Death Is Only The Beginning

Harry fingered the letter thoughtfully, reading over the words again.

'Godric Gryffindor's sword is missing.'

He shrugged. "So it's a bit mysterious, Hermione... but the Ministry can handle it anyway. I'm not going off to save the day again."

That thought set Harry on another silent rant. Damn Fudge. Damn Umbridge. Damn room that melted the knife...

Speaking of that room, Harry's train of thought changed tracks, what did melt the knife? What's in there?

Still thinking about the room in the Department of Mysteries, Harry walked down to the kitchen, the letter still in hand. Absent-mindedly, he opened the refrigerator to get a glass of juice.

The doorbell rang, followed by loud bangs on the door. Dudley, Harry thought as he opened the front door.

"Wotcher, Harry!" Tonks beamed at Harry, her bright pink hair waving in the wind. "Haven't seen you in ages... the Muggles still as neat as usual, hey?"

"Tonks?" Harry raised his eyebrows, confused.

Tonks nodded, settling herself into a chair. "Oh, I forgot!" she yelped and leaped up again, nearly knocking a vase over in the process.

Harry watched, bemused, as she looked outside the window into the rose bushes.

"All right, Lupin, Moody, it's all clear," she whispered to a rustling rose bush.

Moody came into the hall, his magical eye swiveling everywhere.

Probably checking for traps, Harry smiled to himself.

Lupin followed, brushing dead leaves off his robes. To Harry, Lupin's robes looked shabbier than ever.

"Hello, Harry," Lupin smiled, a smile that didn't quite reach his sad eyes.

"Hi," Harry said shortly, closing the door. "So what are you lot doing here? Do you think I can't cope here by myself?"

Lupin looked pained. "Well, Harry..." he said awkwardly, "I suppose your reaction is only natural."

"Damn well it is!" Harry shouted, his eyes blazing. "You just march into my house, expect me to welcome you with open arms, and... and you... you..." he trailed off.

"Shut up, Potter!" Moody growled, settling himself on the Dursleys' lounge. "We're not here to have a cup of tea and listen to you rant."

"Well, if someone would explain, perhaps-"

"A couple of days ago," Tonks interrupted Harry, "McGonagall was ill. Dumbledore was away on business, and McGonagall was left in charge of the school during the holidays."

"So?" Harry demanded, his hand tightly gripping his wand. "If you don't tell me what the hell this is all about, I will curse you all, so help me!"

Lupin chuckled, a slight smile on his lips. "Better finish up, Tonks, the poor boy's about to explode."

"Don't you tell me that!" Harry turned to Lupin. "Tell me what you're all here for!"

"Calm down, Harry," Lupin had a pained look on his face. "To cut a long story short, when Dumbledore came back, he found that Godric Gryffindor's sword was missing. Professor McGonagall didn't know about this - she was barely out of bed while Dumbledore was away."

"That silver one - with rubies all on the hilt?" Harry asked, relaxing enough to sit down in a nearby chair.

"You know it, Potter?" Moody said, straightening up in his chair suddenly.

"Yes... I killed the Basilisk with it in my second year," Harry answered warily. Moody's eye was swiveling around more than usual and Harry could almost feel the eye reading his mind.

Moody raised an eyebrow. "The Basilisk? What do you mean by the Basilisk, Potter?"

"The Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets, Moody. Surely you knew?" Lupin cut in.

Moody nodded slightly. "I wasn't sure. You took on a Basilisk, Potter?"

"Yes..." Harry nodded, his glasses slipping down his nose. He pushed them back up impatiently. "But what does this have to do with the missing sword?"

"Nothing," Lupin said, looking sternly at Moody.

"Right," Harry said slowly. "But that doesn't explain why you're here."

"Dumbledore wants you out of here by tonight... he says it's too dangerous for you to stay," Lupin began. Harry could see Moody watching him closely, while Tonks fiddled with her hair.

"Maybe black and white spikes... Molly'd kill me... or blue hair..." Harry could hear her mumble.

"Tonks!" Moody hissed, nudging her.

"What?!" Tonks exclaimed, jumping up and knocking over the lamp next to her in the process. She mumbled an apology while receiving disparaging looks from Moody and Lupin.

"Oops," she grinned sheepishly. Moody snorted, watching as she set the lamp upright.

"Why doesn't Dumbledore think I'm safe here?" Harry demanded, sick of all the discussion.

"Because," Tonks shrugged. "Dumbledore knows best."

Lupin nodded, putting a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Dumbledore knows what he's doing, Harry."

Harry shrugged Lupin's hand off impatiently. "But we've been following Dumbledore around for ages. He's just telling us what to do and we do it... like... like last year, with Occulmency. I just took those lessons with Snape-"

"Professor Snape," Lupin reprimanded gently.

"Snape and Dumbledore knew we hated each other and Snape'd do anything to mess with my mind-" Harry continued angrily, not listening to Lupin.

"Professor Snape wouldn't 'mess with your mind' Harry. Occulmency was to help you. You know that. You'll continue it this semester, with Professor Snape again," Tonks interrupted, flicking her hair out of her eyes.

"I'm not taking Occulmency again! Not with Snape! Hell, no, you must be mad!"

"You have to take Occulmency, Harry. You have to learn, otherwise You-Know-Who'll have an advantage," Lupin said. Harry turned to Moody abruptly.

"What about you? Don't you think that Dumbledore's being stupid?"

"No," Moody snapped. "Dumbledore's got his reasons, Harry-"

"Why doesn't he tell us? Can't he give us a couple of reasons before telling us what to do? What if it's a trap?"

"Harry," Lupin sighed. "Dumbledore can't tell us in case the owl is intercepted, or in case we're captured by Death Eaters. They can - and they will - torture us to get information if they think we have it."

"Well, I don't give a tuppeny fuck!" Harry saw Lupin and Moody exchange glances. "I'm staying here until I get a reason for going." Harry stomped upstairs to his room.

Moody smiled grimly. "We'll have to do this the hard way," he said, and climbed up the stairs to Harry's room. Lupin and Tonks followed quickly.

"All right," Moody whispered, "this is what we do-" he was interrupted by the opening of Harry's bedroom door.

"Oh," Harry added, sticking his head out, "if you see Dudley coming up to the stairs, let him in, give him his damn key and tell him that if he forgets his key again I am hexing him into next week."

~

Harry paced the room, muttering curses and complaints.

"How dare Dumbledore try to control my life... again?" he grumbled, kicking the wall. "Why does everyone seem to think they know what's best for me... even my friends do. What the hell is their problem?"

His eyes landed on the pile of letters from Ron and Hermione that were threatening to take over his desk.

"Really," Harry glared at the letters. "Take a hint, you two!"

Harry grabbed a piece of parchment from his desk, listening angrily to the muttered conversation downstairs. He slammed the desk drawer closed roughly and reached for a quill and a pot of ink.

"Ron,

Can't you take a hint? Quit sending me so many letters; all the stuff you write is rubbish anyway. I'm not suffering from 'mood swings' - where the hell did you get that idea?

Just leave me alone, damn you. I don't need your sympathy; I'm fine without Sirius. Leave me the hell alone!"

"Hedwig," Harry called to her. "Quit stuffing your face, you've got a couple of letters to deliver."

Hedwig flew over, her eyes disapproving. A worm dangled from her beak as she held her leg out.

"Just wait, I've got to write one to Hermione as well."

"Hermione,

Do you really think I would care if the sword was missing? What the hell do you want me to do, fly out there and get it back?

Get off my back, Hermione, you're cluttering my desk with your useless letters. I don't need consolation because Sirius is dead. Get over it already. I don't need Sirius. I don't need you."

"Here you go, Hedwig. Bring the one on this leg to Ron," Harry tied the first bit of parchment on her leg, "and this one to Hermione. Or can you carry it in your beak? It'll be easier to tell them apart..."

Hedwig pecked Harry and flew away into the night sky. Harry watched silently as Hedwig became a small speck on the horizon.

"Where are those Extendable Ears? I could've sworn Fred and George gave me a pair before the holidays," he rummaged in his desk, sifting through piles of unfinished essays and ink-splattered, incomplete homework.

"Forget it," Harry sighed as he closed the drawer. "I don't need magic to do some old fashioned eavesdropping." He poked his head out on the landing, straining his ears for the sound of muttered conversation.

A figure crept up behind him, motioning to two other people, hidden in the shadows.

"Ready?" One of them murmured, raising his wand. Receiving nods, he waved his wand, muttering a spell.

Everyone - including a struggling, shocked Harry - disappeared from number four, Privet Drive.