A/N: *sighs* I'm sorry people for the slow update. I've just had a lot of trouble lately getting into the right 'mood' to write. I have not forgotten this story however: It has always been in my mind. Hence this short chapter. I decided to post this now, to reassure you all that I am still around.

Chapter 44: Consolidation

Dumbledore sighed wearily as he sank down into his chair. Tilting his head back he glazed sightlessly upwards towards the ceiling of his office. The first of September had always been a busy day, as there was always a few last minute things that needed to be done before the students arrived. But this year it had been much, much longer, as he'd neglected the school even more this summer, leaving Minerva to handle things while he tried to run down Voldemort's remaining Horcrux's. He told himself it was good training for her, for when she took over as headmistress.

In his heart however, not even Albus could truly believe that lie.

Worse of all... the day was not over yet.

As he waited for Harry's group to arrive, Albus reflected on the evening... and the summer just past. So much had happened, that at times he'd been bewildered, unsure as to which way to turn. To someone such as himself, used to always being in control and understanding a situation, it had been most disconcerting.

And the events regarding young Harry in particular... Another sigh escaped his lips, one laced with regret. Looking back, so many mistakes were clear to him now. He was not too prideful to deny the existence of them anymore, not after they had been pointed out so... forcefully, by those around him. The words of that rather dangerous muggle had shaken him to the core.

But worst of all had been the look in Lily's eyes. She'd been a star pupil, and had looked up to him. Now, her eyes were filled with utter contempt.

He didn't know how long he sat there, his mind turning over past choices and decisions, second-guessing himself, until there was a sharp rap on his door. Startled, it took Albus a few moments to gather his thoughts. "Enter."

McGonagall was the first to enter, and Albus could tell just from the look on her face the tone of the ensuring conversation. 'She did know it was a strong possibility...' he mused inwardly.

He was slightly alarmed, though truthfully not surprised, at the number of young people who followed Harry in. 'He's really formed alliances...' Dumbledore felt very uneasy at bearing such young people with the many dark truths that he knew, but he also knew that right now he had no choice.

Once everyone was sat, he decided to jet things started. "Welcome Har... Mister Potter." He corrected himself at the sharpened looks he received from Harry and Lily. "I am pleased you agreed to this meeting. There is much I feel you need to know."

"We'll get to that headmaster. However, first... what the hell are you thinking!" Lily was almost rising from her chair. "Snape as the Defence Professor? How can you have a... a... a person like that in such an important role, especially at a time like this?"

"I assume you Lily, Professor Snape is more than qualified to teach defence."

"No, he's not Albus. I remember what he was like as a student. He only really excelled in Potions. Average at best in Defence. And what of the years after graduating? I don't recall him ever gaining a Mastery in Defence Against the Dark Arts."

Harry snorted. "He likely has a Mastery in using the Dark Arts, knowing him."

A frown creased Dumbledore's brow. "Mister Potter, do not make accusations without proof."

"Professor, with all due respect," Hermione cut into the conversation now, her tone firm. "But even you admit he was a Death Eater, at least before turning spy for you. And his behaviour, both in and out of the classroom, would see him fired from any normal school faster than you could blink."

"We haven't even begun to list the atrocities within Slytherin House." Daphne spoke up, though there was a nervous quaver in her voice. "While he rarely partook in the actions that certain students did, he also didn't curtail them in any way. Threats and innuendo were more his domain." She turned to look at McGonagall. "That's why there haven't been any complaints before now. He's got the whole house terrified of him."

"Albus... why did you make him the Defence Professor?" Remus asked quietly. "With everything going on right now, it's more important than ever that the students are taught Defence well. Surely there were other applicants for the post?"

Dumbledore sighed loudly as he seemed to sink back into his chair in resignation. "That's just the thing. There were no applicants. Every single person I approached about the role wanted nothing to do with it, sometimes even slamming the door in my face. And after last year's debacle, the Ministry won't even acknowledge the bylaw Fudge used to place Umbridge here. Severus was the only person in the whole country who expressed an interest." He looked up to meet the eyes of his guests. "Believe me, I am aware that he is not liked as a professor, and have already had a word with him regarding his conduct." To say Snape had not been happy during that meeting would have been an understatement.

"Then why did 'ou not fulfil the role yourself?" Fleur asked pointedly.

"Ah... that is due to the bane of all our existences, Miss Delacour. Time. Lack of, to be precise. Remember, I am not only the headmaster of this school. I also have duties with the Wizangamont and the ICW. And then there is the fight against our Dark Lord. Which is why I asked for this meeting."

Albus paused for a few moments, his eyes darting between the teens before finally settling on Harry. "I had originally planned to broach this subject slowly to you alone Harry. I felt, and still feel, that in order to defeat Voldemort, you have to understand his roots, where he's coming from."

"What's to understand? He's an insane lunatic with delusions of grandeur." Susan commented dryly.

Albus's beard twitched. "Alas, Voldemort is far more than just that. In his youth he was a brilliant student, gifted with both intellect and charisma. It is only in later life that his megalomania began to manifest."

"You mean as he made more and more Horcrux's?"

Albus nodded slowly at Hermione's question. "Yes. Understand, for years I have been tracing his roots, trying to understand him, searching for clues not only to why he did what he did, but what he would have used and where he would have hidden them. At the same time, I was trying to remove or destroy any information about those vile abominations, in the hope that no one else ever do what he has done again."

Hermione huffed, clearly unsettled at the notion of destroying knowledge. "I hope you have kept some records. At the very least weaknesses and means of destroying them!"

"Ah... Alas, those who practiced this dark art were not in the habit of finding out what would destroy their work. Before now, only one other has made more than one, and even that particular wizard only made two. It is part of who he is, to go further than any other. Even as a young student, he had a drive to be superior. But... I fear he either was unaware of, unlikely given his intellect, or disregarded the signs of the cost on his humanity. Make no mistake though. He still wields his full intellect and abilities; he is only lacking the proper restraint provided by morals or feelings such as compassion."

Harry slowly cocked his head to one side. "How successful have you been at finding his 'treasures'?"

Now a smile finally formed on the Headmasters face, half hidden by his beard as it was. "We have been very fortunate, thanks to you, Harry. When you laid that diary on my desk three years ago, you brought me one that I had been totally unaware of. I also had long suspected both the Locket unearthed at Grimmuald Place and the Cup from Bellatrix's vault to have been used by him as receptacles for his horcrux's, but their location eluded me. And as you are aware already..." his eyes dropped to his right hand, which rested on the desk before him. "...I located and destroyed another over this summer, though not without a cost. Now, with what I have pieced together, I suspect he has only two remaining. Once they are gone, he will be as mortal as everyone else."

Both Lily and Daphne gasped lightly. "Of course. Seven is the most powerful number arithmetically." Said Daphne.

Lily nodded in reply. "He must have been thinking that having that number would have added effects."

Albus beamed. "Your thoughts add weight to my conclusion. Of course, we cannot know for sure without one small, but vital piece of information."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, a little nervous as the Headmasters eyes were now on him again.

Albus sighed. "It seems that before he begun down his dark path, he consulted with a few people regarding parts of his plan. As I said, he had – and still does, to a degree – a great deal of personal charisma, which when combined with his gifted silver tongue allowed him to charm information out of almost anyone. Professor Slughorn is one of those he consulted. Horace is knowledgeable about a great many things, one of which is Arithmancy, which Tom did not study. One of the memoires I had planned to share was Horace's, of the discussion they had on this subject. However, Horace, for what I believe was guilt, deliberately withheld the vital part of the discussion. I had intended to ask you to acquire the full, un-edited memory from Horace this year Harry. But I think we can safely say that the critical point we have already deduced."

Harry sat back slowly, a scowl on his face. Another name who had, even unwittingly, assisted Voldemort in becoming what he was. Putting aside his issues with the Headmasters revealed intentions, he thought back to what had been said. "Do you have any clue to what else he may have used? Or do you only have old information that's not much use?"

Albus bowed his head. "I understand why you say that Harry. But I had to reiterate, understanding Voldemort is, I am convinced, key to his defeat. As for what he may have used... I consider his familiar to be a likely candidate."

It was lily's turn to frown. "That would be an exceptionally long lived snake, Headmaster."

"Normally, yes. But Nagini is no common garden snake. Whatever breed it was once, it has been magically augmented and enhanced, growing to incredible size and intellect. Also, I believe that if he has made her a horcrux, it was after his resurrection. My own reading of him tells me that on that fateful Halloween night, he intended to make another Horcrux... via your death, Harry. Once he came back, he must have felt that he needed the edge of having another Horcrux. His display in the Ministry was greater than our previous duels."

"Great." Harry slumped in his chair. "How in the hell am I supposed to beat him in your great master plan then? He's got power and experience over me."

"Not so much, Harry. Not any more. You see, the synergy of the Horcruxes may have elevated his power, but without them... he is weakened."

"But one had already been destroyed!"

Albus smiled again. "Yes, the oldest, destroyed before he returned. But think once more on the nature of Arithmancy. I am no expert on the subject, but what is the core reason that the number seven is so strong?"

Daphne frowned. "In rituals, seven points form a septagram, but really that's not that much more powerful that five points, in a pentagram. In both however, the object, or target, of the ritual sits at the focal point of the shape."

"Yes, correct. Five points to Gryffindor, for remembering classical arithmetic ritual arrangements." Daphne blushed a little under the headmasters praise. "But that only covers classical rituals. The key point in all this is 'focal point'."

"Wait. Can't you place six points around a seventh, in a cube?" Remus asked questioningly.

"Of course!" Lily gasped. "Six points can be used to define a seventh, the focal point. When used as a ritual with free floating, pure magic runes draw in air, all the output of the six are focused into one single point. That's why seven is such a powerful number."

Albus nodded. "Yes. Six horcruxes, with his new body as a focal point, would account for his greater than normal level of spell-casting. But, in short order, he's lost four of those anchors."

"This is all interesting..." Susan commented dryly. "But how does it affect us? What about the fight against him, and his followers?"

Albus sighed. "I wish I could give you firm answers Miss Bones. I have been following up every lead I can unearth, however unlikely, to see if they lead to something. In regard to the war we're in, for now we have to let the Aurors do their job and contain the threat. The key is Voldemort. Remove him, and the Death Eater cause will wither and die."

"No, it won't Albus." Remus said quietly, sombrely. "Last time, after That Night, they just went to ground, kept quiet, and waited. Waited for his return. And in the meanwhile, lined their pockets and corrupted all those around them. We've had a ineffectual minister, one whose leanings were easily bought. A portion of the younger generation have grown up with the Death Eater poison filling their ears.

"The root cause is the Pure-Blood Supremacist movement. That's what we really need to tackle. Vo-Voldemort is the current leading figure. It's a cancer, and it has to be purged."

"That is a rather extreme view, Remus." There was a concerned note in Dumbledore's tone.

"It's the only way, Headmaster." Harry cut in. "Do you really think that people like Malfoy, or the LeStrange's will say their sorry and seek redemption if you drop Voldemort dead in front of them? Those people are far beyond that. They're totally corrupt to the core."

"And what of Bellatrix? You took her in..."

"Special case old man. And she would be the first to say she's beyond redemption. I've had to set an elf on suicide watch for her." Harry kept quiet that the suggestion had come from Narcissa. She'd told him about how she'd found her sister when her insanity broke... and how she'd tried to take her own life, with Narcissa right in front of her.

"But that issue aside, Remus has raised another point. We have a war to fight in the halls of this school. A war for hearts and minds. I wouldn't be at all surprised to discover that Malfoy's taken the Dark Mark by now. Other's might have as well, or will do soon. Perhaps if you had trusted others to go on your little 'treasure hunts', and kept your eyes closer to home, you could have stopped us coming to this: where we will have to fight our classmates for real." With those parting words Harry stood and made to leave. As one the others also stood and followed him out the office, leaving a tired old man in the ruins of his old plans with much to think on.

The walk towards Gryffindor Tower was done in silence. Everyone had the meeting on their mind. Harry's 'guests' – Astoria, Luna & Hannah – had waited at the bottom of the stairs leading to Dumbledore's office, and rejoined the party when they left. Seeing the expressions on their faces, the three kept quiet.

It was as they ascended the stairs to the fifth floor that the silence between them was finally broken. "His idealism is going to be the death of him." Daphne commented softly.

"Either that or his sheer wilful blindness." Lily muttered. Then she sighed. "But then again, I'm guilty of the same..."

Faintly Harry heard a quiet "myself as well." From McGonagall ahead of them.

"Difference is you recognised and admitted that you were blinkered. He's denying the truth that's right in front of his nose." Susan shook her head slowly, her expression one of disbelief. Out of all of them, Susan had had the most trouble dealing with learning about Dumbledore's failings. While Hermione and Harry had been raised in the muggle world, and Daphne in a neutral alignment family, Susan's upbringing had been firmly Light orientated, where Dumbledore was revered second only to Merlin himself. To learn about such an idols flaws...

They reached the Fat Lady, who smiled conspiratorially at the teens as they approached. "Out fooling around on your first night here? Somebody's eager." To spare McGonagall, none of them decided to mention they'd spent the night before in a tangle of limbs.

Then the portrait saw who was walking behind the teens. "Well Merlin be praised! We'd heard you were still alive, but seeing is believing!"

Lily smiled faintly. "Good to see you too Matilda."

Both Harry and Hermione stopped, their eyes jumping between Lily and the Fat Lady. "Matilda?"

"Oh wonderful Mrs Potter, you still remember my name. Of course, I still remember one Miss Evans, and how one Mister Potter used to get under her skin trying to woo her." At the younger pairs continued staring she huffed. "Did you two really think I spent my whole life being called 'The Fat Lady'? Please."

"This way you two." McGonagall's call from further up the landing curtailed any response the teens could have made. Hurrying over, they joined the others stood in front of another painting. This was not a portrait; instead the painting showed an African vista. The only real point of interest was a rocky outcrop, on top of which a regal lion lounged, king of all he surveyed. Being a magical painting, they could see the lion's fur and mane rippling in the wind.

"Austin." McGonagall spoke, and the lion's head turned to regard her rather than the plains around him. "These will be your residents this year." The lion regarded each one of them stately, before nodding once. With a clunk the portrait opened away from the wall like a door, revealing the hidden entryway.

Harry was the first through, and he looked about in wonder as he stepped in. The room they had entered was roughly half-circular in shape, with them entering via one of the corners. To their immediate right was another door, which he guessed led into the Gryffindor Common room. Further ahead, the curved wall was bisected by a wide, tall fire-place. Either side were three doorways, though one had no door, just a set of steps rising up in a spiral.

The space before them was roughly split into three areas. The area directly in front of them was open, while the area in front of the fireplace had a number of comfortable looking sofas. The final area held a dining table, on top of which were their trunks and other baggage. Crookshanks was already curled up on one of the sofas.

The last feature was along the wall to their left, a set of French doors, through the glass of which they could see that they had a parapet looking out over the grounds.

"We are at the top of one of the smaller side towers of the main Gryffindor Tower." McGonagall explained. "You have direct access to the Gryffindor Common Room. I expect you to make use of that and mingle with your housemates." McGonagall now speared Harry with a sharp look. "I trust you will not abuse the privileges provided." The twitch at the corner of her mouth took some of the heat out of her words however.

"Oh I'm sure he won't." Lily replied, one hand snaking across his shoulders to gently hug him. Instantly some of the tension left Harry's frame, and a smile formed on face as he leaned into the hug.

That twitch eased into a small smile. "Yes... We'll see. Now, this room..." she moved past the door leading to the Common Room to the door on the far right from the fireplace. "...Will be yours Lily. Its a bit smaller than the others, but has its own bathroom and an internal floo connection, which you can use to contact any other office or residence. The other four are each twin rooms, with two shared bathrooms."

Fleur quickly glanced around their group, doing a head count. "Um, Madam McGonagall... there are nine of us..."

"Yes. Harry's room is upstairs."

Harry's shoulders slumped a little. Seeing his action Hermione stepped closer and took his hand in hers. "Don't worry Harry. If it's anything like I suspect, we'll easily be able to visit you." There was a glint in her eye that Harry had become familiar with, and he beamed in reply.

McGonagall nodded, a faint blush forming on her cheeks. "Well then, I'll see you at breakfast in the morning. Good night." With that she turned and stepped out of their chambers.

As soon as the portrait was shut Hermione spun to face Harry, took his head in her hands and kissed him, hard. For a couple of moments Harry stood stunned, before his arms came up and wrapped around his brunette lover. Hermione held the kiss for several seconds before slowly drawing back. "I've been wanting to do that since you smacked Malfoy down."

Harry grinned for a moment, before he sighed. "What we going to do Hermione?"

"Same as we always do. Muddle through somehow on our own."

"Not on your own." Susan said, having stepped up beside the pair. Leaning forward, she slipped an arm around both. "Not this time."

A second set of arms, coming from the other side, prompted both Harry and Hermione to look to their other side to see Daphne stepping into the group. "We're all in this together." She said softly.

"You're not alone any more Harry..." The tension in Harry's frame faded away at his mother's voice, coming from just over his shoulder. Looking up and around, he could see how Fleur had moved to behind Hermione, while Tracy was just past his other shoulder. Silently he allowed the warmth and comfort of family to soak into him. The discussion with the headmaster, while short, had been disquieting. While Harry did not profess to understand everything said clearly, he did get the basics. Until both the remaining, unknown items were cleansed of his taint, Voldemort would remain invincible.

But... there was hope now. Via Hermione's uncle, he had been kept in the loop as to the measures and actions the Army Force were taking to engage the Death Eaters. The Ministry was finally taking action, although so far only the measures taken by Madam Bones were effective. But the Wizarding public was now aware of the danger, and with the campaign of information they were starting to feed into the public via the Quibbler, they hoped to soon destroy the image of the Death Eaters, and reveal the corrupt men underneath.

And Harry had no intention to ever back down from such men. Not now, not ever.

Lily gently squeezed his shoulder. "Come on, time for bed you lot. Classes in the morning."

A/N: There. Again, sorry for the short length. I can't predict when the next chapter will be, but rest assured I do keep this in mind. There's so many great scenes I want to share...

The same thing happened with 'Crisis' you know. Posted the first half, left for ages, then got a second wind and finished it. Hopefully, I'll get that second wind sooner than later...

Thanks for reading.