Malignantly Cursed

5

Even after graduating, it turned out that lessons and training didn't end for Harry. They tried to get Moody to train her, but with Dumbledore gone, he took leadership of the Order of the Phoenix. Him and Kingsley were working around the clock getting every scrap of information they could on Voldemort and Death Eaters. And so, Sirius and Remus decided to bestow upon her their magical knowledge and expertise.

Harry felt as if her days were numbered, which they technically always were. But at least in school she felt more protected, felt like her final duel with Voldemort was ages away. Now she had no school, she was a legal adult, and she was getting antsy waiting for something to happen.

Everyone was. Even Sirius.

Because Voldemort hadn't struck yet.

It had been three years now, since he gained his body back and he didn't make a single attempt on Harry's life. His Death Eaters did, they fucked a lot of shit up for her—but Harry had yet to see Voldemort in person.

"Why is he dragging this out?" she asked Moody, at an Order meeting, resulting in a resounding silence. Almost everyone in the Order was close to her and didn't like to face the fact that they were essentially preparing Harry for a battle she may very well lose. They didn't like to talk about it. However, Moody, she could always trust to be transparent and blunt. "Why is he waiting to kill me?"

Both of Moody's eyes fixed on her.

"He's rebuilding his army," Moody said.

"Still, though," Ron said, "Wouldn't it have been in his best interest to attack Harry when she was younger? I mean, he's literally giving her time to get stronger."

"This isn't what we should be focusing on," Mrs. Weasley spoke up. "We should be grateful that whatever it is, it's buying Harry valuable time and experience."

Sirius looked down and shook his head. "No, Molly," he said quietly. Harry turned to face him. "It's exactly what we should be focusing on."

"It doesn't make sense," Remus agreed.

"So rather than unfolding this mystery, let's be more productive and prepare!" Mrs. Weasley insisted.

"Unless it all ends up being for nothing," Harry countered. "Why doesn't he face me himself? Maybe there's something stopping him—maybe there's something there that we can take advantage of!"

"We don't know," Moody said with finality. "The truth is, after all these years, we don't know and the best we can do is prepare for any situation."

"What does that mean? What type of 'situations' exactly are we preparing for?" Hermione asked. Harry nodded in agreement.

Exactly how imaginative were they allowed to get with possibilities before it became too unrealistic? Because there were too many possibilities. And Harry had a feeling that it was going to be the least likely of them all.

"Everything you can think of," Kingsley said. "That he's biding his time. Waiting to get more powerful before he strikes. Waiting for Harry's guard to be down."

Moody added more scenarios, "Waiting for the fucking blue moon to perform an ancient ritual that will kill her in her sleep. Killing all of us until it's just her standing. Or finding a creative way to recruit her on his side and use her."

The more he spoke, the more unsettled Harry felt. The possibilities were endless, but one thing she knew for certain: she would never take his side.

***

Certain wizards who showed too much loyalty to Dumbledore or Harry were being laid off. To not rouse suspicion, some were sent to other continents for a job or vacation. He was methodical in his take-over and approached it very gently from all factions.