Categories > Books > Harry Potter > Harry Potter and the Distaff Side
Confrontations
15 reviewsThe Prank is aborted, Harry discovers some unpleasant truths about the Marauders and Riddle has a party.
5Exciting
A/N: I own none of this. I do not own Harry Potter or any rights to his image or personality. I do not own the moon or the stars. I do not own human genders, other than my own personal original factory equipment. Honest. Nope, not me. I most certainly do not own the rights to a billion dollar literary work. Damn it.
Harry Potter and the Distaff Side
CHAPTER TWELVE
Confrontations
"They've spotted their minders." Rakasha said while casually tossing the ball in her hand at the stack of milk bottles.
"Pretty hard not to." Lokabrenna smirked as she quietly shrunk yet another large stuffed toy rabbit so that it could fit into her pocket along with the seven others Rakasha had won. "The Chicago Cabs? We need to explain stealth to the girl." She frowned. "The boy spotted them first. Then Harri."
"I'm not certain, but I think the Lovegood girl spotted them first, and possibly us as well. She is so much a melding of Xena Lovegood and Hyperion Malfoy it's frightening. His brilliance combined with her tenacity." The prematurely graying woman shook her head as the pair moved away from the ball toss game, one of them always maintaining an eye on the four young students. "Are you sure about this Loki?" Rakasha asked. "Harri actually seems... happy."
"Yeah Moonie, I'm very sure. I managed to get a good sniff of him before Dumbledore rushed me out of the Hospital Wing last May. His scent is almost exactly the same as Harri's. That raised my hackles all by itself. Even identical twins don't smell that much alike."
"True," the Were agreed. "There are potions that could duplicate scents though... a modified Polyjuice perhaps."
"My thoughts exactly." Her eyes narrowed. "I fucked up in '81, I'm not going to fail Harri again."
"We aren't going to fail Harri again, Loki. We aren't going to fail her."
---===ooo000ooo===---
"Why that Lovegood girl doesn't weigh 15 stone I'll never know." Tonks said shaking his head.
"Yeah. She does put it away." The pair watched as the male Potter and the Granger boy stood from the table and left together in the direction of the public facilities.
Billie Weasley shook her head. "I'll never understand why all you men go to the toilets in groups. What do you do in there?"
"That's the most closely guarded secret of the invisible male conspiracy. I could tell you, but then you would have to die." Tonks grinned. "Should I follow them?"
"No" the red head said shaking her head. "The Potter girl is our responsibility; the Headmistress hasn't said anything about the boy."
---===ooo000ooo===---
Orestes followed Harry toward the toilet facilities, keeping an eye on the minders.
"They aren't paying any attention to us." He hissed to his friend. "But that doesn't make this a good idea Harry. Billie's a curse breaker, which means she knows how to cast all of the curses she has to break. She's going to kill us dead."
/"Pranking people is almost never a good idea Orestes. It is funny though, which makes up for a whole lot of stupidity." Harry took his place on the queue that led to a charity booth. "Now our problem is that using magic is a no no. So, the dedicated prankster has to learn to 'prank off the land' to miss-turn a phrase."
"So we're in line for pies?"
"Yep. Sometimes you've got to go with the classics. Hey, it was good enough for the Stooges."
"Who?" the bushy haired Wizard asked.
"Doesn't matter," Harry said while peering toward the front of the line all the while pondering what a trio of female Stooges might have been like. "I hope they have cherry."
"I thought you wanted to go with the classics," Orestes said hesitantly. "Isn't Banana Cream the traditional pie of choice?"
Harry turned to face his friend. "Ok, now you're just messing with me."
"What?"
"You know the traditions, but claim to be ignorant of the contribution that the Three Stooges made to the art form that is the pie fight?" Harry grinned, and then turned back to the counter to look over the selection.
---===ooo000ooo===---
The pair quietly approached the minders from behind, with Harry signaling that he would take the curse breaker. Orestes' face plainly showed that he didn't think that doing this was a good idea, but he carried on, despite the constant refrain of 'this isn't a good idea' echoing in his head.
Harry eased up to the red head wearing the ball cap, and tapped the woman on her shoulder. "Oh Billie?"
"OOH Pie!" a woman said from behind Harry. Before Harry could react the pie was no longer in his hand. He turned to face a woman with long black hair and grey eyes that seemed to bore into his soul. There was something about the woman's face, the line of her jaw, and the smile lines at the corners of her eyes...
"Meh." A shorter woman who appeared to have lifted the pie from Orestes' hands and had started snacking on a piece. "Coconut Cream," this woman's hair was a light brunette, starting to grey, her eyes were a crystal blue, and her clothing seemed somehow... shabby.
"I like Coconut Cream," The dark haired woman said. "Trade you for this Lemon Meringue?"
"Deal."
Harry listened to the banter between the pair as their identities slowly became clear to him. "Padfoot? Moonie?" he whispered.
"Ah, Ms. Moonie, it seems our visitor recognizes us."
Harry was struck by how Sirius' counterpart stressed the word visitor.
"So it seems Ms. Padfoot. Odd that he would resort to such a pedestrian prank against a pair of individuals who were only trying to protect his dimensional twin."
Harry mentally cringed at the Lupin woman's very accurate point. Recover. He thought. Appeal to Padfoot's sense of humor. An idea occurred. Perhaps her vanity would be a better gambit. "Wow Padfoot, you're beautiful."
The woman paused in mid bite of the slice of pie she had exchanged with Moonie, and raised her left eyebrow. "Really Harry? Both Dumbledore and Harri have told us you come from a supposed 'alternate reality'. Was your supposed male Padfoot that easily distracted?"
"Wow Padfoot, you're beautiful!" The female Were mimicked, her voice full of laughter. "That was fairly pathetic young man, though if truth be told there were times where that line would have worked against Ms. Padfoot."
"I think we should talk Harry." Sirius' female counterpart said before she turned to the pair of minders. "Oh Dionysodoros,"
"Tonks." The man snapped. "My name it Tonks."
"Dionysodoros, I was there when Andy hung that name on you, just before he wiped you clean and put you in Teddie's arms for the first time." The woman's smile grew wider. "If you two would go and ask the two young women to join us at Headquarters?"
"Headquarters?" Harry asked.
"You'll see Lad," the Were said with a smile as she grasped Orestes arm and disappeared with a soft pop.
Harry was startled, was that what a portkey looked like?
"I guess you're with me God-son," the black haired woman said as she took hold of Harry's arm.
Those words were still ringing in his ears when Harry suddenly found himself feeling as if he was being squeezed through a pipe and he could no longer breathe.
---===ooo000ooo===---
Harry could not breathe, it was as if there were metal bands tightening around his chest; his eyes were being forced back into his head; his eardrums were being pushed deeper into his skull and then ... He was on his knees, gulping great lung fulls of air and blinked his eyes to dispel the tears that filled them. It was a few seconds before he realized that funfair had vanished. He and this woman who was, and yet wasn't Sirius Black were now standing in what appeared to be an unfurnished dimly lit room.
"What the hell was that?"
"That was apparition Harry. I take it you've never done it before."The female Black said in a cold tone from behind him. Harry found himself suddenly flying through the air, impacting on the cold stone wall hard enough that he saw stars. It wasn't until his vision cleared that he realized that he was stuck to the wall with his arms rigidly at his sides.
"What is this?" the fifteen year old wizard demanded.
"This is my little way of finding out what you're up to," The woman said. "You've managed to fool Dumbledore, you've managed to fool Harri and her friends. Hell, you've even managed to fool Moody, but me, I don't buy your oh so convenient story for a minute. Showing up just when she needed you? Pull the other one; it's got bells on it."
"Tell me something," Harry spat, his eyes blazing. "If you think I'm such a terrible, imminent threat to Harri then why has it taken six months for you to do anything? Not exactly quick off the mark, are you?"
A door opened on the far wall behind Sirius' analogue. The Lupin woman entered the room. "You started without me Lokabrenna. That's awfully selfish of you." The Were sealed the door behind them. "I told them that you had taken their playmate on a tour of the house. Harri and the Granger boy accepted what I had to say, but the Lovegood girl, she all but called me a liar." She grimaced. "Dionysodoros and Billie Weasley are keeping an eye on them while I 'find' you." The graying woman turned to Harry. "We're going to have a little talk, just the three of us, and you're going to tell us the truth."
"The both of you are in on this?" Harry felt his rage building, but fought to maintain control as he pulled his magic together in preparation for breaking the sticking charm. "This is the second time in two months a Potter has been attacked by backstabbing gutless cowards. Why aren't I surprised? The pair of you just keep piling on things that you'll have to explain to Jane and Lance Potter."
Lokabrenna Black jabbed the tip of her wand into the boy's throat. "Don't you dare speak their names. We honor them with everything we do."
"Fuck you." Harry's eyes narrowed with rage. "You abandoned your responsibilities to Harri the night Jane and Lance Potter died, when you handed her to Hagrid so that you could chase off after Petra Pettigrew instead of taking care of your god daughter like you promised you would, you arrogant self serving bitch. If you had done what you were supposed to do she would have been spared a decade at the hands of her aunt and uncle. It's because of you and your selfish disregard of anyone other than yourself, she's at risk of being adopted by the fucking Malfoys. She needs you and what do you do for her? You show up when it suits you to whine about how rough your life has been and what the dementors took from you. She saved your flea-bitten ass, at least twice. What have you ever done for her?"
"That's hardly fair." Rakasha Lupin sputtered in defense of her friend.
Harry shifted his eyes to Lupin. "And you Werewolf, you're even worse. You don't even have the excuse of being put in prison for being an idiot to fall back on. You abandoned Harri completely. You never even tried to see her, not even after she rejoined the Magical World. It wasn't until her third year she even met you, and even then it was only because Dumbledore called you. On the rare occasions she's seen you since she's mostly been treated to your whining about your 'beast within'. The pair of you disgust me. I tolerated this crap from Sirius and Remus because they at least tried to help me at times. They never attacked me from behind."
Lokabrenna Black dug the tip of her wand deeper into the neck of the boy, "I should kill you little boy."
"Oh really?" Harry asked. "Are you sure you've got the rocks? I mean I'm looking you in the face; wouldn't you be more comfortable with my back to you?"
Rakasha' wand joined that of Lokabrenna Black. "Who are you? Why are you here?"
Through clenched teeth Harry responded. "Fuck you."
---===ooo000ooo===---
"Where is Harry?" Luna Lovegood asked for the third time in as many minutes. Her question was met by silence from the minders. "Fine. I'm going to find him." She stood and headed for the sitting room door.
"Your friend is being shown around the house by my cousin."Dionysodoros Tonks responded patiently while blocking the blonde's exit. "You know that. Rakasha told us all that when we arrived. Loki wants a chance to get to know the boy, and he's never seen this house."
That statement caught Orestes' attention, and spiked his concern to the levels that Luna had been feeling since they arrived at this dreary old mansion. "Wait, that doesn't make any sense. Lokabrenna Black only barely knows me, and doesn't know Luna at all. None of us have ever been here before. Why is Harry the only one getting a personal tour?"
"What's going on?" Harri Potter asked. "Billie, do you know?"
The eldest of the Weasley daughters hesitated. She agreed that something about this seemed... off. But Lokabrenna Black and Rakasha Lupin were senior members of the Order; surely they wouldn't be involved in anything...
"I'm sure they're just having a talk with the little guy." Billie said, not really believing what she was saying. "Maybe they're making sure he's getting 'The Talk' since he's more or less alone in this reality."
"Harry is hardly alone," Orestes said. "My parents have adopted him in the Witching world."
"And Harry most specifically does not need 'The Talk' I can assure you." Luna stated quietly.
"All right Luna!" Harri said, forgetting for the moment the questions in her mind, while smiling at Orestes' blush.
"Be that as it may," Tonks said attempting to regain control of the situation, "You three are staying here."
"By what right are you confining us to this room Auror Tonks?" Luna asked.
"That's a very good question," Orestes agreed. "We were brought here without our consent, and are seemingly confined to this room. Are you arresting us?"
"You're not under arrest," Billie Weasley said. The Curse Breaker didn't like where this conversation was going. These four weren't little kids, and here Black and Lupin had asked that she and Tonks confine three of them while they spoke with the fourth. This had bad idea written all over it.
"Then I for one am leaving." Luna said rising to her feet. "Are you two coming with me? We can find Harry and finish our date."
Tonks drew his wand. "No one is going anywhere."
The three students exchanged looks.
"Are you very sure you want to do that?" Harri asked quietly.
"Girl, I'm an Auror, Billie is a Curse Breaker. It's time for you three to be good children and do what we tell you."
Billie mentally cringed, while pulling her own wand in support of her partner. It was obvious to her that Tonks was an only child, issuing a challenge like that. The trio in front of them was sure to respond to that challenge, and while the kids had no chance against Tonks and herself, the coming rebellion was now inevitable.
"Are you acting in your official capacity Auror Tonks?" Orestes Granger asked.
"No, but this is for your own good."
"Ah. 'For my own good'," Harri Potter said standing up from the sofa. "You know, never once in my entire life have the words 'for your own good' ever meant anything good for me." She slowly drew her own wand, as did the other two students. "Hands up everyone who's ever dueled with the Dark Lady." She paused with her eyes locked with the now somewhat pale Auror. "Oh, just me? Well, I guess I'm going to go find my brother then. Is that going to be aproblem Auror Tonks?"
---===ooo000ooo===---
Riddle sat on her throne watching with a detached amusement as her followers scurried about preparing for the evenings ritual.
This was all too easy. Even the most intelligent of the pure bloods were easily manipulated, be it appealing to their greed, their ambitions or even their fears, but now it seemed that someone else was using this tactic.
Reports of the Malfoy heir being found staked to the center of a pentagram drawn in blood, shaved bare and having had an unknown rune set painted on her body in that same blood had reached Riddle the same day she was found, and the Dark Lady had witnessed Lucille Malfoy's emotional shifts from confusion as to what the incident might mean, to anger that anyone would dare touch her precious daughter, to suddenly, oddly, almost concealed fear.
The Parkinson boy's descriptions of young Thubani's paranoia following the episode almost made Riddle smile.
Still... having such an abject coward in line to lead one of the families sworn to her was a situation that needed addressing. The Dark Lady nodded to herself. The Malfoys would conduct the ritual tonight... All three of them. Should any of the Malfoy family hesitate in their service to the Dark Lady, they could easily be culled then.
Ah, the guest of honor for the evening's ritual arrived. A Muggle boy, no more than fifteen if Riddle was to guess. The boy's eyes were wild and panicked, and he was crying for his father.
Perfect.
---===ooo000ooo===---
"Quit struggling boy." Lupin said dismissively. "We've held stronger wizards than you with this charm. "We kept Orion Black silenced on the ceiling of the charms classroom for a whole weekend."
Harry grimaced in mock pain. These two were rank amateurs at causing pain when compared to the Riddle of the Room. He had defeated the sticking charm a few moments before and was waiting for one of the female Marauders to come within his reach. Sirius' counterpart had conjured a chair and was taking a break, but Lupin was just close enough. The pair's actions were confirming what Harry had long feared after hearing Sirius' 'hilarious' stories of his time at Hogwarts. The Marauders were bullies, plain and simple. Harry didn't like bullies. Not even a little bit.
"Tell me who you are," Lupin said, coming close enough to once again jab her wand into a nerve cluster and casting a pain hex.
The raven haired dimensional traveler had had enough, and he was a little sad that he had overcome the 'don't hit girls' attitude he had arrived in this reality with. Harry spread the fingers of his right hand and silently called his wand.
The werewolf's enhanced senses noticed the wand flying through the air; her ears heard the distinctive slap of a summoned wand into the hand of its wielder. Lupin started moving to prevent the boy from making his escape, her eyes widening in shock as her wolfish speed was shown to be no where near sufficient to counter the boy's casting.
Rakasha Lupin flew across the room in the grip of the boy's banishing spell. The Were impacted hard against the far wall and slid to the floor unconscious.
Lokabrenna Black stared open mouthed at her childhood friend, when she looked to the boy. The boy was standing away from the wall, having somehow freed himself, his wand glowing with barely restrained power. This was... was... impossible. How could a mere boy defeat that sticking charm? It had held the most powerful... Black struggle to rise from her conjured chair when the door blew into the room. The heavy wooden door was blasted across the room, hitting the woman fully in the chest and driving her into the wall.
Lokabrenna's last memory of the event was an outraged Luna Lovegood standing in the now empty doorway.
"Get the hell away from my boyfriend!"
---===ooo000ooo===---
"Pathetic. Just Pathetic."
Lokabrenna's consciousness slowly returned. She was standing upright, somehow. It took her a moment to recognize her situation.
She was stuck to the wall. Lokabrenna opened her eyes and found her self looking into the smirking eyes of Anastasia Moody.
"Mad-Eye?"
"Pitiful Black, you and the werewolf both, just pitiful. I don't blame the cadet or the curse breaker, they were never trained for what you inflicted on them, but you? I spent three years training you and you get your ass handed to you by four school kids." The Retired Auror shook her head. "I told you not to annoy the boy. I guess I should have included his friends in the warning."
"What happened? I feel so..."
"Disconnected? Out of sorts? Not quite yourself?" Moody asked right on the edge of laughter.
"What? What's happened?"
"The Potters and their friends decided to take advantage of the wards on this old mausoleum and practice their switching spells on you four," Mad-Eye laughed, her magical eye spinning wildly. "I think your left leg is yours, other than that, you've got a limb from each of the other three idiots."
Black looked about the room. It was the same room she and Rakasha had been using to interrogate the boy. Stuck to the far was Billie Weasley, with three limbs that didn't... fit. On the wall to Lokabrenna's left hung a still unconscious Rakasha Lupin, to her right, Tonks. Each of the four had a limb belonging to each of the others, with the Cursebreaker and the Auror showing evidence of having been hexed to wild day glo colors.
"What is going on here?" Blanch Dumbledore demanded as she entered the room. "The sitting room is destroyed and..." her voice trailed off as she took in the scene in the room. "Lokabrenna, what have you done?"
"I told you my suspicions about the boy pretending to be Harri's dimensional twin." The fugitive head of the family Black said. "You ignored me, so Rakasha and I took it upon ourselves to find out what he is up to."
"And ending up stuck to the wall in your own house was the culmination of your cunning plan?" Silvia Snape asked from where she leaned in the door jamb. "I need to take all this in," the greasy haired woman said baring her yellow teeth in a most horrendous smile. "One never knows when one will need ahappy memory for a patronus..."
"Oh shut up Silvia," Rakasha Lupin said as she shook her head trying to clear it as she forced herself awake. "Could one of you please give me back my own arm and legs and get me down off this wall?"
Dumbledore ignored the Were. "Lokabrenna, I told you when we discussed this originally that I believed the boy's story." The aged Headmistress waver her wand to disrupt the charm on Lokabrenna, and then frowned when nothing happened. "Odd..." She seemed to peer closer at the woman, "Ah, the work of Ms. Lovegood then." Much more wand waving and several muttered incantations later Black found she once again was in possession of her own limbs.
"He doesn't smell right Blanch." Rakasha protested as Moody freed her from the wall. "He smells almost exactly like Harri. Even identical twins have different scents. He's up to something."
"He was up to rendering you unconscious and sticking you to a wall."Silvia Snape observed. "It's a pity the he didn't do something about your mouth to save us all from having to hear you whine like a little boy."
"The reason he doesn't smell like a twin is that for all intents and purposes the Potters are the same person." Moody said, freeing Tonks from the wall, and casting enervate on him.
"What?" the /]Metamorphmagusjerked into a sitting position. "What happened?"
"You got your ass handed to you by a group of school children." Moody said helpfully. "Almanzo would be so proud of you."
---===ooo000ooo===---
Pausing to rinse the plate in his hand Harry handed it to Orestes to dry. Harri was finishing cleaning the cooker while Luna looked on in amazement.
"You actually do this every day? No magic at all?"
"We're all Muggle raised Luna." Harry chuckled. "This is the only way we knew until our Hogwarts letters came."
"Besides," Orestes interjected, "ignoring the fact that we can't do magic out of school, using magic for something as simple as washing up seems somehow... I don't know, frivolous I guess."
"I don't know if I'd go as far as frivolous." Harri said giving the chrome work of the cooker a final wipe. "But at some level I enjoy losing myself for a few moments in a mindless chore." She reached out to lightly stroke Orestes' arm. "And when I'm doing that chore for someone I don't hate... Well, that just makes it all the better."
"I can't imagine doing daily chores like this without magic." An odd look crossed the blonde's face. "Perhaps it would make an interesting article for the Quibbler."
"Orestes?" Emmit Granger called from the door way. "You all have a visitor."
The quartet made their way to the sitting room to find Professor Dumbledore waiting for them.
"Good evening all." The aged witch said. "I was surprised to find from Ginevra Weasley that you had asked to spend the night here Harriet," she said wearing an expression of supreme disappointment. "Almost as surprised as I was to hear of your adventures today."
"The rest of us neglected to check out with you when we left our homes today Professor," Harry said drily. "Are you also disappointed in us as well?"
"Mr. Potter, you of all people should understand, Ms. Potter needs to be protected."
"The level of protection you're suggesting is insulting Professor,"Harri sniffed. "If I am to be unable to leave the places you define as safe, then I might as well welcome the Malfoy family's attempts to adopt me. At least when they would imprison me, they would be honest about it."
"As witnessed by Harri's guardian problems, you have no claim on Ms. Potter Professor having not made yourself her guardian," Danielle Granger noted. "She is more than welcome here, and from what I understand at the Weasley's. Why are you making this your concern?"
"Mrs. Granger, there are factors of this situation of which you are completely unaware. Ms. Potter is at risk as long as the Dark Lady lives. I have established an organization called The Order of the Phoenix that is specifically tasked with keeping her safe."
"Oh, yes." Luna remarked. "We experienced their efforts toward keeping her safe just today."
"Confinement with a side of torture." Harry agreed.
"Hardly torture Mr. Potter. What happened today was a mistake, an error of judgment by two young women who only intended to protect Harriet." The silver haired witch said. "It will not happen again."
"Too right it won't." Orestes snorted.
"Next time they'll know to bring friends." Luna predicted. "A whole lot of friends."
"There will not be a 'next time' Ms. Lovegood, I promise you." Dumbledore said wondering just when she had lost control of this conversation. "The situation today was purely due to a pair of young women who got a touch over enthusiastic in the defense of the only child of their oldest friends."
"Enthusiastic in deed." Harry scoffed. "You should let them know that the only reason that I didn't do real damage to them is that Orestes was the calm voice of reason as he usually is."
"All of this is very interesting." Danielle Granger interrupted. "But it's getting late. Professor, our boys have out permission to invite their friends over to our home as long as they clear it with us first. Both Xena Lovegood and Ginevra Weasley gave their permission for the visit tonight. You are the Headmistress of the children's school, I would suggest that you focus your attention and formidable talents toward that and butt out of the lives of these young people."
"Mrs. Granger, I assure you..."
"No, Professor, I assure you. If any of your 'Order' try anything like they did today again, I will be calling the police and contacting your ministry to complain specifically about you."
"And I might find it necessary to write to a few of the Witching World's publications to tell the story as well." Emmit added. "I wonder if having your name in it as well as Harriet's might not generate a bit of interest... you know, sell a few papers."
"You just don't understand..."
"Good night Professor." Danielle said rising from her chair.
---===ooo000ooo===---
It had taken another twenty minutes for the Headmistress to actually leave. When she finally did, the elder Grangers sat the teens down at the dining room table and put cups of tea in front of each of them.
It was time to talk.
Danielle Granger pondered what she should be doing. She had been dreading the day that her little boy would discover girls since the day he had been born. No, make that her boys. Young Harry had been in their lives for only slightly more than half a year, and half of that away at school, but he had become part of the Granger family before Danielle had ever thought to make it official.
Now there were young women in the picture. Young women with only one thing on their evil little one track minds. Danielle recognized the looks in their eyes from when she had seen the same look in her own eyes whenever she had looked into a mirror during her own teen years.
"You all know, of course, that we trust you, right?"
Orestes blushed. "Dad..."
"We trust you to spend the nights in your own rooms." Danielle clarified. "Boys in Orestes' room, Girls in Harry's."
"We know that Mum."
"Good." Danielle hesitated. "How much should we worry about what happened today?"
The teens exchanged looks.
"Quite a bit." Orestes admitted. "The Dark Lady's followers have been killing innocents since last summer."
"Harry and I have approached the Goblins about warding your home. That will protect you from them, or at least give you warning and a chance to escape." The female Potter explained.
"In the mean time you've got one of the world's premier spell casters living here, along with the smartest Wizard of his generation." Luna pointed out. "Attacking this house would be the biggest mistake any Death Eater could make."
"Also likely the last." Orestes agreed.
---===ooo000ooo===---
The chamber was lit by hundreds of torches; a raised dais was situated in the middle of the room. Stripped naked and tied to the dais with acromantula silk was the Muggle boy tearfully struggling against his bonds. The dais was surrounded by the followers of the Dark Lady Riddle, chanting "vita eternus pro era" over and over.
Thubani and Lucille Malfoy stood on either side of the boy clad in the silken ritual robes, while a sky clad Narcissus Malfoy straddled the boy's groin, his arms extended toward the sky.
Lucille drew an ornate silver knife from her robes, and raised it above her head. "Is est per veneficus unus meus Era sets suus intentio in motus. Is est per cruor of letalis ut Era usurpo immortalis , vesica usurpo macula. macula fio subcribo. Is est per veneficus unus meus Era sets suus intentio in motus." She intoned.
Thubani picked up the incantation. "vestri vita opes nusquam. nostrum senior mos epulum super vestri nex." A swirl of gray mist bloomed between Narcissus' upraised arms.
"Vestri animus mos nutritor nostrum vinco" Lucile continued, he drove the knife into the screaming boy's chest. "Vestri cruor mos nutritor ritus vesica!"
"Vestri viscus mos nutritor suus secuutus." Narcissus chanted as he drove his hands into the hole the blade had made guiding the gray mist into the boy's body cavity and yanking a chunk of the boy's ribcage free, bringing the boy's flesh to his lips.
"Vos intereo iam ut nos epulum!"Thubani screamed as she pulled flesh from the boy.
Lucille brought the now glowing knife to the Dark Lady. The head of the Malfoy family knelt one the flagstone floor and offered the ceremonial knife up to her Mistress hilt first. Riddle accepted the blade, raising it above her head. "Particeps meus liberi , utor viscus of nequam puer constrictum vestri animus ut mei. Vestri ago es mei , vestri animus es mei , nos es reus una totus nostrum!"
Riddle then slowly sheathed the blade in her stomach, reveling in the pain, feeling the discharge of the absorbed life energy into her body. Her eyes closed she could sense the passions of her followers as other filthy Muggles were brought into the chamber for their pleasure.
Death. Death and pain. Her favorite things.
---===ooo000ooo===---
Orestes jerked upright in his bed, the digital clock on her bedside table showed the time, 3:22 am. Then it came again, the sound that had woke him. Ascream, like a soul suffering the torments of hell.
"What?" Harry asked from the floor. In the light of the clock's display Orestes could see her friend sitting up. For some reason Harry had refused to share Orestes' double bed and had insisted on the floor. "Was that a scream?"
Harry's question was answered by another blood curdling scream.
Orestes' blood ran cold. Harri! He leaped from the bed, with Harry scrambling to his feet to follow. Outside his door Orestes found his parents had arrived at the room Harri and Luna were sharing for the night before he had. Forcing his way passed his parents he found Luna holding a thrashing Harri.
"She won't wake up." The blond said in a panicked voice, "and she won't quit screaming."
"Oh my god." Harry gasped when he say his twin. "Her scar, it's bleeding!"
---===ooo000ooo===---
A/N: A few translations:
vita eternus pro era
life eternal for mistress
Is est per veneficus unus meus Era sets suus intentio in motus. Is est per cruor of letalis ut Era usurpo immortalis , vesica usurpo macula. macula fio subcribo. Is est per veneficus unus meus Era sets suus intentio in motus.
It is by magic alone my Lady sets her plan in motion. It is by the blood of mortal that the Mistress acquires immortality, the blade acquires stains. The stains become the sign. It is by magic alone my Lady sets her plan in motion.
- Yes I ripped off Dune. What can I say, it tickled me.
vestri vita opes nusquam. nostrum senior mos epulum super vestri nex.
your life means nothing. our lord will feast upon your death.
Vestri animus mos nutritor nostrum vinco
Your soul will feed our master
Vestri cruor mos nutritor ritus vesica
Your blood will feed the ritual blade
Vestri viscus mos nutritor suus secuutus.
Your flesh will feed his followers.
Vos intereo iam ut nos epulum
You die now that we feast
particeps meus liberi , utor viscus of nequam puer constrictum vestri animus ut mei. Vestri ago es mei , vestri animus es mei , nos es reus una totus nostrum!*
Eat my children, use the flesh of the worthless boy to bind your souls to mine. Your lives are mine, your souls are mine, we are bound together all of us!
Harry Potter and the Distaff Side
CHAPTER TWELVE
Confrontations
"They've spotted their minders." Rakasha said while casually tossing the ball in her hand at the stack of milk bottles.
"Pretty hard not to." Lokabrenna smirked as she quietly shrunk yet another large stuffed toy rabbit so that it could fit into her pocket along with the seven others Rakasha had won. "The Chicago Cabs? We need to explain stealth to the girl." She frowned. "The boy spotted them first. Then Harri."
"I'm not certain, but I think the Lovegood girl spotted them first, and possibly us as well. She is so much a melding of Xena Lovegood and Hyperion Malfoy it's frightening. His brilliance combined with her tenacity." The prematurely graying woman shook her head as the pair moved away from the ball toss game, one of them always maintaining an eye on the four young students. "Are you sure about this Loki?" Rakasha asked. "Harri actually seems... happy."
"Yeah Moonie, I'm very sure. I managed to get a good sniff of him before Dumbledore rushed me out of the Hospital Wing last May. His scent is almost exactly the same as Harri's. That raised my hackles all by itself. Even identical twins don't smell that much alike."
"True," the Were agreed. "There are potions that could duplicate scents though... a modified Polyjuice perhaps."
"My thoughts exactly." Her eyes narrowed. "I fucked up in '81, I'm not going to fail Harri again."
"We aren't going to fail Harri again, Loki. We aren't going to fail her."
---===ooo000ooo===---
"Why that Lovegood girl doesn't weigh 15 stone I'll never know." Tonks said shaking his head.
"Yeah. She does put it away." The pair watched as the male Potter and the Granger boy stood from the table and left together in the direction of the public facilities.
Billie Weasley shook her head. "I'll never understand why all you men go to the toilets in groups. What do you do in there?"
"That's the most closely guarded secret of the invisible male conspiracy. I could tell you, but then you would have to die." Tonks grinned. "Should I follow them?"
"No" the red head said shaking her head. "The Potter girl is our responsibility; the Headmistress hasn't said anything about the boy."
---===ooo000ooo===---
Orestes followed Harry toward the toilet facilities, keeping an eye on the minders.
"They aren't paying any attention to us." He hissed to his friend. "But that doesn't make this a good idea Harry. Billie's a curse breaker, which means she knows how to cast all of the curses she has to break. She's going to kill us dead."
/"Pranking people is almost never a good idea Orestes. It is funny though, which makes up for a whole lot of stupidity." Harry took his place on the queue that led to a charity booth. "Now our problem is that using magic is a no no. So, the dedicated prankster has to learn to 'prank off the land' to miss-turn a phrase."
"So we're in line for pies?"
"Yep. Sometimes you've got to go with the classics. Hey, it was good enough for the Stooges."
"Who?" the bushy haired Wizard asked.
"Doesn't matter," Harry said while peering toward the front of the line all the while pondering what a trio of female Stooges might have been like. "I hope they have cherry."
"I thought you wanted to go with the classics," Orestes said hesitantly. "Isn't Banana Cream the traditional pie of choice?"
Harry turned to face his friend. "Ok, now you're just messing with me."
"What?"
"You know the traditions, but claim to be ignorant of the contribution that the Three Stooges made to the art form that is the pie fight?" Harry grinned, and then turned back to the counter to look over the selection.
---===ooo000ooo===---
The pair quietly approached the minders from behind, with Harry signaling that he would take the curse breaker. Orestes' face plainly showed that he didn't think that doing this was a good idea, but he carried on, despite the constant refrain of 'this isn't a good idea' echoing in his head.
Harry eased up to the red head wearing the ball cap, and tapped the woman on her shoulder. "Oh Billie?"
"OOH Pie!" a woman said from behind Harry. Before Harry could react the pie was no longer in his hand. He turned to face a woman with long black hair and grey eyes that seemed to bore into his soul. There was something about the woman's face, the line of her jaw, and the smile lines at the corners of her eyes...
"Meh." A shorter woman who appeared to have lifted the pie from Orestes' hands and had started snacking on a piece. "Coconut Cream," this woman's hair was a light brunette, starting to grey, her eyes were a crystal blue, and her clothing seemed somehow... shabby.
"I like Coconut Cream," The dark haired woman said. "Trade you for this Lemon Meringue?"
"Deal."
Harry listened to the banter between the pair as their identities slowly became clear to him. "Padfoot? Moonie?" he whispered.
"Ah, Ms. Moonie, it seems our visitor recognizes us."
Harry was struck by how Sirius' counterpart stressed the word visitor.
"So it seems Ms. Padfoot. Odd that he would resort to such a pedestrian prank against a pair of individuals who were only trying to protect his dimensional twin."
Harry mentally cringed at the Lupin woman's very accurate point. Recover. He thought. Appeal to Padfoot's sense of humor. An idea occurred. Perhaps her vanity would be a better gambit. "Wow Padfoot, you're beautiful."
The woman paused in mid bite of the slice of pie she had exchanged with Moonie, and raised her left eyebrow. "Really Harry? Both Dumbledore and Harri have told us you come from a supposed 'alternate reality'. Was your supposed male Padfoot that easily distracted?"
"Wow Padfoot, you're beautiful!" The female Were mimicked, her voice full of laughter. "That was fairly pathetic young man, though if truth be told there were times where that line would have worked against Ms. Padfoot."
"I think we should talk Harry." Sirius' female counterpart said before she turned to the pair of minders. "Oh Dionysodoros,"
"Tonks." The man snapped. "My name it Tonks."
"Dionysodoros, I was there when Andy hung that name on you, just before he wiped you clean and put you in Teddie's arms for the first time." The woman's smile grew wider. "If you two would go and ask the two young women to join us at Headquarters?"
"Headquarters?" Harry asked.
"You'll see Lad," the Were said with a smile as she grasped Orestes arm and disappeared with a soft pop.
Harry was startled, was that what a portkey looked like?
"I guess you're with me God-son," the black haired woman said as she took hold of Harry's arm.
Those words were still ringing in his ears when Harry suddenly found himself feeling as if he was being squeezed through a pipe and he could no longer breathe.
---===ooo000ooo===---
Harry could not breathe, it was as if there were metal bands tightening around his chest; his eyes were being forced back into his head; his eardrums were being pushed deeper into his skull and then ... He was on his knees, gulping great lung fulls of air and blinked his eyes to dispel the tears that filled them. It was a few seconds before he realized that funfair had vanished. He and this woman who was, and yet wasn't Sirius Black were now standing in what appeared to be an unfurnished dimly lit room.
"What the hell was that?"
"That was apparition Harry. I take it you've never done it before."The female Black said in a cold tone from behind him. Harry found himself suddenly flying through the air, impacting on the cold stone wall hard enough that he saw stars. It wasn't until his vision cleared that he realized that he was stuck to the wall with his arms rigidly at his sides.
"What is this?" the fifteen year old wizard demanded.
"This is my little way of finding out what you're up to," The woman said. "You've managed to fool Dumbledore, you've managed to fool Harri and her friends. Hell, you've even managed to fool Moody, but me, I don't buy your oh so convenient story for a minute. Showing up just when she needed you? Pull the other one; it's got bells on it."
"Tell me something," Harry spat, his eyes blazing. "If you think I'm such a terrible, imminent threat to Harri then why has it taken six months for you to do anything? Not exactly quick off the mark, are you?"
A door opened on the far wall behind Sirius' analogue. The Lupin woman entered the room. "You started without me Lokabrenna. That's awfully selfish of you." The Were sealed the door behind them. "I told them that you had taken their playmate on a tour of the house. Harri and the Granger boy accepted what I had to say, but the Lovegood girl, she all but called me a liar." She grimaced. "Dionysodoros and Billie Weasley are keeping an eye on them while I 'find' you." The graying woman turned to Harry. "We're going to have a little talk, just the three of us, and you're going to tell us the truth."
"The both of you are in on this?" Harry felt his rage building, but fought to maintain control as he pulled his magic together in preparation for breaking the sticking charm. "This is the second time in two months a Potter has been attacked by backstabbing gutless cowards. Why aren't I surprised? The pair of you just keep piling on things that you'll have to explain to Jane and Lance Potter."
Lokabrenna Black jabbed the tip of her wand into the boy's throat. "Don't you dare speak their names. We honor them with everything we do."
"Fuck you." Harry's eyes narrowed with rage. "You abandoned your responsibilities to Harri the night Jane and Lance Potter died, when you handed her to Hagrid so that you could chase off after Petra Pettigrew instead of taking care of your god daughter like you promised you would, you arrogant self serving bitch. If you had done what you were supposed to do she would have been spared a decade at the hands of her aunt and uncle. It's because of you and your selfish disregard of anyone other than yourself, she's at risk of being adopted by the fucking Malfoys. She needs you and what do you do for her? You show up when it suits you to whine about how rough your life has been and what the dementors took from you. She saved your flea-bitten ass, at least twice. What have you ever done for her?"
"That's hardly fair." Rakasha Lupin sputtered in defense of her friend.
Harry shifted his eyes to Lupin. "And you Werewolf, you're even worse. You don't even have the excuse of being put in prison for being an idiot to fall back on. You abandoned Harri completely. You never even tried to see her, not even after she rejoined the Magical World. It wasn't until her third year she even met you, and even then it was only because Dumbledore called you. On the rare occasions she's seen you since she's mostly been treated to your whining about your 'beast within'. The pair of you disgust me. I tolerated this crap from Sirius and Remus because they at least tried to help me at times. They never attacked me from behind."
Lokabrenna Black dug the tip of her wand deeper into the neck of the boy, "I should kill you little boy."
"Oh really?" Harry asked. "Are you sure you've got the rocks? I mean I'm looking you in the face; wouldn't you be more comfortable with my back to you?"
Rakasha' wand joined that of Lokabrenna Black. "Who are you? Why are you here?"
Through clenched teeth Harry responded. "Fuck you."
---===ooo000ooo===---
"Where is Harry?" Luna Lovegood asked for the third time in as many minutes. Her question was met by silence from the minders. "Fine. I'm going to find him." She stood and headed for the sitting room door.
"Your friend is being shown around the house by my cousin."Dionysodoros Tonks responded patiently while blocking the blonde's exit. "You know that. Rakasha told us all that when we arrived. Loki wants a chance to get to know the boy, and he's never seen this house."
That statement caught Orestes' attention, and spiked his concern to the levels that Luna had been feeling since they arrived at this dreary old mansion. "Wait, that doesn't make any sense. Lokabrenna Black only barely knows me, and doesn't know Luna at all. None of us have ever been here before. Why is Harry the only one getting a personal tour?"
"What's going on?" Harri Potter asked. "Billie, do you know?"
The eldest of the Weasley daughters hesitated. She agreed that something about this seemed... off. But Lokabrenna Black and Rakasha Lupin were senior members of the Order; surely they wouldn't be involved in anything...
"I'm sure they're just having a talk with the little guy." Billie said, not really believing what she was saying. "Maybe they're making sure he's getting 'The Talk' since he's more or less alone in this reality."
"Harry is hardly alone," Orestes said. "My parents have adopted him in the Witching world."
"And Harry most specifically does not need 'The Talk' I can assure you." Luna stated quietly.
"All right Luna!" Harri said, forgetting for the moment the questions in her mind, while smiling at Orestes' blush.
"Be that as it may," Tonks said attempting to regain control of the situation, "You three are staying here."
"By what right are you confining us to this room Auror Tonks?" Luna asked.
"That's a very good question," Orestes agreed. "We were brought here without our consent, and are seemingly confined to this room. Are you arresting us?"
"You're not under arrest," Billie Weasley said. The Curse Breaker didn't like where this conversation was going. These four weren't little kids, and here Black and Lupin had asked that she and Tonks confine three of them while they spoke with the fourth. This had bad idea written all over it.
"Then I for one am leaving." Luna said rising to her feet. "Are you two coming with me? We can find Harry and finish our date."
Tonks drew his wand. "No one is going anywhere."
The three students exchanged looks.
"Are you very sure you want to do that?" Harri asked quietly.
"Girl, I'm an Auror, Billie is a Curse Breaker. It's time for you three to be good children and do what we tell you."
Billie mentally cringed, while pulling her own wand in support of her partner. It was obvious to her that Tonks was an only child, issuing a challenge like that. The trio in front of them was sure to respond to that challenge, and while the kids had no chance against Tonks and herself, the coming rebellion was now inevitable.
"Are you acting in your official capacity Auror Tonks?" Orestes Granger asked.
"No, but this is for your own good."
"Ah. 'For my own good'," Harri Potter said standing up from the sofa. "You know, never once in my entire life have the words 'for your own good' ever meant anything good for me." She slowly drew her own wand, as did the other two students. "Hands up everyone who's ever dueled with the Dark Lady." She paused with her eyes locked with the now somewhat pale Auror. "Oh, just me? Well, I guess I'm going to go find my brother then. Is that going to be aproblem Auror Tonks?"
---===ooo000ooo===---
Riddle sat on her throne watching with a detached amusement as her followers scurried about preparing for the evenings ritual.
This was all too easy. Even the most intelligent of the pure bloods were easily manipulated, be it appealing to their greed, their ambitions or even their fears, but now it seemed that someone else was using this tactic.
Reports of the Malfoy heir being found staked to the center of a pentagram drawn in blood, shaved bare and having had an unknown rune set painted on her body in that same blood had reached Riddle the same day she was found, and the Dark Lady had witnessed Lucille Malfoy's emotional shifts from confusion as to what the incident might mean, to anger that anyone would dare touch her precious daughter, to suddenly, oddly, almost concealed fear.
The Parkinson boy's descriptions of young Thubani's paranoia following the episode almost made Riddle smile.
Still... having such an abject coward in line to lead one of the families sworn to her was a situation that needed addressing. The Dark Lady nodded to herself. The Malfoys would conduct the ritual tonight... All three of them. Should any of the Malfoy family hesitate in their service to the Dark Lady, they could easily be culled then.
Ah, the guest of honor for the evening's ritual arrived. A Muggle boy, no more than fifteen if Riddle was to guess. The boy's eyes were wild and panicked, and he was crying for his father.
Perfect.
---===ooo000ooo===---
"Quit struggling boy." Lupin said dismissively. "We've held stronger wizards than you with this charm. "We kept Orion Black silenced on the ceiling of the charms classroom for a whole weekend."
Harry grimaced in mock pain. These two were rank amateurs at causing pain when compared to the Riddle of the Room. He had defeated the sticking charm a few moments before and was waiting for one of the female Marauders to come within his reach. Sirius' counterpart had conjured a chair and was taking a break, but Lupin was just close enough. The pair's actions were confirming what Harry had long feared after hearing Sirius' 'hilarious' stories of his time at Hogwarts. The Marauders were bullies, plain and simple. Harry didn't like bullies. Not even a little bit.
"Tell me who you are," Lupin said, coming close enough to once again jab her wand into a nerve cluster and casting a pain hex.
The raven haired dimensional traveler had had enough, and he was a little sad that he had overcome the 'don't hit girls' attitude he had arrived in this reality with. Harry spread the fingers of his right hand and silently called his wand.
The werewolf's enhanced senses noticed the wand flying through the air; her ears heard the distinctive slap of a summoned wand into the hand of its wielder. Lupin started moving to prevent the boy from making his escape, her eyes widening in shock as her wolfish speed was shown to be no where near sufficient to counter the boy's casting.
Rakasha Lupin flew across the room in the grip of the boy's banishing spell. The Were impacted hard against the far wall and slid to the floor unconscious.
Lokabrenna Black stared open mouthed at her childhood friend, when she looked to the boy. The boy was standing away from the wall, having somehow freed himself, his wand glowing with barely restrained power. This was... was... impossible. How could a mere boy defeat that sticking charm? It had held the most powerful... Black struggle to rise from her conjured chair when the door blew into the room. The heavy wooden door was blasted across the room, hitting the woman fully in the chest and driving her into the wall.
Lokabrenna's last memory of the event was an outraged Luna Lovegood standing in the now empty doorway.
"Get the hell away from my boyfriend!"
---===ooo000ooo===---
"Pathetic. Just Pathetic."
Lokabrenna's consciousness slowly returned. She was standing upright, somehow. It took her a moment to recognize her situation.
She was stuck to the wall. Lokabrenna opened her eyes and found her self looking into the smirking eyes of Anastasia Moody.
"Mad-Eye?"
"Pitiful Black, you and the werewolf both, just pitiful. I don't blame the cadet or the curse breaker, they were never trained for what you inflicted on them, but you? I spent three years training you and you get your ass handed to you by four school kids." The Retired Auror shook her head. "I told you not to annoy the boy. I guess I should have included his friends in the warning."
"What happened? I feel so..."
"Disconnected? Out of sorts? Not quite yourself?" Moody asked right on the edge of laughter.
"What? What's happened?"
"The Potters and their friends decided to take advantage of the wards on this old mausoleum and practice their switching spells on you four," Mad-Eye laughed, her magical eye spinning wildly. "I think your left leg is yours, other than that, you've got a limb from each of the other three idiots."
Black looked about the room. It was the same room she and Rakasha had been using to interrogate the boy. Stuck to the far was Billie Weasley, with three limbs that didn't... fit. On the wall to Lokabrenna's left hung a still unconscious Rakasha Lupin, to her right, Tonks. Each of the four had a limb belonging to each of the others, with the Cursebreaker and the Auror showing evidence of having been hexed to wild day glo colors.
"What is going on here?" Blanch Dumbledore demanded as she entered the room. "The sitting room is destroyed and..." her voice trailed off as she took in the scene in the room. "Lokabrenna, what have you done?"
"I told you my suspicions about the boy pretending to be Harri's dimensional twin." The fugitive head of the family Black said. "You ignored me, so Rakasha and I took it upon ourselves to find out what he is up to."
"And ending up stuck to the wall in your own house was the culmination of your cunning plan?" Silvia Snape asked from where she leaned in the door jamb. "I need to take all this in," the greasy haired woman said baring her yellow teeth in a most horrendous smile. "One never knows when one will need ahappy memory for a patronus..."
"Oh shut up Silvia," Rakasha Lupin said as she shook her head trying to clear it as she forced herself awake. "Could one of you please give me back my own arm and legs and get me down off this wall?"
Dumbledore ignored the Were. "Lokabrenna, I told you when we discussed this originally that I believed the boy's story." The aged Headmistress waver her wand to disrupt the charm on Lokabrenna, and then frowned when nothing happened. "Odd..." She seemed to peer closer at the woman, "Ah, the work of Ms. Lovegood then." Much more wand waving and several muttered incantations later Black found she once again was in possession of her own limbs.
"He doesn't smell right Blanch." Rakasha protested as Moody freed her from the wall. "He smells almost exactly like Harri. Even identical twins have different scents. He's up to something."
"He was up to rendering you unconscious and sticking you to a wall."Silvia Snape observed. "It's a pity the he didn't do something about your mouth to save us all from having to hear you whine like a little boy."
"The reason he doesn't smell like a twin is that for all intents and purposes the Potters are the same person." Moody said, freeing Tonks from the wall, and casting enervate on him.
"What?" the /]Metamorphmagusjerked into a sitting position. "What happened?"
"You got your ass handed to you by a group of school children." Moody said helpfully. "Almanzo would be so proud of you."
---===ooo000ooo===---
Pausing to rinse the plate in his hand Harry handed it to Orestes to dry. Harri was finishing cleaning the cooker while Luna looked on in amazement.
"You actually do this every day? No magic at all?"
"We're all Muggle raised Luna." Harry chuckled. "This is the only way we knew until our Hogwarts letters came."
"Besides," Orestes interjected, "ignoring the fact that we can't do magic out of school, using magic for something as simple as washing up seems somehow... I don't know, frivolous I guess."
"I don't know if I'd go as far as frivolous." Harri said giving the chrome work of the cooker a final wipe. "But at some level I enjoy losing myself for a few moments in a mindless chore." She reached out to lightly stroke Orestes' arm. "And when I'm doing that chore for someone I don't hate... Well, that just makes it all the better."
"I can't imagine doing daily chores like this without magic." An odd look crossed the blonde's face. "Perhaps it would make an interesting article for the Quibbler."
"Orestes?" Emmit Granger called from the door way. "You all have a visitor."
The quartet made their way to the sitting room to find Professor Dumbledore waiting for them.
"Good evening all." The aged witch said. "I was surprised to find from Ginevra Weasley that you had asked to spend the night here Harriet," she said wearing an expression of supreme disappointment. "Almost as surprised as I was to hear of your adventures today."
"The rest of us neglected to check out with you when we left our homes today Professor," Harry said drily. "Are you also disappointed in us as well?"
"Mr. Potter, you of all people should understand, Ms. Potter needs to be protected."
"The level of protection you're suggesting is insulting Professor,"Harri sniffed. "If I am to be unable to leave the places you define as safe, then I might as well welcome the Malfoy family's attempts to adopt me. At least when they would imprison me, they would be honest about it."
"As witnessed by Harri's guardian problems, you have no claim on Ms. Potter Professor having not made yourself her guardian," Danielle Granger noted. "She is more than welcome here, and from what I understand at the Weasley's. Why are you making this your concern?"
"Mrs. Granger, there are factors of this situation of which you are completely unaware. Ms. Potter is at risk as long as the Dark Lady lives. I have established an organization called The Order of the Phoenix that is specifically tasked with keeping her safe."
"Oh, yes." Luna remarked. "We experienced their efforts toward keeping her safe just today."
"Confinement with a side of torture." Harry agreed.
"Hardly torture Mr. Potter. What happened today was a mistake, an error of judgment by two young women who only intended to protect Harriet." The silver haired witch said. "It will not happen again."
"Too right it won't." Orestes snorted.
"Next time they'll know to bring friends." Luna predicted. "A whole lot of friends."
"There will not be a 'next time' Ms. Lovegood, I promise you." Dumbledore said wondering just when she had lost control of this conversation. "The situation today was purely due to a pair of young women who got a touch over enthusiastic in the defense of the only child of their oldest friends."
"Enthusiastic in deed." Harry scoffed. "You should let them know that the only reason that I didn't do real damage to them is that Orestes was the calm voice of reason as he usually is."
"All of this is very interesting." Danielle Granger interrupted. "But it's getting late. Professor, our boys have out permission to invite their friends over to our home as long as they clear it with us first. Both Xena Lovegood and Ginevra Weasley gave their permission for the visit tonight. You are the Headmistress of the children's school, I would suggest that you focus your attention and formidable talents toward that and butt out of the lives of these young people."
"Mrs. Granger, I assure you..."
"No, Professor, I assure you. If any of your 'Order' try anything like they did today again, I will be calling the police and contacting your ministry to complain specifically about you."
"And I might find it necessary to write to a few of the Witching World's publications to tell the story as well." Emmit added. "I wonder if having your name in it as well as Harriet's might not generate a bit of interest... you know, sell a few papers."
"You just don't understand..."
"Good night Professor." Danielle said rising from her chair.
---===ooo000ooo===---
It had taken another twenty minutes for the Headmistress to actually leave. When she finally did, the elder Grangers sat the teens down at the dining room table and put cups of tea in front of each of them.
It was time to talk.
Danielle Granger pondered what she should be doing. She had been dreading the day that her little boy would discover girls since the day he had been born. No, make that her boys. Young Harry had been in their lives for only slightly more than half a year, and half of that away at school, but he had become part of the Granger family before Danielle had ever thought to make it official.
Now there were young women in the picture. Young women with only one thing on their evil little one track minds. Danielle recognized the looks in their eyes from when she had seen the same look in her own eyes whenever she had looked into a mirror during her own teen years.
"You all know, of course, that we trust you, right?"
Orestes blushed. "Dad..."
"We trust you to spend the nights in your own rooms." Danielle clarified. "Boys in Orestes' room, Girls in Harry's."
"We know that Mum."
"Good." Danielle hesitated. "How much should we worry about what happened today?"
The teens exchanged looks.
"Quite a bit." Orestes admitted. "The Dark Lady's followers have been killing innocents since last summer."
"Harry and I have approached the Goblins about warding your home. That will protect you from them, or at least give you warning and a chance to escape." The female Potter explained.
"In the mean time you've got one of the world's premier spell casters living here, along with the smartest Wizard of his generation." Luna pointed out. "Attacking this house would be the biggest mistake any Death Eater could make."
"Also likely the last." Orestes agreed.
---===ooo000ooo===---
The chamber was lit by hundreds of torches; a raised dais was situated in the middle of the room. Stripped naked and tied to the dais with acromantula silk was the Muggle boy tearfully struggling against his bonds. The dais was surrounded by the followers of the Dark Lady Riddle, chanting "vita eternus pro era" over and over.
Thubani and Lucille Malfoy stood on either side of the boy clad in the silken ritual robes, while a sky clad Narcissus Malfoy straddled the boy's groin, his arms extended toward the sky.
Lucille drew an ornate silver knife from her robes, and raised it above her head. "Is est per veneficus unus meus Era sets suus intentio in motus. Is est per cruor of letalis ut Era usurpo immortalis , vesica usurpo macula. macula fio subcribo. Is est per veneficus unus meus Era sets suus intentio in motus." She intoned.
Thubani picked up the incantation. "vestri vita opes nusquam. nostrum senior mos epulum super vestri nex." A swirl of gray mist bloomed between Narcissus' upraised arms.
"Vestri animus mos nutritor nostrum vinco" Lucile continued, he drove the knife into the screaming boy's chest. "Vestri cruor mos nutritor ritus vesica!"
"Vestri viscus mos nutritor suus secuutus." Narcissus chanted as he drove his hands into the hole the blade had made guiding the gray mist into the boy's body cavity and yanking a chunk of the boy's ribcage free, bringing the boy's flesh to his lips.
"Vos intereo iam ut nos epulum!"Thubani screamed as she pulled flesh from the boy.
Lucille brought the now glowing knife to the Dark Lady. The head of the Malfoy family knelt one the flagstone floor and offered the ceremonial knife up to her Mistress hilt first. Riddle accepted the blade, raising it above her head. "Particeps meus liberi , utor viscus of nequam puer constrictum vestri animus ut mei. Vestri ago es mei , vestri animus es mei , nos es reus una totus nostrum!"
Riddle then slowly sheathed the blade in her stomach, reveling in the pain, feeling the discharge of the absorbed life energy into her body. Her eyes closed she could sense the passions of her followers as other filthy Muggles were brought into the chamber for their pleasure.
Death. Death and pain. Her favorite things.
---===ooo000ooo===---
Orestes jerked upright in his bed, the digital clock on her bedside table showed the time, 3:22 am. Then it came again, the sound that had woke him. Ascream, like a soul suffering the torments of hell.
"What?" Harry asked from the floor. In the light of the clock's display Orestes could see her friend sitting up. For some reason Harry had refused to share Orestes' double bed and had insisted on the floor. "Was that a scream?"
Harry's question was answered by another blood curdling scream.
Orestes' blood ran cold. Harri! He leaped from the bed, with Harry scrambling to his feet to follow. Outside his door Orestes found his parents had arrived at the room Harri and Luna were sharing for the night before he had. Forcing his way passed his parents he found Luna holding a thrashing Harri.
"She won't wake up." The blond said in a panicked voice, "and she won't quit screaming."
"Oh my god." Harry gasped when he say his twin. "Her scar, it's bleeding!"
---===ooo000ooo===---
A/N: A few translations:
vita eternus pro era
life eternal for mistress
Is est per veneficus unus meus Era sets suus intentio in motus. Is est per cruor of letalis ut Era usurpo immortalis , vesica usurpo macula. macula fio subcribo. Is est per veneficus unus meus Era sets suus intentio in motus.
It is by magic alone my Lady sets her plan in motion. It is by the blood of mortal that the Mistress acquires immortality, the blade acquires stains. The stains become the sign. It is by magic alone my Lady sets her plan in motion.
- Yes I ripped off Dune. What can I say, it tickled me.
vestri vita opes nusquam. nostrum senior mos epulum super vestri nex.
your life means nothing. our lord will feast upon your death.
Vestri animus mos nutritor nostrum vinco
Your soul will feed our master
Vestri cruor mos nutritor ritus vesica
Your blood will feed the ritual blade
Vestri viscus mos nutritor suus secuutus.
Your flesh will feed his followers.
Vos intereo iam ut nos epulum
You die now that we feast
particeps meus liberi , utor viscus of nequam puer constrictum vestri animus ut mei. Vestri ago es mei , vestri animus es mei , nos es reus una totus nostrum!*
Eat my children, use the flesh of the worthless boy to bind your souls to mine. Your lives are mine, your souls are mine, we are bound together all of us!
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