Title:Game Without Tears
Disclaimer: I do not own, wish I did, but I don't. I only own my plot line. Full disclaimer, first chapter.
Author: ShaeLynn Teelle
All other information: See first chapter.
Polite constructive criticism welcome. FLAMES WILL BE FED TO THE DRAGON IN MY BED. (For whatever reason, you choose, Lucius is no longer confined to Azkaban. I wrote this before OotP came out and couldn't find a way to make it work with him not present. Use your imaginations or just accept, it works for me. - )
Chapter 7: The Future We Don't Have
Draco looked up at the castle from his carriage window, hiding his relief behind the patented Malfoy sneer. He returned his attention back to the inside of the carriage, pointedly ignoring his companion and the hammered steel gaze that had not left his face since leaving the manor.
"Not happy about returning to Hogwarts, Draco?" the voice was deceptively calm and quiet.
"No, Father. If our Lord had not commanded I stay, I would not be here. Beyond not qualifying for the higher ranking ministry jobs, there is little use that I have for returning to this school. There really is very little information that I can ferret out from these walls with Dumbledore so cautious," Draco replied, his tone even, but scowling as he remembered the fourth year and his romp down the hallway as a ferret.
Lucius made no further comments as the carriage passed the outer gates and onto Hogwarts grounds. They reached the main doors and the two stepped out of the carriage. Draco immediately turned towards the Slytherin dormitories while Lucius made his way directly to the Headmaster's office. Draco stopped when he felt Lucius' gaze leave him and watched his father walk away. Then, he sneered at the man, eyes narrowed in hatred before continuing to the dormitory. He never noticed the three stunned gazes that watched the entire interaction from the shadows of the Great Hall's doors.
\/\/\/\/\/
Draco entered the common room to find Pansy sitting by herself on one of the couches near the fire. She looked up when he entered and stood, checking to see if there were any others in the common room with them. Draco simply nodded to her and led the way up to Vincent and Gregory's dorm room, waiting for her to enter before he closed the door.
Pansy took a seat on the top of Vincent's trunk and Daphne came out from behind the curtains of Gregory's bed, sitting on the floor next to Pansy. Draco cast a silencing spell and looked about the dorm room for a moment.
"Where are Greg and Vin?"
"We asked them to wait for five minutes," Daphne said quietly.
Pansy reached behind her to Vincent's bed and pulled a non-descript book off the covers, a book that Draco recognized, "What is this, Dragon?"
"It's a book I… found."
"Where?" Daphne asked, looking at her hands.
"While I was researching potions for the Snake."
"Not 'when', Dragon, 'where'?" Pansy clarified.
"Riddle's hideout."
Pansy jumped up to her feet and Daphne stared up at him in shock. "You took this from the Snake?!" Pansy shouted.
"Snape is the only other person to know of its existence and I highly doubt he even remembers it as he didn't know what it was. If the Snake knew that book even existed he would have had people researching it long before he was defeated the first time," Draco said quietly, not even reacting to Pansy's shout or the glare she now leveled at him.
Pansy looked away and sighed, irritated at both herself for her reaction and at Draco for what she considered his recklessness. Then she turned back to Draco and handed him the book, "So what's in this anyway?"
"Potions, but they're not the kind we make today and it's not in any language I know. Snape gave me a pass for an old book that's not used anymore because it listed ingredients as how they were prepared rather than what they were. They believed the book was useless, but it was too priceless to destroy. That book used the language in here," he said, tapping the cover of the book. "Although the break-up of the words is different."
"Like the black pine needles that you asked about in class that one day?" Daphne asked quietly.
"Yes, but I had to return the book before the Christmas hols and I couldn't bring this with me to start translating what I know. The ingredients in this book aren't written the same way that the ones in the translation book are and it's taking me longer to get anywhere."
"I'll help you with that, Dragon. I have more time than you do with all your Quidditch practices," Pansy said confidently and went back to sitting on Vincent's trunk.
Draco nodded just as there were three sharp knocks on the door and it opened, allowing Vincent and Gregory to enter. The three nodded to each other.
"Alright, Dragon?" Vincent asked as he sat on his bed behind Pansy.
"Alright. Any news from the hols?"
"There's a new spy. I couldn't get any more information out of the Snake's Pet during the revels," Daphne said quietly and Pansy reached over, gently petting her head in comfort as the girl sat by her feet.
"We all know what to do. We need to keep an eye out for any unusual activities. Be on your guard tonight. My father will be at the Head Table for the meal as a form of peace-offering. We cannot afford to have any unusual reactions."
"Millicent leaked to the Second that Daph disappears once a week along with Trace," Pansy said and they all watched as Daphne looked to the floor. "I know that whatever you're doing isn't hurting you or any of us since this was happening in sixth year, too. But we need to know what you're really doing. The excuse that you're studying doesn't work anymore and we need to come up with a reason when she starts to snoop around or we're all at risk."
Daphne stood up and moved away from the group, keeping her back to them she spoke, "We have been studying, just not where we can be found and we're not studying what you think. Trace and I are part of the D.A. We have been since the start of sixth year."
"The what?" Pansy asked.
"You should know what I'm talking about, Pans. You found the original list of names when Umbridge was here."
"Potter's club? I would think they'd have lynched any Slytherins after what the rest of us did fifth year. How did you get into that?" Draco asked incredulously.
"We got in because we're always overlooked. Dragon, you told me yourself that you knew I was a Slytherin in your year, but you didn't know anything else except my name. We approached the trio on a Hogsmeade weekend in our own robes, not Hogwarts ones. We asked to be allowed to join and Potter said sure. He told us when the next meeting was and we went. We signed a parchment of names that listed everyone in the D.A. and Trace was given a coin that would tell her if there was a change in the weekly meetings.
"It took everyone there over a month to realize that we were Slytherins and there was a meeting every week. At the sixth meeting we attended they wanted to know where our allegiances lay in regards to the Snake. Even if they asked now my answer would be the same; I'm on whatever side is trying to stop him."
"But Potter's list tells him when someone talks about the D.A. to someone else. They'll know you've told us," Draco said quietly.
Daphne turned around, "Trace and I have been telling Blaise about it since the beginning of this year. The trio already knows about it and they spoke with Blaise themselves. He can't join the D.A. because of his family, though they won't make him get the mark, and Theodore Nott is his roommate so we meet with him during Quidditch practices in his room and we teach him what we know. The D.A. isn't really a secret anymore so it's okay that we tell people, we just have to be careful what we tell. My sister is going to be one of the first accepted into the group next year when Ginny Weasley, Colin, and Dennis Creevey are in charge of it. She's going to be the youngest member ever, but I've spoken with the trio, Ginny, and the Creeveys about it already. They said that it won't matter what house she's in, they'll accept her."
"Daph, will you and Trace teach us what you've learned?" Gregory asked, walking up to her and slipping a hand into hers. "I can cast the darker curses with ease, but I'm horrible at defending against them."
"Even Dragon could use some help on the basics," Pansy said, looking sideways at Draco who scowled at her.
"No problem. I'll ask the trio when they don't use the room. We can all go together some night and I can show you what we're doing."
\/\/\/\/\/
Nearly a week later found Draco and Pansy sitting on Draco's bed. The potion book was sitting open next to Draco while he held a notebook, carefully copying what was written in the book. At the other end of the bed was Pansy, another notebook in her hands as she carefully translated what she could using the information Draco had previously copied from Mo'ti Ta'skan.
Pansy looked up and sighed as she watched Draco turn the page in his notebook to start the next potion, "Dragon, if we don't even know what these potions are for when we copy them, is it really worth copying them? What if they're not something we can actually use?"
"I'm hoping that by getting the ingredients translated we'll find a potion that we already know how to make and that will at least be a start with the rest," Draco said, turning the page in the potion book.
Pansy turned back to her translating for only a moment when she was interrupted.
"Pansy, what is r-a-d?"
She frowned, but looked over the parchment in her hand, "It either means brown or reduce. Why?"
"What about t-o-e and f-r-o?"
Pansy glared at Draco, but looked up the letter combinations from what she had translated, "T-o-e is happening and f-r-o is from."
"Reduce Crucio happening from," Draco mumbled to himself.
"That doesn't make any sense, Dragon."
"Reduce happening from Crucio?"
"You mean, reduce the outcome from the Cruciatus Curse? But, Dragon, there already is a potion to reduce the immediate effects of being under that curse."
"Yes, but that potion doesn't have either red rose petals or the sap of a black pine. What if this potion is not meant for the effects of short-term exposure? Do you think this might be for long-term effects?"
"Overexposure? Like what happened to Daph's mother and the Longbottoms?"
Draco nodded solemnly.
"Forget the rest. If this potion can return the people that went insane back to how they were before, it's more important than the others. Slide that book over here, I'll translate while you write."
An hour later Draco turned the page and stopped, "We have a problem, Pans. Half of the next page is missing."
"Do we have all the ingredients and directions?" Pansy asked, watching as Draco nodded. "Then, we'll finish what we can and when the translation is sent, explain that something is missing, but there is no way to find out what it is. They can decide what to do from there."
Again, Draco nodded and the two went back to their translations.
\/\/\/\/\/
The next day Professor Snape found a rolled up scroll on the desk in his secret quarters. The rooms were unknown to the students for his protection and theirs, but the scroll did not have the seal of the Headmaster. After casting several spells to ensure it was not a portkey or poison or some other trap, he opened it carefully. The handwriting was immediately recognized as the writing of the Order's unknown informant. He scanned through the contents once before his eyes narrowed and he swept from his rooms, heading towards Dumbledore's office.
Enclosed is the recipe for a potion that will help to return a victim to their previous mental state after prolonged exposure to the Cruciatus Curse. However, a portion of the original recipe is missing which contains what I believe is the details of what happens during the healing process. The recipe itself is complete and copied exactly as it must be prepared on the following page. The recipient of the potion will sleep for twenty-four hours after the potion has been ingested before returning to the minimum point of awareness and coherent conversation relative to the situation.
Suggested recipients of trial run: Frank Longbottom, Alice Longbottom, and Violet Greengrass. However, Trael Greengrass is a known Death Eater and it would be imperative that Voldemort does not know of this potion. Good Luck.
Reviews are appreciated.
