I do not own Harry Potter, only the OC.

Hello guys, Badger here. Back again with a new chapter. Things seem to have improved in UK. The weather is cooler, though there is still a bit of heat. However, it hasn't stopped me from writing a new chapter. I did take a few days break before writing this one, due to the heat causing headaches, but I started writing as soon as things improved.

Now, over the last couple of days, there have been a few more newcomers who have come across the story and seem to be enjoying the story. If you are reading this, hello, I'm glad you like the story. However, if this is your first chapter you are reading, why are you here, go back to the beginning. Anyway, that is all I have to say for now. Read on, enjoy and I will see you at the end.

Chapter 77

An Unbreakable Vow

"Malfoy, for the last time, stop pacing!" Nott snapped, as he and Malfoy sat in their dorm room

Malfoy glared at Nott for a moment, before he sat back down. He sat, his leg bouncing up and down, before pacing once more a few seconds later.

"Are you trying to piss me off?" Nott asked, looking up from his piece of parchment

"I'm sorry, but we have been tasked with killing Albus Dumbledore" Malfoy snapped "This isn't some random Muggle, this is the Leader of the Light…how are you not panicking?"

"Because I'm not you" Nott replied, eyes burning holes into Malfoys skull "My father would always tell me that your father may seem all mighty and powerful, but he is nothing but a timid and weak man, when backed into a corner…seems you are just the same…now shut up, I can't think of a plan, with your pacing and bitching!"

"You know, I have a few plans of my own" Malfoy replied, his face going red with rage, as he bit his tongue to stop himself from snapping

"Which is why you are not in charge" Nott said, not looking up from his parchment "Most of your plans are flawed with multiple chances of failure, or just involve you charging head first, hoping for the best…honestly, how you are a Slytherin I have no idea…you act more like a Gryffindor a times…I mean, dear Merlin, Potter is more Slytherin then you"

"HOW DARE YOU INSINUATE THAT PATHETIC HALF-BLOOD IS BETTER THEN ME!" Malfoy roared, reaching his limit

"Oh I dare!" Nott snapped, standing up, slamming his hands on his desk "Honestly, I dread to think where you will be now, if I wasn't in the picture…without me, Potter and Badger probably would have beaten your ass to the curb about one hundred times by now…you think you are better than that 'pathetic Half-Blood' is better then you, then lets use one of your plans then…go on, tell me one of your plans and prove me wrong"

Malfoy glared at Nott for a moment, before he sat down, explaining the process behind his plan, ignoring the shaking head and rolling eyes of Nott, as he did so.

"Wait…so Dumbledore has known, or at least suspected that Voldemort has achieved, what is essentially immortality, and done nothing about it?" James asked, as he and Harry walked down the Hogwarts Dungeon towards the Potions Classroom

"Pretty much" Harry growled "I just don't understand him…he keeps all these secrets and yet expects me to trust him, or at least work with him"

"If you ask me, he's getting senile" James shrugged "I've said it before, and I'll say it again…he has been leading the fight for too long…he needs to step down and let someone else lead"

"I don't like that I need to work with him, but if it puts an end to Voldemort, then I'll do it" Harry replied, as they entered the Potions Classroom

"Ahh, Mr Potter, Mr Badger" Professor Slughorn said, as he saw them enter "I'm glad you could make it, you are just in time, we were just beginning…you can find the potions books in the cupboard over there"

Harry nods, as he and James go to the cupboard. They open the cupboard door and see two potions books inside. One is brand new and pristine and the other Is old and worn, with tears in the cover. James and Harry look at each other for a moment, before James quickly grabbed the brand new book, before Harry had a chance to.

"Need to be quicker Harry" James smiled smugly

Harry glared at James for a second, before grabbing the worn book and made their way over to the group of students surrounding Slughorn.

"Where were you?" Daphne whispered to James, as he stood next to her

"Explain later" James whispered back, as he turned his attention to Slughorn

"Now that the rest of us are here, we can begin" Slughorn said "Now, before class started I brewed some concoctions this morning, can anyone take a guess, at what these might be?"

Hermione Granger immediatley raised her hand.

"Ah, Miss Granger" Slughorn said "Come on up and take a guess"

Hermione smiled, as she approached the table, holding three small cauldrons, each one bubbling with a different potion.

"The first one is Veritaserum, the truth telling potion" Hermione said, examining the potions "The second one is the Draught of Living Death, it's terribly tricky to make…and the last…is Amortentia…the most powerful love potion in the world…it's gives of a scent combining three things a person loves most and is different for each person…for instance, I smell…freshly mown grass…new parchment and…spearmint toothpaste…"

James snorted quietly at the flustered look on Hermione's face, as she moves away from the table and back into the crowd of students, snapping out of her small trance, looking a little embarrassed. Daphne, however, heard him and elbowed him in the side, telling him to behave.

"Well done, Miss Granger" Slughorn smiled "Take ten points to Gryffindor…now, Amortentia doesn't create actual love…that would be impossible and possible dangerous…but it does cause powerful infatuation, or obsession…and for that reason, it is probably the most dangerous potion, in this room"

Slughorn placed a lid over the cauldron, which snapped a few female students out of their trance, as they slowly approached the potion, each one possibly with a student in mind, to use it on. James, however, noticed a potion in a tiny little vial, being held in a vice above the cauldrons.

"Sir, what is that potion?" He asked

"Ah, yes" Slughorn said, carefully picking up the vial "This, ladies and gentleman, is a curious little potion, known as Felix Felicis…commonly known as Liquid Luck…not only desperately tricky to make, but also disastrous should you get it wrong…just one sip and you will find that all of your endeavours succeed, until the effects wear off…so, this is what I offer each of you today…one small vial of liquid luck, to the one who, in the hour that remains, manages to brew an acceptable Draught of Living Death, the recipe of which can be found on page 10, in your books…however, you should know, only one student has managed to brew such a potion at a sufficient quality to claim this prize…never the less, I wish good luck to you all, let the brewing commence"

Every student took their place around the classroom, gathering their the require ingredients. When Harry gathered his ingredients, he opened his book, to see words written on the inside. Words that read; This book belongs to The Half-Blood Prince. The writing looked familiar but he couldn't place it. He flipped through more pages of the book, to see several instructions had been crossed out, with new instructions written above. Confused, he went to the Draught of Living Death. The first instruction read 'Cut up one Sopophorus Bean'. On the page, the word cut up was circled with an arrow leading to a hand written note which read 'crush with blade'. Across the classroom, students were struggling to cut their beans, as the blade did nothing to the bean. Daphne tried cutting her, only for it to go flying. It would have hit James, if he didn't catch it. He gave her a mock glare, before passing it back to her. James then looked across the classroom and laughed slightly, seeing Hermione get more and more agitated, her hair getting more and more frizzy. It was that moment, he saw Harry pouring drops of liquid from the bean, into his cauldron.

"How did you do that?" James asked

"Crush the bean, don't cut it" Harry replied

James and Daphne shared a suspicious look, before they did as he said. Harry couldn't help but smile, as he watched as all the other students struggled with their potion, whilst he breezed through the instructions. By the end of the hour, Slughorn went around each and cauldron, dropping in a small leaf to test the potions. When he got to Harry's, he watched with delight, as the leaf shrivelled and died.

"Merlin's Beard, its perfect" He exclaimed "So perfect, I believe one drop could kill everyone in this room"

At the end of the lesson, Harry stood beside Slughorn, as he was handed the small vial of Felix Felicis.

"Here we are, as promised" Slughorn smiled "One vial of Felix Felicis…use it wisely"

As Slughorn and the other students applauded, Harry held his potions book inside his pocket. He was definitely going to be reading through it later.

That evening, Snape was looking through some papers that needed to be marked and graded, when his floo network turned on, where he heard a voice. He went to see who it was and was surprised to see Narcissa's face through the flames.

"Narcissa, what a surprise" Snape said "What do I owe the pleasure?"

"Can you come through Severus?" Narcissa asked "It's important"

Snape nodded, confused, though he was certain he knew what this was about. He went through the floo, to find himself in a study, where Narcissa and Bellatrix were waiting for him on the other side.

"What's the problem Narcissa?" Snape asked

"Draco" Narcissa sighed, looking upset "I'm sure you know what he is tasked to do…I'm worried Severus…He's been influenced by Nott Jr and is a lot like his father…"

"I always used to think you were the sensible one, Cissy" Bellatrix spoke up in a sing-song voice, prancing around the room "But then you married that blonde ponce"

"Thank you Bellatrix" Snape drawled, before turning back to Narcissa "You're worried about Draco…"

"Yes, he's too young" Narcissa sniffed "He shouldn't be doing this, but he has been influenced by people like his father all his life…I'm not worried about Nott, but I want you to keep Draco safe, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid...I fear the worst happening, if things go wrong and he fails"

"How do you want me to do that?" Snape asked

"The Unbreakable Vow" Bellatrix said, she had stopped prancing and the others looked at her "The oath to another…make the Unbreakable Vow"

Snape and Narcissa looked at one another. There seems to be a silent agreement between the two, as they extend their arms, their hands holding each other's wrist. Bellatrix removes her wand, pointing it at their intwined hands, where small threads of light, similar to vines, wrapped around their arms.

"Will you, Severus Snape look over Draco Malfoy, as he, and Nott, attempts to fulfil the Dark Lords wishes?" Bellatrix asked

"I will" Snape replied, the threads shining brighter

"And will you, to the best of your ability, protect him from harm?" Bellatrix asked

"I will"

"And…should Draco and Nott fail…will you, yourself…carry out the deed?" Bellatrix asked, with a hint of glee in her eyes

Snape was silent for a moment, before he spoke.

"I will" He said

The small threads of light shone brighter for a moment before fading away. Scars were left behind on Snapes and Narcissa's hand and wrist, as they let go of one another. Snape stood there in silence. His life was now on the line.

...

Harry sat alone as he read through his potions book. He enjoyed what he was reading. As well as potions, there were also blank pages full of spells that he had never heard of before. These included: Lacerare Carnem, Obsurdo and Sectumsempra. He wasn't sure what these spells were, or what they did, but he would have to try them out at some point.

That is the end of the new chapter. What did you guys think?

The beginning with Malfoy and Nott was always something I planned to have feature in the story at some point. I wanted it to show the difference between their two characters: Nott being the one who keeps their cool and plans efficiently and Malfoy who just wants to charge in, without proper planning and would probably get himself killed.

The Potions lesson is kept quite the same in canon, as there isn't really much that can be changed. However, there hasn't been one in a while, but this leads onto the:

QUESTION OF THE CHAPTER - With Harry's current state, and possessing the book of The Half Blood prince, do you think Harry will be more open to using any spells he finds inside, even if they can kill someone?

That is all for now, I hope you enjoyed and I will see you next time.

Badger Out.