A weight startled to settle in my stomach as we arrived on the stairs of Grimmauld Place. Tonks pulled a piece of parchment from her pocket and began to hand it to Daphne.

"It's okay Tonks, she's been here before. Now what's going on?" I asked while somehow managing to keep the trepidation out of my voice.

It was Remus who answered me though. "Not out here, once we're inside I'll explain everything." He was nervously looking around as if he expected someone to jump out any moment.

I let Daphne go ahead of me through the door and then Tonks followed me in with Remus pulling up the rear. Tonks for possibly the first time ever managed to avoid tripping on the umbrella stand.

There were more people than I could ever remember seeing at Grimmauld before inside. They were moving hurriedly into the kitchen and suddenly I was even more worried.

"Remus what is going on? Is everything okay?"

This past year hadn't been good to the man I noticed. His hair was streaked with more gray than I remember from the last time I saw him, heavy bags under his eyes, and lines that I suspect were caused from stress.

"I'm afraid there's been an incident Harry. Well it was more like an attack really."

Daphne's hand reached out and grabbed my arm hard. One look at her face and I could see the worry all over it. "Who was attacked Remus? Where is Alexa?"

Seeing his mistake Remus quickly backpedaled. "Alexa is fine, she's at your manor with Miss Greengrass's family still. They're all perfectly safe."

Together Daphne and I let out a sigh of relief. "Then who Remus?" But even as I said it, things started to click. Why it had been Remus to pick me up from the station and not… "Where is Sirius?"

"He's not in a good way right now Harry. The order was protecting something at the ministry, but Voldemort went after it. He went to help fight off the death eaters but ran into his cousin, Bellatrix. They fought but she managed to hit him with a rather nasty spell. Madam Pomfrey managed to get him stable, but we don't know if there will be any lasting side effects."

All at once the dread that had been building up came crashing down on me and I felt my legs start to go numb. Daphne managed to loop an arm around me to keep me from crashing completely. "Where? I want to see him."

"He's upstairs, his room Harry, but he's not respon…" I didn't wait to hear the rest and was already working my way up the stairs.

In no time I was turning the handle and pushing the door to his room open. The room was weakly lit inside, but I could make out the shape of my godfather on his bed. I cautiously approached to one side in case he was awake now, and I didn't want to risk startling him.

He wasn't though. I stood beside him and just stared down at the man who had braved twelve years in hell, and then somehow mustered the strength to break out when he knew I was in trouble. How could I have let this happen? I'd done so much preparing this year so I could protect those I truly cared about, but here was the one man to truly make me feel wanted, like family and I couldn't help him.

Daphne slid her hand into mine, intertwining our fingers. "I know you're upset Harry, and merlin knows you'll find a way to blame yourself for this, but just know it wasn't your fault."

I didn't say anything. I knew she was right; it wasn't really my fault, but this just meant that what I had planned for this summer was necessary. If the death eaters already felt brave enough to openly attack the ministry then I had no doubt without counter action the recruiting would escalate.

"I need to know what it is that Voldemort wanted from the ministry."

I think one of the things I was starting to love about Daphne the most was that she rarely told me I shouldn't do something or know something. It was almost an unspoken agreement that we would support each other in our decisions, but also be there to comfort one another if they didn't work out.

With one last look at my godfather I gave a gentle tug on Daphne's hand to steer her back towards the door. "You can wait in my room if you want. I'm going to find out why this happened."

"We're in this together now Harry. You don't have to keep me from these things."

I smiled. "I know Daph, and trust me I will tell you, but I thought maybe you'd like to send an owl to Neville, Tracey, and Blaise. We got scooped up and didn't exactly explain what happened. Let them know there isn't anything to worry about."

She looked undecided for a second, but eventually nodded and kissed me once lightly before disappearing into my room. I went back downstairs and to the kitchen where I had seen people rushing into. The door was closed, and I couldn't hear anything from the other side but that was not going to stop me.

I pushed the door open and shut it behind me once I was on the other side. The noise caught the attention of everyone in the room and all conversations grinded to a halt. There was a mix of reactions around the room as people started to recognize who I was.

It was Dumbledore who spoke first though. He was seated farthest from me at the head of the long kitchen table. "Harry, I'm sure you have questions, but right now we are having an important meeting."

I scowled. I was in no mood right now to try and hide my emotions. "I don't care. You can have your order meeting after you tell me why my godfather is currently lying unresponsive in a bed."

"My boy I really don't think…"

"No! You don't think often enough. I've told you to quit it with the my boy stuff before. What was so bloody important that Voldemort…" half the room flinched. "Bunch of ruddy cowards, it's just a name! Anyway, what was so important Voldemort sent his death eaters to collect from the ministry?"

I could feel the palpable unease in the air. No one was sure how to handle me at the moment, and they were content to let me talk only to the headmaster. Even Snape had no words for me.

Dumbledore sighed and rubbed his temples before looking at me. "Voldemort attacked the Hall of Prophecies, it is our belief that he was looking for a specific one that may be related to him." My heart froze, but this time I was able to hide my emotions. "We've known he might go after this for some time and have had an order guard keeping watch. You may recall the Weasley siblings being called to my office a while back." He paused and I nodded to let him know I did.

"Well that was because Voldemort sent his snake, Nagini, who attacked Mr. Weasley while he was doing his guard shift. Thankfully he was able to get a message to someone and help arrived in time to save him. This time there was between six and eight highly skilled death eaters. We were fairing very well, but then unexpectedly Voldemort himself appeared."

I made no show on the outside, but on the inside I was surprised. Voldemort must really fear this prophecy if he was willing to risk exposing himself to the public.

"I dueled him until I was sure all of our members were safe or had been removed from the area. This also had the added benefit of being just long enough for the minister to arrive and see Voldemort. He can no longer deny his return which is a small victory for our side."

Victory? He's calling it a victory when Sirius is lying upstairs and no one knows what might happen to him. "I…I need to see Sirius." I excused myself from the room the best way I could come up with. If I hadn't I feared I was going to say or do something I would inevitably regret.

It was hours later, after having explained everything to Daphne, that I finally was able to start processing. I didn't have much to go on in the way of information. I knew that Voldemort wanted the prophecy, I didn't know if he actually got it though when he went to the ministry. I knew Sirius was hurt, but I also knew there was nothing I could do for him in his present state.

I was grateful Daphne had sent letters like I suggested to our friends so that they wouldn't worry. I cast a tempus and found it was two in the morning. Doing my best not to disturb Daphne I extricated myself from her. I got up and put some clothes on before summoning an extra blanket to myself. I crept out of my room and down the hall to Sirius's. I pulled the door open and slipped inside. There was a rather comfortable chair in his room, and so I curled up in it and placed the blanket over myself. My wand was carefully secured in an accessible place. Rationally I knew that this was Grimmauld and completely safe, but another part of me knew I wasn't giving anyone a chance to hurt Sirius again.

Two Days Later

I stared down at the page in front of me doing my best to avoid glancing at the image on the page next to it. I was locked away in the Black library reading about questionable spells in questionable books written by questionable people.

I'd been spending a fair amount of time in here these past couple of days. Daphne had brought Alexa back to Grimmauld the morning after we returned, so my schedule was limited but I made it work. My daily routine had pretty much become made up of waking up, working out, eating, showering, spending time with Daph and Alexa, library, and checking on Sirius.

He had woken up the day after we arrived, and thankfully it looked like he wasn't going to suffer any lasting damage from the spell. The whole situation did serve as a very real reminder to me of just what was as stake if I was to fail or slip up though. Hence why I had decided to look into more…restricted…spells. I focused once again on the page in front of me and started committing it to memory. The spell itself was called the spine reverser. When I had first seen it I felt slightly sick as the image in the book did exactly what the name said. It caused the afflicted individual's spine to slowly rotate in place. It caused excruciating agony, if the image was to be believed, and very obviously death.

I was secretly hoping I would never need anything close to this. However I rationalized that it wouldn't be below the death eaters to result to something like this so it was important I could recognize the spell, and learn any possible counters to it.

As I turned the page I heard the doors to the library opening behind me. Normally something like that would have caused me to try and shield the book I was currently looking at, but there was only one other person who could get in here.

"Harry?" Or I guess I could be wrong. I turned in my seat to see a concerned looking Daphne slowly walking over to me.

"Daphne, how'd you get in here? It's warded to prevent anyone from entering." I assumed Sirius would have had to give her permission to enter but that left the question of why.

"Sirius gave me permission to enter. We have a room similar to this at Greengrass manor where it can only be accessed by blood family members and those with permission. I was worried about you. It's been almost four hours now that you've been holed up in here."

My eyebrows rose slightly as she told me how long it had been. I hadn't meant to spend more than two in here, but I must have gotten caught up and decided to say as much. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize how long it'd been. Reckon you left Alexa with Kreacher or Sirius to come check up on me then?"

She nodded at me and perched herself on the arm of the chair I was seated in. She angled herself to get a look around me and down at the book I had carelessly left open on the table. "Interesting choice of reading material Harry."

I thought there might be more she was going to say, but when she didn't I took it as a sign for me to say something. "I might need this stuff Daphne, we both know that, but even if I don't it'll be helpful to recognize some of these spells just in case."

Daphne slid herself off the arm and into my lap while also gracefully looping her arms around my shoulders. "Harry, I understand, you don't have to rationalize to me what you are doing. I'm not one of those Weasleys or Granger." She paused and looked me in the eyes. "However I want to be included in this. I know you think because of the prophecy that you have to fight this alone, but you're not a one man army."

This was exactly the type of thing I wanted Daphne to not be involved in. "No. I can't let you do that."

Her eyes darkened slightly, the only outside indicator that she was angry. "You don't get to tell me what I can't do."

I was getting annoyed that she didn't see the reason why I didn't want her helping me with this. "Daphne it's not because I don't think you're capable. Trust me I know you are, I've seen your patronus. But what happens to Alexa if we're both out fighting this war and don't come back? What then?"

My voice had started level but had risen more than I intended by the end of my rant. For her part though Daphne stayed composed while she looked at me. "We don't have to worry about that because I know you would never let anything happen to me Harry. And you need to trust that I would never let anything happen to you. If we work together on whatever it is that you're planning…" I went to deny it and tell her I wasn't planning anything but was stopped with a glare. "No don't try and lie to me. You can fool most people and you've become quite good at the half-truths, but I spend too much time with you."

I desperately wanted to tell her she was wrong, and that I couldn't guarantee nothing would happen. However the rebellious side of me also knew she was right that I wasn't a one man army. I needed someone else to help me, but I didn't want to put Daphne at risk.

"A compromise Daphne, that's what we'll make. I'll work with you and we can train together, in here, on these spells and others. That way in the event you need to you'll be able to fight just as well as anyone. But I can't let you help me with what I have planned. It's dangerous and I refuse to let Alexa wind up without parents like I did."

I could see she was getting ready to argue with me about it. "No I'm sorry but this isn't up for debate. You either accept how it is or…I don't know but I'll figure out something suitable as punishment."

She stared at me as if trying to look right through my skull. "Fine. The condition is that you find someone who can help you with whatever it is you're planning, and you tell me about it. Do not spare me any details. If you're going to do something reckless, dangerous or overall Gryffindorish I want to know so I can tell you so."

I let a smile grace my lips. She always knew when and how to place humor. "I can do that, so I should I start now then?"

"Yes but hold on, we should let Kreacher know we're going to be a little while so he can prepare Alexa for bed."

I nodded since she was right and I had no idea how long our conversation would go. As of yet I hadn't told her the full scope of my summer plans, and I didn't know how she'd feel.

"Kreacher!" A pop sounded and the elf appeared. "Kreacher, Daphne and I are going to be up talking for a while. We have things to discuss, and we were hoping you could help us by getting Alexa to bed."

The elf bowed low. "Of course young master, Kreacher is doing anything he can to serve the young master and his miss."

"Thank you Kreacher, you've truly been a great help this past year. I know it's not really my place but is there anything I could do show my gratitude for all you've done?"

Kreacher looked repulsed that I was trying to show him gratitude. "No young master! Kreacher is just glad to finally be having someone worthy living in the home again."

I nodded still wishing there was something I could do. Honestly the elf had not only been looking after Alexa, but was a main reason for my change in style and to a lesser extent attitude. He left shortly after and once again Daphne and I were alone in the library.

"This whole big empty library and just the two of us. Want to play librarian for a bit Daph?" I winked at her cheekily.

"Tempting, but I think I'd rather you not change the topic and we discuss what you've been hiding."

She was always ruining my fun. "Fine but I also want to know what you were researching. It doesn't have to be tonight, but at some point I'd like to be filled in." She nodded so I continued. "Well I guess I'll start with some basics. You know that Voldemort is back and he's going to be building an army. I want, well need really, to find a way to stop or hinder this."

"So the only thing I could really come up with was to try and scare away those who might be on the fence about joining. There is little chance of me changing the minds of some of the mild supporters, and no chance for me to persuade the fanatics."

"The tricky part is I couldn't come up with a way that would be efficient for a while. Money will only get you so far and someone could always offer more, blackmail might work but digging up things on that many people…impossible. So I was really only left with one viable option."

I paused not knowing how she was going to react to this part. "This summer I have plans to kidnap, question, and possibly kill some low level death eaters in order to raise some fear. Let it be known that there are repercussions to joining with Voldemort."

There was no sharp intake of breath, no gasp, no horrified looks. There was really nothing that changed about Daphne. She just sat and looked at me for a long minute before speaking. "I think you're right…but I don't like the idea of it. Do you really think you could become a killer just like that?"

It was probably the question I struggled with the most myself. "Sirius asked me something really similar when I discussed this with him. The honest truth is I don't know if I'm ready to stand in front of someone and just take their life. The harsh reality I'm trying to accept though is the fact that I will have to do just that in the next few years. If my first time ever killing someone is when I inevitably fight Voldemort and I freeze it could all be over. In a way this is a means to an end." It's what I had been telling myself recently at least.

"I can understand your view Harry, it doesn't mean I have to like it. I don't know just how far you've read into some of these books." She gestured towards the open book still on the table. "But almost all of them come with a warning in the beginning. Killing another individual can do terrible things to you. Not so much physically, but mentally and emotionally you may never be the same after."

I sighed thinking back to my first time reading that warning in the book Sirius had sent me at school. "I know Daphne, and trust me I read it every time I open one of them to remind myself. If I didn't think it was absolutely necessary I would never even consider it. I didn't want to be a killer, but that right was taken from me when the prophecy was made. Then it was taken from me again when Quirrell attacked me first year."

I realized what I had let slip too late. "What about first year and Quirrell?"

Daphne was quick and caught things some people would miss but I was wishing that wasn't true right now. "First year was a mess. There was something being hidden in the third floor corridor and that's why it was off limits that year. Unfortunately my Gryffindor side got nosey and discovered that someone was trying to steal whatever that item was. Long story short it turned out to be Quirrell, who was possessed by Voldemort, trying to steal the item. I wound up confronting him alone and I had to kill him in order to survive. It was the first time I took a life or witnessed death, but I've never really processed it that way."

"That's very curious. There had been rumors of course. There are always rumors at Hogwarts, but no one really knew for sure what had happened to Quirrell. So then was there truth to the rumors from second year as well?"

I shrugged, it seemed like ages ago that all of that had happened. "I honestly don't know. I know that I was rumored to be the next dark lord and the heir of Salazar slytherin. None of that is true, well maybe the dark lord part, but not the heir."

I smiled to lighten up the mood a little bit. "Oh yes I can see it now. The headlines of the prophet will be filled with titles like 'Dark Lord Potter conquers France'." We shared a soft laugh together before Daphne got serious again. "I'm glad we're able to talk like this about these things Harry. So I know I can't stop you if you're set on going down this path, but know that I will always be here for you to talk to. The spells you'll have to use, the things you'll do can all change who you are. I promise I won't let that happen though. I will be the anchor that holds you to yourself regardless of what you have to do to end this."

The love I felt for Daphne couldn't have been any more than in this moment. "Merlin that means the world to me. You have no idea how long I've been dealing with this. The strange part is it isn't the killing that bothers me about all of it. No the men and women who joined as death eaters and committed terrible crimes deserve death. The part that sickens me is to know that one day I might come back and you'll want nothing to do with me because of what I've done. Or Alexa will grow up and only know her father as a killer."

By this point Daphne was practically next to me on the chair and I adjusted so I could hold her more comfortably. "I promise I'll never judge you for what you have to do Harry. I don't envy the position you're in, but just know that at the end of it you'll have me and Alexa waiting for you."

I kissed her neck. "Thank you. It is getting late now, and I have more to tell you but it should wait until tomorrow. We have already discussed enough for one night I think."

Daphne agreed with me and soon enough we were both tucked into bed. I'd done my customary check on Alexa and kissed her forehead before getting into bed as well. It didn't take long for my eyelids to become heavy and I submitted to the dark.

I'd had a full night's sleep thanks to no one trying to disturb us. The fact that there were no annoying classes to get up for was also a plus. The only thing that had woken me was the sound of Alexa crying three times. She was starting to sleep longer stretches at a time which I was eternally grateful for. According to the book Sirius had gifted me she was on track to be sleeping through a whole six to eight hour night by the time she was six months old.

Even now though often when she woke up crying it took only me or Daphne getting up and rocking her for a minute or two before she would fall back to sleep.

She would be turning four months old in just over a week which meant we'd soon get to start working her towards eating different foods. Daphne planned to continue feeding her until she was at least six months old, but we'd be complimenting the breast milk with some pureed foods. It was interesting to me that baby food wasn't much different in the wizarding world than it was in the muggle one.

I finished getting ready for the day, changed Alexa, and brought her with me downstairs to find Sirius. I hadn't really had an opportunity to talk to him since he'd woken up and I didn't want him to feel neglected.

It didn't take long to find him in the kitchen nursing a mug of what appeared to be coffee. "Mornin' Harry and good morning Alexa!" He reached across and tickled her stomach a little which caused her to giggle happily in response.

"Morning Sirius, I thought I might find you down here. Surprised no one else is around though. Where are the Weasleys at?"

"They actually decided to go back to the burrow for a bit. Molly said she was getting homesick, and despite most people protesting it wasn't safe she went anyway. Stubborn witch she is, just hope they don't regret it. Remus is out looking for work today, so that means it's just you, me, Alexa, and Daphne."

"That's great. I was actually hoping we could spend some time together. I know we haven't really talked since your accident, and I don't want to hurt your feelings. I know how sensitive you can be."

Sirius glared at me. "You're certainly cheeky this morning. I refuse to let you know how deep that comment stung though on account of I don't want to prove you right."

I grinned at him. "Whatever you say Sirius." I let my expression become a slight more serious, no pun intended. "I am glad you're okay. The order was bloody useless in giving me information on what happened to you and whether or not you were okay."

"Aww you don't need to worry about me pup. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. Because if I did who would be here to make sure that Alexa gets everything she wants when her mean parents say no?"

"Oi, what's that supposed to mean?"

"It means you and Daphne are going to be fun suckers. It's not your fault, just happens to all parents. They want to make sure their child is 'safe', so they over protect them. That's where dear ol' Padfoot comes in to rescue the day."

"So you're going to be the 'cool' grandpa then?" I smirked knowing I was going to get the reaction I wanted.

"Hey, hey now. Let's not go throwing that word around. Do you see any silver hair in this head? I sure don't. Now if Moony was taking up this role I could see how you might confuse him for an old man, but now I think you're just trying to hurt my feelings."

Sirius and I spent the next couple of hours talking and playing with Alexa. It was actually really interesting to see the paternal side of Sirius. He showed me things that Daphne and I could do with Alexa to make sure her muscles developed properly. One thing he showed me was using a soft blanket as a swing. Actual swings were out of the question for now, but the blanket could be used to support her back and sit on. The swinging motion, done very gently, allowed for her to learn how to use her neck muscles and it would help strengthen them.

I also showed him some of the stuff I had learned with my conjuration. He had asked me to make a ball, and I did. I was confused but also intrigued as he set it on the floor and then let placed Alexa on it with her stomach lying flat on top of the ball.

My curiosity was answered then when Alexa giggled happily and began gently rocking on the ball back and forth. Sirius sat very close and made sure to support her so that she wouldn't fall from the ball.

"Why are you doing that Sirius? I mean it seems like she's having fun, but is there another purpose?"

"Sure is Pup. So I didn't know any of this stuff but since your mum was muggleborn; she had a vastly different approach to raising you then most wizard families."

I was confused and said as much. "What do you mean? How is raising a child different other than the magic stuff."

"Honestly most pureblood families, like your dad's and mine, leave the child raising up to their elves. So you and Daphne have Kreacher helping out, but normally he'd be the one solely responsible. You'd take over around eight or nine when preparation for Hogwarts or another magical school would start."

I was honestly shocked. "Really? Doesn't that hurt the children? Like shouldn't the parents be more involved with them than that?"

"I mean it's not like the parents are completely absent during that time. They'll celebrate holidays, birthdays, go on trips, and all that. But when it comes to the actual care of the child the elves will do all that. Anyway your mum didn't want that. She said that since your dad and her had made you it was their responsibility to raise you. She did things like this with the ball and swing to help build up the muscles in your body. It's supposed to be good for development she said."

I noticed Sirius's eyes had become a little glassy as he talked about my parents. It was a hard subject for me, and I hadn't really known them. I couldn't begin to imagine what it had been like for Sirius to lose most of the people he cared most about in the world all in one day.

I got up and took a seat next to him and gave him a hug. He returned it with one arm as he was still supporting Alexa on the ball. "Thank you for telling me all this. I don't really know all the much about them, so these little stories really help paint a picture of who my parents were."

I took over for Sirius holding Alexa. She was still happily balancing on the ball and even starting to reach out as if testing her arms. "Anytime Harry. We'll have to start making times when I can just tell you about your parents. It's a shame you don't really know more about them."

Daphne appeared in the door of the living room at that moment. Her face was carefully schooled, and I had the feeling she'd been there waiting for a minute or two. I appreciated her for letting me have my time with Sirius. "Morning Daph. You hungry? I'll get Kreacher to whip up some brunch for us."

She nodded yes so I got up as she sat down next to me and looked curiously at Alexa. "Sirius mind showing Daphne the swing and stuff? I think she'll find it just as interesting as I did." I called out over my shoulder as I walked toward the kitchen.

Kreacher wasn't in there when I entered. I shrugged and decided that maybe I would just cook the brunch. It'd been something I had done more times than I could count while living at the Dursley's house. I waved my wand and summoned the pans I would need. I lit the stove and set the pan on top of it carefully so it could begin heating. I had just started looking for eggs and other things when a pop caught my attention.

"What is young master doing?! Cooking is Kreacher's job. Young master mustn't be liking the job Kreacher is doing."

Kreacher looked like he was in a near panic now as he considered the possibility that I thought he was a bad cook. I set out to reassure him immediately. "Oh no Kreacher. It's nothing like that. I just didn't know if you were busy doing something else so I figured I'd make brunch for everyone. I don't want to offend you though, so you can do it if you'd like."

I stepped aside so Kreacher could move past me as he immediately set to work on preparing the food. "Young master is very kind to be considering Kreacher's feelings. The young master is truly a great master."

I took a minute to listen and heard Daphne and Sirius still talking with each other, so I figured I had a few minutes. "Kreacher do you have any family?"

The elf seemed to be taken back by my question but answered anyway. "Kreacher does not know. He has never met any other elves besides those bringing correspondence."

I found that interesting. "So you've been here your entire life then?"

Kreacher nodded enthusiastically. He suddenly didn't look to be the old elf that he was when I first met him. "Oh yes. The Lady Black is bringing Kreacher here when he was very new. I has been serving proudly since."

He was almost finished cooking the food I noticed. It was amazing how much faster he could do this than I would have been able to. "Well just so you know Kreacher I consider you to be a valuable part of my extended family. Daphne and I are both honored to have you helping us raise Alexa. Sirius also respects what you've been doing, but he probably won't say it."

Kreacher chose not to respond to me, but I swear I could see him bolster up a little bit as if he was swelling with pride. When the food was ready and laid out on the counter I went and got Sirius and Daphne.

Together the four of us enjoyed the brunch and Daphne answered questions for Sirius about some of her Hogwarts classes. The afternoon passed quickly and quietly for us as we took turns playing with Alexa. Sirius took us for a walk through Grimmauld which, to my surprise, was much larger than I had thought. Apparently it even had a small courtyard towards the back of it. It was another area only accessible to those of Black blood or with permission. I marveled at the magic and spell work that must have gone into making something like this possible.

It was truly incredible and I couldn't tell if the ceiling was enchanted similar to the one at Hogwarts or if it truly just opened up. The courtyard itself wasn't much. It looked to be in the beginning stages of reparation. There was a tiny pond with water that shimmered and moved of its own accord. There were signs of new plants being added recently.

"Have you been working on this Sirius?" I looked at my godfather not knowing if he had any real herbology experience.

"Kind of. Being trapped in this place made me really miss being able to go outside and just enjoy the weather. So I decided I'd make some changes to this old courtyard and give myself an outdoor getaway." I watched as he struggled with emotions. "Some days it was getting really hard for me, ya know? I wasn't able to see you Harry and no one else really had the time for me. I was pretty much on my own. So I used this to distract myself."

I went to say something but Daphne spoke first. "This is very nice Sirius. You should ask our friend Neville, I'm sure you've met him, for some plants or advice. He loves Herbology if you didn't know. I've heard he even receives special lessons from Professor Sprout."

Sirius cheered up and smiled at Daphne, but I still felt guilty that Sirius was trapped. Someday I'd be able to bring Pettigrew to justice and free the man who risked so much for me. "I might just do that Daphne. I'm sure Neville will be by sometime this summer to visit Harry."

For a while we lounged in the courtyard enjoying the fading sun on our faces, and I had to admit this was a wonderful day. It'd been normal and that was something I could really get used to.

Dinner was a quiet affair. We mostly ate in silence with the occasional small talk. Alexa was put to bed shortly after and it was just the three of us in the living room.

I decided it was time to ask about something. "Sirius how can I get in touch with Malfoy?"

Daphne looked at me very strangely and Sirius just eyed me curiously. "I've got him and his mother staying in a Black property under the fidelius. No one will be able to find them because I am the secret keeper for it. Why do you need to talk to him?"

Before I could answer Daphne cut in though. "Hold on. What am I missing about this? Why is Draco staying in a Black property and not with his father?"

It was then that I realized I'd never spoken to Daphne about the situation I had found myself in with Malfoy.

"Well did you realize Malfoy never gave us much problem this past year? Even after the truth about Alexa?" Daphne nodded so I continued. "Well it was because he was secretly meeting with me. We had a few talks, and it turns out he was very conflicted."

Daphne seemed suspicious, "Conflicted about what?"

"He told me he didn't want to become the way his father was. Or rather he had always wanted to be his father, but recently that changed because of how his mother was being treated. Apparently things have not been well at home since Voldemort returned. He asked me for help because his mother used to be a Black."

Daphne nodded. "That's odd to say the least. All those years of hating you, and then he has to rely on you to save him. What did her being a Black have to do with him asking you though?"

Sirius took over me for. "Well my family unofficially disowned me when I was younger. The thing about it being unofficial is that it didn't really count, so I am currently the Head of House Black. Narcissa had an arranged marriage as is very typical between families of standing like Black and Malfoy. However my family has always been more cautious and less trusting. They included a clause that the head of House Black could break the marriage."

I recognized the shine of understanding in Daphne's eyes. "So you broke her marriage? So then now what? Her and Draco live in hiding from the death eaters I assume. They'll be poor though I assume since she'll have no access to the Malfoy money."

Sirius nodded at her again and I was content to just let him explain this part. "Normally yes. However the Black family fortune is nothing to sneeze at. I set up a small account for them to be refilled each month with enough to live on and a few extra commodities. Cissy was someone I got along with when I was younger and so I'm hoping to work towards that bond we had again."

Sirius turned to look at me again. "Back to the topic at hand though. Why do you want to talk to Malfoy?"

"I need information that I suspect he will be able to give me. He'll no doubt have names about people his father associates with, and maybe even places I could look for death eaters this summer."

"So you're going to go ahead with the plan we talked about then?" I nodded my head. "Well I won't let you do it alone. Obviously I don't have much freedom but anything I can do for you I will."

"I really appreciate that Sirius. I actually will need your help in producing a way to transport the death eaters I capture. I want it to be fast in, fast out to minimize the risk to myself and others in the area. I was thinking portkeys might work, but I have no idea how to make one."

Daphne stayed silent as Sirius and I were talking, but out of the corner of my eye I could see her watching intently. "I can do that, it's a pretty well-regulated piece of magic, but I know the library here has some books on it. I'll start working on it for you, and with all the free time I have it shouldn't take me long to master. Anything else?"

I hesitated because this is the part that I wasn't sure about. "I need you to talk to Snape. Last time I really had a conversation with him it didn't go well. I learned a lot of unpleasant truths that I wasn't ready to deal with. However since I refuse to sink to torture I'll need a way to get accurate information. He is the only person I know that could get truth serum, but I don't want to be directly linked to asking for it."

Sirius looked very conflicted. "I can try, but I don't know that he'll just readily give it to me. I don't know that he would talk to me at all really. But for you I'll do it Harry."

"Thank you I really appreciate it."

There was a long silence before Daphne finally spoke. "So I guess this is it then. This is where everything changes for you Harry. You are going to go from being the one running and hiding to now being the chaser, or seeker if you prefer." She smiled coyly at me.

I couldn't agree more. Everything was about to change, and I knew it was for the better. "So it's decided then. Sirius I assume I can floo call whichever place Malfoy is staying at?" When he confirmed it I spoke again. "Good so I'll do that tomorrow and get the information I need from him. I promised Daphne I would find someone to help me with this and I will, but right now I'm on my own for the time being."

Sirius looked at me in bewilderment. "I thought Neville was going to be your backup in this?"

I shook my head. "Neville and I had a long talk about it. He isn't ready to do the things I will have to, and I respect his choice in the matter. He's learning still so he'll be able to fight and defend himself and others though. He and Blaise Zabini are also working together now to focus on the political side of this war. No doubt before it's done things will get very bad in the ministry. It's too weak now for there to be much resistance against discriminatory laws, so we'll need a group of people influential enough to change things when all is said and done."

"So then who are you going to get to help you? I know you've made more friends this year, but this goes beyond just casual friends. You need someone you can trust with your life."

It was a question I wasn't sure of myself. "I'm not sure to be honest. Neville was my best bet, and when he said no I wasn't prepared. I'll need to really consider the people I know and decide if there is someone I could trust."

Daphne spoke up then. "Why not Tracey?"

My head titled slightly and my face formed a question. "You really think Tracey would help me with something like this? I just don't see it."

Daphne shook her head at me. "You'd be surprised I think. There is a lot more to Tracey than most people know. She plays herself off very well at school as airy but is really anything but."

I was interested in this side of Tracey that I'd apparently never seen and asked Daphne to explain more.

"Well to start Tracey is a half-blood like you, so there isn't much room for her in a world controlled by Voldemort. But it's more personal for her. I don't know if she's ever told you but she lives only with her father. He is the wizard and her mother was a muggle. When Tracey was really young her parents were out and her mother died in a car accident. Ever since she's always blamed her father for not saving her, and now recently she's been questioning whether he did it on purpose or not."

I was really fascinated to find out there was such a sad story behind someone who was for all intents and purposes always happy. However I didn't see the real relevance of it to this situation. "I'm not sure I understand Daphne how does that relate to this?"

"I'm getting there. So she's been carrying this idea around, and was secretly looking into her father. About three months ago she found the answer she was looking for. Apparently when he met her mother he had given in to his desires. He slept with her even though she was a muggle. Tracey was the result of that night, and her mother hid it until she was well along in the pregnancy. When he found out he was furious, but then he saw the child was magical. Apparently he couldn't bring himself to get rid of Tracey, so he waited until after she was born. Then he plotted and got rid of her mother, and used magic to make it look like a car accident."

Sirius and I sat with our mouths open as we processed what we were hearing. "So you're telling me Tracey found out her father killed her mother because she was a muggle? So what, her father is a death eater?"

Daphne shook her head. "No not a death eater. He's more of a sympathizer, and apparently had been ridiculed by some of his former friends for soiling his name. So now Tracey knows the truth, and needless to say she is not happy and has been looking for a way to fight back."

"Do you think she could hold her own, and would she even be happy you told us all of this?" I couldn't imagine a world where a Slytherin was happy one of her darkest secrets was so readily shared.

Daphne shrugged in response to my question. "Probably, and I doubt she'd be happy but if she wants to help in this she would have had to tell you anyway. I'm just speeding the process along. One thing to know though is that she is very conflicted about how to handle her own father. He's done nothing but treat her well throughout her life, so to find out he's actually a very cruel man has been hard on her."

I assumed as much. "How did she find out all this? I can't imagine it was easy."

"Actually it was, apparently her father keeps a journal. In it he detailed every instance he used magic to take advantage of muggle women. Apparently he enjoyed the feeling of power and control it gave him. His mother was the first time he tried without magic and it backfired on him when she hid the truth about Tracey."

I was disgusted by what I was hearing, and I could tell the sentiment was shared around the room. "I think I'll reach out to her then, but I'll be careful about the subjects we discuss." I noticed it was getting fairly late. "We should probably get some sleep now though. It's been a really long day and tomorrow I've got a discussion with Malfoy that I'll need my energy for I'm sure."

Daphne and Sirius both agreed with me and we walked upstairs together. We exchanged goodnights at the door to my room before going our separate ways. While Daphne was using the loo and getting ready for bed I quickly scribbled a note to Tracey asking her if we could meet at the Leaky Cauldron to talk. I attached it to Hedwig's leg and gave her a few treats before sending her on the way. It was another fifteen minutes or so before I was stretched out in bed with Daphne tucked gently against my side. We shared a soft, lingering kiss and looked into each other's eyes. No words were needed between us in that moment. One of my hands cupped her cheek as I deepened the kiss. The other hand began to wander and caress her body. It didn't take long for us to give into the temptations. A short while later we were laid back in the same position but much more satisfied as we drifted into a restful sleep.

I sighed before dipping my head into the emerald flames. It had been a nice change of pace yesterday being able to avoid any real actions. It was just spent lounging, playing, or relaxing. Today was back to reality for me though. Tracey had sent a response already and she was curious but anxious to meet with me. We'd decided that tonight at the Leaky Cauldron would be fine. It was only a floo call away for each of us and it had some private rooms upstairs where we would be free to talk.

Before that I needed to talk to Draco first, and then head to Gringotts and speak with someone about my accounts. My head emerged on the other side of the green fire and I was staring into the family room of what appeared to be a modest cottage. It wasn't huge or lavish like the manors I was becoming more than a little use to, but it was actually fairly nice. Some place I could see myself wanting to live with Daphne and Alexa. I loved my family manor, but if I was honest it was just too big.

My thoughts stopped though as Narcissa entered the room cautiously. Upon seeing that it was my face in the fire she relaxed slightly, but there was still a definite unease to her body language.

"Mr. Potter, to what do I owe this surprise call?" I had to admire the woman's ability to stay formal and polite even in the weirdest of situations.

"I am actually calling to talk with your son if you don't mind." I was going to say Malfoy, but then realized that technically the only Malfoy left was her ex-husband. And possibly Draco if he didn't revoke the name.

"I will see if he is busy right now and let him know you are waiting." I could tell she was surprised by my request and I began to wonder if she knew just how it had come to be that she was able to run from her marriage.

As it turns out I didn't have to wait long. Malfoy and his mother appeared back in the room after only a minute or two. "Potter. This is a surprise call."

"Yes it is, Draco. I hope you don't mind me using your first name. I'm unsure if you've changed your family name."

"I haven't yet. Part of me is still hoping my father will see the error in the way he has treated his own family." My eyes lingered to Narcissa who stiffened slightly at the mention of the Malfoy patriarch.

"Well then Malfoy it is. I have need of some information that I'm sure you could provide for me." I let my eyes purposefully land on his mother this time to convey a silent message.

"Mother, would you mind giving Potter and I some privacy?"

She seemed surprised at the comfort we were showing in talking, but she did step out of the room. Once she left I watched as Draco placed a few privacy spells around the doors.

"I assume this has something to do with my father or his friends then?"

Something I was learning about Malfoy was that even though he had been a pain for pretty much the entire time I had known him, he was very perceptive. "Yes it does. I was hoping for some names of the lowest level death eaters. Quite possibly a location where these people might be sent to recruit or rally support as well."

A barely recognizable dilation of his pupils told me Draco was more than a bit curious about what I would need information like that for. "I could help you with that, and it would seem like appropriate payment since you helped me with my situation. I'll write you a list."

He waved his wand a bit and a quill and some parchment shot to his hands. After he replaced his wand he began to write and I sat quietly in front of him waiting. This had been much simpler than I could have ever anticipated and for that reason it had me slightly on edge.

He finished writing on the paper and then creased it carefully before passing it through the emerald flames. With one hand I felt the parchment on the ground next to me. "One second I'm going to look at it briefly, keep the connection open." I pulled my head back but was careful to leave one hand still in the fire so that the floo would stay active. I unfolded the paper and skimmed it. There was a short list of six names and one location. It was a great start and more than I had expected.

I pushed my head back into the flames. "This is exactly what I needed. Thank you Malfoy."

"You're welcome Potter. I owe you my mother's life, so this is simply a small thing to use as repayment."

It was there and I could see he was fighting the urge to ask. Always the epitome of a Slytherin. "You can ask if you want to know Malfoy."

He nodded his head at me. "I do want to know."

"They're targets now. My targets actually."

"Surprising behavior and decision from the champion of the light. However after this past school year I'm finding that more and more things are not always as they seem. I do wonder if you're ready for it."

I was not comfortable broaching this topic with Malfoy. I shrugged in a non-committal way to try and show him my indifference to his opinion. "It's been nice talking to someone other than my mother or a house elf Potter. If you have time I'd appreciate a conversation every now and then."

Surprised would be the understatement of the century for how I felt. I did however agree to talking with him when I had the chance. I knew all too well what it was like to be stuck in isolation, away from anyone who could really relate to you.

I pulled back from the fire this time letting the connection sever. I looked at the list one more time, committing everything to memory. The six names were people I was admittedly unfamiliar with, but that just lent credibility to them being low level. I was going to have to do some selective research into them. I wanted to know enough about them to find out where they would most likely be and when, but not enough to humanize them. Anything that had to do with a family or someone they might leave behind would make my plans much harder.

I recognized this as a good thing. It meant I still possessed my humanity, but a small part of me longed to just be free of any guilt that might occur so I could proceed. My first step would be to ask Sirius about the names later because he might have some information, and it'd be my best bet for glossing over any information that might personalize them to me.

For now though I pushed those thoughts aside. I wanted to visit Gringotts and check on my accounts before I met with Tracey. Also I felt it was only right that I made sure to keep in touch with Iron Tooth since he had seemed to have taken a liking to me and had been more than generous with his help.

It was an easy trip to Gringotts. I was grateful that because it was early in the summer the alley had very little traffic which meant no one to bother me. Iron Tooth was in a meeting with other chairs of the bank when I arrived, so I waited patiently in the lobby for a goblin to come for me. As I looked around the bank and my eyes wandered from face to face I felt a little nostalgia hit as I recalled my first trip here. I'd been so small then and everything I was seeing seemed so impossible.

If I was completely honest with myself I half-expected to wake up back in the cupboard at any point. None of it seemed real, but then I got my wand. I knew when I felt the warmth flow through me that it was indeed real. Magic was possible and I was a wizard. I was going to school and had a chance to make real friends. Instead it turns out I never really had that chance because my whole life had been scripted for me by someone.

It was humorous to me now that I thought about it. If not for Hagrid telling me all about evil Slytherins then, and if not for meeting Draco while getting measured for my robes I could have been a Slytherin myself. I wonder how the school and Dumbledore would have taken that. The irony of it is that Malfoy was the driving force behind me finally getting free from Dumbledore. If it wasn't for his father trying to force a marriage with Daphne she never would have come for me that night. If my divination texts were to believed that is what they would say is fate, but I don't really believe in any of that bollocks.

"Mr. Potter! Iron Tooth is ready to see you now." I rose from my seat and greeted the goblin escort warmly. He didn't give any verbal acknowledgment to me but most goblins didn't. The now familiar path to Iron Tooth's office was a short one and soon enough I was seated inside in front of the ornate desk.

After I exchanged greetings with Iron Tooth he asked what had brought me in.

"Well a good friend of mine said that I should start thinking of the future. More specifically he told me to think of the future I have with my girlfriend and our child. I've done some research when I could, but I wanted an outside counsel. You've been overlooking the Potter Family vaults for years, am I right?"

Iron Tooth grinned showing all of his razor sharp teeth. "Yes Mr. Potter, I have indeed been in charge of the accounts for quite some time."

I nodded as he confirmed what I suspected. "Tell me then; are there any engagement rings accounted for in the vault? Are they even a thing in the wizarding world?"

I watched carefully as he snapped his fingers and the black ledger in front of him opened to a section. His eyes scanned the words written in what I presumed was the goblin language. He looked up after a moment and spoke to me.

"There are indeed some. However I do find it amusing you are asking. You are still so very young despite the trials you have faced and will face in the future."

I couldn't help but laugh at the implication. "I truly did not expect to ever see the day where I would receive relationship advice from the most honorable goblin who oversees my family accounts. I do understand your concern, and truly I have no intentions of proposing any time soon. I have a feeling her father, Lord Greengrass, would be heavily opposed to that. I just thought it would be nice to know if I had some options. I could have a new one bought, and I still might but part of me felt that using one of these might also be a welcome gesture of how I see her."

Another snap of his fingers and my eyes once again watched as the ledger closed itself. "Well when you decide you need them you can rest easy knowing they are there. Was there any other matters you needed to discuss today?"

I shook my head. "Nothing in particular, but if you're not busy now I have some time to spare. Could we run through the numbers on any investments my family has made in the past? I've been here a lot lately, but it's rarely ever been for anything financial."

"Certainly. Let us first take a look at some of the failed ventures in the past and see what resulted of them."

It was three hours later that I was walking out of the bank with all sorts of numbers filling my head. Truth be told there wasn't a whole lot of investment by my family. It seemed that from what I could gather it was all old money from very long ago and was now just sitting in the vault. Iron Tooth talked to me about some potential new investments he would like to make and after reviewing the basics I gave him the go ahead. I didn't want to risk losing everything though so I set some very specific limits on the amount he could invest.

I had just under an hour until I was going to be meeting with Tracey. I decided to get to the cauldron early and reserve the room so no one would see us doing it together. A five minute walk and I was passing through the opening in the brick wall. Once I was inside I walked up to the counter.

"One butterbeer and I'll need a private room upstairs for the night." I paid Tom and grabbed the key and pint from him. There was an open stool a little bit away from me so I decided to sit and wait there. I could keep an eye on the fireplace as well as the back door. I felt pretty confident that Tracey wouldn't be coming through the front from muggle London.

It wasn't too long of a wait. I had pretty much polished off the butterbeer by the time Tracey arrived through the floo. I watched as she landed gracefully and stepped out of the flames without missing a beat. Her face showed her usual carefree smile and happy attitude, but her eyes were quickly scanning the room until they locked on mine. Instead of calling for her I simply nodded my head towards the stairs indicating she should follow me. Then I rose from my seat and started up them. Tracey followed far enough behind me that it would appear to any casual observer that we were coincidentally both going upstairs.

The room was on the third floor of the pub. There were fewer rooms up here and I suspected these were often booked for less savory meetings. I found the room matching the number on my key and entered. It was nothing lavish inside. I imagine it was the equivalent of a muggle hotel room. I sat myself on top of the desk and waited.

I'd left the door purposefully ajar so that she would know which room to go to. It was only a few seconds later before I heard the door push open and then close with a click. My wand was carefully aimed towards the entrance in case it wasn't Tracey, but the tell-tale blonde hair peaked around the corner not a second later and my arm relaxed.

"Secret meeting in a private room above a bar Harry? If I didn't know any better I'd say you were trying to seduce me. I know you couldn't be doing that though because if you were…well after Daphne got done with you I'd dispose of whatever was left." I smiled at the godmother of my child as she went on.

"Tracey I assure you it is nothing like that. However what I need to talk to you about is sensitive, and shouldn't be trusted in a letter."

One of the things I appreciated about Tracey was she was always jokes and laughter; until it was time to be serious. In those moments she instantly focused her attention to what was happening.

I watched as she assessed me and tried to figure out where this was going. I decided to cut her some slack. "I know about your father."

I wasn't sure how she was going to react, so I was ready to protect myself just in case. Tracey was good at hiding her emotions, but I was becoming much more skilled at reading the flashes of emotion that showed when someone felt too strongly about something. There was anger in her eyes but then it was gone. Shock, fear, curiosity, and everything in between seemed to cycle through. Before finally I watched as she schooled her features back to normal.

"Daphne told you then." I nodded. "What does that have to do with us meeting here tonight?"

Now is when I would need to tread carefully. Pushing her too fast could cause her to lash out at me. Too slow and she might think I wasn't serious. "I am going to need help this summer. I went to Neville, but he is already working on something and didn't feel he would be up to this. Daphne suggested I go to you."

She stared at me as I spoke. Finally she moved from her spot near the door to the edge of the bed where she sat down. "So what is it that you need my help with?"

"This is the hard part." She waved for me to go on. "Our government is failing and our prisons aren't deterring anyone from joining Voldemort. Death eaters were sent there and yet now they're free again. He breaks them out or the bribe their way through the court system. How can we stop people who are very nearly untouchable?"

"So you want my help in finding a way to keep the scum in jail? Sounds more like a job for Daphne. Honestly she is much better at runes than me and could probably create a wicked locking chain."

I shook my head at her. "No I already have a solution. I just need your help in executing it."

"Oh, so what is it then?"

"Honestly it's simple. We don't send them to prison."

This time she made no attempt to hide the confusing marring her face. I took it as a sign Tracey was now comfortable enough around me to not feel a need to hide her emotions. But then as if struck by an enervate her eyes grew wide and she stared at me.

"Harry, you can't…I can't…"

"Tracey I am going to have to eventually. Its better I come to terms with it now. I can't and won't force you to however, and you saying no changes nothing in our friendship."

I sat and just waited for her response. It came much quicker than I expected. "I'll do it. Ever since I found the truth about my father I've wanted to do something to punish him. I haven't been able to bring myself to actually do it though. This…doing this though gives me the chance to save others from what happened to my mother."

I let out a breath I had been subconsciously holding in relief. I had my partner now and I had the names. Things were starting to fall into place for this. I just needed a spot which Iron Tooth was in the process of acquiring thanks to a final comment from me on the way out of our meeting earlier. Then I just had to hope Sirius would come through with his end of this with the transportation and the veritaserum.

"I guess that means we're done here then. Unless you had other questions for me." I wanted to make sure she understood completely what it was I was asking.

"I'm going to need a way to cast magic during the summer without being monitored. I truthfully don't know if that is even possible." This had been something I had thought about for a while. Even Neville would have needed help with this. I wasn't sure there would be a way to circumvent the ministry monitoring, but figured if there was it would be somewhere in the Black Library.

"I'll look into it for you. We have some time still before we're ready to actually act. Once we start things are going to get very…hectic very quickly. I think the best thing you could do these next few weeks is take the time and enjoy you summer."

Tracey gave me a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "I appreciate how much you care about me Harry, but I'm going to spend these next few weeks preparing. Daphne has told me a little about how you've been preparing. I can only imagine you're much further ahead than me and I refuse to be seen as useless."

"Tracey I would never think of you as useless. I am here talking to you today because Daphne assured me you could handle this. If you're set on it though then here." I pulled the scrap parchment from my pocket that Sirius had given me.

I watched as she took it and then read the secret. The tell-tale widening of her eyes as a cloud was lifted in her mind let me know that she understood the ramifications of the paper. I took it back and burned it before vanishing the ashes.

"You can now visit Daphne and me. You are Alexa's godmother so if you encounter any problems with other…tenants…just ignore them. You will be considered our guest." I didn't know when the Weasleys planned on returning, but I could almost hear Ron screaming about snakes and how unfair it was.

"May I come tonight? I haven't seen Alexa in a while and I miss my goddaughter." She finally gave me a genuine smile and I obviously wasn't going to turn her down after what she had just agreed to do for me.

"We'll floo there now then. You and Daphne can spend some time with Alexa while I look for a solution to your wand problem."

"Perfect, let's go." Just like before I left the room and she followed behind but with enough of a gap to make it not apparent we were upstairs together.

Once downstairs I tossed a sickle on the mantel and took a pinch of floo powder. I tossed it in, whispered my location, and stepped into the swirling green flames.

It was midnight by the time I was walking out of the Black library. With some help from Kreacher I'd been able to locate some books outlining the restrictions on underage magic and how wands were traced. Apparently it wasn't anything to do with the wand at all. In fact the exact instance that a witch or wizard was affected by the trace was the first time they crossed the barrier to board the train. I was honestly astounded. It was amazing to think that all this time I had assumed the wand was the issue, but yet it was the person. Thinking about it though it made sense. After all if it was the wand then I wouldn't have been blamed for Dobby casting magic in second year.

I wasn't too surprised to find a manual of sorts detailing the actual trace spell in the library considering there were all sorts of reasons I could imagine for the Blacks wanting to be able to cast magic without being traced before they became of age. Sirius had mentioned many times how protective the family was of their secrets and business. I imagine acquiring that manual took some hefty bribes and persuasion. It was dated almost fifteen years ago, so I was really hoping the process hadn't changed.

While reading about it I had to admire the spell work though. It was a permanent charm which was somehow able to relay information to a department within the ministry. Not only that, but then there must be countless other charms at the receiving end to catalogue, alert, and monitor each and every child. I was curious to know if removing the charm would somehow set an alert at the ministry as well. Surely they would have prepared for something like that, but then another part of me reasoned that the ministry wasn't very competent or reliable.

It was a risk we were going to have to take; the spell to remove the charm was thankfully located in the manual. I didn't imagine it would take me too long to learn. I'd practiced a few times already after reading about it and it seemed fairly simple in principle.

The house was eerily quiet as I walked down the flights of stairs towards the bedroom. It was late, so I was assuming Tracey had already left for the night. Daphne was probably in bed as well. I was grateful the Weasleys hadn't returned as of yet, and according to Sirius they wouldn't be for a few more days.

I reached the landing and walked to my bedroom door. I turned the knob carefully so as to be as quiet as possible. I didn't want to wake Daphne or Alexa if I could help it. I slipped into the room and shut the door behind me. I was surprised to see not one, but two people in my bed. It looked like Tracey and Daphne had both fallen asleep while talking. Alexa was tucked safely in her crib and sound asleep.

For a split second the thought of crawling into bed with the two of them crossed my mind. I was a lot of things, but I was also still a young guy. The rational side of me won out though and reasoned it wouldn't end well for certain parts of me if I did, so I moved my desk chair out and used some transfiguration to make it into a passable bed. It was a little more difficult transfiguring an object to a larger object, but I'd gotten it down thanks to my lessons. I used a switching spell for safe measure in case Tracey woke up while I was in the process of changing. I grabbed two quills from my desk and with a few more spells I soon had a blanket and pillow as well. I crawled into my temporary bed after tucking the manual safely away into a drawer and locking it. The day had taken more out of me than I thought and soon enough I was drifting off into the dark.

I got up and changed into some clothes to workout in. For whatever reason I felt like flexing my magic this morning. I was almost to the stairs when I heard the door open behind me. Curious as to who was up I turned and was surprised to see Tracey come out. She was wearing a pair of what looked like muggle sweat pants and a t-shirt.

"You're up kind of early aren't you Tracey?" I questioned her but was smiling to take away any sense of accusation.

"I heard you get up and you looked like you were about to work out or something. I figured I should be involved in that too." I nodded my head. It was a fair point.

"Alright well follow me then we're going to be practicing a bit."

I quietly made my way to one of the unused rooms Sirius had set aside for me to practice in. Kreacher had already cleared it out of any furniture and cleaned it. Tracey followed me in and closed the door behind us.

"So first things, let's get that trace removed."

I watched as her face lit up. "You found a way to do it?"

"The Black's may have been one of the most resourceful families out there. If anyone was going to know how I knew it would be in this library. Yes I found a way. I'm not sure however if removing it will cause any type of alarm to go off."

I was happy to note she seemed as resolute as yesterday. "We'll risk it anyway. Honestly it's an exciting thing to think I might be able to perform magic now outside of Hogwarts."

I let me wand slide into my hand and loosely held it. "Alright I'm going to perform the counter-charm on you then. We won't know it worked for sure until you've left here. You see the way the charm works is that it identifies magic in an area only. Since we're under the fidelius here there is no way for them to plot the location. Even if we weren't under the fidelius though, there are known magical adults in the area so it would be assumed that they were casting the spells and not you." I waited till she nodded and indicated she understood. "Ready then?" She nodded at me again.

I pointed my wand at her and said the incantation. "Vacu Vestigi."

It was fascinating watching a new charm unfold before my eyes. A silver light left my wand and seemed to wash over Tracey who shut her eyes as it impacted her. There was a faint red pulse around her body as the light hit. It flashed brightly once and then both silver and red were gone. The manual hadn't really gone into specific detail about what would happen if the counter was performed correctly, but I had to assume that it had worked.

I watched with amusement as she opened her eyes and frowned down at her palms. "Is that it? Very anticlimactic. I'm sort of disappointed now."

I chuckled, "Well I'll try not to disappoint you with the spell work then. First things first though. If you're going to do this I need to know you have the endurance for it. I don't want any long drawn out situations and I'm thinking much more snatch and grab tactics, but we need to be prepared for anything. So that means physical work. Can you do pushups?"

In response to me she smirked and dropped to the floor. Surprise was an understatement as I watched her go right into it. I quickly dropped down and kept pace with her. It was definitely going to be an interesting training session.

I rolled my eyes as everyone laughed at me. Tracey had just got done telling them about how she caught me with the tail end of a fire whip. I hadn't been expecting her to pick up on it so quick and had stood a little too close to the target I set for her. While her power was there, her control of the spell was not and it had licked my skin before I could move out of the way.

As if that wasn't bad enough I then proceeded to trip backwards in my haste to move and landed square on my arse. That was the detail that currently had Daphne and Sirius laughing while I sat and ate my dinner. Tracey had told her father she was spending a few days with Daphne apparently, but in reality it was so that we'd have time to train together. I'd had to listen to Daphne smugly tell me how she had been right about having Tracey help as well.

Trying to change the subject I spoke. "Since we're going to be working here for a bit I think I'm going to owl Neville and see if he wants to stop by for a few days as well. That is if you don't mind Sirius." I didn't want to just start imposing on my godfather.

He waved off my concern though. "Not a problem at all Harry. Honestly I'm just happy you have people you can go to. It reminds me of my marauder days with your father a little bit. Except we were planning pranks and you're planning on taking down a madman."

We finished eating and I wrote a quick note to Neville and sent it off with Hedwig. I probably could have fire called him but there was no rush and Hedwig looked like she wanted to stretch her wings honestly.

I called for Kreacher and told him to prepare a room for Tracey. He was more than happy to be doing something for me and I swear he disappeared with a little extra bounce. I walked to my room and found Daphne sitting on the bed while Alexa was giggling happily at Tracey who was playing with her.

I moved around the two on the floor and sat on the edge of the bed. "I have Kreacher preparing a room for you right now, so maybe I can sleep in my bed tonight yeah?"

Tracey stuck her tongue out at me. "You're just jealous Daphne would rather have me in bed than you."

"Oh no, don't you two pull me into this. I want no part of wherever this conversation is going." I smiled wickedly but Daphne saw. "Don't even think about commenting."

I deflated a little but that didn't stop the thoughts I was having.

"You're such a perv, Harry."

"Coming from you Tracey that doesn't mean much. Since the first real interaction I had with you was you telling me Daphne needed a good shag."

Tracey had the grace to blush. "In fairness I didn't know at the time that you two were already getting busy making this beautiful bundle."

I guess around twenty minutes passed before Kreacher popped into the room. "The missus room is being ready now. Kreacher is be taking you to it and then putting the young miss to sleep."

I hugged Tracey goodnight after she placed Alexa back in her bed. Once she had left the room I turned to Daphne. "I missed you last night."

She smirked, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "Oh really? Well you could have crawled into bed with me at any point."

"I didn't think you'd approve honestly. Besides I didn't want to make Tracey uncomfortable."

Daphne eyed me intently which caused me to feel suddenly very exposed. "I trust you Harry. Especially with regards to Tracey. If I didn't then I wouldn't have even suggested you go to her for help. I knew when I did that it would mean you two spending hours together at a time getting ready or planning. It is strange for me, if I'm being honest. What you two will do, the killing I mean, is going to be an intimate experience. It's going to change part of you and her. It's something I will probably never understand because you're keeping it that way. So I envy her in that sense since she'll have something with you that I never will, but I know that you love me."

I was honestly floored. Daphne was not the type to open up about how she was feeling like this. I was more than accustomed to her giving bits and pieces of information or insight into her real thoughts, but this, laying it bare all at once was not something I was sure how to handle. "Daphne I do love you and I value Tracey as a friend. All I meant about you not approving was that I didn't want you to think of me as trying to have both of you. I'm glad to know you trust me, but you're wrong. You'll be every much a part of this as Tracey is for me. I'm counting on you to be my rock and that means I'll need to share the experience with you if you'll let me."

Daphne didn't say anything as she moved to curl against my side. I instinctively wrapped an arm around her body and pulled her close. I leaned down and pressed a kiss softly to the top of her head. "Of course Harry. We're in this together now. Not just as a couple but as lovers and as partners. That means sometimes we will have to do things for each other that maybe we don't feel comfortable with. I need you to promise me something though."

"Anything Daphne."

"When she takes her first, Tracey I mean, life I want you to be there for her as well. Not physically, although I very much doubt she'd ever allow that to happen, but emotionally I want you to be the rock for her like I am for you. Other than you she's the person I am closest with and I don't want to lose her to this."

"I will. This next year is going to take a lot of people from us I'm sure, but I won't let one of them be Tracey or any of our friends. Let's sleep now. You're welcome to join Tracey and me in the morning if you want to practice with us. I did promise to teach you as well."

She nodded her head against me. I made sure Alexa was taken care of knowing that Kreacher would still check on her anyway but not wanting to break my nightly routine. Then I brushed my teeth and changed out of my clothes from the day before hanging them in the wardrobe. Daphne did the same and soon enough we were tangled up in the sheets together.

One Week Later

I sat across from Neville and watched as he read over the notes in front of him. It still amazed me every time how much we had both changed in so little time. Gone were the meek Gryffindors who could barely cast a levitating charm and in their place were two guys not afraid to do what was necessary.

He looked up from the parchment and leaned back in his chair. "This political stuff is harder than I thought Harry. I've got all these notes on who is friends with who, what families have alliances, and favors owed to me because of my parents yet I'm still not ready for any of the responsibilities."

"You'll get there Nev. This is new and you're building the foundation for your future. It obviously isn't going to happen overnight."

Neville scoffed at me a bit while he rolled his eyes. "You obviously haven't seen Zabini then in his full political mode. I've been talking to him through the floo and I'll tell you it's impressive. Although he keeps telling me I'm making good progress too."

I was interested that Neville and Blaise seemed to be working together already. "That is pretty quick for you two to start working. We've only been home from school a little while."

Neville nodded. "We started right away. Figured it was best to have as much time to prepare as possible since we don't have much experience on our side." I was going to comment but Neville kept speaking. "I'm not kidding Harry, Blaise is really something when he gets going. He's charismatic and almost like-able. I think he's a real good person to have on our side in the ministry."

I agreed. I hadn't seen the side of Blaise that Neville apparently had, but I'd seen the schemer who knew how to get what he wanted and wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty. "I'll trust you on this one Neville. I think both of you are really good friends, first and foremost, and it just works in our favor that you'll both be in a position to make change. I hadn't thought of it before but really we might be able to use the fact that he's considered a pureblood sympathizer to our advantage. If we ever need support for a bill I'm sure there's a way you two could work together to come to an arrangement or persuade votes."

He nodded. "You're right. It's something we discussed a little bit. I'm going to try and gather a decent faction of the typical 'light' families around me and he'll do the same with some of the 'dark' ones. It's a tricky game but hopefully we'll be able to manage. We're going to need some strong government once you finish off Voldemort."

I was impressed. "You said the name with no hesitation."

"It's just a name like you said. No reason to empower him anymore. So come on tell me how you and Tracey are suddenly teaming up here."

"It's not really my story to tell. Honestly figured you might have heard about it already since you two had been sharing the room for the past two nights. The short version is I can give her something she needs and in return she's willing to help me this summer."

I'd honestly expected Neville to know the truth. After he'd gotten here a few days ago he'd decided to stay and spend some time with Alexa. Sirius was happy to have him, and honestly I think he was just happy that he had so many people to talk to. I could only imagine that being trapped away for twelve years with no one to talk to would make you desperate for conversation. Kreacher had asked if he should prepare another room, but Tracey had loudly proclaimed that Neville could just share with her since the room was huge anyway.

I smiled as I remembered Neville suddenly looking conflicted on whether or not he should accept the offer. I imagined Hannah would have thrown a fit had she ever found out.

Changing the subject I asked him about her, "How are you and Hannah?"

I noticed Neville suddenly looked very sheepish. "I uh, I actually broke it off with Hannah a few days after we got back. I meant to tell you, but with working with Blaise and processing it myself I just haven't had time."

I was honestly shocked. Never once had I seen any indication that the two were arguing or not happy together. "Blimey, I'm sorry mate. I didn't realize you two were having issues."

Neville shook his head. "We weren't having any issues. She's just too innocent for this Harry. I'm going to be in the political muck and sooner or later I'll probably have to save your arse from some death eaters. Hannah is wonderful and everything I could ever want in a girlfriend, but right now isn't the time for it. Maybe after the war if we haven't become too different we'll be able to try again."

I nodded since I was unsure what to really say. It didn't look like he needed to be comforted. "Well if you need someone I'm here, but honestly it looks like you're handling it okay. Although now I have to know, why were you so nervous about sharing a room with Tracey if you're not with Hannah anymore?"

Neville blushed this time. "You know Tracey mate. The girl is a nymph and a pervert. I swear she's got it on her mind all the time. Although she hasn't been bad to share the room with the past couple nights."

"I guess I honestly just assumed that Tracey and Blaise were a thing. They spent some time together after all."

Neville shook his head at me again. "Nah, I actually asked him about it and apparently they've had some fun with each other, but neither was ever really interested in a relationship. It served as a good cover to keep some of their housemates away as well."

"That all makes sense. There aren't many appealing options, for our year, in Slytherin."

After a few moments of silence I added. "When did the girls say they were coming back?"

"I think Tracey said tomorrow evening she would be back. Went home to spend some time with her dad because she's been 'at Daphne's' all week. Daphne, well I feel like you should know when your girlfriend is coming back."

Now it was my turn to look sheepish. "Honestly I probably should, but I've been distracted with the spells I've been learning and having some trouble keeping up with everything going on. I imagine she'll be back tonight probably. She was only taking Alexa to visit with her family."

"Had any more run ins with her father since you had your chat with him?"

"Nope I haven't really seen him since, but I'm guessing he did what I told him he had to. Daphne seemed much happier after the last time she talked with him. I didn't pry though because I don't need her being suspicious."

I stood up and stretched out. It felt like it had been hours that I had been sitting in the same place. A quick flick of my wrist and a tempus spell confirmed my thoughts. Four hours had already passed by since Neville and I had sat down and started working. My eyes followed the movement across the room as Neville stood up too.

"So have you picked someone out yet for you and Tracey to do what it is you're going to do?"

I wasn't entirely caught off guard by the topic change. I'd sensed there had been something Neville wanted to ask me earlier but had just been working up to and I imagine this was it. I ran a hand through my hair.

"I have. I still have to talk it over with Tracey, but he's a moderately low level Death Eater. He won't have his guard up, and I've been able to find out he frequents a specific pub down Knockturn Alley to relax. With any luck he'll be plastered or tipsy by the time we get there. It'll be a simple snatch and grab with a portkey that Sirius is making for us."

He nodded slightly. "Just be careful mate, both of you. Just because it's supposed to be simple doesn't mean it will be."

"We will be." I reassured him. However I also was trying to calm the little case of nerves I had. I sat back down and started reading again. In a few days I knew I would have to put everything to use.

Four Days Later

I hugged Daphne tight. I didn't want to worry her since I fully planned on being back later, but I didn't want to leave without reassuring my family. I had already kissed Alexa, so as I stepped back I turned and looked at Tracey. I nodded at her and we walked out into the hallway. We headed down the hallway towards Sirius's room.

Two days ago I had received word from the bank that a property had been secured. That very same day Sirius let me know he felt confident enough with his ability to create the portkey. I'd paid the goblins to set up the fidelius wards and had already keyed both Tracey and my godfather in. It was all set now and today was the day.

I walked into Sirius's room and noticed he was standing near the floo. "Alright Sirius we're ready to go."

His eyes fell on me and I felt a little unnerved as he took me in. "Alright pup. I'm not going to waste my breath with some long winded attempt at talking you down. Just be careful and keep your head on a swivel. Same applies to you Tracey. Here's the portkey." He produced a two foot section of rope which I accepted and tucked into my robes.

"This is perfect. Long enough for both of us to grab an end of and force Jugson to touch. How do we activate it."

"Simple it's just going to need the activation word. I wrote it down for you." I took the slip and read the word in my head. Paws. I smirked a little before passing the paper to Tracey.

"Creative Padfoot. Alright, we'll see you at the shack then. Ready Trace?"

I received a nod of the head and soon enough with the hoods of our summer robes up we were stepping into the sparkling emerald flames.

I emerged first with Tracey following quickly after. If all went well we wouldn't even have to cast spells while we were out. We stepped out the back entrance of the pub and into the Alley. It was a typical July day in London. Very hot, but thankfully our summer robes had cooling charms built into them, so we weren't really effected. They also had an added obscuring charm over the face of the hood so we wouldn't be easily identified. Soon enough we were at the entrance of Knockturn Alley.

We paused and I looked at her. One small head nod and we continued forward. I made sure to stay far away from the edges of the path leading into the alley. It was a well-known thing, Sirius had told me, that the beggars were on the fringe parts of the alley and if you got close enough they would grab at your pockets. I made a note that Tracey took to following my lead and walked very closely to me. Her shoulder brushed mine on occasion with how close she was walking.

I reached out and squeezed her hand quickly as reassurance. Neither of us turned to look at each other, but I could imagine she felt better because it helped my nerves too to remind myself I had someone here with me.

I didn't actually know where the pub was. I just knew it was here in the alley thanks to Draco. It had been a long time since I had really been in the alley. Even then my only experience was accidentally winding up in Borgin and Burkes'. So I was taking my time to really take in what was happening around me and the different shops we were passing. For an alley that had such a bad reputation I noticed there wasn't anything that really jumped out at me as dark, but then again my view on the world had definitely changed. Perhaps me from the years past would have been disgusted by the beggars and hags. Or perhaps I would have been weary of shops with enchanted windows to hide their interior and only crudely placed wooden placards to display the name. Now though I just found myself intrigued and if I had been here under different circumstances I might have taken a chance to investigate a few.

I refocused myself on the task at hand though and continued our search. We kept walking for another five minutes or so, but eventually there was a split in the alley. It was admittedly much longer than I had anticipated.

"So which way do you want to try? Left or right?"

I watched as Tracey peered down each way. "I think I can see a small crowd huddled up a head down the left. That might be the pub if they're just getting some air."

"Alright then, left it is."

So I once again took the lead and started walking in direction of the crowd.

As we got closer I could hear them talking, but as I approached the talking faded to nothing and the eyes of the small crowd fell on us. I paid them no mind as I looked at the plaque next to the door. A small smile spread across my face, hidden behind the obscurity charm, as I read the name. The Broken Broomstick. Still without paying any mind to the few figures gathered next to the door I walked to the door and pushed it open. I was doing my best to blend in and stopping outside to consider going in would have immediately made us look like outsiders.

The inside was not what I had imagined. It was loud, but not overly so. The air was filled with a steady hum of conversations. The air was potent with the smells one would expect in a bar, namely alcohol, sweat, and promiscuity. With Tracey next to me I started to push my way through the modest crowd towards an empty table to the right. We were able to reach the table fairly simply. There were no stools or chairs so we simply stood.

Two worn pieces of parchment appeared on the tabletop in front of us. I picked it up and loosely held it while my eyes scanned the list of drinks. I assumed this was similar to how the food menus at the Yule Ball had worked and whispered at the menu for a firewhiskey.

Truthfully I had no plans on drinking it, but to walk into a pub and stand in a corner while not ordering anything would be a major warning sign. There were already still some lingering eyes on Tracey and myself, so we would need to do everything possible to blend in. Tracey followed suit and ordered a butterbeer. No sooner had we placed the drink menus back on the wooden table top before they were replaced with our orders. Along with the drinks came a small black dish which read "tab" on it. I placed two galleons in the dish for payment and sipped my whiskey.

I noticed this act immediately had the people who were casually watching relax and turn away, back to their own private handlings and conversations. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed Tracey continue to follow my lead and take a small swig from her frosted mug.

I turned to her, I didn't want to have my back exposed too much, but also wanted to be seen as making conversation. "Alright we're in the clear for now. It's pretty loud so we don't have to worry about being overheard I think. Are you sure you're up for this? If you want to back..."

Tracey cut me off though and didn't let me finish. "Things will be fine. I simply walk up to him, flirt with him a bit to lower his guard, and then you come up and act like we're together. Cause a little commotion where he gets close and bam we'll hit him with the rope."

I was really hoping things would be that simple, and maybe they would. It was a simple plan after all. I picked up my whiskey again and strted to slowly scan the room for signs of Jugson. It didn't take long to locate him and thankfully he was fairly close. The only issue I saw was that he wasn't alone and had at least three others with him at the table.

The real issue I was having with the other people though was that one was practically latched onto Jugson's side and would likely cause a scene if Tracey attempted to flirt with him

Tracey must have noticed too because she turned to me at the same time. "Well scratch that. We're going to need a new idea or I'm going to have to pull some hair."

Even with the obscuring charm in place I swear I can see the predatory smile on her face when she says it. "Yeah so new plan; we wait until he gets up to leave the booth and we make a quick grab on him. No talking with him or anything we just run into him and then we're off."

I watched as she took another sip and thought about it. "A little more risky, we could accidentally bump someone and take an extra person, but it does seem like the best option we have. Alright lets hope we gets up soon."

It turns out though Jugson had no plans on going anywhere anytime soon. It felt like hours before he finally disengaged himself from the girl who was on his side. In that time though people had come and gone from the table all with their hoods up and charms in place. Conversations were low and shot, but I figured this was all recruiting speeches he was giving.

He made a motion for the girl next to him to get up and she did. He walked past her out of the booth as she sat back down and started across the bar. I subtely nudged Tracey who was already aware. I pushed two more galleons into the tab dish to cover the second round of drinks we'd ordered and we were up and moving.

The crowd which had been sparse earlier was now quite full, so I had to keep an eye on Jugson to make sure I didn't lose him. He seemed to be making a line towards the loo which would actually be a perfect spot to grab him from. I followed at a safe distance and made sure to not bump anyone as we passed through the crowd. Sure enough I saw as he pushed the door to loo open and went inside. I reached the door about 3 seconds after he did and after making sure Tracey was still with me I pushed the door open and the two of us entered.

Jugson was at one of the sinks I noticed. The sound of the door opening caused him to turn and look at us. A disgusting smile on his face as he took in the fact that Tracey was not a guy. "Don't mind me. You two can have your fun and I'll be out of here in a second, but if he doesn't satisfy you come find me."

The comment wasn't even directed at me and my skin was still crawling. I was glad we were starting with this filth and without a word I moved to him. I pulled the rope from my pocket and tossed one end to Tracey. She grabbed it and held firm.

We flanked Jugson with one on each side and he seemed too stunned by what was happening to move. I used my free hand that wasn't holding the rope to force his hand onto the middle. As soon as it made contact I spoke. "Paws."

A sickening twist behind the navel and my world was spinning. It wasn't long though and soon I felt my feet crash firmly into solid ground again. I dropped the rope immediately and snapped my wrist up with my wand at the ready. Jugson was still too disoriented to defend himself and my stunning spell blasted him in the gut as one collided with his back.

I looked over the now prone form of our target to see Sirius standing with his wand at the ready as we had discussed. The blood had rushed to my ears and I could feel it pounding as the adrenaline spiked from what we had just done. It was slowly calming though as I took deep breaths. Tracey I noticed seemed to be doing the same thing, she was hunched slightly looking like she was trying to catch her breath from the rush.

Sirius was moving towards us quickly. "Let's not mess around out here. I'll levitate him inside the cabin. The whole surrounding area is supposed to be under the fidelius but I'll feel safer once we're all inside. Harry you are secret keeper so you'll need to whisper the location to him. It'll work even if he is passed out, but otherwise the magic could go volatile if we try and bring someone on the property without divulging thesecret."

I did as Sirius told me to and soon enough the three of us were inside. The cabin was very simple and served only one purpose. I had the goblins model it after an interrogation room on a crime show uncle Vernon had watched. I'd seen it just briefly once. Two rooms was all we needed; one was for the prisoner, in this case Jugson, and the other was behind a one way wall. People could look in but Jugson would not be able to see out.

In the center of the interrogation room was one chair with magic suppressing restraints. It would do no good if someone were able to perform the barest of wandless magic to try and escape, so I paid extra for the goblins to include those while renovating the property.

I helped Sirius get Jugson into the chair while Tracey watched on. We had agreed that this first one I would handle and the next would be hers. Once he was firmly in place in the chair and locked in Sirius and Tracey moved to the observation room. I kept my hood in place for now. The dramatic effect of not knowing who had taken him would be greater. I'm sure he will immediately declare the Voldemort will seek retribution, but that doesn't bother me.

"Ennervate." The gold spell leaves my wand and connects with his body. All at once he snaps too trying to fight the restraints. The panics is evident in his eyes, but upon seeing me in front of him it is replaced by rage.

"How dare you! Do you know who I am? Who I work for? The dark lord will kill you and your whole family for this."

It was sad how predicatable the death eaters were. "Silence Jugson. Voldemor is no worry of mine. He would already have come for me." I lowered my hood now so he could see who he was dealing with.

I watched as shock, recognition, fear, and then calmness played across his face. I didn't understand the last, why would he be so calm?

"Potter. Brave of you to venture into the alley and come after me. It's all for nothing though, I won't tell you anything and quicker than you can have me in Azkaban the dark lord will have me out."

I understood now. He thought I was going to put him into prison. I pulled the vial of truth serum from my pocket and displayed it for him to see. "That's all well and good, but you won't have a choice in telling me what I want to know. As to Azkaban, well I guess we shall see if you make it there or not."

I walked around behind him and grabbed a fistful of hair and yanked back. It had the reaction I needed as he was unable to keep his mouth closed so I administered the three drops of the serum.

"Are you a loyal death eater?" I knew the answer, but it didn't hurt to verify.

"Yes." I could see the resentment in his eyes but the answer came out easily anyway.

"Have you been actively recruiting new members to join the cause?"

"Yes." I pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill that was enchanted.

"What are the names of the people you have recruited so far?"

If looks could kill I would have been long dead. Five names Jugson gave me and the quill sribbled them all onto the parchment. I looked the list over, but no one of note stood out so I tucked it away for future use.

"Have you in the past commited crimes for the dark lord?"

"Yes." I wasn't surprised, this next question though would be the kicker and the deciding factor on how I dealt with him.

"What crimes have you committed?"

It distubred me that all the anger seemed to be replaced by joy and longing as he recounted for me each and every crime he commited. He had done it all - murder, torture, even sexual assault. Nothing had been off the board for this man and I was repulsed to be in the same room as him.

I once more produced the quill and parchment. "What are the names of known death eaters you associate with?"

Once more I watched as the anger came back and the quill went to work.

"Thank you for all this useful information Jugson. Really you have been such a help." I couldn't resist mocking him a bit. I don't know where it came from but this man in front of me had destroyed lives and I found I couldn't wait to end his.

He spit at me. "It won't mean anything. So you have some names - as soon as I'm free of that prison I'll tell the dark lord exactly what happened and he'll come for you."

I laughed. "You're going to tell the dark lord that an underaged wizard kidnapped you and forced you to spill names and secrets? Voldemort will kill you before you finish your excuses, but luckily for you I don't plan on letting you make it that far."

With one look back at the wall I knew Sirius and Tracey were watching through I hardened my resolve and turned to Jugson who seemed to catch on to what I meant.

"Oh really Potter? What are you going to do? Kill me? That's a laugh - the golden savior committing mur..."

I sliced my wand and let the cutting charm do it's job. The line was thick, right across the next and the shock was still registering on his face as if he couldn't believe what had happened. I don't know what I was expecting, but I found I couldn't move as the cut opened and a spray of blood shot forward and splattered the wall and me.

I kept my wand pointed at him until the last bubbling gasp of breath. I didn't feel differently and that worried me. It had been so easy - almost too easy. Then it hit me all at once. I felt like Dudley had wound up and nailed me in the gut as my breath was knocked from my body. There was a whooshing in my ears and I felt nauseous. I felt my knees hit the ground as I collapsed and curled over to retch. The sound of the door opening from the other room and hurried footsteps was barely audible.

I didn't pass out, but I wish I had. Tracey was supporting my weight and keeping me from pitching forward into the mix of fluids on the ground. I could make out the shape of Sirius blocking my view of Jugson. He reached down and grabbed me under the arms to hoist me up and helped me walk out of the room. Once in the viewing room he dropped me into a chair and there was a glass of water in my hand. I greedily drank it trying to wash the taste of vomit from my mouth. I don't know how long I sat there, but I know it was a while. I wasn't even thinking really - I was just being. I had shut myself into my mind and was processing. I knew Jugson had to die; he told me himself he would have been free in days if he had gone to Azkaban. Also what I had told him was true. Voldemort would have tortured and killed him so this was a much better way to go from that viewpoint. It was the right thing. I had done the right thing.

I finally brought myself out of my own mind only to be surprised by the fact that I was no longer in the cabin, but laying in my bed in Grimmauld. My head was currently in Daphne's lap as she ran her hands through my hair. I made to move but she spoke first.

"Don't Harry. Rest now and in the morning we can talk or not. It's up to you, but what's done is done and now you need to rest. You are safe, Tracey is safe, Sirius is safe. Everyone is safe so sleep. I love you."

"I love you too." Was all I said before taking her advice and collapsing into the darkness.