An Uneasy Alliance - Part 8

"Do you think that's something Malfoy might know?" Ginny asked.

"It's possible, but he's not likely to tell me," Harry said, imagining the sneer on Malfoy's face if he were to question him.

"You could get Moody to ask him," Hermione said.

"Harry, we covered shields in fifth year in the DA," Ron said scathingly.

"If we run into any resistance, or if Voldemort figures out what we're doing, it's you three they'll go after. Voldemort wants me alive," Harry said firmly.

"Yeah, so he can do you in himself," Ron said darkly.

"Wormtail said that after he figured out I…when he…he ordered the Death Eaters not to kill me," Harry said, stumbling on the words. "That's why he never came after me all last year. He wants to capture me and keep me somewhere under his control."

The others gasped in horror.

"We won't let that happen, Harry," Ginny said, shuddering. She moved closer to Harry and wrapped her arm around his waist, as if anchoring him.

"Voldemort still doesn't know the whole prophecy. As long as Snape didn't know, that is.

Dumbledore told me the only two people who knew the exact wording were him and me. So, if Snape didn't know, that means Voldemort still doesn't know that he has to be the one to kill me in order to come to full power," Harry replied.

"But Snape does know that Dumbledore was looking for the Horcruxes, right?" Hermione asked suddenly.

"Yeah. Dumbledore said that Snape was the one who saved him the night he hurt his hand," Harry said, wondering where Hermione was heading.

"Then if Snape really has turned–"

"He has."

"If Snape really has turned," Hermione said, ignoring Harry's interruptions, "he's told Voldemort what Dumbledore was doing. Voldemort isn't stupid. He's going to believe that Professor Dumbledore passed that information to someone else, and that person will try to do the same. He'll be guarding the other Horcruxes."

"Maybe," Harry said, nodding. "Not necessarily, though. Voldemort never would have told anyone else if he were secretly doing something to bring down an enemy. The Death Eaters are his minions, not his friends; Dumbledore stressed that over and over last year. He would never share that kind of information, so he'd never consider the idea that anyone else would."

"Do you think that's something Malfoy might know?" Ginny asked.

"It's possible, but he's not likely to tell me," Harry said, imagining the sneer on Malfoy's face if he were to question him.

"You could get Moody to ask him," Hermione said.

"Hermione, we're not telling anyone else," Harry said through gritted teeth. He ran his hand through his mussed hair in frustration.

"I still think someone in the Order ought to know what we're doing, but I understand how you feel about this," Hermione said, frowning slightly. "Still, I think Moody would help. I doubt Malfoy would know about the Horcruxes, so you could just ask if he'd suddenly ordered any of them to guard anything without reason."

Harry frowned, mulling it over. Hermione had a tendency to always want to run to someone in authority, and she could never admit that the authorities might be wrong. Still, her idea could work, except…

"Moody's too suspicious; he'd never leave it at that."

"He trusted Dumbledore, and I think he trusts you," Ginny said.

"All right. I'll ask Moody if I can talk to Malfoy. That's just the thought I want in my head as I try to go to sleep," Harry said sarcastically.

Ginny ruffled his hair affectionately. "Aww, it's not easy to be the hero."