Harry Potter and the Cult of Shadows

by chadsgirl824

AFTER HOGWARTS Harry now works at Hogwarts and has his hands full as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor. But Voldemort's fate is still a mystery and dark forces are closer than anyone imagines. Written before OotP

7. Chapter 7

The weekend continued on, with everything seeming to resume its normal pace. Harry had spent much of his time working out a lesson plan on how he would teach the students the Patronus charm. He'd also made a few short visits to the Library, looking for any information there might be on the Lestranges, but had not yet had the chance to fully read through any of the books Madam Pince had recommended.

Soon enough, classes began again, and Harry was still finishing up the lessons that each class had been working on. As his first lesson back in September had been with the first-years, they would be the first class to start work on the Patronus Charm.

When Thursday morning arrived at last, Harry made sure to arrive at the dark arts classroom early to once again go over his lesson outline. He had no basis to plan the session on, other than what Remus had gone through with him five years ago, but that had been one on one…this would be different.

After the students had finished arriving, and role-call was through, Harry stepped around to the front of his desk, gently leaning against it, as he looked out over the sea of curious faces.

"We're going to start working on something new today," he began gently. "Before we begin, however, there are a few things we need to go over. The first being, can any of you tell me…what a dementor is?"

There was no reply at first. Some students' brows furrowed in confusion, while others looked as if they might have an idea, but weren't sure. Harry looked out over the students, noticing the only one who looked afraid, was Hadley. She sat silently at her desk, her lips set in a straight line and her eyes focused on her fidgeting hands. After just a moment, however, Ariele's hand rose slowly into the air.

Harry nodded at her softly, and when she replied, she was clearly uncertain.

"Aren't…aren't they…guards? For a…a prison?" she asked quietly.

"That's right," Harry replied with a nod. "They're guards, at a prison."

"So…they're good guys, then?" Lea asked, curiously.

"Well, they try to be," Harry replied, not wanting to scare the students. He was here to teach them to protect themselves, not give them nightmares. "But sometimes they become confused, and that's the reason for today's lesson." He turned around, leaning over his desk to grab a red leather-bound book he'd brought with him, and flipped through it to a page he'd marked earlier, before facing the class again. "I'm going to pass this around the room and I want all of you to take a good look at the picture. This is a dementor."

He set the book down in front of Ariele, watching as she examined the image. It didn't show the dementor's face, only its black robes and long, thin hands. But the picture gave them an idea of a dementor's height and the way it moved, as a member of the ministry was standing beside it, and the two were heading forward, towards some unknown destination in a cold, stone hallway.

"Professor?"

"Yes Ariele?" Harry nodded as the small girl lowered her hand.

"What did you mean when you said they become confused? How?"

"Well, the dementors don't have any eyes," Harry replied carefully. "And if they were to come near you, they wouldn't be able to see you the same way you and I can see each other. If for some reason they're ever away from Azkaban, and they come near you, you would know it because the air around you would suddenly become very cold. You might feel sad or upset, as this is one of the powers of a dementor, and if this happens, you want to get away as soon as possible."

"What if you can't get away?" Hadley's uncharacteristically small voice spoke up then, her piercing blue eyes locking with Harry's green ones.

"That's what I'm going to be showing you today," Harry replied, trying to sound reassuring. "There's a charm you can use, it's called the Patronus Charm. Now before we go any further, I have to let you know, this is not going to be part of your grade. I'm showing you this so you can protect yourselves if the situation calls for it. The Patronus Charm is very advanced and I'm not expecting that any of you should have mastered it by the time we're through with this lesson. We're going to work on the charm for a few weeks, and after that anyone who would like to continue lessons on it can let me know, and I'll set up time either after class or on the weekends."

He paused then, as Ethan brought the book back to the front, handing it to Harry, who thanked him, before returning to his seat.

"Alright," Harry continued, "now I'm going to show you the charm once, so you can see what it looks like, and then we'll begin."

Drawing his wand from his pocket and stepping around his desk to where he'd have a bit more room, Harry saw he had the rapt attention of every last student, before he called out the words.

"Expecto Patronum!"

A brilliant silver light shot at once from the tip of his wand, quickly taking the form of the stag, Prongs. It reared up on its hind legs in utter silence, before hitting the ground noiselessly, and fading from sight.

When Harry returned his gaze to the students he couldn't help but smile at the astonished expressions on their faces.

"We're…we're gonna be able to do that?" Ariele asked, excitedly.

"Well I'm going to start you on learning how, at least," Harry replied gently. "We'll see how far we can get."

He went on for a bit longer, explaining how each person's Patronus would take on a different form, and there was a good chance they might not see what that was for a long time, as the charm was not an easy one to master.

After the first half of the lesson was finished, however, and no one seemed to have any questions left for the time being, Harry decided it was time to let the practical lessons begin.

"Okay, who would like to try the charm first?" Harry asked looking out over the students, hoping one would volunteer. He glanced at Ariele, who looked as if she wanted to raise her hand, but was undecided. Devon, he noticed, was sitting with his eyes down, obviously not wanting to be called upon, much the same as many of the other students in the class. When suddenly he heard someone clear their throat softly from the left side of the room, Harry glanced over, not entirely surprised to see Hadley slowly lifting her arm into the air.

Smiling warmly, Harry motioned for the girl to come to the front of the room near him.

"Thank you Hadley," he said softly as she glanced uncertainly up at him. "Now, for this lesson we're not going to be practicing on a specific target…that won't come until much later. What I want you to do is think of something…anything…that makes you happy. The happiest you can ever remember being."

"Alright," Hadley replied hesitantly, her eyes narrowing in concentration.

"When you have the thought," Harry went on," When you can see the image clearly in your mind, I want you to try the charm…do you remember the words?"

Hadley nodded faintly in response.

"Good, take your time then…" he said quietly, "whenever you're ready."

Hadley made no reply this time, seemingly very deep in thought. The room was utterly silent for several long moments, waiting and watching, until finally, Hadley's gaze came back into focus, and she raised her wand.

"Expecto Patronum," she said without hesitation, a hopeful expression on her face. The tip of the wand lit up at once, a definite silver glow emanating from it, but there was no explosion of light. A delicate trickle of silver fog filtered into the air, and Hadley lowered her arm, clearly disappointed.

"Not happy enough, I guess," she muttered under her breath.

"Actually, you did amazingly well for your first try," Harry spoke up, smiling brightly down at her. "Just the fact that you were able to make your wand glow is wonderful!"

"Okay," Hadley nodded dejectedly, turning to head back to her seat.

"You can try once more, if you'd like…" Harry called out after her, but the small girl merely shook her head, and continued walking towards her desk.

Harry shook his head faintly. Hadley had only just begun learning the charm and already she was expecting too much of herself.

"Alright," he said loudly, returning his attention to the other students. "Who wants to go next?"

This time Ariele's hand went up first; she quickly rose from her seat and joined Harry at the front of the class. After making sure she understood what to do, he stepped back as she brought up her wand.

"Expecto Patronum," she said quickly, her eyes lighting up as the tip of her wand began to glow, before fading out seconds later.

"Excellent," Harry smiled down at the dark-haired girl who looked quite pleased with the result. She went back to her seat, smiling brightly, as several students began raising their hands into the air, all wanting to have a go at the charm. They made their way up to the front one at a time, some looking determined, others hesitant, and some just hopeful, but they all gave their best attempt at casting the Patronus. Most of the time, there would be no glow, no light, their wands would give no indication that the charm had been called out, but that was what Harry had been expecting, and assured the students they shouldn't let this discourage them. Of the few whose wands did produce a glow, it faded quickly. Hadley was the only one so far to have anything actually emit from the tip of her wand. Even if it had only been a thin, shapeless fog, it was quite impressive.

With only a few minutes left to the class and only one student who still hadn't raised his hand, Harry finally had to call on him.

"Devon?" he asked gently, waiting for the small boy to bring up his gaze before going on. "Would you like to come up here and have a try?"

Devon's expression clearly stated that he'd rather do anything else, and his eyes flickered hopefully towards the clock on the wall, only to find there was no chance he could wait it out. There was just over ten minutes left to the lesson.

Sighing almost inaudibly, Devon stood slowly from his seat and shuffled to the front of the class.

"Are you unsure about something? Did you want to go over this again?" Harry asked, wondering why this boy who always before seemed to enjoy practical lessons was now giving the impression he wanted to run from the classroom.

"No," Devon replied quietly, slipping his hand into his pocket and pulling out his wand.

Harry watched as the boy closed his eyes, concentration etched in his features as he brought up his arm and spoke in a timid little voice.

"Expecto Patronum."

Devon's words were followed instantly by a dazzling burst of silver light from the tip of his wand. The light began to fill up the air in front of him, growing rapidly larger, and the rest of the class looked on in awe as the essence began to take on a definite shape.

Harry couldn't believe it either, after the obvious hesitation the boy had displayed towards attempting the charm, he never expected this to be the result.

The silver mist was still swirling in the air, not having completed taking on any form, and Harry looked down at Devon to congratulate him for such a good job, but stopped as he saw the boy's eyes were still closed tightly.

A collective disappointed groan from the class caused Harry to glance up quickly, however, to see the silver fog was dissipating now, not having taken on any form.

"Sorry," Devon murmured quietly and Harry looked down on him once more to see the boy's blue eyes looking straight back at him.

"Don't be," Harry replied at once, a smile crossing his lips as he put a hand on Devon's shoulder "you did wonderful."

The small boy nodded faintly, before dropping his wand into his pocket and heading back to his seat. The other Gryffindors were all looking upon him with amazement and respect; even some of the Slytherins were obviously impressed, with one clear exception.

Hadley was glaring darkly at Devon, who failed to notice her staring as many of his housemates began talking to him excitedly. Harry noticed immediately, however, and shook his head in frustration. Hadley was definitely one who wanted to be the best at everything, and clearly didn't like it when someone outdid her, but she would have to learn to accept it when it happened. He would not allow a repeat of what had happened with the Ashwinder simply because she was upset with one of her classmates.

The lesson came to a close then, and the students rose at once, filing out of the room and still going on about what Devon had just done. Devon, for his part, seemed to be somewhat enjoying the attention, a small grin on his face as he was pulled along with a group of Gryffindors on their way to their next lesson.

Harry watched after him happily, still amazed at how well he'd done for his first attempt at the charm, and glad to see him smiling. As the last few students gathered their things and exited the room, Harry turned away and crossed around behind his desk to prepare for the next lesson.

By the end of the next day, Harry was ready for a break from classes and was quite thankful it was the weekend. He knew the Patronus Charm would be quite difficult for any student to learn, but trying to instruct 30 to 40 of them at a time how to cast it was proving to be just as complicated.

Now that he didn't have to worry about it for a couple of days, however, there was something he'd been wanting to do. As soon as he'd finished breakfast on Saturday morning, Harry made his way back upstairs and entered his office, heading straight to his desk where he'd left the books he'd taken from the library. Settling down on the couch in the corner, for he had no idea how long this would take, he plucked the top book from the pile and opened it on his lap, a waft of dust rising into the air from the movement. The book, obviously, had not been read through in a long while and Harry let out a small cough, waving the gritty air away quickly, before sitting back and starting to read.

For several hours, Harry flipped through page after page, searching for any information that could be useful. Madam Pince had known what she was talking about; Harry could see right away that this book alone was filled with information that the ministry had gathered on the Lestranges, but none of it was what he was looking for. He was interested to find out that both Adrik and Lilith had attended Hogwarts and been expelled, but there was little said about the incident or incidents that caused their expulsion.

There was also a great deal of information on crimes they had committed, and sometimes, Harry thought, a little too much detail on what exactly they had done to their victims, but again, it wasn't what he wanted to know.

Book after book he searched through, scouring the pages for information, slowly coming to the realization that he would never find what he was looking for here.

After what felt like ages, feeling tired and hungry, Harry weakly tossed the last book aside and slipped his glasses off. He set them down on the couch and began massaging around his eyes and his temples, realizing how dark the room had grown as the sun had begun to set. There had to be more information somewhere on the Lestranges…this couldn't be all there was…

As that thought was going through his mind Harry jerked his head up suddenly, hastily grabbing for his glasses as he heard the door to his office open abruptly and slamming against the stone wall.

"Professor Snape," Harry said curiously as his eyes came back into focus. He looked questioningly at the potions master, wondering what the reason for this visit could possibly be. He knew he hadn't punished any Slytherins recently…

"Not hungry today, Potter?" Snape said briskly as he strode across the room, coming to a stop on the opposite side of the coffee table in front of Harry. "I haven't seen you since breakfast."

"Concerned?" Harry asked with a smirk, unable to stop himself.

"No," Snape replied bluntly. "But I would rather not have had to make the trip up to your office…"

"Who ever said you had to?" Harry asked.

"I received an owl this morning, from Albus," Snape said quietly. "He didn't say much, but asked that I speak to you about a potion you were given on Halloween…" he trailed off, his eyes flashing darkly before continuing. "I see you're back to your old habits despite the fact that you're supposed to be setting a good example now as an instructor here…getting yourself into trouble and sticking your nose where it doesn't belong."

"You have no idea what you're talking about!" Harry spoke fiercely, feeling a surge of anger as he jumped up from his seat, meeting Snape's eyes. "I wasn't anywhere I shouldn't have been, and the Lestranges snuck into Ron and Hermione's house!"

"Yes I recall hearing from Minerva that Albus came here that night with Malfoy and that idiot, Black, looking for you," Snape sneered. "How is it no one here knew where you were but the Lestranges did?"

"I don't know," Harry replied stiffly.

"Carelessness on your behalf, I suspect," Snape replied almost casually, and before Harry could utter one word, he went on quickly. "But that's not what I'm here for…now tell me about the potion, I don't want to spend all night here."

"Well we agree on that, at least," Harry said sharply. "And what do you want to know about it? Albus must've told you we don't know what the ingredients were…"

Snape rolled his eyes impatiently, giving Harry a withering look.

"Thank you Potter, I'm quite aware of that fact, yes…" he began snidely, "Tell me what it looked like, what you felt, what the side effects were…"

Harry set his mouth in a thin line, staring straight into Snape's dark eyes, before beginning to speak. He went through as best he could remember, all that had happened from the moment he was handed the glass with the blue flame in it.

"I don't remember the exact words he used," Harry said as he thought back to when Adrik had held the wand to his wrist. "But I saw a mark when he was finished…Albus said it was the mark of the Cult of Shadows."

"Anything else?" Snape asked curtly.

"That's it," Harry replied quietly, "he and Lilith left just after that…and once the mark faded, I could move again."

"Let me see your wrist," Snape said briskly, stepping forward and looking expectantly at Harry who held out his right arm and turned it upwards.

"That's where I saw the mark," Harry said, pointing to the spot on his wrist.

Snape took hold of Harry's wrist in both hands, staring at the skin under his thumb, examining it closely. After a moment of squinting, the potions master pulled out his wand and lit the tip.

"Here," he muttered, thrusting the wand at Harry who took it and aimed it at his arm. After another few minutes and still nothing, he opened his mouth to ask Snape if he thought he knew something, when suddenly the potions master started moving, pulling Harry along with him. The two moved away from either side of the table and came to a stop in front of the crackling fire in the hearth.

"Not enough light from your wand?" Harry asked, confused, as Snape knelt in front of the blaze, forcing Harry to his knees as well. The potions master made no reply, simply motioned for Harry to hush while he continued to look at his wrist.

After several more minutes, Snape began to lean towards the flames, but with Harry's arm out in front of him. Harry seized up immediately, trying to jerk his arm back.

"What are you…?" he began, stopping as Snape looked towards him, his eyes flashing intensely.

"I'm not going to hurt you Potter," he stated sharply. "Now if you'll let me finish what I was doing…" he trailed off, expectantly. Harry had no idea what was going on, but no matter what he thought of Snape, he honestly didn't believe the potions master would intentionally harm him. He allowed the older man to move his wrist towards the blaze, feeling the sweat break out on his hand from the powerful heat.

"Bring the light up," Snape snapped without turning his gaze away. Harry brought up the wand once more, aiming it at his wrist and trying to lean forward as best he could without getting in Snape's way.

"There…" Snape whispered suddenly and Harry looked to where the potions master was pointing to see what looked to be just another shadow in the flickering of the firelight…however this one wasn't moving. It was a dark circle on his wrist, just under his thumb.

After several seconds, Snape released Harry's arm, and snatched his wand back before starting to stand.

"Do you know what it does?" Harry asked quietly, standing up as well, and glancing down to his wrist. The mark had vanished the moment he had taken it away from the flames. "Or how I get rid of it?"

"Do you really think I have enough information to answer either of those questions, Mr. Potter?" Snape replied impatiently.

"I didn't mean…I just thought…since you knew how to make it appear…" Harry stammered.

"I didn't know, it was simply a hunch," Snape replied with a smug sneer on his lips. "You told me Lestrange had you drink fire…in similar potions one can use the same substance they've imbibed to get the desired result."

"But that wasn't the mark I saw before…it was just a shadow," Harry said quietly.

"Well we don't exactly have the same substance now do we?" Snape snapped. "And it seems most unlikely that we ever will, unless Adrik feels the need to inform you of the components he used when mixing the potion."

"No, probably not…" Harry trailed off with an inaudible sigh. He glanced again to his wrist, realizing they weren't any closer to figuring this out, before looking back up to see Snape heading for the door.

"W-wait…" Harry called out, hesitantly, causing the potions master to look over his shoulder, an irritable expression on his face. "That's all?" he asked quietly.

"What were you expecting, Potter?" Snape replied darkly. "Unless there's something you've forgotten to tell me then, yes, that's all I can do. The mark doesn't seem to be harming you in any way…and if it were meant to be something the cult could use to trace you, I'd say it isn't working properly. You've had that for a week now, and the Shadow Walkers are not the most patient beings…they would have come for you by now."

"What happens when they do come?" Harry asked suddenly, unable to stop himself. "How do I fight them?"

"I have other things to do tonight, Potter…" Snape growled as he turned away again, realizing instantly what Harry was getting at.

"When can I use the crystals again?" Harry blurted out, stubbornly, refusing to give up. This was too important.

"I do not have time for this," Snape hissed, turning and looking yet again into Harry's deep green eyes. "And we do not have time to continue the lessons."

"Don't you think it's possible for us to make time?" Harry asked persistently, "I'm willing to do whatever I have to…"

"It doesn't matter how much time we have!" Snape interrupted fiercely, with a sudden, sharp slash of his hand through the air. He paused a brief moment, before continuing in a deathly calm tone. "The lessons are at a standstill…we can't progress any further right now."

"But why?" Harry asked, confused. "What is it that's stopping us? If we work with them more often, won't that help?"

Snape made no reply, and stared back at Harry, who could see the anger building in his eyes, but couldn't understand why…he wasn't asking for anything unreasonable…

Without another word, the potions master turned with a violent swish of his robes, making it abundantly clear the discussion was over, and stalked out of the office, leaving Harry staring after him in bewilderment.

The month went on, and Harry continued the lessons on the Patronus Charm for the full three weeks McGonagall had allowed him. Snape was ignoring him quite obviously now, which Harry normally would have been glad for, but due to the circumstances, it only irritated him. Why was the potions master being so obstinate over the crystals? Didn't he see how important it was for Harry to be allowed to use them? He didn't even care about the lessons anymore…he just wanted to know he could call on the stones if necessary.

Hoping that wouldn't be the case for a while longer, at least, Harry tried not to think about Snape or the stones, deciding to concentrate on classes…and looking for information on the Lestranges.

By the last week of November, several students had progressed to the point where they were able to produce a silver fog from their wand. The majority of these were, of course, in their sixth or seventh year at school, and hadn't needed much motivation to learn the charm. They were all well aware of what the dementors could do.

In his Thursday morning classes, the first-years, while very eager to learn, were simply not powerful enough to handle the charm yet, with few exceptions.

Devon was still able to cast the closest thing to a Patronus of his class, and, Harry realized, of just about any other student in the school. He was still very hesitant any time he was called upon to come to the front of the room and try the charm again, but he always did, and each time produced the same result; a massive amount of silver light and fog, that never took on a definite shape.

Hadley, for her part, was rapidly closing in on Devon's level, her own results growing with each attempt. However, instead of showing pride for her work, which was truly exceptional given her age and experience, she only seemed to exhibit anger and resentment towards Devon, and always returned to her seat looking frustrated.

Knowing there was little he could do to change this, Harry simply made sure to keep an eye on Hadley whenever she was around Devon, which, thankfully, wasn't often outside of class.

On weekends, Harry spent a good deal of time trying to find information on the Lestranges, in between preparing for future lessons and stopping by at quidditch practices. He barely saw Ginny outside of class anymore, seeing as how the first match for Gryffindor was very near. Quidditch practices were in full swing again, the same as Harry remembered them from his early years at Hogwarts…before all the cancelled matches and the seasons were called off…before Voldemort's return.

He was glad though, glad that Ginny and the other members of the team would experience at least one year of normal, fun game play.

On the Friday before the match, Harry had finally given up in his search for information on the Lestranges. He'd even gone so far as to ask Minerva what she could tell him, only to find it was the same information he himself and found in the books. What he was looking for was obviously not in the school…he would have to go elsewhere. So when classes had finished for the day and dinner was over, Harry decided to visit the ministry, and hoped that Dumbledore hadn't left for the evening.

After returning to his quarters to grab his cloak and Moontrimmer, Harry made his way down to the main entrance of Hogwarts and stepped out into the chilly, evening air. He knew the ministry could easily open up a floo channel to reach the school, but he wasn't sure who to contact in order to ask, and didn't want to waste any time waiting. So he set off at once for Hogsmeade, arriving quickly in the small town and heading for the Floo Station.

He decided to keep his broom with him this time, and simply paid the small toll required to get to the ministry building. As soon as he stepped out into the dim, nearly deserted lobby, Harry headed straight across the hall to the indoor grates and stepped in. He directed it to the sixth floor and began walking towards the head minister's office immediately.

The door, he saw, was shut tightly and Harry couldn't tell in the bright hallway if there was light shining under the entryway or not, so when he came to a halt just before it, he lifted his hand and knocked, gently.

He waited, hoping to hear Dumbledore's voice call out to him as he usually did, but there was no response. Harry sighed lightly. The head minister must have left for the day, and Harry would simply have to wait to speak with him. He tightened the grip on his broom and started to turn away, when without warning the door swung forcefully open behind him.

Harry glanced over his shoulder, to find Travis looking curiously back at him.

"Harry?" Travis asked hesitantly, not sure if he'd remembered the name correctly or not.

"Yes," Harry nodded with a grin, turning to fully face the young man, "How are you Travis? It's nice to see you again."

"It's nice to see you too…" Travis nodded, trailing off as his eyes widened and a large smile broke out across his face. "Is…is that your broom?" he asked, pointing excitedly at the Moontrimmer.

Harry glanced down instinctively, before looking back up and nodding pleasantly.

"Would you like to see it?" he asked, receiving an enthusiastic nod in reply. "C'mon, I'll let you look at it inside," Harry said with a grin, stepping forward as Travis moved aside, allowing him into the large office.

"Where's Albus?" Harry asked as Travis gratefully took the broom from his hand, plopping down on the floor in front of the desk at once and beginning to examine it.

"He'll be back in a few minutes," Travis replied absently.

Harry nodded softly, lowering himself into the nearest chair and just watching Travis.

"Is this the first time you've ever held a broom?" Harry asked, uncertainly.

"Oh no, I've held lots of brooms," Travis replied happily. "Just never one as nice as the Moontrimmer 800. All the professional teams use these! I love watching quidditch too…it's just amazing how the players move around so quickly…" he paused briefly, tearing his eyes away from the broom and looking up at Harry with wide eyes. "Do you play?" he asked.

"Not professionally, no," Harry grinned lightly. "I did play while I was in school though…"

"What position?" Travis cut in.

"Seeker," Harry grinned.

"Wow…" Travis breathed, letting out a small laugh. "That's fantastic…you played the best position! Well…in my opinion, anyway…"

"Thank you," Harry smiled, before going on. "Have you ever been to a professional game then? Who's your favorite team?"

Travis shook his head, slowly.

"No…I've never been to one, I just watch from home. I'm a muggle…and even though it's not illegal or anything for me to be there…there are some who wouldn't much care for it."

"So…you've never seen a live game…ever?" Harry asked softly, feeling a familiar twinge of anger, knowing how some wizards thought so little of muggles.

"Not once," Travis shrugged, turning the broom over in his hands yet again.

Harry watched him a moment longer, wishing there were something he could do for him, when a thought came to his head.

"If…if you'd like," he began slowly. "And only if your uncle says it's alright…you can come visit me at Hogwarts tomorrow…there's a quidditch game scheduled for the morning."

"A real game? Seriously?" Travis asked, looking up at Harry with undisguised delight.

"Yes a real game, but not a professional one," Harry said quickly, trying to stifle a laugh at the other man's reaction. "It'd just be the students playing."

"I wouldn't mind!" Travis replied enthusiastically. "That would be so wicked!"

A soft laugh from the doorway broke through the conversation and both boys looked up to find Dumbledore grinning back at them as he entered his office, his eyes twinkling.

"And what is it today that has you so excited, Travis?" he asked as he walked towards his nephew.

"Harry said I can go to a quidditch game with him!" Travis exclaimed happily, beaming at his uncle.

"Did he?" Dumbledore replied, arching an eyebrow as he turned his gaze on Harry.

"I said if it was alright with you," Harry explained quickly. "And only to one of the school games…nothing too big…"

Dumbledore seemed to consider this for a long moment, and Harry wondered if he'd perhaps made a mistake in asking Travis, when slowly the head minister began to nod.

"Very well," he replied, grinning down at Travis. "If you would like to attend the game, you may."

"Thank you uncle!" Travis said, jumping up from his spot and hugging Albus tightly. Harry was taken aback by how childlike the man behaved, but smiled just the same.

"You're very welcome," the older man grinned as Travis lowered himself once again to the floor, before continuing, seriously, "Now I need to speak with Harry for a short while…will you wait right in here and not touch anything?"

"Yes," Travis nodded briefly, unable to stop smiling, and suddenly looked to Harry. "May I look at your broom a bit longer?"

Harry glanced hesitantly to Dumbledore, not knowing if this was alright or not, but the former headmaster nodded once.

"Sure Travis, keep it safe for me," Harry replied with a wink, looking away as Dumbledore began walking towards the doorway to the back room, motioning for him to follow.

"He gets excited easily, doesn't he?" Harry asked as he took a seat on the couch in the next room while Dumbledore closed the door over, leaving it open just a crack to listen for Travis.

"Yes he does," Albus nodded as he crossed the room, taking a seat in the armchair and looking up to meet Harry's gaze. "He has been that way ever since he was 9…that is how he was born."

"What…what do you mean?" Harry asked, suddenly realizing he had a good idea of exactly what the former headmaster had meant, but not wanting to assume.

"I mean just that," Dumbledore replied softly. "Travis is a grown man who can hold a conversation or perform a task if you ask it of him. There are many things he enjoys and many things he does not…but he will always see things from the same perspective as he did when he was a small boy."

"I'm sorry," Harry murmured, not sure what to say.

"Don't be," Dumbledore replied, a warm smile spreading across his face. "Travis is quite happy with his life, and has a family who loves him for who he is. He gets along just fine…" he trailed off, pausing for a brief moment before continuing in a slightly more serious tone. "The reason I even bring this up is because of your offer to him…for the quidditch match tomorrow."

"I'm so sorry about that sir, I didn't even think…" Harry began.

"It's quite alright, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore interrupted gently. "I am not angry with you. I think it will be wonderful for Travis to see a real quidditch game. I simply wanted you to be aware that you will have to keep a close watch on him. Don't let him wander off…or get into anything he shouldn't."

"No, no…of course not," Harry replied quickly, nodding his assurance. "I'll stay right with him the whole time he's there."

"Thank you," Dumbledore nodded with a small smile, before continuing. "Now…I assume you asking Travis to the game tomorrow was not the reason for your visit this evening…"

"No, it wasn't" Harry replied, seriously. "There are some things I'd like to ask you…if you have the time. I don't want to keep you from anything…"

"What would you like to ask?" Dumbledore spoke quietly.

"Well…it's mostly about the Lestranges. I've been looking for information on them…I've checked every book Madam Pince has recommended and more…but I can't find anything I want to know. It usually lists several of the more gruesome crimes they committed…and skips right to them being sent to Azkaban after the trials…"

"And what is it you would like to know of them?" Dumbledore asked, peering inquisitively at Harry from behind his half-moon glasses.

"Whatever you can tell me," Harry replied, solemnly.

For a long moment, Dumbledore said nothing, seemingly deep in thought. Harry waited as the seconds ticked by, and cleared his throat softly after a full ten minutes had passed without any response.

"If you can't tell me, that's alright too," Harry said softly. "Maybe if you could just give me an idea of where I might look to…"

"No, it's not that, Harry," Albus said quietly, seeming to sigh as he spoke, and continued on, his tone grave. "I can tell you something about the Lestranges…something you won't find in any books…"

Harry didn't reply as he sat forward in his seat, waiting for whatever the head minister was going to tell him. Dumbledore seemed to be collecting his thoughts, the warm look having vanished from his eyes as he finally began to speak.

"Adrik Lestrange and Lilith Prescott never tried to hide their interest in dark magic. It was a common bond that drew them together from the first day they met. They attended Hogwarts together for a short while, but were expelled in their fifth year…on this particular occasion, however, it was for something they did not do."

Harry's eyes narrowed questioningly, but he didn't interrupt as the head minister continued.

"I told you once before, Adrik loves to work with illusions, and that is somewhat of an understatement. Once he left Hogwarts, the wizarding world saw less and less of both he and Lilith, and for a great many years there was neither mention nor sighting of them at all. When at last they did resurface, as Voldemort began gaining power, they looked as if they hadn't aged a day since they were seventeen."

"Wouldn't they have been only a bit older than seventeen anyway?" Harry asked quietly, thinking the Lestranges, when he had seen them, looked close to Sirius and Marzia's age.

Dumbledore paused less than a moment, before speaking softly.

"Adrik and Lilith Lestrange are over 150 years old."

Harry's eyes widened and his jaw dropped in shock, having never expected this answer.

"They attended Hogwarts when I did," Dumbledore continued. "And made it very clear how little they thought of the lessons. They found most classes boring and useless, only truly paying attention during Potions and Defense Against the Dark Arts, but even those, after a short time, became dull for them. If their parents hadn't made them attend school, they would have been gone long before they were expelled."

"Why were they expelled?" Harry asked, finding his voice again.

"They were thought to be responsible for the deaths of two students, also fifth-years…and in a way, they were. But they were not the ones who killed them."

"Then, who did kill the students?" Harry asked, anxiously.

"Adrik and Lilith's best friends were the ones guilty of the crime. Jared Graham and Victoria Weston. The four of them were in Slytherin; inseparable from the moment they met. On the rare occasion they spoke to any student outside of their small group, it was usually to insult or taunt. They believed themselves to be above the rest of us."

"So…Jared and Victoria…did they frame Adrik and Lilith?" Harry asked, doubtfully. "If they were such good friends…why would they do that?"

"No one was framed, not at all," Dumbledore replied, shaking his head faintly. "When Adrik was told of his expulsion he didn't seem upset in the least…and in fact, couldn't stop smiling. Lilith's reaction was quite similar. I, myself, am rather certain Adrik and Lilith willingly took the blame for their best friends. Both as a way of thanking them, and as an escape from the school, knowing they would be barred from returning."

"Thanking them?" Harry repeated, horrified. "For what?"

Dumbledore shook his head, looking angry and tired over the memories he was dredging up, but sighed inaudibly, and continued with the story.

"The whole thing came about in a potions lesson in the spring of our fifth year," he said solemnly, his blue eyes looking far off as he spoke. "Adrik and Lilith had always excelled in this class, and as such had become quite overconfident…and careless. We were reviewing in preparation for the OWLs that day, working on a simple poison, a transparent substance that would exterminate any unwanted pests lurking about in your attic or cellar. Near the end of class, Professor Lyman had asked for a volunteer pair whose potion would be tested; Adrik and Lilith, as always, raised their hands. They loved nothing more than to show off their skills whenever the chance arose. So Professor Lyman brought a rat from a cage he'd kept near his desk over to Adrik and Lilith, and they dribbled a small amount of the poison on the table in front of the small animal."

"And?" Harry asked, uneasily.

"The rat didn't die…not right away, at least. But the torment it endured from the moment it tasted the potion was quite obvious. If the ingredients had been mixed correctly, the animal would have felt no pain, and simply passed away within moments of drinking the potion."

"They made it wrong then," Harry spoke up, and Dumbledore nodded silently.

"Something they did not want to admit under any circumstances," he said quietly. "Adrik turned on the students at the desk beside his, accusing them of tampering with his ingredients while he wasn't looking, but before either of them could even begin to defend themselves, another student, Garrick Fairleigh, interrupted the argument. He pointed out a small vile which was barely visible from under Adrik and Lilith's desk. When Professor Lyman retrieved it, he found it was the pinch of Nightshade that would have been required in order to kill the rat quickly. Adrik and Lilith were infuriated…and humiliated."

"What happened after that? Did they say anything to Garrick?" Harry asked.

"Quite the contrary, they remained utterly silent," Dumbledore replied. "They spoke to no one for the rest of class, and seemed almost subdued for the remainder of the day. In the days following, however, classes went on as usual…Adrik and Lilith were behaving as they always did…and it seemed the matter was forgotten. Three days later, Garrick was found dead in his dormitory, as well as one other Gryffindor fifth-year."

"What happened to them?" Harry asked, continuing quickly. "Poison?" he guessed, feeling suddenly sure.

"The very same poison Adrik and Lilith had mixed incorrectly, yes," Dumbledore nodded gravely.

"Who was the other student?" Harry asked quickly, rushing on as the thoughts came to him. "How were Adrik and Lilith caught…and why weren't Jared and Victoria blamed? Are you certain they're the ones who did it?"

"I am quite certain it was Jared and Victoria," Dumbledore said gravely. "You see, the other student who was poisoned, was a close friend of mine. Patrick Dalton. We were both prefects in our fifth-year, and as such were out after the other students every night, walking through the halls to make sure everything was in order, as is the duty of all prefects. Patrick, regrettably, was assigned to the lower halls of the school the night after the incident in the potions classroom. He told me after he'd returned to the common room, that he'd seen Jared out in the corridors, carrying a small sack, and that Jared had seen him as well."

"What did he do?" Harry asked uneasily.

"Patrick called out to Jared, but the boy paid no attention. He ignored Patrick and continued on his way, in the direction of the Slytherin dorms. Patrick followed after him…and would not tell me exactly what happened after that, but I believe Jared threatened Patrick, as my friend now refused to report to the headmaster about having found a student in the halls after curfew."

"Was Jared really that…" Harry trailed off, searching for the right word… "Intimidating?" he asked at last.

"Not in the sense that he was bigger or stronger than Patrick, no. He was not exceptionally tall or muscular…but his eyes were as black as his hair…and his heart. Jared never did anything without first ensuring the preservation of his own best interests, and a great number of students that ever had the misfortune of speaking with him usually went away fearing him…Patrick included."

"That was it then? Jared never got in trouble for that night?" Harry asked quietly.

"Unfortunately, no," Dumbledore replied, shaking his head, a wave of guilt passing through his eyes. "I stayed up long into the night with Patrick, trying to get him to tell me why he wouldn't even consider reporting Jared…and in the end, he asked that I give him my word…that I would say nothing as well. If I had known then, the consequences of making that promise, I never would have done it."

"You did it because he was your friend though," Harry said softly, seeing the hurt clearly in Dumbledore's eyes as if this had all just happened yesterday.

"Yes he was," Dumbledore nodded slowly. "The closest friend I'd had in all my years attending school…and my promise cost him his life. Jared was stealing the ingredients so as to secretly brew the potion we had been working on in class, and Patrick caught him in the act. Jared made sure that Patrick would never be able to tell what he knew to anyone ever again."

"How did he do it though?" Harry asked, his brow furrowed in thought. "How did he manage to get them to take the poison without them knowing?"

"That is where Victoria comes in," Dumbledore replied darkly, his eyes narrowing. "The evening before Patrick was found in his bed…he and I were in the library, studying. We'd been there nearly an hour, when someone came to our table…and it was Victoria. She was looking at Patrick, smiling as if he and she were good friends, and asked him if he had any spare parchment that she could borrow, rather than make the trip back to her common room to get her own. Now Patrick was just as surprised at her request as I, myself was, but he, just as a great many of the male students did, thought Victoria to be very beautiful. She had the deepest red hair and the darkest brown eyes I've ever seen to this day. Her skin was so fair, it only made her other features stand out more dramatically, and Patrick simply could not find it in him to refuse her request. Not that I blame him…I don't know what fifteen-year-old boy would ever have turned her down."

Dumbledore paused then, taking a moment to collect his thoughts, and Harry waited anxiously but quietly, until the head minister began speaking again.

"My mistake," the older man spoke gravely, "was not being more observant. Patrick opened his bag and sifted through it, finding a few spare sheets of parchment and handing them to Victoria, who promptly lost her grip on them. She knelt down immediately, laughing quietly about her clumsiness, and gathered the papers up again. When she stood once more, she smiled sweetly at Patrick and thanked him, before turning away and walking back across the library. What I never realized until much later, was that she did not pick up everything she dropped. When Victoria had come up to us, I noticed she had a bag of candy in her right hand…it was nearly empty. I thought nothing of this, however…and even later on, when Patrick and I were back in our common room…he offered me some candy from the end of a bag he'd forgotten he had, I declined, however, as I had eaten a late dinner, and Patrick finished off the end of the candy. I never put it together…"

"Why would you have?" Harry spoke quickly, feeling fully sickened upon hearing the story. "What reason would you ever have to believe Jared would give Patrick poison for simply seeing him in a hallway?"

"Perhaps there was no reason…and perhaps there was. I realize there is no way to change what has happened, Harry," Dumbledore said quietly. "I've argued the matter with myself more times than I can count…but the guilt I feel will never be completely gone."

Harry nodded faintly, knowing there was no way he could argue that statement, having felt the same way many times in his life, but feeling horribly for the former headmaster just the same.

"A complete search of the school was ordered immediately," Dumbledore spoke up, composing himself at once. "They found traces of the potion and the candy that it had been infused into in the trunks of both Adrik and Lilith. Neither student denied having committed the crime…so the ministry never searched for anything more. Adrik and Lilith were expelled…the case was closed."

"Was anything else done about it though?" Harry asked, almost expectantly. "I mean…they were accused of murdering two fellow students…wouldn't there be more done to them then just expelling them from the school?"

"Further action should have been taken, yes," Dumbledore nodded grimly. "However, Jared saw to it that his friends were not punished."

"How?" Harry asked, surprised.

"His father was the head minister of magic at that time, and made certain that no charges were brought against Adrik and Lilith after their expulsion."

"Why would he do that though?" Harry asked, taken aback. "They were Jared's friends…what difference would it make to him if they were punished or not?"

"Mr. Graham was always one to keep up appearances…and he was quite aware that Jared was truly the one responsible for Garrick and Patrick's deaths. He feared that if this news ever got out, his reputation, which appeared clean, would be tarnished, and he would lose the respect of his peers. He agreed to keep Adrik and Lilith from further punishment so long as Jared promised never to tell anyone the truth."

"How is it you know of this then?" Harry asked.

"Because Jared did not keep that promise," Dumbledore replied stiffly. "I knew what he and Victoria had done to Patrick…and I confronted him about it, demanding to know the truth."

"And he just told you?" Harry asked, incredulously.

"He loved to take credit for his work," Dumbledore replied darkly.

"What did you do?" Harry asked anxiously. "Did you tell anyone?"

"Immediately," Dumbledore nodded. "I went straight to the headmaster's office…telling him everything…only to be told I was mistaken."

"The headmaster was in on it as well?" Harry asked, confused.

"No," Dumbledore shook his head slowly. "It was merely Mr. Graham, taking precautionary measures in the event someone did discover the truth. He lied to the headmaster, saying that a rumor had been started, that Jared and Victoria were the ones responsible for the students' deaths. Headmaster Clayton assured him this rumor would be stopped at once if he heard anything of it going through the school, and assumed that is where my information came from."

"But…didn't you explain to him…I mean…Jared's the one who told you…"

"I did, of course," Dumbledore nodded. "Professor Clayton told me I needed to stop looking for trouble. Adrik and Lilith were not only accused but they confessed…there was no need to look into it any further as far as he was concerned."

"Even though there were now two murderers running loose in the school…" Harry stated angrily.

"He didn't believe this to be the case at all," Dumbledore replied. "And nothing I said changed his mind…" he trailed off, a look of regret passing over his features briefly before he continued. "The ministry has always had its corrupt members, Harry…as far back in time as it has existed."

"Then there was nothing you could have done then anyway," Harry said quietly.

"Not then, no," Dumbledore agreed, almost absently.

"What happened to them?" Harry asked after a few moments. "Jared and Victoria, I mean."

"They are dead," Dumbledore replied, rather quickly. "They have been for a long time."

Getting the impression that the head minister did not want to discuss that particular topic any further, Harry dropped the subject, continuing on with a new question.

"Do you know why Adrik's eyes are gone? And Lilith's…they've changed as well. I know they didn't look that way when I saw them through the Pensieve in your office all those years ago…"

"Yes I remember that day," Dumbledore nodded, the faintest trace of a smile on his lips before he became serious again. "The trial you witnessed happened on the day before the Lestranges were sent to Azkaban, but they spent that night in a smaller prison…a place where any criminals in the midst of standing trial are held. Nabakza. That is where Adrik lost his eyes, and where Lilith's were transformed."

"Did someone attack them?" Harry asked, thinking that could be the only explanation.

"No," Dumbledore replied, shaking his head faintly. "Prisoners are rarely allowed visitors while in Nabakza, but the Lestranges were granted this privilege on their last night there. Only one man came to see them, and they had dinner together under close supervision, after that the Lestranges were brought back to their cells, and no one saw either of them again until the next morning. They found Adrik lying on his cell floor, blood all over his hands…he had gouged out his eyes. Lilith, for her part, did not seem to be in any pain, though her eyes were clearly not as they had been the night before, you've seen what they look like now."

Harry nodded slowly, feeling a subtle chill run down his spine at the memory of both Adrik and Lilith's eyes.

"Why though?" he asked quietly. "Why would anyone do that to themselves?"

Dumbledore's gaze locked with Harry's for a long moment in the heavy silence, before he replied darkly.

"For the one reason that Adrik and Lilith do anything…Voldemort."

"But…Voldemort…at that time he was…" Harry stammered.

"Thought to be dead by most, yes," Dumbledore nodded. "What you must understand, and never forget, is that the Lestranges are loyal to Voldemort, with every last fiber of their being. They believe in him so strongly that they will endure the worst torture imaginable if they deem it necessary to ensure his power continues to grow. They will never deny him, or turn their backs on him."

Harry felt an involuntary shudder run through him at hearing the head minister's words, and had to clear the dryness from his throat before speaking again.

"How did their…actions…what they did to their eyes…how did that benefit Voldemort…?" he asked quietly.

"They were doing it to keep a watch on things, while they were in Azkaban," Dumbledore stated grimly. Harry narrowed his eyes in confusion, and the head minister continued on quickly. "Adrik refused, of course, to answer any questions as to why he did what he did, and Lilith gave no information either. The ministry is quite sure that whatever caused their actions, it was in some way related to the visitor they'd had the night before. Unfortunately, no one knew who he was, or where he came from. He gave the name Oren Norwood when he came to the prison, and despite the ministry's efforts, he was never found so that they could question him."

"Was he a death eater?" Harry asked, feeling he must be, if he was helping the Lestranges.

"It's possible," Dumbledore nodded faintly. "I can remember from when they were in school, there was a Slytherin by the name of Oren Alcott who occasionally would be seen speaking with Adrik and his friends, but mostly he stayed to himself, not caring for the company of others."

"It must have been him then," Harry said, quietly.

"I have a strong suspicion that it was," Dumbledore replied. "However, I did not see their mysterious visitor, so I cannot say for certain."

Harry signed inaudibly, realizing how complicated this all was.

"Then, we have no idea why Adrik really did that to himself?" he asked. "If neither he nor Lilith would tell anyone…"

"As I said before, he did it for Voldemort," Dumbledore replied gravely. "And after much time spent watching both Adrik and Lilith…and listening to them…the ministry has discovered just how useful the loss of his eyes was to him. Adrik can see a great deal more than the rest of us can."

"How?" Harry asked, barely whispering.

"It started with Lilith. He can see anything she sees. If either he or she touches another person, he can see through their eyes as well. He needed an outside person though…and that's where Oren comes in. Oren, I suspect, was traveling anywhere he could, so that Adrik could see what was happening while he was in Azkaban. That way, he could keep a watch over the other death eaters, the ones he considered traitors for not admitting their service to Voldemort. Another reason for this, I imagine, is so that he might be able to listen for information having to do with his master…hoping to discover what had truly become of him."

"So then if either he, Oren or Lilith touch someone, Adrik has the power to not only see through their eyes but hear what they say as well…even if they're nowhere near him?"

"That is what we believe, yes," Dumbledore nodded seriously.

Harry thought back to Halloween night, when Adrik had made sure Ron, Hermione and Mel were in the room, facing him. I like an audience, he'd said. Now Harry understood what he meant…

"How does he control it all though?" Harry asked, turning his eyes to Dumbledore once again. "I mean, with all those people…does it only last for a short while…or is he constantly seeing through all these other eyes?"

"For that, unfortunately, I do not have an answer," Dumbledore replied quietly. "We could only deduce so much by observing Adrik and Lilith in their cells, but I assume their must be some way to control it, or the burden of it all would drive him mad."

"I think he's already mad," Harry said darkly. He sat back against the couch with an inaudible sigh, feeling a dull aching in his head and wishing he knew more despite all the information he'd just received, when the abrupt sound of breaking glass caused him to look up sharply.

Harry was out of his seat in a flash, heading for the doorway to the office at the same moment as Dumbledore. Both men had their wands drawn, and were ready to attack any unwelcome guests as the head minister pushed the door open fully. However, as he took in the sight before him, Harry let out a silent sigh of relief, and lowered his wand.

Travis was on his knees, looking rather pale, a sheepish expression on his face as he glanced from his uncle to the glass littered on the floor in front of him. The Moontrimmer was leaning upside down against the desk next to him, the thick bristles speckled with tiny bits of glass as well.

"It was an accident…" the young man spoke timidly, his eyes looking imploringly up at his uncle.

"I'm sure it was," Dumbledore nodded, a tiny smile on his lips as he stepped closer to his nephew and knelt down near the mess. "Do you remember what we talked about?" he asked kindly. "About not trying to…"

"I wasn't trying to use it, honest!" Travis cut him off anxiously. "I was…I was just pretending…" he trailed off, glancing towards the broom beside him, becoming distracted. "I like to watch flying. I like quidditch." he said, a large grin spreading across his face, his worries temporarily forgotten.

"I know you do," Dumbledore replied, almost sadly as he lifted his wand again. Harry watched as the older wizard conjured a dark blue bag, and lifted the broken shards of what he assumed must've been the crystal ball that once sat on the desk into it, before standing quickly and waving his wand over the end of Harry's broom as well. When all the glass had been collected, Dumbledore tied the bag and dropped it into his pocket.

"I'm sorry," Harry said quietly as the head minister took hold of the broom and held it out to him. "I shouldn't have…"

"Do not worry yourself over it," Dumbledore cut in, chuckling softly. "I never much cared for that particular item anyway. A gift from Sybil several years ago…good for decoration only."

"That doesn't surprise me," Harry laughed, glancing again at Travis who was now occupying himself with a book that had been lying on a nearby table, watching and talking quietly to himself as the pictures moved on the page in front of him.

"He knows very well that operating a broom is something he cannot do," Dumbledore said softly, following Harry's gaze and nodding towards Travis. "Some things he remembers better than others, but if it comes to quidditch or anything related to flying, he retains it quite well."

"Is there anything…?" Harry began, trailing off and averting his eyes as he paused for a brief moment and began again. " I'm not saying that Travis' behavior is wrong or anything like that…but isn't there something we can do for him? To help him…well…get better?" Harry asked, hoping he wasn't sounding rude.

"I wish there were," Dumbledore replied, giving a small grin to show he wasn't offended in the least. "Unfortunately," he continued, "anything we could have done for Travis would had to have been done while he was still in his mother's womb. Since we did not meet either of them until after he was born, it was too late to help."

"I'm sorry," Harry replied, not sure what else to say, but truly feeling bad for Travis.

"Do not be," Dumbledore replied, shaking his head faintly. Travis is well loved by his family, and most of the time, is quite happy with what he has."

"Is it still alright that he come tomorrow morning?" Harry asked quietly.

"Of course," Dumbledore nodded. "As long as you don't mind. He will stay with you if you tell him too…just make sure you keep a close watch on him, as his mind wanders quite easily."

"I've noticed," Harry grinned.

"However, if he wants to go then he needs to get some sleep," Dumbledore continued, glancing at the large clock across the room.

"Wow…I didn't realize how late it was," Harry said quickly. "I need to get going…I hope the floo station is still open…" he trailed off, realizing he had no idea.

"Is that how you arrived tonight?" Dumbledore asked, arching a quizzical eyebrow.

"Well, I wasn't sure who to contact to open up a passage from the school…and I wanted to catch you before you left…" Harry explained, shrugging lightly. "I guess if it's closed for the night I could always just fly back to the school."

"That's quite a long way," Dumbledore said quietly. "And I do not believe it's a good idea that you travel it on your own."

Harry faced the head minister, knowing he was right, but wishing not to be treated like a child just the same. He was going to be on his own a lot, after all, now that he was no longer a student…they would just have to start trusting him to take care of himself. Before he could make any reply, however, the older wizard turned away and crossed the room to the fireplace.

Dumbledore drew his wand from his robes and whispered something that Harry couldn't make out, turning away a moment later as the flames rose up in the hearth, changing from orange, to violet, and back again.

"You can take the floo network from here," Dumbledore stated as he faced Harry once again. "It will bring you directly back to your quarters at the school."

"Thank you," Harry nodded, a small grin on his face.

"I plan on leaving this connected," Dumbledore continued. "So if you ever do need to get to me, you'll have a direct passage. There will be a password as well, to be safe, which I shall let you choose."

Glancing around quickly, Harry's eyes fell on the broom in his hand and he looked back up again.

"How about Moontrimmer?" he asked.

"Very well," Dumbledore nodded, smiling gently as he turned back to the fireplace and bringing up his wand again. Harry watched as another wave of purple flames rose up for several seconds, before returning to their original state.

"I am sorry to cut this short tonight," Dumbledore said as he looked at Harry once more. "We can continue this discussion another time, if you'd like."

"Thank you, and I'm sorry for coming so late…"

"Quite alright," Dumbledore grinned as Harry started towards him, coming to a stop in front of the hearth.

"See you tomorrow Travis," Harry called out, looking over his shoulder at the young man.

"Bye Harry!" Travis grinned, waving absently as he turned his attention back to the book on the floor.

"Goodnight Albus," Harry said, turning to the head minister yet again.

"Sleep well, Harry," Dumbledore nodded. "I will make sure Travis is there in time for the match tomorrow."

Harry nodded his thanks, before taking a handful of floo powder from the jar Dumbledore was offering to him. He threw it into the flames; calling out the password first, followed quickly by Hogwarts, and was promptly whisked off into the swirling mass of colors.

The next morning, Harry woke to the sound of rapidly fluttering wings, and rolled onto his back just in time for a rather large tawny owl to drop the Daily Prophet onto his head, before it swooped around and swiftly flew back out the open window.

Pushing the paper off to the side, Harry let out a large yawn, stretching his arms as far above his head as he could reach, before leaning over and grabbing his pocket watch from the bedside table.

His eyes widened anxiously as he realized how close to game time it was, and he flung off the covers, jumping out of bed and rushing to his closet. He dressed quickly; making sure to wear his Gryffindor robes for the occasion, and exited the room, half running. He realized he had no idea how Travis was going to be arriving…Dumbledore had said he'd make sure his nephew was there in time for the game, but for all Harry knew that could have meant he'd arrived hours ago. Deciding to stop into his office in case a message had been left for him, Harry jogged down the hallway and turned the corner, coming to a stop in front of the first doorway on his right, and pushing it open.

As he started across the room towards his desk, however, the fireplace suddenly rose up in a rush of green flames, and Harry turned his eyes away from the brightness for a brief moment, before looking back to see two people stepping into his office.

"Hi Harry!" Travis said excitedly as he waved his hand in the air.

"Hello Travis," Harry nodded, smiling widely, before turning his gaze to the woman standing just beside the young man. "Simone, is it?" Harry asked, hoping he'd remembered the woman's name correctly. He'd only seen her in Dumbledore's office once.

"Yes," Simone nodded with a small smile. "Good morning professor. Sorry to drop in unannounced, but the head minister said you were expecting his nephew this morning, and asked that I accompany him."

"Thank you," Harry nodded, glancing at Travis who was looking eagerly around the office. "All ready to see some quidditch today, Travis?" he grinned.

"When, right now? Right now?" Travis asked, nodding energetically.

"If we don't want to miss the first toss, then yes right now," Harry replied, looking quickly at Simone once more. "I'm so sorry to rush, but…"

"No apology necessary," Simone smiled. "I need to get back to the office anyway…" she trailed off, looking towards Travis, who seemed to have forgotten she was even there. "I'll be back for you this afternoon Travis."

"Bye," Travis grinned, barely sparing her a glance, and shifting his weight from one foot to the other, anxiously. Simone laughed in quiet amusement before looking back to Harry. "Is four o'clock too late?"

"That'll be fine," Harry grinned. He called out his goodbye to Simone as she headed back to the hearth, before he turned around, to find Travis already on his way out the door.

"Hey," Harry called out, trotting across the office and catching up to him. "I know you want to see the game," he said gently, "but you do have to stay with me, alright?"

"Sorry," Travis said quickly, but unable to keep a smile from his lips. Harry had to stifle a small laugh, and shook his head faintly, before stepping out into the corridor beside Travis and closing the door to his office behind them.

The two made their way through the empty halls of Hogwarts as quickly as possible. Harry had to keep pausing as Travis would stop and gawk at one thing or another as they moved through the corridors, reminding him the game was starting soon. When at last they came to the main entrance of the school, Harry pushed one of the great doors open and stepped aside, letting Travis come through, before leading the way down to the pitch.

As they came to the teachers' box, Harry groaned inwardly, when he saw who the only empty seats were next to…Troy. Sighing inaudibly, Harry started forward, telling Travis to stay close to him, as he made his way through the other professors and took a seat on the bench next to the redheaded instructor, deliberately avoiding eye contact. Travis sunk down in the space beside him, with the largest smile Harry had ever seen plastered on his face. They'd arrived at the exact moment the students had come out onto the pitch, lining up while Madam Pomfrey called the captains of both teams forward.

"Who's your friend?" Troy asked snidely, and Harry barely spared him a glance as he replied.

"None of your business."

"Oh, a bit touchy today, aren't we, Potter?" Troy remarked, smirking.

"His name is Harry," Travis spoke up, sounding as if he were correcting Troy, smiling helpfully.

"Right," Troy replied, disdainfully. "And what's yours?"

"My name is Travis Venable nice to meet you what's your name?" Travis replied all in one breath, smiling pleasantly, extending his hand over Harry and out to Troy.

Glancing contemptuously at Travis' hand, Troy looked away from the excited man and met Harry's eyes.

"Annoying, isn't he? Wherever did you find him?" he asked scornfully.

"He's Dumbledore's nephew, actually," Harry replied curtly, as Travis shrugged and turned his gaze back to the pitch. "And he's never seen a quidditch match, so please just be quiet and let us watch it," he snapped, not in the mood for this today.

"Dumbledore's nephew, ey?" Troy remarked, a curious smirk on his face as he leant forward to get a better look at Travis, who was beaming happily as the two teams finally rose into the air. When Madam Hooch tossed the quaffle high above her head, Travis let out an excited whoop, and Troy stifled an arrogant laugh.

"If he's Dumbledore's nephew why is this his first quidditch game?" the redheaded professor asked snidely. "And why is he acting like he's five?"

"Why do you care?" Harry asked, not wanting to give Troy any information whatsoever about Travis, and trying to pay attention to the game. Gryffindor had taken an early lead over Hufflepuff, and Harry really wanted to pay attention to the techniques his team was using this year.

"What does it matter why I care?" Troy countered. "Why are you being so secretive?"

"I'm not being secretive, I'm trying to watch the match," Harry replied curtly, turning his gaze as far away from Troy as possible while keeping his eyes on the players. He could completely understand why this was the last available place to sit, none of the other professors except for Snape seemed to care much for Troy.

Miraculously, Troy made no reply to Harry's comment, though he could feel the transfiguration professor staring at him for a long moment, until he finally looked away, turning his attention to the game taking place before them.

For over an hour, the two teams kept the game going, Gryffindor never losing its lead. Harry could see Su scanning the playing field carefully, alert and ready to go for the snitch at the smallest sign of its presence, and finally that time arrived.

The Hufflepuff team had just managed to score a goal, and were mostly gathered near the Gryffindor end of the field, when all of a sudden, Su, who'd been hovering mid-field, thrust her broom forward, streaking towards the opposite end of the pitch. She slanted down in the slightest, swooping around the goal posts at the Hufflepuff end, their seeker madly trying to catch up to her, but he wasn't fast enough. Su spiraled around the center post, moving quickly towards the ground, and rose into the air with at least fifteen feet to spare, holding the snitch triumphantly in her left hand.

Harry and Travis both jumped up from their seats, cheering loudly along with the shouts and applause of the crowd around them. Travis was so excited he couldn't stop from jumping up and down where he stood, nearly overbalancing before Harry's hands shot forward, pulling him back near his seat.

"Did you like it?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yes I liked it yes it was fun!" Travis shouted joyfully, whooping with excitement yet again, and Harry could only laugh, happy for him.

"C'mon," he said pleasantly after another moment, feeling Troy stand up next to him and not wanting to give him another opportunity for conversation. "I'll introduce you to the team."

After fighting their way through the throngs of excited students, Harry and Travis finally made it to where the Gryffindor team stood, laughing and joking with their housemates. Harry moved slowly through the crowd, congratulating the team for their excellent job, and making sure to introduce the ever-anxious Travis to each of them. By the time he made it to where Ginny stood, speaking pleasantly with a chaser from the Hufflepuff team, the students had started thinning out, making their way back to the school.

"Harry!" Ginny cried elatedly the second she spotted him coming towards her. She hastily excused herself from the discussion and ran towards him.

"You did it," he said happily, smiling widely as she threw her arms around his neck in excitement. "I told you you'd make a fantastic captain," he grinned when she'd stepped back a pace.

"Thank you," she blushed, modestly. "I was so nervous though! I can't remember being this nervous since my first game as a chaser!" she gushed, breathlessly.

"You didn't look it though," Harry smiled. "I couldn't see any difference. You all did a great job out there today."

"Yeah! Great job!" Travis piped up from a few paces away, faintly bobbing up and down on the balls of his feet.

"Thanks," Ginny replied, smiling hesitantly.

"Sorry," Harry said quickly, motioning towards his friend. "This is Travis Venable. Travis, this is Ginny Weasley…she's the captain of the Gryffindor quidditch team."

"Nice to meet you, Travis," Ginny grinned, extending her hand towards the sandy-haired man. Travis reached forward and gripped her hand in his, shaking a bit roughly and smiling down at her.

"Nice to meet you too, I have to go to the bathroom."

Harry was barely able to stifle the laughter threatening to burst forward as Ginny's eyes widened in shock and her jaw dropped at Travis' very casually spoken statement.

"C'mon," Harry said, unable to stop from smiling. "You can use the ones in the locker room…"

Travis nodded eagerly as he followed Harry the short distance to the locker room, Ginny walking along with them, a curious expression on her face. She waited outside as Harry showed Travis where the stalls were, before coming back out to wait with her.

"So where do you know him from?" she asked gently.

"He's Dumbledore's nephew," Harry replied, going on to briefly explain about his condition.

"Oh that's so sad," Ginny stated softly.

"Albus says he's happy though," Harry said quietly. "That's really all that matters…" he trailed off as Ginny's gaze shifted to something behind him, and he turned to see Devon strolling by, munching contently on a bag of Bertie Bott's Beans.

"Don't have too many of those," Ginny called out, in a voice which very closely resembled a motherly tone. "Got it?" she added with a playful wink. Devon, who had looked startled at first at being addressed by Ginny, smiled faintly and nodded, before continuing on his way.

"Looking out for our first-years, Mother Weasley?" Harry smirked, arching a questioning eyebrow.

"I look out for all the younger students," Ginny shot back with a grin. "But I just don't want him to get himself sick again," she continued, her expression turning serious.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked quickly. "When was he sick?"

"On Halloween," Ginny replied. "He must've had too much candy at the feast, because later on in the common room, he didn't feel well. He lost all the color in his face…he was just too pale, but at the same time he looked almost green, like he was going to be sick. Sloane finally took him down to the hospital wing…"

"Do you remember when this was?" Harry asked immediately.

"Um…not exactly," Ginny shrugged, apologetically. "It wasn't long before Sirius and Dumbledore showed up, I remember that…but I can't remember the exact time…" she paused, her eyes narrowing quizzically before continuing. "Why? What are you thinking?"

"I don't know," Harry replied with a shrug, sighing inaudibly. "It's probably nothing…I mean, it's not as if it would be unusual for a student to have an upset stomach on Halloween."

"Especially after the feast they give us here," Ginny nodded, knowingly.

"I'm here!" Travis' voice cut in happily as he came rushing back out of the locker room. "I'm here! Can I see more flying?"

"Well the game's over, Travis…" Harry began gently.

"I can fly around the pitch a few times," Ginny offered with a small grin. "If that's alright with you, I mean…"

"Are you sure?" Harry asked, smirking lightly. "What about the celebration in the common room?"

"You know very well how long that will be going on," Ginny laughed. "I'm not worried about missing it."

"Alright," Harry nodded, seeing Travis' face light up with excitement. "Let's go back to the pitch."

As they were walking, Ginny spotted Su heading past, towards the locker rooms and stopped her, talking her into staying out a bit longer. The two of them mounted their brooms and flew high into the air while Harry and Travis took seats on the nearest benches. Travis could only smile with delight as he watched the two students perform stunts in the air, and Harry couldn't help but feel happy for him.

The minutes ticked by, and Harry pulled his cloak tighter around him as a particularly strong gust of wind whipped though his hair. The wintry chill in the air was obviously felt by Travis as well, and he shivered visibly in the seat beside Harry.

"Ready to go in?" Harry asked.

"Just a few more minutes?" Travis replied, hopefully.

"Alright," Harry laughed. "Ten minutes."

Travis only nodded quickly in response, the large smile returning to his face as he fixed his gaze once more on Ginny and Su. Harry grinned, enjoying the time he was spending with Travis, and hoping to be able to do this again for him sometime, when the sound of nearby, approaching footsteps caused him to glance up suddenly, turning to look behind him.

"Hey Harry," Ron grinned as he came up beside his friend.

"What are you doing here?" Harry smiled back, standing up.

"Meeting Hermione…didn't she tell you?"

"Tell me what?" Harry asked, his brow furrowing in confusion. "What's going on?"

"That's what I'm here to find out," Ron shrugged. "She sent me an owl while I was at practice today to meet here at four o'clock. I ran into Professor Sprout when I arrived, and she said she thought you were still out here…so here I am…"

Harry pulled out his watch quickly, seeing it was just after three.

"Well we have a little while yet before she comes," he said, slipping the piece back into his pockets. Taking a quick glance at Travis to make sure he was still enjoying the show, Harry nodded to Ron to step a few paces away from the benches before continuing. "What did the letter say?" he whispered.

"You didn't get one?" Ron asked.

"I might have," Harry replied quickly. "I was in too much of a hurry when I got up today…I never really checked to see if anything arrived in my office."

"Well it didn't say much," Ron stated flatly. "Just that she wanted me to be here to meet her at four…I guess I assumed she sent one to you as well, or why else would we come here?"

"Hey you two!" another familiar voice called out to them.

"Mel!" Harry said, both happy and surprised to see her there.

"Sorry I'm late," she said quickly as she finally reached the two wizards, and Harry pulled her into a warm hug before stepping back slightly.

"Late?" Ron repeated. "We have over a half an hour."

"But…Hermione said three o'clock…"

"No she said four," Ron laughed. "Count on Hermione to think ahead…we all know how good you are about being on time."

"I'm not that bad…" Mel began, pretending to be insulted.

"No of course you're not," Harry said, with false sympathy.

Mel shook her head and rolled her eyes, as she crossed her arms over her chest. She glanced away from Harry and Ron, her gaze falling upon Travis, who was still sitting on the bench just short distance away.

"Who's he?" she asked, nodding towards the sandy-haired man, as he started clapping suddenly when Ginny and Su at last began to head down. "He doesn't look young enough to be a student."
"He isn't one," Harry replied quietly. "That's Dumbledore's nephew, Travis."

"Oh yeah," Ron nodded quickly. "Hermione mentioned him…she said you both met him when you went to the ministry…and that Thurston didn't care for him, as surprising as that is…" he trailed off, sardonically.

"Why doesn't Thurston like him?" Mel asked.

"Because he's a muggle," Harry whispered, seeing Ginny, Su and Travis coming towards them, and smiling.

"Have fun?" he asked as Travis neared him.

"Lots," Travis nodded happily, noticing Ron and Mel standing nearby. "Hi my name is Travis Venable, nice to meet you," he said, holding his hand out to Mel.

"Nice to meet you Travis," Mel grinned, shaking his hand lightly. "I'm Mel Tristen."

"And I'm Ron Weasley," Ron spoke up as Travis turned to him.

"And I'm confused," Ginny said, raising an eyebrow at her brother. "What are you doing here? I thought you had practice today…"

"I guess I left early then, didn't I?" Ron replied teasingly, grinning at his sister.

"But why? I know it wasn't to see the game…I didn't see you in the crowd…" Ginny pressed.

"Aren't you missing a victory celebration?" Ron asked. "I know Gryffindor didn't lose to Hufflepuff, even with you as the new team captain…"

"Ouch…that was harsh, Ron," Mel said, cringing as Ginny glared darkly at her older brother.

"Alright, before you two kill each other," Harry spoke up, taking Ginny by the arm and directing her back towards the school. "I need to be back in my office soon anyway…Simone will be back to get Travis shortly." Ginny looked at Harry, obviously knowing something was up and not wanting to be left out.

"I don't know what's going on yet Gin," Harry said quietly. "I promise I'll talk to you later…just go enjoy the party for now, okay?" he grinned slightly.

She nodded faintly, and started off with Su, who was looking at the group curiously but remaining quiet, as the two started off up the hill.

"You know, a little support for your sister won't kill you," Harry remarked sarcastically as he turned back to the others.

"Oh c'mon, she knows I was only joking," Ron shrugged with a grin.

"Sure she does," Harry rolled his eyes, before glancing around nearby, seeing Travis ambling back towards the pitch. "C'mon Travis," he called out pleasantly. "Your uncle will be waiting for you…we have to head back."

"Can I see another game tomorrow?" Travis asked, hopefully, looking very much like he'd rather stay there.

"There aren't any games tomorrow," Harry said apologetically, moving towards his friend and gently beginning to direct him back up the hill. "But if your uncle says it's alright maybe you can come to the next game…"

"When?" Travis interrupted excitedly.

"Well Gryffindor plays again in February, so probably then," Harry grinned.

Travis quickly brought up his hand and began counting on his fingers.

"That's in three months!" he exclaimed quickly.

"That's right," Harry nodded, "Not too long, right?"

Travis looked skeptical at this, shaking his head quickly.

"Three months is a long time…" he said quietly.

"It'll come soon enough," Harry laughed, as the four entered the school at last, Mel and Ron tagging along just behind Harry and Travis, listening to the conversation. They made their way through the halls quickly, heading to Harry's office, and coming to a dead stop the moment they reached the last corridor.

"This feels familiar," Ron remarked suspiciously.

Several feet away, directly in front of Harry's office, was the Bloody Baron.

"Who's that?" Travis yelled, pointing down the hallway, and not taking his eyes off the ghost. Harry didn't reply, intending to talk to the Baron right now and find out what was going on. Before he could make it even two steps, however, the ghost immediately turned and floated up the hall, gliding silently through the wall at the end of the corridor, and out of sight.

"Dammit," Harry muttered under his breath, knowing it would be useless to try to find the baron now. He turned around to face his friends again, finding Travis staring past him in wide-eyed wonder.

"It's alright, he's gone now," Harry said gently.

"Who was that?" Travis asked again, looking at the wall the ghost had just gone through, in hopes of catching another glimpse.

"We call him the baron," Harry said, not wanting to tell Travis the full name of the Slytherin ghost.

"Why is he hanging out around your office all the time?" Ron asked darkly.

"This is only the second time," Harry began.

"That you know of," Mel cut in quickly. "He might be here every day…and maybe he's not the only one…"

"A bit paranoid, aren't you?" Ron joked.

"Wouldn't you be?" Mel countered defensively. "Why would the Slytherin ghost be seen hovering outside the office of the head of Gryffindor? Why did Peeves sound like he was looking for someone that first time? We should tell McGonagall…"

"Tell her what though?" Harry asked with a shrug as he turned and started towards his office, the others following quickly. "The baron was outside my door twice, but we didn't find anyone in the office the first time…" he trailed off, pushing open the office door and peering inside. "Looks like there's no one here this time either," he added, stepping into the room and glancing around.

No sooner had Harry finished speaking, then the flames in the hearth turned a brilliant green, and Simone stepped out into the office.

"Oh good, you're here," she smiled, seeing Harry and Travis standing near the door. "I was afraid I'd be too early."

"Nope, right on time," Harry grinned back, stepping forward while Travis looked up, reluctantly.

"C'mon then Travis," Simone said cheerfully, despite the stubborn expression on the younger man's face. "Your uncle is waiting for you."

"It's okay Travis," Harry smiled gently, seeing him appear as though he didn't intend on moving. "Go on back, I told you if your uncle says it's alright, you can come again for the next game…I promise."

Travis nodded faintly, looking glum as he slowly moved towards Simone.

"Thank you for looking after him, Harry," Simone said with a short nod.

"My pleasure," Harry grinned. "See you later, Travis," he called out after his friend.

"Bye Harry," Travis replied, a tiny smile touching his lips. He waved once as he and Simone stepped towards the hearth, and took the floo network, together, back to the ministry building.

"Can we go see McGonagall now?" Mel spoke up the second they were gone.

"Mel what would I even tell her?" Harry asked, lightly tossing up his hands as he spoke.

"That the Bloody Baron is behaving strangely?" Mel suggested, as if it should be obvious.

"What if it's something Snape has put him up to though?" Harry said quickly. "He's the head of Slytherin, after all…if the baron speaks to anyone it's probably him. If I told McGonagall and she traced it back to Snape it would only seem like I was telling on him, and I don't need him to be any more upset with me than he already is…I'd like to learn to use the crystals sometime this century, if possible."

"You're stretching with that one, Harry," Mel stated flatly. "Snape may not like you, but he's never seemed the type for prank-playing."

"Alright, I know," Harry said quickly. "But I just don't see a reason to worry anyone over this yet…if I ever find someone or something in my office, then I'll go to McGonagall…but for the ghosts just hovering around in front of my door…I don't see a reason to sound the alarm for that."

"But Harry, what…what if it's the Shadow Walkers?" Mel asked, at last. "You probably wouldn't be able to see them in here when you first come in…"

"It isn't," Harry said, shaking his head slowly. "The one thing that was made very clear to me about the cult is that they do not like to wait…if it was them, they'd have shown themselves already."

"Fine, so if it isn't them, who is it?" Mel asked, sounding exasperated and rushing on quickly. "The truth is, we don't know…we don't have any idea…so we should tell someone about it that way we stop something from happening before it starts!"

"If it happens again, I will," Harry replied quickly, wanting to end the discussion.

"You're far too stubborn sometimes, you know that?" Mel asked, a hint of anger in her tone as she stalked across the room towards the desk. Harry stared after her for a moment, turning briefly to glance at Ron, who held up his hands defensively, indicating he was not getting involved in this argument. As he turned back to Mel, however, there was a loud knock on the door, before it was pushed open and Hermione strode into the room.

"Good, you all came," she said quickly, taking a quick glance around the office. "C'mon, there's someone we have to talk to, right now…"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa…" Ron said immediately as Hermione began to turn away. "Aren't you at least going to tell us what this is about?" he asked. "You sent us all rather vague owls…"

"Well, except me," Harry said quickly.

"You didn't get one?" Hermione asked, arching an eyebrow.

"No, I just got the Daily Prophet when I…"

"Harry?" Mel's voice cut in softly, causing him to turn towards her. She reached down to a loosely rolled parchment on the corner of his desk and held it up. "You did get one."

"Oh," Harry replied, but shrugged it off quickly. "Well I never got a chance to read through any mail today…I was in too much of a hurry when…"

"It's open."

"What?" Harry asked, his eyes narrowing in confusion.

"It's open," Mel repeated slowly. "Your letter, it was lying on your desk…opened."

Harry crossed to where Mel stood; gently taking the letter from her grasp and looking at the deep purple ribbon that had been tied around it, indicating the message was urgent.

"Maybe it just got loosened by the owl that delivered it," he suggested after a moment.

"Or maybe someone was in your office, saw you had an urgent owl and opened it to see what was going on," Mel stated evenly.

"Who though? None of the other teachers would do that…well, maybe Troy…" Harry trailed off, thoughtfully. "But why would he care what was in my mail?"

"What's going on?" Hermione asked curiously, sensing there was more to this than just the opened letter.

"The Bloody Baron was outside Harry's office again today," Ron replied, "just a few minutes ago."

"Maybe he went through my mail," Harry joked.

"No, last time they seemed like they couldn't get in…" Hermione began.

"I was kidding," Harry interrupted flatly, tossing the letter back on the desk and sighing. "Alright, I'll try to figure this out later, let's just go talk to…whoever it is you've found…do you plan on telling us?" he asked.

"He's one of my instructors," Hermione said quickly, her eyes widening as she glanced up at the large clock. "And we're supposed to be there right now," she said quickly, turning for the door. Ron simply shrugged, following his girlfriend out of the office a second later. Harry turned to look at Mel, who shook her head faintly as she stalked past him in silence, following the others. Sighing in frustration, Harry crossed the room quickly, and stepped out into the corridor, shutting the door behind him, and heading down the hallway after his friends.

Twenty minutes later, the four friends were stepping out of a large grate in the lobby of the Wizarding University. Harry glanced around as Hermione quickly began leading the way down a well-lit corridor, noticing it had a much newer feel than Hogwarts did. The walls were smooth and soft looking compared to the rough, dark stones of Hogwarts, and there were a great deal more candles lining the halls as well.

"Alright we're here," Ron said, jogging to catch up to Hermione, Harry and Mel close behind. "Do you plan on telling us anything about why you've brought us here before we meet your professor? Why do we need to talk with him?"

Hermione tilted her head closer to Ron's before replying in barely more than whisper.

"Because he knows about the Lestranges…he knows a lot."

"Why all the secrecy then?" Harry asked quietly. "Couldn't you have said that in your letters?"

"No, and for two reasons," Hermione said quickly. "One is because I didn't want anyone else to know what was going on if the owls didn't reach you…which in your case was a good thing," she paused, glancing pointedly at Harry. "And two, my professor does not like to talk about anything other than class work with his students. The only reason he even agreed to talk to us is because I mentioned your name."

"Mine?" Harry asked, wide-eyed.

"Of course yours," Hermione replied, rolling her eyes and quickening her pace after glancing at an old clock in one of the rooms just off the hallway. "He was trying to get me out of his office and I said it wasn't just for me…that I needed to know what he could tell me about Adrik and Lilith because they had attacked you. That's what made him stop to consider, and told me he'd only discuss it once, and only if you came in person. So I set up this meeting right away."

"What made you decide to ask him in the first place?" Mel asked, curiously.

"I was asking all of my instructors," Hermione shrugged gently. "For the most part, none of them knew anything that I couldn't already find in a book…" she trailed off as they came to a halt in front of a large wooden doorway that was cracked slightly open. Reaching forward, Hermione pushed the heavy door fully open, to see a very old looking man fastening a woolen cloak around his neck.

"Professor, I'm so sorry we're late!" Hermione gushed, taking a few steps into the room.

"Late," the short man replied flatly. "You were supposed to be here half an hour ago."

"I know, and I apologize," Hermione said quietly. "Please don't leave yet…this is truly important…"

The portly professor made no reply, staring at Hermione for a long moment in silence, before finally removing his cloak slowly, and hanging it back up.

"Very well, but not too long Miss Granger," he said sternly, before turning away and glancing at the door. "You four were the ones attacked on Halloween?" he asked, motioning for them to come into the office.

"Yes, but it was Harry they were there for," Hermione spoke up quietly as the professor stepped towards the small group.

"Harry," the man said slowly, his eyes finding the young wizard's scar and lingering there for a long moment, before finally lowering his gaze to Harry's eyes. "It's an honor to finally meet you, Harry Potter," he said firmly, extending his hand.

"It's very nice to meet you too," Harry replied, feeling the older man grip his hand tightly. "Professor…?" he trailed off, hoping for a name.

"Professor Alcott," the older man replied. Harry felt his body go stiff at once and pulled his hand back instinctively, narrowing his eyes at the white-haired man.