CHAPTER TWO
Harry Potter
Cissy couldn't believe what she just heard. A witch? What was that supposed to mean? That she could shoot fire balls out of her hands? That she could change herself into an animal when she wanted? Dumbledore seemed to read her mind. 'At Hogwarts,' he said, 'you'll learn how to use magic with a wand, how to use magic on yourself and how to brew magic potions. You also learn how to control your magic and the origins of magic.' He leaned back and took something else from his pocket. 'This is the letter with more important information about the school. It also contains the train ticket you will need to arrive at school. Instructions can be found in the letter.' Cissy quickly asked a question before Dumbledore could continue. 'Are you the headmaster?' Dumbledore nodded. 'That's my function at school, yes.' Cissy looked at the letter in his hand. 'Will that tell everything I need?' she asked. 'Not exactly everything…' Dumbledore gave Cissy a paper which had definitely not been in her room before. She saw an address. 'This is the address of the Leaky Cauldron. You have to cross this tavern to reach the Diagon Alley, where you can buy your school supplies. Is everything clear?' Cissy nodded. 'Now we have to speak about something else.' Cissy noticed that the food had disappeared. There was only one glass on the table, and the tankard with the orange stuff was still there. Cissy looked at Dumbledore again. 'Perhaps you will find trouble on your way to Hogwarts,' Dumbledore said. 'And not because you perhaps can't find the road.' The silence that fell lasted five minutes at least. Then Cissy asked: 'Why I will find trouble?' Dumbledore sighed. He looked very old when he did that. 'The people you have your surname from, have made quite a name in de wizard world,' he said. 'In the past, there was a wizard who believed that only the pure-blood wizards could exist, and that they should rule over the Muggles – people who are not wizards. His name was Voldemort.' He paused. 'Most of the pure-blood wizards agreed with him. Voldemort retrieved much followers with his ideas. They called themselves Death Eathers. Like I said, most pure-bloods liked his ideas. The Blacks also did. Of course there were exceptions,' Dumbledore said quickly when he saw Cissy's face. 'But most of the Blacks followed Voldemort until his defeat, ten years ago. Even after his defeat they still fought for the Dark Lord, his other nickname.' Dumbledore gave Cissy an earnest look. 'Many Death Eathers and innocent people went after Voldemort's defeat to Azkaban, the wizards-prison. With them were also relatives of yours. But they were guilty.' Dumbledore stood up and started to bat. 'You have to understand that Voldemort is a sensitive question,' he said. 'Most people truly believe that Voldemort is defeated, but they are fools. Voldemort was one of the darkest and most powerful wizards ever lived. I'm sure he will return.' Cissy thought of her relatives; her family who had fought with someone who wanted to rule over all Muggles – the people were she was raised with. 'What will happen when he returns?' She didn't want to know the answer. 'I believe Voldemort knows what he has done wrong and that he will find an answer for that problem,' Dumbledore answered vaguely. Suddenly he turned to Cissy. 'The point is that the Ministry of Magic – I guess the name says enough – will question your attendance to Hogwarts, because of you relatives' history. They might want to see you on a hearing. Might this happen, I will be there to defend you. You don't need to worry about that. Is everything clear to you?' Cissy nodded, but then an important question came across her mind. 'What about money? How do I pay all those school things?' Dumbledore smiled. 'I already wondered when you would ask. If you walk out the entire Diagon Alley, you'll find Gringotts. When you're there, ask about the Black's vault. And please ignore any reactions.' Cissy nodded. Dumbledore turned. 'Remember: don't tell anyone here about our meeting,' he said. 'If you do, even I can't help you anymore. I hope to see you at September 1 at Hogwarts.' Than he disappeared with a soft plop.
Cissy had hesitated when she would go – it still looked fake to her – but on July 31 she decided to go and find the Leaky Cauldron. The orphanage was close to the street were the inn was, so Cissy decided she walk there. On the day of depart, the clouds had vanished and the sun was shining brightly. There were much people on the streets, lots of tourists, so it took Cissy thirty minutes to reach the street, and another ten to spot her destination. The inn was set on the corner of her current street; its signboard was a cauldron as well. Cissy noticed that the people passing the inn ignored the place completely; they looked straight forward when they passed. Cissy crossed over the street and walked through the entrance.
She didn't knew what she had expected, but it was clear that the people inside were… different. They wore different kinds of dresses, even the men, and some people had weird, pointy hats with them. Cissy even saw a woman with a green skin! She decided that she would walk to the innkeeper and ask how she got to the Diagon Alley. But when she stepped forward, away from the shadow the door had given her, the people in the inn all looked at her, with a strange expression on their faces. When Cissy had passed someone, he bow to his neighbour and started whispering. One person, a boy, didn't had any trouble with seeing her. His hair was as black as hers, and he had green eyes which were catching the eye immediately. 'Hello,' he said. Cissy saw his companion, a man as high as two men together, and instinctively stepped back. 'Eeh, hello,' she said. 'I'm Cissy. Cissy Black.' One second later she realised that tell the boy her name was a big mistake: the people around her whispered even more. Cissy reminded herself to Dumbledore's words. She had to be careful. 'Well, you're not the only one around people like to talk about,' the boy said. 'I'm Harry Potter.' When he saw that there wasn't ringing a bell, he looked relieved. Clearly he wasn't a fan of attentions either. 'This is Hagrid. He's helping me with all… this.' Cissy nodded. Perhaps she didn't have to do everything alone. 'Come on,' Hagrid said. 'No need to stand here all day.' He went outside, and Cissy and Harry followed him. Behind them, people started whispering again.
Right, it has taken ages to finish this, but I was a bit busy last months. Like I said before, feel free to improve my text by naming mistakes. I will try to write faster.
