Chapter 05- Once more unto the breach
Summary: Harry gets some much needed advice and decides to take a new look on life. Harry Potter/ Tracey Davis.
A/N: All chapters before this one have been added to. I changed a few things in each one also.
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Hogwarts
"Albus," Minerva said, sighing. She never thought she would be advocating this position on a student. This was the fourth time that she was having this conversation with him. For some reason he refused to listen to reason. She had been trying to convince him that it might be best to let Harry come to them. "Every time you send someone out to search for him, it only serves to drive him further away. At this rate, he'll never come back."
"Minerva, I know what's best when it comes to Harry," Dumbledore said, smiling. "Harry is too young to know what's best for him. Once he is back here with those who love and care for him, I'm sure that he'll come around. And haven't you noticed how the students are acting? They were all wondering if something happened when he didn't show up at the feast. Their morale has dropped."
"I've seen it. As have all of the professors. His friends are asking questions every time they see one of us. The Slytherins aren't helping matters. They make taunts every chance they get. If we don't do something, we are going to have more than few students in the hospital wing with only minor curses."
"That is why it is imperative that he is found," he said. "With him here, we can give the people hope. They will see him at the forefront."
"Mr. Potter isn't some soldier in your war," she argued. "He is a student at this school. Your school. And as for the people, they couldn't care less about him at the moment. One day they hold him up as a hero and the next day he is a villain. I've never seen such behavior outside a story book. If you really wanted to help him, you would make sure the press didn't treat him as such."
"I'm well aware that this is my school," he said. "And he'll need to learn to deal with the press one day. This will provide him with the experience he needs when he assumes my role one day."
"Your role?" she said, taking a deep breath. "You think he wants to assume your role? That of the leader of the Light? Albus, have you even taken a look at the boy. The last thing he wants is to be placed on a pedestal."
"Whether he wants it or not, it will be what happens. He'll have no choice in the matter."
"And you took an oath, just as I did," she said, her voice rising, "An oath to protect the students. Are you going to turn your back on those you swore to protect?"
"I would never place the students in danger," he said, hurt.
"You're walking a fine line," she said as she stood up. "If I were you, I would take a long look at the path I choose. One day you may find yourself alone and without even the school. And I would watch myself when you finally find Mr. Potter. He may not be too receiving to the idea of you saving him."
"Minerva," he called out to no avail as she walked out the door.
Turning to Fawkes, he said, "Have I done that bad when dealing with Harry?"
His only response was a soft trill.
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Riddle Manor
Voldemort's Lair
"My lord," Bella called out as she kneeled before her lord. Behind her stood eight rows of Death Eaters. Since her defeat to the boy several months ago, the Death Eaters were severely depleted in number in the ensuing months. The Inner Circle was forced to call in every oath owed to them by lesser families. Still, that wasn't enough to fill the ranks. They were forced to cross over to the mainland to fill the void that Potter caused. The brat didn't fight fair; he attacked without warning and desecrated the manors of the minor families. Luckily, he wasn't able to cross the wards of the major families. Didn't he know that the Light didn't fight like that.
"Bellatrix," Voldemort hissed. "What news do you bring me?"
"Your Death Eaters are ready for the attack on Hogsmeade. We expect minimal interference from the Ministry. Your moles have guaranteed a one hour window to take the village. The only problem will be Dumbledore."
"Leave him to me," Voldemort said as he stood up from his throne. "Once he arrives, I'll make myself known and he will focus on me. When the village belongs to us, Hogwarts will be open for attack. Remember, it is imperative that the old fool thinks we are there for Hogwarts. He'll be more likely to give up the village to protect the school."
"I shall present the village to you, my lord," she said. "It will…"
"No," he said, his voice rising. "Young Draco will lead the attack on the village. This will be his chance to prove himself. You and Lucius will take the second team and proceed from the forest. I want several Inner Circle members in both teams. The rest of the Inner Circle will come with me. Dumbledore will suspect that the castle is the main objective if you are leading that attack. You will slowly fall back to the village and take over the attack. Once he shows up, I shall arrive and drive him away."
"Yes, my lord. I…" She knew that Draco was not up to leading the attack. He was still getting used to his false leg.
At her hesitation, he snarled, "Is there something else that you feel you need to say?"
"I was just curious if we are to take prisoners," she asked. "It is a weekend that the students will be in the village."
"I don't care about a few of the students," he said, his patience drawing thin. "Once we take Hogwarts, we will have all of the students.
"What if He shows up?" she asked.
Growling in anger that his followers were afraid of a boy, he snarled, "If he shows up, then I'll kill him. He is one man; he shouldn't be that hard for my loyal to handle."
"There are the rumors that the Davis girl has joined him," she said, knowing that she was going into dangerous territory. Her lord was angry when the rumor of a member of a known dark family was aiding Potter reached him.
"If the rumors prove true, then the traitor will die," he said. "There is no room in our Utopia for the likes of them."
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Hogsmeade
"For the last time, Ron," Hermione said, rubbing her forehead, "I'm not doing your homework. If you want to stay on the team, then you will need to get your own grades up. I should have seen this coming years ago."
"But Hermione," he groaned. "Those essays are long. And I have six of them to write. I'll be kicked from the team if my grades go down any more. "
"Then you shouldn't have waited till the last minute," she said. "If you finish your homework when it's first given, you'll find that you have more time to play."
"This is all Potter's fault," he suddenly said. In his mind, it was Harry's fault if anything went wrong. "If he hadn't gone dark, he'd be here and I wouldn't have all these papers to write."
Sighing, she said, "Regardless of whether or not he was here, you would still have to write the papers. And Dumbledore said that he will bring Harry back to the Light."
"They should just throw him to the Dementors if they catch him. There is no coming back from where he went. He's betrayed us all."
"Honestly," she huffed. "You're starting to sound like a five year old. And you should have more faith in Professor Dumbledore. He…"
Whatever she was about to say was cut off with a scream from across the village.
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Hogwarts
"Dumbledore," Flitwick said as he ran into the headmaster's office. "Death Eaters are emerging from the forest. They are heading towards the castle."
"How many," Dumbledore asked, standing up. "And who's leading them?"
"Not sure about how many, but Lucius and Bellatrix are leading them."
"This must be it," Dumbledore said, taking a deep breath, "The final battle. Alert the professors and get the students to their dorms. I'll call the Ministry and alert the Order."
"Albus, there are students in the village today," Flitwick said. "What should we do about them? Try and bring them back?"
"No," Dumbledore said as he hurried to the fireplace. "They'll be safer there than they would be here. If you can get a message to them, tell them to go to the Ministry. "
Not bothering to see if his orders were being followed, he threw some Floo powder into the fireplace and called, "Ministry of Magic, Madame Bones."
"Who's calling," a voice called out.
"Albus Dumbledore," he said. "I need to speak with Madame Bones. I…"
"I'm sorry," the voice said, "But she's in a training briefing with the Aurors at the moment."
"I need the Aurors here," he said hurriedly. "The school is under attack."
"Under attack," the girl said, her voice rising. "I really wish I could help, but most of them are locked in the briefing. There are five Aurors here for stand-by. I can send them and alert the rest when they come out."
"You need to notify Madame Bones now," he said. This wasn't how it was all supposed to go down. He was supposed to have an army of loyal followers who were willing to die for the Light.
"I can't. The room is locked from within. The Minister has ordered that no one enter it until it ends, which will be forty minutes from now."
Crying out in frustration, he told her to send whoever she could to the school and alert the rest as soon as they came out.
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Hogwarts Entrance Hall
Hearing voices coming down the hall, McGonagall turned to see Dumbledore running down the hallway with five Aurors behind him. "Where are the rest," she asked.
"This is all we can get for forty minutes," he spat out. "The rest are in a briefing."
"A briefing," McGonagall demanded. "What idiot scheduled that?"
"I'll give you one guess," Snape snapped.
Turning on her colleague, she snapped back, "And why didn't you know of this attack?"
"The Dark Lord has grown suspicious of me lately," he said. "He's been confiding in Bellatrix of late."
"Now's not the time to place blame," Dumbledore said. "We have a school to protect."
"You think it's that bad," Flitwick asked.
"Yes," he said, gravely. "Tom himself will be here. The Death Eaters wouldn't dare mount an attack on the castle without their master near."
"Shall we meet them or try to protect the castle," McGonagall asked.
"Both," Dumbledore said as he looked out the door. "I will take Filius, Severus, and the Aurors with me to head them off. You will stay here with the other professors to protect the students."
Turning to Snape, he said, "I'm sorry but if you didn't know of this attack, then that means your cover is blown. I'll need you out there with us."
His only response was a curt nod.
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Undisclosed Location
"Harry, are you sure about this," Tracey asked. "Up until now, you've only faced lowered tier Death Eaters. You've not killed any of the Inner Circle. And if you are right, Voldemort himself will be there."
Smiling at the knowledge that she could finally say the Dark Lord's name without stuttering, he said, "This won't be the final battle, so I don't plan on facing Voldemort. I'm going to use this as my chance to thin his ranks some more."
"But if this isn't the final battle, then why bother going? Wouldn't it be better to let the three sides fight it out among themselves and for you to go in and take out the winner?"
"Would it work?" he stated. "Well, it would work to a point. But by that time, one side will have cemented their place. By going in today, we'll be going in under the cover of the confusion the battle causes."
"Are we going to attack the Order or Ministry if we get the chance?"
"No," he said. "There will be a time for that later. Voldemort is the most pressing matter at hand. They will be split in two groups, one from the forest and the other attacking the village. We will be going after the Village. The plan isn't to stop him from taking it, just to make sure that he doesn't have anyone left in it to fight for him. By the time he reaches it, I want every Death Eater in it dead."
"What about them escaping," she asked. Since she joined up with him, she had gradually begun to understand that this wasn't the same Harry that she had gone to school with. This was someone who was willing to kill to win. Something that she could understand.
"Ward stones," he said. "I've procured enough from the goblins. They want this war over a soon as possible."
"You trust them," she asked. "And why not try to buy their services. Or the services of some mercenaries. I know some of the old families used them at one time or another."
"Not really," he answered. "I think the stones will work as stated. Though, I think they will stop working after a certain time period. The Death Eaters are some of their biggest customers and they would want some to survive. In fact, I can pretty much state for a fact that the stones will fall. As for getting help, it'll work much better if it's just the two of us. We can move quicker."
"And…"
"And that is why we will not be stopping. We will start at the back and move through them. Take out as many as you can without stopping. We strike hard and fast. Ensure that no one lives."
"Have you had any more progress on staying invisible," she asked as she watched him dress in his armor. She had been amazed when she saw how strong and fast he was now. He could go hand to hand with a vampire or werewolf and win. She was now more sure then ever that she had made the right choice in changing sides. Sure, he still annoyed her at times, but it was getting better.
"No, he said. "I can force myself to turn invisible but can still only hold it for two minutes. Though it gets easier each time I do it. I think it will just take time."
"The war will be over by the time you figure it out," she joked.
"Maybe, but I'm looking forward to this fight." Ever since the infusions had taken hold, he had felt a urge to fight. He didn't loose control, instead it was like a hunger that could only be sated by battle.
"It'll be easy," she said, shuddering. "Hard and fast. Just how I like it."
"It'll be a bloodbath," he said, smiling.
"That's really freaky when you look that way," she said. "Very freaky."
"I hope the Death Eaters think the same. I'm banking on it."
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End Chapter 05
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Edited: 08-13-12