Number Twelve Grimmauld Place, London, 8/12/1995, 09:57
Harry felt himself drifting into consciousness as the sound of his godfather's voice registered in his mind.
Harry could tell that he was lying in a bed, he felt very comfortable and could have probably gone back to sleep if it wasn't for the sound of voices nearby.
Cracking his eyes open, the first thing he saw was the metal frame of his bed. He was in a dimly lit bedroom with peeling green wallpaper on the walls. It was lit by an old tarnished brass chandelier and the weak sunlight coming in through the dirty windows. The ceiling was a faded off-white and he spotted an old wardrobe before the voices he was hearing got close enough that he could hear what they were talking about.
...he's fine, Diggle patched him up good as new," Sirius was saying.
"What happened to him?!" Harry heard Hermione demand as the two of them entered the room.
"The Tonks family was attacked by death eaters last night," Sirius answered and there was no mistaking the anger in Sirius' voice.
"A-are Ted and Andi, okay?" Harry croaked out, getting both of their attention.
"They're fine mate," Sirius said as he rushed over to Harry's bedside.
"How are you feeling?" Hermione asked worriedly coming over to stand beside Sirius.
"Sore. I feel like I got kicked by a centaur," Harry admitted, wincing when he tried to sit up.
"Diggle said you would be sore for the next few days. There was a lot of deep bruising on your chest," Sirius explained as he helped Harry sit up against the headboard.
"He was right," Harry panted as the pain in his chest slowly subsided.
"You look awful, Harry," Hermione said as she took a seat at the foot of his bed.
"Thanks," Harry grunted as he drank from a glass of water Sirius handed him, the cool water soothing his dry throat.
"Alright, I need to go let Kingsley know you're awake," Sirius said, sounding a little annoyed.
"Why?" Harry asked in confusion.
"Auror Shacklebolt needs a statement about what happened last night," Sirius huffed as if he thought the idea was ridiculous.
"Oh, okay," Harry said feeling a weight settle in the pit of his stomach when the events of last night started coming back to him.
"Don't worry, you're not in any trouble," Sirius assured him, correctly reading the worry in Harry's voice.
"I think that I killed someone, Sirius," Harry said quietly, not noticing the gasp of surprise from Hermione at his words.
"If you did, it was in self-defence," Sirius assured Harry in a calming tone.
"Yeah, but try telling the ministry that," Harry muttered darkly.
"There were three Azkaban escapees confirmed to be at Andi's house last night. The ministry won't say shit," Sirius assured him.
"How many were captured?" Hermione asked with interest.
"Two people were captured. Sabastian Scabior and Markus Flint were found unconscious on the lawn," Sirius said as he glanced over at Hermione.
"So the Azkaban escapees got away... again?" Harry exclaimed.
"The only one that got away was my cousin," Sirius replied.
"So the other two Azkaban escapees are-
"Dead," Sirius answered.
"Which ones?" Hermione demanded.
"Well the biggest was Antonin Dolohov, he was Voldemort's number two," Sirius answered.
"And the other?" Harry pressed as he shakily got out of bed.
Harry hissed as pain shot through his chest from the effort it took to stand up. He felt a little woozy and closed his eyes for a second as the pain slowly subsided. He was pulled back to the present when Sirius spoke.
"Rupert Cromwell was the other one. He was a turncoat who spied on the order before Pettigrew joined the other side. Cromwell is responsible for giving up the location of the McKinnons back in seventy-nine," Sirius growled, sounding like this was a sore topic for him.
"Oh. Are we at your Mum's house?" Harry asked as he looked around for his trainers.
"Yeah, I portkeyed you here last night," Sirius answered as Harry found his trainers tucked under the foot of the bed.
"Here, let me help you with that," Hermione offered when Harry started to bend down only to grimace as the motion caused pain to flare up in his chest again.
"I can dress myself, Hermione," Harry protested half-heartedly but let her guide him back to the bed.
"You'll just make your injuries worse," Hermione scolded as she helped Harry to take a seat on the edge of the bed.
"Fine but don't tell Ron about this," Harry joked as Hermione knelt in front of him and began helping him slip on his trainers.
Harry felt a wave of gratitude for his best friend as she tied up his shoes and then helped him back to his feet. He may not like being waited on by others but he couldn't imagine how much pain he would have caused himself if he'd tried to do this by himself in the condition he was in.
Once Hermione had finished her task she stood up and gave Harry a hand in standing up as well.
"Before I forget, Dedalus said you should drink this, it will help with the pain," Sirius said as he picked up a vial from the bedside table and offered it to Harry.
"What is it?" Harry asked as he took the vial, noticing it was filled with blue liquid.
"Anti-inflammation potion, it should help ease the pain in your chest," Sirius answered.
Harry popped the cork out of the vial and brought it to his lips, drinking the potion in one gulp. Harry nearly retched as the bitter liquid touched his tongue but managed to swallow it down, though his face showed his disgust.
"Potions are always nasty," Sirius chuckled as he took the empty vial from Harry and set it back on the bedside table.
"Tell me about it. I guess we might as well talk to the aurors," Harry said as the potion began taking effect.
Harry couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as the pain in his chest started to ease up. Unfortunately, this just made him aware of a pain in his sides that he hadn't noticed before as well as soreness in his left ankle. Idly, he wondered why the potion wasn't easing that discomfort as well before he pushed those thoughts from his mind.
Harry began to hobble towards the door, limping slightly as pain radiated from his left ankle every time he put pressure on his leg.
"I can bring Shack up here if you like," Sirius offered as he and Hermione followed Harry into the hallway.
"No, I would rather walk to him," Harry said, wanting to get the interview over with.
"Alright, though I am surprised you can even walk. You broke four ribs, cracked your sternum in two places, and sprained your ankle pretty good. I think Diggle even said something about a concussion," Sirius said as he caught Harry up so they could walk side by side down the stairs with Hermione bringing up the rear.
"It hurts like you wouldn't believe to walk," Harry admitted as they arrived on the ground floor.
"Then why didn't you just stay in bed!?" Hermione huffed behind him.
"You know me, Hermione, I hate being bedridden," Harry chuckled weakly as they started walking down the short staircase to the basement kitchen.
"So the Potter stubbornness is still carrying on," Sirius sniggered as he pushed the kitchen door open.
The kitchen was full this morning, Molly and four of the Weasley children were there as were Moody, Tonks, Kingsley, Andi, and Ted. Breakfast was in full swing though the room fell silent as soon as the three of them entered the room.
"Harry you had me so worried," Missus Weasley exclaimed as she came over and guided him to a chair beside Andi.
"How are you feeling?" Andi asked looking a tad dishevelled but otherwise perfectly healthy.
"My chest feels like I was punched by a troll," Harry said.
"I hear that," Ted chuckled and Harry noticed a large bruise on the side of his face.
"So... Sirius said that you would like a statement, Auror Shacklebolt?" Harry asked as he looked down the table at the auror in question.
"Not a long statement. I just need to know what happened with Dolohov. Ted and Andi have already given me a good idea of what happened up to that point," Kingsley clarified.
"Pretty simple really, I couldn't keep up with him, he was seconds away from hitting me with something so I did the only thing I could think of, I tackled him," Harry admitted.
"And that worked?" Ron exclaimed in surprise.
"Yeah, we were only about ten feet apart and by the time he figured out what was happening, we were both sailing through that hole in the wall. Then you guys showed up not a minute later, I think his head hit the paving stones when we landed," Harry said looking at Kingsley.
"Not bad lad," Moody praised.
"More like blind luck," Harry muttered.
"You're not exactly a stranger to that kind of luck," Hermione piped in.
"True," Harry conceded.
"I think that is all I need from you," Kingsley assured him as he finished writing down what Harry had said.
"Harry, I've talked with Sirius and for the time being, we'll be staying here," Andromeda said putting her hand on Harry's shoulder and pulling his attention to her.
"Okay," Harry said, having mixed feelings about this announcement.
"Well, you're welcome to share a room with us," George offered with a mischievous grin while Fred nodded his agreement.
"Or I'm sure little Gin Gin wouldn't mind sharing a room with you," Fred offered.
"It could work. You sleep in your boxers don't you, Harry?" Ginny asked innocently, getting a round of laughter from the twins and causing Harry to sputter in embarrassment.
"Absolutely not. I'm way too young to be a grandmother," Molly exclaimed sharply, shooting the twins a look of annoyance.
"We were only kidding, Mum. Harry can bunk with us," George assured his mother.
"I don't think so. I'll take Ron's room, he can bunk with you two," Harry said flatly, knowing very well how much they loved to pull pranks.
"Oi, I thought we were friends," Ron exclaimed.
"Back to the matter at hand, you did really well last night. Unfortunately, this will complicate matters from here on out," Andi said, looking amused at the Weasley's bi-play.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked as Molly got up from the table.
"We had to file an official report of the incident last night. Your being at the scene of the attack will become public knowledge by the end of the week," Kingsley explained.
"Great," Harry sighed as Molly placed a plate of food in front of him.
"It was bound to come out eventually," Tonks pointed out.
"Yeah, it would have been announced the minute you showed up at Hogwarts," Andi agreed.
"I enjoyed not being noticed," Harry admitted as he took a bite of his eggs.
"Ah the woes of a celebrity," Tonks snorted as she got up from the table followed by Kingsley and Moody.
"We need to get back to the ministry. Thank you for helping me get this sorted out, Harry," Kingsley said getting a nod from Harry before the three aurors made their way out of the kitchen.
"I think we are done with cleaning the house now. Have you kids gotten all of your summer homework taken care of?" Molly asked looking between her children.
Harry tuned out the conversation around him and ate his breakfast in silence. He was still having trouble wrapping his head around what happened last night. For the second time in his life, he had killed someone, Granted it was a death eater but it was still weighing on his mind.
That was on top of the occasional nightmares he was having about the night Cedric was killed. He thought he had put it behind him but every time he saw it in his dreams, it felt like he was back there again.
Harry hoped after what happened last night that there would not be a new nightmare to torment him. Though truthfully he didn't feel nearly as upset as he believed he would or should feel after killing someone. When it all came down to it, Harry didn't have much choice in the matter. If Harry hadn't done what he did, there was a good chance he wouldn't be here right now.
Harry looked up from his plate noticing the adults had left while he was eating and it was just the other teens at the table now.
"How are you doing with all of this?" Hermione whispered while the Weasleys were arguing about some quidditch game.
"Still doesn't feel real," Harry shrugged looking at his best friend.
"I couldn't believe it when you showed up last night, you looked awful," Hermione said with a grimace.
"It was my back, wasn't it?" Harry asked knowing it must have looked pretty bad.
"Among other things," Hermione nodded.
"So Harry, care for a game of chess?" Ron asked cutting into their conversation.
"Sure, I might actually beat you this time," Harry said putting a fake smile on his face.
"I think you must have hit your head pretty hard last night, mate," Ron said in faux concern.
Harry chuckled at Ron's attempt at a joke and watched as he seemed to pull a chess set out of thin air and began setting it up. As much as he wasn't feeling up to playing a game, he knew he needed something to take his mind off of what happened.
The rest of the day passed in a similar fashion, his friends doing their best to keep him from thinking about the attack and he couldn't help but feel grateful for that. Ron may be a bit tactless at times but he certainly knew how to make Harry laugh and right now, Harry needed all the laughter he could get.
Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire, 8/15/1995, 23:51
Voldemort entered the throne room to find Lucius and Bellatrix awaiting him. Both of them were standing on either side of his throne with their heads bowed in a sign of respect. Voldemort ignored them as he made his way to his ornate seat and sat down gracefully.
"Leave us, Lucius," Voldemort commanded and paid no mind as Lucius left the throne room without a word.
"Master?" Bellatrix asked nervously.
"I am deeply disappointed, Bellatrix," Voldemort sighed, sounding almost like a parent speaking to an unruly child.
"I'm sorry master. Andromeda was much more skilled than I thought possible," Bellatrix replied, looking up to meet her master's red eyes.
"I granted you the privilege of killing her as a reward and it cost me one of my best soldiers," Voldemort continued a cold edge to his voice.
"Antonin was fighting a teenager," Bellatrix protested weakly.
"And the boy will pay dearly for this," Voldemort hissed angrily as he looked into Bella's eyes.
"There is something else, my lord," Bellatrix said holding eye contact despite the nervousness she felt.
"Isn't there always, what is it, Bellatrix?" Voldemort asked resignedly.
"The boy resembled a picture I have seen of Harry Potter," Bellatrix answered, feeling a tinge of fear as her master's face contorted in anger.
"You're sure?" Voldemort asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
"I am not sure, master, but I knew you would want to be informed so you could determine whether or not it was Potter," Bellatrix answered in a rapid breathy voice.
"Indeed, legilimens," Voldemort hissed as his presence dove into her violet eyes.
Voldemort gently sifted through her memories taking care not to damage her mind any more than it already was before he found the memory he sought.
Voldemort saw the siege from Bella's point of view, he saw Cromwell get blasted into the hallway before the whole house shook from a powerful explosion. He saw Bellatrix enter the room after her sister easily blasted two more of his followers out the window as if swatting an irksome fly.
Then Voldemort saw the boy, there was no mistaking this was Harry Potter. The boy seemed to have grown considerably but Voldemort could see the scar on the boy's arm from the resurrection ritual as clear as day.
Voldemort watched as Potter literally ran and tackled Dolohov out of the hole in the wall. Antonin was a big man tall and broad-shouldered, or he was before he spent over a decade on that accursed island. Now Antonin was skin and bones and much lighter than the healthy sixteen-year-old boy who slammed into him. Voldemort realized that he really should have waited until his followers were in better health before allowing them to go into battle.
Now he had lost one of his best fighters!
Voldemort watched Bella's fight with Andromeda confirming his assessment, that his followers were not ready for combat. Bella's sister wiped the floor with her and it was by some miracle Bellatrix had survived the encounter.
Voldemort pulled out of her mind and looked down at his slightly dazed follower.
"You were lucky to survive that," Voldemort said in a thoughtful tone.
"My sister was trained right alongside me when we were younger, master," Bellatrix answered feeling shame wash over her that her master had seen her humiliated by her blood traitor sister.
"I should not have allowed you to go, you have not recovered from your imprisonment," Voldemort replied after some thought.
"I wish to fight, my lord. I want to destroy the traitors to the Black family," Bella protested somewhat petulantly.
"And you shall but you will wait until the time is right," Voldemort said firmly.
"Yes Master," Bellatrix replied, knowing an order when she heard it.
"You have done well to bring this to my attention. Your suspicions were correct, that was Harry Potter," Voldemort said making Bella smile at his praise.
"I had hoped I was wrong, master. This complicates things, doesn't it?" Bellatrix asked looking worried.
"Indeed it does. I believe you should go and Inform Augustus that I wish to speak with him," Voldemort said in dismissal.
"As you wish," Bellatrix bowed her head before hurrying to carry out her task.
Voldemort was at a loss to explain how Potter had survived the curse a second time, though he supposed he should just be grateful that the results were different than the first time.
There was only one of his followers who could help him with his next course of action. He would have to find out more about the Department of Mysteries and who better to help him than a former unspeakable?
The prophecy was still an issue to be dealt with, it would seem. He would need to find out the rest of it as it might hold the answers to the conundrum that was Harry Potter.
'I suppose it was fortunate that I allowed Bellatrix to pursue vengeance on her sister,' Voldemort thought to himself as he waited for his follower to arrive and help him assess the difficulties retrieving the prophecy would pose.
Diagon Alley, London, 8/21/1995, 13:38
Harry stepped out of the eye healer's office with a satisfied smile on his face as he made his way over to the bench Tonks was sitting at.
Healer Peep had deemed his eyesight to be exactly where it should be which meant he didn't have to take the eyesight potion any longer.
He was actually very grateful for this follow-up visit since it gave him an excuse to get out of Grimmauld Place for a few hours.
Today was the first time he'd left Order Headquarters since the attack. Harry could really sympathize with his friends after the last week and a half. He couldn't imagine what it would be like being trapped inside that dank old house since the first week of July.
Harry still didn't have his Hogwarts list of books but he had planned to do most of his school shopping since he had to come here for his eye healer appointment. If nothing else, the shopping trip would keep him out of the house a little longer.
Harry had already stopped by the bookshop and picked up The Standard Book Of Spells Grade Five. He had also visited Madam Malkins' and purchased three new sets of school robes and two pairs of school shoes before he had to be at his appointment at Healer Peep's office.
He still needed more quills, parchment and ink as well as topping off his potions kit. He also planned to pick up a new potions knife set, get Hedwig some more owl treats, and make a quick visit to Quality Quidditch Supplies.
"Bout time you got out of there," Tonks exclaimed when she spotted him walking towards her.
"I was in and out in under twenty minutes. Aren't aurors supposed to have patience..." Harry trailed off as he saw Lucius Malfoy crossing the alley a few stores down.
"I never was a very patient person," Tonks shrugged as she got to her feet.
The two of them began walking towards the apothecary, Tonks' eyes lingering on Lucius' back when they weren't darting around the alley looking for threats.
"I wonder what he's up to?" Harry muttered more to himself.
From the direction Malfoy was walking, it was obvious where he was going. A moment later, Lucius glanced surreptitiously from his left to right before slipping into Knockturn Alley.
"Something shady, no doubt," Tonks said as she hooked her arm through Harry's and led him toward the apothecary.
"Should we follow him and see what he's up to?" Harry suggested.
"Hell no! Rule number one Potter, never follow your mark into a place where there are no witnesses," Tonks said matter-of-factly.
"Why not?" Harry asked in surprise.
"Because anything can happen in Knockturn Alley. Aurors used to try and follow suspected death eaters in the last war and more than a few got led in there and were found in pieces a couple of days later," Tonks said, giving Harry a meaningful look.
"It's really that bad?" Harry exclaimed, turning to look at Tonks.
Harry knew that Knockturn Alley was dark but he always thought the place's reputation was exaggerated. It blew his mind that the ministry would allow the place to stay open if aurors were getting killed in there.
"The dark arts thing is exaggerated. The shops and businesses still conform to ministry law... for the most part. But nobody in there trusts the ministry and they won't say a word if they witness a murder. They could care less if an auror gets killed in front of them. They'd have the death eaters coming after them if they did speak up," Tonks explained.
"Yeah, I don't think I want your job," Harry said only half-jokingly.
"It's not as glamorous as it's made out to be but it does have its perks," Tonks said, giving him a knowing smile.
"What perks?" Harry questioned.
"Well for starters, the aurors have a rotating schedule to run security for all professional sporting events. I got to go to a Holyhead Harpies match the other night as part of the Harpies protection detail," Tonks smirked.
"That would be pretty cool," Harry admitted, imagining being in the locker room with the Harpies' new starting chaser (and his newest crush), Heidi Macavoy.
"And catching criminals is a rush you wouldn't believe," Tonks continued, oblivious to Harry's wandering thoughts.
"The Azkaban guard duty has got to suck, though" Harry pointed out, pulling himself back into the conversation.
"Yeah but once the new batch of rookies starts in September, I won't have to go there near as often," Tonks shrugged as she pushed open the door to the shop.
Harry went about finding a potion processing kit with a set of silver knives since they were supposed to be more effective at processing ingredients than steel. It didn't take long to find a set with three different-sized silver blades and a stone cutting board. Harry took the somewhat pricey potion processing kit to the counter, handing it to the elderly lady who was running the shop today.
"Will that be all, dear?" The kind-faced woman asked.
"I also need a refill pack for O.W.L level potions and could I get extra eye of newt, I always seem to run out of that first?" Harry asked politely.
"Of course. Give me just a second, dear," the woman answered before turning to the shelves behind her and grabbing a pre-packaged refill kit and an extra bottle filled with eye of newt and setting it on the counter.
"That'll be four galleons, seven sickles, and two knuts," the woman said after bagging up his purchases.
Harry quickly counted out the required gold before taking his purchases and making his way back to Tonks.
"Have a good day, dear," the clerk called after him before turning to her next customer.
"Alright, let's hurry and get this over with so you can buy me an ice cream," Tonks said as they exited the shop.
Harry visited the other three stops on his list and completed his shopping in little time at all. They were soon seated at an outdoor table at Florean Fortescue's Ice Creem Parlour, both tucking into large fudge sundaes while they watched the other patrons of the alley go about their business.
"I guess now all you'll need is your new defence book," Tonks said between bites of her ice cream
"Yeah. To be honest, I'm surprised they haven't sent out our letters yet," Harry admitted.
"Fudge is gumming up the works. The rumour around the ministry is that he's trying to force one of his people into the spot," Tonks confided.
"Well whoever they pick can't be worse than Lockhart was," Harry said somewhat optimistically.
"Don't be so sure. For all you know, he could assign the post to Percy Weasley," Tonks said, pointing her spoon at him to emphasize the point
"Now class, today we're going to talk about the most dreaded creation of nefarious dark wizards, the thin-walled cauldron," Harry said in a passable imitation of Percy's pompous manner.
"That sounds just like him!" Tonks snorted, her grey eyes dancing with mirth.
"Oh look, Malfoy's back," Harry pointed out when he noticed the Malfoy patriarch crossing the street on his way to Gringotts.
"I would love to arrest that pompous bastard for something but he's got Fudge by the short and curlies," Tonks muttered humourlessly.
Harry watched in outrage as Malfoy subtly used his cane to trip a child that tried to run past him from the opposite direction. Lucius ignored the noisy tears of the little girl when she skinned her knees on the cobblestones as he ascended the steps to the bank.
"What a wanker," Harry muttered in disgust.
"Once a Slytherin, always a Slytherin," Tonks nodded as she watched a woman go over to console the little girl
"Andi's a Slytherin," Harry pointed out.
"Yep and she is the most devious person I have ever met," Tonks exclaimed.
"If you say so," Harry said, finding that hard to believe.
"Trust me, she is. When mum wants something, she gets it one way or the other," Tonks warned.
"I'll take your word for it," Harry shrugged.
"You'll find out soon enough. Now come on, I need some real food," Tonks said as she stood from her seat and began shoving Harry's purchases into the magically expanded pocket of her long leather jacket.
"From where?" Harry asked warily, following Tonks as she led him towards the Leaky Cauldron.
"Burger King, I'll even tell you the Quibbler's story about the origins of the king on the way there," Tonks grinned.
"I'm not sure that I want to hear it," Harry muttered, still remembering the Noid story.
"Once upon a time, there was a humble King in a land called Florida. This King was constantly taunted by a clown named Ronald who rubbed his tiny burgers in the King's face," Tonks began, ignoring his last comment.
"This King feared that Americans were far too thin and lived far too active of a lifestyle, so he devised a miracle burger. A burger that would deprive the clothes companies of being able to put out small clothes and give the everyday man a reason to avoid the bathroom scales."
"So this humble King made this miracle burger, detesting the need to fry his meat like that silly clown Ronald. The king used the passion in his heart to devise the greatest creation in culinary history, a device other companies would covet and the obese would rejoice at the mere utterance of its name, the flame broiler!"
"But the King remembered all of the taunting from Ronald the clown about his tiny little burgers and decided to show that makeup-wearing freak what every woman in the world already knows, the size of your meat matters!"
The King put his massive slab of meat between two pert buns with lettuce, tomato, pickles, onion, ketchup, and a healthy amount of his white creamy goodness and called it a Whopper!"
"The common man put the King's Whopper in their mouths, the people rejoiced, and the world declared him the Burger King!"
"And so for years Ronald and the King were constantly at war. The people benefitted as the King was directly responsible for the necessity of the XXXL shirt and the man bra. But little did the King know that Ronald's new friend Mac would challenge his throne."
"Luckily the King was a cunning man and found a way to outdo that asshat Ronald, and so the Double Whopper was born."
"Ronald struck back with the Quarter Pounder, the Big n' Tasty, and the Double Quarter Pounder but they were all a paltry imitation of a Whopper."
"Still Ronald had provoked the King's ire and our great Burger King had become a vengeful ruler. He released the biggest burger known to man, the fat-kid burger, the triple whopper! A burger so big that even the most glutinous of man could not consume it!" Tonks exclaimed excitedly looking like she was trying hard not to crack up as she was telling the story.
"Alright whoever wrote that is insane," Harry said before she could continue the tale.
"It says in the article that it is the truth interpreted by experts," Tonks defended.
"I've read the Quibbler, they claim that Fudge bakes goblins in pies, Sirius is a rock singer, and some lunatic flew a broom to the moon," Harry argued as he saw the storefront up ahead next to the tube station.
"If you want to hear the story about the Cola Wars instead," Tonks offered as they approached the restaurant.
"No, just get me a Whopper combo and tell them to hold the king's white creamy goodness. I would rather just have mayonnaise on mine, thanks," Harry grumbled as Tonks burst into laughter.
Harry sat in a booth as he let Tonks order. Today had been a welcome change of pace after being cooped up in that dreary house, and getting to spend some time alone with Tonks was always a bonus.
Number Twelve Grimmauld Place, London, 8/30/1995, 08:49
Harry had just sat down at the table in the basement kitchen when he noticed an envelope waiting beside his usual seat.
Harry couldn't fight his smile when he spotted the Hogwarts crest on the envelope and snatched it off of the table. Harry quickly pulled the letter out of the envelope and began to read over this year's booklist.
The list was short, there were only two books on the list and he'd already purchased one the other day. Before he could ponder how useful a defence book with the word 'theory' in the title would be, Ron stumbled into the kitchen still dressed in his pajamas.
"About bloody time our letters got here," Ron exclaimed when he saw the envelope next to his own seat.
"I've already got everything but this new book," Harry said after slipping his letter back into its envelope.
"There's something else in here," Ron exclaimed as he turned the envelope over.
Harry turned when he heard something hit the table with a metallic 'ting' and saw a golden badge lying on the table.
"They made me a prefect," Ron said as he stared at the badge in awe.
"Well, it was either you or Dean," Harry said reasonably as he picked up the badge and inspected it before offering it for Ron to take.
"I figured it would be you," Ron admitted as he accepted the badge and held it delicately in his palm.
"I am the better troublemaker of the two of us. Clearly, you've been demoted to the voice of reason," Harry smirked as he indicated the badge in Ron's hand.
"Then the end is nigh if Ronald Weasley is the voice of reason," Hermione cut in as she entered the kitchen already dressed for the day.
"Manners Granger, you're addressing the new Gryffindor prefect. I would hate to give you detention scrubbing the loos... with your toothbrush," Ron drawled in an uncanny imitation of Draco Malfoy.
"You know mate, it worries me that you can imitate him so well," Harry said before sniggering at the incredulous look on Hermione's face.
"Enough of your cheek, Potter. Just wait until my father hears of this," Ron drawled, barely containing his grin.
"What am I going to be hearing about?" Arthur asked curiously as he stepped into the kitchen dressed for work.
"It sounds like our Ronnie is channelling Lucius' son, dear," Molly answered looking troubled at the thought.
"Ron made prefect and it's already gone to his head, Mister Weasley," Hermione explained in a faux sad tone as she took a seat across from Harry.
"Ah yes, power corrupts," Arthur nodded wisely before doing a double take as he processed what Hermione had said.
"You made prefect?" Molly asked, her eyes lighting up in happiness as she caught the important part of Hermione's statement immediately.
"Yeah Mum," Ron said as his ears started reddening in embarrassment.
"That's wonderful dear," Molly exclaimed before pulling Ron into a bone-crushing hug and peppering his cheeks with wet kisses.
"What did we miss?" Fred asked as the twins walked into the kitchen observing Ron trying to free himself from their mother's affection.
"Ron has joined the other side," Harry answered, looking at the twins in amusement.
"You don't mean he's a-
"Prefect," Harry nodded.
"Oh the shame," George muttered in faux mortification.
Harry and Hermione looked over as Ginny entered the kitchen before she took her normal spot beside Harry.
Thankfully, Harry had gotten used to her sitting beside him by now and was usually able to ignore her bare leg rubbing against his during mealtimes.
He still found it somewhat distracting at times (like this morning) when she was still wearing the very short cotton shorts and the tank top she slept in (and neglected to wear a bra underneath).
"So why is Ron getting so much attention this morning?" Ginny asked as Ron finally escaped Molly's grasp, his face beat red as the twins sniggered at him.
"Our brother is following in Percy the Pompous' footsteps," George answered, barely containing his mirth.
"You are looking at the bane of troublemakers everywhere," Fred continued.
"Ron's the fifth-year prefect," Harry simplified, forcing himself to not look below her chin.
"My little Ronnie, a prefect," Molly exclaimed happily as she began to whip up a pot of porridge.
"I am a prefect too," Hermione added as she held her own prefect badge, looking very pleased with herself.
"Ah, now I see. You two are meant to keep this one out of trouble," Ginny said while pointing at Harry with her thumb.
"Huh, that actually makes a lot of sense," Harry nodded thoughtfully as a bowl of porridge was set in front of him.
"I suppose I will have to make a trip to Diagon Alley to get everyone's school supplies," Molly said after she had fixed everyone a bowl of porridge and took a seat at the table.
"I just need this Defensive Magical Theory book. I bought all my other supplies last week," Harry said after Molly started collecting everyone's lists.
"That will speed things along," Molly said looking pleased.
"Where are Andi and Ted?" Harry asked quite surprised they weren't here already.
"Ted was called into work for an emergency this morning and Andromeda had to meet the contractors in Reading to get the repairs on the house started," Arthur answered.
Harry wasn't surprised about that, Andromeda had been planning to get their home rebuilt after the death eater attack and was using the damage as an excuse to renovate the sitting room, kitchen and upstairs bedroom. They were even talking about building a deck around the second floor and putting a sliding glass door in the hole the death eaters had blown in the side of the house.
After Sirius had claimed the Black family headship, he had transferred a sizeable amount of gold to Andromeda as the dowry she should have received when she married Ted, so the cost was not really an issue.
Harry thought the two of them were rather pleased with the prospect of a renovation and had talked a lot about it over the last few weeks.
The rest of breakfast passed with the normal chaos and soon Mister and Missus Weasley left for work and school shopping respectively. Harry decided to get his packing started, though he already dreaded having to fold all of his clothes.
Harry had just finished sorting out all of his socks when Ron came into the room looking ecstatic.
"Mum said she would get me a new broom for making prefect," Ron beamed when Harry gave him a questioning look.
"Excellent. Now you can't blame the broom when I thrash you on the pitch," Harry smirked.
"Yeah, I can. You're riding a freaking Firebolt," Ron exclaimed in annoyance.
"Not anymore I'm not," Harry admitted as he opened his trunk and pulled out the broom he'd bought when he visited Diagon Alley last week.
"But that's a Nimbus," Ron said in confusion.
"Yep, it's a Nimbus 2000," Harry agreed.
"Why would you get that when you have a cup standard broom already?" Ron demanded, looking like he thought Harry had lost his mind.
"Because I don't need to have the best broom in Hogwarts to catch every snitch," Harry shrugged.
"But Harry, it's a Firebolt," Ron protested weakly.
"Yeah, and it really is an awesome broom but I don't want people to think that the only reason I won a game is that I am flying an excessively expensive broom. I did just fine on this model for three years and I'll do just fine this year," Harry assured his friend.
"Well it is pretty close in performance to the Cleansweep Eleven," Ron said thoughtfully.
"Exactly, now when I school you on the pitch it's because of my awe-inspiring skill and you can't blame the broom," Harry beamed.
"You can be a real wanker sometimes. Where is Hermione at by the way?" Ron asked.
"She borrowed Hedwig to write to her parents," Harry said as he packed his new broom back into his trunk.
"What are you going to do with the Firebolt?" Ron asked as he watched Harry lovingly tuck the Nimbus under his school robes.
"I already left it with Sirius. I figure he might have a bit of fun with it while I'm at Hogwarts," Harry shrugged.
"Let's hope he doesn't hurt himself," Ron sniggered.
"Oi, I was flying brooms before you were a gleam in Arthur's eye," Sirius exclaimed from the doorway.
"You've never flown a broom like that before," Harry said, giving his godfather a knowing look.
"I'll be fine," Sirius assured him.
"So what's up Sirius?" Harry asked as he shut his trunk.
"Lunch is ready," Sirius shrugged.
"Excellent I'm starving," Ron beamed leading the other two towards the kitchen.
"You're always hungry, mate," Harry sniggered as he and Sirius followed Ron down the stairs.
The rest of the day seemed to stretch on as most of the house's occupants were chomping at the bit to get out of Grimmauld Place. Harry had mixed feelings about the new school year and could not say with all honesty that he was looking forward to returning. Something told him that school this year was going to be a lot different than the previous ones, and not necessarily for the better.
When Missus Weasley arrived back from Diagon Alley, she gave Harry his new textbook. Harry had flipped the book open to the table of contents and was already certain that defence was going to be awful this year.
The book was over five hundred pages of conflict resolution techniques and instructions on what to do if attacked by a dark wizard, which amounted to calling the aurors and hiding under the bed. From his perusal, he could not find information about a single defensive spell in the entire book! Though in chapter fifteen, this Slinkhard wanker warns about the dangers of counter curses and how they can escalate a confrontation if one were to use them to protect oneself
This book was absolutely useless and Harry lamented the gold he had wasted purchasing it.
That evening there was a party to celebrate Ron and Hermione making prefect. Quite a few members of the order showed up and Mrs Weasley set up a buffet-style dinner. They all just hung out enjoying the last night before Hogwarts. Moody put a bit of a damper on things by showing Harry a photo of the last Order of the Phoenix but other than that it had been a fun evening.
As Harry lay down that evening, he couldn't help but wonder if Voldemort knew if he was still alive or not. He was a bit surprised when no mention of the attack on the Tonks' residence had made the paper.
'If he doesn't know yet, he'll find out soon enough,' Harry thought as he drifted into a fitful sleep dreaming of flashing green lights and Dolohov's lifeless eyes looking up at him through the eye-holes of a bone-white mask.
Same Time, Kitchen, Number Twelve Grimmauld Place
"Dammit Albus, why did you hire that insufferable Umbridge woman!" Minerva demanded from her place to Dumbledor's right.
"Cornelius went over my head. The board of governors voted to hire her, not to mention the new decree Fudge passed through the Wizengamot," Albus sighed, feeling just as upset by this new appointment as his deputy.
There were four members of the order besides himself seated in the basement kitchen for this evening in this unofficial meeting. Minerva McGonagall, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Sirius Black and Alastor Moody
"The woman is a monster, Albus," Moody warned.
"I am well aware, Alastor," Dumbledore sighed.
"Madam Umbridge has already filed the paperwork for authorization to use blood quills as punishment on students. The minister signed off on it this afternoon," Kingsley commented, giving Dumbledore a pointed look.
"Short of charging into her classroom and challenging her to a duel, there is nothing I can do about it," Dumbledore admitted tiredly.
"That's not the worst idea I've heard," Moody grunted.
"You know as well as I do this is only the beginning. Surely you remember what that woman was like in school?" McGonagall asked incredulously.
"I do, We never could prove it was her but in my gut, I know she was the one who pushed Miley Brooks off that staircase," Dumbledore sighed, feeling troubled at the memory of Miss Brooks' accident even after all of these years.
"Then you also remember her O.W.L score in defence?" McGonagall pressed.
"Dreadful if I recall," Dumbledore answered.
"Have you read the defence book?" Sirius cut in.
"I have," Dumbledore agreed.
"Then you know exactly how useless it is, and this when the country is on the brink of another war," Sirius exclaimed.
"If I know Miss Granger I believe she will find a way to overcome that hurdle.," Dumbledore assured him.
"Well I don't like it," Moody grunted.
"Nor do I. Now I talked to Severus before coming here. It seems that Voldemort has called a meeting this evening," Dumbledore said, growing weary of the conversation about his new staff appointment.
"Well, what was the meeting about?" Sirius asked, his expression darkening at the mention of Snape.
"Madam LeStrange has brought Mister Potter's survival to the dark lord's attention and Voldemort wished to discuss this new development," Dumbledore explained.
"Considering he would have found out tomorrow evening when Malfoy's brat sent a letter home, that is hardly news," Sirius snorted derisively.
"Voldemort intends to retrieve the prophecy," Dumbledore continued as if Sirius hadn't spoken.
"There is nothing there but a glass sphere full of black smoke, let him go after it," Sirius shrugged.
"Aye, let him spin his wheels on the prophecy. It will keep him occupied for a few months," Moody cut in.
"I doubt it will take him very long to enter the hall of prophecy and discover that prophecy has already been fulfilled," Dumbledore admitted.
"What happens when he does find out the prophecy is complete?" Minerva asked.
"I doubt it will make much difference in the long run. He sees Mister Potter's continued survival as a personal insult, and he will continue his attacks on the boy regardless of the prophecy," Dumbledore said sadly.
"Then train the boy to fight back!" Moody grunted as if it were obvious.
"I have considered this but I would not be able to teach him personally, especially with the new addition to my teaching staff," Dumbledore confessed.
"Then I'll teach him," Sirius offered at once.
"I would gladly let you, but getting you into the school would draw unwanted attention as well," Albus sighed a twinkle coming to his eye as he heard a commotion upstairs.
'CRASH!'
"I HATE THIS GODFORSAKEN UMBRELLA STAND!"
"BE GONE SHAME OF THE BLACK FAMILY, MONGREL OF A MUDBLOOD AND A BLOOD TRAITOR!
"SHUT UP YOU INCESTUOUS OLD HAG OR I'LL DOWSE YOU IN TURPENTINE!"
"I think Tonksie is here," Sirius grinned as the yelling continued.
"Go shut that damn portrait up, please," Kingsley almost begged.
"Sure thing Shack," Sirius grinned as he got up from the table.
"That girl is like a bull in a china shop," Moody grumbled, a fond smile on his lips.
"She's dead useful though, she can blend in anywhere," Kingsley shrugged having become quite fond of the rookie auror.
"Too bad she's as troublesome as her degenerate of a cousin," Moody sniggered.
"Miss Tonks was much worse when she was a student. The girl was in trouble every other day," Minerva sighed tiredly
Dumbledore tuned out the back and forth as he had a sudden epiphany. The answer to the problem they had just discussed was literally right under their noses.
"I believe I have an idea to solve the problem with Mister Potter," Dumbledore said as he pulled himself from his thoughts, his eyes twinkling brightly catching the other occupants' attention.
"Oh no, I know that look," Minerva said in resignation as Tonks and Sirius stepped into the kitchen, the former still grumbling under her breath about what she thought of Walburga Black.
"Ah Nymphadora, I believethat I have a new assignment for you," Dumbledore began, completely ignoring the last comment from his deputy headmistress.
"It's just Tonks, Albus," the pink-haired auror huffed as she took her seat.
"You have my apologies, Miss Tonks," Dumbledore said distractedly.
"What do ya need me to do, Professor?" Tonks asked looking intrigued.
Minerva listened on as Dumbledore explained while the others threw in their own opinions. Truthfully it was a wonderful idea but it presented all sorts of problems that could turn catastrophic if the ministry got wind of it.
'This will either be a genius idea or it will bring Hogwarts down over top of us,' Minerva thought resignedly as Tonks eagerly agreed to take on her new task for the order.