Are you a fairy Chapter 2
So, here we are again. So far, it looks like people are liking the story. So, for all of you reading, here's chapter 2.
Harry sighs as he hands his 'family' their dinners. His was the leftover sandwiches from lunch. On the one hand, they were more edible than his usual breakfast, but that wasn't saying much. While he ate, his thoughts drifted back to earlier that afternoon, before uncle Vernon told him to clean Dudley's room. 'That girl in the back yard. That couldn't have been real magic, could it?' he thought, slowly eating his dinner to prolong the inevitable string of after dinner demands.
Since he was little, his uncle had always said that magic was a fairy tale. That it didn't exist, and to think otherwise simply proved that he didn't have the common sense to keep living. Of course, Dudley could believe in things like magic all he wanted. For him, it was all about how precious a boy he was.
Still, that girl, Mavis, was able to create fire out of thin air, and she was juggling it around like it was nothing. 'It must have been some cheap trick.' He decides, convinced that was the only explanation, but then he remembered the rose bush. It was completely crushed. He knew that just from the thorn wounds all over his arms and chest, but she brought them back to life so perfectly Aunt Petunia didn't even notice.
Once the Dursleys were done dinner, he took their plates, and as always didn't receive a single word of thanks from them, or even a happy birthday. He couldn't get that scene out of his head. That blond haired girl who miraculously restored a demolished rose bush to health without even moving. There wasn't any explanation but magic.
"Uncle Vernon…" he asks tentatively, "Are you sure that there isn't such a thing as magic?"
What followed was a small whimper from Aunt Petunia and the sound of a tea cup shattering against the ground.
"What…did you just ask?" Uncle Vernon growls, taking off his belt.
Immediately, Harry knew he made a mistake. This was the first time in years that Harry mentioned, as Uncle Vernon called it, the M word, but he could still feel the stings from the belt that was again directed at him. "Nothing." He said quickly, "Forget I asked."
Turning to run to the sink and start the dishes, Harry collapses as a sting pain rips down his back. "AH!" Harry screams as uncle Vernon hits him again, and again, and again. Finally, as he raises the belt for the fifth time, the back door exploded inward, making all of them jump, except Harry, who was crying into the tile floors.
"Who the bloody hell are you?" Uncle Vernon asks, belt raised to fend off whoever it was.
"My name is Mavis Vermillion." A familiar voice says as the air suddenly becomes thicker. All around the room objects started shaking and falling as if there was an earthquake. The rest of the tea set joined the cup that uncle Vernon already destroyed. "And you have five seconds to explain yourself before I really lose my temper."
The girl he met that afternoon was glaring viciously at the three members of the family, all of whom were trying to find some way out. Vernon was the first to find his voice.
"I demand you leave at once!" he growls, brandishing the belt like a whip, "Or I shall remove you myself!"
"That's your excuse?" she smirks, walking forward. Instantly, the air around her seemed to catch fire, bathing her in an orange aura, "Not good enough." With a snap of her finger, the belt disintegrated into ash, "Try again. And next time, it'll be your arm."
Vernon's eyes bulged out of his skull, "You're one of them! A freak!"
"I am a mage, if that's what you mean." She replies, stepping closer and allowing the flames to burn around her hand.
"Magic…" Harry croaks out, and Mavis nods, extending her non-burning hand to him and helps him to his feet, "So, it's really real?"
"Of course." She says, glaring at each of the Dursleys in turn, "And it seems they were well aware of that fact."
"Mommy, I'm scared!" Dudley whimpers, hugging Aunt Petunia tightly.
"Leave!" Petunia shouts, holding Dudley close, "You have no business here!"
"And you have no business raising a child!" Mavis counters, "Tell me, what did this boy ever do to warrant such abuse?"
"He's been living in our house for free!" Vernon roars, "Eating my family's food! Taking up our space! And all because some freaky old man dropped him here after his good for nothing parents got themselves blown up, and told us to keep him or we'd be killed!"
"Who?" she asks, gradually regaining control over her emotions, "Who was this man?"
"Dumble something." Vernon mutters, opening one of the cabinets that they kept locked, and removing a single letter, "Here it is, Albus Dumbledore."
'Him again.' Mavis thought as she took the letter from Vernon's hand and read it. It was addressed to Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, Number Four, Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey.
Petunia,
You may not remember, but my name is Albus Dumbledore, the head master at Lily's old school. I wish that we could have spoken at a better time, but for now, it is my sad duty to inform you that your sister, Lily, and her husband, James, were killed last night. The fought to the end against the Dark Wizard called Voldemort. Tragically, they left behind his boy, their son, Harry James Potter.
I must ask that you take him in and raise him as your own. Due to the circumstances, both he and you would be in grave danger if placed anywhere else. However, I have place protections around your house that will ensure no harm comes to you. Blood wards strong enough to stop even one of your muggle atomic bombs. So long as Harry resides with you, you will not be harmed, protected by your blood and your sister's noble sacrifice. Without him, you will be targeted by those seeking to avenge their master.
If you need anything at all, be it money or protection, simply send me a letter. Anything addressed to the Headmaster of Hogwarts will find its way to me.
Yours in Sorrow,
Albus Dumbledore
"So that's it." She says, placing the letter on the table while both the elder Dursleys shout at her to leave, "Both of you please calm down. Let's discuss this calmly, shall we?"
"Stop up and go!" Vernon shouts, throwing a punch at her. She steps backwards slightly as the punch whishes the air, and places her palm on Vernon's forehead, "Relax." She orders, sending a pulse of calming magic into his body. Instantly, his shoulders relax, and he sighs contently, sitting down at the table.
"Vernon?" Petunia says fearfully, "You witch! What have you done to my husband!?"
"Petunia, dear, calm down." Vernon smiles.
"I didn't do anything but ensure that he remains relaxed for this conversation." Mavis says, sitting across from him.
"Vernon…?" she gasps, staring at her husband.
"Have you ever met this man, Dumbledore?" Mavis says, ignoring the wife.
"Never, though I understand Tuney met him as a girl." He says pleasantly, "Would you care for a cup of brandy?"
"A small one, thank you." She nods as he rushes into the next room. For a moment, she lets down her guard, when behind her she heard the hurried footsteps of someone behind her. A moment later, Harry shouts, "Look out!"
Just in time, she jumps to the ground as a knife plunges into the table where she'd just been. With a swift spell, the metal in the blade of the knife surges to life, wrapping itself around Petunia's arm and pinning her to the table.
"LET ME GO!" Petunia roars, struggling against the metal bonds.
"Petunia!" Vernon shouts as he rushes back to the room, "What happened in here?"
Mavis sighs, casting the same calming spell on Petunia before removing the bindings. "It was nothing." She smiles, taking her seat again, "Just a misunderstanding."
"Yes, that's it." Petunia agrees, sitting across from Mavis and Next to Vernon, who pours them each a glass of brandy.
After a moment of drinking, Vernon looks Mavis in the eye, "So, what was it you wanted to discuss?"
"I assume that you don't know much about magic?" she inquires, taking another small sip of the alcohol.
"Nothing, really." He replies while his wife nods in agreement, "Her sister was the one that could use it, not us."
"I thought so. Is that why you despise them?"
"Actually, no." Vernon shakes his head, "James Potter introduced me to the director of Grunnings. Got me my job, and even bought this house for me and my wife. If anything, we owe them."
"But you still hate their son?" she nods understandingly, which both of them nod, "That makes sense. When did you start hating them? How long did he stay with you?"
"It started the day before I found him, I think." Petunia says thoughtfully, "I'd never really gotten along with Lily… not since we were kids. But I just woke up that morning and started ranting about how much I couldn't stand her."
"That must have been when they were set up." Mavis nods, "Well, I guess I'll explain why, though I'll be the first to say that this is by no means certain. I'm a bit out of my element with the magic of this world, so I can only provide an analysis based on what I know of my own. Blood wards are a form of protection, based upon a willing sacrifice. They are almost impossible to break if used correctly. However, they have a very nasty side effect. The wards turn love, one of the most powerful magics in the world into a defense, preventing any attack by an enemy. However, there is no way to create love. In other words, in order to stand, the blood wards need to obtain the love from someplace else. If not altered in some way, it would sap the love that each of you feels towards the originator, or the one who was protected. In other words, Harry."
"SO, you're saying that the spells Dumbledore cast to protect us caused us to attack like this?" Vernon says for clarification.
"It's possible. Again, I'm something out of my element, but that is how I understand it." Mavis smiles, "And it also means I might be able to fix it."
"And that's what you really wanted to talk about?" Vernon nods, "I have no problem with you trying to but what if you can't?"
"Then it means I was wrong, that you really hate him, and I won't mind taking care of him." She replies, "But let's not worry about that until I fail. It would shame the name of Fairy Tail if its first master couldn't do something so simple." She laughs as her eyes glow with magic, "I'll be right back."
Both adult nods as she walks back into the yard, and walks all the way to the very edge of the property, until she could sense the ward line. With silver magic covering her hand, she touches the Blood wards, and immediately she's overcome with the feelings of Love and protection. Casting them aside for a moment, she finds the source magic of the blood wards. It was certainly unlike any magic she knew, but the essentials were close enough. With her magic pulsing brilliantly in the night, she gradually adjusts the spell, which took a good amount of trial and error before she was finally satisfied.
Stretching, she starts walking back towards the house when there was a faint pop behind her. Immediately, the world goes black.
It had been a very long and tedious day for Albus Dumbledore. It started alright, with a very pleasant interview with Glay Tarson, a member of the dark force defense league who agreed to join the staff as defense against the dark arts teacher. He was a rather accomplished wizard, known across the country for his work as an auror, and with any luck, he might be able to break Voldemort's curse.
After that, though, things started going downhill. Dolores Umbridge brought up yet another bill restricting the rights of the vampires, which it took almost every ounce of cunning in his body to trick a few of the members of the Wizengomot to his side. And next time, it'll pass for sure. And it went from bad to worse when Malfoy introduced a bill to restrict the rights of Muggleborns, among them being a law barring them from attending Hogwarts. It was only when he brought up that the ministry had no rights to determine what student can or cannot attend that Malfoy withdrew the bill, if only until he rewrites it without that provision.
Next was the annual failed attempt at removing him from his post of Chief Warlock of the Wizengomot. As always, despite Malfoy's bribes, he passed the vote easily, but it didn't make the whole ordeal any less aggravating.
Finally, just as he was getting ready to tuck in early, one of the any devices behind his chair started going haywire. Usually, had it been almost any other device, he would have ignored it and gone to bed. But this one was different. It was linked to the house at Number Four, Privet Drive. Someone or something had triggered the blood wards, and even worse, was changing them.
He had to act quickly. Otherwise, if a death eater were to alter them properly, he could prevent anyone from aiding Harry until it was too late. With the Dursleys being blocked from floo network, he had no choice but to rush out of the main gate at Hogwarts. It took almost ten minutes to get from his office to the gate, and during that time he had come up with a dozen means of getting there that he would have to remember for next time. Once he'd passed the wards, he disapparated with a crack.
By some miracle, the wards still allowed him passed, and he appeared inside the Dursley family's backyard. In front of him was a young girl with long blond hair walking away from him. Her very presence exuded magic the likes of which he'd never dreamed of. Acting quickly, he sent a silent stunner at her and breathes a sigh of relief when she goes down.
With the threat safely detained, he turns to the wards, trying to discern what she had changed, and how to change it back. Oddly, there was no drastic change in the effect. The wards held strong, with no weakening to speak of. The magical signature that blocks the dark mark remained unchanged, and no new signatures had been added since he cast them himself almost six years ago. Still, she had changed something. An unusual magical signature was all over the place, including the inner working of the wards.
Despite his best efforts, he could not wrap his head around what was going on. This person had somehow broken into the single most magical secure house in Britain. A house which no one alive should be without his approval, and starts changing wards that could spell disaster for the wizarding world. But she doesn't. All she did was alter the flow of energy feeding into the wards, and from his perspective, made them more efficient.
'What in the world is going on?' he thinks pacing in the yard, 'What is she after? And why?' Unfortunately, the only person who had those answers was laying face down in the mud, and based solely on the feeling he had earlier, it would be nothing sort of foolishness to awaken her. With no other alternative, he draws his wand and places it at the downed figure, 'Legilimens.' He thinks forcefully before hundreds of thousands of images bombard his mind. So many images of impossible events.
'What is this?' he thinks as he observes a red haired woman overcoming a hundred monsters through sheer strength, 'She couldn't have such complex shields up while she's unconscious… but this can't possibly be real…' Finally, the events get more and more recent, until he watches her met with Harry, and more importantly, watches what the Dursleys did to him. What he had done to him.
A hundred emotions flooded through him. Some from the Legilimency like anger, bitterness, and regret. Others were his own. Sorrow, fear, and self-loathing. What drew his attention was her explanation. The more he listened, the more sense it made, and more importantly, the more his self-loathing grew. Why hadn't he realized this before?! He could have saved Harry from so many years of suffering!
He was the most knowledgeable wizard in the world about love magic, having interned in the department of mysteries for a number of years in his youth, along with the independent study he's done since then. He knew better than any one that there was no way to create love. So why didn't he see that the wards would take it from somewhere else!? Why had he foolishly believed that lily's sacrifice would avert that simple fact?!
Ending the spell, Dumbledore nearly broke down into tears as he reflected on all that he learned. He'd caused Harry so much harm. Voldemort might have taken away his parents, but it was Albus Dumbledore that forced him to live in suffering. In protecting him, He'd suffered more than he ever would have elsewhere…
"There isn't any use crying about it." He said to himself as he strides over to the girl, "Revenerate." He sighs, and her eyes flicker open.
Immediately, she's on the defensive, a fireball forming in her hands as Dumbledore raises his hands in surrender. If even half of what he saw in her memories was true, a fireball was the very least of his worries. "Good Evening, Ms. Vermillion." He says calmly, "I must apologize for stunning you like that. I confess that I thought you to be the enemy, but it would appear we are on the same side."
"And what side would that be?" she glares, eyes narrowed as the fireball grows slightly bigger.
"Harry's." he replies, "My name is Albus Dumbledore."
"You…" she says thoughtfully, "Why did you knock me out?"
"I found out that someone was tampering with the wards I placed to keep Harry safe. Naturally, I rushed to help. When I arrived, I saw someone suspicious approaching the house. I might have over reacted, but I could not take the chance that you meant Harry harm." He says truthfully, putting his wand on the ground slowly, "there. I am unarmed, while you could very easily incinerate me, so can we not talk?"
Mavis nods slightly, stooping to pick up the wand, which suddenly felt wrong. Like the wood had been stained with blood. Regardless, she held it firm, "I'll give you this back if I'm convinced that you won't pose a danger." She tells him, leading him back to the house.
"Finally!" Vernon smiles, with another glass of brandy, "We were starting to get worried about you."
"I got held up." She shrugs, "That aside, someone else has decided to join the conversation."
"Professor Dumbledore?" Petunia gasps, "Good lord, you've gotten old!"
Dumbledore chuckles dryly, "I hadn't truly noticed how old until tonight. Nevertheless, it is a pleasure, Petunia."
"Who are you?" Harry and Dudley ask at the same time, though Dudley sort of squeaked it out.
He turned to the children, and again he suppressed his anger and sorrow over his mistakes, "I am Albus Dumbledore." He smiles before turning to Harry, "And I'm the one responsible for everything that you've suffered for the last six years. I cannot tell you how sorry I am. I never dreamed that…" Now, for the first time since Ariana's death, he was overcome with grief, unable to speak .
Across the room, Mavis watched the display. She was not unaware of the feelings that Dumbledore was going through. She made similar mistakes after she took Purehito in. Perhaps that was why he turned dark. Regardless, the emotions going through his body were real. He meant every word of it, and that was the moment she decided that she would hear him out, not judge him for a single mistake, no matter how terrible.
It appeared that Harry had a similar thought, as the seven year old boy was now comforting the old man. Quite a strange sight.
Once Dumbledore was calm enough, the four adults sat down at the table together. Dumbledore looks at Mavis, "Do you truly think that this will work?"
"I don't know." She admits, "But it was still worth the chance. We'll probably know tomorrow."
"I see." He says thoughtfully, "Then I believe it might be best for us to resume talks tomorrow. Needless to say, if it hasn't worked, Harry will not be staying here any longer. A marginally increased defense is not worth the continued danger he would be in."
"You won't see us complaining." Vernon says happily, "So, is that all for today?"
"I think so." Mavis nods, but he looks at the Dursleys threateningly, "But I'll be staying here for the night. After all, it wouldn't be a good idea to leave you alone."
"Fine." Petunia says pleasantly, "But you'd better not mess with our home. Even if you stay, you still aren't welcome."
"Fine with me." She shrugs, "But I'm tired. So, I think I'll go to sleep."
And without waiting for a response, she walked out of the room.
Well, that's chapter 2. Chapter three has harry learning a bit about the magical world, and mavis having some words with our favorite headmaster. R&R!