Everything is J.K. Rowlings. I only claim the plot. Everything else is hers, all the characters and the magic, all of it. Please let me know what you think though, I encourage feedback of all kinds, just be nice about it!

So it's looking like Snape will be fully on the Dark side and it's leaning towards a mentorship. I'll see what I can do with that. Anyway, still give me your thoughts, I love seeing the comments and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

We Have to Make it Seem Real

Hermione paced around the front of Ron's bedroom as he and Ginny lounged on his bed, their eyes tracking her anxious movements. Dobby had just appeared and given them each a letter from Harry. Hermione was impressed at the thought of using House Elves instead of owls as much as she hated the increased use of slave labor. She had noted Dobby's attire change with narrowed eyes and would definitely be bringing that up with Harry next she saw him. Which judging by the letters, who knew when that would be.

The letters had been brief but very informative. The highlights consisting of about four things. One, Harry was with Him. Two, Harry had struck a deal with Him. Three, Harry had gone to Gringotts to get information about his abilities and walked out with three Lordships and ownership of former Headquarters. Which had explained why that morning everyone in the house, which had been the majority of the Weasleys, herself, Moody, Kingsley, Remus, Tonks, and Mundungus Fletcher, had been abrupt -for lack of a better word- blasted out by some unseen force. Four, Harry had agreed not to harm Him and vice versa during this alliance, and that pardon had extended to themselves, the ones Harry still trusted, if they, in turn, didn't take up wands against His forces.

"Hermione, you need to stop," Ginny sighed from the foot of the bed, her fiery hair draped over the edge of the bed, her knees bent and feet dangling over the other edge.

"You're right," Hermione agreed, nodding her head but continuing to pace. Her hands wringing each other tightly in front of her chest, Ron had taken her wand shortly after the letters when her nerves had started causing sparks. "He's safe. That's all that matters."

"We knew that this would happen," Ron chimed in, propped up by his pillows at the head of the bed, his legs stretched out in front of him. "We knew that He would be Harry's best chance, as much as it sucks, that's the way it is now."

Hermione grimaced and glanced at him. The afternoon sun streaming through the window highlighted the scars that stretched across his forearms, a reminder from what had occurred just over a month ago. Hermione still felt pain in her chest most mornings and when she got too worked up, such as now, she thought with a wince as her chest twinged unpleasantly and she rubbed her breast bone to try to ease the ache.

"I still can't believe what Dumbledore was doing," Ginny murmured, her eyes now fixed on the ceiling. "I mean we are supposed to be the Light, the good guys. Torture shouldn't be in our practice. Harry couldn't even control it! It's a magical inheritance, for Merlin's sake! That's already rare enough." The redheads' cheeks were flushed as the anger started to take over.

"We know it's all terrible and the world has seriously flipped in the last week," Ron agreed, surprisingly calm, Hermione noted. That night in the Ministry had really affected him it seemed. "Question is, how do we deal with it? What do we do now?" Ron glanced between the two girls. "Dumbledore will be questioning us soon. He's already gone for the twins. The only thing that has stopped him up until now is that we can't do magic because of the trace. So we aren't prime suspects. But he will come soon. So, what are we going to do?"

There was a seriousness in those blue eyes that was chilling and Hermione found herself missing the way they would lighten as he laughed or brightened when he told a story about a prank the twins did. But it wasn't the time for that, Ron was right. They needed to decide how to proceed.

"Well that's the easy part," Ginny said, pushing herself up onto her elbows. "We lie. I mean this is Harry we are talking about. He's our friend, not Dumbledore. And after what we just found out, even more so. Fuck Dumbledore and his twinkly eyes. I'm with Harry."

Hermione blinked at the passion behind the statement and wondered at its source before Ron interrupted her thoughts. "That was never in question, Gin," he said with a shake of his head. "Of course we are with Harry. What I meant was, how are we going to play this?"

"We have to pretend," Hermione gasped, realizing what Ron was saying and he gave her a solemn nod.

Ginny frowned. "What?"

"Dumbledore doesn't know what we know," Ron explained, sitting up more fully. "He thinks we are all still dotingly oblivious. We have the upper hand. We continue to hold his trust. Pretend to agree with him. Pretend to turn our backs on Harry. Dumbledore might even tell us something of importance that we can send to Harry. We have to keep suspicion off of us."

"We have to make it seem real," Hermione whispered, feeling sick at just the thought of verbally betraying her best friend.

Ginny seemed to feel much the same way but nodded with a resigned sigh. "I see your point but it makes my skin crawl."

"There is another thing," Ron continued, his brow furrowed as he stared at his hands without seeing them. Hermione realized that Ron must have been thinking about all of this quite a lot. "What with the alliance Harry has formed with Him, well Harry claims it's just temporary. But we all know that He won't want Harry slipping away. Not with what Harry is now. I don't think Harry will fold easily, but it is a very strong possibility that Harry will fully join Him. If so, do we follow or stay neutral? I mean, none of us are with the Light after what Dumbledore pulled, but do we go full Dark?"

Hermione thought it over and glanced at the two Weasley siblings, suddenly realizing that she really didn't have to think all that hard over the answer. "I stand with Harry, no matter what." Her voice was soft but firm.

"Agreed," Ginny said with a definitive nod.

Ron smiled lightly. "Glad we are all on the same page then. It will make it easier, knowing where we stand when things start getting rough."

The three fell silent, each absorbed in their own thoughts about what had just been discussed and the decisions made. Hermione could almost feel the shift in the air at their choice. "Ron! Hermione!" Mrs. Weasley's voice drifted up after another hour of silent thought. "Come down, Professor Dumbledore is here."

Hermione felt cold and her stomach dropped. She had never been good at acting or lying to those of higher authority. Luckily the other two looked just as nervous and pale.

"Coming Mum!" Ron shouted back but none of them moved. "Now or never," he finally sighed, swinging his legs off the bed and standing. "Remember, we stand with Harry. No matter what we end up having to say." Ginny and Hermione nodded and Ron gave them each a nod and reached out to squeeze Hermione's hand. Hermione smiled gratefully at him, taking comfort and calm from his strength. He raised his eyebrows as he stared at her, not dropping his hand, but silently asking if she was ready.

Taking a shaky breath, Hermione squeezed back and nodded her head. "Remember not to look in his eyes," she cautioned as Ron dropped his hand and opened his bedroom door. He led the trio out of his room and down the stairs. Ginny trailing behind Hermione, despite not having been summoned.

By the time they had reached the bottom of the stairs, Hermione was focused and determined. This was all for Harry. Her best friend, who had always been there for her. She would lie as much as she could if it kept him safe. The three stopped just before entering the kitchen and exchanged one last nod of solidarity before stepping in the kitchen.

Mrs. Weasley was bustling about preparing that nights dinner and Dumbledore sat at the table with a freshly prepared cup of tea in his hands chatting with Mr. Weasley. What was surprising was that Moody, Remus, and Tonks were also there. The latter two looking worried and confused, as did Mr. Weasley. Moody's magical eye swiveled towards them and Hermione felt her nerves heighten and tried to reflect it as concerned worry.

"Ah, children, thank you for coming," Dumbledore said brightly. The light that twinkled in his eyes looked sinister now but Hermione kept her focus.

"What's wrong, Professor? Is something wrong with Harry? Is he alright? Do you know why we were kicked out of Headquarters?" she rushed out in a stream of questions that would have been appropriate for the Hermione of a week ago.

The aged wizard smiled kindly and gestured to the empty seats around the table. "Please, take a seat. Ah, Ginny, yes, I suppose you should also hear this as well. Please, sit." The three students took their seats. Hermione wondered if Dumbledore noticed the distance they put between him and themselves. He didn't give any indication. "As a matter of fact, this is about Harry."

Remus and Tonks perked up and Mrs. Weasley stopped bustling for a moment, coming closer to hear any word of her surrogate son. Moody grumbled something and slouched deeper in his chair, his eye continuously moving.

"What's wrong?" Ginny asked fretfully. "Did something happen?"

Dumbledore sighed gravely and the wrinkles on his forehead deepened. "I'm afraid I have grave news." Hermione tensed. Wondering how the old man was going to play things. "Harry has gone Dark."

The adults in the room, minus Moody, gasped horrified and unbelieving. Hermione tried her best to mimic them even though she felt like cursing something.

"That can't be possible," Ron blurted out. "It's Harry. He's the Lights' Saviour, the Chosen One, how can he be Dark?"

"I agree," Remus said speaking up. "I find it hard to believe that Harry is Dark."

"I know, my boy. I could hardly believe it either. But it is true. He received his magical inheritance on his birthday. He is a Necromancer." There was a clang as Mrs. Weasley dropped the pan she had been holding, bringing her hands up to cover her mouth.

"No!" Tonks gasped horrified, her hair looking a sickly yellow to match her mood. "He can't be! There hasn't been one in centuries."

"It's true," Moody chimed in. "Seen the mark myself."

"Is that why you rushed out last week?" Ginny whispered. She looked the perfect mixture of horrified and like she just truly wished what she was told wasn't true. Hermione glanced at the Headmaster curious at how he would answer the question.

"Yes, my dear. The wards alerted me that Dark magic was occurring at Harry's house. I assumed it was Death Eaters. When I arrived, Harry had just killed his Uncle and was starting to kill his cousin and Aunt. I did the only thing I could and stunned him. I had hoped that Voldemort might have been possessing him but then I saw the mark on his chest. I enlisted Alastors help in bringing him someplace safe, to question him when he woke up. Hoping that maybe we could reason with him."

"And?" Tonks blurted out, unhappy with the pause in the story.

Dumbledore sighed heavily and if Hermione hadn't known the truth she would have felt for the man. "He awoke and killed Hestia Jones whom I had brought to possibly tend to any wounds he might have received."

"I don't believe it," Remus muttered, looking terribly pale as he stared at the table. Hermione worried that the man might get sick or faint...maybe both.

"But this is Harry," Ron protested weakly, as though trying to convince himself. Hermione chanced a glance at her best friend and saw him looking absolutely distraught at the news. She hoped her own face was mimicking the same emotions well enough.

"Where is he now, Albus?" Mr. Weasley asked, speaking up for the first time.

"He has escaped," the man sighed. "He escaped the other day and I have no trace of him as he no longer has his wand, for I took it off of him when he found him attacking his family."

"Oh the poor dear," Mrs. Weasley fretted. "All alone and not knowing what is happening. He must be so frightened."

"The old Harry yes, but this is not that Harry, Molly," Albus said sadly.

"He is a Necromancer, whoever he was before is gone," Moody said roughly. "You know the stories, as well as I. Necromancers are the Darkest of the Dark. Even Dark Lords rejoiced when they died off."

"But this is Harry," Hermione said softly, she turned her eyes to the Headmaster as though silently pleading that this was all a joke, but she made sure to keep her gaze just out of focus of his eyes staring at the bridge of his nose instead.

"I know, my dear. It is a hard blow to all of us. But Harry is Dark now. And we must do what we can to combat this situation. He is loose in the world and who knows how many have already died. We need to alert the media to be on the lookout, but I wanted to speak with all of you first. You knew him best." Hermione stiffened slightly as those twinkly blue eyes swept across the group around the table. "Can you think of where he might have gone?"

"Not really," Ron muttered, his brow furrowed in thought. "But it's like you said, Professor. Harry isn't the bloke we knew anymore. He's Dark now. Who knows how he thinks now." Ron's nose had wrinkled in disgust as he said this statement. Dumbledore was nodding sagely and Moody looked pleased with his words. Remus still looked sick and Tonks seemed torn but seemed to be leaning towards her mentors. Mr. Weasley seemed to have aged a decade in the span of the five-minute conversation and Mrs. Weasley was busying herself with cleaning dishes but shaking her head in a fretful way.

"What about the former Headquarters?" Tonks suggested. "Could he be there?"

"It is our best guest. I can only guess that it was Harry that banished us in the first place which means he has been to Gringotts and accepted his Black Lordship."

"You mean he kicked us out of his home?" Mrs. Weasley asked in surprise.

"He isn't little Harry Potter anymore," Moody shouted suddenly, turning both eyes towards the Weasley matriarch. "He is Dark. Potter is a Necromancer. What should he care about others having a house?"

"But he knows about here? Could he come here?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"It is unknown," Dumbledore sighed. "But I will increase the wards around the house just in case."

"Do you think it wise to alert the media, Albus?" Mr. Weasley asked changing the subject. "News of this nature would incite mass panic. Harry was the Chosen One, hearing what he is now will destroy people."

"I know, Arthur. But they need to know. They need to be aware and put on alert. Harry is dangerous."

Remus suddenly stood, hunched over on himself. He mumbled something but Hermione couldn't catch it before the werewolf was stumbling out of the kitchen and a few moments later she heard the front door open and shut.

"I guess this explains how Harry was able to survive the Killing Curse," Hermione said as bitterly as she could, trying to draw focus away from Remus's sudden exit. "What exactly do you know about Necromancers, sir? I haven't read much about them. Most of it is all legend and myth and stories to scare children. Is it true they can kill with just a look?"

"I'm afraid I don't know, the very nature of them is uncertain," Dumbledore replied hesitantly, as though deciding his words carefully. "The only thing that history agrees on is that they are the Darkest of creatures. I fear we need to focus on bringing Harry down before we can continue with Voldemort."

Tonks gasped again. "You really think he is that big of a threat?"

"He's Dark, Nymphadora," Moody snapped. "All of the Dark is a threat. He isn't a doe-eyed Gryffindor anymore, he would kill you if given the chance and laugh while doing it. His mind is warped now." The fact that Tonks didn't even react to her given name demonstrated how shaken up the young Auror was. "Worse, once You Know Who finds out, Potter will be his target too. Potter needs to die before he can join with that tyrant."

"And given their connection, it isn't a terrible leap to guess that Voldemort already knows and is hunting him already. Which is why we must alert the public."

Hermione refrained from jumping up in defense of her absent friend at the blatant declaration on Harry's life by nodding her head as if in agreement but really just to provide motion for her anxious energy. Her chest was flaring greater now and she pressed her palm against her breast bone again to try to relieve the ache.

"I know this is all terrible news, children," Dumbledore continued, turning his full attention to Ron, Ginny, and Hermione. "But I need to ask for your help."

"Of course," Ron said instantly. "After all we did for him! All we went through! I still have my scars from that night at the Ministry," he said furiously, thrusting his arms out to show the thin lines wrapping around his skin. "After everything, he just went Dark on us! We were his friends. How could he turn on us like this!" The redhead continued viciously. Hermione had to remind herself that this was all an act because it sounded so believable.

"He's right, Professor," Ginny chimed in. Her face flushed with indignant anger. "To think I actually liked him!" She pretended to gag. "Who knows how many witches he might charm and use with his new powers. Whatever you need, just ask."

Dumbledore turned his gaze to Hermione and she gave as fierce a nod as she could, not trusting herself to speak just yet. The nod didn't seem to be enough though and so taking a breath Hermione continued the rant against her best friend. "It just makes me so sick, Professor. I guess we should have seen it from the start though. I mean he is a Parselmouth and then that connection he has with You Know Who. I just wished we had realized sooner," she spat out and rubbed at her chest pointedly, silently referencing the damage taken at the Ministry.

"I understand this betrayal must feel terrible and I appreciate your willingness to assist me," the aged wizard said kindly sympathetic. "I only wish for you to keep an eye out for any contact he might send. He is Dark and so his goal will be to take down the Light and I have no doubt that he will be using his former connection to you in order to do so." Hermione tried to look disgusted at the thought of contact from Harry but felt a giggle bubbling in her chest at thinking of the letters they had just received a few hours previously. "If he sends you any letters, please bring them directly to me. Don't even open them. We don't know what kind of Dark magic he might have placed on them."

"Of course, Professor," the three chorused together.

"Enough of this talk now," Mrs. Weasley chimed in, bustling over. "Dinner will be ready shortly so you three set the table. Headmaster, Alastor, Tonks, do you plan on staying for dinner?"

All three declined and said their goodbyes. The Burrow felt horribly empty with everyone else gone. Dinner was silent and uncomfortable, with Mrs. Weasley looking like she wanted to either shout or burst into tears at any given moment. Finally, the food was finished and the three teenagers escaped back into Ron's room.

Ron slammed the door and slouched against it, letting out a breath that he had probably been holding since entering the kitchen. Hermione felt her knees go weak and reached blindly for the crowded desk against the wall. While Ginny collapsed onto the bed with a whimper. Hermione really didn't know how spies in wars handled it. The high strung emotions and deceit. Maybe that was why Professor Snape was so cold. He had played spy for both sides long enough that he had just shut off all of his emotions in order to stay sane.

"I feel like I need to shower after listening to all of that," Ginny finally admitted. "I felt like being sick every time I spoke."

Ron grunted, his head resting against the door, eyes closed. "I know what you mean. But we made it through."

Hermione sighed. "We just need to keep an eye out on everyone, see who else might be sympathetic to Harry. Remus and your parents might be but I'm nervous about approaching anyone yet."

"We also need to talk to the twins," Ginny pointed out. "See what they have to say and if they are on the same page as we are."

"Yeah," Ron agreed, it seemed that talking strategy was helping to calm his mind. He was able to open his eyes and step away from the door at least. "We need to wait on more words from Harry though. See how he wants to play this and go from there. For now, we can only sit, wait and watch. Good news is that Dumbledore and Moody seemed to have bought our act."

Ginny groaned and Hermione sighed. The three separated soon after and as Hermione climbed into the bed set up in Ginny's room, she couldn't help but think of what Harry was doing now and if he was really as safe as he claimed under His roof. Taking another deep breath and rubbing at her aching chest, she closed her eyes and waited for sleep.