Danny returned to Hogwarts feeling a sense of accomplishment. He could be nice to Vlad. He could do that and then Vlad would give him the crown. In the meantime, he just had to remember to visit regularly and willingly spend time with the fruit loop. True, he wouldn't be king for a while yet, but it was still a possible eventuality. While he waited for Vlad to give him the crown he could consider the other rules Walker gave him. An older ghost had to coronate him and he had to have ten witnesses. Well, finding an older ghost wasn't going to be hard. Danny was a pretty young ghost, only three years old. It was finding ten witnesses that could be difficult. Dora, Wulf, Frostbite, Pandora and Clockwork would watch. He knew that. Well, he counted Clockwork more out of hope than knowing. But that wasn't enough. And did the ghost crowning him count as a witness, he'd better not count them to be safe. But he had time at least to find those ghosts.
But before then, he had to return to his duties. Watching Malfoy, going to lessons with Miss Fisher, and he should probably keep looking for ghosts too. He didn't want to tip them off that he had a plan in the works. Danny floated through the corridors and sighed softly. After so long, Hogwarts did feel like a second home. He did like the castle. The friendly, passive ghosts. The students liking him. Peeves was fun to be around. It was a great place to stay. Danny frowned. How much would change when Dumbledore died? Would he have to leave the school and follow Harry during the hunt for the horcruxes? Or could he do something more worthwhile? Not for the first time, Danny wondered about the order.
When Snape killed Dumbledore and cemented himself within Voldemort's ranks, he'd be named a traitor. It was something Snape and Danny had spoken about and Danny knew that Snape hated that fact. He didn't want to be the bad guy but it seemed to be the role he was always given. Danny wanted to help the order more and Snape. Dumbledore was right. When he died, and Snape betrayed the order, the order might very well dissolve into nothing. Danny didn't want that to happen. The wizarding world needed to know there was someone fighting back. But if the order lost hope and broke apart, that wouldn't happen. The order would need hope to continue. They needed a reason to stay together. And Danny couldn't help but think, that hope could come in the form of a halfa going undercover as a spy. He knew Dumbledore worried it would be too dangerous. Snape had remarked that it was a risky move since Voldemort would be suspicious. But this was a war. Risks had to be taken.
Danny was snapped out of his thoughts by Hagrid thudding past distractedly.
"Hagrid? Something up?" Danny called in surprise. The immense man turned to the halfa.
"Oh, Danny. Sorry. Er, yeah. Ron got poisoned," Hagrid answered worriedly. Danny's heart skipped a beat.
"Poisoned?! Is he okay?" Danny exclaimed.
"Yeah, Harry was there and got a bezoar into him. He's fine. Just… he's in the hospital wing. I'm on my way there now," Hagrid assured him. Danny nodded.
"I'll visit in a bit. Just need to have a word with Dumbledore and Severus," Danny decided.
"Dumbledore's busy with Molly and Arthur right now. And Severus, well, he's in a bad mood because of an argument with Dumbledore," Hagrid informed Danny quickly. Danny paused.
"Did you hear what the argument was about Hagrid?" Danny asked worriedly. There was only one thing Snape and Dumbledore would argue about. Dumbledore's plan to die and have Harry sacrifice himself. If Hagrid heard that, it would ruin everything. Hagrid shuffled awkwardly.
"I heard a bit. Not much mind. Snape just said he thought Dumbledore was asking too much and he didn't want to do it anymore. And something about investigating the Slytherins. I wasn't really that close and I don't like eavesdropping on Dumbledore," Hagrid admitted. Danny nodded.
"Thanks. I'll go see Severus. Might get him to calm down a bit," Danny excused himself, still a little concerned that Hagrid had overheard the conversation but certain the plan wasn't compromised.
Danny floated to Snape's office and knocked on the door. He received a particularly angered call to come in. Danny took a deep breath and entered.
"Hey Severus. What's up?" Danny greeted. Snape spun around.
"Oh, Danny. I didn't expect you back today. How was your trip?" Snape replied, slightly embarrassed for his previous shout.
"Alright. Not quite as productive as I hoped but it should work to our advantage in the long run. Give it time and it should be fine," Danny answered with a shrug. Snape nodded.
"Do you need any help in keeping your plans to become Ghost King on track?" Snape offered. Danny smiled but shook his head.
"No thanks, I think I've got everything under control so far. But I'll let you know if that changes. But what about you? Hagrid mentioned you and Dumbledore had an argument," Danny ventured. Snape froze.
"Hagrid… Hagrid heard about that," Snape whispered, licking his lips nervously and growing pale.
"He overheard a bit. I was just talking to him actually. He only heard that you didn't want to do something and that you were investigating your Slytherins," Danny assured the teacher. Snape nodded slowly.
"Oh, good. At least he didn't hear anything worse," the man breathed in relief. Danny smiled.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Danny asked. Snape sighed and sank into a chair.
"I'm just conflicted. No, I'm not. I just don't want to kill Dumbledore. He's been nothing but kind to me and he's protected me. I don't want to kill him. I don't want to become a traitor. I know why Dumbledore has ordered me to do what I must, but… it doesn't sit right with me," Snape explained. Danny nodded, floating into a seated position level with the wizard.
"I get what you mean. I feel the same. I know that Dumbledore's going to die. I know that Harry is going to die. But I can't say anything. I watch Harry and his friends laughing, having a great time. I hear them talking about their futures. And yet, I know that Harry doesn't have one. Is it cruel for Harry not to know, or would it be crueller for him to find out? The guilt is horrible," Danny replied. Snape nodded in agreement.
"Dumbledore is asking too much," Snape growled.
"Maybe. Or maybe he's asking us because he thinks we're the only ones able to do it. It's not fair. But… life rarely is," Danny muttered. Snape glanced at the teen.
"It's times like that, when you say those weirdly insightful and profound comments I forget you're a human teenager and not an ageless ghost," Snape remarked. Danny snorted.
"Comes with being half-dead, seeing a nightmarish future, being friends with the ghost of time and having a sister learning to be a shrink," Danny retorted. Snape smiled softly.
"I've been thinking. The more I think about it, the more I'm sure. The order is going to need a reason to stay together after Dumbledore dies. Maybe learning the truth about me will help and I can start using my split personality. My human half could be a spy and Phantom could remain an order member," Danny suggested. Snape sighed.
"We've talked about this Danny. It's too risky. The Dark Lord won't just accept anyone into his ranks, much less a muggle," Snape replied.
"I know that. But directly after Dumbledore dies, morale will be low. It would be a perfect time to switch sides. And Fenton hasn't really been on the front lines before. The only time Voldemort would have seen Fenton would be while on guard duty or when his snake bit me. We can use that. And with your help, we can really sell it. But I can't do it alone. My wand, it needs to have spells placed on it. I've never needed to use it before, but if I'm to sell myself as a wizard, I will need to," Danny retorted. Snape bit his lip and shook his head.
"Severus, if I do this, you'll have an ally close to you," Danny added. Snape blinked and looked up to Danny again. The halfa's green eyes burned with determination.
"You're sure? It'll be dangerous," Snape asked.
"Yes. Besides, the plan is that the ghosts will be gone by then. Without the ghosts, Voldemort will have no way to find out about Phantom and Fenton's connection. And as long as Harry doesn't know and believes Fenton betrayed the order, so will Voldemort. If things take a turn for the worse, I can always teleport out of there," Danny decided. Snape sighed.
"You make a strong argument. Alright Danny. But we'll need to train you up a little for that. You need to learn to be submissive and we can practice duelling with your wand," Snape relented. Danny smiled and nodded.
So Snape is going to help Danny become a spy.
Let me know what you think so far.
Until the next chapter.
