Hey everyone! :) I am back with chapter 11! :)
Thank you all for the comments and Kudos!
I am going on vacation tomorrow, but I am still planning to finish this story this month, and my new story, Transforming Thomas, will be hopefully uploaded in January!
Merry Christmas everyone! :)
"I've been thinking."
Gryffindor raised an eyebrow, "do you care to elaborate on that, son?", he casually picked up a small chocolate frog from the table in front of him while he was talking, feeding it to the boy on his lap, who was sitting absolutely still, happily accepting the treat.
Aurelius smiled at the scene in front of him, "I've been thinking about the deal Dumbledore offered you- and I feel like there's something wrong there."
Gryffindor sighed, "something? Everything is wrong with that deal", he sensed the distress in the boy on his lap, and he tightened his grip, and the boy instantly calmed down.
"Good boy, Tommy", he told him, not bothering to hide the pride from his voice. He had started training Tom a couple of days ago again, and since the boy was constantly fidgeting and had trouble sitting still, he had decided to focus on that first.
Knowing that Tom liked being held, and that it calmed him, he had started the training easy- one minute of sitting completely still on his lap, and then two, and then three…and now they were at eight minutes already, and the boy loved it. His whole face lit up when he told him it was time for training, and he was never calmer and more relaxed than when he got to sit on his Daddy's lap. The treats and constant praises helped, too- and his boy was so proud when he let him know that he had managed to sit still for another minute.
"I am talking about the timing- did I never occur to you that it is kind of a strange coincidence that as soon as you decided to stop the bet, Dumbledore offers you the same deal, Dad?", Aurelius asked, "and also- how did Dumbledore find out about the bet in the first place?"
"He told me he has his sources", Gryffindor replied, a thoughtful expression on his face, "are you saying that Dumbledore has been behind this bet in the first place?"
"It is a possibility, yes- he made one of your inner circle members bring it up for him, so no one would suspect him behind all of it, but when you were ready to call it off, he had to react."
"Mmmhh…that still does not answer the question how he found out that I wanted to call it off- and also, why would Jones from my inner circle help out Dumbledore?"
"Maybe he's blackmailing him", Aurelius suggested, "he also still has some loyal army members who are crazy enough to believe that Dumbledore is innocent."
Gryffindor felt the boy getting restless again, but this time, the boy carefully tugged on his robe, signaling him that he wanted to talk.
"Permission granted, Tommy", he sounded amused, "what do you need?"
"I have an idea!", the boy blurted out, "house elves!"
"House elves?"
"Yeah- maybe one of your elves is spying for Dumbledore and told him that you didn't wanna do the bet anymore!", the boy's voice cracked with excitement, "and that's how he knows!"
Aurelius and Gryffindor exchanged a look, "that sounds worth looking into if you ask me", Aurelius said, "have there been any changes with the house elves recently?"
"There have been some, yes", Gryffindor absently started to caress Tom's curls, and the boy gladly snuggled into the touch, "after the last meeting with my inner circle, I requested some additional house elves- and two of the elves from the meeting have been working for me since then."
"Have you had any complaints about them?", Aurelius asked.
"Well, Juniper was one of the elves in charge at the meeting- he is the perfect servant, never makes mistakes. He seems to fit right in with the other elves. Sonny, the other one is very quiet and withdrawn, and now that you mention it, I had a complaint about him about four days ago, when I saw him lingering around in the hallway instead of working."
"Maybe he was spying!", Tom supplied, eyeing the other chocolate frog on the table.
"How would he contact Dumbledore, though? He never even leaves the Manor."
"I have an idea about that!", Tom exclaimed.
"You seem to be full of ideas today, baby bear", Gryffindor had to chuckle, "what's your idea?"
"I'll tell you in exchange for a chocolate frog!", the boy offered, a teasing grin on his face.
"How about you tell me in exchange for not getting corner time for trying to bargain with me?", Gryffindor replied, but he sounded amused.
"Kay, I'll tell you", Tom was still grinning, he hated corner time though, and he was not going to take the risk, "I saw that elf by the fireplace yesterday, but it did not look like he was cleaning it- maybe it's how they communicate? I couldn't stay to check cause Sirius was waiting for me to finish buildering the igloo."
"Building", Gryffindor corrected automatically, "that's very interesting- maybe I should have a word with that elf. He does seem suspicious."
"He's a spy, I can feel it!", Tom announced, "I never liked that elf- he always gives me dirty looks. I wanna punch him for that."
There's my wild boy.
Gryffindor easily turned his boy around, looking him straight in the eyes, and the boy swallowed, "and are you going to punch him, Thomas?"
The boy flinched, he hated being called Thomas, because it always meant trouble, "no, Sir", he told him, "I won't. I promise."
"Good boy- now, how about you go check what your little brother is doing? You did nine minutes today, I'm proud of you, Tommy."
"I can do ten minutes next time!", Tom blurted out, getting off his lap, "and one day, I'll do an hour!"
That made Aurelius und Gryffindor laugh, "we'll see about that- now go find Sirius and play."
"Can we go see Dad?"
"Yes, you may go see Dad", Gryffindor did not want to think about the fact that Tom easily called Salazar Dad since a couple of days, but he was still Sir- and not Daddy.
"Yay! I am gonna get Bacon, he likes seeing Dad, too! And he's being quietly a lot!"
"Being quiet", Gryffindor corrected, thinking to himself that he really had to focus on Tom's speaking next- the boy mixed around words all the time, but especially when he was excited or nervous.
"Yah, that too!", Tom grinned, and before he could say something, he was out the door.
"That boy…", he sighed, and Aurelius had to laugh, "be honest, you love him that way, Dad."
"I do- but schools won't, and I cannot keep him here with you forever. I had planned to send you all back to Hogwarts soon, but Tom is simply not ready."
"I thought he wanted to go to Belvedere."
"They want him, too- just not…like this."
"He needs to be trained more?"
"Yes, and I haven't even started going over his studies with him- he is not on a third grade level right now, that much I know."
"He is closer to Sirius' level, yes", Aurelius admitted, "but he is a quick learner- and he is smart. I still cannot believe he beat you at chess", he smiled at him.
"He deserved to win- and you are right, he is a quick learner. I wish I could focus more on you boys and your education, but this damn bet…", he sighed again.
"You should really investigate that house elf- and if he is in contact with Dumbledore, you might be able to get some information from him."
Godric's expression darkened, "if that elf really has the nerve to spy on me in my own house, and tell Dumbledore, he has a death wish- but we will see. For now, I am going to observe him."
Aurelius nodded, and then they changed the subject, talking about more pleasant things- like the Quidditch finals, and the igloo Tom and Sirius were building together now.
Gryffindor enjoyed being able to just sit and talk to his oldest son. Aurelius was intelligent, and was a very good judge of character. He had missed this- and he would never give it up again.
You won't destroy my family, Dumbledore- you won't win this.
For the next few days, he kept a close eye on Juniper and Sonny- and while Juniper did not raise any suspicions, Sonny certainly did.
The elf seemed to hate being here- he was never smiling, he never interacted with the other elves, and he always looked tired and sour. Gryffindor did not treat his house elves like they were part of the family, but he certainly did not treat them like slaves, either- they shared a huge, comfortable living space, the bathrooms were modern and spacious, and they had breaks within the day and on the weekends, and they got plenty to eat and drink.
Sonny's almost hostile behavior did not make any sense- especially since he had just hired the elf, and there was no history with him. He had never even met the elf before the meeting, and he could not recall being rude or cruel to the elf at the meeting. It really was strange.
Gryffindor had decided to keep an eye on the fireplace, and on the third day of his observation, he spent another afternoon in the living room by the fire, pretending to read a book.
"Can we go out? Gonna storm soon!", Tom came running into the room, not bothering to greet him, his eyes sparkling with anticipation.
"May we go outside? It is going to storm soon", Gryffindor corrected calmly. They had just started working on Tom's speaking, and so far, the results were…mediocre.
"May we go outside? It is going to storm soon", Tom repeated obediently, and his face lit up when Gryffindor smiled and reached into his pockets, handing him a small toy. He always carried them around, wanting to make sure he had a reward for his boy.
"Thank you! Ca…may we go out now? We are almost done with the igloo! Sirius had a great idea about how to extend the window, and…", the boy kept telling him about the igloo, and Gryffindor listened, amusement on his face.
Their relationship had improved a lot within the last days, but the boy still did not call him Dad or Daddy- and if he was being honest with himself, it did hurt him.
He did not know how to bring it up, though- so he kept pretending he was okay with the boy calling him Sir.
"You gonna look at the igloo when it's done?", the boy now asked, and this time, he only needed to raise an eyebrow.
"I mean…are you going to take a look at the igloo when it is finished?"
"Good boy, Tommy", he smiled when he saw the proud expression on Tom's face, "and to answer your question- of course I am going to take a look at your igloo. I know how hard you and Sirius have worked on it."
Tom nodded eagerly, "so hard!"
"Come here, baby bear", he had barely opened his arms when the boy came running, happily snuggling into his embrace, "I like this", he told the Founder, and it made him chuckle, "I like this, too, Tommy."
"Can…may I ask you something?"
"Go ahead, baby bear."
"Are you…gonna…uhm…like…last night?"
"Are you asking if I am going to tuck you in again tonight?"
"Yah."
"Would you like me to?"
"Yah."
Gryffindor smiled, "I would like that as well, baby bear."
"If I am being good, may I pick a story?"
"You may", he had to admit, Aurelius and Renard Belvedere had been right- the positive reinforcement was working a thousand times better than his approach had.
Credit when credit's due- and I like seeing him so happy.
"Hey Dad!", Sirius came walking in, already dressed to go outside, "it is going to storm soon, did Tom ask…"
"He did- and you are allowed to go, as long as Aurelius is coming with you."
He saw them both rolling their eyes at that, "I know- you are big boys, but since there is a storm coming, I am more comfortable with Aurelius watching you."
"Okay, we'll go and ask Relius to come with us", Tom mumbled, reluctantly getting up, "I want to finish the igloo today!"
"Me too- and then we can build a little igloo for Bacon!"
"That's a great idea!"
"Do you think Bacon would like some windows in his igloo?"
The boys kept talking while they went to search for Aurelius, and Gryffindor looked after them, feeling proud. He loved his boys- and as soon as he had that matter with the bet cleared and Salazar was getting his cure, they would finally be a real family again.
At first, he had to catch Sonny in action, though- and his patience eventually got rewarded an hour later.
He was still pretending to read when the house elf walked in, hesitantly getting closer to the fireplace.
Gryffindor looked up, but he did not say anything, he just kept watching Sonny half-heartedly cleaning around the fireplace.
"How do you enjoy working here, elf?", he finally asked, and Sonny almost jumped out of his skin.
"Sonny is very happy working for Master Gryffindor", the elf replied stiffly, "Sonny is very grateful to have a job."
It did not sound like it, though- more the opposite.
"Well, I am glad to hear that- let me get out of your way, I will see you later at dinner."
"Yes, Master Gryffindor."
He did not go far, though- but apparently, Sonny thought he had because as soon as he was out of sight for the elf, he went back to the fireplace, mumbling something that sounded like a spell.
Gryffindor was watching from his hiding spot how Dumbledore's wrinkled face appeared in the fire seconds later, and he clenched his teeth.
That bastard.
"Any news, elf?", Dumbledore sneered, and Sonny ducked his head, "not…good news, Master", he was trembling, and Dumbledore hissed something that sounded like a curse, "family still happy, eh?", the raw hatred in his voice surprised even Gryffindor- and he knew that the former headmaster despised him, "what's the boy doing?"
"Playing in the snow, Master."
Dumbledore cursed again, "what about the dog? Did you get rid of him yet?"
"It's…he is always watching the dog, Master, and…"
"Idiot!", Dumbledore sneered, "what are your instructions again? Looks like you forgot them already!"
"To…poison…the dog, and to…set a…fire in the…bedrooms", Sonny replied, sounding miserable, "Sonny is not sure if…"
Seriously? You'll go to hell for this, Dumbledore!
"I don't care about your constant whining! Get it done, or I will let Jones know that you are no longer interested in our deal!"
So Jones is in this, too- who else?
Sonny was whimpering now, "no, please, Master, Sonny is interested! Sonny wants justice!"
Justice? Killing a dog and setting a fire is justice?
"Then start acting like it!", Dumbledore was almost yelling now, "it's only two more weeks until the meeting- and I need the damn mutt to be dead, and I need you to scare off those other two brats! Make sure you leave Voldemort's bedroom alone, I need him for the meeting- after that, he can die."
Godric felt positively sick at this point- and he was glad his boys were not here to hear this. How did he miss how deep Dumbledore's hatred ran?
"Ye…yes, Master."
"And how is my dear Slytherin? Is the poison working?"
What?!
"Sonny has just…started with it yesterday", the elf admitted, "Sonny put the poison into the juice, and…Master Slytherin had some of it."
"How much?", Dumbledore demanded, and the elf started to tremble harder, "only…two…sips, Master."
"That's not enough! He has to drink the whole glass!", Dumbledore sounded mad now, screeching and spitting, "make him drink it all tonight!"
"Yes, Master."
"I need to see results, elf!", the old wizard now bellowed, and then- he was gone.
Gryffindor heard Sonny sob, and then the house elf ran out of the room, and he quickly followed him. If Sonny was really poisoning Salazar again, this would end bad- for the elf.
Sonny attempted to go back into the kitchen, but before he was able to open the door, Godric stepped in front of him, blocking his way.
"A word, elf", he did not even try to hide the coldness from his tone, and it gave him some kind of satisfaction to see Sonny wince.
"What…can Sonny do for Ma…"
"Cut the crap, elf", he interrupted him, the anger overtaking him, "I listened to your little conversation with Dumbledore- how dare you to betray me like that!"
"Sonny…can…expl…"
"Sectumsempra!", he was certainly not going to listen to any more of the elf's lies or excuses, and it was time the servant learned who was in charge here- and it was not Dumbledore.
Sonny immediately went to the floor, screaming in pain.
"Silencio!"
The screams stopped, but the elf was still tossing on the floor, his face covered with deep cuts that were bleeding profusely.
"The only thing coming out of your pathetic mouth from now on better be the truth- because I have all night, elf, and there are plenty of spells I could test on you", his voice was a dangerous whisper, and Sonny stumbled back to his feet, his face an expression of agony.
"Finite Incantatem!"
"Pl…please…", he was whimpering, "Sonny…wants…to tell the…truth!"
Godric curled his lips in open disgust, "I am sure you do- and to help you with that, you are going to drink a little bit of Veritaserum", he dragged the elf down the hall to one of the small living rooms, and then he pulled a small vial with the truth serum out of his robe. He had been carrying it around with him since he had started observing the elf, planning to use it and tackle him directly with questions if he could not find out any information after a few days.
Sonny clearly did not want to drink the serum, but he did not dare to protest- Gryffindor looked like he was about to murder him, and he knew his magical powers were ridiculous compared to the ones of a Founder.
He drank the Veritaserum, and then Gryffindor forced him to stand by the couch- it would never occur to him to offer a house elf a place to sit- while he leaned against the closed door, his arms crossed.
"Let's begin, shall we?", it sounded sarcastic and dangerous at the same time, and Sonny started to tremble with fear.
"How long have you been spying for Dumbledore?"
"Since…two weeks. A member of the inner circle approached Sonny at the meeting."
"Who did?"
"Jones", Sonny told him reluctantly.
"What exactly did Jones want from you?"
"Jones asked Sonny to gather information for Master Dumble…", he was not able to finish the sentence because Gryffindor wordlessly waved his hand, and pain exploded behind his eyes.
"Aaaahhhrrgggg!"
"You will not refer to Dumbledore as your Master- I am your Master, elf!", Gryffindor told him over his screams, his voice icy, "now, why did you agree to spy for Dumbledore? What did he offer you?"
"He…offered Sonny…justice", the elf whispered hoarsely, almost blinded by the pain, "justice for…Vanby…and Cinley."
"And who are Vanby and Cinley?"
"Vanby…was Sonny's sister", the elf croaked, relieved when the pain finally lessened, "and Cinley…was Sonny's brother."
"Your siblings then", Gryffindor concluded sharply, getting impatient, "and why do you need justice for them?"
"Vanby and Cinley were killed", for the first time, something like fury overtook his features, "killed by Voldemort. Vanby was working nonstop, never resting, always working, and one day, Vanby just…fell over and died. She died from exhaustion", and now he sounded livid, "and Cinley asked for a break, and he got tortured. He killed himself the next day."
"I see- so you agreed to this…deal for petty revenge."
"For justice!"
Gryffindor waved his hand again, really starting to lose his patience with the elf, "attempting to poison my partner, wanting to kill an innocent puppy, and most of all, setting my son's bedrooms on fire is justice? How is that even related to what Voldemort did or did not do to your siblings?"
"Master Gryffindor took Voldemort in! Master Gryffindor treats him like he is his son! Voldemort deserves no love, no family- he only deserves to suffer!", the elf was screeching now, his eyes wild with insanity, "Sonny wants to destroy all of Voldemort's happiness!"
"By killing his dog?"
"Everyone who loves Voldemort is just as evil as him!", Sonny declared, his eyes sparkling, "everyone needs to die!"
"He is a child, elf", Gryffindor tried, even though he had an idea that logic would not work with him- he was too far gone already, "and house elves do have rights, there could have been an investigation into your siblings' deaths, but this is…inexcusable."
"Sonny had to do what was right!"
He waved his hand again, and seconds later, agonized screams were filling the room, "we are not done here- about that poison you put into Salazar's juice yesterday. What was that?"
"Just some…Prentiss Potion", the elf choked out, "just so…he never gets better."
Unable to control himself much longer, he waved his hand again, more forcefully this time, and the elf began to scream in terror, and the screams soon became high- pitched, and right before Sonny was going to pass out, he stopped.
"Do you know what potion Dumbledore used to poison Salazar in the first place?", he demanded, not caring that the elf's mouth was full of blood.
"N…no", he spit out some blood, "he…did not…tell…Sonny."
"Who else is part of this little scheme?"
"Just…Jones…Sonny…and…Godfrey."
"Who is Godfrey?"
"A…warden…from…the Ministry."
Of course- if Dumbledore was able to communicate with Sonny, someone had to help him while being imprisoned- and set up that connection to his fireplace.
"Do you know what Dumbledore offered Jones to take part in this?"
"No", he coughed up more blood, and Gryffindor frowned in annoyance. The elf was clearly not able to provide any more useful information to him.
"I am going to keep you alive for now", he told the elf, who seemed surprised, "for one reason only- I need to know what poison Dumbledore used on Salazar, and you will help me get that info."
"How…can…Sonny do that?"
"You will pretend that the Prentiss Potion is not working, and you will ask him to give you the same poison he has used before."
"Sonny is not sure if…"
"I don't care", Gryffindor interrupted him coldly, "I am keeping you alive, and you should be grateful for that. I should kill you for spying on me alone, not even to mention the fact that you were willing to kill my whole family, including the dog. You will stay locked up in the basement until tomorrow, and then you will talk to Dumbledore again, telling him the potion does not work. And I am warning you, elf- I will be close by, and one wrong word from you, or the tiniest wink or whisper to Dumbledore, and I will personally torture you every single day for the next year, making sure you will experience that there are much worse things than death."
Sonny trembled like crazy, but he managed to nod, "yes…Master Gryffindor."
"Did you talk to any other house elf about this?"
"No, Master Gryffindor", he answered truthfully, and the Founder turned around, "let's go- I've had enough of you for today, elf."
Sonny did not even attempt to flee when the Founder took him to the basement, and then he locked him up in a tiny cell- much less luxurious than the one Tom had been staying in. This cell had no bed, just a pile of hay on the floor, and there was no table, or chair, or sink- just a toilet in the ground, that was it.
"I'll see you tomorrow, elf", Gryffindor's words echoed in the empty cell, "and you better believe that that little deal you had with Dumbledore is over- we are going to play by my rules now."
He left without giving the house elf another glance- which was a mistake. Had he looked at Sonny, he would have seen the glint of insanity back in his eyes, telling him that this elf had nothing to lose- and that he would not stop with his thirst for revenge.
"Sonny does not play by Master's rules- and the game has just started", he grinned once Gryffindor had gone, chuckling to himself, and soon he was laughing, and the echo made it sound like there were several elves down in the cell, when in fact, it was only Sonny.
Only Sonny…
yep...Gryffindor is getting closer there :D
If you liked it, I would love some feedback! :)
Happy Holidays!
xoxo,
Antonie :)
