Disclaimer:I own nothing except for the stuff that you don't recognize.
AN: Sorry for the wait. I had a lot of work to do for school and for getting ready for graduation and all the crap that needs to be done because of it. Also the other chapters were pre-written before I uploaded them, but the next few might take me longer since i have to write them and finish school. So please be patient with me because i do have a ending for this story. well that's all, so enjoy!
Chapter 9: Guides
The room immediately silenced when they saw the purple-haired girl. She wouldn't speak until she was comfortable next to Lupin. Finally Harry couldn't wait anymore, "So, what'd you find?" Everyone else looked hopefully at her. They had all wanted to ask but didn't have the guts.
"Well, it seems that we know their new Zeichen. It's a man by the name of Richard Parson. He's a wizard who's been stirring up trouble in the government."
"Isn't he an auror?" Fred asked.
"Yeah, he was a year ahead of me. He was always questioning the professors and the reasons for concealment. While he never fully agreed with Voldemort, he believed that wizards are superior to muggles and that we shouldn't hide from them."
"Well, it seems he finally has a place to vent his anger. No wonder they picked him. He's powerful and he's questioning by nature and he has a superiority issue. So now that we know who he is, what do we do?" Hermione commented.
"It seems to me that we can't just go in and arrest him, then Tonks' cover will be blown. And we still need more information on this guy. His grades, his friends, his family and the like. All this will help us figure out what type of riddle he'll ask." Cooper said.
"We'll keep an eye on him at the office and hopefully he'll screw up, and we can interrogate him." Kinsley said.
"No, he's too smart for that, and too powerful. You'll never be able to keep him. Remember the Keepers put all their power in this guy."
"Well, they haven't yet. The ceremony is set for next week. They haven't told us lower workers but I overheard a conversation about it."
"This is great. During the ceremony is when all the Keepers are weakened the most. If we can find out where it will take place, we should be able to strike them, and take them all out." Cooper said.
"Ummm…I hate to rain on everyone's parade, but am I going to get killed when you kill all the Keepers?" Tonks asked tentatively. Lupin took hold of Tonks' hand and looked inquiringly at Cooper.
"Well, maybe." There was a sharp intake of breath around the room. All the blood drained from Lupin's face, and tightened his grip. "Since you actually became apart of the Keepers, the spell might kill you, but since your heart doesn't actually belong to them, it might pass you by. I don't know. There are no records of this ever happening." He looked apologetically about the room.
"If you knew this before, why didn't you tell us?" Lupin said angrily, the wolf showing in his voice.
"Remus, it isn't his fault. I would have joined anyway. That was the path I needed to take." Tears were falling from her eyes as she told him this. "I had to help in whatever way I was needed, and without me there, we wouldn't have been able to find out as much information. If it wasn't me it would be someone else." Everyone was surprised at these words. This was a girl that was so full of life, and yet she was willing to give it all away from them. Because she could look however she wanted, she never showed them the thoughtful, older side of her, but now her age and understanding was reflected in her eyes. Hermione had seen that look far too many times in Harry's eyes, and knew why she had hid it. There were so many people in the world that had seen pain, but not enough that hid their pain to bring laughter to others.
"Well, we'll just have to find a way to keep her safe." Hermione said.
Several hours later, they were all in the library looking for a way to keep to Tonks safe, when Cooper suddenly excused himself. "I'm sorry, but I need to get going. I wish I could be of more use." Everyone accepted this and went back to their research. A few minutes later Harry pleaded a headache, and went up to his room.
He came back down stairs in his invisibility cloak. He would find out once and for all what Cooper was hiding even if he had to confront him about it. Cooper was no where to be found, but he headed for the warehouse expecting him to go there eventually.
When he got there, he saw light coming from the upstairs windows. He saw a fire escape on his left, and quietly ascended. At the window, he found it latched. He said, "Alohamora" and it popped free. He slipped inside and hid behind the couch like before.
The apartment hadn't improved much. There were a few more personal items but other than that it was exactly the same. Cooper came from down the hall, just as Harry ducked behind the couch, however, he wasn't alone. An older gentleman followed him. He wore a white button down shirt and white khakis. He had black hair that was peppered with grays and coal eyes. He looked very distinguished.
"Look, Charles, I haven't been reporting because there has been nothing to report. They haven't found out more than is necessary, and nothing about us."
"Oh, really. Then why is that black-haired boy always questioning you? Is a Keeper?"
"Harry doesn't trust easily. You know that, or has Gabe not been telling you things?" Cooper responded bitingly.
The man named Charles looked back at him as if nothing had happened. "I am well aware of Harry, and it is not your place to take your anger out on Gabe. You knew going into this it wouldn't be easy. People are finicky things, they don't want to know about things they are afraid of, especially if it means change. And yet, they want to be all knowing. You must have patience."
"How can I have patience when I have all the answers but can't give it to them? I don't want to see any of them killed, but I can't stop them from the path they are headed. How do I protect them and not interfere?"
"It is hard, but you must remain unemotional. That is what sets us apart." Charles reminded Harry of Dumbledore. He had all the answers and yet wanted people to find the way themselves; he had always hated him for that. He couldn't take it anymore, he needed to know.
He jumped up, but because of the cloak, neither man saw him. He ripped it from his body but instead of shock, Cooper turned to him, "Hello Harry. I was wondering when your curiousity would get the better of you."
"How did you know?" Harry was very confused He approached them cautiously, with his wand extended.
"There is no need for wands, my boy. We are a peaceful people." Charles addressed him for the first time, and it shocked Harry. His voice had such a calming affect, as if he had no reason to be afraid of anything.
"What are you? Who are you?" Harry resisted the urge to keep his mouth shut, and ask the questions he needed to ask.
"We are Guides."
"Huh?" Harry was completely confused. He had never heard of Guides before, at least not in the magical sense. "What the hell are Guides?"
Cooper shook his head and said, "Harry, you might want to sit down for this." Harry sat warily, looking from one gentleman to the other. "We are Guides as I said before. We show people the way to find what they are looking for. Everyone is searching for something in this life, and we help them find it. When you were younger all you wanted was a place to belong, and Gabe, your Guide, revealed the wizarding world to you through your ability to use your magical powers unknowingly. Then when all you wanted was to defeat Voldemort, he helped you find the strength within yourself to kill him. What a person wishes to find may not be concrete but an emotion or a knowledge of something. It depends on who they are."
Harry was starting to understand; he had always felt like there was a force keeping him sane. Even at his darkest, when he wanted nothing more than to throw himself off of the nearest bridge, something was with him, telling him to stay a little longer. "Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be, like in our heads or something?"
"Not necessarily. For you, Gabe felt that you had too many people trying to help you, so he placed himself in your subconscious so you couldn't be rid of him. While Hermione has always turned to me as her Guide, I stayed in her life as a friend. I always seem to show up when she needs me the most. So you see, you are not alone on your journey." He said, reading Harry's face correctly.
"That's where you learned all the magic from, even though you're muggle. Right?"
"Exactly. I was born a muggle but wanting to be of help to Hermione, I became a part of the Guides. They taught me and showed me the way to Guide people. Once I became a Guide, I ceased being a muggle but I am not a wizard either."
Harry sat back into the couch letting all this new information sink into his mind. Suddenly he remembered something. "Is Draco a Guide?"
Charles looked surprised at the boy's intelligence. He smiled and responded, "Yes, he is in training right now." Interpreting his looks correctly, he added, "And you wish to know why?"
"Well, yes. I mean I have nothing against him now, but when I was younger he was a bit of a prick and tried his damnedest to make my life hell. Why should he—"
"—be chosen over you?" Cooper said. "We do not blame people for their past transgressions. People act with immaturity and without reason when they don't understand the people around them. You were perceived as a threat. You were famous, better at Quidditch and had real friends. He had none of that growing up. He proved himself when he put all that aside and helped your cause though he had nothing to gain from it. Also you can't allow others to be hurt. When you see someone get into trouble you feel the need to rush in and help them. Guides need to step back and let them find their own way. A sink or swim scenario. That is not your nature."
"…so where do we go from here? I don't want to reveal you unless you want me to, but I can't keep a secret from my friends."
"I know. That's why I propose that I tell them when we return to the house. You will have been missed and it's long been time for explanations."
"Wait. You said something before that we were going about Tonks all wrong."
"I never said a thing about Tonks, Harry." Cooper said confused.
"Oh, that I just inferred since this last meeting left with finding out ways to protect her." He said with a wave of his hand. "But you know how to save her, or whether she can be saved, don't you?"
"Yes, but I cannot reveal it. It is against our custom. We are there to Guide, not explicitly tell." Cooper genuinely worried, like he wasn't 100 positive Hermione could find the answer and that scared Harry because she always found the answer.
"Well, perhaps we'll think of something on the way." He responded, getting up and throwing a meaningful look at Charles. Cooper caught it and understood his motives. He wanted to get him away from his boss, so he wouldn't get in trouble.
After excusing themselves, they began the trek back to the headquarters. "So what do you have in mind?" Cooper asked when they were several blocks from the warehouse.
"Well, you aren't allowed to specifically tell us the answers to our questions but what about giving us enough information to answer them ourselves?"
"Yeah, that's what a Guide's job is. I don't see how this helps us."
"Who says how much information it takes for us to get to the answer?" Harry asked as he walked along. Comprehension dawned in Cooper's eyes. 'I like how he thinks,' he thought. They continued their walk in silence until headquarters came into view.
"Hopefully, the others will pick up on the plan so we don't get anyone into trouble." The boy-who-lived commented.
The group was in the library with bags under their eyes, showing they had been up trying to find the solution to their problem. They never noticed Harry and Cooper join their party until they cleared their throats.
"Huh? Oh, when did you get back?" Hermione said, rubbing her eyes.
"Just a few minutes ago. I think Cooper found something that could help us." Harry sat at the table and seeming gave him his undivided attention. Draco watched this and wondered what was afoot.
"Yeah well, I just remembered something I read in the papers about Voldemort and his Death Eaters, but I can't quite remember all of it, just the jist. It had to do with spies…" Cooper left the last part open-ended, so that they could ponder the connection.
"Wait, wasn't Snape a spy?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, I was," came the response from the corner. "But I don't see the importance of that."
"Well, you weren't killed by the curse that defeated Voldemort."
"Nobody was, Miss Granger. The curse was meant solely for Voldemort."
"Of course, but it hurt the Death Eaters due to their connection through the Dark Mark. But you weren't hurt by it. I remember you telling someone that you were glad you were on our side because you disliked pain." Hermione was pacing the room now. Snape stunned that she had remembered such an insignificant comment.
"Maybe the connection between the Keepers is like the connection between Voldemort and the Death Eaters. It only affects those that are truly entrenched in the beliefs."
"But the keepers are much more powerful than Voldemort. They probably thought of something to deal with spies." Harry said, noticing the crestfallen look on Hermione's face at this.
"It is probably something very simple. Often geniuses can't see the simple things because they are always focused on the larger picture. Maybe all that's needed is a little space." Cooper added the last part as an afterthought, which simply confused everyone.
Harry was the first to the have understanding shine in his emerald eyes. Hey, he didn't defeat Voldemort with cotton between his ears. "Does the curse affect Keepers not at the Ceremony? It's possible that they leave some members out of the Ceremony, to enable that the tradition continues. Perhaps that's why they keep reappearing. People try to kill them without realizing that they can only kill the Keepers in the room." Harry finished.
"That makes sense. I read somewhere that the American president and those next in succession are never all in the same room together in case something happens. That way they will always have someone to fill the postion." At the blank looks Hermione received, she added exasperatedly. "I had to do a project on another country and their muggle form of government for Muggle Studies."
"So all we have to do is keep Dora from the ceremony and she'll be safe?" Lupin asked tentatively, holding her hand. Hermione had never heard Lupin address Tonks as anything but, but she figured that in a relationship it is better to call their respective other by a name other than their last name. Dora seemed to fit her.
"I think so. All we have left to do is find the other Keepers not at the Ceremony, and where and when the Ceremony is to take place and we might have a fighting chance." Tonks nodded her head affirmatively at Cooper's comment. The meeting was obviously over, and everyone felt their heart lighten at the knowledge that Tonks would be kept safe.
well, there you have it. and now the moment every reader dreads reading after finishing the chapter. the part where the author begs them on hands and knees to review. i really need someone to review for me to continue with the story. so PLEASE someone review! thank you, that is all.