Chapter Six
The next day, Harry and Hermione started going through the research of those that had been killed in Voldemort's world tour. Almost immediately, they realized just how much they had underestimated the sheer volume of work that these experts had put out in their careers. Even someone like Okeke, who had only been active in her field for about a decade, had written nine books and more than three hundred scholastic articles for magical journals across the world.
In total, these scholars had written over three hundred books between them and well over a thousand scholastic articles. At that point, Harry realized two things. First, this was going to take more than just a few days to go through. Second, there was nowhere near enough space at the Ministry itself for Harry and Hermione to organize their thoughts and lay out the connections between the work.
Therefore, with Tonks' permission, Harry took all of their research to Potter Manor. Once a week, the team would meet at the Manor. Harry and Hermione would update the Aurors on the research that they had gone through while the Aurors would update Harry and Hermione on the movements of the Death Eaters.
Thus far, neither party had anything exciting to report.
On the last day of January, Hermione decided that moving into Potter Manor temporarily would make work that much easier. Unlike Daphne, who only rarely made conversation with either Harry or Hermione, Hermione moved into the bedroom next door to his, ensuring that whenever Hermione had a strange thought at three in the morning, she could barge into his room to tell him.
Of course, more often than not, he was still up reading.
Harry couldn't help but laugh at the work that he was doing. A few years ago, Harry would have hated the idea of reading this much. Now, he gladly spent dawn 'til dusk pouring over thousand-page novels on latent magical theory or the concept of magical nexuses. Of course, he had spent a great deal of his time with Dumbledore studying, so that probably had a great deal to do it with.
One night, well after Hermione had gone to bed, Harry was sitting in the kitchen with a cup of coffee and a stack of magical journals when Daphne walked into the kitchen. While Harry's eyes were on the paper in front of him, out of the corner of his eye he saw Daphne enter the kitchen, realize he was there, and then turn to leave.
"I don't bite, you know," Harry said, never looking up from his work.
Daphne froze in the doorway. She waited there for a moment and then turned back to the kitchen.
"I couldn't sleep," Daphne said. "This place is so damn drafty."
"There's coffee in the pot," Harry said, motioning towards it with his head.
"I said that I couldn't sleep," Daphne reminded him. "What makes you think that I want coffee?"
"Well, if you're looking for something to put you to sleep, there's a liquor cabinet is in the study with the observatory."
"You have an observatory?" Daphne asked.
"You've lived here for two months and you haven't taken a tour yet?" Harry asked, finally looking up from his work.
"No. My host didn't seem that interested in giving me one."
That was unfortunately true. Harry, recognizing the playful jab for what it was, put his book down and stood.
"Follow me."
From the kitchen, Harry led Daphne down the hall until they reached an empty study at the far end of the house. The room itself was small, not much more than a personal office. Harry didn't use it largely because it had been Parvati's space when she had moved in with him. Without her there, it just reminded him of her. In the far corner of the room was a silver spiral staircase that wound up into the tower above them.
Harry was the first up the stairs. He had only been up here one time himself, just after McGonagall's funeral when he wanted nothing more than to be alone. The observatory was about as isolated as you could get. There was only space for one or two people up there, which meant that it was difficult for someone to interrupt you.
From the top of the tower, you could look out over the grounds and see miles in any direction. But importantly, you could also look up and see the stars, and tonight, with the moon dark for the night and not a cloud in sight, you could see every star in the sky.
"Wow," Daphne whispered as they reached the top.
"Yeah, it is nice," Harry replied. "I don't come up here often enough...or ever."
"Can I live up here?"
"I mean, it's February and there's no room for a bed, but sure, you can live up here."
Harry watched Daphne wander around the tower, looking at the stars and the trees and generally just taking in the sights. Daphne Greengrass was a strange person. She was undeniably one of the most beautiful women that he had ever seen. She was tall, much taller than he was with hair almost as black as his but skin so pale that she stuck out in the dark.
Despite her obvious beauty, Daphne had never dated anyone as far as Harry knew. Of course, plenty of people bragged about how they had "bedded" Daphne Greengrass but as far as Harry could tell, they were all lies. Despite the lack of obvious similarities, Daphne reminded him of Luna Lovegood than anyone else. While Daphne wasn't quite as eccentric, she also existed in a world that seemed to move on without her, although unlike Luna, Harry imagined that Daphne was intensely aware of that fact.
Whether she cared was another story entirely.
"We have a tower kind of like this at the Estate."
"The Estate?"
"The Greengrass Estate," Daphne replied. "It's not quite as big as this, but it was a nice place to grow up. There's a pond just a few hundred yards away from the house. You could go up to the tower and watch the sunset over the water. It was beautiful."
Harry could hear that she missed more than the sun.
"How did you manage to get away from your father?" Harry asked.
"I ran," Daphne replied. "I waited until I graduated from Hogwarts and then went to spend the night at my friend Tracey's house."
"I remember her. How is she doing?"
"She's dead," Daphne said without emotion. "Killed in a Death Eater raid two years ago."
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"Me too," Daphne replied. "I stayed with her for a while. I told my father that I was just going to visit but then, one night, I disappeared. I thought I had gotten away. Instead, it seems like he's been keeping an eye on me this whole time."
"I can't imagine what that's like."
"I hear that you had some Muggle relatives that you didn't care for."
"And they didn't care for me," Harry replied. "But they made it clear from as far back as I can remember that I wasn't welcome. It doesn't sound like that's what happened with your father."
"No, my father loves me. As much as he can love anyone anyway," said Daphne. "He was never the most nurturing parent and after Mother died...well, he never got any better."
Harry didn't know what to say to that. He knew what it was like to deal with the loss of a loved one, but he didn't really know what it was like to lose a parent. He had no memories of his parents other than the ones that came to him when the dementors got too near.
They stood in silence for a few moments, watching the stars. Eventually, Daphne turned back to him.
"Can I ask you a personal question?"
Normally, Harry would have said no, but Daphne had been oddly forthcoming, so he gave her a nod.
"You asked me to move in to protect me. And you have. The wards here are far better than the wards I had at my house. So, I'm here. A few weeks later, you and Granger start working together and she moves in."
"Temporarily."
"Sure, sure," Daphne replied. "But you know who I haven't seen here: Parvati."
"She comes to our SAF meetings."
"That's not what I mean and you know it."
He did know it, but that didn't mean that he wanted to talk about it.
"You haven't asked a question."
"Do I have to?" Daphne asked.
"Not really," Harry said as he leaned against the balcony. "The short answer is yes. The longer answer is I have absolutely no idea where our relationship stands."
Daphne mirrored Harry's posture so that they both looked out over the forest below.
"Do you want to work things out?"
"Of course I do," Harry replied. "Things are just...complicated."
"How so?" Daphne asked.
The list of reasons why his relationship with Parvati was complicated was longer than his arm. However, in the end, it really came down to one thing.
"Antonin Dolohov," Harry grunted. "Voldemort attacked the Manor during Bill Weasley's wedding. A small group of us fled to Parvati's parents' home for safety. Unfortunately, we were tailed by Dolohov and two other Death Eaters. Dolohov blew up the front half of the house, slaughtering both of her parents in front of her eyes."
"Oh, shit," Daphne muttered. "I didn't know that."
"She doesn't talk about it much," Harry said. "For a while, she seemed fine. Of course, she was upset, but I didn't notice anything out of the ordinary, at least for what might be expected for someone who just went through that. Then, I left for the first time. I was gone for six months and when I came back, she was still living here. For the most part, things went back to normal, minus the fact that I was still training twelve hours a day."
"Then, I left again and was gone for two and a half months. That was the first time things seemed strained. We fought more often than we had before. I was home for another two months before I left to go train for the third time. That was the first time I broke up with her."
"The first time?"
"We've each broken up with each other three times," Harry replied. "Honestly, we never really get back together. I just leave and then things go back to the way they used to."
"Doesn't sound healthy."
"You're right, it's not," Harry said. "I came back for a couple months then I was gone again for four months. That's the first time she broke up with me. Each time I came back, everything seemed harder. I know that she resents the fact that I left at all. In her mind, I probably could have done most of my training in the ballroom."
"Could you?" Daphne asked.
"Technically? Yes. But I would have been distracted," Harry replied. "I'm good enough to take down Voldemort. I know that. I also know that if I would have done my training here, I would be nowhere near as good as I am now. While I was away, training was the only thing. I trained for at least twelve hours every day, collapsed onto a cot in the corner of the training space, and then woke up the next morning to do it all over again."
"I have to say, Harry, that sounds terrible," Daphne replied.
"It wasn't fun," Harry admitted. "In fact, it was practically torture. But I always pushed through because I wanted to be able to come home to my friends and family."
"But each time you came home, they were further away."
Harry had spent a lot of time over the last few years trying to word his exact feelings. Somehow, Daphne Greengrass, who barely knew him, had done it in about ten minutes.
"That pretty much sums it up," Harry said. "The first time, leaving was basically impossible. The last time, though? I wanted to leave. It was easier, familiar even. You ask why Hermione has been around when Parvati hasn't. The answer is pretty simple: Hermione hasn't been traumatized the same way that Parvati and I have. Sure, she's been through some shit, but nothing like what Parvati experienced."
"Parvati didn't know how to help me and I have no clue how to help her unless murdering Dolohov counts and I can't imagine that's a healthy way of coping with grief. Hermione may hate the fact that I leave, but the moment I'm home, she's ready to move on. Parvati can't let go of the fact that I left her and honestly, I'm not sure that she should."
"It sounds like she needs to let go of something," Daphne said. "I've worked with Parvati for almost three years now. I know Ron pretty well since we're the same age. He's even gotten to be less of a prat about the whole Slytherin thing. But Kliner, Goran, and Williamson are all at least fifteen years older than we are. Sure, we go out for drinks sometimes, but Goran's got grandchildren. Ron, Parvati, and I should be close, but I know almost nothing about Parvati. Hell, from what I hear, her twin sister doesn't know much about her these days."
"I know."
Harry wanted nothing more than to be able to help Parvati. But he couldn't. First, he didn't know how. The person that Harry had fallen in love with had disappeared under the grief that Parvati had buried herself under. Second, even if he knew how, Harry knew that he was dealing with his own issues. It's difficult to be the person to help fix someone else when you are broken in your own right.
"Have you ever considered dating Hermione?"
"What?" Harry replied, blindsided by the sudden change in subject. "Date Hermione? No!"
Daphne gave Harry a strange look. "Fine, no need to be defensive about it."
"I'm not being defensive."
"Harry, no is an acceptable answer. You didn't say no. You acted like I asked if you wanted to date Malfoy."
"Not my first choice either," Harry replied.
"In any case, you and Hermione seem to have a good relationship. You get each other."
"Yes, because she's my best friend."
"You can date your best friend. Hell, some people even marry their best friend."
"Yeah, but, that's not Hermione and me," Harry replied. Harry would be lying if he said that he'd never thought about it. Hermione was attractive, intelligent, and as loyal as they came. She might not have been his oldest friend, but she was his closest.
But Harry knew that he needed Hermione in his life. Even if he was interested in dating her, which he wasn't, he would never risk their relationship to try and date her.
Harry and Daphne remained in the observatory for another few minutes before they descended the stairs once more and bid each other good night. In the morning, Harry awoke to a letter from the Ukrainian Ministry of Magic. After their initial exploration of the Nikola Forrest case, the SAF had reached out to the Hungarian Ministry to see if there was any more information. Unfortunately, the Hungarians knew nothing and for the third time, they suggested that Harry reached out to the Ukrainians.
Harry did just that and as he opened the letter, he was glad to see that his effort had not been wasted. While they knew nothing about Nikola Forrest, they did have information on a man named Piotr Ninovich, a former Ukrainian Ministry official, who matched Forrest's date of birth and general appearance. Unfortunately, the Ukrainians believed that Ninovich had been killed in Romania in 1981 chasing after a rogue Dark wizard. While no corpse had ever been recovered, there had been no evidence to suggest that Ninovich had survived his encounter. After waiting the customary two years, the Ministry had declared Ninovich killed in action and his will had been executed.
A Ukrainian wizard disappeared in 1981 only to reappear in 2002 in Hungary? Harry had already believed that Forrest's death had something to do with The Scholomance and this only furthered his suspicions. Harry raced to his office and sent a reply back to Ukraine, asking them for all the information they had about Piotr Ninovich. If The Scholomance was under Voldemort's control, things could only go from bad to worse.
The rest of the week was spent, as usual, digging through the texts of Voldemort's victims. As usual, the SAF met on Friday afternoon at Potter Manor. Unfortunately, Harry and Hermione didn't have much to say. The rest of the team did have an update on the Death Eaters.
Over the last month, rumors had begun to spread which suggested that Voldemort had yet to make contact with the Death Eaters. This was unusual for Riddle. While Voldemort didn't truly need the Death Eaters, he did enjoy their fealty towards him as well as their influence in the wizarding world. If Voldemort had returned to England and not visited his most loyal followers, something out of the ordinary was happening.
Was it possible that Voldemort was considering making moves on his own? That had never been Voldemort's style. He had always led from the back, hiding in the shadows while his followers did the heavy lifting. If Voldemort was considering a change in tactics, Harry wasn't certain that he could anticipate what the dark wizard would do next.
Of course, the other possibility was that Voldemort simply didn't trust his Death Eaters with what he was working on. Voldemort had never truly trusted anyone, but there were times when he allowed others the opportunity to act for him as Lucius Malfoy had at the Department of Mysteries. After Voldemort's failed attempt to hold England, it was entirely possible that he was no longer willing to delegate to those that he believed had failed him.
Voldemort never would have considered that the failure at Godric's Hollow was his own. Instead, he would have blamed it on his followers. It was why he had left them behind to be captured or killed by the Coalition while he fled.
If they were looking at a schism between Voldemort and his Death Eaters, that was the best possible news for them. While Voldemort would always be powerful, his true strength came from those who followed him. Their influence and their resources were what allowed him to take control of the Ministry in the first place. Without them, Voldemort was still dangerous but didn't pose the same world-altering threat that he had with his allies behind him.
That was assuming the Death Eaters chose not to support him. While some would undoubtedly abandon him the second it became clear that he was not going to help them gain power, others, the most dedicated and fanatical, would stand by his side even as he threw them into the dirt. People like Antonin Dolohov would never give up on Voldemort no matter how poorly Voldemort treated them.
That's what being a zealot meant.
As usual, the members of the SAF remained at Potter Manor for the rest of the work day, each of them getting their own office to work out of. More than once, Ron had hinted that he would like to work out of Potter Manor permanently. Unfortunately, Tonks had shot that down. While she had authorized them to work from Potter Manor on Fridays, she couldn't have her six best Aurors completely out of the office, even if they were working on their own independent project.
Harry was in the middle of rereading one of Kleio Argyris's essays when Ron walked into his study.
"Mate, it's seven. We're leaving," Ron said.
"Is it that time already?" Harry asked. Sure enough, the clock above Ron's head read a few minutes after the hour.
"Time flies, right?" Ron replied. "Listen, we've got a bit of a tradition. If there's no situation that requires our immediate attention, we like to go to Chasers after work on Friday."
"Who is we?" Harry asked.
"The SAF, all of us," Ron said.
"Have you been doing this the entire time that we've been working together?"
"Mate, we've been doing this for the better part of two years," Ron replied. "We didn't invite you because...well, you haven't been the most sociable person since you returned. Plus, Parvati will be there and it's not like the two of you have been exactly fun to be around."
While Harry couldn't deny that was the truth, it didn't keep it from stinging. But he knew that Ron was right, especially about Parvati. While they weren't hostile towards each other, there hadn't been much movement towards repairing their relationship. Like Parvati, Harry had a singular focus and it made it difficult to find time to try and fix things with her.
Harry knew that was an excuse. If he wanted to fix things with Parvati, he would have made it a priority and it would have happened. Right now, neither of them wanted to make that a priority.
"Is Hermione going?" Harry asked.
"She said she would go if you went," Ron answered.
"Dammit, that was going to be my answer," Harry replied. Despite the fact that he wanted to finish this essay, he knew that his relationship with the SAF was just as important as his research. At the very least, he needed them to trust him. Going out with them for a drink would be a step in the right direction in that regard.
"I suppose a drink or two couldn't hurt," Harry said with a smile.
However, before they left, a decision needed to be made about Daphne. Unlike the others, she hadn't left the house since she had first arrived and since Hermione had yet to figure out exactly how to remove the tracking charm, it was possible that Daphne could be tracked the moment she left the house.
Harry knew all of this but when Daphne requested to go with them, he agreed anyway. More than likely, nothing would happen. If it did, well, then Harry would be there to capture whoever showed up for her. Of course, he didn't relay that information to anyone else.
A few minutes later, Harry, Hermione, and the rest of the SAF were seated at a table towards the back of Chasers. While it wasn't quite full yet, it was clear that the bar was only going to get busier as the night went on. Harry sat in between Ron and Hermione with Daphne and Williamson across from them.
Not surprisingly, Parvati sat at the far end of the table.
For the first hour or so while the team sipped on their drinks and snacked on the food that they had ordered, the mood was very casual. Harry could tell that, outside of Parvati, who sat in silence at the far end of the table, this team was very close. They talked about each other's families, asking questions with a familiarity that suggested that they knew them well. Ron asked about Goran's daughter, who was a second year Hufflepuff, before Goran asked Williamson about her nephew, who was also a second-year, although little Charles was a Slytherin.
It was the kind of relationship that Harry remembered having with his friends, especially the six that had gone to Albania. For those few months after they returned to England before Harry had left, they had spent practically every weekend together. After four years though, things weren't the same. He was still friends with Ron, Hermione, and Ginny (albeit to a lesser extent than the other two) but his fractured relationship with Parvati and his non-existent friendship with Padma meant that things just weren't the same anymore.
He had known when he left the first time that things would change. But now that he was back for good and able to reflect on the changes in his relationships, he couldn't help but regret just how much his training had cost. Harry knew that if he eventually took down Voldemort, it would be worth it, but that didn't mean that it didn't hurt in the meantime.
After an hour, the drinks had started to get to him. But if the drinks were starting to get to him, then Hermione was well past buzzed. Apparently, she had needed the night out more than she had known.
It was after her fourth drink in just over an hour that Daphne leaned forward.
"Hermione, is it true that Nathaniel told you that you wouldn't be Minister of Magic without him?"
Normally, Hermione was not one to spend much time talking about her dating history. Because of her aspirations, which she had been quite clear about for quite a while, she elected to keep her private life private lest anyone learn anything about her that they could use to embarrass her politically at a later point.
Tonight, however, Hermione's lips had been loosened by the alcohol in her system. Instead of declining to answer, Hermione nodded.
"You bet he did," Hermione grumbled. "He sure was pretty, but he was a fucking idiot."
"Hermione!" Harry said in surprise. He'd never heard her use that kind of language before.
"Oh, shut up, Harry," Hermione replied. "If you had met him, you would have thought he was a fucking idiot, too. Of course, that's not really a surprise. You know that if I date them, there must be something wrong with them."
Ron, who had been watching Hermione with amusement up until that point, scowled. Hermione, drunk as she was, was still observant enough to notice it.
"Not you!" Hermione slurred apologetically. "We just...well, we weren't right for each other. But there's nothing wrong with you! You are wonderful!"
"Gee, thanks," Ron said. While he might have sounded upset, Harry could tell that he was mostly poking fun at Hermione, taking advantage of her sensitive state to give her a bit of grief, something Ron did better than almost anyone.
"I mean it!" Hermione protested. "You are the best, Ronald Bilius Weasley!"
"Bilius?" Daphne snorted. "Your middle name is Bilius?"
"Listen, it's a family name," Ron replied. "I thought I asked you to keep that to yourself?"
"Oh, sorry," Hermione said, although Harry could tell from the grin on her face that she was, in fact, not at all sorry. "But you are the best. Certainly the best of the people that I've dated."
"Who else have you dated?" Daphne asked.
"Well, let's see. There was Ron," Hermione said, lifting her hand and ticking off one finger. "After that, I dated Russell Williams. He's one of the administrators at the Wizengamot offices. Cute guy, nice guy. But he took me to his mother's house on our first date. That probably should have been a sign that things weren't going to work out. He didn't even touch me until our third date and even then, he just gave me a peck on the cheek. We dated for a month and he never even actually kissed me. On our last date, I tried to get him to put his hand up my shirt and he ran out of my apartment."
"You're joking," Daphne replied.
"Nope," Hermione replied after she finished her drink. "I grabbed his hand and pulled it towards me. Before he could even touch me, he yanked his arm away, stood, and sprinted out the door. I haven't talked to him again. The last time I had to go down to his office, he ran out of the room like he'd seen a demon."
Harry had vaguely heard about this, although he had never gotten any of the details. This relationship had started and ended during Harry's second trip abroad.
"After that was Roger Davies," Hermione replied, motioning to their waiter for another drink. "What a joke that was. We dated for three weeks, slept together twice, and then he forgot to come over for my birthday."
"Excuse me?" Harry said. He had known that she had briefly dated Davies. He did not know that he had ditched her on her birthday.
"Yeah, he said that he had 'somewhere better to be.' My personal belief is that he dated me to sleep with me and once he had gotten that, he was done."
Harry made a mental note to curse Roger Davies to hell the next time he saw the former Ravenclaw.
"After Davies was a strange combination. First, there was Euan Abercrombie. We lasted about five weeks, but it was clear that it wasn't going to work. He was a pretty good kisser but just didn't seem interested in a relationship. Then, a couple of weeks later, I went on a date with Terry Boot. Immediately, it felt like deja vu. Not as good a kisser as Euan, but the same vibe."
"Aren't Euan and Terry married?" Daphne asked.
"You bet your ass they are," Hermione confirmed. "Three weeks after my last date with Terry, they showed up to The Three Broomsticks together. They got married less than a year later. After that, I decided that maybe dating wasn't for me until I went out with Nathaniel. At this point, I think I'm cursed. I only seem to date guys that are afraid of me, gay, or total assholes."
"Too bad you don't know anyone who isn't afraid of you, gay, or an asshole," Daphne said, her eyes tracking pointedly to Harry. Hermione's eyes followed Daphne's to Harry. When Hermione saw who Daphne was looking at, Hermione laughed.
"Oh, no!" Hermione roared with laughter. "No, no, no. That's...that's not a good idea. Harry's basically my younger brother."
"Daphne seems to think that we'd be a good match."
"She's wrong."
"Is she?" Ron asked. Immediately, Hermione stopped laughing and, with Harry, turned to stare at Ron. "What? The two of you have been in sync since you were twelve. You know each other better than anyone else. As far as I know, Harry isn't gay and while he's a bit of prick, I think we're a ways off from total asshole."
Harry shook his head. "No, this is insane. I'm not dating Hermione. She's my best friend. Like she said, she's basically my sister."
"And I'm not dating Harry."
"Your loss," Daphne replied. Harry rolled his eyes and turned back to the rest of the table. While Goran and Kliner seemed to be engaged in a rather animated conversation about Quidditch, Parvati was staring at him, tears streaming down her face.
Before Harry could say anything, she stood and immediately marched from the bar. Harry turned back to the others and apologized for his hasty exit and then trailed Parvati as she weaved her way through the tables and out into the Alley.
"Parvati!" Harry shouted, trying to get her to stop. She ignored him, pressing onward. Harry knew that if she really wanted to get away, she would have already Apparated. Instead, she kept walking. Harry took off at a run, eventually cutting her off just before she reached the Leaky Cauldron.
"Get out of my way, Harry."
"Parvati, listen-"
"Listen to what, Harry?" Parvati growled.
"I didn't bring it up," Harry replied quickly. "Daphne mentioned it and Ron agreed, but I didn't-"
"You didn't say that you had a girlfriend."
"What?"
"I heard every word, Harry. You told Ron that you wouldn't date Hermione because she's basically your sister. But why wasn't your first reason that you already had a girlfriend? Hey, Daphne, you might think this is a good idea, but you see that woman down there at the end of the table, the one that I abandon every time I leave, that's my girlfriend."
"Parvati, that's...it wasn't...you know that I wasn't thinking of that. They caught me off guard."
"Daphne seems to think we're a good match. That's what you said. You've been talking to Daphne about dating Hermione?"
"Merlin, she brought it up. We were up in the observatory and she and I were talking-"
"You took Daphne up into the observatory?" Parvati snapped. "Merlin, are you fucking her, too?"
"What!?" Harry exclaimed. "No! She couldn't sleep and I jokingly mentioned that there was a liquor cabinet in the study with the observatory."
"OK."
"Do you seriously think that I'm sleeping with them?" Harry asked.
"I know you aren't doing anything with me," Parvati replied. "You told me weeks ago that you were going to take me out to dinner, take me to coffee, something that showed me that you were invested in us. We've done none of that."
"I'm sorry. I've only been trying to figure out Voldemort's master plan so that he doesn't murder all of us," Harry replied in frustration. "I don't have time for dinner or coffee right now."
"And what happens if you never find him? What if it takes you a decade? Two? I'm just supposed to wait for you?"
"No, I told you when I left the first time that if you found someone else, that you should take the opportunity," Harry countered. "I was very up front with you that I wasn't going to be a good partner."
"And yet, you somehow managed to fail to meet even my lowest expectations."
"Then, leave," Harry shot back. "I told you exactly what to expect. I told you that I wasn't going to be around. Other than the last time, I told you when I was going to leave and I told you that I didn't know when I was coming back. I was as honest with you as I could be. If that's not good enough for you, then leave."
"Is that what you want?" Parvati asked. "You want me to leave."
"I want Voldemort to be gone!" Harry shouted. "I want him to be dead so that I can have my goddamn life back! But you know what I want right now? I want you to get the fuck off my back. I want you to stop being pissed at me when we both know that you're just mad at yourself for not being able to catch Dolohov."
Parvati looked at Harry like he'd punched her in the face. Hell, she looked like she was going to punch him in the face.
"That's not nothing to do with this."
"Parvati, you're lying to me and to yourself if you think that Dolohov doesn't have anything to do with this. He's the only thing that matters to you. I understand that better than anyone. The difference between you and me is that I don't lie to myself. I know that Voldemort is all that matters right now. I've told everyone that. You, on the other hand, keep trying to pretend that you want something out of life other than Dolohov's death. But you don't believe it and neither does anyone else."
Parvati stared at Harry, fury evident on her face. Normally, Harry might have felt bad for her, but she was doing no one any favors if she lied to herself.
"That's what you think of me?" Parvati asked, only barely hiding the rage in her voice.
"Parvati, that's what everyone thinks of you," Harry replied. "I've told you before and I'll tell you again: you are grieving and you need to talk to someone about it. I know that you're going to tell me that I should be that person, but we both know that I'm not equipped for that."
"Fine," Parvati replied. "That's your opinion. Do you want to know mine? I think that you're a vile, selfish, pathetic piece of shit who is too afraid to be there for his girlfriend when she needs him."
Over the years, Harry had allowed Parvati a lot of freedom to express herself. Regardless of what she told herself, she was traumatized by her parents' murder and her failure to deal with it had permanently affected her mental state. But this was too far. Harry had given up everything to protect those that he had loved and he refused to have that sacrifice reduced to a series of insults from his girlfriend.
"Parvati, I love you, but I can't do this anymore."
"You're quitting?"
"For the time being...yes," Harry replied. "I care about you. I want you to get help, because you clearly need it. But I'm not the one who can do it, and I'm not going to take your abuse in the meantime."
Parvati glared at him. Her hand was shifting ever closer to her wand, and Harry could tell that she was considering cursing him.
"I'll see you at work on Monday, Parvati," Harry said. "For what it's worth, I think the version of you that I loved is still buried in there somewhere. I hope that one day you find her."
Trusting that she wasn't about to curse him, Harry turned around. A moment later, he heard the definitive sound of her Apparating away.
The walk back to Chasers was slow. Harry had never expected to walk away from Parvati. He had always assumed that she would be the one to leave him. But something about her had changed over the last few years, something that she hadn't been able to control. He honestly hoped that she found someone who would be able to help her and the sooner, the better.
As Harry approached the bar, he noticed two things. First, it seemed that the bar was mostly empty, strange when you considered that it had been almost entirely full just a few minutes earlier. That was explained by the second thing that he noticed: a row of black robes with their backs to him, blocking anyone from leaving the bar. If Harry had to guess, the Death Eaters had likely shown up and allowed everyone else in the bar to leave, keeping only their targets inside.
Harry was also certain he knew exactly who their targets were.
Thankfully, the Death Eaters hadn't noticed Harry. As he sneaked up towards the bar, he could hear the one in the center talking.
"...think hiding from us would work? We are nothing if not patient, Miss Greengrass."
Harry's blood boiled. This wasn't just any Death Eater. That voice clearly belonged to Hogwarts' former Potions Master, Severus Snape, the man who had murdered Minerva McGonagall in cold blood. Initially, Harry had planned to wait the Death Eaters out, mostly to see exactly what they planned to do.
Instead, Harry drew his wand. Other than Snape, there were seven Death Eaters, three to his left and four to Snape's right. Harry jabbed his wand at the three to the left. Immediately, all three of them were thrown the length of the bar, colliding with the wall beyond them at incredible speed. Before the other Death Eaters could turn, Harry swiveled towards them and gave his wand a twist.
Behind them, four bar stools unraveled and flew towards the Death Eaters. The bar stools wrapped around each of the Death Eaters, squeezing them so hard that even from across the bar, you could hear ribs cracking and arms breaking as they screamed in agony.
In less than two seconds, Harry had disposed of seven Death Eaters. Snape turned around, his stupid mask still on his face. But Harry could see through the mask into the eyes of the man behind it and Harry saw the one thing that he wanted: fear.
Snape never had a chance to defend himself. Harry stabbed at the air, Summoning Snape's wand to him. Harry grabbed the wand out of the air and snapped it in half before he threw the pieces to the ground and immediately set them on fire. Next, Harry swiped his wand at Snape, knocking the mask from his face. Behind the mask, Snape's face was scarred, marked with the effects of an entire castle falling on his head.
Harry leveled his wand at Snape. With a flick, Snape went flying towards the bar, hitting it hard enough to embed his body into the side. Harry could hear Snape groan out in pain, but Harry, seeing red, wasn't done. Harry waved his wand across the room, throwing Snape through the wall on the other side of the room and into a store room behind it.
Finally, Harry Summoned Snape again, leaving him to float in front of him in the center of the room.
"Professor, how nice to see you," Harry growled. He wanted nothing more than to hurt Snape. He wanted to break every bone in his body and then pull the pieces through his skin one by one. But he knew that he needed information from Snape.
Snape mumbled something and Harry realized that at some point during his assault, Harry had broken his former Professor's jaw. With his quick wave of his wand, Harry healed Snape's jaw, although the healing caused Snape to roar in pain. Normally, that spell was to be performed after a numbing agent had been applied and even then, it was to be performed slowly. Instead, Harry had effectively jerked Snape's jaw back into place and then healed it.
"Now, what the hell are you doing here?" Harry asked.
Snape, not surprisingly, remained silent.
"Severus, there's one of two ways this goes. You're going to give me the information that I want. The only difference is whether you'll end up in one piece or several."
"You think that you scare me, Potter?" Snape sneered. "I've endured torture at the hands of the Dark Lord."
"Yes, I know. His Cruciatus Curse is particularly painful," Harry admitted. "However, the great thing about the Cruciatus Curse is also its one weakness. You see, we both know that it doesn't cause any permanent damage. However, if I do this-"
Harry suddenly jabbed his wand at Snape's leg, which snapped in half with a pop, causing Snape to scream in agony.
"-not only does it hurt like hell, but if you don't get that fixed soon enough, you'll walk with a permanent limp."
"Go to hell," Snape growled.
"I probably will," Harry replied. "But I'm going to send you there first. Now, I heard you mention Daphne's name. I can assume that Ezekiel noticed that Daphne was no longer hidden any longer."
"It was stupid of you to let her come here."
"Was it?" Harry asked. "You honestly think that I didn't suspect that this might happen?"
Behind Snape, Daphne looked at Harry in horror.
"You used me as bait?"
"I had no guarantee that they would approach you the first night that you left Potter Manor," Harry replied. "But I knew that it was a possibility. I just never imagined that the Death Eaters would be stupid enough to send Snape."
"But you used me as bait!?" Daphne growled.
"I suppose I did," Harry agreed, "and look what it got us. Now, Severus, I can assume that you were here to 'recruit' Daphne?"
Snape glared at him but said nothing.
"Fine," Harry replied. "I want nothing more than to cause you inexplicable levels of pain, so you being an idiot is honestly my best case scenario."
Harry flicked his wand at Snape, breaking his other leg with a similar pop as the first one. However, unlike last time when Harry hit his lower leg, this spell hit his femur, snapping the bone in half in the middle of his thigh. Harry knew that no matter how quickly that particular break was healed, Snape would walk with a limp for the rest of his life.
Considering Snape had been responsible for the death of his parents and Minerva McGonagall, he deserved worse.
"Now, Snape, were you here to recruit her?" Harry yelled. "Yes or no!?"
"Yes!" Snape moaned.
"Were you here on the direct orders of Ezekiel Greengrass?"
"Yes!"
"Is he a Death Eater?"
"Yes," Snape said, his voice getting weaker as the pain in his leg, exacerbated by the fact that he was floating in the air, continued to grow. "He, along with Dolohov and myself, run the Death Eaters."
"When was the last time you spoke to Voldemort?"
"Four...years ago," Snape replied. "A few months after he escaped from Godric's Hollow. He sent us a letter telling us to continue his work."
"Where is Ezekiel Greengrass right now?"
"The Greengrass Estate," Snape said before the pain finally caused him to pass out. Thankfully, he had gotten everything he needed out of him.
"Williamson, Goran: take this piece of shit to the Ministry. Lock him in the darkest cell you can find and put a dozen people around him twenty-four, seven. Hermione, Ron, and Kliner: return to Potter Manor and wait for Daphne."
"Where is Daphne going?" Ron asked.
Harry turned to Daphne and gave her a grim smile.
"Daphne is going to take me to The Greengrass Estate."