Reality Check
1. Trains and Chocolate Frogs
The loud whistle shrieked somewhere down the tracks and with slow, steadily increasing movements the wheels of the Hogwarts Express began to carry them off to their sixth year at the renowned school of wizardry.
Harry Potter watched as his friend Hermione tried to help Ron fit an overly large suitcase into the overhead compartment of the train, with the pairs desperate shoving making little progress as far as Harry could see.
"Oh give it up Hermione," said Ron standing back as she was attempted a run at the now deformed piece of luggage. "It's hopeless, face it."
"No...I think...I've nearly...got it..." she insisted between violent shoves. "Why doesn't my magic work? A simple Fit-all spell should have had this sorted out from the beginning."
"Oh, well it used to be Fred's you see," Replied Ron as he gloomily returned to his seat. "Mum had to spend extra to get him and George those magic-proof ones after they turned the old ones into turkeys and set them on Filch."
Harry nearly choked on his Pumpkin Juice as he envisioned Filch hobbling in fear from a pair of Fred and George's killer turkeys.
Hermione finally slumped down beside Ron, crossing her arms and muttering something about unnecessarily small luggage compartments while the bag remained forgotton and immovably stuck overhead. Ron ignored her and produced the huge tome titled 'Potions: The Bad, the Gruesome and the Stuff You'll wish we never Illustrated' from his tattered bookbag.
"How do you make a Hair-Raiser potion again?" he asked, flicking through the torn and stained pages that came to all books forced to sit on the desk during one of Snape's 'cauldron-testings'. "Ear wax isn't it? Or was it urine of newt?"
"Neither. Ron where have you been?! We spent two weeks on them before the summer!" flustered Hermione. She put on an impatient voice that was eerily like Professor McGonagall. "Its on page fifty-seven, next to the Monobrow Brew."
While Hermione dictated to an increasingly irritated Ron the exact measurements of the ingredients that make a perfect Hair-Raiser potion Harry tuned her words out and began to think of how unsettling this summer had been and how good it would be to get back to Hogwarts again.
He could still hear Aunt Petunia's high-pitched screams echoing down the corridors as she sobbed into Uncle Vernons shoulder in the pristine white of the hospital room. Dudleys sallow skin mimiced the pale sheets under which he lay. His gluttonous sides nearly hung over the edge of the worryingly frail-looking structure of the infirmary bed. A tray of rations sat cold and untouched at his side. His piggy eyes were glazed and lost in their own world. Harry thought this must be a world in which you are always falling, until the light of the hospital room above grows distant and your mothers muffled wailing grows fainter until it finally dies.
This was where Dudley was, a world of darkness. His father stood in shreds as he patted his wife's head blindly. He was staring disbelievingly at a point outside the hospital room. A point that seemed to lie very, very far away.
The hosital doctors wore paper smiles as they gave Aunt Petunia some pills that Dudley was to take three times a day. A lady in silver bangles wrote out the weekly appointments to Miss Newman, the hospitals own dietician. The vast series of liposuction and strict dieting was the hospitals last- ditch attempt at making Dudley lose weight.
Seeing Dudley's pale, silent face Harry could no longer bring himself to make fun of his cousin. It was strange how he used to do it such an off- hand manner. He never thought it would come to this. Even his Uncle and Aunt had forgotten to hate Harry in the months after. Harry thought they probably hated themselves too much now to even remember their nephew existed. It was very lonely and the damp, sad air was choking him everywhere he went. It was good to be back on the way to the chattering hallways of Hogwarts after a summer of silence.
Harry shuddered as Pigs squawking brought him back to his seat in the rocking carriage. Someone was opening the carriage door and all three of them stopped to see who it was.
The frail, familiar woman smiled kindly at them as she pushed the overburdened sweet cart into the carriage to where they sat.
'Anything off the cart dears?'
'No thankyou,' said Hermione while Harry picked off a pile of sweets for them all to share.
'Here,' Ron said gruffly as he pushed Harry a handful of knuts in a demanding fashion. Harry knew there was no convincing the proud Ron otherwise and so added his own share and gave it to the smiling lady. She thanked them and wheeled the cart off into the next carriage from which they could hear the hysterical screams of first years and a cry of 'Hey careful! Dont squish him!'.
Harry opened a box of Berty Botts Every-Flavoured Beans and studied a specled yellow one intently while Ron reached over and grabbed a pile of Chocolate Frogs.
'Say, how come you aren't eating anything Hermione?' asked Ron between a mouthful of Chocolate Frog. Hemione sniffed and stiffened slightly. 'I'm surprised you can even look at chocolate after hearing what happened to Harry's cousin. Besides..' she cautioned slowly. 'I'm on a diet.'
'What for?!' roared Ron. 'I mean I know you're a bit chubby round the cheeks but..'
'Ron!' she exclaimed horrified.
'Well I'm just saying- it doesn't mean you need to go on a DIET for goodness sake! Honestly! Just eat a bloody Chocolate Frog,' he shoved one from his pile onto Hermione's lap.
She simply looked at it with disgust and was about to throw it back when Harry interrupted.
'Seriously Hermione, you look fine. Don't do this just because of..' he quickly fell silent and Hermione looked swiftly down at her feet and she too fell into a still silence.
'I don't. I don't do it because of him,' she murmured and attempted a false chuckle as she looked up at Harry. 'I mean he couldn't even say my name properly.' But her mask fell as a tear rolled down her face. Harry leaned over and squeezed her hand comfortingly as Ron reassured her gently. 'He isn't worth it Hermione. He isn't.'
'I know,' she sobbed softly, lowering her head as the tears continued to fall. 'I know.'
Ron stiffened as Harry drew in and wiped the tears from her cheeks with one hand. She raised her head in thanks and he smiled back in kind sympathy.
'Then have a Chocolate Frog,' he said gently, re-offering her the one in her lap. 'It'll make you feel better.'
She nodded numbly and this time took the frog without argument. Harry withdrew back to his seat and decided they better change the subject.
'So Ron,' he said, turning back to his slightly pink friend. 'Hows Fred and George?'
'Oh they've been really busy these last few weeks,' he replied, the pinkness retreated from his cheeks as he relaxed into bringing news of his family. 'They've been working hard to get the joke shop set up. Hey, we could visit it on the next Hogsmeade trip! I bet it's amazing and Fred and George can give us discounts!'
'Where in Hogsmeade is it?' Harry asked.
'Right next to the Post Office. Great location Fred told me. It was really nice of Lupin to get them it.'
'I thought they had to pay him back though', Hermione joined in.
'Yeah,' said Ron. 'But Fred told me the only way Lupin could have got it as cheap as he said he did was if he put an insanity curse on the owner.'
The carriage door suddenly slammed open and they jumped to their feet angrily as Malfoy entered, followed as usual by Crabbe and Goyle.
'Well if it isn't our old friend Harry Potter and the gay squad,' sneered Malfoy while Crabbe and Goyle guffawed loudly behind him.
'What do you want Malfoy?' demanded Harry heatedly.
'Nothing that concerns you Potter,' spat Malfoy as Crabbe and Goyle fell silent. 'Maybe you haven't noticed but I'm afraid you're not the only person on this train. In fact we happen to be searching for our good friend Longbottom. Haven't seen the twerp scurrying about anywhere have you?'
'What do you want Neville for?' growled Ron.
'That's my business Weasly. You'd best mind your own if you know what's good for you,' Malfoy shot back at him.
'Well then take you're business to the next carriage,' snapped Hermione. 'Because we haven't seen Neville either.'
Malfoy glanced at her with a revolted look as Crabbe and Goyle clenched their fists threateningly. 'You heard Mudblood,' Malfoy sneered. 'Let's go.'
With that they stormed out into the next carriage. Harry and Hermione both had to hold Ron back from puching Malfoy on his way out the door.
'Bastard,' Ron whispered.
When they were sure Ron had calmed down enough to let him go, Harry and Hermione slowly released their grip on him.
'I'm off to find Neville,' Hermione said proptly. 'Someone's got to warn him Malfoy's on his tail.' She turned and rushed out the door and into the first-years carriage.
Ron sighed and sat back into his chair, punching the armrest as he did. Harry still stood with an odd look on his face. He thought he had seen something fall from Hermione's pocket on her way out the door. He bent down to pick it up from the carriage floor and noticed it was the Chocolate Frog he gave her earlier.
Unopened.
1. Trains and Chocolate Frogs
The loud whistle shrieked somewhere down the tracks and with slow, steadily increasing movements the wheels of the Hogwarts Express began to carry them off to their sixth year at the renowned school of wizardry.
Harry Potter watched as his friend Hermione tried to help Ron fit an overly large suitcase into the overhead compartment of the train, with the pairs desperate shoving making little progress as far as Harry could see.
"Oh give it up Hermione," said Ron standing back as she was attempted a run at the now deformed piece of luggage. "It's hopeless, face it."
"No...I think...I've nearly...got it..." she insisted between violent shoves. "Why doesn't my magic work? A simple Fit-all spell should have had this sorted out from the beginning."
"Oh, well it used to be Fred's you see," Replied Ron as he gloomily returned to his seat. "Mum had to spend extra to get him and George those magic-proof ones after they turned the old ones into turkeys and set them on Filch."
Harry nearly choked on his Pumpkin Juice as he envisioned Filch hobbling in fear from a pair of Fred and George's killer turkeys.
Hermione finally slumped down beside Ron, crossing her arms and muttering something about unnecessarily small luggage compartments while the bag remained forgotton and immovably stuck overhead. Ron ignored her and produced the huge tome titled 'Potions: The Bad, the Gruesome and the Stuff You'll wish we never Illustrated' from his tattered bookbag.
"How do you make a Hair-Raiser potion again?" he asked, flicking through the torn and stained pages that came to all books forced to sit on the desk during one of Snape's 'cauldron-testings'. "Ear wax isn't it? Or was it urine of newt?"
"Neither. Ron where have you been?! We spent two weeks on them before the summer!" flustered Hermione. She put on an impatient voice that was eerily like Professor McGonagall. "Its on page fifty-seven, next to the Monobrow Brew."
While Hermione dictated to an increasingly irritated Ron the exact measurements of the ingredients that make a perfect Hair-Raiser potion Harry tuned her words out and began to think of how unsettling this summer had been and how good it would be to get back to Hogwarts again.
He could still hear Aunt Petunia's high-pitched screams echoing down the corridors as she sobbed into Uncle Vernons shoulder in the pristine white of the hospital room. Dudleys sallow skin mimiced the pale sheets under which he lay. His gluttonous sides nearly hung over the edge of the worryingly frail-looking structure of the infirmary bed. A tray of rations sat cold and untouched at his side. His piggy eyes were glazed and lost in their own world. Harry thought this must be a world in which you are always falling, until the light of the hospital room above grows distant and your mothers muffled wailing grows fainter until it finally dies.
This was where Dudley was, a world of darkness. His father stood in shreds as he patted his wife's head blindly. He was staring disbelievingly at a point outside the hospital room. A point that seemed to lie very, very far away.
The hosital doctors wore paper smiles as they gave Aunt Petunia some pills that Dudley was to take three times a day. A lady in silver bangles wrote out the weekly appointments to Miss Newman, the hospitals own dietician. The vast series of liposuction and strict dieting was the hospitals last- ditch attempt at making Dudley lose weight.
Seeing Dudley's pale, silent face Harry could no longer bring himself to make fun of his cousin. It was strange how he used to do it such an off- hand manner. He never thought it would come to this. Even his Uncle and Aunt had forgotten to hate Harry in the months after. Harry thought they probably hated themselves too much now to even remember their nephew existed. It was very lonely and the damp, sad air was choking him everywhere he went. It was good to be back on the way to the chattering hallways of Hogwarts after a summer of silence.
Harry shuddered as Pigs squawking brought him back to his seat in the rocking carriage. Someone was opening the carriage door and all three of them stopped to see who it was.
The frail, familiar woman smiled kindly at them as she pushed the overburdened sweet cart into the carriage to where they sat.
'Anything off the cart dears?'
'No thankyou,' said Hermione while Harry picked off a pile of sweets for them all to share.
'Here,' Ron said gruffly as he pushed Harry a handful of knuts in a demanding fashion. Harry knew there was no convincing the proud Ron otherwise and so added his own share and gave it to the smiling lady. She thanked them and wheeled the cart off into the next carriage from which they could hear the hysterical screams of first years and a cry of 'Hey careful! Dont squish him!'.
Harry opened a box of Berty Botts Every-Flavoured Beans and studied a specled yellow one intently while Ron reached over and grabbed a pile of Chocolate Frogs.
'Say, how come you aren't eating anything Hermione?' asked Ron between a mouthful of Chocolate Frog. Hemione sniffed and stiffened slightly. 'I'm surprised you can even look at chocolate after hearing what happened to Harry's cousin. Besides..' she cautioned slowly. 'I'm on a diet.'
'What for?!' roared Ron. 'I mean I know you're a bit chubby round the cheeks but..'
'Ron!' she exclaimed horrified.
'Well I'm just saying- it doesn't mean you need to go on a DIET for goodness sake! Honestly! Just eat a bloody Chocolate Frog,' he shoved one from his pile onto Hermione's lap.
She simply looked at it with disgust and was about to throw it back when Harry interrupted.
'Seriously Hermione, you look fine. Don't do this just because of..' he quickly fell silent and Hermione looked swiftly down at her feet and she too fell into a still silence.
'I don't. I don't do it because of him,' she murmured and attempted a false chuckle as she looked up at Harry. 'I mean he couldn't even say my name properly.' But her mask fell as a tear rolled down her face. Harry leaned over and squeezed her hand comfortingly as Ron reassured her gently. 'He isn't worth it Hermione. He isn't.'
'I know,' she sobbed softly, lowering her head as the tears continued to fall. 'I know.'
Ron stiffened as Harry drew in and wiped the tears from her cheeks with one hand. She raised her head in thanks and he smiled back in kind sympathy.
'Then have a Chocolate Frog,' he said gently, re-offering her the one in her lap. 'It'll make you feel better.'
She nodded numbly and this time took the frog without argument. Harry withdrew back to his seat and decided they better change the subject.
'So Ron,' he said, turning back to his slightly pink friend. 'Hows Fred and George?'
'Oh they've been really busy these last few weeks,' he replied, the pinkness retreated from his cheeks as he relaxed into bringing news of his family. 'They've been working hard to get the joke shop set up. Hey, we could visit it on the next Hogsmeade trip! I bet it's amazing and Fred and George can give us discounts!'
'Where in Hogsmeade is it?' Harry asked.
'Right next to the Post Office. Great location Fred told me. It was really nice of Lupin to get them it.'
'I thought they had to pay him back though', Hermione joined in.
'Yeah,' said Ron. 'But Fred told me the only way Lupin could have got it as cheap as he said he did was if he put an insanity curse on the owner.'
The carriage door suddenly slammed open and they jumped to their feet angrily as Malfoy entered, followed as usual by Crabbe and Goyle.
'Well if it isn't our old friend Harry Potter and the gay squad,' sneered Malfoy while Crabbe and Goyle guffawed loudly behind him.
'What do you want Malfoy?' demanded Harry heatedly.
'Nothing that concerns you Potter,' spat Malfoy as Crabbe and Goyle fell silent. 'Maybe you haven't noticed but I'm afraid you're not the only person on this train. In fact we happen to be searching for our good friend Longbottom. Haven't seen the twerp scurrying about anywhere have you?'
'What do you want Neville for?' growled Ron.
'That's my business Weasly. You'd best mind your own if you know what's good for you,' Malfoy shot back at him.
'Well then take you're business to the next carriage,' snapped Hermione. 'Because we haven't seen Neville either.'
Malfoy glanced at her with a revolted look as Crabbe and Goyle clenched their fists threateningly. 'You heard Mudblood,' Malfoy sneered. 'Let's go.'
With that they stormed out into the next carriage. Harry and Hermione both had to hold Ron back from puching Malfoy on his way out the door.
'Bastard,' Ron whispered.
When they were sure Ron had calmed down enough to let him go, Harry and Hermione slowly released their grip on him.
'I'm off to find Neville,' Hermione said proptly. 'Someone's got to warn him Malfoy's on his tail.' She turned and rushed out the door and into the first-years carriage.
Ron sighed and sat back into his chair, punching the armrest as he did. Harry still stood with an odd look on his face. He thought he had seen something fall from Hermione's pocket on her way out the door. He bent down to pick it up from the carriage floor and noticed it was the Chocolate Frog he gave her earlier.
Unopened.