Soul of the Enemy
By Willow Spirit
Disclaimer: I only own the plot. Everything else belongs to the wonderful J. K. Rowling.
A/N: Thank you for the reviews! Sorry for the wait. Unfortunately, there's not much action in this chapter. It's mainly answering some questions and tying up some loose ends.
Chapter 26 – Answers
From last chapter:
Alex felt like she was beginning to slip away so she knew she had to act quickly. With her last remaining strength, she slipped the matchbox back into her pocket and then gripped her broom for dear life.
Her eyes began to slip shut, but before the darkness engulfed her, Alex muttered "Hogwarts…1998…"
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Everything had faded to an eerie black void, then suddenly the entire group was standing on the shore of the lake, watching as Harry, Hermione and Ron rushed to pull an unconscious Alex out of the freezing water.
"I think that just about does it," Dumbledore said softly from the shore. The others only nodded their heads slightly to agree. Before they knew it, everyone found themselves back in the classroom in the present day.
They had returned. The memory was over.
Stunned and overwhelmed, every body made their way back to their seats in slow motion. Once seated, they couldn't help but stare openly at Alex, who was currently avoiding making eye contact with anyone. She sat stiffly in her seat, her eyes focused intently on some point on the floor in front of her. When they saw how her eyes were shining brightly, they finally knew how difficult this whole thing must be for her.
"Alex?" Harry inquired gently. "Are you okay?"
At first she didn't answer, but then her mouth opened slowly. "It was just hard to see it again," she finally whispered. "It was bad enough the first time around, but to go through it again…"
Some thought that Alex was going to break down at any moment, but she surprised them. Even though her body shook slightly from the effort of containing her emotions, she never let go. They couldn't believe that after all she had been through, she still was cool and collected.
"I still have a job to do," Alex said in a harsh, shaky tone. "I made them a promise and I intend to keep it. He is not going to get away with it this time. If I die, then I'll just come back and try again when everything cycles around."
Several jaws dropped at that moment. "You poor girl," McGonagall breathed in heavily. "You've been through so much…"
"Please," Alex politely but firmly interrupted her. "I don't need sympathy right now. What I do need is time to focus on my job and what I need to do."
"Fair enough," Dumbledore understood. He gave her a tired smile as he quickly glanced at the window. "I think it's safe to say that we've all missed supper. Perhaps it would be best to bring this…meeting to an end."
"Thank you, sir," Alex sighed gratefully.
"Of course, we'll still need to be cautious," Dumbledore gave her a knowing look. "I dare say it wouldn't be a good idea if we found out the date of this Liberation Day that was mentioned in your memory."
"Of course," Alex nodded seriously. "I don't want anything like that to change the future. I won't talk about anything important."
"Then I suppose that's settled," Dumbledore clasped his hands together. "If you students would like to return to your dorms, I will see to it that some food is brought up to you."
"Thank you, sir," Alex said again as she stood to leave. Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny also stood and everyone took a moment to say their goodbyes. The five teenagers filed out of the room, with Alex as the last one to leave.
Just before she disappeared through the door, Alex glanced back at the seven adults who remained. They looked into her eyes once more and saw that they were filled with pain but also a hint of hope. Then she turned around and she was gone.
"Those two," Moody said after a brief silence. "They're related for sure. You can see it in their eyes."
"The same haunted look," Molly shook her head sadly.
"And they're likely to be our last hope."
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The five teenagers walked in silence for a while, mostly because no one knew where to begin. And no one really wanted to discuss the situation out in the open hallways with other students around. As much as it strained their patience, all were able to wait until they were safely locked away in Ron's private room. Once inside, everyone took up their usual positions, with the girls lounging on the couch and the boys sitting on the bed. For another brief second they all just kept staring at each other.
"Alright," Alex said, firing up the conversation. "I know you all have a million questions, so you'd better start now before it gets too late."
"Who was at St. Mungo's?" Ginny asked quietly, getting in the first question. "By the looks of it, someone important had to have been there. Everyone was too upset over something…or someone, I should say."
"Ah, yeah…" Alex nodded slowly and solemnly. "It was…"
"Dumbledore," Hermione interrupted gently. "Professor Dumbledore was there."
"What makes you say that?" Ron asked.
"Wasn't it obvious," Hermione said in a strained tone. "Everyone in that room was devastated by the news. It wasn't just anybody and it wasn't about the building itself."
"Hermione's right," Alex sighed. "Dumbledore had been a patient there for a few months. None of the healers knew exactly what was wrong with him. They figured he'd been poisoned somehow by Salazar, though it didn't kill him. I imagine Dumbledore's tougher than that. He was pretty much in a coma, though, for a really long time."
"I see," Harry nodded gravely. "And that man who attacked you, he was…"
"Salazar," Alex tried her best not to shudder. "Nice piece of work, isn't he? He's a real creative, psychotic maniac, that one."
"What makes him worse than You-Know-Who?" Ron asked curiously.
"Well, it's sort of hard to describe," Alex scrunched her face up in concentration. "I guess you could say that Salazar is more external and Voldemort is more internal. With Voldemort, everything is 'Me, me, me.' It's like he's so focused on being original. Salazar on the other hand, doesn't mind borrowing ideas from other people. You remember when I told you about his followers being called Horsemen? I think he honestly enjoys the irony of taking Muggle beliefs and throwing them back in their faces.
"And Salazar's not obsessed with immortality either. His first goal was to get rid of the Muggles. I think he learned from Voldemort's mistakes too. That's mostly why they seemed to take different approaches. Part of what makes Salazar really frightening is his love for graphic killing methods. He'd hack away at your body even after you'd died."
"So that's what you meant!" Ginny suddenly gasped. "Before you told us who you were, you'd say that we'd all die horrible deaths and that he would come for us. You weren't talking about Voldemort at all, you were referring to Salazar."
"Good one, Ginny," Alex winked at her. "I was just trying to scare you all but I was telling the truth. If you had kept me from doing my job, then Salazar would still come in the future and kill everyone here. As you probably recall, he does have a certain fascination for blood and pain. That's another difference between him and Voldemort. Old Voldie wouldn't hesitate using the avada curse on an enemy, but to Salazar it's too clean. It's not satisfying enough for him."
"I'm starting to realize why so many people would fear this guy," Harry raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Yeah," Alex laughed weakly. "I'm not trying to say that Voldemort is a kitten compared to Salazar, it's just that they're so different."
"Well…how about changing the topic," Ron tried hard to look too pale. "Err…what about Dad? He seemed to be pretty important at the meeting. What's up with that?"
"Do you really want to know?" Alex grinned eagerly.
"Why, what happens?" Ginny looked a bit cautious.
"Oh, not much," Alex glanced down at her fingernails casually. "Just that your Dad becomes the Minister for Magic at some point in the future."
"HE WHAT???"
"Minister for Magic," Alex simply nodded. "You heard me."
"Bloody Hell," Ron muttered softly. "Are you sure? Are you really sure?"
"I'm positive."
"Are you sure we should be discussing this?" Hermione pointed out.
"What's the harm?" Alex shrugged. "As long as you all don't tell Mr. Weasley about this, I'm sure the future will be safe."
"I don't know," Ginny said doubtfully. "I can't see Dad accepting that position. I don't think he'd ever leave his department. He loves his job too much."
"People change," Alex said quietly. "When your country needs a good leader and you're the one that people trust, it's sort of hard to say no. Sometimes you have to give up the life you want in order to do your duty."
For a split second, Alex glanced at Harry and there was a quick connection between them. He knew that she was talking about Mr. Weasley but her words could easily apply to him and her. That's exactly how he felt at times. There were definitely days when he wished he could be a normal teenager but he knew it wasn't possible. Alex's words were so simple and yet so true. They both had a duty to those who believe in them. There were many people counting on them. It was an extremely scary thought.
At that moment, there came a soft knock at the door. Ron got up and trudged across the room. When he opened the door, everyone could see a certain little house elf standing there with a large tray of food in his hands.
"Hey, Dobby," Ron's eyes lit up at the sight of the food. "Thanks a million, mate. I'll take that from you."
As soon as Dobby was free from the weight of the tray, he scampered a few feet into the room and dropped into low bow. "It was an honour, sir," Dobby said. "Dobby would do anything for any witch or wizard here, including Miss Reid."
"It's okay, Dobby," Alex rolled her eyes. "You can drop the act now. They all know."
"What?" Harry glanced back and forth between an amused Alex and a nervous Dobby. "Dobby, you knew who she was but you didn't say anything?"
"Dobby could tell she was a Potter, sir," Dobby wrung his hands nervously. "But Miss Potter told me with her eyes to keep it a secret, she did. Dobby meant no harm. Dobby would never purposely deceive Harry Potter."
"How did you know?" Ron asked in surprise.
"It was in Miss's magic," Dobby explained eagerly. "All wizards have a magic around them and hers was almost the same as Harry Potter's. And Miss had the same eyes as Harry Potter."
"Of course," Harry rolled his eyes.
"Don't worry about it Dobby," Alex shrugged her shoulders casually. "You did well. You did exactly what you were supposed to."
"Thank you, Alex Potter," Dobby bowed deep as he prepared to leave. "It is such an honour to help a Potter. Dobby was glad he could be of service." And with a loud CRACK, Dobby had disappeared.
"Well, that's that," Ron said through a mouthful of supper. "What I want to know is, why did you destroy that boggart that day in DA class. What was it going to turn into that you didn't want us to see? You-Know-Who?"
"Not exactly," Alex shivered slightly at the memory. "It would have turned into Salazar. He's the only thing that honestly scares me, especially after…well, you guys saw what happened. He's enough to give a person nightmares."
"I never heard you having any nightmares, though," Hermione pointed out.
"Yeah, well, that's what silencing charms are for," Alex muttered softly.
"You know what always got me," Harry wisely decided to change the subject. "I always wondered what it was you and the Sorting Hat said to each other. You looked liked you wanted to tear it to pieces."
"Oh that!" Alex suddenly laughed. "It was classic, really. The bloody thing wanted to stick me in Slytherin! Like father, like daughter I guess. I don't know why that hat's so intent on putting us there. I eventually had to tell it that I needed to be here in Gryffindor."
"Why?" Ron asked.
"So that I could spy on you guys," Alex said with a twinkle in her eye.
"Oh…"
"And what was up with Snape?" Ginny's nose scrunched slightly. "It was almost as if he…liked you or something. Don't tell me you're one of his favourite students."
"Nah, not really," Alex shrugged casually like it wasn't a big deal. "I think by the time I grew up he finally got his head out of his ass. I'm not saying he becomes best friends with Harry or anything, but I think he does realize that we're not so bad. Plus he does appreciate good work and I do excel in his class."
"So that's how you were able to make that wolfsbane potion so quickly!" Hermione gasped. "If you're so good at making potions, no wonder he likes you so much."
"Actually," Alex grinned mysteriously. "I learned potions from someone else and I had lots of practice making that particular potion because of Remus. I'm really only an average potion maker."
"But…"
"Hermione, you saw what the future was like," Alex explained patiently. "They taught…or teach classes a bit differently. We didn't have time to focus on little details and writing tests every week. Things were a bit more practical. We learned the spells we needed to learn in order to survive. If it wasn't very useful, then we didn't spend much time on it. That's why I'm not that good on tests and pointless drills. If I'm not interested or if I don't see the importance in something, then I don't do that well. I just don't care. And as for Snape…he's not exactly teaching Potions when I'm at Hogwarts."
"What does he teach?" Harry asked.
"Defense Against the Dark Arts," Alex said with deadpan expression, though her lip twitched as she waited for their reactions.
"WHAT?"
"WHY?"
"HOW?"
"Who's so bloody insane that they'd give Snape that job?" Ron shuddered at the thought. "It'd be pure torture, I tell you. Might as well be eaten alive by flesh-eating spiders."
"Ron," Hermione reasoned. "Spiders don't eat…"
"Uh, hello!" Ron sputtered. "Those giant ones in the forest do! You missed that lovely adventure!"
"I was lying petrified in the hospital wing!" Hermione exclaimed.
"Yeah, lucky you."
"Anyway," Ginny said loudly. "If Snape's not teaching Potions anymore, then who took his place? Anyone we know?"
"Oh, you might," Alex said secretively. For the briefest moment, Alex's gaze lingered on Hermione. It was so quick that no one was able to pick up on it. "Hey guys, you know I'd love to stay here tonight, but I think us girls would be a lot more comfortable if we had some proper pajamas…"
"I agree," Hermione said. "Why don't we go get some of our things then come back in a minute?"
"Sure," Ginny agreed. "We'll be right back."
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"Hello, Crookshanks," Hermione instinctively patted him on his head as he lounged peacefully on her bed. She and Alex started collecting what they needed from Hermione's room, when all of a sudden Hermione spun around and looked at her pet. "Crookshanks! I almost forgot. Alex, what on Earth happened the day you two first met?"
"Ha! That's a good one!" Alex threw her head back and laughed. "I think Crookshanks freaked out because he sensed something different in me. I'm really not supposed to be here in this time period, so I'm sure I felt wrong to him. Plus I was lying through my teeth so often, so naturally he'd hate me for that. He was just reacting to his instincts. But I couldn't let him continue like that so I brought him up here to have a little heart-to-heart. He didn't want to listen at first but then I changed into my panther form and was able to calm him down. Once he figured out who I was and that I didn't mean any harm, everything was fine. We've been best mates ever since, isn't that right Crookshanks?"
Crookshanks turned his head in Alex's direction and lazily twitched his tail a few times in response. A low rumbling purr came from deep inside him.
"Unbelievable," Hermione stared between Alex and Crookshanks in fascination. She shook her head and continued gathering her stuff. When she was finished she took a moment to sit on her bed. Hermione glanced at Alex who was also finished and patiently waiting to go. One part of Hermione was ready to leave too, but another part of her was holding her back. One part of her mind had too many questions and some of them needed to be addressed. She just had to be sure…
"Alex," Hermione started softly. Alex sensed the sudden change in tone and slowly sat herself down on the corner of the bed. "In the future…did you know all about my parents and how they died? That it was Voldemort who killed them?"
Alex carefully kept her face set in a neutral expression. "Yes," she said just as softly.
"And in your memory…" Hermione plunged forward. "When I told you to not change anything no matter what…I was referring to my parents, wasn't I?"
There was no point for Alex to lie.
"Yes."
Although Hermione had suspected the answer, it still hit her like a Bludger. She couldn't stop the painful sob that escaped her mouth or the tears that suddenly blurred her vision. For a few terrifying moments, it felt like she couldn't breathe. Alex slowly inched forward, concern shining in her own glossy eyes.
"Hermione?"
"Oh, Alex," Hermione broke down and fell into Alex's waiting arms. She cried openly for the first time since the night of her parents' death. "So all this time, you knew that my parents would die?"
Alex's heart plummeted to the ground. She never meant for it to be like this. From the moment she had decided that she would show the others her memory, she was afraid that this would happen. She knew there would be consequences but she felt that they needed to know. And now Hermione was going to hate her for it, for allowing her parents to die and not saying anything.
"I'm so sorry," Alex whispered earnestly as her tears began to fall. "It broke my heart to just stand back and not do anything about it. I wanted to so much, Hermione, I wanted to stop it from happening and I fought with myself everyday about it…"
"No!" Hermione suddenly exclaimed, sitting up straight. "You couldn't have!"
"Yes, I could," Alex said. "I could have found a way. I could have done it secretly so no one else would know."
"Don't be ridiculous," Hermione swiped the back of her hand across her eyes. "You promised the future me that you wouldn't change anything. Now I know that I've done my fair share of time traveling in the past, but this case is different. My parents were long gone by the time you all decided to do what you're doing. And if you did happen to save my parents, then where do you draw the line? What else could you change?"
"So you're not angry, then?" Alex asked hopefully. Hermione sighed deeply and hiccupped.
"It's hard to accept, but no, I'm not angry at you," Hermione said. "A part of me needed to know, that's all. You did what you were supposed to do. Besides, I think everything will be alright in the end. I seem fine in the future. I think I just need time to adjust. This is fate anyway, it's all meant to happen."
"Like Bilbo was meant to find the Ring and Frodo was meant to carry it," Alex grinned. Hermione gently laughed.
"Yeah, something like that. You must really like Lord of the Rings."
"They're my mother's favourite books," Alex recalled fondly. "She used to read them to me all the time when I was little. I think she got her first copies when she was young, maybe when she was our age."
"Our age, huh? So who…"
"Not a chance, Hermione, not a chance."
The two girls just sat in silence for a minute, feeling a bit lighter yet sleepy as well. However, they knew the others were expecting them. "Come on," Alex stood up and extended a hand. "Let's go find Ginny and get back to the boys. I don't know about you but this has been one really long day. I'm about to fall asleep standing up."
Hermione reached out and took Alex's offered hand. She smiled gratefully for her strong support.
"Yes, it has been quite a day."
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A/N: Please review!
Next Chapter: The gang finds out more about Alex...Harry and Alex have a little heart-to-heart.