Chapter 133 – Flashpoints
Harry sought out Neville the next morning, joining him on the walk to their first class of the day.
"Thanks, Neville, for the good advice. It was a fantastic idea to tell Severus about the Winter Lands place. I can't surprise him on Christmas morning, but I sure shocked him last night when I told him about it!" Harry whispered with a smile.
Neville nodded and grinned back sheepishly. "Yeah, but I can't really take credit for that. I brought Tante with me to look at the three farms, and that was her idea. I got quite a lecture about how personal a space a laboratory was. Not really my focus, you know?"
"I owe you one, then," Harry offered. "Severus and I will be going up there this weekend, and I hope the rest of the place is OK with him. If we don't need to do much outside, I can probably get it finished quickly. Is there snow on the ground up there yet?"
"Oh, yeah, but the compounds are usually OK. They build the fences around them to direct the wind and the snow away from the houses. Very ingenious. I think there might be some magic involved – I never asked. But the compounds I've been to over the past month or so are surprisingly livable, even when it's winter and there's waist-deep snow banks in the fields."
Harry raised his eyebrows at the reference to the amount of snow up there. He hoped he hadn't gotten too far over his head with this.
He didn't have too long to wonder, as he and Severus took a portkey to Bifrost Hall right after breakfast on Saturday morning. A young man named Einar, whose family once lived in the compound they were visiting, led them in a long broom-ride through swirling snow over fields and finally forest to the remote farm.
The trio arrived as the late dawn was just breaking. They landed in an open field in front of a surprisingly large stone house, two stories tall. The field, house, barn and a few small out-buildings were surrounded by a tall fence made of tall tree poles lashed firmly together. The fence looked sturdy and sheltered enough. But the gate was swinging open in the cold, steady wind.
Severus immediately organized the three of them into a triangle, each facing out with his back protected by the other two.
Einar reacted, indignation in his voice. "Lord Snape, my family lived here. This is a safe place."
"Not with an open gate, it isn't, damn it!" Severus spat. "Anything out there could just wander in, and there are lots of places to hide here."
"But Grendlings won't enter a compound! They're fearsome beasts, yeh, but they don't like enclosed spaces. If they wanted t' get inta a compound, believe me, they'd be able t' tear down most of our fences. But they don't. They always fear being trapped. They are happy t' wait in the forests, and attack when someone's outside the fence."
If Einar thought that starting with the worst case scenario was going to calm his guest, he was wrong. Severus nearly shouted "Grendlings?" as he began to look back and forth frantically
"Grendlings made it very difficult t' operate a ranch here, yeh. My family couldn't take the herd outside the gates without at least five men ready t' defend them. But the family abandoned this farm because of the dementors, not the Grendlings," he explained. "If you know their ways, the Grendlings can be managed."
With a clearly uneasy gulp, Severus slowly straightened up from his defensive stance, but kept his wand in his hand and his eyes continued to dart about. He nodded at Harry, and watched the young man do the same. They were both still very wary. Between the whistling of the wind and the noise made by rustling leaves and loose doors and shutters, it was hard to relax.
"Look," Einar volunteered, "I'll close the gate, if this bothers you." The tall Viking needed only a few strides to get to the opening. After closing it, he set a large timber that was on the ground into two large arms that extended one from the gate and one from the fence, bolting it closed.
Harry smiled at Severus, pleased at his protectiveness. "We'll stay alert," he said softly. "I'm sure that Lord Brand would never have allowed Neville and Tante to visit if he thought there was any danger here. With the fence bolted closed, we'll be fine." Harry tried to break some of the tension by adding "And doesn't Einar sound like Hagrid? I wonder if they've ever compared notes?"
Severus nodded a terse "Indeed" but did not relax. He kept his broom with him, just in case, and was glad to see Harry do the same.
Harry noticed an area near the fence that had been marked with some large stones, and pointed with his wand hand as he called out to Einar, "Are those stones the ones Tante set for the greenhouse?"
Einar surveyed the space in the direction Harry gestured. "Well, we never had a greenhouse on the farm, but that spot would get the best sun. If she marked a spot for your greenhouse, yeh, that's as good a one as any."
Harry had been a bit concerned when Einar told them that the compound had belonged to his family – would he feel like Harry was taking something from him? Certainly nothing Einar said suggested any regret or sense of loss, but he didn't want to hurt the man's feelings.
"Tante visited here with my friend Neville, and he told me that she marked the spot for a greenhouse, so that must be it then. What are the other buildings here?" he asked, curious about the functions of some of the smaller ones and hoping against hope that none of them established that the big house lacked indoor plumbing.
As he started walking with his guests across the field to the first of the buildings, Einar offered a bit of background. "I never lived here, myself, of course. My great-grandfather and his brothers set this place up, and abandoned it in less tha' five years – the dementors, as I mentioned, yeh. They had an idea t' have a dairy farm here, making cheese. There were five brothers, three had wives and maybe a dozen children between 'em. My great-grandfather was killed by a dementor. My Mooa had three children and she and the rest of the family left here within a few months. I've heard stories about this place all my life, yeh, but I've never been here before."
Einar himself seemed to have no emotional connection to the compound, but his knowledge of what was where confirmed that there must have been lots of stories about the place in his childhood. Einar led the little group around the farm, showing off a tool shed, a chicken coop, a root cellar and a cook-house that was steaming in the cold air. "We're on top of a thermal spring here, yeh. There's a cold spring on the other side of the compound, but this one is always steaming hot. Some sort of pool under ground out by the barn, too – my Mooa always told stories, yeh, about her garden by the barn where there was never snow and she grew vegetables all year." He pointed to some pipes coming up from a well, a few of which were heading off to the house. "This water was used in cheese-making, yeh. Helps heat the house in the cold weather, and it's useful for cooking and such there. Never freezes, which is jus' what you need up here." He also lifted the door to a cellar accessed down a ricketly ladder that stretched away from the cook-house; a lingering pungency in the stale air suggested that this was where the cheese had been stored to age.
That was the last of the little buildings, and Einar now led the group to the barn. It was a large, rustic space, which used the fence as one of its walls. Severus took a quick look around and stepped outside. As much as he hated to admit it, Grendlings had a point about not wanting to be trapped in an enclosed space.
As Einar showed Harry the spot that had no doubt been the heart of the working farm for its brief life as such, Severus stood with his back against the barn wall, his eyes scanning the parts of the compound he could see from his vantage point. The snow fell in a curious pattern here – most of it seemed to be swept away from the enclosure, as there was not much snow accumulated inside the fence, not nearly as much as he might have expected, given the storm through which they flew to get here. He suddenly stilled, all of his senses heightened to their fullest. He was sure he heard a noise. Of course, with the wind blowing as steadily as it was, and all the rustling that caused, it was possible that the wind caused the little crunch he was sure he heard, but he wasn't sure. He inched slowly toward the corner from which he thought the sound came, relieved to realize that he was moving into the wind, so his scent did not precede him.
As he reached the corner and prepared to spin to confront whatever was around it in a full defensive crouch, Harry and Einar had finished looking through the barn and were themselves just about to step out into the fresh air. Both events occurred at once – Harry and Einar exited the barn just in time to see Severus leap around the corner, his black cloak and robes swirling menacingly, his wand drawn. They were frozen in place for half a second, when (as Severus would later observe, their mutual Gryffindor natures mandated) they both drew their wands and ran over to him to assist.
Severus had come within a fraction of a second of blasting a cow with a stunning spell.
The cow was munching on some grass growing in the spot where the plant could draw both warmth and water from the thermal spring. A calf was not too far away, and another cow and a bull were similarly munching on grass and some other plants a bit farther down the barn wall. This must be where the garden was, atop the underground pool fed by the thermal spring.
The nearest cow looked at Severus with its huge, solemn eyes, and mooed loudly in annoyance at the intrusion, before turning its attention back to the grass.
For his part, Severus clasped his wand hand to his chest, hoping against hope to calm his thundering heart as he processed that this had been a false alarm. Harry took in the situation quickly, and seeing the look on Severus' face, wisely stifled the laugh that wanted to erupt. Instead, he took Severus by the arm and squeezed, saying, "Calm down. False alarm. What in Merlin's name did you think you'd find here?"
Einar was stroking the cow's head, a look of happy wonder on his face. "My grandfather always told a story about the cows here. After his father was killed and the family prepared to abandon this farm, yeh, he'd heard his uncles talking about slaughtering the herd here and flying the meat back. He was fond of the cow he tended and wanted t' give her a chance. He sent her and one of the bulls out and said he left the gate open. Not everyone believed him, yeh, but these must be descendants of his cow."
By now, Severus' breath had returned to normal and he merely scowled fiercely at the scene before him before sweeping grandly back toward the house. Harry and Einar exchanged grins and hurried after him.
The house was in surprisingly good shape, for such a long period of disuse. Harry with thrilled with the place. Severus was not exactly charmed, but he appreciated that the place could be made habitable.
The downstairs was one huge open space, with big fireplaces on three walls. In some ways, it was a smaller version of Bifrost Hall. There were a few pieces of outsized, solid wooden furniture, including a massive table toward the end of the room that would seem to have served as the kitchen. Most of the windows had been broken, likely from the wind blowing tree-limbs about, judging from the debris that littered the floor. What had looked like a second story to the building from outside was actually a loft that went around the perimeter of three sides of the great room that filled the downstairs, with private spaces, likely bedrooms, against the walls.
"So, assuming this is where we are going to stay, where would we put a potions lab?" Harry chirped, as he dragged Severus downstairs from the loft after a quick inspection of the bedrooms.
Severus pondered that for a second. Finally, he pointed to the wall next to one of the fireplaces, on the side of the house that was closest to the future greenhouse. "I think the best approach would be to build a room right off there, as you'd never put a potions lab in open space used for other activities, like this. It must be separate and it needs a door, not just a passage. Stone, not wood. Slate would be good, or marble, whatever is local. If you put the door here," as he gestured at the wall right next to the fireplace, "you can open up the back of the fireplace, and it can warm the lab, as well."
Harry knew he had a great deal of work ahead of him, to make this a true second home for himself and Severus. He realized he would need to puzzle out many details over the next few months. For now he was nearly beside himself with excitement that they'd found a place that could be theirs alone, remote if it needed to be, but connected to others if that was possible. And it would have something that was meaningful to Severus – that was so important. He'd build his bondmate the best potions lab, ever.
X X X X X X X X X X
While Voldemort had his little band of "Riddle cousins" working behind the scenes to guide muggle action against the magical world, he had others who were anxious to start attacking the magical world more directly and visibly. He finally thought it was time to begin unsettling things a little bit, to make everyone edgy and nervous. When people – with magic or without, it appeared - were worried and looking over their shoulders, they were distracted, easily upset, probably inclined to make rash decisions. Perfect.
Gritting his teeth at the lost efficiency of being able to use the Dark Marks, he'd sent out owls to summon several dozen of his followers who most enjoyed making mayhem. And that's exactly what he charged them with doing. They worked out a program that would play out over the next few months, of an assortment of random acts of violence, perpetrated against muggle and magical targets and people.
"My friends," he addressed the group sat around a large table in his receiving room after they presented their ideas, "we have created a masterful plan here today. Our goal is distraction, but I certainly don't object to as much destruction as you wish. Remember, though, this is not our battle against the light, just a preliminary taste for the light, and their precious muggles, of course, of what might, or might not be coming. Make them nervous, scared, worried. Wreak some havoc, and then ease up, or maybe move to something else. Not knowing what might be coming, not being sure how to prepare to defend – this will wear them down."
Shortly thereafter, a group of very happy Death Eaters departed the wards around the manor and apparated away.
X X X X X X X X X X
On Wednesday afternoon, Hermione had to skip one of her study groups to attend a meeting in the Headmaster's office. She didn't look particularly disturbed about this, although the fact that she was missing a study session was, in itself, quite noteworthy.
Professor Dumbledore looked up from his desk as she entered. "Ah, Miss Granger! Right on time, excellent. I expect Madam Bunswil to be stepping through the floo in a few minutes."
He stood to take his place near the floo in anticipation of the arrival, while pointing out a small table and chairs that had been placed in a far corner of the room. "School rules dictate that you meet with Madam Bunswil in the presence of a member of the staff. I understand that there is a certain confidentiality in the matters you wish to discuss with our guest. I think we can satisfy the Board of Governors' rules and afford you some privacy if we just put some distance between your interview and my work on a few administrative matters."
Hermione nodded gratefully, just as green flames engulfed the fireplace, and their guest stepped into the room. She was a fascinating blend of regal bearing and bohemian dress, with her long, grey hair falling over her elaborate, colorful shawl. She took a deep breath as she took in her surroundings.
Her hazel eyes missed nothing as they quickly scanned the room. She nodded rather imperiously to the Headmaster. "Professor Dumbledore, I presume? I am Vadoma Bunswil," she introduced herself with a formal nod. The Headmaster's eyes widened ever so slightly at her name, and she gave him a steely glare in response. Looking at Hermione, her eyes softened a bit. "And you must be Miss Granger. A pleasure to meet you, my dear. I am most intrigued by what I've heard of your work, just the merest bit that was mentioned by that charming young Auror who contacted me."
"It's my pleasure, Madam Bunswil, and thank you for coming to Hogwarts to meet with me. Here, we can sit over here," Hermione replied, awkwardly trying to assist the old woman to the nearest seat at the table provided by the Headmaster. Madam Bunswil was having none of that – she was quite capable of getting there on her own. Hermione finally stood aside to be out of the way, as her elderly guest took her seat.
Professor Dumbledore thought to break some of the tension by waving for a pot of tea, and with a look of thanks, Hermione offered and poured a cup for both of them at the table.
"So, my dear, tell me about your research, if you will. I am quite intrigued," Madam Bunswil purred, her speech still lightly accented with the inflections of her central European heritage, despite her having resided in Britain for well over 170 years.
Hermione launched into a high-level summary of the article she was preparing, and of her conclusions, and of the most recent request from the editor that she probe a bit more deeply, to offer a few more concrete examples.
The old woman smiled with appreciation at the story. "Fascinating, Miss Granger, and well done, well done!" she enthused. "I think that I agree with you, although I can't say I ever actually approached this with the rigor you have applied here." She smiled as she took a sip of her tea, before continuing.
"When young Master Malfoy approached me about looking into that horrid man who attacked Lord Snape, I sensed the magic of Hungary in his wand, and as it happened, I have many friends there. Literally, with one owl sent to the daughter of an old friend, I had this information." She gestured airily at the small packet of information Hermione had before her on the table. "But you know, there was something else in that man's magic, a touch of British, or maybe Scottish magic, I thought. I recall a number of instances over the years, where I have puzzled over a bit of magic from a different place. I think that maybe you have now solved that riddle for me."
"And would you mind if I asked you a few questions about the information you got on the man?" Hermione asked politely.
To Madam Bunswil's nod, Hermione worked through a list of questions that she had prepared, and she made careful note of the responses she got. The two spoke for half an hour or so, before Hermione summoned her nerve to ask what might be seen as an impertinent question.
"Madam Bunswil, if you don't mind my asking, what exactly do you do when you study a wand, or whatever? I'm delighted that you solved this particular puzzle so quickly, but am not sure what you did."
The old woman considered Hermione for a moment, holding her head at an angle. "I attended Beauxbatons Academy, just like any other strong witch or wizard from my part of the world. I can do all the spells, and charms, just like anyone else. But my magic has some components that are very unusual. I have described it as 'magic of the mind' when pressed. I don't see into the future, goodness no, I'm not a seer, or fortune teller," she sniffed. "But I can tell all sorts of things about magical people, based on their magic. If I meet them, or have the chance to touch something that's contained their magic, I just know. I see it in their magic. It's not a skill I ever sought to develop, but I found it within me and nurtured it, and it has served me well. It was highly valued by a small group who learned to trust it implicitly."
Hermione appreciated that the small group undoubtedly consisted of elder Malfoys, maybe Snapes, and who knows what other Slytherin families. She fought an impulse to shiver, as she pondered the sorts of things those families might have been doing.
As if she knew what Hermione thought, the older woman took her story a bit farther. "I was not involved in any of the business transactions personally. Sometimes, I consulted on completely personal matters. My task was to assess potential partners, to put it simply. Magic is a very rich source of information about a person – family backgrounds, how they've approached events in their lives, how they control their emotions. I can tell if someone is speaking forthrightly, or shielding certain information. I can feel hostility, anger, violence, veniality. For example, if what I conclude does not match with their own statements about their background, that is a concern – they are not telling the truth. My reports to my employers helped some avoid disastrous partnerships with individuals who were not as they presented themselves to be, and enabled many transactions to proceed quickly when I assured that the proposed partners were to be trusted."
Hermione nodded. She'd never heard of this skill, but it apparently was rare, and she was still quite a newcomer to the magical world, all things considered.
Madam Bunswil studied Hermione as she processed the information that she had, and she knew the young woman had other questions, as yet unasked, about the magic of the man who'd attacked Lord Snape. And about her own magic. Rather than wait on questions, she decided to simply respond to what she knew her hostess wanted to learn.
"Hermione, dear, I know that you have unasked questions, likely pertaining to the magic of the man I identified as Andor Szalay. There was a reference in Cili's note to me to his family background, and I suspect that puzzled you." Madam Bunswil was rewarded with a look of utter shock on Hermione's face, no doubt because the thoughts in her own mind had just been given voice by this stranger.
The older woman smiled at the reaction, one she'd gotten many times over the years, even from employers who were totally familiar with her and the unique skills she possessed. Taking Hermione's silence as agreement, she forged ahead. "Cili noted that there were rumors that his family included Roma stock," she began, again eliciting a strong reaction from Hermione as the exact line in the letter that puzzled her was quoted back to her. "The Roma, perhaps better known to you as Gypsies, are a people with a curious magical inheritance. There are actually extremely few witches or wizards who are Roma, and only a few Roma have enough magic to be identified as squibs. But many Roma, the women in particular, do have a magical gift, a magical sight. The muggle stereotype of Gypsy fortune-tellers is actually not far from the truth, at least in terms of the reading of palms, Tarot cards or crystal balls. Many do have the ability to see, in certain narrow respects, into the future. In those rare instances where a Roma is found to be a witch or wizard, most have an element of this magical sight amplified within their magic."
Hermione was puzzling this on two levels: did the man who attacked Professor Snape, Andor . . whatever, have this skill? And didn't Madam Bunswil just describe to a certain extent her own magic?
Madam Bunswil took note of that and proceeded.
"Even in the magical world, the Roma are looked upon with suspicion and distrust. Consequently, many with Roma blood do not disclose that fact. It appears that the Szalay clan may be such a family, based on what Cili said and what I sensed from the magic in the man's wand. The family is an old magical family, known more for its long lineage than for any remarkable or remarkably strong wizards within it. Andor never demonstrated anything unusual or remarkable in his magic that was noted by others. Likely, this man was not a particularly powerful wizard, and probably not the smartest, either. If he had unique skills, he had no idea how to use them, or it is just as likely that he never even realized they were there. But there was definitely Roma there. I can tell."
She took another sip of her tea, as Hermione looked on, mute and slightly agog at the ease with which Madam Buswil knew exactly what she wanted to know.
"And as for me, as you're wondering, I do indeed have Roma ancestry. My mother was a Roma, and you noticed your Headmaster's reaction when I identified myself – my given name is a typically Roma name."
Hermione felt particularly discomfited when she realized what was behind the Headmaster's expression when Madam Bunswil introduced herself with her full name. She was momentarily pained that he, of all people would react that way. He seemed so open-minded, this was almost out of character.
"Think nothing of it, child. I give him credit – he recovered himself immediately, and turned into a gracious host. These are age-old prejudices, they will not go away quickly." Again, Madam Bunswil addressed Hermione's unspoken thought.
Finally, Hermione recovered her voice, if she had not yet overcome her embarrassment or organized her thoughts. "Thank you for your candor, Madam. I was not aware . . ., well, . . . I don't . . ."
She stopped, awkwardly, before starting again. "My theory is that when this man was killed, some of his magic was released into the room. The editor challenged me to prove my theory in real time. To do that, I need to show that someone in that room captured some of that magic. If we assume that Andor had unique traits as a result of his Roma heritage, what ought I look for? The most likely person to have attracted the magic is Harry Potter, who already has a pretty remarkable assortment of magic in him. What would be different?"
Madam Bunswil looked at Hermione with interest. "You assume that Mr. Potter added magic?"
Hermione was reluctant to share what she knew of Harry's history, although it occurred to her that if she thought about it, Madam Bunswil probably read it in her mind, a very disquieting realization.
The old woman continued. "As I said, there was a small bit of British or maybe Scottish magic that appeared to be a part of Andor's magic. If Mr. Potter sent out a burst of magic himself, it seems more likely to me that he was sending out magic rather than attracting it. In the seconds before he died, I would suggest to you that Andor added some of Mr. Potter's magic to his own. However, you have posed a valid question: If Andor's magic was blown apart at his death, and someone acquired a piece of it, what might this mean to the acquirer?"
Hermione nodded, still standing by her best guess that it was Harry who acquired a new magical skill, given his history.
"It is unfortunate that Andor's magic is not documented in any public place," Madam Bunswil mused, "as I am quite certain that the Szalay clan will deny any Roma heritage most vehemently if this is brought to light. To them, this will be a terrible scandal, far beyond the shame the young man's actions have brought."
She patted her lips with her handkerchief, shaking her head slowly. She looked up and caught Hermione's eye, smiling before she went on. "However, assuming that this man had the typical traits, a magical Roma has certain intuitions. They will know something to be true or a fact without being able to point to a specific reason for their knowledge. Someone who has cultivated this intuition or skill, or has more of this magic than others, like myself, perhaps, can call on this skill at will. I would imagine that someone with minimal amounts of this magic, or not fully aware of it, would not be able to control it. Insights will spring to mind, on random topics. I would expect this insight would not be understood, at least at first, so it might not be something the wizard or witch would even acknowledge or mention to someone. But if Mr. Potter is a friend of yours, as I understand is the case, perhaps if you talk to him about this and he looks for evidence that might meet this description, he'll share it with you."
X X X X X X X X X X
The month of November saw the days shorten and the temperatures dip. The Vikings still took turns serving as a personal army for Harry Potter. As their farms were now covered in snow, as many as one hundred Vikings were able to be in Scotland at any given time. They were not particularly bothered by the arriving Scottish winter, mild by their standards. They were also quite comfortable in their drafty tents. However, the house elves were up at arms over wizards living in non-magical, cold, fabric "houses," right in front of them. They insisted that they had to cast magic on the Vikings' tents to keep them warm, an idea rejected out-of-hand by the burly men. It had taken Albus' intervention with Alrik Brand to break the stalemate, and the house elves were allowed to cast their spells. The house elves either did not notice, or chose not to say anything, when many of the Vikings simply tied the entry flaps to the tents open, because they found the tents too warm and wanted the fresh air.
Alrik Brand's presence itself was an unexpected help to Harry, because his wife was now a frequent visitor to Hogwarts most weekends. Diana had mentioned to her brother that she was planning to allow her daughters to spend some time in the Winter Lands in the coming summer. She went on about the fresh air and them having the chance to know their Brand cousins, and for his part, Severus refrained from adding an observation about there suddenly being a certain cachet to residence there. She described the efforts she was taking to make her husband's personal home in the Brand compound suitable for use by her family. She confided that she'd heard from Alrik that Harry had selected a remote compound for himself and Severus, and she offered her assistance in making it ready for them.
To Diana's surprise, her brother actually welcomed the idea, and had her meet with Harry the next day. "Severus told me that you offered to help me get our compound ready," Harry began over tea in their rooms, first wanting to be sure he wasn't imposing on his sister-in-law, "and we appreciate that. We don't want people to know where it is, or even confirm that we have one. He pointed out that if I contract with anyone to do work there, the game is up."
Diana was very pleased that Harry was so receptive to her offer, and readily agreed to use her own work at the Brand compound as a "cover" for work for Harry. She was already working with some highly-recommended firms, and would simply have them work on the remote compound as part of her own project. She could also use the Brand compound as a staging ground for the import of many of the things needed at the far more remote Potter compound, enabling Harry to keep his farm as private as possible.
If she had hoped to have control of the actual design of the compound, though, she was disappointed. Harry had some very specific ideas, and a few likely came from her brother. It seemed that Harry and Severus were generally satisfied with the layout of the buildings as they found them, and aside from building the potions lab, only minimal work was required even on the main house. The new greenhouse was an exciting challenge for her, as was Harry's idea for a small, heated swimming pond.
Hermione had briefed Harry and Ron on her conversation with Madam Bunswil, insisting that they all be on the lookout for any comments or statements that Harry might make that would suggest he was manifesting any kind of Roma intuition.
"She was a really old, really interesting lady," Hermione told her friends. "She referred to Mr. Malfoy as 'Master Malfoy' so she obviously knew him as a child. She thought my theory made total sense, based on what she does. Madam Bunswil told me that she has often detected a bit of magic that was out of place when she was assessing someone's magic. Like, she could tell if someone came from Scotland, but she'd find a bit of magic in them that was Asian."
Ron snickered. "A warm endorsement from someone who sounds a bit like Trelawney – not quite the endorsement that you can really brag about, is it?"
Hermione shrugged; that thought had occurred to her, as well. "You have a point, Ron. It does give me encouragement to me to know that I'm probably right in the conclusions I've drawn, though. She seems to be someone who keeps a very low profile, so there'd be no point in any public statement, anyway."
She had debated with herself about sharing what Madam Bunswil had told her about Szalay's magic, but decided finally to share. "Madam Bunswil told me that it was clear to her right off that the man who attacked Professor Snape was from Central Europe. She knew someone there, and she was able to get his identity right away. But she said there was a little bit of British or maybe Scottish magic in him, and that puzzled her. As we spoke, she seemed to think it might have come from you, Harry, when you sent out the pulse that threw him to the wall."
Harry seemed concerned about that, but Ron looked impressed and elbowed Harry.
"Whoa, there, mate! That must have been quite a bit of magic you did, if it left a bit behind in the man," he leaned in to ask, clearly excited. "Isn't that exactly what you would have expected, Mione?"
"Well, I'm not sure. I've only considered cases where someone's magic is dispersed when they die violently. Harry's no doubt a special case, and you said," she went on, smiling a bit apologetically at Harry, "it was a burst of wandless magic you sent out, probably not very controlled." Harry had to nod, still bothered by this.
Hermione went on. "I suppose that might fit with my theory, then. Most people would only release magic that way in an assault that killed them, but given that you're you, and have so much more magic, your bursts, in particular, might release magic. But as you pointed out, Ron, all we have is Madam Bunswil as evidence of it. For purposes of the theory I put forth in my article, though, I need to look for some magic from the man who was killed, now in someone else. It needs to be visible, witnessed by others. Harry, for example, showing that he has absorbed some of Szalay's magic. We need to be on the lookout, all of us."
Harry gulped, but had to ask. "And what would we be looking for, exactly?"
Hermione consulted a parchment tucked into one of her books. "Madam Bunswil said to be on the lookout for you to have insights or intuitions."
Ron and Harry shared a glance and nearly laughed when they each raised their eyebrows skeptically at the exact same time. Hermione looked at them disapprovingly, and the two wisely refrained from any making any further noise.
She continued. "For example, Harry, I expect that you'd realize that you know something to be true or a fact without being able to point to a specific reason for this knowledge. It's not likely something that you can make happen, but just something that will come into your mind on its own. The topics can be random, too, so it's really that feeling that you have an insight or feeling about something that will likely be noticeable."
Despite their best efforts, nothing remotely of the sort was detected from Harry over the following weeks.
Harry's idea to ask the ravens to appear to him before lunch rather than interrupt his classes had apparently appealed to them. The ravens had made that their standard visiting time, and they were visiting regularly now.
Harry had made it a habit to head to Severus' office before lunch, where they'd either wait for the ravens to report to Harry, or on the rare days when the ravens did not appear, take a leisurely stroll to lunch. Harry was comforted by Severus' presence as he heard what the ravens had to tell him, and they'd established a routine of Harry articulating what he was hearing or seeing to that Severus as it happened. That way Severus could help him probe for details he might miss, and later help him fully recall all he had learned.
Things were not going well in the world outside of Howarts. Only twice had the information enabled Harry to report what he'd seen and prevent an attack; to his frustration, he was almost always seeing events as they unfolded or right after. Things seemed chaotic and uncoordinated, but violent and frightening. There were no discernable patterns; muggles and magical people were victims, things happened during daylight and nighttime, some attacks were on individuals and others directed toward structures. Harry saw bridges fall, underground stations explode, buildings collapse and boats sink, as well as people thrown from buildings. It was truly the stuff of nightmares, and Severus made it a point to have vials of Dreamless Sleep in the nightstand, and to be sure Harry took one each night.
The visions were now often supplemented by whispered reports, with the ravens murmuring snippets of information and details that might not have been clear from the images he saw. Harry, helped along by Severus' participation, began to engage with the ravens, asking questions and probing for more details. Most of the time, they had nothing more than they'd already shared, but sometimes, Harry's questions drew out additional tidbits. It was a slow, exhausting process, although gradually, the ravens seemed to understand what this wizard, among the many they'd served over the centuries, wanted to know and were a bit more forthcoming with relevant details.
Harry fully expected to hear from the muggles about renewing the messages he'd taped in the summer. He could not imagine that muggles, just seeing the violence inflicted on their own kind, would be anything but outraged. He was not surprised, then, when a request for his assistance was made to the Minister's office. As the royal family was not in residence at Balmoral Castle that this time of year, Harry was invited to Buckingham Palace in London.
This necessitated a bit of logistical planning, not a simple trip via floo to Balmoral Castle. Harry and Severus took a port key to the Ministry of Magic, to the Minister's office directly, early on the chosen evening. From there, they and half a dozen Aurors and several senior employees in the Department of Explanations flooed to the muggle Prime Minister's office. Special shields were cast on the Prime Minister's armored limousine and the Ministry officials joined their muggle counterparts in the limousine. With a muggle police escort, they drove to Buckingham Palace, a novel experience for the Ministry of Magic officials. Harry, Severus and two senior Aurors used port keys to join them in the protected courtyard just outside the palace.
Harry was pleased to see the muggle princes again, and their easy repartee was evident right away. The Department of Explanations representatives had been working with representatives from the muggle government to develop appropriate messages to meet the growing distress and agitation among the muggles. The young men did several walk-throughs of the scripted presentations to be sure no one stepped on anyone else's lines and that the conversation flowed, and then they taped the messages.
Severus stood off to the side, not wanting to interfere with the numerous muggle machines that literally formed a wall in front of the chairs on which the three young men were seated, but also not tolerating Harry being out of his sight. It looked safe enough here, certainly from any harm from muggles. He noticed immediately the presence of men who were obviously a security detail; some with bulky metal weapons clearly visible, others with similar weapons clearly concealed, and all with various wires leading to their ears and snaking to their lapels. Traditional magical means of providing security, such as wards and charms, would interfere with the functioning of the muggle electronic devices, so they could not be deployed. Severus was not happy to have to rely on the simple vigilance of the Aurors, but he kept his own vigilant watch over the proceedings and his hand on his wand at all times.
Severus had not paid terribly close attention to developments in the muggle world, aside from the events that were reported by the ravens. He was surprised by the full story of what he realized must have been happening, as he heard the messages Harry and the princes were delivering. He had his doubts that their reasoned messages urging vigilance and restraint would have the desired impact, if the muggles were experiencing the sorts of attacks and general mayhem that were being mentioned.
Harry was in a similar predicament, perhaps even more isolated from the bigger picture about which he was speaking by virtue of his "student" status. He was learning for the first time, as he read the script, about the steps that the Ministry of Magic was taking to prevent these attacks. His mind was racing, and he all but yelled out in frustration that it was all so reactive! Placing wards at the entrance to an underground station AFTER a wizard had apparated in and destroyed a train had limited value. As he mouthed scripted words of comfort and assurance, he was inwardly concerned, were the wizards doing enough? He might not be the one best aware of how magic could help, but what they were doing did not feel sufficient.
The taping dragged on, as multiple messages were recorded that could be used over the next few weeks. It was now the start of the holiday season, with travel and shopping meaning that more muggles would be frequenting the very places that had been targeted for violent attacks in recent weeks. Harry spoke words that described how wizards were tasking some of their police to augment the muggle police, and mention was made that some members of the magical community were providing magical protections to key structures in and around London.
When the tedious evening was finally over, Severus immediately went to Harry, uncomfortable in what was feeling more and more like a very insecure location. He curtly acknowledged the two young royals, as he took Harry's arm and whispered "I'm very concerned – this place does not feel safe. I think it best if we activate our portkey and return to Hogwarts immediately."
The older prince pointed to a door behind them. "We've had some of your people here over the past few weeks putting what I think they called wards or wardings, over the apartments. We're staying here for now, because we've been told it's safer. You could step through, so we can chat for a few minutes," he suggested.
"Would you mind if I asked Madam Bones to join us?" wizard Harry asked. "I don't hear about all the things going on out here, when I'm at school in Scotland. There were some things I read in the script we used tonight that concern me, and I'd like to find out more."
Severus saw the Minister of Magic standing with the muggle Prime Minister, and observed "Likely, we'd need to include her muggle counterpart. Would that be acceptable?" He directed his question to the princes; while not entirely certain about the protocols that attached to muggle royalty and politics, what little he'd observed from his brief meetings with the princes' grandparents had suggested that there would be some rules about this.
It took some quickly whispered negotiations, but finally the two Ministers and Auror Entwhistle joined the princes and Harry and Severus, in a quick walk down a plain corridor. A solid door, manned by several armed British soldiers, was opened to admit them to the apartment. It was another short walk down a much brighter and homier corridor to a modest sitting room.
Severus quickly assessed the wards that he felt as the little group entered into the apartment. They were not the level of protection one would find at Hogwarts, the Ministry or Malfoy Manor, but quite impressive for a residential structure. He relaxed a bit as he found a seat.
Eyes went to wizard Harry as soon as everyone was settled, as he had requested this gathering.
"Madam Bones, I hope I'm not stepping out of bounds," Harry began, looking a little ill at ease. "You represent the wizarding world in this situation, not me. Are you sure that we are doing as much as we can to protect muggles against these attacks? I realize Voldemort's people are attacking wizards, too, and obviously you have to protect them. But the muggles are so vulnerable! Are there wards, or spells or something, that we can do – maybe at underground stations, or shopping areas, schools, that sort of thing?"
Far from offended, the Minister of Magic was pleased, first that Harry had respected that this was her issue to address, and second, that he showed such empathy for muggles. She was finding that a rather rare sentiment among her wizarding constituents and colleagues these days.
She took a deep breath as all eyes in the room moved to her, and nodded with approval. "Mr. Potter, I appreciate your sentiments. As you no doubt realize, magic seems to interfere with a great deal of muggle technology, so we've had to use it very carefully. Around the underground stations, we've had to take care not to disable the trains themselves, for example. In public spaces, it turns out that muggles use a great many devices that are unusable if we put up our standard wards and such. We've been testing some special wards and experimental charms. We have found a few that deliver protections, but don't seem to be a problem for the muggle devices. Just this week, we sent out teams to begin placing wards and charms at the entrances to underground stations, at some of the big stores, and a few other locations."
The muggle Prime Minister, not to be outshone here, quickly added "We are pleased that you recognize our need for your government's support, Mr. Potter. Mrs. Bones and many members of her administration have worked tirelessly with our own police and security organizations. I must admit, we were all a bit surprised by the impact of your magic on our electronics – very disruptive. But Mrs. Bones' team got right on that, and it seems to be resolved."
Severus had heard from his colleagues at Hogwarts about muggleborn students becoming upset because their electronic devices could not be used at Hogwarts. As there were virtually no muggleborn students in Slytherin, he himself was only aware of the complaining, not the details. Given that the muggle Prime Minister seemed as focused on this as eleven year olds arriving for their first year at Hogwarts, he smirked at the fact that this fascination with their devices was not just limited to spoiled children.
Harry nodded and offered a small smile. "I'm glad to hear that we've been of some assistance, sir. Madam Bones, I was just taken aback when we did the taping to realize the extent of the attacks in the muggle world. I realize that the same forces are wreaking havoc in our world, too, and of course, I'm not really aware of how all these limitations fit in. But we have to help. We have to."
Severus' smirk remained – spoken like a true Gryffindor.
The lights flickered in the room. Under normal circumstances, that might not have brought about quite the reaction it did here, but given the topic that had been under discussion, everyone feared the worst. Auror Entwhistle bolted to the door, to see if there was anything happening outside, trusting his magical boss to remember enough from her days as an Auror to provide any needed protection within the warded room, if it came to that. The others stood or sat still, waiting to see what was going to happen.
The lights flickered again and went out. Seconds later, emergency lights powered by batteries went on. While always an inconvenience, loss of power was not necessarily a threat. But then explosions could be heard, and the blare of sirens of emergency responders.
Severus immediately checked the wards and assured the others, "The wards are in tact. We appear to be safe here." Nonetheless, he stood and moved closer to Harry and put a protective hand on his arm. He tucked the butterbeer cap that could be activated as a portkey back to Hogwarts into an outer pocket of his robe where it could be grabbed at a moment's notice, and waited for news.
Entwhistle returned a few minutes later, reporting that explosions had ripped through several areas of London just then, and muggles were sending their fire trucks out to battle the resulting blazes. "There was an explosion just down the Mall, and people are checking to see why the Palace lost power. We don't think anything happened on the Palace grounds, but that's being assessed."
Madam Bones had flicked her wand, and a parchment appeared in front of her, which she picked up and proceeded to read, ignoring the stare of the muggle Prime Minister in the room at this apparently routine means of communication in her world. "Mmmm. Our people detected seven attacks; four in your world, three in ours, all around London, within the last two minutes." She was scanning past the mentions of wizard targets, which would not be known to the others and which, fortunately, were not particularly critical structures. She resumed speaking when she got to the muggle targets. "It seems they inflicted some damage on the Royal Festival Hall and the Golden Jubilee Bridge, and did some damage near the White Tower, although of course, the wards around the Tower of London seem to have protected most of the structures over there. And the Mall. It seems that the Admiralty Arch has been severely damaged."
She looked around the room. "We don't know if this is it, or if more will happen. This is a safe place; the wards we've put up will protect the structure and repel magic. I suggest that we just wait a few minutes. We've noticed a pattern with the attacks we've tracked: there is usually a burst of activity, several attacks all at the same time, and then a round or two of follow-up attacks, and then silence. There doesn't seem to be much coordination among the people behind this, other than with the initial attacks."
Harry nodded as he looked at Severus, not sure if the man was thinking along the lines he was. The raven's recent information had been disappointing, especially when he saw in the script he'd just used how far-reaching the attacks had been. There likely was not much preparation, then, and it was only in the attack itself that the Death Eaters disclosed their intent. On the one hand, as Madam Bones had just said, the attacks weren't well-planned or coordinated and ended pretty quickly. However, that meant the attacks were surprises and nothing the ravens could warn him about.
The royal princes were quiet, not exactly fearful but concerned, as they saw the level of concern on the faces of the wizards. The Prime Minister was less familiar than they were with magic in general, and while he tried to project an image of concern, the fear was pretty easy to see on his face.
Entwhistle and the Minister of Magic noticed, and exchanged a look, and at her almost imperceptible nod, the young Auror addressed his nominal employer. "Mr. Prime Minister, while there is a lull, it might be best to get you out of here, back to your office. I'll escort you to the entrance; if it does not look prudent for you to travel by limousine, there are magical ways to get from here to there, and I'll take you. We ought to leave now."
Not quite wanting to run, but clearly having to hold himself back from that very basic urge, the Prime Minister made a show of bidding formal farewells to the others in the room, before he followed his assistant down the hall.
Madam Bones looked at the four men remaining in the sitting room. "Gentlemen, this is no place for civilians. I've got a dozen Aurors on site already, to defend the muggles here and the palace from whoever is trying to attack; the Ministry employees who were not able to assist in the defense have already apparated back to the Ministry or their homes. You would all be doing us a favor if you left here immediately, so we do not need to deploy resources to assure your personal safety."
The older prince spoke up. "We live here, Madam Minister, and you yourself said we now have strong wards to protect us. Perhaps we should just plan to wait this out."
Severus quickly checked the wards again and reported, "It feels like the wards themselves are being attacked now. True, they are strong wards, but they are new, not yet as rooted into the earth as they could be. I suspect that Madam Bones' Aurors will be able to repel the ones seeking to destroy them long before they are actually breached, but it would be prudent to remove ourselves from the area. As she points out, allow the Aurors to do their jobs without worry for our safety."
Harry immediately asked the princes "Are other members of your family here now?" and to the Minister he said "Are they safe?"
The royal Harry replied "No, we were the only ones in London this week. My grandparents are in Australia and my father is in Greece. Official trips."
Madam Bones saw the potential for the young men feeling targeted, and she wanted to avoid that. "In all likelihood, the people attacking here have no idea who is in the building. It's large, there were wards, it's clearly important, but they might think it is a museum or large government complex. They'd certainly not have realized that the royal family is residing here, or that most of the members of the family are out of the country on official visits. It's just a random attack, and we don't want it to be anything more than that. Please, do as I ask, and leave here now."
A loud, cracking noise reverberated through the room. The three younger men jumped. Severus recognized it as the sound wards made when being forcibly pried from the structures to which they were attached. Not necessarily evidence of a breach, but absolute proof of efforts to bring them down. Things could get nasty here, very quickly.
"Harry, your Highnesses, we have no time to waste," he said. The urgency in his voice was compounded by the speed with which the Minister rushed from the room to join the battle that was no doubt about to be waged where the wards were attached. He extracted the portkey and explained to the princes, "We can take you with us, to Hogwarts; you can return here as soon as it's safe. Just close your eyes, and we'll tell you when you can open them again. Touch the portkey, and Harry and I will take you by the arm, to be sure you are alright. Count of three, then."
Not ten seconds after the four men disappeared from the room, a series of even louder, cracking noises accompanied the breach of a corner of the wards that protected the apartment complex in Buckingham Palace. Of course, there were by now dozens of Aurors in place to repel them, so the Death Eaters never actually got into the Palace. When they saw the size of the magical force arrayed to defend the Palace, the attackers themselves apparated away.
Mission accomplished.
[A/N: My apologies for the long time between chapters. This particular chapter proved very difficult to write, as it seemed to have a mind of its own. Several parts were rewritten a few times along the way, and I had to abandon (at least for now) a few ideas that were supposed to be in here, as they were crowded out by other developments.
I realized too late that this site does funny things to attempts to provide you with directions to other websites. I had mentioned in the author's notes to the prior chapter that Kila9Nishika has created an absolutely beautiful picture to honor this continuation of The Marriage Stone. Let's see if I can just write it out for you. The address is kila9nashika at deviantart dot com. It's fantastic!
I promise more Harry and Severus interaction in the next chapter. And I do love those reviews!]