AN: Here you go. A little bit late but I figured now (while I'm on a train to London) would be the best possible time to post this chapter. Hope you guys enjoy it. Also, big thank you to my betas for the structure of this chapter. I think it works better now, yay!
Chapter 11: Tear it down piece by piece
27th July 1992
She'd been hesitant when her book list for the year had come. Out of the eight books, only one hadn't been written by Gilderoy Lockhart but she'd decided to leave all reservations till after she'd read his books.
She hadn't needed to wait that long.
When Halley to Flourish and Blotts, the line outside the bookstore had been exceptionally larger than normal - and most of the line consisted of women both young and old. Halley frowned.
GILDEROY LOCKHART
Will be signing copies of his autobiography
Magical Me
Today from 12.30 - 4.30
Surely they weren't all lining up for that? It was - she looked at her watch - only 11 o'clock!
Halley hoped that it was because of the man's academic prestige, but another look towards the line crushed those hopes; the group of girls in front of her were wearing robes charmed with Lockhart himself.
She groaned.
Still, the shop was open now. Better she try and get the textbooks while there wasn't a mad rush of people inside.
She walked past the gaggle of Witches and spattering of Wizards into the shop and was quick to try and gather all the necessary texts. When she got to the checkout she noticed Pansy Parkinson and who she assumed was her mother standing in front of her.
"Morning Parkinson," she greeted politely, bowing her head in the slightest way.
Parkinson turned to look at her and frowned in confusion. She bowed her head lower, bending her knees ever so slightly. A show of respect, though barely given. Halley refrained from smiling at the confused look Parkinson had given her. This is what they expected from The Girl Who Lived, so who was she to take it away from them.
"Potter. My mother, Lady Matilde Parkinson."
"Lady Parkinson, a pleasure to finally meet you." Halley curtsied as a sign of respect towards her elder. The woman in front of her was beautiful, and when Halley looked between mother and daughter she couldn't help but wonder if this was what generations of inbreeding did.
Because Parkinson's mother was obviously not a British witch. Not with a name like Matilde, and not with the delicate umbrella in her right hand that no one in Britain used. And therefore she was less likely to have been inbred. Or at least, if she was, she was lucky.
"Heiress Halley Potter," Parkinson introduced, and Halley watched as the understanding flooded Lady Parkinson's eyes.
"Good morning Heiress Potter. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Halley stepped up as the cashier looked between the three of them. Her eyes fell quickly on Halley as she rang up the order.
"Seven Galleons please," the girl squeaked. Halley paid with a frown. Last year's books hadn't cost as much. "Thank you, have a nice day."
Halley admired the girl's restraint as she turned back to the Parkinsons.
"It's ridiculous what we have to pay for this drivel, non?" Lady Parkinson asked.
So the books weren't useful? She would have to make another trip later on. "I don't know. I had my suspicions but I suppose I had more faith in the criteria for teachers at Hogwarts," Halley said.
Parkinson huffed but her mother sent a stern look her way before turning back to Halley.
"Did you come with your guardians Miss Potter?"
She suddenly felt uncomfortable. She wasn't used to dealing with adults. The game they played was more advanced than she would have liked, and she got the feeling that she'd have to choose her next words carefully. "My guardians are Muggles. They are uncomfortable around magic and so sent me to do my school shopping."
Lady Parkinson looked at Halley carefully. "Muggles? An interesting choice in guardian."
There was very little she could do about this situation, and she was at a disadvantage. "Yes, Lady Parkinson. Family from my mother's side."
"Bien sûr," she said happily. "Well if you are alone, would you care to join us? Pansy and I were about to head to our favourite café for a treat."
She wasn't particularly sure she wanted to, but maybe if she spent time with Parkinson and her mother, then Parkinson would have to be civil to her at Hogwarts. Allies never hurt anyone, and it was one evening. "If it's no bother, Lady Parkinson. I wouldn't want to interrupt your time with your daughter."
"It's no bother, Miss Potter. We would love for you to join us, wouldn't we Pansy?"
To her credit, Parkinson did well in answering like she actually wanted Halley to go with them. Halley just knew she didn't.
"Well if you're sure."
Lady Parkinson motioned for Halley to stand on her left as an affirmation to Halley's question.
Lady Parkinson chattered away happily to her daughter, pausing to ask Halley's opinion of some things, as well as find out her general attitude towards her first year at Hogwarts. And though she never fully let her guard down, Halley found that the woman was nice to talk to. Her natural charm left Halley with a good impression of her, and she always seemed to be actually listening to her opinion on things.
Halley hadn't even noticed when Lady Parkinson took them down a darker alley. She only realised it when the arches overhead began blocking out the sunlight and suddenly she wasn't sure what to think.
"Ne t'en fais pas. We mean no harm to you child. As I said, Knockturn Alley simply has my favourite café. Here, we are coming up to it now."
When Halley saw the café she sighed in relief. It was not one of her better moments and Parkinson made sure to remind her.
"Don't think you're so special Potter," she hissed.
"Pansy!" Lady Parkinson rapidly began speaking in French. Parkinson answered just as quickly and for some reason, it struck Halley as odd that Pansy Parkinson could speak French. Either way, she waited awkwardly for the two to stop arguing.
She would have inched further from them if it wasn't for how aware she was of the dimly lit alley. It was, she gave credit where it was due, far less grimy than the entrance had been, but that didn't help the feeling of unease go away.
When they did both stop fighting, Lady Parkinson turned back to Halley with a brilliantly demure smile. Parkinson looked less than happy, but apologised with a grace that Halley hadn't expected.
"It's ok," Halley said.
Lady Parkinson turned and began walking them a few steps further when she turned into a shop entrance. When Halley entered she was greeted with charming brick walls and chandeliers. It was a bit much for a cafe, but it did look nice.
The three were escorted to a table with a view of Diagon Alley and the menus were promptly given. Halley had been worried that she would have to do...something but the lunch was almost pleasant.
If it wasn't for the fact that Parkinson kept glaring at her when she thought her mother wasn't looking, Halley would almost say that she was having a good time. She never really stopped being on edge - she didn't think that she could - but Lady Parkinson kept the conversation light.
The food was delicious but too sweet. She knew that she wouldn't be able to stomach it if she had too much, so she ate small spoons and the best part was that it didn't draw attention to her because Parkinson and her mother did the same thing.
When the tea was over, Lady Parkinson set some money on the table under an engraved, gold dish and they made their way out of the establishment. The crowd lining up for Lockheart had dwindled enough now, although a ruffled looking Mr Weasley came out of the store followed by his brood.
The youngest was cradling a little black book like it had some sort of hold over her. It was weird, but Halley didn't think she needed to pay very much attention to it. She needed to get back to the Dursleys; she'd been out long enough.
2nd November 1993
Halley hid out in her dorm room until it was time for bed. After the instantaneous rage had come a horrid headache that Madame Pomphrey had to give her a pain relief potion for.
The Madame gave her a small smile as she walked into the Infirmary; they were well acquainted by this point. So much of the end of her second year had been spent with the woman checking up on her after the incident.
Halley returned the smile and then explained what she needed.
Madame Pomphrey looked her over. "Is this something that happens to you often?" she asked.
Halley shook her head. "It's the first time," she said. It wasn't. There had been a bad headache after Riddle had taken her to Knockturn Alley but Halley figured that had something to do with the fact that it was the first time she had Apparated. And according to everyone, side-along was even worse than normal Apparation.
"Did it come on quickly or slowly?" she asked.
"Quickly." Instantaneously. But that had been the anger, not the headache. Maybe she shouldn't have lied about that but it was too late now.
"Can you describe it to me?"
Halley tried her best. It was sort of dull and sharp at the same time. Like that headache you got when you looked at something too bright for a long time and then looked away. Moments of burning dullness and lightning sharpness if she shifted her eyes too quickly and nothing happened when she closed her eyes either.
"Where is it located?" Madame Pomphrey asked.
"Along the top of my head." She ran her fingers along the top of her forehead under her fringe and her fingers stopped on her scar. She swallowed.
She'd not thought about it really; the pain had felt like it was all over but now that she was focusing on it, everything seemed to be throbbing or shooting out from her scar. It was like it was the origin of the pain.
"Your scar?" Madame Pomphrey asked. Her voice was carefully controlled but Halley shook her head nonetheless.
"No," she said breathlessly. She hoped the Madame would think it was because of the pain. "It's like a band around that part of my skull."
Madame Pomphrey hummed and took out her wand. She ran a diagnostic charm to make sure she wasn't ill, but then there was an awful lot of time spent with the wand pointed at her head.
"What are you doing?" Halley asked worriedly.
Madame Pomphrey's eyes flickered down to Halley's from where they were focused on her forehead. "I'm making sure there isn't anything tampering with your mind from last year. Have you had any memories come through?" she asked.
"No."
"Have you had any odd dreams?"
An image of the nightmare flashed through her mind. "No."
"And this is the first time you've had this headache?"
"Yes."
Her lips tightened and she hummed again. She stopped the diagnostic spells and walked over to a locked cupboard that had all the potions stored in it. Halley had seen her fair share of the inside of the cupboard over the last two years and she hoped that she wouldn't have to see it again soon.
But the Madame pulled out a potion and handed it to her. "Take this. One dose now and if you need more then take one dose before bed."
Halley opened the stopper and swallowed a small mouthful. She'd wondered at first how she would know how much was in a dosage, but apparently, the bottles were charmed to only give one dose at a time.
The potion tasted like dust. Dry and matte and it stuck to the back of her throat and the roof of her mouth making it itch. Halley made a face as she swallowed it and pocketed the potion. "Thank you," she said.
The headache was easing up some already.
"You're welcome, Miss Potter," Madame Pomphrey said. "Now, I want you to come back if you experience any new memories or the headaches continue after taking a second dosage. It sounds like it's just a migraine, but after what happened last year, we can't be too careful."
Halley nodded, thanked her once more, and then left.
She probably should have gone back to class, but she couldn't find it in herself to face anyone, so she went straight for Slytherin Common Room and her dorm. No-one would be there for a few more hours which would give her enough time to think.
How could she have been so stupid not to realise that the headache was the same kind as when Quirrel/Voldemort had looked at her in First Year?
It was the same kind of sharp burn and that originated inside her scar. Of course, it hadn't come with the urge to slam Greengrass' head into the table, and the headache hadn't been all over but concentrated. But the sensations, the pain, was too similar to ignore.
But what did that mean?
There was no way that Voldemort was inside Hogwarts again! Dumbledore would surely have raised precautions to make sure that no-one could sneak into Hogwarts as Voldermort a second time - though the new DADA teacher seemed to be a little bit sketchy; he'd already missed two classes because he was ill. She supposed if anyone was going to be Voldemort it might be him.
But he wasn't near her when she'd felt that pain and Halley had already had a good six classes with him and nothing had happened so it was unlikely.
But she was still left not knowing what it meant! And she was tired of having so many questions and no answers for them.
And where was Riddle?
He was supposed to teach her everything he knew. If he was doing that she probably wouldn't have as many unanswerable questions at hand. She would probably feel safer too; better to know where your enemy was than to not. Better the devil you knew!
She considered writing a letter, but she didn't know whether Hedwig would be able to send it without an address.
Halley dug the fleshy parts of her palms into her eyes and pushed. The blue and white patterns that emerged behind her eyelids made her dizzy and for a second, when she took her hands away, she was blinded by them until the world came back into focus.
What was she going to do?
She must have fallen asleep because she was woken up by the sound of her dormmates entering their room. All four of them came into the room talking to one another but when they saw Halley on her bed they stopped.
"Where did you go after lunch?" Bulstrode asked.
"I got a really bad headache," she said. "I'm sorry for leaving so abruptly, Greengrass."
Greengrass gave a dainty shrug. "Did you go to the Infirmary?" she asked.
Halley nodded.
Parkinson had been looking at her. It was the same look she'd been giving her all year and Halley had a feeling that she wasn't going to keep quiet for much longer.
"Bulstrode, Davis, leave," she ordered.
"What?" Davis asked.
"Where are we supposed to go?" Bulstrode asked.
Parkinson didn't look at them as she spoke. She kept her eyes locked firmly on Halley. "Go to the Common Room. I know for a fact the both of you have Transfiguration homework you've not completed and we all know how McGonagall is."
"We can do it here," Davis said.
"Don't be purposefully argumentative Davis," Parkinson said.
Davis huffed and folded her arms in a way that indicated she was about to be incredibly stubborn. "I don't think so. I'm not going to leave my room for some sulking little Half-Blood -"
"Who has more status than you do," Parkinson said. Her words were spoken with that calculated, flippant tone that worked to so effectively cut people down before they had a chance to really start.
Davis reeled back like she had been struck; she looked at Parkinson with eyes full of betrayal and anger and hurt. "She's no better than me," she yelled.
"Oh she is," Parkinson said. "She's a Potter. She's the Heiress of millions in galleons and property and she was chosen by magic to be a Parlsemouth." Parkinson looked Davis up and down and then tilted her head. "And you're a Davis. Some connections, but not enough to get your family up to the standing you want them to be. So I would listen to your betters Davis, and leave the room."
It was ruthless. Davis left the room, slamming the door behind her, nearly hitting Bulstrode in the face as she followed closely behind.
Halley had to give the girl credit where it was due; she had left without shedding a tear and that was more than a lot of people could say once Parkinson had lashed a strip of their hides.
"Was that necessary?" Halley asked.
Davis had already hated her. She had no leg to stand on when it came to Parkinson but she could sure as hell make Halley's life somewhat harder, if only by trying to do so. The lashing that Parkinson had just given Davis was going to affect Halley in some way. She just knew it.
"Yes," came Parkinson's abrupt reply.
Greengrass gave Parkinson a look that suggested she was not happy with how she'd dealt with things but Parkinson ignored it. "Alright Potter, I know bullshit when I see it. What happened?"
"A headache," she said.
"I told you, I know bullshit Potter. You looked like you were about to murder someone."
Halley winced and looked away. She stayed quiet because what else would she do? Tell them she thought Voldemort was coming back? That she had wanted to kill someone? That if Greengrass - or anyone else - had been an inch or two closer to her reach she might have grabbed a hold of their necks and squeezed.
Halley felt Greengrass' stare. She was sitting on her bed just opposite Halley's and she wasn't blinking. Parkinson stayed standing and kept glaring at her.
"Look, we've got a bit of an alliance now," she said. "And as much I would really rather not deal with the weirdness that is your life, I'm invested. My mother has decreed it."
Halley knew that. She'd known it from the moment that Madame Parkinson had taken her out to lunch, but it had been solidified when Parkinson and Greengrass had come after her last year after Malfoy had shown how little tact he possessed on Samhain.
She didn't need to ask why; what better way to solidify one's presence than having your child be allies with the only Heir from House Potter. When Halley grew up, she would take over a seat at the Wizengamot. And she would have all the political power that came from being The Girl Who Lived. It was smart, cunning and wholly what she had expected.
Greengrass was probably also doing the same thing, though there hadn't been a formal decree of alliance from her house.
But that didn't mean that she had to accept it or tell them anything. "I'm fine Parkinson. I don't need your help," she said.
Parkinson scoffed. "I knew you were unlucky Potter but I didn't think you were stupid!"
"Pansy," Greengrass called out quietly. "That's uncalled for."
"She is, though!" Parkinson said turning to Greengrass. When she turned back to Halley she was shaking her head. "She's playing right into their hands."
"I agree. But you don't need to sink to name calling to get the point across." There was an unspoken acknowledgement between the three of them that name-calling as a tactic was almost always beneath them. It was delegated to First Years and Malfoy - though there was a place for it if it was done well. Stupid was not doing it well.
Greengrass stood up and walked to the foot of Halley's bed. Now that the two of them were standing in front of her she felt crowded and ganged up on. Her hackles rose and she stood up so she was on equal playing ground. It didn't make her feel much safer but at least she would be able to maneuver herself more easily. She was always better at thinking when she was moving.
Greengrass seemed to wait until she felt more comfortable before taking a breath. "Pansy is right; being a martyr plays into the hands of those who want to control you."
"I'm not a martyr," Halley said firmly.
"Then stop acting like one," Greengrass said. "Slytherin House stands for cunning and ambition. How can you achieve either of those things without surrounding yourself with people who lose if you lose?"
"How am I supposed to achieve anything if I don't trust the people I surround myself with?" Halley asked.
"That's a ridiculously Hufflepuff notion and you know it!" Parkinson said. "Don't trust us. But don't isolate yourself either. Try as you might, there are things that you won't ever understand because you were raised in a Muggle house -"
Halley tensed at Parkinson saying that out loud.
"- Everyone knows it, Potter. Just look at how you don't fit in. How no-one knew you before you came to Hogwarts. How you've never been, nor do you invite, your peers over during the summer."
Halley glowered. Whether that was true or not, and it stung a little to know that she hadn't hidden it as well as she could have, Parkinson had no right to confirm it for Greengrass!
Greengrass put a measuring hand on Parkinson, signalling that the girl should calm down some. "It's going to become a problem if you're not able to navigate the House like you should. You've done well so far, but things change from Third Year. The alliances you make now will very likely benefit you in the future," Greengrass said.
And she knew that. She knew that it was all about who you stood with. Who you stood against. Even those who claimed to turn themselves away from Blood Status aligned themselves with power.
"We can help, and in return there'll come a time where you can help. But you can't do that if you ostracize yourself and play martyr for people you don't even care for," she said.
Halley pressed her lips together and considered it. There was so little that was in her control and so little that she had access to. She hadn't even been able to find what an Unbreakable Vow was without drawing unnecessary attention.
Whatever way she placed herself Halley was always going to be a step behind because she didn't know all the rules of Wizarding Britain. And if Greengrass and Parkinson were offering her a fair exchange then wouldn't it make sense to take it?
"What help can I give you?" Halley asked.
Greengrass shrugged. "Keeping an eye out for my sister? Forwarding the Greengrass name in the future? Going into business with the Parkinsons?"
"Any number of ways, Potter," Parkinson said. "We won't know till we know. But that's what happens with alliances."
Halley frowned at how vague the two of them were. But she could feel it in her gut. She needed someone to work with. One way or another.
"Fine. First I need you to tell me what the proponents are for an Unbreakable Vow. "
Parkinson and Greengrass looked at each other with confusion, and as the seconds passed by their confusion grew into understanding, and then horror. Potter was only going to ask about something like that if she had experienced it and there were only two ways to experience an Unbreakable Vow.
"What the fuck did you do?" Parkinson asked.
"I didn't do anything!" she yelled, finally at the end of her rope being interrogated by everyone. What did they want her to do? What did they expect her to do?
"Alright," Greengrass said placatingly. "What happened?"
And Halley told them. She told them as much as she could - which admittedly was very little with the Imperio still in place, and the Vow she'd sworn. Keep silent about my return. Tell no-one about what happened in the Chamber of Secrets. Do not interfere with plans I make, regardless of what others ask of you. But there were things she could say.
She could tell them that something had happened in the Chamber. She could tell them she'd been made to undergo the Vow. Se could tell them that she didn't know what to do. And she could tell them that she thought that maybe a war was coming.
"Do you still want to be in an alliance?" she asked Parkinson bitterly
The two girls had collapsed onto Greengrass' bed and were ashen. Parkinson swallowed once, and then a second time, like the answer was lodged in her throat. It was Greengrass who answered.
"You're going to owe us a lot, Halley," she said.
"You made me," Halley said.
The two looked at her, eyes somewhat glassy. Parkinson took a steadying breath and then stood up. "First things first we need to get you up to date on Unforgivables and Unbreakable Vows. You cannot be making any more of those!"
"She's right," Greengrass said. "I'll owl my father for any texts he has on them. We need to make sure our bases are as covered as possible."
"Why are you actually helping me?" Halley asked.
Greengrass sighed. "The Greengrasses owe the Potters a life debt. Your father saved my mother from a fatal spell a year before we were born. If he hadn't I wouldn't be here."
Archaic magic. Halley tried to keep her face from scrunching up; there were some things she didn't want to partake in and Life Debts sounded complicated.
"And mama insisted that I need to help you. She comes from a line of Seers - real ones not the idiots like Trewlawney- so I tend to listen to her," Parkinson said. "Though she's not going to be happy about this!"
"No, I don't suppose this is what father had in mind either," Greengrass said.
Halley looked between the two of them. She would have shouted at them if they weren't being so completely Slytherin about the whole thing. And she needed help. She needed to research Life Debts as well, it seemed, because she didn't know what kind of magic would make someone hear everything she'd just said and still say - yes, I'll help.
But with allies in place, things would be easier to tackle from some angles.
AN: What did you think of the chapter? How do you guys feel about the Parkinson/Greengrass/Potter alliance? I'm super interested to know :)
The next chapter will probably be up in a couple of weeks because I'm conscious I'm burning through the pre-written chapters I have. So this week I'm planning on working on Chapter 21 :D
