Chapter 54: Draco Malfoy’s Oath
"There was one more thing I wished to ask you Harry. More to satisfy my own curiosity than anything else." Dumbledore said. "Has young Mr Malfoy's behavior concerning you changed since the Dementor attack?" Harry was surprised that Professor Dumbledore knew about that.
"It has actually. He used to try and upset me whenever he could, now he just ignores me. Why do you ask sir?"
"Harry, you must remember that Mr Malfoy has you to thank for saving his life. In pureblood society when a person saves your life you become indebted to them. Magically speaking this does not mean anything, a life debt will not force a person to do anything they do not want to. However, it has long been a tradition for the wizard whose life has been saved to swear an oath pledging to help his rescuer in any way he can. To not do so is considered quite humiliating."
"So what do you think Malfoy did?" Harry asked.
"I am unsure. Draco is quite sensitive when it comes to questions regarding his and his family's honor, however his rivalry with you could prevent it. Perhaps you should ask him yourself." Dumbledore suggested. "Thank you for coming tonight Harry, it has been most enlightening."
"Thanks for helping me, Professor."
"Harry, that is precisely why I am here. Good night." Harry nodded and walked out the door, leaving Professor Dumbledore alone to consider the conversation. While relieved to learn that Harry had not been conducting any dark rituals he was now at a loss to explain what was going on with the young man. Harry Potter was quite the enigma, and Dumbledore knew better than anyone else how important it was to solve that particular riddle. It could mean the future of the wizarding world.
Harry meanwhile was hopeful that he could soon return to the type of training that he was convinced was necessary for him to become strong enough to survive the war he knew was coming. Despite his improvements he knew he was still no match for the stronger, adult wizards that were loyal to Voldemort. Additionally he had very little experience in actual duels. His training for the tournament was good but not for preparing to fight other wizards. Yet he knew his entrance in the tournament was the catalyst for a lot of good changes that had happened since then.
He also wondered what Dumbledore was up to. His frequent trips away from the castle and his secret meetings with Aurors must be connected in some way. He knew from his talks with Daphne that Dumbledore had been Voldemort's chief rival in the first war so perhaps he was already preparing for the next one. Harry wondered if Dumbledore would try and prevent him from fighting when the war did come, but part of him doubted it. After all his parents had joined the war effort right out of school along with Sirius, Remus, and the traitor Pettigrew.
His feeling of impending danger was beginning to bother him again. He knew he still had some time to prepare, but that time was growing short. Voldemort had at least two loyal followers still helping him and yet nobody knew what they were up to. It was frustrating for him not to be able to do anything after confronting him in two of the last three years. Harry knew that there would be another confrontation in the future, he just wondered how soon it would be.
...
The next day Harry began checking the Marauder's Map periodically to see if Rita Skeeter was back on the castle grounds. So far he had not noticed her and he wondered whether she was staying away because she realized she had been caught or if she simply had other things she needed to do. Daphne had contacted her father to tell him what they had found but so far he had not heard what they were planning on doing with the information and decided to not interrupt their plotting. After all her family had been attacked in a way far more vicious than he had so it was only right that they were allowed to have their revenge.
It wasn't until that Friday that Harry finally saw Rita Skeeter's name on the Marauder's Map. She was currently between the castle and Hagrid's hut, giving him the perfect excuse to let her over hear a conversation. Daphne, along with the rest of the fourth year Slytherins, was still in class but the Gryffindors had a free period. Since he could not enlist his girlfriend's help he ran to find Hermione who was sitting in the library studying.
"Hermione, can you do me a favor and come with me to see Hagrid?" Harry asked once he found her. Hermione looked up from her book and looked at him with a puzzled expression.
"Why do you need me to go with you?" she asked, seemingly eager to get back to her book.
"Because Rita Skeeter is hanging around his hut and this is the perfect opportunity to mess with her. I'll explain on the way, ok?" Harry begged. Hermione sighed in frustration and then began to put her things away. Harry had already let her know what they had discovered regarding Rita Skeeter's illegal animagus status and so he used the time it took to walk outside to give her directions on what he wanted to do.
As they exited the castle and began the long walk towards Hagrid's home Harry rechecked the map to make sure Skeeter had noticed them. On the map he could clearly see her dot quickly approaching his and Hermione's. 'Good.' Harry thought with a smile.
"So, I got a letter from Sirius this week." Harry said using the phrase that would tell Hermione to start the conversation they had planned out on the way.
"Really? How is your godfather doing?" Hermione asked as they continued walking. No one else was around to overhear their conversation so they could feel free to say exactly what they wanted to Rita Skeeter to hear.
"He's doing well, all things considered. Still looking for that traitor, Peter Pettigrew." Harry replied, the distaste for the man evident in his tone. Hermione meanwhile just nodded at his answer.
"It's funny how things worked out, isn't it?" she asked.
"Funny? Are you mad? It's not funny that my godfather got thrown in to Azkaban without even being given a trial for a crime he didn't commit while the real traitor is given the Order of Merlin!" Harry said angrily.
"In their defense Harry everyone still thinks Peter Pettigrew is dead." Hermione commented in an apparent attempt to calm her friend.
"Well it's their fault they didn't do a very good job investigating his supposed murder. But apparently all it takes to fake your own death is to cut off your finger and find someone to blame. One of these days though, Sirius Black will have his justice."
"I'm sure that is what he wants, too. He just has to be careful with the Ministry still looking for him. He's at least somewhere safe isn't he?" Hermione asked.
"For the moment, yes. He's hiding in Berlin for a while before heading to Amsterdam in a few weeks." Harry answered, knowing full well that Sirius had not visited and had no plans to visit either of those two cities. "He can't come back until we find that rat Pettigrew. It'd go a lot easier if the Ministry would admit they made a mistake."
"Oh Harry you know that is never going to happen."
"Probably not. But can you imagine how embarrassed they are going to be when the truth comes out?" Harry said, hoping that it would catch Skeeter's attention. He knew that she loved nothing more than a potential scandal and he was offering her a good one.
"I suppose it will be funny." Hermione said with a small grin. "Oh look, there's Hagrid! Come on, Harry." With that she and Harry ran the rest of the way to Hagrid's home where the friendly half-giant welcomed them in excitedly. Harry was glad to see his friend again, even if he had only gotten the idea because he was trying to trick Rita Skeeter. And there was nothing Hagrid liked more than to have friends over for a cup of tea and some rock cakes, even if his guests turned down his tough cuisine.
Rita Skeeter meanwhile was just as excited as Hagrid, although for completely different reasons. She had seemingly stumbled on a major story! Not only did she learn that the only person to ever escape from Azkaban was Harry Potter's godfather but that the boy seemed to truly believe he was innocent and Peter Pettigrew was not just alive but guilty of the crimes Black had been accused of. Surely there must be some way to verify the claims, but she knew she would be writing a story about it either way. After all, as long as the story sold copies of the Daily Prophet who cared if she really checked her sources? And the fact that it would irritate the Ministry of Magic was a happy bonus as far as she was concerned.
'Yes,' Skeeter thought as she flew off towards the edge of the wards, 'this is going to be an award winner!'
....
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