Harmony Bond (Completed)

Chapter 24: Magical Fire

The next couple of days were quiet for Harry. Per his agreement with Madam Pomfrey, he stayed in the apartment except for lunch and dinner. Breakfast was brought in by Dobby and all studying was done in the apartment, usually with Harry propped up on the couch with a pile of pillows. He missed a couple of Quidditch practices, but Ron ran them fine without him. There was nothing of import in the Prophet until two mornings after his confrontation with Draco and the oath reading. By that time the news had gotten out about the duel, the attack, and the unusual oath. The Prophet was speculative on the legality of the oath, but so far had no reason to doubt it.

The day after the duel, Hermione made a brief trip to the Ministry after classes. Tonks met her in the atrium when she arrived and escorted her to the international portkey office. Once there, it took an hour of paperwork and a fee of eight galleons to arrange the portkey to the Toimisto in Finland for the weekend. When Hermione returned to school and their apartment, Harry had just woken from his nap and started studying so she joined him.

Not long after Hermione's return, Dobby popped in carrying a note from the headmaster's office. Harry thanked him, glad for not having to manually retrieve the note and wondering why they hadn't used the elf in the past. Setting that thought aside, he applied a drop of his blood to the seal that showed the note was from Jean-Louis. The note was brief and to the point:

Lord Potter,

Myself and the cargo have arrived at the destination. There was a good bit of questioning as expected, but my contacts here helped to move me through customs. The packages are now in a secure holding facility with the local law enforcement office. Your friend will be able to take custody at the expected time later on. Please send word if I can be of further assistance.

JLDAD

As Harry read the note, he felt Hermione's acknowledgement as she heard it through his mind. Jean-Louis was cautious with his wording, despite the seal on the note, and Harry appreciated his efforts. Now it seemed that all was in place for Saturday and he just needed to rest and heal.

On Thursday night, Tonks arrived for the usual defense lessons, which Harry was sitting out of course. She actually arrived early and was waiting outside the Great Hall when the Potters and their friends exited after dinner. Seeing the look on her face, Hermione led everyone to their apartment. Her suspicions were confirmed when Tonks immediately began casting privacy wards before turning to speak to Harry, Hermione, and their allies.

"Alright, thanks for waiting on me. Can't be too careful. Amelia gave me news to bring you directly. I don't need to tell you that it goes no further. First, she has increased Auror activity around certain areas and we are close to determining where Voldemort's base is. Of course, all of the most likely candidates are homes or properties of inner circle Death Eaters and warded to hell and back. She says that when she has more specifics she will let you know where to go hunting. Of course, right now you're not exactly in peak form. Also, there has been a unique development that we've kept a tight lid on, but expect to hit the Prophet by tomorrow. That oath of yours had a greater impact than you probably anticipated. I'd like a copy of the exact wording by the way. Everything we've heard is secondhand at best."

"Anyway, Lucius never should have trusted Draco to take the title of Scion Malfoy and he has now paid for it. There are a lot of guesses as to why, but Lucius died the night Draco took the oath. The consensus is that the binding oath over his house conflicted with the oath that he took to take the Dark Mark. He was at a dinner party at Yaxley's house and collapsed. When he couldn't be revived, Narcissa insisted he be taken to St. Mungo's, but they couldn't do anything for him. A bit of money changed hands with the hospital director and his brief stay at the hospital was wiped out of official records, but the Ministry has sources in the hospital as well. One junior healer confirmed that the only visible sign of injury to his body was that his left forearm was charred. Anyway, the body was removed not long after and the family is keeping quiet, although Narcissa did remove Draco from school. By law, since he was scion, he is now lord and emancipated automatically since his father is gone. Again, this has all been kept quiet. We think the inner circle is reeling from this loss. I don't need to tell you that this only increases their desire to target you. Taking the Malfoy fortune and name from them is a heavy blow. I'm sure they have barristers and solicitors trying to find a way out of it. That's why we want the exact wording. Amelia agrees that this is good overall, but it has really stirred up the hornets. And mad hornets are not a good thing."