Chapter 106

Understanding the Enemy

With word in Hogwarts about Ron's attack passing around, people were whispering and being paranoid and careful around the school. Hogsmeade weekends had been cancelled, and security was heightened to keep the students safe.

Whilst Ron was still in the hospital wing, Lily had managed to keep up appearances, despite her anger inside. She was thankful that the Quidditch team played perfectly in sync. Cormac was a decent keeper and managed to save most of Hufflepuff's shots. Ginny, as the chaser, was in top form as usual, and Lily managed to catch the snitch when they were up by a hundred points.

Luna had been commenting on the match, which was funnier than anyone else who had ever commentated. Lily, and most of Gryffindor, struggled to keep straight faces with Luna's commentary, though she had been told to focus several times by Minerva.

After the match, Lily and the team had celebrated, though Lily and Hermione had taken some sweets and cakes to Ron after, so he and Lavender could celebrate with them, and spend time with them.

As soon as Ron was released, they brought him up to speed on everything they had been researching, as well as the training sessions.

The exam for the Apparition lessons was also coming up, so Crouch had been giving the group pointers, and helping them to learn how to keep focused, and to apparate without being splinched.

On the day Ron had been released, Lily received a letter from Dumbledore, asking her to meet him that evening for another lesson. She told Ginny, but she also felt ashamed that she had failed to get the memory from Slughorn. Would Dumbledore have a suggestion for getting the memory?

As she and Ginny reached Dumbledore's office, they saw Professor Trelawny there, complaining that she was to be thrown out, and was being usurped by Firenze. Lily had never taken Divination, but Hermione had nothing positive to say. Lavender and Parvati liked Professor Trelawney, but they weren't sure of the lessons themselves.

"Professor Trelawney, I know I've not taken your class," Lily began. "But my friends have, and they've told me how you possess a 'seeing eye' when you've taught them?"

"Yes, that's right, I do possess the all-seeing eye, which is why I'm surprised that the old nag hasn't been banished," Trelawney replied, looking at Lily.

"Well, that's something Firenze doesn't possess; he foretells things by looking at the stars, and even then, he's told me it can be unpredictable. So whilst he might be teaching some of the students, it's clear that they learn more skills from you. Not everyone will want to believe in the all-seeing eye, however, because they fear knowing the future, so isn't it good that only those who want to learn from you are in your class? This way, you don't have to bother yourself with those who don't want to learn, and so can focus on the select few who can see into the future," Lily explained, wanting to help keep the peace.

Trelawney, for her part, looked thoughtful as she considered Lily's words. "You might have a point there," she admitted. "This will require some careful consideration though."

"And if anyone can see the solution, it will be you," Lily told her. Trelawney rewarded Lily with a smile.

"A shame you did not attend my class, Miss Potter, for I suspect your open mind would see very well," Trelawney told her. "Professor Dumbledore, until next time," she said, before leaving the office. For a brief moment, Lily was sure she saw relief in Dumbledore's eyes.

"Nicely done, Lily. I must confess, Divination is proving to be a troublesome subject, more so than I could have foreseen, especially given that I, too, did not take it. I cannot ask Firenze to return to the forest, for he is now an outcast, and it would result in his death, but Sybill is… naïve to the danger she would be in outside the castle, and I am hesitant to inform her of this," Dumbledore explained.

"Because she was the one who foretold the prophecy about me and Voldemort?" Lily guessed.

"Indeed," Dumbledore confirmed, as Crouch walked into the office. "Ah, Barty, I was wondering if you would arrive tonight."

"Apologies, Albus, I was busy dealing with a matter you asked me to attend to," Barty replied, wearing what was now his customary suit, and jacket. He took the jacket off and sat down. "You'll be pleased to know that Project Hideaway is now complete."

"That is welcome news indeed, Barty. I'm thankful for your hard work and diligence on this matter," Dumbledore flashed a smile as he spoke.

"I'm sorry to say that I… I wasn't successful," Lily said, looking down at the ground. "I tried, but failed, and I wanted to come up with a plan, but before I could, Ron was poisoned."

"And so, your focus was elsewhere," Dumbledore concluded.

"Yes, sir. I still haven't got a plan, but it is forefront of my mind, and I won't give up until I succeed," Lily assured him. Dumbledore nodded.

"I am thankful that you have understood the seriousness of this matter and shall trust you to succeed. However, until you do, there will be little point in meeting after tonight, as that memory is the most important one to find," Dumbledore said.

"What about speaking to him yourself, Albus, and explaining the seriousness of the matter?" Crouch suggested.

"If I thought that would work, I assure you, I would have done so. With Horace, I am confident that the solution lies with Lily," Dumbledore replied. "Now, we shall be looking at two memories tonight, both important which will be part of the final pieces of this puzzle."

"Who's memories, sir?" Ginny asked.

"The first is an old House Elf's, called Hokey, and the second is mine. Before we begin, do you remember where we were?"

"Yes sir," Lily confirmed. "Voldemort killed his father, and his grandparents, and made it look like his uncle, Morfin, was the killer, before returning to Hogwarts and asking Professor Slughorn about Horcruxes."

"Your power of memory serves you well, Lily," Dumbledore complimented. "When we began this journey, I told you that we would be going through murky guesswork and speculation. Now, so far, I trust you agree that I've shown you strong sources for my deductions and guesses as to what Voldemort was doing with his life until the age of seventeen?"

"So far, yes sir," Lily and Ginny said at the same time.

"What we will be looking at tonight will be stranger, and murkier," Dumbledore replied. "It was, as you can imagine, difficult to find evidence about the young Riddle, but it has been next to impossible to find anyone willing to reminisce about Voldemort as an adult. Most of those who know him are, of course, his Death Eaters, and even they know very little."

"He lives in secrecy. No one even knows where he sleeps, or if he sleeps," Crouch added, as Dumbledore picked up two vials, each containing a memory.

"The first we'll be seeing is Hokey, a very old house elf who served her family for many years," Dumbledore said. "Before we do, however, one thing I want to share is what happened when Riddle left Hogwarts. He had been a Prefect, and he had been Head Boy. He got top grades in every exam he took, including Transfiguration, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions… he ignored subjects such as Muggle Studies, Divination, and Arithmancy. They were subjects he felt was beneath him and did not have any way of assisting him in taking power. I believe, and this is just a guess, when he first came to Hogwarts, he had already decided to gain power to take over."

"He always had loved power, from what I can tell of his history," Crouch added. "I know he was able to plan quite well, and even taught me a few tips."

"Indeed. In any case, everyone felt he would go far, and expected him to join the Ministry of Magic. Several teachers, Professor Slughorn chief among them, offered to set him up with appointments, but he rejected all of them," Dumbledore said.

"None of them would hold up to what he wanted. He could have tried to become Minister of Magic, but then he'd have been forced to follow the law," Ginny was angry and bitter at the thought of it. "He's vain, and a power hungry idiot. Being Minister wouldn't have given him any real power or appealed to his vanity."

"Indeed," Dumbledore agreed. "His first choice of job was one that very few knew at the time, or even know now. I was one of the few who Professor Dippet confided in about it. Voldemort approached him and asked to remain at Hogwarts as a teacher."

"He wanted to teach?" Lily was confused. Voldemort had never struck him as someone who would want to teach, so there had to be an endgame to it, a secondary objective that would give him power. Then it hit him as he thought of what they had been talking about only moments earlier. "He wanted to teach students, and make them loyal to him, so he could build up his army," Lily said.

"Whilst also being at the one place he first gained power, and the first place he felt a connection to," Ginny added. "You said he wasn't popular at the orphanage, and we know how he feels about muggles, so he wouldn't want to be among them."

Dumbledore was beaming at the two of them proudly. "You have both absorbed the knowledge wonderfully, and you have an excellent grasp on who he is as a person," Dumbledore said. "That is something that will help you in the long run, but I am proud of how well you've listened, and learnt, in these lessons."

"Well, you are an excellent teacher, Professor," Lily complimented.

"Thank you, Lily. I am glad I have had this attempt to be able to teach you both. I know our lessons have been rather unorthodox, but it has been important, I can assure you of that," Dumbledore promised.

"We know, sir," Lily replied. "It's helping us a lot already."

"I'm glad. Now, Professor Dippet said that he was too young at eighteen but invited him to apply in a few years. I had my own reasons for not wanting him to remain, which I kept to myself, but I did advise Armando to not employ him. When he was rejected, he got a job at Borgin and Burkes," Dumbledore said.

"Borgin and Burkes?" Lily asked. "Let me guess; he wanted access to powerful artefacts?"

"That is the most likely reason, yes," Dumbledore confirmed. "That is something we'll be discussing after we've seen the memories."

"Did you not share your concerns with anyone, sir?" Lily asked.

"At the time, I did not. At first, I was hoping to be wrong about him, and I hoped he would learn to be a better man. Sadly, I did not know the circumstances of his conception, and had I known, I would have been much more cautious," Dumbledore's voice was full of regret. "I should have researched him, that much is clear now."

"As Uncle Sirius tends to say, Hindsight is a bitch," Lily said. "Sorry about the language."

"An accurate saying," Dumbledore replied. "Even after the events that followed Myrtle's death, and the Chamber of Secrets opening, Tom was able to charm almost anyone he wanted."

"In my second year, Riddle showed me one of his memories, first when Myrtle's body was found, and when he tried to attack Aragog," Lily said. "He had met with Professor Dippet, and asked to stay over the holidays, rather than going back to the Orphanage, but Professor Dippet said no, due to the attacks. That was probably when he decided to frame Hagrid and stop the attacks, not because he felt successful, but because he decided that staying at Hogwarts was more important."

Dumbledore looked at her, as did Crouch. "I was unaware of that, Lily. I must confess, I did often wonder why he stopped the attacks."

"It makes sense," Crouch said. "He saw Hogwarts as his home and would have wanted to stay there as much as possible, knowing he could remove muggle borns later."

"Did Voldemort ever get permission to stay at Hogwarts during the holidays?" Ginny asked.

"I believe he was given permission after the attacks stopped, though I merely assumed Armando chose to do so as a reward," Dumbledore said. "Thank you, Lily, for sharing that with me."

"I'm sorry I didn't do so earlier, sir. I didn't realise it would be important," Lily admitted.

"Oftentimes, the smallest things can lead to the greatest answers. I am certain there are many small details I know of that might be important to someone, yet I don't know who yet," Dumbledore explained.

"Still, I should have thought of this sooner," Lily told him.

"Do not concern yourself with what we can't change, and focus on what we can," Dumbledore said. "Now, we shall begin with the first memory, Hokey's, and learn more of Voldemort, and his plans."

As they approached the Pensieve, Lily was curious, and a little apprehensive. Why were they looking into the memories of a House Elf? What was special about this one? What had Voldemort done to the poor house elf? She didn't know, but Lily knew that whatever they learnt tonight would answer some questions that had been on her mind.