Harry looked away from the blonde, who was staring at her hands unblinkingly, back at the Headmaster who has seemed to age significantly throughout their talk. Dumbledore was almost feeble looking and that didn't sit right with Harry whatsoever, "so... Are you still looking for them, sir? Is that where you've been going when you've been leaving the school?" Harry asked and the Professor seemed to lighten up at this series of questions, "correct, I have been looking for a very long time, but have not been successful in locating another Horcrux just yet." Dumbledore sunk in shame of failing to have located anything in the past eight months.
"That's why you want me to go see Fergal. He knows where one is hidden." Mikayla whispered looking up from her hands in realisation, "yes." Dumbledore confirmed and Harry straightened in his seat, "Mikayla, you have to go." Mikayla frowned suddenly, back in Mungo's Harry was proud of her refusing to put herself in danger again, but now he's dismissing her reluctance, and asking her to risk her life for a memory. "He'll kill me." Mikayla looks only at Dumbledore, as if she looks at Harry she may just cave.
"Fergal O'Brien doesn't have a wand." Dumbledore countered instantly, "you and I both know that it doesn't matter if he has a wand or not. The man worked in the Ministry testing new nonverbal wandless magic, I'll be dead before anyone can identify the spell he hit me with." Mikayla argued, ensuring not to raise her voice as she didn't want to be perceived as weak for openingly displaying her emotions. "Being in Azkaban will have weakened his wandless magic abilities." Mikayla scoffed stubbornly disbanding Dumbledore's argument by saying that Azkaban is a recruitment facility for Fergal, and reminded the old man that Fergal had escaped from Azkaban unnoticed just a few months ago.
"The Dementors are working for Voldemort, they haven't weakened shit. So what's the real reason you need me to do it?" Mikayla folding her arms across her chest, "because they're only permitting family to visit now, and legally he's still your step-father, Miss O'Brien." The air seemed to be sucked out of the room at Dumbledore's words, she hadn't been called Miss O'Brien in years, and the way he said it with such venom that Mikayla had actually flinched. Mikayla cleared her throat, while silently scolding herself for having such a physical reaction to two little words.
"And what happens if I end up in the Prophet again, huh? There will be even more rumours about where my loyalty lies and frankly, I'm fucking fed up of having to defend myself and lie to people when following your orders-" Dumbledore interrupted her to scold her for her language and told her to remind who she was speaking to. Mikayla took a deep breath, recollecting herself as she stared daggers at Dumbledore, "why should I be the scapegoat, mmh? I'm sure Avery would willing to help, oh wait, she can't seeing that you killed her."
There it was, Mikayla finally said what she truly felt, and was challenging Dumbledore on whether he was willing to risk another person's life to make it seem that he was a good man. Was he willing to remind Mikayla that Avery was still alive in front of Harry, knowing that it might get back to Voldemort and Snape killed. She knew it was risky, but she needed to know if held any remorse for everything he's put her through, for pushing her to the point of breakdowns, and messing with her head. "Mikayla, we need this information, to destroy Voldemort." Dumbledore pressed on what they were originally arguing about, he didn't squeal and Mikayla quickly realised just how dangerous the old man in front of her is.
"Right, and just sacrifice whoever it takes for that to happen. Your ledgers are drowning in innocent blood, Professor." Mikayla voice trembled and Dumbledore does look a bit caught off guard by the switch between rage and distraught. Harry was staring at Mikayla and was seeing her in a new light, he could see that she was just barely holding herself together, forcing herself not to the tears trail down her cheeks. "Mikayla, if you need a minute to collect yourself." Mikayla was so angry at herself, she showed weakness, and felt Dumbledore's words patronising her being over emotional.
"I'm fine." Mikayla retorts, sinking back into the chair and she almost seemed fragile, like she was second away from completely falling apart. "I'm just overtired." She lied, and drank some of her pumpkin juice to help her swallow the lump building in her throat. Mikayla knows that she's fighting a losing game, that she is never going to truly win against Dumbledore, that she never did have a choice and that she had fabricated the idea of having one after trying to reassure Draco Malfoy that had a choice.
Mikayla sighs as she finally looks into Harry's eyes, his emerald orbs swimming with fear of the unknown, and concern for his friend, "fine, I'll go, but I have two demands." Dumbledore waves his hands as to permit Mikayla that she can voice her demands, which gets even more under her skins than her lack of choice. "No more werewolf recruitment missions. You already 520 of the 600 werewolves in Great Britain refusing to join up with Greyback, that's as good as you're going to get, let Remus live his life and not be tormented by his condition any longer." Dumbledore seemed hesitant but agreed once Harry had also asked him to let Remus move on with his life, as Remus is more than just a werewolf.
"What's your second demand?" Dumbledore asks, and Mikayla's eyes flicker between Dumbledore's and Harry's. "I go alone. I don't want to give Fergal ammunition against me when I see him, no bargaining chips." Dumbledore wasn't all that surprised by Mikayla's demand, but their was a hint of pride flickering in his eyes behind his golden half moon glasses. "Absolutely not! That man will destroy you if you're alone." Harry argued loudly, but Mikayla was done, she didn't care anymore, she was done risking her loved ones lives, even if it lead to her own demise. She allowed Dumbledore to read these thoughts, before adding, 'but are you willing to lose me?'
"Very well, Mikayla. If that is what you want then you will go alone. Come to my office when you want to go and I will apparate you there myself." Mikayla nodded at least she knew just how little value she was to Dumbledore, how dispensable she was in his eyes. "But sir, she could die!" Harry exclaimed outraged that his pleas of someone being with Mikayla at all times are being ignored. "I am aware of the risks, Harry, as is Mikayla." Dumbledore answered showing absolutely no empathy to Harry's fearful worries. "I said I'd do anything to ensure you survive, Harry. It just so happens that getting the memory off Fergal falls into that category." Mikayla smiled reassuringly at Harry, so that he wouldn't be worried.
Harry frown only deepened, "but it doesn't mean you have to do it alone." Harry argued, "yeah it does, because I don't want responsible for anyone else, no else is at risk, thus the chances of me getting someone killed is significantly lowered." Harry sighed as he knew that Mikayla was very stubborn once her mind is set on something, "fine, okay. But if you die, I'm gonna revive you, so that I can kill you." Harry threatened and Mikayla laughed gently whilst holding out her pinky finger towards him, "I promise that at the first sign of danger that I'll remove myself from the compromised situation." Harry wrapped his pinky finger around Mikayla's accepting her promise.
"Right, so when Mikayla gets the memory with the location of the Horcrux, can I come with you and help get rid of it?" Dumbledore looked at Harry very intently for a moment before confirming that Harry can tag along with him on his next Horcrux mission. "I can?" Harry asked thoroughly taken aback by Dumbledore's permission. "Oh yes," Dumbledore smiled slightly, "I think you have earned that right." Harry's whole being brightened up, delighted that he wasn't going to lectured on caution and his protection for once.
The headmasters and head-mistresses around the walls seemed less impressed by Dumbledore's decision; Harry saw a few of them shaking their heads and Phineas Nigellus actually snorted. "Is that wise, Professor? The location surely will quite difficult and dangerous to get to, if Voldemort doesn't want it to be found." Mikayla tried, what is the point of her risking her neck to protect Harry, if he's going to tag along on a life threatening mission. "You don't think I can handle it?" Harry asked stunned that his friend spoke against him, "I know you can handle it, Harry, you just shouldn't have to, I mean, you're not even of age yet."
Harry rolled his eyes, "Voldemort wasn't even of age when he made his first Horcrux, age has nothing to do with it." Mikayla sighed and threw her hands in the air to gesture that she was throwing in the towel on this disagreement, knowing that she had no chance of winning it without being completely hypocritical. "Alright, if he dies, I kill you." Mikayla pointed a finger at Dumbledore and there was not lightness to her statement, she clearly meant it. "You have so little faith in me, Mikayla." Dumbledore commented breezingly brushing off her threat, "do you blame me?" Mikayla asked incredulously, "not at all."