AN: Already getting a lot of feedback on chapter 11 and it's been less than a full day. Love you guys, really I do. I'll keep the discussion on other stories away from… each other, because it confuses me as I read them. I think they're reviews for the story in question when they're not and just ugh, though I do appreciate the reviews nonetheless.
On that note, if you're willing to leave a review then I think you should be willing to make an account otherwise your review is kind of pointless since I can't respond. Especially when good points are made. Also, how TF are you keeping track of stories if you can't fav/follow them? Keeping tabs open eternally sounds like a real pain.
So, there is an idea I've toyed with for a while after reading most of JacobApples' stories and in this chapter, I'll make it official. It requires one small retcon, but honestly, it won't have a huge effect on the overall story.
~MM~
Chapter 11 Summary: Harry gets his room and Ted makes it look absolutely badass. Andromeda learns a little more about how shitty life with the Dursleys was and tasks Nymphadora with figuring out how Harry hides all his stuff. Harry and Nym go shopping for video games and the day after Nym is able to "interrogate" Harry to the point that he reveals the Game. They visit the Zombie dungeon and learn a little more about quests and how they work.
~MM~
Chapter 12: Close Encounters of the Educational Kind
"Well… we've got a lot of time right? Let's just grind enemies here for a little bit, maybe even fight one of the bosses. You already got a level from when I killed all the zombies."
"What? Really? That's so cool! Stats."
Title: Hogwarts Student
Name: Nymphadora Tonks
Race: Wizard (Metamorphmagus)
Level: 27
HP: 300/300
MP: 600/600
Stats 5
Str: 15 +
Vit: 15 +
Dex: 15 +
Int: 30 +
Wis: 30 +
Luck: 10 +
Charm: 15(+) + ?
XP: 7,690/25,000
Harry cut in before Nymphadora could spend her five points. "YOU SHOULD-" He screamed, stopping her finger before it could hit the plus next to Int. "-hold off until you've got a bunch. Just in case you need a certain stat in a pinch. Also, you gotta remember that we've got to fight stuff. Intelligence will increase your spell damage mana pool, but wisdom affects other spells you might want to use. Actually, I can show you right now. Stats."
Title: Forest Born
Name: Harry Potter
Race: Wizard
Level: 98
HP: 1,060/1,060
MP: 620/620
Stats: 285
Str: 100(+) + 10 = 110
Vit: 43(+) + 10 = 53
Dex: 100(+) + 30 = 130
Int: 31 +
Wis: 28 +
Luck: 29 +
Charm: 3 +
XP: 26,474,269/471,858,600
"Morgana's saggy tits Harry! 285?"
Despite knowing how much his level had increased actually seeing the numbers was still a bit of an exciting surprise for Harry.
"Yeah… that's a whole lot. Anyway. I've got my strength to 100, which is another cool thing when you get your stats high enough you get a free perk and I got a spell that increases my strength so I really don't need to put any more points into it. The thing is, this spell is really expensive, and since Intelligence increases Mana I should probably put some into there. Actually, since I've got so much I'll bring it to 100 right now."
Congratulations!
For bringing your Intelligence stat to 100 or more you have been given the opportunity to choose between a number of Intelligence related perks!
Mind Over Matter
…Or rather, mind over experience. You're so smart that you figured out an easier way to level up! Good for you!
10% less Experience required to level up
Well of Infinity
Wells are pretty cool, they give you water and stuff. When a well dries up sometimes the solution is to dig deeper to find more water. That's what's going to happen to your mana pool. Whenever you completely empty your mana your pool will increase by 1%.
Evolution Booster
With your vast intellect, you have discovered a way to make your spells even better than what they could already become when it is time for them to evolve. You will still be given multiple choices, the difference is that there will be secret bonuses to each evolution that will only make the ability far more badass.
Harry gestured to the screen that was taller than both kids stacked on top of each other. "See? This stuff is so cool. So… which one do you think I should pick?"
'A kid is testing me? What a world.' Nymphadora smiled at the thought. "Evolution Booster seems nice, but the other two was way better so it's out. Mind over Matter is nice, but that Well of Infinity has some serious potential. Besides, I don't think that you'll have many issues with leveling up any time soon."
"Booyah, that's what I was thinking. Not to mention, I can purposefully exploit Well of Infinity at any time for any reason. Alright, I still have a bunch of stats to go around. Wisdom is up next, I'm a wizard after all."
Congratulations!
For bringing your Wisdom stat to 100 or more you have been given the opportunity to choose between a number of Wisdom related perks!
Great Sage
Spells are your weapons and mana is your resource.
Doubles MP regeneration.
Wisdom from Beyond
For eons, people have believed that a higher power guides them. Maybe they're right. Whenever you have been completely stumped by a situation a helpful hint will appear.
Mind Reading
You learn Legilimency.
[Wand Magic] Legilimency Lvl. 1
Dive into a person's brain and ruffle around until you get what you want!
Incantation: Legilimens
Stat Battle: Player's wisdom must be double target's
[Combat]
Damage: 100 + Wis Magic
Effects: Causes Confusion or Unconscious statuses
Cost: 500 MP per cast or target
[Utility]
Read someone's mind
Success Chance: 1%
Cost: 500 MP per cast or target
"You just get to learn legilimency for free? That's bullshit." A distressed Nymphadora Tonks cried.
"Is that hard?"
"The mind magics are exceedingly difficult to learn. It's not exactly something you can learn from a book, and the few books that exist are expensive and/or vague and generally unhelpful. Tutors are even rarer and more expensive. On top of all that the mind magics are extremely difficult to master, they're the kind of skills that will always get better for the rest of your life. Legilimency and Occlumency, which is about defending and organizing your mind, tend to be taught from parent to child so it's one big public secret. It's one of those things people use to keep the people that are on top on top."
Harry blinked. "Uhh… ok."
The teenager laughed at the boy's lack of understanding. "It's ok Harry, the last bit you'll learn as you grow up. Long story short, it is insane that you get to learn legilimency for free."
"Got it. Anyway, I think Great Sage is perfect, it'll let me exploit Well of Infinity more and you never know when just a little bit more mana will help in a pinch. I'll definitely pick up Legilimency next time though."
After pressing a couple of buttons Harry continued.
"Still got 144 points. Easy, vitality so I can live."
Congratulations!
For bringing your Vitality stat to 100 or more you have been given the opportunity to choose between a number of Vitality related perks!
Can't Keep Me Down!
You've got people to see and places to go, you ain't got time to be regenerating health!
Doubles health regen and health received from healing over time spells
Beefy Boy
You never know when you will walk into a nuclear warhead and blow it up, so you have to be prepared.
Doubles health points gained from vitality points
Stone Flesh
Become like the mighty castle walls of yore and hold strong against any and all attacks that may come your way!
Damage Taken Reduced by 5% Permanently
Grants access to the Active Combat Ability [Stone Flesh]
[Active Combat] Stone Flesh Lvl. 1
Become like the mighty castle walls of yore and hold strong against any and all attacks that may come your way! But be warned, there is a great cost to this remarkable skill.
Damage Reduction: 50%
RK Cost: 100 MP per second
Dexterity is reduced by half while the ability is active
"Ooh! Me! Me this time. Ok. Beefy Boy will probably let you ignore damage forever, Which is pretty crazy. Can't Keep Me Down is nice, but not as good as Beefy Boy right now since I don't plan on becoming a healer. Stone Flesh is amazing… AND it'll let you easily exploit Well of Infinity which is a priority. Beefy Boy for safety… this is tough Harry. Do you have healing spells and other ways to get out of danger?"
Harry nodded vigorously before Blinking to show off.
"Well, that settles it then. I say go for Stone Flesh."
"Alrighty, Still have a bunch of points, I'll max out Luck."
Congratulations!
For bringing your Luck stat to 100 or more you have been given the opportunity to choose between a number of Luck related perks!
Treasure Hunter
All Drops are doubled! Money, Experience, Items! All of it! Also increases the chances of Mythic drops.
Critical Master
Causes the chance for a critical hit to occur anywhere on an enemy. Or you… literally anywhere.
Vanilla? Who likes Vanilla?
For every 100 enemies faced the chance that a mutated enemy will appear increases. Think of mutated enemies as mini-bosses. They will resemble their original mobs, but have a higher level, unique abilities, and will always drop a high rarity item. Bosses can mutate.
"... Huh. That Vanilla one is pretty cool, but I think the Treasure Hunter perk is incomparable." Nymphadora said, tossing in her two cents without prompting.
Harry giggled. "I think so too." More button pressing. "And the last couple of points go into charisma. Confirm."
Alert!
A small discrepancy has been noted, as such, your charisma stat has gained twenty points.
"Yay! Thanks, Game! Alright, my stats look pretty awesome."
Title: Forest Born
Name: Harry Potter
Race: Wizard
Level: 98
HP: 2,200/2,200
MP: 2,000/2,000
Stats:
Str: 100 + 10 = 110
Vit: 100 + 10 = 110
Dex: 100 + 30 = 130
Int: 100
Wis: 100
Luck: 100
Charm: 39
XP: 26,474,269/471,858,600
"Oh, and I better change my title to Skilled Zombie Slayer, it gives me a good damage boost."
Upon fully absorbing his stat sheet Nymphadora sighed morosely. "How am I suppose to catch up?"
Harry frowned for a moment before smiling brightly. "Grinding of course! We've got all day, right? So let's get you as high as we can before Ted and Andi get home."
"You know just how to cheer me up, don't you Harry?" Nymphadora squealed as she tugged the cheeks on Harry's noticeably more cherubic face.
Harry batted her hands away. "Oww, cut it out." He rubbed his hands on his reddened cheeks furiously. "Just stay safe ok? Some of the zombies can blink just like I did and some throw stuff. I don't want to explain to Mum why you're all bruised up." Harry tittered at the end.
"Hey! That's supposed to be the other way around!" Nymphadora complained before rolling her eyes. "Let's just get on with it."
~MM~
The duo spent six entire hours in the Zombie dungeon. They broke for lunch of course, but it was just sandwiches so that they could get back to grinding as quickly as possible. Nymphadora earned several levels and they would have stayed a few hours longer if they hadn't run into one of the three kings.
Warning! Incoming Boss!
Similarly to the arrival of The Hammer, the sky ripped apart as if by force. This time the hole was much smaller and the being that exited was far more unique.
It was tall, but not a titan like The Hammer had been, it stood at about ten feet tall. Unlike every other zombie thus far it was completely enshrouded in a large cloak and the only other thing Harry and Nymphadora could see was vividly glowing eyes.
For several moments nothing happened, the boss did not attack. Eventually, Harry did what he should have done the second the boss appeared. "Observe."
Congratulations! You reached a milestone with Observe!
Title: The Scholar of the Three Kings
Name: Cortland Law
Race: Zombie (Evolved)
Level: 150
HP: 2,000/2,000
MP: 5,000/10,000
Stats
Str: 50
Vit: 100
Dex: 50
Int: 250
Wis: 290
Luck: 10
Charm: 0
XP: 14,259,765,698/644,245,093,800
Summary: In life, Cortland law was an esteemed wizarding scholar. He was one of the wizards who went with the Pilgrims to America and it was there that he was slain and turned by the native zombies. His power and intellect were so profound that he became greater than any zombie ever before and ruled over a dominion. He was eventually slain in the late 1800s by a large group of American Hit Wizards. Here he has once again assumed dominion though he must share his rule with two others. His work can be seen in the blinkers as they are zombies he personally turned and as such gained one of his abilities.
Drops: 1 Rare Item, 1 Mythic Item, ?
Bonuses:
One With Magic
Your affinity to magic is so great that some say you can commune with it. It fills you with a great power that many envy.
Doubles MP, MP Regen, and Spell Damage
Teleporter
Quick and easy teleportation at a fraction of the cost!
AKA Blink 5.0
Mage Shield
Half of the users MP is permanently used to create a strong shield that defends against all attacks equal to the amount of MP spent. This shield can be replenished.
Flight
Weaknesses:
Fire
"Ohhh noooo. Nym… we've got a problem."
"Yeah Harry, I read it too."
"He's not attacking… so we have time to plan. Uhm… Do you have other offensive spells?"
"Of course I do. I've got the Exploding charm Bombarda. Uhh… Don't tell anyone, but I snuck into the restricted section last year and I got a book on curses. I learned the Blasting curse Confringo, though I didn't get a chance to practice it all that much. Expulso which is an Exploding curse. Flagrante might help, but it only makes things really hot…"
"That's fine, I've got a bunch of crappy swords you can use that on to attack him. He's giving us a free chance to attack so I want to try something."
Nymphadora stayed quiet and watched Harry as he concentrated on seemingly nothing. Then a small arrow formed above his head, and from what she could tell, it was made of pure magic. That arrow began growing larger and larger and slowly losing its form as it became this large twirling mass of power. Now it looked like a large, spinning screw.
When it stopped growing Harry spoke. "Ok… this… is crazy, but Fire is the best way to go with zombie so… Nym, can you use Incendio on this thing?"
Nymphadora's immediate reaction was to say "hell no," but the upcoming fight looked like a tough one and any advantage they could get was crucial. With hesitation weighing heavily on her heart she cast the utility version of the spell.
Harry's face suddenly contorted in pain as he felt the large arrow thing attempt to destabilize when the fire was added to it. Several messages started flashing across his vision.
Intelligence Check: 60
…
Passed
Wisdom Check: 80
…
Passed
Luck Check: 100
…
Passed
…
Critical Success
Congratulations You've created a new spell. Not only that, but you get some free levels.
[Active Combat] Greater Spinning Fire Arrow Lvl. 30
The greater spinning fire arrow is the culmination of multiple branches of the basic Magic Arrow. Making it larger and stronger, spinning it to add piercing damage, and imbuing elemental magic. Truly a horrifying behemoth of power.
Damage: 2,300 Magical/Fire/Piercing
Cost: 1,700 MP
Cast Time: 1 minute
Nymphadora let out a long, awed breath. "Blimey Harry. That's a hell of a spell."
At this point Harry was heavily sweating in exertion and because he was directly under a blazing inferno.
"That's great Nym. But I've got to toss this. Inventory! Nym can you grab Flaming High-Quality Short Sword and the Abomination's Axe with the least amount of durability?"
Neither item was difficult to find. "So what's the plan? Throw the spell and follow up with your sword attacks? I can throw in spells of my own, but I don't feel comfortable casting anywhere near you."
"Well… don't hit me? This massive thing won't even take out half of his shield. We've got to… uhh… drop a building on him or something."
"All the buildings here are just two-story houses shorter. We'd probably be in danger if we did something like that. Maybe because the spell is fire it'll do extra damage? I also know the Stunning spell which just… stuns people. If I get in his shield this will be an easy win."
As the conversation dragged on Harry noticed the spell becoming easier to handle, though the heat was still oppressive. As an added bonus his MP was regenerating despite holding a spell. He already had over 500 MP.
"That sounds broken, so a great idea. I've got a good amount of MP already. So maybe I can Blink with you and get right in his face. But you've got to be ready with that spell."
Nymphadora smirked. "Don't worry about it kiddo."
Needing no further confirmation let loose his spell and waited for the fireworks.
And oh were they glorious.
The boss finally reacted when the fireball was about ten feet away, unfortunately, it had been picking up speed and he was unable to dodge. The explosion was massive. Harry and Nymphadora who were about 100 feet away from the blast were knocked onto their asses.
Super Effective Damage
-5,000 Shield Points
-1,300 HP
"Oh… I forgot about my title." whsipered in awe.
Seeing that text box was Harry's signal to follow up with their attack. Grabbing Nym's hand he blinked he Blinked six times. Unfortunately, the Scholar was already coming to his senses and teleported away.
"Dammit!" Both kids swore at the same time.
Then Nymphadora began screaming as they fell to the ground. 'Is this how I die? Splattered on the ground in the arms of a ten-year-old?' she thought. The teen was oddly calm on the inside despite screaming like a woman possessed on the outside. 'And poor Harry. His life was getting better, I wanted to see him grow up happy and healthy…' Eventually, she closed her eyes, accepting the inevitable death.
But nothing happened.
Harry's voice cut through the silence. "Nym! I told you we would be fine. Didn't you hear me?"
The metamorphmagus blinked owlishly as she registered the fact that she and Harry were alive. Before she could say anything Harry suddenly jumped to the right avoiding a large… laser beam?
"Earth to Nym! We've got a boss to fight!"
At those words, Nymphadora's world zoomed back into focus.
"He shoots… magical lasers. And teleports. And has a crazy shield. How the hell do we do this?"
Harry chuckled. "Easily… we dodge! His laser beams aren't cheap mana-wise. His teleport has a cost too. He can't recharge his shield if he wants to attack us and he has to attack us if he doesn't want to give me a chance to charge another fireball right? We just got to wait him out. And I'm fast enough to dodge all his stuff."
Then the boss teleported behind them… and spoke.
"A child most wise. What a curiosity." His slightly deep, but horribly raspy voice came, made worse by his burns and the stench of burned and rotting flesh. "Alas… you shall not be given the chance to enact your plan. "Die."
The Boss had not been thinking. At all. In the slightest.
"Stupify!" Nymphadora screamed.
A red beam came zoomed out of the girl's wand and smacked the boss square in the chest. He promptly fell over onto his back.
"Oh…" was all Harry could say before running to get the sword and axe that had been left on the street a ways away.
Running high on adrenaline Nymphadora's hair flared a fiery red as she continuously cast stupify upon the boss until her voice became hoarse because she had been screaming. Which was right after Harry had returned, weapons in hand.
"Feel better?" The boy asked.
Voice officially lost Nymphadora only nodded in response.
Harry chuckled once again, albeit nervously this time. "Well… better put this guy down."
The act of slaying the boss was actually rather boring. Being stunned he could do nothing as Harry wailed on him with his fire sword and axe. Within seconds he was dead.
"Woo, we did it…" Harry said in a sad attempt to bring a little laughter to the tense situation.
Luckily the attempt was enough to get the girl to crack a small smile and cause her hair to a brown Harry had yet to see her in. It was the same exact shade of brown that her mother had.
"Hey look, we got cool loot. Let's see. A huge stack of galleons… a magic staff that boosts spell damage… a teleportation skill book that requires a maxed out blink… and finally, a fancy looking robe that gives a free spell shield "Once per day." Pretty nice."
"Want anything specific?"
Nymphadora simply nodded a grabbed the robe with the spell shield. Fancy was not a good enough descriptor. The robe was a deep royal purple and all of its trimmings and stitchings were done in the most beautiful gold the teen had seen in her entire life, to the point that it would not be surprising if it were in fact real gold. On the back was a large etching of a book that was clearly animated since the pages flipped with some regularity and the book gently twirled in a circle. There was nothing beyond that, but the robe still screamed high class. It belonged on some sort of emperor's shoulders, but they would adorn hers.
"Okay… you don't want anything else? Take at least half of the galleons. You won that fight."
Nymphadora shrugged in acceptance. 'Inventory.' she mentally commanded. The teen put half of the massive pile of gold and her new robe in before turning to Harry and gesturing behind herself with her thumb.
"Time to go?" The boy asked as he too stashed his loot.
Nymphadora nodded.
"Okie-dokie. Grab my hand and- ID: Escape."
~MM~
Andromeda Tonks was not a simple woman. After being ousted from her family for loving an amazing man she picked herself up by her bootstraps and made a living for herself. When she had Nymphadora at 21 she had been worried that all of her efforts thus far would be for naught. After all, Ted's mechanic business was booming and she had just recently been upgraded from intern to employee at the firm she was working at. They didn't have the money to hire a full-time babysitter and neither of them were too fond of the idea, so Andromeda was prepared to become a stay at home mom.
Thankfully one of the founders of the firm saw promise in her and they worked out a deal. She would do research for cases from home. It was all rather simple thanks to the wonders of floo travel. She would pick up and drop off files at night after Ted was home and could take care of the baby. It was glorious and in these unique circumstances, Andromeda was able to further astound her employers.
Those who worked off of the files she worked on quickly became far more successful than her peers and soon her cases were actively being fought over. It became such a big problem that the head honchos made it so that Andromeda could take any case she wanted and no one could say otherwise. Many of her co-workers became close friends over the years as they attempted to ingratiate themselves to her and get her to work on their cases. Being a Black, Andromeda could see through their bullshit from a mile away and soon was making a little extra money by charging extra for her services.
Even though she enjoyed the work Andromeda nearly threw herself a party the first year Nymphadora went off to Hogwarts. Sure, they had sent her to muggle primary, but it did not give Andromeda enough time to work an entire case and bring it before the Wizengamot. She finally had the freedom to become a fully fledged lawyer, even if it was a decade later than originally planned.
Once again her pureblood upbringing helped her rise to considerable heights as a lawyer. She stuck to her morals of course, but a couple of side deals and settlements out of court never hurt anybody. Long story short, she knew how to play the game and she played it well. She and Ted were more than comfortable though they stuck to a middle wage style of living and it was in times of quiet like these that Andromeda thought of how wonderfully happy she was.
She finished her filing for the day and began leaving her office.
But these quiet moments of pure contented bliss were often followed by melancholy. Andromeda was happy, but could the same be said for her sisters?
Bellatrix was gone. Consumed by the Black Madness and rotting away in Azkaban. Narcissa was married to her biggest crush… and hated every second of it. Perhaps hate was too strong a word, but that spark she used to see in her little sister's eye had disappeared long ago. They had not spoken in two decades, but it was impossible to ignore the tense moments that occurred when their eyes met as they passed each in the Alley.
It broke Andromeda's heart.
Sure her sisters were not "good people." They both stood by the pureblood propaganda that they had been raised on and fully supported Voldemort during his attempted rise to power. Bellatrix had fully embraced her madness in order to better serve her Dark Lord and Andromeda did not doubt that Narcissa had done her own work, but that could not stop her from loving them.
She knew that somewhere deep inside they both still loved her. After all, there was a reason why her family had not been targeted despite being so vulnerable. So the question became: should she have done more?
The power hierarchy between the Black sisters was often a very muddy one. Bella beat Andi 60% of the time and Andi beat Cissy 80% of the time. Narcissa had even gotten a few wins over Bella through the years. Andromeda knew she could have made a difference when it nearly became an all-out war, but she could not do it.
The mere thought of having to face down Bellatrix in open warfare, the idea that she might have had to put her sister down like the rabid dog she had become made Andromeda nauseous to the point that she had to sit down.
Which she did, alone at her dining room table Andromeda undid her severe bun and collapsed into her arms. She allowed herself a few tears for the sisters she had lost.
Andromeda could not excuse her inaction, not truly. Sure, Ted and Nymphadora were perfectly safe and secure, but thousands of others could not say the same, muggle and magical alike. She had seen Nymphadora's class and all the ones that had come after, they were almost half the size that hers had been!
This sorry state was how Edward found his wife when he returned from his shop.
He and Andromeda had had several long heart to heart sessions over the years about the issue he knew she was currently agonizing over. These moods occurred far less often than they used to, but they still happened from time to time and Ted had long ago accepted that it was something Andromeda would never truly come to terms with. So he simply sat down next to her and did the best thing he could do: distract her.
"Hi, love. Long day at work?"
Nothing.
And now Harry was a part of her life and another reason why she should have done something. Could Harry's parents be alive today if she had fought? What would it be like if the boy never had to deal with the abuse heaped upon him by his so-called relatives? Merlin, why-
"Have you seen the kids? It's getting late." Ted tried when Andromeda failed to respond the first time.
That got the woman moving.
"Sweet Circe Ted! Tempus!" The numbers that came out of her wand read 8:30. "I-I haven't seen them at all." 'Has it already been two hours?'
Now he was worried. "Well… we really don't have a way of contacting her. I told you we should have bought her one of those new muggle cell phones…" Ted trailed off.
Andromeda just rolled her eyes. "We talked about this Ted. Even though the price isn't an issue, they are extremely expensive for something she could only use while at home. Not to mention a Patronus works just as well."
"Maybe, but if she's in a muggle area we'll be breaking the Statute of Secrecy. And now that Harry's with us there is a bigger reason to get a cell phone."
Andromeda hesitated but nodded in agreement nonetheless. "Fine, but I'll be buying the phone, I refuse to get scammed!"
Ted smiled, but before he could respond a ragged pair of teens came stumbling into the kitchen.
"Mu~um! I'm hungry~!" were the first whining words to come out of Nymphadora's mouth as she laid sprawled out on the ground with an equally exhausted Harry on top of her.
"Yeah mu~um! I want pohta~ytoes!" Harry said in support of Nymphadora. He also made himself and Nym laugh with his bad Irish accent.
The adults simply rolled their eyes as they attempted to restrain their laughter at the comedic display. Andromeda also had to quell the rising rush of emotion at hearing Harry call her mum.
Wanting to give his wife a break Ted said, "Your mum is tired from a long day at work. I was going to take us out to eat, but you two are disgusting so I guess it'll just be the two of us…"
Neither Harry nor Nymphadora had ever moved faster in their lives. They were a comedy of disasters as the two tripped and fell over each other in a mad dash to get up the stairs and into the bathroom.
For the first time since he started living there Harry was not only able to wash himself, but help Nymphadora get clean!
"I'll get your back Nym!"
"Thank you, Harry. I'll get yours next ok?"
Scrub a dub-dub.
'Ooh, his hair is just as soft as his kneazle form.' Nymphadora thought as she rubbed the shampoo into Harry's hair.
More scrubbing and twenty minutes later the two were both clean, if a little damp, and ready to go.
"That was surprisingly fast." Andromeda remarked with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm hungry!" Harry answered.
Ted guffawed. "Well, that's a good answer if I've ever heard one." Grabbing the car keys Ted started toward the front door. "Let's go."
~MM~
The Stockpot was a good choice since Harry was not used to upper-class dining and the Tonkses really loved the place.
Harry picked at everyone's meals as he had never eaten out before nor had he ever eaten such meals before, bread and water was his staple at the Dursleys. That fact brought with it a heavy blanket of melancholy that stuck around until Ted mentioned his kids' statesof dress.
"So… why were you two out so late and why on Earth did you come back looking like you've had a roll in the mud?"
Harry looked like a deer caught in headlights and immediately looked to Nymphadora to cover.
The teen was not prepared either, but she was way better at making up stories for her parents. "Uhh… Uhh… well… after breakfast, we went to the park… yeah! We were there all day, had a blast we did. Uhm… ate lunch out… obviously. But that's why we're dirty. Harry got rough."
Harry shot an accusatory glare at the older Hogwarts student for sticking him with the blame.
Andromeda could not help the scoff she let out. "Be that as it may Nymphadora, you are going into your final year at Hogwarts. I expect a bit more cleanliness while you're out in public."
Nymphadora got defensive. "Why? You know I've got terrible balance. I'm getting dirty all of the time anyway. And it's not like I can use magic to clean myself in the middle of a muggle park."
"If you kept practicing…" Andromeda trailed off. It was obvious even to young Harry that she was bringing up an old argument.
"Mum! We did the classes for the entire summer before fourth year and nothing came out of it! Just face it, I'm not going to get better!"
Before Andromeda could fire back Ted stepped in. "Alright, alright, that's enough. I think Dora's right Dromeda." He chuckled, "It's as if she's cursed. So let's just let it go and finish out meal in peace."
"Fine, but I still don't want you two make a mess of yourselves out in public like that. Play in the backyard if you feel the need to roll in the dirt."
Nymphadora rolled her eyes. "Alright, mum."
~MM~
Dinner ended pleasantly and the Tonkses returned home without any more arguments. This time neither Nymphadora nor Harry pretended that they would sleep apart, so the metamorphmagus fell into Morpheus' embrace with the cutest kneazle kitten you ever did see perched upon her chest.
~MM~
AN: Sorry if this chapter is a bit rough, I wrote half of it while at work on my crappy Android since they gave me the easiest job in the world of taking calls while sitting down. I work on Google docs and I'm using the Grammarly beta, I also give it a look in the word processor I use to upload chapters, but I can't catch everything.
Uhh…. this chapter coming out so quickly after the last leaves me without much to say…
If anyone was curious there was liberal use of dice in the creation of the super fire spell. I used percentile dice to figure out how difficult each requirement would be then I used a D20 to decide how successful each stat was. Int and Wis had meh rolls, but I got a 20 for Luck, hence the free levels.
I also flipped a coin to see whether or not the Scholar got away from Harry and Nym's follow up attack and he obviously won that. Nym's attack on him that actually stunned him was purely creative, I had actually expected to drag the fight out a bit longer, but Nym stunning him when he thought he had the advantage hit me like a sack of bricks and I had to do it.
For those curious as to motivations, the reason the Scholar was not prepared for Nym's attack despite being a wizard himself was that he had not realized she was a witch. She doesn't look the part and he wouldn't have seen her wand in the few seconds he spent chasing and cornering them.
And I did a stupidity roll to see if he took Nymphadora, who hadn't done anything, as a risk. He got a three on a d20.
(Get it? Because the Boss was a scholar. Teehee)
Hope you guys like the chapter and like always please leave a thoughtful review.
Thx ;)
