THE NEW ORDER
By
Padfootjr23
Chapter Eleven: Conflicts Among Friends
The village ofLittle Hangleton was relitively small and a quiet place to live. Despite it's warm and inviting setting it still had it's own demons. Sitting atop the hill over looking the village was the dark and gloomy image of the Riddle House. It had been over fifty years since it's owner and his family had been murdered and the house was still empty. For many years the houses gardener, Frank Bryce, continued his work despite the rumors that he was responsible for the family's deaths. He remained loyal to the house he served for so long until he became a victim of the same mysterious death as his employer. It would seem that the true murderer had returned to town. The body of Frank Bryce was found the morning after his death behind the waste bins in the back alley behind The Hanged Man pub in town with the same horrified look almost burned into his eyes.
It had been over two years now since the death of the wrongfully accused gardener and not a soul in Little Hangleton had approached the old house since. Like any other deserted home the inside was a complete mess with many spiders, rats and other vermin taking up residence. The little furmiture that remained was falling apart as time and nesting mice wore down the fabrics. The paint on the walls was now little more than a crumbling mess with no disernable color standing out. However unlike most other deserted homes the Ridlle house was much more than it appeared. As the house itself was little more than a crumbling ruin you would be greatly surprised to see what lay below.
Tom Marvolo Riddle, Lord Voldemort, sat upon a large dark uncomfortable looking throne made of onyx as he surveyed his followers with a bored expression on his face. But those that had been with him the longest could clearly see the intense fury in his eyes. Just hours before his Death Eaters had captured Potter and his friends he had left to recruit some more followers from over seas. He had taken a great deal of joy in breaking into Snape's mind and sorting through all of his dirty little secrets and had left immedietely afterwards as the others took turns punishing the traitor. In all of their incompetence they had failed to send word of Potter's capture until five days later and by the time he returned they had escaped and killed several of his key Ministry insiders in the process. There had been a great deal of suffering that day, though most had no clue as to why they were being punished. After a few days and countless curses he finally began to calm down. Now this had to happen.
Most of the stolen items Burkes was holding could be replaced if you knew where to look but the remaining stock was of great value and extremely rare. And the fact that it was Potter that had led that raid only served to infuriate the Dark Lord furthur.
"Luciusss, please explain to me how thisss happened without me being notified. You were told to have the place watched incase something of thisss nature were to happen." The Dark Lord hissed causing several Death Eaters present to shudder out of reflex. The adressed aristocrate moved from his place and approached his master. Lowering himself to his knees he kissed the hem of his robes before speaking while he remained on his knees.
"I appologize My Lord. I had Marcus Flint on duty yesturday. Apparently he recognized Potter and approached him believing that he had choosen to serve you. Potter stunned him and went about his buisiness." Malfoy replied in a sudmissive manner. If he was going to be punished for this he would be damned if he was going to suffer alone. Perhapes the experience would even teach Flint to be more cautious in the future. After all it was not just his own life Flint had put in danger because of his stupidity but Malfoy's as well. If Lucius Malfoy was anything at all he was a survivor and he would not let some petty thug from a poor family be the end of him. Without warning Malfoy was pulled from his thoughts as he collapsed to the ground as he screamed out in agony. He had been placed under the curse many times before but he would never get used to feeling as if his very skin was melting off and shards of glass were running through his veins. The pain seemed to last forever but when the curse was finally lifted his body was still twitching in pain as he gasped for air and tried to make it back to his knees. Voldemort however did not seem to care about his servent's descomfort.
"Flint!" The Dark Lord snapped. His usual hissing voice was replaced with a dark and sinister growl that terrified everyone present. It was quite clear that Flint would not be so lucky as Malfoy for his failure. The room was entirely still for many moments before a shaking figure stepped away from the rest and approached his lord. He got no furthur than three steps however before a bright green flash of light slammed into his chest and the former Quiditch captin dropped to the ground, his eyes dull and lifeless as they stood open wide and frightened.
"Now everyone leave!" No Death Eater had to be told twice as they quickly turned and fled from the room. Malfoy was nearly out the door when Voldemort called him back in. The blond aristocrate's face was nearly sheet white as he turned back around and stepped forward.
Harry sat the empty dining room table thinking over everything that had happened in the last twelve hours and their implications. He had hoped that he could go on for a while before either the Ministry or the rest of the Order found out that it was him and the others that were preforming these raids. But no, they had to be identified their first time out. Well he was identified, they would correctly assume that the others were with him. The fact that Mundungus was identified by Shacklebolt would also cause some inconveniences but that could be worked around. The biggest of Harry's concerns however involved Fudge. He would have no choice but to allow the recuiting of new Aurors but the public demand could quite easily force them to step up the training by taking short cuts. It would be a whole lot better to not have any new ones than to have a load of under trained rookies. Hearing the door behind him open up he looked back to see Snape walk in with the mind sphere clutched tightly in his hands. Harry almost laughed when he thought that the potions master seemed to be treating it like some young child he was terrified of hurting.
The older man didn't seem to notice his amusement though as he looked like he was fighting some internal struggle as he sat down opposite Harry. The two sat in silence for several minutes but while Harry was content to simply sit there lost in his own thoughts, it was quite obvious that Snape had searched him out for a reason, a reason he was not at all thrilled about. Harry knew very little about the mind sphere that his former professor held close to him but it's very presence made him feel uneasy. Especially in the hands of a man that had been in his mind on numerous occasions.
"Is there something you needed?" Harry asked in a neutral tone though he felt a great deal of curiosity about what could make the man so nervous. The sudden break in silence brought Snape back to reality and Harry was impressed with how quick that familar cold mask replaced the nervous features that were so abnormal on the potions master's face. With his usual scowl in place Snape glared at Harry for several minutes. Far from intimidated, Harry never wavered and broke eye contact. After several moments the look on Snape's face turned from annoyed to confused and even a little shocked.
"Potter, Have you been practicing your occlumency?" Gasped out. Legilimency through eye contact was not as powerful as using a wand but he should have still been able to get something from the boy. It was almost as if Potter's mind was not even there. Harry could no longer keep the smile off his face. Just for the pleasure of seeing the look on Snape's face Harry suggested that the man use his wand to test his shields so that he may have a 'professional opinion'. This was an oppertunity that Snape could not possibly pass up. Potter had actually given him permission to enter his mind and he would act upon it.
Unlike the occlumency 'lessons' he recieved from Snape last year, Harry could feel no significant presence tearing through his mind. Instead it felt like a gentle prodding almost like the feeling you get when you deflect an extremely weak curse. Harry waited for Snape's reaction and he was not disapointed. The older man seemed to lose all color in his face as his wand fell from his hand and clattered on to the table before rolling on to the floor as he stared at Harry with wide eyes and a gaping mouth that seemed to open and close like a goldfish. He had never seem the shields of a natural occlumans before but he could certainly feel the strength and power in Harry's. Because he wanted to know what the man had origionally came to discuss Harry kept his laughter to himself but could not fight the smirk that spread across his face.
"How... how is this possible?" He stuttered as his wand remained forgotten on the floor. He could not possibly understand how anyone much less Potter could master the art so completely in such a small space of time. It had taken him years to reach his level of mastery and this mere boy surpassed him in a fraction of the time.
"It's simple really. I'm a natural occlumans." Whatever answer he was expecting it wasn't this.
"How is this possible? People are born with that gift, it can't be aquired." The man gasped out.
"I have a few theories but nothing for certain." So Harry explained how Voldemorts killing curse had locked away his occlumency skills while he gained some of Voldemorts abilities. When he said that the skill was released with his animagus ability when they escaped from the Death Eaters Snape could do nothing but nod stupidly in agreement. He had never heard of such a thing happening before but the way Harry explained it it sounded quite plausible. As he sat across the table from his former student Snape could not believe that such a well thought out and researched explaination came from the boy. Of course Harry simply repeated Gryffindor's explaination almost word for word but Snape didn't have to know that. After all, who would believe him if he said that one of the Hogwarts founders visited him in his dreams.
"So what's on your mind?" Harry asked as he leaned back in his chair. Snape quickly collected himself and finally got to the point.
"As Bill Weasley explained to you last night Potter, this here is called a mind sphere. The Dark Lord used one simular to this to break through my mental wards and access my memories. My shields held longer than I expected them to but even then I had no chance. What i want from you Potter," At this point Snape swallowed as if what he was suggesting left a foul taste in his mind. "I need your help in training my mind against such intrusions." Now it was time for Harry to look shocked. Did Snape of all people just ask for his help?
"Why ask me?" He asked with genuine curiosity.
"Because I don't know enough about Fletcher or Weasley to trust them inside of my mind. Tonks would probably drop the sphere and ruin the whole point. And the memories I carry will never be seen by Blaise. So that leaves only you. I have never made any secret of the fact that I don't like you Potter but after last year you proved that you could be trusted to keep certain facts to yourself." Snape sounded as if it were killing him say these words.
"One problem, I was told that you had to be able to use legilimency to operate the sphere?"
"That is true, that is why I planned to teach you enough to use it."
"Alright I'll help you on one condition. Instead of just teaching me enough to use the sphere I want you to teach me everything you know about legilimency."
"Potter, advansed legilimency is classified as a dark art." The man sneered.
"Yes, I know. But I will use everything I can to stop Voldemort and his Death Eaters and if that means certain magics that are looked down upon, then so be it. So when do you think Blaise and Tonks will be up and about?" Harry changed the subject at Snape's gobsmacked expression from Harry bloody Potter admitting that he would use the dark arts if necessary. Not even Albus Dumbledore would use such magic to defeat the Dark Lord. For a moment he looked confused at the change of subject but quickly composed himself.
"They should be asleep for a few more hours at least depending on how low their energy reserves were." Surprisingly concern was dripping from his voice as he said this but Harry reminded himself thaat he had every right to be concerned.
"Oh yeah," Harry said with a grin as if he had just remembered something. "Have you seen the morning paper?" With a wave of his wand he summoned the Daily Prophet from where he had thrown it across the room. After taking a few moments to smooth out the pages he handed it to his reluctant ally and waited to see his reaction to being reffered to as one of 'Potter's Raiders'.
Lucius Malfoy was shaking slightly in fear as he returned to his place before his master. When the Dark Lord called him back after the meeting concluded he nearly lost control of some of his more messy bodily functions. The only time the Dark Lord held someone back while the others left was when he needed to discuss something that was to be withheld from the rest of the Death Eaters or he wished to continue punishing someone in private. With the lastest blunders Malfoy rightfully assumed that his master had more instore for him then just a simple curciatus curse. When he was just ten feet away from the Dark Lord Malfoy went down to one knee and kept his eyes down as he stared at the floor in fear unaware that another Death Eater had hung back as well and listened from his hidden position by the door.
Voldemort surveyed his kneeling servent with contempt. Though he demanded absolute obedience from his Death Eaters he was disgusted by the fear they were not able to hide. They were supposed to be the most powerful of the pureblood families and yet they could not look their master in the eye while a mere child defied him. A child they had allowed escape. For the longest time their fear was a source of great amusement for him but now it only served to annoy him. It took forever to desiphere what they were saying through all of their stuttering and half formed mumbles. Only Bellitrix and Snape had shown no fear of him. Snape because of his mastery of his thoughts through occlumency. Bella, she showed no fear of anything or anyone, probably because she was completely insane.
"Stand up, Lucius!" Voldemort commanded in annoyance. If there was one thing he hated more than Harry Potter, it was cowardiss. Malfoy quickly stood and lifted his head though his eyes looked at anything other than his master. "I have long given the thought of taking on an apprentice to train and to place in charge if I am unavailable." This statement got Malfoy's attention immedietely and the man finally met his master's gaze as his eyes shined with shock and even a little fear. If the Dark Lord took on an apprentice then that man would become untouchable while he was free to exhurt authority over everyone else. Most Death Eaters feared Bellatrix because of the power she received from of her close relationship with the Dark Lord. Many times she used her position to eliminate her enemies and those she considered a threat. Hell, she would even accuse fellow Death Eaters of being spys simply to see what methods of torture the Dark Lord would use to interrigate them. But an apprentice would have the potential to be even worse.
"It is an idea I have dismissed many times, afterall who could possibly be worthy of my teachings?" Voldemort asked with a smirk. "However, your recent blunders have shown me that what little faith I hold in you is severly misplaced. I would have offered this honored position to Potter. The boy certainly has potential, but the brutality he showed my Death Eaters two weeks ago showed me that he will not be swayed. What I want to know, Lucius, is what you think about young Draco's capabilities?" A host of emotions played themselves across Malfoy's face as he listened to his master. Shock that he would think of Potter as a potential apprentice and heir. And then contempt and anger at the mention of his son as a possibility. Temporarily forgetting his fear Lucius spoke up in a loud and firm voice.
"My Lord, my son is not worthy of being my heir much less your's." As if realizing that his tone could be construed as disrespectful he quickly dropped back to one knee and apologized for his rudeness. Voldemort for his part waved it off and told him to elaborate on his statement.
"Master, the only thing about Draco that holds true to his family is his hatred of mudbloods and his loyalty to you. Beyond that he is a disgrace to the Malfoy name. He is by no means powerful, he must hide behind those to idiotic thugs when any confrontation arises and is to much of a coward to step up and take responsibility for his rightful place in the magical world. Instead he takes every occasion to look to me to handle all of his childish problems. Instead of bringing pride to the Malfoy family he brings only shame and dishonor. When, 'wait till my father hears about this', is the statement that is spoken most often it shows only the pathetic nature of a weak minded fool who is no better than a squib." Lucius spat as he finished. To the pureblood fanatics being a squib is much worse than a muggle or muggleborn. To them giving birth to a squib is a sign of bad blood and an insult to the entire family. Voldemort seemed to enjoy Lucius' explaination and his eyes flickered towards the door a few times as a smirk slowly formed across his lips.
"Very well Lucius, I will expect you to keep your eyes open for anyone that may be worthy. If you find them then bring them before me no matter what family they are from. Someone's loyalties may not be what they seem so check everyone possible. And I'm sure I don't have to tell you not to bother looking at mudbloods." Lucius merely nodded.
"Yes My Lord, I will begin immedietely." Voldemort simply dismissed him with a casual wave of his hand and the man turned to leave.
"Oh and Lucius," He hiss out to the man's retreating back. "Crucio." The man had not even the time to brace himself from the pain before it washed over him and knocked him to the floor as his body twitched and jerked about as he screamed in pain. The screams and laughter from the Dark Lord echoed off the stone walls and together it sounded more like a banshee than a couple of humans.
Outside the door the easedropper's face was red with anger as he fought to keep his breathing steady though it was a lost cause as he breathed in deep gasps. When he heard the cruciatus curse cast he spun on his heal and marched down the narrow corridor that would lead him to the apparation point within the Death Eater's headquarters. When he arrived the room was empty so he would have to make no excusses for leaving which suited him just fine. Over and over again he screamed in his head how he would prove his father wrong and show him that he was not weak. With one more thought he vanished and was on his way to his destination. Hogwarts.
Harry had made a hasty retreat when Snape finished reading the paper and began cursing the world as loud as he could. As amusing as he found it he didn't want to run the risk of his presence giving Snape something else to focus his anger on. After all he was already going to have to have a discussion with Tonks, Blaise and Snape about why they were in his bed among other things and that was sure to raise the man's blood by it'self. So Harry spent the next several hours skimming through the library, reading up on numerous curses and charms that he may find useful. One of the few that he had read about in depth was the memory charm. He was actually quite surprised by how simple it truely was. The standard charm was simply saying the incantation while thinking about how far back you wish to erase. This version of the charm is only good for erasing the memory of something the person had just seen or heard because it is not powerful enough to go back more than a couple of hours or seek out specific memories. The advanced charm is much more complicated because it targets specific memories and replaces them with a fabricated one. Harry had no dellusions about being able to preform the advanced charm anytime soon but he planned on practicing it when he got the chance.
Despite his new abilities he decided to read up on advanced occlumency to get an idea of what might be possible. He was not surprised to read that a master occlumans could cast off the imperius curse without batting an eyelash but he was a bit relieved that he would not have to worry about that. Since he was able to cast it off in his forth year and his own formidable mental shields only one like Dumbledore or Voldemort would be able to get much of a response but even that should prove to be little trouble for him. He had just put this book aside in favor of one detailing the first war with Voldemort because he figured he could get some insight into what the wizard may do this time around. Before he could even open the book however he was pulled back to reality when a burst of flames appeared right next to his head. Pushing off from the table he knocked his chair backwards and had to jump to his feet to prevent himself from falling on the floor. After grabbing the wall to steady himself Harry looked around quickly and narrowed his eyes in annoyance when he saw Fawkes sitting on the table looking at him with amusement shining in his eyes.
"So you think thats funny do you?" Harry nearly growled as he picked his chair up off the floor. "What are you doing here so early?" He asked when he turned back to the ancient bird. Normally Dumbledore sent his messages in the evenings so that if he had any visitors in his office during the day Fawkes would be there. If he were absent people would surely wonder about what the Headmaster had him doing.
With the change in subject to why he was there Fawkes lost all sign of amusement and became down right angry. The phoenix lowered his head and ripped a message off his leg before literally spitting it out onto the table. With one last look at Harry Fawkes vanished just as suddenly as he had appeard. Filled with curiosity over his reaction Harry stepped forward and picked up the parchment but it left him with more questions than answers. As had become normal in their correspondence no names were mentioned but it seems that Dumbledore never learned to desguise his handwriting.
Due to some recent events it has become necessary for two others to go into hiding. At the moment your home is safer than even Hogwarts for these people. I would like for you to send Twinkle over to bring us to you for a meeting as soon as possible. All will be explained upon our arrival.
With his curiosity peaked he immedietely called for Twinkle and asked her to do as the Headmaster had asked. She nodded in agreement and said that she would bring them to his study before leaving. As secret keeper Twinkle could bring anyone to the house without actually allowing them knowledge of their location. Not even Dumbledore could reach the house without help. Harry took a few minutes to replace all his books in their correct locations before making his way to his study. When he walked throught he door his curiosity gave way to rage.
"MALFOY!" Harry screamed in rage as he drew his wand and advanced on the pale boy who was sitting casually in one of the high backed chairs sitting infront of his desk. He seemed to have tunnel vision and did not appear to notice that in the room as well were Albus Dumbledore, a familar Hufflepuff girl and an extremely displeased house elf. Before he could get to close Dumbledore stepped in forward and cut him off. For a moment Draco showed a great amount of fear when he saw Harry but regained his smug superior look when Dumbledore step in front of him.
"Harry I must ask you to calm yourself." Dumbledore began but got no furthur as Harry's attention was turned towards him. The fury burning in his eyes almost made the old man flinch but he managed to retain his calm demeanor.
"How dare you bring this piece of shit here?" He spat out before taking a few deep breaths. "You better have a damn good explaination for this." His voice was much calmer but a deaf man could pick up the steel in his voice as his eyes burned into the old man. Harry had no intention what so ever of letting Draco stay but he decided that he wanted to know why Dumbledore would be so stupid to bring him there. Without moving from his position between the two young men Dumbledore began to speak. He decided that using the usual stall tactics he enjoyed so much would not be a good idea in this situation.
"It would seem that young Draco no longer wishes to follow his father and serve Voldemort."
"And what, may I ask, changed his mind?" Harry asked in a sarcastic tone. It was quite clear that he had no intention of believing any of it.
"That is something that must stay between Draco and I, I cannot answer your question." Albus said as he looked at Harry as though he expected the young man to except this. If anything Harry's eyes seemed to get even harder.
"No, you will answer. If you don't then the rest of this conversation is unnecessary. You are here because you want my assitance and to get that you will have to answer every question I ask. So I repeat, why did he change his mind?" Dumbledore sighed in defeat and Draco looked shocked at the way Harry was speaking to the man.
"It seems that he overheard a discussion between his father and Voldemort in which Lucius expressed his belief that Draco was not an acceptable cantidate for Voldemort's apprentice." Harry was able to hide his suprise at Voldemort's new 'project' but could not help the smirk that formed on his lips at hearing how little Draco's father thought of him.
"Well I can certainly understand that." When Dumbledore asked him what he meant Harry continued. "I have come to learn an awful lot about Lucius over the last few years. Though I despise the man I must admit that he is actually fairly intelligent and powerful. He's cold, methodical, and patient. But they say talent skips a generation." Harry sneered as he turned his eyes to the young Slytherin. "I have also come to learn that Draco is nothing more than a mere shadow of his father. He has all the hate of those pureblood bigots but that is all he is. He is a coward and he's weak." Draco's face was red with anger but before he could say anything Dumbledore attempted to defuse the situation.
"Harry this is not productive."
"Your absolutely right. I can sit here all day discussing Malfoy's shortcomings but there is only one more question I want answered. What did he do that requires that he come here. I know him well enough to know that he would never come to you for help so what did he do?" He asked in a curious tone thought it was obvious that he demanded an answer. Seeing that his former Headmaster was reluctant to respond he pushed again. "You have a choice, you can either answer my question or I can have Snape come in here and get the answer for me. I can assure you he will not be gentle with the search."
"He's right, I won't be." Everyone turned towards the door to see an obviously furious Snape and the very worn but angry forms of Tonks and Blaise. Harry checked both women over with his magical eye to make sure they were no longer trying to hide their exhaustion before turning back to the room's other two occupants.
"When Fawkes arrived he was quite angry. I have a pretty good idea that it was because of this situation. Now are you going to give us an answer or is Snape going to have to get it for us?" As if to emphisize his point Snape drew his wand and stepped fully into the room. Seeing no alternative Dumbledore explained why Draco had to go into hiding.
Apparentely after Draco overheard his father speaking to the Dark Lord he headed to Hogwarts to try to prove them both wrong. His chosen assignment? Kill Dumbledore. He had made his way to Hogwarts through the Forbidden Forest. After slipping into the castle he used all the secret passages he new of to avoid being spotted before making it to the entrance to the Headmaster's office. To his surprise and glee the gargoyal that was usually gaurding the entrance had been moved aside giving him free passage. That, however, was the high point of this little 'journey'. Upon throwing the door open Draco must have fired half a dozen killing curses in different directions around the office as if he were trying to hit something that was running across the room. From his position behind his desk Dumbledore would have found this almost amusing if it had not been for the fact that those curses were both deadly and fired at him. Dumbledore cleared his throat to get the boy's attention but had to duck as another curse came flying right at him. As the curse slammed harmlessly into the wall behind him Albus sat back up and in a move that seemed to be quicker than lightening he drew his wand and disarmed his young student.
Harry, Snape, Blaise and Tonks all looked at Dumbledore with a dumbfounded expression. Harry and Snape looked back and forth between the young Death Eater and Albus a few times before looking at each other and bursting into a fit of laughter. Everyone looked at Snape with wide eyes, apparently not even Blaise had seen him this amused very often. Just the very idea of Draco thinking he could take Dumbledore was the funniest thing they had heard in a very long time.
"Draco took it upon himself to kill you so that he could make his daddy proud?" Harry asked in a mocking tone that was finshed in a childish voice that was not unlike the one Bellatrix had use after she killed Sirius. Even Twinkle began giggling to herself by now and Harry was pleased to see how infuriated Draco had become. "Now that you have answered my questions I will answer your's. No, Draco will not stay here."
"Harry I'm afraid I must inssist. This is not open to debate!" Albus said firmly as if his words were law. He quickly discovered that he chose his words poorly. Almost immedietely the tempreture in the room seemed to plumet.
"You're right, it is not open to debate. HE WILL NOT STAY HERE!" He said coldly, emphesizing every word. "You seem to forget yourself Albus. As per our agreement, I am in charge here, not you. This is my house, not your's. I will decide who stays here and if you have any arguments to the contrary, tough shit. We have to many things going on around here to be bothered with babysitting some snot nosed brat that that got his feelings hurt. Not long after we were first captured Draco took a great deal of pleasure in holding me under the cruciatus curse and watch how much pain I was in. Through that whole week he came back a few other times becoming more sadistic each time. For a coward he sue as hell grows a pretty big set of balls when his opponent is chained to the wall.
But we have strayed slightly off topic. Including myself, we have eighteen people and ten house elves here. We know for a fact that he has tortured four people at least, all of whom are in this room, and you admit that he tried to kill you. You may be able to forgive those that have wronged you easily but the rest of the world is not as forgivng. If you wish for Malfoy to be your little pet project for redemption then so be it, but do it on your time not mine. You will not make such idiotic decisions and then pass the responsibilities on to me. You may want to give him a second chance as you once did for Snape but rest assured that as soon as I am able to I will make sure he rots in Azkaban. Unless I kill him first." Everyone looked surprised at the attitude Harry was taking but the three other former captives whole heartedly agreed. Dumbledore looked saddened but Malfoy retained his usual sneer.
"Malfoy, you had better wipe that smirk off your face before I do it for you." Harry growled.
"You can't do anything to me POTTER." Draco spat out his name before tapping his wand with his middle finger as if he were trying to intimidate Harry. It didn't work. Apparently he thought that having Dumbledore on his side made him untouchable.
Since Dumbledore was standing in between the two there were two choices; Harry could either try to go around him or through him. In the end he decided on the second option. For the first time in over one hundred years someone actually had the balls to knock Albus Dumbledore aside to reach their target. With a strong shove he was slammed into a small side table and near flipped over it. But with practiced ease he regained his footing and prepared to break up any confrontations. However when he turned back around he found that he was now being blocked in stead of the other way around. Tonks, Blaise and Snape all stood infront of him with wands raised, preventing him from intefering. Albus was good, very good, but even his stubborn mind accepted the fact that he could not defeat the trio in time to save Draco.
As soon as he passed Albus Harry was upon Draco in less than two seconds. The boy didn't have the time to draw his wand or even stand up from his chair. Lightening seemed to flash before his eyes as Harry's fist contected to the left side of his face. The force of the blow knocked him backwards into a casual sitting position. When he looked back up all he saw was Harry's foot as it lashed out and slammed into his chest causing him to flip backwards onto the floor. Not giving him any time to recover, Harry pressed on. As Draco tried to get to his feet what little air that was still in his lungs was now forced out as Harry kicked him forcefully in the ribs. Seeing that the others had Dumbledore effectively occupied he gave his enemy a few swift kicks to the face and head before turning his back on the bleedly and unconscious boy. Pulling out his wand Harry muttered a quite obliviate while thinking about the last hour. Hopefully Dumbledore didn't give him any information before that time. Striaghtening his cloths back out and replacing his wand he walked back over to the others and sat down for the first time since entering the room without anyone knowing that he had just preformed a memory charm which is illegal for anyone but authorized Ministry personel. Seeing that the fight was over his three colleagues pocketed their own wands and conjured themselves some chairs.
"Sit down professor." Harry seemed to order as he waved a hand toward the chair the man had previously occupied. When he sat down and regarded the young man with a carefully guarded expression Harry began laying down some rules. "I noticed when I came through the door that Draco was not surprised to see me here, a little scared yes, but not surprised. I was under the impression that we agreed to keep everything concerning this little operation a secret, even from the rest of the Order, and yet you tell someone you know to be a Death Eater that has given you know real reason to trust him. Before we continue, is there anything else I should know? Who else have you told, even the slightest detail?"
"The only other people who have any knowledge of your operations is Alastor and he only knows the basics. Madam Bones is aware of the fact you are innocent and are still trying to fight Voldemort but, as with Alastor, she knows very little. What she does know is that your 'base' is hidden by the Fidelius charm, that is why she has requested that I beg you to allow her niece to remain here." It was only at this point that Harry seemed to notice the other occupant in the room. And judging by their reactions the others didn't notice her either.
Susan Bones looked just as she did when school let out but that was to be expected since it had been only about a month since the took the train to King's Cross Station. She was by no means fat but was slightly chubby in some areas. Her long auburn hair framed her face while her eyes were wide and regarded Harry silightly in fear. But he could not figure out if she was afraid of big bad Dark Lord Potter with the scared face or if it was because of his aurgument with Dumbledore and beating Malfoy. Harry almost growled in anoyance before he suddenly wondered why she was here. True, her aunt is the head of Magical Law Enforcement but Fudge has Madam Bones so tied up in buerocratic red tape that she has been unable to do her job properly so there was no need to use Susan to put leverage on the woman. To his knowledge niether she or her aunt are connected to the Order in any way. As if sensing his questions Dumbledore explained.
"Durning the first war Voldemort endevured to destroy all of the pureblood families that did not support him. High on that list were the Potters, Longbottoms, McKinnons, Prewetts and the Bones'. As you might imagine his temporary banishment from his body hualted his purges. A month and a half ago we learned that he seemed quite enthusiastic about finishing his work. It was for this reason that Susan and a few other were not approached to join the Order. You and your friends have been targets for a long time now so we felt you needed the extra training. But the others have not had such things to worry about so we had hoped that if they made no moves against him and posed no threat than Voldemort might leave them be for a while and give us time to make better plans. Unfortunately this was not to be. Early this morning the Bones estate was attacked by Death Eaters. Everyone got out safely and no one was injured but it brought to reality what most had been wishing was a simple nightmare. What you must understand Harry is that most witches and wizards do not care much about attacks on muggles, not because they don't like them or anything but because they were not from their world. They don't know the people that were being killed so it held no significance to them. As long as it was merely muggles being killed they could look away and deny that the uneasy peace that has been held since you were a child was no over. But now that their own are being targeted once again they can no longer look away or hide away in their own little worlds.
At the moment we do not know what kind of safty precautions will be implemented for some of the targetted families but since she and Susan are the last of the Bones family Amilia came to me for help asked me to discuss it with you." One look at both Albus and Susan and he knew he was telling the truth but the entire situation still angered him and rightfully so. Of course he had absolutely no intention of kicking her out. So he turned to Twinkle, who seemed to be guarding over the unconscious body of Draco with a look of outright disgust and anger on her face.
"Twinkle, could you please show Susan to one of the guestrooms and help her get settled in?" He asked in a polite tone that jerked the house elf out of her thoughts and caused her to jump slightly.
"Hmm... Oh yes sir Harry, Twinkle will do as she is asked." She answered as her mood seemed to brighten almost immedietely. Both Dumbledore and Susan were surprised at the elf adressing Harry by his first name but were pleased by it nonetheless. Twinkle walked across the room and levitated the trunk that was sitting on the floor beside Susan's chair and made her way out of the room with an physically and emotionally exhausted Susan right behind her. The Hufflepuff gave Harry one last curious glance before leaving. After the door was closed Harry's head snapped back to gaze once more at the Headmaster.
"It seems we must lay down a few more rules Professor." He stated matter of factly. Dumbledore merely nodded in understanding and motion for Harry to continue. "First off, I want assurances from you, Madam Bones and Moody that you will not speak of our function again without my consent as well as a secrecy charm to prevent attaining this information by force. Second, If you have some one you wish to send over here then you will send a message with Fawkes and he will bring me to your office to meet this individual. You will give them no information before hand and if I refuse to allow them to come than that will be the final word on the matter. And finally, we have something else to discuss so if you would be so kind as to head back to Hogwarts I would very much appreiciate it. And take Malfoy with you. If you don't he will be dead a moment after he wakes up."
Dumbledore had been gone for more than a half an hour by now and yet the four still sat in silence, no one knowing quite what to say. After Albus had left Snape moved all of the small tables and positioned four chairs facing each other in a square shape so that everyone could see everybody else. Harry didn't know about anyone else but the silence was driving him insane so he decided to start out with an easy question, or at least he thought it was easy.
"So why have the two of you been hiding your exhaustion? It's quite obvious that you have been doing it for sometime now." The other three started slightly at the break in silence but for a moment both girls looked as if they would refuse to answer. Blaise and Tonks looked at each other for a few moments as they tried to work up the nerve to speak. They had spoken to each other concerning their problem and knew the would eventually have to speak with Harry and Snape but they were hoping to put that off as long as possible. Unfortunately both Harry and Snape were unstoppable when it came to finding out what was wrong with those they cared about. Taking a deep breath Tonks began while she turned her eyes to the floor.
"Niether of us have slept much lately. And when we do sleep it is usually disturbed by nightmares about what happened and what probably would have happened if Harry hadn't been able to get out of his shackles in that dungeon. We have both tried dreamless sleep potion but it doesn't seem to make much difference since you can only use it once a week. We were both hoping that it was only a temporary thing and would go away quickly but it hasn't seemed to get any easier." Tonks said in a monotone voice that was absent of all emotion. Before any other questions could be asked Blasie picked up where Tonks left off, answering the biggest question Harry and Snape had.
"While we were still at Hogwarts we were able to sleep relitively well but when we moved here is when the nightmares started. At the beginning of this week I woke up early in the morning as usual but the terrified feeling I always woke up with did seem to be going away as it usually does. I was scared and paranoid of everything around me so I went to the one place I felt I could be safe. I felt that if Harry could wake up with all the injuries he had and kill twelve trained Unspeakables than he could do a lot more when he is healthy so that is where I went. I had no intention of staying in there it just happened." She continued in a pleading tone as she looked at Harry as if begging him to believe that she had no intention on 'preying' upon him. "I needed to know that someone was close by." She could take it any more and began crying. Snape was at her side in an instant to console her though he had mixed feeling about her explaination.
Despite his personal feelings towards Harry he could completely understand her reasoning and why she would feel safe around him but he was also upset that it was not him that she turned to. It hurt a great deal to see his daughter in pain and being unable to help her but Potter did. He supposed the same was true for Tonks.
"I was there for the same reason." Tonks began in a quiet voice. "Only I had been there more than just that one night." She confessed which pulled Snape's attention away from his still sobbing daughter for a moment. 'If she was there before than why did Potter act as if he did not know?' Snape thought to himself.
"It started out for me the same as it did for Blaise. Just sort of ending up there with no intention to stay, but I drifted off and actually had a decent nights sleep. The following night was the same way. So each night I would go in and make sure I was awake and back in my own bed before Harry or anyone else woke up." Tonks stopped speaking and Harry was both shocked and confused so the room reverted back into silence since Snape was still trying to comfort Blaise. As much as he tried Harry just couldn't understand it. Not only the fact that these to strong willed women recieved comfort form him but also that one of those women was shareing his bed for a whole week and he didn't even know. Harry will freely admit that he knows absolutely nothing about dealing with emotions and such, after all he didn't exactly much experience in such matters with the Dursley's, but this was completely over his head. He of course had heard of people's troubles after trumatic experiences, after all had been there, but as said before, being raised by family that dispised you gave you very little comfort in those times. So he was forced to keep everything inside with no way to express your feelings. Thinking for several minutes Harry came to a solution that he hoped would both help Tonks and Blaise feel more comfortable and allow him to keep his privacy.
After asking the opinion of the others it was desided that the two would be moved up to the third floor into the two rooms on either side of Harry's. The two were slightly smaller than Harry's own room and were connected by two seprete doorways that could allow the two entrance with out going into the hall or could be left open if it gave them a better feeling of security. Once again Snape was not all that happy about Blaise looking to Harry for protection but it was his daughter's health they were talking about and he would go along with or do anything that would make her feel better. Tonks left shortly afterwards to go rest while Snape escorted Blaise to her new room after asking a house elf the have the two witches belongings moved. He was walking out of the room with an arm drapped over Blaise's shoulder whn he turned back slightly.
"Potter, I insist we begin training with the mind sphere as soon as possible. And OUR discussion on the sleeping arrangements is not finished. You will meet me back in this study following dinner tonight." With that said he promptly departed. Even though he had to spend the time with Snape of all people and argue about his daughter slipping into his room Harry was still greatly looking forward to learning legilimency even though he probably will not enjoy some of the things he will see in the man's mind. Harry remained in the study thinking for a few more minutes before heading to the kitchen for something to eat. When he entered the kitchen he was a bit surprised to see both Twinkle and Susan behind the burning stove and no one could ignore the aroma that was circulating through the room. Both seemed to be having a good time and that was a good sign. Though it did not fit the girl's personality Harry was afraid that Susan was be short tempered with everyone at the idea of being locked up away from the rest of the world.
"What's going on?" Harry asked calmly as he strolled into the room. It was quite obvious that they were cooking but the vast majority of the time you could not get a house elf to allow you to help in their work. He learned that quite soon after arriving in his parent's old house. Susan seemed to be a little startled at Harry's unexpected arrival but Twinkle turned and looked down right delighted as she bounced up to Harry with a large smile on her face.
"Harry, Harry, Mistress Susan is teaching Twinkle a new recipe." She squealed in excitement. Harry smiled at the excited elf and approached the stove curious about what they were making. Susan seemed to recoil a little bit as he approached but she did not leave. When Harry looked intot he pans he brock out into a smile.
"Ah yes, Pompano Montmorency." He said out loud with a smile on his face as he looked at the fish fillets, fruit juices and brandy. Susan almost instantly lost all traces of intimidation and just looked shocked.
"How did you know that?"
"I have done my fair share of cooking in my life. Infact I wouldn't be surprised if I were the best gourmet chef in Surry by the time I was eight years old." He told the two a little smugly.
"Why did you not tell me of this?" Twinkle squeaked. She simply hated not knowing how to cook something.
"Because you never let me get anywhere near the stove. Oh by the way, you can bring the flavor out much better if you use cherries instead of raspberries." He chuckled at their open mouthed expressions before ducking out the door when something struck him. He had forgotten about the snake. He had told Snape and Bill to bring it with them from Borgin and Burkes but he had yet had the oppertunity to speak with it. That was something he intended to do right then, as soon as he found someone that could tell him where it was.
TBC