We are on the run in now folks...

Firstly a special thanks to Jake for giving this chapter a really good beta reading, thank you! J

I have had the same `disclaimer' thing for ages but just to say that obviously I make no claim to the characters below, but am really happy to have had the chance to play with them.  Thank you to all of you that have emailed and provided feedback it really has been great to hear from you!!  Thank you!!

I am very open to constructive feedback and comment on the story so please, if you have time and would like to please, either comment or drop me an email on phill2818 at hotmail .co . uk

Harry Potter and the Unforeseen Hero

Chapter Twenty Four: Dumbledore Strikes Twice

"Potter, make sure that you and your friends keep yourselves well hidden, the last thing I want is the school realising that you are back among our midst.  A lot has changed in the past months and it would not be safe for you or them for such a sighting to occur.  You will go to my office and let yourself in.  The password is `revolution'.  I will bring the Pensieve to you.  Go!" McGonagall said as they stepped into the castle courtyard. 

Harry turned quickly to his right and parted company with McGonagall, inadvertently bumping into another invisible figure.  He regained his footing and marched off in the direction of the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom and her nearby office.  It took several minutes to find the office entrance from their previous position but on arrival Harry checked the corridor for onlookers before pulling off the invisibility cloak and saying `revolution' to the portrait guarding her rooms.  The portrait itself gasped at the sudden appearance from nowhere of a figure in front of him but never the less accepted the password springing back and granted them access. 

Once inside Harry pulled off the invisibility cloak and sat in one of the hard wooden chairs opposite the Professors desk.  The three figures of his companions appeared shortly after and Harry reached for Draco's hand, as his flesh found the milky white hand of his lover he felt the tension lift slightly from his shoulders. 

They did not have to wait long before McGonagall appeared and glanced around her own office at the group awaiting her return, before settling her eyes on Draco "You" she said and her lips pursed together.

"Professor, you know Draco has been working with us for the past few months.  He is on our side" stammered Ron.

Harry wasn't sure what had surprised him most the animosity McGonagall displayed towards Draco or the rapid defence that was offered by Ron of his boyfriends credentials. 

"I know, but I still scarcely believe it."

"Believe it professor.  It is because of Draco here that we have gotten as far as we have" Ron said.

"Well if ever there was an unforeseen hero Mr Malfoy, it would be you.  Take as long as you require.  Excuse me" she said, and swept from the office room into a side room leaving the Pensive on the desk. 

Draco took the phial from inside his robes and pulled on the stopper holding the memory in place.  But it didn't move.  "What the hell" Draco said looking questioningly at the others.

"Don't you remember?" Hermione said rolling her eyes "Only Harry can remove the stopper.  I think, Harry, there must be a reason why Dumbledore would make it so only you can open it.  I think you should see this alone and then if there is stuff we need to know you can tell us.  Ok?"

"Ok" Harry didn't want to argue and he also didn't know what it was that Dumbledore wanted to show him, so to him Hermione's proposal made sense though he could see looks of disappointment on both Ron and Draco's features. 

Harry had the familiar sense of falling as he entered the Pensieve but he had learned, through experience, to `glide' down to the solid surface in the memory and so he landed quite comfortably in the office that was so familiar to him, Dumbledore's office. 

Everything was just as he remembered; the solid oak desk stood central to the room with the chair pushed back, the silver magical object's wiring around in the background and even Fawkes, the phoenix, could be found resting on his perch.  

"Hello Harry" said a voice, and Harry jumped as he turned to look in the far rear most right hand corner of the office. 

Dumbledore stood wearing dark grey robes that looked so familiar to Harry.  His arm was withered, as Harry had grown used to seeing in his sixth year of school.  Dumbledore was facing an ornate mirror, looking at himself and he spoke again.

"You have just left me actually.  You are, I certainly hope at least, going to fetch your invisibility cloak so we might venture forth together to seek an object we both desire destroyed."

Harry remembered the night of his mentor's death vividly, promising Dumbledore that he would follow his every instruction and then running to get his invisibility cloak, thrusting the socks that contained the Felix Felicis into Ron's hands before running out to meet Dumbledore. 

"I hope, in many respects, that you will never see this memory Harry.  I hope that I can convey this information to you in person at the right time.  However, it always makes sense to have contingencies in place and particularly in my case" and he waved his withered hand at himself in the mirror. 

"I don't have much time, I anticipate you will be back soon, but I must convey to you some information that I believe you should know.  As you know, Voldemort created seven Horcrux's, Harry, and of course we know why.  He believed, as do many, that seven is a very powerful magical number." 

Harry was entranced by Dumbledore's every word and he drank in his mentor's message.   The old Wizard paused for breath and a look crossed his countenance that Harry had never seen on his ex headmasters face, as if he were struggling with what to say next.   

"I am sorry Harry that it always seems to be me that is the bearer of bad news but there is more information you must know about the night of your parent's murder, that I have not told you before."

Harry's stomach gave an involuntary lurch, wondering what else he would discover about that fateful night. 

"Voldemort was on a mission that night to strengthen his hold on eternal life by creating two Horcrux's, not one, when your parents died.  Bound by blood magic in a double murder."

Harry scratched his head trying to absorb the man's meaning and he looked at him perplexed and hoping that he would continue to explain. 

"Harry, magic is powerful in its own right but if you layer magic over magic it grows stronger and stronger it is, if you will, reinforced.   This, as you are no doubt aware, is why the older pure blood familes have multiple wards layered over one another to offer maximum protection.  Also, as I am sure by now Ms Granger has informed you, one of the most powerful types of magic is `blood' magic particularly where there is a strong bond, such as family involved in the blood magic.  Voldemort had already protected one Horcrux with blood magic, the ring, in killing his father so we know he believes this to be a good method of protection."

Harry's mind was in overdrive hoping that this would all begin to make sense shortly as he struggled to keep up. 

As if sensing Harry's confusion Dumbledore continued his explanation "Voldemort had learned of the prophecy, or at least, as we know a part of it, and sought to maximise it for his own benefit by eliminating the one who could stop him and creating two highly powerful magical objects as a result.  I believe Voldemort planned to create a Horcrux with one family member, your father, and then strengthen the magic protecting it with a further Horcrux he was about to create by killing you, Harry.  But, as you know, he was not successful in creating the double bonded Horcrux."

"Let me step back and recap what I know.  There have been a total of eight pieces of Voldemort's soul at one point in time or another.  At the point that you and Voldemort met for the first time he had created six and you were to be the seventh Horcrux.  However, we must not forget the piece that remained in his mortal form.  At the point he attempted to kill you, it was this eighth piece of soul that was destroyed.  No doubt made so unstable by the separation of the other six.  He then used one of his Horcrux's; I don't yet know which one yet, I hope to find out, in order to re-take physical form.  Soon after he created the seventh Horcrux, the Snake Nagini but as you know this was created sometime after the others when he had used one of the original Horcrux's to return to physical form"

Harry was struggling to absorb this information Dumbledore continued.  "You destroyed the diary in your second year.  I destroyed, as you know, the Ring of Gaunt's.  What you do not know is..."

Finally after a long pause he continued "I have also destroyed the Horcrux he created by the murder of your father.  I'm so sorry my boy that I did not tell you sooner.  But to do so would have involved explaining more than I felt prudent at the time.  Your father was a powerful Wizard and even as recently as your sixth year I felt you too young to be able to process this information.  The loss of a parent is hard enough, yet you have endured so much more.  I didn't want your few memories of your father tainted by this knowledge.  I hope, now that you are a little older and a little wiser, that you will feel nothing but love for your father and see that he is the same person he always was."

Harry was shocked.  The Horcrux was already gone?  What if it was a trap?  A trap to force him into facing Voldemort before it was time, before he could truly die? 

Dumbledore continued "In short Harry, if you have located and destroyed the two unknown Horcrux's and the snake, Voldemort will be mortal with no holds to this earth."

The figure turned from the mirror to look into what had been, at the time, a blank space in his office but now where Harry stood.  Dumbledore's piercing eyes gave the familiar feeling of x-raying Harry as they always had in life.

"Harry, I know what you are thinking.  How can you trust this memory when it was Severus Snape that gave it to you?  I dare say you are anticipating this to be some form of elaborate forgery but I assure you that it is not.  Harry, I trust Severus Snape for reasons that I do not have time to explain.  The two of you have never seen eye to eye and so I do not expect you to like him but, believe me now, he is a good man."

Harry scoffed at the words as he remembered Dumbledore's broken frame at the bottom of the tower.  The bottom of the tower because Snape had killed him.

"I want you to know that my death is not unanticipated" he held up the withered arm and pointed it in Harry's direction "I am aware of the young Malfoy's plans to kill me, on Voldemort's orders of course, you were right Harry.  I know it was Draco that caused Katie Bell's incident and caused Ron's poisoning."

Dumbledore waved his withered arm at Harry again before saying "I have spoken with Severus and asked him to ensure that the Malfoy boy's soul is not damaged on my account.  My death is imminent but the method of my passing is not yet assured."

Harry fell hard onto the floor of Dumbledore's office, reeling from the news that his death had been arranged.  It was cold, calculated and `for the greater good'.  He ran his hands through his hair and rubbed furiously at his eyes hoping to claw some sense of normality back. 

"Harry my boy, you are brave and of noble heart, a true Gryffindor.  Have courage and follow your heart in all that you do because it is almost always......."

Dumbledore's sentence was cut off half way through and he staggered back into McGonagall's office as a searing pain cut through his head for the third time that day.  He collapsed onto the floor, upending several chairs in the process. 

"Harry!" Draco shouted running forward to help his boyfriend.

"What on earth is going on in here?" Harry could just about make out McGonagall say as she strode imperiously back into the office room.

"Professor, it's Harry, we don't know what happened.  One second he was in the Pensieve and the next he came back and collapsed on the floor."

"Out of the way Malfoy" she ordered.  Draco did not move and fixed her with a steely stare.  Sensing the boy's determination the old witch waved her wand and the chairs that had been obstructing Harry's other side vanished.  She knelt down and was nearly hit as Harry sat bolt upright and clutched his head for dear like. 

"Professor...Voldemort...knows we are here...he is coming" Harry stammered out clutching his head for all he was worth.

"Coming Potter, what do you mean coming?  How can he possibly know that you are here?"

"Seen... I checked the corridor but someone was there... saw me."

"We must get the four of you out of here at once!" she snapped before continuing "You three will need to assist Potter.  I will take you back to the gates to let you out and from there you may apparate back to where ever you came from.

"NO!" Harry shouted and the other occupants of the room jumped at his sudden exclamation.

"No, Potter, what do you mean no?"

Harry rubbed his head as the ache began to dull "We have a chance to finish this once and for all."

"Harry?" Hermione asked questioningly.

"There is only one left" Harry said, with a pointed stare at his companions before continuing "we know that the last one will always be wherever he is so it stands to reason that if we want to finish him we have to know where he is."

"Potter, you cannot be serious, he will bring an army of followers with him.  The young innocent lives currently protected by this castle should not be exposed to such a risk" McGonagall snapped.

"Then we have to get them out of here professor.  Don't you understand; this is the only way to be free of him.  It was always going to come to this, a fight.  We have a chance, a chance right here and right now for the fight to be on our terms."

A look of grim understanding crossed the old witch's expression before she stood and drew herself to full height "So it comes to this, the time to fight is now" she withdrew from her tartan robes a wand and flicked it.   Harry jumped as her voice became magically magnified and echoed across the cold castle walls.  "All staff and pupils are to congregate in the Great Hall immediately.  Any pupil that fails to present themselves in the next five minutes will be severally punished."

McGonagall turned back to look at the small group "We will require further support, we five and the other teachers cannot hope to hold off he who mustn't be named."

"What about the Order?  Can we call on them?" Ron asked.

"Of course" McGonagall replied, "I have already summoned them and others that I know and trust."

"What? I didn't see you do anything?" Hermione stuttered.

The old witch turned and offered the most sincere smile that the group had ever seen "Of course not Miss Granger, I am in fact a rather skilled witch."

"But how?"

"The Order of the Phoenix setup, sometime ago now, an emergency summons.  I simply cast the spell and all the people that have been `pre-linked' to the summons are notified by any one of the other parties connected to the network that they are required.  The summons charm also magically accesses the sumonees plight and those summoned will `feel' the urgency of the call.  I dare say that we will be seeing some familiar faces in Hogwarts sooner rather than later.  I must go to the great hall.  I suggest that you four wait here until I call for you." 

"How will we know when?" Draco asked clearly as McGonagall turned back towards the door.

"Trust me Mr Malfoy, you will know when you are required" and before she had finished the sentence the door had closed behind her.

With a pained sigh Harry collapsed back down onto the floor and rubbed his forehead in an attempt to sooth the burning pain that continued to pulse through his head. 

"Harry!" Hermione cried and tried to rush forward but Draco placed an arm on her shoulder that stopped her from moving forwards before he said "Please, let me."

Bending down onto one knee and then the other he sat down on the floor and pulled Harry towards him who obliged by shuffling into the direction of his boyfriends waiting arms. 

Draco gently lifted the thick mop of jet-black hair that covered the infamous lightening shaped scar before placing the palm of his hand over it.  Several things happened at once, Harry's face instantly regained sharpness and clarity while Draco sagged slightly and winced briefly with pain before opening his eyes and placing a steely determined look in Hermione and Ron's direction.

"Excuse me but what the hell just happened then?" Ron's voice clipped.

"Nothing happened here" Draco's equally crisp reply sounded.

"Well that's quite simply not true now is it?" Hermione said with a pointed stare.

"I don't know what you're talking..." Draco began.

"Of course you don't Draco.  It was plainly obvious to see that was not just any old rub on Harry's forehead.  Your connection is even stronger now than it ever has been, isn't it?"

"Oh give it a rest Hermione, Draco simply knows a spell that helps to dull the pain of dark magic" Harry said as he pulled himself back to his feet and offered a hand to Draco.

"That's not strictly true now Draco is it?" Hermione asked with an accusatorial stare.

"Draco?" Harry said and looked at the blond quizzically.

"Ok, ok so it's partly true.  I do know how to dull the pain of dark magic."

"But..." Hermione interjected

"But it doesn't just dissipate into nothing."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked sounding concerned.

"He has been transferring the pain from you to him" Hermione cut in.

"What?!" Harry bawled.

"I didn't transfer it all!  I simply shared it.  I don't see why you have to deal with that on your own the whole time.  I simply split the load."

"You should have told me" Harry whispered and hung his head.

Draco moved towards his boyfriend and placed a finger under his chin and pushed it up "And what good would that have done?  You would have simply told me not to, I would have done it anyway and we would have had a disagreement.  This was my choice as it was my choice not tell you" he said giving Hermione a pointed stare.

"But it caused you pain."

"It caused me some pain, but that is better than you suffering alone.  Harry, I have said this before, you don't have to do this alone" Draco touched his lips to the man he loved and cupped his face in his hand.  Ron coughed and Draco ignored him for a moment before moving away to a more dignified distance. 

"We need a plan.  The playing field has changed; we are putting other people in harms way.  We need to know what we are doing" Hermione interjected.

"It's simple we kill the snake" Harry said.

"Well I wouldn't call that simple mate" Ron cut in with a half smile.

"Do be serious you two!  You know what I mean, we have to have a game plan" Hermione glared at them

"I don't know what sort of plan you are hoping to develop Hermione because we have absolutely no idea where he will be and how the snake will be protected.  This is just going to be one of those things we play by ear."

Harry could tell that Hermione was gearing herself up for a fight but the tingling sensation that emanated from his wrist, and presumably hers, cut her short. 

"What's that?" Ron shouted in alarm.

"Presumably they are ready for us?" Draco suggested.  The tingling feeling was now growing stronger into a more persistent pulling.

"I guess so" Harry nodded and Hermione looked scared "But we don't know what we are doing!"

"Agreed, but we can't argue now" Harry said as the pulling at his wrist was beginning to guide him in the direction of the summons.

"Quick come here" Hermione ordered and she tapped her wand on each of the group and they, once again, disappeared from sight as Harry pulled on his invisibility cloak. 

Cautiously Harry opened the door from McGonagall's office and peered out.  There was a distant rumbling, as though a herd of elephants were migrating to a nearby watering hole, which confused Harry.  He had never heard anything like it.  But he had lingered too long and a grunt sounded from behind him as Ron ran into the back of him.

"Oi, come on!" Ron grumbled.

"Sorry" Harry whispered back and then vacated the doorway and into the deserted corridor.  There was an eerie feeling about the castle that night.  Like a sense of impending madness.  Harry was sure that he didn't like it. 

The group made there way downstairs and into the direction of the Great Hall.  As they entered Harry stopped dead and once again Ron walked violently into him.

"Harry, mate, what the fuck?" Ron cursed before staring into the Great Hall. 

"RONALD Weasley, I will not hear those kinds of words come from your mouth!" The familiar shrill tones of Mrs Weasley echoed around the hall.

Harry stepped forwards to take in the scene before him.  Gone were the house tables and surrounding the raised platform was a group far larger than Harry could possibly have imagined.  Mr and Mrs Weasley, Tonks, Remus, Mad-Eye, Professor Flitwick, Mundungus, Fred, George, Bill, the lumbering Slughorn and many others, some of which he recognised but many of which he did not. 

The large group had turned to face the entrance at the sound of Mrs Weasley's scolding.  Harry pulled the invisibility cloak off and was soon followed by the rest of the group.  There were many mutterings along the lines of `oh my, its Harry Potter' and `isn't that Draco Malfoy?'

Harry reacted instinctively, he raised his left hand and the shield charm sprang instantly out in front of the group.  A number of stunning spells bounced harmlessly off the shield and the mutterings grew louder still.

"Let me make one thing perfectly clear, ladies and gentlemen, Mr Malfoy is not to be harmed.  You have my guarantee that he has been working closely with Harry and his school mates to bring about the downfall of he who must not be named" emanated the deep booming voice of Kingsley Shacklebolt.

"Ron, Harry, Hermione!" again echoed the voice of Mrs Weasley who ran forwards towards the group and pulled them into a hug. After a moment Ron broke free of his mother and exchanged hugs with the rest of his family.

"Percy still not seen the light yet then?" Ron scoffed, noting the absence of the horn-rimmed bespectacled Weasley twin.  Mrs Weasley began to cry and her husband extended an arm around her and pulled her into an embrace. 

"He disappeared Ron, sometime back" Charlie muttered in the groups' direction and before he could explain further his progress was halted by the wispy silver vapour that solidified in an instant into a serpent in the middle of the great hall.  The words were audible but just barely.

"I know you are preparing to fight" many of the group screamed and drew breath.  Draco shivered, feeling as if Voldemort was standing right behind him, breathing down his neck. "You cannot fight me and I do not want to spill magical blood. Give me Harry Potter, and none shall be harmed. Give me Harry Potter, and I shall leave.  You have half an hour." With that the serpent vanished as abruptly as it had arrived.

"Right, a plan has been agreed between The Order of The Phoenix and the Teachers of Hogwarts.  Please step forward and we will divide you up into groups" Kingsley's deep reassuring voice echoed.

"So it begins..." Harry said to the small group of Ron, Hermione and Draco that still surrounded him.