The Darkness Within: A Harry Potter Sequel

Chapter Six

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Hogwarts was no longer the safest place in the world in Harry's mind; it was his own home. Over the years, as he and Ginny had more children, he had taken pains to make the house more secure. Every protection charm in existence was laid upon the building and its surrounding grounds, so no one could enter who was not known to them. Ginny thought Harry paranoid, but he had plenty of old enemies, and he had made plenty of new ones in his years as an Auror. He was taking no chances.

Harry had, of course, removed all magical privileges that Teddy had once possessed, so he was no longer able to enter the Potter-Weasley household. However, with the Elder Wand, unknown powers were available to him, and so Harry had a team from the Magical Law Enforcement Squad rechecking every spell that had been placed, and adding new ones. At the same time, Harry was in his bedroom, dragging his old Hogwarts trunk from the bottom of a wardrobe.

Harry had kept the trunk for one reason only, and it wasn't for its sentimental value. The bulky, dented object was a nuisance in a tidy home, but it was the perfect hiding place for the most valuable, and arguably dangerous, item that Harry possessed: his Invisibility Cloak.

During the last Wizard War, the Cloak had been revealed to be no ordinary magical object. It was one of the three Deathly Hallows, meaning its powers of granting the wearer invisibility would never diminish with age. Harry had not touched it for years, but when he tapped his wand on the trunk's lock and pulled the Cloak free, it shimmered just as it had done when he'd first acquired it at age eleven. He ran his hands over the light material, remembering the numerous occasions when he had roamed Hogwarts castle long after dark, the Cloak shielding him from view.

It was not lost on Harry that Teddy would also be seeking the Cloak; he had grown up with the same stories as every child from a wizarding family. Possessing all three Hallows made one the 'Master of Death'. When Teddy inevitably couldn't accomplish what he sought to with the two Hallows he currently held, he would aim to complete the set. Bringing the Cloak to him made it that much easier for him to take it; however, it was also their best weapon against him. Harry folded the Cloak, stuffed it into a backpack, and made his way downstairs.

Ginny was sat in the garden, reading, as Lily rode around on a toy broomstick. The toy was limited to hover only a few feet from the ground and turn slowly, but already their daughter showed remarkable flying skills.

"She'll make a great Seeker," said Harry, as he walked up to Ginny and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Or a Chaser, like her Mum," Ginny replied, leaning her cheek on his hand.

Harry crouched down next to her. "I have to go."

Ginny didn't move. "Your whole department is looking for him. Hermione has her office involved. You don't need to—"

"You know they're just a distraction," Harry cut in. "He'll see them coming. He's always been clever, but now he's driven by desperation, too. They'll lead the chase, and he'll keep his eyes on them."

"But what if he's already spoken to V-Voldemort?" Ginny asked.

"He probably has," Harry replied. "And I'm not enough to bring him back. I'm going to ask for help."

Ginny turned to face him. "She's only 18."

Harry stroked his wife's face. "You were younger when you fought him."