Okay, today is a half lucky day, half not. I got the phone call I was waiting for my new job. And then I found out that my cousin's cat was being put to sleep...Like I said half lucky, half not.

I don't own Harry Potter. Once again, I don't know if I'll be able to upload...with this new job!


Harry sat alone in the common room, it was too early for others to be up and Harry wanted some free time to think before he had to put the false front he had kept up the entire year. He had made several friends, made a petty enemy, and even made a few discoveries in the magical world that seemed to have been overlooked or hidden away for younger wizards and witches in the school's safety. His notebook was being filled on a daily basis with different things he had noticed while using spells or something interesting that he had read.

He had finished second year's textbooks, and was steadily working on third year standard spell books. He had practiced making first and second year potions over and over again so that he could pretty much make it in his sleep. If only Professor Snape would stop his bullying, he'd show him that he could do much better...

Harry leaned back in his seat and flipped through his book. There were spells that Harry had found in random books.

There was a particular fire spell that appealed to Harry, not just because it was more powerful than the normal fire spell that first years learned, but what form it took when cast. Instead of a few flames coming out of the end of their wand, it would create a large tornado of fire that could be sent in any direction.

Blazi vortesia

The downside, Harry discovered, that it took a lot of will to have the spell change direction and it didn't exactly turn on a knut. It was easy to dodge if you stay near it, granted it got a lot hotter the closer you got to it.

Then there were protective spells that were to be placed on the caster's personal items so that only the caster could remove them from a shelf or a stand. It impressed Harry so much that that he ran out to the broom shed and cast the spell over his Nimbus Two Thousand. He had had so many threats towards his broom, people threatened to steal it, ride it, and break it if he kept playing for Gryffindor.

"All you are is a fast broom Potter, take that away and you're just a first year with little skill."

"Nice broom, Potter, you won't mind if I give you my old Shooting star, do you? Sure you don't...I'll swing by the broom shed and take care of it."

"Someone ought to snap that broom of yours Potter."

"You know, Potter, brooms, doesn't matter how expensive they are, can break under wear and tear. Especially if a little first year with no experience in broom care...you can just walk out to start playing a game when you find it all in splinters. Best keep that in mind..."

This spell would make sure they didn't hurt his most prized possession, aside from Hedwig and the cloak of course. Hedwig could take care of herself, and the cloak...he only told Ron and Hermione about it, and they certainly didn't tell anyone else.

There was a few pages dedicated to the first year Defense book's theories. Listed on the pages, were paragraphs and paragraphs of reasons why the theories wouldn't work in real life.

Dunnings' Theory of Magical Shield spell.

This can't work in the heat of battle very well. According to the theory, you need to be motionless for two minutes at least, the opponent won't let you get that much free time. And the spell's incantation doesn't have the effect it's supposed in the book. A stronger spell is needed. See Guardian Spells, by Armando Fortor. It has a shield spell that can summon a real shield from wand, and you can move about all you want.

Remingston's Theory of Wand Reflection.

Seems sound enough, but when placed into a situation against something that has magical defense as strong as a dragon's hide, then the spell rebounds back to the wand and can cause massive damage to the hand wielding it.

It was a good thing that he dodged the spell when he aimed it at his dragon hide gloves, what it did to the wall that stood behind him...it was a little devastating. He sent an anonymous note with a school owl to Mr. Remingston and told him what he had discovered. Didn't quite know how the man would take it, but hopefully he didn't make a mistake telling the man.

Further in the book, there were tracings of a multiple amount plants. Each one with a little note beside it, a little extra information that Harry had found in different books. There was a traced picture of a Devil's Snare and a little note positioned beside the tracing.

Have fire spell ready, and remain calm, struggling will only egg it on. Also, if you have a few doxy eggs, it will snap them up like a sort of treat. Toss them away from you and that'll distract the tentacles from ensnaring you further.

Harry closed his book with a snap and sat in silence, he had heard something. He turned and saw Ron's pet rat Scabbers.

"What are you doing down here?" asked Harry with a smile. "Reading over my shoulder?"

Harry smiled at his own joke, there was no way for a person to even be able to understand what was written in the book if he could read, let alone the rat. The book wasn't written normally. There was no recognizable letter on any of the pages, they were odd looking shapes and doodles. There was no way for anyone, without the key to the code, to find out what Harry had written in the notebook. And there was no written key anywhere, it was all in Harry's head.

He had developed the code way back in primary school, when he had his white notebook. Uncle Vernon had a deep prejudice against Harry, and Harry knew it...he wasn't stupid and that was one of the problems. Compared to Dudley, he was better looking, more athletic, more intelligent, kinder and obviously on a better path in life. Anything that Harry would bring home that would prove once again that Harry was better than his privileged cousin, would result in punishment and the trophy or report card would be destroyed.

Harry decided to disguise his work and his personal scribbles with apparently harmless doodles.

He levitated his best friend's rat into the air and took him upstairs to where Ron was sleeping, it may be Ron's rat, but that didn't mean he liked touching it. "There, now go back to sleep." muttered Harry as the rat flew over to Ron's bed. Harry went back down to the common room to think.

He had to keep his mind on other things, dwelling on the thing that kept plaguing his mind was slowly but surely driving him insane.

It was the mirror, he was completely in the dark about where it came from, why it was there...and he was in tragic awe over what he saw inside it's reflective surface. If he were to allow his mind to lax for even a moment, the image of his parents and the rest of his family waving happily to him stuck in his mind.

Especially when he saw Officer McFinn standing way in the back.

The overwhelming desire to go and sit in front of the mirror for hours, even days on end was getting too strong, he had promised Dumbledore that he wouldn't go looking for the mirror, but now...he needed to find it. He needed to see his family again. His skin was drenched in cold sweat, his breathing was becoming shallow and his hands were beginning to tremble.

"Morning, Harry." said a pair of voices coming from behind him.

Harry turned and saw the twins coming down the stairs, when all three of them looked at each other, the twins stopped. "Whoa, Harry...you look awful..." said George.

"Maybe you should go back to bed." said said Fred.

"I'm f-fine." said Harry weakly.

"Yeah, sure..." said Fred.

"We believe you." said George.

"Not." said the twins together. "Go back to bed."

"I'm not tired." said Harry weakly.

They looked at each other, nodded and then looked at Harry. "You leave us no choice mate." said Fred.

"We hate to do this." said George.

"But really, what choice do we have?" said Fred. "If you won't go to bed."

They leaped over the sofa and picked Harry up into their arms and magicked a blanket around him to keep him from escaping.

"What are you doing?" yelled Harry.

"Taking you to the hospital wing." said George as they ran out of the common room and to the hospital wing with their bundle. They passed staring portraits and even a trio of ghosts who stared in amazement that students were up and horsing around at this early time in the morning.

"Let me go!" shouted Harry.

"No..." said Fred.

"You look too bad to be left alone." said George.

"Since when do the both of you take care of others?" asked Harry.

"You can ask Ron." said George.

"We've dragged him off to Mum dozens of times." said Fred.

They finally reached the Hospital wing and dropped him on a bed.

"What is going on, in here? What are you boys doing up?" asked Madam Pomfrey coming out of her office.

"Harry's not looking too good." said the twins together.

Madam Pomfrey looked at Harry firmly, he felt a blush creep up his face. "Were you outside in thin clothing again?"

"No ma'am." said Harry quickly.

"When was this?" whispered Fred.

"Not a clue." said George whispering back.

She placed a hand over his forehead and peered into his eyes. "Hmm..." she took out her wand and levitated him into the air and into the bed.

"You'll be staying here today, Mr. Potter." said Madam Pomfrey.

"What? Why?" asked Harry.

"It would take me all day to list the reasons. Now you get some rest." said Madam Pomfrey, turning and summoning a tray of potions from her desk.

"I'm fine, and I'm not tired." said Harry quickly.

"Well, then I can fix that." said Madam Pomfrey taking a round glass bottle and pouring a little in a phial. "Drink this."

Harry took it with a grimace on his face. He didn't want her to fuss, but if he could get a decent sleep, without the dreams...

"Can you.." said Harry up to the twins.

"We'll tell Ron and Hermione, now go to sleep." said Fred and George.

"We'll even tell Oliver, he'll understand." said George, his fingers crossed behind his back.

Harry nodded, but he knew Oliver would have other ideas than just being fine with it, he took the potion and instantly found himself to be drowsy and within seconds, he was fast asleep.

Madam Pomfrey brushed the hair out of his eyes and placed his arms under the covers. "Thank you boys, I can handle it from here."

"Yes ma'am...what's wrong with him?" asked Fred.

"Exhaustion, stress...hopefully with some rest, he won't become very ill...but he'll need to stay here for perhaps a day or two." said Madam Pomfrey.

"Alright, well, good thing we brought him." said George.

"Indeed, he could have developed a fever and then into something far worse. You go and get some breakfast, he'll be here." said Madam Pomfrey.


Dumbledore came down the stairs, blowing his nose on a silk handkerchief. He had developed a slight cold, but if Madam Pomfrey caught wind of him walking around with so much as a headache, he'd be strapped to the bed and cared for to within an inch of his life.

He entered the Hospital wing, blowing his nose loudly, he was about call out to Poppy, when he saw a figure laying in one of the beds, a thick blanket tossed over him and a hot pad over the blankets. It was Harry Potter. He walked over and looked down at the sleeping figure, he looked absolutely dreadful. His face was drawn and pale, he looked clammy and stressed, despite that he was sleeping relatively peacefully.

"Albus, what are you doing here?" asked Madam Pomfrey coming in with a bowl of warm water and a soft cloth.

"I came for a phial of Pepperup potion, may I ask...what's wrong with Harry?" asked Dumbledore, his eyes not leaving the child before him.

"He's suffering from stress and lack of sleep, the Weasley twins brought him in...he seemed a little distracted." said Madam Pomfrey grabbing a phial and handing it to Dumbledore as she walked to the bed.

So...the mirror is still on your mind, dear child? "Will he be alright then?" asked Dumbledore downing the phial in one sip.

"He just needs rest, he should be up and about hopefully tomorrow, if he can get the rest he needs today." said Madam Pomfrey as she walked back to her office.

Dumbledore looked down at the boy sleeping silently, I'm sorry, you weren't supposed to find that mirror. Thought Dumbledore as he brushed the boy's hair back. He pulled the covers up the boy's body and stole quietly away. Leaving the troubled boy to rest.


Harry woke up early the next morning, refreshed and feeling a hundred times better. He stretched and looked around, Madam Pomfrey was measuring a potion when she saw Harry sitting up in bed.

"Feeling better?" asked Madam Pomfrey bustling over to inspect her patient.

"Yes ma'am." said Harry with a reassuring smile.

She looked him over intently, not allowing even a small hint of further illness past her. "It seems you are, I'll let you go, but if you feel overwhelmed again, just come back."

Harry had no intention of going back, he enjoyed the nap, but he had a Quidditch game to get ready for and sleeping everyday wouldn't help him at all when the opposing team's seeker would catch the snitch.

He made his way quickly down to the Quidditch pitch, just so he could get to practice reasonably on time.

Oliver smiled as the first year ran down to where the rest of the team was gathered, it turned out he wasn't mad, he would have been furious if Harry had missed a game, but it was only one practice, and he was a first year after all. Obviously all the practice was too much for the first year to handle, best cut the rookie some slack.

Besides, he figured the news of Snape refereeing the next game would be ample punishment for anything they would do the entire year.

The twins were flabbergasted and George had even fallen off his broom, gaining a mouthful of snow and mud. The girls were looking at each other worriedly and Harry was stunned beyond words.

"Listen, I know we've got the best team, I mean, what other team has Beaters that can leap onto each other's brooms all the while smacking two bludgers with such accuracy?" said Oliver looking at the twins.

"Oh, Ollie..." said Fred with a falsetto voice and flapping his hand.

"And our chasers can do acrobatic stunts like no one else in the school, no other team can do the backflips you girls can do, and score points all at the same time." said Oliver gesturing to the girls.

"We do our best, coach!" said Alicia giggling.

"And we've got the youngest seeker in a century, and easily the best and the fastest in the school." said Oliver ruffling Harry's hair. Harry turned a faint pink.

"And we've got a Keeper that went two whole games straight without letting in a single goal, a school record!" said the twins together.

"We just need to end the game sooner rather than later. We don't want Snape to favor the other team over us." said Oliver.

"C'mon, Oliver, he's going to be a referee, he'll be fair." said Fred.

"That would be true, but this is Snape." said George.

"Never mind, end the game quick." said Fred.

"So it's all up to you Harry, you need to find the Snitch, and get it before Snape can figure out ways to bury us under penalties." said Oliver.

"Is Madam Hooch sick or something?" asked Katie.

"I asked her, she's fine, she's stunned that he offered to referee though too. Must want to get back at us for showing up the Slytherin team." said Oliver.

Harry sat in thought, he wondered why Snape would all of a sudden decide to referee a Quidditch game, especially after he told all the students that were forced to listen how Quidditch players had little to nothing on the ball when it came to brains.

Harry figured that he only felt that way because his team lost, before the game, he was caught saying that Quidditch was a balance of skill and discipline, a perfect game for children to learn to use their brains. His uncle would double talk like that all the time, if the events didn't go the way he wanted, he would backtrack and deny anything he had said before.

He had to make sure that he get the snitch before too much time would pass. Hufflepuff's Seeker was Cedric Diggory, and he pretty good. He had seen a Hufflepuff game, and he was easily the best one in the school. The Slytherin and Ravenlcaw Seekers would go after either Harry or Cedric in order to find the Snitch and then swoop in and steal it. A game between Slytherin and Ravenclaw would last hours, it was pretty much all down to the Chasers and making sure they kept a huge lead ahead of the opposition.

His teammates said that he was the best Seeker in the school, but Harry wasn't too sure, Cedric had a lot more experience in playing the game. Harry had only played one game, but perhaps a few more matches under his belt, he would believe them.

Ron and Hermione were more concerned for Harry than how good Cedric Diggory was. All three of them believed that Snape was out to get whatever it was beneath Fluffy, and with Snape flying right beside Harry...Ron and Hermione feared for their friend's well-being.


Thanks for reading please review!

Question of the Chapter! Mickey Mouse...or Donald Duck...who's your favorite? Or do you have another favorite Disney standard character? Personally...I LOVE Scrooge McDuck...he's my favorite of all time. The accent, the humor, just everything!