𝘙𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵

Chapter 54

Chapter 54

3rd POV

Azalea leaned against the doorway and watched the dark lord rock his son gently with a besotted look on his face. Tom was quietly telling Gasper what he knew about the Potter family.

They had moved into Potter Manor once the school year was over so that both he and Azalea could learn the Potter family history from the portraits in the family gallery. Tom felt a bit awkward considering he was behind many of the most ancient deaths, but he was trying to work past it to ensure Gasper had a firm grasp on his heritage when he got older.

Azalea moved into the room and kissed his cheek and her sons before moving to sit by the picture window which looked out over the vast gardens. It was lovely and peaceful here. After the hectic year, she was grateful for the quiet. The quiet wouldn't last long though. Tom had meetings coming up next week and the summer school. They'd have a few weeks afterward then prep for the next school year.

Tomorrow they would leave Gasper safely ensconced at Potter Manor with Taffy and the other elves to watch over him and they would go to Hogwarts to lower wards. They were going to start with detangling the outwards then address the pressure wards holding the window in the Slytherin common rooms.

William Weasley stood grimly in front of the main cornerstone of Hogwarts wards. The headmaster was in the wardroom ready to bring down the wards. He would then apparate to the grounds beside Bill. He and Azalea were standing by to supply the magical power Bill may need to rework the wards and as first line defense if Greyback decided to attack.

He had a plan for the wards. It was going to take three hours to remove the unnecessary words and repair the ones remaining. A team of warders was spread out over Hogwarts' grounds. It would take all of them to sort out this clusterfuck and then bring the wards back up. Each warder had two defensive guardians and to everyone's surprise, except Lord and Lady Slytherin, a contingent of fifteen house elves armed to the teeth with silver weapons dipped in basilisk venom. No one was to actually touch them.

The house elves were ordered not to hesitate and to remain invisible. If attackers came at their charges then they were to aim to kill.The house elves were frightened, but determined. The Riddles had not said where they had gotten so much silver, but thankfully it wasn't goblin forged for the post part and the venom could be cleansed off later so it could be refused.

Azalea stood next to Bill with Samira coiled beside her. The huge snake was actually a comfort considering the attack they almost were certain was coming. The wards flashed in warning and Azalea called her staff to hand. Five seconds later the wards went down and Tom appeared in a wash of gray snakes to Bill's left.

Bill immediately tapped into the cornerstone pulling up the schematics as did every other warder on the team. Each had a set of wards to work on disassembling. Minutes ticked by as he focused on the delicate work. One by one the redundant wards unraveled and disappeared. Sweat trickled down his face as he poured his magic into the job. Finally, at the three hour mark he lowered his wand with a sigh. "Okay we've finished clearing them up. We break for lunch and to recover come energy then we start repairing and strengthening the remaining wards."

Tom stood and a small, energy dense meal appeared in front of each group. Tired and nervous, no one felt the need for small talk. Tom refused to sit. He kept pacing and staring out into the forest. He could almost feel them out there.

Lunch finished they took their places and began the intensive process of repairing the wards that made Hogwarts the safest place in England next to Gringotts.