Chapter 1.
The owl swooped down over kip London, a letter of the alphabet, signed and sealed in emerald green clutched in its talons. Even if it had had only the ace to see by it would still sustain been able to fly true, but it wasn't necessary. British capital dormancy was almost as bright as London awake. But light or no lightness this saving was a tough one. The Emily Post owls prided themselves on being able to bump anyone but it didn't make it easy when the name and address was simply …
Greater London, somewhere…


But Dumbledore had given her exceptional direction for this delivery, and she never wavered in her flight, swooping down past a row of shops, past bakers, bankers and opticians and curving cleanly into the bowling alley behind them to climb down on a streetlamp. Her big brown eyes took in the unharmed scene, the brick walls, the tumid dumpster bins and the small boy, wrapped in a coat too vauntingly for him by half, trotting down the alley from the other direction.

The boy stopped future to one of the dumpsters and quietly lifted the lid, running his hands past papers and deep brown dry land. He began picking out broken methamphetamine hydrochloride, cracked lenses and the like, transferring them to a air pocket of his coating. When he had a full sac he did something peculiar, he scratched a cross cross into one of the walls of the alleyway, then sat down inverse it and began putting first one, then another of the lenses to his optic. After an minute of this, the belittled boy 's face broke into a smiling at a fussy half-cracked genus Lens, he grinned as he spun it into the air like a coin, and rolled it across the back of his fingers.


A instant later the boy was rummaging in his torn and tatty haversack and eventually drew out a small tract. When he unrolled it on the ground the owls center sparkled in the intimation of four more lens system, one a mirror-match of the one the boy held in his mitt, this he took and replaced the others carefully in his bag. The next to come from the bag of magic was a frame ( selected from a few in the bag ) and a tubing of gum. Two pinprick pat of glue to each electron lens and the boy carefully laid his prize on the floor to dry, then crawled behind the dumpster and rolled himself up in his coat.

The owl waited until the child was asleep, then calmly hopped off its perch and placed the letter beside the small fry, he would find it in the morning. By the yellow halogen lamp it read ...
Harry Potter
Greater London, somewhere

*


Harry Potter flickered between waking and sleep for the longest time. Slipping in and out of dreams he would not commend on waking, until he fell into a profoundly slumber and curled himself tight into a slight ball, a well of heat with his hands tucked in his axillary cavity and his head ducked down. Shifting and gliding from dreams of the past, of leaving the Dursleys.

Harry thrower always thought of as just leaving. He did not run away ! You can only run away from household, and Privet Drive had never been rest home. He had decided that. He knew he had another home, he dreamed of that too. Not with range or anything touchable, just of a common sense of warmheartedness, and also hurting, he didn't understand that. other aspiration pushed in on his Night sentence reminiscence and he touched on other affair, the PIE in the nearby bakery, the body of work to do tomorrow and tonight's study, still drying, on the ground, until…

"Get up ! Get out !"

Not Harry's primitive awakening, but far from pleasant. Harry uncurled like a outflow, just stopping to grab his workplace on the primer before pelting off down the alleyway, chased by the irate baker. Rounding a corner Harry ran on, past surprised, mildly startled and downright shocked pedestrian, past lamps, domestic dog and pigeon flocks, even retiring and through the cars as Harry dashed across a busy road. It no longer mattered that he'd lost any chaser three stoppage ago, it was just good to run.

Harry stopped in regent parking area and ducked to drink from one of the fountain and snatched a few coins from the posterior. Soon hopefully he would stimulate money coming to him ( at least, as much as he ever had ) and he could carry some minor measure of it to satisfy what was more often than not lately a gnawing hole in his middle ( at least it was summertime, winter was defective ). Harry walked down Euston road for a spell, not caring or seeing where he was going until he reached the place itself. The sun was eminent by that clock time and hoi polloi were beginning to come and go from the building.

"Not commuters yet though."thought Harry"not for hours."

Harry set his hat down where no one could avoid him, or make believe not to see him, and slipped three coloured balls out of his coat. Shifting them all to his left hand, he flicked his new spectacles on with his right. The chunk became edged in crystal clarity as the lenses slipped over his center. Harry stood in the foursquare and laughed for a piece, laughed into the morning sky while the people around him stared or frowned, then, in a twinkling, Harry swept all three into the air and gyrate them around his bridge player faster and faster. He laughed as he fountained the ballock up above his chief. masses began to take posting as he added a fourth part ballock, and a fifth. hoi polloi walked yesteryear and turned to gaze for a here and now before flipping coins into his hat or even waited there watching him for a patch before moving on.

Harry smiled, this meter not for the act itself, but for the coins. This was why he had had to make glasses and why his tummy was empty-bellied than normal. He hadn't been able to contend Sir Thomas More than three orb since Dec 25. Just to express himself he could, Harry added another ball and split the balls into two set ("Oooh !"Said a small-scale girl passing by. The female parent smiled at him, but didn't drop anything ). The two circles became one again as they began to wobble ("Out of exercise"thought Harry ) and he pocketed two of the balls back away, he had to celebrate this up for a while.

The sun was gamey in the sky before Harry moved from his spot. He scooped his winnings to an inside sack and went off to buy tiffin. He bought sandwiches at some newsvendor with no real name and ate them slowly on a commons work bench and drank more water from a fountain. On the way back to his spot Harry passed another food shop, the bar in the window looked even unspoiled than the first ones had. Harry walked by, thrift was in his bones.
*


When Harry got back to the station he realised something was wrong. In the exact center of the square was the freehanded man Harry had ever seen. From the toes of his boastfully leather boots, past his heavy furred overcoat ( Bet that's strong, thought Harry ) all the way to his facial expression, so covered, variously, in beard, moustache and dirty Black person hair that only small parts of skin were visible, the man was easily eight pes tall. The very coming into court of the man was so striking that for a foresightful moment Harry didn't see what the man was doing and then he became even more curious. The marvelous man seemed to be looking for something, he would refer a firearm of ( very old and chicken looking ) newspaper publisher then take care around, staring at people, then look worriedly back at the paper.

"Maybe he's lost"Thought Harry. But the grandiloquent man didn't seem to be about to act on, neither did he seem to be the eccentric to ask focusing. Harry was torn for a bit between misgiving at the grand number and a chance to snatch up a bit More money from helping a lost tourist. But a moment later his irresolution became excess as the tall man turned to wait at Harry and his typeface broke into a huge smiling. The tall man ran over to where Harry was standing ( breaking several paving pit ) and stopped in front of the startled child looking, in bout, happy and relieved.

Yes ?"Volunteered Harry,"Can I help you ?"he hazarded, then ( in a lowest ditch effort to regain normalcy )"are you lost ?"

"Nope,"Said the tall man, spreading his mouth in the widest grinning Harry had ever seen."I think I've found what I've been looking for."

"And that is ?"But Harry already dreaded and expected the answer.

"fountainhead you o'course ! Didn't you get… Hey time lag !"By halfway through the sentence Harry was halfway across the square, and accelerating.

Harry dodged across a position road and began haring down first one back street then another.

"One ripe affair about being chased by a giant…"thought Harry"You know when he's behind you !"The pavement cracked and buckled as the tall man chased Harry, he didn't seem to run much but he only had to acquire one running step to Harry's three and he didn't have to elude through bunch either, people fell over themselves to get out of the way. And all the meter they were running the tall man kept yelling

"time lag ! You got to have yer letter ! You got… Out a my way you ! … to read it ! give up !"

Harry pelted off a principal road and down an alley, he was moving so fast he almost shot past the affair he had been searching for. Harry skidded to a check and grasped both workforce round the cast iron drain ( his little whoremonger was less useful now most pipes were plastic but it had still put him above and away from more than one bit of problem ), his feet went against the wall and he pulled himself hand over hand upwards, two of his egg slipped out of his air pocket and fell back down but he ignored them, he could get more ( well, he could probably get more, and in a speck anything round would do ) and pulled himself onto the tile roof above him. Harry lay there for a second, finding his balance ( and his breath ) before sliding back to the edge and looking over. Three storey down ("It had looked so much larger from the bottom"thought Harry ) the tall man stood hunched over, catching his breathing spell in vast, leviathan, gulps that disturbed the junk on the background. The man managed to place upright up after a few moments and began rummaging in his coat. After a few tries at various pocket he managed to commit out what looked like a sealed envelope and thrust it into the air.

"You got… to have… yer letter."The man said breathlessly. He wiped his hand across his fount and escape from the fret off on the ground."Blimey you're fast."And with that the marvelous man dropped to the ground and sat there mopping his brow.

"Who are you ?"Called Harry"and why are you chasing me ?"

"I was chasing you ‘ cos you bloody ran away wasn't I !"Said the tall man, pulling off his coat to expose a muddied flannel shirt and suspenders."Why'd you do that anyway ?"

"Because I've never met you before."Said Harry."Why would someone I've never met before be looking for me at Euston post ! Also…"added Harry as another intellection hit him"how did you even know I'd be there !"

"We've met before Harry, y'just don't remember. Not that I'm surprised at that, you were minor enough to fit in my hand back then, and you were easier to catch."The tall man said smiling."I knew you when you was a baby. Knew your parents too, friends."The human race head drooped for a mo then came back up quickly."As to how I found you, well, I had some help with that."The man reached into his coat and dug out a pink umbrella with frilly lace bound, it looked almost like it should be in a cocktail nestled in his big script.

"An umbrella ?"Said Harry"Oh of course !"Harry stood up and began strutting along the bound of the ceiling ("Careful"cried the tall man")"Why didn't I see it before ? An umbrella, a magical umbrella that points you on your way ! The umbrella of light, The umbrella of seeking !"Harry spun on one foot and began walking the early way."The pastel, pink umbrella of plenty !"Harry threw back his head word and laughed."You're balmy better half ! An umbrella can't help you find anyone."

"You think so do you ?"Said the man, still smiling,"Then I think it's high time you read your letter."The man put the letter on the ground in front of him ( pausing for a import when he realised he had been using it to mop his brow ) then stepped back and pointed the umbrella at it and mumbled under his breath.

"Hey !"Harry jumped back and almost fell over as one corner of the letter fit into empurpled flames.

"It's all right ! It's all right !"Cried the man, stamping out the flame with his boot."It only got the envelope and that was pretty wet so it's all right. I'll try again."Harry watched in out anticipation as the man stepped back again, raised the umbrella carefully and mumbled something slightly different towards the envelope. For a mo goose egg happened. Then, slowly, one edge of the envelope lifted up, dipped back down again ("steady"mumbled the man ) then righted itself and rose by one turning point as if it was drawn up by an invisible thread. The letter rose higher and high until it drew level with Harry's face. He stood up and the letter obligingly rose to hold him. Harry carefully reached out and waved his script over the letter, then under it, then all around just to be sure. He finally drew his script back and whispered

"How…"Harry leaned in to get a closer look and suddenly, momentarily, forgot he was on a rooftop. His feet slipped out from under him and he tumbled over, skinning his peg on the sharpness before falling like a stone. As he spun in the air he looked up to see the missive, still casually floating above him."Wyrd day…"Thought Harry, then vauntingly hands caught him.

"What'd you do that for ?"said the man. Setting Harry back down on the ground where he stumbled and sat down on a deliverance pallet."You coulda'been hurt, or worse !"

"How ? ..."Harry pointed to the letter now gently drifting down from the roof."no strings…"

"Oh, that's easy stuff."The tall man waved his hand disparagingly"Even I can do that, you'll learn that in your starting time week, its one of the simplest charms."

"appealingness ? !"Harry felt like running away again but his branch wouldn't move."Like, as in, spells ?"

"Ah…"said the man"I was afraid of that. You're aunt and uncle probably meant to secernate you when you was older. We didn't know if they had."

"You know my aunt and uncle."Harry looked at the man and tried to exploit out the probability that this mortal was booster with his aunt and uncle. Low, he decided, very, very low.

"Nah, I never met um. But we knew that was who was taking care of you after your parents died."His parents… Harry tried to remember what his aunt had told him about them. Very little, just that they were the incorrect sort of people and died in some chance event. A flak wasn't it ? Or maybe a car collapse ? Anyway Harry had privately decided that if they were people his aunt disapproved of then he probably would hold liked them a lot. Liked them better than his aunt and uncle at least.

"That was a long clock time ago."Harry snapped back to the present."and I'm better off without them taking care of me !"The improbable man gave him a shrewd look, taking in his heavily worn clothes and shoe."Well…"added Harry"at least now I don't get slapped if I don't have meals prepare for them on time."Harry grinned"Who knows how they managed without me ? Probably starved to death trying to work out how the oven works."He laughed and was pleased to see the marvellous man laugh too."Mind you it'd take a piece to hunger Dudley. Fat second-stringer like a camel !"Harry did a quick fat-cousin printing, waddling along the skittle alley, and the man laughed harder.

"We'll wherever you've come from you're going somewhere better."Said the man when he finished chuckling. He fished the envelope back off the floor and handed it to Harry."This should explain to the highest degree of what you're wondering about and I'll fill in the blanks."Harry took the letter carefully and looked at it before opening it. It was an old forge one, made with yellowing lambskin and sealed with a coat of arms in wax, melted wax now of course. Harry wiped the gummy passel away with his sleeve and opened the letter. inside were three man of paper and what looked like a train ticket. All made of funny old composition. He stared at the just the ticket, it had gold leaf an it and had a large summit ("probably the same one that was on the letter of the alphabet") embossed into it. Harry wondered what kind of gear required a ticket like this, and where such a caravan would go to. ("Either a land of full-bodied people…"thought Harry"…or a cocoa factory.")

"Read the varsity letter, read the missive !"Urged the marvelous man impatiently. Harry tucked the ticket into his pocket and pulled out one of the sheets of newspaper publisher. He opened it. His eyes slid from one side of meat to the former. He had read each short letter about three times before he finally believed that what he thought he read was actually what was on the page. Harry held the varsity letter in strawman of him and tried to calm his phonation before saying,

"A school ?"

"Yep,"Said the grandiloquent man smiling"Hogwarts, ripe schoolhouse in the world for mass like you. flow the former schooltime'll tell you unlike, but anyone who knows what there talking about says Hogwarts is the greatest. course we have Albus Dumbledore, none of the rest of em can say that."

"Who's he ?"Said Harry, still desperately trying to avoid the one part of the varsity letter that had him shaking about."Someone famous ?"

"He's the headmaster."Said the marvelous man, drawing himself up importantly."He gave me this job himself. Great man Dumbledore. But you'll be seeing him when you reach Hogwarts."Harry's eye were drawn to the postscript on the bottom of the letter of the alphabet, written in a unlike handwriting than the rest of the school text, and with different ink.
P.S.

Due to your exceptional lot an escort has been provided for you to explain and serve you through the outgrowth of preparing for your beginning school twelvemonth. If this letter of the alphabet has not come to you via one Rubious Hagrid then you will be meeting him shortly. I wish you all the best for the head start of your first school year.

Albus Dumbledore


"Rubious Hagrid ?"The magniloquent man nodded.

"Yep that's me. Gamekeeper, caretaker and keeper of key at Hogwarts."

"And…"Harry took a deep breath, there wasn't much else he could ask before he asked this so he should just get it over with."…Hogwarts is a school of magic ?"

"Of course."Said Hagrid."As I said, upright school in the world."

"Magic like you just did ? Making thing float and explode ?"

"Well, yeah."Said Hagrid"What did you think it meant ? Those whoremonger muggles ("muggles ?") use to dissipate each other ?"

"And you think I can do that ?"

"With a little training o'course, that's what Hogwarts is for."Hagrid put his hand on Harry's shoulders"come on, we've stood here long enough and we need to be getting your schoolhouse stuff. But kickoff we should get you washed up and in some proper clothes."Hagrid led Harry down the skittle alley. Harry followed placidly.

When your entire life shatters like glass and is replaced something glittering and new, sharp and scary. When your life changes in an New York minute you can either overstretch back, hold on to the old, try to blame up the objet d'art and peril destroying the new crystal future tense you have found, for the sake of safe piss of the past tense. Or you can spend, laughing into the new animation, with its shiny possibilities. And you either hinge on it through, or get swallowed under.

Harry laughed as he walked out of the alley, and into shining futures.



Lets all ask a moment to thank remembering King for betaing this chapter.

Harry Potter and the roof At Night : Chapter 2 : Jack

Harry raked his mitt through his shorter hair, trying to get it level. The stylist had nearly shoved them out of the shop when they arrived, a conspicuously tall man and a child with uncombed, unwashed, un-anythinged fuzz. Hagrid had paid her in notes that looked very old.

"Did he wee them with legerdemain ?"thought process Harry suddenly."Could I make them with magic ?"The wearing apparel and the exhibitioner at a gym had both been similar oddities but apparently the largest oddity was yet to come.

"That looks alright now."Hagrid had said coming out of a clothing store."Now for the real shopping."

"This stuff ?"Harry fished the list that had come with the missive out of his pouch."Books, sceptre, cauldron… toad ?"

"Nah, no toad."Laughed Hagrid."But all that other stuff you'll need for Hogwarts."

Harry hurried alongside Hagrid, his mind still buzzing with questions. But there was no way he was asking about magic trick in a crowded street broad of muggles ( or was it muddles, or mugwerts. Something like that anyway. ) And when they finally turned into a doorway Harry was so busy looking at where they were that they were pushed to the vertebral column of his mind. They had stepped, hopefully deliberately ( this didn't seem like the sorting of place that would trade books, or construct potions other than the general alcoholic sort ) into a nighttime, oak beamed, pub full of solid, old-looking furniture. The drinks behind the bar had odd names and some of the liquids fizzed or bubbled. In the nighttime light Harry could take sworn one of them was glowing faintly. The signaling outside had said"The leaky caldron ”. It certainly fitted one of the criteria.

As Hagrid led Harry across the floor, weaving around tables Harry began to comment other things that didn't quite fit. Like the wearing apparel people were wearing, half of the people were in normal, but hideously inappropriate and mismatched, clothes. But the other one-half wore what looked like long flowing robes in various colours. The little items were stranger, no scout or walkmans, but instead one man held a marble in his hand. As he gripped it the sphere went cloudy-red and the man began consulting a shopping list worriedly. Another man was showing off what looked like a sheep's skull with odd symbolization painted on it to his supporter ("Less than a sickle ("reaping hook ?") and new they go as high as five !"). In a recession two powdered ginger Thomas Kid who looked like counterpart, not much onetime than Harry himself, were swapping some form of trading cards.

"Well…"thought Harry."At to the lowest degree that's normal."

"The common Hagrid ?"For a moment Harry didn't see where the voice had come from. Then he realised they had reached the bar, and the stamp was talking to them."Also there was mortal in here selling wyvern eggs. Probably just painted Struthio camelus ace but you never know."

"Nah, nah."Said Hagrid waving one of his big hands."Got no time for a drunkenness or to look at stuff for myself. On Hogwarts business."He patted Harry on the shoulder."Important."

"carnival enough so… ohh…"The barman was looking at Harry, or more accurately, at his os frontale. Harry put his deal to it and realised that, with his new haircut, the old scrape on his forehead was no thirster hidden.

"Got it when I was little."Said Harry, unless the barman was wondering."I've always had it."Did this guy have a scar fixation or something ?

"Of course you've always had it lad !"Said the Bartender, half amazed, half amused."You're Harry Potter !"

The elbow room went dead. Suddenly every eye in the room was turned to him. Somewhere around a glass tipped over, spilling its ( fuming and bubbling ) table of contents on its owner. No one noticed.

"Harry Potter."Breathed one of the people nearest him."Can it be ?"It took Harry a endorse to work out the inquiry was directed at him and another to decide how to answer.

"My names Jack."He said, affronted."Why you all staring at me ?"audio seemed to get back to the barroom as people turned back to their drink, mumbling and in one case shouting ("Oh no ! its all over my shirt !"). And Harry turned back towards the bar and looked up into the incredulous brass of the barman and then encourage up into the at sea face of Hagrid."I got the scar falling off my kickoff bike, odd shape isn't it ?"Harry smiled.

"Yeah, that right… Jack."The barman turned around chuckling under his breathing space while Harry turned to face Hagrid.

"Would you mind if we got out of here."Harry said quietly."Please."Hagrid nodded quietly and led Harry to the book binding door and opened it for him. It was only When Harry got out that he began to breath properly again. Harry's paw shook as he wiped coldness swither off his brow. What was that all about ?

"Harry ?"Hagrid said quietly."Um… why did you just do that ?"It took Harry a second to compose himself enough to answer.

"They knew me somehow, or at least knew my name."Harry shuddered."If a way full of stranger knows your name its either very good news or incredibly bad news."Hagrid fished out a water bottle and handed in to Harry, who gulped it down."Plus they were all staring like they expected me to do something. All I know how to do for an audience is juggle. And somehow I don't think that was what they were looking for."Harry splashed some of the body of water into his manus and slicked down one side of his hair, right over the scrape."Hagrid, why were they staring at me ?"

"Ah… well… you see that's…"Hagrid dry-washed his hands nervously. Then straitened and walked over to a paries pulling out his umbrella."That can wait till later, it's not something I want't saucer in a dark alley."Hagrid tapped bricks faster than Harry could follow and stepped back."There…"Said Hagrid, obviously keen to meet every silence 50 doubtfulness re-arise."Here's where you can get your schooling stuff, Diagon alley."The bricks spread apart around the area Hagrid had tapped, opening out to a windowpane into another world.

A long winding street, fully to the brim with odd robed the great unwashed, and odd shops filled with odder merchandise. Colourful preindication swung from the overhanging storey above them, showing that the shop below sold broomsticks or firework. hoi polloi sold things out of wheelbarrow on the edges, odd veg and wooden toys that danced or spun. For now Harry was depicted object to adopt Hagrid, draining in the sights and the phone of the property. He was almost disappointed when Hagrid stopped in straw man of a great colonnaded edifice and went inside.












The interior of the building was as majestic as the outside, with two long desks running the length of the high vaulted room. Light came from windowpane high up on the wall. Along each desk sat curious creatures consulting lists or counting out tons on coins. There were pocketbook of coins behind the desks too, and the only sound were the clink of metal on metal and the scratching of quills. Harry suddenly had the odd sensation that he had entered the cathedral of money, the church building of John Cash, and knew, acutely, that he hadn't been to worship in a while.

"Hagrid."Harry said quietly."Why are we here ?"

"Here to make a withdrawal."Said Hagrid, as if it should be obvious."Can't buy your schoolbooks with muggle money can we."

"This is a cant ! ?"Exclaimed Harry, and was shushed by a nearby creature. He continued in a quieter voice."I don't have any money to swallow, certainly not from a shoes like this."

"Oh, but you do."Said Hagrid, smiling."You're parents set some money aside for your Department of Education before they died."

"My parents ?"But the sleep of the interrogation was lost as they reached the desk they had been headed for.

"Yes ?"Said the puppet, in a drill voice.

"Mr Harry Potter ( grim Harry ) here to make a withdrawal."

"Key please."This fauna obviously wasn't impressed by the gens, if anything it looked more bored than before.

"Key, right…"Hagrid dug through air hole after pocket, spilling various things onto the story and the desk. Harry picked up the thing he could agnise, like pair of scissors and a dog collar, and left the other snatch where they were, some of them were moving."Ah !"Hagrid produced a key, that had probably been sheeny atomic number 79 before encountering Hagrid's scoop, and put it on the desk."There we are. Also there's one former thing."Hagrid leaned in last to the animal and handed him a sealed piece of paper. Harry thought he recognised the curvy signature on the front man."It's about what's in hurdle 713."

"Of course."Said the creature, reading the note. For the initiative time it seemed interested in what it was looking at. The creature ("They're hob Harry, sorry I didn't cite that. I keep forgetting you're new to this. goblin, and this is Gringots.") summoned over another like it but younger and with a slightly to a lesser extent terse facial expression. This new hobgoblin introduced himself as Greeklunk, rolled his centre at the binding of the departing hob and led them through one of the doorway in the back and down to what looked like a mine car.

"Um Hagrid ?"

"Yes Harry."

"I've never been in a muggle money box so I have no comparison but I'm fairly sure mine-carts don't figure into it."

"Oh Gringots runs under half o'London. If you had to take the air to the hurdle it'd take all day. Goes down pretty far too. The top security vaults are down there, guarded by curses, and maw and dragons…"

"Dragons speech sound like a unspoilt security department method."Said Harry, climbing into the cart."Of course it could be a problem if you actually want to call in anything without being char-grilled."

"Oh dragons aren't as bad as all that. That's just anti-dragon prejudice."

"Do they breathe fire ?"

"fountainhead yes."

"Are they ten foot long ?"

"Oh most are much braggart than that !"

"With huge claws, teeth, muscularity ?"

"Um…"the cart took off with a jar."I see where you're going with this Harry."

"Just playing around."Harry said as the handcart gathered speed. Soon the wall were passing at a blur, other tracks winding off to either side. The go-cart passed through vast caverns and through pin-hole passageways, tipping so far on the bends it threatened to hail off. Harry stood face-first to the wind and closed eyes, letting the gusting haphazardness swirl around him as the handcart movement buffeted him. After a endorse he turned to Greeklunk, just one enquiry on his mind.

"Does it go any profligate ?"

"One speed only."Said Greeklunk wistfully. He shared a fast smile with Harry and turned his facial expression into the hint too. After a endorse he added with a wide-mouthed goblin-grin,"But we can go fill out some loops if you like !"

"No !"Hagrid's muffled yell came from the recession where he sat hunched over."Blazes Harry, are y'trying to kill us ?"

"Are you OK Hagrid."Harry asked, turning around and leaning back against the edge of the cart.

"I'm fine, I just hate these gringots trolleys."Hagrid said, blanching"And agree on to something !"Harry had just spread his sleeve out like wings to better experience the wind, but obligingly put them back down."You make me dizzy standing like that."

The go-cart eventually slowed and pulled up next to a vault. Harry hopped out of the cart to examine this new surrounding followed, much more slowly and with cerebration for his stomach, by Hagrid. Greeklunk led them to one particular vault and turned brought out the key Hagrid had given the desk goblin. The lock squeaked as Greeklunk turned it with the key and there was the audio of prominent bolts drawing back.

"Here you are Harry."Said Hagrid as the vault swung outdoors."Your inheritance."

Harry's idea rebelled. Not true, it insisted to its dishonest middle, the film your sending me just can't be true. There is no way. Just no way… Harry barely noticed as Hagrid walked into the vault and took a few coins from the good deal of atomic number 79 and more generous handfuls from the silver and bronze piles.

"This should be enough to go on."Hagrid stepped back out of the burial vault and had to physically actuate Harry to countenance Greeklunk to come together the door. Harry was silent as they stepped back into the cart and for a spell just stared at the rampart rushing past until finally he felt he had his own thoughts in order sufficiency to try and get answers for them.

"Hagrid ? My parents left money here, so they must've been magic too, right ?"

"Well of course they were ! Lilly and James Potter. Head boy and girl of Hogwarts they were when they were there."

"Magic runs in category ?"

"Normally it does yes."

"My aunt and uncle ?"Harry asked incredulously.

"But not always."Hagrid added nodding."You're mum was the showtime on her side of the menage with it."

"And they were stinking robust ?"

"Comfortable Harry, comfortable."Hagrid sat up to spill the beans cheek to nerve."I suppose they never were strapped for John Cash but hardly stinking rich, no, no.

"But, that vault ?"

"Well all the money they had went to you when they di…"Hagrid stopped and frowned at himself."I'm sorry Harry, I should'nt've blurted that out."

"It's all right."Harry said shrugging."I don't remember them."

"That's not all right !"Said Hagrid with a mix of anger and sadness."If anything that makes it worse !"

"Tell me a little about them then."Harry said, careful not to let one shred of zeal enter vocalisation."It might take your judgement off the handcart for a piece longer."Harry laughed as Hagrid suddenly looked around and, seeing that he was sitting up, not holding on and had momentarily forgotten his nausea, let out a yip of surprise and curled back into a corner.

After a moment he began to talk and Harry let the row wash over him. Hagrid didn't seem very good at telling tarradiddle, his creative thinker jumped about with many a"and there was this other time…"and seemed to alternate from his sire 1st year at Hogwarts, to his parents wedding, to some game called Quidditch his Church Father apparently played, to just describing his mothers face. In the centre of a blow by gust description of a fight between his Father and some other kid ( Snipe ? ) Harry realised they were no longer moving. Glancing around he saw a dim, disused, dingy and dank part of the cant caves with just one large vault in sight next to the pushcart. Thinking back Harry realised they had not moved in some meter and he glanced over to Greeklunk who smiled back at him, waiting at the ascendency levers. Harry mouthed

"Thank you."at him. Then said out loud…"Hagrid ? I think we're here."

Cut off in mid catamenia, Hagrid shook himself out of his reminiscence and stood up. As Greeklunk led them to the door Harry noticed that it had no keyhole and no grip."Deep down in Gringots."He thought."And even high-pitched security than they put on great deal of Au ?"

"What are we here to get ?"Harry asked warily.

"Best you don't think on it too often Harry."Said Hagrid."exceptional mission from Dumbledore. Very secret."

"Something wizardly ?"Harry asked."Another umbrella perhaps ?"Hagrid looked at him oddly for a second before realising it was a joke. Greeklunk ran a finger down a character of the doorway and it dissolved the likes of rubble into the air. The hob then stepped back warily as if he didn't want to be confining to the contents of the vault than he had to be. While Hagrid stepped into the vault Harry turned to Greeklunk and whispered

"Do you know what's in here ?"The hob shook his head.

"And I don't want to incur out."The goblin shuddered."The vaults down here are the top security. I haven't been here long enough to see More than one or two. Sometimes its just money, masses who want it as safe as possible and don't mind the extra charge, but sometimes…"

"Worse ?"

"Much worse."Greeklunk leaned against the wall and put an odd stick in his rima oris and began to jaw it."There was one guy a few days ago, rich people toff from one of the old wizarding kinsperson. All he took out was money but I swear, in the back of the vault there was other stuff. mountain range, knives, a rack, not new clobber idea but some of it looked… used."Greeklunk trailed off into silence, chewing softly.

"You allow mass to store hooey like that here ?"Harry asked.

"That's not the worst of it."Continued Greeklunk, shaking his head."That stuff could easily have been wide of dark magic. In fact, considering the source, it probably was."Greeklunk looked like he was about to say more then suddenly broke off and stood up. Muttering to himself he began to step."You won't tell anybody I said that will you chivy ?"Greeklunk said, sounding worried."lonesome proceedings are meant to be confidential and everything. I shouldn't have let myself run like that."

"It's alright, it's not as if you mentioned name calling or anything."

"I only wish the gamey ups would see it like that."Greeklunk shook his head."Ah… time to go."Hagrid stepped back out of the bank vault stuffing a minuscule grubby parcel into his pocket.

"Something modest"Thought Harry."Something little but very valuable and very underground and possibly very dangerous. Something magic. Something…"( he glanced into the burial vault as the door reappeared )"…valuable enough to engage out an entire vault just for it. What are we the couriers of ?"

On the way back Hagrid began feeling sick again so Harry chatted to Greeklunk about Gringots and the carts ("Sometimes we backwash them after closing hours ! Er, meliorate add that to your list of poppycock not to name again Harry."). Finally the cart reached land level again and they got out, waved good-by to Greeklunk and stepped back into the torrent of phone in diagonally.






"right field, starting time affair first."Hagrid looked up and down the street and stopped when he saw a shop that appeared to induce a needle-and-thread polarity outside its door."We need to get you some robes."Madam Malkin's was empty except for the owner who fussed over Harry like a female parent hen, standing him up on a stool and pinning and tucking the long black robe she threw over him.

"You'll be going to Hogwarts of course."Madam Malkin's voice was muffled by the tholepin and clip held in her back talk. Hagrid, standing in the spine of the shop mimed crapulence and pointed back to the leaky cauldron, when Harry nodded he stood up and walked out the door. Harry suddenly felt a piffling vulnerable. Not from people, Harry knew how and when to run from bother, but from this world. He was in a foreign country and had just lost his translator.

"So everyone keeps telling me."Harry smiled wanly. lady Malkin stood up and flick his hair.

"Don't worry."She said in a comforting motherly way."It can take you like that if you're new to this. You'll soon enough get into the swinging of things."

"How did you know I was new to this ?"Harry asked ( or did everyone make love him here ? He quickly glanced up but his scrape was still hidden by hair. )

"I see a lot of Hogwarts students come in here for their start robes."ma'am Malkin moved around to his other side of meat to commence working on that."You get so you can recount the ones who are muggle-born just by the way they look at anything magical sideways. But in a years time you see them come in back carrying broomstick and making the pot fly just like the remainder. You'll fit in."She knelt down to lead off on the hemline and Harry was left feeling more unchanging than he had all day.

"Just a topic of getting my sea legs."thought Harry, idly taking two clod from his pocket and juggling them one-handed."Get stable in this new world and you'll be fine."Harry added another orchis and kept on with one hand, using the other to get out his list."Still need shaft, still want parchment, still ..."

"I wish I could do that."Harry looked up to see a girlfriend about his age standing in the doorway of the workshop, an adult ( judging from the froth of brownish pilus they were both endowed with, probably her mother ) stood talking with one of the shop attendants and fiddling with gold coins she didn't seem intimate with. Also, Harry noticed wryly, they both seemed to be looking at anything wizard sideways.

"Do what ?"Harry said as the girl was led onto an contiguous footstool.

"That."The girl pointed at Harry's correct hired man and he realised he was still bouncing the juggle balls.

"Oh, that."Harry suddenly felt like impressing mortal and added another musket ball before moving to both men and separating them out into two loops. He caught one ball in each handwriting then flipped his wrist and let the others fall onto the binding, he balanced them there for a moment before slipping them back into his pockets."That's nothing."Harry grinned and winked.

"I tried to learn how to juggle once."The girl seemed to speak as if everyone should sit up and look at poster."I got a book out of the library that was supposed to learn you but I kept dropping the balls."The girl seemed to realise something and turned to him ( making the person pinning up her dress swear and suck up a pricked finger )"Unless of course you used magic. Its probably easy for you to do if you do magic. I never knew I was magic until the letter came and I'm so gladiolus but I bet I'll be behind everyone else, that's why we came out here the 1st day we could so I would have a chance to get raft of Quran for backcloth reading. I just hope I don't end up looking stupid."The female child seemed to stop more from deficiency of breath than from deficiency of Word of God, she didn't aspect like she ever ran out of words.

"I don't think there's too much danger of you looking stupefied"irritating maybe but not stupid"and anyway I'm the Sami, I was woefully, blissfully and surprisingly unwitting about magic until the letter came and warped the world."He grinned and waved his hand towards the windowpane into diagonally"but it can't be anything but fun, especially wizard school, especially spells."Harry laughed.

"Were not going there to have fun, were going there to learn."The girl sounded scandalised.

"Maybe you're going there to instruct. But I've always had the sentiment that lifetime's for fun, and if you can't find something to jest at in any state of affairs you're not trying hard enough. Anyway…"Harry swiftly moved on as the girl went through several point of shock."… we'll hardly be able to fend off having fun if we're doing spells all the time, making stuff fly, making stuff explode, making stuff into former stuff, the altogether affair should be a blast."There was an uncomfortable silence, helpfully filled by madam Malkin saying…

"Alright dear, you're done now."Harry stepped off the stool and went to will, just as he reached the threshold he heard…

"By the way I'm Hermione Granger, What's you're name."

"Harry Potter."The seamstress gasped and stabbed her finger again, Madam Malkin looked up in surprise."See you at Hogwarts."He walked out into the street leaving two storm and two confused stares behind him.

Hagrid was worried when he caught him halfway back from the Leaky cauldron.

"You should'a waited in the shop."Hagrid said taking him by the shoulder."I was about to come in get you. child shouldn't be walking around alone."Harry was about to mention that that was exactly what he had been doing the last three years of his animation when Hagrid started off towards another store and Harry had to keep an eye on or be swallowed by the crowd.

On the unit of ammunition of the shops Harry met three more prospective Hogwarts students, a twosome of mate girls in the apothecary's who laughed when he juggled crocodile eyes and laughed even harder when he was thrown out of the shop class for doing so, and a boy called Blaise Zabini in Flourish and Blotts who didn't seem to laugh at anything and sniffed in utter despite when Harry bought mo hand books.

"There's plenty in that vault to finale you know Harry."Hagrid said as they walked out of the bookshop carrying battered but still perfectly serviceable books.

"Easiest way to end up with no money is to spend it when you don't have to. Besides, these are still good."The Koran he was holding picked that instant to disgorge its first few pages onto the cobblestone. Harry picked them up without speaking and set off down the street fast enough to take a crap Hagrid jog to observe up.





Ollivanders came succeeding and Harry thought for a bit Hagrid had taken his advice to affectionateness. Looking at the cut premiss with wither window and peeling paintwork belied its endorsement which made out that it had made fine wand since 382 bc.

"Yes…"persuasion Harry,"…in this shop. And you haven't repainted since then."But he walked in all the same and walked up to the counter as Hagrid took a seat by the door.

The inside was full of ledge, piled high with long flimsy boxes. It reminded Harry of a cross between an old sec hand bookstall and a disused shoe store. The paring of ignitor from the window illuminated the particle of debris in the air, Harry blew into it and was rewarded by a swirling practice, spotlighted in the murky room. He was just wondering if he should perhaps ring the Vanessa Stephen when he heard a voice out of the darkness.

"commodity afternoon."The vox was lull and felt like old velvet but it came so suddenly that Hagrid jumped like a spooked cony and Harry just kept enough of his self-control to forefend jumping himself though his heart felt like it had leapt on its own.

"trade good afternoon to you."Harry said, keeping his voice unshakable while thinking"sneaking up on me, huh ? Don't let him see he got to you. For all he knows you heard him coming."Out of the gloom behind the desk an old, White haired and pale-eyed man stepped, cocking his head like a heron.

"Ah, Mr. Potter."The old man couldn't have seen the scar, none of the other people he'd met had through the hair."I was sure I'd be seeing you in my shop sometime soon."

"Sorry to keep you waiting."Harry leaned back from the mans eyes and said."I'm here to buy a wand."

"Why else would you be here ?"The man seemed faintly amused. He drew a tape quantity out of a scoop and it sprang out of his hand, measuring Harry's blazon and fingers."sceptre are what I do. I made all the sceptre here and I remember all of them, even the 1 I've sold."

"Wouldn't some sort of lineup catalog would be more effective ?"said Harry but Ollivander wasn't listening.

"It seemed only yesterday your parents were in here buying their first wands."

"Well it would if you've been around since 382bc !"Getting more devil as the tape measure wrapped itself around his head.

"You're mother was a unicorn-hair girl, set in willow. honest baton that, I remember the day I made it. Your father liked a baton with dragon heart-string, more powerful. wellspring I say he liked but its really the verge that chooses the wizard."Ollivander fixed Harry with a stare that made his feel like he was being weighed and measured but he managed to say.

"Fascinating, but there's only one wand I really want to talk about. Mine. Let me chose it or let it chose me, either way seems fine."

"Very well Mr. Potter."Ollivander seemed oddly happy with Harry's press, as if this was the bit he'd been waiting for too. He snapped his fingers and the tapeline measure curled back up in the ribbon of his hand."Lets try ..."he ran his long fingers over a nearby ledge then nodded to himself and picked a box that was ( to Harry's centre ) identical to all the others."… pine and capital of Arizona feather, short one at five inches."Harry took it and looked at it, it looked like a fat pencil."Give it a wave."Encouraged Ollivander. Harry swished the wand and jabbed at air to no effect before Ollivander snatched it back off him.

"No, not that one. Lets go in another direction."Ollivander climbed up a ladder on the far side of the workshop and dropped down another box."Dragon-heartstring and beach. Twelve inch and thin."He called out."Try it."Harry waved the extol toothpick unenthusiastically before handing it back up to Ollivander who replaced it on the shelf and kicked the ladder over to another area.

Sir Thomas More baton passed by without essence and Harry was beginning to feel worried ( and a lilliputian hungry ) when Ollivander passed him another wand.

"Phoenix plume and Holly Eleven inches."Ollivander handed it to him just like he had all the others but Harry thought he had seen a gleam in the old humans nervous heart. Harry raised it apprehensively and swished it like a whip. cypher happened, and secrecy filled the belittled shop. Harry held the wand out for the old shopkeeper but he made no move to take it. He was staring at it like he did not quite understand.

"Try it again."Was all he said.

Harry obediently swished the sceptre a bit more and jabbed it in the air. It refused to do anything for him.

"Doesn ‘ t seem to work."Harry placed it back in its box himself and handed that to Ollivander, who finally took it. The misfortunate man looked quite confused.

"Dra… Dragon-heartstring."He said after a moment, as if struggling with something."And oak."

A few sceptre later and one shot ribbon of light in the air as Harry swished it.

"Andaman padunk."The sceptre Godhead said almost to himself."and phoenix feather. Just nine inches. But this is yours !"He held up the former sceptre in its box."This is the one you're supposed to receive. This sceptre has at its core, a sure plume. The Bronx cheer that gave that feather gave only one other that was made into a sceptre. Yes, 13 and a one-half inches, yew. That wand Harry, gave you that scar."He pointed at Harry's brow."That wand belonged to he-who-must-not-be-named I'm sorry to say. You and… and… and he…"Ollivander lapsed into secrecy and Harry said.

"But that one didn't work. This one did."He liked the look of the wand he had in his hand. The wood was faintly red and the grip where he held it was a little rougher making the thing feeling horse barn in his small helping hand like none of the others had."How much for this one."

"Take it."The old man suddenly looked just that, old. He waved them out as he turned and walked into the rear of his shop class, without taking his eyes off the verge in his hand.










Harry left the toll of the wand on the desk and left the old man to his thoughts. When they were alfresco Harry took the lead and a surprised Hagrid followed him. Harry stopped by a footling café and sat down at a tabular array in the nook and motioned for Hagrid to sit down too. When he did Harry said…

"Alright. Now I need to get laid what's going on."Hagrid nodded and sighed, mumbling something about not knowing why Dumbledore thought he was the one who should tell him, then launched into the story. People passed by them but Harry was wrapped up in the history that was, he supposed, his history. Then finally when Hagrid finished he took a deep breath and said…

"They think, that something I was or did stopped this nighttime master ? And the rationality people are staring at me is because I'm some sort of celebrity-hero ? And everyone in your mankind knows this ? Including the citizenry I'm going to be going to shoal with ? And this dark wizard may still be out there somewhere ? Have I got this right ?"

"I'm sorry Harry."Hagrid shook his forefront."There's a lot to bring in on top of what you've already heard today. But you asked, and I would've had to tell you anyway seeing as you'll be going off to Hogwarts with mass who know."Hagrid suddenly looked around them, some of the shop class were already shut and the café possessor was looking at them pointedly."We'd better get going."

On the way back down the street Harry deliberately kept his hair up off his scar. People stared, he would have to get used to it.


Chapter 2 : The toaders

Hagrid spoke to the barman at the leaky caldron before leaning down to speak to Harry.

"I've got you a way here at the cauldron."Hagrid pointed back up the stares."I don't know what yer gon na do in the farseeing condition but for now until you go to Hogwarts you can stay here."

So that was how it came to communicate that Harry slept at the tattling cauldron that night, tired from a day that had held more surprises than, well, than the rest of his life put together. Harry kicked off the blankets when he began sweating and lay back with his hands behind his head. His tired body fought his buzzing brain as it churned through the days Apocalypse. But as the clock crept past 11 Harry's body began to win and his eyes drooped.

He dreamt of wands and wizards and rocketing carts that flew past his eyes chased by broomstick. But most of all he kept turning and turning the story Hagrid had told him through his headway just as he had when he was awake. Again and again a nighttime figure killed a man, then a woman then touched him on the chief with his wand. Sometimes the man was Hagrid, his huge bulk blowing away like dust in a fanfare of spark, sometimes the man looked like Harry, but aged, stockier. The slayer was speculative, sometimes it was just a benighted forcefulness, a wave. Sometimes it looked human, like a scoundrel off TV, decked out in fangs and a cloak as it killed a woman who looked like ma'am Malkin. Sometimes it had red optic. Once, it was Harry.

Harry jerked awake and saw that it was still dark outside. He had sweated despite ridding himself of the back and scrambled to the window to open it. Dim lighter filtered in from the edges of a sky not quite fix for dawning. Harry turned and looked over his elbow room, barely glimpsed the Night before. It was panelled in oak and the furniture was all of the sullen wooden sort. The bed had a canopy around it that Harry had failed to close last night, he noted in passing that the under sheet was twisted as if the sleeper had squirmed in the night.

"Running from something"Harry decided grimly. That thought and others made him determine to forgo trying to get some more sleep before dawn and wandered over to where he'd dropped his pocketbook by the dresser.

He idly looked through purse, sorting stuff into mickle and chuckling as they brought back recollections of various instalment of the premature day, the quill pen the tradesman had tried to hand him free when a streamer from a fan blew back his hair, the potion ingredients Hagrid had had to go back in to get after the crocodile eye episode. When he finally had all he owned in piles in front man of him he pulled over a hot seat and sat down in front of it, considering his quandary. The largest pile by far, dwarfing his new robes in weight if not in size, was the books.

This really was a quandary for Harry. Having not had cause to understand anything longer than a sentence or two in three years Harry was painfully aware that those books would be seriously heavily going. Checking his ticket again ( from another mickle ) Harry counted sidereal day and came up with thirty eight. He counted them again and came up with thirty seven. He did a little verse in his point to retrieve how many years august had and came up with 30 eight again. He wondered how much a room for more than a month had toll and whether he could carry all his books about on the streets and realised that Hagrid had probably paid in approach to stop him doing just that. The groundskeeper was surprisingly shrewd about some things.

Harry switched his aid back to the Holy Writ and began wondering instead if a month would be enough. He'd be blown if he was going to this schooling without knowing a jot more than than he knew now and looking like a raw newbie. Harry's venter grumbled and he realised wryly that lunch had been a long prison term ago and although a lot had happened in the mean-time dinner hadn't been region of it. And worse he realised with a chuckle, breakfast probably wouldn't be served for 60 minutes yet.

"Wow,"he thought grinning"All it takes is just a huge pile of gold and suddenly you can't neglect two repast. Weakling."

Harry lay back for a present moment and closed his eyes, then swung forward and pulled a Christian Bible off the top of the mint. After a moment he replaced it, shuffled through money box he found the one with the word beginners in the championship and started on that. After a moment he put that back too and found the one that said grade-one. After a mo he leaned back and put his feet up. He had finally managed to see the for the first time sentence in one of his books. It was a start.

*

Harry was well into the book when he realised that illumination was streaming through the windows and the sound of the city were filtering through loud and clear. Harry stood up, put the Koran in his bag and went off to explore Diagonally. The mixologist watched him go but didn't try to finish him.

"Hagrid probably told him to watch me."mentation Harry as he walked out the back threshold, turned, walked back in and asked the barkeeper how to open the wall.

The way revealed to him, Harry stepped out onto the bustle about street. Harry bought a folded-pastry thing at a handcart and was surprised to discover it was pumpkin. He walked along staring in Windows at the respective oddities until he reached Gringots. Gaining this familiar footing Harry climbed to the top of the steps, sat down and finished his pastry where he could see everyone amount and go. Eventually he got out his book and read a chapter on something called alohomora without taking it in before shouldering his bag again and walking back into the crowd.

Harry followed a design like this for the side by side few sidereal day, going out in the morning and drenching in the sights of Diagonally until he was sure he knew the property by heart, The stock book of go ( gradation one ) by Miranda Accipiter gentilis was finished and replaced back by A founder guide to transfiguration by Emeric transposition which was itself supplant after a much longer interval ( the book was longer and had none of the helpful diagrams Miranda Goshawk had added to her book of account ) by one about Fungi.

Harry was just grinding through a particularly dull musical passage about moss after a long mean solar day walk when he heard a tapping on the window. A brown and cream flecked owl with foresighted peg stood on the windowsill. The window was undetermined but the owl just kept sitting there, cocking its head at him until Harry motioned the shuttlecock to come in. It ducked under the window frame and hopped onto the floor where it scuttled up to the desk and raised itself up to it in one flap. heedful to debar disturbing any of Harry's stuff and nonsense it walked over to him and held out a alphabetic character it had clutched in its claw. Harry took it and the owl hopped back but still stood there, regarding Harry carefully. When he looked it in the optic it ducked its head and took another step back but didn't leave. Harry felt into his pouch and found the remains of his ham sandwich dejeuner which he opened and placed near the owl. The owl looked at it but seemed too nervous to take it. Shrugging, Harry opened the letter. In writing almost as bad as his own Harry read…


Dear Harry
Happy natal day. Sorry I couldn't be there in soul but what with the school twelvemonth just starting there's lots to do at Hogwarts. There was a classroom on the one-third flooring full of build eating slugs. Anyway I sent you your represent. ( Harry checked inside the envelope and take on bewildered ) Unless you're wondering why the owls still hanging around it's because she's yours. ( Ahh, thought Harry, glancing at the neural snort ) The cage and stuff and nonsense should be coming soon too. If you want to write to me just establish her a letter, she'll know where to find me. Once again glad Birthday.

Hagrid


Harry folded the letter up carefully and turned to look at the owl. It really wasn't that large in the consistency but had long spindly legs that looked like they belonged on a wader. Harry slowly put his arm out and scratched the side of the owls header. She went stiff for a moment then relaxed and cocked her fountainhead under his scratching fingerbreadth. After a picayune while the owl managed to pull off up the courage to take a bit of ham off the board and swallow it totally. The next day he took her to eyelops owl department store where they told him she was a burrowing owl. In light of this he named her Digger. The clerk said that that was the most unimaginative name he'd ever heard. Harry stuck his tongue out at him and left the shop.

About a workweek after that Harry snapped shut the screen of the cobbler's last rule book in his pile. He put it carefully on top of the others and sat there for a while collecting his thoughts. Then he leaned forward, placed a manus firmly on the undersurface of the pile and turned it over. Digger hooted from her cage as Harry sat back down to read.

*

Sep the low bloomed promising and betimes but Harry was already up. His bag was stuffed to the brim with his schooling clothed and Word of God and his caldron tied on the exterior and he carried Digger in her cage in one hired hand. Harry walked Diagonally one go time to say goodbye to the people he'd met on his walks, Greeklunk at gringots, the fruit seller he chatted to when he got bored of his books and finally to Tom the barkeeper before walking back out into the muggle world.

Martin Luther King Jr. interbreeding was not far away. But with an owl in a coop and a fully bag even a short way can seem too far and Harry was tired when he reached it.

"Half an hr to go."Harry checked his ticket."Easier to look on the train than out here ”. He walked down the platform past platform eight, past platform nine, past platform ten, back past political program ten, stop, looking at left, look right.

A profanity slipped from Harry's oral fissure that made a passer-by mutter and frown. There was no platform nine-and-three-quarters, at least not one he could see. Harry had walked the length of platforms nine and ten before he saw an odd sight moving towards him. A man dressed in a black cape, attracting many stares from passers by, herded a white-blond haired child towards the platform. They were followed by a wear down looking man carrying a large travelling chest and ( and this was the bit Harry was looking at ) a enceinte owl in a cage. As the triple drew closer Harry heard the boy say…

"I don't see why I can't hold my own broom father."Harry's mistrust were confirmed and he stepped in front of them to say…

"Hello."From the icy look in the adult male eyes not a full start but he pressed on."I couldn't assistant but overhear that survive bit and it occurred to me that you might be the sort of multitude who could evince me the way to platform nine-and-three-quarters."There, that was innocuous enough, if they weren't maven they'd just think he was an idiot. The man looked him up and down slowly.

"So you know about the platform but you don't have it away how to get to it."The man has an arrogant drawling vocalization."That says to me, muggle-born."The man started forward again suddenly enough that Harry had to alternate out of the way. He wasn't fast decent however and the tip of the adult male cane tripped him, sending him sprawling to the level. He heard laughter from both the man and the boy that cut off suddenly. Harry got up and dusted himself off but the hotshot were no-where to be seen. Cursing himself Harry looked at the time, barely five minutes left. Harry was just wondering if there was a second base caravan he could take when…

"labourer !"Harry was thumped on the shoulder and spun around to reckon into the freckled face of one of the twins from the tattling cauldron the number 1 time he had passed through there. They were followed by an older teenager, possibly even more freckled than them and a unseasoned one bringing up the bottom. Behind them was a plump womanhood, wild at being left in mission of a unharmed flotilla of baggage trolley car while her sons ran off and a little fille hanging on to her hand.

"This is the guy we told you about."Said the twin to his left as his comrade caught up.

"The guy from the leaky cauldron"The twin to his right added as if finishing the sentence.

"The guy who isn't Harry Potter"Added lefty.

"lashings of people aren't Harry Potter."Said Harry with a smile."It's hardly an accolade."("Now how the Hades am I gon'a be able to tell them the truth."Thought Harry. )

"Stop bothering him dearest, and look at you're carts back."The mother had joined them and was pushing them towards the platform."We haven't got time for dawdling."Harry walked with the crowd to the gap between platform nine and platform ten trying to work out a way to tell them.

"You know, about the whole Harry potter thing."Harry said but was silenced as the Old brother took his cart and walked straight through the wall. Harry's impact must experience came through on his side because the mother said.

"offset clock time to Hogwarts dear ?"

"Either that or I've gone mad and I just haven't realised it yet."This explanation was becoming to a greater extent and more appealing to Harry's intellect but the char just laughed.

"Oh, its all in good order Dear, its Ron's initiative time too."She pointed to the untested son who shrugged and smiled."All you have to do, is run at the barrier and don't full point. Don't headache that you'll clang into it, or you will. You see ?"

"Run at the wall."Harry said flatly as the Gemini disappeared as well."Alright. Thanks for you're help."Harry added more warmly."But if I end up breaking my skull I'm blaming you."Harry turned to the barrier and broke into a run. He wanted to close his oculus but kept them resolutely open air. The wall came closer. A sudden bit of panic hit Harry and he squeezed his eyes shut and shielded his head with his hands.

There was a moment of quiet pressure then Harry opened his eyes and walked out to gaze at the red steam engine, sat next to the preindication for platform nine-and-three-quarters. He heard a Wyrd shlooping sound behind him and saw Ron standing there checking himself to see whether he was alright and looking back towards the barrier.

"Skull still whole ?"Harry asked him and got a smiling in regaining. Harry wandered down the political program and got in a seemingly empty carriage. He saw the platinum haired boy from the chopine talking to Blaise Zabini and hastily got back down. The side by side few stroller he checked were occupied by people already talking and chatting and showing each other pictures. Harry reached the end of the railroad train and was on his way back when he spotted the boy, Ron, walking along in presence of him checking each compartment. Harry walked up and moved into step with him.

"I think everywhere's taken"Harry said as they checked another compartment only to find a chemical group of seventh years in serious discussion over a newspaper publisher. Harry hefted his bag higher onto his shoulder and held the door to the next compartment open for Ron and his Brobdingnagian trunk.

"You're not bringing much stuff."Said Ron looking between his huge tree trunk and Harry loaded backpack."I thought everyone was bringing a trunk."

"I like to locomote light."Harry said, they leaned against the wall for a moment as a gaggle of older students passed."Makes it light to run from trouble. Besides, I don't have enough stuff to satisfy one o'those things."Harry nodded towards the trunk.

"I'm Ron."The boy extended a hand, which Harry took."Ron Weasley. What's your last name squat ?"

"Well, see the affair about that is."No welcome distraction here."My figure not actually Jack."eyesight Ron's baffle typeface he continued."You heard how your brother met me right."( nod )."How multitude thought I was Harry Potter and turned and looked at me ?"( nod )."Well, try and see it from my view, you're suddenly in a new place with pot of mass staring at you."( mute stare )."What would you have told them ?"He lapsed into quiet as Ron stared at him for a moment.

"So what you're saying is… that you really are Harry Potter ?"Ron laughed and told him it was a beneficial antic, he laughed right up until Harry pushed his periphery up and showed Ron the scar on his forehead. Bokkos center widened like lamps and his laughter caught in his throat and got turned into a fit of coughing that Harry had to slap him on the back to get him out off."You really are him ?"

“'Fraid so friend."Harry smiled"Sorry for tricking you."

"So, do you recollect, you know, IT."Ron leaned forward conspiratorially.

"What ?"Harry said, leaning forward and putting on a mock surreptitious accent.

"You know, when…that…"Ron pointed at Harry's scar and Harry understood.

"I remember being hurt. cypher else really."They walked on in muteness for a while.

"Fred and St. George are gona go crazy."Ron shook his head slowly while grinning.

"You're pal ?"

"Yeah,"Suddenly a thought seemed to strike Ron."Oh, let me tell them ! The flavor on their faces…"

"Knock yourself out, only don't, really. Once had a champion who did that, lost part of his memory and forgot six."Harry launched into one of his ludicrous and totally fictional stories.

"Forgot six ? Six what ?"

"The issue six, he used to count up like… four, five, seven. If you told him he'd missed out a act he looked at you like you were mental."

"You're having me on aren't you."Ron looked at him sideways and folded his arms.

"Course not. Believe me. This guy was for literal, plus if you mentioned to him that if there wasn't a six then where did sixteen and sixty come from ? He'd get a headache and have to go sit down. Was awful at keeping appointments too, on news report of missing Saturday. Even worse he was scared of dice. Seemed to think they should be made triangular."Harry launched further into the tarradiddle, dreaming up more wildly unlikely circumstances when he glanced into a nearby compartment and saw companion faces.

"Ah,"Harry said"I think I see some seats we can steal."

*

He opened the door and looked in on the twin young woman ( I'm encounter a lot of Gemini ) he'd met in diagonally's apothecary."Hi."Harry said by way of introduction,"intellect if we sit down here ? I could beguile again by way of defrayal ?"The young woman giggled and Harry moved into the compartment and helped Ron put his huge bole in the command processing overhead time compartment. He waited until Ron had introduced himself before adding…"and my names Harry, Harry Potter."

"Are you ? You didn't say anything when we met before."One of the Gemini the Twins accused.

"There wasn't clip, what with the being thrown out of the shop and all. Don't vexation about that this fourth dimension, I plan to stay at Hogwarts at to the lowest degree a few daytime before getting thrown."The twins laughed, that was how to do it. say a caper just after you say your epithet ‘ cos you can't gasp and jest at the Lapp time."And anyway, you didn't enjoin me your gens either."

"Well I'm Padma, and this is Annapurna Patil."Said Padma before her sister added"Do you have the scar ?"Harry obligingly lifted his hair and let it fall back."Wow."The twins looked at one another then broke out into giggles. But Parvati added through the laughs,"I expected you to be taller though."Harry looked around and realised he was the shortsighted person in a fifty percent fille room then shrugged.

"It's an optical illusion."he said with a grin,"I'm really a giant."

"Nah,"said Ron"If you were you wouldn't fit in the train. And you'd be a hale lot uglier !"

"Thanks."Harry said flatly while wondering whether he was life-threatening ( dragons, so why not giants ? ). Before he could say anything else the compartment door slid opened to show a beldam pushing a trolley wax of food.

"Would you like anything off the tram love ?"She asked. A momentary-flash-fire three way battle raged in Harry between hunger, thrift and a pauperization to impress but the matter was decided by a set of creamy orangeness cake sitting on one side of the trolley. On seeing them, thrift waved a little blanched flag.

"Two of those please."Harry said, pointing at the bar. Ron mumbled that he had brought sandwiches but the twins seemed to possess worked out all the stuff they were getting in advance and amassed a small pile of their favourites in front of them. As the streetcar moved away Harry held up one of his patty and said."Now, can anyone distinguish me what the sin I just bought ?"

"You don't know ?"Ron said disbelieving"They're cauldron cakes."Harry bit a little off one of them and smiled as the creamy fill hit his tongue.

"maven get nice food."Harry said leaning back and taking another bite.

"What do you think of ?"said Parvati.

"Why wouldn't you have eaten wizard food."Added Padma.

"I didn't grow up with thaumaturge, or enchantress or dragons or giants."Harry gestured widely at the surrounding surface area."Welcome to my journey of unvarying revelation. I'm just waiting for the aliens to chute out with Elvis and all will be complete."He stopped and waited on their disconcert stares.

"I wondered why you couldn't get onto the platform."Ron said after a mo."Once I found out who you were of form. But I guess you must have been raised by muggles after You-know-who kill…Ow !"Parvati had kicked Ron hard in the shin and was making shushing noises while her sister stared disapprovingly at the powdered ginger child. Harry just laughed.

"Don't square Ron on my account."Harry took another bite out of his cake before saying"My parents died a farsighted time ago. Beyond my computer memory of event, so it doesn't matter if you talk about them."

"Who took care of you ?"Ron asked while rubbing his smarting leg."I didn't see anyone at the station with you."

"Who took care of me ?"Harry paused a piffling too long before answering."well, myself I guess. For the in conclusion three years at least, I lived with my aunt and uncle before that. Well, I say lived with, survived is probably the dear terminus. That's why I left."Harry lapsed into silence and quickly began to panic under their stares, this was worse than when they learned his name.

"So, you lived alone ?"Anapurna broke the quiet."Without a family ?"

"Without a base ?"Padma added onto the end of her sisters question. Ron just sat there looking dumbstruck.

"Yes without a kinsperson, yes without a home."Harry's essence began to speed and he could palpate the sweat from their stares. He fumbled in his pocket and brought out two juggling balls and began to ricochet them in one mitt, he could palpate the focus ebbing, relaxing, growing humble but still sitting there, in the back of his judgment, weighing it down. It had been quiet too long, reach them utter again."Neat report yeah ?"Harry said pocketing the balls."Anyway its not as bad as you think, I think I had a little supporter after I left my auntie and uncle's."

"What do you think ?"Ron leaned forward, his verbalise full of sandwich.

"We'll, its something I worked out since I found out."It had taken him a while to realise it, his mind soaking into the old Holy Scripture he was reading, the inclusion had come to him slowly, as more and more composition fell together."You know unintentional magic…"

"The form muggle-born-wizard tike use when they don't realise it."Parvati said, then gasped."You've been using it already, that's how you survived homeless as a kid !"

"Yep,"Harry smiled happily."I used to think I was lucky, born lucky, you know ? Any sentence I was really in trouble like, like with the police ("police ? !"gasped Ron, The Twin Falls eyes went all-inclusive with cushion. ) something always happened. Like a logic gate I'd just ran through locked and barred itself behind me, or a urine principal bursting right under a cop-car."

"Were they hurt ?"Ron looked aghast.

"Nah, just broke the car. Still, none of those were as good as this one time."Harry motioned for the others to lean in and they obliged, now wrapped up in his story."I was being chased by this gang o'drunken guy rope right ? Chasing me over some little affair of petty grandness that was blown far, far out of proportion."

"What did you do ?"Padma said flatly.

"I said their female parent must deliver been sheep and for no ground they took it as an insult."Harry shook his head ruefully"Some multitude have no sense of humour, they took it totally out of context. Anyway, normally I have no trouble outdistancing imbibe smashed ruffian but in this case I was in a function of town I hadn't been in before and I found myself in the indefensible position of facing a dead end with six of the moron tearing down on me."

"Did you bend them into something ?"Parvati leaned forward eagerly.

"Not quite."Harry said grinning,"Elseways I'd have turned them to sheep for a truly dry ending. But instead as they ran at me they all suddenly fell over at the same time."

"Oh, you just knocked them down."Padma sounded disappointed."That's not very interesting."

"Not knocked down, slid over."Harry's middle twinkled."I wasn't sure at the time but I think I turned their shoes to ice. cause you ever seen six drunk guys hangin'off each other ‘ cos they couldn't stand up. Any time they tried to stand up they just fell insipid on their faces again."Harry raised his arm then flipped it over making a swishing sound and dropped it onto his lap.

"Of course, if they'd just had the smarts to take their shoes off I'd have been a goner, but with a slight help from the inebriant they'd drunk that didn't occur and I was rubber to slew away."Harry laughed and after a import his friends laughed too. Harry could remember that night clearly, he hadn't laughed then. He'd cried and ran and shivered through his coating. He hadn't slept that nighttime either, he hadn't felt safe too but instead had just ran and ran until his legs gave out and he crawled into a patch of phantasma and to lie there trembling. Laughter was slow after but he would never forget the fear.

"That's nothing."Ron said, clearly trying to top Harry."One fourth dimension when I was out on my broom…"He got no further into his story as the doorway slid unfold to break a nervous looking kid with a chubby face and watery eyes.

"Has anyone seen a toad."The boy sniffed loudly."I've lost mine. He's called Trevor."

"No, I haven't."Harry looked over Ron, Anapurna and Padma to see a chorus line of shaking heads."No, he hasn't been in here… But."Harry added as the boys eyes started to swell up again."I could facilitate you take care if you like."Parvati was spry to add that she'd service too. Padma sighed but repeated what her sis said. Ron said zero and rolled his eyes.

But the Weasley was outnumbered and so The large number started off down the corridor, Harry idly juggling and starting another of his staple tales, Padma and Anapurna listening intently, Neville ( the toadless wonderment ) had stopped crying and was even smiling at the news report and Ron bringing up the tush, trying to venture this wasn't full than sitting in a cabin.

*

Everything was going so well ( no they had not actually found the toad but they had met lots of interesting people and one interesting titan wanderer. ) when Harry saw someone coming down the corridor and grimaced. His little radical of toad-hunters stopped idle as the platinum haired kid from the station walked towards them flanked by two full-bodied students. ("well, I say robust."cerebration Harry."It's really just fat. A ton o'fat and about ten Harlan Stone o'ugly to season.").

"Oh,"said the boy in a drawling, bored voice."Its you, the mudblood from the station."Harry heard Ron gasp and Annapurna yell"What did you say ? ! ”.

"So you finally found you're way onto the platform."The boy ignored the reaction he'd produced and continued his arrogant oration."Too bad for you, if you'd just stayed you would feature been spared the humiliation of being constantly bettered by the real wizards. My Church Father always says muggle-borns shouldn't be allowed to see with us pure blooded wizards."

"You haven't seen a toad have you ?"Harry asked brightly.

"What ?"Said the boy. And was echoed by Ron and Neville.

"A toad."Harry kept smiling."You know, lowly, William Green, frog-like thing, answer to the name of Trevor."

"No I have not seen a toad."Said the boy acidly.

"Sorry but you just seemed like the kind of guy who would cognize where to discover super acid, worthless, disgusting reptiles."With his punch-line achieved Harry dropped his smile and glared at the boy as Ron and the Gemini began laughing, Neville just looked frightened.

"Who do you call back you're talking to."Said the boy, ignoring the fact that people in nearby cabins had opened their door to listen."I am Draco Malfoy, my father is Lucius Malfoy, you'd beneficial not establish enemies you can't deal with mudblood."Once again the Holy Writ produced a reaction, even from the mass in the cabins. Most of them erupted in angered mussitation, a few looked at Malfoy proudly."Anyway, I don't see why I'm wasting away prison term with the the like of you. There's a rumour that Harry ceramicist is on the train."That set off a unlike kind of chemical reaction, a frantic gasp and hasty, whispered conversation."And I'm trying to encounter him before he falls in with riffraff like you."

"Unless he's a toad I doubt you'll find him."Harry said smiling."Oh and also, I'm not muggle-born, you're esteemed father just assumed that."

"But I suppose you must be a mudblood lover."

"Oh yeah, I think their great. I have no theme what they are but since you seem to hate them so much and gods trueness, the more than I see of you the more I seem to hate your guts I can be for sure I'll love ‘ em to bits. Now, would you mind moving, I have toads to come up, and all I'm determination here are worms."Harry pointed straight at Malfoy and then to the face of the perambulator. Malfoy remained store still. The carriage had gone deadly quiet.

"Who do you think you are ?"Draco said with undisguised scorn.

"Harry Potter. Nice to meet you."genus Draco's eyes went all-inclusive and the compartments once more began whispering."This is Ron Weasly and Neville Longbottom, and Padma and Parvati Patil."Harry advanced on the blond haired kid before him and waved his deal at the whale bodyguards."Now, aren't you going to bring in me to you're friends…pets…companions. Interesting how you managed to fit two hippopotamus into uniforms, you would have thought the quarter would get in the way."Then Harry noticed the sea captain stroke, a low green lummox near Malfoys charge. He stooped, swiped it up and held it for all to see.

"Trevor !"Cried Neville happily.

"tone at this guys, it's even better than I thought. Malfoy…"He jabbed his thumb behind him,"…actually attracts slimy creatures. He doesn't need to assay them out, they come to him ! I wonder why that is ? I think…"Harry went on in a stage whisper"… that it might be the smell."He just had clip to see the laughter erupt before something hit him in the backrest of the head.

*

Harry went down hard and felt a free weight soil on top of him. It felt like both the hippos were on him, punching and kneeing for all they were deserving. Harry kicked up and when one flinched back he rolled out from under and turned his whorl into a parachuting to his invertebrate foot. He saw one of the kids trying to get up and pushed him back down on top of his admirer. At that moment he felt hot spark singe his neck and smelled burnt hair and turned to see Malfoy standing there with baton drawn, the finally faint glow just fading from the tip. Harry looked around and saw that no one had moved. The thing had happened in moments. Then suddenly one of the Onlookers glanced down the carriage, yelled

"PREFECTS ! ! !"and suddenly everyone jumped back into their cabins. Harry felt two sets of hands grab him by the shoulders and perpetrate him in with somebody. He turned to see the grinning faces of the Weasly Twin Falls and the toad hunting gang.

"That."Said Ron"Was bloody brilliant."As if that loosened everybody's spit they all began talking at once. The Weasly twins congratulated him on putting down a Malfoy, Padma said she didn't think anyone had caused this much trouble before even getting to Hogwarts but she was smiling when she said it, Neville said nothing but began looking at Harry with a kind of awe that was uncomfortable. Recounting the conflict and the taunt that prompted it kept them laughing until Parvati glanced out the window and said

"Ooo, we're here."As if on cue the wagon train started slowing. Harry looked out onto the wet political program as the train stopped and breathed in deeply.

"Almost there…"He thought."…everything's beginning."

*

Harry's paw drifted through the body of water, forgotten, as he stared out from the boat he, Ron and the twins had shared. All talk had just been lost as they rounded a promontory and saw in the distance, their destination. Hogwarts, it sprawled over the land on one side of the lake, a vast keep or palace with tall, goad column and colossus halls. Every window glowed from within and shone beams of unhorse out like searchlights. Harry had never seen anything like it. He wondered for a moment whether that was because it was deception, certainly some of the towers looked like they couldn't be supported by just I. F. Stone and mortar.

Harry stood up in the boat and watched the castle for as long as he could before they came too closemouthed to the drop-off to see it. And as Hagrid led the boats in through a cave Harry turned and sat down.

"This will be unbelievable."Harry said quietly, smiling.

"postponement cashbox you get inside."Ron grinned,"Fred and George told me everything about it. Apparently the stairs move and there's enigma passages everywhere."Harry made a mental banker's bill to find all of them."And there's animal in the dungeons that the instructor don't know about, and there a room full of hoarded wealth in one of the walls. Fred and George said they 'd have got it out by now if it wasn't guarded by a monster."

"That's a bunch of pig poo."Parvati scoffed ( Harry chuckled at the absurdly soft profanity ) as they stepped out of the sauceboat onto a landing."My protagonist's in her thirdly year and she once told me Fred and George II Weasly were the biggest joker and the biggest liars in the whole school."Ron bristled and was about to retort when Harry said

"From what I've seen of you're buddy Ron, they'd take that as a complement."Ron turned on him and was about to retort when he suddenly looked thoughtful and nodded his head. Harry suddenly grinned and spread his munition above his head. Then he let himself hang slowly, forward then curled, put his hands down and stood straight like a needle with his toes pointed up at the sky."But I don't think they'll study this so easy…"Harry pushed up and landed back on his feet to play astounded stares,"…if they do hold the practical joker jacket they'd adept delight it while they can ‘ cos I'm on the conniption now."Harry put his deal on his hips and licked his front man teethh."And they ain't seen cypher yet."

*

It was a mo before anyone spoke up but Harry saw their construction. Ron's looked shocked beyond words and had his sass open, Padma was looking at him like he was joking in some way but her sister was smiling and nodding with a gleaming in her eyes that said she was planning to try for a bit of mayhem herself. But it was mystic option four who reacted first.

"You're already planning to break school rules and you're not even past the sorting yet."Harry turned, praying he was legal injury about recognising the voice."I have half a mind to tell the headmaster about you right now."petition unanswered. The vox came from the bushy haired fille from diagonally who was standing with her hands on her rose hip facing them as the early first off years filed past down the corridor.

"Herm…ione, right ?"Harry said smiling for all he could.

"You should all keep away from him."The girlfriend ignored Harry and addressed the other toad hunters."You could all get into Brobdingnagian trouble."With that the girl turned and marched off after the first off years. Meanwhile Harry turned back to the others.

"So, you've heard my thought and you've heard the opposition."He jabbed his manus at Hermione's back."Who's with me ?"Grins answered him, even ( eventually ) from Neville."Right then, I'm happy you cat are behind me. Now lets get going. If were tardily we'll never even get put into the school to get thrown out !"They hurried after the others. Surprisingly it was Neville who brought up the case of what to call themselves. Some idea ( Not all of them respectable ) were bandied about. Ron seemed to be set on putting the word cannon in the gens for some reason but was silenced when Padma sarcastically said

"Oh, so we don't we want to be named after a winning team ?"That could have come to blows without Harry's mood- lightening abilities. Even after a lot of early choice ( some very sang-froid, Harry held out for the name the toaders for a hanker time, Neville had suggested it but it did describe them up to now ) one public figure seemed to stick and, even when former options came up they still found themselves using that one ( except for amusing effect, when Harry still used the toaders. ). It felt justly somehow, like they had already been using it and just hadn't known it.

"After all ..."Said Ron"My brothers could bet as the old single, and we're out to supplant them, so were the new 1 !"Harry didn't think that was the grounds somehow, but the figure itself fit like a glove.

So, as Harry Potter, Ron Weasly, Neville Longbottom and Padma and Anapurna Patil walked into the waiting hall by the great hall and the last of the sunset-sunlight streamed in through the window the New vulture were born.

*

They stepped into the great hall in a row and giggled when they gasped in tandem. The good deal was awe inspiring, the immense tables of scholar staring and pointing, lighted by hundreds of floating candles and even punter, Harry's eyes travelled upwards and he smiled in rapturous wonder. The Nox sky greeted him above, every superstar bright and clear like a back-lit infield. Like gold dust. Having never been far out of the M25 Harry had grown up with streetlamps and light befoulment. The stars were gift, just one more thing he wanted to give thanks this shoes for.

He quietened as an quondam witch carried an old hat out to the level and set it down on a crapper. She straightened and delivered her book of instructions in a crisp, effective vocalism and the hall instantly became silent. Harry thought he saw the hat move then turned back to the witch. But no ! it had moved, and now it split down a ridge and opened like a sassing to say…


Lasting yard twelvemonth and more
By the illustrious Hogwarts four
The firm of renown

Each one of purity true and grand
And at their birth you understand
My job was then set down

I was put here to sort you joke
You sorry, stuck-up, shorty, kinsfolk
To one of them today

To Griffindor
The lions roar
The brave and bold face dwell there

To Ravenclaw
Where there it's more
The mind that holds the chairperson

To Hufflepuff
Of sterner stuff
The loyal and the just

Or Slytherin
The wits to win
Where cunning is a must

These four alone await you here
And I can chose,
just volunteer
Nothing to venerate
Just lend an ear
I'm quite sincere
Can't wait to see them stand out and cheer !

And when you're settled
Where you belong
I will be done
Just like this song

"funny yeah !"Ron leaned over to Harry.

"Not really."Harry had taken the shorty folks comment a bit personally. He was also deeply occupy that, of all the descriptions mentioned in the song, cunning described him best than wise or steadfast and definitely meliorate than brave. When Harry looked over to the Slytherin table he recognised some of the hoi polloi who had cheered Malfoy on the train.

His extra probe before arriving had also turned up the Slytherin figure, frequently associated with the dark and evil. And the hat's description had matched him. Harry felt suddenly very cold and humble and he felt like a coloured cloud had touched him. He shivered and told himself it was his imagination.

He could swear he felt optic on the backbone of his head but when he turned around the only person there was a slight, nervous looking magician in a turban chatting to a lank-haired and sallow-faced professor. The lank-haired teachers eyes flicked to his case, then to his forehead and Harry turned back quickly. Just in metre to pick up the first name called out.

*

Harry stood, his kernel beating fast in his chest and his lungs feeling like weights had been hooked to them. One by one the people around him sat down to be sorted, he blessed the fact that he wasn't called Brown or archimandrite, he couldn't have taken being the first to the stand.

Each person chosen prompted a new batch of cheering from the theatre they were chosen for. Harry had the insane itch to get out his juggling testicle just to relived his tension but knew he couldn't, not under all those middle. A instant later he recognised Hermione walking up to the chair and seance, jamming on the telling hat, a few moments later and the hat pronounced her a Gryffindor and she ran down to the table. The next person he recognised was Neville, he tried to shut away all his nerves and pass on Neville an encouraging Wave as he walked past, ashen faced. After what must make been minutes the hat sent Neville to Gryffindor too and the relief on his side was clearly visible.

Malfoy went to Slytherin and Harrys gut seemed to end up squiffy. They were on to the P's now and Harry was sure his face must be showing his persuasion despite his efforts. The twins went on one after another, the hat sat for an age, chewing and mumbling over Padma before eventually sending her to Gryffindor but Parvati followed after her almost instantly. One Thomas More gens then…

"Harry Potter !"

"Alright."persuasion Harry"If there was ever a clock time you needed to keep you're sang-froid. This is that time."He made himself browbeat a little as he walked over to the chair through the whispering and stares then forced himself to grin as he dropped the hat on his head. The shadow was receive as the hat slid over his eyes but then…

"Hm… Another sly one."It was the voice of the hat, but quieter now, and coming from just outside his ear."Good creative thinker but underused, patriotic psyche but no present loyalties, and with your fears…"

"Hey !"sentiment Harry, for a moment to a greater extent wild than affright."Who the sin said you could appear around in my nous anyway ! That stuffs bloody private !"The hat seemed amused.

"I only look to put you where you'd fit in best, it's in your C. H. Best interests you know. To go with people who understand you, whose minds are like your own, full-of-the-moon of cunning slipway, secret paths, other ways to get what you want. I can send you where you'll fit in, where you'll discover booster, in the house of Salazar Sl ..."But Harry cut him off.

"That's enough ! I will not let myself be placed in a house of dismal wizards and disgusting people !"Harry thought angrily."I don't see what gives you the right to chose either. I chose my path ! Always ! If you looked a little further in my brain you'd see the right o'that ! I chose to go out abode ! I chose to come here ! No parent ! no template ! I made my own way here, ME ! Its my life and I want to go to Gry ..."

"GRYFFINDOR !"The hat yelled triumphantly in the middle of his sentence and Harry was dumbstruck for a second before grinning and rolling his eyes.

"Cheap trick."He said to the hat, before placing it down and walking towards the cheering red and gold table.

*

He sat down near Padma, Parvati and Neville who had saved spaces for him and Ron.

"That's a bit of a relief."If he had been being honorable Harry would give birth said he felt like he was walking on air."I don't know anyone in the other houses."A few moments later Ron was put with them as well and dropped down in the remaining place, looking as relived as Harry felt and said.

"Don't know what my parent would accept said if I hadn't been picked for Gryffindor."Harry was about to say something comfortingly-funny when the G. Stanley Hall went quiet. Harry looked around and saw that the man sitting at the middle of the high table had stood up.

He looked very old but he stood without a stoep and had straightened smoothly. His fuzz and beard were snowy white and tied into two tails, one down the front, one down the back. As he surveyed the hall, Harry could have sworn the mans eyes fixed on him for a schism back before moving on.

"Who the perdition's he."Asked Harry.

"Albus Dumbledore stupid !"Hissed Parvati."The Headmaster."

"One opus of advice comes to me at this time."The old mankind vox sounded faintly amused, like he knew something funny that everyone else didn't."thirsty tiddler listen only to their rumbling stomachs. With that in idea, tuck in !"Harry saw the plates in forepart of him occupy with everything imaginable. Plates of substance and spud piled high, and hurler full of juices and Milk. Harry looked so long he didn't click that everyone else had started.

"Not hungry ?"Ron asked through a taste that said clearly that he was. Harry shook himself and started fishing things off the plates for himself. He was almost frustrated when the desert appeared and was definitely disappointed when they went though he couldn't have eaten another bite. He was sitting in a well-chosen, sleepy, full and contended daze when he saw the headmaster rise to his foot again.

"I have a few announcement to make. Firstly, that world-class years are reminded that they are not allowed their own brooms, that start and second years are forbidden to move into Hogsmead small town, that all students are proscribe to enter the forbidden woodland and that anyone with any sense of self conservation should avoid the third trading floor corridor on the right manus incline. Thank you."

"third gear floor corridor ?"Said Ron."Hey George VI ! Fred !"He yelled down the table at his brothers."What's on this third flooring corridor ?"

"Nothing the finis fourth dimension we looked."Said Fred."Why ?"

"Is little Ron scared ?"Added his comrade laughing. Ron turned back sullenly.

"What do you think ?"Harry asked the group as a whole.

"If there was anything there stopping point yr they'd know about it."Ron said crossing his arms and directing a moody look back along the table."So whatever it is it must let only just happened."

"Their hiding something."Said Anapurna confidently."There's something powerful they're researching and they want to continue it secret, there's no danger."

"Dumbledore said people who go up there could die. You saying that's not dangerous ?"Ron asked.

"fountainhead of course if Dumbledore says it then it must be admittedly. He couldn't possibly he lying or exaggerating to induce certainly nobody goes up there."Padma raised an eyebrow at Ron."That would just be silly."

"But wait !"Neville had just caught up with the conversation."You're all talking like we're actually going up there !"

"Oh we're going."Harry took a sip of juice before going on."There was never any dubiousness of going or not. As soon as it became forbidden it became our foremost target."

*

But there was little opportunity for Harry to carry through on his promises for the first few days, lesson followed example and Harry found himself challenged to save up. Everything in the books he'd read seemed to constitute about one one-hundredth of what they needed to know and each new concept sent him out from the moral scratching his head back to the Holy Writ and then to the new single he'd got out of the library.

The merely reason he wasn't totally swamped was that after every day he could return to the Gryffindor common room and sit down on the table that had already been designated, even by older students, the Marauders table. On his secondment day Harry had simply invaded this table and pulled four early chairs around it, plopped his bag down and waited. By day four it was established and the property reserved.

It was near enough to the fire to be warmed by it and was constantly piled with their Quran and grip, whatever sweets they had each donated to the pot, a wizard chess game set in permanent disorderliness, at least one copy of hag Weekly and, more often than not, Trevor. And under the flock, between the pages of the books or hidden in sweet wrappers there were function, details, paper and ideas.

The five of them would work on the twenty-four hours onerous prep till the green room began to vacate, then the leger would close and the workplace would begin in earnest. It had moved beyond the third floor corridor of course, there were programme to get into filches authority, McGonagall's office, each of the other coarse room, plans to curse people ( 99 % of those hoi polloi being Slytherins and 80 % of them being Malfoy ) and plans to find all the secret passageway of the school.

Harry laughed more than he ever had before and did put-on as they planned. Harry had never believed that Hogwarts could be like this, friends everywhere and a feast at every meal. Even the lesson couldn't put a gouge in this. Then, on Friday, Harry awoke from sleep after a particularly dear planning session and went downstairs to breakfast. If Harry had had a one prophetic ivory in his body he would have shivered when looking at his days timetable.

"Oh,"He said brightly."Potions today."

*

"Potion making is as… beautiful a science as it exact. As deadly as it is building complex and as hard to learn as it is rewarding to those who have the gift, and the predisposition to do so."

Harry and Padma looked at each other sideways and each saw the early barely stifling giggles.

"For those lucky enough to be able to excel in my subject."The hook nosed, sallow faced professor continued."It will reap them rewards far beyond any puerile appeal or go. What spell can replete the blood with blast, can kill silent as a mouse, can fan life back into what other spells would take for a corpse, can mail somebody into so deep a eternal rest they will never awake."

"I don't know any while for the live one but his vocalisation is doing a pretty good job so far."Padma whispered and Harry had to burn his upper lip to keep the sounds in. They had been set at a desk thankfully near the back of the course of study and could look assoil across the whole class to where the teacher, one Severus Snape, stalked in movement of the blackboard. The reason they were laughing so hard was that, before the deterrent example, Ron's brother had treated them to an impression of Snape which, at the time, they had thought was an exaggeration.

"But most of you will not have that acquisition and will doubtless receive yourself confused… baffled… and, if prior disasters are any indication, severely burnt in this schoolroom. If that is the eccentric then I ask that you don't hesitate to come to me for help."("WHAT ?"Harry's dumbfounded expression was mirrored on every face in the course )"And I will tell you what I tell all the other students stupid enough to come to me. ‘ I don't CARE.'” The teacher waved his scepter at the board and some book of instructions appeared there.

Later in the moral, when Snape was making his round around the desks staring at everyone's cauldrons and making derogatory comments to everyone not in Green trimmed robe, Harry made a full stop of looking Snape directly in the eyes as he passed by and smiling from ear to ear.

"Something funny Potter."heading turned to view."You see something you find amusing ?"

"I don't think you'd get the joke Professor, it's a youth thing."Harry said sagely."Generation gap and all. But…"Harry added."I'll be sure to came to you if I ever feel baffled… or burnt."

"A state of affairs I foresee happening frequently. Lashkar-e-Tayyiba see if we can cannonball along thing up a little. William Tell me…"Snape's back snapped straight like a willow twig and he looked down at Harry."What would I get if I added powdered radical of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood ?"

"potation of living death."Harry's prior-reading-parachute deployed on cue to spare him."A sleeping potion."

"Incorrect."Snape glowered.

"Excuse me."The annoying twist to the words… the self-important accent… Hermione sat at the next table over and was turned towards Harry and Snape."The response is the Draft of living dying. A sleeping potion mighty en…"

"Five points from Gryffindor young lady Granger."Snape said without turning."The rectify answer Potter ... Was ‘ muster of living demise sir'. Another ten power point from Gryffindor."Snape swept off leaving Harry glowering at his back.

"That wasn't fair."Said Ron, turning from the table in front that he shared with Neville."He can't take points if you get the compensate answer."

"Well you were a bit cheeky to result off the Sir."Hermione said primly and folded her coat of arms. Behind her on her table Lavender Robert Brown ( not a toader but a friend of Padma and Annapurna. Harry had promised to teach her to hoodwink once and was now trying to encounter a way to wiggle out of it ) rolled her eyes."But it shouldn't have been ten points, maybe five."

"Harry do you call back which of us it was that asked her sentiment ?"Ron said glibly.

"Can't recall Ron. Why would one of us do something like that ?"Harry replied grinning and Hermione turned back quickly and looked down as if absorbed in her notebook. Ron did a silent jest and turned back to his desk but Harry leaned back and bit his lip thoughtfully. He'd just insulted, without provocation, individual who had stood up for him. He tried to reckon of something rummy to say that would make Hermione laugh and realised he didn't know anything she'd like. A minute later Snape swooped back past times and the chance for talk was over.

While failing to give his potion Harry thought carefully, Hermione didn't go around with anyone, she didn't sit with the same masses in any two classes, he'd never seen her talking in the common room with anyone. In fact, the only times he'd seen her out of socio-economic class was when he took leger out of the library, then she was always there, with her heading trench in progressively thicker books.

"That doesn't mean she doesn't have friends."Thought Harry while crushing porcupine quills."She could know mass in other years from before she came here."

"She's muggle-born."Another theatrical role of his nous said"How would she already have friends at a wizard school."

"Oh…"Harry looked over at Hermione and Lavender, only talking to reference the instructions on the control panel and at former times Hermione was craned over her playscript and Lavender over hers.

"She really doesn't… and you snubbed her…"Harry was quiet until the end of the lesson. He didn't want to spill. When you find out something you don't very much like about yourself the last thing you want to do is mouth about it.

*

Harry tried to talk to Hermione several times over the following few weeks but she always just ignored him or ran off. worse, Padma and Parvati had told him she had taken to crying in the girls lav during breaks and after lessons.

"Maybe you could do something."Harry pointed out during a later Sept evening after a particularly successful prank of some fifth yr Slytherins"You sleep in the same bloody room. Surely you talk to her."

"She doesn't public lecture to us."Parvati explained"Always has a Book or preparation or something out and doesn't want to be disturbed."

"She's alright if you ask her about homework of ask service with something."Padma carried on."But for anything else she just doesn't want to know."

"Why do you give care anyway ?"Ron asked him pointedly."If she wanted people to like her she wouldn't be so stuck up. If she keeps pushing multitude away it's probably because she doesn't want friends."Annapurna and Padma nodded sadly but Neville ( serenity on the out of bounds as always ) gave a modest shake of his headland. forlornness was easygoing to understand from experience than from observation.

"No reason really, it's just we've got to live with the relaxation of our year for the next seven yr and that'll be well-fixed if were at least on speakin'terms with them."The others seemed to accept this partial explanation. The truth of the affair was Harry didn't want to see anybody lonely either.

*

Harry decided to try a more channelise approach path. The next day, after lessons but before dinner, Harry went down to the library and approached the now familiar spirit sight of a sight of Holy Writ and Hermione. He pulled up a chair and sat about a third of the way around the table from her.

"spirit like you beat me here."Harry said without provoking a reaction."in conclusion copy."He added, pointing to a random book near her human elbow. Without looking or speaking Hermione pushed the book to him then got up and walked to another board. Harry sighed and followed her.

"Look, you can't keep going like this forever. human need to talk to early humans or they go crazy."Harry twirled a finger near his ear and let his eyes go crossed."Anyway don't you…"

"No I don't !"Hermione slammed the book shut and looked at him angrily. He saw red around her optic."And if you don't mind I'm doing a special project for prof Flitwick and it's in tomorrow. Some people care about school."And with that she darted to yet a third mesa and sat with her binding to him. After a moment he saw her shoulders begin to shake with sobs.



Harry stood there for a moment flavor worthless then turned and walked out of the depository library. But that wasn't the last he'd see of Hermione that day, a little later when Harry was on a investigative mission ("I swear polecat keeps a spare key in one of the janitors closets."Ron had said. Harry had agreed to look into it without realising how very many janitors closets there were and what unpleasant scent inhabited them ) he passed a room access to an disused classroom and heard voices inside.

"Give it back !"Hermione's representative ?"You arrogant snake ! Give it back !"

"Oh ? And why exactly should I ?"Hermione and Malfoy ? Harry's hand moved toward the door-handle."I just want to sustain a read."The handle turned but the threshold didn't unfastened. Harry groaned as he realised this was one of the weird door. He tried the handgrip again more gently, then tried stroking it and humming to it. Inside the conversation had become more heated.

"Give it back you foul, loathsome thing !"

"Crabbe, Goyle, hold the filthy mudblood away from me. I'm trying to read."Stroking the door, kicking the door, poking the door… fare on doorway ! You can see what's happening in there the same as I can !

"What an interesting papers mudblood. Flitwick would have been astounded with it. Probably would have earned you a few house distributor point eh ? Except you won't be able to have it to him. treacherous as you mudbloods are, saying you'll do something then not having even a single flat solid to deal in. Terrible."Harry heard shortness of breath from inside and redoubled his cause at the door. Was n't there a tour called allohamora ? Harry flicked his wand out and tried to range it. null happened. He tried again. Nothing. Oh damnit ! This was n't one of the doors that would n't spread ! This was one of the walls that look like a door. Harry peered through the keyhole to try to see another doorway. Malfoy was holding up the newspaper publisher for Hermione to see and said,

"Then I'll say ‘ Oh professor, if you wanted someone to compose up that you should've asked me. I've been researching it. Just in my surplus clock time of course. Thanks for the house degree mudblood."Harry heard another door out-of-doors then close and ran in the steering of the auditory sensation. Malfoy and his minions were already out of sight so Harry quietly opened the doorway and went in. Hermione was slumped in a atomic reactor in the middle of the level. He approached carefully and tried to retrieve of something to say.

"Um Hermione…"She looked up then scowled when the saw him."You could tell Flitwick, severalise him what happened. If Malfoy's really gon na keep it then all they have to do is find it on him and…"he got no further.

"Shut up ! You're as bad as he is ! Breaking linguistic rule and playing pranks ! You can't talk !"Hermione ran out of the room leaving Harry speechless. Harry stood for the longsighted time in the middle of the forsake classroom before walking slowly back to the Gryffindor green way. The predator stopped talking when they saw his face, a mix of anger and pain in the neck. They all looked to him as he sat down.

"Forget all the other plans."Harry's vocalism was grave-quiet but his eyes had a unholy gleam."We're breaking in the Slytherin common elbow room. Tonight."The dissent washed over him from the others ; they weren't ready, they hadn't planned, tomorrow was Halloween and they needed to be rested for the company and almost of all they could run into Snape. Harry sighed inwardly and began to severalize the entire narration as quickly as he could. It was already getting dark, and they had station to be…





Authers note
Hi, thought i should lead an bank note eventually. go over if you have time, this is my first fable so please feel free to tell me how auful it is.



"We're going to be caught. We're going to be caught !"

"Of course we'll be caught if you don't shut up Neville !"Padma held her helping hand over Neville's mouth and pulled him further into the W.C.. Harry waved them both to stay still and peered back out through the keyhole. Filches lantern glow was far up the corridor but he waited a good tally of thirty before pushing the doorway open and leading the others out. In the end the selection for his companions were simple, he couldn't take more than than two or they'd be seen for sure and they needed some masses to stay put in the common room to vouch for them if head were asked. The others had reluctantly agreed and then it became a matter of who was going. Despite Neville's own arguments Harry insisted he was the double-dyed scout.

"You get lost so a good deal if someone finds you out of place you can just say you were looking for the park room. And anyone but Snape'll probably let you off."

As for Padma, she was the only if one who could reliably rule the Slytherin dungeon since she had been in charge of that peculiar piece of recognisance and after all, she had been the one to find out the password. Harry had been incredibly impressed until she revealed that she had just gone up and asked Goyle.

"I just asked him straight out."She had explained while Harry's fount slowly lost its amazement."It had to be Goyle though, Crabbe's too fresh to be fooled by that sort of thing."It had actually taken Harry quite a long prison term to gain she was joking.

The three of them crept down the last flight of stairs and Padma silently pointed to a flat spell of wall ahead. Harry nodded and he and Padma moved on while Neville got his sceptre out and pushed himself deep into an bay behind some armour. Harry gestured back at him and got out his wand.

"Mico Neville"Harry muttered, sending the signal, and having his own sceptre vibrate as a reply. It was the serious way to charge signal, the person had to be within ten or so meters but it was virtually silent. Harry crept towards the wall and stepped aside so that Padma could give the Password.

"Ophiophagus"The wall dissolved from the core and revealed the doorway.

"Anticlimax."Muttered Harry, surprised that the entrance to the Slytherin room should be so unnoticeable."Expected fireworks."Harry moved into the dark within and felt Padma following him.

It was iniquity but not pitch. A few dying embers in the huge marble hearth gave an forbidding glow. All the furniture was great and dark, and in the bad lighting it looked oddly threatening, looming like drop-off above the creeping baby. Padma tugged at Harrys robe and as he looked back she waved her hand in front of her eyes and shook her mind. She couldn't see. Harry knew his centre were beneficial by dark and he kept forgetting the rest of his clan didn't share the benefit of his previous, autonomous life-style. Harry guided her to a bulwark and put her behind a wall suspension, sitting near a large urn unpleasantly decorated to resemble a screeching cheek. Harry placed Padma's baton in her hand and looked at her cheek before leaving. She was wearing a determined expression but her eyes were all-inclusive and she was breathing hard.

"No shame to endorse out."Harry whispered in her ear, for the first-class honours degree time having doubts about tonight's venture."I did kinda throw everyone in at the cryptical end today."

"I'm staying."Padma's spokesperson as barely more than than a voicelessness."I chose Gryffindor didn't I ? I'd better start earning it."And with that she pulled back into the alcove.

"She said she chose her mansion too."Harry thought as he headed towards the bedchamber."Perhaps there's more to the sorting than brave, cunning or whatever. Perhaps its not what you are…"Harry's mind kept considering as he slipped into the stairwell."It's what you want to be…"

*

Harry had to chortle as his fingers found a doorknob in the nighttime. What he had thought would be the severe part had turned out to be the easy. They had debated for ages how to get hold out which room was Malfoy's, from bribing someone to covering his skid with ultraviolet ink but it had been all for nothing. Harry checked the brass nameplate on the room access and chuckled again before moving into the elbow room. Like a wraith, Harry tried not to even think loudly. Like a touch, here then gone, no ghost. The room was large for a undivided person way, larger even than the one in Gryffindor tower he shared with four other people.

"Can't make precious pet Malfoy ploughshare a room."Harry sneered in the dark. If there had been a way to silently trash the place he would have got done so, instead he began looking around for the project. He slid his work force onto ledge and held composition up in the moonlight to say the covers. The only time he stopped was when he was searching by Malfoy's bed and saw something on the screening. He'd had to replicate up to prevent from laughing and he'd felt like every venous blood vessel would bristle. Malfoy had taken his shift to schooltime with him.

Harry could see a clock on the pall, the hand glowing faintly in the night and saw that he didn't have much fourth dimension left. For a consequence he stopped looking and just stood in the darkness to think. There was no way he could search the altogether place, not going as slowly as he had to to forefend detection.

"The hat said I think like them."Harry shuddered at the thought but pushed on, no time for self-recrimination."And Hermione said I'm just like him. So where would I hide it ? Where would I trust to be prophylactic enough…"Statues moved more than Harry in the foresightful minute of the night.

"Nowhere. I wouldn't put it anywhere because I wouldn't reliance it enough. I'd proceed it with me from the moment I got it till the instant I let it leave my hands."Harry's gaze shifted to the prone pattern on the bed."Under the pillow ? No, not that obvious. In his pocket ? If it's there then I'm screwed so…Where else… No where. This air of thought has got me no-where and time is running out."Harry threw up his helping hand in defeat and at that minute felt something in his pocket vibrate. He brought his wand out to feel the shakiness in his hands.

*

Fear wasn't what he needed now, neither was a mad dash. Running now was the last thing he wanted to do… Just creep back through the door and go quietly down the stair. Down the stairs to where there's a luminosity on. Harry crouched at the top of the stairwell and shielded his eyes to economise his Night sight before sliding a tiny periscope between the bannister ("Do you carry whole toyshops around in you're pockets ?"Parvati had said when he showed them some of his putz like the periscope."You never know when this material'll come in handy."Harry winked and twirled a curl pick between his fingers. ) The tiny mirror-pipe revealed a pocket-sized clustering of one-fifth years who looked like they had just come in. They began talking loudly about some news or early and Harry carefully slid back from the sharpness. Now what ? He didn't have the project, and his way out was now blocked. correction, his and Padmas room out were now blocked. Harry slid back to the edge, the Slytherins seemed to be settling down for a Nox of raucous behaviour as they lounged in the enceinte chairperson with a bottle of something, probably stolen from the kitchens. If they were distracted ? If Harry waited until they simply salute themselves into a stupor ? Perhaps they'd go to bed soon ? Harry cursed as he saw one of them detach themselves from the grouping and weave uncertainly towards the stairs.

"What the underworld was he gona do now ?"Harry's brain worked quickly"Run back, skin in a… oh no don't !"Harry watched as Padma slipped out of her hiding place holding the handgrip of the titan urn.



"rear in !"Harry mouthed, abandoning the periscope and sticking his head between the banister."Before they see you."She shook her head stubbornly and raised the pot above her head.

"She's making a misdirection !"Harry cursed"Stupid ! poor fish ! I told them ‘ no noblesse during heists !'” Harry at least had the presence of mind to wrap his scarf joint around his face and trademark forehead before standing up and yelling…

"Oh no they're awake !"Harry gestured at imaginary figures in the empty hall behind him"Go ! Run !"Harry had meter to see the bibulous snake take in his red and gold edged robe and clamber over each other towards the stairs before he took his own advice and ran back down the hall.

It takes quite some ability to run quietly but Harry had experience, his footfalls were light as black eye on the floorboards. He turned and saw a familiar door. Switching himself from quiet-running-mode to bloody-silent-creep he slid into Malfoy's room and shut the door.

"citizenry chasing you expect you to run away, especially if there's a lot of them. They don't expect you to go to ground."Harry spoke the words in his psyche, hoping that would constitute them true.

"Start searching the rooms !"Ach… Harry desperately looked around the room for a spot to hide but to his dismay saw only darkness. He had lost his night eyes in the park room.

"What was here ? Where did I search ? Oh my god, please just call up !"The rale threshold handgrip and steamed voices got closer, thank firmament Salazar Slytherin built his bulwark stocky and wish oak doors or Harry was for sure Malfoy would accept woken.

"Wardrobe ? It had had glass in the battlefront ! Under the bed ? No room !"Harry's sentiment grew panicked as the voices got closer."Walls, flooring, roof, bed, desk, closet, fireplace…"Harry dropped to his hands and knee and crawled across the floor as fast as he dared. He was sure he was making noise now but he didn't have the face left to go any tedious. His hands reached the low temperature stone of the hearth and he felt his way into it. No ash tree at all, the fireplace had never been used. Later on that night Harry would realise that the Slytherins probably heated their chambers by magic so they didn't get the sess and gained a more even heat, all he thought at the meter was a panicked…

"Thank you !"as he stood up. His custody found a bar embedded in the wall to hang locoweed from and he lifted himself up and stood on it. At that moment brightness level flooded in from below. Harry could see that his fundament were only a few column inch from the top of the fireplace and hoped fervently there was no one too short-circuit in the search party.

"What do you think you're doing !"Harry heard Malfoy cry out indignantly."Why are you barging into my elbow room in the centre of the night Flint ?"

"Yes Malfoy."Harry thought to himself"Good Malfoy. Now be you're piddling stuck up, indignant ego and confound them out of your room."

"There's somebody sneaking around in the rooms."The vox sounded like the speaker unit was gargling gravel."We thought he might have come in here."

"No one been in here you idiot ! If they had don't you think I would take in woken up ?"

"Nope."Harry chucked as his panic began to fade."And you're the moron Malfoy. You should pay more attention to your gravely pal."

"He's not in any of the former rooms."A new vocalism, possibly untried and more hesitant than the staidly boy."And we checked the bathroom and back down in the unwashed room."Harry hoped Padma had had the brains to be well on her way back to their vulgar room by then, and to have Neville with her. Harry's handwriting brushed something in the wall behind him, careful not to make a sound he slid it out of the wall and choked back a triumphant gasp as he read the lettering on the back of the parchment.


The use of modified static-induction charms in

the context of adhesives and fasteners.

Hermione Granger

"Yes !"Thought portion of Harry's psyche."I'm still born lucky ! This is what I came here for."…"This is what I came here for ?"Said another part in skepticism"adhesive agent and fasteners ?"Harry shook his head and laughed at himself a bit before folding up the reputation and slipping it into his robe. backrest in the bedroom the conversation had become more heated.

"When my father hears about this !"Malfoy was in full argumentative swing"You will all be sorry ! The Malfoy family own your father Flint ! And you can be certainly there will be words on the subject of this incident."

"I'm sorry Dra… Mr Malfoy."The other boy was obviously older but the awe was plain in his voice.

"You know."Malfoy's voice was more sly now"You know how you could make it up to me."

"But outset years… never… go on the teams. No matter how, absolutely, brilliant they are at Quidditch."The older boy was obviously fearing some reprisal to boot-lick so obviously."Definitely next year though !"

"That remains to be seen…"A new vocalisation, a slimy part, a voice dripping disrespect with every word !

"Ah"thought process Harry as his gut clenched up"There's that panic again."prof Snape continued talking in the room.

"Tell me why some of the leading appendage of Slytherin sign are awake at this hour ? Hmm… Some of them stinking of flashy wine-coloured !"He almost made the fact that it was gaudy auditory sensation like the regretful part."Well ? Or have you all been rendered silent by drinkable !"

"We were chasing someone !"Flint said shakily"Someone was sneaking around in here !"

"Inside the Slytherin uncouth elbow room ?"

"Yes."

"Inside the password protected Slytherin common elbow room ?"

"Yes !"flint was delirious but Snape just snorted.

"tomfoolery. All you saw was the vino floating in front of your middle seeing as you seem to have drown yourselves in it !"Harry heard Snape's stride head towards the door.

"There was someone ! They were wearing Gryffindor robes !"The stride continued and Harry heard a door open"And they were inadequate !"The steps led out the room access"And they had a scarf around their head !"stride then…

"WHAT !"Snape thundered back into the elbow room."They wore cloth around their heading ? !"

"Yes ! So we couldn't see their face I'll bet !"

"Don't be stunned, he could hold back his personal identity better than that."Snape seemed to be talking to himself slightly at that point but then…"Search everywhere ! Every room, turn them upside down and throw off them if necessary !"Harry's heart leapt into his throat and he looked around wildly for a way out. But he already knew the only ways, down or up. Harry pushed his spine against one wall and carefully shifted his feet onto the opposite one. Hogwarts was old stone and there were lots of handholds to avail him chimney up faster, and more quietly. But just as he was thinking he had reached beyond their hearing someone said.

"What was that in the lamp chimney ?"Bloody Malfoy ! Since when did ophidian receive such good ears ? Harry went absolutely still except for his mouth moving in a silent curse."I heard something !"Harry looked down and was met by a relieving batch. The chimney curved as it went up, He could no longer see the rope of twinkle at the bottom.

"I can't see anything."Flint again, thank nirvana for small minds.



"Move over."Harry heard a clunk as Snape pushed his student out of the way then…"Acerbus cuspis !"Harry's view was momentarily lighted as bar of unwell silver light shot up the chimney towards him then his sight was lost in pain. Harry's feet slipped but he grimly held on by his handholds, gritting his teeth against the stabbing air mile of pain each lance had left in him.

"I heard scraping Professor !"Malfoy must have heard his boots moorage."Something's up there !"

"Acerbus cuspis !"This time Harry was flattened against the bulwark and only a few of the bolts hit him."Conjunctivitis !"that spell winged right past times him, cracking chips off the rampart above him, then…"Relashio !"Heat flooded up the lamp chimney to him and Harry's skin felt like it was going to blister. He bit his spit between his teeth and pulled one sweaty bridge player off the wall so he could fumble in pouch for a expectant metal jar. At the sentence Harry had thought Ron's suggestion had been a bit stupid but now he was especially happy he had agreed to bring the jar along. He pulled the cap off with his tooth and dropped the contents before they had a chance to bite him, far below he heard…

"Aaaa ! Doxies !"A few more piece rang out but none directed at Harry, even the heating plant stopped, allowing Harry to put his understructure back against the wall and give his aching weapons system a rest. Below him he heard Snape yell out

"Search the other rooms."Harry waited a long time before climbing further up. His implements of war needed the residual anyway and there was no way he was gon na try to sneak back out through the Slytherins tonight.

*

The light below was lost behind Harry as he ascended out of the keep. The lamp chimney he was climbing joined others then split again. One or two of the chimney had ladders in them, or at least parts of ladder, but nigh of them he had to clamber up. The air was hotter and Smokey here, perhaps some of these chimney were still in use this late, or more likely it was too soon enough that the kitchens had woken up. Harry would be the start to take on ( to himself at least ) that he had many fears but claustrophobia wasn't one of them. He pulled his scarf joint tighter above and below his glasses to keep out smut and around his mouth to breath through as he climbed up into more used chimney. Harry felt himself motivate out into a declamatory sphere but couldn't see the rampart through the dark and the smoke. Questing finger found a eat run and a few moments later Harry pulled himself over the brink of a huge chimney and let himself down to the rooftop below.

Tired but elated Harry pulled his scarf from around his case and tried to find some clean cloth somewhere on himself to wipe his glasses off. When he put them back on he was struck dumb for a consequence by the lot that met his eyes.

Rolling hills of tile and banks of slate. tug popping out at angles and queen balconies with balustrades like lace. Harry walked along the ceiling rooftree he had landed on in curiosity, there was a whole world up above Hogwarts. more than chimney jutted out everywhere, some just pipes and some, like the one he'd emerged from, with width like industrial towboat. Harry sat down on the ridge and stir his head in disbelief. Even the climb hadn't taken his breathing time like this did. He lay back and behold another wonder. The stars from here seemed brighter, almost as unspoiled as the astronomy tower ( Harry's favourite lesson, just as an exculpation to stargaze ).

"And no-one up here but me."Harry said aloud, there was no one to hear."Peace."Harry could have fallen asleep against those tile but something moving below caught his eye. Snape, passing along a corridor with magniloquent windows all along it. Harry moved to veil then realised his sooty-black robe blended perfectly against the nighttime sky and wrapped his scarf around his face to hide the terminal pink skin. His trash were still grubby enough not to shine.

Harry trailed Snape over the roof, not even for a present moment thought process of going back to the Gryffindor way and thinking even less of the risk. Here on the roof he was in his element, there was no risk here. Snape stopped at what looked like a teacher twenty-five percent and pushed through the threshold without knocking. It took Harry a minute or so to find the corresponding window then lowered himself down near it. By luck or the wagon-lit habit it was ajar. When Harry moved closer he heard ...

"D…on't know what you're talking about Severus. I've been asleep he…here the wh…ole time."Quirrell ? Snape had gone to Quirrell ?

"What whole time ? How do you even know when this happened ?"Snape's voice was furious and accusing."The only fact that keeps me from cursing you into dreary oblivion right now is that I can't quite bring myself to think that even one so pathetic as you would be stupid person enough to think it was moved to the Slytherin keep of all places."

"Th…Then why are you here ?"Quirrell's phonation grew a short steadier now, just a little."Why come to me ?"

"Because perhaps you were looking for something else, perhaps a way past my protection of it or some hint as to what that trade protection is. I assure you, you would have found neither. My work is as fiendish as it is building complex and as crafty…"Harry groaned inwardly, not this talk again."And you could never pierce it. Never. Despite Dumbledore's sovereign lack of judgement in hiring you and letting you assist in the protection of the stone I will preserve vile matter like you from it !"With that Snape turned and stamped out of the room. Harry was about to leave when Quirrell quietly spoke.

"He, suspects something master. We can not do it tomorrow."

Harry waited but that seemed like all Quirrell felt like saying. Harry left over the rooftops and mulled over what he had heard as he scrambled towards Gryffindor tower.

"Do it tomorrow ? Do what tomorrow ? What's so exceptional about tomorrow ? Other than it being Halloween ..."

*

"How could you leave him there !"Ron was still yelling despite all endeavor to calm him down. Parvati grabbed him and clamped her deal over his mouth.

"Thank you."Padma breathed and shared a quickly smile with her sister. But she quickly fell silent again. If she was to be honest with herself she would have to say she was ashamed. Ashamed that when Harry had stood up on the stairway she had instantly realised what he was trying to do ( having been about to do the Same herself ) and had for a mo not known quite what to do. She was ashamed that after she had taken an age behind the curtain working up nerves and steeling herself to furnish a distraction and Harry had done the same in an trice. She was ashamed that, when she heard people coming back towards the park elbow room, she had bolted back though the doorway, pulled an amazed Neville from behind the armour and had shepherded him across the school, not once talking until they passed behind the fat ma'am and got back to Gryffindor plebeian room and into the awaiting and recriminating stare of Ron Weasly.

"What will happen now."Neville's phonation was diminished and he was hunched in on himself on his chairperson. But even he had been braver than her, he had signalled the Slytherins coming and had waited once they had passed to persist in keeping watch.

"He'll probably just get detention, he'll mislay us a few house breaker point for being out after curfew."Padma knew her sister was deliberately making thing seem expert than they were to ca-ca her feel better. Sometimes Padma thought they had been born to with personality inverse, the eternal optimist and the cynical pessimist. Except this fourth dimension her sister wasn't just being optimistic. And neither was she just being pessimistic when she said…

"But he could be expelled."The others went tacit and looked down. They had all been thinking it."For breaking into another house. For undertake larceny. He could be expelled."She had got Harry ceramicist expelled from Hogwarts because she wasn't brave enough. She knew when the hat had left it up to her she would select wrongly. She didn't deserve to be here."In Harry's first condition he'll be expelled."

"I'm doing what now ?"

The New piranha turned en mass and saw a blackened and scraped Harry drop from one of the highschool windowpane. His face was red and raw and he had a ugly contusion on his leave alone cheek, his hands were bleeding and he staggered as he hit the ground but he wore a smile of joy and triumph as all-inclusive as they had ever seen on him.

"Miss me ?"Harry's stagger became a prance as he approached them."I wasn't gone that long. Although of line, in the company of Slytherins it seemed lots longer."

"How did you…"Padma's voice breathed skepticism into the air."They were right on behind you."

"Chimney."Harry said lightly."Easy climb really once you get past the first bit. Oh and one other thing…"Harry fished around in his pockets and drew out some papers. Padma found herself shaking her head, no, not after all that happened, you can't still have got it, no single that serious."We got what we came for. It may need some cleansing though…"With that the floodgates came loose and the Marauders began peppering Harry with questions. The strange child laughed as he unrolled a story that had them gasping. As she listened Padma realised she was glad she'd made her choice, even if she wasn't brave enough for Gryffindor she wouldn't give up the Marauders for the world. And besides, she thought as the looked at her sister, at Ron, at Neville and especially at the soot clothed figure animatedly talking before her, even if I'm not endure now I'll be learning from the best.

*

Hermione rose early from her shroud and was mildly surprised to see that they weren't covered in binge. She was sure she'd been crying when she went to sleep. She dressed mechanically and didn't talk to anyone as she made her way down to breakfast. Not that that was strange she conceded to herself but today especially she didn't want to talk. That thought only made her hunch in further over her food. Before anyone else had left the table Hermione walked out of the gravid vestibule, leaving the rest of her food behind ( even if she hadn't had somewhere to be she felt too offensive to eat ). The project was of import, it was the sort of thing they gave third and one-quarter days to process on. Hermione straightened herself up as she walked towards Flitwicks bureau. Best get it over with…

"going somewhere Mudblood ?"Draco Malfoy lounged in the corridor in battlefront of her. She ignored him and walked on past only to have him cohere his foot forward to try to head trip her up."What ? No affront ? No ‘ Give it back !'today ?"Hermione kept walking."Oh, I don't have it with me. That would be a bit conspicuous, I figure I'll give it to him tomorrow. Or the day after, you know, so he doesn't get suspicious but is still impressed by my obviously Lake Superior talents."Draco grabbed her by the shoulder and spun her around."Don't ignore me Mudblood !"He grated,"This is only the first stage. I'm going to make life hell for you and all the other filth at the schooltime until you'll driblet out of your own free will. I'll… Oh hello Professor !"professor Flitwick had just emerged from his room and was looking between them.

"Hello Brigham Young Mr Malfoy."He chirped"Are you and Miss Granger friends."

"We were just discussing the charms assignment you gave her."Draco turned to her with an evil smirk."It's a topic I myself find very interesting."

"Then perhaps I should let you read young woman Grangers write up. It was most detailed."

"What !"Malfoy's voice rose an octave. Hermione would have laughed if she hadn't been so shocked.

"Yes, left on my desk this break of the day. I flicked through it over breakfast. I used to read the daily prophet of a morning but there's so many advertisement in it now."The professor shook his head and didn't appear to discover the totally stupefied aspect on the two first-years faces."I'll give you better feedback when I've read it fully misfire sodbuster and then…"Flitwick turned to Malfoy"…I'll be sure to pay it to you."With that the curtly fellow wandered off humming faintly to himself.

"How."Malfoy had wrath and shock in his eyes."You didn't have other written matter. You said you didn't have other copies !"

"I didn't."Hermione was surprised at the trace of smugness in her phonation. Malfoy was looking at her with barely suppressed fad. Then he seemed to notice something and for a import his oculus widened in realisation then screwed up in even darker anger than before. Then Hermione realised he wasn't looking at her with such hatred, he was looking behind her. She turned and looked back down the corridor. And there stood the Marauders. Tired and resplendent, staring Malfoy down with five Cheshire-cat smile. The Slytherin looked like he was about to burn out a vena, or possibly shoot steam out of his ears.

"YOU ! ! !"He bellowed striding towards them pointing with his wand."It was you !"Harry and his friends stood their footing against the charge and Malfoy was brought to a dead end, it was that or walk into a human paries."You stole it ! When I tell my don he'll bring it to the schooling governors and…"

"Tell them what worm."Harry's vocalism was good of laughter.

"That we cunningly and evilly broke into your rooms and slip something awfully treasured from your rooms ?"Parvati said in a voice like she was talking to a nestling. She leaned forward."Admit that we stole something that you stole yourself !"

"Even if you were leave to take a fall just to put us in trouble."Ron continued to a suddenly crestfallen Malfoy."Even if you did, where's the proof ? The story right back where it should be and nothing else was taken from your rooms."

"Not even a teddy bear."Harry raised his eyebrows and began chuckling. After a mo the sleep of his gang began laughing as well. Malfoy turned and stalked away against a backdrop of hysterical laugh. Hermione was surprised to she was laughing too. At the end of the corridor Malfoy turned back and yelled…

"You win this round ceramist ! But I'll get you adjacent fourth dimension !"

"I look forward to it."Harry said between wheezes."You can show me the relaxation of your stuffed fleshly collection."

*

The unfortunate by-product of the heist was that Malfoy was even Thomas More acidic than usual in class that day. Despite restate warnings from teacher he insulted Harry and the eternal sleep of the Marauders with every early breath. Fortunately though that hint was wasted as nine times out of ten the predator in query was asleep on their chair. Hermione sighed, but not unhappily and reached for a new quill. She'd unspoiled take a leak these line good, it looked like they'd have to be copied from a few times. When she reached the green room there was a sixth chairperson by the fireside tabular array. She smiled and felt warmly inside for the maiden time in what seemed corresponding forever and walked over to sit down with her friends.


I own nix, certainly zero Harry Potter related.

Seriously, i 'm not kidding ! Do I await full-bodied than the fairy ?



"Go on !"

"No ! I can't !"

"Go for it ! You've come this far."

"He'll see me !"Hermione glanced over the balustrade to where Snape was berating Ron and Neville for ‘ fighting'in the corridor. What the boys had in fact been doing was distracting Snape so he would come and brook under the overhanging upper berth story. That part of the plan had gone perfectly. The succeeding portion was proving problematic.

"Just pick it up and tip it on his head."Harry spoke slowly pointing first to the pail of cooking oil ( a few bit of burnt chicken were still floating in it ) standing between them then down to the potions master."Then we run like hell."

"You're all weirdo ! Any one of the stunts you've pulled could warrant exclusion ! How recollective do you think you can keep getting away with it ?"Hermione's whisper was tempestuous and horse."And if you think"She pointed at his drumhead"I'm tipping that"A gesture at the grease"over a Hogwarts instructor !"a finger stabbing down at Snape"You must be disturbed !"She swung her sleeve astray in exasperation and they both heard a clunk, then a splashing noise.

Harry saw his acquaintance face turn from righteous choler to grey dread fast as a attain match. She kept her eyes firmly ahead and, as if denying what had just happened, shook her head. Harry in dividing line had grinned like a maniac and now grabbed Hermione by the robe and began running off through the corridors pulling her after him. A consequence later they heard a violent roar behind them

"WHO DID THIS TO ME !"Harry suddenly found himself as the being pulled along as Hermione outdistanced him."THE scholar WHO DID THIS WILL PAY WITH PAIN !"Harry pulled Hermione to a stay and dragged her sideways into a little used corridor, with her still simple and ashen-faced he pushed her to a pre-opened window.

"seminal fluid on ! Just like the architectural plan !"Harry said, then added"Only real number !"Hermione almost jumped through the window and disappeared as she clambered up a ladder. Harry swung out after her, shut the window and slide onto the roofing tile above. He wasted no clip in pulling himself back to the sharpness and poking his periscope back down to the edge of the glass. A second later an irate Snape ran past. Harry only caught a glance, but he thought the man seemed slicker than usual. Harry rolled back and looked up at Hermione who still seemed shaken.

"I hope Parvati and Padma were in situation with the television camera. I wouldn't have wanted to make to do all that again."Hermione's expression sent Harry into another fit of giggles.

*

A week or so latter the morning bloomed bright and other as the Marauders made their way down to the grass in front line of the castle. Harry stopped to post up a few more pictures after making sure the sea-coast was clear. The Slytherins were tearing them down wherever they saw them on Snapes orders but Harry had even seen some of them trying to hide giggles as the magician poster displayed Snape being doused again and again. The rest of the school didn't get to to hide it and the school day had been awash with laughter ever since the commencement one went up three mean solar day ago.

The instructor were all trying to line up who was posting them ( Harry had caught both Flitwick and Sprout laughing when they thought no one was looking and even McGonagall had cracked a smile when an incoherent Snape had burst into her classroom brandishing a wad of notice that had papered the chief court ). The teachers didn't recognise how so many of them were getting so many office around the grounds. Harry knew, it was just a matter of a Handy rooftop and a following wind. When he had seen some errant movie carried into the sky by gusts he had idly wondered just how far they'd go.

Hagrid too had been roped into removing them but when Harry went down to his hut to see him the giant man had laughed and handed a spate of bill back to him.

"They told me I had to take ‘ em down."Hagrid had said with a jiffy."They didn't say what I had to do with ‘ em after."Harry had been even happier to see a passel of envelopes on Hagrid's table. It looked like the statistical distribution was going to even extensive than he thought.

The teachers search and lady hooch's in the beginning ill health were some of the reasons they were going to their first flying lesson bundled up in winter clothes.

"Now…"lady hootch's voice rang out over the assembled Gryffindors and Slytherins"Just upgrade your the right way paw over the broom and yell UP ! Just like this… UP !"Her ling leapt obediently into her hand, Harry noted that it was varnished and looked a lot newer than the ace the students had."Well go on…"

The course of instruction obediently placed their hand over their brooms.

"UP !"Harry yelled, feeling a bit foolish, the pin by his human foot refused to budge."UP !"Harry looked around and saw first one then others of the class assume their broom."UP !"Harry thought maybe Malfoy had replaced his magic broom for a existent broom in revenge but the thing had been handed out randomly. Harry shifted his foundation surreptitiously underneath his Scots heather and tensed ..."UP !"Harry grabbed the rising heather and held it nonchalantly on his shoulder. He caught Parvati looking at him and giggling.

"What ? I didn't do anything."

"That's right you didn't !"

A few moments later everyone had their brooms and Madam hootch was showing them how to grip the stupid things.

"Right, now… Just kick off from the background, hover for me for a second then leeee…an forward and drift back down again."Madam Hooch demonstrated then held up her gloved hand."Three… Two… One."Portions of the course of study rose unsteadily into the air, others remained grounded or had slipped off their ascent broom. Harry glanced to his face shame-faced as his Scots heather resolutely refused to demonstrate any device characteristic beyond long, wooden and prickly. Harry motioned towards Ron who was dropping down smoothly beside him and held out his broom.

"Let me try with yours."

"No, I don't want the dud Calluna vulgaris !"Ron strafed out of orbit to the side with a apply hand before coming to rest."Take Neville's."

Harry turned and saw Neville rising at a snails footstep with a spirit of teeth-gritting concentration."At that rate the class'll be over before he gets down."Harry turned back"ejaculate on, I just want to see whether Malfoy really has screwed this broom."

"Only powerful magic trick can interpose with well-nigh broomsticks."Hermione was landing ungracefully beside him, gripping the broom with Patrick Victor Martindale White knuckle joint. Harry chuckled at the thought that she still found concentration left to rebuke them."These are old Scots heather but their still fairly resistant to that sort of thing."

"This isn't shadow magic I'm talking about its him swapping it with a normal broom."Harry poked at the bristles trying to elicited some reaction."Why don't you lend me yours then, you don't looking like your in a hurry to fly again."

"And what is that supposed to mean !"But Ron cut off any ensuing argument

"Oh fine…"He held out his heather."Just commit it a shot if you have to."

"Thanks."They swapped ling and Harry got himself back into the demonstrated riding berth. He hopped off the reason but dropped back down just as quickly.

"Still having worry ?"Harry saw Ron float over his head and drop-off down in front of him,"Nothing awry with this one mate."Ron knocked his brass knuckles against the wood of Harry's broom."I think its even a little skilful than my one."

"In that case give it back."As Ron laughed Harry held up his Calluna vulgaris"Or I'll show you the early way to use one of these !"

"Having trouble Potter."no… not now…"Your flying's so pathetic even the weasel here can beat you and that's saying something."Malfoy floated along in front of Harry, sitting side-saddle and not even bothering to defend on."Didn't your don ever teach you to fly… Oh no wait I forgot ! He's a bit too mouldy to sit on a ling now !"The comment about his parents washed over Harry but the other insult bit and he sneered at the white haired kid in front of him. Ron however erupted."What do you think that's saying something !"He was back on his broom in a twinkling and whipped himself around Malfoy so fast the Slytherins robes billowed in the air current."half of my household's been on the Gryffindor Quidditch team !"

"As if that's saying anything."Malfoy shot back but he had had to grip his broom in the crosswind and was now sitting normally, staring Ron down."Gryffindor oasis't won the cup in years. Being on a team of nonstarter is no honor weasel."

"Yeah, they haven't won since my buddy Charlie left !"Ron's tirade had began to attract attention and Madam hooch was walking over. Harry tried to catch Ron's eye but failed."Best quester in a decade ! He coulda'played for Engl…."

"Mr Weasly ! Mr Malfoy ! Decend at once !"ma'am hootch didn't wait for them to respond and instead grabbed the front end of their brooms and yanked them to the story. Ron fell in a slew, Malfoy kept his balance but only barely."I will have no line of reasoning in my family and I distinctly told you to ascend then drop, not loom like blowflies !"The flying teacher spun and walked back to the rest of the class leaving Malfoy and Ron glaring at one another.

Harry shifted his broom under himself, all during the contestation he'd tried to climb up up and join his friend but the heather had refused to move. By the end of the moral he'd aviate once, a few wobbling feet followed by a sum up crash into the smoke. Malfoy had laughed worse than before and Harry said some affair that lost them house points ("An eleven twelvemonth old shouldn't know those words Mr thrower, much lupus erythematosus know what they mean !") and the Marauders were a muted lot that ascended the step to Gryffindor tower. Parvati tried to get down the tone by pointing out how many students had the drenched Snape notice on the paries of their rooms and Harry decided to stop moping.

"Right,"Harry cracked open a boozing stolen from the kitchen."Down to the serious business. What have you all found out about Quirrell ?"

*

"I still think Snape's your bad guy Harry."Ron tapped his finger on the table as if to punctuate himself. Neville, Annapurna and Padma all nodded but Hermione snorted dismissively.

"Just because you don't like someone doesn't mean you can blame them for anything Ronald."Hermione shook her point as if explaining to a child.

"It just doesn't make sense Ron."Harry continued"Snape may be a git but it doesn't make sense. He thinks Quirrell's trying to steal something, from what I overheard afterwards he probably is. Why would Snape play like he's accusing Quirrell when only Quirrell was in the way ! Also why would Quirrell play like it's him when nobody was in the room !"Harry leafed through some written document again while the others bickered, the daily prophet from a few calendar month ago was there, a raid at gringots where nothing was taken. Other things too, Quirrels records, researched through old files, an intelligent student, masterful in the theory if not the exercise of defence against the nighttime art, the shoemaker's last few years of his life spent travelling around dealing with grievous dark beasts. Harry pushed them away and pulled over a diluent file, Severus Snape, potions captain of Hogwarts and long time envier of the defense against the sour arts Post. There wasn't much else, Snape didn't seem to be a very newsworthy person.

"It's right there."Ron was taking to him again. Harry pressed his hands to his temple, there's only so much insistence one can take."Snape wants the dark arts job and is trying to get Quirrell sacked."Harry was about to excuse then stopped, if the last XXX fourth dimension hadn't done it…

"We're not going to roll in the hay until we see what's on the third floor."Padma said with a note of conclusiveness."Until then all this is just academic."She waved her hands over the tabular array. Harry silently thanked her, he could always numerate on her to cut straight through the bull.

"We won't be able to do it."Hermione crossed her blazon."Well we won't !"She said to their recriminating stares"I'm not just being… being…"

"Yourself ?"Ron said and earned a kick from Parvati.

"Being straightlaced. I've been looking into it the Sami as everyone else has which is exactly the point. We've all been caught loitering around the thirdly floor a few too many times. Did you hear what McGonagall said in class yesterday ?"They all did, she'd basically just repeated what Dumbledore had said at the start of term but she had looked right at them the entire time and each Word had been clipped like little razors."She knows we're preparation something and she probably knows we're behind the notice too, she just cant prove it."

"So ?"

"So, Mr Ronald Weasley they are watching us like hawks. I'll bet there's a teacher guarding the third floor right now and another just on the other incline of that door."She pointed at the other side of meat of the fat ladies portrait, from this side looking like a hole in the paries."Even putting aside the notions of custody, house-points and especially riddance ! We'd never get near enough to the corridor to find anything. It's all your defect really"She continued without a breathing spell."If you hadn't done your pointless linguistic rule breaking we might be able to find out really important stuff now."That comment was the reason an tilt broke out that Harry had to calm down with wit. It was also at least partially the reason Harry stayed awake that night boulder clay he was certain Ron and Neville were numb then got out his darkest clothes and slipped out one of the windowpane before heading in the focus of the forbidden corridor.

*

Harry peered through a window and saw professor Vector idly marking some assignment by the light of his baton while sitting on the stair above the fat dame's portrait. Reminding himself to tell Hermione later ( she'd be insufferably smug but she deserved the expiation ) Harry slipped away and made his way over to the third floor corridor on the rectify paw side, or above it at least. The thing was in the middle of the building, no chimney or window reached it and Harry could only peer through a English window at the Wizard guarding the doorway… Quirrell… Standing in a patch of lumos-light, his shadow jumping as he nervously twiddled his sceptre in his digit. Harry slid inside and dropped behind a column. Quirrell was guarding it ? He'd been so sure… Maybe the others were proper and Quirrell wasn't attempting stealing after all. Or maybe he just hasn't gotten past the denial Snape mentioned yet. Then why isn't he inside the corridor trying to break through them. Harry's mental monologue was cut short as the solution leaned out of the patch of darkness it had been sequestered in, invisible even to Harry's eye's.

"Nervous Quirrell ?"Snape slid from his shadowy corner, his wand held lightly but readily in his hired hand."Or perhaps not happy with the company."Harry saw now that it hadn't just been the tincture, Snape's entire body blended into the background knowledge, changing colouring like a chameleon. Only his center stayed the Lapplander, pitch blackness jam even against the lighted grey rock candy behind him, it made them seem like they were floating above the ground.

"Why ever w…would I be distressed Severus."Quirrell was leaning away from the wraith-like form before him."No one better equipped to ward this situation than you and I, Eh ?"

"Because if you were dysphoric with this arrangement."Snape continued like cipher had been said."You'd have to get used to it because I've made sure all our safety duty's occur on the same nighttime Quirrell, won't that be fun."Snape laced the close word with such poison Harry was surprised the dada professor didn't run like a rabbit. Instead he jumped like one and whimpered.

"Y…you truly don't trust me Severus ?"

"No Quirrell. I do not, have never and will never bank you."Snape slid back into his shadowy corner and once again became virtually invisible. Quirrell swallowed loudly and brightened his wand, peering into the darkness around.

But Harry was already develop, while they had been talking he had sneaked around into the room next to the be-turbaned wizard and entered. It was an evacuate classroom, desks piled up to the roof. Harry waited near the door as the searchlight shaft swept past his place, swinging across the room like passing headlight before moving on. Harry waited patiently. maltreat two was already in motion.

*

Crack…

"What was that !"Snape pushed forward from his hiding shoes at the small but nearby sound. He pointed his camouflage arm at the far paries, by some column."I heard something over there."

"I didn't hear anything."The rat said in his cowardly quavering tone."Perhaps you're… ha… ha… imagining things…Severus."

"It should be Snape from the the like of you."Snape kept scanning the darkness before him and a moment later

Crack…crack…

"There."Behind a mainstay, perhaps the Potter boy or one of his clique trying to progress to the corridor again. An irritation he didn't need with something so much more authoritative going on. The rat Quirrell needed observation. For now Snape wasn't sure whether he wanted the stone for himself or for… for… Snape shuddered away from the name in his idea. Dumbledore said saying it would piddle him fear less but to Snape it was too very much. The old fool didn't know, he hadn't been up close. Some things deserve fear.

"Well if you think so th… then go over and check."

"Oh you'd love that wouldn't you Quirrell."Snape jammed his baton under the servile poor devil's chin. Quirrell squealed and tried to stand on his tiptoes to break loose the dark-wood point."leave-taking you close to the threshold unsupervised while at the Sami clock time turning my back on you. Something I will never do."Snape pushed the man towards the early wall."You go first."

They walked like hostage and kidnapper up the cold stone pathway to the mainstay. Quirrell raised his wand. Not a chance…

"Back down by your side or I will strike it and possibly the manus It's gripped in too."Quirrell's arm shot back down. As they reached the mainstay Snape let the rat take the wind and tone around the corner. Better him to take the first of all shock if one came.

"There's n… zippo here Sev…Professor Snape."No there isn't now, not after you distracted me for so long. Useless idiot.

Snape stepped around himself and saw nothing but three oddly placed rock 'n' roll, all together, near the ground where they might cause fallen. They were both considering the enigma when a shadow skirted the back rampart and stopped by the no-longer-guarded door.

*

"Alohomora."just a whisper like silk sliding over silk but the lock chamber clicked and Harry slid the door opened just ever so slightly, then entered the forbidden hall.

"Ha."Harry thought as he took one lowest coup d'oeil at the professor before closing the doorway."Lighter than air liquorish. Eat it quick or it melts in the air ! also if you tie up a rock or two with it you get a randomness about five transactions after you take it from its wrapping. Who needs Q when you have mail-order Honeydukes ?"Harry turned back and for the for the first time time took a look at his surroundings.

delivery melanize. Not even centre trained for this could pervade it. Harry squatted down quietly and let his other senses have a try.

Cold, clammy, thin intermittent pushover. Odd that, you'd think there was nowhere for a gentle wind to come from. Also the air had been dead still out on the roof.

Damp perfume with a hint of mud and raft. There was urine in there somewhere too and other things even less savoury. Bit like a wet dog smell…

And most importantly in a bone cooling, meat leaping, cold-sweat, dry-palms, running-for-the-door-despite-Snape-and-all way, the strait of breathing. Heavy in-out breaths with a hint of slobber on them. More like snoring actually. Harry tried to steady himself down and at least partially succeeded. Getting out his baton he smothered the tip in his robe then breathed.

"Lumos"

The lambency through the fabric was like suddenly fireflies but it showed Harry the human body of what was in presence of him. Its bulk half way to the ceiling and slowly rising and falling with its breathing place. Like a muffled wraith Harry moved across the level, skirting the bulwark until he had travelled all the way around the beast, having to maltreat over its tail where it brushed the paries. There were no other doors. This elbow room and this wolf was all there was to see. Harry edged closer to the front of the thing, his feet turned and poised to flee to the door at any moment.

"But what if I'm not fast enough."Harry tried to still his brain but it kept up its shrill reserve"What if its like a Dragon and it doesn't matter how fast I am. It'll Wake Island and I'll die in one bright flair in the darkness !"

"It'll viewing for sure if you don't shut up and let me rivet !"Harry edged in closer to the beast and stopped when his light source revealed a variety of grain in the floor. Harry carefully traced its edge in his creative thinker."A square… a trapdoor… that which is hidden… that which is forbidden."Harry grinned in the darkness. The only problem was the dark mass obscuring one corner of the square, a paw or nipper of the matter. Harry's movements was as decelerate as drifting plumage and as quiet down as his script found the bound of the thing, and the handle, on the polar incline to the nipper. Harry wanted to press out his wand but the sound he'd have to make was unfit than the stifled gleaming. Harry reached for the trapdoor handgrip and applied the easy touch sensation of draw to it, increasing by pilus comprehensiveness Harry felt the Sir Henry Wood move.

A oink near his shoulder made his muscle frost and his heart race. He felt flesh move all around him and the air brought new streamer of stench. But the wildcat just grunted again and fell back into snoring. Harry eased the room access up a half span more then flummox his hand in and felt inside. No steps met his questing script, just a unbowed prick. Harry propped the door open with a rod and felt in his pocket. He drew forth a long string. His agile digit felt the plumb on the end and he put it through the trapdoor then slowly and evenly paid out circle counting under his breath. The twine went slack. About eight meter. With something soft he'd do it. With coldness rock he'd go against a leg. Harry wondered if a genuine mavin would lie with some self levitation charm to get themselves down safely. He pulled back up on the cosmic string and suffered a surprisal. It was stuck ! He tugged on it again. No give at all. He tugged again and in a heart stopping instant, felt the rod brush his arm.

The trapdoor battering closed was like a cannon ball in the gut and Harry felt the darkness movement around him. He threw himself backwards as a guttural growl filled the elbow room with primeval fear. He saw a shape the size of an oven overhead down in front man of him and heard Sir Henry Wood splinter and wisecrack. Harry whipped the cloth from his sceptre and the blunt shadows danced senior high school on the walls before him as the massive rottweiler head turned and looked at him with bloodshot eyes. Harry dived again to avoid its dentition and looked up to see it descending from above him too ! Harry kicked off from the ground and slid, he felt hot breath on his spinal column and the snap of jaws behind him but he was gone. Straight into the ruin trapdoor and plummeting down the shaft.

*

Harry spun in the air and he felt hard pain in the neck as his head caught itself a chap on the passing rampart. He landed in a works and in a shock, his center showing him melanize spots more than anything else. He lifted his hand to his headway and was surprised to see it came back clean, without origin or possibly brains. He shook his drumhead to authorize it and held his trembling hand and wand up to bring out his surroundings. A characterless room with this industrial plant covering the floor, covering some of the rampart too, and the roof, and him !

"What the nether region !"Harry shouted at the tendrils as they wrapped themselves around his legs. He tried to pull them off but they were like wire ! They wrapped his waistline too ! Harry pulled and tore at the vines !"Acerbus cuspis !"Harry used the condemnation Snape had aimed at him but bare threads of visible radiation dig from his wand and the plant barely noticed. What was that other one ! ? Think ! Think !"Relashio !"red sparks and heat snap from his wand and where they hit the plant life drew back."Relashio !"Harry aimed at his ramification and cried out as his skin burned. But he was give up. He stumbled to his feet and blasted a few last tendrils. He leapt to the door and pushed through, staggering down the corridor occasionally pointing his wand back in case the demon plant had tried to follow him, he reached another doorway and carefully pushed it open, wand out in front he entered the room, and was met by a strange sight.

Shining, fluttering glittering thing, flying near the ceiling 100 of them. Harry edged out into the inwardness of the high gear vaulted infinite. The pouf sparks remained near the ceiling and Harry at terminal stopped eying them crooked. He walked over to the room access on the other side and tried the handle. Locked. Obviously. It could never be easy could it ? Harry was just wondering what to do when he heard voices from behind him. Spinning like a startled cat Harry saw faint luminosity coming from around the edges of the door he'd just come through. The light and the voices got stronger as Harry searched for a veil place. He ran to a rampart buttress and grabbed for a handhold, thank promised land they like decoration around this place…

*

"I assure you Professor Dumbledore no one got past tense us. Unless they were… hm… invisible ! Ha…"

"I am not impugning your power Quirenius I merely wish to be sure."Dumbledore walked slowly as if there was no precipitation. Severus had alerted him as soon as the dog had awoken and had himself tried to cool it the beast which was tearing at the floor near the trapdoor in a hysteria. Still, the old fool still had his wits about him. He'd made them both leave while he placated the dog so neither of them had seen how to do it. He'd conjured a staircase to take them down and a marble walkway over the devilsnare with a casualness that betrayed his avowedly powers. Snape had to privately admit to himself he couldn't have replicated either feat. That made him fawn inside but he took some comfort from the fact that if he could not do it, Quirrell certainly couldn't and so the endocarp was still safe.

They emerged into the key sleeping room and Snape strode forward and jerked the handle. The door was still locked.

"They could have locked it from the other side."Ivy and keys ? stupidity and idiocy. The other teachers hadn't protected the stone nearly well enough.

"But if they had."Dumbledore said in his insufferably unruffled interpreter."Then the key would experience been locked on that slope with them and I think… Ah !"The old man pointed a be-ringed finger towards the ceiling and Snape strained his optic into the cloud of glitter but failed to pick out which one the old man was indicating."It's still here. So… crisis averted. Or more correctly, there never was a crisis in the first place."

"well. I… I for one am calling my replacement."Quirrells voice was shrill and grating. Snape made a mental government note to add de-lunging to his list of tortures once he finally caught the disgusting animal."I'm all of a fl… flutter."Quirrell turned and walked back down the corridor.

"Professor."Perhaps he'll listen to me now. Perhaps the doddering fool will mind to what I have to say now."As I have said before, Quirenius Quirrell has every intention of stealing the philosophers stone."Snape was so thurify he didn't even notice the movement above him in a mellow bay, like someone getting into a better position to listen."He was seen snooping around the Slytherin vernacular elbow room a week ago and he's never really excuse why he took the defence job in the first place."Snape couldn't give voice to the real reasonableness for his mistrust. A gut spirit, a twisting tongue in his heart and an aura of menace he felt in every cell whenever Quirrell was nearby. An irrational fearfulness too. A fear of being discovered, a fearfulness that made every here and now a dumb prayer that his mental defences would hold and he wouldn't be found out for what he was. He hadn't felt like that in over ten years…

"And as I have said before Severus I have no grounds to mistrust Professor Quirrell."As he half release away Snape could take sworn that Dumbledore's lips tilted into a unruffled smile."But if it would aid you catch some Z's better I will station my own protection on the Stone tonight rather than waiting until after Christmas."That was certainly a shock !

"professor you have resisted every postulation that you add your own legerdemain's to the protection of the stone."He had. All the other teacher had done it but the headmaster had maintained he wasn't ready yet and he still needed to try."What has changed ? Have I truly swayed you ?"

"Many things have changed. Before I had not tested enough. Now I have."Dumbledore took a small sweet out of his air pocket and popped it in his back talk before continuing."I intended to do a bit more try but…"The old man spread his hands."I suppose the current interlingual rendition will probably work well enough."

"May I ask what this providential protection is ?"The headmaster had made some extraordinary title about what his auspices would do."A protection that not the Dark God Almighty, nor any Death feeder, nor anyone with wish to use it for ill or avaritia could click ?"

"Ah Severus."Now the man was smiling. Sometimes the senile old man was just plain impossible."You are always telling me I'm too trusting and now you want me to reveal my brilliant protection ?"His smiling optic glanced at Snape over the top of his glasses before he turned and walked back down the passageway. There wasn't much Snape could do but be him.

*

Harry waited a goodness half minute after seeing Snape disappear, just to be indisputable he was truly gone before slipping out of his hiding place and climbing down to the storey. With a furtive glimpse around he made for the door and was almost there before…

"going already Harry ?"

Harry turned on his axis of rotation, his face frozen mid pant and looked up into the typeface of Albus Dumbledore.

"Headmaster."Harry said doing his best to smile."I was just inspecting the security department you have here. Sort of… um… assessing it for you so I could tell you where you could… improve…it…"Harry trailed off under that quizzical stare.

"And…"

"And ?"

"And how could I improve it ?"Dumbledore was half smiling when he said that. Under that warm smiling face Harry relaxed a petty, this didn't flavour like a conversation that could end in expulsion.

"Well, the two headed dog was good."

"lastly I looked it had three heads."

"Well I didn't stick around long, I only met two. The industrial plant was less good though. A piddling heat, a few discharge and it's backing away."

"Devilsnare has clamed older and wiser superstar than you Harry. You'd be amazed how few people can still recall clearly enough to fire it away while being constricted."Dumbledore stepped forward and touched Harry's face. A moment later he nodded and touched Harry's forehead with his baton. A moment later Harry felt an odd prickling fill him, the burn on his legs faded and disappeared, as did the scar he'd received throwing himself away from the dog."There. All better."Dumbledore moved back and folded his limb."And now I'm afraid to say I must ask the literal reason you came down here tonight."Suddenly the air had grown colder. Expulsion was back on the table.

In defiance of tradition Harry tried the truth.

"I overheard Professor Snape threatening professor Quirrell the night before Halloween."Dumbledore just nodded as if this was formula."Snape seemed to think he was going to try and slip something. We…"No, better he thinks I'm the only one to blame"I worked out that it must be what's hidden here. What you got Hagrid to garner for you the Saame day we shopped for my schooltime stuff and nonsense. The same thing someone tried to infract into Gringots to get later."

"The philosophers stone."When Dumbledore saw Harry's font he continued"Harry, don't feign jar I know you overheard my former conversation with professor Snape. What I wish to hump is why you came here in the heart of the night and alone."

"Couldn't risk anyone else. And besides, they all make too a good deal noise for this kind of work."Harry tried to picture Neville sneaking past the dog and giggled."The simply way I could do this was alone."The former reason of course was that after being humiliated by Malfoy on a broom handle he'd wanted to prove to himself that he could do it alone.

"Harry. As amazed as I am to say this it is possible you are going to turn out to be more problem than your father. I never thought anyone would take exception that crown."Dumbledore's smile was back, and this time not a half one. He shook his head ruefully then frowned as if a abominable retention was surfacing. But the smiling was back in a moment and he motioned Harry over to the wall behind him where a tall mirror was stood.

"That wasn't here before."

"I brought it down after conversing with Professor Snape."

"This is your protection ? What your using to protect the I. F. Stone ?"

"region of it."Dumbledore looked thoughtfully at the mirror for a second then turned back to Harry."Its called the Mirror of Erised. wait into it and separate me what you see."

Harry obediently moved in front of the mirror and stared into his manifestation. He wasn't alone in the mirror. Behind him stood the new Marauders, some of the other students he'd talked to around the school day, Hagrid, even Malfoy for some rationality, More faces he'd met and some hoi polloi he hadn't but still felt some odd connecter to, as if they were… friends. As he watched he saw himself age, and the others around him too, passing through teenage years he grew taller, passing further and further, rail line appeared on his fount, then grey in his tomentum. He grew to an old man, smiling, surrounded by his admirer. Then in an instant he was back as a tike and he saw it begin again.

"What does it have in mind ?"Harry looked at the silver haired professor who was standing nearby."Is it showing the future ?"

"One could hope so, but no."Dumbledore seemed delight but faintly surprised as he looked down at Harry."The mirror shows us zip more or less than what we truly desire above all else. You Harry, who by your own choice lived a lonely and cold childhood desire admirer, and fellow traveler and more than that ..."Dumbledore took Harry by one articulatio humeri and kneeled down to blab to him face to present"…you want to know you'll stay fresh them. You want to do it that you don't have to go back to the cold lifetime. Because that is what you most fear."

Harry looked back at the mirror. The faces were still there standing behind him, some were laughing now, or talking amongst themselves. The figures were growing misty for some reason, Harry wondered if there was something awry with the mirror. Then he felt the sting in his eyes. Wordlessly, Dumbledore handed him a tissue.

"Let me demand you back to your room Harry."He said quietly."Your friends are waiting for you."They walked calmly back through the rooms and out into the sleeping castle.

*

"So."Said Harry at a personnel casualty for conversation."How ‘ d you get past the other protections ?"The Headmaster fixed him with a critical eye.

"I reckon I could get past ‘ em."Harry grinned up at the old wizard."Got past two didn't I ?"

"Indeed you did. The point of which I would prefer you keep to yourself."He smiled back down at Harry."And perhaps you are right. I strongly suspect that my own protection would not fuss you at all."

"Hm, how do you get past a mirror ? expose it ! That's the answer isn ‘ t it."

"Oh please Harry. Do you really think my tribute would be so crude."

"Exactly. It ‘ s so mere that no one would mistrust ! That's how I ‘ d do it."

"Then I am thankful Harry, that I am not actually employing you."

*

"Harry !"Ron's voice filtered down from the kickoff class room to where Harry was idly skimming through one of his school account book by the Noel tree."What are you doing down there ?"

"What do you have in mind ?"Almost no one else left in the Gryffindor common room since everyone was away for the holidays, thus Harry didn't feel the need to moderate his voice when yelling back to Ron. It was just one of the fun things they had worked out about being left behind. Of course Ron wouldn't have kept tranquillity anyway. Ron had no loudness control."And Merry Christmas to you to !"

"Merry Yuletide ? Yeah I can see why you'd leave that to concluding sightedness as you've left all your present up hear."Ron emerged from the stairway and tossed a present at Harry who caught it before it could criticise over a lamp."Why'd you just leave them up there ?"

If Harry had been honorable he would have said that he'd just assumed they were Ron's. Instead he went for…

"Didn't want to waken you. And why are you using my nowadays as projectiles ? What if it had been fragile ?"

"Nah mate."Ron shook his headland ruefully"I can tell what that one is, however you wrap them they all feel the same."Harry unwrapped the parcel and pulled out a wild blue yonder, knitted jumper. On the front were three juggling balls in red, scandalmongering and green."My mum."Ron said holding up a similar article."She makes them for all of us. moldiness have heard you weren't expecting many presents."

"Its pretty unspoiled. Very debonair."Harry pulled the jumper on over his forefront and they went back up to the room to get the rest of the presents. Of form Harry had sent his friends present tense ( poor Digger had been run ragged. The little owl was so bore to please she didn't seem to take any faulting in flight. ) but it sort of failed to click in his head that he ‘ d probably get some in return. Harry noticed one with Hermione's keen handwriting on it ( after all, he ‘ d copied off her musical note decent metre. Occasionally even with permission. ) and pulled it over first.

"It ‘ ll be a record book mate."

"Wow Ron, a thick, sullen, rectangular bundle from a known bookworm ? And just from that you can reckon it's a Quran ?"

"That, and she got me one too."Ron held up a book with a checkerboard natural covering, there was a rook on the straw man but Harry couldn't read the championship. Pulling the newspaper off his own present he smiled. It was an tumid choice of chocolates but what made him smile was the annotation on the top that said


Admit it, you thought this was a al-Qur'an didn't you ?

Ron himself had provided Harry with an absurdly orange tree hat and Neville had found him some juggling billy charmed to trail rainbows in the air behind them when thrown. Padma and Parvati had got him books, but it looked like they'd collaborated because the titles read concealment and legerdemain, appealingness of concealment and Beyond allohamora, unlocking your obstacles. to the highest degree of the rest period were victuals things ( not that Harry minded ) and he bit into a bar of burnt umber while settling down to read.

*

Harry popped the second to last of his Christmas chocolates into his back talk and handed the last one to Parvarti who was skulking in the dark nearby. At least it was a nice night, nights with rain had been rather unpleasant. For the past few months the marauders had been working on the Quirell mystery but getting nowhere. Eventually one day when they were researching in the library Harry threw his Holy Scripture away in disgust and said

"This is pointless."

"You ‘ re the one who said we had to get him mate."Ron had been staring at a book on ancient alchemy for the preceding half hour. He hadn't turned the page.

"We do have to get him."Harry waved his manus wearily over the table."But we ‘ ve gone through all this stuff. We ‘ re not gona find anything this way."

"We can ‘ t really do anything else Harry."Herminone had pointed out. Of track she would say that. She was probably enjoying this."We just don't know enough about what he ‘ s doing."

"No…"And that was when the approximation had formed in Harry's idea. It was so simpleton he wondered why he hadn't thought of it before."But we can find out."

"How ?"Neville had asked.

"We become his dark. We watch him everywhere he goes. He ‘ s got to slide up eventually right ?"

Organising a night watch had seemed like a lot more fun than it was. In squad of two they rotated, each squad taking either the first half of the night, the second one-half or having a nighttime off. After a calendar week and a half of repress sleep the 1st year rascals were getting a bit tatty. At least he was paired with Parvarti. She was mostly cheerful.

"This isn't working."Or not…

"We know he's going somewhere. Some nights."Ron had woke them all after one of his rounds with the news that Quirrell had slipped out furtively. Him and Hermione had moved swiftly to the third floor corridor to head him off, but he had never showed."We just want to go for a piddling longer."

"But I'm tired."The usually chipper twin hadn't taken well to the hr."And he's never going to come out."

"Funny you should say that…"Harry ducked low and pulled the girl down with him as he saw the doorway to Quirrells tail unresolved and come together, permitting the instructor to scamper off down the hall.

"Yes ! We've got him. Lets go !"The tiredness had drained from her face and she had regained a grin. She moved off without a give-and-take but Harry had started in the opposite guidance."Hey ! The 3rd floor corridor is that way !"

"Yeah but we don't know he's going there."Harry held her hand as they walked a ceiling ridge on the slope of a court."I'm not making the Lapp mistake as the others, I'm not letting him out of my sight."They slid silently down a drainpipe onto a flat roof above the kitchens and Harry saw the turbaned wizard slip out a face door, cross the courtyard, then participate a door leading to the entree hall.

"wellspring we can't…"But Harry held up one finger to hush up her and a import later they, heard a door scuttle and closing then could clearly see the drab shape of the hotshot robes as he crossed the grounds towards the forbidden timber."What do we do now ?"

"We watch him."Harry said it without the judgment of conviction it usually held and with a good dose of fear in there as well."You go back and tell the others."But he was surprised when she shook her head.

"No, I'm going with you. You can't go in there alone."She started moving before he had a chance to object."Besides, I've heard there are centaurs in there. I wouldn't idea seeing a centaur."

*

"Do you know where your going ?"Parvarti hadn't seen any centaur, but there had seen early things skulking between the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree. Harry looked back and wished he would ingest offered some reassurance. He knew he could find oneself the way back, well probably. He had made sure to mark it at veritable separation with excision on the tree torso. But tracking a man through forest was nothing he had even thought of doing before. They had entered the woodland at about the same office as Quirrell and Harry had had his hope boosted by finding a footmark printing in mud nearby but after that nothing.

He was vaguely aware that they should look out for demote twigs or birdsong but the twig seemed to have no discernable feature film and the timberland was eerily quiet. Except for the things.

"looking at at this !"Parvarti was pointing at a foliage nearby. When Harry moved closer he saw what she was pointing at. A silver grey liquid covered the folio, it felt slick and greasy under his fingerbreadth. Also slightly strong."And there's more."Again she was right, there was a trail leading across the track they'd been taking more melted tinged the basis in both focal point."It must have been bleeding !"

"It ? What it ?"

"The unicorn silly !"Parvarti pointed her burglars lantern back at the leaf."Oh I cant imagine what could do such a thing ! This is unicorn profligate Harry, and it looks smart !"

"It is."Confirmed Harry with a gulp."Its even still warm."Why are we here ? Why did I do this ? Why didn't we get the others or tell McGonagall or… Harry tried to keep his face impassive but it was hard.

It was one affair knowing nasty affair were out in the wood butchery nice things, quite another to deliver substantiation and another still to have them be so close that the line of descent wouldn't have had clock time to cool in the dark air. He looked at his friend and was suppressed to see no fear in her face, only anger that something would hurt a unicorn.

"But which way did it do ?"She glow her light initiatory one way then the other.

"This way."Said Harry in abruptly tonicity and pointed at the soil ahead. In the mud there, illuminate for all to see, was the heel of a boot mark. Harry didn't want to admit even to himself that his for the first time instinct on seeing the print was to point the former way. That or run for the pitcher's mound."Alright. Close the shutter on the light right down, we can see the blood well enough. And go slow."Parvarti did as she was told and they set off again into the woodland. Harry couldn't have told anyone afterwards how longsighted they had walked, it seemed like an eternity. The splatter of blood grew larger and more frequent, the further they went until.

"!"Harry stopped idle and put his hand out flat in movement of the former Marauder. There was a glade up ahead, bathed in the gibbose moonlight and the night air carried sounds to them. It sounded like an salacious slurping and gurgling and along with it there were the sounds of faint effort. Harry pointed left, around the edge of the clearing then once again put up a single finger's breadth. Silence.

They moved around until they were behind a fallen tree then slowly looked over the top of the log. Through the offshoot that his them they saw an awful sight. The unicorn was splayed on the floor like it had been run to terra firma and a draped image hunched over it, drinking its blood out through its wounds.

A tug on Harry's sleeve brought him back to the moment and he crouched back down with Parvarti. Her face was a ikon of ira and she mimed jumping over the log while brandishing her lantern. Harry shook his head firmly. What the infernal region was she thinking ? She gestured more firmly then touched her heart and made a pumping motility. What was that supposed to think of ? She opened her sass and mouthed something to him but he couldn't tell what. She did it again more exaggerated and the significance hit him with sickening certainty.

"It's still alive !"
Harry looked over the log again and saw what he had missed the get-go time. The Unicorns chest was indeed still moving up and down and its hint disturbed the dust near its head. He sat back down and made the heart pumping motion while nodding, he'd seen it too. Obviously Parvarti wanted to save the puppet if possible. Harry stuck his digit in the dirt between them and wrote one word.

HAGRID

Then pointed to her. She nodded, then pointed to him. He smiled and wrote one more word.

DISTRACTION

*

Without further ado he moved further around the clearing so that when he ran he would take the thing away from the direction Parvarti would have to go to get assistance. He was sword lily to see her moving off too, rather than arguing with his determination. Harry wrapped the scarf joint round his foreland again and tucked it in so it wouldn't unravel. This would do, he thought. No good sense waiting around. He got out his wand, took measured aim and yelled

"Acerbus cuspis !"

The cloaked figure was caught off guard and some of Harry's shadowy spear had hit it. It flinched back, more surprised than hurt then an new noise came from its cap, a drawn out thirsty audio. Like a Hydra having a rat dangled in its face. Wonderful, thought Harry as the thing rose up, Uncle Vernon always said I was vermin.

It was as if that thought snapped him out of his fright paralysis and he ran, away from the clearing and the matter. He moved without thinking, foundation slamming on solid priming where possible and pushing off tooth root and mud when not. Harry never looked behind him but he knew the thing was still on him. He moved into new sections of the timber where the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree were different flesh, elder, newer, taller, Thomas More brush they all shot by him in an instant, too fast for him to see properly. He did notice that they weren ‘ t meeting any animals and thought that they were probably scared of the thing behind him.

He reached a duncical standpoint of Tree and brushing and slipped in sideways. Here he risked a look back. Nothing. Sides ? strawman ? goose egg. Harry allowed himself a controlled breath. It looked like he had lost it. Harry sat for a indorse on a log and let his legs rest. The weariness of the retiring hebdomad and the stress of the night caught up to him at once and he sagged against the tree behind him. He didn't know how long he sat there, he may even have fallen asleep but he did know what caused him to descend to aid suddenly. A branchlet breaking nearby. Harry moved slowly and backed away from the root of the sound when a hand grabbed him from bottom and swung him around roughly. Harry's care of attack turned into rest, then quickly back into fear.

"Out for a midnight stroll potter ?"

"prof Snape."Harry said trying his practiced to put on a good face."Thank god you found me."

*

The boy walked in silence in front of him as Snape led him back towards the castling. The spell he'd laced the edges of the forest with had tripped, waking him and warning him that Quirrell had gone on another of his nightly sashay. But once again the trivial insect had eluded him and he'd been on his way back when he'd seen Potter in a stall of trees. His mouth felt like twitching into a smile, at least some sound could follow of tonight's work.

"What are you going to do when we get back to the castle."The male child voice was steadier than he expected. Planning something… Ha ! Just like the other Potter this one thought he was smart.

"We are going to your head of business firm. Then to Dumbledore. Then you can explain what you were doing in the forbidden timber after hours."Snape allowed himself a moment of joy then said."Then you can go back to your way and inner circle for the train journeying back. From which you will never return."

"But what if I've got a good cause for being here ?"

"What possible understanding could that be ?"

"Same reason you are. Following Quirrell."Had that been a shot in the wickedness ? He tried to get the insufferable small fry's eyes but he looked straightaway ahead."And unlike you I succeeded."

"Quirrell is a blighter teacher. With every right to visit the timber if he so chooses."

"Oh."The scion of his foeman said brightly."So you wouldn't be interested in what he's doing in there then ?"

Insufferable, Worthless, Sneaking, COWARDLY, MANIPULATING !, WORM ! ! Snape took a moment to assemble his thought before turning Potter and looking directly into his eyes. There was a flash, a tabular array, some faces… a scowl crossed the boy face for a moment then he shook his head worriedly. Even Snape could not hold back his electric shock as a space wall appeared before him, slowly fading over the computer storage. The boy was an Occlumens ! But he couldn't know what he was doing, it must be subconscious ! With a flicker of fear his oculus were drawn to the scratch on the male child forehead. Or was it entirely subconscious ? baron would be transferred in such an event, great power…

"What are you suggesting ?"Inside himself he was seething. He so wanted to see the son of James Potter expelled. It would make up for so practically but… Quirrell was more crucial, if there was even the slightest hazard the Stone could be use to bring back… Potter could wait for another time.

"You forget this ever happened and in one week I ‘ ll enjoin you what I saw tonight."Smug and insufferable. And in this case right.

"Why one hebdomad ?"

"Because it would look odd if in one week you go to Dumbledore and say ‘ I caught Harry Potter in the forest a week ago, I just didn't William Tell you till now.'” They had entered the castling now and were on their way to the mutual way. They stopped outside the portraiture door."Well ?"

"Agreed."

*

Harry breathed again and slipped in through the threshold. A moment later he was attacked ! Visiously and unexpectedly, it took him a instant to realise it was Hermione. She had thrown her sleeve around his neck opening and was sobbing against his chest.

"We thought…"She sniffed giving Harry a opportunity to look around. Everyone was there, including Parvarti. They all looked relived."That it had… got… you."

"drive it promiscuous alright. I'm alright."Harry levered her off him and took a breathing place only to be re-bowled over as Parvarti hugged him."What the ?"

"We shouldn't have left you. And it was me who wanted to relieve it in the commencement topographic point, I…"

"I. Am. Fine."He pulled her of as well and was about the speak before looking up expectantly at Padma.

"Oh fine if everyone else is doing it."She stood up and hugged him too. Then let out a pseudo sob and said"And I broke a nail this morn !"Harry grinned and she returned to her place at the table.

"So, now we know what he ‘ s doing the adjacent stair ‘ s to find out why. And what we ‘ re gona to do about it."



*

The next few week were full of disappointment. Except for the Slytherins who got a irregular reprieve from pranking. Hagrid had saved the unicorn and in thanks for their help he told them all about the properties of unicorn stemma and what it could be used for. Snape hadn't been any assistant, when Harry told him the fib a workweek later he merely nodded and told him to get out. From what they knew they could do work out that Quirrell was after immortality but for what rationality ?

"Maybe he ‘ s not after it for himself."Neville had said one day. Harry tried to always treat Neville's suggestion as smart in the hope it would sway the boy to talk more."You said he called someone master when he thought he was alone."

"But he was alone Neville."Ron apparently hadn't heard about that programme."Wait… that's our account. He ‘ s weirdo ! Nuts ! He ‘ s prob'ly talking to his turban !"

"Or he had some sort of magical communicator in his room."Padma said scathingly."Something he was talking to person through."

"Oh, yeah."Ron looked down a little sheepishly. Then brightened."Hey ! Maybe if we got our hands on the communicator we could, I don't know, trace it back to this victor ?"

"That would calculate on how sophisticated it is."Hermione's articulation came from behind a pot of books, shed already begun revising for the end of twelvemonth exams and at to the lowest degree some of the other marauders seemed to need to join her."But Dumbledore could probably do it."

"Alright then."A architectural plan began to mould in Harry's mind."Dumbledore said he had no reason to distrust Quirrell and Snape's got no proof to show him otherwise. If we get this communicator then they've got the proof they need and they can move to stop Quirrell."

"But Harry. We don't know where the communicator is."

"I know. That's why we ‘ re going to burgle Quirrell."

"Is ‘ burglarize ‘ even a word."Padma asked.

"The spellchecker seems to think it is."

"What's a spellchecker ?"

"it's a magical spell that detect misspelled password, underline them in red."

"I really need to revise."

*

But the opportunity didn't come for a recollective spell. Quirrell had begun sleeping with his windowpane closed and the lock on his door resisted all the tricks in beyond allohamora. ("I can't believe you gave him that."Hermione had said"Its like giving a rascal the key to the plantation."Ron had shot back"Yeah, or you the key to the library !") and there was nothing to be done but wait and watch for Quirrell to err up. There was a plus position though. Guard tariff gave them plenty of time to retool. Then the exams came, painful and inevitable with the fear and incertitude that came with them.

The only 1 Harry was at any way well-heeled about were good luck charm and astronomy, the latter because unlike former socio-economic class he actually paid attention and the former because ( perhaps due to his Yuletide presents ) he was genuinely good at the spells. Potions was a nightmare and defence reaction against the dark arts worse. Quirrell had taken to watching him out of the corner of his eye when he thought Harry wasn't looking. Harry hadn't told the others, Quirrell wasn't watching them and he didn't want to occupy them.

Even with the exam and their bear on failing in their labor it was hard to feel bad. The weather had turned to wonderful and students could always be found out sunning themselves on the gage. Harry was just on his way to spend an afternoon in just such a manner ( the rest of the marauders already waiting ) when he looked up and saw what he had been waiting for for week. Quirrells window, open.

Harry glanced around, did he dare go up on the rooftops in the midsection of the day ? When the whole shoal would be capable to see him. Harry turned to where he knew he could climb up and stopped. Should he get the others ? No. Quirrell might return and their only chance would be lost. He quickly scurried up the rampart and slipped in through the window.

The room smelled strongly of ail and indeed there were garlic clove hanging in respective places around the room. He quickly began searching using what they knew of communication appealingness, mirrors were often used, sometimes gems or crystal. He checked the mirror in the bath but it appeared to be the normal form ( no response when tapped with a baton ). He was about to check the bedroom when he heard a voice behind him.

"seminal fluid into my parlour said the spider to the fly."




short letter, if your wondering why some of the chapters are twice the length of the others it 's because they used to be two chapters. I put some of them together because its taking so long to get the stuff posted. Also because they seemed pointlessly short before.


"Well, well, well."professor Quirrell had lost his stutter and stood in battlefront of the interlace door with his wand pointed at Harry's chest."You do get yourself into a slap-up deal of sticky situations."

"it's a gift."Harry tried not to glance at the window. It was still open, and there were some trees in the court below. He might make it.

"No !"Quirrell flicked his wand and the window banged shut. Another flick and it glowed for a moment, accompanied by a squelching sound."No, you're not leaving that way Potter."He grabbed Harry's arm, jerked his wand out of his pocket then pulled him to the doorway. The 1st yr could feel the tip of Quirrells verge against the modest of his back."Now walk, calmly and unhurried. To the third floor."

The corridors that were always so entire of smiling scholar were virtually abandon now. All of them outside enjoying the sun. The few he saw in the distance too far away to signal to.

"Face forward."Quirrell hissed."If you attempt to warn anyone then that person die then you die is that clear ?"

"Why are you taking me up there ?"Harry tried to convince his brainiac to crop but he seemed to be missing Einstein cells.

"Oh that's quite unproblematic. Your going to help me, I knew what you and your little friends were up to so I laid a ambush. Now you are going to wait on me with something, with two things actually. The first of all is unproblematic, all you have to do is play along. Lie. You're good at that yes ? The mo is a bit more complex. You see…"They grew close to the corridor and Quirrell pulled him to a stop and into a disused classroom."I've spent the yr devising foolproof ways to get past each defense lawyers except one that still eludes me."

"Snape."commodity old surreptitious love child Snape.

"Yes Snape."Quirrell drew an odd potion from his gown, it was pitch Negroid and looked oddly oily."His tribute I don't know how to make pass but… that is for later. For now ? Drink this."He held out the potion."Just a sip, we only need the effect for a few minutes."Harry hesitated."Do it ! Do it or you die !"

Harry took a lilliputian sip of the potion and instantly felt the core. His hands seemed to grow and he pulled off his shoes as the pressing in them increased. Black hair grew down in nominal head of his eyes and he flicked it out of the way. After a few second the effect ceased and he stood up again, taller by far than when he had begun.

"Ah, wonderful."Quirrell said smiling."Now put these on."He handed Harry some recollective moody gown and gestured to the mirror nearby. Harry took them and walked over, stopping for a moment in shock. He looked like Snape !"Get on with it boy !"Harry struggled into the robes then did them up and allowed Quirrell to lead him towards the dreaded corridor. Harry saw professors Flitwick and Sinestra outside the doorway. Sinestra was sitting crown of thorns legged and appeared to be meditating in some way. Quirrell prodded him in the dorsum. Of course, Snape would make the first motility. He tried to take a leak his vocalization as sneering as potential then said.

"We're here to relive you."Apparently that was all that's needed as the two teachers nodded and left the corridor murmuring goodbyes. Quirrell pulled him towards the door."What if they meet the real Snape ? They'll know he's not here."

"Professor Snape was called away unexpectedly."Quirrell smirked confirming to Harry that his absence was no concurrence."He thinks he arranged a replacement on guard duty but unfortunately the owl never got through. Oh and in subject you were wondering your precious Dumbledore is gone too, called away to the ministry. No one can help you."

"I can help me."Harry thought desperately as they entered the room with the monster dog. Its three straits instantly rose to look on them but Quirrell pointed his wand at the base nearby and a harp appeared. Another composite cause and it began plucking out a simple tune. The heavy beasts palpebra drooped and it fell quickly asleep.

"ejaculate on boy ! I haven't got all day."Quirrell pulled him forwards to the snare door then pulled it spread out. He whispered a trivial charm and a R-2 began curling its way out of his wand. Quirrell seemed to have to centralize a keen batch to force this off and Harry backed away slowly. He felt some thing behind him and put a hired hand back to feel. It was the harp. Acting on inherent aptitude, Harry grabbed the harp and smashed it as hard as he could against one of the detent gargantuan paws. The dog awoke with a roar and bit through the harps remains in a single chomp. Then it turned to the other trespasser in its elbow room.

"Boy ! What do you remember you're…"But then Quirrell was forced to fight back himself as the great top dog reared up above him. He screeched a single word and fireball smacked one on the nose. Harry took the opportunity and bolted for the door."I'm not done with you yet monkey around !"Quirrell screamed. Harry glanced back in time to see red light, then darkness.

*

"Where the hell is Harry ?"Ron glanced back at the palace irritated."He said he was only gon na be a few minutes."

"Why are you worrying Ron, when you could be sunbathing !"Parvarti stretched out on the priming coat and sighed happily.

"He's probably just got distracted by something Ron."Hermione was doing her character of sunbathing. With a book."Honestly, sometimes I think he has a light tending span than… than… well than you !"

"I can't conceive your reading out here."Ron caught the quaffel thrown to him by Neville then threw it back."The exams are over Hermione."

"For this year."

"You're actually revising for next long time exams ?"Ron shook his top dog then yelled"Hey !"as a quaffel smacked into the side of his psyche.

"Oh sorry Ron."Padma commented with massive insincerity."Were you not ready ?"

"Oh look the mudblood army seem to be missing a general."The marauders turned en mass to see Malfoy strolling towards them with his hired hand in his pockets."bettor get used to it though."

"What did you say !"Ron yelled at the same time as Hermione said"What do you think of get used to it ?"

"I mean scum,"Ron's fist clenched."That your little zep seems to have finally gotten into more trouble than he can handle. Oh yes, I saw a teacher carting him off. Looked angry too."

"Which teacher ?"Padma's question seemed ominously tranquil in the open air.

"prof Quirrell, but don't think that… Hey !"But Ron had grabbed him by the front of his coating, knocking his baton away. The redhead was vaguely aware of his friends surrounding him with wands drawn. Keeping Crabbe and Goyle at bay.

"Where did you see them ?"Ron punctuated each word by shaking the Slytherin up and down."WHERE !"

"Th… Th… Third floor. That corridor with the maypole painting."Ron let him go. That was correct next to the dog's room.

"Mr Weasley !"McGonagall was striding across the earth in choler."I never expected such wild doings from…"

"professor McGonagall !"Ron interrupted her ( something never done ), bringing gasps from the onlookers."Harry Potter's in danger. And so's the Philosophers Stone."

*

"viewing up Mr Potter. boost and refulgency for the brand new day."The sentence slid around the nigrify cocoon of Harry's unconscious."Now now, that won ‘ t do. Up !"pain in the ass blossomed in Harry's stomach and the con of it pulled him back to realness. He drew himself up on the cold pit floor shaking terribly. The recollective sleeves of his gown fell down over his munition and he realised he was back in his own body. Quirrell aimed another savage kick at Harry ‘ s chest and he sprawled on the flooring again.

"You think that's pain ceramicist ?"Yep, sure seemed like it, at the very least he had a cracked rib."I can put in you to the torture curse if you want. If you choose not to co-operate with me."Harry raised his fountainhead wearily and realised that he was in a new room. blast blocked both doorway and on a table in the nub a row of nursing bottle stood, twinkling in the torchlight.

"Wh… where ?"

"The traitors trial."That hadn't sounded like Quirrell. Harry looked up and saw fear in Quirrells eyes.

"So."Thought Harry."He has the communicator on him. That must have been his master copy voice and whoever the master is he's scared of him."

Quirrell bent over the table and read with a smile…

"Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,
Two of us will serve you, whichever you would get,
One among us seven will let you make a motion ahead,
Another will ship the imbiber back instead,
Two among our issue hold only annoy wine-coloured,
Three of us are killers, waiting hidden in business.
Choose, unless you wish to last out here forevermore,
To avail you in your choice, we give you these clew four :
start, however slyly the poison endeavour to obscure
You will always observe some on annoy wine 's left side ;
Second, dissimilar are those who stand at either end,
But if you would locomote onward, neither is your friend ;
third, as you see clearly, all are dissimilar size of it,
Neither dwarf nor hulk holds death in their insides ;
one-quarter, the second left wing and the second base on the decent
Are twins once you taste them, though different at low gear sight."

The wizard shook his head angrily.

"What kind of a task is that ? You don't even need magic. And besides, I've never taken the logical way to get result. I so prefer the… experimental approach."He picked up one of the bottle at random and held it out to Harry with a peaked grin."potable up !"

*

"He's there !"Ron was shouting now. Heedless of the steady stream of crimson that must have been leaving the hourglass in the groovy anteroom."He's there right now having god knows wha…"

"Mr Weasley ! If you can not control yourself I will have you dragged to my office where I will flue your mother ! And we will discuss your continued presence at this school !"The argument had moved from the exterior to the corridors as the deputy headmistress had failed to listen."As it is you are all already in enough problem for just knowing about the stone ! Let alone disesteem to a Hogwarts prof. Two prof in fact as I think Professor Quirrell will want to see about the base accusal you have made."

"But you don't…"Ron was brought to a arrest by a hand on his berm. He turned to see Neville holding him back with a terrified look on his face. He shook his head quickly.

"You should listen to your supporter Mr Weasley."The professor said while turning and walking down the hall."Now you will all follow me to my berth where we can decide…"

"Petrificus Totalus !"

The marauder work party watched in utter silence as their head of house went stiff then slowly but inexorably fell backwards. Ron caught her and lowered her to the floor, ashen faced. He looked round to see Neville standing with his wand out and a appal expression on his aspect.

"I… I … I had to…"Neville stuttered without moving."God, that was like cursing Gran."

Ron looked down at McGonagall face. A person shouldn't be able-bodied to evoke awe while only moving their eyes but somehow the set of them said there would be hell to pay.

"Ok then."Padma broke the silence."Since it seems we're going to get expelled anyway lets go get our boy."

*

"Nil for two Mr Potter !"Harry fell choking on the flooring as Quirrell took a sip of the potion he'd just proved was safe."Still born lucky I see."Harry fell into a fit of coughing that wracked his organic structure with pain. He pulled his head back and idly noticed the blood all over his sleeve. So, More than a roughened rib then.

When he had refused to fuddle the start bottle Quirrell had used some sort of bludgeoning condemnation that squashed him back to the floor. As he had lain there vainly trying to get his intimation back Quirrell had pulled his headspring back and tipped the potion down his throat. The second time he had tried to resist Sir Thomas More and been formally introduced to the cruciatus swearword. He was ashamed to say he willingly took the bottle in shaking helping hand and salute a sip himself. All the fourth dimension feeling wretched and a coward.

"Now."Quirrell looked down on him almost proudly."Since you seem to accept learned your place in this minuscule drama."The sadist looked down for a reaction but Harry didn't rise to the hook. He wasn't sure he had the energy too even if he had wanted."I'll let you chose the following one."He waved his hand over the remaining nursing bottle and stood waiting.

Harry pulled himself up on the edge of the table and tried to add a brain cell to expect."Hermione where are you when I need you ?"He must have said it out flashy because Quirrell laughed and said

"I could get her if you want. I'm surely she'd like to see the cruciatus curse. As a purely donnish work. Of course to fully appreciate it I would consume to do it on her as well."Harry looked from one bottleful to another and a snatch of Sung came back to him.

Neither dwarf nor heavyweight holds last in their inside.
Harry's oculus slid to the smallest bottle in the row. His hands shook almost too much for him to take the cork out and he spilled some as he took a sip. An trice cold sense trickled down his throat and into his coat of arms. But was this the forrard potion or the game one ? It didn ‘ t really matter since Quirrell was between him and the way back, so only one way remained. Harry put his paw to his throat and pretended to throttle, falling towards the blast he took a heavy gasping breathing space.

"wile ! Get Him !"DAMN IT ! Harry reacted on instinct and kicked the closest tabularise leg. One of the remaining potions fell between him and Quirrell, cracking on the level and bursting into blue-black fire. That was all the misdirection Harry needed as he clawed himself off the base and jumped headfirst into the fire.

The floor on the other English knocked the nothingness from him but he wasn't burnt. It had been the flop potion.

"You will pay for that !"A chain with a claw shoot through the curtain of flame, trailing sparks.

"A screen shot."Harry thought muzzily."But I can't stay here."

He pulled himself up and staggered along the corridor clinging to the rampart. Quirrell continued to shout behind him but he ignored it, there was a room up ahead. He walked in and barely saw the place. All he took in was the grandiloquent mirror in the inwardness, familiar. Without really realising what he was doing he moved towards it and fell to the ground in figurehead of it. Oh, god everything hurt. He looked up into the mirror and saw his friends companion faces surrounding him, filling the mirror-Harry with heat and happiness.

"Where are you."Harry spoke to the empty room. He felt himself falling backwards, lonely and reveal."Where are you now ?"

He floated in the darkness for a moment then was brought back around. Instinct again waking him when he was no foresighted alone. He turned to see a charred figure, robes in tatters and his pillbox unwound and trailing behind him.

"There's always more than one way round a challenge."The voice was cracked and thirsty but full of malice and ire"You just have to think outside the box."

*

"No."Harry pulled himself away from the advancing figure. Forgetting for a moment that there was nowhere to go.

"Yes potter. What Severus seems to have forgotten…"The wretched build said as it stalked towards Harry on ruined branch."Is that I would much rather walk through fire than take failure to my master key. a lot, a great deal rather."He came to a plosive consonant in front line of the Mirror and pointed his blackened scepter at Harry.

"No wait, this won't work."He threw the verge away like refuse."But luckily I have another."He drew out Harry's wand, unblemished and pristine. He laughed at Harry's shocked face and said"Rubbed in what piddling of the potion you let expend on the base. It was bound to live better than mine. After all, phoenix feathering are meant to egest through fire."He flicked the wand negligently and ropes bound Harry's branch under him.

"Yes, you left just enough for the sceptre and for…"His handwriting rose involuntarily to the vertebral column of his head and a quiver of pain ran across his human face."But enough !"He stood in front line of the mirror, his anticipation clear on his cheek."I see myself presenting the stone to my original. He is restoring my body, making me well again… But how do I get it ?"

"Use the boy."Quirrell grabbed his arm and jerked him back in movement of the mirror. The images swam in pain in front man of him. His champion faces still stared back at him, mocking him with their happiness.

"Well boy ? What do you see ?"

"Well…"Harry though."…since I seem to be dieing anyway…"

"I see myself you charred bastard. It's a mirror."

"Crucio !"Pain obliterated the humankind again but soon enough he was agitate awake and slammed in front of the methamphetamine.

"What do you really SEE !"

"I ‘ ve just found every coffee frog card. My ingathering is complete."

"Do you enjoy pain ?"Quirrell's cheek was twisted beyond recognition."Do you guess even for a moment that your petty rebelliousness will actually achieve anything !"

"Alright fine."Harry brought a rictus grin to his face"I see Hagrid with a hulk spiked baseball game bat. He's sticking it right up your…"the world once again dissolved into pain.

*

"A cheat set, what the…"

"Oh god expression here on the floor… Blood."

"Do you think he.. ?"

"No time for this ! We need to incite !"

*

Harry floated again on the sea of excruciation. But this sentence he wasn't alone.

Brave, or maybe simply foolish.
That vox again. The headmaster.

Your parents were brave Harry Potter. It didn't do them any just either.
"Oh so you know my parents too. Got any serious anecdotes ?"He wasn't sure if he said that out tacky but the phonation laughed.

Oh yes. Joking in the nerve of infliction. That is something I think your father would do.
"Yeah."Harry said as the populace began to swim back into focal point."But I've got my mother eyes."He looked up but Quirrell was standing a fashion away, curiously with his back to him. Harry groped around for his glasses.

"There by your elbow."The voice almost had a teasing tone to it now but Harry was struck by a 1 interrogative. How did he know ? He pulled his Methedrine back on and was met by his horrific response.

"Yes Harry."The brass spoke with spitefulness now, and barely controlled anger."This is what you reduced me to. Ten long time ago."

"Oh my god."Harry gulped as he realised the truth."Voldemort."

"Yes Harry Potter. Lord Voldemort. Now do what you are assure and tell me what you see in the mirror."

Harry turned without wanting to and stared again into the shining open. The faces stared back, laughing and happy.

"Their probably still out on the grass."persuasion Harry. The Ron in the mirror patted him on the back."They don't know about this evil. This wickedness. They haven't seen it. They don't have to deal with it. And they shouldn't need to."

"I see…"

"Yes… yes !"

"I see… stars."Harry smiled and flung himself at the mirror.

The crashing sound echoed through the hall and Harry felt meth shards cut into his cutis. He tried to turn over but a incisive pain in his arm caught him and he stopped, quivering.

"You FOOL."He felt himself picked up and stir like a wench."You destroyed it !"He fell to the ground again and saw Quirrell rifling through the shards, heedless of the undercut and blood."Where is it ! Where is it ! … Gone… You knew !"The replicate top dog came up and looked him straight in the eye."You knew that wouldn't going the rock !"

"Dumbledore told me."Suddenly Harry actually did feel like laughing."But on the negative side, that should be seven age bad luck."

"You.. YOU ! !"The threefold wight stood quivering with madness."wellspring I hope you savour your victory."The thing drew Harry's wand"Because, it is the last thought you will ever bear ! Avada Ked…"

"Tarantella !"

The jinx spun over the brute head and broke against the far paries. Harry turned to the doorway and saw the Marauders standing there. Five baton pointed ramrod-straight at the thing, that had swung around to face them.

"Children."Quirrell's voice again. They probably hadn't even seen the former face."What are you doing here ? This area is forbidden."

"Put the wand down."Ron's voice quaked a piffling as he said it. But he kept his sceptre trained."Wand down now !"

"You wouldn ‘ t hex a teacher would you."Quirrell was playing with them. His voice was just like it had been when he'd forced the drink on Harry."You'd get in so much trouble."

"I ‘ ve already petrified my head of house."Neville seemed to have left his stutter in the earthly concern of fearfulness and could utter calmly now he'd moved on to terror."It can ‘ t get very much worse."

"You think not ? Then perhaps I should be talking out of the other side of my face."Quirrell turned on his axis and Parvarti shrieked.

"shaver !"Quirrells limb twisted back, cracking round at the elbows to give Voldemort control condition of the wand"I will not be stopped again by child !"

"Petrificus Totalus !"Hermione's voice rang out but Voldemort raised a shield disdainfully. The rebounding curse took the Brigham Young witch in the chest and she fell like a stone.

"Crucio !"Neville dropped to the ground. His side a mask of pain.

"Crucio !"Padma fell, her arms wrapped around her bureau. Screaming. He was still playing with them. He could cause death as easily as painful sensation.

"Crucio !"Ron fell in his tracks. He had tried to buck the animal.

"Im… im… obstruction !"

"Crucio !"Parvati's spell died on her sceptre and she fell beside her sister. He had to do something. He had no baton. He had no weapon… He had glass. Harry pulled his too long sleeves up around his hand and picked up a long sherd.

"Pathetic creatures."The face spat the words."Unworthy of life !"Harry stepped closer deliberate not to raise up the spyglass on the floor."You will all die ! For defying Lord Voldemort. You will…"

"passkey look out !"But Quirrell's warning was too late as the prospicient fragment plunged into his stomach. Him and his assaulter fell together and Harry jerked the trash out only to dip it again into the wizards figure. His hands bled, the fabric of the robe hadn't been nearly enough to protect them. Quirrell rolled over under him and the serpentine face looked up at him in hatred.

"You can not destroy me Harry Potter. I can not die ! Whatever you do I will return !"

"fine then snake-face."Harry raised the shard above his school principal."See you in another ten long time. Do try to come back pretty succeeding time."And plunged the shard through Voldemort's eye.

The screech rung out through the bedroom. Rising gamey and higher, louder and louder till the sherd still on the floor shattered into sand. Then the body slumped like a rag bird and finally lay still.

Harry fell back drained. It felt like he had nil left in his venous blood vessel, felt empty. He slumped on the floor and looked up to see five concerned faces crowding around him. They were saying something but his mind couldn't quite ready good sense of it. The figure of speech suddenly reminded him of something and he pointed at them with a shaky hand.

"Stupid mirror."He laughed."I thought I broke you ?"Then the darkness rolled over again and he didn't see a thing.

*

"I could just drive the one…"

"Ron people left those for Harry !"

Voices ? …

"But I just want the card."

Familiar…

"It'll try to hop away when you open it !"

"Oh please that's what he's planning. Then he'll ‘ have'to eat it."

Ah…

"Maybe I'll just take a cauldron cake…"

"You so much as try it…"Harry pulled his eyes open with an movement."…and I'll hex ya fingers off."

"Harry !"The marauders crowded around the infirmary bed."You awake ?"

"wellspring yeah."Harry shook his head to take in it before answering Hermione's enquiry."Why would I not be ? How recollective was I asleep ?"

"Days I ‘ m afraid mate."Ron shook his head ruefully."They had to give you sleeping potion while everything healed. Did you know you broke your arm ?"

It had hurt when he rolled over, but surely he would give birth noticed ?

"How ‘ d you follow me ?"Harry groggily shook his head again."I swear all the potion got drunk."

"Dumbledore said they regenerate."Hermione answered smiling."We had to go through the chess piece of music too."

"Ron was amazing."Annapurna said beaming. Ron blushed and said

"Oh that, that was nothing. Anyway it was Neville got us past the devil snare !"

"Devil snares easy. Anyway you got the key."

"That was a team effort. The twins were up there too. Plus Padma worked out the dog."

"There was a discontinue harp on the floor. What else could it consume been but euphony ?"

"I don't know, its allergic to harps ?"

"Children."The 1st years turned as Albus Dumbledore stepped into the hospital extension."I can not think how delight you must be that your protagonist is awaken however,"He continued with a twinkle in his eye as he peered over his spectacles"…it will mean that you will induce to get hold a new reference of chocolate frogs."Ron at least had the decency to look shamefaced."Now, if you would generate us some privacy I would like to verbalize to your friend."The marauder filed out and Harry was left alone with the schoolmaster.

"The mirror."Harry began,"Was it… valuable ?"

"Irreplaceable."Harry's stomach seemed to fall out his body."It ‘ s a good thing it is being repaired."

"You could receive told me that bit !"Harry shook his nous as he regained his stomach.

"Although they may leave one shard out. It may need to be kept for posterity."

"So is he… gone then ?"Harry's voice was hopeful but something in him already knew the answer.

"Nothing about this destruction was any different from his previous one. If he survived that I believe we can assume he can survive this."

"Will he fare after the Oliver Stone ? I mean, when you fix the mirror you can get the stone ?"

"Yes, and it will be destroyed."Harry breathed a suspiration of relief."But it appears I was wrong about one thing Harry."

"Hireling a man who was literally double-dealing ?"

"No Harry."Dumbledore fixed him with a patient stare and Harry bit back a grin."I mean that you were unable to get past tense my live on protection. You did not get the stone."

"Yeah. What was I supposed to do ?"

"When you saw yourself in the mirror there. What did you see ?"

"The same matter as before."Harry shifted uncomfortably"You know, friends."

"So faced with the aspect of eternal life and unending wealth, your ambition remained the same ?"

"I have a bully deal of wealth now, and if eternal life means being someone's scalp I think I ‘ ll crack on that too."

"Very well Harry. I will not pry any foster. But there is something else that we need to discuss before I let your friend back in to niggle further."

"Hm ?"

"I want you to return to your aunty and uncles house."

"No."

"Harry, I can assure…"

"No. The answer is no Professor."Harry looked directly into the Headmasters glittering gaze."I will not."

"You are eleven Harry."professor Dumbledore put his hand on Harry's berm and his voice went soft."It would be negligent of me to let you leave my tutelage without assuring myself that you would be looked after."

"You did it once before. Left me on a doorstep."a sliver of steel entered Harry's vocalism.

"I thought that you would be happier with family, even removed ones."

"You were wrongfulness. Would you like to see some cicatrix by way of trial impression ?"

"No Harry, I see I can not sway you on this score. I will arrange for you to continue at Hogwarts over the summertime, it has been done before in certain circumstances."

"Thank you."Harry smiled and he saw a sealed tension lift from the air. Harry looked down at the endowment arrayed in front of him and picked up one."hot chocolate toad ? Go on, otherwise Ron ‘ ll just take all of them."

"Thank you Harry."Dumbledore took the squirming concoction and stood up."Now I shall just visit this wings other resident then leave you to yourself."

"Who ?"Harry looked around and spotted a twain of slipper poking out from behind a mantle."Who'zat ? They Ok ?"

"Oh they ‘ ll recover quite soon."Dumbledore seemed to get hold something in this slightly funny."She's just sleeping off an improperly formed Petrificus curse."

"Oh."Said Harry uninterested."How soon will she get skillful ?"

"Hopefully after your friends leave."

*

"conclusion prospect for sound magic !"Fred ( or George VI ) yelled as he walked down the Hogwarts express. His sidekick walked beside him ringing a hand-bell up and down."I repeat ! finis prospect for all summer !"

"You heard that Harry ?"Ron said as his crony walked past the marauders carriage.

"Yep."And indeed he could see the London skyline around the train as they pulled towards Rex crossing. He had asked Dumbledore if he could company his acquaintance on the train and the Headmaster had agreed.

"You gon na be alright over the summer on your own Harry ?"Parvarti leaned over considered him quietly."You ‘ ll write everyone right ?"

"And you have to visit home."Ron said through a mouthful of sweets"Mums been bugging me about it ever since she found out."

"May just choose you up on that Ron."Harry stretched as the train drew into the post."Oh, and before magic becomes illegal…"Harry took a small parcel of land out of his scoop, tapped it and pulled back as his bag expanded to full size.

"You brought your bag ? Why did you impart your bag…"Hermione's vocalisation became shrill and a little scared. But the question was moot, everyone in the rig had guessed the solution.

"Oh, issue forth on guys."Harry shot them a grin and slid out of the carriage."Don ‘ t tell me you didn ‘ t see this coming ?"

"Harry ! The hero of the wizarding world can not just go AWOL !"Padma shook her chief in unbelief."Dumbledore will find you, or the ministry."

"The ministry can only tag me if I use magic."Harry said jumping down onto the platform."And distance counts too, I ‘ m thinking Greece or possibly Spain. Mediterranean Sea certainly."

"You ‘ ll never get away with this Harry."Hermione spoke but all for some rationality didn't quite conceive it. The marauders stood in a semicircle around Harry with respective versions of skepticism on their faces. But after a year they had realised that Harry mostly made his own ruler.

"What they gon na do ? arrest their shining hero ?"Harry winked and smiled his iniquity superstar smile."And I ‘ ve realised something. Being a homeless vagabond sounds a hale lot more fun if you ‘ ve got a goliath voltaic pile of gold subway to come back on. It ‘ ll just be like going somewhere fun, to have fun."

"I think that's called a holiday Harry."

"right hand, that."Harry pointed and nodded."I think I ‘ m due one of those."He turned and began walking down the political program."Write every day ! But no traceable speech !"

"HARRY POTTER YOU GET vertebral column HERE ! ! !"

"Got ta go."Harry broke into a run as the teachers appeared at the other end of the program. He dodged between grouping of students as the call got closer and guess between carts. He saw his chance, launched himself like a catapult off the tree trunk of an astonished student and dived through the roadblock. He kept running through baron crisscross, past mathematical group of astonied muggles. Running for freedom.

*

"Think he'll miss ‘ em ?"

"Oh, Neville you know the answer to that."Padma smiled at the Chaos Harry had left in his Wake Island on the platform."It's the vulture first linguistic rule. ‘ You can do anything you set your mind to if you've got the boldness to see it through.'”

"I thought that was ‘ Never get caught'?"

"That one too."




Phew ... one Holy Writ down ! Six to go.


Harry Potter stepped back onto British soil with a fountain in his whole tone and a tan fit to blind seagulls. Officially there was not take aim magical course across the TV channel save by broom or other tool of flight. However Harry had known before he had ever held a sceptre that the most utilitarian things were always hidden from those in direction.

It had been by this ancient hearth, disconnected from the sleep of the flue network but with a direct link to a like hollow and portals around Europe, through which Harry had left the country hebdomad ago. An eleven class old can not book a plane ticket alone much less hitch a rhytidectomy on a broomstick and even if he could do so those ways had probably been watched.

After he was gone he'd sent a missive to Dumbledore, with a borrowed owl and an untraceable speech. He'd received a stern one in reply. The Headmaster understood his decision and his need for freedom, even sympathised with it. But Harry needed to be kept safe, protected.

But to Harry protected meant trapped and the cause he needed to be kept safe was the very thing he needed some freedom from. So Harry ceramicist had spent the majority of the summer as Jack Match, juggler and tumbler pigeon on various Grecian beaches. He had explored the wizarding side of the ancient country too, he had watched a school of hippocampus breaching and jump like dolphins off the coast of Aeaea and seen the colossus of Rhodes. He had walked to the Temple of Alcmeonidae at Delphi and climbed hand-over-hand up the yearn trailing vines of ivy to where it floated in the sky. Levitated above the ‘ ruins'below and concealed from muggle eyes. But the seer that gathered there had seen through his camouflage and greeted him as Harry Potter. They had treated him with an eerie regard and he had been taken to give birth tea with the stream oracle. It was a coming together he would never forget…

"Sit dear one."She led him to a cushion on the story and sat down herself nearby him. She looked like she was barely a class or two honest-to-god than him but he knew that if he believed that he was a fool. Only her oculus betrayed any jot that this was possibly the most powerful seer in the world. Harry had been shocked when he first saw them, he had heard news report that the bully seers had milky white eyes showing that they were blind to the mundane. The seer center were normal except that the sword lily of one was inscrutable purpleness and the early light green. Oh and the school-age child ( and Harry had had to attend hard to hit this out ) were shaped like champion.

"Thank you Pythea."Pythea wasn't her name, the prophesier held it as a title in honour of the first."But you really don't have to do any of this."

"It is not very often we receive visitors."She smiled at him with those bass eye. Something in them betrayed a lasting lugubriousness, a hint of the retention concealed behind. retention that spanned 100.

"If you wish to encourage more visitant your gracility. Perhaps you should install stairs."He instantly felt that perhaps he was being too fellow. Harry generally ignored authority but the tranquil power of the small female child before him ( even sitting as she was, barefoot in a round-eyed Elwyn Brooks White garb ) was voiceless to deny. Anyway he didn't he didn't want there to be stairs. Too many people, especially too many tourer, would ruin this peaceful home.

"Yes, that is why we do not consume them. And no, I prefer that you speak freely before me."Harry looked up at sea and she laughed. It sounded like falling water."Your occlumency is quite effective for one doing it unconsciously. But entree to thoughts is one of the gifts that comes with being… this."The sadness was back in her middle for a mo then she reached forward and poured him a glass of water system out of a tall fluted jug.

"Thank you."Harry took it and sipped it. It smelled alike mountain air. He grinned and looked down at it speculatively."Is this going to make believe me see visions or turn over out ?"

"Those things are more in all probability to happen if you do not drink it seeing as you climbed for half an hour in the summer sun."

"Mad dogs and so on…"Harry took another draft of the odoriferous deglutition and asked."But, why did you tempt me up here ? Why am I sitting, joking, with the greatest seer in the world."

"I wanted to contact you myself. I ‘ ve heard about you of course of instruction, the boy who lived. You are not what I expected."

"Oh."Harry looked down guiltily. He knew he was a bit of a disappointing hoagie but coming from her it seemed spoiled.

"You are anything but a disappointment Harry. I think you are be to the task ahead of you, More than equal. I look into your someone and what I see gives me gravid Hope. You are more than you think you are Harry, you are far more than you, or anyone else, realises. You must entrust that you know the way of life you need to walk, not anyone else, and above all you must trust yourself."

"Really."Harry's pharynx was suddenly very dry. He took another gulp of piss."Anything else ?"

"I like your eyes."

Harry coughed and spluttered and the little seer laughed. He realised she was teasing him.

"You're a bratwurst !"He sniped at her.

"Am I ?"She seemed to look far away for a bit then come back down to worldly concern."Why do you say that ?"

"Because you ‘ re teasing me ! You're a seer, aren ‘ t you supposed to be telling me my future or something ?"

"Do you really want to have a go at it ?"She seemed amused."Really ?"Harry thought about it for a consequence.

"No. No, if I knew what was gon na bump it wouldn ‘ t be any fun."

"Good."She smiled."serious pick. But I think I will turn over you something anyway. In exchange for a hereafter not told."She dipped her hired hand into a pocket of her dress and drew out a chandelier on a braided leather cord. Harry leaned closer and saw that it was made of sea shell, glittering like it had just been plucked from the water. She held it out towards him.

"fuzz please."She commanded and he obediently lifted his shaggy head of hair up so that she could tie the cord behind his sunburnt neck.

"What is it ?"Harry lifted the shell to look at it closer but it didn't have any markings at all. It looked like it was made of two orient spiral case, hanging vertical from its clasp. Harry looked closer and saw that the very nates item was tinged green and the very top tinged purple."Is it magic ?"

"Yes."

"Are you gon na enjoin me what it does ?"

"No."

"Meany."Harry tucked the pendent into his T-shirt and felt it neglect down near his gist.

"You ‘ ll find out what it does eventually. But you will bear to learn a few thing for yourself before you do. Call it a little piece of music of your future."She took his script and raised him to his feet."Now I am afraid I must say auf wiedersehen. The duties of my federal agency call."She seemed genuinely sad to see him go and Harry suddenly wondered if she was lonely up here.

Not trusting himself to speak Harry bowed for the first fourth dimension in his life and walked towards the door.

"Oh and when you go back to Hogwarts."The lilliputian young woman said as he reached for the hold."Could you tell Sybill Trelawney to stop owling me. please ?"

Harry climbed back down and walked a little ways away before turning around and gazing back at the peacefully drifting construction, floating over the horizon. shovel flapped down on a rock following to him and handed him a letter. He took it without reading it and slipped it in his sac, still thinking. Then he walked over to a clump of flowers sprouting out of the stone nearby and picked some of the larger ones.

"Up there please."Harry nodded towards the tabernacle while holding the efflorescence out to his owl."Pythea. And be careful."The owl obediently took off and Harry walked off down the road with his head teacher still full of thoughts.

It had not been long after that when he found his way to the krybo-lakkos grocery store in capital of Greece and to the odd pottery chimney that connected to the under-flue and that could get him house.

*

"Five Galleon ‘ s. Here."The storekeeper pointed to a pot next to his cash cash register. Harry nodded to him while dusting himself off and dropped five of the gold coins in the jar. This holiday had cost him surprisingly piddling, tourer had liked his juggling on the beaches and liked his witty remarks even more. The galleons to get there and the galleons back was probably more than he'd spent the completely time in between.

Harry stepped out into a muddied alley and set off away from the shop class. Walking quickly he made for the unaccented end of the street where he could hear Sir Thomas More multitude moving. People turned to stare at his bright summery clothing in the dark and shadowed street and he heard grumbling and muttering. A bony hand fell on his shoulder and he broke into a run. Shadowy figures leapt out at him and More handwriting tried to gain purchase, Harry broke off as his way ahead was blocked and he sprinted down a side street. He could see the bright sounds of diagonally ahead of him and sprinted as hard as he could.

Suddenly he hit what felt like a golosh wall, picking him up and bouncing him back into the swarthiness.

"What the… ?"But there was no clip to think. build were closing in and Harry dove in the opposite management. He slipped down another road.

Sir Thomas More robe body seemed to pop out of every shadow. The small boy dodged down another street and found himself at a dead end. The entrance to the alley was blocked by a minor crowd, five or so wizards and beldame in dark ragged robes blocked his way back.

Harry slipped his scepter out of his pocket into his right hired hand. His eyes scanned the walls around him but they were straight up and down. No handholds. The crowd advanced on him with hands out. Harry crouched down, if he was gona die he was prepared to die like a rat in a street corner. Biting and scratching till the survive.

"What have we here ?"A scabby and dishevelled witch said with a cackle."Kids shouldn't be in knockturn alley. Something bad could happen."She reached out towards him and Harry's deal tightened on his wand.

"Stand aside hag !"A flash of red luminousness shot from the other end of the alley and the beldame hair burst into flame.

She shrieked and jumped away while the others tried to put out the flame. This left Harry with a clear scene down the alley to the man standing there, his tenacious wand out.

"Never fear youthful rascal !"The man said in a booming voice."Markus A. A. Michelson is here !"

*

"Who in the… Hey !"Harry tried to object but the man had reached him in three retentive strides and picked him up with one script."Put me down ! Put me down !"

"Quiet down pipsqueak."The man set off out of the back street with Harry held almost nonchalantly in the crook of his heavily muscled arm."You're in safe hands now."

Harry tried to pry the fingers off of him but the man grip was like a vice. Harry continued to struggle until they got out into the dependable seaport of diagonally and he was dumped unceremoniously on the storey.

"For someone being rescued by the peachy warrior, adventurer, lover and Internet Explorer that the humanity has ever known."The man put his clenched fist on his hips and bent down to put his facial expression near Harry's."You sure don't seem to hump how show you're grateful."

Harry sat up and checked himself over before replying. For a moment his manus rested on the leather cord around his neck opening then he looked up and responded.

"Yeah, sorry. Thank you. Thanks."The man reached out a hand and pulled Harry to his feet.

"Not to worry. I'd imagine getting stuck down a dead end in knockturn bowling alley is a little frightening for somebody not as… imposing… as me."He tucked his wand in his belt and Harry looked him up and down. Even without taking his hat into account the man was easily seven feet tall and had shoulders like a ox. He wore duncical leather iron heel and leather trouser above them, fitting tightly over muscled legs. The whang was snake in the grass skin and he had what looked like animal teeth tied hanging off it so they clattered as he moved. Above that he wore a form fitting red undershirt that left his arms bare. Harry could see the bound of a tattoo peeking up amongst his chest hair and another on his bicep. Further down his arms he wore two spike dance band. To top it all off the man wore a cowhand hat over his thick blond haircloth with a long red plume tucked into the stripe on one side and three rifle bullets on the former.

"Who are you ?"

"Thought I introduced myself before. Never mind, probably slipped your mind in all the excitement."The man struck a pose."I am Markus Maximus Michelson. well-chosen to spend a penny your acquaintance pipsqueak."

"My name is Harry."Odd to hear that after a summer of shit.

"goodness to see you little Harry. Now…"the man looked around at the crowds"…where are you meeting your parents. Can't leave you alone out here since you seem to draw trouble. You little tyke."He ruffled Harry's hair as if he was a little kid, earning himself Harry's unending hatred.

"…um. The ice cream place."Harry lied with a straightaway face."Their probably waiting."

"good, good."The man grabbed his arm again and set a snappy pace through the bunch. There were a lot of masses this sentence of day but they parted to let Markus through. Harry had hoped that when they reached Fortescue's ice cream parlour the odd magician would leave him alone. He did nothing of the sort however and sat down at a table, leaning far back on his chair and tucking his thumb in his knock loop-the-loop. Harry was just wondering why he was waiting around when the reason walked up to the table.

"Can I get you anything Mr Michelson."The waitress was a new beldam, probably not far out of Hogwarts, and she blushed as she spoke to Harry's rescuer.

"My petty friend here needs a umber Sunday to calm him down. He's just been in a bit of a embarrassing situation down knockturn alley. For myself just seeing you smile is all the sweet I need, and please…"he plucked a chicken daisy out of air and set it behind the girls ear"…call me Maximus."

"You helped him ?"

"Oh no."Thought Harry."She was here last-place summer. She knows who I am."

"You saved Harry ceramist ! Oh, you ‘ re so weather and like, strong !"

"Harry Potter.. ?"The man looked at him for a moment with a dismount smile then turned back"Yes I did. And yes, I am rather strong. Mighty is my middle name."The girl swooned and rushed off to get Harry's ice ointment. When she was gone the man turned back and fixed him with the smile again. Harry crossed his arms.

"sentiment your mediate name was Maximus."

"Nope, Mighty."The man flexed his bicep and Harry was able-bodied to study the tattoo there. It was five Ms written one after another. The man pointed at the it with his other hired hand."Markus Maximus Mighty Majesto Michelson"he tapped the monogram with his finger."But the first of my midsection names is my personal pet. So these parents that we're waiting for…"

"My friends parents."Harry fabricated."I ‘ m life with them this summer. I didn ‘ t explain because I prefer to go under the radar a bit, you know."

"Can ‘ t honestly say I do little man."Harry's Dominicus appeared and he began eating it quickly."How can you not walk down the street and finger the basking latria of the people Harry. I owe it to my legend to be seen, in the Leslie Townes Hope that I inspire Whitney Moore Young Jr. puppy like you to go just like me. Its my obligation Harry, as a man."

"Oooo."The waitress had stuck around to listen to Marcus speak and was now holding her hands clasped together over her pectus."You're so fresh as well as so hansom. You're like a poet or a radio lead or something."

Harry rolled his eye and finished his ice ointment quickly as the vain wizard chatted to ( or more accurately chatted up ) the girl. Harry dropped the price of the meal on the table.

"Ah, there they are."Harry pointed off in a random direction and got up."See you."

"Sure I will Harry."The man said cryptically before turning back to the former target of his attention.

*

Harry moved quickly once he was out of the military personnel sight and slipped into Gringots. He got money out more quickly than he should have by simply ignoring the waiting line and asking for Greeklunk. His old goblin acquaintance quickly helped him refill his pouch for another year. While he was down in the hurdle Harry stuck his t-shirt in his bag and instead took out a long robe with a goon. At Greeklunk's confused expression he said…

"Someone back up on the street that I ‘ d rather didn ‘ t recognise me."

"Oh rightfulness. Bloody paparazzi."

Harry stepped back out into the street and did his shoal shopping quickly. When he walked back past Fortescue's the wizard was still there, showing the waitress a recollective scar on his arm.

*

Harry stood in the country lane and rechecked the letter he held in his hand. He was sure he was at least in the right village and probably on the rightfulness route. It was just that the road went a long way in both directions and Ron's advice on getting to his theatre had been rather vague. Like he'd only really seen the surrounding countryside from the air. Harry folded the letter away and shrugged, there was always another way. He walked over to a where a farmer was sitting near his tractor, fiddling with something in the locomotive.

"Hi. I'm looking for the folk of peppiness people who keep hooter as pets."

"Down the lane, turn left at the co-op."The man said without looking up."And tell the man I need my wrench back."

*

Harry had to stand firm the impulse to break into a run as he caught sight of the Weasley house. Outside it in the grow over garden he could see three boy working, flinging something he couldn't make out over the garden wall. Harry smiled, they were expecting him today but he hadn't exactly been capable to give them an exact clock time. As he walked closer the threshold to the planetary house opened and Molly Weasley ( Ron had told him all about his family ) emerged, carrying a tray with drinks on it. Behind her a Whitney Moore Young Jr. girl ( must be Ginny ) stepped out-of-door and leaned against the doorpost looking bored. None of them seemed to ingest noticed him yet, or maybe the tan had changed his show a bit. As he stepped up to the nominal head gate he spread his limb all-inclusive.

"aloha !"

"Harry !"Ron jumped in surprisal"You ‘ re here."The twins jumped up too and ran to touch him, but the most extreme reaction came from the youthful Weasley. Ginny went dead white under her tomentum and her rima oris seemed to move as if she was trying to say something then she bolted through the still undetermined room access.

"She has some sort of dissent to aloha ?"Harry asked the ginger crowd.

"Nah, mate."Ron shook his psyche."She ‘ s been jumping and squeaking every time we so much as mentioned your name. Guess you in the flesh was just too a great deal for her."

"Ron, be skillful to your sister."Mrs Weasley's voice was severe for a minute then turned soft again as she turned back to Harry."She ‘ s just shy Harry. I ‘ m sure she ‘ ll get over it the more she sees of you."

"Probably."Agreed Harry"The hero thing doesn ‘ t last. I ‘ ve been told on repeated social occasion that I ‘ m a monolithic disappointment."

"Who told you that ?"Molly Weasley looked aghast.

"Snape."

"Yeah but he said you had floberworms for mental capacity too."Said Ron."And we're fairly sure that's not true."

"Right."Chimed in one of the Twin."We ‘ re pretty certain they ‘ re doxy droppings."

"At to the lowest degree that's up the evolutionary scale."

*

But Ginny's odd behaviour didn't closure. Harry found that she was incapable of staying in a elbow room that he was in and that any effort to speak directly to her was sufficiency to broadcast her scurrying away. One morning when he came down and found her curled up on the sofa with a magazine he decided to put a catch to it.

"Ginny."She stiffened and looked like she was about to take flight."Don't run away please."He walked around and sat succeeding to her on the couch. She looked like a low rodent confronted by a snake, optic wide-cut opened and too scared to run."Can you tell me why you run every time I try to verbalise to you or enter the room ?"silence, except for the twitching she could possess been petrified."looking at Ginny I don't know what it is but could you please blab to me. We ‘ re going to be going to school together for the next six years. Could you talk to me. Please."

"Y… you…"Harry had to distort to hear her deliquium whisper."you destroyed you-know-who."

"Oh you ‘ re still thinking about that ?"Harry waved his hand dismissively."That happened age and long time ago. No one cares about that. Apparently Markus Mandy Michelson is everyone's hero now."

"You ‘ ve got the scar."

"I ‘ ve got a lot of scars. Which one in specific ?"Ginny reached out to signal at his frontal bone and Harry brushed away the haircloth to expose the scar. But apparently this was too a good deal for Ginny and she bolted up the stairs almost knocking over Ron.

"What ‘ s that about ?"He asked sleepily.

"She ‘ s still shy around me. That sucks."

"Why are you so messed up about it."Ron asked. Then looked up as if he remembered something."You were acting like this about Hermione too, last year. Back before she liked us."

"And that turned out OK."

"You ‘ re not gon na mount up a chimney again are you Harry ?"

"No Ron but I think I do think I need to rent drastic action to correct this situation."Harry thought for a moment then latched onto a brilliant plan. An amazing plan. Possibly the greatest plan he had ever devised."You have a few heather here right ?"

"Five survive sentence I looked. My old one, the twins, Percy's and one Charlie left here."

"Excellent. I would like to make for some Quidditch."

"But Harry you can ‘ t maneuver Quidditch. The last sentence you got on a broom you made a complete sucker of yourself."

"Exactly !"

*

This was the uncollectible design he had ever come up with.

"You have to postdate through."Ron made a jabbing motion with the flat of his bridge player. That meant survey through Harry knew, the deal signals were about all he ‘ d picked up during the game."Just concentrate on following through. That was the problem that time."

"No Ron, the problem was that I flew into a tree."Harry tumbled to the background and spat out a leaf."What's the signal for ‘ You're about to fly into a tree ‘ ?"

"There isn ‘ t one, we'd have to formulate it just for you."Ron helped him back on his broom and they flew back up to join the twins. Ginny was sitting a little ways away watching them, when Harry had fallen out of the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree she had jumped up in stupor. But as Ron and the twins had begun laughing at him he had seen a tail of a smile cross her face as well. That apparition was all that was keeping him from giving up the entire attempt and getting his human foot back on solid priming.

"Right."Ron said as they hovered at their end of the pitch."You make for the right hired man face. I ‘ ll root for them off to the leftfield then pass it to you. Then you can rack up. Got it ?"

"Aye aye Captain !"Harry saluted and almost overbalanced.

"Oh and by the way, from now on this…"Ron grinned and put both fists out straight ahead."… from now on that means tree."

"I would plug you Ron, but I ‘ d Fall off if I tried."Harry began moving off to the right field and saw his friend shoot away with the Quaffle. After a instant Ron turned and chucked it ahead of him. He rushed forward to catch it, fumbled it, then snagged it in one hand.

"I got it ! I got…"thumping !

Harry struck the ground hard and rolled to a arrest in the long gage.

"Ow."Harry put his hand to the back of his straits and sat up. Looking right into the face of Ginny Weasley. She had run over to see if he was alright and now stood, wide eyed before him.

"There didn ‘ t used to be four of you."Harry pointed at her with a shaking hand."Stop being four of you, person… girl… Where am I ?"Harry blinked and looked around blurrily. A small disturbance brought him back to the present and he looked forward. Ginny had her hand over her mouth and was trying hard not to laugh. Little speech sound kept escaping like steam out of a kettledrum.

"You ‘ ve got steam in your mouth !"Harry tried to get up and fell back on his stern."Like water but… broken. Where are my glasses ? The four of you should be able to find them."And with that Ginny burst out laughing.

The four Weasley's carried him off the sales pitch and Fred and George VI ( who seemed to have experience with question combat injury for some reason ) pronounced him ticket.

"Maybe we should take a break."Ron said worriedly."You know, render him sentence to recover."

"better idea."Harry tossed his Calluna vulgaris to Ginny."You take my spot. I am never ever ever ever ever ever getting on one of those again. From now on I walk where I need to go."

"Hey ! I don't want her on my team."Ron said angrily."That ‘ s not fair when we're already behind !"

"Ron…"Harry pitched his representative to match Mrs Weasley's"Be nice to your sister ! And besides, your choice are me or her."

"Welcome to the team Ginny."

*

"See ! No one can nonplus my team !"Harry grinned and slapped his chest as the game drew to an functionary end.

"What do you intend your team."Ginny glided past him smiling and laughing."When you went off you were eight goals down. How can you say you won ?"

"The team won."Harry explained with sweeping paw gestures."And we all played a share in that."

"And your part is ?"

"Cheerleader. I really should get some pompoms."



notation : Right, thats the second yr started.

Interesting news about Dumbledore, but it makes sense when you look back on it. Does form of make it more tragical however. The champ of accepting the great unwashed for who they were died without ever himself being accepted. He probably never even told anyone. The bit about how he did n't move against Grindlewald was interesting too and puts the whole affair in a new lighter. What if Grindlewald was well aware of Dumbledores touch and used him to attain mightiness in safety ? Knowing full fountainhead that Dumbledore was the alone one who could have posibly stopped him. Ah well ...

This is why we need JK Rowling to write some prequels.


# include `` standard legal disclamer.h ''

Ok, thats a very nerdy joke but thats fine 'cos anyone who laughed is just as nerdy.






baron cross was crowded beyond feeling as the Weasley kin crossed the station towards platform nine and three quarters.

"haste up."Mrs Weasley herded her various charges towards the barrier."rightfulness. Come everyone, while the muggles aren't looking."One by one the redheads shot through the barrier. Harry waited until last, as the summer had drawn to a conclusion he had wondered if perhaps he might not be let back into the schooling. He had got the book tilt but perhaps that had been automatic.

"You go first. I ‘ m fine."Harry motioned Mrs Weasley ahead of him."I want to enjoy my finale moment of freedom."She disappeared through the roadblock and Harry took a deep breathing time. There wasn't much more he could do to put this off. He started running forwards, lowered his head and closed his eyes as he reached the barrier.

Crack ! Harry bounced back and fell to the soil gasping. The barrier hadn't opened ! He put his handwriting to his brow and it came back bloody. His mind reeled.

"They don't want me back."Harry blinked and looked up at the clock. LE than a minute till the gearing was supposed to pull up stakes."They expelled me."

Harry stayed on the floor despite the odd looks he was getting. There didn't seem to be very much compass point in getting up. The clock ticked over the 60 minutes. The geartrain was leaving.

Harry looked down platform ten and thought he saw a wisp of gage hike from beyond the tracks. Where was the wizards platform anyway ? A mad idea struck Harry and he was stood back up in a flash. His feet seemed to prompt of their own pact and he took first one then another halting footfall along the platform. Another wisp of smoke. He broke into a run and willed his legs to post him flying and faster.

"it's a steam train."Harry dodged past a startled conductor at the end of the platform and jumped down onto the tracks."It takes a spell to bucket along up."He pumped his leg for extra upper.

"power shovel !"Harry reached onto his knapsack and flicked his owl's coop surface."catch me up at Hogwarts !"Harry dead reckoning to the boundary of the train tracks and looked down. The normal, muggle geartrain tracks coming out of Martin Luther King hybridization were raised up on a sorting of foresightful bridge circuit, raising them several stories above the metropolis streets. Harry glanced down in time to see the end of the Hogwarts expressage squeeze play itself out from between the bricks of the span and head off down a cut that looked disused. Up ahead the rails rose up and joined with the others, if Harry was going to do it, he ‘ d have to do it now.

"Please ! Oh god please let me still be born lucky !"Harry prayed silently, then launched himself off the English.

He crashed into the top of the close carriage and hung onto it for dear lifetime. The power train was beginning to pick up speed and Harry crawled to the boundary. Thankfully the carriages window was opened. Harry swung his bag in through it then slid down into it himself.

"Harry Potter. Nice to meet you."He said to the aghast first days who's carriage he'd dropped into."See you at Hogwarts !"Harry walked shakily out the door. Once he was safely in the corridor he leaned against the bulwark and slid down till he was on the trading floor. He wanted to get up and discover his friends but for some ground none of his limbs seemed to work. He caught a glimpse of himself in the chicken feed in front line of him and blinked in daze. He looked a wreck ! Blood ran down the unexpended face of his face and was matted into the pilus above.

"M… Mr Potter."Harry looked around and saw the crone with the trolley standing looking at him. Harry gulped for air.

"Two cauldron patty please."He said, trying to think of something that would calm down his nervus.

She wordlessly handed him the cake and took the price of them without once taking her eyes off him. When he was about to leave she finally said.

"Did you… just… saltation onto the train."

"No."Harry shook his headway"No. Definitely not. You ‘ d have to be crazy to parachute on a moving train."

*

Harry moved down the geartrain as quietly as he could. Trying to find his acquaintance without drawing too often attention. Unfortunately talking travelled fast on the Hogwarts express mail and he couldn't go five steps without encountering another stare or pass a group of students without them breaking out in a fit of whispering.

"So piteous tending seeking Potter smash again."The vocalisation was behind him. Harry turned around and sagged when he saw Malfoy and his tough staring at him.

"Malfoy I really don't have the energy for this now."It was true. Harry would take liked doing null to a greater extent than simply collapsing on the floor there for the remainder of the journey."Could you please, and I mean this in the nicest possible way, sod off and die like the diseased composition of distended rectum flesh you are."

"Big talk for a kid who can barely stand."Malfoy took a step forward and Harry retreated."And I don't see your little Friend here to help you today. This may just be my lucky day."The three Slytherins advanced on him and Harry drew his wand when…

"Potter !"Harry turned and saw professor McGonagall standing in the go-cart. Malfoy and his bodyguard disappeared through a door."How in Merlin ‘ s name did you get here ?"She grabbed him and pulled out her wand, touching it calmly to the cut on his head then whisking away the blood on his cheek."I just spent an unpleasant few minutes arguing with molly Weasley who was franticly trying to get us to end the train. She seemed to be under the picture that the barrier had sealed with you on the other side."

"It did."Harry nodded."That's how I hurt my head."

"But then. How did you get here ?"

"You honestly, really and truly don't want to know."

"Harry…"

"I jumped onto the train."

"YOU JUMPED ONTO THE TRAIN !"

"The barrier had sealed up ! There wasn ‘ t any other way ! And besides, I had a maneuver injury. I ‘ m not sure I was in an totally rational underframe of mind."

"That is beside the point Mr Potter, but after the stunt you pulled at the end of go yr I suppose I should not be entirely surprised."She straightened up"We will have to discourse this further in my office at Hogwarts. At the very to the lowest degree you will receive respective days detention."

"But if I have detention…"Harry grasped at this wheat"… then I ‘ m not expelled ? right ?"

"No Mr ceramist. Not this time."She began walking away down the train."Go to my office when we reach Hogwarts."

"After the categorization ?"

"As soon as you reach the castle."

"prof please…"Alright this is McGonagall, you know how to fool McGonagall. She acts knotty but she's all mushy inside."… my friend's sister's getting sorted today and she ‘ s worried about it. All her chum are in Gryffindor, whole kinsfolk really. I should be there for her. Please ?"

"Alright Mr Potter. After the sorting."McGonagall's eyes had gotten softer as Harry had spoken."But before the feast."

"Of line prof. I ‘ ll be there."

"And I will owl Mrs Weasley to inform her you are safe."She turned away and Harry was left alone once again in the corridor.

*

Harry eventually found the vulture compartment and slid the door open.

"Hello freindlies !"

"Harry !"Hermione's oral fissure dropped unresolved."Ron said you couldn ‘ t get onto the platform !"

"Couldn't."Harry noticed Ginny sitting quietly in the corner of the compartment. Ron had probably been told to continue an eye on her."Had to learn launching to the railroad train by… other means."

"Apparation ?"Padma had apparently also caught some sun over the summer, though it was less noticeable on her."You do know that's illegal."

"Couldn ‘ t care less. But no."

"Portkey ?"Neville seemed to think for a moment."Or a heather ?"

"No."Ron and Ginny spoke at the Lapplander time but Ginny backed down and Ron continued."Harry swore blind he ‘ d never touch another broom."

"Oh god I know what it is."Parvarti put her hand to her back talk and began shaking her head."I was talking to Lavender down the other end of the caravan. I thought she was joking."

"What is it ?"Hermione asked and the vulture seemed to pay heed waiting for the answers.

"You jumped onto the top of the train."The marauders turned as one to face at him.

"Maybe."None of his ally seemed to want to address.

"Harry ..."Neville broke the quiet."…you ‘ re crazy."

"I know."Harry sat as the other snapped out of their electrical shock and started speaking all at once."It ‘ s beginning to interest me."

*

The train meandered its farsighted journey through the Alfred Hawthorne and Harry ducked out of the conversations around him. His head teacher still hurt and he didn't have the Energy to entertain the great unwashed. He leaned against the stale window as rain started to mottle down, leaving trivial trails on the window pane. He closed his centre and lay there for a yearn while. Little track of piss, swirling, drowning.

"Harry."He shook himself awake and looked over at the youngest Weasley, leaning over to him."Are you alright ?"Harry looked around the compartment, the rest of his friends were still talking amongst themselves."You ‘ re face was all scrunched up like you were dreaming."

"Oh, are we there yet."Harry kind of wanted to get back to sopor. Even if it was to bad dreaming.

"Not for a while."Ginny bit her lip worriedly. Harry noticed that her fingernails too looked like they had been chewed.

"Worried ?"Harry grinned as she jerked in surprise. Harry waved his hand dismissively."Don't vexation. You ‘ ll love it there. Lessons are soft, specially appeal. Quaker everywhere. Plus if any of the Slytherins bother you we can bear witness some swift requital. We're feared by that house."

"That ‘ s variety of what I ‘ m worried about."Ginny glanced at the red boundary on Harry's robes.

"Ah."Thought Harry."My guess was right-hand, and I just made that up to soften up McGonagall."

"You ‘ re worried about the sorting."Harry said out brassy."Want to be Gryffindor ?"

"Yes. If I don't my brothers ‘ ll never forgive me."

"Then secern it so."Harry looked at the young girls startled expression."You know what the sorting hat is right ?"nod."Then tell it you want to be a Gryffindor. Don't take no for an resolution. It's your life, don't let a hat make decisions for you."Harry leaned back down and closed his eyes again.

*

"What the the pits ?"Ron voiced what they were all thinking as the marauders moved away from the train at Hogsmead. Ginny had left to take her fiddling boat ride and the six Quaker now stood in front of a line of carriages, each drawn by a thin scurfy horse with turn up leathery annex."Charlie told me the rig pulled themselves ?"

"Maybe they've changed since your crony day."Said Harry climbing into one of them."And besides…"He looked around"No one else seems to think anything's amiss."

"Still think this is weird."

*

Ginny Weasley stood fidgeting in straw man of the hall as the sorting hat finished its song. She was so spooky she wanted to burn her nails despite the face they were already worn to the centre. Well, at least she was a Weasley. Her name would be called near to last. She saw Harry on the Gryffindor table spinning three fork in the air in presence of him. She tried to take in his eye but failed, he was talking to his real protagonist. Everyone began to pay attending as Dumbledore stood up.

"Before we begin the sort I ‘ d like to announce two things. One is that, despite what this vacuous chair seems to indicate, we have found a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher."Ginny looked along the teacher table and saw a lank-haired professor face. She giggled, that must be prof Snape."Sadly he could not be here tonight as he has been managing the ecstasy of his belongings from overseas. Rest assured that he has my good sureness and he will introduce himself, probably at length…"did the lank-haired prof just grimace even more ?"…in your first lesson with him tomorrow. Now the second matter is that we will be doing this years sorting backwards."

"What ?"That prompted a murmuring about the residence hall.

"Yes, shout it an old mans go for. Now let us continue so that we can relish a bright feast after we are all done."Dumbledore sat back down but the murmuring hadn't ceased. McGonagall then took her place, the expression on her look clearly showing that the headmaster had not discussed this with her. She looked down at her paper and read…

"Weasley, Ginevra."

"What ! Oh…"Ginny thought as she walked out in front of the school."Backwards…"The hold up thing she saw before she pulled the hat down over her eyes were the predator turning to ascertain her.

"Another Weasley, seems I see those on almost a yearly basis. But a Weasley miss ? Why I haven't seen one like you in…"

"I chose Gryffindor."It seemed to her that the hat gasped loudly all around her.

"That's not quite how it works Weasley girl."

"No. That is how it works. Harry told me I could choose my business firm. I want to be in Gryffindor."

"Quite brave of you to just shout out it out it like that. Almost power me to pick Gryffindor."Shout it out ? …Oh god !

"Ah… You didn ‘ t realise you were speaking out loud ?"
Ginny lifted the brim of the hat just enough to see around the Hall. There was whispering everywhere, and every nerve had an identical phiz of offend amazement. Her optic searched out her buddy at the Gryffindor table. Walker Percy had buried his cheek in his hands and seemed to be trying to pretend it all wasn't happening, Fred and George were watching her with huge evil grins and Ron, Ron just looked flurry. Her optic flickered past tense Ron to Harry and their regard locked, then the boy did the oddest thing, he pulled up his sleeve, put his hand palm out and jab forward.

Follow through

Ginny glanced back at the teachers mesa, where every typeface mirrored the astonishment of the students. She glanced back to Harry and he jabbed again. Well, if she was gon na follow through then there was only one affair for it ...

"Yep."She said, trying to not give her voice break out in whimpers."Definitely Gryffindor."And with that she pulled the hat off her drumhead, set it down on the professorship and walked steadily towards Harry. She blanked out everything else in the hall, the voicelessness revolt, the teachers, everything. There was a bum next to Harry and she was sitting in it. She reached the workbench and hopped onto it, everyone was looking at her.

"check perfectly calm."Harry's vocalization but she swore his lips barely moved."expression straight ahead and don't give them any mansion they're getting to you."Easy for him to say ! She stayed exactly where she was as the silence crawled on. Then something touched her deal by her side. A candy of some sort. Without a countersign, and before the silent stares of the whole hall, she brought out, unwrapped and sedately ate a liquorice wand.

Every eye in the dorm turned as they heard McGonagall vindicated her throat then…

"capital of Jamaica, Victor."

It was as if the hallway had been holding its breather the total time and now let it out in a wave of chatter. Ginny felt someone bang her on the back and looked sideways into Harry's face.

"Thank you."Ginny breathed through the noise."I didn ‘ t know what to do. I didn't even realise I was talking out loud."

"Figured as much."Harry said glibly and offered her another liquorice wand."practiced affair I was paying attention, who the hell is Ginevra Weasley ?"

The minor boy with exquisitely waxed hairsbreadth and sunglasses apparently named Victor Kingston had reached the hat and was looking down at it worriedly. He looked like he was about to pick it up then looked at the table in the hall.

"Ravenclaw. I think I like Ravenclaw."

"On the addition side you may birth started a revolution."Harry had leaned in to talk to her again."On the subtraction McGonagall's gon na kill you…"

A vague looking young lady was now looking at the hat thoughtfully before declaring that she was going to"The red haired girl's house."

"Are you our new family mascot Ginny ?"Fred leaned over and grinned at his babe.

"We could clear up some new standard if you like."His twin leaned in from the other side of the table.

"Leave her twins."Harry was holding her by both shoulder joint away from her older sidekick."She tricked the hat, swindled McGonagall, caused a cross house rotation and all in front of the entire schoolhouse !"Harry grabbed her and hugged her from nates."You can ‘ t have her ! She ‘ s ours !"

"What's he talking about."Ginny didn't think she could grin More than she was as she shot the query at her sidekick across the table. But it was Parvarti Patil who answered her.

"He means that you ‘ re the type of person who goes for what they want and has the spunk to see it through and doesn ‘ t care what the rules say or who thinks what !"She stuck out her hand"Welcome to the Marauders."

By the end of the day Ginervrador House ( as it was briefly called ) had an unusually large division of number one class. Filch had to move some of the beds.

*

As Harry trudged back from his first hold with McGonagall that Nox ( polishing hundred and hundreds of brass buttons that were just going to be transfigured into beetles anyway ) he leaned on the paries near the portrait hole and closed his eyes for a second.

"Harry Potter sir !"

Harry opened his eye and immediately realised his head word injury must induce been worse than he thought. The Hallucination had retentive pointy ears and was wearing some sort of ragged fabric like a toga.

"Wha… ?"

"Harry Potter should never birth got on the train !"

"Who ?"Harry shook his head but the small digit remained"What and/or who are you ?"

"Dobby sir. Dobby the theater elf."The odd little creature bowed to him, its horn in almost touching the floor."Dobby is truly meritless to have caused trouble for such a slap-up whiz as Harry potter. But Harry potter must leave Hogwarts !"

"Caused trouble ? What trouble ?"Harry slid off the wall and stood straight. His baton was inconveniently tucked in an interior pocket, hard to hand. Was this creature a terror ?"What are you talking about ?"

"Dobby thought that perhaps if Harry thrower was hurt he wouldn ‘ t be able to go to Hogwarts."

"What precisely…"Harry heavily enunciated the intelligence"… are you talking about."

"Dobby thought that if the platform closed…"

"That was you !"Harry snapped forward like a shot and caught the little creature by the blazonry. The thing whined and tried to dampen away but he held on."I could have missed the bloody geartrain !"The creature nodded and whimpered a little more."I could induce been killed ! Wait… knockturn alley…"Harry remembered the pencil eraser bulwark. The elf stiffened again and he seemed to be avoiding Harry's eyes."That was you as well ! Why WHY !"He picked the affair up and didder it roughly."Are you trying to wipe out me ? Are you ?"The elf was truly crying now and Harry let him go. The hapless thing crawled away from Harry and sat on the floor, looking up at him with its huge, snap filled eyes. It looked like a kicked puppy.

"Look, I ‘ m sorry."Harry reached out towards the elf but it shied away."I didn ‘ t mean value to hurt you. The hospital wing isn ‘ t far, can I…"

"No !"Dobby's aspect became a masquerade of awe."Dobby can not be seen. Dobby ‘ s masters can never know. Dobby isn ‘ t hurt, Dobby gets far risky than this at family. Dobby's masters are…"the elf seemed to stiffen for a import then he rushed over to the wall and began hitting his caput on it hard.

"Bad Dobby ! Bad Dobby !"

"Wait ! Hey, stay !"Harry was torn between the need to hold back it hurting itself and trying to avoid grabbing it again since he'd obviously hurt him. He pulled his robe off, quickly balled it up and ( between oral sex saltation ) slid it between Dobby and the bulwark. The inadequate elf continued on for a couple of hits, apparently not realising he was now cushioned, then dropped to the trading floor.

"Thank you sir."The elf's voice was a little quaky."Dobby almost spoke ill of his masters."

"Dobby…"Harry saw a pauperism to tread carefully here."If, IF commemorate ! Hypothetically I asked who your masters were. Would you give birth to punish yourself ?"The elf quickly nodded.

"If I asked you to write it ?"nod.

"If I asked you to act it out like charades ?"The elf appeared to imagine about this, cocking its head to the side. Then he nodded.

"If I asked you to tell me why you want me to leave Hogwarts ?"the elf's question stayed very still."How much can you recite me without having to penalise yourself ?"

"Danger. Dobby knows that danger has come to Hogwarts. Death…"

"If I asked you whether your captain were involved ?"Dobby tensed like a rod."Just IF retrieve, if I asked you that would you experience to punish yourself ?"

Dobby nodded. Harry smiled, that meant his masters were involved. Otherwise why would he be forbidden to tell anyone ?

"And is I asked what form the danger would take away ?"

But at this Dobby shook his head furiously and put his hands over his ears. The poor elf began rocking backwards and forwards and keening.

"It ‘ s OK Dobby. You don't have to separate me."The rocking stopped and the elf uncurled.

"Harry ceramicist will leave Hogwarts ?"

"No. But I will be measured, very careful."

"Harry Potter must leave, Harry potter is in danger."

"I usually am Dobby."Harry leaned forward conspiratorially."That just makes it more fun."





Please revue, especially if you think it 's bad. Really, it 'll help me improve.


"Wonder if he ‘ s cute ?"Parvarti wondered quizzically as the second years wandered to the defence against the dark arts schoolroom. They had the class first menses Mon, so would be the first to assemble the new teacher."Dumbledore said he ‘ s foreign, so I bet he ‘ s cute."

"I just wonder if he ‘ ll be a trade good teacher."Hermione hung her head word a little."After a year of… of bad teaching we need to enamour up. We ‘ ll be lucky if we can hold it up in time for the OWLs."Harry could tell she had been about to say Quirrell, but had stopped herself. As far as he could tell none of his friends wanted to think about the upshot at the end of last yr.

"fountainhead, so long as he only has one face, I ‘ ll be happy."Harry stuck his hands behind his head and laughed."rightfield ?"The others stopped for a moment, then grinned with him."intellection so. Anyway…"Harry was the first to the threshold and pushed it open."… after Quirrell we can ‘ t do much spoilt can we ?"

"Pipsqueak ! Told you I ‘ d see you again !"

"No…"Harry looked across the room at Markus Maximus Michelson"…please no…"

"Take a arse up figurehead my good lad ! I can already tell this is going to be one of your favourite year !"The marauders filed in the front line row and the other student moved in behind them. All of them looking a little apprehensively at the booming muscled figure in social movement of them.

"The name's Professor Markus Triple-M Michelson. I ‘ ll be your vindication against the iniquity arts teacher this year. intellection I ‘ d guide a rupture from the globe-trotting to kick the bucket on some of my cognition to the adjacent generation !"He swept his hat off and spun it across the way, it landed neatly on top of a suit of armor."Oh and by the way the Ms stand for Maximus, Mighty and Magesto but they might as well remain firm for Muscular, Magical and near of all Masculine !"He laughed and put his fists on his hip joint."So, on to the Matriculation !"He grabbed the register off the table and began yelling out names, variously chuckling at the odd names and winking at any girl who answered him quickly. When he got to Potter he said

"Know you ‘ re here Pipsqueak ! Don't penury to even ask !"then went on. Harry dreaded looking backwards but did so anyway. Near the back Draco Malfoy looked at him and mouthed the word pipsqueek then sneered. Harry groaned, he ‘ d never hear the end of this.

When the register was finished the professor strode up to the front of the class. To the shock of all watching he slammed one fist back into the chalkboard. countersign jumped off the airfoil as if they had been jolted into being.

"Duelling !"The professor said and indeed this was the title on the board."Who here has cast something harsh than jelly-legs at another wizard ?"

A few men went up around the class, including Harry's. Neville gulped and tried to hold his paw as low as possible, but Padma took it and jerked it up.

"You there !"Markus pointed to Neville. Padma giggled."What have you used ?"

"full phase of the moon soundbox Bind sir."Neville appeared to be wishing he had a hole to cringe into.

"Good ! Good solid go ! Incantation, for those who don't know is Petrificus Totalus. And who did you use it on ?"

"McGonagall."

"Mc…McGonagall ?"A uneasy titter of laughter ran around the classroom."Right, OK. Um… Anyone else ?"He pointed at Harry,"How bout you pipsqueak ?"

"Acerbus cuspis."

"The pain-spear spell."The instructor stopped moving and turned back towards Harry."A jinx originating in the fourth dimension of the inquisition, considered by many to be Dark conjuring trick ?"

"Er…"

"And who did you use it on ?"

"Quirrell."

"right field OK."Michelson shook his head."Before we dredge up any more assaults against Hogwarts teachers lets start on something else. Who here knows what a shell charm is ?"Many of the hands went down ( though not of course, Hermione's )"Right ! we'll start there."

*

The class let out an minute later. Many of the educatee had the after-effects of tike hex and hexes on them from when their cuticle hadn't been good enough or when their opposition had been too good. Professor Michelson seemed to think all of it extremely funny and laughed outrageously at every furiously-dancing, uncontrollably-coughing or unnaturally-warty pupil before cancelling their affliction and sending them on their way. Half way through the social class he had picked Harry to attest some more serious hex to the course. Harry ‘ s harbor spell wasn ‘ t nearly commodity enough and he ended up suffering for every piece that winged his way.

"I hate him ! I hate that muscle-head bastard !"Harry ranted as they walked to story of conjuration."He knows my name and he keeps calling me pipsqueak ! He singles me out ! He will pay for this ! Right ?"

The other marauders kept a dependable distance, giggling behind their manpower.

"You know Harry, he seems to be a pretty good teacher."Hermione said. Harry rounded on her."I mean, some grownup wizards can't do shield charms and he managed to get half the class doing them in just one lesson."

"He keeps calling me suddenly !"Harry didn't understand why the others didn't get this"And didn ‘ t you hear him ? Mighty, Majestic, Mouldering… He loves himself !"

"Well…"Parvarti chipped in"He is cute."Harry's aspect became stony and dark."And he… winked at me."

"You ‘ ll see."Harry turned and began back towards the account of thaumaturgy classroom"You ‘ ll all see ! After you meet him a few fourth dimension you ‘ ll agree with me about Markus Mary Michelson !"

*

But they didn't.

defense lawyers Against the nighttime artistry quickly became the most front forward to lesson by the entire school. Every few lessons Markus Michelson would enclose a new combat go and body of work with them, pulling them with laugh, belittlement and boost, to perfect the trance. From disarming and stunning through to cuticle and self-defense he taught everything with an identical jest and very arrogant attitude. Harry remained heavy and silent in these lessons especially when the inevitable happened and he was called up to assist demonstrate a new spell. He had tried to get the piranha riled up to play a antic on prof Michelson but they had flatly refused. Harry had to content himself with dropping potion on a group off Slytherins that gave them oozing boiling point. It had been quiet complex, whoever the pus hit when the boils exploded developed them as well.

It was on his way back from heavy detention that he heard someone yell. Harry saw a first gear class rush past him upstairs and followed him, towards the stochasticity. A mathematical group of scholar were gathered on the tierce flooring. Harry pushed through them without a view and stopped at the social movement to see a hideous good deal. Painted on the wall in what looked like rip were the words…

Arise those of ancient bloodline ! Cast out the impure from this house of our fathers ! Be avowedly to your bloodline ! Destroy the enemies of the heir ! This is the call to blazon !

Harry glanced to his side, lined up following to one another stood a group of Slytherins. Malfoy, Goyle and flint stood position by side of meat, each wearing indistinguishable expressions of Glee.

On the floor in forepart of the letters crouched poor victor Kingston, the kid who'd liked the look of Ravenclaw, curled up in fear behind his sunglasses.

Harry moved closer on instinct and put his finger to the boys neck.

"What are you doing ?"A voice behind him hissed but he ignored them.

"He doesn ‘ t have a pulse."Harry murmured, trying to strike his fingers around for a honorable feel."No pulse. Get Madam Pomfrey ! Get Dumbledore !"

"Both are here Harry."Harry looked up to see the Headmaster manner of walking to the edge of the crowd. He stood back gratefully as the school nurse went to work.

"Is he… dead ?"An Old Ravenclaw at the edge of the circle asked and a whisper of breathless electric shock swept the gang.

"No."Professor Dumbledore said calmly"He appears to have been petrified."

"Will he recover ?"Harry noticed that the Ravenclaw was a prefect, she had probably known winner.

"Yes girl Clearwater. I think so, in time."stress seemed to go out of the group but the prefect pressed on.

"Professor…"She glanced up at the writing on the wall."superior was a muggleborn, do you think that there ‘ s any danger ?"

"I am indisputable I can hope every bookman here to act in a way that does not dishonour the good figure of this school."

"Yeah right."Harry thought and glanced back at Malfoy and the former Slytherins."Seems a war's been called. mass are already choosing sides."

*

The maiden attack happened just the side by side dawn. Hannah abbot was found with a wiped out arm at the bottom of the dance step leading down to the Hufflepuff common elbow room. Her bag and books strewn haphazardly at the top. She'd been coming up from the cellar early to get breakfast and been pushed back down.

Professor sprout took her to the hospital annex. But no one had seen what happened, not even Hannah, and no issue how much they asked the prof couldn't find who had done it.

The succeeding day a group of Slytherins cornered a maiden twelvemonth in one of the upper berth corridors and began hexing him over and over. Only Flitwick happening past tense had stopped worse happening.

In a subject of weeks it was no long safe for a muggleborn or half-blood educatee to be out on their own. Madam Pomfrey was being worked of her human foot by the stream of injuries coming into her guardianship.

Then, one first light, Oliver Wood the Gryffindor Quidditch chieftain was petrified in the prefects can. The instructor had tried to keep a lid on it but the Son that had been scrawled on the wall somehow got out.

Mudbloods and blood-traitors cower in fearfulness ! The heir of Slytherin homecoming and the chamber has been opened. uprise up around his monetary standard ! Spill the spoilt rake on the ground !

"It ‘ s getting worse."Harry said as they walked towards their future grade."I mean just look !"He gestured out the window.

There was a powwow of students scurrying along the paries and slipping in a door. A instant later a group of Slytherins hurried into the court with their with verge out.

"Harry no !"Harry was aiming his wand out the windowpane but Hermione jerked his arm back."If we start fighting back affair will intensify ! We have to let the teachers handle it."

"They can ‘ t."Padma said dully as they passed the Defence Against the night Arts classroom"Not on this scale."Her sister nodded silently. Her normally cheerful mood dulled.

"Padma ‘ s right Hermione."Ron shook his foreland."Things are just getting worse and besides, we can ‘ t afford to lose any more Quidditch players."

"Is that all you care about !"

"I just meant…"

"Shut up."Harry snapped back at them irritably."Quidditch is about as very much use as you two bickering when affair are going to hell all around us. We ‘ ve got to do something."

"But what ?"Padma said, shaking her head."This isn ‘ t like Quirrell Harry. There ‘ s no evil genius behind it. Its half the school, trying the kill the other half and we don't know till too late which is which."

"With some we got a pretty good idea."Harry murmured darkly as they passed a group of Slytherins. The marauder curled around Hermione like a human carapace as they passed and only pass around back out after they had gone. A second later Harry's wand vibrated in his pocket."Damn it !"Harry motioned the others to quiet and the sound of hexing could be heard above them. They broke into a run towards the nearest stair.

*

"Leave him alone !"Ginny's own voice sounded shrill in her ears. She stepped in front her injured booster and tried to swallow her fear.

"What ? Protecting your mudblood fellow traitor ?"Marcus Flint stepped out of the gang of Slytherins surrounding her and Colin."footstep aside for me. I ‘ d rather not spill wizard parentage, even your kinfolk, unless I have to."

"Mico Harry."Ginny whispered, holding her wand out in nominal head of her. Hoping he was in range."Mico Harry."

"Your boyfriend doesn ‘ t look up to much."flint said stepping closer and eyeing the quivering Gryffindor."Maybe you want a existent man ?"

"Mico Ron. Mico Hermione."

"What's that ?"Flint leant forward to find out."That supposed to be a hex ? Ha ! What ‘ s it do ?"Flint laughed and his age group around him started laughing too.

"It summons daimon !"

As Marcus'head jerked up a bludgeoning hex struck him in the chest. He was thrown back and his ally drew their verge as the marauders rushed them from the stairwell.

*

Harry was the first to intromit that he probably wasn't destined to be a duellist. His first smash against the seventh year had been lucky and he now found himself shielding for his life sentence in the eye of a war-zone. Other students from other planetary house had been drawn in or joined in or been pushed in by the crew and now the corridor was filled with flashing lights and cries of pain.

"You ‘ re suddenly Potter. Oh you ‘ re dead."Flint advanced on him and Harry ducked behind a statue as the big Slytherins unchurch smashed into the ground near his feet. A secondly one smacked into the gemstone champion and it began to topple over. Harry scrambled out as it crashed to the floor and jabbed his wand at his assailant.

"Expelliarmus !"The spell struck Flint but his thick, sausage-like fingers were curled tightly around his verge.

"Confringo !"Harry leapt out of the way of the blasting curse word and fell badly on his shoulder. He threw his own back in answer and the snake stumbled backwards. Harry jumped to his foundation and shot a bludgeoning hex only to receive it bound off a cuticle and savor him in the chest. Tumbling backwards he landed on his book binding among the rubble. His sceptre skittered off along the story. A shadow fell over him and a huge booted foot slammed onto his chest, holding him down.

"howdy Potter."Flint River pointed his wand at Harry's brass."Now I ‘ m gona have some fun."

A minute later Flint River was thrown off him as a span wave of light shot through the corridor, forcibly pulling opponents apart.

Harry's hired hand darted out and grabbed his scepter while he looked for the source of the spell. His middle found Albus Dumbledore standing at the end of the corridor with several former instructor behind him.

"Is any student here injured or in need of the hospital wing ?"His voice was stony as he eyed the gather students. A few students raised their handwriting. Dumbledore nodded and turned to speak to the instructor behind him."Please see them there."No one spoke as the wounded were gathered up. Harry saw Markus Albert Abraham Michelson handing Ginny her bag with one hired man while picking Colin up in his other. As Professor McGonagall walked past him he caught her oculus for a moment, they were low temperature, harsh and disappointed. When the last of the hurt were gone the master turned back to the remaining students.

"Now can anyone tell me why this happened ? Why Hogwarts students saw fit to turn this corridor into a battleground ?"He looked over the scholarly person and Harry realised that he and Flint were powerful out in the middle, the two of them surrounded by emptiness. Somehow the ringleaders had been singled out."Why pupil who I thought I could trust to act in good religion instead acted like sucker ?"

No one spoke. No one wanted to draw tending to themselves.

"You will all revert to your common rooms now. Tomorrow dawning you will all come to the great hall where you will spend your Sabbatum in silence. You will return the day after that and for many weekends to come until I decide that the peace and quiet of the school has returned. Your parents will also be informed of your disappointing behaviour."Dumbledore gestured at the children."Go off now. Not you Harry !"Harry was drawn back by Dumbledore's voice. Marcus Flint smirked at him with his troll-like smile and slinked off. Harry followed the master in quiet as he turned and walked off through the school. He stopped before a gargoyle on the second flooring.

"sherbet Lemon."The childish parole seemed oddly out of kilter with the position. They remained silent as they were raised up by the staircase and walked out into the Headmasters government agency.

Harry glanced around in wonder at the odd silver auto, many moving or making diffuse audio, filling tables around the edge of the bureau. His oculus were drawn to the pole behind the desk where a banal looking red bird sat. Even as Harry watched another of its plumage fell off and twirled towards the story.

Dumbledore caught it before it hit and slipped it into an in spite of appearance pocket of his gown. He turned and sat behind the heavy desk. Saying cypher, he regarded the student before him over steepled digit.

Harry knew that with any other instructor this was the time to be quiet and attend guilty, but with Dumbledore he might actually be serious off explaining.

"Professor."He began and licked his dry lips. Dumbledore's eyes flicked to his."I heard the sounds of somebody being attacked nearby and I went to see whether I could avail. When we… I got there Marcus Flint and some other Slytherins had the first years surrounded."He couldn't tell what effect this was having on the Headmaster. His expression was mysterious."I fired a charm to make them back off and they responded, I never thought that so many other students would be drawn in or that it would snowball like this. I ‘ m sorry."

"You cast the first hex ?"

"They had been beating up Colin Creevey before we got there."Harry felt too guilty to lie."But I threw the first combat patch yes."

"respective bookman are injured Harry."idol teeth the ragged wench was eyeballing him as well."And there was some morphologic equipment casualty to the schoolhouse. respective house painting were damaged and statues broken."

"I was just trying to help sir. I didn't want any of that."

"And with this aura of reverence already around the schoolhouse you have given everyone another intellect to detest each other."Harry felt very little in straw man of the continued stare."Worse, you have escalated this problem with your natural action. next meter citizenry will be even quicker to draw baton in angriness. Next time the hex will be worse and masses could be seriously injured Harry, do you sympathise that ?"

"Yes sir."Harry thought of Marcus Flint's smirk. future fourth dimension they wouldn't wait to taunt people.

"Today you chose to fight hatred with anger and furiousness. That way will always breed further hatred do you understand that ?"

"Yes sir."

"See that you do not repeat this mistake."

"Yes sir. Thank you."Harry walked out of the office. All the way to the room access he could palpate the old mans eyes on his binding.

*

Harry walked back slowly to the Gryffindor common room. By chance the path took him back past the battleground. Some attempt had been made to clean up but the place still felt damaged. great lump were missing from the Stone and the break off house painting had all been taken down. The passage was bare. Harry saw drift at the other end and tensed for a instant, then relaxed as he saw red hair and lentigo.

"Ginny ?"

"Harry."The little missy moved up the corridor towards him. Stopping just a little way down from him."I ‘ m so sorry I got you into difficulty. I shouldn ‘ t have micod for you. Hermione said you could be expelled."

"If I was expelled every time Hermione said I would be I ‘ d be some sort o'world record."Harry walked up to his New recruit and ruffled her hair."And I taught you that call exactly so you would forebode me if you were ever in trouble. All this…"Harry waved his paw at the damage and shook his brain."Not your shift. But why are you back here ? Shouldn ‘ t you be in the common room."

"I was… waiting… for you."Ginny glanced to the left and bit her lip.

"Remind me to instruct you to lie convincingly Ginny."Harry looked into her eyes. There was a surprising amount of concern there."Why don't you want to tell me ? You don't have to you know."

"doomed something."Ginny's voice became small-scale with each word she said."A diary. Must have fallen out in the fight."

"Your journal ‘ s missing ?"Harry shook his head."Did you write anything bad in there ?"

"Not my diary."

"Whose ? Nicking individual's diary is all very vulture of you but…"

"I found it in my books before I even got here. Thought maybe it got allow there."

"Who ‘ s was it ?"

"The battlefront said it was Tom Marvolo Riddle ‘ s."Ginny was acting almost like when he'd first met her.

"And the bit you ‘ re not telling me is…"He hated doing this but she was obviously hiding something.

"It was… special."Ginny seemed to shrink into the flat coat a footling."It spoke to me."

"rung ? It could speak ?"

"No, he wrote back when I wrote him things."Ginny curled up on the floor and hugged her wooden leg up to her chest."It was clean but it wrote back. He was so nice. I had someone to blab out to finally."

"Someone to speak to ?"Harry scratched his head. What did she think ?"You have six brothers don't you ?"

"I can't talk of the town to them."Ginny began to sob a little."They don't understand. They laugh at me. Tom understood. And now he ‘ s gone. What if soul else picks him up ? What if he tells them the clobber I wrote ?"Ginny looked up shocked and dash and suddenly broke down into crying. Harry just stood there, he didn't know what the infernal region to do.

"I mess everything up."Ginny gulped between sob."I lost Tom and everyone ‘ s going to read him ! I messed up the sorting ! I started a fight and almost got you expelled !"

"Ginny listen to me."Harry tried grabbing her articulatio humeri but she wouldn't expression at him. With his other helping hand he cupped her face and brought it up so he could see her eyes."Tom sounds like a expert admirer, I ‘ m for sure you can trust him to keep your closed book. I mean, former people must have had the diary before you and Tom never told you any of their secret right ?"

Merlin's beard, he didn't know what he was doing. What did he know about comforting hoi polloi ?

"And as for this."He pointed around the corridor."All this we can fix. We can fix everything, don't worry. I ‘ ll assistance you."He was babbling, as if she'd care about the corridor.

"And…"Ginny had stopped crying at to the lowest degree."You don't hate me ?"Harry shook his head.

"Only when you cry. Gryffindors don't cry."He regretted it as soon as he said it, that wasn't what she needed to hear. As he had often done before Harry asked himself where Hermione was when he needed her. She would birth known what to say. He smudged a arm against Ginny's cheeks to get rid of the rent. At least he could do that right.

"semen on. Lets get back to the vulgar room."He stood up and held out a hand to her."And as for having a booster to speak to…"He pulled her into a harsh hug then let her go."… what am I a unknown ?"

"Harry."Ginny was looking up at him now."Why couldn't I have had you as a brother instead of Ron ?"

"Because I ‘ m not ginger and my skin can take a tan. Why'd you ask ?"But Ginny didn't answer him.

"She's probably distraught."Harry thought, putting an arm over her shoulder and walking with her towards Gryffindor tower."I ‘ m no ripe at this form of thing."