I'd like to thank thekingofsweden1, rpeh and brianna-xox for beta reading. Their work and diligence has improved the story a lot.

Chapter 13: Confessions

London, Ministry of Magic, September 11th, 1999, 14.30 hours

Wand-Leader Hermione was taken aback by the destruction she saw inside the Department of Mysteries. To think Ron and the others had willingly entered the department while this acid wave had filled it… she shuddered.

Dean glanced at her, raising his eyebrows. She schooled her features. "Imagine if this flood hadn't been stopped, and had filled the Ministry."

That made her friend wince. "Stupid Unspeakables, messing with things they can't control."

"We don't know if that's what happened," Hermione corrected him automatically. "It could have been sabotage, or an attack from the outside. Although the latter seems a bit far-fetched," she added. "Alright, let's get to work. We need to know if that half-naga was involved."

Colin was already taking pictures everywhere, but those wouldn't show magical residue. Dean sighed. The Wand wasn't looking forward to covering the entire department with detection spells. Neither was Hermione. Especially since she already knew that they wouldn't find anything linking this to the attacks on the Malfoy, Nott and Lovegood families.

"What did your team find?"

Wand-Leader Benjamin was five years older than Hermione, and his tone showed just a slight hint of condescension towards the youngest Wand-Leader in the Investigative Corps. Both were standing in one of the laboratories of the Department of Mysteries.

Hermione stood at attention, not showing how tired she was after four hours of casting spell after spell. "We didn't find anything that would link this to the half-naga. Though the office of the Head Unspeakable has been cleared of any residue. Including the corpse found there. But there were signs that the body found inside had been suffering from exposure to the acid, though the effect had stopped before the witch had died. It could have happened at the same time the whole mass went inert, but I'm recommending a closer analysis of the body's robe."

Benjamin nodded. "We've tracked the origin of this wave to an Ottoman artifact, which was delivered to the department just two days ago." He pointed at the center of the room, where a misshapen lump of metal was sitting. "That's all that's left. Apparently it was a research project that the Head had given priority. There was an outside expert involved, who vanished a few days ago."

"And Rookwood is still missing?" Hermione narrowed her eyes. "His office is purged, the outside contact missing, a dead Unspeakable in his office…"

"We have a lot of questions for him," the older Wand-Leader said.

"But we have to find him first," Hermione added. She didn't sound smug, but Benjamin still frowned.

"Let's hope he can't hide as well as that half-naga."

Hermione didn't react to that barb, but she nodded rather stiffly before she turned to leave. Even though she knew about the truth behind the 'half-naga', the comment hurt her pride.

"We're back to hunting snakes then," Dean summed up the day a bit later back in their own office.

"Half-nagas," Hermione corrected him. "We wouldn't want someone to think we're hunting Slytherins."

Dean and Colin chuckled. The youngest member of their team was checking his camera. He'd have to spend hours developing the pictures.

"I'm going to get some food. Are you eating with us, Hermione?" Dean asked, standing up.

She shook her head. "I'm meeting Antoine." She had to ensure that he really was fine, now. And find out what exactly had happened in the Department of Mysteries. She wanted to see if her own deductions were close to the truth.

"We still haven't met him." Dean was grinning as he said it, but it wasn't the first time he had mentioned his wish to meet her boyfriend.

"We can have dinner together next week," she said. "For the weekend, he's mine."

"You've got it bad," her friend said, shaking his head.

She nodded. "Oh, yes."

"And what does the Minister's son think about your new relationship?"

Hermione sighed. "Is this all the Corps talks about?" Sally-Anne should be guarding more, and gossiping less!

"I heard it from Luna," Dean admitted.

Hermione sighed. "She's concerned about his reaction."

"And does she have a good reason to be concerned?" Dean was staring at her, and Colin had stopped cleaning his camera.

She hesitated a second, then nodded. "You know him, and his ego. I hope he'll give up after he realises I'm not interested, but…"

"That could take a long time," Dean said. "He isn't exactly used to being turned down."

"You could ask the Minister to talk to him," Colin proposed.

Hermione winced, and cursed herself right afterwards. She was too exhausted, after worrying about Ron for the night, and working the whole day. Dean hadn't missed that slip, she knew. "I don't think that would be a good idea. The Minister is under a lot of pressure with the attacks and this disaster."

Colin nodded, turning back to tinkering with his camera. Dean didn't look convinced.

"Want to walk together to the Floo connection?" her friend asked.

Hermione didn't want to, but nodded.

"Alright. I'll get you the usual order, Colin."

As soon as they were out of the office, Dean cast a privacy spell. Others would think they were talking about a case.

"Did anything happen with the Minister?"

"No." She wasn't lying. Nothing that Dean was suspecting had happened.

"But you don't think he'd help you," Dean said. He knew her too well. And there was a reason he was with her in the Investigative Branch.

"Antoine's a pureblood, and a foreigner. If we were to marry, then the Minister might see that as a security risk." It was a good explanation. And the mentioning of marriage might distract her friend.

It didn't. Dean frowned. "That makes no sense. You know the Minister. He trusts us implicitly." He hissed. "You don't trust him!"

She had no choice now. He wouldn't let that be. "I've finished my investigation, Dean."

His eyes widened.

"You'll chance on me and Antoine in Ebenezer's this evening. Say, in two hours. Don't look into the Minister's eyes should you meet him until then."

Dean nodded, stiffly. He understood.

Now she had to explain this to Ron.

London, Diagon Alley, September 11th, 1999, 19.00 hours

Ron Weasley found himself embracing and kissing Hermione as soon as the door to his room in the Leaky Cauldron had closed. He had missed her, especially after his group had left the Department of Mysteries, battered, bruised and with two of them cursed. He held her, feeling some tension he hadn't noticed until then leave him.

"How did you get hurt?" she whispered.

He winced, remembering the moment he had been thrown into the wall. "Rookwood transfigured his desk into tentacles. One of them grabbed me and slammed me into the wall, before crushing my leg."

"That sounds worse than what you told me," she said, frowning. She glanced at his leg too, and he thought she was restraining herself from checking for lingering damage.

He didn't think it was a good idea to tell her he hadn't wanted her to worry. "Sorry. It was still a bit fresh, then. I didn't want to think about it." Not while Skele-Gro was making his leg hurt far worse than the wounds had, at least.

She bit her lower lip. "No, I'm sorry… I didn't think about that."

Now she sounded guilty, which in turn made him feel guilty. He kissed her again. They sat down on his bed, her in his lap, and he told her more details about the fight against Rookwood. Hermione nodded, obviously trying to analyze the whole battle in her head.

Finally, she nodded. "That fits what I found. Not that there was much to be found. Dumbledore didn't leave many traces. Though he'll be among the suspects as soon as Benjamin realises that the whole flood had to be the result of alchemy.

"Benjamin?" He hadn't heard that name yet. Another friend of hers?

"The Wand-Leader in charge of the investigation." Her tone didn't seem to indicate a close relationship with the wizard.

"You weren't put in charge?"

"No, my team is still hunting the 'half-naga'."

The Dark Lord. He nodded. It would have been useful if she was the one investigating the incident, but it would also endanger her just a bit more.

"Speaking of my team…"

He looked at her. She didn't usually beat around the bush.

Hermione took a deep breath, then sighed. "Dean suspects that I don't trust the Minister anymore."

"Merde." He tensed. How to deal with that, with him…

"I told him to meet us by chance in Ebenezer's, in about an hour and a half."

"What?"

She looked at him, frowning. "He's my friend, and he's a good Wand. If I, if we don't tell him, he'll find out anyway. Or ask the wrong person for help."

"You said he doesn't know Occlumency." There were ways to deal with such knowledge.

"He doesn't. But if he noticed this once, he'll notice it again." She knew those ways, of course. And she was probably correct. "He doesn't have much contact with the Minister though, since he is no team leader."

"You want to tell him the truth."

"About the Minister, yes."

He nodded. "Will you be able to tell what he's thinking?"

"Yes. I know him well. We were in the same year."

Ron suppressed the spike of jealousy at hearing that. He told himself Dean was just like a brother to Hermione. They grew up together as Wands, and hadn't any other family. It didn't help that much. But he wasn't about to ask her if she had ever slept with the mec. "And if he wants to rat you out?"

"Then I'll obliviate him," she said in a flat but determined voice. He didn't doubt that she'd do it - that was the Wand-Leader he had grown to know and love.

"Well, let's get something to eat then, before we meet Dean."

He almost snorted when he suddenly thought that this was like meeting the family of his girlfriend. Hopefully, it would turn out better than when he had met Estelle's family. That had been a debacle.

London, Diagon Alley, September 11th, 1999, 21.00 hours

Ebenezer's didn't look like a good location to talk treason, Hermione thought. It was loud and packed with people, even with the threat of an attack by the Dark Lord hanging over them. Not that the people around her and Ron would know that muggleborns and half-bloods were in danger. They thought a 'half-naga' was attacking the purebloods.

And yet the noise level would make eavesdropping difficult, even without privacy charms. With them, it would be nigh-impossible.

She clung to Ron, as if they were just out to have a good time. She didn't see Dean around yet, and so steered Ron to the dance floor when a slow song started.

For a few minutes, she could relax and enjoy the moment. Then she saw Dean. He came right up to them, smiling. He was forcing himself to smile though, she could tell.

"Fancy meeting you here. Is that your mysterious lover?"

"Hello Dean." She didn't need to force herself to sigh. "This is Antoine. Antoine, this is Dean, one of my friends from the Corps."

The two wizards shook hands. An outside observer would attribute their slight awkwardness to her. Ex-lover meets current lover. A good cover.

"Let's sit down," she said, loudly.

"Alright." Dean agreed at once. A good sign, she thought.

They managed to grab a table thanks to their brown robes. The predominantly half-blood crowd didn't want to get in the way of two Wands. Hermione briefly wondered how much of that was fear, and how much was respect. Then she cast the best privacy charms she knew, masking both words and gestures, and nodded at Dean.

"I've tracked the Obliviators in muggle Britain."

He nodded. "I assumed you did."

"I saw Martin Tuckleton and John Meriweather 'recover' a muggleborn child. They wanted to murder her parents, but decided against it. Because, as Merriweather put it, they had done that too often."

Dean drew a hissing breath.

"They decided instead to frame the father for murdering his daughter." She stared into his eyes. "There was no sign of any abuse. The muggles saw the child do accidental magic, and liked it."

Her fellow wand blinked. She continued before he could ask. "I checked the records. Our records. I tracked down the Obliviator who had 'recovered' me from my parents, Keagan Banks, and interrogated him with Veritaserum."

"You were the one attacking Ottokar Merriweather," Dean said.

She didn't answer that. "I presented him with my file. He admitted that he had faked the report. My parents hadn't abused me. Merriweather hurt me, to fool the healers. They murdered my parents." She felt Ron wrap his arm around her, and took a deep breath.

"Merlin's stinking arse!" Dean swore.

"I asked about the other reports. Yours. Colin's. Sally-Anne's. He said he had never seen a muggle abuse their child. All the reports were faked."

Dean was staring at her, his mouth opening and closing.

"Banks had done that because he had been ordered by his superior, Cornelius Fudge. I interrogated him. He had acted on orders."

"By… by the Minister," Dean said, shaking.

"Yes."

"Are you… are you certain?"

"Yes. I can give you the memories, but you know about the pensieves." They couldn't use one of those rare devices without catching attention.

"I can't believe it," he said, shaking his head. "Not the Minister."

"I didn't want to believe it myself."

"Could.. Could it have been a setup?"

"No. Too many people, too much information to be manipulated."

"They could have simply memory charmed you." Dean glanced at Antoine.

"I've mastered Occlumency." Best nip that suspicion in the bud.

"You could have been memory-charmed into believing you did." Dean was grasping at straws.

"If 'they' could do that, would 'they' bother with having me talk to you, instead of doing the same to you? Make you believe you found out yourself, or independently confirmed the facts? Or simply make you forget?" She didn't have to point out that he could have been easily ambushed with her help.

Dean closed his eyes, cursing under his breath. Hermione reached out and took his hand. "I know how you feel."

He nodded, shakingly. "So… our whole life, the whole Corps…"

"... is based on lies and murder," Hermione finished for him.

Dean took a few minutes to compose himself again, enough at least to continue their talk. "And what's his role?" He pointed at Ron. "He knows about this."

Hermione studied Dean. He was shaken, but he did believe her. She was certain of that. And he'd not betray her. They had known each other too long, trusted each other with their lives even. Still, he couldn't protect his mind. Telling him the truth about Ron would be a mistake. Dean would understand that. "Yes, he knows. And he's helping me."

"Helping you with what?"

"Helping me to find a way to inform the rest of the Corps. And to avenge our families," Hermione said. "That scum who did this to us will pay."

Dean nodded, his expression as grim as hers.

London, Diagon Alley, September 11th, 1999, 22.30 hours

Ron Weasley found Dean staring at him as soon as Hermione had left the table to 'freshen up'. He met the other wizard's eyes, of course.

"I don't like you," Dean said. It wasn't really a surprise.

"Why?" Ron asked, barely refraining from adding 'jealous?'.

"She shouldn't have gone to an outsider." The Wand scowled.

"A pureblood, you mean."

Dean didn't answer that, but his scowl deepened.

"She didn't come to me because of this, you know. We got together before she found out about it," Ron said. The implied accusation that he had exploited Hermione's shock after her discovery wasn't something he'd let stand. No matter if Dean had actually implied that. And it was close enough to accusing the Wand of being jealous.

"I don't care about that," Dean said, baring his teeth. "But we're her family."

Ron had no doubt of that - Dean was acting like Estelle's brother. Merlin, he was thinking about marriage with a girl that had dozens of brothers and sisters! On the other hand, he thought, he had six siblings. And his mum. He chuckled. "You certainly act like the typical brother."

Dean narrowed his eyes. "I take it you've met many of those?"

Ron rolled his eyes. "It's a cliche." Apart from Estelle's brother, he hadn't met anyone actually acting like an overprotective brother. Though as Ginny's sibling, his standards might be a bit skewed.

"If you hurt her, you'll pay for it."

"This isn't some bloody wireless show!" He scoffed at the other wizard. "Are you really going to tell me she needs your protection?"

"She vulnerable when it comes to relationships."

Ron suppressed the guilt he felt - he had hurt her, even though he hadn't wanted to. "She's stronger than you think."

Dean snorted.

Ron sighed. "You know why she wouldn't go to you with this. If Malfoy reads your mind, he'll know all about this."

Dean glared at him. "I know about it now."

"Yes." Ron didn't hide the fact that he didn't like this. "And you're a risk."

"And you're not?"

"I'm not living and working in the Ministry," Ron said.

"And yet you could meet the Minister anyway. You certainly are known enough," Dean sneered.

"I'm prepared for that." He had mastered Occlumency for this mission, after all.

"How? Occlumency?"

"It's a very useful skill. Have you ever duelled a Legilimens?" Ron hadn't, actually. Unless the Professor counted - but Dumbledore could probably predict his moves just from his experience.

"A Shield Charm will stop that."

"Maybe."

"I'll learn Occlumency," Dean said.

"That takes too long."

"Maybe you took too long," Dean said, sneering slightly.

"Just ask Hermione how long she had until she had mastered it." Ron smiled, just a bit smugly. Dean glared at him again.

Hermione's return to their table with a new round of drinks which prevented them from continuing their discussion. The witch sat down, then looked from Ron to Dean and back. "What did you talk about?" she asked, warily.

"We've been talking about ways to prevent Dean from endangering us all by having his mind read," Ron said. Dean scowled, but nodded.

"There's not much to be done. Avoid the Minister. If you can't avoid him, don't look into his eyes," Hermione said. "It won't work forever, or even that long, so we'll have to prepare to quickly inform more of the Corps so that we can secure the Ministry and then inform the rest of the Wands."

Ron was quite certain that sort of planning should be done with Dumbledore, not by themselves. He couldn't say that though. "That'll be difficult."

"The Minister's weakened. With the disaster in the Department of Mysteries and the half-naga troubles, we'll have an opportunity for a take-over soon, I think," Hermione said.

Dean snorted. "If we can convince the Corps, the Ministry is ours. The Aurors certainly won't be able to hinder, much less stop us."

"The Unspeakables are a wild card, but with the current troubles, they are weakened as well. Until there's a new head, they'll be mostly focused on their own issues. As usual."

"Maybe." Ron didn't think it would be that easy. Things never were. And the Wands didn't really strike him as good plotters and schemers. Not even the Investigative Branch. "Don't tell anyone though, until we have a plan."

Dean nodded.

Ron took a sip from his drink. He really needed to talk about this. With Hermione, and with Dumbledore. Now if only Dean would leave…

As if the other wizard had read his thoughts, he leaned forward. "Now let's change the topic to something less serious! How did you win our dear Wand-Leader's heart?"

Ron would have happily hexed the git. As if it wasn't obvious what Dean was trying to do! He glared at the other wizard while Hermione was blushing slightly, and mock-scolded Dean.

Ron just knew this would be a long evening.

London, Diagon Alley, September 12th, 1999, 11.45 hours

"So… what happened in the Department of Mysteries?" Luna leaned forward, towards Hermione, uncaring that she just barely manage to avoid pushing her robe into her meal.

"It's an ongoing investigation," the Wand-Leader answered reflexively. "I can't talk about it."

"Of course, sorry I asked." Luna smiled. "So… let's talk about what didn't happen in there!"

Hermione sighed. "Luna…"

Her blonde friend pouted. "But the Ministry already released the official statement: It was a tragic accident during an experiment. So, logically, that means that the investigation has already been concluded!"

Hermione rubbed her forehead, ignoring her own meal for a moment, glad she habitually cast a privacy spell when eating with Luna. "You know that's not the truth."

"Of course it's not the truth!" Luna exclaimed. "Not even you would be that quick. But it means that officially, the matter has been settled! At least as far as we civilians are concerned. Which means you can talk to me about it! About what hasn't happened, I mean."

Hermione thought Luna sounded a bit off, then closed her eyes when she realised what her friend had to be thinking. She patted the blonde's hand. "It wasn't that kind of accident, Luna. It wasn't spell research."

Luna bit her lower lip while she slowly nodded. "I was just thinking about Mum, you know."

Hermione smiled. "I know. It also wasn't an attack by the half-naga."

"Albino half-naga," Luna corrected her. She sighed. "It's a bit of a relief, you know? To see that even in the Department of Mysteries, accidents do happen. Some people said my mum would still be alive, if she had been working there."

Hermione nodded. The other witch had left unsaid that people also said that her mother would have joined the Unspeakables, if she hadn't wanted to work part-time to take care of Luna. "Accidents happen everywhere." As did attacks and acts of sabotage.

Luna sighed. "The Minister himself told daddy about the accident. She had been working on a new spell for him, and it didn't go well. He later revealed that she had helped him prepare for his confrontation with the Dark Lord. Said Mum was a hero."

Hermione had heard that story often. She now knew that at least part of the story had been a lie; the Dark Lord was still alive. She didn't say so, though. She held Luna's hand instead, and smiled, and listened while her friend told her about her mother.

London, Diagon Alley, September 12th, 1999, 19.34 hours

"I was thinking, with Dean convinced, we could contact Wand-Leader Benjamin and Wand-Commander Sarah. If they believe me, then we could have a shot at turning the entire Corps before Malfoy notices.

"You know we can't really plan anything without Dumbledore," Ron Weasley said to his girlfriend. They had just finished eating in his room.

Hermione froze for a second in the middle of vanishing their take-out boxes, then sighed. "I know. I just… "

"You just hate how your friends believe in Malfoy and fight and bleed for him," Ron finished for her.

She frowned. "Yes. And how we might be forced to fight them."

"I doubt we'll have to do that. Once Malfoy is dead, and the Dark Lord is dead, we'll have enough time to sort things out peacefully. There's no one poised to succeed Malfoy." At least Ron thought that this was Dumbledore's plan.

"Draco and Mrs Malfoy might attempt to take over. They have the best claim."

"Do you think the Wands will follow them?"

Hermione bit her lower lip. "I don't know… Draco is questionable. He hasn't really impressed anyone. At least not in a good way."

Ron frowned. "How so?" According to Luna, the git had been using the Wands as his personal harem.

"We don't really talk about that with the rest of the Corps." Hermione looked down. Ron assumed she meant the group of witches Draco preyed on.

"Ah." He didn't want to press further. He really wanted to kill Draco though. Painfully and slowly.

"And Mrs Malfoy… she isn't really loved. She is always rather aloof, distant." Hermione sat down on the bed. "But they are the son and wife of the Minister. If he dies, many will support them, just because there is no one else."

"Well, looks like they'll have to die as well then," Ron said. With them gone, they could contact the Wands directly.

Hermione hesitated, then nodded. "I guess so. Or they might send Wands to die pointlessly." She sighed. "But if the Minister dies before we expose his lies, then some will keep believing in him. Make him a martyr even."

"Dumbledore might have a plan for that too."

Hermione looked at him. "You put a lot of trust in him."

"Of course. He's the greatest wizard of our time," Ron said.

"That doesn't make him perfect though. He was beaten by Malfoy once already."

Ron's first impulse was to explain that things had changed. That Dumbledore knew what he was doing. "You don't trust him."

"Not that much. I doubt he really cares about the Wands. Not many do. Even those we protect don't like us, so why would someone fighting the Minister really care about us?"

She looked rather lost, so Ron pulled her into his arms. "Trust me, he does care."

He didn't think he would be able to convince her of that though. Hopefully the Professor would be able to.

Beauxbatons, France, September 13th, 1999, 18.07 hours

Albus Dumbledore looked at the letter he had just received. It was just as Severus had told him - a note supposedly from an Unspeakable, warning him of the Dark Lord's Horcruxes. As proof part of the diary Lucius had destroyed had been sent with it. Even forewarned, he had checked the letter for curses, poison and other threats - it wouldn't do to become careless when things were going so well.

Albus briefly wondered if he would have been deceived by the letter, had he received it without knowing what he did. Would he have reacted like Lucius hoped he would, moving against Tom? Probably, he had to admit to himself. Though he also thought he would have acted with careful planning, not the rash action Lucius obviously hoped for.

Although if Lucius expected him to react in a rash manner, then that could be exploited. If the British Ministry thought he was moving against Voldemort, then they might order the Wands not to interfere with certain operations. This could be useful.

He had other issues to ponder though. Like the unfortunate revelation of Wand-Leader Hermione's knowledge about her and the other Wands' past to her coworker. Dean. She had had the presence of mind not to mention Albus's involvement, but her and Ron Weasley's security was now compromised. How could he deal with that best?

Removing Dean's memories was a possibility, but he might have expected that, and taken precautions. Which Legilimency would reveal, unless the young man had been so clever as to have the knowledge that he had taken such precautions obliviated, and had left a letter explaining where he'd find it. He had known agents in the past who had used such measures. But he doubted Dean would think of such a ploy, and he'd need another Wand to obliviate him. Still, memory modification was not perfect. A wizard chosen for the Investigative Branch might discover he had been manipulated over time, if he kept interacting with the subject of the modification - in this case, Hermione.

Albus could have the Wand kidnapped and held until the war was over. A rather drastic solution, but it would remove the danger of Dean's mind getting read. But at the same time, careful planning would be needed, and his apparent disappearance still might throw suspicion on Hermione, leading to an investigation endangering her.

He could remove Lucius, of course. Severus could easily kill him. With the Minister gone, the threat of him reading Dean's thoughts was gone as well. It would also prompt Tom to move against the Ministry, though, which would be in disarray and vulnerable. Albus and his friends might be forced to intervene to prevent the Dark Lord from winning, and they were not yet ready for such an operation.

Which left Albus with waiting, and hoping that Voldemort's Horcruxes were dealt with before Hermione's friend compromised her actions. It wasn't his favourite option, but it was the best he had - or rather, the one with the smallest risk of failure. And not likely to pit the Wand-Leader's love to young Mister Weasley against her loyalty to her friend.

Which was, he knew, a growing problem. Any fool could see that exposing the lies of Lucius to the Wands to turn them against him would not be easy at all. Or rather, nigh-impossible. People seldom wanted to hear disturbing truths, and the Wands had been indoctrinated from birth. Many would dismiss the evidence as faked and Hermione and Dean as having been memory charmed or imperiused.

Albus didn't think that Hermione and Dean would have accepted her findings, had they not been trained as investigators who were used to questioning everything. The rank and file of the Wands? He was certain they were trained not to question orders from the Minister. Some would believe her, of course, but not enough.

No, it was best to kill Lucius before trying to convert the Wands, even though this would make it more difficult to make them see the truth. It would make Lucius a martyr, many would see any revelations as baseless slandering of a dead man. Albus would also have to proceed with a lot of caution, to prevent the Wands from rallying against him, or be rallied by another pureblood trying to follow Lucius's example. The Investigative Branch seemed to be the most promising avenue of attack. If they could interrogate Cornelius and the Obliviators, check themselves for signs of manipulation, they might be convinced of the truth. It shouldn't be too difficult to set them on investigating the Obliviators either, but to do it so they wouldn't expect a setup was trickier.

Overall, the odds of the Wands ending up split, even fighting each other, would still be high, but it was the best he could think of.

The old wizard hoped Hermione would see this as well.

London, Ministry of Magic, September 13th, 1999, 19.12 hours

"Sir? Wand-Leader Jane is here to speak to you."

Lucius Malfoy, Minister for Magic, looked up from his desk at the interruption. His secretary looked slightly nervous. But Wand-Leader Jane was the one leading the security detail for Narcissa this week, and she wouldn't disturb him unless it was important.

"Send her in, please."

The mudblood entered and saluted.

"Good evening, Wand-Leader. What happened?"

"Your wife received a letter from her sister, sir."

His eyes widened just a bit. Had Dumbledore received his fake notice, and was now contacting him through Narcissa's sister? Had his plan worked far better than he had dared to hope? That would be very good news.

"Her sister Bellatrix Lestrange, sir."

"What?" Not Andromeda? Only long habit and experience kept him from showing his surprise more.

"The letter has been thoroughly checked for curses and other threats, and was deemed safe."

They wouldn't divulge the contents unless he asked. He could show his trust in his wife's loyalty. But it would be quite the risk. He nodded. "You have a copy, I assume."

"Yes, sir." Jane handed a letter over. He read it quickly.

Dear Narcissa

By now you are aware that the Dark Lord has returned to us. He is more powerful and mighty than ever! He has conquered death itself! To be in his presence is to bask in his glory!

You should also be aware now that to stand against him is foolish beyond belief. Mudbloods and traitors cannot stand against him. Not even the heart of the Ministry is a safe place. Those who betrayed their lord and master will suffer as they deserve.

But while your husband has doomed himself by his treason, you do not have to share his inevitable fate. You are still my sister, my blood. If you abandon your traitorous spouse, the Dark Lord will show you and your son mercy. You are of noble blood.

I urge you to think about your family, and do the right thing. I would hate to lose the last members of my family because they decided to support a traitor in his suicidal attempt to defy the Dark Lord. Should you continue with this folly, I cannot guarantee your life, much less the life of Draco.

Your loving sister

Bellatrix

"Interesting. Thank you, Wand-Leader. Please forget that this letter was delivered today."

"Yes, sir." They would obliviate themselves of the knowledge, he knew.

He pondered the letter. Bellatrix was lying, obviously. The question was, did Narcissa realise that, or would she be fooled by nostalgia and misplaced love for her sister? Or moved by fear of the Dark Lord?

He believed she'd stay loyal. She knew how unstable her sister was. It was a miracle Bellatrix had managed to resurrect the Dark Lord, in Lucius's opinion, given her lack of patience and self-control. But Lucius couldn't be certain. Narcissa had one weakness, and that was Draco. If she thought it would save her son, she'd do anything, betray anyone. Even Lucius.

He couldn't take the risk. He had to ensure Narcissa's loyalty. And there was one way.

He flicked his wand and hit the enchanted bell on his desk, summoning Daphne.

"You called, sir?"

"Yes. Please send for Draco. I need to talk to him at once."

London, Diagon Alley, September 13th, 1999, 20.30 hours

Lucius Malfoy stepped out of the fireplace in his home's entrance hall, followed by Draco.

"Mother!" his son called out, his excitement obvious. "I've great news!"

"Draco!" Narcissa hugged her son, though her smile vanished when she looked at Lucius over Draco's shoulder, suspicion evident on her face.

"I'm about to lead a special team in the search for the half-naga!" Draco said. "Father said it was time for me to prove myself!"

Narcissa froze for a moment. "That's wonderful, Draco. I'm so proud!" she managed to say with a smile. "You can tell me all about it during dinner; I have to speak to your father for a second about a letter I received today."

Draco nodded, and went to his room. Narcissa's smile vanished as soon as he had turned away, and she glared at Lucius.

He met her eyes unflinchingly and gestured to the study. His wife walked past him as if her upper body had been frozen stiff.

Lucius had barely closed the door, cutting off the sound from the hall, when she rounded on him.

"How could you!" She was trembling with rage.

Lucius raised an eyebrow. "How could I do what? Offer my son the chance to prove that he's my successor? To impress the Ministry, and more importantly, the Wands?"

"How could you send him against the Dark Lord! Draco doesn't even know it's him, returned from the dead!" Narcissa screeched.

And some people thought the Malfoys had Veela ancestry, Lucius thought, before focusing on his wife. "You sound as if you have no faith in the Ministry forces."

Narcissa drew a hissing breath. "You know about the letter I received."

It wasn't a question. He nodded anyway. "Of course." She would have known he would be told.

"So why would you send him out… Merlin! You want him to declare himself the Dark Lord's enemy!" She gaped at him.

"He already is the Dark Lord's enemy. You know how the Dark Lord was, you know how your sister was. They will not spare him, no matter what you do. My blood flows in his veins, he is my heir. If I fall, then he will be next, unless the Dark Lord is killed," Lucius said.

"How can you kill a wizard who has come back from death once already?" She had tears in her eyes. Her trust in him had been waning, he realised. "With Augustus gone, even!"

"Augustus might be gone, but there's another who will be able to destroy the Dark Lord," Lucius said.

"Who? There is no one able to face him, other than…"

He nodded. "Dumbledore now knows about the Dark Lord's way to cheat death. He's an old man, so he will do all he can to destroy the Dark Lord for good, before he succumbs to old age."

"You are planning to beat a troll in your house by luring a manticore inside!" Narcissa accused him.

"Dumbledore is nothing like a mad beast." Unlike the Dark Lord, whose form now betrayed his base nature. "Do you honestly think he will attack us, knowing it would plunge Britain into a war? A war of which the cost would be paid with the blood of mudbloods and blood traitors?"

His wife blinked.

"He will not attack, not as long as attacking us would mean attacking our loyal mudbloods," Lucius said.

"Merlin… they're like hostages." Narcissa said, apparently finally appreciating his reasoning. "But he'll try to turn them against us."

"He can try." Lucius scoffed. "They are not under any spell. They are loyal because they were lovingly raised to be loyal." To him. "Who will they believe, an exiled traitor, or the man who has been like a father to them for decades?"

Narcissa slowly nodded, no doubt now regretting her lapse in faith in him. He had to forgive her - she was simply too emotional, and not rational enough.

"But Draco will still be in danger!"

"He won't be in any greater danger than he already is. He'll be surrounded by Wands ready to lay down their life for him." And most of the planning would be done in the Ministry or other safe places.

"I want the best Wands to protect him. The very best!"

"Of course, dear." Lucius would be a fool to trust the safety of his heir to anyone but his best Wands.

Narcissa nodded. She had already calmed down, and her face didn't betray her earlier outburst anymore. She was a true pureblood witch.

"I want Hermione!" Draco declared at the table.

"What?" Narcissa actually flinched at her son's statement, Lucius noted with well-hidden amusement.

"Hermione. If I'm to hunt this monster, then I need the best Wands at my disposal. And she's the best in the Investigative Branch."

"Ah, of course, Draco." Lucius's wife was smiling again.

"And if she's in my group, I'll be able to seduce her easily!"

Narcissa flinched again.