From the Burrow, Severus apparated directly on to the front step of Number 12 Grimmauld place. With a cautious hand but firm resolution, Severus trusted Granger's word that he would indeed be granted access by the wards. The door opened with ease revealing the deserted hallway beyond. Stepping over the threshold, Severus felt what could not be seen; wards more powerful than he would ever have anticipated. The magic swept over him, warm and insistent, and then was gone in an instant.
The door shut behind him with a clang and Severus called out, "Mr Potter! Mr Potter!"
Severus listened for a response but none came. The house seemed deserted and Severus couldn't hear a sound. It was completely quiet. Too quiet.
Something clicked and Severus looked to the wall on his right, seeing for the first time what wasn't there.
The hall had felt unnaturally quiet because of the absence of screaming. Walburga Black was gone. Not that she was absent from the frame but that her portrait was gone altogether, a lighter square patch left on the dingy wall where she once hung.
"Professor?" Severus looked to the top of the stairs where Potter had spoken from.
"Mr Potter."
"What are you doing here?" Harry asked, descending the staircase.
Still distracted by the missing portrait, Severus ignored Potter's question. "Where is Walburga Black?"
"Huh?" Harry responded inelegantly.
Severus spared him a look of disdain and spoke again as if the boy were simple. "Where is the portrait of Walburga Black which previously hung in this very spot?"
"Er-" The young saviour looked flustered, caught like a deer in the headlights. "We, er, took her down. Y'know 'cause of the screaming and the – racist slurs and stuff."
The Professor levelled him with a suspicious stare. "And just how exactly did you remove a portrait that was stuck with an everlasting sticking charm that wizards over twice your age, including Albus Dumbledore himself, failed to remove?"
"Er…" Severus' frown of suspicion deepened. "Well, I, um, had Kreacher take it down."
"Kreacher?" Severus wasn't convinced.
"Yeah, y'know, elf magic."
"I see." Harry squirmed under the Professor's hard stare.
"So, umm, why are you here, Professor?" Harry broached again. "Not that I don't want you here or anything, just wasn't really expecting you."
Still unconvinced by Potter's explanation, but with more immediate concerns, Severus explained. "I have just come from the Burrow, I take it you have not heard the news?"
The boy from moments before was gone in an instant, replaced with the young man Potter had become. The mask of calm was back, belied only by the slight look of panic in his eyes.
"What's happened?"
"There's been a Death Eater attack." He began before reassuring quickly, "Everyone in the Order is fine." He noticed the slight relaxing of the boy's shoulders and continued, "The attack was on a muggle family in Hertfordshire. Sadly there were no survivors."
Potter's hands clenched into fists. "A family? Children?"
Severus nodded sharply, "Three."
"God damnit!" Potter's right fist slammed loudly against the wall next to him, though fortunately no damage was done to flesh or plaster.
"Potter!" Severus admonished.
Harry took a deep, deliberate breath and calmed himself. "Sorry, Sir." He ran a hand through his hair. "Well, thank you for coming to tell me, Professor. I appreciate being kept informed." He gestured towards the kitchen. "Can I get you a drink or anything?"
Severus shook his head. "Potter, there's something else."
Harry looked at him with interest again.
"Perhaps we should sit down." The Professor suggested.
Potter looked exasperated. "Just say it, Professor."
Severus sighed, "The Death Eaters left a message at the scene." He hesitated again, wary of the boy's reaction. "They made a threat of sorts."
"What threat?" Harry's eyebrows drew into a frown.
"The threat implied that Miss Granger would be their next target."
The colour drained from Potter's face and a look of utter horror came over him for a moment before his controlled expression was back.
"Kreacher!" Potter surprised Severus with his call towards the kitchen. In the next moment Harry was reaching for his cloak on the stand behind him and turning back to the Professor as he pulled it around his frame. "What did the message say?"
"Potter, what are you doing?" Severus asked instead as Harry began shoving his feet into a pair of worn leather boots.
"Getting ready." The younger answered dismissively before repeating more insistently. "What were the exact words, Professor?"
Reluctantly, Severus answered, "The message appeared over the bodies of the murdered muggles. It said, 'The mudblood princess will be next.'" Potter showed little reaction, continuing to prepare for departure. "Where are you going?"
"The Burrow." Severus was relieved, he had half expected Potter to high-tail it to Hertfordshire without a second thought. "I need to make sure Hermione's alright, then I'll speak with Arthur and Kingsley about our next steps."
Before Severus could raise any possible objections to this course of action, a pop announced Kreacher's arrival. The elf was much changed from when Severus had last seen him. In appearance the old elf had been cleaned up and, with a fresh, unstained pillowcase, looked almost presentable. In mannerisms the change was even more pronounced, the once recalcitrant elf now spoke with mild manners and respect, showing an obvious regard to his new master as he informed the elf of his departure.
"Yes, Master Harry. I'll send your things on to the Weasley residence." Kreacher nodded.
"Harry," Severus interjected. "Miss Granger is fine, just a little shaken."
"Thank you, Professor. I still need to see her myself."
"I understand completely. I can come with you to the Burrow now. But there's no need for you to concern yourself with the Death Eater hunt now, Arthur has it under control."
Harry stood still and looked his Professor square in the eye. "Death Eaters have taken nearly everyone I ever loved from me, Professor." He said, voice sure and resolved. "I refuse to stand by as they attempt to harm my family."
It was easy sometimes for Severus to forget just how much Harry had suffered; how much he had accomplished, and grown, and changed. And then, in a moment like this, he would be hit with it full force, like a punch to the gut, and he would have to acknowledge to himself once more the transformation Harry had made from struggling boy to remarkable young man.
He nodded to said young man before him. "Well let's go to the Burrow for now, Miss Granger will be pleased to see you, I'm sure."
Harry nodded, shoulders slightly less tense than before. "We can take the Floo." He suggested and led the way down to the kitchen fireplace, offering the Professor the Floo power first and stepping in after. "The Burrow!"
He arrived into a gaggle of activity, discussions batting around the room and people walking to and fro. As he stepped into the fray the pace of the room seemed to slow and conversations began to die down. Severus who had arrived only seconds before, watched with interest how Potter's mere presence entirely changed the dynamics of the room. Aurors with years of experience and impressive reputations, looked on the teen with respect, a reverence, wanting to hear whatever he had to say.
Harry, either ignoring or unaware of his effect on the room, paid little attention to the majority of its occupants and zeroed in on Ron and Hermione, sat together in a quiet corner.
"Harry!" The pair of them stood as they saw their friend and Harry wrapped Hermione in a fierce hug, exchanging silent conversation with Ron over her shoulder.
"You alright, 'Mione?" He asked, holding her at arm's length to examine her.
She smiled gently, "Of course I am, Harry. Nothing's happened to me."
"I know but-"
"Harry, I'm fine." She reiterated. "It's not like our lives haven't ever been threatened before."
"Well this is the last time." Harry said definitively and Hermione rolled her eyes.
"If you say so."
Assured of Hermione's physical and mental well-being, Harry turned to the room and his eyes found Arthur.
"Mr Weasley," The redheaded patriarch stopped mid conversation and looked towards the teen. "What do we know?"
Arthur sighed knowing he wouldn't be able to keep the three young people away from his investigations. "Very little at the moment, Harry. There's no magical trace of where the Death Eaters went after the murders. We aren't even sure who was involved at this point."
As Aurors began to exit the room on their given missions, the core of the Order gathered round the large family dining table.
"So who are the main suspects?" Harry asked.
Bill answered, "Ruling out those who were killed or captured in the final battle, there aren't many of Voldemort's inner circle left. Lestrange, Dolohov and Yaxley are most likely responsible."
Harry nodded. "So where could they be? I'm assuming their known residences have all been acquired by the Ministry but do we know of any other Death Eater hangouts?" He turned to the Hogwarts Deputy, who still stood lurking by the fireplace. "Professor?"
Severus shook his head. "I already informed the Ministry of anywhere I knew the remaining Death Eaters to lodge. All of those places have already been systematically searched by the Order and the Aurors, but I highly doubt they would stay anywhere they know I am familiar with."
"So where do you think they'd go?" Harry followed up, still focused on the gloomy teacher.
"My best guess is that they're hiding in the muggle world. Angry and bitter, they're just hoping to cause as much destruction and chaos as they can before they are either captured or can escape the country." Severus watched Harry's brow furrow in thought.
"But there's got to be some sign of them, surely?" He looked over at Ron and Hermione. "We know how hard it is to stay invisible when you're in hiding and completely cut off from resources."
"Yeah, and we at least had you and Hermione who were raised by muggles to keep us inconspicuous." Ron chipped in. "Merlin knows how a bunch of pureblood Death Eaters are coping in the Muggle world."
The frown suddenly cleared from Potter's face, "That's it." He said quietly, moving swiftly towards the fireplace.
"Harry?" Arthur questioned.
"I'll be back."
"Harry, wait!" But he had already stepped into the floo, consumed by green flames, with a parting cry of "Leaky Cauldron!" He was gone.
"What's he doing?" Bill asked, looking to Ron and Hermione as though they might have intuitive knowledge of Harry's unspoken motivations. The pair shrugged, unknowing.
Molly fretted, "Arthur, he can't go off alone. What if he's gone after them?"
"I know," the Weasley patriarch agreed. "Severus?"
Severus sighed, expression full of disdain. This was the second time today he had been sent to fetch Potter and his patience for the task was wearing thin.
Not bothering to reply to Arthur's unspoken request, Severus stepped into the Floo and followed Potter to the Leaky Cauldron.
Stepping out into the dingy pub, Severus immediately drew the attention of the few patrons present, who drank frothy ale from stained tankards. Since Potter had ensured his war efforts had been publicized, Severus tended to receive the same sort of stunned awe that now graced the faces of those midday drunks. Where the Golden Trio and other Order members were showered in praise and adoration wherever they went, most people who came across Severus Snape were wary enough to keep their distance, though they all knew who he was. Tom looked up from where he was wiping down the bar with a greasy rag.
"Potter?" Severus asked succinctly.
Tom nodded his head towards the muggle entrance. "'E went straight through."
Severus nodded his thanks and exited the inn swiftly via the creaking wooden door. The street outside was deserted; a muggle alleyway that led onto a busier road. Severus could hear the hum of traffic from beyond the mouth of the alley but it was quiet around him. He transfigured his robes quickly into more appropriate muggle attire, simple black trousers and a long black coat buttoned up to its high collar, and took long strides towards the main road.
Stepping into the bustle of pedestrian traffic, Severus looked up and down the street, all around, for any sight of Potter, but could see no sign of that messy mop of raven hair or his familiar bespectacled face. He had no way of knowing which way Potter had gone, he may even have apparated to somewhere else entirely.
Realizing that there was little he could achieve on the London pavement, Severus retreated back into the alley that ran alongside The Leaky Cauldron and, ensuring that no stray muggles had wandered in behind him, Severus used his wand to send a patronus to the Burrow. No sign of Potter. I will wait at the Leaky Cauldron.
He re-entered the pub and situated himself at an isolated table in a dimly lit corner, exuding an unwelcoming aura that told the other patrons clearly to keep their distance. He kept one eye on the door as he waited, nursing a tankard of mead that Tom had brought him without his asking and for which Tom would accept no payment. Severus refused to worry for the boy, to wonder what he was doing.
Severus hadn't been waiting 10 minutes before the very door he himself had walked through was kicked open again. A silhouetted figure filled the doorway, blocking out the grey London light from outside. It appeared in the dim lighting to be a tower of paper a top a pair of skinny legs, but, when Severus stood he could see a familiar crown of untidy black hair.
"Potter!" Severus hissed at the stack of paper. "What in Merlin's name are you doing?"
A pair of spectacles peeped around the paper mountain. "Oh hi, Professor, can you give us a hand?"
Severus growled but took a chunk off the top of the tower nonetheless, mostly so he could look at the boy's face as he berated him. "What the hell were you thinking, you blithering idiot? What possessed you to disappear by yourself?"
"I was getting these." Potter answered factually.
Severus looked at the boy as though he was missing some vital mental faculties.
"I'll explain when we get back to the Burrow, come on." Harry led the way into the Floo and in a flash of green flames was in the Weasley living room once more.
"Harry!" Mrs Weasley cried as he stepped out of the fireplace. "Oh, thank goodness you're alright."
"I'm fine." The young man rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "I had a thought and went to get these." He indicated his armful of papers with a nod as Severus came through the fireplace with the second half.
The Order gathered around the Weasley's dining table again and Harry took the lead, easily calling the attention of men twice his age. "What Ron said got me thinking; when we were in hiding it was next to impossible trying to survive without being noticed in some way. If a bunch of pure-blood Death Eaters are hiding out in the muggle world, there's got to be some sign of them."
"But Harry," Charlie interrupted. "That's what we've been looking out for, we still haven't found anything."
"But we've been looking in the wrong places, looking for the wrong things." Harry explained. "We've been looking for things that are out of place in the wizarding world, things that don't make sense to wizards, but what we should be doing is looking for things that don't make sense to muggles.
"That's why I went to get these." He began passing out muggle newspapers. "We need to look for things that have been reported in the muggle news. Not big, notable stuff, but odd little unexplained happenings. Look for anything which the muggles find strange or that seems too unlikely; things disappearing, a trend of theft, bizarre sightings."
"That makes sense." Granger agreed reaching for a stack of magazines and flipping through. "I suggest we look for human interest stories. That's where the wacky, unbelievable stuff will be."
They all settled down to examine their own stack of papers, flicking through the pages and skimming the headlines. A studious silence fell over the group, disturbed only by the rustling of pages as they worked. Severus too bowed his head over a pile of newspapers, impressed, and surprised, by Harry's idea. Really, Severus thought, he should cease to be amazed by anything to do with Potter.
In the next hours they scoured the muggle magazines and papers that Harry and collected and then gathered more material to pour over. It was nearing midnight before someone decided they should stop for the day and by that time a map had been erected in the Weasley living room which was adorned with dots and labels indicating every unusual incident which may plausibly have been caused by the fugitive Death Eaters.
"So, Yorkshire…" Said Bill, taking a step back from the map, hands in his pockets, as he took in the pattern the dots had created.
"Yorkshire." Arthur confirmed. The markers were not confined to that area but there was enough of a gathering to confirm that something peculiar, something magical was happening in that area.
"But the murders last night were in Hertfordshire." Percy countered, "Have they moved?"
"No," Ron inspected the map himself. "That's just a diversion. Look, all the targeted attacks against muggles have been down south, far away from the Yorkshire dots." With his wand he began changing some of the dots from red to blue. "The incidents up north were unintentional disruptions that have been spotted by the muggles because the Death Eaters haven't been careful enough. The ones down south are deliberate attempts to divert our attentions elsewhere. Their base is in Yorkshire."
"Alright, this has got us a lot closer." Arthur concluded. "We can get some local papers from there tomorrow and see if we can narrow it down, but for now we all need to rest."
"I've popped the kettle on, everyone's having some hot cocoa before you go." Molly ordered and no one dared disagree.
The group settled in to the comfortable seating, drinking from the steaming mugs that Molly forced upon them. Severus wanted to check in with Potter and see how he was handling it all, but the Golden Trio had tucked themselves away in a corner, murmuring inaudibly to each other.
Everyone began clearing up to leave, taking their mugs back into the kitchen where Molly was casting domestic charms on the sink and crockery. The Professor held back, till hoping Ron into the kitchen.
"Here, you are mum." Ron passed over three or four mugs he had collected from his friends and siblings.
"Thank you, dear." Molly levitated them into the soapy sink.
"Mum…" Ron started tentatively, and his tone made Molly turn and give him her full attention. "Me and Hermione are going to go and stay with Harry tonight." Bill and Charlie who also stood chatting in the kitchen quietened down to listen in.
"You can't." Molly said and though Severus understood her fear he was relieved that Potter wouldn't be in that old house by himself after the day's events.
"He can't stay there alone."
"No, you should all stay here."
"Harry's not going to stay here, Mum. We need to go and be with him."
"They'll be alright, Mum." Charlie added. "Don't worry."
"Sorry, Mum." Ron said, feely guilty. "We'll keep in touch though and we'll see you in a few days for the New Year's Eve party."
Molly went back to the washing up without any more acknowledgment than a nod of her head. Bill clapped a hand on Ron's shoulder reassuringly and the youngest brother left dejectedly. Severus, feeling as though he was intruding on a family moment, slipped quietly out of the kitchen and came across Ronald leaning on the wall outside.
The boy looked so miserable that the professor didn't feel he could leave him like that. "Are you sure you don't want to stay here? When something like this happens, people find comfort from being around family."
"I know, that's why I have to go to Grimmauld Place." The young man said firmly. "Because these are my family, but we're Harry's family."