Harry Potter and the Hall of Justice

Chapter 22 Orb of the Oracle


It was very late in the evening when Professor Dumbledore arrived at Falcon’s Lair. Before he went back to Hogwarts, he gathered Athena and Coeus to the tables.

“I thank you all for a job well done!” the old wizard shouted out. “We will have much to discuss tomorrow morning. It’s important we rehash the events of this evening in great detail. We will learn much from our shared experiences.”

The young wizards and witches began excitedly talking amongst themselves. Fred and George went about reliving their experiences up on the roof, and the story had the tables of young witches and wizards breaking out in laughter.

Professor Dumbledore motioned Priest and Grime to join him at the portkey to the conference room. The three disappeared in a flash and were immediately standing beside the large conference table at Hogwarts.

“I know we’re weary and need our rest, but I wanted to chat with you both a bit. Are you two up for a little conversation?” he asked.

“Hell yes!” Grime exclaimed. “I’m still pumped up, Albus. I haven’t felt this damn good in twenty years. I couldn’t sleep a wink if I tried.”

Drucila Priest nodded her shriveled old head. “The same goes for me. I wasn’t as physically involved but just the thought of what we accomplished has my mind reeling. I can’t believe we’ve actually started to strike back, at long last. Long overdue but we’ve started!” the old witch exclaimed, smiling broadly at the two wizards.

“Right you are, Drucila. Right you are,” Dumbledore replied. “And we’ve much to decide. Getting our hands on those files tonight will certainly change our course of action. They are incredible. Very detailed. Exactly what we needed.”

“What a fool he was! Cetus must have been really paranoid to keep such incriminating information. And I believe you hit the nail right on the head - - - he probably planned to use those files as leverage. Pitting one wizard against another and such, I imagine that’s closer the reason for their existence,” Grime said, rubbing his face with his two large hands after he finished. He was indeed pumped.

Professor Dumbledore looked around and saw a fresh tea service sitting on the countertop behind him. He brought it to the table and poured ice tea for his old companions. They took seats and drank quietly for some time, lost in their own thoughts. Dumbledore stroked at his long white beard with his right hand, smiling to himself. He felt like a young wizard again. Adrenaline was still coursing through his old body and it felt grand.

“We have our work cut out for us; that’s certain. Those files will have to be broken down and organized. They should be our immediate focus, do we agree?” he asked out, looking at Grime and Priest.

They nodded their heads in agreement. “Drucila, you told me you were very impressed with Graciela Calderon. What do you say we task her with organizing those files? We could give her two Coeus members and one of the extra offices. We need to organize the data by region, first. It might provide us with a better picture of their organization, too,” the old wizard said.

“Good idea. And Graciela would be the best choice and no doubt get the job done quickly,” Priest replied.

The old wizard nodded his head. “Bartholomew, those muggle weapons did the trick, I must say! You were absolutely right. Much quicker but they do create a lot of noise. And we did leave Drucila a very nasty mess to clean up,” Dumbledore said, smiling at the old witch and giving her a wink.

The old witch grinned proudly. “Wasn’t too bad of a job, Albus. It went along fairly well, actually. I turned the whole lot into dust and sent it flying on the evening breeze. Repairing all the holes and gouges those muggle weapons made took me much longer,” she laughed. “But I was also impressed with the lethality of them. Noisy, yes! I could hear the damned things firing clear back in the trees. But they did get the job done, didn’t they?”

“Yes. Of course, we will most likely not be able to use them as much as we would like. Many of our targets will be too close to populated areas. Have you taught that reduction incantation you used to turn all that trash into dust to Athena, Drucila?” Dumbledore asked.

“No, not yet, but it’s important they learn it. Tonight made me aware of that. I won’t be able to tag along on all their little adventures just to clean up their messes. They need to take care of their own garbage,” she replied.

Dumbledore laughed out. “I absolutely agree with that. We should never leave any evidence behind, unless of course, it’s in our best interest to do so,” he said, grinning. “Also, when I interrogated Cetus, he said I had stolen the portkey Malfoy used to contact Voldemort. He said it was a small, wooden box. Do either of you remember such a box? We haven’t stored it amongst our previous haul from Malfoy’s, have we?”

“I don’t remember one. Do you Drucila?” Grime asked.

“No. Not to my recollection. I’ll take a close look when I return. The last thing we need is Voldemort appearing within our dungeon. What do you want done with it if we find it, Albus? Destroy it?” she asked.

“No, no, Drucila. Let’s not do that. It might be possible to locate Voldemort’s whereabouts in the Carpathian Mountains. It has been many years since I’ve been through that part of the world. I rather doubt the portkey would lead us straight to Voldemort, anyway. He could be hundreds of miles from the point the portkey terminates. It would be interesting, however. A trip I wouldn’t mind taking,” Dumbledore said, staring down into his glass of iced tea.

“You wouldn’t dare risk such journey alone, Albus?” Drucila quickly asked shocked at what she believed the old wizard was thinking.

“No, of course not. A small team would do better. We might put a few of our Coeus members to work doing just that, though. They could take their time, snoop around several hours each day and see if they might just happen across something interesting,” he replied.

“They could go about that work without a great deal of training. It might just be wise to do that very thing, Albus. We should give it serious thought,” Grime said.

A serious look came over the old headmaster’s face. “Yes. But we wouldn’t want to put any of our young members at risk. That would be unacceptable,” Dumbledore added.

They talked on for almost two hours. Dumbledore, at last, told them he would return to Falcon’s Lair in the morning after he gave the Chief Justice the after-action report he wanted. Professor Priest suggested the young wizards and witches be given the day off, after they helped complete the inventory of the seized items from the Cetus property.

Before Priest and Grime left for Falcon’s Lair, she turned to Dumbledore and said, “You know, Albus. Between what we seized at Malfoy’s and the Cetus estate, we probably have more gold than Gringott’s.” All three had a good laugh at her observation. But, seriously, they each knew she probably wasn’t too far off with her estimate.


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Early the next morning, the old professor briefed Professor McGonagall on what had transpired at the Cetus estate. She was amazed at their findings. After admitting to the old wizard she had been greatly concerned they were starting off too quickly, she agreed that such an outcome should make everyone feel much more optimistic.

Professor Dumbledore again timed his visit to the Hall of Justice just as the Chief Justice was beginning his breakfast. This morning, however, other visitors had joined him. Ministers Weasley and Bones had also just arrived and were taking their seats when the old wizard topped the landing.

“Albus! Thank God!” Webster screamed out when he saw the old wizard walking toward their table. “How did it go? Is everyone all right?”

“Yes! Everyone is fine! We could not have had a better outcome, Your Lordship!” the old professor exclaimed, smiling broadly and shaking hands all around the table.

“The meeting took place then, Professor?” asked Arthur Weasley.

“Yes, a large one at that. We believe we eliminated over fifty. It happened so fast; they truthfully did not know what hit them. It was over in a flash. Amazingly fast! Athena performed admirably,” he told them, filled with pride.

“What a relief! None of our people were injured?” Webster asked again, wanting to make certain he had heard right the first time.

“No. Not a scratch. You can’t say that about Cetus and his henchmen, however. They’ve been scattered on the wind, literally,” he said.

The old professor went on with his after-action report. He told them, in detail, everything that had transpired. They were amazed at his story concerning the information found in the filing cabinet. Dumbledore then requested the two ministers listen carefully for any rumors about missing persons over the next days. They agreed it would be interesting to see how long the evil associates and under-lords could go before asking around about those who were missing.

“What do you wish done with the valuables we confiscated, Your Lordship?” Dumbledore asked.

Webster looked at Minister Weasley and shrugged his shoulders. “What would you suggest, Arthur?”

“Not a thing. I assumed you would use it to fund your operations. It actually shouldn’t be any business of the ministry, at all. In fact, it’s best, in my opinion, if as few people know about those seizures as possible. Although, after hearing what Professor Dumbledore has just told us, I’m hopeful his team will make a great deal of headway and put this all behind us before too long. Why don’t you wait until we have reached a point of some finality before deciding?” Minister Weasley asked.

“Is that all right with you, Albus?” Webster asked.

“Yes, perfectly. I must say we’ve spent a large sum already, purchasing the muggle weapons, the invisibility clothing and new broomsticks and, well, the list goes on and on. Yes, it will help fund our activities,” he admitted. It occurred to the old wizard the men didn’t fully understand just how much plunder they had actually seized. But, he felt better about not having to clarify it. After all, his young wizards and witches just might need every bit of it before their crusade could be considered over.

After the breakfast and chat session, Weasley and Bones excused themselves and returned to the Ministry of Magic.

Professor Dumbledore asked the Chief Justice and Hermione if they wished to return with him to Falcon’s Lair. Webster excused himself, as Hermione had assigned him the task of reading the History of Magic.

“Hermione’s quite the task master, Albus. But she’s right, I need to get up to speed on you magic folk. What I’ve read so far has been damn interesting, too, I must confess,” Webster said, grinning at the brown-haired witch, who squinted her eyes at him over that ‘task master’ label.

“I shall test him each evening, Professor. He’ll be very well versed within a fortnight,” she said, winking at her boss.


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Hermione and Dumbledore went straightaway to Falcon’s Lair where they found Professor Priest and her young protégés finishing up their inventory. She walked over to Dumbledore and showed him a long parchment, but she admitted having no idea the exact value of everything.

“The chests we brought back are full of Galleons, not a Knut or a Sickle to be found. And those bags of jewels, I have no understanding of how they are valued. Next, there are exactly four hundred bars of gold and we’ve filled up a number of large crates with the muggle money. It’s frankly beyond me, Albus. I have no idea of its total worth,” she told him, clearly frustrated with it all. “On the other hand, I believe I found that little wooden box from Malfoy’s. We need to move it to another, safer location. Don’t you agree?”

“Yes, I have the exact place for it, Drucila. I will move it later. Now, how’s Graciela coming along with those files?” he asked.

“Grime is with her. I assigned two Coeus members to help them out. Follow me,” she said, “they’re in one of the offices at the end of the first training room.”

Dumbledore and Hermione followed the witch. Hermione looked around and didn’t see Harry or Ron anywhere. She was anxious to see what they had to say about the raid.

“Bartholomew! Graciela!” Dumbledore exclaimed, as they walked into the office. Files were spread about on several tables in stacks of various sizes.

“Albus! What a find we have here! We’ve counted almost two hundred, so far. Graciela is separating them using what appears to be some kind of code Cetus used,” Grime said. The large man was clearly very excited and appreciative of the immense value of the information.

“Graciela? What do you think?” Professor Dumbledore asked the small Hispanic witch.

“The files are very enlightening, Professor. We’re trying to understand the coding system Cetus used. See!” she pointed to the front of a folder. “He used letters followed by numbers on each of the files. We believe the letters refers to a particular Dark Lord. We don’t know what the numbers represent unless it’s only his assignment of a number to each individual. The highest file number we’ve found so far is one hundred ninety-six.”

“I see you’re grouping them together by the letters.”

“Yes. We’ll do that first to see if it makes any sense. It might give us an idea of their locations and the identity of the Death Eater to which they are assigned,” she replied.

Dumbledore and Hermione sat down at one of the tables and began reading through a number of the files.


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


The Chief Justice took a break from his assigned reading, and began randomly meandering through the huge library. He walked down long hallways of shelving and soon noticed he was unable to decipher the writings among the bound volumes. Walking far into the back of the library, Webster found clay tablets and many artifacts of unknown purpose. Finally, deciding he had dallied away enough of his time, he turned to return to the library’s copy of the History of Magic lying on one of the large tables near his chambers.

He purposely changed his route on his walk back but, as he was leaving the area containing the unusual artifacts, caught sight of a small crystal globe. The clear glass ball seemed to glow with an almost imperceptible bluish light, which seemed to pulse like a heart. He stopped to peer into it but was unable to see where the light within it originated. Reaching out to lift it for a better look, the globe let loose a great blast of energy. So severe was the shock, Webster was thrown backwards into the shelving across the hall. The Chief Justice immediately lapsed into unconsciousness.


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


“Master, Lucius has failed to bring news. He is long overdue,” Pettigrew said, after he had walked into the dark room his lord and master was using for his metamorphic change. Wormtail had greatly feared to bring such news to Voldemort, dreading he might strike out at him for Malfoy’s failure to appear.

The creature squirmed on the floor, lifting its massive head to better view the bearer of such grave news. “I sense great peril. Lucius is dead. His plan has failed. He has betrayed me,” the large half-slug, half-snake hissed.

“What are we to do, Master? None of your servants knows where we are. There are none who can assist us,” Wormtail said, wringing his hands and growing ever more anxious over the abysmal state they were in.

“Calm yourself. I require only time and food for my transformation to be complete. We have nothing to fear. Lucius will be replaced. There are many who wish to serve,” the smelly slug said, rocking slowly from side to side, its sticky slime squishing under the creature’s heavy weight. “When my transformation is finished, I will return to inflict great suffering on all who have failed me. Has my meal been prepared?”

“Yes, Master. There are two young tender muggles ready to please you, as you requested,” Wormtail informed him.

“I trust you satisfied your lustful cravings,” the slug hissed out.

“Yes, Master. I found them to be most pleasing,” Wormtail chuckled. “If you wish it, I will leave your meals unsoiled.”

“It matters not. But they must be aware of my presence. You will not hurt them so that they can no longer move or display terror. I must play with my meal before I eat it,” it said, slithering to the door Wormtail held open for him. As the huge creature moved by him, he could see the thickening at the base of the large snake-like head. He smiled to himself at this; the master was changing more every day. Wormtail hoped it wouldn’t be long before he again had arms and legs.

He opened the last door and the large beast quickly moved inside the room. The two young muggles screamed and ran about in an attempt to evade the ugly creature. Wormtail smiled, knowing his master would greatly relish his buffet.


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Professor Dumbledore jumped from his chair. He brought his right hand quickly to his chest. Hermione, who had walked outside the office to talk to one of the newly appointed witches, rushed back in to tell the professor what she had just felt.

The professor looked at the young girl and noticed the horrified expression on her face. Without saying a word, they both rushed from the office to the portkey and were soon back at the Hall of Justice.

“What has happened, Professor?” Hermione cried out, as they hurried along.

“Something dreadful I fear!” the old professor led the way, his hand upon his chest, feeling the sensations from his amulet but unable to articulate their meaning.

The professor entered the library and rushed back into the cavernous halls, proceeding as his amulet directed him. They quickly stopped at an intersection of hallways and saw the Chief Justice sprawled along the floor at the base of one of the massive shelves.

Crouching over the large prostrate man, Hermione lifted his head and felt warm blood on her hand. The Chief Justice was moaning, consciousness was slowly returning to him.

“What happened, Daniel?” the old professor asked, when the man opened his eyes.

“I don’t know. I was knocked out. I’m okay, just a little groggy,” he replied.

“Easy!” Hermione shouted out, as he attempted to get up. “You’ve got a nasty bump on your head and it’s bleeding.”

“I’ll be okay. Let me sit up, Hermione. It’s okay. Really!” he exclaimed.

The Chief Justice slowly sat up and leaned into Hermione, who was attempting to see what damage had been done to his head.

“Damn!” he shouted out. “That hurt!”

“Be still! I need to see how bad you’ve been hurt!” she commanded, her hand shaking from the adrenaline rushing through her body. “It isn’t too bad. But we need to clean it. I don’t think you will need stitches but you’ve got one heck of a bump back here.”

“I sense you did not fall, Your Lordship. Were you attacked? Did you touch something?” Professor Dumbledore asked.

“The ball thing over there,” he said, pointing in the general direction where he remembered it to be. “It was glowing. I was going to pick it up to look at it then, well, I don’t remember. I think it shocked me!”

Professor Dumbledore slowly approached the crystal globe and peered at it. He, too, raised his hand to it but quickly thought better of it. The old wizard had no idea what it was and couldn’t remember ever having seen it before.

Hermione helped Webster to his feet. He stood leaning against the heavy wooden shelf until his head cleared.

“What is that thing, Professor?” he asked.

“I don’t know, Dan. I’ve never seen it before. That’s no surprise, however. There are thousands of artifacts back here no one living today knows anything about. Let’s see,” he said, rubbing his beard and looking about at the various other things on the shelves from the period. “If things were rightfully placed here and no one has moved them around, I would say we are looking at items from about the time of Edward D’Mar. Maybe, something like a thousand years ago, give or take a hundred.”

“Is it still glowing, Professor? It was glowing a bluish color. I was trying to see where the light was coming from and reached up to move it when it got me,” he said, slowly walking across the hall to again peer into the object.

The old professor again walked up to the globe and saw a faint bluish glow for the first time. As Chief Justice Webster got closer, the glow grew in brilliance.

“Wait, Your Lordship! Wait! Stop where you are!” Dumbledore shouted. “Back away! Walk back to where you were!”

Webster complied. Hermione walked up to stand alongside Professor Dumbledore, and both noticed the glow diminish in intensity.

“What’s happening, Professor?” Hermione asked.

“I don’t know. Dan, walk back this way slowly, but stop when I tell you to,” he ordered.

The Chief Justice began to walk again toward the globe but Dumbledore commanded him to stop, as the glow again increased.

“It senses your presence, Your Lordship. My, my! What could it be? Does it remind you of anything you’ve read about in your studies, Hermione?” he asked.

“No, Professor. I’ve no idea what it is. If you like, I can search the library for a reference book describing these artifacts,” she said.

“Yes, we must do just that. We should start with some of the texts by D’Mar. If you should find a drawing of the object, bring the writing to me. I will translate the text,” he told her.

“Of course,” she said, again looking at Webster. “Your Lordship, we need to take you back to the residence and clean you up.”

“Yeah, I guess I should,” he said.

“You two go ahead,” Professor Dumbledore said. “I’m going to look around for some of D’Mar’s parchments. If I remember correctly, I think they’re at the end of the hall here. I’ll be along shortly.”

Hermione took Webster back up to the third floor residence to clean his head wound. He told her he felt all right, and he didn’t seem to display any lasting effects. She brought him some iced tea, and Webster explained why he had ended up back in that part of the library. The tea revitalized him quickly, and he was feeling like his old self when Professor Dumbledore walked into the residence with a number of hefty bound texts in his arms.

“Here Hermione!” he exclaimed. “Take a couple of these and begin flipping through them. Dan, here is one for you. Look at the drawings on the parchments. If you see something that reminds you of the globe, let me look at it.”

They began flipping through the old, musty parchments and Hermione was the one who first found a drawing resembling the globe. “Professor! Look at this!”

The old wizard took the parchment from her. It was obviously the globe as it had the same markings along the base. “Yes, Hermione. This is it.”

“What does it say, Professor?” she asked.

“It’s a very old text in an early dialect I’m only slightly familiar with,” he said. “It’s name is loosely translated ‘Orb of the Oracle’ or ‘Oracle’s Orb or Sphere’. ‘The one who is called shall perceive that which is hidden’, ‘the one who is called will understand, will know the unspoken truth’, and the rest in unclear to me. I believe the globe is not to be touched. Did you touch the globe or the base it sat in, Dan?”

“I think I might have touched the glass ball part. I didn’t think about picking it up by the base. I was just trying to see where the light was coming from,” he admitted.

“I’ll take this parchment back to Hogwarts with me. I have some texts I use to translate some of the old tongues. I might be able to interpret what the other writing here is about,” he said.

“Yeah. I ain’t touching anything else back in that part of the library. I darn sure learned a lesson today,” Webster said, gingerly feeling the back of his head and wincing.

“Good idea, Dan. There are dangers back there we cannot even begin to comprehend,” the old professor related.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, chuckling out. “Why didn’t my ring protect me from that thing, Professor?”

“I don’t know, Dan. Maybe it wasn’t meant to. It’s hard to say. If Edward D’Mar made the orb, it just might be it sensed your ring. Possibly, only you can use the orb, as it may need the power of the ring to work. ‘The one who is called’ might refer to the Chief Justice. Let me try to translate the rest of this text first. My curiosity is definitely peaked,” the old professor said with a smile.

Dumbledore left shortly to Hogwarts where he immediately searched for the texts he needed. Chief Justice Webster and Hermione went to his bedroom, after she convinced him he needed to rest.

Webster removed his clothes, dropping them on the floor and sat down on the edge of the bed. Hermione scolded him for not at least laying them across the chest of drawers, which he laughed out at.

“You are getting awfully bossy,” he teased her. “Come here!”

“You need to get some rest,” she said, smiling at the handsome young justice.

As she walked up next to him, he reached out, wrapped his hands around her hips, and pulled her to him. He pushed a cheek against her firm stomach and felt her warmth.

“You know I can’t rest properly when you are fully dressed,” he said, giggling and looking up at her face.

“You are a nasty, nasty man,” she said, winking at him. “Don’t you ever think of anything else?”

Webster lowered his hands to her legs, lifting her skirt, as he slid his palms up the back of her firm thighs to squeeze at the panty covered cheeks of her tight ass. Hermione knew there was no use arguing the point. She moaned at the manipulations of the large hands kneading the flesh of her behind.

“It appears your head injury didn’t have any adverse effect on the other one,” she said, smiling and closing her eyes, loving the sensations she was feeling. “You want to do that doggy thing again so you don’t hurt your head?”

“What’s the rush?” he replied.

He removed his hands from below her skirt and helped her out of it. Soon the young witch was standing totally nude in front of him. She slowly raised her hands to her breasts, pinched at the nipples with her thumbs and index fingers and pulled on them, repeating the process a number of times until the swollen little buds were fully erect. She then grasped his shoulders, and squatted across his crotch, her knees on either side of his hips. Hermione then lifted her right breast to his mouth, allowing her lover to suckle the firm gland.

After sharing information with each other over their sexual escapades with their master, the girls concluded Webster’s main weakness was breasts. He loved sucking their breasts. They had each admitted loving the pleasure it gave him and marveled over how greatly it aroused him.

Webster pulled Hermione to the bed, rolled her over and began kissing her passionately. She squirmed and giggled in reaction to his nibbling at her neck.

He was soon pumping away at the brown-eyed, brown-haired girl, savoring the feel of her. Hermione raised her legs, challenging him to deepen his thrusting. For many long minutes, they lustfully humped at each other. Sensuous electricity flowed in ever-rising torrents through their bodies. They came together, shuddering violently at their shared release. Webster collapsed and kissed her on the cheek.

“I love you, Hermione,” he whispered, kissing her lightly on the lips.

She opened her eyes wide at his statement. “I love you, Dan. More than I’ve ever loved anybody,” she said, throwing her arms about him and holding him tightly to her.

As Webster turned on his side, Hermione squirmed up to his back and raised a hand to his arm. She kissed his shoulder and within seconds, they were both fast asleep.


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Professor Dumbledore found the text he desired and took the books with him into the conference room. Over the years, the old wizard had translated many such texts. He had come to realize some of his translations were not exact, however. Colloquialisms and unknown phrases were used, which frustrated his efforts.

After several hours, the old professor had a general understanding of why Edward D’Mar had named it the Orb of the Oracle. It was, indeed, clearly to be used by the Chief Justice: “the one who is called…”. Clearly, it sensed the power of the justice’s ring. The Orb would allow him to “see that which was hidden”. This excited the old wizard.

“Why had something with such power been put on a remote shelf, as if it were being hidden,” he wondered. “Perhaps the early justice’s didn’t understand it or were afraid of its power.”

Dumbledore ruminated over the dangers and unique possibilities the Orb’s use might have for their crusade and to the Lord Chief Justice himself. Finally, the old wizard secreted away the parchment. He decided he would allow himself a few days to consider whether they should chance having Webster use it. After all, there was much other work to be done. It was important to first eliminate more of Voldemort’s underlings. The evil lord would need their assistance before daring a return.


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Over the next two weeks, Professor Priest had taught the extremely powerful ‘organisma limpiesa completemente’ incantation to her young wizards and witches. She had begun the instructions using food scrapes and small dead rodents. As it was practiced, they began focusing more and more through the amulets at their chests. In short order, all had mastered it. Quickly, they could make organic based material turn into fine dust and, with a twitch of their wands, lift it into the air, dispersing it into the wind.

At the Ministry, witches and wizards from all disciplines were jubilant over Malfoy’s defeat, and the vast majority was even more moved to great joy over Cornelius Fudges disappearance. Arthur Weasley’s appointment had returned an easy-going atmosphere to the Ministry of Magic that had been missing for many years. It resulted in much more open and free discussions. No more did they constantly and carefully have to phrase what was being said, worrying they might be overheard. Interim Minister Weasley let it be known that any subject was open for discussion. He would stand for no more censorship or secretly held meetings to discuss the workings of any minister or department within the Ministry. If any matter needed discussing, it would be open for debate by anyone having an opinion.

Draco Malfoy, Goyle and Crabbe took up residence at the Malfoy Manor. Draco was overcome with hate. He vowed he would destroy Hermione Granger with his own hands. Even torture was much to good for her. He spent hours of every day planning how he might get his hands on her. Even his dreams were filled with her screams.

In the Carpathian Mountains, Pettigrew was astonished at the progress his master was making each day. The evil lord now had two small appendages poking out of the growing shoulders. He couldn’t help but compare the transformation to a tadpole turning into a frog. He was still a long way from the final form he would one day have, but it made Pettigrew much less apprehensive about their precarious situation. As long as he could keep his master in fresh meat, he was sure he would continue to rapidly change.

Professor Priest gave the portkey Lucius Malfoy had used to travel to the Carpathian Mountains to Dumbledore. The old wizard immediately prepared another pair of portkeys. He, Sirius, Remus and Harry used the small wooden box portkey and were quickly transported to a small, deserted cabin high in the Carpathian Mountains. Dumbledore destroyed the old wooden box he found inside the cabin and replaced it with a broken bottle, which he placed on a shelf near the fireplace.

Sirius then used a muggle device that Minister Grime had purchased. He called it a GPS locator. Grime had instructed him on its use and how to save the exact coordinates where they appeared. The location could then be easily plotted on detailed maps he had secured of the region.

Dumbledore and his team scouted the area around the cabin for several hours that first day before returning to Hogwarts. The cabin was, indeed, very remote and well off any trails. Malfoy had chosen his site well.

During this trip, Harry first noticed he was able to clearly make out Dumbledore, Sirius and Remus while they were fully clothed in the invisibility garments. At first, he thought it was a mirage or a ghostly image from something in his eyes. At the time of his discovery, they were flying along on their broomsticks, each streaming a small colored ribbon out of the flap where their left hands held the invisible brooms. Both Sirius and Remus were frustrated when Harry told them of his new ability. Professor Dumbledore assured them, in time, they too would possess the capability.

Back at Falcon’s Lair, Grime went about fixing the coordinates captured by the GPS device onto the maps. This, he had told them, would allow the Coeus team members to mark the areas they searched each day, precisely and quickly returning to any area they felt needed further scrutiny.

Grime also purchased a number of large maps of Great Britain and Greater Europe, including a highly detailed one of the Carpathian Mountains. He affixed them to the walls of the main training room. Over several days, he had carefully marked the exact locations of their ongoing missions with colored pins.

The large man had also returned to the source he had used to secure the muggle weapons. From him, he purchased special threaded barrels for the automatic weapons along with silencers, which screwed onto the barrels. The Athena team practiced almost daily using the longer and somewhat clumsier weapons, but they soon adjusted to the added length and weight. They were all amazed at how much the silencers quieted the weapons. It was now possible to use them within populated areas with little fear of being heard.

Coeus team members were immediately outfitted with the special order Nimbus brooms and invisibility garments. Remus Lupin practiced with them constantly. They became well versed in the special tactics they were to use, as their missions wholly depended upon stealth.

Coeus was soon dispatched to track down and verify the whereabouts of those Graciela Calderon, Priest and Grime had marked for termination. They decided it was best to clear one geographic area at a time before starting another. Calderon had identified the associates and under-lords in each area. Their plan was presented to Professor Dumbledore for approval, and he was very impressed with their strategy, which was to work quickly from the top, down to the very lowest ranking member on each list.

Athena began their seek and destroy missions in earnest. Fred and George brought that phraseology to the attention of Sirius and Lupin, and they agreed to its use. ‘Seek and destroy’ became a catch phrase in the group, and soon Professor Priest and Minister Grime were using it to describe the current assignments, too.

After Dumbledore had approved the course of action, two Athena members were sent out on each assignment to eliminate the target in or around his residence. On some days, four teams were off on missions at any one given time. As each target fell, Athena used the powerful incantation Professor Priest had taught them to completely dispose of the remains.

In the two-week period, over forty missions had been assigned. Only four did not result in a kill. Eight resulted in multiple eliminations, after the team overheard evil plans being discussed between the target and his or her guests. As the teams returned, they marked a large red “X” across the wizard or witches file. They were then assigned to look through and familiarize themselves with the likenesses of other faces they might happen across. In this way, a number of other files were closed.

Harry was able to have a number of late night liaisons with Ginny, which Professor Dumbledore had assisted in setting up. Harry calmed her fears, as she had heard rumors about people disappearing. He couldn’t tell her how or what he knew, but assured her the only people missing were those associated with Voldemort. She had nothing to worry about.

The Ministry warned all schools of magic that attempts might be made to kidnap any number of young students, as the word was out that unexplainable disappearances were being reported from all over Great Britain. Dumbledore had smiled at this, but Arthur Weasley and the old wizard decided it was best, for appearances sake, to let it be known Hogwarts was complying with the new security requirements, as outlined by the Ministry of Magic.

Actually, Professor Dumbledore was relieved by the measures. The Ministry had assigned a number of security personnel to monitor the comings and goings at the school, and they were physically present at Hogwarts twenty-four hours, every day.

During these weeks, Professor Dumbledore had given the Orb of the Oracle considerable thought. Everyday the problem was at the forefront of his mind. Late at night, he would sit in his old rocking chair, in front of his small fire, pondering whether to have the Chief Justice attempt to use it. If it were not for the fact the crystal globe had almost cost the life of his new, dear friend, he would think nothing of the attempt. But the good witches and wizards of his world could not chance losing such an important and well-meaning man.