So, new chapter once again, and thank you to the people who reviewed C29, your thoughts were appreciated. Onward to the next chapter. As always, I hope that people enjoy reading these as much as I have in writing them. ~F

Chapter Thirty

Flight from Britain

"I am certain that the Malfoy boy knew where Potter was," Alastor said, pausing momentarily in his jerky pacing through Albus' office. "That most assuredly needs to be the first place we investigate."

The Headmaster suspected this already, of course, but the same problem remained, "Alastor, we don't have the authority to just barge in and create a political incident in the attempt to locate Harry… or rather Nobu'tan…"

"Albus, stop calling him that, he's Harry Potter," Alastor grunted, "That was what he was named, and regardless of whatever he wants to call himself, you can't just change your identity as you please."

"I beg to differ on that Alastor, for a few small reasons," Albus countered, eager to change the subject away from attempting to just raid the Wiltshire manor home of the Malfoys, "Harry was taken from us so young, that he never grew into the identity that we knew him as. Harry is Nobu'tan, and it is by that strange name that he predominantly identifies with. I would be insulting to call him anything but what he truly identifies as…"

"Then should you be calling Voldemort by his preferred hyphenated titles then, by that logic?" Alastor sniped back, but Albus just shook his head.

"No, that is vastly different; Voldemort wants people to call him those ridicules titles, because it gives him power over them to inspire fear. Nobu'tan was the first name that Harry learned to identify himself with, and is by all accounts his name, regardless of what legally was given to him by Lily and James. It hurts no one to refer to Harry as his original name, especially if we are in company that we do not wish to know the truth as of yet."

"I suppose there could be a use to that…" the gruff man acquiesced, "but that still doesn't change the fact that we need to get into Malfoy Manor to find the boy."

"And I've told you countless times, unless you can get Ministry approval and bring Aurors to do the search by the book, we'll never survive the legal battle that Lucius will raise in response." Albus said with a sigh.

Most of the other dark families had willingly opened their homes for the search, even without a warrant from the Ministry, but the boy had not been found. Naturally, the Malfoys had demanded that such a document be presented before they allowed anyone onto their property, and then did everything in their power to prevent such a warrant from being acquired.

But there could be ways to alter that shortly, if some people had responded to Albus' letters of invitation into the Order of the Phoenix. They had grown frightfully low on willing members due to the war with Voldemort, and he had needed to reach out to other families that thought along the same lines that they did.

As if on cue, an owl limped through the air and into the Headmaster's office, crashing into more than landing on the table. The worn aspect of the poor bird left little wonder as to who it had come from. Taking the small scroll of parchment from the bird's leg, Albus scanned it quickly, before smiling in relief. "Alastor, I believe you have your warrant for the Malfoys…" he said simply.

"Arthur pulled through for us then?" Alastor demanded.

"It took time, but eventually he convinced Molly that they were needed to help us fight Voldemort, and that he would indeed return. You know how she is after losing both her brothers in the last war." Albus explained.

Alastor said nothing, more out of respect for the memory of Gideon and Fabian rather than a lack of sympathy. Albus knew that the three of them had been relatively close in ideals and commitment, and the old Auror wouldn't admit it, but the pair of brothers was probably the closest friends that the grizzled old warrior had ever had. Their loss had been felt strongly in all corners of the Wizarding world, and for old Mad-Eye, it was the breaking of his last real link to other people.

"Shall I go get the actual form and get Amelia to countersign, then?" the other man said after a few moments.

"Yes, do so, but be careful… if Nobu'tan is at Malfoy Manor, it is likely to be well defended, and they won't surrender him without a fight I believe." Albus said, sighing in defeat.

"Constant Vigilance Albus, Constant Vigilance…" the Auror said dismissively, stomping out of the room. For a long moment Albus simply watched the door as his close acquaintance departed, before several chirrups from Fawkes broke him from his deep thoughts. There was much to be done and little time to do it in.

Not to mention there was still the matter of Sirius Black's escape to deal with, and an irate Minister that was demanding to know where Harry Potter was so that they could help protect him from the supposed lunatic that was after him. Albus had his own thoughts on the matter, but he had never truly been in a position to stop what had occurred after the death of Lily and James, and his priority had been Harry, so he still felt rather guilty that he had been unable to help Sirius and learn the truth of what had happened, but not for a lack of trying.

He had petitioned for years to have several untried cases reexamined, but was rebuffed again and again by various officials on both sides of the argument. It was growing clear that in the matter of Harry Potter and his orphaning, the Wizarding World was satisfied with their story, and the truth wasn't something they were willing to learn, regardless of what it might be.

But the fact that Fudge wanted to place Dementors around Hogwarts to supposedly protect them from Black was insane, and highly distracting from what Albus knew should be his primary focus, making sure that Nobu'tan didn't do anything rash or destructive while he was so far out of Albus' careful watch.

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Lucius felt the wards ripple in warning as invaders bearing the signals of the Ministry appeared at the edge of his property. "Looks like Dumbledore found a loophole to try and invade my home to search for you…" he commented aloud to Nobu'tan, who was with him and Lucius' family eating a small lunch in the smaller, intimate dining room.

"What shall we do, Lucius?" Nobu'tan replied, "move on with the plan to get me out of the country, or stand and fight?"

Lucius noted the respect that the leader of the Order of the Black Harvest was giving him in deferring to the owner of the manor for their defense, something that the Dark Lord would never do, and he thought for a moment. There was no way for the Aurors and whomever Dumbledore sent to approach except by ground or broom, which would both be rebuffed by the powerful wards around the manor itself.

"We can do both, after a fashion…" he responded, before turning to his wife, "Narcissa, you and Draco will need to leave for this, either the summer homes in Italy or France will do for the time being. I will contact you when it is safe…"

"I want to stay and help!" Draco said abruptly, but Lucius turned a small smile to his son.

"You will help most by leaving; we need to convince the Aurors that we had nothing to do with what is about to happen here, and a suitable story of us being out of the country will be needed." Draco looked disappointed, but nodded, "Don't worry, Draco, your time will come when your magic will be needed to fight other battle, but just not at this moment."

Stand and clapping his hands once, Lucius summoned all the Manor's house elves, "our home is threatened." He announced, and the look of terror on his servants was instant, "Lady Malfoy and my son are leaving for one of our summer homes, I need most of you to go with them and prepare whichever of the homes they choose, the rest will ward and lock away everything that the Ministry would disapprove of finding throughout the house, including those area normally off limits to elves. Dismissed."

The reaction was immediate, with a unified crack, all the elves disapparated to their tasks, already delegating among themselves who was to do what.

The wards tingled again in the back of Lucius' mind, signaling that the approaching Aurors were halfway to the Manor. Looking toward Nobu'tan, he nodded once, and the boy stood, walking swiftly to acquire the garb he had assigned himself for their business as warlocks.

"Be safe, my husband…" Narcissa said imploringly, taking him by the hand once the boy was out of sight. Lucius turned to look in the enchanting eyes of the woman he loved with all his heart, "I will be, now go swiftly," he urged, ushering both wife and son out of the dining room and toward the nearest fireplace. Only when they were safely away to the France home did he refocus completely on the task at hand. Conjuring illusions wrought of Fel magic and shadows, his beautiful aristocratic features melted away into the grisly, tusked visage of an orc, one of the powerful, albeit primitive beings of Nobu'tan's homeworld.

There was a tight balance that needed to be woven, and knowledge of the Malfoy family's direct involvement was not part of their plan. Nobu'tan returned, dressed as the brooding dark warlock that he truly was, albeit devoid of any sort of illusion to shroud his presence. Lucius' illusion even worked to change his voice to a low rasping growl, as he spoke, "It may not be wise to actually let the Ministry officials know that you were indeed here."

"I disagree Lucius," Nobu'tan replied, "let them think that, because I was invited here once, that I let myself in while your family was away, and made secret plans to attack the Ministry from here. In the end they will have to surrender the property back to you, when they find nothing of mine left…" he added, patting a pocket of his large robe.

"So you have agreed to attend Durmstrang in the meantime for this year," Lucius asked.

"I see little choice otherwise in the matter," the young warlock answered, even as they exited the front door of the Manor and spotted the approaching delegation of wizards.

Lucius was less than surprised to see Alastor Moody in the lead, stomping along with a scowl on what was left of his face. At his sides were Dawlish and Shacklebolt, both representing the interests of the Ministry and Dumbledore respectively, presumable, along with around ten other Aurors and a few Ministry flunkies. At the very back, Lucius could spot the red hair of Arthur Weasley, which explained why these ones felt that they could just waltz onto his property. He was glad he had decided on this plan, rather than just demanding a warrant, as they probably had one now.

"There you are Potter!" Moody called, and although Nobu'tan didn't react, Lucius could sense a coiling of magic around his body as the anger at the name surged through the young warlock. "Good, decided to just come quietly did you, alright, off with you, your relatives are worried about your well being after you up and ran from Hogwarts…"

"Quite the intricate lie, don't you think…" Nobu'tan said smoothly, looking sidelong at Lucius in his hunched and unappealing form. Playing his role well, Lucius laughed, sounding like stones being shaken in a bag. "I have told the Headmaster what I felt about his hospitality, and I will not be returning to his prison of a school anytime soon."

"Unfortunate for you then, isn't it," Moody retorted, "that Albus Dumbledore is you Magical Guardian, and therefore in charge of you wellbeing and care, which means he directly has control of where you are or are not supposed to be or go during whatever time he pleases. For your safety in these troubled times, he has determined that the safest place for you is at Hogwarts. So whether you like it or not, son, you are coming back to the school with us, now…"

"I think not…" Nobu'tan replied again, raising his arms and conjuring Fel flames within his palms. Moody moved like lightning, firing a stunner at the boy, but the warlock expected the counter attack, ducking out of the way as he brought both hands forward, unleashing small waves of flame upon the knot of Ministry workers, who scattered for cover.

"Rise my minions, devour them all!" Nobu'tan bellowed in the language of the demons, and the ground erupted with the Felguards that had been positioned to defend the Manor from all attack. Felhounds ran amok, siphoning off magic and preventing the Aurors from effectively casting their spells, leaving many to fall prey to the swinging axes of the Legion's warriors.

Quite a few of the grunt Aurors were at a complete loss as to what to do, and a pair were easily crush by the surprise attack, but to Lucius' great annoyance, Moody was able to react like the wind, his wand working great arcs as he leapt to the side, sending blasting and bludgeoning curses in every direction, already quickly prioritizing targets on the Felhunters over the Felguards, and rallying the rest of his group to do the same.

The itch to draw his wand and slay some of these fools was palpable, but Lucius resisted, as doing so would tip their hand far too soon to the enemy, and engaging directly was to be decided upon by Lord Nobu'tan alone. For the boy's part, he stood stock still and watched the scene unfold with a small smile.

They had already decided that, to make it seem convincing that the Malfoys were indeed not present, that certain amounts of destruction of the grounds had to be allowed, and once all the hounds were slain and the attackers were starting to focus completely on the Felguards, shields and powerful curses coming heavily to bear again the towering demonic soldiers, he acted.

Raising the staff in his hands to the sky, Nobu'tan chanted a short incantation of demonic words, and the entire rune covered piece of wood glowed the eerie fel green of the Legion's magic, even as a storm cloud of green was conjured into existence. Having seen this occur back in the Department of Mysteries, Lucius knew what was coming, but only a handful of the Aurors had a clue.

"Get down!" Dawlish shouted, even as the Infernal Meteorites crashed into the grounds of Lucius' manor, impacting hard and created three massive craters in the once beautiful landscaping. The house elves would not be pleased to have to fix that damage… then again they'd probably be overjoyed for more work, Lucius thought with a suppressed snort of amusement.

The hulking Infernals rose over even the height of the Felguards, and roared their strange incoherent cries, before lumbering somewhat awkwardly toward the Aurors. To support the newly conjured Infernals, Nobu'tan also summoned several swarms of imps, when ran gleefully into the melee, arms full of flame to pelt their opponents with.

"I believe I've made my point," Nobu'tan said aloud to no one in particular, "We shall be going now, but I hope you enjoy yourselves without me…" once again the staff raised to open a portal out of the country, but Lucius saw Moody drop the attacker he was fighting, before whirling on the boy while his back was turned.

Lucius had no way of preventing it as three different spells spat from Moody's wand, knocking the staff from Nobu'tan's hand and striking the boy in the back. His cloak shimmered, preventing the full effects of two stunners, but it left Nobu'tan supremely angry as he staggered forward, before revolving slowly to face Moody, fire in his eyes and creeping up from his hands, the blazing orange and tint of green within casting shadows around him.

"That was most foolish of you…" was all he said before stepping toward the old Auror, reeling back to hurl devastation at his foe.

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Alastor had not expected the boy to be able to put up much of a fight on his own. Yes, through Albus he had expected the demonic creatures, among other things, which was why he had insisted that Amelia send the very best of her Aurors to investigate, citing the attack on the Department of Mysteries as his reference, and that had panned out well. Only three or four had gone down, and even those noncombatants like Arthur Weasley were holding their own against the small shrieking creatures and the huge rock golems.

But once Potter joined the fray himself, all bets were off. Fire leapt from the boy in torrents, scorching the very earth beneath them as he flung spheres and waves of flame of Alastor, trying to wash over his hasty and powerful shields. The boy was inherently powerful, that much was certain, but there was still a certain lack of refinement in his attacks that he could potentially exploit. What truly worried Moody was the last figure, which had yet to do anything of note. The hideous thing which Aurors had described back in the Ministry, and Moody had seen before.

He refused to be caught off guard by the creature, or Death Eater in disguise that it might also be, so he made sure to place his footing to keep the attacking boy between him and the creature, allowing his magical eye to focus on either side and behind him for other potential adversaries that might interfere, even as his wand became a storm itself, catching and redirecting some of the fire that was throw back at the boy, opening a small window that Moody used to pour as many spells as he could, regardless of their effect, at the boy, in effort to knock him from the stance of aggressor.

What the boy did was quite unexpected, even for the grizzled Auror. A small dagger flashed in the light, even as the boy cut his own arm deeply, the blood flowing even as magic was poured out of the wound, creating a barrier around the figure, absorbing and nullifying every spell that Alastor sent at him, before Potter immediately went back on the attack, ignoring whatever spells happened to fly at him in favor of pushing the offense.

Alastor was forced to dodge when a powerful bolt of raw chaotic magic was hurled at him, impacting the ground with a concussive blast, and had to back away again as fire started rain down in spheres from above him, in a miniaturized storm.

Had the magic not been tainted with some unfathomable evil, Moody would have been more than a touch impressed with the skill that performing such abilities must have taken, but fighting for his life left little time for philosophical thinking. That was one thing that Alastor did not understand how Albus managed to do, even to the point of carrying on a debate with his opponent mid duel.

Even for this small bit of reflection, Alastor paid dearly as a spell slipped through his defenses, burning like angry welts running along his insides. He grunted, feeling the pain actually intensify over time rather than diminish, and momentarily wondered why he had been no spell flash had been visible, but had to shield again as more flames soared through the air.

Snarling in irritation, Moody was forced to withdraw to the rest of the Aurors, who were still fighting the hordes of tiny flame-wielding creatures, blasting a pair aside as he moved. Potter was stronger than he gave the boy credit, and the presumption had cost him this victory. "Portkeys!" he called, watching as the dozen wizards fished in their robes for a moment, before one by one vanishing in a swirl of color.

Sparing a final glance back at the boy, who was smirking amid the fire and devastation he had caused, the rest of the demonic creatures gathering around him in a defensive circle. "This isn't the end, runt," Moody said, even as he snapped the small twig that served as his portkey back to the Ministry.

"I look forward to it, wizard…" Potter replied in equal contempt.

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Nobu'tan watched the last of the attacking wizards flee from him, knowing that indeed Alastor Moody was one worthy of his attention. Old and withered though he might have been, the old Auror was still feisty and reasonably powerful. He clearly also had connections to Dumbledore, who was learning the power of the Arcane. So it was reasonable to presume that the next time he faced Moody, and it would be in addition to the arts of a Mage, combined with his already powerful wizarding skills.

"A worthy battle indeed…" he said softly to himself.

"It is past time to leave," Lucius said from his position near the front of the Manor, unmoved from when the battle began, as he was instructed. Nobu'tan nodded, the man was indeed correct. Returning to where his staff had fallen, the young warlock began the ritual for a portal once again, thinking of the place that he had been shown in memory from Lucius. The icy mountains were swirled with snow even in summer this far north, where the hidden Institute of Magic known as Durmstrang was hidden from the prying eyes of others.

Learning the new language of these northerners would be relatively simple, having already mastered the English language with the assistance of wizard's magic, and there would be far more opportunities for his personal activities without prying eyes such as Dumbledore here to hinder him. Lucius had already dispelled his illusion by the time they arrived at the gates of the magical school, but Nobu'tan retained his warlock robes and ornaments, distinguishing himself as something more than just an ordinary student here for enrollment.

Whatever magic kept these wards, powered by far fewer lines than Hogwarts, disappointingly so, but it still functioned to notify whoever was acting as Headmaster that there were guests inside their school.

Within minutes of their entering the first hall, someone appeared from a side room. "Welcome to Durmstrang," the man said with a thick accent to his English, "How can our school be of service to… Lucius?"

"Hello, Igor…" the British Aristocrat replied, starting down at the rather poorly kept man, despite the trappings of a Headmaster about him, "I am here to gauge where your true loyalties lie, as well as secure a place in your school for someone very important to our future."

"My… my Loyalties?" the pitiful man stuttered, not even bothering to look at Nobu'tan, let alone recognize him under the deep hood of his garb. "I… I do not know what you mean Lucius…"

"You know exactly what I mean Karkaroff… we are they who wish to oppose the Dark Lord if and when he returns, you have every reason to assist us if you value your worthless and indeed pitiful life…" Lucius said, going straight for the kill. "You will offer Mr. Potter a place in your school, to protect him from those who wish to control and demand his future, and allow him free reign to go and do as he pleases here. There will be no distraction from your normal operations I assure you…"

"Mr. Potter?" Karkaroff said, finally turning to look at Nobu'tan, "are you really?"

"Perhaps I am, and perhaps it is merely a rouse, but what harm will it do to you to allow my presence here. I am one who serves neither Dumbledore nor Voldemort, and have power enough to combat any threat that may arise here." Nobu'tan countered, enjoying watching the man's mind spin out of control.

Unleashing a small amount of Fel energy had the other man shivering as he responded, "Alright, I understand that you have given me no choice, I will allow this person, whether he be Mr. Potter or not, to stay at Durmstrang. I presume you will attend at least some classes, and by and large act as a normal student?"

"At times…" Nobu'tan replied, "I have much work that will take my time away from such things, but there is always more of your magic that I may wish to learn of. Lucius and others from Britain may come occasionally to meet with me here, but otherwise I will keep mostly to myself, and will require space to that effect, preferably somewhat distant from others."

"It will be done," the man said, stuttering slightly as he gazed sidelong at Lucius. The man still feared his old comrades, and Nobu'tan smirked at the irony that he was completely unaware of the true threat in the room, centered solely upon Nobu'tan himself.

They were led through the rather small castle, when compared to the likes of Hogwarts, up to one of the towers on the fourth and highest floor, where there was a large guest chamber that was carefully placed behind an enchanted statue guardian, which Nobu'tan was permitted to instruct on how to defend his quarters. Several words in orcish were set as a sort-of password, and any others that attempted to force entry, without special permission from the Headmaster himself, would be physically attacked by the guardian, which was some sort of magical creature enchanted out of the stone.

Afterward, with Karkaroff gladly spouting all the benefits of attending Durmstrang Institute of Magic, the trio of magic wielders toured the halls and classrooms, all abandoned with the summer currently upon them, but with the end of July coming upon them, things were in full swing to begin the next round of students that would walk the halls and learn. Several Professors were passed as they walked, but only a few stopped and spoke with them, and none were of any particular note to Nobu'tan.

It was quaint, and Nobu'tan could tell that there would be little time out of this castle for a while. But there was nothing that truly kept him here, not that any of that information needed to be shared with this pathetic man, who would do little more than grovel at even Lucius' feet. "All is quite acceptable, given the circumstances…" Nobu'tan said as they returned to the main hall, "I will remain for a time to settle, and come and go as I please…"

Karkaroff still looked to Lucius before answering, "that should be no problem young man…"

Lucius nodded, "You know how to get in contact if you need anything," he said, before turning toward the entrance. Karkaroff remained until Lucius was out of sight. "Make yourself at home, Mr. Potter…" he said with a false sense of invitation, before simply walking away to where the warlock suspected that the man's office was located.

Ignoring the false platitudes, Nobu'tan returned to his high tower room, examining the rather sparse furnishing, not that he needed much in the way of comfort, used to much less in the tent of Gul'dan. Of much greater importance was the fact that he had all the free space he needed for his magical pursuits and some.

Withdrawing the wizard wand from his robes, Nobu'tan repaired and cleaned everything with a single wave of the small stick. Throwing open the window; he banished what snow was collecting on the small ledge, throwing up a charm that would repel any more from collecting there. Now that he was freely out of Dumbledore's grip, he had no qualms of using his supreme knowledge of their magic to his benefit, and soon enough all his things were sent flying about to appropriate locations in the room, setting themselves up and even magical fire being lit within the fireplace and under the massive cauldron he had acquired to replace the one left at Hogwarts.

Karkaroff had mentioned something about fire being restricted to magical purposes only, but Nobu'tan didn't care what the pathetic man had to say or for his rules. He was a student in name here only, and would actually be hard at work to prepare for the advent of the Legion, and claim his reward from the demonic masters that he must serve.

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Draco waited with his Mother at their family home in France, waiting for the commotion in Wiltshire to finally die down, and soon enough Lucius did indeed return to them. "The Aurors are back at the Manor, and the second part of our plot may begin. Prepare yourselves; for I fear Moody will more than likely be snooping about as usual."

Both Narcissa and Draco nodded, and together they took the floo back to their ancestral home. Mercifully the battle did not extend to their inside of their house, but stepping out to the grounds, where Aurors were swarming around looking for even the smallest remnant of what could only have been the demons that fell in battle. "You there!" barked a man, and the three Malfoys turned with equal looks of disdain as Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody stomped toward them.

"Malfoy!" he roared, drawing his wand as he approached, but Lucius stood his ground.

"What is the meaning of this!" Lucius said coldly back, "what are you all doing here on the steps of my home?"

"Like you don't already know…" Moody spat back, "you probably let the boy right through your wards at any time, to come and go as he pleased, and summoning dark creatures to do his bidding as well…"

"I would never… I haven't a clue to what you are raving, Mad-Eye…" Lucius replied, grey eyes staring into the electric blue of Moody's crazed magical eye.

"The Potter boy, the one you let stay at your home last year, was apparently back while your family was conveniently away, conjuring creatures to do his bidding and living like a king in your home, only to vanish when the Ministry showed up to search your house for him. Very suspicious indeed, that you had rebuffed any attempt to come investigate until there was no choice, and then just happen to not be there when the surprise investigation was to take place."

"How can that be more than coincidence?" Lucius retorted, "I obviously could not know that you were returning, and it is common knowledge that we go abroad during the summer months, now that we only have so much time to spend with our son. How dare you accuse me of anything with no proof! Why should I not have the wards expel the lot of you this instant?"

"This, Malfoy," Moody said, tossing the head of a Felguard at the feet of the three Malfoys. Narcissa, who had not seen any of the demons that Draco, Lucius or the others could summon, wilted somewhat on the spot at the presence of the fel magic, and Draco had to support her as they moved back toward the door of the manor.

"Take that… thing, away this instant, you are upsetting my wife!" Lucius roared his anger palpable and very real. Actors though they are were well trained to be, Draco knew full well that his parents fiercely loved each other, and that his father did everything in his power to protect and shelter his wife from the darker aspects of what he went and did, both when he followed Voldemort and now.

Another Auror came and collected the demonic skull from the ground, packing it as evidence, but Moody continued to watch the three Malfoys for any sign of deception. That point at least was where Draco and Narcissa's reactions were paramount, and why Lucius insisted that they leave and not see what happened to the grounds of their home. As they slowly went about and took account of the damage, their reactions were genuine, as they were experiencing what happened here for the first time.

While naturally they knew everything would easily be repaired by magic, it was still a shock to see the level of devastation that one small skirmish with the demonic legion could produce in a short amount of time. Eventually Moody finally was forced to conclude his investigation, especially with Lucius continual pushing that they were uninvited upon private property, but the scarred man warned them that more Aurors may yet return to follow up; basically another threat for them to not try anything suspicious.

"Is Mr. Potter safe?" Narcissa asked once the last Auror vanished into a swirl of blue Portkey magic.

"Yes, and well out of the way for whatever Dumbledore desired for him this year…" Lucius responded, "We will keep in touch and he may yet return to visit from time to time, but otherwise we need to be aloof of his movements, which include preparing Draco to return to Hogwarts for this coming year."

Draco was not pleased with this news, but understood that he was not longer able to act like a selfish child anymore. He had stepped into an adult's responsibility, and had to take on duties such that fit the station, and currently that was protecting the Order's leader through deception and distraction. And he would see this mission fulfilled, he was prepared for that much at least.

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Hermione had waited quite patiently for the first half of the ride back to Hogwarts upon the Express on the appointed day of September the First. She knew that seeking out Harry usually was not in favor of what the mysterious Ravenclaw desired, and if he sought her companionship, typically he would find her. If he was delaying that meeting, either he was busy with his Slytherin friends, or else he was not there at all, which was absurd naturally. Who in their right mind would purposefully abandon their magical education at Hogwarts…?

Even as she thought that however, Hermione knew that of anyone in the school, Harry would fit the standpoint closest, but still she rejected the idea. Hogwarts stood on the most populace set of leylines in the country, and for most of the regions round about. Magic was powerful here, especially from the arcane aspect of things; there was little reason that the boy wouldn't want to come back at the least to tap into that source of power once again.

It had been odd to receive no letters from him, but still Hermione had been away, traveling with her muggle parents to various locations and doing many activities. Then there was the lack of an owl in the possession of the Ravenclaw, so perhaps he simply hadn't been able to send her anything.

After some time, she did grow restless, and decide to break the presupposed protocol and seek out Harry, starting by locating the Slytherin faction that had gravitated to the boy. They were not difficult to find, as they glowed slightly in the power of the Arcane, although with a far different light than Hermione had witnessed in those she had assisted in training. It was mildly unpleasant, but she presumed that the aura was different based on the sort of person, and their personal inclinations into the magical arts.

"Draco…" she greeted casually, curious to note that not one of the boys here even so much as sneered at her, merely glancing with neutral expressions.

"Granger…" the blond replied, "If you're looking for Harry, he is not here…"

"I could see that, but do you know where on the train he went?" Hermione continued, not interpreting what the boy had said at first.

"No, I mean he is not here, on the train… Harry did not come back to Hogwarts… he's disappeared, again…"

"I…" Hermione started, even as the verbal blow settled into her stomach. It flew in the face of everything she had projected for the possible outcomes of this year. Without Harry, how could she advance as a mage at a rate better than a crawl? For all she knew, Dumbledore had outstripped her already, and she really wanted to be the best, as she had been the first of the new Mages. "Where could he be?" she asked after a moment of processing.

"We have no idea," Draco said slowly, "but we suspect it had something to do with Dumbledore and his manipulations…"

Hermione started to defend the Headmaster, but stopped herself. Not only was it merely their collective opinion, but there had been a few instances where Hermione herself suspected that something was going on between the Ravenclaw and the Headmaster. "…perhaps that is possible, but should we also look into other options?"

"There's this too…" Theodore Nott stated, handing her a copy of the Daily Prophet. She had not had the opportunity yet to acquire a subscription to the newsprint, and scanned the headline with dawning horror.

Dark Creatures attack Ministry and Malfoy Manor, Boy-Who-Lived suspected target of kidnapping

By Rita Skeeter

Hermione read the rather short and surprisingly scanty article rapidly, her fear growing within her. Apparently some sort of gang of creatures, ones that the Ministry has never encountered or seen before, attacked the Department of Mysteries, presumable to steal a prophecy or some other object from within, which they apparently claimed as the vanished from within the department, observed by over half a dozen Aurors who were battling the minions of these unknowns. Days later, the same creatures were seen at the residence of Draco's family, mercifully while the Purebloods were away on vacation, and kidnapped Harry, who had been staying at the spacious Manor for reasons unknown. Aurors dispatched again were thwarted by a horde of evil creatures using magic unknown to any of them present, disappearing with Harry in tow.

"This is horrible…" she said as she lowered the paper to look at the other boys. She had a suspicion as to what the creatures might have been after, if their strange and dark magic was anything to go by. Harry was a natural in the magical arts, and gifted beyond belief in the nature of the Arcane. Was it possible that these creatures wanted to use him for some nefarious purpose?

"What can we hope to do about it though?" Blaise Zabini said casually, gesturing at them all, "We're just students, and I'm sure Dumbledore and the Ministry is already doing everything in their power to find him…"

"There might be something that we can do…" Hermione said, thinking hard. With the right number of Arcane magic users, and some groundwork in Ancient Runes and Arithmancy, which she already had from the books for both classes she was taking, there might be something.

All five of the Slytherin boys looked suspicious at the look that dawned over her face, "We are twelve, four sets of three…" she said, already plotting what would be needed.

"You not contemplating some sort of ritual, are you?" Draco asked hesitantly, "it wouldn't be advisable, as the Ministry outlawed the majority of ritual magic long ago."

"But they have no precedent on the Arcane, now do they?" she countered, which seemed to peak all of their interest, "Just hear me out first…" and she began to explain her idea slowly, trying to contain her excitement.

When she finished, they all sat in silence for a time, "It might work, but you'd need to mix us thoroughly with your group, as you probably could tell our training is somewhat… different from you and yours. But I think a mutual venture in locating Harry might be something that our two organizations could come together on."

Hermione wasn't sure why Draco was making it seem as though normally they ought to be at odds with each other, but she readily accepted the willing help, "When shall we make the attempt?"

"The first Hogsmeade weekend?" Theodore Nott suggested, "it will be easier with the castle clear of anyone that might interrupt or intrude…"

"I also know the perfect location for the ritual." Hermione added, smiling. They might do what the Ministry could not even dream of attempting. It was only a pity that they had to wait two whole months to perform the ritual, but Hermione agreed to the need for secrecy. There were still many unknowns about the Arcane, and the less people that knew the better for now.