"Harry, may I have a word with you?"
Harry looked coolly at Dumbledore. It was only a few days since the second task and Harry still had not forgiven the headmaster for what happened. He knew he crossed a line when he drew his wand on the older wizard but did not regret it. In fact, he had been waiting for Dumbledore to try and approach him. When Dora left the school for something, Harry had guessed Dumbledore would do this.
"If you would like, Sir," Harry said at last.
Dumbledore frowned slightly. "I would. If you would follow me to my office, please."
"Does this have to do with my schooling?"
He frowned more. "Not precisely."
"Then I do not feel comfortable going to your office. I am fine speaking with you here in the grand foyer."
"Our conversation should be in a more private setting."
"There's no one really around. We can step into the corner."
"I must insist we go to my office."
"Then I must insist that I contact Auntie Andi or Sirius or wait for Dora to return."
Dumbledore scowled. "Have you been instructed to do that by them?"
"Not at all. That is what I personally want and feel comfortable with," Harry said smoothly.
The headmaster took on an injured air. "I will admit that I do not like the change in your attitude since you have spent time with them. I never would have imagined you drawing your wand on me like that."
"Sir, the Tonks nor Sirius have not influenced me like that. They have only shown me care and support and I'm grateful to them for it. I trust them."
"Have I not done the same? Do you no longer trust me?"
"Not to the degree that they have. They have helped me and talked to me where you have said you helped me."
"I have done more than said."
"Have you discovered who put my name in the Goblet?" Harry asked. "Or how?"
Dumbledore said nothing for a long moment. "One failure overwrites all I have done before then?" he asked finally.
"If it was only the one failure, then maybe not. I still can't believe you sent a child into the Black Lake. Then again, I still can't believe you took me away when I was a baby either."
"I did that for your own good," he replied heatedly.
"For my own good," Harry repeated. "Would you like to see my back, Sir?"
Another long silence.
"You could explain why it was for my own good," Harry said.
More silence.
"The thing about trust is that it goes both ways, Sir. You don't want to share things. In turn, I don't trust you."
"There are some things I cannot explain."
"Then I cannot trust you. Especially knowing what you have done."
"Your parents did." He immediately knew he overstepped and went too far.
Harry's eyes hardened. "I wouldn't know," he said as calmly as he could. "Maybe you were more honest with them. Besides, even though I look like my dad and have my mother's eyes, I'm not them." He looked away. "I have homework to do and I still have to prepare for the third task. Will there be anything else…Sir?"
Dumbledore sighed. "No."
"Have a good day then, Sir."
Harry walked away and did not look back.
-0-
He lay panting on the ground, exhausted and out of breath.
Dora looked down at him, breathing heavily as well, with a large smile on her face. "Good job," she said.
"Why don't I feel like I did a good job," he snarked back.
Dora laughed. "Because you're not supposed to feel like you did a good job. You're supposed to feel wrung out and like shite. If you felt it was easy, it was too easy. If you're dead, you failed. When you're still clinging to life, that means you survived and beat the other bastard gunning for you. That's when you did a good job, you earned it."
He rolled over to look up at her. "You're a great motivational speaker."
She snorted and sat beside him. "I was trained by one of the best Aurors, he used to say stuff like that all the time during training."
"He sounds pleasant."
"His name is Mad-Eye Moody."
"Even more pleasant."
She ruffled his hair. "He's an old bastard but he's got a good heart. I think you're going to do well on your last task."
A few days ago, Harry learned that the final task was a maze. The champions had to make their way through the maze, overcoming various magical obstacles, and the first to reach the Cup at the center would be crowned the victor.
When he gave the news to his family, they came up with a list of spells that would serve him best and at every available opportunity, Dora trained him relentlessly. Ron and Hermione and even Neville helped him to train. With each spell mastered he felt a little better.
"Should I just hide in a corner when the task starts?" he asked. "It's not like I care about winning."
"That's not a bad idea. But if the other champions all fail, you'll still be stuck because the task wouldn't be finished. Just plow your way through and if you're there first, just grab it. That way it'll be over and you'll be safe."
"That makes sense." He reached out for her hand. "Thanks, Dora."
She pulled him into her lap and hugged him. "You got this. When this is all over, we can really figure out who got you into the mess and we'll make them regret it."
-0-
The day of the final task arrived and the air crackled with energy. For most it was the end of exams and the finale of the tournament. The majority of the students from the schools were eager to see who would earn the title of Champion and bring that eternal glory that was promised.
For a select few, it was the nervousness of the unknown entity. The person who had entered Harry's name had not been caught, thus the motivation of Harry being in the tournament was still unknown. Amelia brought a full complement of Aurors to provide security and they watched over things with careful eyes.
Harry spent the day with Andromeda, Ted, and Sirius while Dora came and went. It was nice to visit with them but there was a definite sense of the calm before the storm, of the false quiet before the fury.
People drifted to the Quidditch pitch where the final task would be. The pitch was covered in large hedges. Enchanted mirrors floated in the sky to reflect what happened within to the watchers. The Aurors patrolled around the maze while the stands filled with people.
"You okay?" Dora asked worriedly.
Harry gulped but nodded. "I'm okay. As ready as I'll ever be."
"Here," she said softly, slipping something into his inner robe pocket. "If you need help, holler okay? Getting disqualified is better than the alternative."
He patted the slim shape in his pocket, recognizing what it was. "Thanks, that makes me feel a lot better."
She hugged him and kissed his forehead. "See you when you get out."
-0-
"Thattaboy," Sirius praised as he watched Harry get past a trap. The ground had shifted and sent the cobblestone paving flying about. Harry had manipulated the Wind Blast Charm into a tight cyclone, sending the stones around him. He ran through, avoiding being hit by any of the rocks.
"He's doing great," Ted said with relief.
"Dora did an excellent job training him," Andromeda said. "He is doing very well avoiding traps and fighting the monsters."
Dora's eyes were focused on the mirror following Harry. "That's my boy," she muttered. "Go get 'em Harry."
Sirius looked away for a moment and frowned. "What's he doing?"
Andromeda followed his pointing finger. "Crouch? He seems to be patrolling the perimeter."
"Kinda strange, don't you think?"
"Perhaps he is putting up a show, considering he helped turn the tournament into a fiasco involving Harry," she offered.
Sirius spent more time watching Crouch when he was in his line of sight.
A gasp came up. The mirrors all went dark, no longer showing the champions running the maze. People booed and shouted, and Ministry personnel ran back and forth trying to get the mirrors back up. Loud noises erupted from the maze but the hedges were too close and too tall to let people look into it easily.
"I hope everything's okay in there…" Ted said.
-0-
Harry ran down the path. He had intended to take his time, to let anyone else get to the Cup before him. He really had no desire to be crowned the victor. Yet he had the strangest sense that something was following him as he progressed through the maze. The obstacles had been challenging. Several spell traps and puzzles were figured out, he fought off a giant Blast-Ended Skrewt and a kappa.
There seemed to be something following him, driving him on, and he had decided to try and always stay ahead of it. "Better the enemy you see than the one you don't," Dora had said and he agreed whole-heartedly. Eventually he decided that it probably was better to end everything instead of drawing it out.
An acromantula almost got the best of him. Luckily, a quickly cast Impediment Jinx slowed the giant spider enough for Harry to cast a Stone Pillar Spell, a giant stone block appearing from beneath and punching up into the acromantula. It was knocked over on its back, letting Harry run past. He saw the Cup in the distance and hearing spellfire behind him, he ran on.
For a brief moment, he felt a surge of satisfaction in reaching the Cup before a surge of magic took him away.
-0-
"I don't know what's wrong with the system!" Ludo said loudly. "No one can get the mirrors working again!"
A large crowd of Ministry officials and Aurors argued with one another with the Hogwarts professors involved. Words were thrown and if it was not for Amelia's presence and the headmaster's, wands would have probably been drawn and spells thrown as nerves were stretched thin.
Amelia had wanted to send Aurors overhead to look down into the maze but was denied. The champions would signal if they needed to be extracted and there would be no outside interference. She had not liked that ruling and fumed at the other officials.
Sirius continued to stare suspiciously at Crouch. He had remained apart from the discussion, continuing his seemingly aimless wandering around the perimeter of the maze. "Something isn't right."
"What do you mean?" Dora asked.
"Crouch has always taken advantage of a chance to throw his weight around. Always wants to take control of a situation if he can. Why isn't he doing that now?"
Before Dora could respond, a grizzled man hobbled over. His face was a briar's patch of scars and he leaned heavily on a prosthetic leg, a large false blue eye spun independently in a socket. "Isn't this a load of shite," he grumbled.
"Good to see you," Dora said with a sincere smile.
"You too," Moody said. "Good to see escort detail hasn't gotten you fat."
"Hey Alastor," Sirius said, interrupting Dora's retort, "can you look into the maze?"
He shook his head. "No, enchanted against me. For some damn reason."
Sirius' frown deepened. "From one paranoid bastard to another, what do you think about this?" He explained his concerns about Crouch.
Moody turned and stared at Crouch with both eyes. "It does sound fishy when you put it that way." He stomped over with Sirius and Dora following. "Bartemius," he called out.
Crouch turned and his face twisted when he saw who approached. "Alastor. What is it? I'm busy."
"I was wondering why you weren't trying to sort out that mess." Moody hiked a thumb over his shoulder.
"I am no enchanter, how would I fix the mirrors? I have more important things to do."
"You're also not an Auror, you're not tasked to patrol the outside of the maze," Sirius said.
Crouch's glare was venomous. "And you know all about pretending to be something else, don't you Black?"
Sirius took a step back. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing. I have no time to waste with you." Crouch turned to leave.
"Yeah you must be real busy," Moody said. "We're short-staffed all over, had to haul my arse out of retirement. Like the Auror department during '71."
"Precisely."
"Wait, that wasn't the Auror department. That was your department, Council of Magical Law." Silence filled the air between them. "You're not Bartemius."
Crouch snarl and flicked his wand several times. Sirius and Moody hurriedly brought up shields, blocking the incoming spells. "Stupefy!" Dora's stunner hit Crouch directly in his midriff, knocking him out. People cried out at the sudden duel and people came running.
"What in the world?!" Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic, shouted. "What did you do to Barty?!"
"That's not Barty," Moody said. "That's an imposter, failed a simple question and was acting suspicious."
"If that's not Barty, we have to stop the task," Amelia said. "He was responsible for setting it up. The champions inside could be in danger. I bet that's why the mirrors went down, so we can't see what's going on."
Dora reached into her pocket and pulled out a small mirror. "Harry Potter," she said into it. She felt the magic shift in her hands and the mirror's surface was dark. "Harry, can you hear me?"
"You gave him his two-way mirror before the task?" Sirius asked.
"Yeah, just in case. Is it broken?"
He shook his head. "No, if it was you'd only see yourself right now. Something must be obscuring the mirror."
"Dora?" Harry's voice was faint and laced with pain.
"Harry! What's going on?!" Her shout drew people around her.
"The Cup was a Portkey," Harry gasped. "Don't know where I am. He's here…"
"Who?!"
"Harry!" Sirius shouted. "Say 'Follow me'! Now!"
"Follow me," Harry whispered. "Dora, Sirius, help me. Please."
"We're coming!" Sirius shouted. He grabbed the mirror from Dora. "The mirrors can be traced to each other. We can follow the magic and apparate to the other."
"Half team go into the maze, now! Recover the other champions!" Amelia ordered. "Jones! Secure Crouch! Rest of you, follow me. We're going to follow Sirius and go rescue Mister Potter."
Sirius took off running, followed closely behind by Dora, Andromeda, and Ted with Amelia and her Aurors. Dumbledore followed them. "You should stay at your school," Amelia said firmly.
"Harry is my student and I will come to assist," Dumbledore said.
"Fine, but I'm in charge of this operation and what I say goes or else I will stun you. Am I clear?" Amelia sighed at Dumbledore's reluctant nod. "Right, what's the play? Will the mirror take us to him directly?"
"It'll take us close and only a few of us can go with it. We should go and a few memorize the area and apparate back to side-along others."
"Right. Do it."
Once they left the grounds of the school and past the anti-apparition wards, Sirius, Dora, and Amelia grabbed hold of the mirror. Sirius muttered a word and the three popped away. They reappeared in a small neighborhood. Amelia and Dora immediately turned to look down either side of the street, wands out. Sirius shook the mirror and felt the draw to its twin. "This way," he whispered.
They followed the pull until they peered into a small cemetery. A loud scream cut through the air.
"Harry!" Dora went to run to him but was held back by Amelia.
"Wait!" the older witch hissed.
"That was Harry!"
"I know but he's been abducted and us running into who knows what won't help!"
They looked in and gasped. A crowd of individuals wore long black robes and silver masks surrounded a tall pale figure. Some had their hoods up but others did not. They laughed and jeered while the pale figure in the middle said something indistinct, and Harry's scream tore the air once more.
"That's Him!" Amelia gasped.
"And Death Eaters!" Sirius swore.
"We have to go back. If we bring all that we have at the school, with the element of surprise we can handle them. At least make them back off and get Harry and go," Amelia said. She stared at Dora. "Can I trust you to stay and observe and not interfere until we return?"
Dora bit her lip and tasted blood. "Hurry," she said.
"We'll be right back," Sirius said. He and Amelia backed off and apparated.
It was the longest wait she had ever endured. She wanted nothing more than to wade in and Curse every person there to pieces. Hearing Harry scream in pain was torture for her and she gripped her wand tight. Her breathing was shallow and ragged and she silently begged for the others to return. She nearly jumped when someone touched her shoulder, realizing it was her mother.
"I took the mirror back with Ted and Moody," Andromeda whispered. "Sirius and Amelia are side-alonging with the rest." Her eyes narrowed as she looked at the crowd. "Oh, blood will flow tonight."
Moody grinned ferally. "Well now, this will be nice to bring more scum to justice."
The others arrived and assembled behind them. "Vanish the bars on the fence and we go in," Amelia said.
"Rules of engagement?" Kingsley asked.
"Try to stun but the second they start casting on you, cast what you need. No Unforgivables but anything else goes."
"Is that really You-Know-Who?" Emmaline Vance gasped.
Sirius looked at Dumbledore and saw a flicker of surprise but not nearly like the looks on everyone else's faces. He looked at Andromeda and saw that she noticed too.
"Looks like," Amelia said grimly. "Alright, we're going in blazing. If you get eyes on Potter, get him out, priority. Then take down as many Death Eaters as possible but stay alert. No heroics. Ready?" She waited for everyone to nod. "Go!" She vanished the bars on the fence and Dora, Sirius, and Andromeda led the charge.
One of the Death Eaters screamed as Dora's bludgeoner spell knocked him into a gravestone, the crack of bones audible. Stunning spells from the Aurors shot out and a few forms crumpled while others spun to summon shields.
One of the Death Eaters shot a spear of flame and winged an Auror who fell over shrieking, trying to put the fire out. Ted summoned a thick foam to douse the fires, pulling the Auror with him behind a tall plinth. Sirius' Severing Charm removed the Death Eater's hand at the wrist.
Dumbledore and Moody went straight for Voldemort. The newly resurrected wizard gaped with surprise but his wand was in motion, throwing sheets of purple black fire at them and tendrils of summoned snakes. Moody blasted the snakes aside and used spears of water to douse the flames while Dumbledore threw a cone of webbing at Voldemort.
Harry, despite enduring the Cruciatus, scrambled to his feet. He shot a Reductor Curse at a large statue, sending shards of stone into the air and making a few Death Eaters scream from shock and pain, caught in the blast.
Andromeda snarled, summoning a large whip made of bright red fire. She snapped it out, catching a Death Eater in the face, one who had aimed his wand at Harry's back. The Death Eater screamed as the whip lash melted the silver mask, bonding the metal to his skin. Andromeda struck twice more, cutting through his robes and leaving long rents in his robes and skin.
Sirius and Dora reached Harry at the same time, pulling him out and summoning shields. "Harry! Are you okay?" Sirius shouted.
Harry shook from pain and adrenaline. He pointed with a shaky hand. "Sirius!" he gasped.
Sirius looked and he looked hungry. "Wormtail!" He transformed into his animagus form and took off, dodging spells flying about.
Dora grabbed Harry about the middle and ran away from the conflict. "I got you," she said. "I got you Harry."
"I know," he said weakly. "Thank you."
A giant explosion knocked people over and a large hissing sound filled the air. Flames leapt high and an immense serpent grew from the fire. Dumbledore, Moody, Amelia began casting, blasting the fiery snake with blasts of water and wind, smothering it with conjured stone. The other Aurors joined them and after a few tenuous moments, the fires died, leaving clouds of smoke and ash. Of Voldemort and other Death Eaters, there were no sign.
"He got away!" Moody spat. "Bloody coward."
"Not all of them though," Amelia said grimly. There were bodies lying about, wearing Death Eater robes. "Shacklebolt! Report!"
"Bennets is dead," Kingsley said, favoring his arm. "Shaw and Timmins are hurt bad. Thank goodness Ted came with us, stabilized them. We got Potter and I think there might be one or two enemies captured alive."
"Here's one." Sirius came up dragging a fat whimpering man who held a bloody stump with his hand. "He had a brand-new silver hand that tried to kill me then him. I cut it off. Finally got to cut something off. "
"Well well, Peter Pettigrew," Amelia said. "You look well for a dead man." When he opened his mouth she stunned him. "Between him and whoever fake Crouch is, we'll learn a lot."
"How's Harry?" Andromeda asked as she knelt beside him.
"He suffered the Cruciatus," Ted said shortly. "Multiple times. Big stab wound on his arm, lost some blood. Otherwise, he'll recover."
"Back off!" Andromeda snarled at Dumbledore who tried to approach.
"I must know what happened tonight," Dumbledore replied.
"We all will know," Amelia said.
-0-
Hours later, they gathered in the Infirmary at Hogwarts. Harry had recounted what happened to him after being taken away by the hidden portkey. Landing in the cemetery, he was disoriented and was captured by Pettigrew. He described the ritual in detail, how his blood, Voldemort's father's remains, and Pettigrew's hand had given Voldemort a new body. Then Voldemort summoned his Death Eaters and during his lambasting, Harry felt his mirror activate, giving the others the means to find him.
Amelia revealed that Crouch Senior was actually Barty Crouch Junior using the Polyjuice potion to impersonate him. Using veritaserum on both him and Pettigrew, they learned that Pettigrew was once Scabbers, biding his time. When news of Sirius' trial came out, Pettigrew fled, afraid. He somehow was found by Voldemort's shade and discovered that Barty was still alive, kept by his father at their home. Pettigrew and Voldemort overpowered Crouch Senior and spent the better part of the year preparing for the ritual. Using his father's name and appearance, Barty was able to put Harry's name into the Goblet, and then manipulate the maze for the third task, as well as creating the portkey. She then revealed all the Death Eaters who had been killed in the fight.
After trying to bluster that there was no way that Voldemort had returned despite copious evidence, Amelia kicked Fudge out of the Infirmary, coldly informing him that he had already alerted the Wizengamot and made public knowledge of the identities of the captured and killed Death Eaters. She warned him to take the situation seriously before slamming the door in his face.
An uncomfortable silence filled the air. On one side Harry lay in the hospital bed, accompanied by Dora, Andromeda, Ted, and Sirius. Amelia stood closer to them. On the other side stood Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Pomfrey. They looked at each other tensely, waiting for something to break the quiet.
"You knew this would happen," Andromeda said softly, staring at Dumbledore.
"You must stop this persecution of me," Dumbledore replied. "You have done nothing but question my integrity and intelligence. How would I know that Crouch would be impersonated by his son? How would I know Harry would be used in some kind of ritual?"
"Not that. You know Voldemort would return." She ignored the flinches from Ted, Amelia, McGonagall, and Pomfrey. "Somehow you knew."
"I had an idea that it would be possible," he admitted.
"Why did you not say anything? Do anything?"
"You assume that I did not."
"I know that you did not. At least, you did not do enough."
"There was never enough proof and I have been gathering it," he said severely.
"Quirrell was being possessed by Voldemort my first year," Harry said. He continued when heads turned to him. "The second year, Voldemort's diary from when he was a student here, it was the reason everything happened."
"Not enough proof?!" Sirius shouted. "That's proof enough!"
"And what would you have me do?" Dumbledore looked truly annoyed now, frazzled. "If I went to the Wizengamot with that information, I would have been laughed out and sacked! Then what could I do? I have acquired information and have tried to draw conclusions to get things done! You know as well as I that former Death Eaters that escaped punishment and imprisonment were in the Ministry or still had ties. Any measure or precaution was doomed to fail."
"Have you shared this information with anyone else?" Amelia asked. She shook her head with disgust at his silence. "Of course not. You always hoard information, keeping your so-called allies in the dark. Only Albus Dumbledore can know anything pertinent."
"No more. I demand to know the secrets you hold," Andromeda said. "Anything that pertains to Voldemort that you think is important and how it applies to Harry. You owe us this."
"I owe you nothing."
"You have failed in the contract you signed earlier this year. You have not shared valuable information that could have prepared us or even prevented this."
Dumbledore laughed. "That is egregious reasoning and I dispute it entirely. You cannot blame me for this."
"I can and do. You forget yourself Mister Dumbledore. You signed the contract yourself after you read it."
"I will not divulge what I know. I cannot give false information and if it somehow gets out what we know, then it will cause more harm than good."
Andromeda smiled. "So you refuse my demand?"
"Categorically and utterly."
Andromeda leaned back. "So be it."
Dumbledore frowned for a moment before he winced. He opened his mouth and groaned in pain, clutching his chest.
"Albus!" Pomfrey grabbed him before he could fall over. "What's wrong?"
"Do not waste your energy," Andromeda said in a bored tone. "You can do nothing for him."
"What do you mean?" McGonagall asked.
"I made my demands for restitution and he refused. By the contract, he suffers the consequences."
"You would kill him?!" McGonagall screeched.
"No, I am not that forgiving and he would not have signed the contract if that was the case. No, he is losing his magic."
"That will kill him at his age!" Pomfrey shouted.
"That is definitely a possibility," Andromeda admitted.
"You would render me powerless?" Dumbledore gasped. "In the face of Voldemort's return?"
"No, you are rendering yourself powerless. You have the power to stop this. You refuse to." Andromeda stared at him. "You made your bed, Mister Dumbledore. You will lie in it. I hope it is comfortable, it just might be your last." Her smile turned feral. "How does it feel, Mister Dumbledore? You threatened Harry with this. Almost forced him to lose his magic if he did not compete. Poetic, is it not?"
Harry opened his mouth but Dora touched his hand, shaking her head ever so slightly. Amelia looked at Sirius who also shook his head. Ted simply watched.
"Fine!" Dumbledore gasped. "I will share what I know!" He breathed deep as soon as he said that, the pain in his chest leaving.
"Well get on with it then," Andromeda said.
After a moment Dumbledore told them of the prophecy, the one made where the Dark Lord would mark the child of those that defied him thrice as an equal. That none may live while the other survives. He told them that was the reason that Voldemort had gone after the Potters, intent on killing Harry as a baby.
Harry listened numbly, shocked beyond tears. Despite the pain from the Cruciatus, he welcomed Dora's touch, holding onto her as he learned why he became an orphan, why he lost his parents.
"I can't believe it," Sirius groaned. "Bloody Divination. That shite is all perception and interpretation! There's literally hundreds of ways to see every prophecy and that's why I lost my best friends? Because some dumb nose-less fuck was scared of a baby?!"
"We learned the motivation, good. But that does not explain how Voldemort existed to possess someone and ultimately return. You know more." Andromeda continued to stare at Dumbledore.
"I do not know exactly why but I have my guesses."
"Then share your guesses."
Dumbledore then began to describe how there was dark magic that could break a person's soul and attach the pieces to objects. As long as the object remains, then a person could not truly die. They either had to undo the ritual themselves or the objects must all be broken before the person could die. Most people looked horrified as they learned about the magic but during Dumbledore's explanation, Sirius and Andromeda shared a very subtle look.
"That's incredibly Dark," Amelia muttered. "Does it have a name? This ritual?"
"I need to do more investigation to learn it," Dumbledore said.
"Very well. I hold your end of the bargain fulfilled," Andromeda said. "The contract has been completed." She smiled prettily. "There, was that so hard?"
He stared back at her.
"So what do we do now?" McGonagall asked to nip the coming argument in the bud.
"There will be an emergency meeting of the Wizengamot tomorrow," Dumbledore said smoothly. "With the evidence provided, Fudge will not be able to fully block the information. With the death and injury to the Aurors, the rest of the body cannot ignore everything."
"Especially since some of the ones in the holding cells are members of the Wizengamot," Amelia said grimly. "Caught red-handed. I'll drag out the bodies of the Death Eaters if I have to. I don't know if Fudge will do anything worthwhile, but I'll start recalling Aurors and implementing emergency protocols."
"It is thanks to Harry that we know all this and multiple people saw Voldemort," Dumbledore said graciously. "He lost the element of surprise and lost supporters this night. He would have flourished in anonymity and could have grown a large power base while everyone else was unaware. Now he cannot move about as easily and will find it more difficult to acquire power."
"Right. Let's see what the Ministry will do and we can make our own plans," Sirius said.
"A fine course of action," Dumbledore praised. "Voldemort seeks to divide us, we will be stronger together." With a nod he left, followed closely by McGonagall. Pomfrey went to her office.
Amelia waited for the office door to close before surrounding them with a privacy charm. "Alright, spill. I noticed that look you two shared."
Andromeda's lip curled. "The arrogance of that man. 'Stronger together'. Bah! I noticed he gave no name to the Dark magic."
"You know what it is?" Ted asked, surprised.
"Yeah. We're the Blacks," Sirius said. "Literally every example of Dark Magic with a book on it is probably in our library if not an example of it somewhere on our property or in a vault. It sounds like Voldemort made a Horcrux."
"Dear Merlin, you really know the name of it," Amelia said.
"At least two members of our family made Horcruxes," Andromeda said to their shock and horror. "Caritus Black killed his brother and used that to fuel him making one. He already planned on killing him to take control of the family but decided for a bit of insurance. Of course he was found out and they broke the Horcrux and killed him right after for killing a family member without just cause."
"There's just causes for killing family?" Ted asked, queasy.
"Many. Typically you have to have a quorum of family members to approve of the killing but that's exceedingly rare so it does not happen often. But there are many clauses of just cause," Andromeda said matter-of-factly.
"Discordia Black made a Horcrux to fulfill her oath to ruin another family," Sirius said. "This other family targeted the Blacks and almost wiped us out. She survived, and made a Horcrux so that she lived for a really long time, making sure she completely wiped the other family away. When she finished, she showed remorse for the first murder and passed away."
"The Blacks are kinda scary," Harry said, awed.
Amelia shuddered. "So, Voldemort made one and we have to go find it and break it before we take him out to make his death permanent."
"Objects." Everyone turned to look at Dora. "He kept saying objects, not object."
Andromeda groaned. "So he thinks Voldemort made several."
"His diary. His memories took on a form of life and could do things. That had to have been one," Harry said. "I stabbed it with a basilisk fang and it…died. Lots of screaming and bleeding. Voldemort is still alive now even though that one is dead."
"That's pretty much proof," Ted muttered. "Bloody hell. How do we know if we get them all? They could be anything."
"I'll head to Grimmauld and try to dig up the books we got," Sirius said. "There has to be a way to track them down. Something that Dark requires a lot of power and I'm sure we can find a way to find them. If you can enchant a connection between mirrors, there has to be a way to follow pieces of soul. We find them and break them."
"Then I have to kill him," Harry said quietly.
Dora took his hand. "Not necessarily."
"That's not what the prophecy says! It said that either must die at the hands of the other because neither can live while the other survives!"
"Harry, prophecies are idiotic things," Andromeda said firmly. "Yes, you can interpret it that you must kill him, but there are many ways to kill someone without directly killing them. One could say that a gardener that grew the hemlock that someone else bought and sold for someone to make a poison potion out of had a hand in killing the victim."
Harry blinked at her. "Uh, well when you put it that way…"
"Or if I hire someone to kill someone else, you could say they died by my hand while I didn't actually kill them myself," Sirius said.
"What are you teaching him?!" Amelia asked with an indignant tone.
"That divination is bunk." Andromeda patted Harry's hand. "In any case, yes you will have to fight him. But that does not mean you will be the one that cuts him down permanently. There are many that would be more than happy to do the deed. But you will not be alone. We are with you to the end."
Harry breathed out, immensely relieved. "Thank you." He clung to Dora when she hugged him.
"Are you going to tell Dumbledore you know?" Amelia laughed at Sirius' snort and Andromeda's look. "Right, dumb question." She looked at the doors to the hospital ward. "I think everyone here knows that we can't completely trust Dumbledore, nor the Ministry."
"Just like we know Hogwarts is old," Sirius replied.
"We stand apart," Andromeda said. "Are we agreed?" Everyone nodded, even Harry. He knew how far the Tonkses and Sirius had gone for him since finding them, he trusted them.
"I can ask around too," Amelia said. "Colleagues that would rather do something worthwhile than be hampered by the Ministry or Dumbledore's…ideals."
"Good. We'll draw the lines then. Our first priority is each other, second is taking out Voldemort." Sirius grinned. "Everything else can be dealt with after." He hesitated. "Dumbledore will probably bring back the Order of the Phoenix. I was a part of it but I won't be this time. He might ask around and see who wants to be a part of it."
"I'm tempted to stamp it out if I 'officially' hear of it," Amelia mused. "I know a few Aurors with close ties to Dumbledore. Then again, if the Death Eaters and the Order are at odds…"
"…we can act with more leeway," Andromeda finished. "I agree. Dare we let someone we trust to play along with him? Inside information?"
"He's not going to trust anyone that is associated with us really," Ted said. "He'll still want the support but I'll bet you that he'll be using that person to keep tabs on us too."
"We should not risk it then," Andromeda said. "We stick together. That will be safest."
"Right." Amelia sighed. "I feel pretty good about this plan. We can do what needs doing."
The adults left and Dora stayed behind with Harry. She tucked him under the covers and held his hand when he offered it. "You okay?" she asked.
"I still ache from the Curse and well, I'm honestly kind of terrified that Voldemort's back," Harry said softly. "But…I know I'd be worse off without you and the family and Miss Bones. Having you around makes me feel a lot better. Hopeful even." He smiled at her. "Thanks, you saved me again."
"I'll always save you," she said fervently. "I've told you, I'm never leaving you alone again." His grateful smile melted her heart a little. "Don't worry, everything'll work out."
"I know. I still trust you." He yawned.
She watched his eyes slowly shut. "Harry?"
"Yeah?"
"I swear that you'll make it through this."
He fought against the slumber that awaited him. "You too. You'll make it through too." His voice became a whisper. "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you."
"You won't," she swore. She felt him fall asleep but his hand clutched hers. "I also swear to absolutely destroy anyone who tries to hurt you. Tonight was the last time they got away with it unharmed." She smiled as a random memory bubbled up in her mind. "I have just the thing to do too."