Christmas Holidays Interlude: Dumbledore and Quirrelmort

Albus Dumbledore sat in his office, going over the various things that had happened so far this year. Magical Beasts let loose to run amok in the school, duels between a fifth year and a first year, the first accelerated courseload student since Albus himself had been in school, and an attempt on the life of Harry Potter during a quidditch match. All of those plus the Stone had made for an interesting first-term in the Chinese Sense.

Of course, of those happenings, the first three had a student in common, Blaise Zabini. Albus had kept an eye on Young Blaise as he had planned, though doing so tended to be difficult when one factored in the fact that the lad apparently had a Major Concealment Cloak. Still, what he had seen puzzled him. Oh certainly, Blaise had enough cunning to make Salazar proud, but he also displayed courage and a sort of disregard for Danger more akin to a member of Godric's House, a Loyalty to his friends and a willingness to work at his studies that would make Helga weep for joy, and an inquisitive and intelligent mind that Rowena would have wanted for her House.

It truly was a rarity that a student who possessed all the traits that each house exemplified in various quantities possessed those traits strongly enough to puzzle Albus. Oh, don't get him wrong, every child possessed the traits of each house in different measures, but normally, only one of those traits could be considered strong enough to sort, it was that sort of strength of character traits that the hat looked for when sorting.

"I do believe the last time someone with strong traits from all four houses appeared was Alfred Elrick in the eighteen-nineties." Mused Dumbledore.

Alfred Elrick had been the Slayer of the Goblin King Ranrok the Fifteenth, the Vanquisher of Victor Rookwood, and the Hero of Ranrok's Rebellion of Eighteen-Ninety to Eighteen-Ninety-One. He had brought ancient Magic back to Hogwarts and done great things, though he had only been a fifth-year at the time. Gellert had gone looking for him to duel in Nineteen-oh-five and had lost, though Gellert had never actually said what had occurred, save that he had been beaten. It was that exact loss that had driven Gellert down the path to the Elder Wand, and ultimately, his downfall at Albus' hands in the War.

That wasn't to say that Blaise was his sole, or even primary concern, mind you. There was also Harry Potter, the Child of Prophecy, and the Stone to take into account. By all accounts, Harry was himself a powerful Wizard, though he tended to favor Gryffindor Traits above all else. Harry was perhaps the Exemplar of what it meant to be a Gryffindor, evidenced by his lack of hesitation to plunge into danger alongside Blaise on Halloween and his courage on the Quidditch Pitch. Last Week's Game against Ravenclaw had seen Harry practically crash into the turf in pursuit of the Snitch, only pulling up at the last second when he had his target in hand.

"And Harry and Blaise are clearly growing closer, despite the odds being stacked against them by the House System. That is very interesting indeed." Muttered Dumbledore.

Especially given the Cross-House Study Group that Blaise had set up. It was as if the two fed off each other, Harry's Gryffindor Traits enhancing Blaise's courage while Blaise's other house traits injected further cunning, intelligence, and work ethic into Harry. That symbiosis even had knock-on effects on the rest of their circle of friends. Albus hadn't failed to notice how Millicent Bulstrode had become more capable in her spellcasting, or how Neville Longbottom had become more confident in his abilities.

Those were just the most pronounced examples, but there were others. Ronald Weasley gained a measure of tact through osmosis he previously lacked and Susan Bones gained an appreciation for more subtle spellcasting that had her scores in Potions and Astronomy Class improve markedly, for instance. Hermione Granger had even stopped fearing Severus' verbal barbs, which was something that most Muggleborns took years to do.

Ironically, the least changed was probably the person Blaise saw the most, Daphne Greengrass. The two certainly seemed to compliment one another as much as Blaise was with Harry. Albus chuckled as he realized that should Blaise and Daphne pursue a relationship in the future, when they were a little older, they might truly become a power couple in the school, in the literal sense of the word as well as the figurative. If that is, they decided to make a go of it. Miss Bulstrode did seem to have quite the infatuation with Young Blaise, after all, and Blaise clearly cares for her enough to face down a pair of Trolls.

Speaking of, perhaps he could encourage something similar in Harry down the line? The Power of Love was quite a potent thing, after all, and something that Tom knew nothing of. It was Albus' personal opinion that it had been Lily's love for her child that had seen the Killing Curse backfire on Tom that night, and if Harry could find a way to empower his spellwork with such an emotion, then that would truly count as the Power that Tom knew not. Molly Weasley's only daughter would be coming to Hogwarts next year, and Molly had said that she had developed a schoolgirl crush on Harry simply from reading the fictional exploits about him. Perhaps that could be something?

"What are you plotting, Albus?" Came the Voice of Minerva McGonagall from nearby.

"Oh, nothing Minerva, I assure you." Grinned Dumbledore.

"Dinnae be haverin', Albus. I know you too well." Scoffed Minerva, dropping into her native accent for a brief moment.

"Alas, it is nothing that anything can be done about for a few years yet." Admitted Dumbledore. There was certainly no way he was going to admit to Minerva that he was thinking about the potential future romantic life of his students.

"Well, I thought you should know that the first few trials have been attempted." Informed Minerva.

"When?" Questioned Dumbledore, throwing cold water on thoughts of future matchmaking for Harry in order to empower his spellwork against Voldemort.

"Last night. Fluffy was put to sleep with a haunch of deer that was laced with a potion that Severus claims is one used by various Dragon Preserves to sedate Dragons before a checkup." Explained Minerva.

"I see. What of the Devil's Snare?" Queried Dumbledore.

"Untouched. Severus found a vial with traces of Night Owl Tonic down there. It seems that whoever attempted the Trials used a broomstick to avoid the Tendrils and Night Owl Tonic to see in the dark. Fortunately, it seems whoever attempted the trials was stopped cold at the Rune Puzzle. There were hints that one of the Thurisaz Runes was touched, shocking the challenger and forcing a retreat." Answered Minerva.

"I see. And you said the Ministry NEWT Prep Staff already left for the Holidays?" Asked Dumbledore.

"They left when the Students did." Nodded Minerva.

"Then it was someone on staff." Mused Dumbledore.

"Or one of the students that are staying for the Holidays. We have an unusually large number of them. All four Weasleys including the Twins, plus Harry Potter." Responded Minerva.

"The Weasley Twins, you say? I suppose it's possible." Allowed Dumbledore.

"Of course it is, Albus. You cannot possibly believe that You-Know-Who would fall for a runic trap of that nature? He ought to know better." Huffed Minerva.

"Yes, you're quite right. Still, I suppose it won't hurt to change things around a touch. Have the House Elves move the Mirror out of the Trapped Chambers. It has yet to be disturbed, so I doubt anyone knows its true function yet." Commanded Dumbledore.

"I'll get on that, Albus. Christmas Eve in only a few days away, however, so I'll have to leave you to supervise that now." Insisted Minerva.

"Of course, Minerva. I trust you'll see nothing untoward happens." Agreed Dumbledore.

Then Minerva left, leaving Albus Dumbledore to stew in a mix of paranoia and attempted strategizing, all thoughts of future encouragement of romance for Harry Potter forgotten. He could rule out any of the students who had gone home for the Holidays, plus the Ministry NEWT Prep Staff. If it was one of the staff, there were only two people who it could be, and neither were easy options to pick. After all, Arif Sikander was someone who by nature wouldn't join Tom's cause, while Quirinius Quirrel was too clumsy of a Wizard for Tom to even consider recruiting.

Unless, of course, the Former had been suitably encouraged, either through the use of the Imperius Charm or other inducements. Meanwhile, the Latter could be faking his clumsiness, cowardice, and overall lack of magical talent. It was a difficult choice to be sure, complicated by the fact that it could have been the Weasley Twins indulging their natural curiosity.

Albus Dumbledore would need to watch all parties carefully going forward, just in case. . .

XXXX

Quirinius Quirrel was horrified. He had gotten past the Cerberus all right and had managed to bypass the Devil's Snare Plant easily enough, though admittedly part of that had been the sheer luck of already being on a broomstick instead of using the provided ladder in order to avoid even the slightest hint of discovery. If he had been forced to burn the Devil's Snare, that would certainly tip off the Headmaster that something had gone awry.

'And yet, you did so anyway, you accursed fool!' Snarled Quirinius' Master inside his head.

"Please Master, your presence weakened me, I did my best." Whimpered Quirinius.

'Yes, I know. However, your lack of grace is not my problem, count yourself fortunate that I require you whole and that the electrocution you received was punishment enough!' Hissed Quirinius' Master, telepathically.

"Thank you, Master, thank you!" Babbled Quirinius.

The shock had been bad but was manageable with a day of rest and some potions, though it had been excruciating at the time, much to the delight of Quirinius' Master, who could simply allow Quirinius to feel all the pain for both of them.

'Silence you gibbering oaf! Recover your strength so we might try again in the future! Unless you fancy losing control of your body to me permanently?' Commanded Quirinius' Master, mentally.

"No Master. Sorry, Master." Apologized Quirrel, realizing he was still thanking the Dark Lord while his mind had wandered to the memory of the shock.

Unfortunately, the spasms had begun to be a problem. Initially, he had faked the tremors and the stuttering entirely, but as the first term of the School Year drew to a close, they had begun to become very real as his Master drew more on Quirinius' mystical reserves to sustain his possession. This time, the spasms had caused his hand to twitch and touch the wrong rune in the runic puzzle, electrocuting him. Next time, it might be more fatal. If something didn't change soon, Quirinius would become utterly useless to his Master within the month, and that meant that his Master might as well take control of his body permanently anyway. Quirinius would do anything to stave off that fate and complete his mission.

'Anything, Quirinius? Interesting. As it happens, there is one thing that might just do the trick which does not require the Stone.' Informed Quirinius' Master in the back of Quirnius' mind.

"Yes, Master! Tell me, I'll do anything!" Pleaded Quirinius.

So his Master Told Quirinius exactly what he could do to help stave off full possession and make the tremors and stuttering an act again. It wasn't something that Quirinius Quirrel had ever thought he would do before entering the service of the Dark Lord. In fact, it wasn't something he would have ever even thought of before, as there were all sorts of warnings and cautionary tales against and about doing such a thing. His Master had merely laughed at his objections, claiming them to be mere superstition and the prattling of fools too weak to make the attempt.

'Besides, Quirinius. Did you not just say you would do anything?' Mocked his Master telepathically.

When his Master put it like that, there really was nothing Quirinius could say to object to the course of action provided. He would have to simply buckle down and do it. That evening, while the rest of the castle was asleep, Quirinius Quirrel headed out into the darkened eaves of the Forbidden Forest at the command of his Master, the Dark Lord.

He would be hunting down a unicorn to feed on its blood and hopefully, stave off full possession. . .

XXXX

AN: All right, here are the first of the Christmas Holiday Interludes. These ones show Dumbledore and Quirrel plus Voldemort's Possessing Spirit in Quirrel's Body. We also get to see Dumbledore narrowing down his list of suspects for who Voldemort's agent is, while we also see that Quirrel is in a bad way vis-a-vis Voldemort's possession and has resorted to hunting Unicorns in the Forbidden Forest in the hopes that drinking their blood will allow him to complete his mission and rid himself of the possession before its too late.

We also get a look at Dumbledore's thoughts on the Power of Love. His shipping Harry with Ginny actually has a practical purpose here, in that powering Harry's spellcraft with such an emotion would count as being 'The Power He Knows Not' for the purposes of fulfilling the Prophecy, not that I plan to pull the trigger on anything like that for a few years yet.

As to it being the 'Power He Knows Not', Voldemort is completely incapable of feeling love, though it's mostly because he's a sociopath, to begin with. The whole him being a child of magic date rape and that meaning that he is incapable of actually feeling love thing that Rowling put in her worldbuilding skeeves me out something fierce.

At any rate, the next chapter will be interludes with Harry and Ron over the Holiday Break, including Harry getting the Invisibility Cloak and finding the Mirror of Erised.

Stay tuned. . .