I do not own Harry Potter, only any OC that may or may not appear in my stories.
Hello guys, Badger here. I hope you are all doing well today. I know I am. As mentioned in a previous story, things at University are very mellow at the moment, allowing me to write and update my stories, more often.
Before we move onto this new chapter, however, I would like to say something. I'm not going to name any names, but some people have been sending PM's demanding to know when the next chapters will be written and posted. I would just like to say, I have a life. A very busy and personal life. I only write fanfiction, as a hobby and when I have time to do so. However, when people constantly message me, demanding when the next chapter releases, it feels less like a hobby and more like a job, with someone beating me over the head with deadlines. Because of this, it makes me want to write even less, so all I ask, is that people are patient, my stories will be updated. Just be patient.
Anyway, sorry for the rant, I'll let you read the new chapter and I'll see you at the end.
….
Chapter 10
Failure Is Not An Option, I'm Afraid
Dumbledore was alone in his office, after Severus left, having ended their conversation. The Potion Professors words were still echoing in his ears. He had rather hoped that, by now, Harry would've forgiven his parents for their mistakes. Or, at the very least, understood why they gave him up all those years ago. However, it was clear to Dumbledore that the boy needed to learn forgiveness. Once James and Lily returned from the gig tonight, he was going to have a talk with the two, so he could help them find a way to get Harry to forgive them and start making amends. Even Aiden has now turned against his parents.
Dumbledore had his work cut out for him. First, he had to get Harry and Aiden to forgive their parents, get Harry to make amends with James and Lily, convince Harry to go to Hogwarts and convince Aiden to return to Hogwarts and, somehow, convince Harry to make a stand against Voldemort and defeat the Dark Lord. Dumbledore wasn't sure how he was going to fix all this, but he knew he had to try.
All in good time.
…
Back inside The Blues Nightclub, whilst he was watching The Outcasts, Remus, thanks to his werewolf genes, smelt something. A scent. A presence. He looked around, trying to see where it was coming from. He knew it wasn't Sirius, Arthur, James, Lily, or any of the children, he already knew what their presence smelt like. This presence, smelt vile and foul. It smelt like…. a Death Eater. The possibility of a Death Eater, in the area, most likely tracking down and searching for Harry, immediately raised his concern. He had to find where the scent was coming from and stop the Death Eater, before they were able to summon Voldemort and more of his followers. The last thing he wanted was for innocent, Muggles to be attacked and slaughtered as Voldemort tried to get his hands on Harry.
Sirius, who was sat next to Remus, noticed his fellow Marauder seemed very distraught and concerned, as he looked around the Night Club, frantically looking for something. This made Sirius just as concerned.
"Moony, is something wrong?" He asked, keeping quiet to not alert or worry the rest of the group
"No…I think a Death Eater is nearby…" Remus whispered.
"A Death Eater…here?" Sirius' eyes widened, now even more concerned "Are you sure?"
"I know a Death Eater when I smell one…" Remus whispered, looking to the rest of the group, to make sure they weren't aware of their conversation, before looking around once more, as he stood up "Follow me…"
Sirius nodded, before he stood up and followed Remus. Thankfully, the rest of the group were to busy watching the band to notice them leave, where Remus led Sirius out of the Nightclub, following the foul scent.
…
After leaving the Nightclub, Augustus Rookwood slipped away into a nearby alleyway, before he removed the Disillusionment Charm. After watching the band on stage play, Rookwood was now, completely certain that the leader singer was Harry Potter. There was no one else it could be. The boy had to be him. The biggest concern, however, was the fact that, several, members of the Order of the Phoenix in the crowd, though it didn't seem to be a trap, to lure the Dark Lord. Besides, even if members of the Order of the Phoenix were there, they would fall at the hands of the Dark Lord. They will be slaughtered, along with the Muggles inside.
However, all of a sudden, before Augustus Rookwood was able to summon the Dark Lord, he felt something hit him in the back, where everything went dark.
…
Remus and Sirius had left the Nightclub, a chill in the air, as a gust of wind passed through the empty street. Remus took a moment to figure out where the scent went, before leading Sirius towards the opposite side of the street where, looking down an Alleyway, they saw someone wearing Death Eater robes and garments, their back turned. The Death Eater wasn't aware of their presence. Looking around, to make sure there were no Muggles around, who may end up seeing them, Sirius removed his wand and fired a stunner, which hit the Death Eaters back, causing him to fall to the ground, unconscious, with a dull thud.
Keeping his wand ready, with Remus readying his wand just in case, the two Marauders approached the unconscious Death Eater and turned him over, so he was laying on his back, to get a better look at who they were dealing with.
"Augustus Rookwood…" Sirius muttered, when they saw his face, "He was part of the Death Eater attack, at the Quidditch World Cup, was he not?"
"There were many names thrown about, but his was definitely one of them" Remus nodded
The Death Eater attack, after the Quidditch World Cup final, was headline news for weeks, after it happened. Fear had rippled all across the entire Wizarding World, not just Wizarding Britain. If only they all knew, back then, what that attack meant. Now, a second Wizarding War, was almost inevitable.
"Why is he here?" Sirius asked
"Orders from You-Know-Who, I reckon, probably looking for Harry…" Remus said "I doubt it's just a coincidence, that he happened to be in the area, at the same time as us…the Ministry needs to handle this…"
Remus waved his wand, where a jet of blue light flowed out from the tip, the strands morphing and shifting together, turning into a realistic, semi translucent Wolf, glowing a bright blue hue, as its paws touched the concrete, before turning to face Remus, clearly awaiting instruction.
"Go to Amelia Bones, inside the Ministry of Magic, tell her to come here, with Aurors, and quickly" Remus said "We have a Death Eater here and he could be useful in getting some information"
The wolf Patronus bowed its head, before it began to run, flying upwards in the air, disappearing into the clouds above. Remus watched the Patronus leave, before turning to Sirius, once it disappeared from view.
"You can head back to the others and watch the rest of the band" He said "I'll stay here and wait for Amelia to arrive to take care of Rookwood"
"Are you sure?" Sirius asked, not thrilled with the idea of leaving Remus alone "What if, more of them arrive"
"I'll be fine, Sirius, just go" Remus said, more firmly.
Sirius wanted to argue but decided against it. Remus could be very stubborn, when he wanted to be. Nodding, Sirius pocketed his wand, before making his way back to the Nightclub, all the while, making sure, no Muggles had been eavesdropping on him and Remus in the alleyway and seeing something they shouldn't. Once inside the Nightclub, he made his way back to the table, where everyone else was sat, where Arthur noticed him approach, surprising, wondering when Sirius had left, along with Remus when he saw his seat was empty too.
"Sirius, did you go somewhere?" He asked, quietly "And where's Remus?"
"Something came up" Sirius said, being quiet to not alert anyone else "Remus is currently taking care of it…"
The tone of Sirius' voice told Arthur it was something serious and not something he wanted the others, the kids especially, overhearing, so Arthur merely nodded, choosing to drop the conversation for now, before turning back to the band, watching in fascination. Whilst the music wasn't to his taste, he couldn't help but marvel at the Muggle culture taking place in front of him.
…
Voldemort paced back and forth, in his throne room, his hands behind his back. He thought he was a patient man, but it was clear he wasn't. He felt close to snapping at any moment. After the Blood Tracking potion informed him that Harry Potter had moved locations, he had sent out Rookwood, to see make sure it wasn't a trap set up by Dumbledore. Whilst Voldemort doubted the old fool was smart enough to make a plan like that, he still remained cautious and sent Rookwood to investigate. Now though, his patience was getting thinner and thinner, as he continued to wait. If it wasn't a trap, then Rookwood would have informed him immediately, it made Voldemort question what was taking so long.
"Rosier!" Voldemort called out, his voice echoing, loud enough for any to hear
After a few moments, Evan Rosier, timidly entered the throne room and knelt on the ground, in front of Voldemort, bowing his head.
"You summoned me, my Lord?" Rosier said, slightly nervous from how furious Voldemort sounded
"My patience, regarding Augustus Rookwood is wearing thin" Voldemort sneered "I want you to go to his location and find out what's going on…and why he is taking so long to report back to me, do you understand?"
"Yes, my Lord" Rosier nodded "I'll do so, now, my Lord"
Getting to his feet, Rosier bowed once more, before quickly leaving the throne room. Rosier made his way out of the Manor and, once he was passed the Anti-Apparation wards, he apparatus away, arriving where Rookwood was instructed to go earlier.
After looking about, to make sure no one, Muggle or Wizard, was around, Rosier quickly disillusioned himself, before he used a Point-Me Charm, to try and find Rookwood. Hopefully, he'll find the man quickly. The Dark Lord was close to snapping and Rosier hoped that, if he found Rookwood quickly, both of them would get to keep their heads on their shoulders. With use of the Point-Me Charm, Rosier was able to quickly find where Rookwood was residing, however, even though he was hidden under the Disillusionment Charm, he hid behind a wall, when he saw Rookwood's unconscious body, surrounded by several Aurors from the Ministry of Magic.
"I received your message, Remus" Amelia Bones said "What happened?"
"My werewolf senses picked up Rookwood's scent, so I followed it and tracked him here" Remus replied "I have suspicions as to why he is out here, in the Muggle World, but I figured the Ministry will be able to get the answers to those questions, as well as putting Rookwood on trial"
"Thank you Remus" Amelia Bones said "Auror Shacklebolt, put Rookwood in magical suppression cuffs and prepare him for transfer to a Ministry Holding Cell"
"Merlin's sake, Rookwood…" Rosier muttered under his breath, as he watched Rookwood's unconscious form be placed in cuffs
Rosier knew he couldn't do anything. He was vastly outnumbered. He'd be stunned and restrained almost instantly if he tried anything and would, no doubt, be sharing a Ministry Holding Cell with Rookwood. He had no other choice but to leave and inform the Dark Lord of Rookwood's failure. This was, no doubt, going to send the Dark Lord into a fit of rage.
Failure was not an option in the Death Eater ranks.
Leaving, before his presence was noticed, Rosier removed the Disillusionment Charm, moving far enough away from the alleyway, before Apparating away, arriving back at the Manor. Quickly making his way through the Manor, Rosier nervously entered Voldemorts throne room, clearing his throat gently, as he knelt in front of the Dark Lord, looking down at the ground.
"My Lord, I regret to inform, that Rookwood has failed in his instructions" Rosier said "He has been captured by Aurors and is currently being transferred to a Ministry Holding Cell"
Silence.
There was utter silence in the room, as Voldemort stood, seemingly processing what Rosier had informed him. It was almost deafening and, the longer it went on, Rosier became more and more nervous, as he waited for Voldemort to do, or say, something. Anything. Rosier lifted his head up, looking at Voldemort to speak. However, Rosier's vision was disturbed by a bright green light, and he knew no more, as the world went black.
Voldemort sneered at Rosier's lifeless corpse, as Nagini made her way over, to feast, once more. Whilst Nagini began to feast on her dinner, Voldemort began pacing back and forth, once again, thinking. Whilst he didn't think the Aurors were there at Dumbledores orders, it didn't discredit the fact that they were there and Rookwood had failed to find Potter. Voldemort couldn't afford to lose any more Death Eaters. Their numbers were already low, as it is. And that was before he murdered Rosier in cold blood. He was going to have to go through with his plans, to break his followers out of Azkaban, earlier then initially planned, though he had no choice in the matter.
First things first, however, he needed to deal with Rookwood.
"Lucius!" He called out
The Malfoy Patriarch soon entered the throne room, but stopped, when he saw Nagini feasting on the corpse of Rosier. He grew nervous, as this meant the Dark Lord was already, clearly, enraged, so he would have to tread carefully, if he didn't want to suffer a similar fate. He quickly made his way to Voldemort, kneeling in front of him, bowing his head as he did so.
"You summoned me, my Lord?" He said, respectfully
"Yes...it seems Augustus Rookwood has failed me" Voldemort spoke in a smooth, cold tone "He failed my instructions and now, he is being taken to a Ministry Holding Cell...I'm sure you know, Lucius, failure is not tolerated within my ranks...I want you to send a message to our friend inside the Ministry, Yaxley...inform him of Rookwood's failure and that I want him to be...taken care of...I can't allow any of my followers spilling any secrets to the Ministry now can I?"
"Of course my Lord, I'll contact him right away" Lucius bowed
...
Back inside The Blues Nightclub, there was applause and cheers all across the room, as The Outcasts finished playing their final song of the night, to which they immediately received a standing ovation. None were louder, then the Order of the Phoenix, however. The members of The Outcasts had big smiles on their faces, as they waved and bowed to the crowd. It was clear they enjoyed the applause and cheers. Lightning smiled, as he picked up the mic once again, wiping some sweat that was falling down his brow.
"Thank you, you fucking beautiful people" He said "you were a lovely crowd tonight, as always...we're so glad you enjoyed our gig tonight, and we hope to see, some of you again, at our next gigs...thank you, you fucking beautiful people and good night!"
As the crowd cheered for The Outcasts, as they made their way off the stage, none were louder than Lily, as she cheered for her son. Seeing her own child up on stage, singing his heart out, made her so proud. However, she knew he was hurt. Hurt by her actions. Abandoning him. She would do anything to earn his forgiveness, and for them to be a proper family again. She hoped, that by coming here to his gig tonight, would be a good way to start making amends for their mistakes.
...
Augustus Rookwood struggled against his restraints as he sat in a Ministry Holding Cell. He had been woken up by Amelia Bones, who informed him that he will be put on trial, before the Wizengamot, as he is one of the Dark Lords most loyal Death Eaters, he doesn't have the right to have a private trial. Until a trial could be placed, however, he was to stay within the Ministry Holding Cell, where he would be fed twice a day. He wasn't going to sit here, however, and allow himself to be put on trial by Ministry dogs. He needed to get out and make his escape, before the Dark Lord catches wind of his failures. Failure was not an option.
And the Dark Lord was never generous when it came to dealing with Death Eaters who have failed his instructions.
Rookwood stopped struggling against his restraints, when he heard the door to his cell open. He looked up and let out a deep sigh of relief when he saw Corban Yaxley, one of the Death Eater spies within the Ministry, enter.
"Yaxley, thank Merlin, it's you" Rookwood said "You need to help me escape, before the Dark Lord finds out about my failure"
"I am not here to help you, Rookwood" Yaxley said, in a smooth tone, as he removed his wand from the holster on his arm "And the Dark Lord already knows that you have failed his instructions…I'm here on his orders, he wants you to be taken care of…we can't have you giving away any of the Dark Lords secrets or plans, now can we…otherwise you'll be a failure and a snitch"
"Wait, no…Yaxley, wait a minute…" Rookwood panicked
"Goodbye Rookwood…" Yaxley said, raising his wand "Avada Kedavra!"
Yaxley lowered his wand, as Rookwood collapsed, dead, his corpse falling off his seat, onto the floor with a dull thud. A small smile made its way onto his face, as he looked at Rookwood's corpse, until he heard the sound of a tray crashed onto the floor, behind him. He turned around to see Auror, Nymphadora Tonks standing behind him, a tray on the floor, with food scattered around, as she looked at him with a shocked look on her face. A few seconds seemed to pass, before Tonks was able to process what just happened, before she pulled out her wand and pointed it at him.
"C…Corban Yaxley…I'm going to have to place you under arrest, for murder…come quietly, as I place you in a cell for questioning…" She said, her wand arm shaking slightly
She had been instructed by Amelia Bones to bring food to Augustus Rookwood, whilst she set up the necessary deeds and paperwork for a trial. However, as she entered the cell, she saw Yaxley kill Rookwood with the Killing Curse, she was still trying to process what happened. Yaxley merely smirked, as he looked at her.
"You won't be taking me alive, you Ministry dog" He snarled "I won't betray the Dark Lord…when he rises you will all kneel before him"
Before Tonks could do anything, Yaxley put his wand under his chin and cast a Bombarda Maxima, his head exploding into a mess of blood, flesh and bone, as his headless corpse fell to the ground. Tonks couldn't help but stumble back in shock, paling at the sight she just witnessed. A few moments later, Amelia Bones appeared, along with Kingsley Shacklebolt, having heard the commotion. Both of them looked at the sight in shock and horror.
"Auror Tonks, please explain what happened here" She said, whilst Shacklebolt stepped towards the bodies
"I…I came to give prisoner Rookwood his food, as you instructed me to" Tonks said, paling "As…as I arrived I…I saw Yaxley murder him with the Killing Curse…I tried…I tried bringing him in for questioning but he…he cast a Bombarda Maxima on himself…and…"
"Madam Bones, you'll want to see this…" Shacklebolt spoke up, as he knelt beside the headless corpse of Corban Yaxley
Amelia approached and looked to see that Shacklebolt had lifted up the man's sleeve, where the Dark Mark was present on his forearm, making Amelia curse under her breath.
"If Yaxley is a Death Eater, then anyone else could be one as well…Auror Shacklebolt, we need to launch an investigation…with You-Know-Who's return, we can't have any Death Eater spies within the Ministry" Amelia Bones said, as she stood up, before she noticed Tonks was pale and shaking slightly, as she looked at the corpses of Yaxley and Rookwood "Auror Tonks, take the rest of the day off…take the day off, relax and have a drink if you must, to forget about what you just witnessed here tonight"
"Yes, Madam Bones…" Tonks muttered, nodding slightly
A drink sounded good, round about now.
…
And that is the new chapter done.
You may have noticed this chapter is different to previous ones in this story. When planning this chapter, I wanted to do something different and divert from The Outcasts and tell a story, about something going on behind the scenes. Which is where the idea of Voldemort ordering Rookwood's assassination, came from. What will happen now? We'll just have to see.
Before we end things off, I would like to update you on new stories I have in mind. The first one is a remastered version of my first story, 'A Different Hogwarts Experience', with longer and more fleshed out chapters. The second story is a blind Harry story, where he is blinded by Voldemort when he attacks the Potters. The final story is a different one to ones I've done in the past, as this one will have Neville as the main character, though I won't give away details on the plot, just yet.
But that is all for now. I hope you enjoyed and I will see you next time, in whatever story I see you in.
Badger Out
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