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Author: Zelthian Story: The Gryffindor Four Rating: Young Teens Setting: Pre-HBP Status: Completed Reviews: 2 Words: 31,336
"So I was right," Draco gloated. "You do have a girlfriend after all, don't you, scar-head." "Wanna make something of it, cotton-head?" Harry mocked, snickers sounding behind him. "I have to admit, Potter, it's not nearly as surprising as Weasel King and Granger. I honestly thought she had better taste, even if she is a Mudblood." Suddenly, three dozen or so wands came flashing out, all pointed right at Draco's face. "Temper, temper! My, my, aren't we all twitchy today..." Draco sang smugly. "You think your condition on the train last year was bad, Malfoy, what do you think you'll look like once the whole lot of us get done with you?" Ron sneered. Draco just stood there, smiling strangely. Very slowly, he pushed back his cape with one hand and grabbed a long velvet bag with the other. Letting go of his cape, he reached into the bag and pulled out the butt-end of his wand. Staring Harry in the eye, he laid his wand on the counter in front of the twins. "You wouldn't attack an un-armed wizard, would you, Potter?" Harry didn't flinch. "Under normal circumstances, no, but in your case I'll make an exception" "Harry NO!" Hermione said quickly, grabbing Harry's arm. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't, Hermione," Harry said, not taking his eyes off of Draco. "He's invoked a Hospitality charm. By surrendering his wand, he's now protected from magical attack. If you try to hex him, the spell will reflect back to you instead. Only the most powerful of spells can penetrate the charm." Harry's anger only increased as he realized he couldn't attack his school rival. The emphasis Hermione put on the word 'powerful' was not lost on Harry; he knew exactly the kind of magic she was referring to. Here was Malfoy, unarmed and without his bodyguards, and there wasn't anything Harry could do about it. Against his better judgment, he willed his wand back to his side. Slowly the rest of the shop's visitors followed suit. The twins looked livid and Fred started to say something, but Harry stared them down. Reluctantly, the twins put their wands back into their cloaks. Fred took Malfoy's wand. "No funny business with the wand, Weasels," Draco warned. "No bloody way we're gonna let you have a curse on us, Malfoy. We'll keep it safe," George sneered. "He's up to something," Hermione warned quietly to Harry. Harry nodded to let her know that she had been heard and asked, "Why are you here, Malfoy?" "You have some nerve coming in here, uninvited, without your bodyguards, and leaving yourself unarmed," said Hermione, her voice tight with barely repressed disgust. "Hate to say it, but I didn't think you were that brave." "Or that stupid," Ginny amended. Everyone laughed except Harry and Malfoy. "Don't think I'm here to join your fan club, Potter. Far from it. But I must speak to you four," he said, pointing to Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny. "Alone." The silence in the room was so intense Harry could hear the candle flames flickering. Nobody moved or said anything for several seconds. Harry took his eyes off Draco just long enough to look towards the twins and nod. "All right folks, that concludes the festivities for the evening, unfortunately short as it was. Be sure to grab your party favors on the way out, have a lovely evening, visit us again real soon," the twins traded off. There were strong and loud protests all around, but Hermione, Ron, Ginny and the twins assured everyone that they could handle Draco. Harry and Draco said nothing; they were staring each other down, Harry in mistrust, Draco in disgust. Once everyone was gone, Fred locked the front door. "Can I get anyone a chair?" "No thanks," Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny in unison. Draco remained silent. "Suit yourselves, then," Fred replied. He returned and joined his twin behind the counter, sitting on one of the two stools. "What do you two think you're doing," Draco said, looking at the twins. "I said alone." "Anything you can said to us you can say in front of them," Harry said firmly. "Now, out with it, Malfoy." Malfoy smiled slyly. "I was just wondering how you weasels were enjoying your new home." Harry's blood froze. Could Draco actually know about Number 12 Grimmauld Place? No, this was impossible: Dumbledore was the secret keeper. He must be bluffing. "What are you talking about, Malfoy?" Ron demanded. "Oh, just the fact that it seems lately that the weasel home... the Burrow, is that what it's called? Yes, that the Burrow has gone uninhabited for the most part. One can only assume that this is either because the weasels have gone on vacation again, or you have found another hole in the ground to huddle up in. Judging from the fact that I've seen a lot of you lot and your parents running around Diagon Alley of late, one is forced to choose the later." Nobody said anything for a moment. Harry knew Draco's bit about moving was a ploy; someone in Voldemort's employ had discovered the Weasleys weren't spending much time at home, and Draco was fishing for answers. "So what if we have moved, Malfoy? What's it to you?" Ron sneered. Draco squinted his eyes at Ron. "You don't think I'm stupid enough to think your parents have the resources to buy a new house, do you Weasley?" "What are you getting at, Draco?" Hermione asked impatiently. Draco sighed dramatically. "I can remember tales my father told me. Tales, Potter, of a secret band of ragtag wizards joined together to foil the plans of the Dark Lord. Of course, there was no way they could contend with the power he and his loyal followers could wield; they spent most of their time chasing their tails and watching their numbers dwindle." Taking two, slow, deliberate steps towards Harry, he continued, "Then, at the moment of glory, when the Dark Lord stood poised to eliminate the only hurdle standing in the way of his dreams, he gets defeated... by an insignificant child of a half-blood." Harry and Draco stood eye to eye for a few moments before Draco turned around and said, "And now the Dark Lord has returned, and the rumored leader of this band of nothings seems to have revived his group, and at the same time the weasel lot disappears from their very home. Coincidence?" Harry knew Draco was on the right track. He realized that Voldemort's followers knew the Weasleys were members of the Order of the Phoenix, and that the order had reformed and were hiding out somewhere. It also meant that Draco only knew enough to be dangerous or had just come to taunt them. But for what reason? When the room remained silent, Draco continued. "Nothing to say? Then how about this: There are ways to break a Fidelius Charm, boys and girls. If I were you lot, I'd be careful." Hermione finally broke the silence. "He's bluffing." "I am, am I? How can you be sure?" Draco mused. "You forget who you're talking to," Ginny said. "I've studied the Fidelius Charm," Hermione said. "It's one of the most powerful charms in all of magic. The ward around the protected inhabitation is undetectable and unbreakable. Only the Secret Keeper can dispel the charm or reveal the location, and there's no way to reveal who the Secret Keeper is." Draco looked around smugly. "Well, if I were a ragtag band of misfit wizards intent on foiling the return of the Dark Lord while hiding out in a dingy house on the outskirts of London, I would sleep better at night knowing my Secret Keeper was protected from any and all threats. Besides, the Fidelius Charm only keeps the inhabitation secret; the wizards who visit it can still be followed to the general location, leaving it vulnerable to an ambush." Harry was sure his face was red. "Are you threatening us, Malfoy?" Draco made a scene of straightening his robes. "Clearly, I have overstayed my welcome. Fred, George, my wand if you please." Fred looked over at Harry. Harry gave him a slow nod. Ron started for his wand, but Harry put out his hand to stop him. Fred tentatively gave the wand back to Malfoy, who slipped it back into his cloak. His hand returned with what looked like a galleon. "Should be fun watching you leave, Malfoy. We may be bound by your Hospitality charm here, but as soon as you step out that door, you'll be hexed twelve ways to Sunday." A devilish grin spread over Malfoy's face. "Oh, I think not. I'm not as stupid as you think I am. See you around, Potty!" With that, Malfoy tossed the coin in the air, and the instant he caught it, he was gone. "A bloody Portkey! That git!" Fred exclaimed. "Where did Malfoy get a Portkey?" Ginny wondered out loud. "Some Death Eater, probably," Harry answered. "I don't like this, Harry," Hermione said. "He knows too much. I can't be sure he isn't bluffing." "I don't like it either, Hermione. Draco's never been one to resist taunting us in any way he can. We've used the fireplace enough that, had he figured out where headquarters is, the Order would know by now. My guess is he just came here to make us nervous in an attempt to force us make a mistake." "They probably have guessed that Dumbledore is the Secret Keeper," Hermione said. "There's no way they would attempt to force him to reveal the location." Then with a swift motion, she brought her fisted hand sharply into the other and said, "One of these days I'm going to give Malfoy another good punch in the nose." Harry sighed. "At any rate, this little episode is even more reason we'll never forget this night."
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