Chapitre 77: C077 - Halloween Year 2

The Quibbler was a nice read this time around. It actually retold what happened, and Xenophilius toned down his eccentric opinions for the other articles on conspiracies and nifty little tidbits of magical information a little. I hoped Luna and Xenophilius would gain a few loyal readers from me buying fifty of them and dropping them randomly to the four house tables at dinner.

The next morning, I even heard a few people talk about the paper, and I felt that Luna rightfully preened as she listened in on many of those conversations.

When I finished attending Quidditch practice that day and was more sure than ever that I would break that 'lowest scores in a season' record, I decided to enter another trance. Something about the hectic broom flight to dodge the bludgers gave me inspiration.

Settled on the couch on the elevated platform overlooking the potions counter in the Room of Requirement we used for the potions, I relaxed with the chant and was once more face to face with raven... still in total darkness.

Caw caw caw!

I saw the pitch black eyes shine as the raven crowed at me and closed my eyes.

CAW!

Wind suddenly hit my face as I heard the bird flap its wings as it continued to caw at me.

When it was about time for the bird to have lifted off, I opened my eyes again. The total darkness was gone. Instead, I was sitting on a thin wire with another raven right in front of me sitting on another wire.

Next or rather below me was one of those telephone poles. The two of us were roughly on the height of the third floor of a building in the far distance... I wasn't in my own body. Quickly looking down, I saw dark grey chest feathers. I lifted my 'arms' and saw black feathers. Wings.

I wanted to say something, and yet I could only muster an unsure 'caw?'

The pitch black raven in front of me crowed in laughter, beat its wings and I wasn't able to keep the balance with the wind of his wings hitting me as I perched on that thin wire in a body that wasn't my own. I fell and tried using my wings just like the raven had - but instead, I fell to the ground and snapped out of my trance.

"Are you alright?" Hermione asked as she saw me jerk in place in my usual posture on the couch.

After taking a deep sigh, I looked at her and explained, "I suck at being a bird, apparently." Scratching the back of my head, I went further to say, "Uh, wings are kinda hard to use. Fell from a pole and crashed."

"So you progressed? That's great, no?" Hermione asked the important question, and I could only nod.

Taking a moment to enjoy the achievement, I muttered, "Guess I did..."

-----

A month later, a few things have changed as I watched the first match of the Quidditch season. Slytherin versus Gryffindor. I didn't put enough Slytherin players in the hospital wing this past week, so the schedule wasn't changed like last year.

The game was boring to someone who disliked Quidditch as much as I did. Slytherin went for sneaky and unsportsman-like plays. Gryffindor had the individually better players and a clown for a seeker.

As for what happened in recent weeks, that was quite a long list.

My mother posthumously got herself a First Order of Merlin for being recognized as a war hero. Fudge made a big deal out of it to appear on the side of justice.

Patrick and Amanda had successfully settled the new Goldsborough residents, and their well-being was taken care of.

And, we, and by that I mean Hermione and Penelope, finished the potion for the animagus transformation last week. It turned out just like the recipe had mandated and was stored in total darkness. Now, all we needed was a lightning storm.

I finished connecting to my raven form two trances after the one where I broke the darkness. Lara, with her incredible affinity for the magic, was prepared long ago, and even Penelope was done and could fly in her falcon form while in her trance.

The only thing missing was learning the fate of Auror Gruff. My inquiry as a Lord didn't yield any results yet... all I found out was that Gruff hadn't been working since my speech at the Wizengamot. That was positive but also annoying.

Grindelwald taught me a few more spells and the subtleties of leading a movement from his perspective. He also gave me inspiration on how to deal with Slughorn pestering me.

The man changed his approach with me quite a bit when I was pronounced a lord. He was still orange in my Eagle Vision, but he stopped trying to subtly inquire about my goals. Either Dumbledore had enough information after that Wizengamot hearing and told him to stop, or Slughorn himself realized it was in bad taste.

With Gryffindor winning 310-110 a good hour into the game that was unbearable to watch, I walked towards the greenhouses with Isobel and Luna.

"I'm not telling you to ignore my father, but you will have to send him an answer eventually," Isobel argued as she continued to stare at anyone but me.

"You are a very lovely girl, Isobel. But I will not entertain an arranged marriage with anyone," I countered and heard her sigh in exasperation.

"I know that. But you will still have to answer the letter!"

I shuddered. By becoming a lord, I was bound by noble obligations to deal with a whole bunch of annoying crap. And, sadly, I met with Lord MacDougal during the summer break. I distinctly remember him not being too fond of me... but he still chose to ask about my opinion about his firstborn, Isobel.

"Fine. I'll put Limm on the task if you refuse to pen it for me. You can't make me write the answer myself," I countered with a small pout. "The first thing I'll do if I ever become minister or Chief Warlock is do away with all this posturing. It's so annoying!"

"And help get rid of nargles," Luna chimed in.

"And get rid of nargles," I confirmed as I pointed to Luna. "Excited for the herbology club?"

The girl hummed with a smile. I urged her to attend both the survival club and asked Sprout to consider allowing Luna the same freedom to act about in the greenhouses that Neville and I, as well as a few upper years, enjoyed. And so far, she didn't disappoint.

Only on our second outing with the survival club, she found some super rare root plant as she was chasing a 'purple-horned hare', something not even Hagrid had heard of before. In any case, she listened to my suggestion and unearthed that root to bring it to Sprout, who had been beside herself with joy.

Fridolin's Glassroot, a rare kind of plant that never broke through the soil and was therefore pretty much impossible to find. It grew up to a hundred meters in length as it grew in a net from a single long tube above tree roots... and it made tea taste better.

From the top of her head, Sprout didn't know if it was used in any other potions or whatever... but the infantile root merely twice as long as Luna was still like a godsend to the witch. Luna, in a rare moment of cunning, gifted it to our herbology professor on the premise that she could enjoy the tea together with the older witch.

It seemed she wanted to soak up as much knowledge from the herbology professor as I have and continue to do. It was in line with the outdoorsy, curious girl I became familiar with since the sorting.

-----

A few days later, on Tuesday, I was hawkishly looking around the Great Hall for the first two meals that day. Hoping to catch a glimpse of someone possessed, I sadly came up empty.

It was Halloween. In canon year two, the chamber of secrets was opened, and Filch's cat was petrified next to a puddle. Two weeks from now, a dueling class was announced. Snape and Lupin would hold it. Though Gilderoy Lockhart was missing, the event where Harry exposed himself as a Parselmouth was still about to happen. Earlier than in the original story, and under different circumstances, but it would.

I dodged my friends today so that I could come and go without being seen. Since that event was about to happen, I was getting paranoid about other things happening as well.

My Eagle Vision as I stalked around the secret passages around the second floor lavatory that was haunted by Moaning Myrtle, the entrance to the chamber of secrets, was constantly active. I was disillusioned, wore my hidden blade for good measure, and had my wand out without fail.

Before I could hear them, I suddenly saw four red outlines walking around the corner through the wall.

"Nobody has seen him today? That's ridiculous, Draco! I specifically came here today to pass by him 'coincidentally'! I told you to keep an eye on him. I schemed to teach that mindless P.S.Y. class instead of that dreadful Hopkirk witch," a voice I recognized all too well scolded with gritted teeth.

Lucius Malfoy was in the castle.

The someone he was looking for was bound to be me. It had to be.

Quickly entering another secret passage, I stopped my search for the possessed holder of the diary horcrux and followed those three unseen. Thinking quickly on my feet, I equipped a ring that I had been given by the brotherhood, stopped my disillusionment charm, and jumped out of a corner.

"If we can't find him, you will have to give it to him," Malfoy instructed. His mood had worsened since I began stalking him.

Just as they walked around a corner, with purposefully hurried steps, I walked right into Lucius Malfoy, and we both crashed to the floor.

"You bloody cur!" Malfoy cursed as Goyle and Crabbe were helping the man up like dutiful little servants.

"It's you! Where have you been all day!?" Draco screeched angrily as he pointed at my face.

"And you would need to be apprised of my whereabouts why? I already told you we were not in a romantic relationship last year. There is no need to discuss my plans for the day with the likes of you," I countered while inwardly celebrating. I managed to prick Lucius Malfoy with the poisoned ring!

Before either of them could say anything, I looked at Lucius with a disdainful sneer the likes of which he was about to perform on me and mocked after standing up, "See? I need a pensieve so that my children would never be this loathsome."

Lucius looked at me with a furious expression before he schooled it and looked at me like I was already dead in his eyes. Instead of getting out his wand, he walked over to me with his pretentious cane that hid his wand and pretended to pat away the dust from my robes with one hand. As he did, I saw the small red mark on his wrist from the needle and hid my smirk.

But I was astonished even more. Lucius Malfoy knew 'sleight of hand' magic. Distracting me by using his hand to forcefully pat away dust from my shoulder was meant to disguise that he dropped something in the pockets of my school robe.

"A man of your station needs to mind his surroundings more. Hurrying without care for your betters can be seen as the mark of a fool," Lucius instructed in a lecturing yet mocking tone of voice. He turned around and ordered his son and the two mute followers, "Come now. We wasted enough time already."

Watching those four walk away, Lucius becoming more cheerful with every step, I cautiously floated out whatever the man had put into my pocket while dodging back into the secret passage I had come out of before.

The moment I did, I was dumbfounded.

"No way," I uttered under my breath, looking at the object. "There is absolutely no way."

Lucius Malfoy had given me the diary horcrux on his own volition.

[POV Lucius Malfoy with his son and followers]

"Remember, steer clear from him. The object should warp his psyche soon, and loath though I have to admit it, the bastard is stronger than you in martial magics," I instructed for the third time as I walked out of the castle with my son in tow. Giving that cursed object to the bastard was something I carefully chose to do after finding no better option. It would be his undoing, and nobody would be able to link it back to me. After all, it was cursed by the dark lord, not by me.

"Yes, father," Draco answered with a respectful bow of his head. Just like I taught him.

The bloody mutt could say whatever he wanted, Draco was a powerful wizard in the making. He would inherit my life's work in due time and expand on it with ferocity.

For that to happen, I still needed to deal with that insufferable buffoon Sirius and any potential heir he had written in his will, but that would happen eventually. The dark lord and my father had made fine work of the Black family. I wouldn't let their efforts fail at the last step.

The Black fortune will be mine.

"Do you have any instructions for me, father?"

Looking at my son for a short moment, I explained, "The dueling event in two weeks. Listen to your godfather and be outstanding. Macnair and that little imp are not allowed to attend, I made sure of it with my governor position. The stage is yours to use others as a stepping stone, to let them see the might of our house. You spent a whole summer with Severus to get better. I hope you used that time well."

Watching a small shiver run through my son, I nodded with pride. Severus had really put Draco through the wringer to get him better at magical fights after the news of Macnair's win in Italy.

Good. He needed the strength to show others that they were among their betters.

After walking outside of castle wards, I apparated back home. Umbridge wanted to spearhead another law to marginalize mudbloods... she still didn't grasp that the political climate of today was not in her favor.

But with a well-placed scheme and the appropriate wording, we might be able to pass something that would see her will be done. With her owing me a favor, I'd soon get in the good graces of that helpless clown Cornelius again... how I wished I could just curse him and his entire family for turning his back on me. Me!

Walking up to my study, I opened the collar of the robes to allow the scars on the back of my neck to be untouched by fabric. Even years later, no healer was able to remove that detestable scar the dark lord had inflicted on me for Selena Macnair's defection.

Everyone that he sent out to find the witch came back emptyhanded. Everyone was dealt a lesson in pain.

As I applied the ointment on my neck like usual to take away the sting, my hand began to tremble. It turned a little numb.

Looking at it with a small frown, I found nothing but a small scratch on my wrist just below my palm. Likely from my fall earlier when that bastard bumped into me.

He'd pay for that soon enough.