Last chapter that i've got written. Want more? Just vote on my poll. Otherwise, it could be a while.
War of the Grail chapter 3
The plot begins
After Harry had disapparated, Hermione turned to Dobby, "Thank you, Dobby." she smiles.
"Dobby is not troubled at all." he bows, "Dobby must be getting back now. The Carrows are ruthless with the elves. They killed Winky last week because she wasn't working!"
"Oh dear." Hermione says sadly, "I hope that all of you are safe. Is Kreacher still there?"
"Yes, miss. But he has been most saddened. He thinks that something terrible has happened to you." Dobby sighs, "Can I tell him that you are okay?"
"Sure. Just tell him that right now it isn't safe for us to contact him and to keep up the good work." she smiles, and Dobby disappears with a crack.
Turning to her host, she asks, "Is there any place that I can sit and think for a while?"
"I've always liked the small cliff about a quarter of a mile that way. It's still inside the wards, but there isn't any sound but the waves." Bill smiles.
"Thank you." she smiles, walking off to find the cliff. It was very difficult go find. Just at the very edge of the property, a small cliff sat overlooking the sea, "Archer?"
The white hair man appeared next to her, feet dangling over the cliff.
"You said that you would tell me who you are." she says calmly.
"My name is Emiya." he answers, "The fact that you haven't heard of me is to be expected. After all, I haven't even been born yet."
"You're from the future?" she gasps.
"Time has no meaning to the grail." he shrugs, "Before you ask, I can't tell you what will come of this war. Just my being here could change the future. All that is known is that I will be born and I will leave my mark on history. Any more than that, and I can't say."
The sea air blows past, and for a moment there was silence. "Do you think this plan can work?" Hermione asks with a brave face, though Archer could pick up on her fear.
"It will either succeed or it will fail." he answers, "There isn't any point in worrying. Even if I told you it wouldn't, you'd do it anyway."
"True." she laughs, "Archer, while you are in spirit form, can you apparate?"
"Depends on the situation." he shrugs in the wind, "Why?"
"After we lay the bait, someone needs to watch for Bellatrix. Would you be able to do that?" she asks tentatively.
"If you wish, I will. However, such a job is far better suited for Assassin. If you can find some way to communicate over long distances, there shouldn't be any problem." Archer tells her.
"But lancer said that he could find Assassin. You said that you were better suited to direct combat, right?" Hermione asks, and Archer snorts in reply.
"It's no great feat to find Assassin when he is making no attempt to hide. His presence concealment is his true power. The ability to remain undetected if he so chooses."
"Let's get back. Harry might have returned." Hermione sighs as Archer returns to spirit form. She turns her back on the sea and walks the path back to shell cottage.
Hermione steps into the cottage as Fleur places five plates on the table. "Hello Fleur." she smiles brightly.
"Hello Hermione." she say in a heavy French accent, "You and Harry will be joining us for a few day."
"Thank you, fleur." she smiles, "Is Harry back?"
"I believe he and Bill are in the study. They should be out in a moment." Fleur replies, not looking away from the meal she was cooking.
As it planned, no sooner had she finished her sentence then the door to the study opened and both men enters the dining room accompanied by a goblin.
"Then I shall see to the paperwork. It will not actually do anything, but it the dark lord has spies within the bank, it will confirm their fears." the goblin says with a bow.
"Thank you, Griphook." Bill says with an identical bow, "I shall see you tomorrow night for drinks."
"Very well, Breaker Weasley. Harry, good fortunes with your search." Griphook says as he steps out of the house and a second later, there was an unusually loud crack.
"Harry, you'd better get in touch with these people that you're so sure can match Bellatrix." Bill sighs, "Because if this plan works then she'll be there in no time."
"I'll go after dinner." Harry assures him, "Luckily I don't need to be disguised. I can apparate straight there."
"I'll go with you." Hermione nods.
"Wonderful. Just be sure to be back before it gets too late. You'll want to be awake early to see everything set in motion." Bill says as he down a shot of firewhiskey, "Did Ron ever find you guys?"
"Ron?" Hermione frowns, "He was looking?"
"Sure was." Fleur adds, "Showed up here just at the end of October. He kept talking about how he wanted to go find you, but didn't know where to go. Then just after Christmas, he left without warning, insisting that he knew exactly where to go."
"I hope he didn't get caught in that attack." Hermione mutters.
"Attack?" Bill frowns. Fleur seemed concerned, though more for her husband then his brother.
"Just before we came here, Bellatrix and one of the goons tracked us down in the forest of dean. We killed the other one, but just barely managed to escape with our lives." Hermione says, leaving out the entire incident with the servants.
"Did you use You-Know-Who's name?" Bill asks.
"You mean Voldemort?" Harry stares, thinking back as Bill and Fleur wince, "No. We just got used to calling him you know who when Ron was around. Why?"
"He placed a taboo on it. We're fine here since the Fidelius is stronger than the taboo, but in almost every other occasion it would destroy the wards and light up your location for them to kill you at their leisure." Bill shivers, "Nearly killed Kingsley when he made the mistake."
"We'll have to be more careful." Hermione sighs, "But at least Ron won't have anything to worry about."
"You two have to understand it from his point of view." Bill explains, "You were both raised in the muggle world. In our world, you learned from a young age that you don't use the name. My mum would rather you use a curse word than that. I didn't even know his name until I went to Hogwarts."
"At least it gives you protection in times like this." Harry says with a nervous chuckle.
"Let's move this depression talk to after dinner." Fleur smiles as she places the wonderful looking food on the table, including a very rare steak for Bill.
The food was wonderful. Harry could only assume that all Weasley men were programmed to find women who could cook. Harry wasn't very big on French food, but he couldn't get enough. After three servings of everything, he let out a sigh of relief.
"Wonderful dinner, Fleur." he smiles.
"Thank you, Harry." she replies, "Now, you'd best go talk to your people before bed."
"Yes ma'am!" Harry says in a mock salute, and he and Hermione left the cottage. Before he could say anything, Hermione took his hand and dragged him towards the cliff she'd talked with Archer at that afternoon. With a few basic wards, mainly disillusionment and Muffliato, she turned to Harry, "Archer, Assassin, let's talk."
Both servants appeared next to their masters without a word. "Assassin, is it true that you would be able to remain hidden in Diagon alley to watch the bank?"
"Certainly." the snakelike man replies, "But you would still need to be nearby or else you would miss your chance."
"You heard what Griphook said." Harry notes, "It would take about fifteen minutes to get to and from the Lestrange vault if they only took the cup. We can afford a little separating to avoid being spotted."
"Better idea." Hermione smirks, reaching into her magical extended bag, and pulling out two galleons. With a flourish of her wand, the galleon glowed blue and became identical. She hands one to Assassin, "This was a method of communication I created in my fifth year. You can change the serial number to send us a message and it will automatically update on our coins."
"Ingenious. Such a thing would be impossible to detect unless they had the galleon at the moment it received a message." Assassin grins, accepting the galleon.
"That's one problem down." Archer nods, "So we can stay here while he watches the bank, and then we'll apparate to the bank and snatch the cup in the crowd. Maybe stab Bellatrix in the back."
"Lancer is still a problem." Harry says, "If we don't know anything about him, then who knows what he might do if he's backed into a corner."
"That's a risk we'll have to take." Hermione sighs, "Our only objective is the cup. If we can get that, we'll retreat."
The servants think carefully, and eventually nod. "Alright. Tomorrow afternoon I'll pop down to the bank. Keep watch on that coin. There's no telling when it could go off." Assassin says calmly, "Keep everything ready to go. The last thing we want to do is have a last minute rush and miss her. Keep your wands with you and be prepared to apparate at a moment's notice."
Harry's stomach ties itself in a knot as he slowly says, "My wand was broken a couple weeks ago."
"And why have you not replaced it?" Assassin asks, eyes narrowed.
"Because right now I'm the most wanted man in the country. I can't exactly walk up to a wandmaker to get a new one." Harry says coldly.
"Luckily for you, I happen to be a wand maker." Archer snorts, "I should be able to make something for you by tomorrow morning."
"Thank you." Harry sighs.
"Well, with that settled, let's go over the plan once more." Assassin insists.
Narcissa awoke in a cold sweat as she found herself unable to breathe. Berserker's madness was overpowering. Even after taking every step to reduce it, it was still so intense.
"Cissy?" Bella asked from the door, "Are you alright?"
"No." she admits, "It's getting to be too much for me. I don't know how long I can take this. All I know is that if he uses his noble Phantasm, I'll die."
"Then forbid him!" Bella pleads, "Use you command seal!"
"No." she says firmly, head swimming from berserkers influence, "I may be a failure, but I'll be a master to the end. I will not weaken my servant. If he uses it, even saber would be obliterated. I just need to make sure that potter is in the crosshairs."
"You'd die for the dark lord?" Bella asks quietly, unaware of her sisters true feelings. Cissy isn't about to enlighten her as she lay back down.
"Bella... If something happens to me, protect Draco." she whispers.
"Of course." she whispers back, handing her a vial of dreamless sleep potion. She watched as she drank the vial and feel back into the same troubled sleep she's been in since the summoning.
Quietly, she left the room. Behind her, a voice asked calmly, "How is she?"
"She's reached her limit, my lord." she says bowing, "Please, give this mission to me. There is no reason to subject Cissy to this..."
"Enough. My order stands. When potter is found, your sister shall be the one to defeat him." Voldemort glares, silencing the witch, "Berserkers power is dangerous. Surely you can tell that he is far stronger than both caster and lancer."
"My lord, cissy can't use that power. It will destroy her." Bella says fighting back tears at the thought of losing her beloved sister.
"Such is the commitment I require." Voldemort says dismissing her concerns.
Harry woke the next morning to him a wand on his nightstand. It appeared to be made of silver, thought it still felt like wood. He could feel the energy when he picked it up, the sudden warmth that spread through his body.
Making a mental note to test its capabilities, Harry placed the wand in his pocket and stepped out of the guest bedroom. Hermione was already eating a bowl of cereal, reading the prophet with the usual headline, 'Search Continues for Undesirable Number One.'
"I doubt that they would expect me to be reading my own wanted poster." Harry sniggers.
"Sirius did it while he was on the run and it helped him, so why not us?" Hermione shrugs, passing him the newspaper.
"Bill left early this morning." Fleur yawned, "He said that he would stop by after the meeting with Griphook."
"Good. Now it's just a matter of time." Harry sighed silently, "Do you have a broom?"
"I think Bill has one in the shed out back. Why?"
"Flying is the only thing that helps with my nerves." He says with a sip of butterbeer.
"You're welcome to take it for a ride." Fleur says as she hands them both a plate of food.
"Thanks." he smiles, digging into his breakfast.
The after breakfast ride was exhilarating. It wasn't as fast as his old firebolt, but riding the nimbus two thousand brought back memories of his first year. The hours flew by, as did Harry.
"You are certain of this?" Voldemort asks Dolohov.
"Yes my lord. I overheard a goblin informing Bill Weasley that the plan would be enacted tomorrow, and every known or suspected death eater shall have their accounts drained!" the twisted man smiles.
"You've done well, Dolohov." Voldemort grins, "Bring me Lucius and Dear Bella. And spread the word amongst the others. Do not allow them to drain our capital!"
"Yes my lord!" he yells, running from the room. Within minutes, both Lucius and Bellatrix were groveling at his feet.
"What are your thoughts on this matter, Lucius?" he asks after explaining the problem.
"It could be a trap. There has been no provocation. A race as cunning as goblins wouldn't stupidly turn against you without a reason. " Lucius says, still bowing.
"I agree, but this threat must be addressed. Bella, retrieve everything from your vault. And-" he adds, smiling evilly, "Take her with you."
Bella pales, but nods nonetheless.
"Is everything ready?" Hermione whispers during lunch, just after Bill returned.
"Assassins watching the bank. He'll let us know when something happens." Harry whispers back.
"Care to share with the rest of us?" Bill smirks from across the table, "Let me guess... Discussing this crazy plan?"
"Sort of. We just have to wait now." Harry shrugs, "I've got a friend watching the bank. He'll let us know the moment she arrives."
As if on cue, the galleon in his pocket started burning. He extracted it and read from the serial, 'She's here.'
"Hermione!" Harry shouts, and she gets the meaning. She bolts to her room, arriving back with her beaded bag. "We'll be back." Harry says, running from the cottage. As soon as they reach the ward line, they gulp the last of the polyjuice potion and disapparate.
Assassin is waiting for them just inside the alley. "We've got trouble." he says calmly.
"She spotted you?" Hermione gasps.
"Of course not, but she wasn't alone."
"The fact that lancer is with her just proves she's a master." Archer snorts.
"I wish." Assassin says urgently, "Her sister came with her."
"And?" Harry asks.
"She's affected by Mad Enchantment." Assassin hisses.
"Fuck." Archer mutters, "Lancer's one thing, but I don't want to fight Berserker if I can help it."
"Well you can't so that's just the way it'll have to be. If you can hold him off until we destroy the cup, we win." Harry sighs.
"That's a pretty big if." Archer glares as the group walks through the nearly empty streets, "And if Lancer gets involved too, I won't stand a chance."
"You might have a chance of defeating Berserker with your noble phantasm." Assassin sneers as they browse the shops at the end of the alley, awaiting their targets, "Or is it only for show?"
Archer remained silent, possibly contemplating the idea. Hermione had talked to him while Harry was flying. She knew what his noble phantasm was, but she couldn't believe it. How could such magic exist?
Archer nods resolutely and turns to Hermione, "Master, I need your permission to use my noble phantasm."
"You sure it'll come to that?" she asks worriedly. The drain on her magic would be almost unbearable.
"Against berserker and lancer, it's the only chance we have. Please!" he begs.
She'd endured the Curciatus curse, so this should be easy, "Alright. Use it as you wish. Just make sure you win."
"Speaking of..." Assassin says, jerking his head towards the couple walking away from Gringotts. One of them was supporting the other, who seemed to almost unconscious on her feet.
"We'd better act now if we don't want them to apparate!" Assassin hisses, "The horcrux is in her pouch."
Archer nods and creates a long sword. A bow appears in his right hand as the sword turned to an arrow. Effortlessly he releases it, aimed straight for Bellatrix's heart.
Just as it appears to be a sure hit, the weaker woman collapses as a massive explosion incinerated the arrow and half the nearby shops, sending patrons of the alley fleeing in all directions.
Standing between them is a tall man with long untidy black hair and a terrifying look in his eye, which only just peaked out from behind his overgrown hair. He had a slim build, and his facial structure was almost identical to his...
"Dad?" Harry gasps as the man pointed a wand towards them and sends a blast of red light. Hermione screams, as does Narcissa. And then the explosion.
Well, Harry's reaction is to be expected, right? Next time, a servant dies, another servant makes an appearance, and Archer uses his noble Phantasm. Until then, R&R!