Chapter 11: Atrium

Bill eyed the crowd with suspicion; knowing any lapse in concentration would be noticed by the paranoid man next to him.

"Pay attention, Weasley!" The crazed, ex-auror snapped.

' For fucks sake, I'm being vigilant.' He thought in muted frustration

"Ahh." His partner let out happily from next to him a minute later.

"The two men near the entrance, do you recognize them?"

He took in the men thirty or so meters to his right.

Two men with drooping faces and thinning hair were surveying the crowd muttering amongst themselves. While the tall, sturdily-built blonde man looked familiar, he couldn't place the name.

"Not instinctually, no."

"Malcolm Avery and Rodolphus Lestrange, both escaped in the Azkaban breakout, and both are members of Voldemort's inner-circle."

He flinched slightly at the use of the dark lord's name but kept his eye on the dangerous men still standing some ways to his right.

A loud explosion from behind them rocked him from his thoughts, and suddenly the atrium was alight with debris and color as masked figures appeared from thin air.

"Pay attention, boy!" Moody yelled over the noise. "I'll handle Lestrange and his masked friend, you take care of Avery."

' Where the hell are the aurors?' He thought to himself.

He knew the Bulgarians and the Irish had primary responsibility for the events security, but they were struggling to contain the chaos, British aurors were supposed to be called in for these situations.

He grunted out his acceptance and let loose a flesh-eating hex at his opponent.

His hex barely missed the dark-haired man's shoulder, causing him to turn his attention away from the fleeing crowd.

' Coward.' He thought. 'Fight like a man!'

The death eater seemingly read his mind as he grunted in anger, letting loose a series of vile-looking black and yellow spells.

Bill smacked the first two away with ease before conjuring a slab of granite to absorb the third.

Using the debris from the granite, he transfigured the halves into small rhino's, sending them thundering towards Avery.

With the animals as a distraction, he cast a quick disillusionment charm on himself and charged towards the death eater, unleashing a series of bludgeoners and bone-breakers as he moved.

Avery's left-arm exploded in a spray of gore, covering the immediate area with bone and blood.

Next to him, Moody took the distraction as an opportunity to finish off his masked opponent, getting hit with a puncturing curse in his side as a result.

' Moody is going to lose this fight.'

With that realization Bill moved to finish his duel.

The death eater was distracted by the remaining rhino, and his missing arm; Bill took aim, silently sending a bludgeoner, hitting his opponent in the side of the head.

Next to him Rodolphus let out a roar at the death of his comrade, taking his eye off Moody to fire several killing curses his way.

Bill conjured a marble shield to intercept the first, before diving out of the way of the second.

Moody used the distraction wisely, hitting Lestrange with a killing curse of his own, ending the fight as suddenly as it had started.

Bill glanced around, looking for the familiar royal blue robes of the auror force. 'Still no response.'

The thought scared the hell out of him.

Bill took the momentary pause to heal Moody, before glancing around at the chaos around them.

The area was a war-zone, the atrium completely torn apart, dust and debris everywhere.

"Potter!" Moody stated from next to him, pointing to a head of messy black hair leading a pretty blonde girl out of the arena by her hand.

"They're trying to make it to the portkey zone." Moody stated. "We'll follow them."

Bill frowned, but nodded, following the pair as they followed the path as it wound its way into the woods and back towards the campsite.

"Something's wrong." He muttered to Moody.

"Good instincts, Weasley." The grizzled warrior complimented. "Potter's walking into an ambush."

Bill ran ahead of the ex-auror as the forest around them lit up.

' Shit.'

He heard a girlish cry of pain, followed by a plume of mustard smoke emanating from the area a moment later.

Bill began to choke and hastily applied a bubblehead charm.

' I'm too late.' He panicked, as he sprinted into the clearing.

With a conjured gust of wind, the gas began to dissipate, leaving behind a violent display of gore.

three men in blood-covered, bone-white masks lay dead in a half-circle around the opening, each of whom had vomited various pieces of esophagus and intestine.

The fourth victim wasn't wearing a mask, but his condition was the same.

' Walden Macnair.' He realized.

The entire sight was horrific.

' Did Potter do this?'

Unfazed, Bill searched frantically for several minutes, but Harry Potter and his companion, had escaped the massacre.

Harry woke up early the morning of September 1st and quietly made his way to the floo, intent on visiting Daphne as soon as possible.

The previous night's events continued to play through his mind, he had been thankful when Sirius, Tonks, Remus, and Septima arrived safely at Grimmauld Place shortly after his talk with Victoria Greengrass.

Little was known about the attack; or at least Harry knew very little, he suspected Sirius wasn't telling him everything, and for the moment, that was okay. He took solace in knowing that his family, and his girlfriend, were safe.

"Here so early?" A voice greeted him as soon as he stepped out of the floo.

Despite having met the man on several occasions, Alfred Greengrass was largely a stranger to him.

"Yes sir, with your permission I would like to stay until the Welcome Feast starts this evening."

The older man stared at him for a long moment, and he absentmindedly noted that he and Daphne shared the same green eyes.

"She won't be conscious until tomorrow." The taller man countered.

"I brought a few books, sir." He said, patting the bag hanging from his shoulder.

Lord Greengrass appraised him for a moment longer, a shade of a smile tugging at his lips.

"I was just going to check on her myself." He said, turning on his heel.

The pair ascended a flight of stairs in silence before Alfred led him into his daughter's room.

The room was smaller than he had expected, but well decorated with dark violet walls, several bookcases, a wardrobe, and a messy desk.

In the center of the room, Daphne slept peacefully on a queen-sized bed.

With a flick of his wand, Alfred conjured a comfortable looking chair for himself before plopping down, making no effort to help Harry.

Daphne's father eyed him carefully, as if waiting to be impressed.

' Is everything a test with this family?'

Picturing his uncle's leather recliner, he silently flicked his wand, conjuring a perfect replica of the comfortable chair.

Using occlumency to keep a grin off his face, he plopped down, grabbing Daphne's hand with his own.

Alfred glanced at his hand but didn't object to the small display of intimacy.

"What happened last night, Mr. Potter?"

Harry told him everything; from inspecting the various vendors right up until Victoria sent away for healers.

The elder Greengrass listened calmly, only stopping him to ask several follow-up questions.

"You could have left at any time, Harry. Why did you save my daughter?"

The question surprised him, he had never considered his actions, he had only known that doing nothing would kill Daphne, and he couldn't live with that.

"I care about Daphne." He started. "I care about her more than just about anything on this planet, I will always try and protect her."

To his surprise, Alfred didn't smile, silently handing him a copy of that morning's Daily Prophet.

Potter Kills Four at the World Cup Final! Saves Heiresses Life!

He read the article silently. Apparently, several witnesses had seen Harry and Daphne flee the arena together, while another had seen Harry floating Daphne through the woods before portkeying to safety.

The article showed the graphic aftermath of the spell he had used, and the author speculated that it was he who had cast it.

"Surprisingly accurate." He responded nonchalantly, handing the paper back to Lord Greengrass, who looked momentarily shocked; "although they jump to the conclusion that it must have been me without providing any evidence."

"People are going to be afraid of you now, Harry." He pointed out.

He frowned slightly. "You don't think Daphne will be afraid of me, do you?"

Alfred shook his head; "my daughter will be grateful."

"Then I don't care what the rest think." And it was true; he had cared once-upon-a-time, back in first and second year, but that was a long time ago.

His classmates - outside of a few - didn't like him and he couldn't care a less what they thought of him, they weren't worth his time, Daphne was.

Alfred nodded curtly. "Good."

The pair sat in silence for a few minutes.

"She thinks that I don't care." He said sadly.

"Care about what, sir?" He asked, confusion evident in his voice.

The older man ignored his question. "I'm playing a dangerous game, Harry."

"Why is that, sir?" He blurted out, hoping the man would answer one of his questions.

"The Greengrass family is unique among the Wizengamot." The dark-haired man started. "We are a middle-class pureblood family with few connections, and therefore of little consequence to the Dark Lord; or we would be if not for my Aunt's connection to Bellatrix Lestrange."

With his questioning gaze, Alfred continued. "Historically speaking, the Greengrass family has lived a quiet existence; because we have kept to ourselves, and never held any real power. Because of this, my family has remained an afterthought in most conflicts that have arose.

Ophelia broke that mold, and instead of doing the honorable thing and dying in battle where she couldn't do our family harm, she trained a monstrous apprentice who ended up killing her, and anyone else she saw fit."

He took a sip of tea, "Bellatrix Lestrange is the dark lord's most violent, smart, loyal, and cunning soldier. If Voldemort has a weakness, there is a strong likelihood that he told Bellatrix, who may have confided in Ophelia."

"You fear her experiences make your family a target." He stated with skepticism, it sounded rather unrealistic.

"It already has." He confirmed. "Draco Malfoy has gotten close to my youngest daughter over the last few months. I have encouraged Astoria to remain friends with him for the time being, despite Daphne's objections."

His blood-boiled. He could understand why Daphne wanted Malfoy away from her sister.

"Being close to him," Alfred started, "and to you," he admitted; "leaves my family in a situation that cannot be maintained."

"Then why did you put yourself in it? Why did you lie to Daphne" He asked.

The other man smiled; "sometimes we wear masks to keep those we love safe. You'll understand that someday, Harry. In the meantime, I want you to keep an eye on my daughters at Hogwarts, let me know if anything out of the ordinary happens."

' I'm late.' He thought with a frustrated sigh.

He had spent the entire day, sans a few hours, next to Daphne, and had floo'd into Tonks' private chambers at Hogwarts only a moment before.

He would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous for his entrance. Despite the self-assured response he had provided to Alfred, he was concerned about the consequences of his actions.

Thankfully he had the support of Sirius, who along with Andromeda had assured him that he had acted in self-defense, and that the ministry lacked the evidence to bring him up on charges.

He sprinted the rest of the way through the narrow passage, emerging a few meters from the entrance to the great hall.

Harry paused outside the doors and sighed; the rest of the school had already been seated and was waiting for the sorting.

He gently pushed the left door open, hoping to slip in unnoticed; his hopes flew out the window as the door emitted a loud creak, drawing attention to himself as he slipped in.

Whispers broke out almost immediately as people stared at him in fright.

' Compose yourself, Potter. Don't let them get to you.'

He straightened his back and raised his chin slightly, hoping to cut a confident figure as he made his way to the Ravenclaw table.

Harry made quick eye-contact with Terry, and, ignoring the frightened looks of most of his housemates, and the taunting of Goldstein, plopped down next to his friend.

"What did I miss?" He said to Terry a little too loudly.

The bespectacled-brunette snorted in indignation. "These idiots -" he started, pointing towards the rest of his house, "think you're a mass-murderer."

He kept himself from rolling his eyes but was unable to stop a snort from escaping.

"Of course I am." He deadpanned. "What do you think."

Terry grinned. "I think that whoever took care of those Death Eaters should be approached cautiously."

He smiled - it was good to have a friend in the house.

The pair talked casually for a few minutes longer, before Dumbledore rose to address the students.

"As many of you know," he began with a smile, his blue eyes twinkling. "Hogwarts will be hosting the Durmstrang Institute and the Beauxbatons Academy of Magic this year for the revival of the Triwizard Tournament!"

The announcement caught most of the crowd off-guard, and chattering broke out across the hall.

The headmaster waited for the commotion to die down, then continued. "An impartial judge will select a student from each school to represent them in a series of individual tasks that make up the Triwizard Tournament."

Seeing that he had the attention of his audience, Dumbledore continued. "In order to be selected as the Hogwarts champion, potential students who are of age must submit their names no later than midnight on September 30th."

At the grumbling from the overwhelming number of students the headmaster smiled again; "for the other students; each school will be fielding quidditch and dueling teams to compete against each other throughout the year."

Excitement rose throughout the student body at the last proclamation, and Dumbledore prepared to conclude his speech.

"Our guests will arrive on September 21st."

Bellatrix trembled in delight as her master stepped into the room.

"Bellatrix, Lucius; please sit."

It was strange hearing her lord speak through an idiot like Crouch, she looked forward to his full revival.

The pair sat silently, though she made sure to position herself so that she could keep her wand trained on her blonde counterpart.

"How many losses?"

It was strange, how naturally her lord slipped into his post-battle cadence, even after all these years.

"Three civilians, two Bulgarian Aurors, and an Irish auror. 6 more Death Eaters were slain as well, including Malcolm Avery, Walden Macnair, and Rodolphus Lestrange."

If that buffoon thought she would show a hint of sadness in front of him then the cause was truly doomed.

"The loss of my husband, my lord, presents a particular set of difficulties."

Her husband was always the more rationale of the Lestrange brothers; Rabastan was a degenerate gambler, and an alcoholic, he couldn't be trusted with a fortune.

Her lord knew that.

"I want you to bring me what I gave you, then do what you must to secure our future."

She nodded with a smile; there was no way she would let a fool like Rabastan ruin the Lestrange name.

"Are there any other obstacles we need to take care of?"

She gave a negative response, but Malfoy spoke up.

"Two things, my lord."

The Dark Lord gestured for him to continue.

"Minister Nott has become increasingly difficult to deal with."

Her master pondered his words quietly. "Give Nott space for now, he has a difficult job, and we need him in power for as long as possible."

Bellatrix frowned internally. 'We need to eliminate Nott before he betrays us.'

Malfoy moved to continue with his second point; "also, it has become apparent that Bellatrix has her own source within Hogwarts. Severus and I have been unable to vet her spy, I'm not sure it is safe to trust their information."

She scoffed; her spy had been more valuable than that turncoat Snape, and they had killed that half-breed Flitwick.

Her lord scowled at Lucius; "secrecy is the point of espionage, Lucius. Severus of all people should know that. Bellatrix will tell me who her spy is, won't you, Bellatrix?"

"In private, my lord." She said, sending a scowl towards Lucius.

"What's next?" The dark lord continued.

"Simple preparation work; we are ready to act on Bulgaria as soon as possible."

"What about Potter?"

Lucius opened his mouth to speak, but she beat him to it. "He killed four of our death eaters, including Macnair. He did it in defense of Greengrass."

Her master looked pleased, at what, she didn't know. "

Your son is getting close to the younger Greengrass daughter isn't he, Lucius?"

Malfoy nodded; "he is, my lord."

The heir to Slytherin continued; "Ophelia Greengrass was rumored to have left behind a collection of memories, is that right, Bellatrix."

She scowled at the thought of her mentor; "she did, my lord. Any moment she felt contained some sort of importance was copied."

' It's why I killed her.'

"Lucius, I want Draco to continue to get close to the younger Greengrass."

The Malfoy patriarch nodded.

Her lord dismissed them a few minutes later, and she made her way home, and to her study to pen a letter; she had enemies to neutralize.

The bell rang, but he remained unseen in the front-left corner of the room, anxious for the meeting that was about to take place.

He heard the door shut behind him; "Theodore, you got my note, I wasn't sure."

Theodore Nott bowed respectfully to his grandfather. "Grandfather."

Theo had a complicated relationship with his Cantankerous Nott. While the man had certainly brought honor to their family; he was petty and bitter; making the him difficult to get along with on the best of days.

"Your father wanted me to hand you this note."

The fourth year Slytherin took the piece of parchment marked with his families unbroke wax seal.

He read the note, a cascade of emotions playing out in his mind.

"Why?"

But he knew why, his father was supposedly the most important man in the country, and he had to cover his bases if he wanted to keep that power.

"Your father does not wish to be a puppet of Malfoy, and is encouraging you to forge your own alliances, even if they may seem unconventional."

With a nod Theo burned the letter and left the room, he had a lot to think about.

With only a moment's hesitation he tapped the third brick from the right on the fifth row of the wall adjacent to the kitchens.

The wall came alive instantly, forming into a large archway, allowing him access to a roomy passage that, if Tom Riddle was to be trusted, would lead him right outside the Slytherin common room.

Riddle's knowledge of the castle was beyond impressive.

Exiting the passage from behind a suit of armor a few moments later, Harry was surprised a minute later to be standing face to face with a brunette Daphne.

"Harry Potter." The girl said with a warmth that immediately put him at ease. "Just the person I was looking for, I'm Astoria Greengrass."

He took the offered hand, gently placing a chaste kiss on her knuckles, formally introducing himself.

The younger girl rolled her eyes. "There's no need for formalities, Harry; they ruin friendly conversation."

He had never understood what Daphne meant when she said her sister could make anybody feel special, until now.

Although short, and thin as a wisp, the younger Greengrass sister carried herself with a quiet confidence, but unlike her sister - who used her own confidence to emit an aura of power and intimidation, Astoria was using hers in a much different way.

The way her hazel eyes gazed into his, as if they were the only two people in the crowded corridor.

The way she stood; back to the rest of the hall, shoulders slightly turned his way, as if blocking out the rest of the world. giving him her full attention.

The way she seemed to truly hear every word he said. It made him feel as though he was the most important thing in her world, and, in that moment - with the day he had had, that was all he needed in life. It was enough.

If Astoria Greengrass ever realized the effect she could have on people, she would be incredibly dangerous.

' Or maybe she has realized the effect she has, and is using it to manipulate the situation?' He thought. Her sister would, and he had a suspicion Alfred would as well.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Astoria. Daphne talks about you constantly."

Humor danced in her hazel eyes, and she gave him an amused grin.

"You don't need to lie to me, Harry Potter." She admonished teasingly. "My sister only talks about me, or to me, for that matter, when she is worried - either about me or something else."

He began to correct her, but he couldn't, Daphne had all but shown him as much.

"I'm happy I can be that outlet for her, she puts so much stress on herself, it's nice to know she cares."

' I need to regain control of this conversation.'

"She is fond of you. So is your father."

Surprise flashed briefly in her eyes, but she hid it well.

Astoria bit her lip and stared at the wall behind him in a gesture reminiscent of her sister.

When she stared back into his eyes, her expression was far more serious.

"My family worries about me."

He waited for her to continue, when she didn't, he spoke up.

"Because of your affliction?"

Rather than being offended, the other girl nodded sadly.

"So, Daphne told you about it?" Astoria questioned

"Not really, just that you have one."

She considered him momentarily; "About a hundred years ago, a witch in my family broke a marriage contract with another pureblood family in France."

He listened patiently - Daphne would never share this information with him, willingly.

"It caused a scandal. At the time the Greengrass family was an 'up and comer' in British society, we were supposed to solidify our status by introducing the powerful Lestrange family to Britain. But when my great, great, great, great aunt broke that contract, the Lestrange's got mad, and placed a curse on our family that would appear randomly in witches throughout our bloodline - it affects me."

"What does it do?" He found himself asking.

For the first time Astoria lost her quiet self-confidence and looked every bit the sickly twelve-year-old she was.

"The curse makes my magic toxic to my body. If my magic becomes too strong, then my body cannot fight it and I get a severe fever and die. Eventually, it will kill me."

He felt a certain kinship with the younger girl in that moment; like him, she was making the best of an impossible situation.

"How do you block it out?" He asked. In many ways, her situation was worse than his - there was always a chance he killed Voldemort without dying.

She looked exceptionally vulnerable. "I don't, not really." She said. "It's always there."

The pair fell into a comfortable silence for several seconds.

"That's why Daphne hates the Lestrange family." He muttered more to himself.

Astoria smiled; "it's also why Bellatrix murdered my great aunt, and why Daphne doesn't like my talking to Draco."

He remembered his conversation with Alfred and reminded himself to watch the boy this year.

"It was good talking to you, Harry Potter. Thank you for saving Daphne's life."

As the girl walked away, Harry went straight to Tom Riddle's room, thoughts of changing the rooms password completely forgotten as he digested what he'd learned from the captivating Astoria Greengrass.

"Oh Daphne, let me get that!" Lily said as she removed Daphne's bag from her shoulder and guided her to a chair.

"I'm fine!" she half-snapped at her friend. 'She's not normally the type to dot on someone.' She thought with a frown. Still, nearly dying has that effect on some people.

It had been a strange day; outside the hushed whispers and quick glances her way, she had noticed the fearful glances the other students were shooting at Harry.

' Idiots.'

They couldn't comprehend the situation they had found themselves in.

' A situation I couldn't handle.' She felt guilty; her inability nearly got them both killed. 'I'll have Harry talk to Tonks, make her let me join their training.'

"What happened that night, Daph?" Lily asked softly, interrupting her thoughts.

She sighed, she had grown sick of this talk. "We were ambushed, everything happened so quickly, I'm not sure what happened."

She wouldn't tell her about the hate-filled look in Harry's eyes as he killed those men, it was none of her business.

The conversation took a more mundane tone after that as she looked around the common room, briefly catching Theodore Notts eyes, the boy seemed to be appraising her. 'What the hell was that about?'

She rubbed her stomach absentmindedly, and let the curious glance from Nott drop, turning her attention to her sister's conversation with Draco Malfoy on the other side of the room instead.

She smiled at the beautiful snow-white owl in front of her, offering her a quick slice of ham as she retrieved the letter from her leg.

' So, he has a girlfriend?' She thought to herself resolutely as Harry apologized for 'leading her on.'

' It must be that Greengrass girl from the papers.' She thought to herself.

' No matter, hard work never hurt anybody.' Gabriel Marie Delacour would get what she wanted in the end, she always did.

"I'm sorry Marcie." She smiled apologetically, interrupting her friend's invitation for a quick trip to the beach. "I'm not feeling so well, maybe tomorrow?"

The lie came easy to her, and her friend left her alone. She could never tell if her friends bought her little lies, she had decided whether they did or not didn't really matter - all that mattered was that they gave her privacy.

" Treat them well and they'll eat out of you palm." Her sister's words were never far from her thoughts.

She excused herself a second later, telling the smart owl to meet her in the gardens.

With a 'hoot' the owl flew off, and Gabrielle made her way to her favorite table at Beauxbatons.

Five minutes later the veela was sipping tea, surrounded by a sea of roses, overlooking the Mediterranean.

The salty-smell of sea air helped her relax, allowing her to compose herself.

It would do her no favors to aggressively pursue the British boy, he was likely to push her away if she was too overt.

' Better to make him want me.'

Slowly she began to write, making sure to wish his girlfriend a speedy recovery.

Gabrielle removed a photo of herself and Harry in Italy from her bag to include with the letter.

' See how happy we look, Harry?' She thought deviously as she wrote a quick inscription on the back.

With a smile, she reached into her bag a second time, this time removing a small bottle of perfume.

Spraying the air around her softly, she waved the piece of parchment through the air, capturing the smell of lavender and sea breeze in her letter.

' I look forward to seeing you on the 21st, Harry.

Yours Truly,

Gabrielle Delacour '

With a smile she sent her letter off with Hedwig. She would win Harry Potter, all she needed was time.

He groaned as he made his way towards the dungeons for double potions with the Slytherins.

He hated Wednesdays. While he could stomach herbology and history of magic in the morning, double potions with Snape in the afternoon was going to be a different issue.

Harry felt something solid as his shoulder collided with that of Oliver Rivers.

"Watch where you're going, Oliver." Goldstein warned from next to him; "you don't want to piss off a psychopath, you may end up dead. How many people have you killed now Potter? Five including Granger?"

From down the hall Draco Malfoy gave Goldstein an amused snort and a small smile.

' That's interesting.' He thought to himself.

He felt his blood boil at the jibe, using all of his self-control to ignore the bait.

The normally friendly Oliver Rivers scowled at Harry, but said nothing, hurrying ahead to join the rest of his classmates.

The first few days had gone mostly the same; even the sixth years in his charms and transfiguration classes had been wary of him, as had those in fifth year Ancient Runes.

Ignoring the jibe, he took his seat in the middle of the dim dungeon next to Daphne.

"Listen up!" The perpetually annoyed voice of their potions master yelled, grabbing the attention of the fourth years.

"The headmaster has insisted on emphasizing partnership and communication this year." He spat, as if the idea was a personal affront.

"For the rest of the year, you will work in pre-determined pairs."

Harry was momentarily excited by the possibility of working with Daphne in another class, but that hope was dimmed almost immediately as his girlfriend was paired with Su Li.

He saw Daphne began to scrawl a few words on the corner of her parchment; "Riddle's room, 18:30."

He agreed with a nearly imperceptible nod of his head.

"Harry Potter and…" His head perked up a bit as he heard his name; "Theodore Nott."

Snape offered him a savage smile as Lily offered him a sympathetic look. If there was someone in their class worse than Theodore Nott, he couldn't name them.

He smiled as he saw her approach. Checking to make sure they were alone, he removed his invisibility cloak and greeted his girlfriend with a soft kiss.

He felt her smile into his lips as he ended the kiss and opened the door.

"I thought you were going to change the password?" Daphne asked.

He smiled; "I was. But I ran into your sister the other day and got distracted."

"Oh?" She responded, not the least bit surprised. "And what did you think."

"She's -," he searched for the right words, how did he describe Astoria Greengrass? "Incredible." He finished lamely.

Daphne gave him a smile. "I told you."

The truth was his conversation with Astoria had weighed heavily on his mind over the last few days. There was just something about the girl that drew him in.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, pointing towards her stomach.

She offered him a grateful smile; "great, thanks to you."

He smiled; "we'll be better next time."

Daphne nodded confidently; "I want to practice with you and Tonks."

He agreed, they both needed to be able to protect themselves better.

"How's being paired with Su Li?"

Daphne's face contorted into an annoyed look. "The girl is too quiet and thinks too highly of herself. I don't think it's going to work out. How's Nott?"

Theodore Nott was also quiet, although he didn't assert himself too much as they brewed, allowing Harry to lead, the pair had managed an exceeds expectations.

"I don't think Snape is going to fail the Minister's son."

Daphne agreed. "Probably not."

They slipped into a comfortable silence as they browsed Tom Riddle's bookshelf.

"I was thinking, for runes, we enchant our room as if it were a dueling pit, so we have a place to practice."

Harry frowned; "that's more of a warding exercise."

"Yes, but the runes that go into making those wards permanent, for the most part, have their basis in fifth and sixth year material. I'm sure Vector would allow you to use it as our project."

He thought about it; having their own space to practice would be invaluable.

"Fine." He smiled. "Do you want to help me change the password to the room?"

Daphne perked up in excitement; "you actually know how?"

He smiled; "of course. I was thinking we could do it this weekend."

Daphne nodded in agreement.

"How is your warding coming."

"Good." He responded without hesitation. "I'm thinking I'll have another go at the drawer." He said, pointing towards the heavily warded desk drawer.

Anger flashed across Daphne's face; "no you won't. Not now. Not after last time."

"I need to see what's in there, Daphne!" He whined.

"Even if it kills you?" She said softly.

"I think you're being a bit melodramatic." He replied, but let the topic drop, choosing instead to pick up Tom Riddle's personal notes on his hunt for the Chamber of Secrets.

The boy had been obsessed with finding Salazar Slytherin's mythical chamber, for some reason or another.

" According to a diary written by Antonio Ravenclaw in 1233. Salazar Slytherin traded spells with Rowena Ravenclaw over a beast he had hidden in his personal chambers in 1182. None of my research points to Salazar Slytherin ever creating personal chambers; could Ravenclaw be referring to the Chamber of Secrets?"

-TMR 10/15/1942

" Salazar Slytherin suffered from delusions of grandeur and fashioned himself as the most powerful practitioner of magic the world had ever seen. He was known to proudly be a parseltongue, carrying a snake with him wherever he went. Assuming Antonio Ravenclaw can be believed; it is my belief that the beast Slytherin hid in his chambers is either a runespoor or a basilisk."

-TMR 10/19/1942

"What are you reading Harry?"

Startled, he looked up. "What was that?"

She flashed him a pretty smile. "What are you reading?"

"Tom Riddle was obsessed with finding the Chamber of Secrets, it's kind of interesting."

The pretty blonde bit her bottom lip as if she wanted to tell him something, but let it go.

"Riddle seems pretty smart. I'm sure he probably found it."

Dumbledore tapped his fingers impatiently, waiting for the room to quiet down.

' Ahem.' He cleared his throat, and a few seconds later the noise died down.

"Thank you all for coming on such short notice. I would like to welcome you all to the newly reformed Order of the Phoenix."

A murmur burst out amongst the small crowd gathered in Grimmauld Place, and he took a moment to look around the room.

Arthur, Molly, Bill, and Charlie Weasley sat closest to him; the former two paying rapt attention. 'They'll do whatever I ask.' He frowned; while great hosts, Arthur and Molly lacked the talent or resources to be of any use to the cause, unfortunately.

Their children, however, had potential.

Bill had proved himself admirably at the quidditch world cup and possessed one of those rare skill-sets that was invaluable to any war effort.

While Charlie Weasley had spent the last several years working with dragon's. 'I should introduce him to Hagrid.' He thought with a smile, glancing at the half-giant who was talking to Sirius.

"As you all have noticed; over the last couple of years, there has been a rise in activity among death eaters who escaped justice during the last war." He paused for a moment to let his words sink in.

Moody, however, took the lull in his speech as an invitation to address the crowd.

"Between the breakout at Azkaban, the attacks in Hogsmeade, Diagon Alley, and the World Cup; as well as a Minister who is, at the very least, sympathetic to Voldemort, we cannot afford to NOT be vigilant!"

The crowd didn't appear to know how to react to Mad-Eye's intense proclamation, most choosing to ignore it.

"Thank you, Alastor."

Albus took a look around the room, taking stock of the individual talents of each person.

Alastor, Bill, Kingsley, Sirius, Remus, Nymphadora, and Severus. He frowned, besides himself they had only seven competent fighters, one of whom couldn't show their allegiance in battle.

' I'll train Bill and Nymphadora.' He thought to himself - they were younger and showed the most promise. Those two, along with Alastor could train the rest.

Plans were forming as most of the order left; leaving only the fighters, minus Severus. 'I'll see him later.' He mused. 'Maybe I can convince him to train Harry?' The boy had shown an inclination towards the Dark Arts, few were better suited to teach Harry than Severus Snape.

"Do you have any updates for me, Alastor?" His old friend shot him something that resembled a smile and gave Nymphadora a quick glance.

The metamorphagus, who was currently sporting shoulder length brown hair, offered him a confident smile.

"Augustus Rookwood has been associating openly as Rufus Hallett, a pureblood from the States. As Rufus, he follows a routine we can exploit."

"What sort of wards does he have around his property?" Albus asked with curiosity.

For the first time the champion duelist looked nervous; "the wards are more advanced than my rudimentary knowledge." She smiled apologetically.

He offered her a kind smile; he learned long ago that praise and kindness would get him a lot further than fear - something Tom Riddle could never understand.

"No worries, my dear. Speak with Bill, I'm confident that he will be able to provide us with more insight."

The two shared a look of agreement, and he dismissed the meeting a few minutes later, eager to get back to the castle to hear what Severus had learned.

She was curious as to where they were taking her as the pair led her through a maze of halls before stopping at a seemingly empty corridor

"We're here." Harry said confidently.

If it had been any other student, Tonks would have rolled her eyes and walked away, but since it was Harry, she took a second look.

Sure enough, about a quarter of the way down the hall and to the right was a slight shimmer. The metamorphagus tried to take a closer look but seemed to forget what she was observing.

She smiled; "an illusion with a notice me not ward, Harry? Impressive."

Daphne smiled. "Those aren't the only wards on the room, come on."

The new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor followed the pair of fourth years as they led her to their hidden oasis.

As she crossed the threshold entering the room, the torches came to life and she felt a warmth spread through her body.

From next to her she noticed Daphne had a similar look on her face.

Harry smiled; "that was the new wards recognizing you."

"When did you add more wards?" The regal-looking Slytherin asked.

Her young apprentice frowned; "while you were in the hospital, I thought I'd add a few I had read about."

Tonks cast a couple of diagnostic spells on the room. "Impressive." She said.

And she meant it. When layering security wards, most experts chose to follow one of a half-dozen or so proven ward configurations. Whether it was out of ignorance, or out of arrogance, Harry Potter had created a truly unique set of wards. And while not particularly difficult to breakdown - they were creative enough, and put together in a way that, they could perplex while being able to be expanded upon.

Harry smiled. "Don't tell anyone, please."

Tonks nodded her agreement as she glanced around the sparse room.

Outside of several bookcases, a couch, a table, and a pair of desks there was nothing remarkable about the makeup of the room.

"You two need to spruce this place up a bit, it lacks romance." She said offering Harry a smirk.

The boy blushed cutely, but she let it go.

"Once Daphne improves in conjuring, we'll add furniture." The girl nodded.

"Shall we begin?"

Lightning-quick, Harry whipped out his wand, waving it in a familiar series of movements, charging a set of runes on the wall closest to the door.

"How much time do we have?" She asked.

Daphne smiled; "an hour, maybe a little more."

Tonks nodded seriously. "Then let's get to work."

Daphne was good; she thought to herself fifteen minutes later.

"Not bad Daphne!"

She said, batting away a severing charm.

"But you're relying too much on dodging."

To prove her point, Tonks shot a spell at her, forcing her to dodge to her left, then quickly hit her with a jelly-legs jinx.

"You don't need to shield or give up your attacking capabilities. You just need to accept the fact that you are going to have to deflect spells more often than you would like."

The girl rolled her eyes but nodded. Daphne wasn't the type of witch to believe she was wrong, she needed to be shown.

' Harry's girlfriend can be a stubborn little bitch.' She thought.

"Alright you two, two on one, no rules, let's see how long you can last."

Septima quietly stepped into Harry and Daphne's room, and immediately felt a pleasant warmth spread through her body.

' That's new.' She thought as she heard a muffled explosion.

' They must be dueling.' She sighed, as the haze lifted and she noted that the pair had spent an incredible amount of time in this room since school had started a few weeks prior.

Slipping through the door, she was met by the scene of a limp-armed Nymphadora Tonks casually dancing out of the way of various curses coming from the two teenagers trading spells with her.

Seeing her, Tonks smirked in her direction before quickly neutralizing her opponents.

"Harry did you and Daphne still want to practice occlumency today?"

Harry hadn't actually said Daphne would like to practice with them, but she figured she may as well test the girl; besides, if Harry was going to eventually learn legilimency, then having a willing partner was a bonus.

"Alright you two." Tonks said, fixing her shoulder with a flick. "I'll see you after dinner tomorrow."

Septima gave the talented witch a soft smile as they exchanged greetings.

"Let's test your shields quick, shall we?"

"You are absolute shit at skipping stones." Terry commented from next to him, as his stone skipped once before sinking into the Black Lake.

From next to Harry, Lily laughed; "like this, Harry." The black-haired girl said with a smile as her stone skipped across the water.

' 12 skips? How the hell does she do that?'

"It's not my fault you two are finding all the good stones." He countered with a whine.

"Then conjure one." Terry deadpanned.

' Damn.' He thought. 'Guess I walked into that one.' He had been showing off his conjuration skills all year, now it was biting him in the ass.

Unable to back down, he conjured a perfectly flat rock.

Gripping the rock loosely between his index finger and his thumb, Harry squared his body and bent his knees before dropping his hand to his waist. Flicking his wrist lightly, he let go of his conjured stone.

It skipped once.

It skipped twice.

Splash!

His perfectly conjured stone sank into the water.

' What am I doing wrong.' He wasn't used to not being at least above average, let alone being bad at anything.

Terry and Lily let out a string of laughter.

"Keep laughing! I'll remember this the next time you need help with homework, or maybe I'll forget about our study sessions."

That shut them both up, and the trio slipped into comfortable conversation.

"Delacour's coming tomorrow." Lily said somewhat vacantly.

Harry dug his hands into the soft dirt behind him and leaned back, enjoying the sun on his face.

"Mhmm."

Was his response - he had desperately wanted to avoid the topic of the beautiful girl.

"You hurt Daphne, you know."

"Come off it, Lily!" Terry defended him. "They weren't even dating at the time."

"And she kissed me, AND I told her about it the first chance I got." He jumped in to defend himself. "Besides, Daphne seemed fine."

"You told her you still want to be friends with a beautiful French veela, from an old pureblood family, who kissed you." Lily said slowly, as if he was supposed to come to some realization.

She groaned. "She feels threatened by her!" Lily screeched.

Terry immediately came to his defense. 'He's really trying to get back in my good-graces.'

"The smartest thing Harry did was salvage a friendship!"

The brunette spoke with such a confidence, that he was momentarily taken aback.

' Gabrielle is smart, kind, and beautiful. Why wouldn't I want to be friends with her?'

' She reminds me of Astoria.' He realized.

"Her uncle is Sebastian Delacour." At his confused look, Terry scoffed at him; "do you not pay any attention in history of magic? He is France's current representative to the International Confederation of Wizards."

Harry would have to look into that later, but he didn't see how that was important, and he said as much.

Lily sighed; "Boot is right." 'When did she start referring to Terry as Boot?'

"Winning a war is about more than just fighting on the battlefield, you'll need strong political allies; you already have Boot."

Terry nodded.

"Having a direct connection to the ICW is the type of political clout most would kill for." For her part, Lily sounded depressed that she had to concede that point.

Terry cut in; "and her father is Gabriel Delacour."

He did a double take at the name; ' Gabrielle's father is named Gabriel?' He groaned.

Taking his groan as confusion, Terry continued; "he handles the finances of the French elite.

"Be a good friend to her, Harry. If you can't win the game off the battlefield, it doesn't matter who wins on the battlefield."

The spy sat in their chambers at Hogwarts, enjoying a pot of Earl Gray before their guests arrived when a familiar tabby owl knocked on the window.

With a smile, the spy opened the window, allowing the owl entrance before removing the letter and directing her towards a water dish.

Familiar, tidy handwriting greeted the spy's eyes as they read the letter.

The orders were complex, vague, and would take time.

The spy smiled widely as they re-read the last part.

' It is integral that Malfoy does not discover our plans.

Love,

Bella'

The spy inhaled deeply, enjoying her smell as a smile overcame their face.

The spy sighed as they burned the letter.

' I have a pair of Slytherins to watch, and a head of house to avoid.' The spy thought, happy to have such an important task.

"Daphne, a word?"

She looked over her shoulder to be greeted by Theodore Nott.

' What the hell does he want?' She wondered.

Alone except for the two of them, in an underused corridor, what could go wrong?

With that in mind, she fingered her wind, ready to strike at the first sign of danger.

"Of course, Theodore." She said with forced charm.

She hadn't had much interaction with Theodore Nott over the last few years, the boy mainly kept to himself; observing and studying.

Following the dark-haired boy into an abandoned room, she took a moment to show off her skill, silently cast a few privacy charms.

' See that, Nott? Silent casting. Don't fuck with me.'

Nott looked impressed but remained quiet.

"What did you want to talk about."

The boy looked nervous all-of-a-sudden. 'Merlin he's not going to ask me out, is he?' She didn't want to have to turn down the Minister's son.

"It's about Potter." She visibly relaxed her body but hardened her eyes.

"What about him?" She replied dangerously.

Her counterpart gulped.

"As you know I'm paired with him in potions."

"Get to the point, Nott. I'm not the most patient person." The boy was intimidated by her, that much was clear.

"I asked Snape to pair me with him!" He blurted out.

The proclamation caught her off guard.

"Why would you tell me that?" She understood why he did it, getting close to his master's enemy would benefit Voldemort's cause.

He frowned. "Potter is exceptionally powerful; both magically and politically. I was hoping to come to some sort of agreement between the two of us, but he's been difficult to get close to, and I was hoping for your help."

His reasoning was perfectly logical.

"Why did you come to me?" She finally asked, needing to hear him say it.

"The Prophet may only speculate about what happened with you at the world cup final, but my father knows Potter killed those men in your defense. "

Nott chose his words carefully, Daphne could appreciate that.

"Besides that, you are one of the most influential students in the school."

She laughed. "I doubt that." She replied confidently. "Greengrass isn't an important name."

"Yet your family sits on the Wizengamot." Nott countered.

"Outside of me, Malfoy, Boot, and Potter, you're the most influential student in this school."

"How do you figure?" She was genuinely curious as to how he had come to that conclusion.

"The first four are obvious."

Daphne conceded that point, it would be hard to argue that any of those names didn't carry tremendous influence.

"Potter controls both his vote in the Wizengamot, and influences the Black vote, not to mention his obvious power and fame." Nott stated the obvious, again.

' Get to the point.'

"You're dating Potter." She wasn't surprised that they had been figured out and didn't react, much to Nott's chagrin.

"He listens to you, you can help influence his decisions." He started. "I'm not asking you to manipulate him, just ask him to meet me for a few minutes Saturday morning after breakfast."

Daphne thought about it for a second. They would need all the help they could get; and they could do a hell of a lot worse than Theodore Nott as far as allies went.

"Fine." She started. "Meet us in the dungeons, next to the portrait of the fruit bowl at 8am this Saturday, and don't eat breakfast."

Nott nodded his head in agreement and left the classroom.

With a sigh, Daphne waited till he was out of sight before heading towards their room.

"Tea?" The spy offered, offering an amused smile. 'I think she'll take tea with two sugars.'

"Yes please." Lily Moon started with a pretty smile. "With two sugars."

"Of course." The spy responded. 'These little games keep me young.'

"Have you discovered anything new about Harry Potter?" The spy asked with curiosity.

Although it wasn't one of their orders, the spy had figured that providing the most up-to-date information on Harry Potter to Bella was of critical importance.

"Gabrielle Delacour has a thing for Harry." The girl responded vacantly. "She kissed him in Italy, Harry liked it, but told Daphne about the incident right away. Delacour and Harry have agreed to remain friends."

Lily's monotone voice echoed throughout the room.

"How does Potter feel about Delacour."

The girl seemed to fight the curse for a second but fell back into a semi-sedated state.

"Harry likes her."

Lily's vague response disappointed the spy.

"Sexually?"

The young Slytherin pondered the question. "Yes."

"Good. I want you to pay special attention to Potter and Delacour, encourage their relationship, if you can. I also need you to watch Astoria and Daphne Greengrass and report back to me with anything you discover."

Moon nodded silently, and the spy willed the girl out of the room.

The room was saturated with excitement as Moody waited to begin.

Normally, the grizzled ex-auror would have quieted the room himself, but he had been waiting for this day for weeks and could understand the excitement surrounding him.

He observed the team he had assembled for tonight's mission with only a mild sense of confidence.

' We lack experience.' He thought to himself; and that - more than anything - scared him. An inexperienced group was unpredictable. Unpredictability led to death.

Weasley would break down the wards, allowing them entrance. 'Hopefully.'

Hestia would act as their expert on obliviation and the mind-arts. Albus had been clear that the target must be kept alive.

Black, Tonks, and Shacklebolt would serve as the fighters, should it come down to it. While Lupin would be observing from a tree, ready to act as a sniper if he needed to.

"As many of you know, tonight we take the fight to the enemy!" The group perked up, some with excitement, others with nervous interest.

"Last week Kingsley was called to a situation in Dover." Alastor motioned for Kingsley to continue.

"When I arrived in Dover, I met a shopkeeper who was complaining about two men who traded spells in his shop. When I was shown a picture of the suspects, I immediately recognized one as Augustus Rookwood, who has been living as 'Rufus Hallett.'"

The unmasking of his old friend as a Death Eater spy had disappointed Alastor more than he would ever admit. The loss had been a huge blow to their side.

"Tonight, we will break into Rookwood's residence and interrogate the man, we cannot harm him. It is important that he remains alive."

The proclamation was met with grumbling, but he would have none of it.

"My word is final!" He snapped irritably. He really didn't have the patience for this.

"Weasley, when we arrive in Dover, we need you to find a way past his wards."

The redhead who was sporting his customary ponytail, acknowledged his role with a slight nod, and Moody began to dole out the rest of the assignments.

The group spent the next hour preparing before apparating just outside of the village of Adisham.

Adisham had an interesting place in history.

During a severe drought - the result of a curse by an emerging dark lord - in the sixth century.

After years of failure, a wizard named Augustine successfully broke the curse, ending the drought.

Upset at his spell being broken, the dark wizard spent months trying to reapply the curse only to be defeated by Augustine.

The story became so famous that it had found its way into muggle legend.

Moody applied a quick charm to his ear.

"Can everybody hear me." He whispered, getting an affirmative from his team, he motioned for them to continue forward.

The seven of them began to make their way up a narrow dirt path towards where they knew Rookwood to be hiding.

Weasley stopped the group.

"Subtle proximity wards on the stones to the left." He whispered.

' I didn't even notice those.'

Moody's respect for the kid rose ever-so-slightly.

Bill cut through the proximity wards with a subtle touch, allowing the group passage before allowing them to take form once again.

The group moved much more cautiously after that, allowing Bill to take the lead as he discovered several more traps on their way to the innermost wards of the property.

Mad-Eye was nervous. Rookwood had been one of the smartest sons of a bitch he had ever met; while he wasn't talented with a wand, he specialized in secrets, and experimental knowledge, his designs revolutionized magic.

At the trial of Igor Karkaroff, it had been revealed that Voldemort used to invite Rookwood for an evening brandy several times a week to discuss ways to remove various impediments.

Karkaroff's testimony, along with that of Rookwood's, had gone a long way to convincing him that Voldemort was more than the murderous madman the ministry wanted him to be.

"This may take a while, everyone. So, make yourselves comfortable." Bill said to the group.

" This may take a while, everyone. So, make yourselves comfortable."

Sirius sighed. He had never been the most patient man and having to wait for a cursebreaker to take down wards was maddening.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tonks wearing a similarly annoyed look on her face, and he briefly wondered if patience was hereditary.

In front of him he watched as the ginger-haired man worked.

Curse breaking, and by extension ward-breaking, was primarily based around trial and error.

First you started with a couple general diagnostic spells. If you're talented enough you can decipher what those spells tell you and identify the ward scheme.

Assuming you can identify the ward scheme, the caster then needs to either reverse, remove, or alter the ward; that is, if you haven't passed out from exhaustion, or been found out.

The man in front of him was beginning to sweat from the effort, as his cousin stared at the man hungrily; 'this is one for the pensieve.'

Forty-five minutes later and Weasley stopped working, a satisfied smirk resting on his sharp features.

Behind him, Sirius could see a glimmering tear in the wards.

The group quickly climbed through with Weasley sealing the wards again with a flick.

The cottage sat on a heavily wooded property. Tall trees and rolling hills surrounded the small home, leaving a number of observation points.

With a look Remus began pacing the perimeter of the house, looking for the perfect vantage point.

Several minutes later, he heard a voice in his ear.

"I'm in a tree on the property's north side, the target is in his study." Remus's voice whispered in his ear.

The rest of them split up into pairs; Bill pairing with Tonks, Hestia with Kingsley, leaving him with Mad-Eye.

The pair stopped outside the window, running a few more diagnostic charms.

"Cocky son of a bitch." His partner growled as he opened the window.

The prick hadn't even secured his windows.

They made their way quietly through the kitchen, running across Tonks and Bill near the stairs.

"The six of you are clear to the study, there doesn't appear to be any other occupants." Remus whispered.

That was all they needed.

Sirius took the lead, quietly guiding the group up the stairs and outside the study.

" Fuck!" He heard his cousin yell. 'She tripped the wards.' He thought. 'Dammit. So much for easy.'

"Tonks down!" Lupin screamed in their ears.

The witch complied immediately as a ball of fire zoomed over where her head had been.

The wards were attacking the group with gusto from every angle, as Hestia was forced to shield against a ball of black sludge.

"Black!" Moody yelled, catching his attention. "Neutralize Rookwood!"

He grunted in acknowledgement, twirling out of the way of several darts and barged into the study.

The older man wasn't very quick, but he was prepared.

Sirius didn't recognize a single one of his spells, forcing him to dodge instead of shield.

Sirius dipped and dived out of the way, returning fire with only stunners, hell-bent on accomplishing his mission.

After a minute of dueling, he clipped Rookwood's shoulder with a stunner, and the wards deactivated.

"Good work, Black." Moody congratulated. "Hestia, you're up." He said as he bound Rookwood to a chair.

"Tonks, Black, Weasley, Shacklebolt; search the house but make sure to return everything to its place; we're here for information only."

The team nodded their consent and dispersed, leaving Moody alone with Hestia and Rookwood.

The younger witch sported a black ponytail and a heart shaped face.

"What am I looking for, Alastor?" The woman asked softly.

"Start by looking for higher level plans; anything mentioning death eaters, known associates, foreign governments or Voldemort, then see how deep you can dig."

She nodded, and the room went quiet again as she probed the unconscious man.

Hestia pulled out suddenly, her eyes as wide as saucers.

"Bellatrix! She has just led a coup of the Bulgarian Ministry, that's where Rookwood just was."

Moody frowned. "Is there anything we can do to stop it?"

Hestia looked distraught; "no."

"Anything else?"

"The Dark Lord has asked Bellatrix to retrieve something from her vault, but he doesn't know what. He suspects it has something to do with whatever 'horcruxes' are."

Moody nodded having no idea what a horcrux was, but he would pass it along to Albus.

"Is Voldemort back?"

Hestia flinched; "no, he's - he's possessed Bartemius Crouch."

Alastor digested that piece of information as the rest of the group began to return.

"Did we find anything interesting?" He asked.

Bill spoke up. "A couple of documents, but not much else. I put up some monitoring wards, so we can keep track of what he is doing."

Moody smiled; "good. Put a tracking charm on his wand, obliviate him, and let's get out of here."

As he waited outside the headmaster's office fifteen minutes later, he couldn't help but feel more alive than he had in years.