ch 15

"Come in." A high pitched whiny voice called from behind the door.

Harry looked back to me, or where he knew I was waiting behind him in his invisibility cloak. I held Creevey's camera in my left hand while I clasped the cloak closed with my right. I could have gotten away with the disillusionment but I didn't want to risk her seeing me or having wards to alert her. Plus Harry practically shoved the famous Hallow in my hand.

We entered the room and immediately I was assaulted by the color pink.

You've got to be fucking kidding me. I thought to myself as I stayed behind Harry as he walked in. It's unnecessary but I couldn't help it.

"Mr. Potter, have a seat." Umbridge said from behind her desk. She had a ridiculous smile on her face.

No doubt, the prospect of torturing the boy-who-lived turns her on, fucking bitch. Maybe my hatred of her from my past life is affecting my judgement but I can't help but hate her.

Harry did as she asked and sat in the front seat, closest to her, just like we discussed. She got up once he did and reached into her drawer. She pulled out a stack of paper, and on top say an unassuming quill.

I knew better. A blood quill, deemed illegal unless by permit or by binding lawful documents by the ministry, after the turn of the twentieth century. I thought to myself, remembering the legal document Fleur owled me before this year started.

She walked over to Harry's desk and I moved, silenced, to behind her desk and off to the left, for a better picture. All Harry had to do was write a single line on the paper where the camera could see his blood on his hand and we would have her.

She'll be taken out of the game before she can even start. I thought remembering the plan we concocted.

"You'll be writing lines, Mr. Potter." She started and Harry interrupted.

"Is that all?" He asked with a healthy dose of sass.

She didn't react then but I could see her smile become slightly tighter before continuing.

"I don't know how you got out of expulsion, for attacking a Professor, but it doesn't matter. One more thing the ministry will change by the end of the year." She told him, baiting him.

He didn't bite on the bait, instead he kept his sassy tone before replying. "Dumbledore has a soft spot for me, didn't you know? No headmaster in their right mind would expel the 'boy-who-lived', other schools would grovel at my feet to have the opportunity after all." Harry smirked at her the entire time he spoke.

I'm impressed. My mind supplied as I processed his words. Let her think you're just as arrogant as everyone says you are, control your image. When the time is right, show your power, make them wonder how they could have gotten it so wrong.

She turned around with an ever brighter smile on her face, convinced that Harry needs the punishment he is about to endure. She sat back down behind her desk when Harry spoke again.

"Plus." Harry continued and I silently cast a disillusionment on myself under the cloak. "Neither of us think I attacked you Professor, I simply showed my classmates how incompetant you are, nothing more, nothing less." He hissed 'professor', using his parseltongue abilities to get the word out.

I took the cloak off slowly and laid it on the floor, then I waited for her reaction. She did nothing to indicate that I could be seen by the visible eye or by her wards so my left hand, the one holding the camera, slowly rose to capture the scene.

I must have made a distortion in the air because Harry's eyes shifted slightly before reaching down and grabbing the quill.

"We'll see what the Minister thinks about the situation, Mr. Potter. Not even you can get away with attacking me. You'll be made an example of eventually. For now, I want you to write, 'I am harmless.' over and over until I tell you to stop." Umbridge spoke and I swore her face was about to split in half because of her smile.

No doubt, she thought herself clever for coming up with the phrase that he would scar into his own skin. A way to get back at him for his demonstration in class, and also to oppose the propaganda that still clung to the tables in the Great Hall and the hallways.

I'm glad I get to ruin your fun, Delores.

Harry smiled at her order, seeing the situation for what it was for.

He's starting to see the game. I thought as I prepared myself to take the picture, I put the camera up to my eye.

"Of course, Professor." Harry hissed out again. Umbridge faltered at that, her eyebrows scrunched at his happiness. Her face corrected itself quickly.

Harry put the quill on the page and drew it down sharply, he made no sound as the skin on his hand split open to mirror the page.

A flash lit the room as I stepped towards her, my disillusionment charm and silencing charm dropped at the same time in accordance with my will. I drew my wand immediately as my left hand held onto the camera.

"Stupefy!" Umbridge shouted in reflex when she heard my footsteps. She only half turned in her seat.

I knew the attack was coming so I quickly batted the spell into the wall of the castle. A second after that, Delores had an ethereal blade resting on her skin, that extended from the tip of my wand to her neck, right where the jugular is.

No one spoke but I did notice Harry was standing and had his wand in his hand, a reaction from her spell. I held out the camera for him to take and he wasted no time in retrieving it from my hand.

I then reached forward and snatched Umbridges wand from her still outstretched hand, she hadn't moved since she realized what was resting on her neck. The wood felt dead, defeated. My own wand vibrated happily.

Normally wizards and witches rest the tip of their wand on the skin of their enemies when they get the drop on them, but I am not stupid. It's ridiculously easy to catch that wizard or witch off guard and engage in physical confrontation, something that would distract a lot of people from casting any spells. My way of doing things is much more efficient, one slip of the hand and you'd be dead in minutes.

I dropped the spell as I back away from her. I called my magic from beneath my skin and my wand sang as my will channeled through it's familiar wood. My hand flicked her direction. The world reacted immediately and Delores was bound in ropes that held her feet, hands, and throat to her chair.

"I expected you to be screaming at me by now Professor." I said handing Harry her wand and grabbing the camera from him in return.

"Mr. Weasley, you have no idea what you've done, do you?" Umbridge asked.

"I know exactly what I have done." I told her as I removed the film from the camera, expertly. A result of playing with the thing and figuring it out no more than thirty minutes prior. My wand rose again and I momentarily relished the power that it gave me as I once again cast a spell through it.

The film in my hand rose into the air and stopped a few feet from me. With my wand still outstretched to it, I unrolled it a little with a deviation of the levitation spell. The enlargement charm made the film bigger for the whole room to see. The severing charm cut the end of the film that held the picture of Harry holding a blood quill, doing lines for our Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

I casually flicked my wand again and the film slowly developed in front of our eyes. First it formed into a single piece of paper, then ink formed on top of that, and finally color was added to form the whole picture. All caused by a spell that could be found in the library for most, for me, the Room of Requirement held the knowledge I required, right beside the variation of the sticking charm that I utilized so brilliantly, yesterday.

There is a surprising amount of publication spells in the library, and by extension, the ROR. If Colin Creevey can do it, then so can I. I thought to myself as the spell finished. My wand dropped but the paper stayed in the air, fluttering slightly because of my will.

"I'll repeat, I know exactly what I have done, swine." I snarled the last word out. "Do you?"

My wand rose again when I realized I hadn't made sure no one would hear us.

I love magic. I told myself as I felt the overpowered spell meant to make eavesdropping our conversation impossible take effect.

I finally turned back to Umbridge and she was not smiling at all. Instead her face showed confusion with a hint of amazement. Her lip trembled as she thought through everything.

She's slowly figuring out that I have her backed into a corner.

Harry stood off to the side, twirling her wand between his fingers.

"You subjected the boy-who-lived to torture, with an object that the ministry, your employer, deemed illegal in 1902. All for him playing a harmless prank on you in class. He's just lashing out you know, he watched a good friend get killed right in front of his eyes last year. Poor kid was just trying to cope in his own way. And you tortured him." I told her in a tone that one would take if they were discussing the issue over tea.

Harry stopped twirling the wand at the reminder of Cedric's death for a moment before continuing. His eyes never left her form, and I could swear that he was trying his best impression of a basilisk.

"At least that's what the Daily Prophet will say once they see this. Tsk, tsk, Delores, what will this do to Fudge?" I asked her guiding her along the path I wanted her to see. "He might even be kicked out of office. The public will think he stepped down, but we will know won't we?"

She didn't answer. She was too shocked to do anything apparently, so I waited. I waited for her to speak, so that I could be sure she would understand the next part.

"It was you. You put up that propaganda against me." Umbridge spat out eventually.

I smiled, feeling like an evil villain, relishing in his victory. "I did. Harry, played his role perfectly." I answered.

"You planned all of this? Why? What did I do to you?!" She yelled the last bit. I didn't answer and neither did Harry.

"I'm ruined." She said aloud again.

"Yes you are." I paused. "You were planning on making children torture themselves in detention for you!" My wand is still visible as I start to yell. "And then you would slowly start to try and kick Dumbledore out of the school, the one person protecting us from Voldemort. I couldn't let that happen Delores, surely you understand."

"Do you know what happens next?" I asked her as she started sobbing. I hate ugly criers..

She didn't respond so I walked over to her and grabbed her by the hair, forcing her to look my in my eyes. "DO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!?" I yelled the question.

"No!" She managed to get out in between her sobs.

I let go of her hair and it slumped, only held up by the ropes digging into her skin.

I bent down in front of her before I spoke.

"Nothing."

Her head rose slowly once I said that, and she looked into my eyes, happy.

"Nothing?" She parroted back to me.

"That's correct, Delores. Nothing, you'll do your job, you'll teach Defense however you want to. Detentions will be sent to Filch, McGonagall, or another Professor, anyone but you. No one will serve detention with you, do you understand?" I said the last part with a slam of my hand on the desk to grab her attention. "Do you understand?"

She jumped when I did that and stammered out her response. "Yes! Yes! I understand, detentions with anyone but me!"

"Good. If you do that then this..." I said pointing to the picture floating in the middle of the room. "...doesn't get out, no one has to know. We all go about our happy lives, yea?"

She nodded once again.

"Good." I told her as I walked out of the room, grabbing the camera and motioning for Harry to follow.

He did but right before we passed the threshold and passed into the hallway, he dropped her wand on the ground.

"Oops." Harry said with a laugh as we walked into the hallway.

I looked at him and realized that this is a completely different person than what he would have been if I hadn't 'merged' with Ron Weasley. Sirius, the mind ritual, me, and everything else has had a tremendous effect on him.

"You're bloody mad. No, brilliant, mate!" Harry exclaimed as his stepps caught up to mine and we walked side by side down the hallway.

I handed Harry the camera once more and he took it without question. Then I waved my wand over the paper and a duplicate appeared. I grabbed a letter out of my robes and folded it up along with the original picture of Harry.

"I need you to send this out for me." I told him handing him the letter. I could have done it myself but I knew that pigwidgeon wasn't in the owelry.

"Why are you sending this to Fleur?" He asked looking at the name on the letter.

"Because that is the only thing that will keep Umbridge in line this year, what do you think her next move is?" I asked in response.

"She'll try to destroy the evidence. But you made a copy, what does it matter?" Harry asked finding a hole in my plan, or at least he thought he did.

Fair question. I thought before answering.

"Any copies made with the spell that I just used can be destroyed, if you can get your hands on the original. Half a days worth of research would tell anyone that, and I bet she'll figure it out soon." I answered before continuing to explain it better.

"That's why magical books are still done by printing press, or by hand in some cases. Authors don't want their works to be copied willy nilly, after all. That's exactly what happened before someone came up with the potion to destroy every copy of a piece of paper that was created magically. Technically she could get a copy and use the potion, but it would only destroy everything made after that copy, following?" I asked him, realizing that my words were getting a little hard to follow.

He nodded confidently and I continued. "So I'm sending the original somewhere she'll never get it. And every copy will be made from this copy, so even if she gets this one, I can have Fleur send me another copy. Do you copy?" I added a joke there at the end.

"10-4." Harry said in response to my corny joke.

"Good now I have a question for you." I said as we walked along the corridors to our destination. "How have you been feeling since the ritual?" I whispered that last bit.

He seemed surprised at the question but recovered quickly. "Great, fantastic actually."

I gave him a bland look. "...and."

He smiled at that. "Well magic has been so much easier and ...fun lately. I'm enjoying my time spent behind books, and casting the magic afterwards."

I smiled too, because I understand exactly what he's talking about. Then I elaborated a little on the question.

"That's good. What about your magic, has anything changed, what about your mind or your interests?" I asked the last part without a smile.

"Yea a lot. It's a lot easier to pick up on the theory of pretty much everything..." That's normal, I'm the same way. "...and I find myself wanting to change things in my life. I guess it's a lot of the same with my magic, defense was always my specialty but now it seems like offensive spells are much easier to learn and more powerful."

He continued talking about it as we walked on but I couldn't shake the bad feeling that I was getting. The weirdest part was that my eyes kept getting drawn to a single spot the entire conversation.

His lightning bolt shaped scar.

I arrived to the Diagon Alley apparition point with a crack that signified me bending space to my desires.

I still haven't perfected it. I thought hearing the audible pop that apparition made until mastery, where it would become silent.

I shoved that thought to the back of my mind as I began walking towards Gringotts to meet up with Fleur and Bill. It is fairly early on a Saturday so there isn't a lot of people walking the streets.

It didn't take me long to find myself before the steps of the goblin nation. The air on the right side of the steps shimmered and my wand found its way into my hand on reflex alone.

It wasn't needed as the person dropped the disillusionment charm immediately and latched themselves onto me in a hug.

Vanilla assaulted my nose and platinum blonde filled my vision as Fleur tried to smother me with her body.

"Hello to you to." I told her finally embracing her.

"Hello." She mumbled from my neck.

I brought her face back towards mine and our lips danced with each other. It might have been a little inappropriate for public, and on the front steps of her employer, but we didn't care. She responded with equal passion and I had to pull away eventually. She disagreed with her teeth biting my bottom lip.

"I've missed you too, love." I told her with a smile, she also smiled but couldn't take her eyes off my lips.

"Now that we've gotten that out of the way." I heard from behind Fleur.

Bill stood at the top of the steps.

Guess I was too distracted. I thought berating myself at being caught off guard.

"Enjoy the show big brother?" I spoke since it was obvious Fleur wouldn't, considering she hadn't let go of me yet.

Gotta love a little clinginess. I thought reaching my hand down and squeezing her perfect rear.

She squeaked then and finally let go of me with a pout. Bill and I just met eye contact and smiled at each other at the display.

"I would rather watch goblins copulate, little brother." He jabbed back at me. I couldn't help but laugh at that one.

I decided to change the topic and move on to why we were actually meeting. "So, where are we off to?"

"A nice little cottage down the road." He said as he offered his hands to us.

Fleur glared at him and grabbed my arm as I reached out to grab his arm.

The world twisted as I embraced the side-along apparition. Internally I was slightly impressed at Bill's confidence in taking the two of us with him. It becomes exponentially harder to apparate the more people are added.

All three of us landed gracefully on a beach head. The sun beating down on the sand did make the transition harder considering the change in the brightness of the landscape. I turned around to see exactly where it was that we were at and could immediately tell that we were a good distance from civilization.

The sand met a stony cliffside that I could see was at least sixty feet above us. The ocean lapped at the shores and there were no land markers anywhere in the water, nor were there boats.

"A nice little cottage huh?" I said after I got done looking around.

A memory hit me then, a memory of Dumbledore and Harry searching a cave for something, something relating to Voledmort, but I couldn't remember what they were searching for. I did remember the dangers that lay within, however.

"Bill, tell me we're not looking for a cave." I said to him.

"I'm afraid I can't do that." He responded with a grin.

I flicked my wrist and drew my wand, prepared for the worst as he started walking towards the cliff side.

"Dumbledore had reasons for calling me back home, little brother." Bill told me and I looked back to Fleur, more to make sure that she was alright considering how quiet she is being.

"What reasons?" I practically demanded.

"He's searching for something, along the coasts. Says it's crucial in defeating You-Know-Who. My position in Gringotts gives me access to information that is needed for this particular mission. And also to keep an eye on you. You have drawn the eyes of some powerful people Ron." He told me as he kept walking to the cliff face.

I followed, making sure I kept my body in front of Fleur's in case something happened.

"How does Gringotts have information that is crucial?" I asked, not interested in the last part of his sentence. I knew all along I would gather attention if I strove to reach the top.

"Gringotts has intertwined themselves with the ministry. They hold most, if not all of the legal documentation of properties in their archives. Dumbledore is trying to follow a paper trail to a specific point in Voldemort's past, he thinks he bought some properties under a false name some years ago. I'm scouring through the information, sometimes that means seeing the property for myself." Bill told us as we followed him to a small alcove hidden along the wall.

The hole is no bigger than a doorway you would find in your normal home. It was something that you wouldn't see if you weren't specifically looking for it, a great hiding spot.

"It just so happens that this one is warded." Bill said as he presented us the cave entrance. "Don't worry, it's been abandoned for over forty years. Shouldn't run into anyone."

"Why do places like this exist?" I asked naively.

"Anything really. It can be to live in privacy, to hide something, to hide someone." This time it was Fleur that answered as she ran her wand on the air in front of the cave.

Bill took notice of her actions. "I always heard veela were sensitive to magic." He spoke watching her.

I started to notice it too, her wand traced through the air and there were slight distortions following its path.

"Not all of us are, but some are born with the talent. Others grow upon that talent." She added that last part for our benefit.

I guess that means she is fairly sensitive to it. I thought watching her.

My own wand rose and I drew my magic to the surface of my skin and into the wand but not casting any magic, trying to replicate what she was doing.

I stepped closer to the distortions but not through it, Bill and Fleur watched me closely. My wand met resistance and I could feel it. It was that feeling of when your ear popped, suddenly you could 'hear' different. That's the best I can describe it.

Then I listened to what the magic was trying to tell me. I didn't have to try hard. The sound cancelling barrier was apparent, as was the one way light cancelling barrier. It was directed towards the inside of the cave, so that no sound or light spilled onto the beach. The other part of the ward felt like a muggle repelling ward, but I wasn't sure.

I voiced my theories and I heard them both intake air and then Fleur laughed. "Of course you would get it on your first try." She said.

"What was supposed to happen? Was I right?" I asked.

"Yes you are correct. Nothing should have happened, you shouldn't have been able to find them. Your wand wouldn't have made them react at all." She answered.

I frowned at that, confused before I remembered the most important rule of magic. "It's all about intent."

A snort from Bill was the only response I got. He mumbled something about child prodigies but I ignored him.

"Technically this isn't my first try." I said turning back towards them. "I'm kind of keyed into the wards of Black family house." I told them realizing how ridiculous it sounded. "They are ...much stronger than these and much easier to feel."

Bill was the one who laughed then. "Sirius ...I have no words." He said dumbfounded at the information.

"That still doesn't explain it." Fleur stated after his exclamation. "You're supposed to feel those wards, these…" She said pointing towards the cave. "...you aren't. It seems you have some talent."

I didn't actually believe her about that. Might be because I do nothing but eat sleep and breathe magic. I thought.

After she finished speaking, she walked forward into the cave. I just watched her wanting to stop her in case of hostile wards. Then I realized that it has been abandoned for a long time, that and Bill didn't react to her walking forward either.

We moved to follow and I immediately flicked my wand. Orbs of white light shot out and traveled along the corridor, sticking to the walls as they hit. Once they did we were greeted to the sight of a singular room with a large bed in the middle of it. Furniture you would normally see around bedroom was spread about and knocked over.

"Not another one." Bill groaned from behind me.

We stumbled upon a bedroom, and judging by the stains, a bedroom with one purpose: Sex.

"This is normal?" I asked him, taking in the sight of the room relieved that Voldemort wasn't going to pop out of the shadows somewhere.

"Unfortunately." He answered and Fleur laughed at her place beside the bed.

I walked over to the closet in the corner wondering what I would find. I got closer and immediately felt the change in atmosphere. It wasn't a temperature change, it was just a warning not to do what I was about to do.

"Guys." I said to get the attention to both of them and my wand flicked towards the door of the drawers

Its doors opened and out spill a black mass of swirling darkness. It started coalescing and soon I was met with the sight of a small girl. She had blond hair and extremely light blue eyes. Freckles spotted her face, not too much, just the right amount to be looked like what might someday be mine and Fleur's child.

And she was dead, by the looks of the blue in her lips and the blood staining her dress.

I froze, terrified at the image. The effect lasted for all of two seconds before my brain kicked into gear and realized what it was that I was looking at.

A Boggart.

A white hot rage washed over me as my wand rose. I did not cast riddikulus as Lupin taught me a few years back. A blue flame shot out of my wand, no smoke accompanied it and it made no noise. It blazed a path to the boggart whose eyes widened before it consumed it.

No noise was made in response to the blue flame engulfing it and the closet. I just watched as the little girl was reduced back into a black mist that became so fine it floated past me and out of the cave.

The blue flame roared in front of me, waiting for it's next command. I stood there for an eternity, staring into the flame as it danced to my will. My mind raced, tracing its origins and where I learned it from. It stemmed from the 'protego diabolica' spell, except much more offensive in nature. The Black's of old loved the spell before the more powerful 'fiendfyre' became popular.

For the second time that day, vanilla filled my nose as someone embraced my front.

Fleur. I noted as I melted into her embrace. The blue flame died out with my anger as I reeled in my emotions.

"..on. Are you ok?" She asked me from her place on my chest.

I shook my head, trying not to think about the little girl and what she symbolizes.

"No." I croaked out in response.

"Come on. Let's go." Fleur told me. She let me go and turned to Bill. "I'm taking him." She said simply and all Bill could do was nod as he turned around and walked out of the cave.

"Focus on our magic. This is how you break wards: brute force."

I did as she asked and my mind drew inside to the force rolling underneath my skin, her own magic intertwining with mine. Then the world shattered before twisting around me.

We landed in an apartment and once again my nose smells that familiar vanilla that I had come to love so much.

She just ripped right through the wards ...Fleur's apartment. I thought taking in the decor of the room.

I closed my eyes as I shook my head and once again focused on my occlumency lessons. Slowly the world started to make sense again as my emotions finally obeyed my will and settled down.

I opened my eyes to find that I was on a bed with a warm mass connected to one side. Fleur's arm rubbed circles up and down my torso trying to console me.

I took a second to digest the scene and appreciate the moment. Eventually I shifted and tried my best to melt into her body.

She looked up in response to me moving. "It's about time you pay attention to me."

I laughed before responding. "Sorry, it took me off guard."

Her eyes softened. "Wanna talk about it?"

I've never been one to hold things like that so I did what she asked. "Do you know what that was?" I asked her.

"The boggart, or what form it took?"

"The form it took." I answered her.

"It was a girl that could pass for our daughter." She answered without adding that the little girl was dead, lifeless.

"I guess I'm most afraid of not having a future, not being able to make it to that point." I summed up, looking behind what the boggart symbolized.

Even though Fleur was the one supposed to be consoling me and helping me through the situation, I could tell that the boggart affected her just as much as it did me. She looked so fragile as she spoke next.

"Is that the future you want?" She whispered the question.

"I can't think of anything else I want more." I answered truthfully.

Fleur broke eye contact with me when I said that and buried her head into my chest and clung on to my side tighter than before.

"I love you." She mumbled.

I didn't hesitate to answer. "I love you too."

Her left leg swung over my waist and soon enough she straddled me. Her hands flew to the bottom of her shirt and pulled it off, revealing her bare breasts to me.

"Good, now prove it." She said as her mouth descended and claimed mine.

Our tongues danced as my hands worshipped her body. Fleur ground her hips into mine in response.

My hand found her throat as I flipped us over expertly.

"Gladly."