THE NEW ORDER

By

Padfootjr23

Chapter Thirteen: Interrogations and Returns

Deep within the Cardamom Mountains in western Cambodia a lone man stood outside a rather large and luxurious cabin and looked down at the valley below with a newspaper clutched in his hand. He had a very distant look in his blue eyes and anyone who knew him could tell he was doing some serious thinking. He had traveled nearly half way around the world and had lived in these mountains for most of his adult life in the hopes of keeping his family safe. When looking for a safe place to hide Cambodia would certainly not be the first place one would think of, or the second or third for that matter. But that is precisely why he chose it. Complex shields and wards established by his wife made sure that they would go unnoticed and protected. They rarely left their mountain hideaway and the few times they did they took every precaution.

Even in their isolation his family had lived happily and without care. He and his wife instructed their three children extensively and he couldn't have been prouder of their progress. Unfortunately the tranquility was not to last. He had just returned from one of his rare trips to the wizarding district of the capital city of Phnom Penh where he had learned some disturbing news. With a heavy sigh he turned around and slowly walked into his home to speak with his wife.

"What's wrong?" He winced as his wife asked as soon as he walked through the door. It seemed that no matter how hard he tried he could never hide his true feelings from her. Without a word he handed her the newspaper and she responded by simply looking at him in confusion. After a moment of tense silence she took the paper and unfolded it in an attempt to find out what had caused her normally stoic husband to become so agitated. She was surprised to see that it was an old copy of the Daily Prophet, probably thrown away by some Member of the Cambodian Ministry. She quickly discovered why he looked so nervous. After reading the primary articles and skimming through the rest in the hopes of finding more information she dropped the paper and looked up with wide eyes.

"He hasn't been defeated yet?" She asked in a quiet voice as she looked out the back window to where her children were playing in the back yard.

"Apparently not! From the way the articles were written it seems that something happened to keep him at bay for awhile but he is now back at full strength." He paused for a moment to work up the courage to speak his mind. He loved her dearly but his wife had a serious temper and if you said something to infuriate her you better watch out. Taking a deep breath, he decided to just come right out and say it.

"We have to go back!"

Harry and Tonks were on their way down to the 'holding cells' to interrogate Geoffrey Stevens, Head of the Department of Mysteries, when Twinkle suddenly 'popped' in beside him. Having gotten used to her sudden appearances, Harry barely showed any sign of surprise, though he did flinch slightly. Tonks on the other hand was not as composed. Jumping back quickly she was able to completely cover up the soft shriek that passed her lips and went tumbling down on to her backside when she collided with the small table that was placed next to the staircase. Immediately Harry lost control and burst into a fit of laughter and was forced to hold his side tightly as pain coursed through his muscles from their 'work out'. Twinkle was more composed than her master and her face was set in a neutral expression though if you were to look close enough you could clearly see amusement shining in her eyes. Tonks evidently didn't find it nearly as funny as she glared up at the House Elf and Harry before climbing back to her feet.

"What was it you needed?" Harry asked the elf after calming down enough to speak.

"The post has arrived and I thought that you would be wanting to receive this letter promptly. The rest I left in your office since they carry no significant importance." She explained as she handed the letter over and looked at him nervously, afraid that she may have assumed too much. Looking at the expensive parchment the envelope was made of he turned it over to reveal the crest of the Gringotts bank. Looking down he smiled and thanked Twinkle for bringing the letter to him before he opened it. His forehead creased in confusion when he read the first two words but other than that he showed no reactions that would give Tonks any insight into what the letter had said.

Lord Potter

As per your instructions a full list of your holdings is enclosed along with the names of various accountants that have been dealing with your interests in the Muggle World. With your blood sample that you sent last night the wards surrounding the Potter family vault have been changed to accept your magical signature and yours alone. As of now you are the legal head of the Potter family and are able to use the title of Lord Potter that has been passed down since one of your ancestors abandoned the name of Gryffindor to protect his family from the dangers that the name brought. Since you are now the legal head of the Potter family the Ministry's laws of age restriction to family vaults will no longer hinder you.

Within the envelope you will find a small round stone that will act as a portkey to allow you access to your vault without having to travel through Diagon Ally and avoid prying eyes. However, to grant another access to your vault would require you to appear in person since the portkey will only work for you and will not carry more than one person.

Since your family vault has been out of use for many years now you do not have a manager that has much knowledge of all of your current holdings but one of our brightest is as of now familiarizing himself with them. After looking through your assets if you have any questions please relay them to Shuantis Griphook, who will personally manage your accounts.

On a final note, your presence is required at our main branch in London for the reading of the Last Will and Testament of Sirius Octavian Black. You have been named as one of the primary beneficiaries and failure to attend would forfeit your rightful claim and it would pass to Mr. Black's closest living relation, I believe that would be Narcissa Malfoy. The Will shall be read in a private conference room at 11:00 am on the 30th of this month.

Sincerely

Draas Bullgluk

Gringotts Managing Partner

Harry quickly squashed the annoyance of yet another title as he passed the letter to Tonks while he continued on to page through the various parchments that outlined his family's holdings. Quickly scanning through the facts and figures that he didn't understand he turned immediately to the monetary value. His eyes went wide at the sheer volume that his vault seemed to hold and he couldn't help but wonder where it all had come from. After all, people didn't usually have over two hundred million galleons just lying around. Looking from page to page he could see that over the years many branches of the Potter family that were killed off until only Christopher Potter and his son James remained.

"When did you send them a blood sample?" Harry's head shot up at the sound of Tonks' voice. Seeing the family he never knew wiped out on paper he had completely forgotten that he was not alone. It took a few moments but he was finally able to comprehend her words.

"Oh, I wrote him a letter a few days ago and I received his reply yesterday. He needed a blood sample to reset the wards around the vault so I sent it off to him immediately." He answered absently as he pushed the thoughts of a faceless family to the back of his mind before his eyes lit up and his smile returned. "Oh yes, we have a politician to interrogate." Tonks seemed to share his enthusiasm and the two, accompanied by Twinkle, went to meet Snape.

Geoffrey Stevens was beginning to wake up but the moment he recognized this fact he wished he hadn't. His entire body was painfully stiff and he was sporting numerous bruises and a few rather nasty cuts. After a moment he tried to move slightly only to find that his arms and legs had been tightly restrained against the sides of the chair he was currently sitting in. Suddenly the memories of his 'encounter' with two members of the 'Raiders' came back to him. If he were not bound in an unknown room with an unknown number of guards around him he would have groaned loudly at his mistakes during that engagement.

Thanks to the fact that his office door was transparent on the inside he saw to colleagues approach from down the hall. This was a normal occurrence since the offices of the Ministries top officials were all on that floor but the only thing odd about it was that one of these 'colleagues' was the spiting image of him. After shaking off his shock he figure it must have been a Death Eater under the effects of the Polyjuice Potion in an attempt to access his office and possibly lay a trap for him or more than likely he was their immediate target and they were simply using his image to give them a reason to be in the area. Surprisingly the two didn't even pause at the door; they merely walked in as if they owned the place. Then again with one disguised as him it would have looked odd if he stopped at his own door. He had to admit, from a critical view of course, that they pulled if off flawlessly. But that certainly didn't stop him from showering them with curses the moment they walked through his door.

Unfortunately the first one though took the brunt of the assault giving his look a like time to take cover. When they showed themselves again he was surprised to see not his face looking back but the face of a known metamorphmagus, Nymphadora Tonks. He of course was quite surprised that he appeared to be a target of Harry Potter. It certainly gave a healthy jump to one's ego. As if on silent agreement the two stood, leaving their protective covers behind, and began their duel. He, naturally, had been a highly trained Unspeakable and took great pride in the fact that unlike most department heads he was not some second rate political appointee who had no idea what they were doing. He may be a bit on the elderly side but he could still hold his own.

Miss Tonks however didn't seem to be nearly as clumsy as her reputation would suggest however and he needed a good deal of his concentration solely on her. Almost as an afterthought he sent a quick stunning spell towards the prone figure by the door to make sure that he wouldn't be interrupting. As the fight continued he began admiring her ability and thought that maybe he should try to recruit her before he remembered who she was and why she was there. All things considered he was rather enjoying himself, it had been sometime since he last got a workout and he found it a bit refreshing.

Tonks on the other hand was really beginning to get annoyed. Everything she tried was either dodged of blocked quite easily. The two were going toe to toe for almost five minutes now and she knew she had to end it soon or she would end up tripping over some table and breaking her neck. While she is prone to bouts of clumsiness all day long if you put her in a fight she could be as graceful as a swan, that is if it doesn't run to long and she looses her concentration. Watching him skillfully sidestep two more of her curses she suddenly had an idea. From what she could tell the man wasn't really taking this fight seriously so if she could just throw him off his guard a bit…

"AVADA KEDAVRA!" Stevens' eyes went wide and his body went stiff when he heard these words. Normally they would not have fazed him in the slightest but he never expected that curse to come from the former Auror. Shaking off his shock he quickly dove out of the way only to be hit by a stunning charm that was cast just a brief moment after the killing curse. He had been suckered in.

Stevens sat still with his head down as he silently berated himself for falling for such an obvious trick. He had the advantage in knowledge, skill and experience and yet his own overconfidence showed itself to be an enemy. He should have ended the duel at any number of occasions that he had the opportunity but no, he just had to have his fun and where did it get him. Blindfolded and tied to a chair.

"Glad you could join us Potter." Snape sneered as Harry and Tonks descended stairs that led too the potions lab and holding cells. Harry just rolled his eyes before walking passed his former professor intent on immediately questioning their prisoner. "Potter, wait!" Snape called out before he could walk through the door. Harry turned back to the man with an annoyed look on his face. For his part, the Potions Master was surprised that the young man had not snapped back but instead appeared to merely be waiting to hear what the man had to say.

"Before we begin to question Stevens you must understand that the questioning itself may turn out to be a waste of time."

"The man is the head of the Department of Mysteries, how could it be a waste of time?" Harry asked in confusion and annoyance.

"Because Potter, unlike most Ministry heads he is not a politician. He spent the majority of his career as a top level Unspeakable." Snape growled in irritation when everyone looked at him as if they had no idea what he was getting at. "Unspeakables are trained to fight against many forms of mind control and are required to master Occlumency. As a master Occlumans it is a certainty that he can fight the effects enough to be able to remember every question we ask. It is also possible, though unlikely, that he could manipulate his answers." He explained.

"And you're just now mentioning because?" Tonks asked.

"Because even if the potion has no effect at all we can still use the fact that he's here to our advantage. If it works we will get some answers and some valuable information. But if it doesn't and we do this right we could have a powerful ally in the Ministry." After a few minutes discussion it was decided that even if the man was not a Voldemort supporter it would still be to dangerous to allow the man to much information about their operations. They instead agreed that the best course would be to try to 'inadvertently' peak the man's curiosity and suspicions enough to drive him to seek out the truth for himself.

For the sake of safety, when they entered the room those that had not yet been identified by the Ministry had their hoods drawn and remained in the shadows. Even if this man proved to be an ally they did not want him to be able to gain too much information. As everyone knew that House Elves had taken them from Hogwarts there was no need for Twinkle to remain hidden. It appeared that Stevens was still unconscious but to make sure Snape hit him with a stunning spell so they could administer the Veritaserum without any resistance. When the man's body went limp Snape stepped forward quickly and poured three drops down his throat before reviving him. Holding Stevens' head tightly in his hands Snape looked intently into his eyes until a slightly white haze seemed to pass over them. The Potions Master breathed a sigh of relief, at least now they knew that they would get truthful answers.

"What is your name and position?" Snape began.

"Geoffrey Allen Stevens, Head of the Department of Mysteries." He answered in a monotone voice but even Harry was able to see a spark in the man's eyes that should not be there. As Snape thought, he was completely aware of his surroundings but was hiding it fairly well at the moment.

"Are you a Death Eater or Voldemort sympathizer?" Harry snapped out and Snape shot him a look that clearly told him to shut up. In any other situation the old Unspeakable would have released a barrage of hexes at any man that questioned his loyalty but at the moment he was fighting an up hill battle just to keep his anger at such an accusation from showing.

"No."

"Who do you support, Fudge or Dumbledore?"

"Neither."

"Why?"

"Because Fudge doesn't have the brains to outsmart a flubberworm much less Voldemort and Dumbledore doesn't have the balls to do what must be done." This answer seemed to surprise everyone in the room and even Snape had a look of confusion on his face. Stevens was lucky that his answer warranted such a response because he lost his composure for just a moment but no one seemed to notice. It was after all an answer he never would have spoken out loud. He greatly respected the Hogwarts Headmaster but he thought the man had his priorities in the wrong place.

"No one is going to argue against your assessment of Fudge's intelligence but why do you question Dumbledore?" Harry asked in confusion.

"Albus Dumbledore, though intelligent and powerful, holds himself above the actions of the Death Eaters. The Dark Lord and his followers kill indiscriminately yet he will not advocate using lethal force if necessary. He believes that all Death Eaters should be captured and sent to Azkaban. In a perfect society this would be all well and good but we do not live in a perfect society. Voldemort has already arranged one mass breakout of the prison and he certainly has the means to do so again. If we continue to do things as Dumbledore wants, we will all be risking our lives to capture Death Eaters only to hand them right back to their master."

"I like this guy already." Harry chuckled.

"Potter, quiet." Snape shot back. He clearly didn't like being interrupted.

"What, the man is right. You saw how those Unspeakables were fighting. We can't exactly fight against the unforgivable curses with tickling charms and pinching hexes." While Snape and Harry were glaring at each other Stevens took the time to observe the young man. Though his face was scarred and battered and according to Auror Shacklebolt he could be fierce in a fight, he didn't really look nearly as cold and bloodthirsty as many were claiming him to be.

"Speaking of which," Tonks began as she stepped forward. "Fudge claims only one Unspeakable survived Harry's explosion curses, is that true?"

"Yes."

"What is his name?"

"Adam McNair."

"Walden McNair's younger brother?" Snape asked in surprise.

"Yes!"

"Where is Fudge hiding him?" Harry asked angrily.

"I don't know."

"Have you questioned him?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Fudge ordered that no one was to see him."

"That son of a bitch." Harry growled as he began pacing the length of the room before another question came to him.

"You are in direct control over the Unspeakables, you claim that you are not a Voldemort supporter and yet over a dozen Death Eaters have managed infiltrate the Department of Mysteries. How could that happen?"

"The Death Eaters have never been able to get a foothold in the department. Our screening techniques for new recruits will uncover any attempt at deception." This time he was not able to keep his anger from showing but no one seemed to notice. He was also confused at this line of questioning. When they first began he figured they would ask about the departments various operations but they had yet to ask anything that couldn't gain them an advantage over the Ministry.

"Apparently your screening techniques aren't as fool proof as you claim…" Snape began with a sneer but Harry suddenly cut him off.

"You said you screen all new recruits, does this include questioning under Veritaserum?" He asked curiously.

"Yes."

"Are all Unspeakables routinely questioned to prevent leaks in security?"

"All lower level agents are interrogated at least once a month by their commanders."

"What about the commanders?"

"They are not subjected to investigation."

"Why not?"

"I don't know." Harry was a bit surprised at the answer before he realized that the man could only answer questions that he was one hundred percent sure he knew the answer. He could not offer opinion or speculation.

"Tonks, do you have any idea why they wouldn't investigate people that held such important positions?" He asked the young Metamophagus. As a former Auror she was the one most likely to have a decent answer.

"Probably because they are the ones in charge. They rise high enough in the department and they feel that they are some how above the others and don't have to subject themselves to the same set of rules." She replied after thinking for a few moments. Harry nodded thoughtfully before turning back to their 'guest of honor' just as Snape was asking his next question.

"Would you agree that if one of these commanders was to change his or her loyalties, they would then be in a position to recruit those that also held the same loyalties as well as making sure that their intentions remained hidden by filing false reports about their various interrogations?"

"Yes." Stevens answered in the same monotone voice but everyone could see the brief look of realization pass before his eyes. The man was greatly surprised that such a scenario was never considered before. Unspeakables had to serve at least twenty years before they could achieve the rank of commander so after twenty years of monthly questioning it just didn't occur to anyone that they might betray them after so many years of faithful service. As much as he hated to admit it, even to himself, he now began thinking that it was entirely possible that Potter and his companions may have been speaking the truth. If an Unspeakable Commander had joined the Dark Lord they could easily bring other Death Eaters into the department.

"So you would also agree that the security that is employed by the Department of Mysteries is not as complete as you originally believed?"

"Yes."

Snape saw the white haze clearing away from the man's eyes as the truth serum was wearing off. "Lucius Malfoy and his 'colleagues were all captured in Death Eater robes and masks, each one had preformed the Unforgivable curse numerous times. Just last month they were all set to be shipped off to Azkaban for life. Why were they released?"

"Minister Fudge and a number of other high ranking officials spoke on their behalf. They argued that those men had been forced to act while under the Imperius curse. With their support, the majority of the Wizengamont voted in their favor."

"You mean they just believed that pathetic story?" Dung's friend Nigel yelled from the shadows. His thick cockney accent making his rage all the more evident.

"Don't answer that." Snape told Stevens before he turned back to his fuming colleagues. "It is not that they believed their story but rather that the majority of the Ministry heads are purebloods that are afraid of making the Dark Lord their enemy. At the moment they feel they are in no danger since they have no muggle blood and they don't want to draw attention to themselves. While most would never even consider joining the Death Eaters, they could not care less about what they do to others. The only reason so many Death Eaters are released when they claim they were under the control of some curse or potion is because there is no way to disprove their stories. The money they throw around to various ministers also helps their cause."

"Why is it that Dumbledore was not aware of their release until after the fact? He is after all the head of the Wizengamont."

"Because Fudge chose not to inform him of the hearing. He claimed that since Dumbledore was aided in apprehending them that he was to personally involved to give a fair judgment."

"More like he was afraid the other members would align with Dumbledore rather than him if he were present." Harry muttered to himself angrily.

"Potter, the Veritaserum is wearing off, we have to get him out of here before he starts taking notice of his surroundings."

"Any chance of him remembering any of this?"

"Not much, there were a few brief moments when his eyes betrayed emotion but I don't believe he had complete control. He may recall certain details but not enough to make much sense out of them."

"Alright, stun him and we'll dump him off at his home." Were the last words the man heard before the red light of Tonks' stunning spell connected with his chest and everything went black. Nigel and John took the man and activated a portkey that Snape had previously made and the two men and their prisoner disappeared.

"Well I think that went well." Harry said happily as he clapped his hands together. He turned to Twinkle to see about getting something to eat prepared but held his tongue when he noticed the confused look on the house elf's face. He was about to ask what was wrong when her eyes suddenly went wide and she quickly vanished with a pop.

"Um, what was that all about?" He asked in a confused tone as he looked at the others around the room.

Snape was crossing the entrance hall after leaving the others to talk after their interrogation. He had no desire to linger and talk about nothing so he intended to head to the library and see how Susan and Blaise were coming along with sorting out the books they had taken from Hogwarts. He was nearly at the staircase when the front door opened behind him and thinking it was Dung returning from his own little piece of the nights scavenger hunt, he turned around to see how it went. What he saw was not what he expected.

"SNAPE!" An angry and shocked voice ground out while three wands were pointed at the former Death Eater.

Harry and Tonks were walking up the stairs from the basement just a few moments after Snape when they heard someone shout Snape's name angrily. The two looked at each other in confusion before running up the remaining stairs and through the open doorway into the entrance hall. They stopped suddenly and Harry removed both his wands when he saw two unknown people holding wands on the Slytherin with two obvious children stood behind them. Another, obviously a man, held Snape by his collar and was whispering to him. They could not hear what the man was saying but given the situation they didn't need to. Snape was clenching his teeth in anger as he sneered at the man but even from this distance Harry could see the shock on the man's face. He looked like he wanted nothing more than to blast the man into oblivion but he recognized that with two more wands trained on him he didn't have a chance. Without thinking Harry raised the hood of his cloak to hide his face since he had no idea who they could be. He did not want to reveal himself to anyone unless absolutely necessary.

Despite his confusion regarding the situation Harry decided it would be best to neutralize the aggressors. No matter who they were or the fact that they had children with them, they illegally entered his house and considering who they were and what they were doing they simply could allow anyone to simple walk in as if they owned the place. He took a few silent steps forward and quickly got his chance when the two children moved to the side, giving him a clear shot at both the man holding Snape and one of the two that had their wands drawn. With a silent incantation he shot one stunner from each wand and easily hit both targets. Both children turned swiftly and looked at him in fear but Harry paid them no mind. His third target was turning but suddenly stopped as Harry spoke up.

"Don't move, you're not that fast." He said coldly and the figure stopped suddenly. "Drop the wand and move to the wall!" After a moments pause their arm lowered the wand clattered to the floor. Slowly they stepped over to the side to stand next to the two children and Harry and Tonks could now see that it was a young man, may a year or two younger than Harry himself. He had unremarkable features and a shock of red hair. Not the bright Weasley red but closer to a deep auburn color. Walking forward Tonks picked up the boys wand as well as the two of the people laying stunned on the floor.

"Now, would someone care to explain what the hell is going on?" Harry asked calmly but a deaf man could hear the threatening edge in his voice. Snape was more than willing to explain although you couldn't tell if it was because he no longer had wands pointed at him or because he didn't want to annoy Harry in such a situation.

"These, people, just walked in a moment ago." He answered shortly but he looked uncertain about continuing and glanced at Harry with something that looked like concern before he focused his gaze on the two people on the floor.

"Who are you, and how did you get here?" Harry asked the oldest boy as he decided to think about Snape's odd behavior later. The teenager just rolled his eyes and turned his attention elsewhere as if Harry wasn't worth his attention.

"Ah, the silent type are you." Harry said in a silky voice as he stepped a bit closer to the boy. "Let me explain something to you. Obviously we are in the middle of a war, but unlike everyone else we have to enemies, Voldemort and the Ministry. Both are after our blood. This house is our only refuge and it will remain so only as long as NO ONE knows where it is. I will go to almost any lengths to guarantee the safety of those within these walls. You were able to enter and when you did you attacked one of my people. The situation is entirely unacceptable "

"If you fight against this Dark Lord then why would the Ministry be your enemy?" The boy asked in a shaky voice. Harry was a bit confused at his choice of words, as if he knew almost nothing of Voldemort but he didn't let that deter him. It was a simple question so Harry decided to answer truthfully.

"When you kill a dozen of their top law enforcers they tend to get a bit cranky. Now I will ask you again. Who are you and how did you get here?" Harry nearly growled. The boy gulped and took a few shaky steps to stand in front of the two younger children. Looking at them for the first time Harry could clearly see that they were related.

"My name is Jacob Andrews, this is my brother and sister."

"And them?" He asked as he pointed to the two stunned adults.

"My parents."

"See, that wasn't so hard now was it? Now how did you get into this house?"

"An elf brought us in." Harry looked at the boy intently for a moment before he remembered Twinkle's odd behavior and disappearance not long ago.

"TWINKLE!" Harry roared causing the three children to jump back in fear. An instant later Twinkle appeared with a pop but she looked at anything other than Harry.

"Master wanted to see Twinkle?" She asked in a quiet voice. Obviously with her fear of punishment she reverted back to calling him master.

"Why did you bring these people here?" Harry had managed not to yell at the scared creature but it took an awful lot of restraint. He was beyond pissed that she would give someone access to the house without telling him. Especially since the people in question attacked Snape as soon as they entered.

"Because Master wished it." When she said this Snape's head snapped back up from where he was just staring at the people at his feet and looked at the elf in shock. Harry however only seemed to grow angrier. He hadn't told her to let anyone in much less people he didn't even know. He was about to lose his temper completely when Snape stepped in.

"Potter, you are going to need to see this." His words were said calmly but they were laced with a great deal of urgency. Harry looked at the man where he was standing next to the body of the man that had previously attacked him and he saw both shock and disbelief on the man's face. With one last look at Twinkle and growled and walked over to the older man.

"What?" He snapped but Snape didn't take offence to his tone which told Harry that there was a serious problem.

"Look." He said plainly as he kicked the man over on to his back. Harry looked at him in confusion for a moment before he looked at the man on the floor. At first his mind didn't register what he saw but a moment later Harry's face went white and he was backing away slowly until he tripped over the bottom step of the staircase. He sat there for several minutes in silence, his eyes never leaving the man's face. Despite being a bit older than he appeared in old pictures it was fairly obvious who he was, or at least who he was pretending to be. A moment later the man began to stir and his eyes slowly fluttered open and Harry's breath caught in his throat as the face of James Potter stared back at him.

TBC