Companions of the White Warlock

Smoke Year VII - Companions of the White Warlock Chapter VIII Sunday, July 20, 1997 Midnight

"Nervous, pink meat?" Greyback snarled.

Draco Malfoy glared at his tormentor, but dared say nothing.

"Answer me, little boy," Greyback growled, getting in Draco's face. "Your protector won't be around to help you forever, you know."

"But he is here now," Snape said from behind. Greyback whirled around. Snape stared him down.

"Do not challenge me!" Greyback roared. His eight followers cringed slightly.

"I bow before just one being," Snape answered evenly. "So do you. Do not challenge me or mine, and I shall not challenge you."

Greyback spat on the ground and turned his back on Snape, and Snape decided he would not further challenge the pack leader. Snape signaled Draco and Pettigrew over. "Now, do you both know how to operate the new auto-portkeys?"

"Yes, sir," Draco said, just a bit doubtfully.

"He's never even seen a Muggle push-button device before," Pettigrew reminded Snape. He turned to Draco. "Let me take the lead. Don't act unless you see I'm in trouble. I'll go forward with the pack."

Draco looked at Snape. "One person should be forward," he suggested.

"Very well," Snape said. "I shall report to the Master as soon as you leave." He turned and walked a few feet away, wondering what Pettigrew was up to.

"Are you ready to go?" Pettigrew asked.

"So soon?" Draco asked in return.

"The moon will turn full at 2:24 at Hogwarts," Greyback snarled. "I have to have things in readiness before then."

"Fine," Pettigrew said. He turned to Draco and repeated the plan so there would be no misunderstandings. "You send us with your control, that's the blue button there. Greyback will trap and muzzle the unicorn before he transforms. Then on his signal, you transport in the rest of the Pack and yourself, that's the white button there. We let Greyback tether his Pack and himself with these special ropes."

"That's for sure," Greyback snarled.

"When he starts to transform, I'll cut the unicorn, unmuzzle it, then transform and move forward. Remember, DO NOT make any sudden moves. That scent retarding potion will protect you. As soon as they are transformed they will be attracted by the unicorn blood. When the last one is transformed, press this button."

"The orange one."

"You won't have light, so remember which button it is," Pettigrew reminded him. "It releases both the werewolves' tethers and the short tether on the unicorn. It will run the length of the tether and hopefully attract Hagrid then or later."

"Good," Draco spat. He had no love for the half-giant who had consistently favored Potter in his eyes.

"Remember, only hit the various recall buttons once they start to transform back or if there is significant opposition," Snape commanded.

Greyback snorted.

"You will start operations only some ten yards from the ward boundaries and less than thirty yards from Hagrid's cabin, and we know the Order is present at the castle in force," Snape reminded the alpha werewolf.

"Let's just get started, WE at least know what we're doing," Greyback said. His Pack growled in agreement.

"Yes, you two should be going," Snape said, addressing his remarks to Pettigrew.

It took Greyback over an hour to entice and trap the unicorn, a rather young and foolish one. There was just enough time to transport in the werewolves and for Greyback to tether them and then himself, a necessary step so that they did not attack the unicorn prematurely or run off towards the scent of people in the castle.

The nine werewolves were restless and in pain as the full moon approached. Only Greyback had the experience and will to fully keep his mind during the twenty minutes before the transformation started. Pettigrew cast a muting spell on them, which would be broken once they transformed.

The terrified unicorn was struggling against its bonds as it sensed the growing dark magic around him. Finally, the werewolves began to transform. Pettigrew slashed the flank of the unicorn with his silver knife, and its silver blood began to pour down its hindquarters.

When the werewolves were nearly all transformed, Pettigrew said to Draco, "Give me until they are fully transformed and all straining on their leashes," and he cut the muzzle and the first of three tethers holding the unicorn. He then transformed and disappeared into the long grass of the clearing. The unicorn bolted towards Hagrid's hut, making loud neighings of terror. It would have about twenty yards of rope before running out of the first tether.

Draco waited until the last werewolf was straining on its leash, and then pushed the release button.

A number of things happened at once. Draco was aware of none of them except for a bright flash that blinded him, and after that, he was unconscious.

At the same moment that Alastor Moody had stunned Draco, there was a series of explosions as John Russell cooly and accurately shot six of the werewolves, the silver alloy balls from his old pistol ripping through the backs of their skulls and exploding their brains. He had deadly aim, and it took less than ten seconds.

While Russell was shooting down six of the werewolves, including Greyback (the first one he shot), a similar form tore out of the woods and attacked the beta werewolf. Remus Lupin, his mind largely intact from long-exposure to the wolfbane potion, was asserting his own dominance.

Meanwhile, Hagrid had leapt out of his hiding place and cut the remaining tether on the unicorn, which continued on to Hagrid's cabin. Buckbeak and Firenze ran around the side of the cabin and took up guarding positions around the injured unicorn while Hagrid kicked one werewolf out of his way. He broke the other's neck, which would not kill the werewolf but it would keep him helpless until he transformed back at dawn. Moody bound the remaining werewolf with silver ropes before he could get up off of the ground where Hagrid's kick had landed him.

By this time, Remus had defeated his opponent, and Moody roped that one as well.

"Come on out, Pettigrew," Russell called out as he knelt next to Greyback's body. "You can't go back now!"

Pettigrew transformed back into himself. "Remember, we have a deal!" Pettigrew said, his arms raised. "I want the rewards for all these!"

"Right down to the ten Galleons for Malfoy," Russell agreed. "Still, we need to interrogate you, the boy, and the surviving werewolves."

"I know," Pettigrew agreed. He paused and asked, "Will Harry be meeting with me?"

"Perhaps after you've been debriefed," Russell said. Three additional Order members, who had also been both disillusioned and under scent removal potions, came forward to take the prisoners off. Pettigrew made certain that the three guards stayed between himself and the growling Moony.

"What do you intend to do with that one?" Moody asked Russell, pointing at Greyback's body.

Russell pulled out a large clasp knife. "I was thinking about taking a trophy for in front of my fireplace."

Moody shook his head. "Don't do it, lad. You don't want that on your conscience -- and besides, what happens if you nick yourself and some of that blood gets into you?"

Russell hesitated, and then pocketed the knife. "You're right on both counts," he agreed.

"Glad to hear it," Moody said.

"So are we," said a voice behind them. The two wizards turned, wands raised, but they did not fire off any hexes.

"I am Ronan," said the centaur stated haughtily. "Come." He ambled past the two surprised wizards and then past the dead werewolves over to where Hagrid, Firenze, Buckbeak, and the injured unicorn were. Hagrid moved slightly in front of Firenze.

"That is not necessary, Hagrid," Ronan said. He turned to Russell. "You may tell the White Warlock that we will live in peace with the people of Hogwarts and Hogsmeade as long as they do not trespass into our parts of the forest. These places will have notices, and any who trespass do so at their own risk. In all other parts of the forest, we shall treat each other with respect."

Ronan turned to Hagrid. "That applies to you as well, Hagrid. You have brought the spiders and the giant into the forest, however. We cannot fully trust you." He turned to Firenze. "The same also now applies to you. Not even Bane will attack you in the areas of common forest, unless you stray onto our truest territory. In return, you will formally instruct the foals at Hogwarts on how to recognize our territory, the penalties we will extract should they stray, and the greater penalties we will extract should they cause harm."

Firenze bowed in agreement.

"We shall heal this innocent one," Ronan said. At a gesture, the unicorn hobbled over to him. Ronan looked up. "Mars burns brightly, but not as brightly as we feared." He left, with the young unicorn following.

As Hagrid went over to move the werewolves' bodies, Moody muttered to Russell, "Thank Merlin for traitors and incompetents."

"I'm just thankful Harry agreed to stay near the castle," Russell retorted.

Moody grinned. "You don't know 'the Hope of the Wizarding World' as well as you might think. Potter! Take that damn cloak off!"

Harry sheepishly appeared nearby.

Russell glared, but said nothing. Harry, after all, was his leader.

"Sorry," Harry said with a shrug.

"Why don't you go nap?" Moody suggested.

"I'll have a preliminary report for you after lunch or dinner," Russell added.

Harry gave them a salute and went back to the castle.

That evening, after dinner but before dark, Harry, McGonagall, Hermione, Ron, Luna (who was taking notes), and Tonks met to hear what Russell, Moody, and Remus had to report.

"Shall we start off with the good news or the bad news?" Russell asked.

"Let's start of with the bad, then," Harry suggested.

"The attack here was not the only attack last night," Moody said. "There were two attacks on Muggle-born Gryffindor families. Bellatrix Lestrange led one of the attacks. I'm sorry to say that the Creevy brothers, their family, and the two Order members guarding them were all killed. They seemed to have taken at least three of the attackers out, but the Death Eaters came out ahead. The other attack was less of a disaster. It was led by that big Death Eater who was in on the Hogwarts attack. We still don't have a name for him, but he was heard speaking German to his followers. We're in contact with the central European ministries, who are checking to see if any of the neo-Grindelwald types are missing from their usual places."

Harry nodded and asked, "Who did they attack? Dean?"

"Exactly," Moody said. "Fortunately there were only three of them, and Finnigan was staying with Thomas. They fought to a draw when the auror who was stationed there attacked from the rear and the Death Eaters retreated. There was a fair amount of damage, but no one was really hurt."

Harry nodded again, saddened over the murder of the Creevys but glad that the news had not even been worse. "Prof?"

"First of all, let me remind everyone that except for the people in this room, the only people who know about the Horcruxes are Longbottom, Ginny Weasley, Snape, and Voldemort himself -- and Pettigrew." Everyone nodded. Hermione had fully brief McGonagall, and Russell had briefed Moody.

"First things first then, here," Russell handed Harry Gryffindor's knife, along with a chisel and a hammer. "The soul fragment is concentrated in the handle."

Harry smashed the handle with the hammer and chisel. In moments, the soul fragment had disappeared.

"Pettigrew didn't have much to do for twelve years except be a rat and to think," Russell said. "He figured out the main outline of what had happened and what Voldemort had done. He of course didn't, and doesn't, know how many Horcruxes were made. He does say, and it seems to be the truth as he knows it, that Voldemort plans on making one more, when he murders Harry."

"So Voldemort didn't know this Horcrux was made?" Harry asked, pointing at the broken knife.

"Apparently not," Russell agreed. "He attributes his change of appearance from before his first bodies' death and what it is now with having been 'purified' by the rebirthing ceremony."

"Is it possible that he would be destroyed if he spilt himself again?" Hermione asked. "I mean, that would seem to be one more split than he had planned."

"I don't know," Russell admitted. "I am making progress at setting up a meeting with someone who is supposed to know if anyone does, but nothing has been finalized yet."

"How come the Dark Lord didn't know that was a Horcrux?" Ron asked.

"If he had ever handled it once it was made, he might have," Russell explained. "He didn't, and he had no reason to believe that it had been made into one. Since the sheath had been lost, he couldn't use it in a future Horcrux."

"Did Pettigrew know anything about the remaining two?" McGonagall asked.

"He doesn't know anything about Hufflepuff's cup," Russell said. "However, the reason why Voldemort retreated to Albania when he had been disembodied is because Slytherin had set up a refuge there. He found the location mentioned in the Chamber of Secrets. He had already placed Ravenclaw's quizzing glass in the Albanian refuge some years before. He had his snake swallow it years ago, which has been mutating the snake ever since."

"So we really will have to kill Nagini to destroy that Horcrux," Harry stated.

"Exactly," Russell agreed. "I will be sifting through Pettigrew's and the others' minds for a few days yet. As of this moment, the most important things I have discovered are Voldemort's current hideaway and Snape's refuge."

He had everyone's attention except Harry's, since Russell had immediately informed him.

"I told Harry, and with his permission I have already set a chain of events into motion. Voldemort's location is a remote abandoned quarry in Cornwall. There isn't even a village within eight miles. Even though there are various distraction spells around it, that will not confuse electronics."

"But wouldn't any wards Voldemort have set up disrupt electronics, even if the distraction spells wouldn't?" Hermione asked.

"That is a bare possibility with these wards, but that really won't matter. The Muggles are launching some small missiles into the quarry even as we speak. The attack probably won't be destructive enough to take out Voldemort's headquarters inside a small shaft near a side of the quarry, but it will take out the entire camp outside that shaft, and give those inside quite a scare. There should be some Death Eaters, some werewolves, six giants, and perhaps a dozen trolls inside the quarry."

"That should make the Muggles happy," Moody said.

"Why?" Hermione asked before anyone else could.

"It turns out that a very tiny segment of the Muggle governments, segments of the intelligence groups, know about us, and know about what's happening," Russell explained. "They and their governments have felt frustrated about not being able to easily strike back. This should make them feel that, with our help, they can partially defend themselves."

"What about Snape?" Ron asked.

"A joint force of the aurors and the Order as raiding his house now as well," Tonks said. "If Snape is there, good. If he isn't, he knows we're thinking about him."

"By the way, Pettigrew asked again if you would meet with him," Russell told Harry.

"Did you tell him we know he killed my father?" Harry demanded.

"No," Russell said.

"I will," Remus growled. "I won't hurt him, but I have some things to say to him."

"Fine," Harry said, "because I don't want to talk to him."

"How's the Ferret?" Ron asked.

Russell shrugged. "He's confused, angry, arrogant, and whiney."

"So, he's pretty much himself," Ron said.

"Exactly."

"Did he have any information?" Hermione asked.

"He confirmed some of Pettigrew's info and of course we already knew most of what he did last year but he confirmed that as well, but nothing new of any importance," Russell said.

"So dump him with the aurors," Harry said with contempt.

"How about the surviving werewolves?" McGonagall asked.

"Much the same," Russell said. "Lots of supporting information, and lots of information of the attacks."

"You seem dissatisfied, John," McGonagall pointed out.

"I am," Russell admitted. "None of them, not even Pettigrew, knows much about the dementors."

"That mist seems to have disappeared since late June," Hermione pointed out.

"That means it contracted into new dementors," Russell said. "That is NOT a good thing."

"I was wondering if I could ask about one of the werewolves," Remus asked tentatively.

"Let me guess, Jason Smith?" Russell asked.

"Exactly."

"Why him?" Harry asked. "Who is he?"

"You saw him before," Remus told him. "He was the newly-bitten werewolf who was at St. Mungo's when Arthur was there."

"And was he already Dark or did he turn that quickly?" Ron asked.

"He lost his job, his family, and his friends in less than six weeks," Remus pointed out. "He was literally starving when Greyback approached him a year ago June." He turned to Russell. "Has he killed?"

"Apparently not," Russell said. "The other two have, but Greyback didn't think much of him as a person or a werewolf. This was his first real mission. Before that, he was left back as a sentinel."

"No offense, Remus, but I didn't think werewolves could act like that without being on the wolfbane potion," Hermione pointed out.

"Individually, they, we, can't," Remus agreed. "In a pack, however, they can be that organized." He turned to Russell and Harry. "Can you save him?"

"Save him?" Harry asked.

"Pettigrew goes to prison in South America and Malfoy joins his father," Russell said. "Werewolves are questioned and then destroyed."

"But this guy hasn't killed anyone!" Ron exclaimed. Hermione nodded her agreement, too shocked to say anything.

"The Ministry doesn't care," Tonks spat.

"They do now," Harry said firmly. He turned to Russell. "The other two werewolves are killers?"

"Long-term killers and biters," Russell confirmed.

"Then we turn them over to the Ministry, and we don't complain about their execution," Harry said. "I will tell the Minister and his people that they must cancel out most of the restrictions on other werewolves. . . ."

"Most?" Hermione and Tonks asked together.

"We still need to be registered and tracked," Remus said sadly.

"And, if they are going to keep killing killer werewolves, they're going to have to consider executing Death Eaters who are captured in the field," Harry added. There were some factions in the Ministry still fighting that idea. "No double standard. Plus, if they execute those two while letting up on the other restrictions, they won't be seen as being soft on werewolves while any other werewolves might be less interested in following Voldemort."

"I'll talk with the Minister," Russell agreed.

Hermione was obviously dissatisfied, but said nothing.

"When do you turn them over to the Ministry?" Moody asked.

"In a few more days," Russell said. "Pettigrew will likely be sent off to South America in early September."

"Luna?" Harry asked, dismissing Voldemort's minions from his mind, "how are you doing with the Headmaster's notes? Any clues?"

"Not for where we should look," she admitted. "The Headmaster spent a great deal of time tracking down Tom Riddle's past, of course. Most of the people close to him at Hogwarts are, or were when they were alive, Death Eaters, so he could get little information from them. Most of his recurring work was with the Muggles Riddle was raised with. He kept coming back to them."

"The orphanage," Harry said.

"Exactly. The Headmaster interviewed all the orphans and staff who were still alive that he could find, which is how he tracked down the locket location."

"How about the building itself?" Remus asked.

"That was destroyed in the spring of 1945. The Muggles list it as being destroyed by something called a V-2 rocket, but the Headmaster believed that Riddle destroyed it. A commercial building was built on the site in 1952, and all the businesses failed. The Headmaster wondered if the site might have been cursed."

"Is that building still there? Did the Headmaster search it?" Ron asked.

"The Headmaster traced the property," Luna said. "The building and site were bought in 1979 by a Muggle Trust located in the Bahamas, but which is actually owned by the Malfoy Trust. The building was torn down in the summer of 1980 and it is currently just paved over and used for the day parking of Muggle automobiles."

"Did Albus search it at all?" McGonagall asked.

Luna nodded. "He searched the building twice, once in 1976 and again when it was partially demolished. He also searched the property itself in 1987 and twice last year."

"Why so often?" Moody asked. "Did he suspect something was there?"

"No," Luna said, "he was just being thorough. Each time the Headmaster came across a new set of spells, he rechecked all the sites. He had looked for the cave three times before he located it, because it was hidden by unusual wards. I have a list of all the spell sets he used."

"So, no leads?" Hermione asked wistfully.

"Not on new locations, at least so far," Luna said. "We now know what the Horcruxes are, and that was over half of the Headmaster's notes. I've skimmed all of it anyway I could decode, just in case there were any clues."

"How far are you with them?" Russell asked.

"About eighty percent," Luna said. "Some of what he wrote was in codes as well as under enchantments, and I've had to break them. I have all but three finished. I have two more to decipher." Russell nodded approvingly, impressed. The group sat in silent thought for a few moments.

"Has the Headmaster said anything about the Chamber of Secrets in his notes?" Harry asked. "Did he search there at all?"

"Not really," Luna said. "He thought that the diary was the Horcrux linked to the Chamber, and that Riddle wouldn't have had any chance to infiltrate the Chamber after he left Hogwarts."

"That would depend on if there was anyway of getting into the Chamber from outside the school," Remus said.

"The Headmaster wrote that if that were true, Riddle should have tried to join his disembodied self with any Horcrux fragment," Luna said simply.

"Are you finished with that section?" Russell asked.

"Yes, but the Headmaster wasn't," Luna admitted. "His speculations were interrupted because he started on the trail of Slytherin's ring and he left it incomplete."

"The Headmaster was the world's leading alchemist authority," Russell admitted. "Still, I would have thought that Voldemort would have had a difficult time restoring his body with the Philosopher's Stone and just his last soul fragment."

"The Headmaster's notes seem to refer to some other notebooks he needed to refer back to," Luna said. "Could there be some other notebooks where he might have information about the Philosopher's Stone?"

"Not here," McGonagall said. "I shall ask Aberforth."

Remus turned to Harry. "I think we ought to search the Chamber by early August. Even if there isn't a Horcrux there, there could still be a way into the Chamber from outside."

"Wouldn't Voldemort have used that way to get his Death Eaters and werewolves in for the attack, then?" Hermione asked.

"Maybe not," Harry said. "The Chamber is very important to him. He might not have wanted just anyone, even his followers, going through it."

"Especially Greyback and his werewolves," Remus agreed.

"So," Hermione said, "the wedding, Harry's birthday, the Chamber search, and then Ginny's birthday?"

"Plus we continue our training," Russell agreed, which made Moody grin.