The memories of Fleur were not something I would have ever guessed. I couldn't help but sit silently inside the Room of Requirements, right at the foot of the giant, stone pensive. I wanted to speak with my Father right now! Is this true? Or is this just some kind of farce? No... it had to be accurate; I also realized who they were. I saw them over and over again while growing up and visiting Neville! There was no question in my heart they were speaking the truth... So, my Father was a double agent? Why? That was a question I wanted to ask him the most, but I had no chance to do so.
"Okay... Think..." I whispered, closing my eyes, taking deep breaths, and starting to talk within the confines of my mind. "Her father takes away Quincy. The Professor is right; she is in no danger. This means the Order knows very well that we are trying to provoke a war in here... so they must have come prepared, which means..."
"Dumbledore." Answered a familiar voice in my head before I continued.
"Yes, he is here. There is no question about it! Fleur is also part of the whole affair, but I bet she knows way less... Still, she has to be an Order member!"
"And you sent her back."
"I wouldn't want to keep her with me even if I knew it beforehand!" I replied to the voice subconsciously.
"Doubt it."
"Heh, I don't want to make a deal with them! The moment I make it, multiple things could happen. They could take advantage of me! Realizing my sheer desperation. NEVER start demanding things when you are desperate. They will smell it from miles away! Not to mention, HE could use it to kill me, as I made a deal with the enemy. The perfect reason! Both sides do nothing but look at us like discardable pawns! The Order would use Quincy to pull on my strings like a puppet to do what they wanted. I already have a puppet master, no? If I tried bargaining, that would turn from a hostage exchange into me running laps, doing 'just one more thing' before they give her back. But they would keep her and know I couldn't say no. It is a lose-lose situation."
"They say Dumbledore is an honorable man."
"And I was told to trust Severus Snape! Heh... thinking about it, no wonder he doesn't want to help me! If Father sent me to him, it means he is also a Double Agent! Ahahaha! What a snake! And HE doesn't know? What a perfect agent... No... I do not trust either of them! Bastards! Both!" Rolling up my sleeve, I looked at the Death Eater tattoo on my hand, thinking about how to remove it or if I could even manage something like that.
"Let me help..."
Now, I not only heard that second voice, but I felt a hand grabbing mine, and I watched as the tattoo started bleeding as it flew out from my skin, black magical energy mixing with my red blood, dripping to the floor.
"Your blood is potent... use it more. Don't suppress it; let it explode when you feel it bubbling."
"Are you me, the basilisk blood, or Herpo?" I asked while calmly watching it happen, not minding the pain.
"Why question it now?"
"Because either I am going insane, or there is something worse happening to me."
"There." The voice chuckled as I felt the pain subside, but the tattoo was not gone completely, and I could still see its outline.
"It is still visible."
"Of course! Until it's time, we can't remove it for real, or it would be too suspicious."
"Can you break the contract with the Goblet too?"
"No. You are too weak for that. I can't help you there."
"So, which are you?" I asked again, but I was waiting for an answer for naught. Walking to the pensive and looking into it, I could still see my somewhat orange-colored eyes reflecting back at me, slowly returning to their natural hue. "Not good... Something is not right with me..." I sighed, but it had to wait.
With a deep breath, I pushed my worries down and forced myself to focus on my current mission. Picking out my notebook, I wrote to inform my helpers to keep their eyes open and notify me if they see the Champions and their Headmaster.
If the Order is here, their hiding place must also be local. In the forest? That was my first guest... My second was Hogsmeade. I had no idea how they would manage that or where in the village they would hide, but that also could be a possibility. I will have to hire more of my classmates to keep an eye out. I will visit Hogsmeade soon and, if nothing else, place people under the Imperius curse to spy for me... So, I will need to master it first from Slytherin's own books.
When I find their hideout, I will tackle the problem of sneaking inside... But I will worry about it then and not before. What gave me peace was that I now knew who took Quincy away and that they wouldn't hurt her. That mattered the most right now!
...
....
......
"What should we do with the child?" Asked a calm, cold voice belonging to none other but Severus Snape, meeting with Dumbledore hidden under the town of Hogsmeade.
"I miscalculated with the Black brothers... I thought they would have been more mature, especially after they did not act on their impulses while living under Anguine's care."
"I told you many times that they are liabilities. Both of them!"
"I know Severus, I know." Dumbledore sighed softly, raising a hand, calming his top agent down.
"The kid won't give up; he is too much like his father."
"He won't be able to do nothing, Severus. He is still just a child."
"Don't underestimate him! His father is still holding that grudge against HIM and has managed to come this far, using nothing but pure hatred as his fuel. Yet... he also kept it in check, and not even his son noticed it."
"Do you think a young wizard like Conrad could cause trouble to us? Find us when top-tier Death Eaters fail to do so?"
"I am telling you to not think about him as just a kid! I understand Angus very well... and his son is just like him. He won't let Quincy go; if anything happens to her, he will become like his father."
"And you are sure of this because...?" Dumbledore asked, still remaining calm, his voice kind and conversational, searching Snape's black eyes for answers.
"Because I am the same, you know that."
"Yes... yes, I do!" He sighed, nodding his head while gently stroking his long, white beard, "My good friend Nicholas is already brewing some potent Thought Eraser; we will still use it if we must! This mission is too crucial to not take precautions. The two are... unfortunate to get swept up in it."
"I... Understand." Severus nodded, but before he could leave, Dumbledore held his hand, lowering his voice.
"I will still need you to stay close to HIM even if we succeed here. In the future battle, I allow you to deal with your school bullies."
"..." Severus couldn't help but freeze for a moment, looking deeply into Dumbledore's cold, blue eyes, knowing he wasn't kidding.
"What they did could have ended in disaster. Punishment is in order... We are so close to defeating HIM! We must get into the castle and destroy his Horcrux that is still hidden here! We will have only one chance right when the chaos breaks out! I can deal with losses but not with liabilities, not at this stage! Do you understand... Severus?"
"Yes." He nodded heavily, but a little excitement did flash in his eyes.
"Good..." Dumbledore smiled like a kind grandfather, patting his hand and letting him disappear into the dark tunnels, going back to stroking his beard. "Conrad... Anguine. Quincy Black... How interesting..."
...
....
......
It took four days for the guests to reappear once again on the castle's ground. There was a meeting between teachers, and I knew it was about me, but as to what its result was, I have no idea. Not that I cared. When the two visiting schools' students saw me, I couldn't help but snort, seeing them part ways or outright avoid me. I didn't really care about that, but it seemed that further raised my position among the other Hogwarts students.
Thanks to this, my retinue, who were keeping secret lookouts, counted around 60 members, and I was getting constant updates on where Fleur Delacour was or where Nicholas Flamel popped up. I was just reading the latest updates when I was approached by someone calling out to me. It was so surprising that I almost dropped my notebook, closing it just in time.
"Viktor?" I asked, raising an eyebrow questioningly.
"I heard story. Your wife...? I am sorry."
"Thanks... but she is not dead."
"Sure?" He asked me not to threaten or mock me; I could feel it. He just wasn't good with English.
"Yes."
"I see. You know who? I heard what did you."
"I am 100% sure they did it." I answered calmly, and with such confidence, it conveyed I had proof... I was just not ready to share it with him.
"I see. Fighting to death with honor is part of contest. This? Despicable. If help you want... I give." He said while looking into my eyes, stretching his hand forward.
"Mhm." I nodded, grabbing it and shaking his hand, "Thank you, Viktor. If anything happens, I will not hesitate to look for you. Also... Same here. If we ever fight, it will be face to face, in the competition."
"You say it as if we snakes." We were interrupted by a third voice, and turning towards it, I was surprised to see Fleur Delacour here... I knew she was close by; that is why I had checked my notebook earlier. But for her to come to me by her own accord? That was something new.
"No. I think highly of snakes. You? Not even close." I replied, but Fleur didn't flinch and only peered into my eyes, frowning a little. I was hoping it was not the result of the Professor's spell failing.
"Talk." After just standing there for a minute, she said with a hard voice, "Privately."
The memories of Fleur were not something I would have ever guessed. I couldn't help but sit silently inside the Room of Requirements, right at the foot of the giant, stone pensive. I wanted to speak with my Father right now! Is this true? Or is this just some kind of farce? No... it had to be accurate; I also realized who they were. I saw them over and over again while growing up and visiting Neville! There was no question in my heart they were speaking the truth... So, my Father was a double agent? Why? That was a question I wanted to ask him the most, but I had no chance to do so.
"Okay... Think..." I whispered, closing my eyes, taking deep breaths, and starting to talk within the confines of my mind. "Her father takes away Quincy. The Professor is right; she is in no danger. This means the Order knows very well that we are trying to provoke a war in here... so they must have come prepared, which means..."
"Dumbledore." Answered a familiar voice in my head before I continued.
"Yes, he is here. There is no question about it! Fleur is also part of the whole affair, but I bet she knows way less... Still, she has to be an Order member!"
"And you sent her back."
"I wouldn't want to keep her with me even if I knew it beforehand!" I replied to the voice subconsciously.
"Doubt it."
"Heh, I don't want to make a deal with them! The moment I make it, multiple things could happen. They could take advantage of me! Realizing my sheer desperation. NEVER start demanding things when you are desperate. They will smell it from miles away! Not to mention, HE could use it to kill me, as I made a deal with the enemy. The perfect reason! Both sides do nothing but look at us like discardable pawns! The Order would use Quincy to pull on my strings like a puppet to do what they wanted. I already have a puppet master, no? If I tried bargaining, that would turn from a hostage exchange into me running laps, doing 'just one more thing' before they give her back. But they would keep her and know I couldn't say no. It is a lose-lose situation."
"They say Dumbledore is an honorable man."
"And I was told to trust Severus Snape! Heh... thinking about it, no wonder he doesn't want to help me! If Father sent me to him, it means he is also a Double Agent! Ahahaha! What a snake! And HE doesn't know? What a perfect agent... No... I do not trust either of them! Bastards! Both!" Rolling up my sleeve, I looked at the Death Eater tattoo on my hand, thinking about how to remove it or if I could even manage something like that.
"Let me help..."
Now, I not only heard that second voice, but I felt a hand grabbing mine, and I watched as the tattoo started bleeding as it flew out from my skin, black magical energy mixing with my red blood, dripping to the floor.
"Your blood is potent... use it more. Don't suppress it; let it explode when you feel it bubbling."
"Are you me, the basilisk blood, or Herpo?" I asked while calmly watching it happen, not minding the pain.
"Why question it now?"
"Because either I am going insane, or there is something worse happening to me."
"There." The voice chuckled as I felt the pain subside, but the tattoo was not gone completely, and I could still see its outline.
"It is still visible."
"Of course! Until it's time, we can't remove it for real, or it would be too suspicious."
"Can you break the contract with the Goblet too?"
"No. You are too weak for that. I can't help you there."
"So, which are you?" I asked again, but I was waiting for an answer for naught. Walking to the pensive and looking into it, I could still see my somewhat orange-colored eyes reflecting back at me, slowly returning to their natural hue. "Not good... Something is not right with me..." I sighed, but it had to wait.
With a deep breath, I pushed my worries down and forced myself to focus on my current mission. Picking out my notebook, I wrote to inform my helpers to keep their eyes open and notify me if they see the Champions and their Headmaster.
If the Order is here, their hiding place must also be local. In the forest? That was my first guest... My second was Hogsmeade. I had no idea how they would manage that or where in the village they would hide, but that also could be a possibility. I will have to hire more of my classmates to keep an eye out. I will visit Hogsmeade soon and, if nothing else, place people under the Imperius curse to spy for me... So, I will need to master it first from Slytherin's own books.
When I find their hideout, I will tackle the problem of sneaking inside... But I will worry about it then and not before. What gave me peace was that I now knew who took Quincy away and that they wouldn't hurt her. That mattered the most right now!
...
....
......
"What should we do with the child?" Asked a calm, cold voice belonging to none other but Severus Snape, meeting with Dumbledore hidden under the town of Hogsmeade.
"I miscalculated with the Black brothers... I thought they would have been more mature, especially after they did not act on their impulses while living under Anguine's care."
"I told you many times that they are liabilities. Both of them!"
"I know Severus, I know." Dumbledore sighed softly, raising a hand, calming his top agent down.
"The kid won't give up; he is too much like his father."
"He won't be able to do nothing, Severus. He is still just a child."
"Don't underestimate him! His father is still holding that grudge against HIM and has managed to come this far, using nothing but pure hatred as his fuel. Yet... he also kept it in check, and not even his son noticed it."
"Do you think a young wizard like Conrad could cause trouble to us? Find us when top-tier Death Eaters fail to do so?"
"I am telling you to not think about him as just a kid! I understand Angus very well... and his son is just like him. He won't let Quincy go; if anything happens to her, he will become like his father."
"And you are sure of this because...?" Dumbledore asked, still remaining calm, his voice kind and conversational, searching Snape's black eyes for answers.
"Because I am the same, you know that."
"Yes... yes, I do!" He sighed, nodding his head while gently stroking his long, white beard, "My good friend Nicholas is already brewing some potent Thought Eraser; we will still use it if we must! This mission is too crucial to not take precautions. The two are... unfortunate to get swept up in it."
"I... Understand." Severus nodded, but before he could leave, Dumbledore held his hand, lowering his voice.
"I will still need you to stay close to HIM even if we succeed here. In the future battle, I allow you to deal with your school bullies."
"..." Severus couldn't help but freeze for a moment, looking deeply into Dumbledore's cold, blue eyes, knowing he wasn't kidding.
"What they did could have ended in disaster. Punishment is in order... We are so close to defeating HIM! We must get into the castle and destroy his Horcrux that is still hidden here! We will have only one chance right when the chaos breaks out! I can deal with losses but not with liabilities, not at this stage! Do you understand... Severus?"
"Yes." He nodded heavily, but a little excitement did flash in his eyes.
"Good..." Dumbledore smiled like a kind grandfather, patting his hand and letting him disappear into the dark tunnels, going back to stroking his beard. "Conrad... Anguine. Quincy Black... How interesting..."
...
....
......
It took four days for the guests to reappear once again on the castle's ground. There was a meeting between teachers, and I knew it was about me, but as to what its result was, I have no idea. Not that I cared. When the two visiting schools' students saw me, I couldn't help but snort, seeing them part ways or outright avoid me. I didn't really care about that, but it seemed that further raised my position among the other Hogwarts students.
Thanks to this, my retinue, who were keeping secret lookouts, counted around 60 members, and I was getting constant updates on where Fleur Delacour was or where Nicholas Flamel popped up. I was just reading the latest updates when I was approached by someone calling out to me. It was so surprising that I almost dropped my notebook, closing it just in time.
"Viktor?" I asked, raising an eyebrow questioningly.
"I heard story. Your wife...? I am sorry."
"Thanks... but she is not dead."
"Sure?" He asked me not to threaten or mock me; I could feel it. He just wasn't good with English.
"Yes."
"I see. You know who? I heard what did you."
"I am 100% sure they did it." I answered calmly, and with such confidence, it conveyed I had proof... I was just not ready to share it with him.
"I see. Fighting to death with honor is part of contest. This? Despicable. If help you want... I give." He said while looking into my eyes, stretching his hand forward.
"Mhm." I nodded, grabbing it and shaking his hand, "Thank you, Viktor. If anything happens, I will not hesitate to look for you. Also... Same here. If we ever fight, it will be face to face, in the competition."
"You say it as if we snakes." We were interrupted by a third voice, and turning towards it, I was surprised to see Fleur Delacour here... I knew she was close by; that is why I had checked my notebook earlier. But for her to come to me by her own accord? That was something new.
"No. I think highly of snakes. You? Not even close." I replied, but Fleur didn't flinch and only peered into my eyes, frowning a little. I was hoping it was not the result of the Professor's spell failing.
"Talk." After just standing there for a minute, she said with a hard voice, "Privately."
