Author's note: Well... it's been a while since I last updated huh? As some of you know, I've been busy dealing with Murphy's law. I can't promise that things will go back to normal now, but I certainly hope to get the next chapter up in a much more timely manner.
As always, thank you all for reading, and special thanks to those who review. I greatly appreciate the feedback, so let me know what you think.
Additional thanks goes to Jonn Wolfe, for putting together the new cover image. Now you guys don't have to look at my ugly mug. :)
-o-o-
Chapter 22
Temper temper
-o-o-
Not even the full force of Voldemort's cruciatus came close to the exquisite pain that Harry felt as he made his way toward the solitude of the Chamber of Secrets. His heart felt like it was being twisted apart. He could understand his father hating him, in many ways he was expecting it, but not wanting anything to do with him? Trying to disown him? Harry couldn't fathom how a father could feel that way.
He was so caught up wallowing in his pain, that he never noticed that someone was following him.
Trying to hide in the shadows, a sadistic smirk formed as the silent figure saw Harry enter the bathroom. Drawing their wand, they rushed forward to take advantage of their cornered victim.
Myrtle wasn't in her bathroom. Harry figured she was either peeping in the prefect's bath again, or exploring the Black Lake; which suited him just fine, he wanted to be alone to process everything. Resting his hands on the sink that marked the Chamber's entrance, Harry paused to take a deep breath. Suddenly, something slammed into the back of his head, forcefully smashing his forehead into the mirror.
As the mirror shattered, shards of glass bit into his flesh, causing rivulets of blood to run down his face. Both figuratively and literally, Harry saw red. As he whipped around to confront whoever was intruding on his solitude, he drew his dagger, and sent it flying through the air.
A meaty thunk, followed by a string of foul language, let Harry know he had hit his target. Wiping the blood from his eyes with one hand, he drew his wand with the other. The large form of Thomas Selwyn was bearing down on him with murder in his eyes.
With one arm hanging limp thanks to the dagger embedded in his shoulder, Selwyn's wand was already trained on Harry. "I was just going to teach you a lesson Potter, but now I'm mad. Crucio!"
The sharp wave of pain that passed through Harry caused him to shudder involuntarily, an unfortunate twitch of his hand sent his wand skittering across the tiles. Falling to one knee, he took a deep breath and gritted his teeth to bite back a moan.
"Not so tough after all, are you Potter?" Selwyn taunted with a cruel sneer. "I can't believe that ponce Malfoy is scared of you."
"Not too bad Selwyn... I mean nothing like Voldemort's, but you're not half bad with the cruciatus." Letting himself fall back into a seated position, Harry smiled up at his attacker. "That was nice, but I'm really not in the mood for this sort of thing right now. We can play some other time, right now I just want to be alone."
Harry's attitude confused Selwyn, causing him to pause. "I don't think you understand the situation Potter. I'm going to hurt you so bad, it will take Saint Mungo's months to put you back together."
Harry smiled wider. "Oh no, I get it. You're trying to make up for trying to torture Wednesday by torturing me. We are a couple, engaged now, so you really should hurt us both together, that would be the proper way to do things."
"Look Potter." Selwyn began as he moved to be standing over Harry, pleased that the Gryffindor had stopped smiling.
In the blink of an eye, the seventh year found himself face to face with his intended victim. He only vaguely realized that Harry had grabbed his wrist to point his wand away. Nearly all of Selwyn's attention was focused on the agonizing feeling of Harry's other hand tightly gripping one of his floating ribs.
"The cruciatus will only do so much to put me in a good mood." Harry hissed as he dug his fingers deeper to better grasp the ribs.
"My. Name. Is. BLACK." The rib broke free, and Harry shoved it up into Selwyn's body as far as he could.
Gasping for air as his lung filled with blood, Selwyn reflexively curled into a ball as he fell heavily to the floor.
"Aw dammit." Harry shook his head in remorse as he watched the older boy cough up blood. "Wednesday is going to be mad at me for this."
Not sure what to do, Harry just collected his knife and wand, and left the dying Slytherin writhing on the bathroom floor.
-o-o-
When Voldemort was in a bad mood, nearly every Death Eater knew that avoiding him was the best way to ensure that they'd live to see another day. By the time the screams died down, and he stepped over the quivering mass that was Nott, the halls were all but empty. Those who were unable to leave in time were thankful that the Dark Lord was wholly focused on his destination as he stormed past, headed toward one man in particular.
Lucius Malfoy was beside himself with fear as his master bore down on him. Still, he held his ground as best he could, desperately trying to remember if he had done anything that might have upset the powerful wizard. Unable to think of anything, he quickly thought up a few generic excuses that might deflect the Dark Lord's ire.
"Lucius, send word to your son. The Nott brat has failed his task so completely that I want him dead." Voldemort snarled. "Not only is that pompous old windbag still alive, but he's managed to find the courage to reveal my secrets."
"O-of course my lord. I'll inform Draco at once. Shall I have him take over the other boy's task as well?" Keeping the relief from showing on his face, Lucius began planning how best to take advantage of the situation. If he was careful, and just a bit lucky, he could use his son's accomplishments to put himself back into Voldemort's good graces.
"No, I'll deal with Slughorn eventually. He can do no more damage, and has earned my personal attention." The barely human wizard proclaimed darkly, his eyes flashing dangerously. "Young Draco should concern himself with Nott's son, even your child should be able to manage that much. As for you, bring me a house elf. There is something I need to do. Then go to Lestrange manor, tell them to raid the ministry as soon as they are ready. I need all of my best wands."
"Does this mean you have a task for me as well my lord?" Lucius asked tentatively. Despite his current situation as an errand boy, he knew that his master would still recognize his talent.
"Protect Nagini with your life." Voldemort said flatly, his red eyes glowing with the promise of pain. "Should one of her scales be out of place, your fate will be worse than you could possibly imagine. Now bring me an elf!"
-o-o-
McGonagall's stern face hid that she was terrified that she'd lost another student. Mister Black was absent from her class, and none of his friends had any idea where he might be. The thought of losing her Gryffindors one by one was going to give her nightmares for weeks, even if both Messrs. Black and Weasley showed up suddenly, none the worse for wear.
Entering the library, McGonagall sought out the petite Hufflepuff who was most likely to have answers. "Miss Addams, do you know where your fiancé is? He did not show up to my class this morning. Miss Granger assures me that he is well, but after..." She paused as Wednesday stood abruptly. If it weren't for her expressionless face, she would think the girl was annoyed more than anything.
"I'll take care of it." Wednesday said tersely, walking away without offering any explanation.
-o-o-
Wednesday examined corpse impassively, idly wondering why it hadn't been found yet. Harry had mentioned that people avoided the bathroom, but she hadn't realized how much of a deterrent Myrtle really was.
The ghost in question seemed torn between wanting to report the dead body, and wanting to have a crying fit over the dead boy passing on completely. Harry and Wednesday wouldn't be around forever, and she wasn't looking forward to being lonely again. Another ghost haunting her bathroom, especially a boy, would have been wonderful.
"Don't worry about that for now, but see if you can find Harry down there. Tell him that if he doesn't either come up here, or let me go down there, I won't let him so much as kiss me until our wedding night." Wednesday stood with her arms crossed, and stared at the hidden entrance while she asked Myrtle to act as a messenger.
The ghost gave a forced giggled, and commented nervously on how Harry must be in trouble, while working up the courage to float down into the Chamber of Secrets. Over five decades had past since she had been killed, and the thought of what might lie below still terrified her. The only reason she was willing to face her fear, was the kindness shown to her by Wednesday. The expressionless girl never made fun of her, visited often, and actually wanted to hear how miserable her afterlife was. Myrtle closed her eyes, and while trying to still her trembling, dove through the sink before she could change her mind.
Watching the ghost force herself to enter the Chamber, Wednesday allowed herself to enjoy the palpable fear that the dead girl projected. Then she waited, as still as a statue, for the secret entrance to open.
After five or so minutes, the familiar portal opened, and Wednesday stepped through, making her way toward the main chamber with a measured pace.
Harry was nowhere to be seen, but his voice carried across the chamber. "I don't suppose you'll let me be miserable in peace, at least for a little while longer."
Wednesday scanned the room, and noticed that the small table they'd brought down had only one chair at it, instead of the two they'd brought with it. The missing chair didn't seem to be anywhere else either. Fixing her stare at the empty space where the chair should be, she walked across the chamber.
Grasping at the air in front of her, she heard the faint rustle of fabric. With a fast sweeping motion, she darted forward and managed to capture a handful of the elusive cloth. Casting aside his cloak of invisibility, Wednesday loomed over her fiancé, folding her arms as she stared.
"Well, explain." Wednesday demanded. "You've got shards of glass sticking out of your face, your robes are stained with blood, and upstairs that Selwyn boy is a corpse for some reason. You wouldn't be having fun without me would you?"
Somewhat surprised, Harry brought his hand up to his forehead, slicing his fingers in the process. He gave Wednesday a sheepish grin as he pulled one of the larger shards free. "I kind of forgot about that... As for Selwyn... I kind of lost my temper, sorry."
Rolling her eyes, Wednesday let out a sigh of exasperation. "I thought Draco already told you that you shouldn't kill him here in Hogwarts. The teachers are already uptight about the boy Hermione let die." She threw her hands into the air in frustration. "I was planning on having Daddy and Pugsley take you out before the Wedding to hunt him down. Now I suppose you'll have to do something else for a bachelor party."
"Well, It's not like I planned it. He attacked me, and I wasn't even trying to kill him. Like I said, I lost my temper." Harry defended his actions while continuing to pick pieces of broken mirror out of his forehead. "To be honest, I thought it might be you at first considering he caught me off guard. I thought you would try and follow me, talk me out of wallowing in misery, or something like that."
Wednesday swatted his hands away, and took over glass removal, using her dagger to dig out the smaller pieces. "I was, but Grandmama talked me out of it. She reminded me that we aren't married yet." She took a fistful of his hair, and waved the dagger millimeters from his eyeball. "When we are married though, you had better remember that I'm the one who's supposed to be making you miserable. It's just awful to see you in pain, and know that I had nothing to do with it."
She used her handkerchief to wipe away the blood, and examined his face closely. "I think that's all of it. If you have anything left over from when you healed Pettigrew, you should use it. Otherwise I'll see if Hermione can help heal you quickly. Professor McGonagall is scared enough as it is. If she sees you like this, who knows how she'll overreact." Wadding up the handkerchief, and shoving it into her pocket, Wednesday shook her head. "The people around here make such a big deal over little things like cuts and bruises."
Once again lamenting his poor memory, Harry buried his face into his hand. "I completely forgot that I have Transfiguration in the morning. How much time do I have until class starts?"
"Early morning classes ended a while ago. Lunch will be starting in a half-hour or so. I told you the professor was scared. She thinks that whatever happened to the other boy, happened to you." She put her hands on her hips, and stared at him, letting the corner of her mouth rise ever so slightly. "Now clean yourself up, and go see your teacher. If you want to be miserable, it will have to wait for our honeymoon, I've been working on seeing that we have a few soul rending days between the wedding and our return to school. If everything comes together, at least one of us is going to suffer."
"What about Selwyn? I'm not really sure what to do about him." Harry asked as he rummaged around for the leftover healing salve.
"Myrtle will probably tell someone that he's dead, but is it worth hiding the body?" Wednesday wondered out loud. "I don't think she knows you killed him. Are wizards as good as regular people at discovering who committed a crime?"
-o-o-
The rage he'd felt upon seeing the empty basin where his locket should have been, pushed Voldemort to new heights of destruction. Though he'd never describe it as such, the tantrum he threw shattered his enchantments, and blew the top clean off of the island. The elf he'd brought along to help him retrieve his horcrux cowered, petrified at the display of raw power. Upon noticing the frightened elf, he turned his fury on the helpless creature.
Destroying the island, and mangling an elf, did little to calm the storm that raged within Voldemort. He forced himself to be calm enough to apparate, turned on his heel, and disappeared with an inelegant -crack- reminiscent of a sonic boom.
-o-o-
Reappearing in front of a rundown shack, just outside Little Hangleton, Voldemort set to work dismantling the protections that guarded one of his first horcuxes. As he disarmed traps with the efficiency and elegance of a locksmith who use C4 to pick a lock, he thought about how he could better protect his precious soul fragments.
His diary was destroyed years ago, thanks to Malfoy's idiocy. Perhaps when the fair haired wizard was no longer of any use, he would revisit Lucius' punishment.
His locket, an heirloom that was rightfully his, was missing. One way or another, he would find the one responsible, and make them pay dearly for their transgression.
Hopefully his ring would still be here, and he could find a more secure location to hide it. If it too was missing... With that dark thought, Voldemort tore through the last of the protections, revealing his irreplaceable family ring. Somewhat relieved, he negligently removed the withering curse, and put the Gaunt heirloom on, feeling the comforting presence of his soul fragment.
Breathing deeply, he tried to clear his mind, and think rationally. Surely the locket was a fluke. Moving the ring from the Gaunt hovel was perhaps a good idea regardless, but the others, the others were in no danger.
Hufflepuff's cup was safely nestled within Gringotts, that one certainly shouldn't need to be moved. The goblins might be disgusting creatures, but they guarded treasure with an inspiring fervor. Not to mention, only he had the talent and power to bypass their security, and escape unharmed.
Ravenclaw's diadem should be perfectly safe as well. In the unlikely event that someone discovered how to use the wondrous hidden room, they would still have to sift through mountains of rubbish. Still, if the boy proves his worth, perhaps he should put some thought into having the Malfoy brat ensure the safety of his horcrux.
Nagini could protect herself of course. Add the protections he'd bestowed upon his pet, and she should be nearly as immortal as him. Adding Malfoy as a bodyguard was really more to humiliate the failure of a wizard, who was just useful enough not to kill.
That left the boy, Black. There was no doubt at all that Dumbledore knew about that one. Originally he was taking his time creating the necessary ritual, wanting to ensure that his soul fragment was completely safe; however, the strange girl had been badgering him about doing the ritual during the winter break, and he had agreed in order to shut her up. Now he was glad that he'd given in to her request. He had no idea if the ritual would leave the boy alive or not, but once his horcrux was relocated, he couldn't care less what happened to Black.
Absently rubbing the band of his ring, Voldemort considered what to do with it. He would not feel truly safe until both it and the horcrux in Black were relocated, and thoroughly protected.
-o-o-
Draco reread the note several times before tossing it into the fire in the Slytherin common room. There was no mistaking the message his father had hidden, encoded among mindless drivel about how much his parents loved him. Nott must have seriously screwed up the task he'd been so proud of, and now he was expected to mete out the boy's final punishment.
Staring into the flames, Draco wondered if there was any way he could get out of his appointed task. Despite his support of the Dark Lord, and his resignation to eventually becoming a Death Eater himself, he wasn't sure he had the stomach to kill one of his classmates.
With a growing smile, Draco sat up, and looked over at the bust of Salazar Slytherin. He wasn't some idiotic Gryffindor, there was no reason he had to dirty his own hands. Nott had already handed him the perfect solution. All he needed to do was point Nott in the right direction, and he'd willingly kill himself.
-o-o-
While searching through the stacks to find something to help him pass Charms, Cormac McLaggen overheard a girl complaining one row over.
"... not fair. How can Harry be marrying that thing? My boobs are so much bigger than hers, but he hasn't even noticed me..." The girl was muttering angrily, possibly venting to a friend. "I mean, I've done everything but literally throw myself at him, and it's like I don't even exist."
"Just let it go Romilda. It's not like he'll just suddenly decide he wants you instead of his fiancée." Another girls voice quietly commented. "Romilda... why are you smiling?"
"Your idea is perfect. All I need is to buy a quality potion, and he'll love me instead of that twig." Romilda sounded excited as her whisper grew louder.
"Ugh no, that's stupid. Stop blaming me for your bad ideas. Besides, how are you going to afford a good enough potion. Seriously, just let it go." The other girl trailed off, as she apparently walked away from the conversation.
Cormac smiled as he abandoned his search, and walked around to the next row. He confidently walked up to the younger girl, whom he vaguely recognized as a Gryffindor fourth year. "I overheard your little problem, and thought I would offer some help. A guy like me doesn't have any use for love potions, but I'll help out a fellow Gryffindor, and loan you some money to buy one."
Having been contemplating excuses she could use to convince her parents to send some galleons, Romilda Vane got excited. Looking up at the smiling seventh year, she also got a little suspicious. "Why would you help me... Wait, why were you listening to a private conversation anyway?"
"We're in a library, not the girls loo. Conversations are only as private as the charms you decide to throw up." Cormac pointed out, defending the fact that he'd been obviously eavesdropping. "As for why I'd help you, why wouldn't I. Having Potter fall in love with you is a plan that has no losers, everybody wins."
Leaning in closer, and whispering conspiratorially, Cormac laid out his reasoning. "You get Potter, Potter gets you, and I can be there to console Addams. See? Everybody comes out on top." He pressed a small stack of galleons into her hand, and gave her a winning smile.
Cormac intentionally left out the fact that there wasn't any love potion that was permanent, but he figured things would work out anyway. Addams would get to see what a real wizard was like, and would be grateful that she didn't make the mistake of marrying Potter. Chances were Potter might whine a bit, but the girl was right, she had a great rack, so Potter would probably stay with her. If she wasn't so much younger than him, he'd convince her to sleep with him, but a kid with a nice rack was still just a kid.
As Romilda pocketed the galleons and rushed off, Cormac started thinking about what a spirited girl like Addams would be like in bed. She probably would be up for some wild things, especially while she was still reeling from having Potter dump her.
-o-o-
"Nott, a word?" Draco asked with a face that betrayed no emotion.
Theodore eyed Draco curiously before shrugging. "Sure, what do you need? Have your bollocks grown back, do you want my help with Potter?" He taunted after following the Malfoy scion into a more private alcove.
"Watch your mouth Nott, the whole school knows how easy it is to take you on. Black did it without even using his wand." Before the other boy could respond, Draco held up his hands placatingly. "I didn't ask you over here to posture, I have a message for you. It appears I was wrong, and it would be in everybody's best interest... well, everybody that matters... for you to 'take care' of Black."
Deciding he could afford to let Malfoy's insult slide, Theodore smirked knowingly. "Father did say those beneath me would act as messengers. I'll help you with Potter just as soon as I finish my first task. There's been a slight hiccough, but I'm sure it will be taken care of before next weekend."
Draco clamped down on his sense of outrage. The underlying fear was absent, but thanks to Black and his woman, he was much better at controlling his outbursts. "The other task can wait. This is more important, and you won't be helping me, handling Black is your responsibility. I will help you."
"More important? Is that your opinion, or does this come from..."
"Do you honestly think I would dare put my desires above the Dark Lord's?" Draco scoffed. "All I know is what my father relayed to me, and you need to drop everything. Black is your only concern right now. Now, what is your plan, and how can I help?"
There was an uncomfortable silence, as Theodore stared at Draco. "I see what you're doing, and it won't work. This is my time, and you won't steal any of the credit. Just sit back, and watch how a real wizard handles things."
Watching Nott walk off, Draco cursed inwardly. He was hoping to have some control over the situation, to make sure that Black wasn't harmed. Chances were that Nott would fail miserably, but if the arse succeeded... Draco knew his life wouldn't be worth a knut.
-o-o-
With several decisions still to be made, Wednesday flipped through her notebook. While mother and grandmama had given advice, every choice was ultimately hers to make. It was her wedding after all. Not wanting unsolicited advice from her roommates, she had found an unused corner of the dungeons. As far as she knew, not even the Slytherins came this way very often; although, she didn't understand why not, it was cold, damp, and smelled of mold. Taking a deep breath, she turned to the page holding the list of students that she felt may be worth inviting.
A moment before she felt magic wash over her, Wednesday heard a low voice whisper, "Imperio." Curious, she allowed the strange wizard to believe his will surpassed her own, and paused to see what he wanted her so desperately to do.
A small silver potions knife was placed on her notebook, and the boy whispered into her ear. "The slightest scratch is all that is needed. Take the poisoned knife, and kill your boyfriend. Then, turn the knife on yourself, and join him in death."
Theodore couldn't believe how easy the imperious curse was. Supposedly it was difficult to maintain control, but he couldn't feel any resistance from the girl. She was a Hufflepuff, so he wasn't expecting it to be too hard, but this was laughably easy. Surely the spell's difficulty was exaggerated, or he was more talented than even he thought.
Wednesday picked up the knife, sniffing once before licking the blade. "Curare, how mundane. Don't you have something more potent?"
Realizing that the lack of resistance was because the spell failed outright. Theodore quickly tried to cast the imperious again, before it registered that the girl had willingly licked the blade coated with deadly poison.
"I think we both know that you aren't going to be able to control me." Wednesday commented dryly. "I appreciate the attempt at a wedding gift, but it's a little early, and really not that good of one. You are a wizard, why don't you try again with a magical poison? If you need an idea where to start, I'm sure Grandmama, Professor Frump that is, will be more than happy to help."
The situation having quickly spun out of his control, Theodore panicked and raised his wand a third time. "Obliviate!"
-o-o-
"Ooh cauldron cakes, can I have one?" Demelza Robins asked as she threw her books onto her bed.
Romilda didn't bother looking up as she carefully filled each one with the expensive amortentia she'd keyed to herself. "Only if you want to fall madly in love with me."
Demelza looked at the boxes of cakes in disbelief. "You're seriously doing this? I'm telling you, it's a bad idea. Overkill too, why are you using two whole boxes?"
Ignoring the first part of what her roommate said, Romilda answered the second. "This one's for Harry, he'll fall in love with me, and we'll be the perfect couple. The other one's for the twig. The boy who helped me buy the potion wants her for some reason, so I thought I'd help him out. Why else would he have given me one of his hairs with the galleons?"
"There isn't any way to talk you out of this is there?" Demelza asked flatly.
"You worry too much." Romilda laughed as she replaced the last cake, and sealed up the box. "What could possibly go wrong?"
-o-o-
"Professor Slughorn? I was just in the library, trying to look up wizarding law, but I'm afraid I don't understand, the books aren't very clear." Harry broached the topic as he stepped into the professor's office.
The potions master looked up from a stack of essays. "Good to see that you're alright Mister Black, Professor McGonagall has been worried about you. I trust you've let her know why you missed her class?"
"Yes sir, I lost track of time." Harry answered vaguely. "About the law, you said we could ask you anything, so I was hoping you could help me out."
"Certainly Harry, come sit down." He gladly set the poorly written essays off to the side for a moments distraction from one of his most promising connections. "I suppose this has to do with the nuances of being head of house Black?"
"No sir." Harry shook his head. "I'm pretty sure I can handle that. It has to do with self defense."
"Ah, I see. You're worried about your fiancée, and the practices she's been encouraging in Hufflepuff." Slughorn nodded knowingly. "Not to worry. I dare say my snakes deserve the bumps and bruises they've been receiving as of late."
"Actually sir, I was more interested in the penalty for killing in self-defense."
"Killing?" The old wizard looked shocked, but then nodded grimly as his mind put together why his student might ask. "You've had a target on your back since you were a baby, and your afraid your luck will run out and you'll have to do more than stun to survive."
"Something like that sir."
"This is... purely hypothetical of course?" Slughorn asked hopefully.
"No sir, both Wednesday and I have been attacked recently." Harry paused as Wednesday walked into the office and tossed Nott's corpse onto the desk. "As you can see, Nott here was a Death Eater. That should make things easier right?"
Nearly falling backwards out of his chair, Slughorn focused on the Dark Mark displayed prominently on the dead boy's arm. They were in the school... They were in his house...
"Professor?" Harry pushed, as Slughorn seemed to have frozen in place. "I can't find any set punishment for taking a life. As far as I can tell, it has everything to do with who the killer and victim are, but I'm not quite sure which details are important."
"Harry is trying to ask: Is it worth going through the trouble of hiding the bodies, or will it be easier to just inform the police." Wednesday pointed out, as she tried to pull her dagger from where it was lodged in Nott's forehead.
"Aurors, police are muggles." Harry corrected absently, wondering if coming to Slughorn for advice wasn't the best idea. The professor was turning an interesting shade of green, and sweat began to cover his brow.
Wednesday paused, rolling her eyes at the distinction before tugging forcefully to free her blade. "Like it matters. Police, aurors, they're all the same. The laws they enforce don't make any sense at all."
Slughorn felt bile rising, and had to steady himself when the knife was jerked free, causing a small spray of blood to stain the essays he'd been working on. "I... Merlin help me." As if for the first time, he looked at the two students, ignoring their wealth, and in Mister Black's case, fame. For a moment he was reminded of the charismatic Tom Riddle, but Riddle hid his deviance. These two almost reveled in it. There was no remorse, no humanity in their eyes. They didn't even seem all that concerned about the repercussions of taking a life.
Taking a deep breath, and looking away from the corpse, the old wizard considered the situation. They did say it was self-defense, so perhaps everything was not as bad as it seemed. Mister Nott was clearly a Death Eater as well, so it was likely they had saved his life too.
"Looking up to face Harry, Slughorn asked about the other death. "You said you were attacked as well. By whom, another Death Eater?"
Harry shrugged. "I don't think so, but I'm pretty sure his father was one. It was Selwyn, the large seventh year boy."
"Draco did mention that Selwyn's father was a Death Eater." Wednesday agreed.
Wiping his brow, Slughorn hated himself for his feelings on the matter. Minerva was beside herself with panic over her missing Gryffindors, and here he was, knowing two of his Slytherins were dead, yet he couldn't help but feel relief.
"Okay you two." Slughorn began, as he secured the door to his office with his wand. "Tell me exactly what happened, and I'll see what I can do."
-o-o-
"You know... It was pretty hypocritical of you to kill Nott, and right after telling me I shouldn't have killed Sellwyn too." Harry pointed out as he walked with his fiancée toward the Hufflepuff dorms.
"He tried to memory charm me, what would you have done?" Wednesday asked, already knowing the answer.
The smile that had been on his face melted away, and his eyes narrowed as he growled, "He did what?"
"Exactly." She nodded, then sighed in frustration. "And I had just resharpened my dagger. Now I'll have to do it all over again. Maybe I should have just broken his neck, Susan is going to ask questions, and I don't think she's ready for the answers. Maybe I can distract her... Do you mind that I've been pushing her toward revenge killing Voldemort?"
"Why would I mind?" Harry asked, genuinely confused.
Wednesday shook her head and groaned. "I've been picking up some bad habits in Hufflepuff, everyone is so unbelievably polite... It will be good to go back home and get away from all the cheerful kindness. I've been trying to fix my house's attitude, but it's like trying to drown a cat with a teaspoon of water."
"I'm sure you'll manage, you've done well with those three so far." Harry pointed out as three very serious looking first-years headed toward them.
The little girl in the lead held out a folded piece of parchment when she got close enough. "Some Gryffindor girl wanted to make sure you got this Wednesday."
"Thank you Tina, have you three been practicing?" Wednesday asked as she unfolded the parchment and began to read.
"Madam Pomfrey made us stop when Danny managed to break one of my ribs." Tina looked down, seemingly disappointed, then she looked up with a proud smile. "I didn't cry this time, even though it really hurt."
A glint of anger flashed in Wednesday's eyes as she folded the note back up, then she smiled warmly at the little Hufflepuff. "That's good. Remember, pain is your friend. You don't have to stop, just don't go to the infirmary anymore. Find another way to heal if you need to, or worst case scenario, go easier on each other."
Harry grinned as the three firsties ran off. "She's going to grow up to be a maneater isn't she. Those two are already following her around like little puppies."
Nodding as her emotionless expression returned, she handed the note to Harry. "I have high hopes for those three. Hopefully Danny and David will grow up to be ladykillers as well."
As Harry read the note, his expression darkened.
-o-o-
Auror Proudfoot pinched the bridge of his nose. The war was going bad enough as it was, that children were getting involved was just too much. He had just finished listening to Professor Slughorn's account of the death of two students in his house. Headmaster Tofty was nearly in tears, but Proudfoot was so jaded at this point, that the whole thing merely gave him a headache.
Sighing, Proudfoot reached for Nott's wand. "The Dark Mark is fairly damning evidence as it is, at least for Mister Nott, but just to be thorough I'll need to check the boys' wands. I'll need the other two wands involved as well."
"There's little point to that. Neither Mister Black, nor his fiancée used a wand to defend themselves." Slughorn pointed out, then continued before the auror could insist. "I have Mister Black's wand here. He has nothing to hide, but I'm afraid Miss Addams simply doesn't have a wand to check."
Taking the offered wand, Proudfoot fixed Slughorn with a disbelieving glare. "I understand wanting to protect one of your little projects, but this is very serious. I need the girl's wand."
"Professor Slughorn is correct, Miss Addams does not own a wand." Headmaster Tofty interrupted. "At first I was going to stop her matriculation, but none of her courses require a wand. I believe it goes against family tradition to use one, I never did get a straight answer."
Letting the matter drop for the moment, Auror Proudfoot examined the three wands, frowning at the results. "I suppose it doesn't matter. With unforgivables cast by the deceased, they would have been sentenced harshly anyway. Mister Black's wand is clean, so this incident appears to be fairly straightforward. I still would like to interview Addams and Black."
"Is that truly necessary?" Slughorn asked, looking concerned for the students in question. "The children have been through a lot. They've had enough difficulty telling me what happened, and both Mister Black and his fiancée are horrified and sickened by what they had to do. Taking a life, even in self-defense, is a devastating thing. They're both putting on a brave front, but it's best to leave them be."
Tofty nodded in agreement. "The well-being of my students is my highest priority. There has been enough suffering, and I ask that unless it is absolutely necessary, please don't force them to relive their ordeal."
-o-o-
Author's note:
To den123456 reviewing chapter 20: Halloween just felt like the perfect time for Harry to pop the question.
I haven't decided what Dumbledore will do yet. Hopefully I'll do justice to not only his desperation, but his considerable talent.
The séance didn't last very long, so in a very real sense, everything about it was rushed. James got bombarded with a lot of information about Harry and his friends, and reacted poorly. I don't think considering his character one dimensional is a bad thing in this situation. There is more to him and his motivations, but there wasn't any time for anything but a knee-jerk reaction. Had Harry not run off we would have seen more, but said knee-jerk reaction really hurt Harry, and he reacted poorly to his father's poor reaction.
You're welcome. I try to respond to nearly every review, to show my appreciation for the feedback.
I've noticed that I have a tendency to not realize that I haven't sufficiently explained or alluded to a characters motivation. I know most everything about who my characters are, and how they'll react, so I'll sometimes forget that the reader doesn't.
I once wrote a thank you letter that was meant to be gracious and articulate. This was way back in grade school, and my misuse of some words made the letter sound very condescending and sarcastic. Not my finest moment, but it serves to show that what is intended, and what is, can be wildly different. This is particularly true in writing, because people almost never write the same way that they speak.
To Gravin X reviewing chapter 20: I'm glad you liked the chapter so much. I particularly enjoyed writing the entire CoS scene, from murder to proposal to the aftermath.
I have pages of notes regarding the upcoming wedding, and considering the thought going into it, I really hope that it turns out decent. As of right now, the guest list is just friends and family. Voldemort is at best an associate, so I don't see him getting an invite at this point. The wedding is still months away, so Voldemort's status could change. Time will tell. I hadn't thought about Lucius Malfoy attending. Considering Harry views Draco as both friend and family, I suppose it's possible.
To Spuffylover19 reviewing chapter 20: I was hoping that some people would be surprised. :)
Canon Harry would react to his father's rejection with angst, and would probably break some stuff in anger. My Harry takes it a step or three further, intentionally wallowing in his misery, and instead of an act of vandalism, he commits murder.
If any of them were going to react poorly, it was going to be James.
I don't know that Lily was exactly happy to meet Wednesday, but she certainly accepted the situation as it was, knowing that she couldn't change it, and because she loves her son unconditionally.
Sirius was kind of pulled every which way, he didn't know what to do or say for the most part.
Draco is starting to become a solid supporting character, so you'll probably see more of him, but I can't make any promises.
I'm not sure when Remus will make his next appearance. Hopefully sooner, but if nothing else, he's certainly going to be invited to the wedding.
To Guest reviewing chapter 20: If Harry was cheating, the wizarding world would be down one boy-who-lived.
I'm not sure I could bring myself to write even a 'what if' scene where Harry was cheating on Wednesday. The whole story is kind of built around their relationship.
The Wedding will be during the winter break, so hopefully you won't have to wait too many chapters for it. It's only two months away.
Part of why Draco and Millicent get along so well, is that neither one views the other as acceptable dating material. By all means, feel free to ship them yourself, but it is very doubtful that they'll get together in my story.
James reacted poorly, no doubt about that, but if he had more time to mull over the situation, he might have taken back his hurtful words. If you read the bonus chapter, you got added insight into James' character.