A/N: Thanks to those of you who are still with me. If you haven't done so already, drop me a line and let me know what you like and don't like. I don't make any promises, but I am definitely open to suggestions.
Chapter 30- The Grand Scheme of Things
He harms himself who does harm to another, and the evil plan is most harmful to the planner.- Hesiod
Severus stood at the window, staring out over the bare trees that marked the edge of Grimmauld Square. The sun glittered off the remnant of snow and ice lying serenely on the top branches. There was a soft knock on the door. Severus walked over silently and opened it. He stepped aside, allowing Rachel to enter.
"How is he?" she whispered. She walked over and sat in the stiff wooden chair by the side of the bed, taking Draco's pale hand in her own.
"There will be some scarring," said Severus softly. "Sam only healed the internal damage and left some of the surface wounds alone. If Draco went back to Voldemort completely healed, he would become very suspicious. He should be fine in a few days."
"Thank you," said Rachel. She turned to Severus. "I'm really sorry. I know you're probably not thrilled with Draco and I at the moment. Samantha shouted at me for quite some time this morning."
Severus walked over to the opposite side of the bed. He placed his hand on Draco's forehead, checking for any sign of fever. He withdrew his hand.
"I am certainly unhappy with your lack of stealth in coming here," said Severus. "But it will definitely be of benefit to have you here when Draco awakens." He pinned her with a serious look. "You have chosen a very dangerous path, Rachel. You must be strong for him, just as he is being strong for you."
Rachel looked back at Draco's sleeping face. Her eyes filled with tears. "I don't know what to do. I just feel so helpless."
"Believe me," said Severus as walked back over to the window. "You are doing more than you can possibly know to help Draco just in being here. I'm sure a time will come, and soon, where you will have ample opportunity to do something." He glanced at his watch. "He should wake up any time now. If I'm not back, call Samantha. We need to make sure that the potions didn't affect him strangely in any way." Rachel nodded and Severus walked towards the door. He opened it and stopped abruptly at the sight of Harry's hand raised to knock.
"How do you do that?" said Harry with a grin. Severus returned it, ushering him and Ginny into the room with a graceful wave of his hand.
"I'll be back in a little while," said Severus.
Half an hour later, Severus returned, freshly showered. He noticed the sleeping bags still on the floor in the hallway as he went back into the bedroom. Samantha sat on the edge of the bed, running diagnostics on a conscious Draco while Rachel stood on the other side, holding his hand. Harry stood at the end of the bed, his arms around Ginny. Severus stood next to her, watching as Samantha finished her spell.
"Everything seems okay," said Samantha. "I'll have to do a few more tests, but we can do that later. How are you feeling, love?"
"Okay," said Draco hoarsely. "I'm really sore all over, but otherwise I'm fine."
"I'm surprised you feel even that well," said Severus. "You lost enough blood to feed several ravenous vampires, Elias."
Draco smirked at him. "Hope I didn't ruin any of the carpet."
"Yes, well," said Samantha sternly. "You should concentrate on resting for now, Draco."
"He can do that after he reports," said Severus. Samantha clenched her jaw, but nodded once.
"Fine," she said curtly," but after that, the lot of you will leave the boy in peace. Understood?" She glared at the three kids before they all nodded their assent.
"From the time you left the house, if you please, Elias," said Severus. He crossed his arms and leaned against the bedpost as Draco began.
"I apparated to the meeting by the Mark, as usual," said Draco. He shook his head. "The Dark Lord was in a towering rage. He's still furious about Hogsmeade and how the Order just happened to be there, so we were punished for that. Again. After that, he talked on and on about what he wanted to accomplish with that attack and why our failure was unacceptable. He was trying to weaken the village for another attack." Draco looked at Severus, who ran a hand over his face.
"Did he say when?" asked Harry as he released his hold on Ginny. "Any possible dates?"
Draco shook his head. "No. He pulled a few of us aside after he was done with his 'punishing' to talk about possibilities were we to take the school. Wormtail was there, obviously. Aunt Bella and –" he paused, coughing slightly, "—and me."
"Bloody hell," said Harry. "We're in this deep, aren't we?"
"Yes, we are, and faster than I thought we would be" said Severus, continuing to stare at Draco. "But, if Voldemort's planning an attack on Hogwarts, this is exactly where we want to be. I assume you haven't been fully admitted yet, hence the nature of your wounds."
Draco nodded. "He let Bella and Wormtail have a little 'fun' after we were done. Bella didn't do too much damage with her slicing hexes, since she healed them before she cast the next one. But Wormtail," he growled, "Wormtail had fun. After this is all over, if he's not already dead, I will fix that immediately."
"Take a number," muttered Harry.
"I've also been given another task," sneered Draco. "It is my job to find out as much information as I can about the Order of the Phoenix, including who the Secret Keeper is. The Dark Lord doesn't want me to infiltrate the Order, as he's a bit cautious after what happened last time, but he wants to know what we're doing to stop him and how we're getting information about what they're doing."
The whole room fell silent. Draco squeezed Rachel's hand. She gave him a small smile, raising their joined hands to her cheek.
"Then we will get you information," said Severus softly. The other four looked at him in shock. "I must think about this carefully. Rachel, be very mindful of what you say around Draco." She nodded. Severus looked back at Draco. "We'll be downstairs. You need to go back to your apartment soon, but you need to rest before attempting to apparate. We'll be downstairs." He motioned for Harry and Ginny to leave, giving Samantha a pointed look. She conjured a glass of water, setting it on the bedside table for Draco. Severus gently touched Rachel's shoulder. She bent forward and gave Draco a brief kiss before standing and leaving the room. Severus ushered them out of the room, closing the door softly behind him. Harry and Ginny stood in the hallway, waiting.
"Kitchen," he said. They all made their way downstairs and sat around the table. Samantha returned it to its normal size, summoning a few extra chairs from the corner. Severus stood at the head of the table.
"Voldemort already has some idea of where we are," said Severus. "He's been sending out scouts to search for clues. They will undoubtedly begin to report to Draco. Due once again to Albus's brilliant forethought, we are somewhat fortunate in dealing with the Fidelius charm on the Order and this house, am I right, Sam?"
Samantha nodded. "The Dark Lord would have to have both you and Remus tell him or someone else the secret before the charm would be completely broken."
"So, we can either have Draco tell Voldemort both your names," said Ginny. "Or just one."
"So now the question is," said Harry. "Which of you will we put in even more danger than you're already in and when will we do it?"
"We need the chest first," said Samantha. Severus looked at her sharply, flicking his eyes to Ginny and Rachel.
"We know," said Rachel. Severus looked to Harry, who shrugged.
"They asked Elias about what we were doing here at the house when we weren't getting information," said Harry. "He patronused me and asked if he could tell them. I said yes. No one else knows. At least, not at this point."
"We're going to have to tell the Order soon," said Samantha, frowning slightly. "Especially if the Dark Lord goes for the school."
"We can deal with that later," said Severus. "For now, we need to find a way to get Draco information so that he can secure his position in the Inner Circle. And I think I've thought of something that might work." He turned to Rachel. "Rachel, you're going to have to start letting some details slip about your kinship to Lupin in front of Draco."
Rachel gave him a questioning look. "How is that going to help?"
"By doing that, you can imply things without having to say them out loud," said Harry slowly, staring at Severus. Severus nodded at him. "If you imply that Remus is the new leader of the Order, Voldemort might assume that Remus is the Secret Keeper."
"Which he is," said Samantha. "We're taking an awfully big risk here. Remus isn't hidden and protected like you are, Severus."
"We can have Tonks lay down some wards around his house," said Harry. "He's connected by floo if something did happen."
"It's a risk we must take," said Severus softly. "I don't like putting our members at risk, but we have to do what is needed in order to further the larger picture. I will notify Remus and tell him all the details about what we're doing as far as Draco is concerned. Draco won't pass this information immediately. We do need the chest before we do anything." He looked solemnly at the four of them.
"If battle comes to Hogwarts, it will be the last battle," said Severus softly. "Girls, I want you both to go home and get some rest. We'll be in contact with you about coming over and doing some training with us, especially you Ginevra. You have some catching up to do before I feel comfortable with you in ground battle. I will go talk to Draco about the plan. We'll go for the chest on New Year's."
A week later, the hallway echoed with the banging of spells hitting others and hitting the walls of the ballroom. Harry and Draco were standing in the middle of the hallway, waiting for Severus. He came through the ballroom doors, shutting them behind him and striding quickly to the front door.
"Charms," said Severus softly. Harry and Draco raised their wands, casting Disillusionment charms. Severus grinned as he did the same. "We're off." They went out into the night, leaving nothing behind other than the female shouts and yells from the ballroom.
They apparated to the Atrium of the Ministry. Severus grabbed their arms, holding them still. His eyes darted back and forth.
"Alright, let's move," whispered Severus. "Cushioning charms as well, if you please." He flicked his wand down at his shoes and proceeded to the stairwell past the elevator. He took the stairs two at a time, ears alert for any sign of patrolling Aurors or security. The silence that greeted him was disquieting.
"Why didn't we take the elevator again?" hissed Draco, panting softly.
"It is too noisy," muttered Severus. "I didn't want the entire Ministry to be alerted to our presence." He lit his wand softly and read the placard next to a door. "One more floor. Quickly." He reached the door to the fourth floor first. He tapped the frame with his wand, smiling at the blue glow around the door. He looked behind him at the two hunched over blue outlines and chuckled softly.
"I see we need to add a little conditioning to our workouts," said Severus softly. He tapped the doorknob and the door opened slightly with a loud click. Severus peered through the crack, searching for any unwanted observers. He slid through the door, looking back and forth down the hallway as the boys came through.
"Shut the door, James," whispered Severus. Harry pulled the door to with another loud click. Severus walked across the hall, lighting his wand to quickly read the placards on the doors. "This way. Follow me." He took off to his right, relying on his memory of what the hall looked like upon his last visit. He walked past a door, not bothering to look at it. He stopped suddenly, frowning. He turned back around and approached the door. He scoffed.
"And the Ministry was sending out leaflets on security," muttered Severus. He lit his wand and skimmed it over the sign. He read the word 'Storage' in bold dark letters. He held his breath as he flicked his wand, canceling the repelling charms on the door. When no alarms sounded, he spoke softly. "Elias, what was the number of the cell where the chest was?"
"983," whispered Draco. Severus raised his wand to the door, but paused.
"Touch nothing but the chest, are we clear?" said Severus softly. "Who knows what kinds of things they've got in here, never mind how they're stored." He tapped the door, opening it quietly, the boys on his heels. Harry closed the door behind him.
"Split up," said Severus as he lit his wand. "Call a bracelet when you find it. Do not attempt to break the wards yourselves." He walked towards the end of the room, while Harry and Draco went sideways. There were aisles and aisles of small, closet-like compartments, the only distinguishing mark between them being a black number painted on the front. Severus ran his wand over them as he walked quickly up one aisle and down the next. The rows of compartments were endless. The Dark magic was palpable around a few of the compartments, muddling Severus's mind. He shook his head and erected some weak Occlumency walls. He turned down one row and stopped to read the bold script on the end of the aisle: Proceed with caution. Highly dangerous contraband: cells 900-1354.
Getting close, thought Severus as he lengthened his stride. His Mark began to tingle slightly. He reinforced his mental walls as he stopped before a large compartment. He lifted his wrist to his mouth as he walked to the end of the aisle.
"Elias," he whispered. His bracelet immediately glowed navy blue.
"Find it?" said Draco.
"Yes," said Severus. "You'll need to put up some Occlumency walls before you come closer. Call James and walk towards the center aisle of the room. I'll be flashing my wand." His bracelet went cold. He began to flick his wand back and forth, light and dark. He stopped when he saw two blue outlines jogging towards him. He turned back down the aisle, stopping before the compartment.
"Now what?" whispered Harry when he reached Severus. Severus began an incantation, encasing the compartment in a red glow. He continued the incantation for several minutes. His forehead broke out in a sweat and his hand began to shake with the effort of breaking through the wards. A hole appeared in the red glow, slowly becoming bigger. Just as he fell to his knees from the effort, the red glow disappeared entirely. He stayed on the ground for a few moments, gasping at the stuffy air of the room, as Draco made his way over to the door and tapped it with his wand. The compartment door opened.
Draco lit his wand, peering inside. He cursed under his breath. "It's bloody huge. Why don't I just go in and look for it? I've seen it before, so it won't take me as long." Severus nodded wearily and Draco's blue form disappeared into the closet. Harry knelt down beside Severus, his wand pointed towards the end of the aisle.
"You okay?" he asked, placing a hand on Severus's back. Severus pushed himself up against another compartment, his breathing finally returning to normal.
"Yes," breathed Severus. "I'm alright. Ward breaking is very draining. I don't know how Bill did it for all those years in Egypt." Harry smiled in the darkness as he watched for any signs of security. Severus kept one eye on Harry while still watching the door to cell 983. Severus got to his feet, feeling his knees shake a little. He reached out a hand to steady himself against one of the compartments, as Draco appeared carrying the chest. Harry shined his wand on it. The Ravenclaw crest was faded on the side of the trunk.
"Good work," said Severus. "Apparate to the Square." He tapped both of their heads again, recasting their charm. "You must get the chest quickly to the 12. Any Death Eater within several meters will be able to feel its presence. I will be behind you. I have to reset the wards on the cell. Go now." Harry took a deep breath as he and Draco disapparated. Immediately, bright red lights flashed on and off and shrill alarms sounded. Severus tried to disapparate, but nothing happened. He clapped his hands over his ears as he ran for the door. He reached for the door handle, but had to jump out of the way as the door burst open. Dawlish, Kingsley and Tonks stood right inside the doorway, panting slightly. Severus edged around them as Dawlish began barking orders.
"Shacklebolt, go right! We'll flush him out! Tonks! Start the detection spells on the perimeter!"
Severus took off running down the hall, taking care to avoid the many Aurors who were racing past him in the opposite direction. He heard someone shout "Malfoy" as he disapparated with a soft, inaudible pop. He reappeared in the park and met another blue outlined figure walking quickly towards him.
"That was fast," said Draco softly as he reached Severus. Severus grabbed his arm.
"Go to your apartment now," said Severus quickly. "I imagine you will be having visitors for the next couple of days."
"Damn it," said Draco as he disapparated. Severus ran to the 12. His charm faded just as he shut the door. Samantha ran to him as he slid to the floor, his head in his hands. Harry stepped out of the kitchen and ran over to them.
"Severus, what's wrong?" cried Samantha. She shook his shoulder. "Severus!"
"The alarms went off when the boys apparated out," said Severus angrily. "Aurors were everywhere. Shacklebolt and Tonks were there, along with the entire department, I imagine. They know what cell we broke into. They will know what's missing by the morning."
"Bloody hell," said Harry, rubbing his face with his hands. "So Elias won't be over for a few days?"
"He most certainly will not," said Severus as he got up stiffly from the floor. "Since we can't tell Kingsley and Tonks why we broke in, the story will hit the Prophet tomorrow. Hopefully, Scrimgeour's dislike of bad publicity will keep all the details from being published."
"Where did you put it, James?" asked Samantha. Severus kissed her forehead, running a hand through her curly hair.
"It's on the kitchen table," said Harry. Severus and Samantha followed him down the hall. Harry pushed open the door and froze. Severus looked over his shoulder. Samantha's eyes widened as Harry stepped closer to the unmoving house-elf lying on the floor. He nudged it with his shoe, recoiling when it didn't respond.
"The other Horcruxes didn't do this," whispered Harry. He backed up against the wall and drew his wand. "Why is this one different?"
"Maybe he touched it or something," said Samantha. "Or tried to open it." She worriedly looked to Severus.
"I'll deal with the elf," said Severus. "I need to put the chest somewhere safe from prying first. You two go on up to bed." He kissed Samantha goodnight as she and Harry left the room. Severus flicked his wand at the trunk, levitating it behind him as he walked down the hallway. He opened a door, the light from the hallway reflecting on some pieces of glass that still remained on the floor from a month and a half ago. He maneuvered the chest to the middle of the room, and set it down with a thump. He shut the door, warding it thickly against intrusion.
Severus walked out of the room and back to the kitchen. Kretcher was still lying in the middle of the floor in the exact same position as they had found him in earlier. Severus flicked his wand, levitating the tiny body off the floor. He made his way over to the little used back door and fumbled with the old lock. He finally got the door to open, the hinges protesting loudly as Severus pulled on the oak door. He quickly descended the steps and strode over to a tree that stood in the middle of the yard. He set Kretcher down on the ground and muttered a spell. Dirt began to pile beside an ever-deepening hole next to the tree. When the spell was complete, Severus lowered Kretcher into the pit, muttering another spell to cover the elf in the earth. He also cast several deflection charms around the tree to keep dogs and other scavengers from digging up the body. He hurried back inside the house, shutting the door firmly and relocking it. He ran a hand through his hair as he made his way upstairs to bed.