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Weapon	By : uqui Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Voldemort Views: 105432 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 26
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Weapon (Possession Chapter LXXIV)

Chapter XXIII - Ingrained Knowledge

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Harry sighed as he lay down his quill at the signal before he smiled up at the still shell shocked examiners. They'd been rather taken back when he'd asked if it was all right to put a speed charm on himself so that he could write faster since he wasn't going to be able to answer everything properly without the charm. They'd discussed it for a bit, no doubt thinking he was bluffing before they allowed it.

That had been three written OWLs ago and even with the charm, tiny writing and a few scrolls of extra parchment on each OWL he still felt that there were things he hadn't answered properly. It was surprising. He'd never concentrated on the information his beloved had given him before but now that he was, it just seemed to flow out of him. The depth and the breadth of information was impressive. Voldemort just didn't understand the complex charms and incantations; he understood the basic premises of magic, the things most wizards and witches understood instinctually, or never really understood at all, he knew consciously. It was a part of what made him so dangerous.

To Harry though, it was a part of what made him so attractive. The Serpent Lord was accustomed to looking beneath the surface, to seeing what was hidden and to understanding why things were the way they were. He accepted the truth without trying to twist it to his purpose.

He was cunning, yes, arrogant, yes but thoughtless... no. That was a misconception held by many wizards, that the Dark Lord thought nothing more than about his own power, cared nothing more than for domination. They would understand soon although many would not see. He was cunning for that was his nature, his arrogance was born of ability and he had thought past the destruction of what they knew.

That wasn't Harry's concern at the moment though. Now he had to go eat lunch and prepare for the afternoon practical session of the OWL. He nodded pleasantly to Blaise and Millicent as he left. While they were taking the OWLs together, they were eating separately, and for the most part, they were avoiding him. They were waiting for the axe to fall... It would, in time, once they thought they were safe although he rather imagined that Zabini might yet confront him...

He wasn't worried about that though, not when he was anticipating the practical session. The first practical OWL session, Harry had been a little worried. After all, it was common knowledge, thanks to the Tri-Wizard Tournament that his wand was eleven and a half inches long, and made of holly. The wand he bore now though... thirteen inches, yew... That was just as famous... for all the wrong reasons.

The examiners though either hadn't known or didn't care and that had been somewhat of a relief. The Auror's knew, some of the Order knew but Dumbledore had cautioned them all against destroying what they believed to be the Voldemort's wand, pointing out that he would be defenseless without it, that without his own wand, he needed something and that the Dark Lord was not likely to be giving his back anytime soon, if he had it at all, which he did. Emerald eyes narrowed reflectively. He wasn't going to let them destroy this wand, not because he didn't believe it evil, it was an inanimate object, and it could not be defined as being evil... Only the use, the intent with which it was used, could define if it was evil or not. He knew that but that didn't matter, he wasn't going to let them destroy it because it was now his wand. They would figure out what that meant in time.

At the moment Fawkes was busy. The phoenix had voluntarily said he would 'sleep' during Harry's OWLs so that there could be no question about the results but the fire bird was also busy communicating with Order Members in the wake of the successful joint attack on his beloved's stronghold with the vampires. It was nice, to be able to be himself during this time. He was careful to hide in the evenings as the bird had checked on him each night so far, probably wanting to confirm that the information he had was nothing more than information, and wasn't part of a personality plant designed in the end to betray them.

As if he needed that to love the one who had been true to him!

They didn't understand that. They wouldn't understand that, the reason he had... not turned... but accepted the Dark Lord as his lover, as the one he would support, and more importantly who would support him for all time.

Voldemort offered many things but there was one thing no one from the Light had ever offered him. Some had tried... but this was something where the attempt was not good enough.

Love. The Dark Lord offered him that. Private, intense, obsessive. He could have been loved by another, Ginny was falling over herself to be the object of his affection, but it was the Dark Lord who had his heart because the Serpent Lord had been steadfast with his emotions and had offered him more than just that emotion...

Acceptance. Dumbledore didn't understand that there were precious few who would accept him as he was. Everyone saw the singular act the magic of Lily Potter had wrought without seeing him. Ron, Hermione, Sirius, Ginny, Remus, even Snape... They did but there were very few who looked beyond that, who even tried to look beyond. Very few who would accept that he did not have the responsibility to be their savior. Voldemort did though.

Understanding. There was no one else who understood. The others could try but they did not understand, and Harry didn't blame them for the lack but they looked upon him with sympathy, not understanding exactly what it was that he felt. They didn't know what he needed when he remembered he'd been raped, they didn't know what he needed when he woke up crying... he didn't want them to know.

The Dark Lord did. He knew and he had, in the house that had held his torment, given him what he needed despite the risk, the risk that he would later reject him, that he would later consider anyone who had slept with him in that house an enemy, the risk of many things going wrong. And later, at Hogwarts, the Serpent Lord had been prepared to again give him the love he needed, to show him that he was still loved but had equally been prepared to let him take control. Voldemort had been prepared to wait until he was ready to accept him, had stood all year as a constant loving beacon in his mind, and had not said a word about his denial. He had waited because he knew that in the end, he was the only one who truly understood.

Cunning, yes, because he knew that despite the need, his attentions would not have been accepted because Harry did not understand.

Arrogant, yes, but arrogance born of experience and he alone knew what it was that Harry needed.

Thoughtless, no, courtship had been gentle, loving, solicitous, each move revealing the truth only when it would be accepted, each action designed to reassure and to show the singular understanding that no one else could.

That understanding was the reason above all others that he had seen and accepted the Lord Voldemort for what he was. Harry was not foolish though. He knew the Dark Lord had only seen him because of his ability and was concerned even now, with his aptitude for battle, but in the end, they would and they did stand together as equals. Their power had drawn them together as enemies, but their understanding saw beyond that. In the final analysis, that was all that mattered.

And that was why he knew at the moment, the Dark Lord was more annoyed than worried about that loss since it did now confirm who his enemies were. And it allowed him now, to take definite steps, without wondering if they would be necessary, to combat the vampires.

The Order would broach Xeoaph's proposed alliance to the Ministry soon and while it had only been a week or so, Harry had to admit that Dumbledore moved fast. The vampires had a small presence in Hogwarts already although there were plenty of places they were restricted from. Still, there was nothing better to create a feeling of alliance than by allowing mingling. The shadows had countered by now always forming at least some of his clothing so if the need arose they could defend him, not that he really expected Xeoaph to try anything... at least, not yet. It was too early.

Remus was still sulking and there was something else going on with the werewolves but Harry expected that situation to be in hand soon. When he'd asked the shadows had just said that everyone was coming along. They wanted to surprise him. Harry grinned. It wasn't going to surprise him but he was looking forward to the outraged screams from the Ministry, and then he'd probably have to do something to make it up to his beloved for stealing what he knew Voldemort already half thought of as his troops.

That could be fun.

Harry sighed as he shifted his wand slightly, bringing his thoughts back to his OWLs. This afternoon it was the practical side of the Defense Against the Dark Arts OWL and right at the minute, his hand still ached from writing. If it was one subject he personally knew well it was Defense Against the Dark Arts, but with Voldemort's extra knowledge... He already knew his answers would eclipse anything anyone was expecting, even if they had read his previous two OWLs.

The Dark Lord was knowledgeable about Herbology but it was knowledge based more on how to use, or how to avoid plants rather than how to care for them. Still, Harry knew the information had been more than adequate and Herbology had never been his specialty. They, Dumbledore and the Examiners, wouldn't be expecting anything special from that OWL.

Potions had been the second one. And that was one where his beloved's knowledge had helped immensely. He tried in Potions, he really did but Snape had not been impressed when he had started brewing everything perfectly and had ignored him since about midway through the year. It had not been good way to learn but at least Potions was no longer the trial it had been.

He had, in the written portion written much more than he had intended to, going so far as to point out some of the fallacies with popular known potions and to then suggest some improvements. In the practical section, he had perfectly brewed the listed potions, and had brewed the extra potion that the Examiner had requested.

Dumbledore had told him that would happen. Where he showed great proficiency, the Order had requested that the Examiners raise the bar a little, to push his knowledge. So far though, he hadn't really been able to detect any increase in difficultly although from the stunned expression on Blaise and Millicent's faces and the well concealed surprise on the Examiner's face, he supposed it was difficult.

The knowledge was just there. There was no question about it and there was no hesitation. If he thought of something, he just knew the answer, the same way as he knew everything else he had learnt during his life.

For the DADA practical... well... he didn't know what they might ask, but this was one section he should excel in above all the rest.

---

"Albus... I need to talk to you."

The Headmaster looked up to see Marchbanks, the head examiner standing in the doorway. "Shouldn't you be preparing for the practical?" He asked mildly.

The woman smiled wanly, "With only three people, it's all in hand," she said softly and it was only then that Dumbledore noticed the shaking of the parchment held in her hands, shaking that was directly translated from her trembling. He had never seen her like this.

"What's the matter?" He asked seriously, waving for the ancient witch, who had seemed old when she examined him but now seemed frail and scared, to enter.

She gulped as she moved forward and the door closed securely behind her. What she had to say was of such magnitude that her mind was still trying to come to terms with it. As Head Examiner for the OWLs and NEWTs she had seen many extraordinary things. She had seen the best and the brightest in their fledgling years, seen the brave and the strong developing their traits, seen the loyal and the meek show their worth... She had seen what generations of wizards were going to be capable of. She had seen Tom Riddle's twisted brilliance, seen Dumbledore's assured skill but she had never seen anything like this.

Nor had any of the other examiners.

Very gently, Marchbanks laid the parchment on the desk, almost as if she was afraid that it would explode or self combust at any point. "We..." she gulped. "We know you said to expect great things from Mr Potter and we took that into consideration... We were expecting another you perhaps... or maybe even something closer to Mr Riddle, or a combination of his mother's grace and his father's charm. We were not expecting this."

"Has Harry done something?" Dumbledore asked, concerned.

"No..." the Head Examiner sighed. "No... he hasn't done anything wrong."

"Is there a problem then?"

"Albus, I'll admit, I didn't quite believe you when you said what you wanted done with Mr Potter's OWLs but when I saw his Herbology OWL... Albus, every single answer was perfect. And his Potion OWL... We haven't graded them yet, mostly because we aren't sure how... I've read both of them though, both written OWLs and I saw the practicals... They weren't OWL level answers, Albus. They were, at the very worst, top level NEWT answers!

"So we... we did something different today with his DADA written OWL. I'm the only one who's read it Albus, and it scares me," the examiner indicated towards the parchment. "Take a look."

Dumbledore reached out and took the small stack of parchment, settling his glasses into place as he turned it over and looked at the first of the answers. The handwriting was tiny but the words were neatly formed and precise. He read the answer carefully, and smiled when he saw that the question was answered in a concise manner before extra information was offered.

"It all seems in order," he said finally, looking up.

"Look back at the front cover."

The ancient wizard turned the parchment back over and frowned when the words seemed to blur at him. He blinked rapidly, blue eyes reaching through the illusion to focus. "This isn't an OWL..."

"Yes, we gave him the NEWT paper. We're not sure if Mr Potter noticed but he didn't even blink at it, just started writing... and there are three scrolls of extra information, all written in the same tiny format, and all just as accurate as his answer."

"Defense Against the Dark Arts has always been Harry's specialty," Dumbledore said easily.

"If it was a one off, I might be able to believe that but not when his Herbology and Potion's papers are similar. No one else has seen this paper yet, Albus... I'm not sure what to do with it but I want you to tell me one thing now... what exactly are we testing Mr Potter for?"

Dumbledore looked up at the ceiling as he breathed deeply. He should have expected Marchbanks to be like this, especially with Harry producing outstanding results and he shouldn't have expected anything less from the boy. "You are testing to see how much information Harry has adsorbed from the Dark Lord Voldemort," he explained mildly, deciding to go with the truth.

"We're what?!"

"You are testing to see..."

"I heard, I heard... Why are we testing for this? How did it happen?"

"We will never know what Lily was trying to do beyond protecting Harry, that night... but whatever it was, it had some unexpected consequences," Dumbledore began the explanation, unconsciously echoing some of Tom's words to Elliot. "Avada Kedrava is a very powerful curse - both in terms of the magic required to make it work, and the emotion it involves.

"Bouncing it back, however the combined power of Harry and Lily did it, had some interesting effects which are only now coming to light, and they are coming to light because Harry is maturing and can now use what he has always known.

"When Tom attacked, in that singular moment there was a sort of bond formed between him and Harry. It is evident in Harry's scar but it was more than that. Harry feels pain when Tom is happy and can to some extent know what he is thinking. It is not something we have asked Harry to use because he is still a child. When he comes of age, though, the Order will help him to control it, and to use it in the battle.

"There was more though. Somehow, Tom's knowledge, or part there of, also got transferred into Harry. It hasn't been active until now, and we think Tom may have done something in the past year... So that's what you are testing... How much information got transferred, so how much information Harry can possibly use in the battle."

"I... I see," Marchbanks said slowly.

"I assure you," Albus said knowingly, "we are aware of the risks, and Harry is a fully inducted member of the Order of the Phoenix. Fawkes is checking on him every night and so far there has been nothing even slightly out of the ordinary beyond the usual teenage woes."

"That's good to hear." The relief was evident in the Head Examiner's voice. She had obviously been concerned but uncertain how to phrase the question.

Dumbledore nodded reassuringly. By offering this information, he could skip over some of the rest of it, like what Tom might have done to activate the information, or why they knew about it in the first place. There were so many questions he didn't want to answer.

"If Harry is doing even better than expected then, can you stay a few more days?"

"Why?"

"If Harry says it's okay, I'd like to see how he does in those subjects he hasn't studied. Tom had extensive knowledge in all areas of magic, but Harry at least, has never studied things like Arthimancy, and I would be curious to know if the knowledge he now possesses is activated by his own studying, or if it's just there for him to call on when he wishes."

"Ah," Marchbanks nodded as she looked at the situation in abstract, pretending it was a hypothetical circumstance rather than reality. "That shouldn't be a problem. I doubt I'm the only one who is curious to see how far Mr Potter can go. He's going to break all previous grading records, you know."

Dumbledore smiled, amused. "I know. So how do you think this afternoon's practical will go?"

"After reading his paper, I think we're not going to be prepared but I think we should try for something like the Auror test."

"A duel?"

"Yes but only if he passes the rest of it."

"He will," Dumbledore half closed his eyes as he considered it before he sighed. It would be a good opportunity to gauge how ready Harry was for combat. The tests could show him so much, but only mock combat itself could really begin to show him how long it would be before Harry could enter the battle, and right at the moment, he didn't have any one who could test the boy properly. This was too good to pass up, even if the Examiners weren't bound to secrecy... It was something that would come out eventually. "Be careful," he said finally. "In combat, even mock combat, Harry could be more dangerous than you realize."

"We will be," Marchbanks nodded before rising, picking up the parchment once again and hugging it close. "I have to go, or else there won't be an afternoon practical."

Albus nodded. "I will ask Harry about the other exams tonight."

"I'll start getting the NEWT papers together then," Marchbanks said with a laugh. "OWL papers hardly seem challenging. And I will look forward to the day that Harry enters combat. I do believe the Dark Lord will know fear."

"I will tell you when he is ready," Dumbledore nodded. "Thank you," he added, ignoring Marchbanks' parting wave as he picked up the duplicate copy of Harry's exam he had made when looking through it.

This was very interesting...

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