The Intelligent Potter

An: If you would like to read the latest chapters of TIP a few days early, please check this story out on . I hope you enjoy this chapter! I'm steadily approaching the big chapter 100, and that is quite exciting for meeee.

*** Present, Riddle Manor

Bran Buckley bowed before The Darkness.

He was still confused with everything that was happening. His Dark Lord had gone from the fearsome master to the Death Eaters' enemy number one within the span of a single day. A somewhat useless pureblood himself, he accepted his new master as he had accepted his old master.

And the new master had certainly made an example of the few Death Eaters who had rebelled against him. Bran was happy enough to keep his life intact.

"Any news on Voldemort?" The Darkness asked Buckley.

"No sir, our spies are all out looking for The Dark-I mean, V-V-"

"It's just a name," The Darkness growled, "The name of a weak coward, not a Dark Lord."

"All our spies are out looking for him," Buckley chose his words carefully. Despite the departure of Voldemort, decades of habit meant that he could not make himself say the name of the man he had once called his lord.

"And?"

"We have had no luck," Buckley admitted, "He isn't at any of his safe houses, or anywhere in the underworld of Magical Britain, that is for sure. The agents we hired in the muggle world have not had any luck finding him there either. He seems to have just disappeared off the face of the Earth. If he had left the country via any magical or muggle means, our Ministry would have registered the act."

The Darkness hmmed, deep in thought, "Then I know where that rat has gone," he said with contempt.

"And where is that, sir?" Buckley asked.

"Our little rat has fled," The Darkness said, "to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Buckley gasped, "That is most terrible news, sir," he said, trying to figure out how to phrase what he wanted to say without disrespecting his master, "we have had...difficulties trying to raid Hogwarts in the past."

"On the contrary, Bran," The Darkness said with a smirk, "This is excellent news."

Bran blinked once. Then twice.

"What?" he asked.

"Put Nagini under lock and key in the dungeons," The Darkness commanded his subordinate, "And prepare for an assault. The Leaders of the Light will be coming here."

*** Hogwarts

"Why can't you just deal with my horcrux after you've dealt with The Darkness," Tom grumbled.

"Are you being serious, Riddle?" Babajide asked incredulously, "The Darkness is a major problem certainly, but you are the man that has terrorised this country for decades now."

The two men were currently getting ready to lead the mission on Riddle Manor.

Arcturus had initially wanted Tom alone to go to the Manor and retrieve his snake, but the former Dark Lord made a good point about The Darkness seeing that coming from a mile away, and the necessity of having backup became quite obvious.

Arcturus and Babajide would both accompany Tom on the mission. It was an extremely risky play, endangering the two strongest fighters that the Light side had for this mission, not to mention two of the Leaders of the Light, but it was a necessary risk, Babajide opined, because they needed to have Tom mortal and killable, so that he didn't just slink away once his goal was fulfilled and The Darkness was dead.

He had to pay.

The three men were making the assault alone, they were short enough on men already, and this was a little bit more of a stealth mission, so there was no point bringing along large numbers of men to the battle.

Though it would be hard to muster a decent force at this point anyway. There was no international help for them apart from that of Anu and Babajide who had both taken time off from their jobs to help out in Britain. Locally, there were a few old Aurors who had stayed loyal to Amelia, as well as a few members of the Order of the Phoenix, but their total numbers were still fewer than fifty.

"We're ready to go," Tom said grimly, pulling his two companions out of their thoughts.

*** Headmistress' Office

Harry was subdued.

Minerva could hardly blame the young boy, after all, she had no idea how she would feel if it were suddenly sprung on her that she would have to die for the Dark Lord to be defeated. Not to mention the boy was still a teenager, he should rightfully have had at least a century of life to go, a century of very good life, Minerva privately hoped, to make up for the hardsh.i.p.s he was being forced to face as just a child.

"Good Morning Professor McGonagall," the boy said to her, bringing the Headmistress back to reality, where she had called the young Potter into her office.

"How are you feeling, Harry?" she asked him, concerned.

He stared at her, and she could tell that he did not know how to answer.

It was times like this when Minerva sorely missed the presence of the man whose portrait hung behind her. The version of Albus in the portrait was a dull recreation of the man she had known in life. It could recreate his personality, but it could not give the kind of advice which he was known for.

The kind of advice it now fell to her to give her your charge.

"What would Albus say," she murmured, which brought a smile to Harry's face.

"I've been thinking that a lot as well," he admitted, "Wondering what the Headmaster would say to me. How he would make me feel better… if he would make me feel better."

"Of course he would!" Minerva said, still racking her brain on what Albus would say.

"We will find another way," she said finally. It was not what Albus would say. He would try and get Harry to be at peace with the current reality, but that was not what Minerva would do.

She would find another way for her young pupil.

*** End of Chapter