Chapter 17 Synopsis: What starts as a simple snack run turns into a spy-hunting mission for Harry. With Sirius by his side and Dobby doing his best to help, Harry uncovers a network of traitors operating right under Lord Stark's nose. Things get intense as the trio scrambles to stop a malicious and possibly deadly plot.
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Last Time: ... To keep even the Warden of the North ignorant of so much to do with his homeland, must have taken a concerted effort over a very long time.
The worst part was that Lord Edwyle could easily see it being a plot by the Maesters, or the Faith, or the Targaryen's, or all three. To all these parties, the Starks were a quiet but clear threat to their power. It was the only explanation that made sense.
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Chapter 17: Watching the Watchers, Sensitive Matters
Harry stifled a yawn as he trudged through the halls of the castle, feeling a tad tired having spent the evening copying more books from the library. He was cheered though, by the warm tart he was chomping down on, having just pilfered it from under gaze of the kitchen maids, for an evening snack.
That cheeriness seemed to snap when a sudden shiver ran down his spine, and the hairs on his neck rose like someone was watching him. This was more than a gut feeling, it was a clear warning from his magic, a subtle sense that served him well during the wizarding war, and he knew better than to ignore it.
With practiced ease, Harry hid his reaction and continued on as if nothing were amiss, just casually strolling through the castle corridors while keeping an eye-out for any clue as to what triggered his gut reaction.
As he rounded a corner which would take him momentarily out of sight of anyone trying to follow him, Harry stepped into the shadows and cast a strong disillusionment charm. Now functionally invisible, Harry waited for the mysterious follower to appear.
Casting a quick stunner on the person that rounded the corner a few moments later, Harry was surprised to note they appeared to be an innocuous kitchen hand. Having learnt a healthy level of paranoia from Mad-eye Moody in the war, Harry decided to check his facts regardless of how innocent the person looked. They might be here on legitimate business, but he couldn't think of a reason for a kitchen hand to follow him towards the library away from the kitchen, and he had learned to trust his gut feelings.
Harry reached out with his magic for a passive Legilimency scan, and what he found left him deeply troubled. This kitchen hand was broadcasting quite loudly that he was acting as a spy, and had been asked to follow Harry for some extra coin. Without hesitation, Harry conjured ropes to bind the spy and apparated them both back to his tent for further interrogation.
Upon arrival in the tent, Harry securely tied the spy to a chair. He then launched a full-blown Legilimency attack without bothering to wake the spy up, diving into the spy's mind. It felt like wading through a murky river, as he sifted through the kitchen hand's memories, trying his hardest to ignore the irrelevant information. After all, he really didn't need to know that Josie the scullery maid was laying with Walden from the market. Or that Walden was also laying with Josie's sister. It seems this kitchen hand was the town gossip, as well as a spy, though he supposed the skills were relatively interchangeable.
Eventually, he locked onto the thread about the spy's work. It was concerning but not surprising to learn that his focus was on Lord Stark and his immediate family. The kitchen hand took coin from a hidden spymaster in town to report any goings-on in Lord Stark's domain.
Diving deeper, Harry found that the kitchen hand knew of at least one other spy in the castle and suspected his spymaster had others scattered throughout the North. He didn't know the name of this spymaster, but conveniently had a dead-drop in town that he knew was scheduled to be checked by the spymaster tonight. The man had already dropped a note there, speaking of the mysterious foreign merchant lords that appeared to be new allies of Lord Stark. That was definitely information Harry didn't want to get out.
It might not be a surprise, but the confirmation that Lord Stark's home was infested with spies actually left Harry with a sense of righteous anger. Lord Stark was not only his friend, he was also clearly working in the interests of his people, and any spies could only be working in contrast to this goal.
He really wasn't all that surprised that people were willing to pay good coin for information on the Warden of the North, but it didn't sit right with Harry, and he definitely wouldn't be leaving this alone.
For now, Harry apparated the kitchen hand to one of the old barracks-style sleeping rooms that the elves had previously occupied in his camping tent. Vanishing some of the beds, Harry transfigured a temporary row of metal-barred cells to contain any spies he captured.
The hunt was on!
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The light of the moon cast eerie shadows over the snow-covered streets of Wintertown as Harry, Sirius, and Dobby embarked on their clandestine mission.
Harry had informed them of the spy situation after Sirius had asked why they had a man trussed up in a cage. "Not that he was judging, just curious".
Naturally, Sirius and Dobby had insisted on accompanying Harry to root out the rest of the spy network.
The trio stealthily made their way through the quiet streets towards the site of the dead-drop, their strong disillusionment charms rendering them almost invisible. Earlier scouting had shown the location to be a rented townhouse on the edge of the market.
Harry suspected this was where the spymaster actually resided, which didn't seem like the most sophisticated operation to Harry, but then he wasn't sure what to expect from what amounted to medieval spies.
Slipping inside the house quietly, they began a thorough search for documents and evidence.
Dobby was fairly quick to point out the lifesign he sensed upstairs, elves being particularly attuned to that sort of thing.
Moving as quietly as shadows, they crept up the stairs and were met with an unexpected sight. The spymaster, a middle-aged woman with a sharp, calculating gaze, stood by the bedroom door, a dagger in hand. She lunged at Dobby, but the elf was quick to react. With a snap of his fingers, he stunned the spymaster, while Harry and Sirius, drawing on their wartime experience, cast protego shields to protect their friend.
Harry liked it when people made things easy for him. To be fair, an experienced spymaster laying in wait with a dagger could be a danger to anyone else, but to a magical it was just a convenience to find them here, instead of having to give chase.
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Harry sat back on a conjured armchair in front of his cages. He was waiting on Sirius to measure out the veritaserum, and in the meantime, reading through the documents they'd snagged in their hunt.
There weren't many documents, given how expensive parchment is and the notes were conveniently short and to-the-point, probably so they could be hidden easily in transit.
Harry looked up to see Sirius pouring a veritaserum spiked glass of water down the prisoner's throat. The potion allowed for a much easier interrogation than a legilimency probe, with less chance of missing vital information.
A thorough veritaserum interrogation did still require some skill. If someone had a well organised mind and a strong enough willpower, they could hide information by only answering the exact question, with no prevarication. An interrogator would have to craft each question to extract as much information as possible. Thankfully, Harry liked to think he was pretty skilled in this sort of interrogation after his experience in the Wizarding War.
"Who do you work for?" Harry demanded, once he saw the woman's eyes glaze over, showing the potion had taken effect.
"I have two masters," she admitted in a stilted response, her voice eerily calm under the influence of the truth potion. "I was originally sent north by the Tully's, and later, I was discovered and hired by the Targaryen's Master of Whispers."
Harry and Sirius exchanged a glance, their expressions grim. The Targaryen's were a powerful family, and their involvement complicated matters significantly. Harry sighed, this went deeper than he'd thought, best to just get as much information as possible and figure out next steps.
"What instructions were you give in setting up this network?" Harry asked
"I am to gather information on the goings-on in Winterfell and report back to my masters," she replied. "I'm also tasked with identifying any weaknesses or vulnerabilities that could be exploited. Any opportunity to weaken the North should be taken if it doesn't risk revealing my network or the influence of outsiders in the North."
It seemed this was also an espionage operation. Harry sighed. At least he knew they hadn't discovered the water wheels and other plans yet. The note he'd intercepted from the kitchen hand seemed to be the only one that hinted at his interactions.
Though he expected there might be one or two other southern houses with spy networks here, so he couldn't truly know how effectively they'd hidden the plans to uplift the North. He'd make an effort to cast a targeted notice-me-not on all the relevant documents he and Maester Garrick had prepared, but the best action would be to weed out all the spies.
"Have you been given any specific targets?" Harry inquired.
"Not at the moment, but my masters expect me to be prepared to act against anyone who might threaten their interests."
"How do you send your reports?" Sirius cut in.
"I use a network of ravens to send my reports to my masters," she explained. "I have a hidden rookery in a secluded location where I can send and receive messages without arousing suspicion." That was good to know. He'd ask Dobby to dismantle that rookery later.
"What are your plans for the future?" Harry asked, his voice steely.
"I will continue to serve my masters until they no longer require my services or I am caught," she answered without hesitation.
Harry continued with his questioning, getting a bit deeper into the information she'd been asked to gather, and other activities, until Sirius jumped in with a crucial question.
"Tell us all the spies and sources in your network. We want everything you know on them, including. Names, positions, and especially their intended purpose in your network"
The spymaster seemed to struggle for a moment, clearly not wanting to share the full breadth of her network. Her eyes glazed over again as she began to list names in a flat emotionless voice.
"Who among these spies are the most dangerous? Who poses a risk if they find you've been taken?" Harry added, after taking down all the names and details of the network both here in Winterfell and across the North. He suspected there were more that this spymaster wasn't privy to, but this was a major boon in taking down the network of two major southern powers nonetheless.
"There is a sworn sword of the heir Lord Rickard Stark who is both a spy and a trained assassin, a knight in Lord Edwyle's protection detail, and I've recently managed to insert a trained poisoner into the newer batch of ladies' maids serving his wife, Lady Marina Stark." Even through the haze, Harry could tell this woman was smug at how successfully she'd inserted such deadly assets into the household. Though Harry conceded she had a somewhat morbid right to be smug. With one order this woman could practically behead the Kingdom of the North.
Sirius seemed to be of the same mind with his next question.
"What are their orders if they discover you've gone missing? Are they to take any action?" Sirius asked.
She almost smiled, and in her still monotone voice replied "I have not specifically instructed on what action to take, but I decoded some secret instructions passed through me to the three spies in the household from the Master of Whispers. He's a dangerous man. All three were instructed to make every effort to dispose of their targets if they suspect they've been discovered."
She seemed to struggle further, but there was no breaking the hold of veritaserum, Sirius had been very careful to measure out the right dose.
"They're to make it look like an attack by the Ironborn, the Martell's, or the wildlings, depending on how they set-up the assassination. Even just calling out a family motto while committing the act could throw enough suspicion to hide the Targaryen's hand in this"
"Would any of them know you're missing yet?" Dobby asked, having been silent for most of the interrogation, simply contemplating.
Sirius and Harry looked at each other in alarm, having not thought to ask that, and now worried
they could have personally triggered an assassin to take action.
The woman seemed to smirk ever so slightly, showing that the veritaserum was staring to lose it's effect. "Oh they know, they'll all know. Your kitchen hand friend over there wasn't the only drop planned tonight, and I have fail-safes in place that will even reach the ear of Lord Rickard's sworn sword" she said this as she gestured to the unconscious kitchen hand still trussed up in the other cell.
"... ... ... Shit!" was all Harry could say before Sirius stunned the woman, and made to grab his sword.
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Not really needing anything more than a look between them, the trio apparated to a copse of trees just outside the gates of Winterfell.
"...Shit shit shit!" Harry breathed to himself, as they stumbled onto the road and jogged to the gates, desperately hoping they weren't too late. They couldn't just enter the castle without raising suspicion on themselves, but going through the gate was just another step between them and the assassins. "shit"
As they approached the gates, Harry called up to the night watchmen, who were understandably wary of letting anyone in at such a late hour.
"We're sorry, but we cannot allow you entry at this time," one of the guards said, his face stern. "And we cannot wake Lord Edwyle unless there's an urgent matter."
Sirius, losing patience, narrowed his eyes at the soldiers. "This is a matter of utmost importance and concerns the safety of Lord Edwyle and his family."
The guards remained unmoved, shaking their heads. "Our orders are clear. We cannot disturb our lord for any reason unless it's a matter of life and death."
"This is exactly that!" Harry added, knowing they weren't going to get anywhere with these guards.
Unable to tolerate the delay he made to wave a compulsion over them, but was beaten to the punch by Sirius who was apparently already in the process of surreptitious casting compulsion on the guards, ensuring their cooperation.
The change in their demeanour was immediate, and one of the guards rushed off to wake the Master at Arms, who then went to rouse Lord Edwyle.
After much commotion, the Trio were shown into the great hall, where Lord Edwyle, cloaked in his great black fur coat over his pyjamas, observed them with some consternation.
It was clear Lord Edwyle had been burning the midnight oil in his solar, reviewing their plans. Though his wife, Lady Marina, who the trio weren't as closely connected with, stood by his side and had all the signs of having been woken for this disruption. Their master at arms, Ser Cassel, stood behind them and to the side, looking wary but curious.
"We may have begun the bonds of friendship Lord Peverell, but this is beyond the pale," Lord Edwyle began, his voice deep and powerful. "What reasons have you to wake the household at this hour?" He insisted with all the grim gravitas of a Lord Paramount, reminding them of his power.
Harry cringed, knowing he would be just as unhappy at being disturbed so late into the night like this, but he was sure Lord Stark would forgive them once he heard what they had to say.
Harry stepped forward to explain "we apologise for the late hour my lord, but this could not wait, it's a matter of life and death. Of your life for that matter! For the safety of your family this absolutely could not wait"
This clearly caught Lord Edwyle's attention and he leant forward speaking with more urgency now "If that is the case then speak quickly Lord Peverell. For I would see any threats to my family's safety taken care of at once"
Taking a breath and glancing at Sirius, Harry launched into his tale, starting with his discovery of the kitchen hand following him in the castle, and leading on to their clandestine adventure this night.
Lord Edwyle's face progressively darkened with anger at each revelation. The mentions of spy-craft were shocking, but espionage was even more appalling. More than anything though, the threat of assassination against his family had Lord Edwyle burning with fury.
Lady Marina also seemed more awake now. Her eyes widening in shock. The atmosphere amongst the small retinue in the great hall grew tense as they realized the gravity of the situation.
When Harry reached the end of his tale and disclosed the names and positions of the known spies and assassins close to the family, Lord Edwyle leapt up in a rage. While Lady Marina sat in shock with her eyes wide and her face pale.
"To think that these snakes are so close to be within striking distance" Lord Edwyle growled, pacing with his hand on the pommel of his sword, looking to draw it at any moment.
"Anyone with control over the spymaster could have wiped out the Stark family with the stroke of their hand. This state of affairs cannot continue! I will not allow a threat to go unanswered. And I will take no chances with the lives of my family! These spies and their like will face the sword" Lord stark grit out with his hand gripping hard on the handle of his sword as he paced.
Pausing to look around at the small retinue with him in the hall, Lord Edwyle took a brief moment to contemplate his next action, thinking out loud.
"The spies in the castle should be easy to capture with the element of surprise. The difficulty will be getting to Rickard's sworn sword before word reaches them. We have no way of knowing what method this harlot used to setup the failsafe she mentioned to notify them of her capture".
Lord Stark looked piercingly at Harry, not angry at the man per-se, but at the news he brought, "If your interrogation proves true, this assassin will seek to kill my son", he roared again in rage and hurled a cup against the wall, getting some satisfaction in it smashing.
Lady Stark seemed to have gathered herself at this point and added in panicked but intelligent voice, "Rickard and his retinue left just over a sennight ago on a tour of the houses and lands worst hit by the recent winter. If they are still in the Rills then a mounted party could catch up to them with a day's hard ride." She looked at Ser Cassel as she said this, practically begging him to get things moving.
Stopping and seeming to think for a moment, Lord Stark turned to his master at Arms with a steely resolve and growled, "Ring the castle bells! We need a riding party armed and mounted without a moment to lose."
"And you!" He gestured to the small retinue of night guards, present in the hall for the disturbance. "We have known spies in our halls, hunt them down and take them into custody."
Ser Cassel just nodded stoically and ran quickly out of the room towards the gatehouse, yelling for the guards to follow him. A moment later they heard the deep gong of the bells ring out over the castle, followed by shouts and the sound of many moving feet.
Sirius observed the chaos around him, thinking that despite the seriousness of the situation, it was all rather exiting. He really needed to stick closer to Harry if this is what happened around him all the time. He had thought there was no way Harry could find trouble sitting in a library all day, but this certainly proved him wrong on that count.
Hearing the click of a door off to at the back of the hall behind the Starks, Sirius looked up to see the new handmaiden shuffle in, trying not to gather any notice. She was clearly here to find out what was going on, and probably gain some juicy information for her spymaster. Well not on his watch!
Sirius darted past the Starks, startling both the Starks and the handmaiden hidden in the shadows behind them. Seeing the handmaiden start to draw a knife from her sleeve, he reached out and grabbed her forearm with an iron grip, pushing the knife back into its sheaf. "Don't even think about it" Sirius growled, "the game's up, we know who you work for!"
The girl's eyes widened in shock for just a moment, then her mask fell and a look of disgust covered her face. "Unhand me you northern heathen!" she spat out "you have no idea who you're dealing with. I have friends in high places!"
"You would do well to hold your tongue" came the sharp voice of Lady Stark from over Sirius' shoulder "you have no friends in the North. Not anymore."
"Like I need the help of savages like yourselves" The handmaiden said struggling in futility as Sirius handed her over to one of the remaining guards "the light of the seven will keep me safe."
"I doubt it" finished Lady Stark, turning slightly to address the guard "take her to the deepest darkest cell you can find. We will deal with her later". This was one of her personal staff after all, she'd be particularly vindictive in interrogating this monster.
They watched as the guard led the former handmaiden, now prisoner, towards the door, passing through the small crowd that had started to gather in the hall in response to the bells still ringing through the night. Only for a blur of motion to catch everyone off guard as a man from the slowly gathering crowd drew his sword and lunged towards the prisoner and her guard. The move came so fast that most only saw a blur out of the corner of their eyes, followed almost immediately by an almighty clang when the attacker's sword met an immovable force.
Lord Stark had reached for his sword as soon as he saw the motion, with reflexes honed through previous wars and sharpened in the training yard over many years. Though he knew there was no way he would be fast enough to save the guard. Only to be caught by surprise when he saw the assailant's sword had come to a violent rest against Lord Harry's distinctive silver blade. Lord Stark was stunned, wondering how he had reacted so fast, and sure in his mind that Harry was on the other side of the room a moment ago. Though with everything happening so fast, he could have been wrong.
Harry swiftly disarmed the assailant who was now visible as the knight in Lord Stark's retinue that had been outed as a spy. "Thank you, Lord Harry," Lord stark intoned "it seems you and Lord Sirius have made a habit of saving my family and my men tonight. It will not be forgotten."
Turning to the guard he said "another traitor for the cells." he gestured at the knight, "Keep guard over them until you are relieved, we cannot allow them to escape and send word to their compatriot with my son".
Watching as the knight was led out of the room towards the cells, Lord Edwyle mused that he should never have bothered letting a knight into his retinue in the first place. Knighthood was a southern custom. Only those that followed the Seven could take the oath of knighthood. An oath this knight clearly didn't keep to. It was no great loss, either way, since Lord Harry had just made the knight's sword skills seem like those of a child.
Lord Edwyle's musings were interrupted by Ser Cassel jogging back into the hall followed by an additional retinue of now very alert guardsmen.
"The mounted men are ready my Lord" he declared, with the clipped calm under pressure of a veteran who'd seen war.
"Excellent" Lord Edwyle said as he strode towards the courtyard, with the growing crowd following him in anticipation "you shall lead the troop Ser Cassel, as I am clearly needed here to get things back in order."
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Chapter 18 Teaser:
… "Dobby was having the time of his life.
He had been waiting in the courtyard of Winterfell for Harry and Sirius when the bells began to ring. The sound was deafening, but Dobby ignored it as his attention was quickly caught by the reaction of the people around him. The castle had been roused and people were running everywhere in what he thought was a beautiful sort of chaos.
People everywhere were suddenly working, fetching things, carrying things, building things, dressing up. He wasn't entirely sure what the bell meant, but the effect was pure heaven for Dobby.
Dobby thought to himself that maybe he should ring some bells himself in the future, if that's what it took to get more people as excited by work as he usually was."
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