently."
Snape still looked too stunned to speak, and just shook his head silently. Suddenly a most welcome voice was heard over all the talking, "What matters most is not how it was done, but that it was done, my good friends. Might I simply find out how my school is doing and figure this out later?"
Hermione pushed one of the doctors out of the way and tackled Albus Dumbledore with a hug and started sobbing with relief.
Ten minutes later the specialists had gotten no further and finally they left as did Madam Pomfrey. The nurse, other than her personal worry for Albus, could find no reason to keep him there. Severus and Hermione remained with the Headmaster. Albus turned to Severus, "Could you please tell me what happened?"
Courtney sat in Herbology distracted by her father's actions. He had not returned before lunch's end and so she and Amelia had simply gone to class. Courtney told Amelia to join them for dinner and that hopefully her father would explain then why he had made such a seemingly outrageous offer.
Professor Longbottom noticed Courtney Barnes' inattentiveness, but let it slip, considering this was the first time she had attended class since her mother's death.
Severus blinked, seemingly surprised at the request, but Hermione's mind was whirling, "He…he..must have released the oath!" she blurted.
Both men looked at her in surprise and she blushed.
Albus chuckled, "When did you discover the truth?" he asked.
"Just a few days ago. How and when did you figure it out?"
"When Severus revealed to me that Courtney Barnes is a Parselmouth."
Hermione's eyebrows shot up. That was not something she had known.
Severus managed to tell them both what had happened and then retreated to his dungeons to brood.
David wandered the castle for hours, thinking. He had released Albus, and effectively the rest of the Hogwarts staff minus Sirius, and revealed himself to Snape in the process. Probably not the smartest thing he had done all day, but….
He heard footsteps behind him and turned around to see a very startled Sirius Black. "Mr. Barnes, can I help you? Are you lost?"
David shook his head. Sirius looked at him for a moment and then said carefully, "Would you join me for a drink, I have no class at the moment and I would like to talk to you."
David hesitated, but nodded and followed him. Sirius led him to his private quarters not very far away. He poured him some pumpkin juice (Sirius had been surprised at the selection, he had thought the man might want something a little bit stronger.)
After an uncomfortable silence, Sirius finally started by saying, "How are you handling things," hoping against hope that he would not offend the man.
David shrugged. "It hurts. A lot." Tears started flowing silently down David's face, crying once again for his wife.
Sirius nodded and hesitantly said, "It does hurt. When Arabella died two years ago, I thought I could never function again. Remus and my friends helped me through that time."
David looked up in surprise, he had not even realized Sirius had been married, much less that she had died. Yet another similarity with this man.
"It doesn't stop David. You move on with life and accept it, but you never want to let go completely. You always remember, and though the pain fades, it is always there."
David nodded absently and said softly, "Death seems to haunt me, always taunting me, but never taking me."
Sirius was startled by this morbid statement, but he heard the anguish in David's voice. He must have lost many people in his life. Like himself. Sirius remembered feeling the same way many times, when he remembered Lily's and James' deaths, when he saw hundreds of people he knew dying on the battlefield, when Arabella had slipped away, and now they were loosing Albus as well.
David stood up, his demeanor suddenly becoming cold, as though he had just realized who he was talking to, nodded his thanks and left without another word, leaving Sirius Black once again puzzling over the mystery known as David Barnes.
Courtney entered her father's rooms right after classes ended for the day. "Dad, I invited Amelia over for dinner," she said hesitantly.
"Good, I'm going to tell her."
"Tell her?" Courtney didn't dare hope he meant what she thought he did.
"About me."
Courtney ran over to him and hugged him.
There was a knock at the door and Courtney hurried to open it. She gasped when she saw that it was not Amelia, but instead the Headmaster looking the epitome of health.
"Ah, Courtney, may I come in?" she just nodded in astonishment, unable to reconcile this with the comatose Headmaster she had been told of this morning.
"Mr. Barnes, I understand you wanted to talk to me?"
A/N: Ok, rather short chapter, especially after two months. I am really sorry, but this is where the chapter wanted to be divided. I will revise this chapter a little tomorrow and add more author notes, but I promised this before 2004, and I'm getting it in two hours under the mark (US Mountain time). I know I need to put more into Amelia and show more of her character in this chapter, but she is the character that just jumped in without permission but she, as you can see, is a catalyst in this chapter. I also know I need to show more of their grief that is still prevalent. But they have other things that need to be taken care of at the moment so they are…distracted.
Please review!
Happy New Year everyone!