New chapter! Yay! Read and Review! Time for stuff to go down!
October had come, and it was time for the usual Wizengamot meeting of the month.
"Order. Order," said Dumbledore, being the Chief Warlock of the meetings. He was considering forfeiting the title of Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards to somebody else but hadn't found a successor. He was leaning towards one, but he needed to make sure the successor would do his job right. Dumbledore had to admit, juggling three jobs in his age was tiring, and he wasn't able to see the all the details of the big picture.
Dumbledore went through the usual agendas, role call, etc. They debated about Weasley's Muggle Protection Act, the general ideas of where the Quidditch World Cup was to be held, security details, budgets, etc.
"Is there anything else that needs to be gone over?" asked Dumbledore after Bones' request for a bigger budget for the Auror department was denied again by Fudge and his lackeys. Fudge claimed there was no need for such thing, and that the extra money needed to be funneled into somewhere else important. That 'important' thing was his own pockets, supplied by Malfoy and his 'advice'.
"Yes. I wish to have Sirius Black be removed from Azkaban so he can be brought here to Wizengamot to actually receive a trial," declared Amelia Bones.
This caused mass whispers within the court before Amelia continued, "I have learned that Black was thrown into Azkaban without a trial. If this can happen to any one of our pure-blood members of our society, then who's to say it won't happen again."
The whispers grew louder until Dumbledore called for order once more.
"Is there anyone who's opposed to this?" asked Dumbledore.
"I do," said Fudge furiously, "I've told you before, giving that man a trial is a waste of money and time. He's guilty without a doubt."
"If there's a chance that he's actually innocent, then we have sentenced a man to Azkaban for no reason," replied Amelia, "We aren't a society that throws anyone in jails just based on suspicion. We do it on facts!"
"Facts!" scoffed Crouch, standing up, "He bragged that he was the Secret Keeper. And the next thing we know, You-Know-Who shows up and kills them. There was no need for a trial. It's plain as day he's guilty."
"He was James Potter's best friend," shouted Amelia, "You all know this. Why would he just suddenly betray his almost brother in all but blood?"
"Obviously to get in a better position with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named!" shouted another member.
Another shouting match went off until order was restored once more. Then, Lucius Malfoy stood up to talk. He had been invited to the meeting by Fudge.
"Esteemed members of Wizengamot." drawled Malfoy, "I have a different proposal. It's true that Black has been in Azkaban for many years now. But because of this, the Black seat has remained empty. I propose that we have Black kissed by the Dementor and removed from Azkaban so his seat may go to the next of kin."
"That sounds marvelous," stated Fudge, jumping on the idea, "We could save money from feeding the traitor."
"About time," muttered Crouch, "Never trust a Black. Hopefully, the next one will be trustworthy."
"That would be my son," smiled Malfoy, "And I can assure you, We will use it to bring it back to glory."
"Jolly good!" smiled Fudge, already thinking of all the wealth that would be coming into his pocket.
"If you do so, then we have to give Black a trial before anything can be made," stated Dumbledore, "That still means that Sirius Black will need to come here."
"I vote we bypass that," said Crouch.
"Seconded!" joined Fudge.
"Rejected!" shouted Augustus Longbottom, "We can't just have someone kissed just because you say so!"
Wizengamot went up in an uproar. It was easy to see Malfoy had already paid/blackmailed a few people in supporting his cause with promises of more.
"We would be laughed at!" shouted another, "Killing without a trial."
"Bah who cares? We're showing the world what we do to those who betray others!"
"What if he's innocent!?"
"I doubt it."
Soon, Dumbledore had to raise his wand to fire some noise cracking spell to get everyone to quiet down.
"Well, then let me prove you wrong," snorted Amelia as the noise died down. She waved in three people who had been sitting in the viewing area since the beginning of the meeting.
"And who are they?" sneered Senior Undersecretary Umbridge, a rather short and frog looking woman wearing bright pink clothes.
"We are lawyers from DnD," said the lead lawyer putting his case down with a bang on a table. Everyone slightly jumped at this. They all knew this wizarding firm.
"And what are the famous DnD lawyers doing here?" asked Fudge with a practiced grin. Inside, he was sweating buckets.
"We heard about the lack of a trial for Sirius Black and decided to do our own investigation. Did you know that the Aurors who took Black in failed to even use the Reverse Spell to check what Black even used to 'blow up' the streets?" asked the lead lawyer.
"Not only that," continued another one, "The Investigation Department never bothered to check what really happened."
"And finally, we have Bartemius Crouch who threw Black in jail without trial and proof, while he so 'generously' gave others who were or suspected to be Death Eaters," finished the last one, "Even Bellatrix Lestrange, a clear supporter of Voldemort (Here, most of them shuddered) was given a trial, though I suspect because his son was there that they were given one. Could it be that he did so because he held a grudge against the Black family and abused his power?"
Most people looked at Crouch, who was turning red in rage.
"I followed the rules!" shouted Crouch, "I made sure the people were safe!"
"And yet, you easily broke it when it came to Black," said the lead lawyer coolly.
"Get them out of here!" shouted Crouch, "They shouldn't even be in this meeting!"
"We are here since you're insisting on throwing our client to being kissed by the Dementors without a trial again."
Shouting was raised all over the place before Fudge stated, "I declare that Black be Kissed as soon as possible! No more of this nonsense! Amelia, you and I are going to have a talk whether you are going to be even able to keep your job after this nonsense!"
"Cornelius, you cannot do this! I advise you not to," warned Dumbledore.
"I am the Minister of Magic! It is my duty to do what is right, and that is to have a Black representative back to help us, instead of rotting in jail and wasting our people's money!"
"Is that your final answer?"
Everyone paused as they heard the lead lawyer said it quite loudly and coldly.
Fudge hesitated, but when he saw Umbridge and Malfoy nod, he stated, "Yes. Now get out! Aurors! Arrest them and throw them out!"
The lead lawyer sighed, taking his glasses off.
"Very well. Then by the power vested in me by the Queen herself, I hereby declare the power Wizengamot of Great Britain to be SUSPENDED!"
At once, the control of the wards was all stripped away from Fudge and Dumbledore. They shouted in surprise, feeling the wards disappear.
Outside the Ministry of Magic and the entrances, the Queen's soldiers had been ready. Their magic division, AKA, MI0, British Magical Intelligence Section 0, charged in first. They secured the entrances and made sure nobody would make it through. The other soldiers went on ahead to secure a direct path for the Queen herself to come.
While Wizengamot was wondering what was going on, one of the more... prone to side with Voldemort whipped out his wand and fired a spell that the lead lawyer, only to see it fizzle.
"What...?" He didn't get to say anything else before the lawyer fired a spell to stun him.
Suddenly, the doors opened up to reveal Queen Elizabeth II herself, followed by Stoick and North among others as part of her honor guard.
"I... have heard quite a bit," said the queen slowly and harshly, causing many to flinch, "And I and my court are not pleased with what we've heard."
"What's a Muggle doing here!?" sneered an unintelligent man.
The queen slowly turned her head to stare at the man. Said man felt his bladder relieve itself.
"We have a lot to discuss, including you're the latest attempt of handing a death sentence without a trial or representation at all!"
Fudge whimpered.
"Extra, Extra! Ministry under Reformation! Fudge found guilty of embezzlement!"
"Whoa. There's a picture of your dad, Hiccup."
The Daily Prophet came out with a special edition of the Ministry being reformed. The lawyers spilled all the money trails Fudge had left carelessly. Umbridge wasn't safe either. The lawyers did their work and what they had been rumored to do and found many 'skeletons' within Umbridge's closet. Malfoy barely escaped from being chucked into prison because he knew how to cover himself, but his usual wealth had decreased due to all this reform. Several Ministry workers found themselves fired, but the majority held on after renegotiating a new contract. The Non-magical Prime Minister would meet the new Minister for the Ministry of Magic every 4 months to get and update on what was going on, and not when the Minister felt like doing on a whim. The picture in his office was switched from a snotty photo into a more respectable picture in both person and behavior. Said photo was burned to ashes, serving as firewood.
"Guess our future is looking a bit brighter," joked Hiccup.
"HADDOCK!"
They looked to see Malfoy storming to him.
"What's up, bad faith," greeted Hiccup.
"You're filthy no good muggle father will pay for this!" snarled Malfoy, "Don't think the Dark Lord will take this lying down."
"Malfoy, I though you already learned your lesson," sighed Hiccup, "Keep talking like that, and you're going to go in way deeper than you can chew."
"Shut it!" hissed Malfoy, "I'm calling you out on an honor duel!"
"On what honor?" mused Hiccup, "That my father managed to get in contact with the Queen's court and found corruption within the Ministry of Magic?"
"Your father smeared the name of the Malfoy!" shouted Malfoy.
"What's this? A duel?"
"Oh no," groaned Jack as they saw Lockhart standing behind them.
"Excellent. I've been meaning to find more ways to teach, and with this, I can create a dueling club! Now, no dueling, but when I get the chance, I'll be sure to call up you two as volunteers."
"Great job, Malfoy," groaned Hiccup as Lockhart left, "Now you got blowhard on our tail."
"Whatever," snarled Malfoy, "I challenge you to a duel right now!"
"Declined," replied Hiccup, causing Malfoy to look confused, "There's no 'honor' be threatened here. There's no point as Lockhart's going to call us to fight later on. And it's a waste of time that I could be using for myself."
Malfoy couldn't respond fast enough as Hiccup left with the others. Jack looked back to make sure Malfoy wouldn't do anything and tapped his nose to let him remember what happened the first time.
Halloween was upon them in a flash. Harry, along with his friends, went out to the lake in the morning to have a small mourning for his parents. Everyone seemed to just forget that who had died on that fateful day, and merely recalled him, the boy who lived. Hagrid saw it and went to pay his respects to James and Lily Potter. Some of the staff also noticed it from their windows and took a moment of silence to remember them. Harry had two small boats with copies of his parent's faces on each before letting them float down the lake.
Hermione saw that Harry slowly let down a tear and hugged him, telling him it would be alright, that they loved him even though they were gone. As they left, Dumbledore slowly walked to the place where they had set the boat. With a flourish of his wand, he transfigured the boats into something more majestic and bowed his head in sadness, as if to join the mourning.
"Afternoon, Severus," said Dumbledore, not looking up, "Come to pay your respects?"
"Only for one," sneered Severus before taking a red lily, the same shade as Lily Potter nee Evans. He tossed it into the lake, watching it float away.
"Come, Severus," said Dumbledore, "We have a Halloween feast."
Harry was walking through the corridors alone, stating he wanted some time alone, when he heard something.
". . . rip . . . tear . . . kill . . ."
"Who's there!" shouted Harry, drawing his wand. But yet, nobody showed up.
The whispers slowly faded away, making Harry sweat a little. He remembered Merida telling them something would happen, and though this might be it. He decided to back up and quickly find the nearest populated area.
Soon, the Halloween feast was underway. Harry sat with Merida, Neville, and Ron, eating and enjoying some small talk. Luna sat with Hermione and Hiccup. Rapunzel was with Susan Bones and Hannah Abbott, along with Cedric Diggory, who's father was considering running for Minister of Magic. Jack was laughing with Daphne and Tracy. Ron noticed that his sister came in a bit later, though, but didn't question it. He thought she was doing some girl stuff and didn't want to ask.
After everyone was done, they were all walking back to their dorms when the students in the front stopped and gasped. Others pushed to see what was happening and gasped. For on the wall, in blood red, was words written foot high, between two torches.
THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED. ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE.
And to emphasize it, on a torch bracket, was Mrs. Norris, Filch's cat. She was hanging by her tail, not moving at all and eyes opened wide. On the floor was a large puddle of water that most people had no idea how it got there.
"Enemies of the Heir, beware! You'll be next, Mudbloods!" shouted Draco Malfoy with a smug grin, his cold eyes alive. Then, he howled in pain as he felt something stab him in the butt. Jack had motioned Baby to do so whenever he uttered the word Mudblood. And of course, Draco had no idea who was doing it.
Dumbledore arrived with the staff, quickly clearing the students away while Filch was bemoaning about his cat. The students quickly hurried to their dormitories for safety.
"Whoa. Guess Firenze was right," whispered Merida towards Harry as they approached their dorms, "Something did happen."
Harry nodded before wondering about the sound that he had heard. He didn't know whether to tell them or not. They all went to sleep, slightly scared for tomorrow.
The next few days passed in slight fear, though Malfoy seemed to be strutting down the hall fearlessly as if he owned the castle. During the History of Magic class, Hermione even asked Professor Binns about the Chamber of Secrets. It made for an interesting lecture for about 20 minutes before he decided to go back to droning about goblin wars.
"Huh. Wonder if that's actually true," commented Hiccup when they were back in the library.
"What do you mean? Binns said so himself!" raged Hermione.
"Binns is a ghost that drones about Goblin wars," said Hiccup placatingly, "Plus, you know history can be skewed easily throughout time. Plus, Jack's in Slytherin, and he's nowhere like Salazar, just the cunning part. Plus, I doubt Slytherin was all about blood purity. Otherwise, the other founders wouldn't have invited him."
"Why divide our friendship?" frowned Merida, "We've been breaking traditions ever since we got here."
Everyone laughed and continued on with their studies. They didn't notice the trail of spiders leaving the castle.
Soon, the first Quidditch match of the season was upon them, Slytherin vs Gryffindor. Harry was anxious to beat them and rub it in their face that those with money wasn't always the winner, as were the rest of the Gryffindor team. Lucius Malfoy had decided to attend to support his son, sitting next to Snape. On another side, Valka and North had come to show their support for Harry.
The game started off with the Slythering leading off due to their brooms, leading them 30-0. After another Quaffle made it through, Ron quickly shouted for a timeout. They gathered around him, and Ron began making drawings of what he had observed and the weaknesses.
"I'm glad Harry got you to become Gryffindor's Strategist," grinned Wood, "Perhaps a few more years and some practice, you'll be leading Gryffindor Quidditch team as Captain."
Ron blanked out for a second before shaking his head and grinning. They scattered back into the air.
"What the!"
"Oh cmon!"
"No fair!"
Slytherin team's comment started to complain as Gryffindor began to systematically dismantle their strategies. Even changing some new plays were ineffective as Ron had already predicted them. Soon, the score became 50-30. Then, it went wrong when it started to rain. Harry was searching for the Snitch, ignoring Malfoy's taunt for the moment, debating on whether or not the Wronski Feint would work on him when a Bludger came pelting towards him. Harry dodged it narrowly, the iron ball ruffling his hair. George came by and swung it towards one of the Slytherin chasers when it suddenly stopped in midair and went back for Harry.
"What the?" gasped George before narrowing his eyes, going towards it and slamming it towards Malfoy. It ended with the same result, stopping and aiming for Harry. Harry quickly began to fly as fast as he could away from the Bludger. It kept chasing him, going far faster then what it normally should go. All the while, the rain started to get heavier. He ducked right as Fred swung his club, trying to dissuade the Bludger, but it was no use.
"We need a time out!" shouted Fred to Wood.
Luckily Wood managed to hear it and called for a time out. At that moment, the rogue Bludger paused, waiting for Harry.
"What's happening? George, Fred, where were you guys when the Bludger hit Angelina? It's 70-40!"
"Trying to make sure a Bludger wasn't trying to take Harry's head off," snarled Fred, "One of the Bludger's been tampered with!"
"Maybe we should ask for an inquiry," suggested Alicia, not keen on letting Harry being chased by a rogue Blduger.
"If we do that, then we forfeit the match!" groaned Wood, not wanting to lose to those who bought their way to win.
"If we can prove that it's tampered with, then the game will have to be halted," reminded Ron, who had gone through the latest rule books in preparation, "We just need to convince the Slytherin and Madam Hooch to agree."
"Fat luck that'll do us," sighed Fred, "They'd never agree to that."
"Of course, they wouldn't agree if it didn't affect them," pointed Ron, "However... I have a plan that'll demolish their formation and make them agree. The downside is that it puts Harry in danger."
"What's the plan?" asked Harry before anyone could disagree with it.
"Fred and George, you two leave Harry alone and focus on the other Bludger. Harry, try your best and keep flying, and fly right through Slytherin formations. This should keep them scattered nicely. They'll have to agree. Wood, make sure you notify Madam Hooch of possible tampering to make her watch and agree."
"That's crazy!" shouted Angelina.
"It'll work," said Harry, already agreeing to the plan. Wood nodded to his team and flew back into position.
"North, that Bludger doesn't look normal, does it?" asked Valka in the stands with North and the kids. Hermione had her hands up to her face again in worry.
"Hmm, it doesn't" murmured North, "But they're still playing. I wonder..."
Hiccup frowned and passed a small vial to Merida, who automatically took it and put it as one of her arrowheads.
The game started once more, and Harry was dealing with the rogue Bludger. Taking Ron's advice, he flew through the Slytherin formation. They kept being scattered due to the Bludger not caring who was in its ways and almost slammed into one of the Chaser's head. The score became a bit more even, going at 80-60
"Scarhead, what do you think you're doing!" shouted a frustrated Malfoy, "Practicing for ballet?"
Harry had managed to drive the Bludger into the wall and was staring at Malfoy when he noticed the Snitch hovering right behind Malfoy's ear. It was a moment too long. The Bludger came back with a vengeance and slammed Harry's right side. He felt his right arm break and ribs possibly fractured as he spun, but Harry didn't give up. Using his left hand, he managed to get himself out of spinning and pushed his broomstick forward, going right for Malfoy. Malfoy's eyes widened in fear and got out of the way just in time to see Harry nab the Snitch.
With only his legs on the broom, Harry fell down onto the field. Luckily, he wasn't too high up when he impacted into the ground, but he did land on his right side, causing him to almost black out in pain.
"Harry Potter has caught the Snitch! Gryffindor wins!" shouted Lee Jordan.
"Inquiry! The Bludger's been tampered with! I demand this game to be voided!" shouted Flint.
"You should've done that earlier, then," scolded Hooch, "But the game has officially ended, and your inquiry has become void."
Harry was slowly blinking, trying to get up when he heard someone shout "Harry, look out!"
Harry saw the Bludger still coming for him and aiming right for his head! He rolled left to dodge it, letting it impact on the ground. However, it flew back up into the air and towards Harry's head once more, as if trying to kill him. Merida took out her bow and arrow with the vial and fired it right into the Bludger, the rain not even affecting her aim. The vial contained some of Toothless's flammable drool that would explode upon contact with air. The vial shattered and blew up the Bludger into pieces, saving Harry.
"Harry, are you alright?" asked Hermione worriedly as she was the first one to arrive. Harry could see she had been digging her nails into her face again in worry.
"Not really," groaned Harry, "My arm's broken, and I think my ribs are also."
"Just lay still for now," lectured Hermione sternly, "Rapunzel should be able to heal them easily."
Without noticing, Harry's head was somehow on Hermione's lap as she used it to elevate his head to a more comfortable position. The rest of Harry's friends and the team arrived to see if he was alright. However, Lockhart also arrived.
"Not to worry, I'll fix that arm and rib straight away."
"No, not you," said Harry, trying to escape. He was scooting back as far back as possible, bumping his head on Hermione's stomach. She slightly blushed at this action.
"Doesn't know what he's saying," stated Lockhart loudly to the anxious crowd of Gryffindors and friends pressing around them. He saw Valka approaching and wanted to impress her. "Not to worry, Harry. This won't hurt a bit."
He twirled his wand and pointed it right at Harry's ribs before uttering a spell. However North had arrived, and noticing what Lockhart was about to do and hearing his choice of spell, his eyes opened widely and quickly grabbed Galleon in his pocket and threw it right into Lockhart's wand arm. Lockhart's aim veered from Harry's ribs to his right arm before the spell was cast.
"Who did that?" said Lockhart loudly, "Well, I suppose I could start with the arm first."
Harry looked down at his right arm and shuddered. He couldn't feel anything in them at all! Lockhart grabbed it to show everyone how it flopped like rubber.
"Yes, well that can happen, but the important part is that you don't feel pain anymore," smiled Lockhart.
Harry almost fainted as he saw Lockhart demonstrating the fact he had no bones in his right arm by bending it in an impossible way.
"You bloody removed his bones!?" screeched Merida.
"Idiot," groaned Jack.
Before Lockhart could respond, he found himself being lifted into the air and staring into North's eyes. He gulped as he swore he saw the raging blizzard within those blue eyes.
"You... were about to remove his rib cage," growled North.
"Well, yes. To make the pain go away," stuttered Lockhart.
Hermione paled at the implication of no rib cage. Without it, Harry wouldn't be able to breathe and suffocate to death. Lockhart had almost killed Harry! With that, any worship for Lockhart disappeared in her eyes and heart.
"Do... you know what happens if there is no ribcage?" snarled North.
When Lockhart shook his head, North almost lost to the temptation of bashing his head into the ground. Instead, he let go and quickly scooped Harry up.
"Hospital Wing. Now. Direct me."
Jack nodded and lead North to the Hospital Wing. Harry's friends quickly went to give chase. As Lockhart dusted himself, he noticed Valka passing by.
"Ah, Valka! How are-"
He didn't get to finish as Valka slammed her leg into his groin, causing him to go down in pain. Everyone who saw that winced, even Dumbledore. He would have to get more details of why such a violent reaction.
"You should've gone straight to me!" raged Madam Pomfrey, "I can mend bones in a second — but growing them back... It'll be a painful process. You'll have to stay the night."
"Rapunzel. Can your hair... you know, make bones grow back without the pain process?" whispered Hermione.
Rapunzel shrugged her shoulders, "Haven't tried it before. Might be able to now, thanks to the unicorn blood, but because everyone saw the idiot remove his bones, they all know Harry's in the Hospital Wing. I don't want my hair power to be known too easily."
"Then can you sneak in later at night and accelerate the process?"
"Not a good idea," murmured Hiccup, who saw Pomfrey grabbing a bottle of Skele-Gro, "We have no idea what'll happen if it does restore his bones while he's on Skele-Gro. He might grow too many bones."
"So no choice then," frowned Hermione.
"Sadly, no," sighed Jack, "Uncle is furious with Lockhart and is launching a complaint already. Wonder how's that going?"
OH ALL THE!"
North started to rant at Lockhart, who seemed to grow smaller. Dumbledore had been summoned to hear the rant and was quite surprised to suddenly hear North spout off in Russian. None the less, he got the message. Lockhart had almost killed Harry with his foolish choice of spell. Valka had opted not to show as she had business with Hagrid, and that if she saw Lockhart again, she said she would make sure to rupture the other nut.
North finally stopped to take a breath. Lockhart tried to explain when North went off again. He had just paused to take a breath.
"I think we get it," said Dumbledore dryly after North seemed like he finally finished.
"You better," growled North, "You know I hate when children are hurt by the stupidity of others, especially elders."
Dumbledore winced at this, knowing this was also a jab at him too.
"Now, see-" started Lockhart, but shut up when both Dumbledore and North turned to glare at him.
"Control your staff, or I will be forced to take action," snarled North, "I will be staying the night to make sure Harry is fine. Evidently, the Bludger today was tampered with."
"I will send a House Elf to show you the guest room, then," nodded Dumbledore, snapping his finger for one to appear, "Twinkle here will guide you."
"Twinkle will show you the way," bowed the House Elf.
"Just take me to the Hospital Wing and I'll just borrow a bed there," replied North tersely, "I need to make sure Harry will be safe." He walked out the office with Twinkle and slammed the door shut.
"Well, that was that," chuckled Lockhart.
"No, it was not," said Dumbledore gravely as he turned to Lockhart, "He had his rant. Now it's my turn."
Lockhart whimpered and released his bowels, letting his diaper do its work.
At Hagrid's, he was squealing in joy. Valka had come through and brought a Terrible Terror dragon egg for him, instructing him on what to do. He had gone to the dragon reserve in Romania last summer and had been taught the basics.
"I'm so happy!" squealed Hagrid. Valka laughed, seeing Hagrid was an eternal child at heart. Then, she noticed a trail of spiders leading to the forest.
"Hagrid?" asked Valka, "Do spiders follow this pattern?"
Hagrid looked and frowned, "Dunno. I think the last time I saw this was 50 years ago.
Harry woke up hours later in the middle of the night in pain, feeling splinters in his right arm. Then, he felt someone sponging off his forehead.
"Get off!" yelled Harry before noticing a tiny creature with large, bat-like ears and bulging green eyes the size of tennis balls.
"Dobby only wants to help the great Harry Potter," said Dobby, introducing himself to Harry for the first time, "Dobby thought that when Harry Potter missed the train, he would go home. But never Dobby think Harry Potter would still get on it."
"Wait. You're the reason why the barrier sealed shut?" asked Harry, getting angrier.
"Dobby did it so Harry Potter would be safe!" wailed Dobby, "Harry Potter must go home! Dobby thought his Bludger would be enough to-"
"Your Bludger!" snarled Harry, "That Bludger almost killed me! Is that what you call saving?"
"No, never kill," said Dobby, shocked. "Dobby just wants to save Harry Potter's life! Better to go home injured than dead! Dobby-"
He didn't get to say anything more as two new House Elves suddenly tackled Dobby out of Harry's bed, along with a peculiar looking elf wearing red and green all over his body with bells on his hat. The other House Elves wore something similar but more respectable. It was night and day comparing Dobby's pillowcase clothes.
"Dobby. It is you again," said North, getting up from his bed. Dobby squeaked in fright, not noticing North had been lying next to Harry's bed the whole time.
"What do you want us to do with this one?" asked the neatly dressed House Elf. Harry noticed that their speech was much better than Dobby's. Both House Elves grabbed each of Dobby's arm while the last elf... gnawed on Dobby's leg.
"For now... nothing," commanded North before poking the small elf to stop gnawing, "Dobby. Why are you so set on trying to 'save' Harry's life?"
"Dobby cannot let Harry stay here now history is repeating itself," said Dobby in a panic, "Now that the Chamber of Secrets has opened once more."
"Once more?" asked Harry. Dobby tried to punish himself, but the other two House Elves wouldn't let him.
"Please, don't ask Dobby," cried Dobby, "Dobby only wants to make sure Harry Potter is safe when danger strikes again."
"Dobby. Two of my best friends are muggle-born. They'll be first in line if the Chamber really opened." said Harry.
"Harry Potter risks his own life for his friends!" moaned Dobby in a kind of miserable ecstasy. "So noble! So valiant! But he must save himself, he must, Harry Potter must not —"
Dobby froze all of a sudden. They all heard people walking towards the Hospital Wing.
"Dobby must go!" whispered Dobby trying to free himself. With a nod from North, the two House Elves let go of Dobby and disappeared, taking the small one with them. Dobby himself snapped his fingers to disappear. Harry laid back on his bed to relax while North stood up to see what was going on.
Dobby himself snapped his fingers to disappear. Harry laid back on his bed to relax while North stood up to see what was going on.
Dumbledore opened the door to let Professor Babbling and Vector set down a stretcher carrying a boy with a camera to his face. McGonagall was next to them, looking in a panic.
"What happened?" asked North, walking forward. McGonagall almost screamed, forgetting North had been here.
"There has been another attack. A boy has been found petrified," said Dumbledore gravely before putting a silencing bubble around them.
North looked and frowned at the stiff body. Dumbledore leaned forward and wrenched the camera out of Colin's rigid grip.
"You don't think he managed to get a picture of his attacker?" said Professor McGonagall eagerly. Dumbledore didn't answer and opened the back of the camera to have a jet of steam hiss out of it. The insides of the camera had been completely melted as the acrid smell of burnt plastic filled the air.
"What does this mean, Albus?" Professor McGonagall asked urgently.
"It means," said Dumbledore, "that the Chamber of Secrets is indeed open again."
"It's opened before?" questioned North.
"Once, when I was still a Transfiguration teacher 50 years ago," sighed Dumbledore, "Headmaster Amando Dippet almost had to shut down the school because someone died. Suddenly one classmate turned in another, saying he was the Heir. The boy was expelled from Hogwarts, and the attacks suddenly stopped. But I never believed it."
"Why?" asked North.
"Because that same boy has been with us for 50 years as our groundskeeper. That man is an eternal child at heart, and would never hut or kill anyone. I believe Hagrid was framed."
"By whom?" asked North.
"I do not know. There was no proof of who else did it, and Hagrid was used as a scapegoat because of his peculiar eccentricities towards some exotic animals and his heritage."
"Heritage?"
"Hagrid is a half-giant."
"Huh. Explains why he's bigger than me and Stoick."
"You... do not care?" asked McGonagall.
"I do not judge anyone base on their blood or who their parents."
"A view that I wish many people would accept," sighed Dumbledore.
"What will you do, then?" grunted North.
"Contact the Board of Directors and see if they will allow Aurors and other experts to come in," replied Dumbledore, "It may be hard, though. They are a rather stubborn and pro-blood group, although the reforms in the Ministry may make it easier."
"You do that. I'll start researching on what animal causes this."
"You've already narrowed it down to animals?" questioned Pomfrey.
"I doubt it was a student," said North, "I'm going to visit a friend. He's more knowledgeable about this. You have Mandrakes?"
"We are growing some," said Dumbledore, "But they won't mature near the end of May. We would try to buy some from other places, but it is rare. Mandrakes must be used immediately into the potions to keep the freshness for it to be most effective. Not to mention it's a seasonal plant."
"I can get some from my friend," answered North, "He has several greenhouses with different temperatures for each place. We don't want the boy to miss most of his Hogwarts education."
"That would be most grateful," smiled Pomfrey.
"Until then," said North as Dumbledore took him to the nearest fireplace to use the Floo network.
Hope you've enjoyed it. Guess who's going to show up? Also, enjoy my little elf! MI0 was something I'd imagine would fit the bill for the MI series. Would've done MI7, but that's actually a real department, though it was shut down.