Chương 159: CHAPTER {173-175}
****MAKING-MOVES (IV)****
~~Tonks' Residence~~
After listening to everything her daughter had to say, Andromeda didn't know what to say. Yes, it was a boy problem, but it was nothing like she was expecting the problem to be. How was she even supposed to deal with something like this? Andromeda knew her own fair share of Curses, but she had never killed anyone.
"What do you think I should do, mom?" Tonks asked, looking frustrated. Alastor had made her swear Secrecy Oaths that would prevent her from revealing anything they discussed in meetings to anyone outside the group, but the Secrecy Oaths didn't extend to anything she discovered herself.
"What can you tell me about the people he killed?" Andromeda asked. She didn't miss the fact that Tonks never told her about the people Harry had supposedly killed.
"I can't talk about them, mom, but just know that they weren't good people" Tonks answered with a scowl and after hearing those words, Andromeda seemed to lean back on the couch with a thoughtful look on her face.
"Well, there is your answer…" Andromeda answered with a soft smile on her face, making Tonks frown unhappily.
"But that's wrong!!" Tonks protested hotly. "That is why we have a system, don't we? It is not okay to kill people just because they did something wrong" Tonks shook her head with a frown.
"Yes, you are right. What he did was wrong, but does that make him a monster?" Andromeda asked softly and after thinking for a bit, Tonks shook her head hesitantly. "In an ideal world, justice should have been absolute, but we don't live in an ideal world. You have seen this yourself, how many criminals walk free just because the prosecution didn't have enough proof" Andromeda explained softly.
"Just take Avery, for example. He should have been sentenced to life in Azkaban, but he practically walked free due to some technicality… Now, don't blame his Pureblood status. It might have played a part, but that is not everything as the Weasleys are Pureblood too" With that, Andromeda finished her explanation, and after a few seconds of pondering, Tonks finally nodded her head in understanding.
"Thanks for the talk, mom" Tonks said before she hugged Andromeda and stood up. Thanks to the conversation with her mom, Tonks was able to understand quite a bit, but she still decided to have a chat with Harry. Tonks would admit, compared to her mother, she was pretty naive, as her mother was able to explain that the world wasn't black and white.
There were shades of gray in between and having a chat with Harry might help her understand better…
"Anytime, Nymphadora. By the way, why don't you stay for dinner?" Andromeda offered after separating from her daughter.
"Sure!" Tonks accepted the offer with a beaming smile on her face. It has been quite a few days since she ate anything homemade. She was a disaster in the kitchen, so she only ate takeout food…
~~Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire~~
"How may I help you, Narcissa?" Harry asked as he put down the book he was reading on the table. Narcissa awkwardly lowered her hand with a minor flush on her face. She was about to knock on the doorframe to get his attention, but apparently, he already noticed her arrival.
"I was wondering if I can host the Yule ball we host every year" Narcissa revealed somewhat nervously as she walked inside the room. Harry wordlessly offered her a seat.
"How big and extravagant this ball is going to be?" Harry asked as he leaned back in his chair and Narcissa seemed to think for a bit before answering.
"There will be at least a hundred guests" Narcissa answered. To be honest, a part of Harry wanted to deny Narcissa as he wanted nothing to do with a ball, but at the same time, a ball might be a great opportunity for him to scout his enemies… Even though he knew their faces and their names, thanks to Lucius, he was yet to meet any of them face to face. Well, except for Avery even though he was wearing a mask.
"Have you talked with Lucius about this?" Harry asked and Narcissa shook her head in denial.
"He no longer talks to me and in this house, his opinion no longer matters" Narcissa finished with a grin. Narcissa seemed to be quite pleased with the fate of her husband…
"Fine… Have your ball and don't forget to invite the Greengrasses, I have unfinished business with them" Harry declared and a small part of Narcissa felt sorry for the Greengrasses, but that was only a small part. It was no concern of her, after all, they shouldn't have gotten involved with Harry in the first place. Well, they will learn their error pretty soon.
"Then I would need to invite a few more families of the Grey Faction, otherwise their inclusion might look out of place" Narcissa pointed out. Not that she cared about inviting a few more families… Even though she was spending the Malfoy fortune, she never considered it her money as Lucius never gave her access to his Family vaults. This was the only way she could get back at him.
"Do whatever you must" Harry declared without missing a beat, but Narcissa seemed to have something else to talk about. After hesitating for the next few seconds, she finally spoke up.
"Harry, I believe Severus suspects something. He is trying really hard to meet us. He had been sending me messages through Draco" Narcissa revealed and Harry rapped his fingers on the table while pondering how to deal with the issue.
"Fine, invite him for dinner or something in the next couple of days and I will deal with him" Harry decided to nip the problem in the bud.
According to his mom, Severus was most definitely a Death Eater, but according to Dumbledore, the man was a spy… Now, it wasn't like he didn't believe his mother, but there was a small chance that Severus might have been a spy for real, or something might have happened which made him change sides… Not that Harry was planning to spare the man in any case.
Though he wanted to know where his allegiance truly lay before killing the man. Severus Snape carried the Dark Mark and he would die… There would be no exceptions to that. He would destroy everything Voldemort ever stood for…
Narcissa opened her mouth to say something, but she stopped. For the next few seconds, she seemed to hesitate, but she finally gathered her courage and started to speak. "Can you… Can you spare him? He is my friend" Narcissa asked hesitantly and there was clear fear in his eyes. Now, Harry could have lied, but Harry decided not to.
"I am sorry, Narcissa, I can not do that… He is a Death Eater and his fate was sealed the moment he chose to take the Dark Mark" Harry answered and Narcissa grimaced at his words.
"But he was a spy!" Narcissa tried to defend her friend, but Harry simply waved his hand dismissively.
"So?" Harry asked indifferently. "He works for the other Warlord… Big deal! If killing him would mean hurting Dumbledore, then I would kill him just for that" Harry stated firmly and Narcissa decided to drop the issue. Yes, Severus was a friend, but there was no way she was going to lose her own life for his poor choices. This was how it worked in the Slytherin House.
Meanwhile, Harry was wondering how Severus managed to slip into Narcissa's heart in the first place. The woman dared to risk her own life in an attempt to protect him, but Harry knew Narcissa well enough to know that Narcissa considered anyone who wasn't a Pureblood to be beneath her station. Even now, Narcissa only feared him and respected him for the raw power he possessed, nothing more, and as long as she didn't insult his mother openly, she could think whatever she could.
Thankfully for Narcissa, she no longer insulted his mother even inside her Mind. As long as Narcissa was concerned, Lily Potter was the most honorable and respectable Muggleborn in her Mind and Harry didn't mind someone calling her a Muggleborn, after all, it was the truth. Unable to hold back his curiosity, Harry decided to take a look inside her Mind and her thoughts almost made him smile…
Narcissa was most definitely a better snake than her husband…
At first, Narcissa only reached out to Severus because he was extremely good at Potions and Dark Arts. She was planning to use him for his talents and then she managed to discover that Severus was the son of Eileen Prince. This led Narcissa to deepen her friendship with Severus in case he managed to become the Lord of the said Family as Eileen was the only daughter of the Family and Lord Prince never disowned her even after she ran away with a Muggle.
While she was disappointed that he didn't manage to become the Lord of the Prince Family after the death of the rest of the members, he was able to become the youngest Potion Master in existence, which was quite a huge achievement in itself. Now, Narcissa knew that her dear husband was going to kick the bucket and after that, she was going to have access to the remaining Malfoy fortune. With that fortune, she wanted to open a Potion factory with Severus working for her.
That was the only reason why Narcissa wanted him to spare Severus… There was nothing more to that…
"Then can I withdraw one hundred thousand gold from the Malfoy vault?" Narcissa asked. This was her next plan in case she failed to get him to spare Severus.
"What are you planning to do with that kind of gold?" Harry asked curiously. He could have read her Mind, but decided not to.
"I want to start a business venture" Narcissa answered primly.
"Alright, you will have the gold" Harry decided to give her the gold since it was her gold, to begin with. As long as she wasn't hiring mercs with that gold to create problems for him, he didn't care what she did with the gold.
"Thank you, Harry" With that, Narcissa finally excused herself from the room…
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****MAKING-MOVES (V)****
~~Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire~~
At this moment, Lucius Malfoy was not a happy camper. The Manor might belong to him, but he was no longer the man of the house. It was downright humiliating to him… He was forced to live as a servant in his own house. Even the Dark Lord had never humiliated him as such. Though unfortunately for him, his problems didn't end with humiliation.
He would have happily degraded himself if it meant he could live, but the boy had promised him death and to be honest, he completely believed the boy. The boy was much similar to the Dark Lord, but at the same time, he was much different from the Dark Lord. The boy was ruthless, cruel, cunning, extremely powerful and inhumanly powerful.
Lucius was confident that he could prevent the Dark Lord from killing him by proving himself useful, but the boy would most definitely kill him, no matter what he did…
That was the exact reason why he found himself in a conundrum… He was aware that the Dark Lord was back, and he was certain that he would be punished severely if he went to the Dark Lord since he no longer carried the Dark Mark, but there was a chance that he might be able to prove himself useful to the man by providing him information, but it was easier said than done.
The boy was an extremely good Legilimens, so if he suspected anything then everything would be over for him and his Family legacy… Even if he didn't get caught then there was always a chance that the Dark Lord might lose… The boy was stronger than anyone should be allowed to and if the Dark Lord had his Death Eaters, then the boy had Gellert Grindelwald and his followers working for him.
He believed the Dark Lord to be stronger than Gellert Grindelwald, but the two of them were in the same weight class, which meant Grindelwald couldn't be underestimated…
"Lucius" Lucius was broken out of his musings by his subject of concern.
"Yes?" Lucius asked as he went ahead and kneeled in front of the boy. Kneeling in front of the half-breed made his pride hurt more than he would like to admit.
"Narcissa wants a hundred thousand Galleons" With that said, Harry turned around and left. Meanwhile, Lucius who was kneeling on the floor with his head lowered, bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. He was practically shaking in rage, but there wasn't anything he could do. He really wanted to walk up to Narcissa and backhand her, for forgetting her place, but once again, his hands were tied.
Something inside Lucius snapped and he decided to contact the Dark Lord. He was going to be killed either way, but he vowed to make Harry's life as difficult as he could…
Meanwhile, Harry, who was on his way to meet Jacklyn, grinned really. He wanted to see how far he could push Lucius before the man finally snapped, and he finally did. That was exactly what Harry wanted… Harry wanted Voldemort to learn a few things about him so that Voldemort could be on the same level as the other two Factions. Yes, Voldemort was going to have a bit more information than the other two Factions, but it wouldn't matter in the long run…
<Line Break>
~~Kalnansu Bog Trail, Latvia~~
Voldemort walked through a forest, he couldn't be bothered to remember the name of, with a small sneer on his face. He couldn't believe he was doing this… This task was below his station, and he would have preferred if he could have sent Mulciber for the job, but there was a chance that Mulciber might be killed and consumed. While Mulciber wasn't a strong combatant, his expertise when it came to Magical Creatures was simply unmatched.
"I have been hearing some rumors and it seems that the rumors had some truth in them" A large man walked out from the treeline. The man grinned widely revealing his sharp inhuman teeth. The man was only wearing pants and his whole body was riddled with various scars. To call this man a human at this stage would be a grave injustice to the rest of the humans as the man looked more like a savage beast rather than a human.
Not that Voldemort had any legs to stand upon in the first place… He looked more like a serpent rather than a human at this stage…
"Your pack has been growing, Fenrir" Voldemort commented as a lot more people walked out from the treelines. Anyone in his place would have felt afraid, but he was Lord Voldemort. If they dared to bare their teeth at him then he would put them down just like the beasts they were.
"So, you want us to join you just like we did in the last War?" Fenrir Greyback, the large man, asked with a grin as he already knew the answer. Fenrir was much different from the other Werewolves as unlike the others, he didn't need a full moon to transform. He had accepted the wolf part of him to such an extent that his wolf features have started to bleed into his human form.
Fenrir Greyback was a wanted criminal in all the Magical Communities, but anyone rarely dared to come after him. If any glory seeker ever dared to come after him then his death would simply dissuade the others from such a foolish course of action… Fenrir on his own would be extremely useful for his plans. He would be a strong deterrent to anyone who dared to oppose him.
"Yes, that is my intention" Voldemort nodded his head in agreement.
"Good, it will take us almost eight months to reach Britain" Fenrir agreed to join him without asking for anything as he knew that he would be getting what he wanted without even asking. Voldemort wanted him to cause chaos and unrest and Fenrir was more than welcome to deliver just that, and if was able to turn a few more into kind in the process, then who was he to complain?
"Alright" Voldemort accepted the timeline as he wasn't planning to start moving anytime soon. After that, Voldemort didn't have anything to discuss, so he turned on his heel and disappeared with a soft crack, leaving the Werewolves.
A large woman, dressed in animal fur and leather, walked out of the tree line and walked up to Fenrir. "Are you sure we can trust him? I believe he intends to use us" The woman asked him, without a trace of fear on her face, which would be impossible for anyone else in the pack.
Fenrir looked down at the Beta of his pack. "I already know that, Sveta. He wouldn't hesitate to get rid of us if we lose our usefulness as in his eyes, we are nothing more than savage beasts" Fenrir answered with a sigh.
"Then why?" Sveta asked, looking confused. If Fenrir already knew that then why would he accept the offer in the first place?
"You know why? If I had denied then he would have killed me along with the rest of you until the rest agreed to join him and to be honest, I missed hunting and feeding" Fenrir finished with a savage grin on his face and Sveta also grinned savagely, revealing similar type of teeth inside her mouth. Just like Fenrir, most of his pack were cannibals. It took him a lot of time to convert them, but he somehow managed, in the last decade.
"We hunt!!" Fenrir exclaimed loudly and the pack members present at the scene exclaimed loudly. "We feed!!" Fenrir exclaimed again, and once again everyone cheered loudly at his words… Yes, Voldemort might kill him and his pack in the future, but he wouldn't go out without a fight. That was the reason why he asked Sveta to remain hidden.
He already had a plan in his Mind… While he would take half of his pack with him to Britain, Sveta would take the remaining half with her and increase their numbers in secret within Britain. Nobody would notice if a dozen of people disappeared completely after a Werewolf attack and Voldemort wouldn't know what was happening until it was too late for him to stop Sveta and the pack.
Maybe, it was finally time he accepted the offer of that little mouse from Antigen…
<Line Break>
~~Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire~~
Nymphadora Tonks stared at the imposing mansion with some trepidation in her mind before gulping loudly. Now that she was finally here, she was feeling kind of nervous. She had a list of questions she wanted to ask Harry in her Mind, but right now, those questions were little of her concern. She had seen Aunt Narcissa before, but this was the first time she was going to meet the woman without her mother in the company.
If her mother was to be believed, then Aunt Narcissa probably hated her for being a half-blood, and from the looks Aunt Narcissa gave her mother whenever they came across, Tonks seemed to believe her mother. Though, regardless of what she believed, she needed to talk with Harry or she wouldn't be able to rest… After taking a deep breath to gather her courage, Tonks walked up to the door and knocked on it.
Only a few seconds later, the door was opened by a well-dressed house elf, which was kind of surprising to Tonks as she expected the house elf to be dressed in a pillowcase or something like that.
"Hi, I am Tonks, just Tonks…" Tonks finished and started to fumble with her words. She smacked her head to get her thoughts straight and she felt even sillier when the house elf gave her a weird look. "I was wondering…" That was all Tonks managed to say before a familiar voice called her out.
"Tonksie?" Tonks immediately looked past the house elf only to find Sirius staring at her with a gobsmacked look on his face, but he wasn't alone. There was a man beside him and he was probably the palest man she had ever seen. Thanks to her job, she easily recognized the man as she had seen his pictures multiple times and Tonks felt her knees go weak as her whole body started to shake in fear…
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****MAKING-MOVES (VI)****
~~Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire~~ (A Few Minutes Ago)
Yesterday, after spending almost a whole day with his Godson, who wasn't hiding behind an act, Sirius realized that he didn't know his Godson, at least not for real. Harry was still polite and reserved, but there was a certain level of arrogance and assurance in all of his actions. The way he talked, the way he moved, the way he acted… Sirius couldn't find the exact word to describe Harry, but the word 'Inevitable' was somewhat fitting.
That was why Sirius decided to learn all he could about his Godson from the people around him. There were only four people Harry spent his time with, which explained quite a few things about Harry. Having a chat with Jacklyn would have helped him the most as she was quite close to Harry, but unfortunately, Jacklyn was unavailable as she went somewhere with Harry. Then there was Narcissa, but there was no way Sirius was going to give the woman satisfaction by approaching her.
Leaving aside Jacklyn and Narcissa, there were only two more people Harry spent his time with. One of them used to be a notorious Dark Lord while the other one was a creepy and insane Wandmaker. Violetta unnerved him more than Gellert did, which explained several things about the eccentric woman. So, Sirius decided to have a chat with Gellert before meeting Violetta. With the decision made in his mind, Sirius started to look for the man.
It didn't take him long to find the pale man… "Um, can you spare some time?" Sirius asked nervously. The man was reading some sort of black book, and for whatever reason, he wanted to stay far away from the book. Gellert looked up from the book and stared at the younger man.
"Yes, is there something I can help you with?" Gellert asked politely and Sirius internally shivered in fear. He had heard that Gellert Grindelwald was extremely charismatic and now, he could see that with his own eyes. Though much to his horror, Harry was just as polite and charismatic as Gellert.
"Uhh… I was wondering if you could tell me about Harry since you spend a lot of time with him?" Sirius asked with an unsure look on his face while he internally cursed himself. He never imagined that he would ever need to ask a notorious Dark Lord about his own Godson in a million years, but here he was.
"Sure, I do have time to spare" Gellert agreed happily as he placed the book on the table and stood up. After that, Gellert started to tell him about the time when he first met Harry and how Harry convinced him to join Lost Garden, much to Sirius' horror. The two of them didn't even notice that the two of them ended up near the entrance during their talk.
"Tonksie?" Sirius blurted out unconsciously with a gobsmacked look on his face. He was so surprised by her sudden arrival at the Malfoy Manor that he completely forgot about his company. When Tonks didn't greet him back, that was when he noticed that she wasn't even looking at him. He finally remembered that he wasn't alone… He was being accompanied by Gellert Fucking Grindelwald!!
Meanwhile, Tonks barely managed to stay on her feet and then she somehow managed to pull out her Wand with trembling hands… With how afraid she was, it was a surprise that she didn't end up peeing in her pants. That would have been quite embarrassing for her. Though unfortunately for her, Grindelwald didn't seem to be bothered by her actions in the slightest.
"Don't step any closer! Stay right where you are!" Tonks exclaimed while trembling. This was the first time she was facing someone like Gellert Grindelwald, so her fear was pretty understandable.
"Hhm… Why don't you make me?" Gellert asked in an amused tone and stepped forward without bothering to pull out his Wand and instead of taking action, Tonks simply stepped back on pure instinct.
"Wait! Wait! Wait!!" Before the situation could deteriorate any more, Sirius decided to jump between the two. Sirius knew what Tonks was capable of, but there was no way she would be able to face someone like Gellert and the former Dark Lord was not known for his mercy. "Tonks, this is not what it looks like. Please, listen to me. Don't do anything stupid!" Sirius hurriedly explained as Tonks was still holding over her Wand, with trembling hands.
Tonks stared at Sirius before staring back at Gellert, but to be honest, she didn't know what to do… She was running purely on adrenaline and her body was starting to feel somewhat heavy. Sirius slowly approached Tonks with his hands raised in the air, trying his best to look not threatening. Tonks stared at him with dilated eyes, but she didn't seem to act. Her gaze shifted when Sirius grabbed her shoulders and shook her.
"Tonks, calm down. You will hurt somebody!" Sirius exclaimed and her eyes finally seemed to regain focus. Tonks glanced back at Gellert, who seemed to be standing right there with a relaxed look on his face before her gaze finally focused on Sirius.
She gave him a sharp look. "Explain everything now!" Tonks furiously hissed at Sirius, but she continued to point her Wand at Gellert, just in case.
"Why don't we go inside instead of making a scene out here?" A feminine voice suggested. Both Sirius and Tonks turned around only to find Narcissa approaching them. The two of them never noticed her arrival. "I have ordered Alef to prepare some refreshments" Narcissa added with a smile, making Sirius and Tonks look at each other uncomfortably.
After some time, the group of four found themselves seated in the drawing room with some tea and snacks spread in front of them. Gellert and Narcissa picked up their tea, completely ignoring the awkward atmosphere in the room. "So Nymphadora, how is your mother?" Narcissa asked smoothly after taking a small sip from her tea cup.
Unable to hold back her frustration, Tonks finally snapped. "He is sitting right there in front of you! Aren't you afraid?!" Tonks asked hysterically and Gellert gave her an offended look at her rude words.
"Yes, but unlike some people, he is a complete gentleman and I know he won't do anything to me" Narcissa answered with a smile, and Sirius scowled at her words as he knew that she was taking a jab at him with her words. Though Tonks couldn't help but give her Aunt a dumbfounded look at that as her hair started to cycle through various colors.
"You are a Metamorphmagus" Gellert stated simply and Tonks stiffened at his words. This wasn't the first time he saw her changing color. When she went into shock after seeing him, her hair changed into pale mousy brown and stayed like that until she finally regained her bearings. "Fascinating!" Gellert exclaimed excitedly as he continued to stare at her, making Tonks really uncomfortable.
"Gellert, you are making her uncomfortable" Narcissa pointed out primly and Gellert coughed in his hand before giving Tonks an apologetic look.
"Forgive me, it was not my intention to make you uncomfortable" Gellert immediately apologized, creeping out Tonks even more as in her eyes he was nothing but a murderous monster, but he was more than that.
"So, what do you want with Harry? Why are you forcing him to work with you?" Tonks asked suspiciously as she couldn't think of anything else. After hearing her question, both Gellert and Narcissa looked at her before they burst out laughing. Even Sirius gave her a weird look before he broke out in snickers. Tonks was completely dumbfounded by all three of their reactions. Sirius also stopped snickering and started to laugh outright just like Narcissa and Gellert.
"Why the fuck are you three laughing?!" Tonks exclaimed loudly, looking really creeped out by their actions while internally she started to wonder if she cracked a joke by accident or not…
~~Quidditch Pitch, Ilvermorny~~
"So, what's up with the sudden visit?" Brittany asked as she finally finished her ice cream. Both Harry and Jacklyn were here to visit and there was no way Carlson wouldn't allow them to enter the school, and spend some time with their friend. Right now, the three of them were sitting at Quidditch stands while a couple of Quidditch players continued to practice.
"Can't we visit our best friend?" Harry asked with a hurt look on his face, and Jacklyn snicked at his antics while Brittany simply gave him a dirty look. "Fine! Spoil my fun" Harry huffed before looking at the Quidditch field with a grave look on his face. "Voldemort is back" Harry revealed and Brittany seemed to lose all color from her face.
She already knew quite a few things about him, but not everything. So, Harry quickly started to tell her about Voldemort. At first, he didn't want to tell her anything about him as he didn't want to put her at risk, but later, he realized that she was already in danger just because she was his best friend and it would be much better to prepare her for every possible outcome.
"He is going to come after you, isn't he?" Brittany asked while she bit her lip in worry.
"Yes, I am a black mark on his reputation. Not only did he fail to kill me, but he also lost his body, which led to his supposed defeat back in the 1980s" Harry explained. He didn't tell her anything about the Prophecy as it was not necessary right now. "But I am not worried for myself. I can handle myself. I am worried for you and your family" Harry added and Brittany seemed to frown for a moment before a look of realization finally dawned on her face.
"He might come after me and my family so that he could hurt you" Brittany muttered with a look of horror on her face.
"Yes, but I won't let that happen. That is exactly why I am here…" Harry smiled as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer comfortingly…
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