The answer to a cliffhanger. A bit of a shame that it's a cliffhanger itself . . .
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Harry Potter: A Flaw in Fate
The Blackest of Nights
VIII. An Unexpected Offer
Her breath fogged up in the air before her. Harry watched as it dissipated into nothingness, his fingers fumbling with the wand in his robe pocket. Sparks flew from its end as he pointed it between her eyes.
"What do you want?" Harry grit his teeth, his feet sinking further into the snow, "Why are you here?"
The woman with the curly black hair seemed rather unimpressed. She slowly raised a single digit into the air, pushing the end of his wand from her face. Harry scowled, pointing it back at her again. Bellatrix pouted.
"See, that's just not very nice." the woman giggled, her eyes combing over his face, "No wonder you're so buddy-buddy with blondie - she seems boring, too -"
The end of Harry's wand flashed a sickly green. He shoved it into Bellatrix's neck - but rather than protest, the woman stared at the end in wonder.
"It's beautiful." Bellatrix let out a heavy sigh, turning back to him. A wild, excited gleam welled up in her eyes, "Have you done it, then? Have you killed?"
Harry swallowed. Something uncomfortable wavered upon his lips, but he pushed it aside. He glared at the curly-haired witch, his wand not moving an inch.
"How do you know about Daphne?"
"Daphne?" Bellatrix frowned, flicking Harry's wand away from her again, "I don't know any Daphnes. I know about blondie, though. Mini Ophelia. She's very pretty, isn't she -"
Harry growled. His arm straightened as he returned his wand to between the woman's eyes - but her arm arced up as well, and a flash of bright, white light flooded his vision. Harry swirled through the air, crashing into the snow with a soft thud.
Fucking hell that hurt.
"See, that isn't nice." Bellatrix skipped over to him, a curved black wand pointed at the side of his skull, "You can't go introducing yourself like that - you've got to say, 'Hi, I'm ickle Harry, nice to meet you' -"
Blood slid from his lips. Harry wiped at his chin, watching as the thick liquid seeped from his gloves to the freshly fallen snow. A single drop splashed upon the cover of a tattered leather diary. Harry's eyes swam across its surface, and a pained expression marred his features.
Not strong enough.
"If you're here to kill me," he began tiredly, shoving himself off the earth, "just get it over with already."
Laughter assaulted his ears, screeching like nails on a chalkboard. Bellatrix, her wand still pointed at his head, doubled-over, giggling madly.
"Kill you?" Bellatrix straightened up, brushing her curly locks out from before her dark eyes, "Now, why would I ever want to kill you -"
The woman paused. Dark, heavily-lidded eyes latched onto something in Harry's hands. The diary, thin and tattered, swung in the grip of his palm.
Sweltering heat slammed through the cold, stale air. The snow beside Bellatrix's feet melted. Rivulets of water slid down towards the Great Lake.
"What did you do?" Bellatrix hissed, the end of wand glowing a violent red, "What the fuck did you do, you miserable little half-blood -"
"Why don't you ask your Master?" Harry spat angrily, "She's the one who gave it to me in the first place!"
Bellatrix paused again. A soft giggle escaped her lips, and the tip of her wand dulled slightly.
"She might've mentioned it." Bellatrix kicked at the snow, watching as it soared through the air, "I forgot. Silly me."
Flecks of snow wafted back towards her, carried by the gentle breeze. Bella spat them out angrily, glaring.
"You're lucky she's got more of those, mind you." she pointed lazily at the diary, "I'd have had to kill you for real, otherwise. Not that it matters, not now - I've got something important to tell you -"
Bella frowned. She kicked at the snow angrily as she paced back and forth, her eyebrows hunched together.
"What'd I want to tell you?" her words, soft and whispered, were more to herself than anything, "What was it, come on - oh, right!"
Bellatrix turned. The same mad gleam hovered in her eyes as she lowered her wand, flashing Harry a dark smile.
"I'm here to make sure you don't do anything rash or reckless or stupid. You don't do that often, do you?"
"Only when I'm bored." Harry murmured sarcastically.
"Same!" Bellatrix clapped merrily, bouncing up and down, "Well then, I'll have to make sure we only do it together. Nothing unsupervised, alright?"
She's absolutely barmy.
"I'm here to help you, too." added Bellatrix, "I can teach you - I heard you like being taught all sorts of things, don't you?"
A flash of scarlet bore into his mind, accompanied by straight black hair and soft, pale skin. Harry grimaced.
I'm not talking about her. Not with one of her servants, and especially not with a deranged one at that.
"What, exactly, stops me from telling people all about this?" Harry glanced up at the castle. The large oak doors were cracked open - but they were far from the entrance, where a few students were huddled, "I mean, what makes you think I won't tell everyone you were here?"
Bellatrix frowned.
"I suppose you could." she admitted, frowning, "But then you wouldn't learn anything I have to offer, would you?"
Harry stared at her, nonplussed.
"Is that it?" he asked, spinning around, "I'll be going, then -"
A bright, white light flashed again, and Harry flew through the air a second time. He groaned, wiping the blood from his lips.
"I wouldn't have been hit, you know." murmured Bella, swaying slightly, "I can teach you how to avoid it, too -"
"I've already been taught." Harry hissed, pushing himself up again, "By two different versions of your Master, if you must know -"
"I heard about that." Bellatrix snickered, "Lilian Baker sends her regards."
Harry scowled.
"But," Bella continued, drawing out her words in an almost childlike manner, "Little Miss Baker only taught you tactics, didn't she? And there's only so much you can learn from a diary, even if it was hers -"
Pale blue sparks leaked from the tip of Harry's wand, but Bellatrix paid them no mind.
"I'm a Black by birth, too." she whispered, tapping the side of her skull, "I've got the knowledge of the Blacks all in here - it's yours, if you want it. Even pretty-bitty Emily doesn't have that."
Harry paused. His body leaned in against his will, and Harry vaguely felt his wand lower.
"You really expect me to believe you didn't tell her a thing?"
Bellatrix shrugged.
"I can't." she explained simply, "She's not part of the family -"
"I'm not, either."
"Oh yes, you most certainly are." crooned Bellatrix, leaning closer, "Didn't you know? Your grandfather Charlus fucked my grand-auntie - Dorea, by the way. That's how titchy-little James was born!"
Right.
"And that's close enough?" he asked, unable to hide the curiosity in his voice.
Bellatrix shrugged again.
"Close enough for me." she whispered, "You've got the Black blood in your veins, haven't you? Otherwise I wouldn't be able to even talk to you about it - it'd all sound like gibberish. And besides," she paused, leaning in closer, "there aren't any other Blacks alive to stop me, are there?"
Harry frowned. His fingers slid across the length of his wand, wiping away bits of ice and snow.
"Tell you what," Bella leaned even closer, the hem of her robes brushing against Harry's shoes, "You're a third year, aren't you? When you finally realise just how interested you are, you can meet me in Hogsmeade - I'll be waiting for you there."
The woman with the curly hair nodded to herself, replacing her silky black hood upon her head. Harry stared at her as she turned around.
"My form isn't signed." he blurted out, "My Hogsmeade one. I'm not allowed to go."
Bellatrix giggled. Her head turned a fraction, and her lips slowly curved upwards.
"Then you've got some work to do, don't you?"
The woman with the curly hair skipped off into the distance, her dark black robes trailing after her as she approached the outskirts of the Forbidden forest.
-(xXx)-
Harry watched as the last students filed into the classroom. Beside him, Daphne fiddled with her textbook. The blonde-haired girl squinted, her eyes sliding across the book's surface. To his other side sat Nott. Harry turned to him, shoving his book aside.
"We didn't have any homework, did we?"
"Just a twelve-inch essay." murmured Nott, grinning as Harry paled, "I'm kidding. It was fourteen."
"It was zero." Daphne flicked the page of her book, turning to Harry, "Lupin almost never gives us homework -"
Bang.
The classroom door flew open, revealing none other than Professor Snape. The hooked-nosed man strode across the room, idly waving his wand. The curtains slowly slid close, and the little daylight left the room.
"Professor Lupin has chosen a rather poor time to feel ill." he drawled, tapping the front desk with his wand, "As such, I shall be teaching you today."
Whispers filled the classroom. Professor Snape glared at them all, and they fell silent. To Harry's left, Daphne was frowning. She glanced at Snape, then to her book, then back again.
"What is it?"
Daphne shook her head. She plucked a thin sheet of parchment from her bag, neatly marking her place near the end of the book.
"I'm not sure." she murmured, "Nothing, maybe."
Harry frowned. A few seats in front of him, Hermione Granger did something similar. She was carefully reading through the back of her textbook, ignoring Ronald Weasley's attempts to grab hold of her attention. Harry leaned in, trying to see what she was reading - but the girl slammed her book shut, shoving it into her bag.
Light flickered at the front of the room. Harry watched as Professor Snape pulled out a model of a small, wart-covered creature, placing it on the table before them all.
"This," he began, his lips curving into a sneer, "Is a Red Cap. They often stalk those traveling through forests. Should you turn around, they will dive into the dirt beneath them. The top of their heads resembles a mushroom - it is often enough to convince most that they are safe. They will attack you the moment they think they can get away with it, and they often aim to kill.
"Why Lupin wishes for you all to learn about this, I've no idea. I personally would have chosen something more threatening - werewolves, perhaps." Snape paused, his eyes lingering upon a few Gryffindors near the front, "Then again, I wouldn't put it past some of you to get beaten by a mushroom."
Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan both grimaced, as did Ron from his seat behind them. Harry watched as the red-headed boy's ears went bright red, almost matching his hair. Professor Snape paid them all no mind, pacing back and forth by the front of the classroom.
"Take out your textbooks, and turn to page forty-seven." Snape plucked up the model, pocketing it, "You have half an hour to write an eight inch essay about Red Caps and their behaviors. Get to work."
The students all groaned, muttering darkly as they reached into their bags.
-(xXx)-
Cool mahogany pressed against the underside of his palm. Harry closed his eyes as his fingers slid across it, pausing as they reached the edge. They curved slightly; Harry traced the table's underside, turning to the window at his side.
Snow still littered the Hogwarts Grounds. Even from his window in the Hogwarts library, Harry could see just how much of the school was covered. In the distance, the Whomping Willow shook. Shards of ice flew from it, and thick, heavy branches stabbed at the snow by the tree's roots.
A small huddle of girls sat nearby. They watched as the willow flung its branches around, carefully making sure they remained far out of reach. Emerald eyes fell upon the smallest of them all. She had long blonde hair and soft, pale skin. Her icy eyes were even lighter than her sister's. The girl wrapped herself in her robes, cheering along with her friends.
"Can she be out there?" Harry whispered, "Out in the cold, I mean?"
Daphne slowly shut her book. She sat across from him, turning her head so as to gaze through the window too.
"As long as she's supervised." she murmured, "Her blood curse doesn't make it any worse than it would be for anyone else."
Harry nodded. Professor Sprout stood a short way away from the circle of first years. He watched as one of the girls waddled up to her. The Herbology Professor leaned closer, listening as the young girl whispered something in her ear.
Something flew past them, blowing in the wind like one of Aunt Petunia's empty grocery bags. Dark and tattered, the robed creature extended a decaying hand. Its fingers curled, and it reached into the empty air.
Dementor.
Professor Sprout straightened up. She yelled loudly at it, brandishing her wand. The Dementor slowly flew away.
Good.
Harry turned away from the window. The image of the dementor's gnarled, curved hand hovered in his mind. A brief flash of sickly green light accompanied it, and a woman with scarlet eyes flickered into view.
"Are you alright?"
Harry glanced up. Daphne was watching him carefully. She gently set her book aside, leaning closer.
"Just thinking."
"About what?"
Harry frowned. His eyes jumped to the window, combing over the faint edge of the Forbidden Forest.
Bellatrix Lestrange is just past there. If she isn't now, she will be. Waiting for me in Hogsmeade.
A high, horrible giggle played in his mind.
But she could help me grow stronger.
"About Voldemort."
Daphne froze. Her lips fell into a thin line, but she didn't flinch.
"And?"
"And," Harry continued, "How I'm meant to beat her. How to get stronger."
Harry paused, playing with the words on the tip of his tongue.
"It's dangerous." he admitted, "Really reckless, too."
She's her most loyal servant. It isn't just reckless, it's absolutely stupid.
"But I have to beat her." Harry straightened up, looking Daphne full in the eye, "I can't - I can't just let her go. I can't let her hurt anyone else. And if that means being reckless, then I have to be reckless. If that means doing something dangerous, I have to do something dangerous. If that means doing something absolutely stupid -"
Then I've got to do something stupid.
Thin, soft fingers reached across the table, interlocking with his own. Daphne watched him very carefully, her lips slowly parting.
"You said you'd be careful." she whispered, her grip tightening, "You meant that, didn't you?"
Harry nodded. Daphne swallowed, forcing her words out of her mouth.
"Then do it." she said, her voice wavering, "If you think it'll work out, I think so, too. Just - don't make a habit of it, alright?"
"I won't." Harry murmured, "I promise."
-(xXx)-
Empty.
The Hogwarts courtyard stretched out before his very eyes. It was very cold; Harry shivered, wrapping the ends of his robes more tightly around him. He watched as the last of the older students shuffled out, stumbling along the path that led to Hogsmeade.
Nott had left a quarter of an hour ago. The boy had promised to bring something back - a box of chocolate frogs, most likely. Those, at the very least, would be rather nice.
They're all made in Hogsmeade. They'll be fresh, I think.
Behind him, somewhere in the depths of the castle, Daphne sat with her sister. Harry shuffled across the stone bench, kicking at the snow by his feet.
Astoria's getting worse.
Perhaps it was nothing more than a common cold. That was all it seemed to be to Harry. But Daphne had insisted on staying by her sister's side.
Not that I blame her. I'd do the same, too.
Something pressed into the side of his skull. Harry looked up. Emerald eyes fell upon a ghost with long translucent hair and aristocratic features. She slowly straightened up, gliding through one of the walls behind the courtyard's stone archways.
Her again.
"The Grey Lady." Harry frowned, staring at where the woman had just been, "Rowena Ravenclaw's daughter, Helena."
What does she want with me?
Harry pushed the thought aside. His fingers wrapped around his Invisibility Cloak, which he had stuffed into the pocket of his robes almost an hour prior. Curly black hair flashed before the eye of his mind, and Harry grimaced.
Now's your chance. Off to Hogsmeade.
Harry reached into his pocket, pulling the cloak from within -
"Psst - Harry!"
Harry jumped, shoving his cloak back into his robes. Behind him stood the Weasley twins, both decked in hand-knitted sweaters marked 'G' and 'F' respectively. They waved him over, looking around conspicuously. Harry sighed, getting to his feet.
"What?"
"Just a moment." one of them - Fred, if the letter on his chest meant anything - murmured, glancing at a piece of parchment, "Alright, let's go."
Harry followed the twins out the courtyard and back into Hogwarts, his fingers tapping irritably against the edges of his robes. His eyes jumped to the watch adorning his left arm.
I'm wasting time.
At long last, they came to a stop. The twins turned around, standing proudly on either side of a statue of a humpbacked, one-eyed witch. George held out the parchment from earlier, presenting it to Harry.
"Happy Christmas." he murmured, "It's an early Christmas present for you."
Harry stared blankly at the parchment before him.
"You're not drunk, are you?"
The twins laughed. Harry watched as Fred pulled a glass of alcohol from the bag around his shoulder, gently tossing it to him. Harry caught it deftly.
"Nice catch. You'd make a good seeker." Fred pulled out two more glasses, handing one of them to George, "That's Butterbeer, by the way - and no, we aren't. Not yet, anyway - we're waiting for Lee and the others. No point getting wasted on your own."
Right.
"But nevermind that." George cut in, "Here, you'll understand faster if you see it. Watch this."
The red-headed boy pulled his wand from his robes, tapping the surface of the parchment. Thin ink lines began to spread like a spider's web from the point that George's wand had touched. They joined each other, they crisscrossed, they fanned into every corner of the parchment. Harry watched as deep red ink curved into words at the top.
'Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs
Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers are proud to present
THE MARAUDER'S MAP'
Harry's eyes lowered, and he felt his jaw drop.
It was a map of Hogwarts. Countless different rooms covered the parchment. But what was truly astounding were the dots. There were hundreds of them, each accompanied by -
"Names." Harry breathed heavily, leaning closer, "So this map shows -"
"Everyone."
"Everyone?" repeated Harry.
"Everyone." said the twins together, "Where they are, what they're doing, every minute of every day."
Brilliant.
Harry slowly took the map from George, his eyes combing from top to bottom. He folded it gently, his eyebrows scrunched together.
"Why are you giving this to me?" Harry paused, glancing back at the map, "Don't get me wrong, it's brilliant - but why aren't you giving it to, I dunno, Ron or your sister?"
"We're giving it to you because of our sister," said Fred.
"We haven't forgotten what you did last year." added George, "Consider this payback for saving her from the Chamber of Secrets. We'd have given it sooner if you'd have locked Percy in the chamber as well, mind you -"
"- but we suppose saving Ginny will have to do." Fred finished.
Harry nodded, his eyes still latched upon the map. Inky red footprints sat side by side in the Slytherin dormitories. Harry looked away from Daphne and her sister, his gaze falling upon a strange symbol that had appeared on the map. It hovered just above a drawing of the humpbacked witch just to his left.
"What does that mean?"
"Secret passageway." Fred grinned, tapping between the witch's eyes with his wand, "Dissendium."
Crack.
The statue's hump split, creating an opening wide enough for a rather thin person. Harry looked at the twins, then the statue, and then the twins again. His lips parted, words on the tip of his tongue -
"Don't sweat it." said George, "Paying you back, remember?"
"Oh, and whenever you're done using it, don't forget to tap the map and say, 'Mischief Managed.'" Fred added, "Otherwise anyone can read it."
Harry nodded blankly.
"Thanks."
"No problem. Just don't use it to prank us, or we'll get you back."
"I won't."
"We figured." George took a sip from Butterbeer, "For a Slytherin, you seem pretty decent. I suppose Bill was right about some of you being alright."
"Er - thanks?"
George patted his shoulder, winking.
"Better get going, Harrikins. We've all got loads of mischief to be getting up to."
With that, the twins disappeared down the corridor and out of sight. Harry watched as their inky footprints walked through the courtyard and out the castle. He slowly turned to the one-eyed witch.
Time to go.
A high, cruel giggle rang within his ears. Harry ducked into the passage, watching as the stone walls swallowed him whole.