Chapter 16
Snape frowned as he quickly sent off a Patronus to Albus, telling him he would be out of the castle for the rest of the day, before he quickly headed to the Entrance Hall and outside, passed the gates so that he could disapparate.
Normally, leaving the castle abruptly would indicate he had been called to a Death Eater meeting, so Dumbledore was used to the call from his Defense professor.
However, this particular afternoon, he was heading off to meet Narcissa. She had sent him a rather panicked letter a few days earlier, and this was the first chance he had had to get away.
He quietly entered his home on Spinner's End, and waited only a few minutes for a quiet knock to sound. Opening the door showed his guest.
Narcissa Malfoy entered the house meekly; it was a far cry from the dignified Lady that Snape was used to, and he felt things had only gotten worse for the woman since the first time she had shown up at his house the previous summer with her sister. He had spent some time talking with her over the year, and felt like she would hear him out on an offer of safety. She really didn't seem too keen on Voldemort's grand plan any more.
Snape led her to the sitting room and gestured for her to take a seat, deciding to forgo the offer of a beverage, since she really looked like she just wanted to get this whole thing over with.
"What was it you wanted to speak with me about, Narcissa?" he asked courteously, his voice even.
Narcissa took a deep breath and looked at her… what was he? They weren't really friends, she had to admit. She respected him, and he was allied with those her husband had laid down his allegiance to, but they weren't friends. "You have told me that I can trust you, Severus. I find that hard to believe, as we were both in Slytherin. Cunning and resourceful. Why should I believe that you would not sell me out if it is advantageous of you to do so?"
Snape had to hold in a chuckle. He was used to Narcissa deferring to her husband, but that didn't mean she was dimwitted.
He nodded slowly, and spoke when he knew she would not catch the amusement in his voice. "I have no wish to rat you out to anyone, Narcissa. Perhaps it would be better if you were to tell me what thoughts you have that may seem treasonous."
Narcissa glared, but couldn't help the answer from coming. Severus was good at saying everything and nothing, but after meeting with him in private several times over the last few months, she believed she could tell him her feelings and he wouldn't rat her out, even if he didn't agree. He had gone out of his way to assure her that he was there for her. He had even suggested the possibility of seeking safety in her maiden House! As if Sirius would ever allow that. Though she couldn't deny the twinge of sadness at the thought that returning to the Black family was impossible.
"Draco has taken the mark. Willingly."
Snape grit his teeth and nodded. He wasn't all that surprised.
Narcissa sighed. "I want what is best for my son. But I am not altogether certain the Dark Lord is it."
Snape pursed his lips. He was close. Narcissa was almost there. The question was how much he could reveal. Narcissa was a trained Occlumens, so she would be able to keep his secrets, but the nature of spy work was delicate. The more people who knew, the greater the danger.
"I have mentioned it before, but you should speak with Black."
Narcissa snorted. "Sirius would not accept me back into his family," she replied derisively. Her cousin had denounced anything dark the moment he had run away from the family at sixteen.
Snape raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't be so sure."
Narcisa stared. "What do you know?" she asked suspiciously.
Snape sighed. "Black may be more willing than you think. But do not make this decision lightly, Narcissa. If you wish to return to the Black family, you must be willing to denounce the Dark Lord an all he believes in. You must be willing to denounce your son and your husband. Are you?"
Narcissa pondered the question for a few minutes. Could she really leave her son and husband behind?
If it was the cost of safety and survival, she could do it. They had made their choice. She would make the one that best served her. She looked back at Snape. "I am."
Severus held in another sigh as he nodded. "If that is your decision, I will speak with Black. Be aware that he may ask you to prove yourself. He won't trust you, but if you swear fealty to the Black Family and offer assistance in the fight, it may go a long way."
Narcissa tilted her chin up slightly, her expression observing and carefully blank. "You do not serve the Dark Lord," she commented neutrally. "You may act the part, but you report to a different master. Tell me, Severus, when did Dumbledore change your views?"
Snape clenched his jaw. "I do not align myself with the old man," he forced himself to remain calm. "And believe me, if I was making this offer on his behalf, you would be smart to remain as you are."
Narcissa started. "To whom do you report, then?" she asked, idle curiosity in her tone.
Snape shook his head slightly. "Just trust that I am resolved to seeing this war end, and I believe I am on the right side. I am willing to vouch for you, so do not make a liar of me, Narcissa. If you want this, I will make it happen, but Merlin help you if you go back on your word."
Narcissa took a deep breath. "I want this," she said softly.
Snape nodded. "Then I will speak to Black."
Narcissa made to stand up, when Snape's voice halted her actions. "What is your son up to?"
Narcissa flinched and turned around. "Pardon?"
Snape raised an eyebrow, a not quite glare on his face. "Do not play games with me. I know several Slytherins who have spent the last year whispering in corners and classrooms, hiding their conversations and thoughts from everyone. Something is going on. Tell me. Prove to me that you want to change."
Narcissa wilted. She slid back down into her seat and Snape, watching her, refused to allow himself to feel guilty at the almost tortured expression she wore. "Please, Severus. I do not want that life anymore, but he is still my son."
Snape's almost-glare intensified. "If he is planning something at Hogwarts, think of all the lives in danger. How many other sons and daughters could be hurt because of him?"
Narcissa paused for a moment, before she nodded slightly. "I am unaware of all the details," she said hesitantly, "but they are planning some sort of attack on the school. The Dark Lord has given my son one chance to redeem himself, after the failure last June."
Snape almost swore, but stopped himself, and just nodded resolutely. "Thank you, Narcissa. I will be in touch with you about Black."
Narcissa bit her lip, and stood back up. When she was at the door, she stopped and turned her head slightly so that she was looking at Snape out of the corner of her eye. "Thank you." And then she was gone.
XXX
Minerva and Harry were both concerned when Snape told them what he had learned from Narcissa, and promised to keep a close eye on the worrisome students.
Minerva also told Harry about Narcissa's change of heart, since the subject had come up, and he was happy to have her on their side, as long as she could be trusted.
Snape sighed when the question was broached. "Narcissa is a Slytherin," he said brusquely. "She will look out for herself first. She is willing to leave her husband and son to their fate because it suits her. That does not mean you should not be willing to offer her aid when she asks for it. She is simply learning the same lessons I did prior to the end of the last war. She has learned that there is nothing to be gained by serving the Dark Lord. That doesn't mean she would fight against him, but she won't fight against us either."
Harry nodded carefully. "I would feel more comfortable if she swore a vow to not fight against us, but I wouldn't turn her away when she's asking for help. I'm sure Sirius would say the same."
Minerva nodded. "We will offer our assistance, of course. But I will not allow her into our home unless she proves herself trustworthy. We can set up a safehouse if she needs somewhere to stay."
Snape inclined his head. "That is acceptable. Perhaps once term lets out we can set up a meeting and discuss terms. I trust you will inform Black of the situation?"
Minerva nodded again, and Snape left for his office.
Once he was gone, Minerva turned to look at Harry. "What is your opinion?" she asked curiously. She knew they had sort of sprung this on Harry, and she was interested in his thoughts.
Harry raised an eyebrow. "I thought I already gave it." Minerva just stared, and Harry sighed. "One less person we have to fight against can only be a good thing. I've never had much interaction with Mrs. Malfoy, but if she's willing to set aside her feelings and come to us for aid, then we have to be willing to offer our assistance. Don't we?"
Minerva smiled. "Well said, Harry. Narcissa is cold, but not unfeeling. If she made the choice to leave her family behind, it is because she truly does not want to align herself with You-Know-Who anymore."
Harry's lips quirked upwards in a facsimile of a smile. "All right. I should get going, I'm going to meet up with the others to study."
Minerva's smile widened slightly. "Of course. I'm sure you all have nothing to worry about. Tell Miss Weasley that obsessing is not going to help. She is among the top students in her year, and she should not be worrying and wasting sleep."
Harry grinned. "Yes, Professor." He ducked out of the room and headed up to the Room of Requirement.
He didn't tell them what he had been talking about with Minerva and Snape, since that sort of information would be best kept private. Ginny, of course, knew, but that was different.
They sat in a comfortable sitting room, as Harry asked for updates.
Blaise shook his head. "There's no way to be certain," he huffed. "We can dream up possibilities, but we can't really check them out."
Hermione pursed her lips. "I considered the idea of the orphanage he grew up in, but we don't even know where that is, do we?"
"Somewhere in London," Neville supplied helpfully.
Hermione glared at him. "The point is, we can't really check anything out until this summer, and even then it would be difficult."
Harry smiled slightly. "We'll find a way to check. I still think Hogwarts and Gringotts are possibilities."
Hermione nodded once. "I'm not so sure, but we'll add them to the list."
Harry's smiled widened a bit. "Thanks. In the meantime, how are we coming with Voldemort's past?"
Susan sighed. "I guess you could say we've had a little more luck," she shrugged. "We managed to get a name on his mother. Merope Gaunt. She lived with her father and brother in a shack outside of Little Hangleton, the town the Riddles lived in."
Harry tilted his head to the side. "Why does that name sound familiar?" he asked, almost to himself.
Ginny frowned in thought. It did sound familiar, and she was sure she had heard it somewhere, probably from her husband. Boyfriend. Damn it, she really needed to figure out what to call him in her mind.
Harry's eyes widened after a minute. "Gaunt," he said quickly, looking at the others. "I remember that name from a few years ago, when Sirius was teaching me about things I needed to know as the Head of an Ancient and Noble House. I had to learn about the old families. The Gaunt family is one of the older pureblood minor Houses, but it died out over fifty years ago."
Ginny furrowed her brow. "The Gaunt family… I think I remember you… telling me about that. They weren't particularly known for anything, were they?"
Harry shrugged. "Not really. Like I said, they were a minor House, but I think they had ties to some major pureblood lines. But if they had any real talent in the family, it died out a long time ago." He paused for a moment, before looking at Neville and Susan. "Do you know exactly where the family lived?"
The couple shared a look, before Neville replied. "We have a general idea, but it might take some searching."
Harry nodded, and Ginny looked intrigued. "You think it's worth checking out." It wasn't a question.
Harry bit his lip. "It's just an idea. We'll see if we can do some poking around the area this summer."
They all nodded, excited by the prospect of an actual lead.
"Do you two have any possibilities for what the objects are?" Daphne asked, looking at Harry and Ginny.
Harry sighed. "It really is a lot of guesswork," he admitted. "We've done some research on the founders, and found a few leads. The only known relic of Ravenclaw is her lost diadem."
"But the lost diadem is… lost, isn't it?" Susan asked tentatively.
Luna nodded, showing more interest than she had been all afternoon. "Daddy's building a model that will replicate its properties."
They all looked at her for a moment, before Ron spoke. "Sorry, but what the bloody hell is a diadem?"
Harry chuckled. "It's sort of like a tiara. Ravenclaw's was imbedded with jewels, and had the phrase 'wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure' inscribed on it."
"So you think this might be a horcrux?" Hermione asked.
Harry shrugged. "It's just another idea," he admitted. "It does seem awfully farfetched, since no one's seen it pretty much since Ravenclaw died."
"Have you asked her daughter?" Luna asked, her voice breezy.
Harry furrowed his brow. "Helena Ravenclaw? She disappeared before her mother died."
Luna's smile widened slightly. "She makes a delightful chatting companion when she's in the mood." The others just looked more confused. "You would know her as the Grey Lady."
Harry started. "The Ravenclaw ghost? That's Helena Ravenclaw?" Luna nodded, and Harry smiled his thanks. "We'll look into that Luna, it's a good idea. In the meantime, here's a picture of what the diadem looks like." He handed out copies that he had made from a book on the founders where he had found the information. They glanced at the picture briefly, before Harry continued. "The other lead we found was an item of Hufflepuff's. She had a cup that was said to negate all poisons of whatever was placed in it. It's also been missing for a while."
"No idea what happened to it?" Hermione asked, disappointed.
Harry took a deep breath. "I think I've combed the entire library section of old Prophet's. The cup popped up belonging to a woman named Hepzibah Smith, who claimed to be a descendant of Hufflepuff. A little digging and some reading between the lines, and I found out that Borgin and Burkes tried to get her to sell the cup to them many times. After her death, the cup was discovered missing by her family."
"How did she die?" Blaise asked, wondering if it might have something to do with it.
Harry sighed. "Her house elf was charged with the murder. She was rather old, and admitted to putting something in her mistress' tea that turned out not to be sugar, but a poison."
"It's a lie," Hermione stated with conviction.
Harry looked at her. "Of course it is," he replied calmly. "But who's eager to prove it? The elf admitted what she had done. In my opinion, someone planted a false memory in the elf's mind, to frame her."
"So it's another dead end?" Ron asked, disappointed.
Harry smirked. "Of course not. I'm planning on taking a little trip to Borgin and Burkes at some point, to see if they know anything."
"He's not going to say anything you know," Neville said.
Harry's smirk widened. "He won't have a choice." He looked at Daphne. "You interested in helping me brew some Veritaserum?"
Daphne blinked, startled. "What?" she asked, confused.
Harry shrugged. "You want to be a Potions Mistress, which means you have to have some talent. I've seen you in class. You're good. Better than me."
Daphne smiled at him. "Of course I'll help. You're planning on using truth serum to get answers out of Burke, aren't you."
Harry nodded, and Hermione groaned. "Harry, you know how much trouble you could get in, just for brewing the potion, let alone using it?"
Harry shrugged. "Not nearly as much trouble as we'll all be in if we don't win this war."
Hermione rolled her eyes, but had to concede the point.
Ginny cleared her throat. "I was thinking…" They all looked at her, and she bit her lip. "Harry, you mentioned how intelligent Nagini seemed. Is it possible to make a horcrux out of a living being?"
Hermione and Susan looked a little sick, but Harry frowned in thought. "Theoretically, maybe," he allowed. "And I suppose it would make a sick sort of sense, for him to use his pet in that way. It would underline his connection to serpents, and again, the Slytherin line." He looked at Ginny. "I think you might be right, now that I look back on the dreams I've had with Nagini in them, and seeing her in that graveyard. She was a little too intelligent for a regular snake."
"So now we have to kill the snake," Ron commented. "I'll volunteer for that."
They all looked at him, confused. Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
Ron's gaze narrowed. "I owe that snake for what it did to dad."
Ginny nodded understandingly. "Sounds good to me."
Hermione reached out and grasped her boyfriend's hand, while Harry did the same for Ginny.
Since they didn't have any more new information to bring to the group, they spent the rest of the day doing homework.
In a surprising display of trust, Daphne let Harry spent several hours exploring her mind. The year before, she never would have even considered it, but after everything he had done for her and Astoria, she knew she could count on him to use discretion. She wasn't sure why he wanted to do this, but she trusted him to not be planning on using whatever he learned for anything nefarious.
He had spent most of his time with this project using Ginny as his subject, but she really needed to study for her exams, and couldn't spare the time. Besides, Harry thought as he navigated the twists and turns of his Slytherin friend's mind, it was good to get multiple perspectives; it would help him learn a little better.
After a couple hours with Daphne, Harry switched to Neville when he offered. Harry happily accepted, and spent the rest of the afternoon studying his fellow Gryffindor's mind.
When they packed up to head to dinner, Harry felt like he had come a long way in developing his Legilimancy skills.
XXX
Over the next week, Harry was intrigued by an idea that had come to him as he had called his friends to him and Ginny using the DA coin a while back. It would be so much easier if they had a way to communicate with more than just a coin that could list dates and times. If they could input locations, or perhaps even numbers of opponents, or something like that, it would be so much more useful.
With that thought in mind, he secluded himself in the Room of Requirement for most of Saturday, while his friends were in the library studying. Conjuring up multiple matching medallions, he worked tirelessly to get them to do what he wanted, with the result being a set of fourteen necklaces that were linked together so that any of them could be used to send short phrases to the others, like a location, or whatever else the wearer needed.
He felt very pleased with his success, and presented them to his friends the next day. Hermione studied the medallion closely. "This is quite intricate, Harry, I'm very impressed." She put the necklace on, smiling at her fellow Prefect.
Indeed, Harry thought the image worked. The medallion itself was a circle shape, about the size of a galleon. On the back, he had borrowed part of the image from his House Crest, and put the image of a crossed wand and sword. On the front was a dragon, its wings unfurled, rearing up halfway, claws extended. When they sent out the information, the dragon image would disappear, to be replaced by writing.
They all admired the necklace, as Harry explained. "I thought about using a phoenix, but then I didn't really want to use something that could be linked to Dumbledore's Order. And I could have used a griffin, but I didn't want it to be too Gryffindor for our Slytherins." He grinned at Blaise and Daphne, who rolled their eyes. "I thought the dragon fit. We're not just meekly following orders or waiting for someone to tell us what to do. We're fighting. These are different from the DA coins. You can enter short phrases into them, and they will show up on the others. Locations, or numbers of opponents. When they're activated, they get warm."
Everyone put them on, complimenting Harry on his spell work. Harry smiled his thanks. "I made a few extra. I'm going to give them to Cedric, Fred, and George. I figured they could probably find use for them as well. I'll give the necklaces to them this summer. I'll also give ones to Professors McGonagall and Snape."
Ginny beamed. "This is a really brilliant idea, Harry. The main issue with the coins was that we could leave them in our rooms, or might not notice when a new date was added. These will tell us, and we'll be able to keep them with us at all times."
She leaned over and gave him a kiss, which Harry returned willingly.
"Now that that's all taken care of, I think we should talk about the hippogriff in the room," Blaise said. When they looked confused, he elaborated. "We know there's a plan in the works to infiltrate Hogwarts. Dumbledore certainly isn't going to do anything to stop it, so it's up to us."
Harry let out a breath of air, conceding the point. "What do you suggest?"
The two Slytherins looked at each other, before Daphne shrugged. "We can put some monitoring spells up in the common room, since let's face it, most of the students we're keeping an eye on are there. It's kind of hard to plan when we don't know when or where this attack will come."
Harry nodded. "We'll think about it. If you have any ideas, don't hold it back."
They all agreed, and moved on to more leisurely pursuits. They spent the rest of the day relaxing in their animal forms, since as Harry always maintained, sometimes the best thing to do when the stress was getting to be too much was just unwind and not think about whatever it was for a while.
XXX
Minerva and Snape both praised Harry on his idea and work on the medallions, and promised to wear it at all times. They thought it could come in handy, and were pleased that he had included them as he made these plans.
Minerva gave him a hug, smiling at the way he blushed at the praise. Pulling back, she observed her charge. "I'm really proud of you, Harry." He looked confused, so she continued, brushing his hair out of his face. "A few years ago, you would never have considered telling an adult about any of this. Do you remember all those harebrained schemes you cooked up with Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger? And now look at you. You've grown up so much."
Harry's blush deepened. "I think I just learned how to trust," he admitted. "So really, you and Sirius are to blame for this."
Minerva beamed. "Well, I'll take partial credit, but you're the one who did the hard work, Harry. You let us in. Now, you should head back to your friends, but take ten points to Gryffindor for excellent forethought and spell work."
Harry grinned and left the office.
XXX
Fred and George were feeling immensely frustrated. Even after their father had joined them in their efforts, they still weren't having any luck in getting these listening devices to work.
"It shouldn't be this hard," George complained, collapsing onto one of the benches in their workroom. It was a weekend, and they were still working. Arthur had joined them since he didn't have to be at the Ministry, and they were trying to come up with new ideas on how to get these things to work. If it weren't for their potential use, they would have just tossed the idea in the impossible to complete pile.
Arthur shook his head slightly. "It might be difficult, boys, but it will be worth it. Think of what it would do for our side, if we were able to get these devices in You-Know-Who's headquarters."
The twins nodded. They did understand, it was just frustrating that they had been working on these devices for months and still didn't have a working prototype yet.
Fred sighed and picked up the small device they had been working on. At least this one hadn't exploded on them. "How are we supposed to get this to work without magic?" he asked for the millionth time.
Arthur frowned, and went into his tool bag, pulling out several different sizes of batteries. "Perhaps the answer isn't to try and figure out how to put passive magic into something. Boys, do you have the notes Harry sent you? From what I saw at McGonagall Castle, Lilly Potter was a genius in getting muggle devices to work around magic. Perhaps the solution is to get a device to work off of this battery, and then shield the muggle technology from the magic surrounding it." He was very proud of himself for remembering what Harry had called the small objects that powered muggle devices.
Both Weasley twins immediately lost their frustrated looks and stood up, getting back to work.
Together, the three of them spent the rest of the day, and most of the evening, working on this new angle. The result was a still nonworking model, but it was closer to their goal than any previous attempts. And this one wasn't likely to explode on them, so it was progress. They were ready to keep trying, until Arthur noticed the time, and had to hurry home before Molly completely lost it.
Once their father was gone, Fred and George looked at each other and grinned, before cleaning up and heading up to their flat above the shop. It was nice to have such a short commute from work to home.