Author's Notes:
Here's Chapter 131 for you!
So, I quit my job last week. Therefore, I've had plenty of time to write this chapter, although, it took me a while to decide whether or not to write it. The last chapter was a mixed POV and this chapter is mainly a Harry POV, but there is some Hermione and Draco at the end.
Love, DW
PS Enjoy x
Harry stares at himself in the mirror above the fireplace, straightening his necktie beneath his shirt collar. The second of May was a hard day for everyone, and after the previous Ministry War Anniversary dinner, where Hermione had made her controversial speech, he had thought the tradition would be discontinued. Especially with the number of cheers and celebrations afterwards, from people who clearly agreed with Hermione's statement. However, Minister Kingsley Shacklebolt needed to continue the War Anniversary dinners to boost his standing within the Ministry and the wizarding world. As an auror, the 'saviour' of the wizarding world, and as one of the new leaders of the New Order, Harry had to show his face at the dinner to avoid suspicion.
Ginny had agreed to attend with him, but they both agreed that their children shouldn't be forced to go through the dinner, and so Hermione and Draco had agreed to look after them since they had refused to attend. Ginny was at their house now, dropping Teddy and James off for the afternoon.
The fireplace lights up as Ginny returns, "Are you ready?" she asks, placing her hands on his shoulders to smooth out his robes.
"As ready as I'll ever be," he sighs. "Let's get this over with." He takes her hand in his, kissing her knuckles.
The Ministry is eerily quiet when they arrive by floo, despite there being numerous groups of people lingering around on the floo floor and along the corridors leading to the banquet hall. Harry knows that people mourn their loved ones differently, and thinks that very few would find this form of public mourning to be appropriate. For Harry, he prefers to mourn his fallen friends and family in private, with the ones who also knew and loved them. They can share stories and laugh and cry as they remember them for who they were. Hermione was right, they shouldn't be remembering the fallen for their sacrifice, but for the life they led when they were alive.
"Mr Potter, you and your wife are seated at the Minister's table," a Ministry Official informs him as they enter the banquet hall.
"Great, thanks," Harry mutters.
Ginny's hand grips his tighter, assuring him that she is there with him, every step of the way, and it certainly helps. He squeezes her hand back in thanks as they follow the Ministry Official to their table, where the Minister is already sat, laughing with Elias Woodward, the Head of the Department for Education.
"Ah, Harry Potter, it's great to see the Saviour finally here. You're cutting it a little short, aren't you?" Elias Woodward asks, standing to shake his hand.
"Yes, quite right, Elias. The dinner begins in ten minutes." The Minister agrees, also standing to shake Harry's hand.
Harry smiles, shaking the Minister's hand. "We had to drop the children off beforehand," he states, pulling the chair out for his wife to sit.
"You didn't bring them, they should be proud of what their father has accomplished," Elias Woodward continues, shaking Ginny's hand as well.
"I think they're a little too young to understand completely what this dinner represents. I'd prefer to wait until they're older." Harry answers, sitting beside his wife.
"I was disappointed to hear that Hermione wouldn't be attending this year," Elias grins at Harry, obviously having fun winding the Minister of Magic up. "Although, maybe that's for the best, after her little speech last year." He adds.
"An invitation was sent to Ms Granger and Mr Malfoy as a courtesy," Minister Shacklebolt states, his jaw tight. "But they declined to attend."
"I find it all rather disrespectful to those who lost their lives during the war. How would they feel, looking down to see that one of the Golden Trio can't even be bothered to show up to their memorial dinner?" Elias comments and the Minister nods in agreement.
Harry bites his tongue hard, tasting blood in his mouth. He wishes he could snap back at Elias and the Minister. He wishes he could leap across the table and punch Elias in his stupidly handsome face, but that would arouse suspicion on his part, something he could not afford right now.
"I do believe Hermione and Draco have chosen to mourn their fallen friends in private," Ginny says, her voice trying to remain indifferent, but the tension is audibly there.
Harry is pleasantly surprised by his wife. He had expected her to find it harder than him not to lash out against the Minister and Elias, but she's managed to somehow keep her cool.
Thankfully a Ministry Official arrives and whispers something to Minister Shacklebolt, who excuses himself and follows the Ministry Official to behind the stage.
Elias Woodward raises his hand and a waiter arrives with a shot of firewhiskey, "It's all rather exhausting, isn't it?" Elias mutters, downing the shot, and slamming the empty glass on the table.
"I'm sorry, what is?" Harry frowns, confused by the man's change in demeanour.
"Stroking the Minister's massive ego." He admits. "I was honestly relieved when your father told me something was finally going to be done about him, even if it is going to take a while." He nods at Ginny.
"Arthur spoke to you?"
"About this 'New Order'? Yes, he did and asked if I wanted to join. Of course, I couldn't turn him down, not when Arthur had helped me get my position as Head for Education." Elias explains.
"How did my dad manage that?" Ginny asks, knowing her father didn't have much respect within the Ministry, due to his chosen career path and interests.
"Before the Minister went power crazy, Arthur convinced him that promoting me, the son of two muggleborns, to a high position would be a great move away from the purist government that had been in power before him," Elias explains.
"Well, I'm glad you're on our side, Elias," Harry smiles.
"Hey, how come you didn't know I was a part of the New Order?" Elias leans across the table to whisper.
"I'm not sure how much you know, but there's the main group of seven, and each person has a group of agents beneath them, you're one of Arthur's agents, but the main seven haven't met up to disclose their agents," Harry explains.
Elia shrugs, "Makes sense, I won't take offence." He smirks until his face becomes sombre. "I apologise for bad-mouthing you and your friends there. I've been told I can get a little carried away with the dramatics." He chuckles. "To be honest, I would rather be at home, mourning with my mum than here." He admits. "Her husband was killed in the war."
"Oh, I'm sorry about your dad," Ginny tells him.
"Oh, no, he was my step-dad, my dad was killed in the first war," Elias explains. "I'm the only family she has left."
"That's so awful for your mum." Ginny tears up. "Sorry, I'm really hormonal right now." She dabs at her eyes with a tissue from her handbag.
Elias smiles uncomfortably, "It's fine. Congratulations, it's great that you're both bringing some happiness into the world. Babies are great." He adds, sounding unconvinced.
The booming laugh of William Haynes, the Head of the Department for Health, makes those that are nearby jump. William pats Elias hard on the back, "I know you're not talking about babies, Eli," William shakes his head. "This one is such a ladies' man, but you'll never catch him settling down and having kids."
Elias frowns, shoving Williams hand off his shoulder, "Just because you find satisfaction from your many sexual conquests, doesn't mean that every else does."
William pats Elias on the back once more, before he is called away by someone from the next table.
"He's such a bastard," Elias frowns, then shakes his head. "Hopefully this dinner won't take too long. It's due to start any minute."
The lights around the hall dim, signifying that everyone should make their way to their seats. Once everyone is sat down, a spotlight falls on the stage where Minister Kingsley Shacklebolt is stood behind the podium.
"Ladies and Gentlemen," he begins, and the hall full of people quietens. "Welcome to the Ministry of Magic for our third war anniversary dinner." The Minister pauses, but the room remains solemnly silent. "We are gathered here today to celebrate the end of the war, and to celebrate and mourn the lives that were lost during Lord Voldemort's reign of terror."
Ginny's hand reaches across Harry's lap, finding his hand and giving him a small squeeze. Harry smiles softly, patting his wife's hand in appreciation.
"This time of the year is difficult for the whole of Britain, as we remember where we were three years ago. However, this year, I want us to take a moment to think about how far we've come in the past three years." Kingsley Shacklebolt pauses for a few breaths to allow the hall to think. "We all came together to rebuild Hogwarts, so our children can return and continue their education, we have worked tirelessly to arrest and charge as many Death Eaters as we could, and sent them to Azkaban, and we passed the largely successful Marriage Decree, which has not only increased our population but also provided some of our more 'at-risk' members of society with a positive role model spouse, who has turned them into upstanding members of society."
"Did he really just admit to manipulating his citizens through the Marriage Decree?" Ginny whispers to her husband and Harry nods in disbelief.
A quiet murmur spreads through the banquet hall, as the majority of the crowd come to the same realisation. Unfortunately for the Minister for Magic, the majority of the crowd are also those who were forced into marriage from the Marriage Decree, and a glance around the hall shows that most people are furious with the Minister's admission.
"Now, as the Minister of Magic, I have an announcement to make," he pauses once again. "This year, in memory of all those who lost their lives at the hand of Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters, I am unveiling a new memorial."
The heavy, red velvet curtains behind the Minister slowly open to reveal a tall, mirrored, metallic obelisk. Since Harry is sat at one of the closest tables to the stage, he can see that on the four sides are lines upon lines of engravings, from the tip of the tapered, pyramid top to where the obelisk meets the marble base.
"For those of you who can't see, upon the metallic surface of this obelisk are the names of every person who lost their life during Lord Voldemort's reign, from 1942 to present day." The Minister of Magic makes eye contact with a couple sat at a table next to Harry's. "The last name on our memorial obelisk is Tabitha Penn. Whilst Lord Voldemort's death brought an end to the war, his Death Eaters remain loyal to him and his cause, which unfortunately led to the death of Miss Penn. I sincerely hope that Tabitha Penn's name will forever be the last name on this obelisk, which we have decided to place permanently in Diagon Alley, at the point where Knockturn Alley breaks off, which is where Miss Penn met her untimely death."
Harry realises that the couple the Minister had made eye contact with during his speech are the parents of Tabitha Penn, who were both crying as they nodded to the Minister. At least they seemed to appreciate the thought behind the memorial obelisk.
Suddenly, the spotlight flickers off, sending the banquet hall into darkness. The sound of chairs scraping against the wooden floors and concerned mutters echo around the hall. Harry instinctively reaches for his wand, brandishing it in front of him and casting 'lumos'. Many other attendees had instinctively done the same, habit left over from the war no doubt, to grab their wand at the slightest hint of danger.
As dozens of wands brighten the banquet hall, multiple screams and gasps spread around the hall as numerous floating figures are illuminated. Harry's eyes flicker across all the cloaked figures above them, counting nine altogether.
"QUIET!" A raspy voice magically booms around the hall, which instantly falls silent. "Your Minister lies to your face. He claims to know the motives behind the Death Eater Movement, but we have evolved. We no longer follow the path laid out by the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord failed us. The Dark Lord promised to lead us to greatness. The Dark Lord promised to never leave us. The Dark Lord promised immortality and yet he was slain by your saviour, Mr Harry Potter." The raspy voice continues as the spotlight returns, this time aimed directly at Harry.
"We have a New Lord. Our Heres has a new path laid out for us. Heres promises us only one objective, to defeat the Minister of Magic. Our numbers are many. Our numbers come from all walks of life. Our loyalty lies with Heres and Heres only. We hide in plain sight. We could be your colleague, your friends, even your family, and you would never know. We have evolved to be better than we ever were under the Dark Lord." The raspy voice finishes.
"LONG LIVE HERES! LONG LIVE HERES!" The nine Death Eaters in the air chant before the spotlight once again turns off.
The only light sources in the banquet halls are from the wands of the few who had lit them up. However, a blanket of darkness has fallen across the ceiling, hiding the Death Eaters from view. The hall remains quiet and waiting. Harry's free hand grabs Ginny's. He doesn't know what is coming next. Are they waiting to attack? Or are they using the blanket of darkness to escape from the hall?
Harry's questions are answered when a flash of green lights up the room. Time seems to slow down as Harry jumps to his feet, eyes scanning the table on the other side of the hall where the green light had hit. He sees a man, leaning over the table, the woman beside him staring, mouth agape, as a silent scream escapes. Then all of a sudden, time catches up as the hall erupts with the sounds of screams, chairs scraping against the floor and people running towards the two side exits to the banquet hall. A loud cackle echoes around the hall as more flashes of green light up the otherwise darkened room.
"Gin, under the table, now!" Harry pulls the long tablecloth up, ushering his pregnant wife underneath. His top priority is to protect his wife and unborn child.
Once he's satisfied that they'll be safe for the time being, Harry jumps onto the table, sending 'stupefy' spells to any floating cloaked figure that catches his eye. He hits one, who falls from the air, landing atop a table. Their hood falls back to reveal a masked face. Harry's attention doesn't linger, as he sends another 'stupefy' at another Death Eater, but he misses. Thankfully, that Death Eater is hit by another spell. Harry glances across to find his colleague, Auror Blackwood, racing to tie up the fallen Death Eater.
Harry realises that the hall is just as crowded as it was a minute ago, and with a cold chill running down his spine, he realises that the Death Eaters had locked the only exits from the banquet hall. He's frozen as he watches the attendees running towards the locked doors as the Death Eaters pick them off one by one, firing 'Avada kedava' into the crowd. Bodies fall to the ground, tripping other attendees up as they scramble towards the doors. As the crowd gathers at the door, pounding their fists in an attempt to gain attention from Ministry Official on the other side of the door, a few take their wands out but there's no safe way to break the door down without injuring more people.
Noticing that all the Aurors in attendance at the War Anniversary dinner are working on taking all the Death Eaters down, and a few Aurors were already at the doors, trying to unlock them, Harry turns to the stage, hoping to find the Minister of Magic helping. Instead, the stage is empty. Harry climbs down from the table, running up the stage steps to behind the curtain, where the stage door is wide open and Kingsley Shacklebolt is racing down the corridor.
Harry's anger gets the better of him and he whips his wand out, casting a spell to knock the Minister of Magic off his feet, sending him sliding down the corridor on his front. Harry runs towards the Minister as the man turns over, fear in his eyes until he sees Harry.
"Coward!" Harry spits, jabbing his wand towards the Minister. "The Kingsley I voted into power would never have run from Death Eaters; he would have stood his ground and taken them down one by one until either he or they were brought down," Harry yells at him.
"I'm the Minister of Magic," Kingsley reminds him.
"You're the Minister of Magic, you're supposed to protect your citizens, and yet you've left them in a locked hall where they are dying."
Kingsley's eyes widen, "They locked the doors?"
"Yes, your citizens are being killed off, one by one, while you turn your back on them and run away scared." Harry lowers his wand. "So, go, run away, save yourself. I'll make sure the press know how much you helped since that's what you really care about."
Harry turns, running back down the corridor, but taking a right before he reaches the stage door. After a few more turns, he finds himself outside the locked door to the banquet hall. He takes a step back and casts 'bombarda maxima' at the door, which instantly shatters into splinters of wood.
Harry has to quickly take a step against the wall to avoid being trampled by the stampeding crowd of people screaming and crying as they run from the hall. There's a short gap as the people who had been gathered near the door exit the hall, and the people who had been gathered at the door on the opposite side run across the hall, risking their lives, to escape. Harry takes the gap to enter the hall.
There's a young woman lying on the floor, probably knocked unconscious from the shoving and pushing of the crowd attempting to escape. Harry pulls her aside, away from the crowd of people running across the hall. He checks for a pulse but is unable to find one. He points his wand at her, casting 'enervate' hoping to restore her to consciousness, but the woman remains still, dead.
Harry stands up, scanning the hall to find numerous other bodies lying across tables, the floor, and across other bodies. The only word that comes to Harry's mind is 'massacre'. The Death Eater's had been right about one thing, they had evolved past the path laid out by Voldemort. Lord Voldemort would never have risked spilling pureblood like this, but this New Lord, whom the Death Eaters called 'Heres', killed indiscriminately.
The last few attendees leave the hall as the Aurors tie up the last of the stunned Death Eaters. Harry runs over to his table, lifting the table cloth up to find his wife, kneeling with her wand pointed at the ready.
"Gin," he breaths in relief, offering his hand to help her out.
"What happened? What the fuck happened, Harry?" Ginny asks, visibly shaking.
She whips around the room, taking in the carnage. "Oh Merlin, look at all those bodies. How many?" She asks as Harry guides her out of the hall.
"I don't know, but there's a lot, and Kingsley ran. He left us all for dead." He angrily tells her taking her to the floo floor. "Go to Hermione, tell them what happened, and wait for me there. I'll come as soon as I'm done here."
Ginny nods, pulling her husband in for a quick 'thank-goodness-we're-alive' kiss, before flooing to Hermione and Draco's house.
Harry sighs in relief, knowing his wife and children are safe, then turns to run back to the banquet hall. The first Auror he meets is Peters.
"What's going on?" He asks.
"Vale has ordered us to take them all down to holding," Peter's explains.
"Did we get them all?" Harry asks hopefully.
Peters shakes his head, "I hit the main one, who did the talking. I swear I hit them, but it bounced right off. They must have had some protective cloak on, because they escaped as soon through that side exit before they locked the doors. Then there was one more that escaped as soon as you exploded that door."
"Damn," Harry curses.
"I know, I better get this one down to holding. There's a few more that need grabbing if you want." Peters' gestures back to the pile of unconscious Death Eaters. "Vale wants them to remain masked, in case there are any civilians in the corridor." He adds.
Harry nods, "Makes sense."
Harry walks over to the unconscious pile, where Vale is stood logging various Death Eater wands into evidence. "Help yourself," Vale mutters, nodding at the pile.
Harry levitates one of the unconscious bodies, then starts the walk down to the holding cells. The holding cells are next to the Wizengamot Courtrooms, down a flight of stairs. Harry locks his Death Eater inside the cell along with the rest that had already been taken.
Blackwood is stood glaring at the five unconscious bodies, shaking his head. "I'm torn," he admits. "I'm feeling an overwhelming amount of excitement at having arrested all these pieces of scum, but an overwhelming amount of terror at the cost this came at. No matter how long you're an Auror for, you never get used to seeing dead bodies littered around like they're nothing." He sighs, "I'm going to write up my report." He leaves Harry alone.
Quickly, Harry removes his invisibility cloak from his extended cloak pocket, throwing it over his shoulders and the hood over his head. Hiding in the corner of the room, Harry waits. It takes nearly two hours for his theory to be proven.
Head Auror, Alphard Vale, enters the holding cells, locking the doors behind him with a simple locking charm. In the two hours Harry had been waiting, the majority of the unconscious Death Eaters had awoken but were keeping to themselves. It was strange, Harry assumed they would be talking about the events of the afternoon or their Heres.
One of the Death Eaters, that had been walking back and forth since he had woken up, walks to the cell doors to meet Alphard Vale. He doesn't wait for the Head Auror to speak, and spits in his face, baring his rotten, yellowing teeth in a grin.
"Have some dignity, Ferio. This is not the first time I've had to save your skin," Alphard Vale snaps at the masked Death Eater.
Harry's eyes widen in fear; he has to cover his mouth with his hand to stop himself from making any noise in horror.
"You're one of us?" Ferio asks, an amused smile spreading across his lips.
"Adruo," Vale places his arm between the bars of the holding cell, and Ferio grasps his forearm, shaking once in an introduction.
"Adruo, our Ministry cover-up man is the Head fucking Auror," Ferio grins excitedly.
"We don't have much time." Vale removes a flask from his cloak. "Take this, it's polyjuice potion. You'll look like me. Then you use my wand to stupefy me and unlock the doors, leave my wand with my body, then just leave and hide." Vale orders.
"What about the rest of us?" Another Death Eater that has awoken asks.
"Who are you?" Vale asks as Ferio takes the polyjuice potion.
"Caedo," he introduces himself.
"You can do whatever you want, as soon as I'm unconscious. Heres asked me to release Ferio, again. You must be important," he glances back at Ferio to find himself looking back, Ferio having removed his mask.
Vale nods, handing over his wand reluctantly to the Death Eater, who doesn't even pause a second before casting 'Stupefy' on the Head Auror. As his body falls to the ground, Ferio lets out a laugh.
"I've always wanted to do that to the bastard. I never would have thought he was one of us." Ferio mutters. "Right, you coming?" He asks, pointing the wand at the cell door and casting 'bombarda'.
"Obviously," Caedo covers his face with his cloak hood and removes his mask, hiding it beneath this cloak. "See you tonight," he mutters as he quickly exits the holding cell and slips up the staircase.
Ferio's eyes scan the holding cell, three of the Death Eaters are still unconscious, "We can't bring them with us. Pavor, Initio, are you coming?" He asks.
"Already gone," a woman's voice states as she rushes out of the cell, removing her mask before she reaches the top of the staircase.
"Initio's a frightful being," Ferio admits.
Pavor scoffs, trying to remove his mask and remain hidden beneath his hood.
Harry wonders if it's a new rule their Heres put into place, that the Death Eaters not be allowed to know who else is a Death Eater. It would mean they wouldn't be able to turn on each other if they were arrested. That's something that ran rampant under Voldemort.
"Adrian?" Ferio quickly speaks. Harry watches as Ferio pulls Pavor's hood around his face, protecting him from any of the other Death Eaters that may awake and see his face.
"Shit," Pavor panics, hiding his face.
"Don't worry, Adrian." Ferio softly says. "We had each other's back in the days of old. I was wondering if you had joined the new guard." Ferio smiles, with Vale's face.
Pavor's face softens as he comes to a realisation, "Thorfinn?"
"Shh," Ferio winks. "Let's go!"
The two Death Eaters race up the stairs, leaving Harry alone with an unconscious Head Auror Vale, and three unconscious Death Eaters. Whipping his invisibility cloak off, Harry rushes to lock the holding cell doors before either of three Death Eaters can awake and escape too.
Using the toe of his dress shoes, he nudges the side of Vale's face. The Head Auror is still unconscious, thankfully. Harry throws his invisibility cloak over his boss, casting 'mobilicorpus' to levitate his invisible body. Carefully, Harry moves Vale's body up the staircase from the holding cells and towards the lifts down the hall from the courtrooms.
With every step of the way down the corridor, Harry feels the anger building up until he's absolutely fuming as he presses the button for the lift. Alphard Vale has been his mentor throughout his training and his first year as an Auror. Harry had looked up to him until their investigation in Beddgelert. Now, to discover his suspicion on Alphard Vale was correct, that his boss was a Death Eater left Harry feeling disgusted and some part at fault for not realising sooner.
The lift arrives with two people muttering back and forth between each other, however that stops when they glance up to find Harry Potter glaring at them.
"Out!" Harry snaps.
"Excuse me?"
"GET OUT!" Harry shouts, and the two people scramble out of the lift.
Harry levitates the invisible Vale into the lift, and presses the button for Minister Shacklebolt's office, on the top floor. When they reach his floor, Harry rushes down the corridor, walking straight past the Minister's receptionist and barging through the office door.
Minister Shacklebolt is sat at his desk, deep in conversation with Poppy Montgomery, the Head of Media, Oscar Crawford, the Head of Defense, and Gideon Johnson, the Head of Foreign Policy.
"Mr Potter?" The Minister stands. "As you may assume, we are busy attempt to rectify this afternoon's events."
"Rectify?" Harry laughs in loathing. "Kingsley, people died today, you can't fix that." He shakes his head. "I need a private word." He adds.
"We're busy," Kingsley reiterates, angry that Harry has embarrassed him in front of his Head staff.
"This is important," Harry states.
The two men lock eyes in a glaring stare off, neither breaking eye contact until Gideon Johnson slaps his knees and stands up.
"I think we should take a break, lets grab a coffee from the cafeteria," Gideon ushers Oscar Crawford and Poppy Montgomery out of the Minister's office, closing the door behind them.
As soon as the door closes, Kingsley opens his mouth the shout and curse Harry out, but Harry whips the invisibility cloak off of the unconscious Alphard Vale and completely shocks the Minister for Magic.
"What have you done?" Kingsley asks.
Harry roughly places Vale's body atop the Minister's desk. "There is your Ministry Mole. I caught him giving one of the Death Eaters captured today polyjuice potion and allowing him, along with three others to escape. I've been building a case against him since December, and I've finally had my suspicions confirmed."
"How sure are you?" Kingsley asks, staring down at his Head Auror.
"How sure am I? I just told you what I witnessed." Harry digs around in his cloak pocket, removing a large case file. "Here's the evidence I've collected. Read it for yourself and you'll see. I watched him recognise a Death Eater by his mask alone, and call him by his nickname. Vale introduced himself to the Death Eater as Adruo. What more evidence do you need?" Harry angrily tells the Minister.
Kingsley Shacklebolt calls his receptionist into his office. "Call Aurors Peters and Blackwood up to my office at once."
The two Auror arrive, looking confused when they find Harry stood in a staring match with the Minister for Magic.
"What is going on?" Peters ask, upon spotting their boss lying unconscious on the Minister's desk.
"Vale is a Death Eater," Harry announces before the Minister can deny the fact, or skirt around the issue. "I caught him releasing a prisoner."
"Are you for real, Potter?" Peters' eyes widen. "Shit, what's going to happen to him?
"Obviously he's going to be arrested and sentenced to the highest extent of the law, to make an example out of him. He had made a mockery out of you and your government, Kingsley." Harry states, not feeling the least bit guilty at manipulating the Minister so openly. "He's a Death Eater, and the other one called him the Ministry Cover-up Man. He's obviously the mole you've been so paranoid about."
"Take him down the private holding cells," Kingsley orders, gesturing at the Head Auror.
Once the two Aurors have taken their boss away, Kingsley sits back down in his chair, sighing deeply, "How could we have not noticed a Death Eater right under our noses?"
"Full offence, sir, but I did notice, and I've been investigating him for five months. This one is on you." Harry turns and leaves, done with the day and ready to go home and just be surrounded by his family.
As he walks across the floo floor, Harry feels himself being watched, but the floor is empty. The Ministry had been evacuated of all civilians after the events of the Anniversary Dinner, so the only people who should be around are employees, who have no reason to be lurking in the shadows and spying on him.
Harry takes his wand out, turning on the spot to scan the environment, "Reveal yourself!"
"Harry, it's me," Dennis Creevy steps out from behind a floo fireplace, his hands raised in defence and looking overwhelmingly anxious.
"Dennis, are you okay?" Harry asks, lowering his wand.
"Can we go for a walk, somewhere private?" He asks, eyes shifting around the empty floor.
"Sure, outside?" Harry asks, and Dennis nods.
Neither of them speaks as they make their way up to the foyer and out of the muggle entrance to the Ministry of Magic. Harry keeps his eye on Dennis as they walk. His friend is hunched over, chewing nervously on his lips and picking at the skin on the side of his thumb. Dennis has obviously got something on his mind that he needs to get off his chest.
As soon as they've walked around the corner, Dennis leans his head back against the side of the Ministry building. "I've messed up, Harry. I've proper messed up and I don't know what to do."
Harry places a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Whatever it is you've done, I can help you. You're not alone in any of this."
Dennis steps out of Harry's reach, pulling his hands through his hair, "I'm Picus."
"You're who?" Harry asks, scanning his memories for the name 'Picus', and then it suddenly hits him like a ton of bricks. "No, Dennis! What have you done?"
"I know, I'm sorry. I happened up a group of them in the outskirts of Hogsmeade during my last year at Hogwarts." Dennis quickly tries to explain himself. "That raspy one started talking about Colin, and I wasn't going to take any shit from them, so I stood my ground. Turns out the raspy one is Heres, the New Lord."
"The raspy one from today?" Harry asks.
"Yeah," Dennis confirms.
"Does he have protective cloaks? Our stunning spells were just bouncing off him." Harry questions.
Dennis nods, "Look, Harry, I was promised the name of the Death Eater who killed Colin. Heres promised me he was still free, and a member of the New Death Eater Movement. Here said that once the Movement is done, I can have him. I'm going to kill him, Harry." He says, surer of himself now than he was minutes ago.
"Merlin's sake, Dennis. One thing at a time, please." Harry sighs. "Right, why did they want you? What do you have to offer the Death Eaters?" He asks.
"Heres said I would be useful for gathering information from the other side," Dennis admits.
"The other side?" Harry urges him to tell more.
"The Ministry. It's hard not to agree with them when their enemy is the Ministry. It's gone to shit under Kingsley Shacklebolt. Heres thinks he's going to announce a second Marriage Decree soon, for the graduates of this year and the ones who graduated since your Marriage Decree. Ron spoke to me about joining the New Order, and I agreed. I haven't told Heres, but we're working towards the same aim, right. The removal of Kingsley Shacklebolt." Dennis explains.
"Oh Dennis," Harry sighs, removing his glasses to rub his eyes. "Can't you hear yourself? You're all 'Heres this' and 'Heres that', you've obviously being manipulated by whoever Heres is and the Death Eaters."
Dennis shakes his head, "No, I know what I'm doing, the only reason I'm doing this is to avenge Colin. I haven't killed anyone, the most I've done is set a tree on fire."
Harry pushes Dennis up against the building, "Dennis, the Death Eaters cause terror just by showing up in their cloaks and masks. Just because you haven't killed anyone, doesn't mean you haven't hurt people." Harry growls at him, pushing him away. "Why did you tell me this? What do you need me to do? You obviously don't want my help getting out of this?" He finally asks, trying to keep his anger down.
"I want to offer you my help," Dennis admits. "Obviously the New Order's aim is focused on the Minister right now, but I can help you take the Death Eater's down afterwards. I know nicknames, and I know where they derive from, which can help you figure out real names." He explains.
"I can't condone your actions, Dennis," Harry shakes his head. "We've just taken down Adruo."
Dennis nods, "The Ministry Cover-Up Man."
"If you chose to be a double-agent for the New Order, that's up to you, Dennis. We will obviously take any information you offer, but if I find out you are passing any of our information over to Heres, I will bring you into Minister Shacklebolt myself, do you understand?" Harry threatens.
"Yes, I understand," Dennis agrees. "Name a time and a place, I'll be there and I'll tell you everything I know." He says, voice clear and serious.
Harry sighs deeply and nods once, "I'll let you know," he mutters before disapparating away.
"It's been nearly three hours, where is he?" Ginny asks, pacing back and forth across Hermione's living room rug, leaving a flattened pile trail behind her.
"Ginny, Harry was fine when you left him on the floo floor and you said all the Death Eaters were unconscious when you left the banquet hall. He's fine. He's probably just doing paperwork or something." Hermione tries to comfort her friend.
"I never thought I would have to see that many dead bodies again," Ginny sighs, lowering herself down beside Hermione on the couch.
Hermione pulls her friend into a hug, "I'm sorry you had to experience that, and on the anniversary too." She smooths Ginny's hair back. "Just think though, Ginny. Your children are safe, you are safe, and Harry is safe. He's at the Ministry, working hard to take down the Death Eaters that caused those deaths." She reminds her friend. "You and the kids are going to spend the night here, okay?" Hermione tells her.
"Thank you, Hermione, but I'm sure Harry will be here soon." Ginny sighs, feeling calmer now she's sat down.
"Then he will spend the night too." She smiles. "Come on, Mitty made some cake this morning, we're going to have a slice with a cup of tea while Draco keeps our kids busy in the garden."
Hermione pops the kettle on, collecting two cups while Ginny stands at the kitchen window, watching Draco push Scorpius on the baby swing while Teddy is pushing James.
"He's such a good big brother," Hermione comments, watching Teddy stand in front of the swing, pushing James backwards then running away just before he can kick him. It sends both of them into a fit of giggles while Draco watches on in confused amusement.
"That's what Harry does with them when we take them to the park." Ginny smiles softly. "How did we get so lucky, hmm? I can't believe I'm saying this, but we've got loving, attentive husbands and some bloody amazing children." She admits.
"Why can't you believe that?"
"Because, I mean, it's Draco Malfoy, complimenting him doesn't come naturally." She jokes.
"Oh," Hermione laughs, making their cups of teas. "Do you remember during our last few weeks at Hogwarts, when I asked you if you were leaving me apples?"
"Yeah," Ginny remembers, sitting down at the kitchen couch with their slice of cake and cup of tea.
"I'm pretty sure that was Draco, he was the only person around on numerous occasions, so the process of elimination tells me it was him. Is that the Draco Malfoy you remember from before the war? You said that the Minister's speech mentioned pairing 'at-risk' people with positive role models; well, I don't take any responsibility for the way Draco has turned out since being paired with me, he was beginning to change on his own." Hermione tells Ginny.
"You're too modest, Hermione. You should definitely take some credit for who Draco is now." Ginny smiles. "I mean, I've left my children in the care of Draco Malfoy, and I trust him to keep them safe." Her face contorts at the uncomfortable realisation.
"I can see that you are finding it difficult to process that thought," Hermione nudges her elbow playfully.
"GINNY!" Harry's voice calls from the front door.
Hermione takes Ginny's cup before she can drop it, as she runs to meet her husband. Harry rushes into the kitchen, pulling his wife into his arms for a much-needed embrace.
"Get Draco in here," Harry says, making eye contact with Hermione over his wife's shoulder.
She nods once, rushing to the kitchen door and shouting across the garden for her husband to bring the children back into the house.
The adults gather around the dining table while Mitty keeps the children occupied in the living room. Nobody speaks, waiting for Harry to inform them of whatever has occurred after Ginny had left.
"Today has been a nightmare," Harry sighs, his head falling into his hands.
"Take your time," Ginny says, caressing his thigh in an attempt to comfort him.
"There were nine Death Eaters involved in the massacre this afternoon, we arrested seven of them," Harry begins. "I took one of them down to the holding cells and I waited beneath my invisibility cloak, and guess who turned up, Alphard bloody Vale." He shakes his head, still angry.
Hermione's mouth falls agape, "What did he do?"
"He knew one of their nicknames and introduced himself as Adruo. He confirmed our suspicions," Harry laughs. "He gave one of them polyjuice potion to look like him, and then his wand to stupefy him. I had to silently stand in the corner and let four of them escape, but I got Vale. I took him up to Kingsley and gave the Minister the case file I have been putting together for the past five months."
"I know it's hard for you to understand right now, but you did the right thing, Harry. It's much better for you to take down Alphard Vale, the Head Auror, than for him to continue to abuse his power. Vale is a much bigger fish than those Death Eaters." Hermione tries to comfort him.
"I'm not so sure about that," Harry sighs, looking across at Draco. "I'm sorry, but Rowle and Avery were two of the four that escaped."
Draco's jaw tightens. Rowle had become the bane of his existence after the last time he escaped from holding and threatened Draco. The Death Eater had been on the run ever since. Draco sometimes got updates from the Auror on his case, but the updates had gotten far and few between.
"It's fine, Vale needed to be taken down. As long as the Minister ensures he's sentenced to Azkaban for as long as possible." Draco states, taking a deep breath.
Harry smirks, "Oh, I made sure of that; I convinced Kingsley that Vale was the Ministry mole, that he had 'made a mockery of him and his government' or something like that." He laughs. "And I made sure to say it in front of other Aurors, so he can't back down and send Vale away quietly."
"Good," Draco nods once.
"Then as I was leaving, Dennis Creevey stops me," Harry begins. "He is Picus."
Hermione eyes narrow, "Why would Dennis be a Death Eater?" She questions.
"Heres promised him the name of the Death Eater who killed Colin. He promised me he hasn't killed anyone, and he's offered us his intel. He knows all the nicknames of the Death Eaters, and where the names derive from, which can help us uncover their hidden identities." Harry explains.
Hermione slams her fist down on their dining table, "What is he thinking? How did he even get involved in them? And after everything, the Death Eaters did to him and Colin." She shakes his head.
"I promised to meet him soon to share information," Harry adds. "I told him that I don't agree with his actions, and if he passes on any of our Order information to the Death Eaters, I threatened to take him to Kingsley myself."
"From what I've heard, about this afternoon, this new Death Eater movement is trying to move away from the Dark Lord. I no longer have confidence in my knowledge of their workings. Previously, I would have said that there is no way this new Lord would let Dennis leave the movement alive, but we don't know who this 'Heres' is and what their motivation is beyond removing the Minister from power." Draco says.
"We'll find out more from Dennis at your meeting with him," Ginny assures them all.
"Our first Order meeting is Saturday," Hermione reminds them. "I've received confirmation from all the Professors who agreed to help, they easily figured out the crossword clues." She smiles in amusement. "You should try to meet with Dennis tomorrow so you can feedback to us on Saturday."
Harry agrees, promising to send an owl to Dennis in the morning. "I need to stop thinking about this now, I'm getting a headache." He complains.
"Here's our plan, we order food in, put the kids to bed and just sit around talking about nothing for a few hours. Tomorrow is a new day." Ginny suggests.
"A perfect plan," Harry smiles, kissing her cheek.
"I'll order a pizza in from the local restaurant," Draco stands, his mobile phone already in his hands. "They deliver too." He adds, leaving the room.
The four friends put their children to bed together in one of the spare double beds. Teddy lies in the middle, his arms are thrown out and mouth wide open, snoring softly. James is curled up in a ball against Teddy's side, while Scorpius takes up half the bed by himself, starfishing sideways with his legs in Teddy's ribs.
Then they gather in the living room with their takeaway pizza and glasses of wine, or juice for the pregnant Ginny, and laugh the night away as they remember the best of those they lost during the war. They eventually make it to their respective bedrooms just after midnight, falling fast asleep despite the horror of that afternoon.
Fair warning that from this chapter onwards, there is a slight shift in the theme of the story. This is similar to the summer between Harry's fourth and fifth year where the story gets more serious and mature. Of course, there will still be cute, family moments, but there may be more scenes with swearing and fighting as the story gets more intense.
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