A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed so far! When I started this story, I never imagined that people would actually like it. Well, I want you all to know that I appreciate the comments you've made. I understand that the story is a bit confusing right now, but hopefully this chapter should make things a bit easier to understand. Well, on with the show!
**
Chapter 05: Planning and Revelations
**
While Harry was taking the map to Dumbledore's office, Hermione sat on his bed thinking. Why did she act this way? Why did she have the compulsion to kill? Harry said she would get all her answers when she was fully awakened on her birthday, but she wanted them now. She decided to make Harry explain when he got back.
Harry got back to the room, and immediately noticed the determined look on Hermione's face. He sighed. She was going to want answers, and it would be up to him to give them to her. Harry knew that although her powers had activated, she was not yet a fully awakened Shadow Master. That would happen on her birthday, in two weeks. However, Hermione's studious mind would not allow the questions to go unanswered for that long. It was time to face the music. "You look like you want a history lesson." He said, sitting down in the chair next to the bed. Hermione nodded.
Harry took a breath, got his thoughts in order, and started. "Ok, this story begins on March 22, 1980. Voldemort is at the height of power, and his influence is growing everyday. However, a group called the Order of the Phoenix has formed, and is actively attacking his forces, getting closer everyday. Follow me so far?" He paused, and waited, knowing that she would want more detail.
"The Order of the Phoenix was attacking him? I thought they were resisting him." Hermione said, confused.
"With the help of many powerful Aurors, and talented wizards who liked to fight, the Order of the Phoenix was almost as powerful as the Death Eaters. Back then, they attacked when they could, and were often victorious." Harry said, and then continued his story. "Well, naturally this made Snake Face a bit worried. After all, Albus Dumbledore is the most powerful sorcerer in the world. So he starts going through his dark arts library, eventually coming across a ritual to make himself almost invulnerable. The ritual, if successful would summon two Shadow Masters, who would present him with the Cloak of Shadows. Before you ask, a Shadow Master is a type of demon. We'll get to that in a minute, but do you have any other questions?"
"Yes I do," Hermione said. "I'm assuming that the two Shadow Masters that he summoned are us, right?" Harry nodded, and Hermione asked the real question. "Then why don't we serve him? If he's the summoner, then we would be compelled to obey him, would we not?"
"Ah, here's where the story gets interesting." Harry said, and his eyes began to twinkle like the headmaster's. "Although the Cloak of Shadows would make him almost invulnerable to attack, the ritual used to summon the Shadow Masters would leave him as a squib for several years. You see, Shadow Masters are complex magical creatures. It takes a whole lot of magic to summon them, and even more to hold them in the world. That would leave Voldemort as nothing more than a muggle, until he could recover his magic." Hermione gasped, but Harry continued. "Naturally, Voldemort found this side effect to be totally unacceptable, so he modified the ritual. Rather than summoning us from pure magic, he called us into the bodies of living humans. He had two of his followers ready to accept the Shadow master energies, but he did not specify that the Shadow Master spirits had to occupy said followers. Instead, the spirits chose two more suitable candidates. Me and you were perfect for them." Harry started to say more, but Hermione interrupted him.
"What do you mean, perfect for them? We weren't even born yet!" Hermione exclaimed. Harry smiled at her in a rather sardonic way.
"Exactly. No thoughts of our own yet, and no magical resistance to possession. Their spirits merged with ours, and went dormant. Since we had no magical ability to speak of at the time, the desires and powers of the Shadow Masters lay dormant inside of us. Naturally Voldemort assumed that the ritual didn't work. He made preparations to try the actual summoning ritual, and then heard about a prophecy that could mean his downfall. He put the Cloak of Shadows on hold, so he could deal with the threat of a newborn baby with the power to kill him." Harry said, eyes still twinkling, but not with amusement. They now glittered with anger. "That is how we came to be Shadow Masters. Any more questions?"
"A few." Said Hermione. "Even if he called us, rather then summoned us, according to the ritual, we still should be compelled to obey his orders. So, why is it that we feel no obligation to seek him out and serve him?" Harry actually laughed at this, and Hermione got the feeling that Voldemort had made another huge mistake in the ritual.
"We are compelled to serve Lord Voldemort until we die." Hermione opened her mouth to argue, but Harry held up a hand to silence her. "Unfortunately for him, ritual magic is very precise. There is no such person as Lord Voldemort. In the eyes of magic, the man who calls himself Lord Voldemort, will never be anyone other than Tom Riddle."
Comprehension dawned on Hermione's face. "So we serve no one. Tom Riddle called us to serve Lord Voldemort, not Tom Riddle."
"Exactly." Harry said. "Any more questions, or should we get down to planning?"
"I have one more question, but I'm not sure how to ask it. Harry, why do we have a compulsion to kill?" Hermione asked. This was the question that had plagued her since the first time she'd done it. Harry looked her in the eyes. He placed his hands on her shoulders, and spoke in a very soft voice.
"I know what you mean Hermione. I hate it too, but we can't help it. Shadow Masters are a lot like werewolves when it comes to violence. We simply have to kill." Harry said. "Our thirst for death is very much like the Vampire's thirst for blood. It doesn't ever go away, but it can be temporarily satisfied."
That answered many questions for Hermione. "Will it ever stop?" She asked, almost afraid of the answer.
Harry smiled softly. "Yes it will. Our Shadow Master spirits are tied to Tom Riddles life force. Even though we don't serve him, he did call us. When his magic disappears from the earth, the spirits he called will leave this plane once again. When I kill Voldemort, we will be free of this curse. However, powerful as he may be, Voldemort is only one man. His real power comes from the hundreds of wizards at his disposal. We need to isolate him from them first. To do that, we kill off his circle. Doing that will satisfy our craving for death. It also makes it more difficult for him to enact his plans."
"I'm not sure I understand, Harry. If we kill Voldemort, then we'll be free, and the Death Eaters will disband once more. Why not just do that, and solve everyone's problem?" Hermione said. Harry sighed
"Think of Voldemort's group as a Hydra. Voldemort is the dominant head, right now. If we cut that head off, another head will take it's place, and change the whole Hydra's behavior." He said. "Voldemort may be the brains of the outfit, but he has almost no contact with anyone outside his inner circle. By killing the members of his circle, we eliminate twenty to thirty heads at once, since Voldemort has no way to control the people serving the circle member. He doesn't even know who they are."
Hermione nodded her understanding. "Ok, then let's talk about Theodore Nott Sr."
"Alright, then." Harry said, his mood turning sinister. "I changed the plan. Saturday at noon, outside Gringott's bank in Diagon Alley. Here's the plan…."
**
The Next Morning
**
Kingsley Shacklebolt burst into Albus Dumbledore's office, out of breath and panicking. "Albus, he doesn't work alone!" Albus stared at Kingsley for a moment, not sure what this was about. Comprehension came quickly, however, and his eyes widened at the implications.
"There are more than one of them?" He said. "How do you know this?"
"When we were examining Malfoy's body yesterday, we examined his wand hand very carefully. According to our forensic scientists, his hand was pierced by a throwing knife. While that is unusual, the knife came from Lucius Malfoy's right side. According to the examiners, Malfoy was drawing his wand when it happened. If he was facing his attacker, then the assassin had a partner." Kingsley said, laying all information on the table.
"This is bad. One Shadow Master is difficult to deal with, but two are almost impossible." Albus said, as he began writing letters. "I'm convening an Order meeting for Saturday night, at Ten P.M. Alert the others."
"How do we deal with them, Albus? Can they even be killed?"
"Yes, Kingsley. They are not immortal, nor are they invincible. They are almost invulnerable, however. They each have a Cloak of Shadows." Albus said, the twinkle absent from his eyes. "I will explain our predicament at the meeting."
"Good day, Albus." Kingsley said, walking towards the door.
"Be safe, Kingsley." Albus said, as he went back to his letter writing.
**
A/N: Ok, that was a fun chapter to write. Hopefully I answered some of your questions about shadow masters. If you have any more questions about them, put it in a review and I will try to answer it in future chapters. Just so you're not confused, there is a difference between invincible and invulnerable. Invincible means that they can not be harmed in any way. Invulnerable means that they are resistant to any kind of attack, with no specific weakness. I hope that helps. Next chapter will contain the death of Theodore Nott Sr.