Draco: Phoenix Rising

Chapter Forty Two - The Elven Council

Once inside the dark office, they each lit a few lamps to dispel the perpetual gloom. Besides Snape's old chair, there were only two hardbacked wooden chairs before the desk. Lupin took Snape's seat with a sigh and commented, "I have the feeling I need to be sitting down for this."

Tonks perched on one corner of the desk and looked at some of the bizarre items Snape had left on his desk. Hermione marveled at the quantity of items Snape had left behind. When he'd left Hogwarts, he'd taken nothing but his wand. She wondered if any of his things held sentimental value. Or if Snape could even feel sentiment.

She sat down in one of the hard seats. Draco stood nearby, partially in shadow, likely uncomfortable as he usually was in the presence of others. Harry paced.

Without further delay, Hermione launched into an explanation of where they had gone--leaving out their side trip to Godric's Hollow. Lupin's lips thinned into an irritated line when he heard they had departed the school unannounced yet again, but he allowed her to finish without interruption. She felt quite guilty anyway, especially considering they planned to sneak out again at the earliest opportunity.

Draco willingly repeated his conversation with Snape and they postulated a bit on Snape's motives, without managing a satisfying explanation.

"Maybe Voldemort killed someone he cared about," Tonks suggested.

"I find it difficult to believe he could care enough about anyone to seek revenge for over a decade," Lupin said.

"He cares about Draco."

"He seems to care about him," Harry snapped. "With Snape, nothing can be taken at face value."

His pacing was beginning to annoy Hermione. "Harry, will you please sit down?" she asked. He stopped walking, but did not sit.

"Well, the first order of business is to send a warning to the Ministry. They will likely not heed it, particularly since we have only a vague caution, but at least we can keep our own Ministry officials on the alert. Unfortunately, there are only a few of them now."

"Jack and I can trade off shifts. Kingsley and Arthur, too."

"Try to spread as many rumors as you can to keep the sharper officials on their toes. If word gets out, some of them will pay attention. The rest of us will start combing the forest and try to locate some sign of Voldemort. I'll recruit Hagrid."

"And Grawp," Harry interjected. Lupin cleared his throat.

"And Grawp."

"Moody will leap at the chance for some action. I think we should start in the clearing where we found Draco--maybe we can figure out why he was taken there."

There was a long silence.

"Why does it disturb me that you three are not leaping to volunteer for one duty or another?" Lupin asked.

Hermione flushed.

"I'm rather tired," Draco said dryly.

"Would you let me help?" Harry asked bitterly.

"Probably not, but I think it is more likely that you are all up to something. Someone needs to invent a charm that will set off an alarm the instant any of you get too close to the outer wall."

"We'd just figure out how to disarm it," Draco replied.

Lupin stood up. "Yes, you probably would."

He and Tonks went out.

Draco was looking at the books lining the shelves.

"Remarkably similar to the ones Snape had at home," he commented. "Less deadly, however. At least he didn't willingly allow some of the nastier volumes to fall into student hands."

"Wouldn't you have been first in line?" Harry asked.

"As long as it would have given me a weapon to use against you? Most likely." Draco grinned. Harry shook his head wryly and tugged at his hair.

"Do you think there is anything useful in here?" Hermione asked.

"Like what?"

"Like a list entitled 'Places I Already Seached for Horcruxes,'" Draco suggested. Harry shot a mild Stinging Hex at him and Malfoy yelped and rubbed his arm. "Watch it, Potter."

"Don't you think he would have told you if he had such a thing?"

"Not necessarily. He's still a git. I think his need to destroy the Horcruxes wars with his need to make it difficult for me."

"He's probably just jealous of your blinding good looks," Harry commented and then made a gagging face.

"Potter's trying to hide the fact that he's in love with me," Draco said conspiratorially to Hermione. "You should see him grope me when we're alone."
A second Stinging Hex followed the first and Malfoy said, "Damn you!" But he grinned when he shot one at Harry, who leaped aside.

"Will you two stop acting like children?" Hermione snapped primly. "I'm sure the Order went through this place a dozen times, trying to find a clue as to why Snape killed Dumbledore."

"Do you think he'd write that down?" Draco asked ingeniously. Hermione stood up and glared at him.

"You don't want me to give you a Stinging Hex," she warned.

"Maybe I do," he said caressingly. She sighed in exasperation.

Draco was suddenly serious. "Is there any chance Voldemort has accessed the school? What if he found a weakness in the defenses?"

"We already checked," Harry said absently.

"You checked the entire school?"

"We sort of cheated," Hermione admitted, realizing Draco did not know about the Marauder's Map. "We should probably look again, Harry. Just to be safe."

"All right. We should also go say something to Mrs. Weasley, first." Harry pointed his wand at Malfoy. "Don't say it."

"Don't say what?"

"Whatever horrible, sarcastic comment you were about to make."

Draco clapped a hand to his chest. "You wound me, Potter."

"Let's go," Hermione said. "I don't know how much more of this I can take."

As they began to enter the Great Hall, Fred and George Weasley stormed out.

"Hermione, just who we were looking for," George said.

"Ron says you found Malfoy by some scrying method," Fred continued.

"We need to use it to find Percy."

"He's a bloody git."

"But he's still our brother."

"Do you have something that belongs to him?" Hermione asked.

"Of course."

"I think we have something that belongs to everyone," Fred mentioned.

"You never know when you might need it."

"Even me?" she asked indignantly.

"Well, not you," said George.

"We'd never nick anything of yours, Hermione."

"Definitely not."

She looked at them suspiciously, but it was impossible to be cross with them, even at their most maddening.

"The scrying?" Fred prodded. Hermione nodded and led them down the hall to Firenze. Harry and Draco followed.

The centaur seemed glad to see them--he likely got very bored hanging out by himself in a castle--all except Draco, who stayed back as though Firenze had some sort of contagious disease. The centaur still had the bowl and water was quickly fetched. When it came time to drop in the object, Hermione gasped.

"You took his Prefect's badge?" she snapped.

"He foolishly left it out in the open," Fred protested.

"We were just keeping it safe for him."

"Hanging on that bare wall, in that flimsy frame, beneath that delicate glass..."

"Why, anything could have happened to it!"

"Peace, children," Firenze ordered calmly.

Fred and George managed to not only stop chattering, but they were remarkably quiet long enough for the bowl to ice over and an image to appear.

"He's alive!" George cried. Percy was lying on the ground, looking dead but for a hand he had flung up as if to ward off something. A guttering candle lay on the ground nearby. His clothing was torn and dirty and his spectacles were missing. A nasty bruise darkened one cheek and his chin seemed to be marred with dried blood.

"Doesn't look too good," Fred commented.

"Where the hell is he?"

"Looks like a cave."

"Well, that narrows it down to about a hundred million places."

"Hermione? Any ideas?"

Firenze pulled the image back as far as possible, but only darkness was visible beyond the rocky area surrounding Percy. She shook her head.

"It could be anywhere."

They all sat in frustration for awhile, and then Firenze dispelled the image. Fred and George launched into a discussion with Firenze about creating portable scrying pools and Hermione walked back to join Draco.

"Do you think we should scry for your parents?"

His silver eyes went far away for a moment.

"I'd have to go home. I don't have anything that belongs to them."

"Lupin would kill us if we left again this soon."

"I don't think your centaur likes me, anyway."

"I think it's the other way around," she said dryly.

"Well, it is a--"

She clapped a hand over his lips and hissed, "Stop that!"

He grabbed her hand and held it in place while he touched a tongue to her fingertips. She shivered deliciously. He released her when Harry walked over.

"Let's go get that map," he said. "I should double-check the Pensieve memories, to make sure I didn't miss anything. We have to find those Horcruxes."

They were on the third floor landing when a sharp pop halted them. Dobby stood on the step above Harry. The house-elf goggled at Draco for a moment before narrowing his eyes in an angry glare. Hermione realized she hadn't seen Dobby since the rescue of Neville Longbottom.

"Dobby must speak to Harry Potter. In private," he murmured loudly, shooting suspicious glances at Malfoy.

"Um..." Harry said.

"We'll wait for you in the Trophy Room," Hermione said with a gesture at the nearby door. She grabbed Draco's hand and towed him into the room. Sconces sprang to light when they entered, dimly illuminating the glass cases that lined the walls.

"You just wanted to bring me in here to snog, didn't you?" Draco asked hopefully.

Hermione's pulse jumped at the thought. She grinned and looked at him sidelong, but sobered when her attention was snagged by the prominent case at the end of the hall. They walked forward to look at it soberly.

"The Tri-Wizard Cup," she murmured.

The plaque beneath the cup had a memorial inscription for Cedric Diggory.

"Is it still a Portkey?" Draco asked.

"No. Dumbledore fixed it." She sighed. "I hate looking at it. So many horrible memories. Let's go next door."

A connecting door led to the Armor Gallery, filled with sets of armor, weapons, shields, and other accoutrements of war. She didn't think she'd ever been in the room, before.

"Remind me to hurry here if the Death Eaters invade the school. Magic is fine, but a fine length of steel is a nice backup." Draco admired a thin rapier with an intricate, lace-like guard.

Hermione looked at a case containing a wicked looking morning star that bristled with sharp metal spikes.

"I can't imagine hitting someone with this," she said. Draco joined her.

"I don't know, I think Snake-Face would look better with three-inch spikes imbedded in the side of his head."

She chuckled. "Good point." She laughed again and tapped the glass. "Get it? Point?"

Draco groaned and grabbed her.

"That was so bad I see I shall have to shut you up."

He turned her to face him and kissed her. He pressed her against the glass case. That was a pleasant pursuit for a few minutes until she found herself drowning in sheer bliss. She broke away and ducked under his arm.

"Where are you going?" he asked when she hurried to put another glass case between them.

"I can't think when you do that," she said breathlessly.

"You don't have to think all the time, you know."

She watched as he peered through the case at her. Inside, a number of empty scabbards had been propped upright to resemble a teepee. They were all beautiful--leather or wood wrapped in gold filigree, silver gilt, or enameled metal.

"I wonder where the swords are," Draco commented casually as he sidled around the case. Hermione moved when he did, keeping the case between them. She didn't trust his casual interest in the scabbards.

"Probably broken in battle," she replied.

"What does the plaque say?" he asked seriously. She bent to read it and Draco bolted. She tried to run, realizing his trick, but it was too late. He caught her and slid his arm around her waist.

"You won't escape now," he whispered and kissed her again. She gave in thankfully and slid her hands into his hair. She would never tire of touching it. After awhile, she admitted he was right. She didn't have to think all the time.

* * * * *

Harry and Dobby walked down the hall to the empty Charms classroom, which reminded Harry that he needed to show Hermione and Draco the spells Fred and George had developed.

"Where have you been, Dobby?" Harry asked, somewhat guiltily realizing he hadn't even thought of the house-elf in days.

"That is what I have come to tell Harry Potter," Dobby said seriously. "Dobby caught Kreacher when he left the house of nasty-bad Malfoy wizards. Kreacher fled, but Dobby finally caught him. Dobby took Kreacher to the Elven Council."

Harry blinked at him.

"The what?"

"The Elven Council. They are not house-elves. In fact, they hold us in contempt for choosing to bond ourselves to a wizard household or family. Yet, we are bound by their laws."

Dobby was unusually serious. Harry struggled to absorb the concept of elves that were not like Dobby and the other subservient house-elves.

"Did Kreacher break a law? An elven law?"

Dobby nodded.

"He betrayed Sirius Black and broke the covenant made with the Black household by obeying Bellatrix Lestrange over you, the rightful master. However, there is some question as to the legitimacy of your claim, Harry Potter. The elves are investigating."

"What? You are saying I might not be the rightful owner of Grimmauld Place?"

Harry sat down hard in Flitwick's chair. As much as he hated that house, it was his only connection to Sirius.

"Not by wizarding law!" Dobby assured him. "Only by elven law. Kreacher may be forgiven for his crimes. In the meantime, they are keeping him. Elven law is extremely slow where house-elves are concerned. They don't care about us."

Dobby sounded both sad and bitter. Harry was relieved.

"That's fine! Kreacher was more of a nuisance than a help. This way, at least he won't be assisting the enemy."

Dobby nodded. "Very good, yes, Harry Potter." The house-elf's tone hadn't changed.

"What is it?" Harry asked in trepidation.

"Dobby did not want to go to the Elven Council. Dobby did it for Harry Potter--to punish Kreacher for his betrayal."

"But?" Harry asked resignedly, knowing whenever Dobby did something to help Harry Potter, it usually ended up a cocked-up catastrophe.

"Dobby also betrayed his master. When Dobby was bound to the Malfoys. Dobby betrayed them to help Harry Potter."

Harry gaped at him. "But, you punished yourself every time you did anything against the Malfoys! You nearly beat your own brains out against my bedpost!"

Dobby scoffed. "Small pain is not elven punishment. The Council is looking into my crimes, also. Only because I am now free was I allowed to return to Harry Potter. I must go back once the matter has been decided."

"And if they find you guilty? What will happen?"

"I could be stripped of my magic. Or sentenced to a century of enslavement." Dobby shuddered. "Forest elves are horrible masters. They would make my time with the Malfoys seem like a happy holiday."

Harry couldn't fathom such a thing. "When will you know?"

Dobby shrugged. "A long while. As I said, elven justice moves slowly. I just wanted Harry Potter to know."

"Well, if there is anything I can do... just tell me."

Dobby beamed. "Thank you, Harry Potter!" His eyes welled with tears that Harry quickly staved off with a question.

"We think Voldemort might be hanging around the forest or somewhere close by Hogwarts. Do you want to do some spying for the Order?"

Dobby nodded. "Yes, of course, Harry Potter."

"Well, go talk to Lupin, then. I'm sure he'll find somewhere for you to look."

Dobby disappeared.

Harry sighed. Elven Council. Another freakish complication he didn't need.