Chapter 16: Dumbledore's Requests
Draco is completely still as he sits besides Hermione in the headmaster's office. She knows the indifferent mask is only a mask, but she can't see past it. Hermione taps her fingers in her lap endlessly to get out some the anxious energy in the room.
"Headmaster," Draco greets with a small tilt of the head as Dumbledore sits down. Dumbledore smiles gently, but the lines around his eyes seem tight. Three wars are really too many for one life, and he's lived through four if you count the two life times of the war with Grindelwald.
"Mr. Malfoy," Dumbledore starts, "I understand that you have taken up the proposal for the Order to protect you and your mother." Draco nods. "Am I correct in assuming that you do not wish to actually join the Order and fight?"
"I've fought in one war to keep her alive and have done things no one should. As I understood it, your side does not require me to fight for the protection you offer, is that correct?" Draco replies calmly, though his words are slightly clipped.
"Nothing is required of you Mr. Malfoy except that you break ties with Voldemort," Dumbledore answers.
"That is not a problem. And no, I do not wish to fight."
"Understandable after everything. Where you and your mother will be residing with be secure and well protected. However, for the duration of the war, I must ask that neither of you leave that safety. Thus, I propose having some means that will keep you engaged as well perhaps prepared for your NEWTs, given that you will not be able to come to your seventh year. Please create a list of items that you and your mother will need and I will have that delivered before you arrive." Draco looks shocked and merely nods. Dumbledore nods as well, though his smile is waning.
"There are two other things I'd like to ask of you Mr. Malfoy," Dumbledore begins again. Draco's eyes sharpen and watch the headmaster. "The safe house you will be at will also have Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, and Miss Granger. Very few others will enter the house or even know about it. Because of this, I ask that you help them in what you can as far as brewing potions and healing, of course from within the house."
"And the second thing," Draco says.
"I do not wish for Mr. Potter to know about my departure. Once I am gone, you will be the only person who can tell him as Miss Granger will still be bound by the vow. Once he knows enough that Miss Granger's tongues is loosened, she can take over."
"Why not tell him before?" he asks. Hermione swallows the lump in her throat and look away.
"I do not wish to spend the remainder of my time being grieved for what cannot be avoided. Nor do I wish that Mr. Potter spend time looking for another way instead of training for the coming war," Dumbledore replies. He adds, with a small smile, "And I do not care for goodbyes."
"Yes, sir," Draco says with respect, "I can do those." Dumbledore smiles proudly at him.
"I thank you. And goodnight, Mr. Malfoy. We will speak again before the time comes," Dumbledore dismisses. Draco nods and leaves the office. The sparkling blue eyes turn to Hermione. "Miss Granger, I have never been so pleased to be proven wrong than I have with how you've changed Mr. Malfoy's mind." She shakes her head.
"That wasn't me at all," she replies. "This is what he wanted. He just didn't know enough to choose it the first time around." He nods sagely.
"Aw, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore greets. Harry slips into the seat beside her which Draco had vacated. "By now I expect Miss Granger has told you quite a bit more about the plans we've made."
"Yes, sir," he responds.
"I am in the middle of finalizing the deal with the goblins to return Hufflepuff's cup. That is, of course, the one that Tom would be able to get to the easiest, but they have assured me that it has been taken from Bellatrix's vault and is safely tucked away as we finish up a bit of paperwork."
"How did you convince the goblins to give you an item from someone else's vault?" Hermione asks, a bit of awe slipping into her voice. Dumbledore chuckles lightly.
"Apparently it against the owner contract for Gringott vaults to hold an item stolen from historical sites. It is also abhorrent to goblins to use such dark magic as a horcrux. Thus, with a small reward for returning the piece to the rightful owner, the goblins were delighted to be rid of it. Filius has really been a great help in navigating goblin politics," Dumbledore finishes with a sigh. Hermione smiles in return. That is much easier than barely escaping on a dragon.
"What is next?" Harry asks.
"The diadem has already been retrieved and is currently resting in a magic canceling box. The compulsion charms and such around it is contained for the moment. The last to get would be the locket, which the house elf Kreature has?" His blue eyes look to the witch.
"Yes he does," she replies.
"Well he is my elf. I can simply order him to give it to us," Harry says.
"No," Hermione says sharply. "He was ordered to protect it all his life until it could be destroyed. The conflicting orders will allow him to follow one and punish himself for not following the other. He rather receive a punishment than betray the last person who cared about him. You can not get it from him by force and I would recommend you not try."
"Then how do we get it?" Harry replies.
"You have to earn his respect. He has to think of you as the Master, not just his owner. Until he trusts you he would rather die than give up the locket he swore to protect." Harry sighs.
"Perhaps I know a way to win over the elf," Dumbledore says. "You will be moving into that home soon along with your guests. Perhaps you can ask him to clean the house and prepare it to have guests."
"If you are kind to him," she chips in, "he will come around. He did before." With a deep breath Harry nod.
"Kreature," Harry calls out. A loud crack announces the elf.
"Master," Kreature sneers and bows ever so slightly. Harry's jaw tightens for a split second before he relaxes and smiles.
"Kreature, the Malfoys are coming to stay with us in the house," Harry says. The elf looks shocked. "Mrs. Malfoy was the niece of the late Mrs. Black, correct?" Kreature nods. "I would ask that you prepare the house that we may be able to make them comfortable."
"Of course," Kreature replies immediately without the normal sneer. Harry smiles, then looks torn for a moment.
"Kreature, I do not want harm to befall the Malfoys," he says. "So I must order that you do not repeat that they are coming within hearing of any living person who is not currently in this room." Kreature scowls at the order for a moment, but then it drops and he nods. "Thank you so much." Kreature bows lower than before and disappears with another crack.
"You said nothing about the locket," Hermione comments lightly. Harry's lips lift in one corner.
"That elf is not going to be won over in an evening."
"Too true."
"With that figured out," Dumbledore starts again, "there is another item I would like to discuss. I have arranged for some...special tutoring for the remainder of the year. Professor Flitwick has been kind enough to be willing to teach both of you and Mr. Weasley four evenings a week, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. These lessons will center on dueling, specifically with skilled opponent and multiple opponents. With the war gaining momentum, I believe it won't be long until you will very much need the skill and experience." The student nod back solemnly. "I will still meet with you, Mr. Potter, on Wednesday and Sunday evening. Now off to bed, you two. Best to get plenty of rest while we can."
Dumbledore smiles as the students stand and bid him goodnight. Still his eyes look sad, like he was leaving them in a slaughter house. Hope may be hard to come by today, for those in the know, but Hermione can't help but feel they are better prepared this time around.
Professor Flitwick bounces on the balls of his feet as Hermione leads him and Harry and Ron into the Room of Requirement. The 'remaining hidden' aspect being one of the main reason for using this room instead of an empty classroom or office. The professor stares around the room for a moment before turning around to face the students with a smile.
"Magic can be quite wondrous," he says softly. Hermione smiles in return. It definitely can be. After taking stock of what the room has provided, he turns to them once more. "We shall start by evaluating the level you are currently at and move forward from there. I will duel Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger in turn and then we have a round with all three against me to see how you work together."
Ron smirks at the idea of three on one, but Hermione knows enough to be wary. Dumbledore didn't pick him as their tutor without reason.
"Mr. Potter?" Harry and Professor Flitwick face each other while Ron and Hermione clear off into a corner and watch. "On three, one, two, three."
Harry sends an over powered disarming spell that hits the wall as Flitwick is already on the move. Flitwick is favoring silent casting while constantly shifting around the field. The spells don't seem too powerful or dangerous, but it keep Harry on the defensive, casting shields and dodging. The constant barrage of spells is wearing on Harry. His moves are getting sloppy as well as a few of the spells he's sending half heartedly between his own defense. Hermione sees it a mere moment before it comes to fruition, Harry has been herded into the stunning spell that Flitwick uses to drop him to the ground.
Harry is revived and joins Hermione in the corner as Ron takes his place, looking considerably less sure of himself. Flitwick decides to draw a shield against Ron's first spell. Ron wants to end this quick, and the power shakes the professor's shield slightly, but it holds. Ron advances triumphantly as Flitwick says on the defensive. Hermione can already see the error. It's easy enough to spot and a ploy she wishes Ron wasn't so ready to fall for. Still, Ron is getting cocky as he drives Flitwick back. Shock crosses Ron's face for a second as Flitwick cast the stunner while dodging Ron's curse.
Hermione can see why Dumbledore picked him for these lessons as well as how he lead and herded both boys into a compromising position that ended with their loss. She just doesn't know if she will fare any better.
Hermione steps forward and waits. She decides he can have the first spell of the battle. He smiles at her, but the action seems more goblin in nature than friendly. A blue light is speeding towards her before she sees his wand. She rolls to the side and cast a hasty shield. He shoots a stream of water at her as she gets to her feet. She holds her shield steady, keeping the liquid from her, however the next moment it's ice. She can only stare at the ice sculpted around the shield for a moment when it comes shattering apart from another spell. It breaks through her magical protection as well and the impact throws her back along with raining down shards of ice.
Hermione's head spins and she knows she needs out of this now. Running through the list of spells in her mind, dismissing the majority of them as a waste of energy without any chance of success. She's at the L spells when everything goes black.
The witch wakes to a smiling professor with his hand out reached. She lets him pull her to her feet.
"Let's see if you fare better together," he says, before sliding back into his dueling stance. The girl assumes they will, but she'd forgotten one major thing that quickly becomes obvious. The cues Hermione would give to send warnings or instructions had not be developed between the three of them yet. Instead they are reduced to crude warnings.
"Harry, move," she shouts as Flitwick moves in on the target. However, instead of Harry being stunned, Hermione finds everything going black.
"Very interesting," Flitwick says once the students are all revived once more. "While Mr. Potter and Weasley are powerful, they seem to lack some tactical awareness. Mr Potter, you move from the spells with no thought of where you are going, only surviving through the moment." Hermione hides her grimace as he says this. Harry never quite moved passed just surviving. Even in the war, he could only see as far as out surviving Voldemort.
"Mr. Weasley," the professor turns to him, "you seem to have a problem with being a bit too cocky. You were easily lead into a trap because you believed you were in control of the situation. And Miss Granger," he smiles fondly. "You seem a bit indecisive in battle. While your great intellect offers much it is a hinderance in dueling since you spend too much time trying to find the best possible spell, instead of just one that will win it for you."
"I can be more decisive," she defends automatically. There were plenty of times when she had won throughout the war.
"Oh, I know," he answers quickly. "However I would say the more skilled the opponent, the more you struggle. The wider their display of spells, the more you try to grasp for the perfect one to finish them off. Do not let the opponent dictate the spells you use in your repertoire nor your movement. You should be flexible, yes, adapting even, but play to your strengths not just their weakness.
"Now, for homework," he adds cheerily. "Mr. Potter, I want you to study your surroundings until our next lesson. Consider where would be the most defendable spot if you were suddenly surrounded and where would be the least opportune spot to be cornered. Mr. Weasley, you should think about how not to underestimate your opponent. Consider the pawn as great a threat as the queen, for even a pawn can win the game. Figure out how that applies to the magical world and how you can stay ahead.
"Miss Granger, I want you to compile a list of no more than 25 spell that will cover the widest range of attack. These will be the spells you train with and really the only spells you will use in combat. You may trade out one spell for a more useful one, but only after practicing with it before an actual altercation. I will see you on Saturday evening to continue training. Complete you work before then."
The young witch and wizards nod and leave at the dismissal. While a brilliant idea for getting them ready for every possible eventuality in the coming war, they are still uncertain how they'll keep this all going. Harry is meeting either with Flitwick or Dumbledore all except one night a week. While grades are not all the important at the moment, the three of them all following behind will be suspect. Still how are they supposed to keep up with the increased load of homework on top of the war training and strategizing. Things just can't be simple.