Harry Potter and the Secret Treasures

The day began with a heated argument between Sirius and Harry.

Evan, Hermione, and Elaine remained in the room upstairs, giving Sirius and Harry space to talk, but a loud crash from downstairs forced them to go down!

As Evan descended the staircase, he caught a glimpse of Sirius’s cloak disappearing behind the door before it slammed shut, waking the sleeping Mrs. Black with a piercing scream that echoed throughout the house.

“Quiet!” Evan strode over and cast a powerful Stunning Charm on the old woman in the portrait.

He then quickly drew the curtains, plunging the house into a sudden, eerie silence.

The kitchen was a mess; chairs lay overturned, and the house-elves Kreacher and Dobby were nowhere to be seen. It seemed a scuffle had just taken place. Harry stood there, wand in hand, still trembling with rage.

“Harry, did you use magic on Sirius?” Hermione asked incredulously.

“He deserved it!” Harry snapped at Hermione. “Don’t look at me like that!”

“Enough, Harry, are you going to start fighting her?” Evan demanded.

“No, no, we can’t fight,” said Hermione sadly, stepping between the two.

“Fighting is wrong,” said Elaine calmly, hopping up to sit on the table.

“What on earth happened?”

“He still treats me like a child, won’t let me be part of anything, not even in rescuing Ron…” Harry paused for a moment, then continued, “He’s promised me so many times that I’d be part of the action, that we’d go on adventures together, but they were all lies. He’s a complete liar. I asked him — if he were the one captured by Voldemort, would my father just stand by and do nothing?”

“I don’t think he would,” said Evan, righting a fallen chair and helping Elaine down from the table. Then he looked up at Harry with a serious expression. “And stop saying that name. Remember, it’s under a spell. The moment we speak it, he can sense it. The Dark Lord might not be able to see this house, but he’ll know someone nearby just said his name. Many Death Eaters know the Black family home is here on Grimmauld Place. It won’t take them long to connect the dots and realize we’re hiding here.”

“I don’t want to keep hiding!” said Harry bitterly, seemingly unconcerned that Voldemort and the Death Eaters might already know their hiding place. “If my father could go save Sirius, why can’t I go save Ron?! Does he think I’m some coward too afraid to fight for my friends?!”

“We all know you’re not —”

“But I keep playing that part,” Harry interrupted. “Then and now, it’s always the same. I’m the one being protected while others risk their lives for me. I’m sick of it. I don’t need Sirius. I don’t need the Order of the Phoenix. I’ll bring Ron back myself.”

“How exactly do you plan to do that? Take on nearly a hundred Death Eaters all by yourself?”

“You don’t even know where Malfoy Manor is.”

“There’s always a way,” said Harry stubbornly.

“What we need now is time, Harry, not a head-on confrontation with the Dark Lord. We have no chance of winning that way. We’ve discussed this many times before, and you should know that well,” Evan changed his tone, trying to persuade Harry. “You’ve been asked to stay here and be protected because you are important enough. Only you can defeat the Dark Lord. No one else can replace you. But it’s not time for the final battle yet. We still have a lot to do: decipher the secrets of the Cup and the deed, and study the relics left by Dumbledore.”

“Are those things more important than Ron’s safety?”

“I think they are,” said Evan quickly and firmly. “We can’t just rush to save someone because they’ve been captured. There are many things more important than one person’s life. Dumbledore taught us that, Harry. Death isn’t the worst thing. Besides, if Ron really has a Horcrux, they won’t kill him. The Order of the Phoenix will find a way to save him. He won’t be in any danger.”

“That’s exactly what Sirius said. So that’s your plan — sit here doing nothing while the Order saves Ron. Perfectly safe, isn’t it?” said Harry with a trace of bitter sarcasm.

He looked down at his feet, his thoughts drifting to his father.

What would James have done in his place? Would he have hidden away in this old house — waiting, rationalizing, protecting himself while his friend’s life hung in the balance? For the sake of the greater good, for some higher cause, would he have stood by and done nothing?

Would James have done that? Would he have chosen reason over loyalty?

Then, Harry seemed to find the answer.

He quickly looked up and said, “I’m going back to my room. Let me know if there’s any news.”

Harry walked out of the kitchen, his heavy footsteps echoing in the hallway.

Hermione looked uneasy, as though she wanted to speak but couldn’t find the words.

“Let him have some peace and quiet; it’ll be good for him,” Evan sighed. “What would you like to eat? I’ll have Kreacher and Dobby come out. Oh, and I’m going to the library later to look for information about the Black family’s ancestors and see if they left any information about the homeland of house-elves. Hermione, want to come with me?”

“Yeah, I’d like to look for a few maps of ancient Greece!” said Hermione.

“I’ll pass,” Elaine murmured lazily. “I’m going back for a nap. Wake me when it’s time for lunch.

Because of Harry’s absence and Sirius’s sudden departure, breakfast was spent in a somber atmosphere.

Evan took a couple of bites of bread and stopped. He asked Dobby, the house-elf, to take some food up to Harry, while he idly flipped through that morning’s Daily Prophet. The paper was full of news; the front page featured wanted posters of Evan, Harry, Hermione, Sirius Black, and other members of the Order of the Phoenix.

The charge against Evan and Harry was absurd:

WANTED FOR QUESTIONING ABOUT

THE DEATH OF ALBUS DUMBLEDORE

That was undoubtedly infuriating; the new Ministry of Magic was twisting the truth. They were trying to frame Evan and Harry for Dumbledore’s murder, but as Sirius had said the night before, the Wizarding world was deeply unsettled by Dumbledore’s sudden death, and people wanted to know the truth. The fact that the Daily Prophet was publishing this information indicated that the coup had proceeded smoothly, almost silently.

Apart from the dragon Evan and the others had set loose in Diagon Alley, which had left every wizard present utterly stunned, there had been no other real conflict. The official version of Rufus Scrimgeour’s murder was that he had resigned. His successor, Pius Thicknesse, had long been under the Imperius Curse — acting entirely under Voldemort’s control…