Sufficiently Advanced Technology…
…is indistinguishable from magic. – Arthur C. Clarke
CHAPTER 6 – New Professors, New AlliesProfessor McGonagall chimed her spoon on the side of her glass for attention, and Professor Dumbledore rose to address the assembled students.
"Before our usual excellent lunch appears on our plates and we eat ourselves into our customary Saturday-afternoon stupor, I would like to take this opportunity to welcome two newly arrived professors to Hogwarts, and introduce two new subjects to our school curriculum. It appears that for the foreseeable future, our world will be interacting more closely with the Muggle world, and so these new subjects will be mandatory for all students. Professor Bruce Thomson will be teaching the subject of Muggle Sciences…"
Bruce rose fron his seat and inclined his head to the students' polite applause.
"…while Professor Richard Johnson will instruct you all in Self-Defense in a Muggle World." Dick stood up and performed a flamboyant bow, resulting in a slightly more enthusiastic welcome.
"You will receive your new schedules on Monday morning," Dumbledore concluded. "Having completed this special announcement, we now return you to your normally scheduled meal." He sat down and began to converse with Professor McGonagall, as the food and drink appeared in their usual manner.
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Long after 'lights out', Tim lay awake in his bed, trying to be patient. He was waiting for the other boys to fall asleep, so that Robin could meet Batman and Nightwing to do some basic reconnaissance. Finally all was quiet in the dorm, and Tim could proceed. Having had extensive practice in sneaking out while at Brentwood Academy, it took him only a few minutes to change into costume, get down the side of the dormitory tower, and slip through the shadows to the prearranged rendezvous point.
"Report." Batman's deep growl came out of the darkness. Oddly, Tim found the curtness rather comforting. After all the strangeness of the last two days, Batman's normal abruptness came as a relief, giving Robin a familiar grounding point.
"The magical ban on technology is active within a four-mile radius of the castle. It covers all electronics, whether local or remote," Robin began.
"That explains why the castle hasn't been spotted by any of the spy satellites," Nightwing interjected thoughtfully.
"Anything that's purely chemical, or that relies on simple mechanics or lenses, seems to function normally. However, nothing electric will work, even if it's battery-powered."
"So flashlights won't work, but our gas pellets and jumplines will," Batman said. "This also explains why our mask night-vision lenses work, but our tracking and targeting optics don't. Our laser cutting torches won't work, either, but the mini-chemical torches should. Nightwing, you and I will have to do some experimenting with our utility belt devices tomorrow. Robin, we'll let you know what we learn."
"Why can't I help?" Robin asked, affronted at being left out.
Batman fixed him with a glare Robin could sense even without night-vision lenses.
"What reason would Tim Drake have to be hanging around with two teachers on a Sunday?" he demanded. Robin subsided with a wordless mutter of disgust.
"By the way, Robin, how did you learn all that stuff? I got the impression that these wizards didn't understand any of our technology," Nightwing asked as an afterthought.
"You remember meeting Hermione Granger this morning? Her parents aren't wizards, so she didn't even know anything about magic until she was accepted at Hogwarts. She was raised as an ordinary person. She kind of reminds me of you, Batman," – this earned Robin a raised eyebrow – "she reads everything she can get her hands on, she tries to learn as much as possible about any subject that interests her, and she remembers all of it. I was hanging out with her, Ron and Harry Potter this afternoon. When I asked a question about why the castle doesn't have electric lights, I got chapter and verse on what works and what doesn't work here, and why. What we rely on technology for, they do with spells and charms." Robin explained.
"This isn't getting our work done," Batman observed pointedly. "We need to find out if anyone is moving around the castle grounds late at night."
"Other than us, you mean?" Nightwing quipped. Batman favored him with the twin of the glare he had given Robin.
"Move out, but stay together for now, and watch out for anything unusual."
Tim thought of asking what they should consider 'unusual'. However, after thinking about Batman's probable reaction to that question, he decided to keep his mouth shut.
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Harry woke up out of one of his unfortunately-too-frequent nightmares. He sat up, gasping and fumbling for his glasses. Putting them on, he wiped the sweat from his forehead with a corner of the sheet, and got up to pour himself a glass of water. As he returned to bed, he noticed something that stopped him in his tracks. The hangings on Tim's bed were pulled open, Tim's pajamas were lying on top of the blankets, and Tim himself was nowhere in sight. Harry quickly moved to Ron's bed and shook him.
"Ron…Ron!" he hissed.
"Wha…whazzup?" Ron muttered sleepily. "Harry…what's wrong?" He sat up, suddenly wide awake. Harry pointed at Tim's empty bed.
"You woke me up because he just went to the loo?" Ron asked exasperatedly. "Ssshhh!" Harry said, holding up Tim's pajamas.
"Uh, oh." The two boys looked at each other.
"You don't think…he wouldn't be…part of…You-Know-Who's crowd…would he?" Ron asked worriedly.
"I don't think so," Harry said slowly. "The Hat put him in Griffindor, remember. I don't think it'd have done that if he were one of Voldemort's followers. But he could be in trouble. He doesn't know the castle. He could stumble onto something dangerous completely by accident. We'd better find him." He grabbed his wand off his nightstand, muttering "Lumos" under his breath. Then he went to his trunk, rummaged in the bottom for a moment, and pulled out a piece of seemingly blank parchment.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," he whispered, tapping the parchment with his wand. Slowly the parchment's surface darkened with a detailed map. Moving dots appeared at various places on the map, each labeled with a person's name. The Marauder's Map had been given to Harry by Fred and George Weasley during Harry's third year at Hogwarts. It was a complete and accurate map of Hogwarts castle and its grounds, and it showed the name and precise location of everyone moving on the premises. It had proven invaluable to Harry many times in the last three years.
"There he is!" said Ron, gazing over Harry's shoulder. "But what's he doing out there? He'll get hiimself killed!"
"And who's that with him?" Harry added.
A dot labeled with Tim's name was moving slowly in the vicinity of the Whomping Willow. There were two other dots beside him, each labeled with an unfamiliar name. The boys looked at each other again.
"I'll get the cloak. You send a message to wake up Hermione," said Harry, rummaging in his trunk again. Ron grabbed his own wand, flicked it with a peculiar counterclockwise double loop, muttered, "Alertus Commence…Hermione, get dressed and meet us in the common room right away. We've got trouble, and need to go outside. And don't argue!…Alertus Finis…Hermione Granger…Alertus Transit!" He flicked the wand again. Then he quickly pulled on his clothes, picked up his shoes, and tiptoed down to the common room after Harry.
Hermione woke up with Ron's voice sounding in her ear. She listened to his message completely through, and scowled. As the message began to repeat itself, she waved her own wand, quietly murmuring, "Alertus Receptus." Then she, too, quickly and quietly dressed, and left the dormitory without waking her roommates.
Meeting the other two in the common room, she began to demand an explanation. But before she could get a sound out of her open mouth, Ron shoved the Marauder's Map under her nose. Her gaze followed his pointing finger, and she looked shocked for a moment. Then she looked up to see Harry holding up his Invisibility Cloak. The three of them wasted no time getting under the cloak, slipping out of the portrait hole, and creeping silently out of the castle.
They hurried across the grounds, moving as fast as they could while still staying under the cloak. As they neared the Whomping Willow, Harry could just make out three dark shadows moving stealthily against the deeper darkness of the hillside just ahead of them. He could also see the limbs of the Willow beginning to tremble and sway, as if in a high wind.
Ron's foot hit a rock, and the moving shadows froze. But they were too close to the tree! There was nothing for it…Harry took a deep breath and yelled, "Hit the deck!" The shadowy figures responded instantly, diving for the ground as the deadly tree limbs whipped by overhead.
Harry, Ron and Hermione stopped just outside the tree's range. There was nothing more they could do. They couldn't see the others against the dark ground, but they could see the branches swinging wildly about.
"I hope they make it out," whispered Hermione in a shaking voice. "They–AIEEEE!" Her voice rose to a shriek as she was thrown to the ground and someone landed on top of her. Harry and Ron were knocked down simultaneously, and for a moment there were six people tangled in the Invisibility Cloak. Then Harry, Ron and Hermione were firmly pinned in place, and the cloak was stripped off of them.
"We need some light on the situation," a low voice rumbled. Hermione was in complete agreement with that sentiment. She was still clasping her wand in her hand, and managed to gasp out "Lumos!" A gauntleted hand clamped over her mouth just in time to muffle her scream as the wand flared and she caught sight of the black-masked figure holding her down.
"Hermione!" a familiar voice exclaimed. "Ron! Harry! It's all right, Batman. They're friends." The figure pinning Hermione seemed to consider this for a moment, then nodded. He rose to his feet and held a hand down to help her up. She took it apprehensively and climbed to her feet, then nervously drew a little closer to Harry and Ron.
The three Hogwarts students found themselves facing three men in totally outlandish costumes. The largest wore black and grey tights, with an emblem of a bat centered on his chest. His head and upper face were covered by a cowl resembling the head of a bat – complete with pointed ears. His black cape, apparently cut to resemble a bat's wings, fell in jagged folds to his boots, and he wore black gauntlets. Most frightening of all, his eyes were white – just…white.
The second man was slightly shorter and much slimmer than the bat-costumed man. His costume was almost entirely black, with the exception of a V-shaped swath of cobalt blue across the chest, and matching blue stripes down the sleeves to the fingertips of his gauntlets. He wore no cape, and didn't have a cowl over his wavy black hair, simply a black mask with also-just-white eyes.
The third man was smaller than either of the others, and his costume was, in some ways, the strangest of the three. At least the other two were dressed for sneaking around in the dark. This one's outfit consisted of a bright red leotard over emerald-green tights. His mask and gloves were green to match the tights, and his boot-length cape was black with a gold lining. He wore a stylized yellow 'R' emblem on the left side of his chest, and a matching yellow belt. His hair was spiky and black.
Ron took a closer look at the man in red and green, suddenly realizing that he was younger than he had first thought. He appeared to be a boy about Ron's own age. In fact…
"Tim?!?!" Ron exclaimed incredulously. "Is that you?" The colorful boy didn't answer at first, but looked to the bat-clad man, who sighed. Apparently taking that sigh as permission to speak, the boy turned back to Ron.
"Yeah, it's me," Tim acknowledged. "What are you guys doing out here, anyway? I thought you weren't allowed out of the castle after dark."
That was the last straw. "Keeping you from getting yourself killed!" snapped Hermione.
Before Tim could respond, the bat figure spoke in a deep, raspy growl. "We had no need of you."
"Oh, really?" retorted Harry. He lit his own wand and pointed it at the Whomping Willow, whose branches were now madly whacking the ground with lethal force, leaving deep ruts in their wake.
The bat-man's eyes narrowed. "Point taken."
Tim spoke again, trying to calm things down. "So how did you know we were out here? And how did you get this close without our seeing you?"
Hermione responded by asking a question of her own. "More to the point, who are they and what are they doing at Hogwarts?"
"What difference does it make?" answered the blue-and-black-costumed man, who had been quiet until then.
"It makes a lot of difference! Unless we know who you are and if you can be trusted, we're not telling you anything!" answered Ron angrily.
This time it was Tim who sighed. "They're the two new teachers," he answered.
"No, they're not!" exclaimed Harry and Ron in unison. Tim raised an eyebrow, as Harry continued, "Don't lie to us. The new teachers aren't named Bruce Wayne and Richard Grayson."
All three costumed figures stiffened.
"And where did you hear those names?"
The bat's voice, already impossibly deep, had dropped another octave, sending shivers down the students' spines. But they stubbornly held their ground.
"Not until you tell us who you really are," insisted Harry. Ron and Hermione nodded in firm support.
The other three looked at each other again for a long minute.
"I don't think there's any other way," said Tim finally. "And Professor Dumbledore told me this morning that if we needed any help, they were the ones to go to. He said they were 'most trustworthy and knowledgeable' – and we're going to need both."
"I agree, Batman. We're obviously going to need their help," the second man added, with a glance back at the angry tree.
Batman – by now the name was obvious – sighed in resignation. "Agreed." All three of them reached up and pulled off their masks.
Harry, Ron and Hermione stared in amazement. They were the two new teachers whom Dumbledore had presented earlier that day – by different names!
"I guess we should introduce ourselves, even though you already know our civilian names," said Tim. "I'm Robin, this is Batman, and this is Nightwing."
Ron didn't react to the names, but Hermione's and Harry's jaws dropped.
"I've heard of Batman and Robin…on the news," Hermione whispered. Harry nodded.
"Yeah, you guys are superheroes from…some big city in America," he said.
"Come to think of it…" continued Hermione, "I've heard of Bruce Wayne, too." She looked at Batman. "Aren't you the…fourth wealthiest man in the world?" Batman said nothing. Tim just smiled and continued his introductions.
"Batman, Nightwing, this is Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and Harry Potter. They're sixth-year students in Gryffindor house – and my classmates."
Nightwing acknowledged the introductions with a nod. "So how did you find out our names, anyway?" he asked.
Harry held out the Marauder's Map for them to see. Batman's blue eyes narrowed again. Without his cowl on, the expression wasn't as frightening, but it was still intimidating.
"Does everyone have one of these?" he asked menacingly.
"Oh, no," said Harry quickly. "There's only one in existence. My father and his three friends developed it when they were students here. And watch…" He tapped the parchment with his wand. "Mischief managed." Batman's scowl eased as the parchment faded to blankness.
"Aside from my two older brothers, no one else knows how to activate it," added Ron.
"And how did you sneak up on us? Not many people can manage that," Nightwing continued.
Harry reached down and picked up a large piece of silvery-grey cloth from the ground. "With this," he informed them.
Nightwing looked at the fabric and raised an eyebrow. "And this is…"
"An Invisibility Cloak. It belonged to my father."
Nightwing's other eyebrow rose to join the first. Harry answered the unspoken challenge, swirling the cloak out and draping it over himself.
"I see. Actually, to be more precise, I don't see," Nightwing quipped. Harry dropped the cloak to his shoulders, so his head appeared to be floating in midair. Tim gave a slight shudder.
"Boy, what the Joker wouldn't give to have one of those," he murmured under his breath. Batman ignored him, walking around Harry and closely examining the cloak.
"Interesting," he stated, removing his right gauntlet and reaching out to feel the fabric with his fingers. "Does it work for non-wizards?"
Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at each other.
"No idea," said Harry. "Want to try and find out?" He held out the cloak.
Batman and Nightwing looked at each other. Then Nightwing shrugged.
"Sure, why not?" He took the cloak, swung it over his head and let it settle over him. "So?" he asked.
"I can't see you. How about the rest of you?" said Harry. They all shook their heads.
"Nightwing, what do you see?" Batman asked.
"I can see everything around me, although it feels like I'm looking through a slight haze."
"Can you see yourself?"
"Yeah."
"Drop the cloak to your shoulders," ordered Batman. Nightwing did so, and then looked down at himself.
"OK, that's weird," he said. "Talk about your weight loss diet…" Everyone snickered. Even Batman's mouth quirked in a half-smile.
"I think Clarke was right," he observed. Everyone else turned to him with puzzled looks.
"That one went by a little fast, Batman," Tim confessed. "What was Mr. Kent right about?"
Batman rolled his eyes. "Not that Clark," he told Tim. "Don't any of you read science fiction?"
"Oh! You must mean Arthur C. Clarke!" exclaimed Hermione. Batman nodded in approval.
"Very good, Hermione," he said. Nightwing and Tim looked at each other, astonished.
"Praise? From him?" Tim mouthed. Nightwing shrugged.
"I think he's found a kindred soul," he mouthed back. Batman simply continued talking to Hermione, ignoring the two of them.
"Do you remember what he wrote about magic?" he asked her.
Hermione scrunched up her face, thinking hard.
"Let's see…it's been a long time since I've read any of his stuff," she admitted. Then her eyes flew open.
"I remember! He wrote…oh, my goodness…'Any sufficiently advanced technology is… indistinguishable from magic.' " The last three words were spoken in a whisper. "But technology doesn't…do you think…maybe…" Her voice trailed off in awe.
"It would be interesting to investigate the possibilities, don't you think?" Batman suggested. She nodded in excitement.
By now, Ron had had enough.
"EXCUSE ME!" he said loudly. Startled, everyone looked at him, even Batman and Hermione."Is it time for the less-educated among us to ask questions yet?" he asked sharply. Batman looked rather affronted at the interruption, but Nightwing grinned.
"I think so," he said, removing the Invisibility Cloak and handing it back to Harry. "What would you like to know?"
"For starters…why are you here? What are superheroes doing posing as new teachers and an exchange student at Hogwarts?" Ron demanded.
"Yeah, and why did Professor Dumbledore introduce you by different names?" Harry added.
"OK. Let's take the second question first – it's easier. Actually, Hermione answered it a little while ago," said Nightwing. Hermione looked puzzled for a moment, before her face cleared in understanding.
"You mean when I recognized Bruce Wayne? Oh, you must be working undercover!"
"Exactly. As for the first question…that's going to take a little longer. How much do you know about the criminal called 'Lord Voldemort'?"
All three young faces hardened, their expressions suddenly showing experience well beyond their years.
"He killed my parents," ground out Harry, "and my godfather." He was startled by the sympathetic looks that flashed over the faces of all three superheroes. This was the first actual emotion he'd seen Batman display.
Recovering from his momentary distraction, he continued. "He's been trying to take over the world for years now. He lost his powers – and his body – when he tried to kill me when I was a baby, but he returned a little over a year ago. He and his followers – they're called Death Eaters – have been killing witches and wizards since then, trying to terrorize the entire wizarding community. The Ministry of Magic refused to admit he was back until just a couple months ago, so no one had any information on how to protect themselves." Harry was obviously quite bitter about this last fact.
"He apparently has also been killing non-magical people," Nightwing said soberly. "The entire populations of several villages in Great Britain have died under mysterious circumstances. In each village, everyone died within a few minutes of each other, and the authorities could find no cause for their deaths. There were no survivors to describe what happened. The number of affected villages has been escalating rapidly, and the government decided it needed help."
"So they called you?" Ron looked skeptical.
The corner of Nightwing's mouth twitched upward briefly. "Sort of. You see, along with being crimefighters in Gotham City, we're also members of an international team of heroes–"
"The Justice League!" exclaimed Hermione.
"Right. The government officially requested the Justice League's help in investigating the deaths. Well, Batman, here," Nightwing gestured toward his partner, who frowned at him, "is known as the World's Greatest Detective, so he was the logical one to be assigned to the case. Robin and I are the rest of his team. Any questions so far?"
"Yeah," Harry said slowly. "That explains what you're doing in the UK. But you're Muggles – so how do you know about Voldemort, and what are you doing at Hogwarts?"
Tim took over the explanation at this point. "I was at King's Cross Station yesterday morning. I saw people vanishing into a brick pillar, and thought I better investigate. I ended up going through the pillar also, and got on the Hogwarts Express, figuring I'd gather information and report back to Batman later. But when I tried to call him, my commlink didn't work."
"What's a… collmink?" interrupted Ron. Hermione favored him with a Look that could have rivaled Batman's.
"It's a commlink, Ron – a communications link. It's a way to talk over long distances. But since it's Muggle technology, it wouldn't work on the train."
"Oh. Well, how was I supposed to know? I barely know how to use a fellytone," Ron answered. Hermione rolled her eyes, but didn't reply.
"Anyway," Tim continued, "I got to Hogwarts, and when Professor Dumbledore saw me, he told everyone that I was an exchange student, and I got sorted into Gryffindor. Then this morning, he called me to his office – you remember the note, Harry." Harry nodded.
"Well, first he explained that he knew I was a crimefighter and a wizard – though I have no idea how he figured any of that out –"
"There's a field of magic called 'Legilimancy' – a witch or wizard can use it to read specific thoughts and memories in a person's mind," explained Hermione.
"Oh. When I told him I was only an apprentice crimefighter, he decided to invite Batman and Nightwing to join us. They came by Floo powder. Then he explained to us about Voldemort–" Tim noticed Ron shudder as he spoke the name. "–and his followers, and what they've been doing. He told us about their use of the Killing Curse on wizards, and that the curse was what caused the deaths we are investigating as well."
"But why does Dumbledore want you teaching here?" Hermione asked.
Batman entered the conversation for the first time. "Tim's – and thus our – arrival here was evidently the response to a spell Professor Dumbledore cast requesting professional help. Because there is no magical defense against Voldemort, he believes that non-magical means may be effective." Hermione shot Ron an 'I-told-you-so' look. "Our teaching roles will provide a cover for our researches into ways to stop this madman." He gave all three of them a stern look. "We will actually be teaching real subjects, however, that do work at Hogwarts, so you will need to pay attention in class."
"Yessir," they responded in chorus. Nightwing and Robin shared a private grin. Obviously Batman's usual interpersonal techniques worked just as well on wizards as on ordinary people.
"But, Batman…sir…" Hermione began.
"Yes?"
"If Tim…Robin…hasn't had any wizard training, how is he going to function as a sixth-year student here?"
The three crimefighters shared a look.
"I've been kinda worried about that myself," Tim admitted.
They were all silent for a moment.
"You could teach him, Harry," Ron suggested suddenly. Everyone looked at him. "You did teach us all about Defense Against the Dark Arts last year, remember?" Looking at the confused Americans, he realized he'd better explain.
"Last year, we had a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who worked for the Ministry of Magic. She refused to teach us anything, and wouldn't even let us learn on our own. And we had O.W.L.'s coming up–"
"Like promotion exams," interrupted Hermione. Ron glared at her and continued.
"–and we didn't want to fail. Anyway, Harry had learned all sorts of defensive spells for the Triwizard Tournament two years ago, and he'd fought You-Know-Who three times and lived. So we formed… kinda an underground Defense Against the Dark Arts class of our own, and we called it Dumbledore's Army, or the DA for short, and Harry taught us all. And he was a really great teacher. So I figure he could teach Tim what he needs to know to get by."
Hermione and Harry stared at Ron. Harry was rather less than enthusiastic about the idea.
"But…" he started. Hermione ran right over him.
"Ron, that's a great idea," she proclaimed.
"But…" Harry tried again. Hermione looked at him in exasperation.
"Harry, we'll all teach him…all three of us." Harry started to object again, but she glowered fiercely at him until he shut his mouth.
"Yeah, that'll work," said Ron. "After all, Harry, we don't want Tim left helpless against Malfoy, do we?"
"I guess not," muttered Harry. "OK. As long as it's all of us and not just me this time!"
"Now that that's settled," began Batman, but he was again interrupted by Hermione.
"Heavens!" she exclaimed. "We've got to get back to the dormitories – it'll be daylight soon!"
"As I was saying," growled Batman, "we'd better close the discussion for this evening. Robin, you'll need to climb back into your room without being seen. That'll be harder here than it was at Brentwood."
"He might as well come with us," Harry offered. "We can fit four under the cloak."
"Cool!" Tim responded with enthusiasm. Nightwing gave him a wicked look.
"Study hard tomorrow, Tim," he urged. "Remember, you've got classes on Monday!"
Tim winced, then grinned impishly back at Nightwing.
"So do you!"
TO BE CONTINUED…