Never Many

Never Many

Chapter 4

Author: wordless_angel

Author email: [email protected]

Previous Chapter Summary: Harry has stumbled across The Eternals, the world's most powerful wizards. He's also discovered he has a twin sister. She won't last long...

Liberated women

The greatest power a person possesses is the power to choose.

"Harry, something bad has happened," said Dumbledore.

"Oh, really? How extraordinary. Imagine, here, of all places." Harry flopped into a seat and rolled his eyes, annoyed at having been dragged up a million stairs to Dumbledore's office and then being greeted by such a blunt statement. "Shock me," said Harry. Glaring at Draco who he had only just noticed.

"Susan's been kidnapped."

Suddenly, Harry had to take a few good, deep breaths before he could talk. "I didn't mean it literally!" he wailed.

"She was taken by one of The Eternals."

"Shit." Harry sunk further into the chair. "When?"

"She was out with me," Draco said quietly. "We were walking down to the lake and suddenly, BOOM. Some evil creep appears and grabs her. She screams, sticks her finger in his eye. He swears and runs off to the forest with her."

"Just like that," said Harry bluntly.

"No, Potter. We were walking down to the lake and I said, 'I'll bet you ten galleons I can get captured by a group of world famous Dark wizards before you can' and she says, 'Ha, you're on.' So we raced off to the forest and now I owe her ten galleons."

"I'm sure there's another explanation. There's always got to be another explanation," Harry babbled, in his fear completely ignoring Draco's sarcasm.

"What, she's been mislaid? Get it together Potter. We need to help her, not sit around gaping like fish," snapped Draco.

"Now, Mr Malfoy," put in Dumbledore, "I have to go and see if there is some way I can find her and get her back. You two had better be civil and try to work this out." With that, Dumbledore ushered Draco and Harry to the door.

The two began to walk over to the lake. Once there, they tried to settle down. Harry found this extremely difficult. Once he sat, he was forced up again to pace.

"Malfoy, if we're going to help my sister, we need to come to an agreement. I will not kill you and you will return the favour in kind until she is recovered."

"Do I have to like you?" asked Draco.

"No, because that means I would have to like you. The very thought sickens me."

"It doesn't sicken Susan," Draco pointed out. Harry stopped pacing to shudder, then began again.

"I don't know what you see in her."

"That's a good a thing then, because, you know, if you did, it would be a crime. And a word of warning, Potter-"

"Yes?"

"If you persist in your pacing, I will be forced to use a very painful muggle technique to nail your feet to the ground, and then use magic to keep them there."

"You would actually get up for me to do it?" Harry batted his eyelashes mockingly.

"Of course not. I'd pay someone to do it for me. I wouldn't want my hands covered in your blood."

"Doesn't surprise me, somehow." Harry sat down. They sat in silence, each thinking his own thoughts. Neither of them could come up with a plan that didn't involve both of them ending up dead.

At last, they gave up and returned to the castle. They said nothing to each other as they separated to go to their own common rooms.

Harry didn't sit in the common room that night. He went straight up to his room. Sleep had decided to spend the night somewhere else and Harry found it impossible even to just close his eyes and rest. He room was unusually hot for the time of year.

Finally, Harry gave up on trying to sleep. He crept out of bed and got dressed in the dark, pulling the invisibility cloak around him. He found his way down the stairs, only stumbling one or twice and keeping the swearing down.

Having conquered the stairs, he slid out the portrait hole, down the corridor and into the Entrance Hall. He walked quietly. He could see a full moon as he stepped outside. He made his way across the Hogwarts grounds until he reached the Forbidden Forest.

He took a deep breath and stepped into the forest, where he collided with something solid and very much alive. And it was not a tree.

"Bloody hell, Malfoy! What are you doing here?"

"I could say the same thing to you. But if you must know, I'm here to save your sister."

"You really like her! The ice queen Draco Malfoy has a heart!" Harry did a little dance, then realised how stupid he looked.

"Don't you tell anyone that or I'll have to kill you. I work very hard to get that image."

"What, as a heartless, cruel, selfish brute?"

"Yes. Hang on, did you call me a queen before?"

Harry blatantly ignored the late reaction. "Well, now that you're here, why don't we do this together? Two heads are better than one and all that philosophical crap."

"As long as you don't tell anyone about this either. Working with Harry Potter of Gryffindor could ruin me."

"Working with anyone could ruin you," Harry snorted, as he and Draco set off to find the clearing in the woods. Their stealthy quiet search was interrupted repeatedly by Draco's recurring question.

"Are we nearly there yet?" He moaned, sounding like a four year old. Or perhaps just sounding like Draco Malfoy. Harry clenched his teeth.

"Do you have any idea how many times you have asked me that question?"

Draco thought for a minute. "Twice."

"To you, having the brain capacity of a stunned marshmallow, it would be twice. For the record, though, you depressingly daft dimwit, you have asked me the same question nine hundred and thirty four times. Nine hundred and thirty four times in twenty minutes! Are we nearly there yet? Are we nearly there yet? Are we nearly there yet?" Harry mocked "You're driving me insane, and you're probably scaring off any secret clearings which don't want to be stumbled across."

"Nine hundred and thirty four? Never! I only asked once or twice when there was a lull in conversation."

"Malfoy, there has been nothing but lull making up the conversation since we started! I would rather have rotting worms inserted up my nostrils with a rusty skewer than travel anywhere for longer than half an hour with you, and if you ask me that damned question again I will tell Hermione that you really, really want to know about her relationship with Ron. With all the gruesome details. Any questions?"

"Just one. Are we nearly there yet?"

Harry threw his hands in the air and gave up.

"What are we going to do now? I mean, what's the plan?" prodded Draco.

"I thought you were the great plan planner. The grand planner of plans. Le planneur extraordinaire. Any plans you need planned? - See Draco Malfoy, he'll plan your plans while you wait."

"When did you learn to speak French?" Draco asked.

"Never. Made it up," Harry grunted.

They plodded along in silence for a minute or two.

"Ah! How about we blast them with magic and muggle weapons? Like, say, knives, jaguars and assorted cooking appliances?" Harry suggested.

Draco raised one eyebrow.

"Well, I would certainly be injured if a five-speed food processor hit me in the back of the head."

Draco's other eyebrow joined the one already creeping up to his hairline.

"Go hitch a ride with a serial killer, Malfoy."

Draco looked mildly amused.

"Get your mind out of the kitchen, Potter." Harry frowned. Some things just didn't translate.

Suddenly, he had an idea. Harry wasn't sure if the idea came merely from hating Draco or was just because of his repressed inner genius.

"I have a plan," Harry grinned.

"I'd just guessed that. Your head was making funny noises." Harry glared at Draco. Draco just smirked.

"We could have one of us run in and lead The Eternals away on a wild chase while the other goes in to rescue Susan!"

"That won't work. They all know what you look like, idiot. And my family is one of the wizarding world's best known."

"Well, you can wear a disguise..."

"Who decided that I was going to be the decoy?"

"Me."

The boys were silent for a moment as Harry tried to think of a suitable disguise. After a moment's thought he figured he had it. He looked at Draco sideways. Draco saw the look. Draco knew the look. Draco was very, very scared of the look.

"Oh no, no, no. Whatever idea you have come up with Potter, scrap it. I don't like it and I'm not doing it."

"You don't even know what I'm asking for yet. And it's the only way. It isn't too bad, I promise."

Draco sighed in concession. Harry grinned. He was going to enjoy this. He took his wand out of his robes and waved it around, muttering the spells he needed. Draco closed his eyes tightly. Once Harry stopped chanting he peeked out of one eye, looked down and swiftly shut it again.

"Potter, you are a madman, and I am going to kill you, agreement or no. I am NOT going to lure The Eternals off wearing this."

"But you look good in pink." Harry snorted. He had transfigured flowing pink robe, complete with frills and a huge bow at the back. Lucky for Harry, Draco couldn't see that part. He had also conjured up a strawberry blonde wig, which hung in ringlets by Draco's face.

"I HATE you, Potter, with a burning passion, and I promise that when I return to civilisation, I will tell everyone in school that your chosen bed fellows are sheep," Draco grated.

"Bit rich coming from Little Miss Bow Peep," smirked Harry. "Now, let's go find us some evil wizards."

Harry and Draco moved quietly through the woods. It was slow going, as Draco was having trouble walking in the dress boots Harry had conjured him. Draco opened his mouth and Harry quickly reached for his wand to give Draco piggy tails if he asked if they were nearly there yet.

"What am I going to be called?" asked Draco cautiously.

"Drusina," Harry sniggered.

"You have spent way too much time thinking about this," Draco muttered. "And there is no way in hell I am going to be called Drusina. It should be something simple, like, say, Kate."

"Drusina," said Harry.

"Kate," grunted Draco.

"Drusina," argued Harry.

"I am too mature to stand here and argue with you," huffed Draco haughtily. Harry covered his mouth to hide a smile. Draco had no idea how silly it sounded to have words like that come from someone with pink bows in his hair.

"...What am I going to say?" Draco was talking again.

"You'll think of something. Make sure you make your voice higher," coached Harry pleasantly.

"Oh yes, how 'bout I say 'Just came to say hi, and ask if you could follow me so that Harry Potter, who is, by the way, hiding behind some bushes, can rush in and rescue his sister?'" grumbled Draco.

Harry stopped laughing when he heard chanting and yelling coming from somewhere near by.

"They're torturing her!" whispered Harry urgently. "Come on."

The two ran to the noises, Draco slipping and sliding all the way. They came to the clearing and looked in. They listened to the chanting.

"Oh, bringer of the unknown, oh, of mother of power, oh...."

"I'm not a mother. I'm certainly not your mother," yelled Susan over the chanting. They stopped and stared at her, unsure of how to handle her joke. "What kind of girl do you think I am? I'm 17! I've never even had a boyfriend! Okay, well, I have, but we never did anything! Now, if you lot ever had mothers, which I seriously doubt, they should have run away before you were born."

"S'only a figure of speech. Sheesh," grumbled one of the younger members.

"It's a dammed insult, is what it is. Now, if you untie me from this tree I'll show you a really good chant," wheedled Susan.

"Oh. Okay then," shrugged the same young member.

"Don't you dare to even move! She is trying to trick you!" screeched the oldest looking one.

"Well, duh," Susan muttered.

"Oh. Right." He turned back to Susan. "Sorry, but they say you're trying to trick me, so I can't untie you or they'll probably chop me 'ead off. But I'd like to see them new chants when they've gone." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, and then stepped back into the line.

"Ugh," wailed Susan.

Harry nudged Draco in the ribs.

"Go on," he hissed through clenched teeth. Draco sent a look of pure hate Harry's way and stomped out prissily into the clearing. No one noticed him at first.

"Excuse me," Draco tried. No one heard except Susan and she looked at him. Her eyes travelled from the blonde wig to the pink dress boots and back. Then her eye glinted and he knew she knew who he really was.

"EXCUSE ME," he tried, trying to make his voice sound female. Heads turned in his direction. "That's better. My name is Drusina." Draco registered the strange looks he was getting and made a quick recovery. "Kate. Kate Drusina. I saw you chanting and I thought I'd come and say hello. Draco's voice was cracking and squeaking. Harry shoved his fist in his mouth to stop himself hooting with laughter but he soon had to remove it because he was going to choke.

"I also came to tell you that Harry Potter is in these woods." Whispers passed from person to person like the clichéd wind rustling the clichéd trees. Then, there was sudden action. One of The Eternals grabbed Draco/Kate/Drusina by the shoulders.

"Where did you see him?" His voice was little more than a whisper but painfully reminded Harry of being fed slivers of glass. He'd never actually been fed slivers of glass, but he could imagine.

"Ah, I... uh, I saw him, near a tree. That was next to another, bigger tree. Oh, and the tree was green and brown. Mostly brown. And green."

Behind the bushes, Harry shook his head hopelessly and grumbled quietly to himself. Harry peeped out of the bushes in time to see one wizard narrow his eyes.

"I've never head of the family Drusina," said he.

There were mutterings of "Yeah," "True," and "I'd love to learn a new chant." Harry decided to change tactics. He drew out his wand and whispered his clothing transfiguration spell. He watched in excitement as the pink dress disappeared and a new smart, black robe took its place. The strawberry blond ringlets vanished and in their place appeared a golden French braid. The dress boots were gone and instead Draco wore a pair of simple black lace-up boots made of sensible dragon hide. In one hand he held a cordless (and, in Hogwarts' grounds, completely useless) microphone and pinned to the front of his (her) robe was a huge badge with Draco/Kate's picture on it and the words Daily Prophet Journalist.

"So you're a journalist?" asked one Eternal.

"Okay, okay, you boys caught me out. I'm a journalist for the Daily Prophet. I was sent to do a story on The Eternals. I heard there was a group here so I jumped at the chance. You guys are, like, my heroes. I would really love it if you could come with me and we could do a photo shoot and I could ask you some questions."

"Don't be ridiculous. No journalist would know of our existence. Hardly anyone does. You cannot lure us away. We are strong."

Harry could see that Draco was getting annoyed.

"Fine then. Have it your way."

Draco brought up his wand and tried to freeze them in place. Nothing happened. He tried again. The Eternals were closing in. Harry waved his wand to try the spell that was causing Draco so much trouble. They froze. Harry rushed into the clearing.

"What are you two doing here?" screeched Susan.

"We came to rescue you," said Harry stupidly.

"I don't want rescuing."

"Pardon?"

"I'm a liberated woman. I don't want to be rescued. "

"You're tied to a tree, Susan," Harry pointed out kindly.

"Only because I got caught on purpose. Dumbledore needed information about The Eternals and I was happy help. He wasn't happy to let me. I still think I could take them all on my own."

"He could at least have told us," mumbled Harry. Draco was mad.

"Do you mean to say that I, Draco Malfoy; formed an alliance with my worst enemy; nearly got scared to death while walking in a dark forest late at night; put up with being threatened by your dear brother; put on two female robes and nearly got myself attacked by the most powerful and evil wizarding group known to... uh... me; so that you can tell me that you don't want to be rescued? That's just unacceptable. I am going to rescue you whether you like it or not," Draco vented.

"You looked good in pink," smiled Susan. Harry grinned at Draco, whose blush stood out strikingly on his pale skin. "Besides, Dumbledore wants this information. He needs this information, and he'll get it. Now, if you don't mind, could you please wake these people up and go away? You may already have ruined this mission. Do you realise that you could have got me killed? I've met Death once before and I do NOT care to repeat the experience. Have you ever read Terry Pratchett books?"

Harry nodded. Draco just looked confused.

"Well, Death is just like that, only he makes really bad jokes. Now, scat."

Harry and Draco just stood and stared at her for a moment until Harry shook his head.

"If she's anything like me, we have no choice," he murmured. He turned to walk back to the bushes, with Draco following behind.

"You're still tied to a tree, you know," murmured Draco, turning back to Susan, who grinned.

She showed him her wrists, where there was a loop of frayed rope on each. "No I'm not."

She winked at them as Harry performed the counter curse to the freezing spell, and then he and Draco went separately back to the castle.