Ch. 17

When Harry reappeared with Cedric's body, Dumbledore gave a sigh of relief. Currently, he had Tori Mars restrained by Lupin and Snape to keep her from ripping his throat out. She had gone ballistic when she saw her son vanish. When Dumbledore confessed that he was confused and that the Port Key wasn't part of the Tournament, Tori had launched herself at him, demanding that he bring her son back.

Dumbledore rushed down to see Harry along with Moody and Fudge. Harry was still in shock over his encounter and could barely get out that Voldemort was back. Fudge noticed Cedric's dead body and tried to pry the corpse from Harry's arms. Harry refused to let go, his grip only tightened by his trauma.

"Harry, let go of him." Fudge said.

"Harry, you can't help him now. Please, let go." Dumbledore said.

"He wanted me to bring him back. He wanted me to bring him back to his parents," Harry muttered as Dumbledore pried his fingers off of Cedric.

Harry felt as if he were floating in a dream. None of this could be real. He closed his eyes, trying to block out the sounds of crying and Dumbledore's voice. He felt strong arms lift him and help him walk away.

"What happened, Harry?" It was Moody. Harry felt a little safer knowing that the ex-Auror was with him. He'd protect him from Voldemort.

"Cup was a Port Key," Harry said, his words slurring together. "Took me and Cedric to a graveyard. Voldemort is back. He was reborn."

"Tell me what happened, Harry."

"He got his body back," Harry whispered and then gave a choking laugh. "He is one ugly jerk! Looks like the byproduct of a snake mating with a human."

"And then what, Harry?"

"Gave me my wand back. We dueled."

"You fought the Dark Lord?"

Harry nodded. "My wand did something funny. I saw my mom and dad. They came out of his wand."

He felt a cup being pushed into his hand and Moody was telling him to drink it. It tasted peppery and it burned his throat. Moody's office came into focus and so did Moody. The ex-Auror was pale, both his eyes focused on Harry.

"Harry, you have to tell me. Did he forgive his Death Eaters?" Moody asked. "Did they return to him?"

Harry nodded. "He forgave them when they answered his call. He -" Harry suddenly remembered. "He has one here at Hogwarts! He has a Death Eater here at Hogwarts!"

"I know, Harry. I know who it is."

"Karkaroff, right? It was Karkaroff!" Harry asked, wildly.

"Karkaroff? No, he fled when he felt the Dark Mark burn on his skin. He abandoned the Dark Lord in favor for his own life." Moody laughed. "He won't live for long once the Dark Lord hunts him down."

"If it wasn't Karkaroff, then who was it?"

Moody smiled and Harry felt the air chill around him. "Why, Harry, it was me."

"No, it couldn't be you. You dedicated your life to stopping Voldemort!"

"I assure you, Harry, I am his most faithful Death Eater." Moody said, drawing his wand and pointing it at Harry.

"So, he forgave the scum that abandoned him, did he? They turned their backs on him, and he welcomed them back? I had hoped that he would have tortured them for their faithlessness. I remained faithful. I risked everything for him, even delivering you to him."

Harry gaped at him. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Moody was the Death Eater? He listened, numbly, as Moody crowed about how he had tricked Harry and Dumbledore. He listed every little thing he had done to bring Harry to Voldemort.

"I was disappointed, Harry, that the Dark Lord didn't kill you." Moody said, bringing Harry's attention back to the present. "However, think of how he'll reward me when I bring him your dead body."

"I think he's more interested in mom," Harry said, stalling for time.

"Oh, yes, the Dark Lady. I can never remember her being a part of the meetings, but I do remember the Dark Lord being impressed by her. He would sneak off at times to watchTori, mesmorized by how she planned on finding him.If he wants Tori Mars, then I will deliver her to him as well."

Moody looked insane as he continued. "The Dark Lord and I are so much alike. We both had disappointing fathers, forced to bare their names. Both of us suffered indignities at their hands, and we both had the pleasure of killing our miserable fathers."

Moody raised his wand. "And now, Harry Potter, this is where you say good-bye."

"Stupefy!" Three voices yelled out and three red beams hit Moody. Harry looked over to see Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape standing in the doorway.

McGonagall reached Harry first, helping him up. "Come along, Potter. Let's get you to the hospital wing."

"No," Dumbledore said sharply.

"Dumbledore, he ought to go. Look at him - look at what he's been through," McGonagall stammered.

"He will stay because he needs to understand." Dumbledore said. "He needs to understand why this has happened to him tonight."

"How could it have been Moody?" Harry asked.

"This is not Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, Harry. You never met the real Moody, but he would never have taken you out of my sight after what happened tonight." Dumbledore said. "The second he took you, I knew and I followed."

Dumbledore then turned to Snape and McGonagall. "Severus, fetch the strongest Truth Potion you have and then go the kitchens and bring a House Elf named Winky here. Minerva, you'll find a black dog sitting in the pumpkin patch by Hagrid's hut. Fetch him and bring him to my office. And please have Remus keep Tori out of the way a while longer."

Harry watched his teachers leave, following Dumbledore's confusing requests. Dumbledore then discovered the real Mad-Eye Moody in the seventh compartment of a chest in the corner. As they waited for Snape and McGonagall to return, the false Moody changed into a man with pale skin and straw-colored hair. It was Mr. Crounch's son, the one he had sent to Azkaban.

Snape returned with Winky and handed Dumbledore the bottle of Veritaserum. McGonagall was right behind him, looking rather shocked to see the younger Crounch. Winky, when she saw him, flung herself on his chest and cried.

Dumbledore let three drops of the Truth Potion to slide into the boy's mouth before he woke the boy up.

"Tell me how you escaped from Azkaban," Dumbledore said.

Crounch took a deep breath, his eyes open and unseeing. "It was my mother. She knew she was dying and convinced my father to let us change places. We brewed a Polyjuice Potion and I was led out in her form while she stayed there in mine. She died, looking like me to the very last."

"Say no more, Master Barty!" Winky pleaded. "You is getting your father into trouble!"

"My father staged a funeral for my mom, but the grave is empty. The House Elf nursed me back to health and stayed by my side. My father had to subdue me to keep me from returning to my Master's side."

"How did you father subdue you?"

"The Imperius Curse. He kept me under his control."

"Did anyone ever discover that you were alive?"

"Yes, a witch named Bertha Jenkins. She had showed up with papers for my father, but he wasn't home. She overheard me talking and knew what who I was. My father had to place a powerful memory charm on her to make her forget."

"Tell me about the World Cup."

"Winky talked my father into it. She said that my mom would want me to spend some time in the fresh air. I was hidden under an Invisibility Cloak. We pretended that Winky was saving a seat for my father while I watched the game.

"Winky never knew that I had grown stronger. I threw off the Imperius Curse for brief periods of time. The World Cup was such a time. I saw a wand sticking out of a boy's pocket and I took it. No one knew what I had done."

Winky moaned. "Master Barty, you bad boy!"

"Then what happened?"

"We went back to our tent. I could hear them, the Death Eaters who were never caught. They never tried to find our Master. They were traitors. My father left to save the Muggles and I left to show them what true loyalty was. Winky tried to stop me, but I managed to get the Dark Mark in to the air.

"The Ministry wizards stunned Winky and myself, but I was hidden in the Cloak. Only my father, when he saw Winky, knew that I was near. He dismissed her for failing him and kept a tighter reign on me."

Winky wailed in despair.

"Then, my Master came for me. He had broken the memory charm on Bertha and came for me. He knew of how Dumbledore had hired the Auror Moody, and had me take his form. I was to guide Harry Potter to the trophy and send him to my Master."

"What happened to your father?"

"My Master put him under the Imperius Curse. He was to act as if nothing had happened and go about business as usual, but he managed to throw it off. He came to Hogwarts to warn Dumbledore. I had to kill him. I Transfigured him into a bone and buried him in the Invisibility Cloak while Krum was unconscious. Then I ran into Snape, who told me that Dumbledore needed my help with something. I pretended to not know anything as I searched for a body that I knew was buried."

"And tonight?"

"I turned the Cup into a Port Key. My plan had worked when I saw that Potter had reached the Key. I hadn't expected for him to tie with Diggory, but it turned out all right. I will be honored beyond my wildest dreams. I even stole the blood oath from Snape in case my plan failed. As long as we have Potter's blood, there are spells we can do."

He smiled an insane smile as Winky wailed at his side.

Snape leaned forward. "Where is the blood oath? Where is the rest of the stuff you took from my office!"

"The blood oath is in my desk. I only took that and bloomslang skin for my Polyjuice Potion."

"Where is the rest of it!" Snape hollared. He would have continued to question the man if Dumbledore hadn't told him to calm down. Harry wondered briefly what had been stolen from Snape that was far more important then the blood oath.

Dumbledore then took Harry, against McGonagall's better wishes, to his office to get Harry's side of the story. Sirius was waiting for him, and offered support as Harry dully told his story. Then, and only then, did Dumbledore take Harry to the hospital wing. Sirius stayed by his side as a dog.

Lupin had to hold Tori back when she found out what Dumbledore had done. She was furious that Dumbledore had questioned him when he needed help. It was borderline abuse, and she swore that if he ever tried a stunt like that again, she'd reactivate the protection she placed on him as a child and take him away from England for good.

"You'll have to fight Voldemort on your own! No more Harry Potter to save your fat from the fire!" Tori promised.

Tori stayed by Harry's side as he slept, drugged by potions. Ron, Hermione and the Weasleys refused to leave as well. He was only woken up when Snape, McGonagall and Fudge entered the hospital wing, fighting and calling for Dumbledore. As it turned out, Fudge had brought a Dementor into Hogwarts and it had kissed Barty Crounch Jr.

Dumbledore was furious when he had heard the news, demanding to know why Fudge had done such a thing. They had lost a valuable witness to the fact that Voldemort had risen. When Dumbledore tried to reason with Fudge, it was obvious that the Minister didn't want to believe that Voldemort was back, even laughing at the fact that Harry was now the only witness.

"You are prepared to believe that the darkest wizard of all time is back on the words of a lunatic murderer and a boy who . . . well . . ."

Tori stood up. "Are you calling my son a liar!"

"He is not your son!" Fudge cried. "He is a boy who should have been raised by appropriate people instead of being kidnapped by a woman who is strongly suspected of being involved with dark wizards. If he had a proper upbringing, then maybe he wouldn't be so confused or disturbed!"

"You've been reading Rita Skeeter, haven't you, Mr. Fudge?" Harry said. He saw several people in the room jump, not realizing that he was awake. Only Sloane (who must have joined them after Harry had fallen asleep), Tori and Lupin didn't jump.

"And if I have?" Fudge retorted. "It seems as if you two -" here he pointed between Harry and Dumbledore, "- have been keeping things from me. A Parselmouth? Having funny turns all over the place?"

"I assume you mean the pains that Harry has experienced due to his scar?" Dumbledore said coolly.

Fudge sneered. "You admit that it's true?"

"I assure you that Harry is as sane as you or I. His scar has not addled his brains. Instead, I believe it hurts him when he is near Voldemort, or when Voldemort is feeling particularly murderous." Dumbledore said.

Harry could see the calculating look in Tori's eyes. She now had an idea about his scar, and could find a way to help him.

Sloane leaned over to Harry and whispered in his ear, "Cool. You're a Vold-o-meter." Harry smiled briefly, pleased that his brother was there for him.

"I did see Voldemort come back!" Harry said, looking over at Fudge. "I even saw his Death Eaters. I can give you their names! Lucius Malfoy -"

Snape made a sudden movement, but when Harry looked at him, his eyes flew back to Fudge. Tori gave a gasp, sitting back down on Harry's bed. He had known that the name of her friend would hurt her, but it was the truth.

"Malfoy was cleared! A very old family - well liked in the Ministry!" Fudge declared. Tori gave a soft snort and Harry realized that she was trying to not cry.

"Macnair!" Harry continued.

"Also cleared!"

"Avery - Crabbe - Goyle - Nott -"

"All cleared! You are merely reciting the names from the trials of thirteen years ago!" Fudge accused. "I'm surprised that you don't name Tori next."

"Voldemort has returned, Fudge. You must be prepared for what is to come." Dumbledore said.

Tori turned and hugged Harry and Sloane as Dumbledore and Fudge fought. She already knew what she was going to do. She had to train her boys to live. She had been pretty lax in their training so far, but not any more. She remembered what it was like when Voldemort was at his peak, and she vowed to not lose her sons to that!

They turned back in time to see Snape approach Fudge, rolling up his left sleeve. He forced Fudge to see the Dark Mark on his arm.

"There, see? It is not as bright as it was an hour or so ago, but it is back! When the Dark Lord was defeated thirteen years ago, it vanished. Now, it's back and so is he! Here is your proof!" Snape snarled. Tori gave another stifled cry and Snape turned towards her, a look of sad defeat on his face.

Fudge left after that. He paused only long enough to drop Harry's winnings by his bed before he fled from what he believed to be madness. Harry and Sloane were comforting their mother, who looked as if her world had fallen apart. Lupin looked rather grim as he ran one hand up and down Tori's back, whispering that everything would be all right.

"There is work that needs to be done," Dumbledore said. "I can count on you and Arthur, right Molly?"

"Of course," Mrs. Weasley said. "We'll stand by you all the way."

"Then I need to get a message to Arthur. All those whom we can persuade to see the truth must be notified."

"I'll go," Bill said. "I'll go now."

He quickly left the room after he kissed his mom good-bye and flashed a smile at Harry and Sloane.

Dumbledore turned to McGonagall. "Minerva, go get Hagrid and have him wait in my office for me. Also - if she will consent - get Madam Maxine as well."

McGonagall nodded and left.

"Poppy," Dumbledore said, turning to Madam Pomfrey. "Please go to Moody's office and fetch the House Elf there. Her name is Winky, and I believe she is still distraught. Bring her to the kitchens and have Dobby look after her."

Madam Pomfrey looked startled, but she left as well. Dumbledore made sure that the door was closed after she had left.

"Now, it is time for two of our members to recognize each other. Sirius, assume your usual form."

Sirius leapt from Harry's bed, transforming from dog to human. Mrs. Weasley gave a terrified cry, nearly fainting. Snape looked murderous, but it was Tori who had the best reaction. Before anyone could stop her, she stepped forward and slapped Sirius across the face with all her might.

"Tori!" Lupin cried.

"Wait, Remus, I may have deserved that." Sirius said, massaging his aching cheek.

"You betrayed Lily, you sick, slimy, murdering -" Tori began but Lupin had made his way over to her and gently pulled her away from Sirius.

"Tori, he didn't betray Lily. It was Peter Pettigrew who betrayed James and Lily." Lupin said.

Tori snorted, still glaring at Sirius. "Did you ever tell her that I was trying to find her? Did you tell her about my letters being returned to me, that her precious husband blocked me from writing to her!"

Sirius had the grace to look ashamed. "I told James. He was the only one who could remove the block. When he found out that you had been seen near Godric's Hollow, he strengthened the barrier."

"James was scared that you might be involved with the Death Eaters. Almost everyone you were friends with in school turned out to be Death Eaters," Remus explained. "He just panicked. He wanted to keep his wife and child safe."

"He robbed me of my friend!" Tori hissed. "How do you think I felt when I found out that she was dead! We never had a chance to say good-bye! Why did you do it, Sirius! Was it because of your paranoid jealousies! Did you even think that I'd miss my friend or did you keep her from me as a way to pay me back for your delusions!"

"I am so sorry, Tori," Lupin said, wrapping his arms around her as Tori cried. Years of pain finally broke free after she had confronted the person she had held responsible for her best friend's death.

"What is Black doing here, Headmaster?" Snape snarled. He was glaring at Sirius with a look of horror and fury, which Sirius returned.

"He is here on my invitation, as are you. I trust you both and believe that it is time for you two to set aside your differences and trust each other." Dumbledore said.

Sirius and Snape merely glared at each other.

"At least try for a lack of open hostility!" Dumbledore exclaimed. "Time is short. Now shake hands and pretend to be friends!"

Very slowly, Snape and Sirius approached each other. They briefly shook hands, letting go so fast that you'd think they had burned themselves.

"Good. Now, Severus, you know what I must ask you to do. Are you ready?"

Snape nodded and turned to leave. He made it to the door before he stopped. With a sigh, he turned back and stalked over to where Tori stood. Without a word, he grabbed Tori and kissed her. This was no sweet kiss good-bye, but one fueled with passion, anger, betrayal and desperate want.

Tori gave a low moan, reaching up to cling to Snape. She matched his kiss, emotion for emotion. Slowly, he pulled back and looked down at her. Tori leaned up, kissing him again. This kiss was gentle and she was crying when they parted.

"For luck," Snape whispered and quickly left the room. Tori stood there, tears rolling down her cheeks, one hand gently touching her bruised lips.

"Sirius, Remus, I want you two to round up the old gang. Lie low at Lupin's for the time being." Dumbledore said. There was a faint hint of amusement in his voice.

Sirius nodded, patting Harry on the arm. He turned to Tori and sneered, "If I didn't already think you were soiled goods, I would now," before he turned back into a dog and waited for Lupin. Lupin left only after he knew that Tori would be all right. Dumbledore left after them, wishing everyone a pleasant evening.

"Harry, you still need to rest. Take the rest of your potion," Mrs. Weasley said. This brought Tori out of her state of shock. She shooed Mrs. Weasley away from Harry, determined to be the only mother he needed at the moment.

Harry felt the tears he had denied himself all night start to sting his eyes. Tori saw this and quickly closed the curtains, telling Sloane that everyone should leave. She then held on to Harry as he cried, rocking him to sleep.

A few days after Harry left the hospital wing, he was back in. Only, this time it was to visit Sloane. Tori had brought Signore Dottore over to perform the healing spell on Sloane's heart.

"So, your father showed up?" Harry asked as he handed over his get-well gift. The contrast between what Harry normally woke up to and what Sloane's admirers had left was staggering. Instead of the mountains of candy and cards that Harry had received, Sloane's gifts were more tasteful and rare.

"Yea, dad showed up. He and mom helped with the healing, though, il dottore said that I'll have to do this at least three more times. My heart was just that bad."

Harry sighed and sat on the bed. "Sloane? Do you need to talk about it?"

Sloane looked at him. "Talk about what?"

Harry shrugged. "About who your father is? Are you all right with it?"

"What do you mean? I've known who my father was since last year." Sloane said.

Harry looked surprised. "You knew and you didn't tell me! For a whole year, you knew that Snape was your father and you never told me!"

Sloane laughed. "Yea. I mean, look at how you took it."

"Would you hate me if I still wanted mom to get together with Lupin?" Harry asked.

Sloane smiled. "I won't hate you. I think we both want mom to be happy. If Lupin is who makes her happy, then that's what we should want. However, we don't know how my father feels for mom."

Harry nodded. "We have one really mixed up family."

There was a pause before Harry turned back to his brother. "OK, one more question. How did you find out. Did he tell you or what?"

Sloane grinned. "He told me. It was something like this," Sloane brought his hands to his mouth and mimicked heavy breathing, "Sloane, I am your father."

"You're kidding. He just came out and told you?"

"No, I'm pulling your leg. I let him know that I suspected him and he confirmed it."

There was another pause before Harry said, "So, if Snape is Darth Vader, and you're Luke Skywalker, does that make me Princess Leia?"

Since Sloane had to stay in the hospital wing during the Feast, Harry stayed with him. They had a little bit of food brought to them and they talked about their plans for the summer. This summer was going to be one to remember.

On the train, Hermione proudly displayed the fact that she had discovered Rita Skeeter's secret.

"Now I know how she got all that information when she wasn't supposed to be on Hogwarts grounds." Hermione said, pulling out a jar with a bug inside. "She's an unregistered animagus."

Sure enough, the bug inside the jar had strange markings around the antennae like Rita's glasses. Hermione had caught her on the windowsill at the hospital wing and trapped her.

"Well done, Granger," Draco Malfoy hissed, opening the compartment door. "You must be really pleased with yourself. You caught a reporter and Potter is Dumbledore's favorite boy again."

Harry frowned slightly. Draco and his two thugs were looking a little too smug for his liking. It was like Draco had a secret that he knew Harry would give anything to know. However, Harry found his attitude to be annoying.

"I told you, Potter, on our first day, that you should be more careful of the friends you keep." Draco said. "You picked the loosing side, Potter. Now that the Dark Lord is back, you'll learn the error of your ways. Mudbloods and Muggle-lovers are first. Well, second, actually. Diggory was the first!"

The air was suddenly alive with magic as Harry, Hermione and Ron hexed Draco and his thugs. The combination of the hexes left the Slytherians unconscious and, quite frankly, ugly.

Harry sighed and was about to sit back down when a tanned hand waved a white handkerchief from the side of the door. A few seconds later, Sloane peered around.

"Is it safe?"

Harry laughed. "Yea, Sloane. What did you want?"

Instead of answering, Sloane motioned for Harry to come out to talk to him. Harry had to step over the Slytherians and figured that they were the reason why Sloane was so cautious.

"What is it Sloane?" Harry asked.

Sloane leaned forward and whispered into Harry's ear. Harry's eyes widened and he pulled back, a look of disbelief on his face.

"Give me a head start, OK?" Sloane said. Harry nodded and watched his brother dash back up the train. He sighed and turned back into his compartment.

"What was that all about?" Ron asked as Harry shoved Draco and his thugs outside.

"Well, you two know how you'll be spending part of the summer with me in Florida?" Harry said. It had taken some time, but Tori had convinced the Weasleys and the Grangers to let their children stay in America.

Ron nodded. "What of it?"

Here was where Harry wished he could just run away like his brother. "Well, Sloane informed me that you won't be our only guests. Draco is spending the summer with us as well."

"WHAT!" Ron cried. "Why!"

Harry shrugged. "Mom is already working out how we'll sleep. Most likely, the three of us will stay with my Uncle Hayden since his house is bigger. However, mom will expect us to try and get along while we're in America."

"I can't believe this! I refuse to spend my summer with Malfoy!" Ron growled.

"I think she's doing this to save him," Harry said. "Mom and Lucius Malfoy used to be friends. His being a Death Eater hit her pretty hard. She's scared that Draco would wind up being one if no one intervenes."

"And how can she save him?" Hermione asked.

"Yea. He's rotten to the core!" Ron declared.

Harry shrugged. "Who knows. Maybe she can't, but she has to try. Mom is also going to give us lessons in America on how to protect ourselves."

Ron grumped, but Harry was finally able to convince him to stay. If he had known about Draco coming to America, Harry doubted he would have hexed him - as much. It would make for a very tense few weeks.

Fred and George joined them for a few games of Exploding Sap, a type of wizard card game. They were impressed over the hexes on Draco, Crabbe and Goyle.

Before he got off the train, Harry stopped Fred and George. He thrust the bag of his winnings in their arms.

"Look, I don't want this money. It should have been Cedric's, but his parents turned me down." Harry said. "Use it to open your joke shop. Right now, we all could use a few laughs."

Fred and George protested until Harry threatened to hex them. They took the money and promised to get Ron a decent set of dress robes. Harry's heart felt lighter as he watched them go. Nothing, not even Draco, would ruin his good mood this summer.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

OK, I had agonized over revealing Sloane's father. I had wanted to keep it surprise, but decided I had torchured everyone long enough. Besides, the fifth part has some cute scenes that only work if we know who the father is.