"Alright," Harry said, checking on Hermione, Draco, and Ron's progress. "I think you've got the hang of isolating your magical points. It's time to move onto the next step."
"Finally," Ron said with an eager smile, ready to move on to something more interesting. "What's it going to be? That thing you did to take down the Acromantula in forbidden forest?" he asked hopefully.
"That's a little more advanced than you're ready for now," Harry replied with a smile. "But I think you're going to like this," Harry replied, calling for the room of requirement to create a stone pillar for him.
Draco raised an eyebrow as he watched Harry walk up to the pillar, balling his hand into a fist.
Harry reared back his fist, coating it with magic to harden it before punching the center of the pillar, and causing it to explode backwards in a shower of rock.
"Wicked," Ron breathed, imaging doing the same thing himself as Hermione and Draco stared in shock at the smashed remains of the pillar.
"That's why I taught you how to locate your magical points," Harry explained. "Now that you know where they are, you can expel magic from them, and with some practice, coat any part of your body with it."
"Can it block spells as well?" Hermione asked, eager to find out how it works.
"With enough practice, and depending on the spell," Harry explained. "The first few times you use it, it'll give you the equivalent protection of a couple of sheets of parchment, but the idea is to layer the magic to make the protection stronger."
"How long before we're able to block spells?" Draco asked excitedly.
"It depends," Harry replied. "The stronger the spell, the more likely it is to get through. An unforgivable, for example, will get through regardless of how strong your protection is, and after the rituals the study group has done, it won't give you much protection against their spells."
"But it will help against the Alumni," Ron said, catching on.
"Exactly," Harry agreed. "The study group is going to be focused on opening the portal, so it'll fall to the Alumni to protect them."
"What about that punch you did?" Ron asked.
"That one's also going to take some time," Harry explained. "It isn't just about layering magic for protection, you also need to put the force behind the punch to break through."
"How do we start?" Hermione asked, eager to try it for herself.
"Focus on your magical points," Harry explained. "But instead of producing light, direct your magic to flow over and stick to your hand. The more magical points and layers you apply, the stronger it will be."
Hermione nodded, following Harry's instructions. "I can feel it," she smiled, looking down at her hand.
"Good," Harry praised. "Now try creating another layer of magic on top of it."
"Ok," Hermione said, pushing more of her magic out. "It's harder," she said with a frown. "It takes a lot more concentration to form the second layer."
"Yes," Harry agreed. "Your magic will naturally want to spread out, covering a larger area, so you have to picture in your mind what you want it to do. With practice, it will become easier."
Harry watched as his friends trained, all with varying degrees of success. Hermione was a little further ahead overall, but Draco had a better grasp of layering his magic, and Ron could use more of his magical points.
"They're performing better than I expected,"Merlin admitted, a rare compliment from the ancient wizard."If they had another six or seven months to train, they might even be of some use to you."
'It'll give them some protection,'Harry thought, never intending for them to use hardening offensively during the ritual.
"The letter you received from the Minister was less than promising,"Merlin added somberly."Twenty fighters at most. They will be nowhere near enough to make a difference."
'I know,'Harry thought back, not needing the reminder. The goblins weren't willing to stick their necks out either, and after making a third attempt to talk to the headmaster, he had given up on the idea of getting his help as well.
"You don't have any other options, Harry, and you know it,"Merlin continued."You know what you have to do."
Harry sighed, looking down.'Bole,'he thought. Merlin made no secret of his plan to stop the study group, and with his options dwindling fast, he was tempted, going back and forth about the idea for weeks.
Bole had tried to kill him and his friends on more than one occasion, and if their roles were reversed, he doubted Bole would even hesitate, but he wasn't Bole. Could he really kill someone, and in cold blood? The idea seemed abhorrent to him, but with the pressure he was under, and what was at stake, could he afford to stick to his morals?
"It won't be easy,"Merlin said, speaking from experience."There is too much at stake for your own personal morality. All that matters, all that ever matters, is the lives you can save."
'The greatest good for the greatest number of people,'Harry thought back, wishing it could all be that simple.
"It is that simple,"Merlin thought back insistently."Their actions are going to cause the deaths of millions, perhaps even billions. Are you prepared to shoulder the weight of that?"
'They don't know what they're doing, not really,'Harry thought back.'Morgan's manipulated them. They think they're going to make the world better.'
"What they think doesn't matter, it's their actions that do,"Merlin disagreed."Have you thought about what's going to happen if they bring Morgan back? She won't stop until she rules the entire world with an iron fist, and maybe not even then. It's going to get messy. People don't won't live at the feet of a dictator, they're going to fight back, and many people are going to die before they realize they can't win."
Harry felt Merlin's words hit him hard. He hadn't fully considered what Morgan would do once she was free, and if Merlin's memories were anything to go by, she would pick up right where she left off.
----------------------------------------
Rita let out a tired sigh, pouring herself a glass of fire whiskey as she sat alone in her home. She had tried reaching out to some of the smaller British publications over the last few weeks to get her story published, but they had all turned her down. Witch Weekly had even turned down a meeting with her.
She looked at the half dozen offer letters on her coffee table. There were two from France, one from Bulgaria, two from Germany, and even one from America. They were all good offers, paying far more that she made at the Prophet, but she couldn't bring herself to reply to any of them.
It would mean leaving Britain, everything she had ever known, but with the way things were shaping up, she only have a few more months before she would have to make a decision. She couldn't just live off her savings forever.
When the protests started in front of the Prophet, she held out some hope the public pressure along with the canceled subscriptions would force them to re-hire her, but that was also when the smear articles against her started coming out.
It was a sobering reminder of the kind of journalist she used to be, but what made matters worse was that it was her former colleagues behind the articles, people that knew her, people that knew she changed, people she thought were her friends.
They were using the same tactics she used to use, stating unverified rumors, attributing then to unnamed sources, and alleging whatever they could to smear her, and it had worked, the protests died down, and the people simply moved onto other stories, other gossip.
Rita looked up, hearing a knock at her door. She stared at in confusion, wondering who it could be. Just about everyone she was close with cut all contact with her as soon as the Prophet fired her.
She got to her feet, putting her glass down as she made her way to the door. When she opened it, a blonde missile crashed into her, nearly knocking her to the floor. "Ouuf," she grunted, taking a step back as she steadied herself.
"Xeno?" she said in surprise, then looked down. "Luna? What are you doing here?" She asked, genuinely surprised to see them.
"We came to see you," Luna replied, smiling up at Rita.
"Yes, can we come in?" Xeno asked.
"Oh," Rita blinked. "Yes, of course. Sorry about the mess," she said, looking at the state of her living room. "I wasn't expecting guests," she added, feeling a little embarrassed at the state of things.
"It looks fine to me," Xeno said with a friendly smile. "I usually get my best writing done where there's a little clutter around."
"We read the articles the Prophet wrote about you," Luna said, an angry expression on her face. "We canceled our subscription straight away."
Rita cracked a smile, the first one she'd had in weeks. "Thank you Luna," she said warmly. "I appreciate your support."
"How could they just fire you?" Luna demanded. "You're their best reporter!"
"They didn't like the article I wanted to publish," Rita explained.
"Evergreen?" Xeno guessed.
Rita nodded.
Xeno sighed, having already guessed it was something like that. "What do you plan to do now?"
"What can I do?" Rita asked with a sigh as she sat down. "No media outlet in Britain is even willing to talk to me, let alone hire me," she added, gesturing to the offer letters on her coffee table.
Luna picked up on the letters, her fingers trembling as she realized what she was reading. "You're leaving?" she asked, her eyes wet.
"Oh Luna," Rita said, giving the girl a hug.
"B-but you can't leave," Luna said, tears falling from her eyes. "You have to stay!"
Rita felt her heart breaking as she held the little girl close, rubbing her back comfortingly. "I haven't decided anything yet," she said soothingly.
Luna hugged Rita tighter. "Please don't go," she whispered.
"Luna," Xena said gently, pulling his daughter back.
"It's not fair!" Luna said, rounding on her father. "Rita didn't do anything wrong! Why is she being punished?" She asked, the idea of her hero being forced to leave just felt wrong.
"…It's complicated," Xeno said, not sure how best to explain something like this to his daughter.
"There are people that don't want the truth to come out," Rita added.
"Why? What people?" Luna demanded. "Telling the truth is what we're supposed to do. That's what you said, daddy," she said, rounding on Xeno.
"It is," Xeno agreed. "But there are people in the world that don't care about the truth, people that make a lot of money doing the wrong things, and they don't want people to find out and expose them."
".. Oh," Luna replied, looking down sadly before her head popped up again as she got an idea. "You should print Rita's article, daddy," she smiled.
"What?" Xeno asked, surprised.
"Daddy! It's the best idea ever! Rita can write at the Quibbler! That way I can see her every day," Luna beamed.
"…Oh Luna," Rita jumped in, seeing the expression on Xeno's face. "It isn't that simple, sweetheart," she tried to explain. "The people that got me fired, they aren't going to like that."
"Who cares what they like?" Luna interrupted stubbornly.
Xeno stared at Luna as everything crystallized in his mind. "You're right," he admitted. "They did the same thing to me," he said, looking at Rita. "I had to shut down the office because of them, and lost more than half of my readers."
"Xeno?" Rita asked questioningly, not sure what he was getting at.
"They're afraid," Xeno explained. "I don't know why I didn't see it then, but they're afraid of getting exposed. That's why they went to the lengths they did. They knew they couldn't cover it up after the article printed."
"And what's stopping them from retaliating now? Or shutting you down again?" Rita asked, not wanting to get either of them tangled up in this as well.
"They could only shut me down because I had the office and writing staff," Xeno replied. "Someone I hired must have been spying for them, that's how they found out, but now it's just a one man operation, and they don't know that we know each other."
"So they'll only find out after the paper's printed, and in the hands of your readers," Rita smiled, following Xeno's line of thought.
"Exactly," Xeno smiled. "And after we expose them, they won't risk going after us. It's only going to make the article more credible."
"…Are you sure about this, Xeno? Absolutely sure?" Rita asked, looking between Luna and Xeno. "If we get this wrong, they could shut down the Quibbler for good… or worse."
Xeno looked at Luna, seeing the determined smile on her face. "We're sure," he said, putting an arm on Luna's shoulder. "But to be on the safe side," he said, deciding to hedge his bets. "Maybe we should take a bit of a vacation after we print the article, maybe a couple of days in France? What do you say Luna?"
"That's a great idea daddy!" Luna smiled, her eyes lighting up. "The Crumple Horned Snorkack likes to winter in France!"
"Then it's settled," Xeno said, returning her smile.
"Before we get ahead of ourselves, how many readers do you actually have?" Rita asked. "This is only going to work if enough people read the article."
"It's about five thousand subscribers, give or take," Xeno replied.
"That many?" Rita asked in surprise. It was far less than the twenty thousand subscribers the Prophet had, but still far higher than she expected.
"Yes," Xeno nodded proudly. "It helps that annual subscription only costs one galleon per year."
Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.
'That's five thousand galleons per year,' Rita thought, doing the math. As a reporter, she made a base of three thousand galleons per year. She made a little more for special editions, or if her articles drove up sales, but it didn't happen very often.
"That's- that's great," Rita smiled. "With that many readers, they won't have an easy time sweeping this under the rug."
"My thoughts exactly," Xeno replied.
"Xeno, you said you wrote your own article about Evergreen, right?" Rita asked, getting another idea.
"Yes, somewhere at home, although they went by Greenview when I wrote my article. Why?" Xeno asked.
"Do you still have it?" Rita asked. "If we combine what you and I both found out about them, we can make an even stronger case against them."
"Are you offering to share a byline with me, Rita?" Xeno asked, smiling.
"Just this once," Rita said with a playful smirk. "We won't make a habit of it."
"Let's go!" Luna said excitedly, grabbing her father's and Rita's hands as she pulled them to the door, eager to get started.
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Draco walked down the corridor on the seventh floor, making his way to the room of requirement. Even though his house mates weren't talking to him, they picked up pretty quickly that he wasn't sleeping in the dorms, and word had finally got back to Professor Snape about it.
The conversation he had with his head of house, as well as godfather, had been uncomfortable to say the least. It had always been difficult to keep things from him, and he had picked up right away that he was hiding something from him, and demanded to know what it was.
Draco sighed, remembering the look on his godfather's face when he refused to answer. The yelling and the threats washed over his back, but the look of disappointment on his face was a lot harder to shake.
In that moment, he had strongly considered telling him everything, but he didn't even know where to begin.'How do you explain to a professor that had been teaching at Hogwarts for a decade that there's a secret organization that's been operating under his nose all this time without sounding crazy?'He thought. He had seen it firsthand, and he even thought it was crazy.
It had gone downhill from there when Professor Snape threatened to get his father involved, and he still refused to say anything. He genuinely wondered if he could get his godfather's trust back after all of this was over.
Draco was so deep in thought that he didn't notice he was the only one on the seventh floor, and only realized something was wrong when he was slammed headfirst into a wall.
He groaned, dropping to the floor as he grabbed his head, still dazed as he looked up. His eyes widened as he saw who was walking towards him, Beatrice, and Elspeth. His eyes trailed down to the wands in their hands, and he gulped visibly, knowing he was in trouble.
'Stupid,'he thought, cursing himself for getting distracted, and not realizing he walked into a trap.
"Look at him," Elspeth sneered, he's scared.
"Good," Beatrice replied, coldly. "After what he did to Lucian, he deserves what's coming."
"T-this isn't a good idea," Draco said, staggering to his feet, trying to bluff his way out of this. "If you do anything to me, my father won't stop until he finds you," he threatened.
"You think we're scared of your father?" Beatrice asked, laughing mockingly. "That boot-licker? Do you even know what they say about him behind his back?"
Draco narrowed his eyes as he glared at the third year, just itching to grab his wand, but he took a breath, knowing that getting angry wouldn't help him get out of this. "What do you want?" He demanded.
"We want you to know we're done playing around," Elspeth replied, matching his glare. "And we have a message for Potter. You're going to deliver it for us."
"What message is that?" Draco asked, feeling a shiver run down his spine as he looked into their eyes. He could tell there was something very, very wrong with them, almost crazed.
"Confringo," Beatrice hissed, aiming her wand at Draco's forearm.
Draco let out an agonized scream as he clutched his arm, hearing a loud crack. He grit his teeth, fighting through the pain. His arm was broken, but he drew his wand anyway, his fingers shaking as he held onto it.
"Accio wand," Elspeth said, ripping the wand from Draco's outstretched hand.
Draco took a step back, looking back and forth between the two witches. He thought about running, but knew it was impossible. They would cut him down before he could even turn around.
"Don't bother running," Elspeth said coldly. "The time for that's over."
"Confringo," Beatrice said, using the blasting curse again, this time on Draco's leg.
"Arghhh!" Draco screamed out as he collapsed to the floor, his leg broken, and no longer able to support his weight. He looked at them wildly, wondering if they were planning on killing him right here in the hallway.
Elspeth bent down, seeing the look in Draco's eyes. She grabbed his hair, pulling sharply, and forcing him to look up at her. "Don't worry Draco, we're not going to kill you. That would be too easy," she said, before shoving him back hard.
Draco landed heavily, his head smacking against the unforgiving stone floor. His eyes were blurry, his head rolling from side to side as his vision darkened. He fought through it, using every ounce of willpower he had to remain conscious as he rolled over onto his stomach.
He crawled away, using his uninjured arm to pull himself forward, not believing a word they said. He felt his heart pounding in his chest, hoping that someone would find him.
"Oh Draco, where are you going?" Beatrice laughed, a manic edge to her voice. "You haven't even heard the message we have for Potter."
"Stop it Draco, this is pathetic," Elspeth said, slamming her foot into the small of his back, earning another scream of pain from Draco. "Even for you."
Draco breathed sharply, feeling as if the last attack had also cracked a few of his ribs as well. "W-what m-m-message?" he said between pained gasps.
Elspeth leaned down, whispering into Draco's ear. "We're coming for him next," she said before slamming his forehead onto the stone floor.
"Come on, let's go," Beatrice said, looking down at the unconscious form of Draco disdainfully. "The others are waiting for us."
----------------------------------------
Harry sat with Hermione and Ron in the room of requirement, each of them looking at the ground somberly.
"It was a couple of fifth year students that found him," Harry said, softly. "They brought him to Madam Pomfrey. She said it could have been a lot worse if they didn't find him when they did."
"How did he look?" Ron asked.
"Not good," Harry replied. "A broken arm, leg, cracked ribs, and a gash on the back of his head."
"I have to go see him," Hermione said, standing up.
"No," Harry shook his head, grabbing her hand, and pulling her back down. "That's what they want."
"We have to do something," Hermione insisted.
"Like what?" Ron asked. "We can't fight them. They're way too strong for us."
Hermione went quiet, looking away.
"Where you able to talk to him?" Ron asked.
"No," Harry shook his head. "He's still unconscious."
"But why did they attack Draco?" Hermione asked. "They know he isn't a threat to them."
"They're getting worse," Harry replied. "It's all the rituals they've done. It's messing with their heads, making them more aggressive."
"Egwu was like that too, in the chamber," Ron said. "So was Bole."
"And it's only a matter of time before it happens to the rest of them, if it hasn't already," Harry replied gravely.
"It's my fault," Hermione said, getting choked up. "Draco said he was going to the room of requirement. I should have gone with him."
"This isn't your fault, Hermione," Harry said, putting a steadying hand on her shoulder. "If you had gone with him, the same thing would have happened to you."
"That's their plan," Ron said, feeling a flash of anger. "They want to pick us off, one by one. They attacked Draco first because he was the easiest to get to. He can't stick with the other Slytherins, like we can with the Gryffindors."
"That's not going to happen," Harry said, trying to calm down his friends.
"You can't promise them that, Harry,"Merlin reminded him."Even if you stick with them every second of every day."
"How are we supposed to stop them?" Hermione asked desperately.
"…I don't know," Harry replied.
"Yes, you do,"Merlin insisted."You have one of them laid out in the hospital wing, right next to your friend. Get them before they get you."
'I can't,'Harry thought back, not outright dismissing the idea this time as he thought about the state they left Draco in.'They're too strong.'
"When they're together, you don't stand a chance against them, but individually is another story. They're not trained fighters. They have weaknesses you can exploit. You've already proven that with the one in the forbidden forest."
'How would I do it?'Harry thought back, actually considering Merlin's suggestion this time.
"Start with the one in the hospital wing first,"Merlin replied."He's their weakest, and the easiest to take out."
'Then what?'Harry thought.'They'll know it's me. What's stopping them from retaliating?'
"Do it tonight,"Merlin replied,"while everyone is asleep. Then go after the two third years. You shouldn't have any problem getting into their common rooms again. Take them out while they're sleeping."
'What about Egwu, Winger, and Murk?'Harry thought back, his mind flashing back to how Merlin handled the cult in his time.
"Deal with the third years for now,"Merlin advised."The Aurors will be called in the morning, and they won't be able to retaliate, or… they'll be so far gone at that point they'll attack anyway and the Aurors will mobilize in force and give us the numbers we need to take them down."
Harry said nothing, a grim look on his face as he thought about the ruthless efficiency of Merlin's plan.'Tonight then,'he agreed with a troubled sigh, feeling the relief from Merlin as he agreed to his plan.
----------------------------------------
Harry stepped out of his dorm room late at night, shutting the door quietly behind him as he left. He glanced at his watch, seeing how late it was. Ron, Neville, and the rest of his dorm mates had taken longer to fall asleep than he expected.
He stared grimly around the common room, mentally preparing himself for what he had to do, but stopped short, drawing his wand as he sensed a presence.
"Oh, good. You're here, Harry," Harry heard a voice in the darkness.
"Who are you?" Harry said, narrowing his eyes as he pointed his wand at the girl that appeared from the shadows.
"It's me," Tonks replied, changing her form back.
"Tonks?" Harry asked in surprise. "What are you doing here?" He asked, lowering his wand.
"I have something important to tell you," Tonks replied, casting a muffling charm in case there was someone watching them. "I know some people in the Ministry, people we can trust."
"Who? What did you tell them?" Harry asked, feeling both hopeful and worried at the same time.
"I think you met him, Saul Croaker," Tonks replied.
"The head of the Department of Mysteries?" Harry asked, now confused. "How is he going to help? They're just a bunch of researchers."
"No," Tonks shook her head. "You can't tell anyone else this, but they're trained fighters, too. They said they're going to help."
"Why can't I tell anyone?" Harry asked, getting suspicious. "What do they have to hide?"
"It's politics," Tonks explained, disdainfully. "They technically fall under the command of the Wizengamot, and if they knew they were trained fighters, it would give them a private army, and upset the balance of power in the government."
"Ok, fine," Harry said, shaking his head, and accepting her explanation, for now. "How many of them are there?"
"There's about fifty of them, and they're all committed to stopping the Alumni," Tonks replied.
"Ok," Harry said, nodding his head. It was less than he hoped for, but better than nothing. "How did you convince them it was real?" He asked, thinking about his own recent failures at doing the same.
"It's what they do," Tonks explained.
"I still don't know when they're going to attempt the ritual," Harry said. "How can I get in touch with them?"
"Send me an owl," Tonks replied. "I'll get word to them."
"Alright," Harry agreed, feeling a small amount of tension leave his shoulders.
"There's one more thing Harry," Tonks said. "The tome you showed me. Do you still have it?"
"Why?" Harry asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.
"I want to bring it to the Unspeakables," Tonks explained. "They want to see if there's a way they can undo the ritual, or if there's any weaknesses in it they can exploit."
"They're already dying," Harry replied, "and there isn't a way to undo it."
"Harry… you've done a lot, more than any first year should be capable of, but you're not an expert in this kind of stuff. The Unspeakables are. You need to give it to me," she insisted. "They could find something you missed, and if we can help them, isn't it worth a shot?"
"That's exactly why I don't want them to have it," Harry denied. "Can you honestly tell me that one of them wouldn't be tempted to use it? Think about the damage they could cause."
"It's not like that Harry," Tonks denied. "They know what they're doing."
"Yeah? The study group thought the same thing," Harry said flippantly. "And look how that turned out."
"What? What happened?" Tonks asked, seeing the angry look on Harry's face.
"They didn't just stop after their failed attack on you and me," Harry explained. "They put Draco in the hospital wing, and if they get their way, they're going to do the same to the rest of my friends."
"Why?" Tonks asked, confused. "This is just going to draw more attention to them. That should be the last thing they want."
"They're losing control," Harry explained. "All that foreign magic in their systems, it's making them more aggressive, and they're only going to get worse."
Tonks exhaled, remembering their own escape from the study group, and the amount of magic they could put into their spells. A shiver went down her spine as she thought about how much worse they would be with no control, or thought of consequences.
"Alright," Tonks relented. "I'll warn them. They won't perform the ritual. They'll just research it, and find a way to stop them. But they need the tome to do that Harry. You have to trust me, please."
"The tome's already destroyed," Harry admitted.
"What? How?" Tonks demanded. "It had to have all kinds of protections on it to prevent that."
"It doesn't matter," Harry replied, choosing not tell Tonks about the goblin's involvement. "It's gone."
"Alright, alright," Tonks said with a sigh. She could tell by the expression on Harry's face that he was serious, and pushing him now for more details wouldn't work out in her favor. "If anything else happens, you need to owl me," Tonks insisted. "The department of mysteries is looking into this as well, and anything you find out, they need to know about, too."
"Alright," Harry agreed. "Provided they do the same."
"It's a deal," Tonks agreed. "I have to go. Be careful," she said, walking away.
Harry watched Tonks leave, extending his senses to make sure she was really gone before he made his way to the hospital wing. Even with the supposed support of the Unspeakables, he couldn't risk his friends getting hurt again.
He stood outside the hospital wing, making sure that Madam Pomfrey had left for the night before he quietly opened the door, stepping inside.
He spotted the two beds in the corner, one with Draco in it, and the other with Bole.
He made his way to Bole's bed, transforming his wand into its dagger form. He sat down on the chair beside the bed, looking at Bole as he held the dagger in his lap.
'He doesn't look like a threat, not like this,'he thought idly, tracing his thumb up and down the handle of his dagger, finding his task much more difficult now that he was actually looking at Bole.
"Don't let that fool you,"Merlin warned."He was ready to kill you in the forbidden forest, and given the chance, he'll try again."
Harry nodded resignedly, lifting his dagger, feeling his hand shake as he held it up. He closed his eyes, taking a breath to calm himself, trying to prepare himself for what he had to do to protect his friends.
"Take another breath,"Merlin instructed."This will not be easy for you, but tactically it's the right move, and you know it."
Harry listened to Merlin's words, taking another breath as he tried to prepare himself. He brought the dagger down, just touching Bole's neck. He knew the dagger was sharp and it wouldn't take much force to do what he needed.
Merlin remained quiet, silently observing as Harry prepared himself. He knew it was different for him. Harry hadn't killed before. He didn't know what it was like. The hollowness that came afterwards, and he genuinely wished it didn't have to come to this, but there was no other choice, not anymore.
Just as Harry was about to press the dagger into Bole's neck, he heard a groan. His eyes widened as he pulled back his dagger, looking at Bole's face, and making sure he was still asleep.
That was when he heard it again. He looked sharply to his left. "Draco?" He asked, now knowing where the sound was coming from.
Draco gingerly rubbed the back of his head as his vision cleared. "Where am I?" He groaned.
"Easy," Harry said, moving to Draco's hospital bed. "You're in the hospital wing."
"Harry?" Draco asked in confusion.
"Yeah, it's me," Harry replied.
"…The study group," Draco said, attempting to sit up. "They attacked me."
"I know," Harry replied. "Don't get up just yet. Your arm and leg are still broken, and you have a fractured skull."
Draco gave a nod, taking a pained breath as he lay back down on the bed. "Where's Madam Pomfrey?" He asked.
"She's gone home for the night," Harry explained. "No one expected you to wake up, at least until the morning."
"It was Haywood, and MacGillony," Draco said, trying to concentrate on anything else other than the pain. "They attacked me out of nowhere. There's something wrong with them… they were never like that before."
"It's the ritual," Harry explained patiently. "It's messing with their heads, making them more aggressive."
"What are you doing here, Harry?" Draco asked, his mental fog beginning to clear. "You're the one they really want. This could be a trap to lure you out."
"It's not," Harry shook his head. "I already checked for that before I came down here. They're all in their common rooms."
Draco nodded, then his eyes drifted down to the dagger in Harry's hand. "What's that?" He asked.
"It's nothing," Harry said, quickly putting away the dagger.
"No," Draco shook his head. "It's not nothing. What were you-" he stopped, catching sight of Bole in the bed beside him. "You're here for him, aren't you?"
"…Yes," Harry admitted, not seeing any sense in denying it now. "He tried to kill us, and the rest of them are just going to get worse."
"…Are you sure?" Draco said, grimacing as he shifted his arm, still feeling a sharp pain. "This is something you want to do?"
"What?" Harry asked, surprised that Draco would have a reaction like that. "Look at what they did to you. Imagine if that was Hermione or Ron."
"I get it," Draco said tiredly. "Believe me, I get it."
"But," Harry said, sensing that Draco had more to say about it.
"But are you sure it's something you can live with?" Draco asked.
"…It doesn't matter what I want," Harry replied. "My guilt is a small price to pay if it means something like this doesn't happen again."
"It does," Draco insisted. "So if you do this, you need to be sure."
"You're not going to try to stop me?" Harry asked, surprised by Draco's reaction.
"No, and I'm not going to think any less of you, if you do," Draco replied.
"Why do I get the feeling you're holding back?" Harry asked.
"…My father," Draco admitted. "I've heard some of the things they say about him. The Death Eater that bribed his way out of Azkaban, the crimes he committed, the people he killed."
"Where are you going with this Draco?" Harry asked.
"I never had the nerve to ask my father about it directly. I still don't," Draco continued. "But I asked my mother once. Do you know what she told me?"
Harry shook his head.
"She asked me if I really wanted to know. I was only seven at the time, and I didn't know any better then, so I said yes," Draco replied. "My mother looked at me for a long time before she said anything. I'll never forget the look on her face. She was sad, but also resigned. She must have known I was going to ask one day."
"She looked me straight in the eye and said he did everything they accused him of and more."
"Did she tell you why he did it?" Harry asked.
Draco shook his head, "no. She doesn't know either. All she knows is that the night he came back, he wasn't the same man anymore. He lost a bit of himself, and it got worse each time he went out, until eventually she couldn't recognize him anymore."
"I know this isn't the same thing," Draco said softly. "And the stakes are a lot higher… I just want you to know you won't be the same after this."
Draco's words hit Harry hard, enough to even drown out Merlin, urging him to finish off Bole. His mouth went dry as he sagged into his seat, no longer sure of what he should do.
"He isn't going to be asleep forever," Harry said. "This is just a setback for them."
"I know," Draco nodded.
"…What would you do?" Harry asked, glancing back at Bole.
"Honestly?" Draco asked. "I don't know, but if I had to, I wouldn't want it to be like this, while he's lying there helpless."
Harry nodded, turning his dagger back into a wand and putting it away in his holster. "I'll wait with you, in cause they decide to show up later," he said, knowing that he'd disappointed Merlin, but it was a disappointment he could live with.