Chapter 6-Confrontations of a Different Sort
The morning dawned cold and overcast with a bitter wind biting through the air, and as soon as the couple awoke, they dressed and began to make their way to the great hall, hoping against hope that their latest challenge would be over within the next couple of hours. As Ginny had finished getting dressed for her classes, Harry had contacted Hermione, Ron, and Draco, the latter two promising to come to the castle as soon as they could, and Hermione planning on meeting them at breakfast before they proceeded to the headmasters office.
Not surprisingly, they were among the first to arrive at the hall, but much to their relief, Hermione, Remus, and Sirius were the other professors present, but when they surveyed the students, they became instantly aware of two hard emerald glares focused directly on them. Harry caught their glares, and before he realized what he was doing, he had started to make his way toward the Gryffindor table, intent on talking some sense into his children, but before he had taken a dozen paces in their direction, a strong hand gripped his left arm, and as he focused his glare on Severus, another hand was resting on his right shoulder and the headmaster was speaking in his ear.
"Harry, not here, we will discuss this in my office and figure out what is going on" he said as he physically directed the younger man out of the great hall, followed closely by Hermione, Ginny, Remus, and Sirius. Their conversation proceeded much the same way as the one the night before had, and after an hour of furious discussion, they were no closer to finding out how the children had come to know the truth, even after Ron and Draco had arrived. In the end, it was decided that the twins would be summoned to the headmasters office at the conclusion of the days lessons and if they refused to reveal their source for information that was of the utmost secrecy, then Harry would cast a spell on them that would force them to tell their source.
It had been the plan in not telling the twins sooner that they would be able to keep the truth to themselves and not tell anyone else, for if anyone found that Harry had housed Voldemort's soul, or that he was his grandson, and the heir of Slytherin, the repercussions would have dangerous effects, to say the least. No one knew just how the wizarding world would react to these truths coming to light concerning the head of those who were supposed to protect them. Add this to the fact that the truth had been hidden for so many years by the headmaster and five professors of the most prestigious wizarding school and the top two aurors of the ministry of magic, and you have a disaster in the making, to say the least.
The day's lessons had passed rather uneventfully, save one small fact, the twins didn't show up to any of them, nor did they come to lunch or dinner, causing the stress of the situation to just escalate even more.
After speaking to all of their friends and classmates, the situation began to look hopeless. James and Lily had just vanished.
"I should have spoken to them this morning! I should have explained everything immediately, not waited!" yelled Harry furiously as he paced around the headmasters office.
"Harry, you mustn't be so hard on yourself. There was no way we could have known that they would disappear like this, and unless you can get yourself together, we won't be able to find them" said Hermione in an effort to calm her best friend turned brother in law.
"Hermione's right, Harry, you need to get yourself together" said Draco calmly as he stretched back in one of the plush chairs "Besides, they're probably just in the village trying to let all of this sink in, after all, it is a lot of information and a lot of shocks to find out so fast"
"Shut up, Malfoy, you wouldn't be so calm if it were Dylan out there, now would you, and while we're on the subject, neither of your children" he said as he rounded on Ron and Hermione, fixing them with the same glare as Draco "Have death threats against them, do they?" he asked angrily
Upon hearing his words, the tension in the room multiplied as they all remembered that they weren't the only ones looking for James and Lily Potter. After several minutes of tense silence, the headmaster spoke up.
"Harry, I know you are feeling upset and angry, but you are doing James and Lily no good by turning on your friends like this" he said gently and his words seemed to curb the worried fathers frazzled nerves slightly and he took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry, I just don't know what to do" he said after a few moments and some of the tension dissipated with his words
"Well, the first thing we need to do is search the village and the grounds more thoroughly, Remus, Sirius, you two search the castle, you know more of the secret passages, and ask the rest of the staff if they know anything that might be of help. Ron, Draco, you two search the village, ask around and see if the twins went there. Hermione, Ginny, you ask all of the students if they saw anything. Harry, Severus, you two change into your animagus forms and fly over the forest, Harry, talk to the inhabitants and see what they know. I'll remain here in case anyone finds anything and owl some of my contacts in other areas" said the headmaster and with nods all around, the group left on their respective missions, all but Harry and Snape who both transformed, Snape into a black hawk with gray tips on his wings and tail, and Harry into a solid black owl with a white lightning bolt on his left side and emerald green eyes. Both birds spread their wings and an instant later, they were gliding out the headmasters window in the direction of the forbidden forest.
They started by merely flying over the forest and looking for the two children, but after three hours of fruitless searching, they decided to try a different routs and landed in a small clearing. Instantly, they had returned to their human forms.
"So, what now?" asked Snape
"Now, we talk to the animals around here and see what they know" said Harry bluntly
"You have got to be kidding me, Potter, talking to the animals" said Snape with a snort "And how exactly do you plan on going about this?"
Instead of answering, Harry merely shifted his staff to his left hand and transformed into a black unicorn, again, with a white lightning bolt, but this one was on his chest. He fixed his green eyes on his former professor and obediently, the older man changed again and began to hover in the air over the unicorn who began to trot into a deep thicket of trees. After about fifteen minutes of this, they reached another clearing and Snape was surprised to see about a dozen pure white unicorns, all perfectly at ease and lying on the thick grass. He perched himself on a low branch of one of the surrounding trees and watched the younger man approach the oldest unicorn. One that appeared almost silver in color with a gold horn. He observed as the black animal knelt down on one knee and the silver nodded her head before standing herself. They then stood facing each other for nearly ten minutes before Harry again bowed and the other knelt even lower as the black animal turned and made his way back toward the original clearing, Severus flying silently overhead.
"So, what did she say?" asked Snape once they had both resumed their human shapes once again
"They didn't see the twins, but they have seen strange men gathering in the forest for the past week. They have tried to stay away from them as much as possible, she said that they were evil and if they continue to come to this area of the forest, she is going to move the heard to a different home" he said heavily
"Well, this can't be good" muttered Snape under his breath "Where to next?" he asked in a louder tone, and again, he received no response as Harry shifted into a wolf. Again, the process was repeated when the found the den of wolves, and again, they had no information on the twins, but their fears echoed those of the unicorns. This continued for another six hours, visiting the serpents, foxes, hawks, owls, and two dozen other animal groups, but with no luck. In fact, the only thing that they did manage to find out was that if things continued the way that they were proceeding, then the forest would be completely abandoned in a matter of weeks.
Finally, frustrated and exhausted, the two professors spread their wings and returned to the castle, hoping that the others had had better luck.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
When they left the headmasters office, Ron and Draco proceeded directly to the large oak doors and began to cross the grounds. Hearing a loud screech from above, both looked up and saw the two black birds flying overhead.
"Severus and Harry, I hope they can find something" said Ron quietly and Draco nodded in agreement. The rest of the trip into the village was spent in absolute silence and after a ten minute walk, they entered the busy village. Because it was winter, it was already quite dark, even though it was only seven in the evening, but the small village was teaming with witches and wizards who were finishing their shopping or going for a bite to eat, or a drink in the pub.
"Ok, how about we split up and meet back here when we're finished. I'll check the north end of town, you take the south" suggested Ron and Draco nodded his head in agreement before setting off down high street while Ron headed up the road.
They began by speaking to the shop owners, asking if they had seen any Hogwarts students around that day, and followed by asking if they had seen anything strange at all within the past days, but not surprisingly, no one knew anything at all. Next, they spoke to the shoppers and various inhabitants of the pubs and restraints, but again, those who were sober enough to understand what they were asking knew nothing, and those who weren't wouldn't have noticed anything anyway.
Three hours later, they met up with each other in the middle of the village, both with disgruntled looks on their faces.
"Judging by your expression, Weasley, I take it you found about as much as I did" said Draco as he collapsed onto one of the benches lining the street.
"If you found absolutely nothing, then yes" said Ron as he fell beside the blonde with a heavy sigh "Poor Harry, this is all he needs right now" he said quietly
"For once, I totally agree with you. Guy just can't get a break, can he?" asked Draco
"Nope, if it's not one thing, it's another, and now he's having to look for his kids and find out information on this new wannabe dark lord" said Ron heavily as he began to massaged his temples
The pair of aurors remained silent for several minutes before Ron once again got to his feet "Come on, we need to report back to Harry and Dumbledore" he said and groaning, Draco got to his feet as well. The pair headed silently back in the direction they had come from and after a short while, the enormous castle was once again within sight.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Hermione and Ginny had gone at once to the Gryffindor common room to question Lily's friends, starting with Jasmine.
"Sweetie, are you sure you didn't talk to Lily at all today?" asked Hermione for the fifth time
"Yes, mum, I swear, she just got up this morning and went straight to breakfast. James came over and sat with her, but neither of them would talk to anyone and as soon as Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny came in, they left and I didn't see either of them again" she said as tears began to fill her eyes
"Ok, well, thanks Jas, let me know if you hear anything else" said Ginny as she stood and proceeded to the rest of the Gryffindor students. They repeated their questions to every member of the house, and after an hour and a half of questioning, made their way to the Ravenclaw common room, followed by the Hufflepuffs, but neither house could help them at all so they tiredly made their way to the Slytherins' where they first cornered Dylan.
"Dylan, did James say anything or do anything this morning that could help us find him?" asked Hermione quietly
"No, when we got up, he was already dressed and gone. I went to the great hall to see if he was there, but I didn't see him until one of the other boy's asked why he was sitting at the Gryffindor table, but before I could go ask him, he and Lily got up and left together and I figured they were going to your rooms and that I would see him in charms, but he never showed up, and I haven't seen him all day" he said honestly as he looked from one surrogate aunt to the other.
"Well, thank you Dylan" said Hermione as the two stood and after a quick good night, they began to speak to the rest of the house, but had just as much luck as the previous three. After midnight, they began to make their way toward the headmasters office, hoping the others had had more luck.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Remus and Sirius had begun their search by speaking to Hagrid, but to their disappointment, all they accomplished by that visit was a very upset half giant who had tried to cry on their shoulders at the news of the twins disappearance, much to the two men's dismay, and after the twenty minutes it had taken for them to calm the man down, they had found out nothing.
Next, they had gone to the three heads of house that weren't searching on their own, and none were of any help since all were still in their quarters when the twins were at breakfast and arrived only after they had left.
The same proved true for the caretaker and the remaining professors, all of whom expressed their deepest sympathy and hope for a good solution until they went up the stairs to the divination tower.
"Sybil" began Remus once the two men had taken their seats beside the stifling fire "We were wondering if you had seen either James or Lily Potter at all today"
"No, why do you ask?" she asked with true curiosity in her tone
"Well, they were at breakfast this morning, but left early and didn't show up for any of their lessons today, now the other meals and we are worried that they may have gotten into some sort of trouble" he said honestly
"Ah, well now that you mention it, my inner eye did foresee that the fate their father has managed to avoid so many times will strike the unfortunate children, for one man can only avoid death so many times before she begins to search out his loved ones. I am truly sorry that I am the bearer of such sad news, but please give my condolences to their parents" she said with an air of extreme sadness
"Well, thank you Sybil" said Remus quickly as he dragged his best friend down the stairs before he hexed the woman for her comments. They then made their own way through the castle and searched all of the hidden passages that they knew of, but unfortunately, they found no sign of the two children, and they made their own way back up the stairs to meet the others in silence.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A/N: ok, I know this chapter is kind of confusing, but all will be explained, I promise. Furthermore, let me apologize for how long this took, I told you last time about my roommates evil boyfriend, well, he practically made her move in with him and no one had heard from her in over a week and we didn't know what was going on or if she was ok. The police got involved and everything, so needless to say, life has been pretty insane as of late, but the good news is that we found her this morning, as he was getting ready to take her with him to Mexico. So, she's home now and everything is settling down, but if any of you know of a good beta reader, let me know because she used to do it for me, but now she's gone for the next two months, so I need help, please! Anyways, thanks for all the reviews and I'll post the next one as soon as I get it done!~Tismy
The morning dawned cold and overcast with a bitter wind biting through the air, and as soon as the couple awoke, they dressed and began to make their way to the great hall, hoping against hope that their latest challenge would be over within the next couple of hours. As Ginny had finished getting dressed for her classes, Harry had contacted Hermione, Ron, and Draco, the latter two promising to come to the castle as soon as they could, and Hermione planning on meeting them at breakfast before they proceeded to the headmasters office.
Not surprisingly, they were among the first to arrive at the hall, but much to their relief, Hermione, Remus, and Sirius were the other professors present, but when they surveyed the students, they became instantly aware of two hard emerald glares focused directly on them. Harry caught their glares, and before he realized what he was doing, he had started to make his way toward the Gryffindor table, intent on talking some sense into his children, but before he had taken a dozen paces in their direction, a strong hand gripped his left arm, and as he focused his glare on Severus, another hand was resting on his right shoulder and the headmaster was speaking in his ear.
"Harry, not here, we will discuss this in my office and figure out what is going on" he said as he physically directed the younger man out of the great hall, followed closely by Hermione, Ginny, Remus, and Sirius. Their conversation proceeded much the same way as the one the night before had, and after an hour of furious discussion, they were no closer to finding out how the children had come to know the truth, even after Ron and Draco had arrived. In the end, it was decided that the twins would be summoned to the headmasters office at the conclusion of the days lessons and if they refused to reveal their source for information that was of the utmost secrecy, then Harry would cast a spell on them that would force them to tell their source.
It had been the plan in not telling the twins sooner that they would be able to keep the truth to themselves and not tell anyone else, for if anyone found that Harry had housed Voldemort's soul, or that he was his grandson, and the heir of Slytherin, the repercussions would have dangerous effects, to say the least. No one knew just how the wizarding world would react to these truths coming to light concerning the head of those who were supposed to protect them. Add this to the fact that the truth had been hidden for so many years by the headmaster and five professors of the most prestigious wizarding school and the top two aurors of the ministry of magic, and you have a disaster in the making, to say the least.
The day's lessons had passed rather uneventfully, save one small fact, the twins didn't show up to any of them, nor did they come to lunch or dinner, causing the stress of the situation to just escalate even more.
After speaking to all of their friends and classmates, the situation began to look hopeless. James and Lily had just vanished.
"I should have spoken to them this morning! I should have explained everything immediately, not waited!" yelled Harry furiously as he paced around the headmasters office.
"Harry, you mustn't be so hard on yourself. There was no way we could have known that they would disappear like this, and unless you can get yourself together, we won't be able to find them" said Hermione in an effort to calm her best friend turned brother in law.
"Hermione's right, Harry, you need to get yourself together" said Draco calmly as he stretched back in one of the plush chairs "Besides, they're probably just in the village trying to let all of this sink in, after all, it is a lot of information and a lot of shocks to find out so fast"
"Shut up, Malfoy, you wouldn't be so calm if it were Dylan out there, now would you, and while we're on the subject, neither of your children" he said as he rounded on Ron and Hermione, fixing them with the same glare as Draco "Have death threats against them, do they?" he asked angrily
Upon hearing his words, the tension in the room multiplied as they all remembered that they weren't the only ones looking for James and Lily Potter. After several minutes of tense silence, the headmaster spoke up.
"Harry, I know you are feeling upset and angry, but you are doing James and Lily no good by turning on your friends like this" he said gently and his words seemed to curb the worried fathers frazzled nerves slightly and he took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry, I just don't know what to do" he said after a few moments and some of the tension dissipated with his words
"Well, the first thing we need to do is search the village and the grounds more thoroughly, Remus, Sirius, you two search the castle, you know more of the secret passages, and ask the rest of the staff if they know anything that might be of help. Ron, Draco, you two search the village, ask around and see if the twins went there. Hermione, Ginny, you ask all of the students if they saw anything. Harry, Severus, you two change into your animagus forms and fly over the forest, Harry, talk to the inhabitants and see what they know. I'll remain here in case anyone finds anything and owl some of my contacts in other areas" said the headmaster and with nods all around, the group left on their respective missions, all but Harry and Snape who both transformed, Snape into a black hawk with gray tips on his wings and tail, and Harry into a solid black owl with a white lightning bolt on his left side and emerald green eyes. Both birds spread their wings and an instant later, they were gliding out the headmasters window in the direction of the forbidden forest.
They started by merely flying over the forest and looking for the two children, but after three hours of fruitless searching, they decided to try a different routs and landed in a small clearing. Instantly, they had returned to their human forms.
"So, what now?" asked Snape
"Now, we talk to the animals around here and see what they know" said Harry bluntly
"You have got to be kidding me, Potter, talking to the animals" said Snape with a snort "And how exactly do you plan on going about this?"
Instead of answering, Harry merely shifted his staff to his left hand and transformed into a black unicorn, again, with a white lightning bolt, but this one was on his chest. He fixed his green eyes on his former professor and obediently, the older man changed again and began to hover in the air over the unicorn who began to trot into a deep thicket of trees. After about fifteen minutes of this, they reached another clearing and Snape was surprised to see about a dozen pure white unicorns, all perfectly at ease and lying on the thick grass. He perched himself on a low branch of one of the surrounding trees and watched the younger man approach the oldest unicorn. One that appeared almost silver in color with a gold horn. He observed as the black animal knelt down on one knee and the silver nodded her head before standing herself. They then stood facing each other for nearly ten minutes before Harry again bowed and the other knelt even lower as the black animal turned and made his way back toward the original clearing, Severus flying silently overhead.
"So, what did she say?" asked Snape once they had both resumed their human shapes once again
"They didn't see the twins, but they have seen strange men gathering in the forest for the past week. They have tried to stay away from them as much as possible, she said that they were evil and if they continue to come to this area of the forest, she is going to move the heard to a different home" he said heavily
"Well, this can't be good" muttered Snape under his breath "Where to next?" he asked in a louder tone, and again, he received no response as Harry shifted into a wolf. Again, the process was repeated when the found the den of wolves, and again, they had no information on the twins, but their fears echoed those of the unicorns. This continued for another six hours, visiting the serpents, foxes, hawks, owls, and two dozen other animal groups, but with no luck. In fact, the only thing that they did manage to find out was that if things continued the way that they were proceeding, then the forest would be completely abandoned in a matter of weeks.
Finally, frustrated and exhausted, the two professors spread their wings and returned to the castle, hoping that the others had had better luck.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
When they left the headmasters office, Ron and Draco proceeded directly to the large oak doors and began to cross the grounds. Hearing a loud screech from above, both looked up and saw the two black birds flying overhead.
"Severus and Harry, I hope they can find something" said Ron quietly and Draco nodded in agreement. The rest of the trip into the village was spent in absolute silence and after a ten minute walk, they entered the busy village. Because it was winter, it was already quite dark, even though it was only seven in the evening, but the small village was teaming with witches and wizards who were finishing their shopping or going for a bite to eat, or a drink in the pub.
"Ok, how about we split up and meet back here when we're finished. I'll check the north end of town, you take the south" suggested Ron and Draco nodded his head in agreement before setting off down high street while Ron headed up the road.
They began by speaking to the shop owners, asking if they had seen any Hogwarts students around that day, and followed by asking if they had seen anything strange at all within the past days, but not surprisingly, no one knew anything at all. Next, they spoke to the shoppers and various inhabitants of the pubs and restraints, but again, those who were sober enough to understand what they were asking knew nothing, and those who weren't wouldn't have noticed anything anyway.
Three hours later, they met up with each other in the middle of the village, both with disgruntled looks on their faces.
"Judging by your expression, Weasley, I take it you found about as much as I did" said Draco as he collapsed onto one of the benches lining the street.
"If you found absolutely nothing, then yes" said Ron as he fell beside the blonde with a heavy sigh "Poor Harry, this is all he needs right now" he said quietly
"For once, I totally agree with you. Guy just can't get a break, can he?" asked Draco
"Nope, if it's not one thing, it's another, and now he's having to look for his kids and find out information on this new wannabe dark lord" said Ron heavily as he began to massaged his temples
The pair of aurors remained silent for several minutes before Ron once again got to his feet "Come on, we need to report back to Harry and Dumbledore" he said and groaning, Draco got to his feet as well. The pair headed silently back in the direction they had come from and after a short while, the enormous castle was once again within sight.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Hermione and Ginny had gone at once to the Gryffindor common room to question Lily's friends, starting with Jasmine.
"Sweetie, are you sure you didn't talk to Lily at all today?" asked Hermione for the fifth time
"Yes, mum, I swear, she just got up this morning and went straight to breakfast. James came over and sat with her, but neither of them would talk to anyone and as soon as Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny came in, they left and I didn't see either of them again" she said as tears began to fill her eyes
"Ok, well, thanks Jas, let me know if you hear anything else" said Ginny as she stood and proceeded to the rest of the Gryffindor students. They repeated their questions to every member of the house, and after an hour and a half of questioning, made their way to the Ravenclaw common room, followed by the Hufflepuffs, but neither house could help them at all so they tiredly made their way to the Slytherins' where they first cornered Dylan.
"Dylan, did James say anything or do anything this morning that could help us find him?" asked Hermione quietly
"No, when we got up, he was already dressed and gone. I went to the great hall to see if he was there, but I didn't see him until one of the other boy's asked why he was sitting at the Gryffindor table, but before I could go ask him, he and Lily got up and left together and I figured they were going to your rooms and that I would see him in charms, but he never showed up, and I haven't seen him all day" he said honestly as he looked from one surrogate aunt to the other.
"Well, thank you Dylan" said Hermione as the two stood and after a quick good night, they began to speak to the rest of the house, but had just as much luck as the previous three. After midnight, they began to make their way toward the headmasters office, hoping the others had had more luck.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Remus and Sirius had begun their search by speaking to Hagrid, but to their disappointment, all they accomplished by that visit was a very upset half giant who had tried to cry on their shoulders at the news of the twins disappearance, much to the two men's dismay, and after the twenty minutes it had taken for them to calm the man down, they had found out nothing.
Next, they had gone to the three heads of house that weren't searching on their own, and none were of any help since all were still in their quarters when the twins were at breakfast and arrived only after they had left.
The same proved true for the caretaker and the remaining professors, all of whom expressed their deepest sympathy and hope for a good solution until they went up the stairs to the divination tower.
"Sybil" began Remus once the two men had taken their seats beside the stifling fire "We were wondering if you had seen either James or Lily Potter at all today"
"No, why do you ask?" she asked with true curiosity in her tone
"Well, they were at breakfast this morning, but left early and didn't show up for any of their lessons today, now the other meals and we are worried that they may have gotten into some sort of trouble" he said honestly
"Ah, well now that you mention it, my inner eye did foresee that the fate their father has managed to avoid so many times will strike the unfortunate children, for one man can only avoid death so many times before she begins to search out his loved ones. I am truly sorry that I am the bearer of such sad news, but please give my condolences to their parents" she said with an air of extreme sadness
"Well, thank you Sybil" said Remus quickly as he dragged his best friend down the stairs before he hexed the woman for her comments. They then made their own way through the castle and searched all of the hidden passages that they knew of, but unfortunately, they found no sign of the two children, and they made their own way back up the stairs to meet the others in silence.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A/N: ok, I know this chapter is kind of confusing, but all will be explained, I promise. Furthermore, let me apologize for how long this took, I told you last time about my roommates evil boyfriend, well, he practically made her move in with him and no one had heard from her in over a week and we didn't know what was going on or if she was ok. The police got involved and everything, so needless to say, life has been pretty insane as of late, but the good news is that we found her this morning, as he was getting ready to take her with him to Mexico. So, she's home now and everything is settling down, but if any of you know of a good beta reader, let me know because she used to do it for me, but now she's gone for the next two months, so I need help, please! Anyways, thanks for all the reviews and I'll post the next one as soon as I get it done!~Tismy