Hope and Fear

Part 3. Assassin

***

The sun was shining, the sky was clear, and Ginny Weasley felt free again. She, Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked down the lane that led to Hogsmeade, laughing and talking about how nice it was that they were all together and away from school for a change.

They entered the Three Broomsticks, and were greeted by Madam Rosmerta. "Oh, there you are. I was afraid I wouldn't see you until after exams," she said showing them in. "What made you decide to come up for air?" Ron and Hermione blushed at this last statement.

"We've earned a treat, and besides it's not like I plan on working for a living once I leave school anyway," Ron said, as they sat at one of the tables.

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Hermione shot back, taking a menu from Madam Rosmerta.

"I'll get by on my good looks and animal magnetism, of course." Ron smoothed his hair.

"Yeah, I hear that Professor McGonagall is looking for a new boy toy, maybe you should apply there," Ginny said, with a sly look at him across the table.

"I was going to try for that job," Harry said in a fake disappointed voice.

"Would you like me to bring you some butter beer while you decide?" Madam Rosmerta said, shaking with laughter.

"Yes," they all said at once.

"Two for me," Ron added.

"Let me get your butter beer and warm up the grill," and Madam Rosmerta headed toward the bar.

***

Pansy lay in the half light of the hotel room and once again tried to decide who it was she hated so much. She did this a lot because as long as she could remember an ocean of hate had been swelling and ebbing inside of her. Sometimes it kept her from eating and often, like now, it wouldn't let her sleep. But it was elusive and she could never quite get a grasp on it.

It wasn't Potter and his people, she really didn't feel anything for them. They were like pieces on a chess board, nothing more than opponents. She didn't hate the muggles or the mudbloods either, although she knew she was supposed to. They just weren't important to her.

She thought of her parents, but it wasn't them. While she had been angry with them for almost seven years, and it had been a long time since she could say she loved them, she didn't hate them. There was no way they could have stopped Macnair from doing what he did to her just before she left for her first year at Hogwarts.

Macnair! Now that was one she did hate. He had been her family's contact with the Deatheaters and sort of an old friend. At least she thought he was a friend until the night he ordered her parents out of their own house and came up to her room while she was bathing. Still, he wasn't the one she hated the most, and besides there was no use wasting hate on the dead.

She smiled and looked down at the sleeping form next to her. Draco, her dark prince. He knew all about what had happened and had given Macnair's death to her as a present the first time she slept with him. He had simply let the right word slip to the right person and Macnair found himself facing an army of Aurors. If she had to give a name to her feelings for him it might be love. She could never hate him; well, maybe just a little. Just enough to keep the sex good.

"Speaking of good sex," she thought and retrieved a healing potion she had stashed in the night table. It wouldn't do to go back to school covered with cuts and bruises, especially in the embarrassing places he left them. As she downed the potion she wondered once again who it was she hated so much.

Three soft knocks came from behind her. Before Pansy could look up, Draco had his wand pointed at the door. "Yes," he said in a clear emotionless voice that showed he was instantly awake.

"Potter, Granger, and the Weasleys just showed up at The Three Broomsticks," Crabbe's voice whispered.

Draco looked at her and smiled. "Wait downstairs and stay out of sight," Draco responded, getting out of bed and going over to the fireplace.

Pansy watched as he took a handful of dust from a container and threw it into the fireplace. Unabashed, he stood naked the firelight as it turned green and flared up. Emerald light and dark shadow played across his pale skin, throwing every line and curve of his muscular body into sharp relief.

Draco stood tall as he spoke. "Father, Potter has finally left the castle."

"Excellent," the voice of Lucius Malfoy responded. "You know what to do?"

"Yes, Father!" Draco tensed his muscles in impatience. Pansy inhaled sharply and realized that she hadn't been breathing.

"Report to me when our man is done," Lucius said, and the fire went out.

"Let's get ready," Draco whispered to her as he collected his clothes.

"Do you think the assassin will fail?" Pansy asked as she transfigured her torn dress into a more suitable outfit.

"I certainly hope so," Draco answered with a satisfied smile. "Potter is mine."

***

Harry sat happily enjoying his lunch while watching Ron put on a show. Ron had been particularly jovial since they had left the castle. "He's probably trying to cheer Ginny up," Harry thought "He seems to be doing a good job." Ron continued the story of how they met Aragog in their second year, a story he never thought Ron would find funny. Ginny buried her face in Harry's shoulder convulsing with laughter as he described his reaction to a hundred giant spiders coming at them. Harry was stroking her hair when something out the window caught his eye.

One of the school house-elves was walking with three disreputable looking goblins. At first glance there didn't seem to be anything wrong with the scene, except that the lead goblin kept looking around in a shifty way, and the house-elf kept wringing his tea towel as if he were nervous.

The goblins led the house-elf to a run down abandoned home with a for sale sign on it. The lead goblin opened the door with a key, let the house-elf in, and locked it again. The three goblins turned and went back down the street in the direction they came.

Harry looked out the window at the deserted house with its boarded up windows while Ron continued his story. No one else on the street seemed to have given it a second glance. It wasn't that unusual a scene but the house-elf didn't look happy to go in there.

Should he mention it to the others? Ginny was just cheering up and heaven knows he didn't want to get Hermione started on the subject of house-elves.

"I'll be back in a second," Harry said getting up. "Ron, don't eat my sandwich."

"Who, me?" Ron responded with mock indignation.

Harry headed for the loo, but slipped out the back door as soon as he was out of sight. He rounded the building and headed for the deserted house.

***

Pansy waited in a deserted alley, feeling a little nervous in spite of herself. Suddenly, three goblins came around the corner and trotted up to her. She pulled out her wand waved it over them and said "Gobless Finite." In an instant of blurred motion the three goblins became Draco, Crabbe and Goyle.

"Did it go all right?" Pansy asked, surprised with herself. She was genuinely worried for Draco.

"Yes, fine. Potter should be on his way to the house by now." Draco responded, but there was something thoughtful in his eyes.

"But something is wrong?" Pansy persisted.

"There is something about this plan that doesn't make sense to me," Draco looked back toward the house and shook his head. "It doesn't matter now, it's out of our hands. Come on, let's get back to the room. We shouldn't be seen on the street."

***

Harry walked up to the deserted house and knocked. "Hello," he called, and tried the door. It was locked. He looked around, pulled out his wand, and whispered, "Alohomora." The door opened with a soft click.

The inside of the house was dark with thin lines of sunlight slipping through the cracks of boarded up windows. "It's all right, I just want to talk," he said, stepping over the threshold. As soon as Harry was inside, the door slammed shut. A bright circle of light burst out from the doorknob, then quickly spread across the interior surface of the whole room. He grabbed the door knob and pushed on the door, but it wouldn't turn and the door tingled with magical energy. A spell had sealed the room and there was no way out.

"No, Potter, I am afraid that it isn't all right." A voice Harry recognized came from behind him. He turned to see a young man standing there holding a wand on him.

"Marcus Flint," Harry said, keeping all emotion out of his voice.

Flint made a motion with his wand indicating to Harry to drop his. It rattled when it hit the wooden floor. "A great disguise wasn't it?" He tossed a tea towel to the floor with his free hand. "We knew you couldn't resist helping a house-elf," Flint gloated, but Harry wasn't listening. He was scanning the room with his eyes looking for something that could help him. Like most wizards, Flint considered the fight over once Harry lost his wand. Harry had been in too many duels to let a little thing like being wandless stop him. After a second of looking, he found what he needed. A loose support beam for the roof was just over Harry's head, and ran the length of the room to a point over Flint's head. It didn't look like it would take very much to bring it crashing down. Even though he hadn't been told to, Harry raised his hands until the beam was just above them.

Flint smiled at the sight, and uttered the phrase that Harry was getting very sick of hearing. "So much for the famous Harry Potter."

***

Ginny watched Ron gleefully finish Harry's sandwich. She had expected this and so had saved half of her own for Harry. Sick of looking at Ron's smug expression, Ginny glanced out the window, and was surprised to see Harry outside. "Blast him, going off alone," she thought as she saw him knock on the door.

"What is it?" Hermione asked when she and Ron saw the expression on Ginny's face. Ginny pointed out the window. Harry was opening the door of the house with his wand, and went inside.

The door slammed shut as soon as he went in. "Bloody hell!" Ron exclaimed, and the three of them leapt out of their chairs and sprinted to the door.

***

All Harry needed was a split second of distraction by Flint to make this an even fight again. "Better keep him talking," Harry thought weighing the odds. "What's the matter, Flint? Still mad you couldn't play quidditch for England?"

"What would you know about it?" Flint growled, losing his smile.

"I hear the London Wee Wizard Quidditch League is looking for a new coach, you should try there," Harry said in a calm voice.

"Shut up, Potter!" Flint snarled.

"Or maybe you could be a player." Harry smiled, watching Flint loose his focus.

Just then there came a pounding on the sealed door. "Harry!" Ginny's voice sounded.

Flint's eyes flew to the door and Harry seized the opportunity he had been waiting for. He leapt up, grabbed the beam and pulled down with all his weight. The beam cracked and fell, forcing Flint to jump out of the way. Harry dived on his wand and rolled behind a table for cover as a curse whizzed by his head.

Harry shot back with the Reductor Curse, but the enchanted wall Flint was hiding behind was too solid. He would have to find a way to get him out from behind cover, fortunately Flint's next move helped him there.

"Serpensortia," Flint cried, and a great black poisonous snake flew over the table toward Harry.

"Wingardium Leviosa," Harry shouted, and the snake hovered just above him. "He's using snakes against me? How thick can you get?" Harry thought.

After speaking a few well chosen words to the snake, he gently let it down, as another curse from Flint blasted away part of the table. Harry fired back with a few curses he didn't really think would work, but kept Flint off balance.

Just then he heard Flint cry out and blast a curse at the hissing snake. It was the break Harry was waiting for. Looking out from behind the table, he saw that while still mostly covered behind the wall, Flint's weight was all on one foot as he shot at the quickly moving serpent. That foot, while also covered, stood on just one floorboard. "Reducio," Harry said, aiming at the floorboard. It quickly shrank to the size of a stick. Flint fell backward into the open room. "Expelliarmus!" he yelled at the now exposed target. Flint's wand flew out of his hand as he was thrown back into the fireplace.

"Harry," Ginny cried from outside the house.

"It's all right Ginny," Harry yelled. He caught Flint's wand as it sailed through the air, and aimed his own wand at the prone figure.

Blood flowed from Flint's head and arm as he lay in the fireplace, a look of utter astonishment on his face. "It can't be," he was mumbling. "The dark lord swore he had given me the power to destroy you."

"Flint, believing anything Voldemort has to say was probably the biggest mistake you ever made," Harry said, putting his opponent's wand in his belt.

Most of the fight seemed to have gone out of Flint as he wrapped his arms around his body. "I feel strange," he whispered, in a voice Harry barely heard.

"Ron, Hermione, I have everything under control here, but the house is magically sealed," Harry yelled, his wand still pointing at Flint who was starting to perspire. "I think we are going to need some help getting the door open."

"I'll go up to the castle and find Professor Dumbledore," Hermione called.

"It hurts," Flint shrieked, suddenly twitching in the ashes.

"We'll get Madam Pomfrey to have a look at you, but I think that's the least...," Harry stopped in mid sentence when he saw Flint's eyes. They were glowing red like two burning coals.

"What's happening to me?" Flint cried, his skin beginning to smolder. The blood that dripped from his wounds was bursting into flame.

"Damn it, Marcus, what did you let him do to you?" Harry exclaimed, but the answer was becoming clear. "Ron, Ginny, get away from the house!" He tried to disapparate but nothing happened. "Blast, they sealed it against that, too!" Harry muttered as he moved to the window trying to find a way out.

"Oh God, it burns," Flint moaned, his skin beginning to glow orange.

"Harry, no!" Ginny cried, pounding at the door.

"Ron, get her out of here!" Harry cried looking desperately around the room, his eyes fell on the discarded tea towel. He knew he had only seconds as he cast his spell. When he reached down to grab hold of the tea towel he looked at Flint and his heart sank into his stomach.

Hands and face burning now, Flint screamed, "Harry, please help me!"

***

Ginny fought with all her might as her brother pulled her away from the house. "Ron, let me go!"

"Ginny, no! We've got to.." Just then a blast blew them both off their feet. The wind was knocked out of Ginny as she and Ron landed in a heap. Debris fell all around them and they looked at the fire ball that had just been the house.

"Harry!" Ginny sobbed, breaking free of Ron's grip as he sank to the ground. Her tears shone in the firelight as she whispered, "No, please!"

"Ginny!" a voice came from behind them.

Ginny turned to see Harry covered in soot and throwing an old tea towel to the ground as he walked toward them. She ran up and collapsed into his arms sobbing uncontrollably. "It's all right, I created a Portkey. The walls weren't shielded against that," he said, stroking her hair. "Hermione taught it to me, but it took me a minute to remember how to cast the spell." Ginny couldn't have answered if she wanted to, so she just held onto him as tight as she could.

Ron was still kneeling on the ground with an ashen look on his face. He held his chest with one hand and pointed his finger at Harry with the other. "You know, you could get into a lot of trouble, making a Portkey without a permit," he panted.

"They can bill me," Harry said, guiding Ginny back to The Three Broomsticks.

***

Draco, Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle watched silently from their hotel room as Harry, Ginny, and Ron entered The Three Broomsticks. "It didn't work," Goyle grunted in a dejected tone. Pansy couldn't tell if that was an exclamation of disgust, or he was just catching on to that fact.

"No it didn't," Draco said thoughtfully. "And I'm not sure the Dark Lord expected it to." The others looked at him in surprise.

"What do you mean?" Crabbe asked bewildered.

"Flint couldn't beat Potter as a first year student. The idea that he could best him in a duel now is laughable." He considered for a moment. "And there was no way we could have sealed the house against Portkeys without very powerful magic. Magic that strong would have been noticed before we could have sprung our trap."

"Then why go to that much trouble?" Pansy asked, looking at Draco carefully.

Draco narrowed his eyes as he thought. "To get inside Potter's head maybe. To make him watch someone he once knew die horribly and be unable to save him." He smiled and looked at Pansy. "To wear him down and keep him off balance until someone like me is ready for him."

Pansy smiled back at him as she realized he must be right. She also knew that one day soon he would position himself to be the one to kill Harry Potter. Her dark prince was getting very clever indeed.

***

Ginny quietly sipped the tea Madam Rosmerta had brought her. She wasn't sure but she thought Harry might have had Madam Rosmerta slip a shot of Ogden's Old Firewhiskey into it the way her father sometimes did for her mother.

Lots of people were running around and shouting orders, mostly to do with putting out the fire. Harry answered any question he was asked, but never got up and kept his arm around Ginny, until Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape rushed in.

"Professor Dumbledore," Harry exclaimed, getting to his feet.

"Harry what has happened?" Dumbledore said, in a concerned voice.

"An assassin, sir. We had a duel in that old house. I won the fight, but Voldemort did something to him and sealed the house. I had to create a Portkey to get out. Then the assassin, um... blew up, taking the house with him. There was nothing I could do for him," Harry said in an even tone.

There was silence for a moment, until Professor McGonagall asked "Who was it?"

"Marcus Flint," he said, the first signs of emotion in his voice. Professor Dumbledore looked pained by this news.

"We will need to discuss this in more detail. Will you accompany me to my office?" Professor Dumbledore asked politely, even though it was more of an order.

"Of course, sir," Harry responded in almost military fashion.

"Miss Weasley," Dumbledore said, and Ginny jumped. "They will have started dinner by now. As I will be keeping Mr. Potter for quite a while, I was wondering if you could have the kitchen prepare a plate for him and bring it to your common room."

"Um, yes sir," Ginny said, glad to have something to do.

"You should hurry, Miss Weasley," Snape added, his eyes full of meaning. "It's later than you think."

***

Next: Part 4, Plans and Preparations

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