CHAPTER 20
Of Precautions, Foxes And Break-ins
Severus hurriedly threw a pinch of floo powder into the fireplace and made his first stop at Andromeda's home.
"Andromeda! Teddy! Tonks!" he yelled before he stepped over the grate. There was no response.
"Teddy! Andromeda!" he yelled harder and was greeted by the pounding of feet as all the members of the house rushed out to greet him.
"My goodness, Severus!" Andromeda said, trying to catch her breath. "Whatever's-"
"Right!" Severus interrupted her. "I don't know how much time we have, but Lucius Malfoy is bent on killing Narcissa and Draco." There was a gasp, but Severus hurried on, "He finished looking through all possible allies and on hitting dead ends, he will now come to your doorstep for answers. And I don't think he will be as gentle and cautious as he was with his Death Eater friends.
"Therefore, I want you three to go into hiding. Put up the Fidelius, construct security wards, disillusion or disguise yourselves when you leave your home, secure your work place as discreetly but as powerfully as possible or you will be hurt in the most unimaginable ways. You heard about the Longbottoms. I don't want another repetition. I already have a child who goes to visit his parents and receives no response, no recognition whatsoever."
Nymphadora Tonks moved to argue, but Severus cut her off,"Tut tut! Do not argue! I don't have much time, I have many other places to go to. Please put up those wards, the Fidelius and everything I've mentioned immediately...more even if you can. Your lives as well as those of the Blacks and perhaps even Petunia, Dudley, the Evans' and Potters depend on it! Do you understand?"
Andromeda nodded solemnly, her face a picture of dogged determination.
Severus abruptly threw a pinch of floo powder into their fireplace and stepped in and called out the name of his childhood home at Spinner's End. Then he hurried to the Evans' home and began putting up more wards around their home. Then he knocked and entered, not waiting for anyone to open the door
"Severus!" Mr. Evans said, startled. "What's-"
"No, time, Mr. Evans." Severus said as he began shooting protective spells around him ignoring the fact that the man was already overflowing with protections. "This is an emergency that doesn't involve you directly, but connections may directly lead to you two."
"What connections?" Mrs. Evans said, alarmed at the atmosphere surrounding her sitting room.
Severus, satisfied that Mr. Evans could roam out without being attacked by Lucius Malfoy or Sirius Black or anyone else, turned to Mrs. Evans. As he put up spells around her, she said, "Severus! What on earth are you doing?"
He simply replied, "I'll explain it to you in detail over tea whenever I get the time, alright?"
Mrs Evans looked even more alarmed, but Severus didn't wait for her response.
He finished working on her a minute later and rushed to the fireplace and flooed to the Potter Alcove.
To his good luck, Narcissa, Petunia and Dudley were all having tea in the kitchen.
"Severus!" the women cried in surprise as he made his sudden entry.
"Do not interrupt me." he said, "I have something important to tell you. Lucius Malfoy entered the castle today via some unknown passageway. He knocked at my door and I let him in. He decided to take a shot in the dark and ask me where I'd hidden Narcissa, and Draco. I for my part, laughed and casually asked him if this was his newly availed strategy and somehow, I got his suspicion off me."
Severus took out his wand and began running it around Dudley, putting spells on him that wouldn't let anyone of potential danger even set their eyes on him. He knew, that just like the Evans' case, he had put these spells on Petunia and Dudley before, but a second time wouldn't hurt.
As he worked he spoke, "He realised that his only source of information regarding your whereabouts were the Tonks and I've instructed them to hide. That is exactly what I want you to to do. Without wasting any more time, Narcissa, I want you to stay at home. No stepping out of the house unless you're disguised."
"I always do that!" Narcissa said annoyed. Severus let out an exasperated sigh as he turned to Petunia and began working on her, having finished with Dudley.
"I know that you do, but I don't think the gravity of the situation has hit you. He wants to kill you both and one small act of forgetfulness on your part could leave Draco with no choice but to return to the wonderful care of his father. And that will mean the end of him as well!"
Narcissa looked dismayed. Severus used the silence to put charms on her and when he was done, Petunia said, "Is it safe for Dudley go to school?"
"Of course." Severus said. "My spells have always and will always keep any potential threat from recognising him, you and everyone else, I've put my spells on. And as always," he turned to look at Dudley, "when a stranger asks you your name, you are?"
"Nick Clause, from London." Dudley answered dutifully.
"And if they press you for more?" Severus said.
Dudley prattled out very convincingly, "I'm fourteen years old, and I attend school at Smeltings. I'm an excellent student and I have no favourite teacher, but they love me. I am simply visiting Stonewall High as an exchange student and mind you, this place is pathetic. The food's stale, the water tastes horrible and the peons do not make our beds! At Smeltings we never ever had to wash our underthings! But it horribly different here! We're punished if we don't keep our place clean!...Wait a minute! I'm not supposed to talk to strangers. But you were real nice, though. I hope you have a nice day, Sir or Ma'am."
Petunia tittered with disapproval.
Severus ignored her and said, "Alright, remember what I've told you. Take care, be aware of your surroundings. And now, I will need to leave."
Severus hurried back upstairs and flooed to his own quarters. Hurriedly he rushed out into the corridor and paused, not knowing where the Swarm would be. On deciding to check their meeting place in the dungeons first before going up to the library, Severus headed deeper into the roots of the castle.
He needed to cast extra protections on Draco, so if ever his father came across him, Draco wouldn't be recognised.
All he heard was silence as he approached the cave, and he decided to turn back and head upstairs. However, instinct made him check the room before he turned back and when he entered, he was most surprised to see his charges sitting cross-legged, eyes closed and deep in meditation. However, Severus could only count four heads. There was no Harry!
Panic was on the verge of taking a firm hold in Severus's chest. Anything could have happened to Harry! He could have been pounced by Sirius Black, or he could have been lying hurt somewhere else or his leg could have given way and he could have fallen and hit his head and...And then reason made way through Severus's stressed mind, Harry may simply have gone to the bathroom or he may have been trying to get his homework done somewhere.
But he wouldn't have gone to do his homework when the other four were doing something that seemed quite important...then he saw it and gasped.
Lying there, curled up between Draco and Ethan was a tiny light brown furry creature, eyes closed as though deep in meditation, and as unaware as the others. The creature had long distinctive ears, similar to those possessed by fennec fox. Then on its head lay a streak of white fur arranged into the familiar form of the lightening scar that Harry wore on his head.
Severus's gasp got the children as well as the fox out of meditation and the fox's black eyes seemed to register surprise as it found Severus standing up so high. It looked around at its companions and seemed to find them rather tall as well.
It opened its mouth as if to speak, and a high pitched squeak was the only sound it made. As one children's eyes fell on him and as they gasped, the fox closed its mouth and looked down at its paws and its jaw fell open as though involuntarily in a very human-like fashion.
"Harry!" the children cried in surprise and so did Harry.
"How did you do it?" Blaire asked.
The fox literally shrugged its shoulders and shook its head, its black eyes now confused.
"Did you know that you transformed?"
Again the fox, er, Harry shook his head.
"You just did it?" Draco said incredulously. "Without even knowing that you would become one?"
Fox Harry shrugged.
"Wait a minute, wait a minute." Severus interrupted. "Is this fox, Harry?"
"Yes, Prof." Blaire said.
He looked at them all accusingly and said sternly, "What were you upto?"
"We were just meditating, Prof!" Neville said, his eyes wide and sincere.
Severus looked intently at him for a moment and then, satisfied that he was telling the truth, nodded. Before he could utter another word, however, Fox Harry let out a high pitched cry and took off, running around the room, chattering happily as it did, skidding as his body, unaccustomed to this new form, refused to co-ordinate. He skidded and slided around and around trying to get the hang of running until Severus bent down and grabbed him by the scruff of his neck as he was sliding past and held him to his face with a rebuffing grunt.
Fox Harry, who would later be called Sly (having being the first to transform, therefore taking the first letter of the word Swarm), looked up at Severus disgruntled. Severus could barely keep from smiling at the sight of those big eyes on that tiny face. Harry's form was... adorable, but Severus would never admit it out to them.
"Can you transform back?" he asked.
The little fox nodded and closed its eyes and half a minute later, he opened his eyes and looked up at Blaire in confusion.
"Transfomare ad tergum humano." Blaire said to him and Harry, the fennec fox, nodded and closed its eyes again.
In a three seconds, he was growing larger in size and before Severus knew it, he was holding Harry Potter by the scruff of his robes. Severus let go, folded his arms across his chest and looked down at Harry disapprovingly.
He was proud of the boy for accomplishing this feat, but he had firmly told them that they were not to transform! He had repeatedly reminded them of how dangerous it was to become an animagus. He was disappointed in them, and would have said so, had a familiar voice in his head not bring his attention to the fact that Harry's transformation, judging by how the fox reacted, was probably an accident.
"Well?" Severus said.
"I don't know what happened, Prof!" Harry said. "Honest!"
Severus simply stood there.
Harry hesitated and then said, "I used to get distracted while meditating the usual way, so I would imagine a breeze that would come in contact with my entire body, that suddenly, that breeze would turn into magic and I would see something light brown flash across my mind. And after that nothing more, that is either I'd fall asleep or I'd get distracted.
"And by today, I was curious to know what my form was, so as we meditated, I tried to focus on that light brown, but all it did was dash across my mind and it kept coming and going away until, I heard you and opened my eyes. Then I realised that I had turned into an animal!"
He looked up at Severus and said in a lower, meeker voice, "What sort of animal did my form take, Prof?"
Severus permitted his expression to soften as he said, "A fennec fox, the smallest of the fox species...they usually live in deserts and are accustomed to dig underground tunnels... Anyway, I don't think I can impress upon you how important it is that you keep this ability of yours a secret. You have proven to be extremely powerful to have achieved this at your age, though I didn't have any doubts since I saw that orb glowing light in your cupboard two years ago, but powerful or not, skillful or not and admirable or not, the Ministry will not hesitate to lock you up for doing this without their knowledge or consent.
"I must therefore demand that you do not use this ability of yours, except in a life or death situation... Harry, do you understand? Do all of you understand? Will you keep yourselves and each other out of trouble?"
They nodded solemnly.
"I want words!" he snapped.
"Yes, Prof." They said, "We promise."
"Promise what?"
"We won't use animagus transformations unless in the situation is a life and death one." Harry said, speaking for them all. "But Prof, may we practice?"
"Only when you are absolutely sure that you're alone...But when you're doing the transformation for the first time, I'd prefer if you to do it when I'm around, or at least when all of you are together. I know that I'm taking a risk in allowing you to do it, and I know how the guilt will eat my mind if something happens. I know that I cannot stop you...I just hope you know the consequences if..." Severus trailed off wondering if he would ever regret his decision...He hoped not...And he had more pressing matters to take care of at the moment.
"Thanks, Prof."
Severus merely nodded still feeling very conflicted and unable to fully accept this new development. Then he shook his head. He needed time to sit down and think. He really did. His charges were trustworthy when burdened with responsibilities, of that he had no doubt, but could they be trusted to look after themselves?
He took out his wand and began casting the necessary spells on a very confused Draco. When he'd finished, he looked at the boy and said, "I don't mean to alarm you, Draco, but very unfortunately, Lucius Malfoy has managed to find a way to get into the castle. He approached my quarters and we had a little chat and I learnt that at present his goal was to find you and your mother and do what, I need not tell you."
The poor boy paled, and Severus felt sorry for him.
"Draco, the spells I've just placed on you will allow you to be in Lucius's line of sight and not be recognised. I have already put a good number of protection spells on you and Neville since, you don't have the protection, Harry, Blaire and Ethan have. And my protections aren't as effective as theirs, but they will hold. Then is the matter of those portkeys you wear. The moment you are in danger, I trust you know how to activate them.
"You will be safe. Safer than many other wizards who may fall victim to Black and Malfoy...I won't be surprise if they form a league. And if by chance, Lockhart chooses to join them, the Wizarding World will tilt on its axis leaving no room for recovery." Severus sighed dramatically, trying to lighten the situation. "We will be submerged by lotions and curlers and insanity."
The children smiled and Severus left them to hurry up to the office of Albus Dumbledore. Severus banged on it, dignity and posture forgotten.
"Enter!" Dumbledore called out.
Severus didn't hesitate any further. He opened the door, crossed the threshold and shut the door behind him and put up wards of his own, ignoring Dumbledore's raised eyebrow. He didn't waste time on preliminaries, and neither did he wait to be seated before he started explaining.
"Lucius Malfoy entered the castle today."
Dumbledore looked startled from his position behind his desk. Apparently, Severus noticed, he had been answering mail before Severus knocked.
"Are you quite sure, Severus?"
"Positive! He approached me at my quarters and I played my part and we had a conversation. His first goal is to get rid of his family. Then he will go in search of Voldemort. So far my records show that he isn't in contact with Voldemort or Black or anyone else for that matter, except Fudge and a couple of other Ministry officials."
"Why does he want to kill his family before resurrecting Voldemort?"
"He hates them that much. He hates Narcissa for making Draco her number one priority and he hates Draco for being the reason Narcissa's attention was taken away from him. According to him, Voldemort wants the place clear of all traitors before his return."
"And that was why he didn't go in search of Riddle all those years ago?"
"He had a suspicion that his wife would act according to the best interests of their son. He knew she would get him caught if that meant the safety of Draco. And he, I quote, tested, unquote, her the day she left him with her son and Dobby, and she acted as he had expected."
Dumbledore looked pensively at Severus as he finally took his seat.
"I take it you took care of pressing matters before you came to me?"
Severus nodded.
"What do you propose we do next?"
"That is up to you, Headmaster." Severus said firmly. "You know as well as I do that when he returns, I'll resume my spying."
"You have priorities, Severus." Dumbledore said quietly. "You have an entire family depending on you."
"My spells will hold, Headmaster. And in case of my untimely demise, Narcissa will protect the rest. Not to mention Minerva and you of course."
Dumbledore shook his head, "I believe you are aware of the hurt that you shall leave behind?"
Severus's heart sunk lower and lower as he forced himself to say slowly and deliberately, each word adding a little more weight to his heart, "They all understand the importance of my role, Headmaster, and they understand the gravity of the situation. They know what the dangers are and they know what will be lost if I don't spy. They will live through it. My death won't mean so much to them, they have each other."
Dumbledore looked at him with sadness. His expression influenced his tone as he said, "You know as well as I do, Severus, that this is not true."
Severus stood up abruptly and said, "I'm sorry, Headmaster, I know my priorities. I have work to do presently, so if you will excuse me, I shall take my leave."
Severus turned around, crossed the office and left.
They would survive ...he would die if it meant that they would would be safe.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The only time Harry had ever seen Draco so jumpy was when he had woken up at Privet Drive after Dobby brought them there. Harry knew fear and he knew how deeply and firmly it could grasp a person. But he knew that he would never let Lucius Malfoy harm his friend if he could help it.
Everyday, Harry would make time to lock himself up in the bathroom and transform into a fennec fox and back. Gradually, the process became faster as though it was now a part of him. Usually an animagus needed to use the words, 'Transfomare animale animae' to transform. But Harry had never once used the incantation.
And as he got better at the feat, he realised that while in human form, his body adopted some knew, interesting and very useful traits. For one, his hearing was so good, he could hear what was happening in the common room and probably further from his chair at his cubicle.
The next trait his body inculcated was a sensitive nose, that could distinguish one person from another only by it's scent. Harry could also see wonderfully in the dark, and he knew that the trait would be very useful... the last new trait that Harry found about himself so far was his ability to feel cool even in the hottest, most stuffy room...this meant that he felt rather cold when he was in an open room...and therefore, he was now forced to use sweaters under his robes while in the dungeons.
Harry had now nearly finished reading a few notes on fennec foxes and realised they were native to Africa, particularly the Sahara desert (that explained the change in his body temperature). He learnt that these foxes considered insects a delicacy (yuck!) and they had the ability of burrowing burrows and tunnels.
He would test this last fact oneday when the danger of Sirius Black had passed. He would transform oneday outside in an insulated place, hidden away from prying eyes, and would see how well ingrained his digging abilities were.
But until then, he'd just have to wait. Harry who was presently in the library sighed and he shut his book. He and the rest of the Swarm were doing their prep. It was Halloween today and it happened to be a Hogsmeade weekend, and they couldn't go.
Prof entered just then looking very tired. He nodded at Madam Pince and slowly made his way to their table. There was no one else in the library so he sat by them, leant back and sighed.
"How's it going?" he asked lazily waving his wand in a motion that, Blaire knew, would cause any unwanted person to turn around before they set their eyes on any of the six of them at the table.
"Quite well, Prof." Blaire answered from where she sat by his side.
"Did you do the DADA homework, I gave you?"
"Oh, yes." Neville said, but Professor Lupin said that there was no need to turn it in."
Prof shook his head with an annoyed grunt.
"What's Ethan doing?" he asked and all eyes fell on Ethan, who looked really very pensive.
Blaire looked over to see a date- that she recognised to be the day on which, Prof took their DADA class- written below another date. She nudged him and he shook himself alert.
"Prof!" he exclaimed received a warning glare from Madam Pince.
"What were you thinking about so intently?" Prof asked.
Ethan frowned and said, "I'm trying to recollect some strange occurance on the day Professor Lupin didn't take our DADA class and the other day he hadn't turned up at the Great Hall. I just can't find any."
Prof smiled at him mysteriously and said in a low tone, "Have you tried researching the different phenomena that occurred on that day...or the day prior and the one subsequent to that day? Search, every chart you get. Keep finding similarities everytime you get a new date... It won't take you a couple more months... You'll figure it out, Ethan."
"Figure what out?" came a quiet voice a from a small distance away.
They turned to see Professor Lupin himself walking towards them with a heavy book in his arms that threatened to pull him down to the floor with it. Apparently Prof's protections weren't effective on him.
Ethan was surprised at how Lupin could hear what they were saying from so far away...was he an animagus?
Lupin... wasn't a bad teacher...he taught them quite a lot, which wasn't the case with Quirrel or Lockhart and he rarely got them to go through their textbooks. His practical lessons were excellent, though, he seemed to have royally ignored the fact that he, Ethan was in the classroom on their first DADA period. He simply skipped him, and Ethan just didn't get a chance to face a boggart. Apparently he did the same thing to Blaire and Harry and the triplets' opinion of him wasn't very high.
Hence as he approached the table, the five stiffened in alarm, and Lupin's previously smiling face was now haggard, worn and drawn, and his eyes seemed to carry deep grief and even regret. Ethan chanced a glance at Prof and saw a glint of triumph and pride in his eyes, though his posture indicated that he wouldn't hesitate to harm Lupin if he got any closer.
Lupin sighed and said, "Oh never mind, I'll get on with my work."
And he turned and moved to another table and opened his book. The rest of their time was spent in awkward silence.
But that little encounter left his mind as the day moved on slowly. The Swarm enjoyed their afternoon in Prof's quarters...While Blaire was engrossed in a muggle mystery book, Ethan chose to use the time to paint the picture of a hippogryff majestically standing on a flat terrain. In the background were the dark forbidden forest, Hagrid's hut and a very stormy sky.
Harry was trying to improvise magically on the controls of a couple of a meter long airoplanes that he'd built from small pieces of wood and plastic and metal. While Draco helped look up a charm to make the planes waterproof, another to get it to fly to a certain place and back on command and maybe even deliver messages.
Neville was tending to a sensitive plant with bright, yellow leaves, that Ethan hadn't seen before, but apparently, the moment someone simply lost their temper, it would bawl its eyes, er, violet daisy like petals out as though mortally offended. After startling Ethan for the tenth time, with a loud moan when Harry cursed at a failed attempt on his plane, leaving him to remove a long green mark from across the canvas, he finally decided to simply refer to it as the Darling Daisy Utmost Delicate. When he learnt that the plant's name was the Untroubled Sprout, he wanted to cry.
And after what felt like an age, it was time to head out for the Halloween feast, and Nearly-Headless Nick the dignified ghost of Gryffindor out up a great show that depicted his execution. But as soon as they all headed to their dormitories, they were shepherded out by their prefects, and Neville's panicked voice filled the triplets' heads.
"Sirius Black! He's in the castle!"
tbc...