Daddy Dearest - (No Update, Edit)

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to JKR. All situations are mine. No $$$ is being made from this fanfic.
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Chapter 69 ~ The ROR Evaluation

Mathias and Andreas exited the outfitting room to find Severus and Tonks talking in low tones. Both witch and wizard looked up when the door closed. Severus had a small mirror in his hand.

Both boys had showered and dressed, Mathias' hair quite damp and flat to his head. Tonks walked up to them and handed the wizards their wands.

"Here you go," she said, looking them over again.

Mathias instantly applied a light drying spell to his hair, leaving it slightly damp. Over drying made a mess of it. Both boys looked at Tonks expectantly. She rubbed her hands together.

"All right, now that you two know you are not invincible, its time for you to do a run-through of the Room of Requirement. Have you ever used one before?" she asked them.

Both boys nodded. They practically lived in the ROR at Hogwarts.

Tonks walked over to the blank wall and made several motions with her hand. A seam appeared, then expanded horizontally to form a door.

"This is the Order's Room of Requirement. It's much more advanced than the ROR at Hogwarts," she said with a grim little smile. This room can be set to specific levels of challenge. You two will be set to Advanced Beginner. The room will test your magical and physical skill levels. The Professor and I have decided on a specific scenario. At the end of the room you find yourself in, there will be a glowing blue gem on a pedestal. You have to retrieve that gem and exit the room intact," she said evenly, her hazel eyes shifting from one wizard to the other.

Severus watched as Tonks gave the boys their instructions. They were going to get quite a surprise when they entered that room. Tonks wasn't telling them the whole story.

"Wait right here," Tonks said, walking toward the ROR door, "I have to set up the room for you."

Tonks opened the door, and both boys tried to see what was inside but she closed it quickly behind her.

Mathias looked at his father.

"What's in there, Dad?" he asked Severus.

"You'll see," Severus replied obliquely.

The ROR was a completely empty all-white room. Tonks stood in the center.

"Level one point five. Scenario: Fortress. Golems…" Tonks hesitated, looking thoughtful, "Seven. Deatheaters: Defensive/Offensive mode. Physical level: two. Magical level: one. Aggression: five. Damage level one. Reactive. Voice engaged."

Tonks then went for the coup de grace

"Golem: One prefab Dark Lord. Offensive mode. Physical level: one. Magical level: five. Aggression: ten. Damage level: two. Reactive. Voice: Engaged. Scenario begins with prefab throne visual."

Tonks smiled. That ought to get their hearts pumping.

"Entry: Corridor, locked door, indirect view," she said. "Weapons: staff two. Deflectives: five: chairs. Blue prize. End scenario with plus two damage. End scenario blue prize to exit."

Satisfied she had set the room properly, the Auror exited.

Mathias and Andreas looked at the spiky haired witch anxiously when she emerged and closed the door. They both started to approach the ROR, wanting to see what was in there. Tonks held up her hand.

"You've got to wait a bit. The room is setting up," Tonks said. "My, you both are anxious to get whipped, aren't you?"

Both Andreas and Mathias scowled slightly, unable to defend themselves in lieu of Tonks kicking both their asses so easily. They didn't respond.

Tonks chuckled and Severus arched an eyebrow at the boys.

"Will we have to get around obstacles?" Andreas asked her, thinking the room would be providing difficult terrains, magical puzzles or something similar.

"Obstacles? Oh, yeah. There will be obstacles all right," Tonks replied, a rather evil grin on her face. She knew the boys had never encountered golems in the ROR at Hogwarts. It didn't generate them.

Golems were temporary human constructs that served a specific physical purpose then faded away when that purpose was fulfilled. They had rudimentary thought processes and could be programmed with specific behaviors. They could also duplicate actual human beings in features and actions.

Golems were also automatically generated by the ROR in populated settings such as a reproduction of Hogsmeade, and automatically assigned roles. In the case of sneak attacks, any golem could be an enemy, and have varied levels of fighting skill depending on the skills of the person in training. Magical attacks could be simulated, and pain could be felt from the psuedo-hexes thrown by the constructs.

The ROR also stored information on the trainees as they battled their way through, saving it for the next scenario to generate more challenging golems or work on strengthening weaknesses. The ROR was quite an effective training aid.

Severus looked into the mirror he held.

"The ROR is ready, Tonks," he said to the witch. The Potions Master and Tonks would be able to monitor the boys' progress through the mirror.

"Right-o," Tonks said, looking at the boys. "Go on in, and do your best."

Mathias and Andreas looked at each other, then started for the door. Andreas pulled it open and they both looked in warily. All they saw was a corridor with a door at the end.

"Don't just stand there, go in!" Tonks urged.

Mathias and Andreas entered the corridor, leaving the door open in case they needed to beat a hasty retreat. Tonks slammed it closed as Severus chuckled.

Tonks walked over to him scowling and sat down, looking into the mirror, which showed the boys looking back with startled looks on their faces.

"Someone always tries to leave the door open," Tonks snorted.

Severus smirked, moving the mirror slightly so Tonks could see better.

Well, now he'd see what the boys could do.

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Mathias and Andreas stood before the closed door.

"What do you think is in there, Andreas?" he asked.

Andreas concentrated.

"I can't see anything. Probably because the ROR is actually illusion," the wizard replied.

"Yeah, but an illusion that we can touch, taste and smell," he said.

Andreas scowled slightly.

"How bad can it be? We will probably have to climb over mountains or swim, or something like that to reach the blue gem. We can do that," the wizard said.

Mathias nodded.

"Let's go in though, but open it slowly. The door might trigger something," he said.

Andreas gripped the knob and turned it slowly, his wand at the ready. Mathias was right behind him. They pushed the door open quietly and peered inside.

"Wow," Mathias breathed.

The corridor opened on to a huge circular stone room. Flickering torches lined the walls, and a number of doors were cut into the stone. The floor was bare, but there were dark stains everywhere. Several high-backed armchairs were scattered about, and there were two long poles lying on the floor as if dropped there. In the center of the room was a throne, turned slightly. Directly in front of the throne about twenty feet away was a pedestal, and on that pedestal rested a glowing blue gem.

"This is a throne room," Andreas said, looking about carefully.

"I don't see any obstacles, Andreas. It looks like a straight shot from here to the blue gem," the wizard said.

Andreas studied the room.

"It can't be that easy, Mathias, there has to be something guarding that stone, or some magical protections…I think this is supposed to be Voldemort's throne room," Andreas said, "He's the only one I could imagine with a throne."

Mathias' eyebrows rose. So this was what Voldemort's throne room looked like.

"There's blood everywhere," the wizard said, his dark eyes falling on the stains.

"Creepy," Andreas agreed, "But come on, we have to try and get that gem. Let's stick to the wall, wands out."

Mathias nodded and both boys slipped out of the corridor and pressed themselves against the wall.

"Now what?" Mathias asked, "Should we try to sneak up on the throne?"

Andreas looked at the throne hard. He thought he saw some kind of movement.

"I think someone is sitting there," he hissed at Mathias. Both boys hunkered down a bit.

"We need to see who it is. If someone is there, we have to get him out of the way to get the gem," Mathias said.

"All right. Slowly then brother," Andreas whispered, sidling along the wall, trying to keep to the flickering shadows so their movements would be hidden. The two boys crept around until they could see who was on the throne.

"Voldemort!" Mathias hissed, "That's him, Andreas…that's how he looked when I saw past his glamour."

Yes, it was Voldemort, or a Voldemort golem, perfectly reproduced from the thin body, to the scaly skin, red eyes, ear and nose slits and lipless mouth. He was dressed in an elaborate gold robe and didn't move, looking straight ahead, apparently at the sparkling blue gem.

"Maybe it's a statue. He's not moving," Andreas said.

"No, you saw something move before. Maybe he's someone dressed up to look like Voldemort," Mathias whispered.

"No, I would have felt another human presence. This is something else entirely. I get nothing from it," Andreas said. "No life force. Shift to aura view and see what I mean."

Mathias did so, and there was a colorless shimmer around the wizard sitting in the chair, but it was a glow associated with inanimate objects.

"No, its not alive," Mathias said, his brow furrowed, "But still, something's up, Andreas."

Severus and Tonks watched as the boys tried to decide what they were seeing and what to do about it. The mirror didn't have sound however, so they couldn't tell what the boys were talking about.

"They're cautious. That's good," Tonks said, "A lot of newbies just rush in without taking in their surroundings."

Severus nodded, but didn't say anything. The image of his son in Voldemort's throne room was unnerving, even though it was only a construct. He leaned forward, watching the young wizards intently.

"We can't just stay here," Mathias said, looking at the tall armchair in front of them. "That chair is big enough for both of us to hide behind. Let's move closer…we can check him out better. I'll go first."

Andreas nodded and watched as Mathias bent low and ran silently for the armchair. He ducked behind it and peeked out at the wizard sitting on the throne. He still hadn't moved. He waved at Andreas to come join him.

Andreas looked furtively at the wizard in the throne. Something was wrong here. The wizard pushed off the wall and ran for the chair, but stumbled on the way. Suddenly, Voldemort looked in his direction.

"Who is in my throne room!" the wizard cried in a high-pitched voice, rising and looking toward the armchair.

"Oh shit!" Mathias hissed.

"My deatheaters! Come! There are intruders!" the wizard commanded.

Suddenly, there were several flashes of light and seven deatheaters appeared, wands in hand. They were fully robed and wearing half-skull masks. One appeared directly behind Mathias and Andreas.

"I see them my Lord!" the deatheater cried, rushing forward and shooting what appeared to be a stunner at the boys. A cry went up from the other deatheaters.

"Scramble!" Mathias shouted at Andreas as they leaped out of the way of the blast.

Mathias fired back at the deatheater hitting him. He fell. Andreas ran to another armchair, barely slipping several powerful blasts. He fired over the back of the armchair and hit another deatheater, who also fell.

Mathias was running around the throne room trying to avoid the attacking deatheaters. One dove for him, and Mathias managed to stop, the deatheater flying by him and hitting the wall hard. He slid down the wall, stunned.

Mathias looked to see Andreas struggling with another deatheater, who had his arm wrapped around the black wizard's throat, choking him as another approached, smiling, his wand drawn.

"No!" Mathias cried, running toward his brother. Andreas managed to bend and flip the wizard over his back as Mathias slammed into the other deatheater with all his weight, knocking him away

Mathias desperately cast a binding spell on the fallen deatheater, tying him up securely as Andreas viciously began kicking the deatheater who had choked him in the head. Another deatheater ran forward and fired a blast at the distracted wizard, hitting Andreas squarely in the chest. The boy flew several feet through the air and landed hard on his back. He didn't move.

"Andreas!" Mathias screamed, then ducked and weaved as the remaining three deatheaters fired at him.

He ran in a zigzag pattern, firing blasts over his shoulder as he dove for another armchair. He couldn't get to Andreas, but managed to hold the deatheaters off, exchanging blasts with them as he dragged the armchair back, trying to get his back against the wall. He didn't see Voldemort approaching from the side until it was too late.

"Avada Kedavra!" the scaly wizard cried, pointing his wand at Mathias and bathing him in simulated green light.

Suddenly, everything froze, then disappeared, the room becoming empty and white. Andreas lay on the floor, propped up on his elbows and looking around dazedly. He groaned.

Mathias looked around the room, then walked over to Andreas, caught him by the hand and helped him to his feet. He then retrieved his wand, which was several feet away.

"I guess we lost," Andreas said, accepting his wand from Mathias, then brushing off his robes.

"Yes. You were down and Voldemort killed me," Mathias said, "But we didn't do too bad, Andreas. They were grown wizards after all. We got four of them."

"Yes," Andreas said, "but nowhere near the blue gem. We didn't even try to go for it, we were so busy fighting. One of us should have tried to get it."

Mathias scowled.

"It's hard to go for something when everyone in the room is trying to kill you," he said.

"Yes, but we still should have tried. We had a goal and got side-tracked," Andreas said. "Next time we need a plan."

Mathias nodded. Next time they would be more focused.

"We should have kept our eyes on Voldemort too. It was like I forgot about him totally," the pale wizard said, looking around the room again. "But you have to admit, this ROR leaves ours in the dust. That was cool."

The door opened and Tonks stuck her head in.

"Come on, you two. The evaluation's over," she said.

Mathias and Andreas exited the room, walking past Tonks, who looked at them thoughtfully.

Severus walked up to Mathias and gripped both his shoulders.

"Are you all right?" he asked his son, his face paler than usual.

It had shaken Severus horribly when he saw the golem-Voldemort cast the simulated Killing curse on his son. He knew it wasn't real, but gods…it felt like it for just a moment. Mathias could be taken from him.

"I'm fine, Dad," he said.

Severus looked over at Andreas.

"How are you, Andreas. That was quite a blast you took," he said to the wizard.

Andreas give him a small smile.

"I am fine too, sir," he said shortly, "just a little sore."

Severus nodded. Andreas was a tough young wizard.

Tonks walked up to them.

"All right. Andreas got hit, and Mathias got killed. You didn't do too badly for your first time out. At sixteen years old with no actual formal training, you managed to take down four deatheaters at level five aggression. But you didn't keep your eyes on Voldemort, nor did you go for the gem, which was your main goal. You must always focus on your goal, regardless of what obstacles are before you. There were several instances when you were running around in there Mathias, when you could have grabbed the gem. But you ran right by it. If you had grabbed the gem and ran for the exit, you would have won. Also, you were distracted by Andreas. That's not good. You can't protect him and yourself in battle. You need to realize that. It's every man for himself for the most part. The best way to save your comrades is to complete your goal. Remember that."

Mathias nodded.

"And you, Andreas…you let anger take you over. You were hit by that blast because you were punishing the wizard who choked you. You should have disabled him and continued toward your goal. You cannot let personal feelings control you in such a situation. You have to be focused. Take him out and keep moving. If you don't…you'll end up dead. Understand me?"

Andreas nodded. But the wizard had pissed him off and it had been very satisfying kicking him in the head. Up to the point he got blasted, that is. Tonks was right. He could have just as easily been killed.

"I understand, Tonks," he replied.

"And neither of you made use of the staffs when things got physical. You should always be on the lookout for things that can help you fight. Even if it's a book or a bucket. Anything. You both stepped over the staffs several times," she said, shaking her head.

The boys both dropped their heads. They had been stupid.

Tonks eyes softened.

"But look, you did all right, see? No one wins the first battle…but you boys were close. You just made mistakes, and my job is to fix those mistakes so you won't make them again," Tonks said comfortingly.

"Can we try again?" Mathias asked.

Andreas nodded enthusiastically.

"No, not tonight. In a few days maybe…after Kingsley and I have had a few sessions with you," she said to the boys.

"Sessions? What? We'll be coming back tomorrow?" Mathias asked, looking at his father.

"No, you will be staying until Friday. Actually, the whole of your summer, excluding weekends will be spent here at Order Headquarters. And during school you will be here on many weekends from Friday night until Sunday night as well as some weekdays. I will bring you and retrieve you both. You are going to be trained up, boys. By the time you graduate, you will both be forces to be reckoned with," the Potions Master said. "But, you will have to keep your marks up to par."

Mathias and Andreas looked at each other, smiling broadly.

If they had their way, they'd be assassins.

Tonks met Severus' eyes soberly. She would have to work them hard to get them ready to meet Voldemort's forces. The deatheaters of the inner circle were much more fierce than the golems in the ROR at level five. Much more fierce.

The young wizards really would have to become skilled as assassins to survive them.

It would be her job to make sure they did.

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A/N: Chappie finally up. Sorry for the wait. Well, they didn't do too badly all in all, but have a lot to learn about fighting deatheaters and reaching goals. But I think Tonks and Kingsley will whip them into shape while keeping them humble. Lol. I bet Tonks kicks their butts anytime they start getting too cocky. . Anyway a transitional chapter up next so we can get them back in school and advancing the story. We'll touch on Jasmine as well. Please review.