Thanks to everyone for the reviews and comments! I have replied to everyone who felt confused about Harry's personality in the last few chapters, as well as the way Harry, Draco and Ron treated Hermione. Hopefully you guys do understand it now that I elaborated a bit on the matter :P
Enjoy!
Chapter 7. The Last Day of Their Youth
"Holy crap, this job is going to kill me one day, and it's not going to be a murder," murmured James, sipping firewhisky from his glass and glancing at Sirius who was sitting in front of him. "Why do we always have to investigate the hardest cases?" he added whiningly, leaning his head against his hand which immediately rustled his messy hair even more, and staring at the wooden ceiling of the old pub somewhere at the outskirts of London.
"Well, we can't help it, Prongs," his friend sighed, taking his own glass and tasting the burning liquor, smiling blissfully the next second. "You wouldn't want to do some pleb job being the Head of our department, would you? Besides, you can't say that it's not intriguing, and that's to say the least. Although it's also kinda sad," he reasoned, and his face darkened a little bit – probably not enough to notice for most people even among those who knew him personally, but James recognized that look of his the same second.
"Damn... Sorry. I forgot that the two of you used to be close," he looked away shamefully, taking another sip.
"Is fine," said Sirius after a short pause, shrugging. "It's all in the past now. I don't think I have even talked to her throughout the last ten years at, to be honest. If not more than that."
"That's really unfortunate, man," James sighed, rubbing his face tiredly. "Feels a bit awkward right now, to be honest. But I, uh... Kinda must ask you. Are you sure that you wanna work on this case? Given all the circumstances–"
"What? Are you kidding?" The blue eyed man smirked joyfully, cheering his friend with his glass. "I'm looking forward to it. It's probably going to be the most interesting investigation we had in ages. Besides, I'd really like to know who killed her. As of now, I have absolutely no clue whatsoever. Do you have any idea?"
"Yeah," said James quietly, looking around and lowering his tone, "I have quite a few versions, but all of them are not solid at all and are based on my intuition alone. Truth to be told, this is totally confusing. I would have understood it if the victim was some relevant Death Eater, like Bella or even Lucius, but her... Makes no sense at all. It's as if somebody wants to distract us from something big that is coming soon... Or already happening. Call me paranoid, but I don't think it was just a random murder caused by some maniac for fun."
"Nah, of course it wasn't," Sirius winced, taking a few salty peanuts from the plate in front of him. "She wouldn't have gone to Knockturn Alley alone without a very good reason to it anyway. Frankly speaking, I doubt that she even left her house that often in the last few years. Maybe we should check her latest correspondence first of all, even though it's unlikely that we'll find any clue there – the likes of her always make sure to destroy any clear evidence like this as soon as possible, you know."
"Well, it's not like we have any other choice," murmured his friend thoughtfully, staring into the window perplexedly.
"Harry's not going to like it. I can already see him prying into this, so the two of you need to be very careful," murmured Lily, putting the scroll she'd been reading for the last few minutes away, sitting next to James with a bottle of butterbeer in her left hand.
"Huh? Why is that?" asked Sirius, giving the red haired witch a baffled look.
"Draco Malfoy is his close friend, that's why," she muttered gloomily, rolling her eyes. "Don't tell me you forgot about it."
"Oww," the man drawled, nodding in understanding. "Right. Well, that's shit, what can I say."
"Language, Sirius," sighed Lily tiredly, leaning against her husband's shoulder as he chuckled at her comment.
"Language my arse, we're not at school for Merlin's sake, Lily!" barked Sirius in annoyance, making the woman shake her head and smile.
"Well, you better were, seeing as you are still incapable of speaking properly in a lady's presence."
"Gah! Prongs! Get a hang of your woman for once!"
"Nah, I'm out of it, thank you," James smirked in amusement, hugging his wife's waist. "Stop mocking him, honey. It's really not the best day for it."
"Fine, fine," she snorted, giving Sirius a reassuring grin. "It's not like he is in any real grief, though."
"Alright, now I'm feeling hurt! Thank you! You are so cruel!" Black let out a loud sigh, turning away and gripping his heart pretentiously.
The three of them laughed the next second, clinking the vessels with their drinks.
"Seriously, though, sometimes you are almost beginning to sound like the bookworm you used to be back when we attended Hogwarts," said Sirius.
"Can't help it," Lily winced slightly. "I have to be like this at school, otherwise Dumbledore will kick me out for sure. I must not show any favouritism towards Harry or his friends, that's why I gotta act like an arse whenever I play the role of their teacher. Not that the job itself is that awful, for I always liked potions and everything related to it as well as cooking, but I hate the hurtful glares he shots at me from time to time," she uttered sadly, lowering her green eyes but smiling gratefully the next second as James rubbed her hand reassuringly and said,
"We don't have any other choice. Dumbledore must not realize that you work undercover no matter what. Not only that would endanger Harry, but we would also lose our only opportunity to spy on him."
"He doesn't really trust me at all, though," she said quietly after a short pause. "He is still displeased by the fact that you keep working for the ministry. Both of you, actually. Ever since you had left the Order he's been pretty cold whenever it comes to our family."
James snorted contemptuously, rolling his eyes.
"Well, it tells a lot about his true motives and personality. Dumbledore never wanted to just get rid of Voldemort and his followers. He wants to change the rules of the game and to control the country by himself. What for would he need the Order otherwise? Its original purpose has been long fulfilled, you know. And I don't care if he's doing it for the greater good or not. He might not realize it himself, but that's exactly how any dictatorship is born. I won't let it happen no matter what."
Lily nodded seriously, moving her eyes to Sirius and saying,
"That's why I have to keep my eye on him and his supporters inside the school. I must not allow him to approach Harry. No matter what happens, I won't let him pull our son into his twisted games."
"Well," said Sirius, rubbing his chin. "At this rate, Harry can very well approach the old man himself. From what you said, it sounds like he's really mad at you, Lily."
"No, he isn't," James shook his head, frowning. "Harry is a very smart boy. Even if he doesn't realize what Lily's true motives are, he wouldn't get mad just because of her being a harsh teacher. Without a doubt, he does realize that it's just a mask. And I told him many times to stay away from Dumbledore anyway, so it's hardly a concern for us. What really bothers me a lot, though, are his friends..."
"What of them?" Sirius smirked, taking the bottle from the table and refilling his glass. "You befriended me yourself in the past, and I'm a Black. Blacks were far worse than Malfoys at the time."
James and Lily exchanged understanding glances before the woman sighed, uttering quietly,
"Please, Sirius, try to keep up. Draco Malfoy is in Gryffindor, and the two of them are also friends with the smartest girl in their year, as well as the son of Frank and Alice. There is also a very keen Weasley hanging out with them. Are you getting it now?"
The eyes of the man widened in the realization in a few seconds as he whistled.
"Merlin's pants, yes, I am... They are going to meddle with the investigation for sure. Blimey..."
"Precisely," Lily nodded. "And although I'm going to watch them closely, what happened today will affect the boy dramatically. And hence it will inevitably affect Harry, too. We are all in trouble."
"Are we, though?" James looked around, as if making sure that nobody was listening to their conversation even though he didn't really have to worry about it – since they weren't dressed in the Auror uniform, nobody payed any attention to the three of them. "Of course, it is really sad and it will certainly complicate some things, but maybe it's exactly what Harry needs at his current level. A challenge. Something to distract him from the hardships of his training and his burden. And also something to help him forge the bonds with his friends, too."
Lily hemmed thoughtfully.
"Well, as cruel as it sounds, what you're saying doesn't lack logic. The five of them are really dedicated to become Aurors when they grow up," the three of them chuckled understandingly, "Who knows, they are really shrewd. Maybe they will truly help us at some point. No... Actually, I believe they definitely will. But we must make sure to guide them in the right direction."
"Or rather you must make sure to. You are their legit babysitter nowadays, after all," Sirius smirked, receiving a light cuff on the nape from the witch.
"Harry is coming home for Christmas soon. He told me that he's also going to bring Draco, although I'm not sure if it will happen now, seeing as... Well, you know. Still, my point is that all of us, including Remus, need to be very careful. Especially if Draco actually comes to our place. We can't let them choose the wrong path now."
"We won't, don't worry. If this Malfoy brat is anything like I was in the past, then these news will only strengthen his resolve. It's remarkable that a Malfoy, of all people, ended up in Gryffindor, though. Lucy must have felt so pissed." He laughed.
Lily giggled and James smirked, covering his face with his palm.
"I know right. I'd pay a lot to see his face when he received the news. And there is also a muggle born Draco is friends with now. Can you imagine"
"Jokes aside, though," Lily's face darkened a little. "That could be one of the reasons for the murder."
James lowered his eyes to give his wife a doubtful glance.
"Are you implying that Lucius could've killed her himself?"
She raised her head to meet his gaze.
"Don't you think it is possible?"
The man shrugged slowly as his fingers were playing with the long strands of her silky hair.
"I don't know. It is certainly not impossible, but he's not so stupid. And it doesn't look like an accidental kill done in the heat of passion. No, I don't think it's him. Sirius?"
"Meh, definitely not him. Still needs to be checked, but I'd say it's very, very unlikely. I'd rather believe that someone is trying to frame him, but even that doesn't seem to be the case to me."
"True," James nodded. "But Lily has a point. The fact that Draco is in Gryffindor could be one of the factors. Many pure blood families do not fancy Malfoys now to say the least, and I think Lucius is only making it worse with his behavior and attitude. Honestly, sometimes it seems to me like the man is completely divorced from reality."
"Indeed," Sirius agreed, taking another peanut from the plate. "I don't think he does realize that their age is long over."
"And is it really over anyway?" James sighed, shaking his head. "Voldemort is still out there, plotting and looking for a way to return. It's only a matter of time now, and who knows what will happen."
"Harry will destroy him," said Lily vigorously all of sudden, making Sirius choke and give her a baffled look. "What?" The woman frowned, meeting his surprised gaze. "Am I supposed to pretend that the prophecy doesn't exist or something? It is my son's destiny to kill that maniac, and I'm fine with it so long as he gets out of it unharmed."
Sirius smirked, taking his glass again.
"Sometimes your wife can be really scary, Prongs. In a good way, though."
James grinned in amusement, kissing Lily's temple.
"Tell me about it. By the way, where is Moony? It's not very much like him to be late, and it's five past nine already," murmured James, glancing at his watch.
"I saw him in the morning," replied Sirius. "He told me that he might be a bit late, but he never elaborated why. He looked happy, though, and I also must let you guys know that he mentioned that he won't be coming alone tonight."
Both Lily and James gasped in surprise and whistled excitedly at the same time.
"Now that sounds like a fun evening!" exclaimed the Head Auror, smirking childishly and winking at his friend who laughed in return.
"Uh huh. Well, hopefully he has finally found himself someone decent. Remus is such a sweet man, and it's so sad how biased most women are just because of his... Disease." Lily sighed, shaking her head.
"We'll see," James nodded, "He deserves some happiness for sure. After all, even Snape has managed to get himself a wife, and we are all around thirty already. It would be unfair for Rem to be beneath him in this aspect."
"Yeah... Snape seems to be a lot more confident nowadays. Who knows, maybe it's exactly because of that woman. And by the way, Harry seems to enjoy his lessons quite a lot," muttered Lily, frowning as if she remembered something really unpleasant.
"Eww... How could you let this happen, Lily? Shame on you!" exclaimed Sirius with fake conviction in his voice and smirked.
"Not like it's a very bad thing. For all I know, Snape is a good teacher. He could fill the gaps I left in Harry's education and also give him a wider view on what he will have to deal with when he grow up." James shrugged, taking a sip from his glass and coughing slightly as the amber liquid burned his throat pleasantly.
"I'm still not comfortable with the fact that he prefers his lessons over mine," Lily sighed sadly, looking down.
"Hey, isn't it intended to be this way? After all, you do push him away on purpose while you guys are at Hogwarts," said Sirius carefully.
"I know, but it's still frustrating. And I still haven't forgiven Snape for trying to let Voldemort kill Harry back then."
"Honey, we've already been through this, let's drop this matter for now, alright?" uttered James, hugging her tighter.
"Fine," she murmured reluctantly, closing her eyes.
"Oh, there they are!" Sirius waved at Remus who appeared at the entrance of the pub, looking around as he and his counterpart who looked notably nervous tried to spot their table.
"Holy shit!" James gasped, making Lily snap her head and open her eyes which widened in awe the same second.
"Wait... Isn't it that rookie Italian girl who got enrolled this summer? She's just twenty one, isn't she? And already pretty famous for her... Talents!"
James nodded and Sirius smirked mischievously, waving to the pair so that they would come to their table.
"Yeah... That Rem. I wasted so much time on flirting with her with no effect, and there he is... Lucky bastard."
"Anyway, I'll go order us some more drinks. Be right back," said James, getting up from the table and heading toward the bar, followed by the troubled gaze of Lily.
It didn't miss her eyes that he took out the familiar small mirror out of the pocket of his jeans.
"Dad?"
Harry stared into the white crystal he was holding in his hand, or rather at the shard of the mirror that was hidden inside of it. The unexpected call of his father caught him walking out of the library late in the evening, so he was heading towards the common room with his bag full of various books their company needed for various reasons. Going there had become a daily ritual for the five of them, and tonight was his turn to go. However, although usually Harry wasn't lazy at all, his intuition had been telling him rather persistently and for a while by now that it was a bad idea to go this time. Until now, he hadn't found a logical reason to it, that's why he preferred to ignore the annoying gut feeling, but that was exactly why he felt quite worried now as he met the gaze of James who appeared to be quite troubled by something – not a very common situation, that's for sure.
"Hey, Harry. How are you?" His voice was sounding normally, if only a bit tiredly.
"Fine, I guess. We don't have much time to chill nowadays, but other than that I'm good. What about you guys? How's Gwen? And mom? I don't get to talk to her at all inside the castle, you know."
James pursed his lips, frowning at his son.
"We're alright. I wanted to discuss a few important things with you, if you don't mind. Do you have a few minutes right now?"
"Sure." Harry shrugged, coming close to one of the windowsills and sitting on it. "What's up?"
"Is anybody around?"
Harry looked across the broad, dimly lit passage before shaking his head.
"No, I don't think so."
James nodded.
"Very well then. First of all, I'd like to let you know something about your mother, or rather about the reason why she's been so harsh towards you lately." The boy smirked jovially, which made James gave him a slightly baffled look. "What's so funny?"
"You don't need to tell me any details, just say, dad... Does it concern your job somehow?"
The brown eyes of the Auror in the mirror widened in surprise, and then a warm, prideful smile appeared on his face.
"So you have figured it out, huh?"
Harry snorted, and James couldn't help smile as he noticed how similar the gesture was to Lily's typical reaction whenever she felt proud of herself.
"Of course. You don't think I'm dumb, do you? I realized it a few months ago. Speaking of which, you might want to let her know that sometimes her glares towards the Headmaster are too obvious. She needs to be more subtle, but I can't tell her that for obvious reasons."
James' face reddened at his son's words, and he looked away from the mirror for a second before replying, lowering his voice,
"And how do you expect me to tell her that? She's gonna kill me! And you, too!" He was obviously kidding, but at the same time, he had a point.
Harry grinned.
"Well, a lot of things depend on her nowadays as far as I understand. I don't think a witch of her level would let her emotions overwhelm her professionalism. Should be alright."
James winced, grimacing at his son.
"You're beginning to sound like a wet blanket, you know?"
Harry flinched suddenly as he heard someone walking down the stairs at the end of the corridor to the left of him, glancing in that direction before smiling and uttering quietly,
"Can't help it, dad. You are not anywhere close, so mum is my only role model nowadays."
The Auror barely managed to hold back a laughter.
"Is that so? I heard you fancy Snape quite a lot."
Usually it wasn't very easy to make The Boy Who Lived feel embarrassed, but his dad always managed to do it effortlessly, and this time was no exception, which made Harry feel even more ashamed of getting caught off guard.
He blushed a bit, looking away.
"Not really... He's smart, I can give him that, and he's also very skillful. I wouldn't deny that he has taught me a few important things, too. But other than that... I don't like him that much, to be honest. Still, he's a valuable asset, isn't he? You told me to use the likes of him as much as possible, and that's what I'm trying to do, dad."
James nodded, clearly satisfied by his son's reply, and smirked.
"Huh, fair enough... Anyway, it's good that you do realize now what your mother is doing. Saves me the trouble of explaining a lot of things to you. But that's not the reason why I decided to contact you tonight."
The boy's expression became serious again the next second, and he nodded understandingly.
"Yeah, I figured as much. So... What happened?"
"Is your friend Draco anywhere around?"
Harry's brow cocked slightly as he gave the man a confused look.
"Malfoy? No, I think he's in the common room right now. What of him anyway?"
James' face darkened as he sighed sadly.
"Oh well, I guess you don't know yet then. Something nasty happened yesterday, so me and Sirius are working on this new case starting from today. You see..."
Draco hugged his knees tightly, sitting near the window inside the boys' bedroom in Gryffindor Tower and looking distantly at the snowflakes that were swirling right in front of him in a bizarre, wild dance, making the complete darkness of the evening winter sky behind the glass look a bit more welcoming than it actually was to everyone... Everyone but him.
Albeit the boy didn't care at all. Truth to be told, he couldn't even see anything right now, still gripping the unfortunate letter that was now completely sodden, threatening to start falling apart in his grasp any second now, but he didn't notice anything around himself. His body was shaking terribly, but young wizard was still unable to cry.
Of course, he had always known that his life would be anything but simple. He also realized that he wasn't supposed to take anything for granted despite being born into a very rich and influential family. And of course it was at this point obvious to him thanks to his best friend, Harry Potter, that money and power could never grant anyone true happiness.
All that put together made him wish he could've exchanged the life of a Malfoy to the life of anyone his father usually called lowlifes. Because no matter how rich Malfoys were, no matter what privileges his name granted him, Draco had now to face the simple yet absolutely remorseless truth.
His mother was dead.
She had been killed by some filth at Knockturn Alley just a few hours ago, according to the letter he had received from his father – supposedly by a follower of his parents' former master, Lord Voldermort.
He gritted his teeth, crumpling the parchment and tossing it aside, gripping his head and swaying back and forth desperately.
It was probably fate's punishment for his doubts, he decided then. He was too much of a coward, he always doubted his every choice, unsure if his father would approve them or not. He was too weak to accept another simple truth, one that his mother told him many times all through life, but he had never really believed it, or rather had never understood these words' true meaning until now.
His life was his own and nobody else's. He and only he, Draco, was allowed to decide what to do with it.
The boy winced in the impossible pain, remembering her soft, kind and tender voice that was now repeating these words inside of his head again, and again, and again...
Draco knew that he wouldn't ever hear it again. He was familiar with the concept of death, even though he had never experienced a death of someone he loved before. His mother was the first one... But who would come next?
At the same time, it also made him realize the third truth, and this one was making him want to get up and do something immediately. To scream, to cry, to train... To fight...
To kill the bloody mongrel that had murdered his beloved mother. To make this monster suffer for all eternity...!
He sniffled quietly.
Said third truth was that everyone was going to die at some point. His dad, his friends, his enemies... And himself, of course. Life was a very short and fragile thing that needed to be treasured above everything else in the world. And what had he been wasting his life on so far?
Silly archaic teachings of pathetic pure bloods that didn't make much sense even to themselves? Idiotic traditions and etiquette thats only purpose was showing off before other prideful morons which were absolutely nobody in reality? Trying to make his father proud of him, to prove himself worthy of his family?
Draco clenched his fists, closing his eyes and raising his head.
The time has come, it was now absolutely clear to him. He could no longer hide behind his cowardice and those lies he'd been fed with since the day he was born.
He was going to make his own decisions from now on. And his first decision would be...
"We'll find the one who did this," the familiar voice echoed across the empty room.
The first tear flowed down Draco's cheek as he lowered his head, beginning to shake again as he heard the sound of soft footsteps closing in on him.
"I promise you. We will," the voice added as young Malfoy felt a warm hand of his friend gripping his shoulder, and then the boy finally sobbed.
"I'll kill this person, whoever it is–do you hear me, Harry? I'll fucking kill this fucker no matter what!"
The grip on his shoulder tightened as the blond began weeping desperately, trembling and finally letting all of his emotions out.
Harry didn't reply right away, but this time Draco refused to doubt himself or his friend, and rightfully so.
"Yeah... You will," said the raven haired boy simply, sitting down next to Draco and staring at the floor of the room.
"We will all help you, Draco," said another voice – one he had used to loathe quite a lot not so long ago, but now it miraculously made his shattered heart feel the small wave of warmth filling it.
The blond turned his head slowly to look at the girl. Hermione knelt down in front of him, and just as he met her tear strained eyes, she took his hand into hers, making the boy flinch slightly at the familiar feeling he failed recognize, but it still made him feel slightly better, and it was more than enough for him to be grateful to Hermione Granger.
"Absolutely, mate. Whoever did this, we'll make sure to–," Neville who was standing next to the door paused for a moment, unsure what words to use in this situation, but Ron came to his aid right away,
"...To help you get your revenge," said the redheaded boy, nodding in agreement. "That's a promise."
To his own surprise, a tiny smile appeared on Draco's face as he looked at his friends who gazed at him compassionately with resolve he wished he had himself.
Although...
Maybe he had it now, at long last?
"I–I realize it now–how important it really is–what we intend to do. We shall become Aurors–no matter what. I–I shouldn't have doubted this idea to begin with."
"Doubting anything is normal. But only until you have made a decision," reasoned Harry, making Neville, Ron and Hermione look at him and frown as Draco nodded quickly a few times.
"Yes... Yes, you're right. And I have made mine. We will definitely make it, all of us. What happened to–to my mother... I'll do everything possible to prevent it from happening to anyone else."
"Damn right!" exclaimed Ron vigorously, clenching the fist of his right hand.
"Exactly. Fighting criminals is the most important thing, after all, isn't it?" said Neville quietly, but his voice was filled with the same resolve they all shared now.
Hermione nodded slowly as well, but her eyes stopped on Harry who didn't visibly react to Longbottom's words, staring outside the window thoughtfully instead.
"I guess it is," he finally muttered in a few seconds, making the girl frown. Still, since she was clearly the only one who had noticed Harry's strange reaction, apparently she decided to drop it for now, turning back to Draco instead – the blond seemed to be getting out of his shocked state, and although all of his friends realized that it would take a while for such a horrible wound in his soul to heal, they could already see that his spirit had started to retaliate the pain, which meant that was going to be fine... Eventually.
The boy himself didn't feel as confident at the moment, of course. Still, he knew that he had no other choice but to get a hang of himself and to get over it as soon as possible.
He raised his head again, stopping his gaze on each of his friends for a while.
Ron... He was a really smart and cunning guy despite his bad marks. Highly underestimated by everyone including his family, he was looking forward to achieving something great. And Draco respected that, but even more so he respected the fact that unlike Slytherins, the redhead wouldn't go over the heads of other people in order to reach his goals. He was noble, and he was a great friend.
Neville... Not the brightest one of them for sure, but still a very kind and caring guy. Until this day, young Malfoy probably secretly envied him more than he did to anyone else, because Longbottom had the quality Draco lacked the most – the unbreakable will and unrivaled courage. Although they were still kids, the blond realized that even now Neville would die for any of his friends with a smile on his face if he would ever have to.
Then there was Hermione... The strange girl all of them used to hate had turned to become the epoxy adhesive that had connected their bunch with an invisible, intangible yet incredible power. It was only a month and a few weeks since the day she had been accepted by them, but Draco already couldn't imagine their daily life without her. And although she could still be annoying, clumsy and laughable sometimes, somehow he knew for sure that she would eventually grow up into the finest witch in their generation.
And finally Harry... The informal leader of their group and also its biggest enigma. Despite having been friends with The Boy Who Lived for years by know, sometimes it seemed to the young Malfoy that he still didn't fully understand the heir to Potters. But at the same time, Draco was perfectly fine with it. He knew that his best friend was destined to become someone great – greater than any of them. Eventually Harry would ascend so high that none of them would be able to reach him. And he knew that the green eyed boy realized it to, yet still...
He had never failed neither him nor any of people he cared for. He was the best friend Draco could ever wish for, and he knew that no matter what awaited him and Harry in the future, they would never betray each other. Harry always helped him in every possible way... Even now he was the first one to come to support him in his darkest hour. And this coming from someone like him... From the Chosen One... The boy who had made Draco open his eyes, who had showed him the reality of the magical world and who had never asked for anything in return...
Draco knew for sure that if there was one person in the universe he would sacrifice everything for if needed, that would be Harry Potter.
Wiping his tears off his face, the blond smiled at the four of them which made them reflexively smile in return.
"Thank you..."
He was waiting.
His whole existence throughout the last ten years could be described with these three simple words, although right now there was finally another meaning to them, much to his amusement. At last there was something to dilute his usual boredom and solitude.
His thin lips curved into a small smile as he was watching at the yard outside the old dirty window.
The blonde woman who was wearing the long black loose overall entered his domain, walking quickly towards the door of the ancient, seemingly abandoned house in Little Hangleton where he was residing at the moment, although Voldemort wasn't planning to spend much more time here, of course. He hated this place with passion, after all, even though he had conquered it long ago.
Yes, today was very a special day. Special enough for him to take the risk and to show up in England in spite of Dumbledore, Potters and Unspeakables still being after him, without a doubt.
Oh, yes... This was the day he had been looking forward to throughout the last decade. His plan was finally being set in motion... All thanks to his most loyal follower that was now walking up the stairs, preparing for the audience with him.
Voldemort's eyes narrowed at the door to the room as he heard the footsteps stop behind it. Even though he was nearly powerless at the moment, they still feared him so much... It was ugly and pathetic, but at the same time it was exactly what he needed, so the warlock couldn't complain.
The door opened, and the aristocratically looking woman entered the room, taking her hood off and kneeling down in front of him.
"My lord..."
He studied her pale face for a while, stopping his gaze on her scarred neck for a moment before nodding slowly.
"Rise."
She did as he told her, avoiding the gaze of his burning red eyes and staying completely silent, clearly waiting for his next command.
"Settle down. You must be very tired now, and there is no need to torture yourself. You have served me well today."
"I–," she blushed a bit, "...Thank you so much, my lord... But I assure you, I'm perfectly fine."
"Very well then," he replied surprisingly genially, keeping studying her appearance. "Have you brought it?"
"Yes...! Yes, of course I did," she said quickly, taking the big golden cup out of the folds of her coat and putting it on the small table next to his chair.
"Hm...," he studied the familiar shiny artifact with his eyes briefly before turning back to her. "Very well. Has anybody spotted you as you were retrieving it?"
"No!" the woman blurted out, shaking her head. "Nobody, my lord, I swear. It went flawlessly, I assure you." She was still afraid to meet his gaze, but even with his current level of power it wasn't necessary for Voldemort to look into her eyes to read his servant's mind like an open book.
It was not a lie.
"I see... I am satisfied, then. Do you think the goblins are likely to notify the ministry of the fact that a dead person entered Gringotts and withdrew something from Blacks' family vault?"
She smirked unwillingly, but he didn't mind it. He was feeling far too amused tonight.
"No. I don't think so, my lord. They are very prideful creatures; surely they wouldn't want to let anyone know that they were fooled by something as trivial as Polyjuice Potion."
He smiled at her response.
"That is true. I hope you did not make the wife of Lucius suffer way too much. Bella wouldn't appreciate it, and I don't want her to feel too sad."
The person with Narcissa's face grinned maniacally.
"No... I killed her swiftly and painlessly, I don't think she has even realized what hit her. Although... I'm so sorry, my lord... But I had to do it the muggle way. I sliced her neck with a knife. Otherwise the Aurors would've felt my magic, it was too dangerous!"
Voldemort shook his head slowly and clicked his tongue disapprovingly.
"How barbaric... But it was justified, so you are forgiven this time. I want to know about the boy now. Tell me everything you managed to find out."
She nodded hastily as her eyes widened slightly.
"Of course, my lord. The boy... I haven't been in direct contact with him, but I managed to get a lot of information from my daughter who is in his year, as well as from my spy among the teachers. They say that he is very smart, perhaps even genius. My sources also state that his power is immense even by the standards of adults, let alone for someone of his age. Old teachers that remember you, my lord, from your years in Hogwarts, say that he might even surpass you one day."
The Dark Lord chuckled joyfully, playing with the wand in his hand.
"Very interesting... Continue."
The woman swallowed nervously.
"He is also close friends with Malfoy's offspring. And he is actively tutored by Snape. It seems that they are aware that you are still alive, my lord... I believe that they are preparing the boy to face you when you return."
He couldn't hold back a laughter this time, feeling even more pleased now.
"That is just splendid... If he is at least half as good as you're saying, then everything is going exactly according to my plan."
She smiled happily, looking at him with her eyes shining with adoration and limitless, fanatic loyalty.
"Are you planning to use the part of your soul inside of him to take over his body?"
He looked at her skeptically, shaking his head slowly again at her suggestion.
"As smart as you are, sometimes it is amazing how short sighted and naive you an be."
She gave him a confused, slightly frightened look, as if expecting him to curse her the next second.
"My lord...?"
He sighed, looking at her as if she was but a delinquent child he was about to lecture.
"Thanks to my power that I had transferred into his body just before my previous one was destroyed, the boy will grow up into a perfect tool for me. Mind you, he is only so powerful because I have given him everything I had. And would you honestly believe that I did it just to wait for him to grow up so that I could possess his body? What do you think I would need that for?"
She lowered her eyes shamefully.
"I–I'm sorry, my lord–"
"You need to think wider, my dear. He shall come to me one day. And then he will become my right hand and my most valuable weapon. This way, we will be able to crush all of our enemies with their own beloved beacon of hope. Their saviour will become their doom, and it will be the ultimate testament to our supremacy."
The witch frowned, still afraid to look at him again.
"But... Forgive me for asking, my lord, but... How are you going to get your power back, then?"
He chuckled devilishly, making the woman flinch in fear as he hissed,
"All in due time, my friend. For now, we must proceed with our original plan. Everything has been going accordingly so far, after all. For now, we are leaving this country. Since you have brought this," he nodded at the horcrux on the table, "This is the last one, so there is nothing else for us to do here in the next few years. We have more important things to do and places to attend."
She bowed down, and just as she did so, the effect of Polijuice Potion started to weaken, revealing the long and curly dark brown hair and bright blue eyes of someone who looked just a bit younger than late Narcissa Malfoy.
"As you wish, my lord."
The prologue part is finally done. I'm finally able to start writing the main part of the story, yay! Hopefully you guys enjoy it so far. Expect a 4.5 years time skip now!
Kindly let me know what you think about it by dropping a review! Even a few words help a lot! Thanks! ;)