Harry Potter and the Sacrifice of the Traitor

Harry Potter and the Sacrifice of the Traitor

Chapter Two

Harry waited impatiently throughout the last day before the Dursleys went away on their cruise, looking forward to being able to get to Mrs Figg's. He was very eager to find out just what had been planned for the rest of the holidays. When Hedwig returned that night from delivering his note to Hermione, he immediately sent her off again begging for proper news, and not just hints of what would happen. He was disappointed though - all he got was a brief note saying they were sorry but they couldn't say anything by owl post in case it got intercepted. Harry was a bit confused by this comment - surely the Ministry weren't still monitoring the post, now that they believed him and Dumbledore?

He still had to endure Dudley strutting around the place, delighted because they were all going on holiday and Harry would be stuck in Mrs Figg's horrible cabbage smelling house. Harry was sure that she would help him keep in touch with the wizarding world however, so he found it fairly easy to ignore Dudley's taunts. He did think it was prudent to stay in his room as much as possible, just in case. After all, last summer he had been blamed for injuring Dudley when he had in fact been trying to save him. In any case, the driving rain which continued steadily made it impossible to go out anywhere for long, so he spent most of the time lying on his bed re-reading the Quibbler or his Chudley Cannons book.

At long last Saturday morning arrived. Harry was delighted, not only because he would be getting away from the Dursleys, but also because they seemed to have decided that since he would be leaving soon, they needn't bother to feed him as much. His meals had taken a definite turn for the worse lately. After a quick and rather meagre breakfast of half a slice of burnt toast, he finished gathering all his belongings up and threw them all rather untidily into his trunk, then lugged it downstairs. He went into the lounge, and Dudley immediately rushed out and upstairs, slamming the door of his room. He obviously hadn't forgotten the Ton Tongue Toffees he had eaten the last time Harry had been picked up when he was around, and wasn't eager to see what else might happen to him. After a few minutes sitting in the lounge with his aunt and uncle glaring at him, the doorbell rang. Uncle Vernon shot Harry a nasty look, saying 'Go on then boy, make yourself useful for once and answer the door.'

Harry ran to the door and opened it. On the doorstep was Mrs Figg, and - to Harry's surprise - Remus Lupin. He looked quite tired; Harry supposed that there had been another full moon recently. However, his robes were less frayed than usual. Uncle Vernon, eager to get Harry out of his house as quickly as possible, was just behind Harry. He looked suspiciously at Lupin, who calmly said 'Good morning Mr Dursley, I hope you are well. I'm just helping Harry here with his trunk.'

Harry wasn't sure whether or not Uncle Vernon had recognised Lupin from when he was threatened by the Aurors at Kings Cross station at the start of the holidays. He thought it best not to linger, so he quickly said goodbye, and helped Lupin lift the trunk and Hedwig's cage. The door slammed shut behind them, and he followed the other two quickly down the street, before anything could happen to stop him getting away.

'Er, morning Mrs Figg,' he said to the old woman stomping along beside him. She smiled at him in return, which he found a bit alarming to see. He wasn't yet completely used to the thought that she was actually part of his world and liked him.

'Will I be staying with you for long?' he asked her.

'You'll find out soon enough, Harry,' she replied.

'Just be patient until we get back to the house, Harry' said Lupin, glancing around at him.

'Alright then, Professor, as long as you tell me what's going on then,' Harry said, finding himself smiling for the first time in what felt like months.

'Now Harry, you know I'm not a professor any more, you can just call me Remus,' said Lupin, smiling back at him. Hesitantly he added 'I know it's not the same as having ... Sirius back, but if I can ever help you, if you want to talk or anything ...'

'Yeah, ok,' said Harry quickly, definitely not wanting to start that sort of conversation. Lupin was nice of course, and the only one of the Marauders left to him, but he wasn't sure if he was ready to replace Sirius quite that easily. He couldn't deny that he needed and wanted someone older to talk to sometimes, but the hole left by Sirius' death was too new to think about it too much. He particularly didn't want to have this sort of conversation in the middle of Privet Drive.

Lupin and Mrs Figg chatted lightly as they walked along, but Harry was too keen to get to her house and find out where he was spending the rest of the holiday to join in. He was also finding his trunk increasingly heavy, although he suspected Lupin might have surreptitiously put a Lightening Charm on it, as it wasn't as bad as he'd expected. At last they turned into the right road and reached Mrs Figgs' house.

When they stepped inside, Harry had a brief moment to look around her kitchen, which was small and untidy, with several cats slinking furtively around. The smell of cabbages was as bad as ever, and he had to stifle the urge to sneeze violently. A kettle stood boiling, and the radio was playing a tune, but he didn't have time to listen and find out if it was a Muggle tune or whether Mrs Figg listened to the Wizarding Wireless Network. Then there was a thunder of feet on the stairs, and Hermione and Ron had hurtled into the room and were slapping him on the back, and in Hermione's case hugging him, clearly delighted to see him again. The cats yowled in surprise and shot out of the kitchen at once.

'Oh Harry, it's so good to see you again, you look much better now, have they been feeding you properly for once!' squealed Hermione excitedly.

'Hello mate, bet you can't guess where we're going for the holidays!' shouted Ron enthusiastically.

'Er, no, not really, if we're not going to The Burrow' said Harry, rubbing his elbow where Hermione's elbow had caught him in her excitement.

'Well, we're going to go and spend the rest of the holidays at my parents' house, all three of us!' said Hermione.

'I've never stayed in a Muggle house, I bet it'll be great fun and really weird,' said Ron, obviously thrilled at the thought of going somewhere without magic.

'It's going to be much better than the Dursleys, that's for sure!', said Harry, grinning widely now. 'But why couldn't you have told me by owl post, surely the Ministry aren't still spying on us? You were being nearly as secretive as last year, and it was driving me mad!'

'No, I don't think they are any more,' said Hermione, 'But it's better to be cautious, in case anyone finds out where you are.'

'I suppose so,' muttered Harry, not much liking this, which seemed suspiciously like the events of last summer when he was being followed everywhere without his knowledge. However, the conversation in the kitchen was rushing on without him, so he let the matter drop.

'Professor Lupin, how are we going to get there?' Hermione was asking. Lupin rolled his eyes slightly at the persistent 'professor' but answered her, 'Tomorrow morning Dumbledore has arranged a special Portkey to take you to the Grangers' house.'

'Isn't the use of Portkeys still restricted?' asked Harry, remembering how Fudge had been annoyed at Dumbledore making one at the Ministry of Magic.

'I bet they wouldn't deny Dumbledore anything now,' said Ron with a smirk.

'Actually, the restrictions have been eased quite a bit lately, and in any case Fudge hasn't been too well. I think the news of Voldemort's return has been a terrible shock to him,' said Lupin.

'I heard he was thinking of retiring early, Professor,' said Hermione eagerly.

'Please stop calling me Professor, Hermione - it makes me feel very old' said Lupin. He refused to be drawn further on the subject of Fudge, and they gave up and went into the cabbage-y smelling lounge to sit down.

They spent the rest of the day talking about the holidays; Hermione seemed to have spent most of it so far at the Burrow with the Weasleys. She was also very keen to talk about the upcoming O.W.L. results. Harry was trying not to think too much about this; he felt very nervous whenever he thought of it. Some of them he was sure he had done well in, though he wasn't sure if it would be good enough to become an Auror. On the other hand, some of his exams had definitely not gone too well, although the distraction of Professor McGonagall and Hagrid being attacked in one, and Voldemort sending him visions in another, should surely be some excuse. Ron didn't want to talk too much about it either. He also wanted to become an Auror, and Harry wasn't sure what else either of them would do if they didn't get the marks they needed.

Hermione seemed less sure what she wanted to do after school. She had borrowed several books from Percy about her N.E.W.T choices and career options, and insisted on going through them all in great depth. Ron didn't seem too pleased about this, and kept complaining loudly that he might as well be back at school already. However, Harry noticed he seemed happy enough to have Hermione sitting next to him on Mrs Figgs' old overstuffed sofa, leaning over him to point things out and explain various things in the books.

During the afternoon's chatter, Harry developed a feeling that Hermione seemed to be keeping a few secrets from them. Several times she started to say something and then stopped suddenly as if she didn't want to give anything away. Harry got the impression that it was a subject she was considering studying, but he wasn't sure what subject would require her to keep it a secret from them. He also saw her staring thoughtfully into space, apparently frowning hard at the cats in the room, or at a couple of small excited spaniels being walked past the windows, or at the birds in the tree outside. Whenever he asked her what she was thinking though, she just shrugged and changed the subject. Ron seemed to have noticed something was up as well, but neither of them could get her to say what she was thinking about.

On the whole though, Harry was just happy to be with his friends again - he tried again to find out what Voldemort had been doing lately, but they didn't seem to know much more about this than he did. Apparently Mrs Weasley had managed to find all the remaining Extendable Ears George and Fred had left them, so they hadn't been able to eavesdrop on any meetings. George and Fred themselves were living in Diagon Alley now, to be near the shop. Mrs Weasley wasn't too happy about this, but as they could afford the rent ('I wish I could' said Ron enviously) she couldn't do much about it. Harry grinned guiltily at the others, as they all knew that the twins' initial finances had been a present from Harry of his Triwizard winnings. Mrs Weasley was still unaware of this, and Harry rather hoped that she never found out. Still, at least she couldn't deny that they had found a profitable business.

While they talked on and on, catching up on all the news, Crookshanks was having the time of his life. Most of Mrs Figg's cats were quite old and wanted to rest, but Crookshanks was rather unfairly chasing them all around the house, clearly having never had so much fun with so many other cats. In the end Hermione had to shut him in his basket so that they could all get some peace from the other cats leaping all over the furniture to get away.

In the evening Mrs Figg made them some supper, pork chops followed by Harry's favourite, treacle tart and they ate hungrily, talking busily about what they would do at the Grangers' house. Hermione was eager to show them around the area, and meet her parents, and perhaps go to the cinema or something. Ron was desperate to use the 'fellytone' again and show Harry how much he had improved in using Muggle artefacts. Mr Weasley would be telephoning regularly to check that they were alright, and Harry was sure he was as excited about using Muggle machinery as Ron was. Harry was just looking forward to decent meals, a chance to stretch his legs instead of being shut in his room, and to be treated like a normal person, or at least as normal as possible. He was very pleased that he would be spending the rest of the holidays, including his birthday for once, with his friends.

After supper they all had a few boisterous games of Exploding Snap, and then sat around talking quietly again. It turned out that Lupin had been doing various jobs for Dumbledore. Most of these he refused to tell them anything about, but it seemed that they were providing him with some money. That explained why his robes were looking better, Harry thought. Ron and Hermione, who hadn't seen Lupin that summer, tried to get some information out of him about the Prophecy that had been smashed at the Ministry of Magic. Harry kept very quiet during this conversation - he noticed Lupin giving him some concerned looks from time to time. He didn't know whether Lupin knew what the whole Prophecy was, or whether he knew that Harry had been told its contents, but he didn't want to talk about it. He still didn't know how he was going to tell his best friends that he would have to be either murdered or a murderer, and he definitely didn't want to start the discussion now, when he was enjoying being back in the wizarding world. Eventually Hermione seemed to notice that she was not making herself popular with her persistence, and the talk moved to safer topics.

Ron was in a very good mood and happy to change the conversation to Quidditch. It turned out that this was because his favourite Quidditch team, the Chudley Cannons, had just won a major victory and were moving up the League. Mr Weasley had managed to get them tickets for a game at the beginning of the holidays, and Ron regaled them all with a blow by blow account of every second of the game. Harry listened eagerly, wishing that he wasn't so isolated from the wizarding world at Privet Drive, and wishing that he had been able to see the game. Lupin listened with a little less interest and slight amusement at Ron's enthusiasm, and Hermione and Mrs Figg both buried themselves in books. Hermione of course was re-reading one of her books, Which N.E.W.Ts Are Right For You? by Madame Motley, while Mrs Figg appeared to be reading Witch Weekly.

Eventually Mrs Figg looked at her watch with a start, and announced that it was time for bed. They all stumbled upstairs yawning, and found their bedrooms. Harry and Ron were sharing a room, and Hermione was next door. Harry had been worried about nightmares, not wanting to make everyone fuss over him if he woke up shouting Sirius' name, and wished that he could get hold of some of Madam Pomfrey's Dreamless Sleep Potion. Ron didn't notice his reluctance to share a room, and Harry firmly told himself not to be silly - after all, he would have to share the dormitory with all the other Gryffindor Sixth Years back at Hogwarts. If he did wake up with a nightmare, he would just pretend he couldn't remember what it had been about and hopefully gloss the whole thing over. For once though, he was lucky and slept right through the night without any visions of Sirius to wake him or the household up.

He was woken up by Ron shaking him and telling him it was time for breakfast. Harry considered asking him if he had any idea what Hermione had been avoiding talking about yesterday, but his stomach grumbled so loudly he decided to ask Ron later. After a hearty breakfast of bacon, sausages and eggs, they went back upstairs and repacked their trunks. Harry's was even more untidy than before, but he didn't really care. They dragged their things downstairs and said their goodbyes to Mrs Figg. Harry had thought Lupin would be coming to the Grangers with them, at least to introduce them and make sure they were settled. However, he had to go and do something for Dumbledore. 'I'll see you later in the holiday though, I'm sure,' he said with a wink to Mrs Figg, which she returned.

'When will that be?' asked Hermione. 'What are you doing for Dumbledore?' asked Harry.

'Never you mind,' said Lupin. 'Just keep yourselves safe and out of trouble, and I'll see you in a couple of weeks I expect'.

Without giving them any more chances to ask questions, Lupin gathered them all around, and handed them a crumpled handkerchief.

'Harry, when you get there, please send Hedwig along with a message that you've arrived safely,' he said.

'Shall I send it here to you?' asked Harry.

'No, just send it to The Burrow. Mrs Weasley can send Hedwig back to you, then you can keep in touch,' replied Lupin.

Pigwidgeon hooted indignantly at being forgotten, and Ron said 'Shut up Pig, you can help too!' to keep him quiet. Then they all took a firm hold on the handkerchief with one hand, and their trunks with the other, and Lupin counted down the last few seconds. When he reached zero, the familiar feeling of the hook behind his navel gripped Harry, and in a whirl of colour and sounds, the little kitchen disappeared from his sight.