A/N: Hey everyone! Welcome back to The Guarder Snake!
Thank you all so much for the continuous support for this story, it means the world to me!
For those of you interested in my other works, I've got a wealth of oneshots available as well as two other fics in progress! Tomorrow's release will be remastered PoL chapters 1-5! We'll also potentially be having a one-shot sometime this coming week!
A big thanks to my Beta's and Discord Staff - Alec, Alpple, CalamityXx, Champ, DorianGray, NerdDragonVoid, O'Neill, Seventh Son, SinisterFox, Theo and Xevier!
Feel free to join my Discord for updates and information, link on my profile. Without any more rambling from me, I hope you enjoy the story!
(Sorry if you don't like the chapter!)
May 29, 1993
Saturday Evening
"Harry?" Ginny was looking at him with wide eyes, tears rolling from them openly as her attention was still fixated on his arm.
"I'm fine," He assured the girl, standing up and flexing his arm to show as much, "We have to leave," he said, extending his arm towards her, the girl still seated on the ground and looking at him in awe.
"I don't know how," Ginny returned before grabbing hold of his arm and letting herself be pulled up.
"You don't remember how you came down here or left?" Had the book taken all of her memories from her? If so, how could the item be so powerful that a ghost — or whatever the boy was — could not only interact with physical objects but also seemingly possess Ginny?
He smiled reassuringly in case she looked towards his face and reached down for the book; his plan was to pocket it for Cora or her family to see, then give it to Dumbledore. Maybe magic like this was common knowledge for older students or adults, he just had no clue what it was.
Ginny was still struggling to blink back the tears when he glanced back at her; the girl's attention still focused solely on his arm while only occasionally sweeping towards the giant corpse of the Basilisk he'd killed… Merlin that was crazy, he'd killed a Basilisk — Cora and his studying had been right too! He'd avoided the gaze and made himself almost impossible to track on account of his invisibility cloak.
To think all his cleverness and the extra spells he'd learned from his older friends had almost been for nought after the fang embedded itself in his arm. Fawkes, and by extension Dumbledore, had saved him.
Harry took a breath in thanks when he remembered that life debts didn't exist; he'd surely owe one to Dumbledore if they did.
"Harry?" He looked over to see that the girl had finally gotten her emotions under control — he knew from witnessing a few arguments with Ron that she loathed being seen as weak — and with that confidence back, Ginny slid her hand into his and motioned towards the Phoenix watching them. "I think it knows how to, it keeps swinging its head for us to come closer."
Looking over at the beautiful bird and realising she wasn't misinterpreting its actions, Harry led the two of them over. He wrapped up in his robes and nestled away the Basilisk fang before making his exit though, there was no telling the worth of something so rare so long as he didn't get stabbed with it a second time.
"I'm sorry."
"Wha-t?"
Ginny had apologised right as they'd grabbed a hold of the Phoenix's legs, causing his question to skip as the bird jolted them upwards with multiple flaps of its wings.
"It was my fault all those people got petrified, and it was my fault that you… you almost…" Ginny looked away from him and towards the grey stones of Hogwarts, going silent as Fawkes sped along the Chamber to free the two of them from its oppressive confines.
Harry couldn't hug her as he would've liked, nor could he really show any sign of physical affection to comfort the girl considering the circumstances they were in; it was something he'd have to do later, he knew that, but all he could do now was smile at her and tell her everything was fine now.
In a sense, he wasn't lying either. Whatever compulsions had come over her from that book were destroyed, the Slytherin boy who'd made her do unspeakable things in the hopes of absorbing her life was gone, and the Basilisk that'd been the menacing voice echoing through the halls had been killed. Everything happening as it had, he was left with the distinct impression that this was the best possible outcome from the hundreds Cora had warned him from his very attempting to save the Weasley girl.
She'd been wrong, but Harry wasn't dumb enough to think entirely so.
Her only miscalculation was how far he'd willingly go to save those who he called friends, and after this year, he'd be a bit more careful in deciding who was given that privilege.
June 25, 1993
Friday
Cora was mad at him.
Harry knew she would be considering he'd disregarded her words and all but promised otherwise from the actions he'd taken in saving Ginny Weasley; he just hadn't thought she'd be this angry.
From the 29th of May in the evening whence he'd rescued Ginny to today, the 25th of June — Cora had said all of fifty words to him. None were spoken in the hospital either, considering the girl had refused to visit him even when asked to by Stuart; the boy had come as soon as he, his girlfriend, and Loma were allowed.
A few days later when he'd hoped she'd be less angry and more welcome to see him, he'd approached. Her reception to seeing him alive and well was a small, initial smile… followed very quickly by a frown and sour face. Cora didn't yell at him, scold him, berate him or anything else, she simply allowed him in her presence while all but ignoring him in favour of other conversations.
For some reason, her lax ignoring of him made him feel worse than any scolding she'd ever dished out before. Like all the conversations, hugs and times spent together were void in the girl's eyes as she'd greet him upon his showing up only to act like he was barely with them during the rest of the time he'd been near.
All this annoyance, neglect and sadness would vanish from him within minutes of boarding the train — Cora's angry face and the way she'd pulled him into the compartment where he was now alone with the seething girl told him as much. For better or worse, they were finally done with her phase of dormancy.
"Sit," was all Cora said in greeting after her sharp tugging of him into the compartment, that word being followed up very quickly with the girl casting something he wasn't at all familiar with in the direction of the sliding door before she took a seat for herself.
"Cora I'm so-"
"No," Cora shook her head and raised her hand, Harry choosing very smartly to stop speaking so she could say whatever it was she wanted to, and she did.
"You completely broke my trust when saying that you'd not pursue the Weasley girl. Not only did you lie straight to my face when I'd trusted you with the information, but you also put yourself in a situation where you could have potentially been killed at the slightest mishap. You still standing here at this point is entirely due to luck, Harry, I'll have you know that rather than letting you think it was reliant on any amount of skill," Cora took a breath and looked down at the arm he'd been bitten in. "Ginny Weasley was the one to tell me exactly what happened with you, and not entirely either; Madame Pomfrey is entirely too loud in her speaking about the status of patients — Aster may be far too nosy in addition to that," Cora said that at the same time her expression lightened to some degree, though that wasn't to say it wasn't still serious, "My trust in you is broken, quite frankly, and I doubt you'll be able to get it back in the entirety for some time. Don't complain about that either, I would've been far harder on you should you have attempted to force this conversation."
Cora paused again, taking another breath and reclining in her seat; Harry could see the quickness of how her chest was rising betrayed the sense of calm she was attempting to outwardly show.
He was thinking she was finished when the silence continued and opened his mouth, his lips making a soft smacking sound from the few tears that'd gotten snagged on them only for Cora to say something more. Only this time, in a far softer tone of voice and with a much nicer expression worn.
"I'm very relieved you're still here, Harry. No amount of praying at Yule Altars or taking part in any of our traditions will ever be able to express my gratitude towards whichever being or beings saw you through your fight with a Basilisk," Cora leaned forward in her seat, brushing a hand through his hair in the way that always comforted him, "And while I know I'll be unable to fully believe you going forward, I sincerely hope you've learned enough to listen when I caution you; despite the very positive outcome."
Harry waited again to see if she had anything more to say and when she didn't he took the chance to finally respond.
"I'm sorry Cora, I really am. I just wouldn't let anything happen to Ginny, she's always been so friendly with me and so has Ron, the twins too! Knowing what could've happened to her made me act so that it didn't." Harry jumped across the open space of the compartment and wrapped his arms around Cora, having missed the feeling for far too long; he was more than happy when she returned the hug rather than rebuke him for doing so.
"Trust our Professors, Harry — with your ability to speak parseltongue in the open as it is, you could've brought with you the majority of Hogwarts Staff when facing down the creature… though I suspect a few would have perished," Cora shook her head and went about playing with his hair again, saying idly, "I'll never understand how you made it out in a scenario where I think even I'd have failed."
Harry shook his head to indicate no, the effect somewhat dampened by the closeness they were sharing, though it still got the point across when she chuckled and continued her soothing touches right up until the door was knocked loudly on.
She gently pried him off from her and looked at him, her facial expressions a mixture of happy and stern.
"I'm still cross with you for lying," She prefaced, "But I'm far happier that you're safe."
That was that; Cora wouldn't give him a chance to respond as she slid open the door after cancelling whatever magic she'd put upon it, the rest of the older Slytherin's waiting at the door for the two of them.
Harry smiled and greeted them as he always did, only this time much more animatedly now that Cora was finally back to being, well, Cora.
July 3, 1993
Saturday
The post was in!
Harry would finally see where he was in terms of his grades — all his studying with Cora and the others, along with the peer-reviewing from Hermione and occasional tips from Stuart should have raised him from the middle of his year towards the top… he hoped. If not, he'd let them all down, but he wouldn't let that stand; it meant next year he'd try all the harder!
Though he'd probably do that anyway.
Being first in his year would be an incredible accomplishment, and considering what he was looking at for his later profession in the wizarding world, one that would be very beneficial for him as he grew older, especially if he could keep with it.
"Here you are dear," Aunt Ashtyn said to him, holding out her hand which contained a single letter with the Hogwarts seal on it.
"Time to see where you've ended up, Harry, and if Clara's two attempts at studying did anything for your grades," Cora was an outspoken critic of her friend's attempts at working with him, the reason being the Carrow girl's general goofiness and the 'reward' system which existed only to 'fatten him up' as Cora had so gently put it — maybe her giving him sweets wasn't the best thing to do, but he certainly had zero problems with it!
Harry smiled and thanked the older woman, taking the sealed envelope in his hands. He didn't open it immediately, instead choosing to look at it while worrying his lips; what if all the help he'd received hadn't been enough? His biggest fear was the potential of no improvement, or worse yet, showing that he'd regressed in terms of skill or knowledge.
His thinking now startled with the possibility of failure or what he'd interpret to be as much, Harry slid the Hogwarts postage into his robes. He'd hoped to get away with opening it in his room rather than in the presence of his tutor and Aunt, but the looks they shot towards him removed any ounce of him thinking that'd be allowed.
Cora even went as far as to slide her grades in his direction, the parchment being riddled with Os, EEs, and a singular A in history.
Harry wondered how she'd even passed the historical class considering she'd skipped it so often, or when she'd shown up, used the time to study for other classes tests later on in the week. In fairness to his friend, a literal ghost acting as Professor may not have been the wisest decision, though the same could be said for a few other Hogwarts staff.
"Go on dear, you know by now we'll not be angry no matter the outcome," Aunt Ashtyn was gentle and soothing in her approach, smiling fondly at him when he'd looked over at the start of her speaking.
"Speak for yourself and father — Harry studied with me over the summer, all throughout last year and on our Yule break, failing any class isn't an option," Cora was far less so, the girl putting voice to the thoughts inside his mind.
Aunt Ashtyn's look of disapproval at her daughter did little to calm the feelings rising, and fearing he'd make more out of the moment than he already had, Harry pulled the envelope back out of his robes. That action stopped either woman from continuing in their urging and removed them from the staring contest started seconds ago, as both were far more interested in the object Harry once more had in his hands.
With a look of confidence — one that was purely for show — he ripped open rather messily the top of the letter, the parchment coming partially out of the top as he did so.
Immediately what greeted him upon that action were the top two classes grades, those belonging to Astronomy and Charms, with his grades being an 'A' and 'EE' respectively.
Such grades were semi-disappointing considering the effort he'd given the two subjects, but thankfully, neither were the ones he'd focused the most on; those would be Defence Against the Dark Arts and Transfiguration.
Taking a breath to steady the rising nerves he was feeling, Harry lifted the rest of the parchment from the captivity of its holder, showing the remaining five grades he'd gotten from the effort put forth during his Second Year. Unbeknownst to him during his withdrawal of the card, a second had fallen to the ground containing detailed information from his Professors in regards to what he needed to do for improvement.
Harry glanced from line to line, examining the varying grades he'd been given on the remaining subjects with incredibly minor notes from the Professors of the classes; such notes ranged from 'Congratulations Mister Potter on being top of your year in Transfiguration, keep it up!', 'Wonderful job as I suspected of a fellow societal great, hope to see you for lunch in the coming days!' to finally, 'Fine'.
He couldn't believe the grades he'd gotten, moreover, the fact that he'd achieved top status in Transfiguration and an 'O' in DADA? All the work had turned out far better for him than he'd ever have hoped to guess!
Smiling widely at the two women sitting across from him with matching expectant looks, Harry slid across his report card; he hoped they'd be incredibly happy with them, the praise and affection were something he'd come to love from positive reactions — scowls and scoldings though, he took far worse than he had when living with the Dursleys.
Watching their faces for reactions, Harry was suitably pleased when he saw the slight widening of Cora's eyes and the incredibly wide smile from his Aunt; those two looks were all he needed to know he'd done very well for the year. Luckily enough for Harry, while they were all he needed, they weren't all that was given.
His Aunt had scanned the small thing twice over before standing up from her seat, walking around the table until she was right beside him and promptly lifting him straight up and into a hug. More often than not, Aunt Ashtyn would hug him at the most minor of good happenings or deeds; there was a clear difference to him this time though, almost like he'd earned the warm, soft hug which still raised that funny feeling in his stomach.
After the older woman had pulled back from her hugging and continued smiling at him, it was Cora's turn to take him in her arms. She didn't lift him as her mother did, nor did she squeeze him with the same pressure, in a way, his older friend's hug was like barely being touched at all in comparison — he wasn't sure why it'd changed since the last time he felt it.
He'd take it though, Cora's hugs or kisses on the top of his head were two of his favourite things in the world, in part due to such occurrences meaning he'd done especially well.
"Congratulations on being second across the entirety of your year, Harry. I know I speak for Celtsean too when I say we couldn't be more proud of you," Aunt Ashtyn looked filled with pride, the woman's eyes had become slightly watery since he'd been in Cora's arms.
"Second?" Harry parroted, not knowing why she'd said that when he'd yet to read anything about it.
Cora pulled back from him, remaining close enough to mess his hair further than it usually was, and chuckled when he'd replied.
"You've got to improve your situational awareness, this small letter-" Cora held up yet another form with the Hogwarts seal at the bottom, this one being signed by Professor Dumbledore while being something he'd not gotten the year prior, "is from Headmaster Dumbledore. When you withdrew your performance review and the notes from the Professors, this was tucked within that second parchment; it's nothing overly elaborate or long in wording, simply put, you were congratulated for having finished in the top three of your year and in your case, specifically second behind Granger."
"If I'm not mistaken, you'll be sent a package containing a commemorative plaque and some treats to go with it since you'd accomplished this as a second year," Aunt Ashtyn spoke up, telling more still.
Harry wanted to question why she'd said 'second year' at the end of her sentence, he wanted to question what the treats were too, but his mind was still stuck on the fact he'd become the second-best student in the entirety of his year.
"Second?"
Aunt Ashtyn's smile grew wider if such a thing was possible, the woman nodding her head and pulling him towards her.
"Yes, Second! You've done phenomenal, your improvement from last years being towards the middle of your class to this year being at the very top is monumental," His Aunt then looked at Cora, "I'm half-tempted to throw a small celebration with how well the two of you've done, perhaps invite friends over or keep it to just the family?"
Harry nodded repeatedly while Cora shrugged; something about the girl seemed off, like her smile wasn't as full as usual or the physical affection was less gratifying.
He didn't like it.
July 12, 1993
Monday
"Harry darling, how'd you like to join me for lunch on the southern balcony?"
That offer coming from the voice of his Aunt was what shook him from his idle pondering of the most recent piece of muggle literature he'd read, and in response to the said prior offer, Harry slammed shut the book with a silent apology to the author; what happened to that ring near a volcano could wait.
"I'd love to Aunt Ashtyn," Harry said, cutting back on the energy in his response and bowing as he'd been practising — manners were something that'd begun being taught to him this year far more so than last… he had some balls and other formal events they'd want to take him to.
Needless to say, he wasn't excited in the least.
"Wonderful!" His Aunt said in reply, holding out her arm in another gesture he'd been familiarised with.
Harry's response was to loop his arm through hers while escorting the taller, older woman to the aforementioned balcony where their food was likely already waiting for them; the house-elves that the Avery family owned were very efficient and friendly, the one he'd been given was no less so in the small amount of time it'd begun living with them.
"Have you done anything other than your usual reading for fun or education recently? It's important to exercise the body as much as the mind, more so to give it a break to keep in the information you've gone through," Aunt Ashtyn chose to start their conversation during their walking with something regarding his favourite past time since television wasn't a thing in the wizarding world.
"Not really, Cora started me on this weird muggle fantasy setting — it's nothing like our world but the things they come up with are wicked!" Harry needn't cover for his friend in regards to her hobby when around her parents, half the books she had in her personal, hidden library came from them after all.
Aunt Ashtyn smiled and laughed at his words, saying "I remember when Cora was a few years younger; if my memory isn't failing me early, I dare say her interest in those novels was as piqued as yours seems to be," the older woman looked at him sharply, "You'll tell me if your favourite Aunt's memory starts to go, won't you?"
Harry nodded in response, said favourite Aunt's face changing back to the usually present smile and away from the oddly out of place sharp look she'd teased him with.
"Wonderful!" She dropped their intertwined arms and used the newly free limb to wrap around his shoulders, pulling him closer to her as they walked through the final set of doors that led to the balcony, "You've not had a lobster bisque before, have you? In hopes of increasing your tastes considering the varying events you'll likely go to in your life, I decided on that as our main with a few other seafood-related dishes alongside it.
"I've never had it before and I trust your judgment; I've never had a bad meal or one that wasn't filling since you took me in," Harry replied, his words filled with honesty as he'd still yet to have a negative experience with all the varying foods the older woman would organise.
"I'm happy to hear that, I've always tried to ensure it'd be something not too far out of your preferences from what I perceive them to be," Aunt Ashtyn paused when taking her seat, Harry doing the same and choosing to sit in the seat directly across from the older woman, "Why don't you tell me about Clara's studying sessions too? Cora complained to me about them only yesterday and without going into much detail — I don't think they'd be too bad considering the head she has on her shoulders and the family she comes from."
Harry side-eyed the older witch with a small smirk on his face, mostly feeling amused at Cora's annoyance that even managed to get her mother in the know.
"Clara and I only studied a couple of times because of what happened this year, but the few times that we did, her way of instructing was very different from Cora's! From the start she was far less strict, bringing a second satchel filled with snacks for breaks in studying and the rewards promised; most of the time those rewards were candy or something else sweet. We studied out by the lake instead of in the library, the water and breeze were calming, a lot more than the enforced silence of the library," Harry scratched his head, tilting it a second after, "Cora does tend to get more done though, Clara likes to mix in fun, snack breaks or random conversations. Still, she's wicked smart in the subjects she cares about enough to help me with!"
"I'm glad to hear it," Aunt Ashtyn replied before crossing her legs in the chair and sitting more upright, "What do you think of this coming year? Come to think of it, I don't recall you telling me the electives you picked; I certainly hope you've not taken the easy route."
Harry laughed and shook his head, "I didn't! Cora told me the same thing! She'd only let me pick one easy if I really wanted to, but she told me that Ancient Runes and Arithmancy were a lot more important than the other two, so I went with them."
"She'd only let you pick one?" Aunt Ashtyn didn't look all that pleased with his choice of wording, "I hope you know the decision was solely yours to make; Cora shouldn't be applying pressure to your decisions, regardless of how much she's right in the point of those two being far more helpful later in life. Should you wish to change your electives, we could have that done."
"No no, I like them!" Harry was quick to answer, waving his hands along with his head emphatically to represent 'No'.
"You're sure? You're not saying that because Cora'd be upset with you if you changed them?" Aunt Ashtyn's eyes were narrowed, the older woman leaning forward in her seat to lock Harry's gaze with hers.
"No, I picked them after checking with other friends too! They all told me that those two classes were far better in the long term, that most Ministry fields will check if you took the easier courses that are less applicable outside of Hogwarts! Divination especially, most people say the Professor is a fraud," Harry spoke quickly, getting out all of that in one breath to the point that he sounded winded by the time he'd finished.
Aunt Ashtyn kept her suspicious gaze on him for seconds still, remaining silent while watching him for any signs that he'd simply been parroting something rehearsed or if he didn't fully believe in what he was saying; when she saw nothing, the older witch smiled, leaned back in her seat and patted his one hand that'd come to rest on the table.
"Wonderful, I'm glad you're not doing what you have just to please Cora or other peers of yours; too many people do that and appeasement so often leads to the same results that would've come eventually. Tell me, did Cora tell you what I specialised in from my time in Hogwarts, or has she left that to me?" His Aunt looked a bit smug, crossing her arms when she'd said that.
Harry shook his head, saying "Cora didn't tell me anything about your time at Hogwarts, nor Uncle Celtsean… what did you specialise in?"
Finishing with a question, Harry imitated the woman's earlier action of leaning in, resting his head on the hand that had already been residing on the table.
Winking at Harry and picking up her spoon from the table, his Aunt answered at the same time she rested a book on the table.
"Runes and the wardings you can make from them — you didn't suspect Cora and Celtsean would be the only ones helping you along the way, did you?"
Harry smiled wide at the older woman; House Avery got better every passing day!
July 31, 1993
Saturday
His birthday had been absolutely wicked!
Every single object he'd looked at with a modicum of interest during the few trips to Diagon Alley he'd taken with Cora or his Aunt had been picked up — there were even a few gifts he'd been given that he'd only glanced over for a few seconds, the flashiness of them having gotten his attention; a golden snitch charmed with a variation of Lumos came to the forefront of his mind.
Having gotten him everything he could've ever wanted and then some, it was crazy to think his other friends like Aster, Clara or Stuart got him anything at all.
But they had.
Aster had gotten him a book that had within it multiple 'dark' spells that originated from Eastern Europe.
Clara's gift was far more in line with the girl he'd come to know, that being boxes upon boxes of sweets from every shop in Wizarding Britain; Cora told him it likely cost around a quarter of a thousand Galleons.
Stuart's gift in contrast to the incredibly useful potentially illegal one from Aster or extremely unhealthy, bordering impossible to eat from Clara was… normal. He'd gotten Harry a wardrobe full of Gryffindor clothing, along with bedsheets, tapestries and various other accessories to go along with it.
Harry would put them all around his room later that day, or at least the objects that were meant for showcasing; the clothing was much too high in quantity to wear in one setting, tempted as he was to try.
But, even with all the gifts he'd opened from acquaintances, friends and family, there was still one singular object laying under the tree, its sender left as unknown as the contents within, but the wards around the house not having flagged it for anything potentially harmful.
Uncle Celtsean didn't risk it though, the man telling Harry that he'd take it back to his study for a quick checkup to ensure the wards hadn't been fooled; when he came back half an hour later with the item rewrapped almost completely as it'd been, Harry knew that meant it was fine.
Harry took it back and unwrapped it with caution, revealing a small box that, with the lid off, revealed a folder with maybe an inch thick of contents. Seeing that made him pause and look towards his Uncle, the man likely already knew the contents within due to his checking of the present; upon his doing that, he took in the watery eyes and the way his Uncle would refuse to meet his gaze longer than the split-second he'd been surprised with — Harry was even warier of what the gift was when taking in that reaction.
Steadying himself with a deep breath, he carefully pulled out the folder and opened it; instantly, he knew why his uncle had appeared so sad… the man saw his friends, Harry's parents.
Roughly a dozen wizarding photos — mostly from later Hogwarts years based on their clothing and ages — were placed carefully within. Harry felt tears building in his eyes as he looked at varying pictures displaying differing scenes, all of which contained one or both of his parents with friends or family. At the very bottom of the photos given, was one in which Harry was present, likely being younger than a year.
He was in a muggle-style set of child's clothing and being held in the arms of his mother, next to her looking down at him with the fondest of expressions, was his father; Merlin did Harry think he looked like the man! Behind his two parents when he finally glanced to see the others present, were three men and two women.
Harry recognised none but the recently escaped Sirius Black, the man's name only having come up in passing late yesterday evening before his Aunt and Uncle switched discussion when noticing his presence.
"Aunt Ashtyn, Uncle Celtsean?" Harry called to his two pa-guardians, getting their attention from the small, hushed conversation they'd been having.
"Yes, darling?" His Aunt responded for the two of them.
"Could you tell me who these other men and women are? My parents seem to have them in most of their photos and I just, I've never met them," Harry saw only one photo in which his Uncle Celtsean was in, while Aunt Ashtyn wasn't in any; he didn't think all that much of it but considering how much they proved they loved him, it made him wonder where the other friends of his parents had gone and why they hadn't come for him as the two adults in front of him had.
Lord Avery — as Harry referred to him as when the man looked angrier, more imposing — stood up from his seat and excused himself, saying he was running late with a meeting; Harry recognised it as the excuse it was, the two women in the room did too, but none pressed the matter or said anything verbally other than farewell's until he was out of the room.
Then, once the door was closed, his Aunt Ashtyn slid closer to the edge of the seat and motioned for Harry to come to take up the newly vacant spot beside her.
He did, and no sooner had he done so, did the woman point in order at the other young adults in the joyous wizarding photo, putting names to faces in order of right to left; Frank Longbottom, Remus Lupin, Sirius Black — his parents were skipped over — Alice Longbottom and Anna MacDonald.
Tempted to ask the fates of them all, Harry decided to begin with the one that'd invoked such emotion from his uncle the night prior.
"What happened to Sirius Black? What'd he do?"
What followed was one of the saddest stories he'd ever heard in his short life, one that contained betrayal to the worst degree, and one that explained why he'd lost his parents along with the emotions he'd seen from Uncle Celtsean since the moment he'd lived with the man's family.
Sirius Black, a man who'd been claimed as the best friend to his father, had been the direct cause of Harry's parent's murder — Harry hated the man for that, more than he disliked the Dursleys, more than he despised Malfoy; Sirius Black was only second to Voldemort in his mind.
Thus, with a great deal of anger, Harry hoped the man would be at large until he became an Auror. Then, he could bring in the man responsible for having ripped his parents away before he could even speak a word to them.
July 31, 1993
Saturday Evening
"Harry?" Cora called from the entrance to his bedroom, the girl having knocked once on the already open door.
He looked over from his spot in the windowed alcove, that area has become his favoured nook for reading when not invited to Cora's room.
"Yeah, Cora?"
"How've you enjoyed your birthday?"
It was an odd conversation starter coming from her, the question being something he knew she'd not usually ask unless it was being used to start a harder topic in a lighter mood.
Nevertheless, he'd respond in hopes of her getting to whatever it was she wanted to… maybe the thought of her finally easing up after having been upset with him for the majority of the summer was a factor in his quick response too.
"It's been great! Thank you so much for everything you got me, Aunt Ashtyn and Uncle Celtsean too — I feel spoiled getting so many gifts these last two years!" Harry knew he was exactly as he'd said, how many of his peers were treated this well and given so much? He doubted very many would experience the same quantity and quality of care.
Cora smiled, the look not being as sincere as he hoped it would've.
"You'll never want for anything, I told you that prior to your living with us," Unlike her facial expressions, her words were sincere. He knew as much from her tone; Cora not having ever lied to him always flashed across his mind, the boy cringing as it did considering he'd done so multiple times… that was probably why she was still angry with him too.
Harry nodded and hugged her for a scant few seconds, "Thank you, Cora," he looked up at the girl, her hug still lacking and his look expectant.
She held his gaze for some number of seconds, clearly debating herself based on her shifting expressions from annoyance to understanding and all about that spectrum. Eventually, one side of herself won out and Cora sighed.
"Swear to me you'll do nothing to put yourself at risk this year — you have to, Harry, for the sake of our friendship; I can't spend my time worrying about you running off and if your luck's finally run out."
Harry felt his throat constrict when she'd gotten to the 'sake of our friendship' portion. He knew how she must feel when he disregarded her, and while he didn't regret having done so due to his saving of Ginny, he wished a lot he'd not lied due to the stress he'd caused.
Thus, his mind came to the conclusion that if saying he'll not put himself at risk was a means of repairing the divide that'd grown between them, he'd do it.
Besides, agreements could be amended and modified as time progressed, what was more important was getting his affectionate, helpful tutor back in her entirety.
Nodding a few times so Cora could see, Harry made his agreement vocal.
"I swear I'll stay safe this year, Cora. I promise."
Cora finally smiled wide — Harry being able to see the slight, faintly noticeable hint of water in her eyes.
"Good," he got a tight, squeezing hug that meant so much for than the light ones she'd been giving him for the duration of summer.
He was happy.
September 1, 1993
Wednesday Evening
"Why have we stopped?"
Harry had opened his mouth to ask that exact same thing to Cora, only Aster had beaten him to the punch, directing his question to the entire cabin instead of solely who Harry would've asked.
"I don't kno-" the lights onboard went out, the air getting cold enough that the glass frosted over and their breaths became visible, "Dementors — Minister must've lost the little bit of sense he had left if he was foolish enough to have them search the train."
"He wouldn't do that; there are too many Heirs or members of houses too important to make enemies of, not to mention Harry being here too," Alisa pointed out, the girl withdrawing her wand from her sleeves midway through her sentence.
"Doesn't matter if he wanted them here or not, especially so if they're on the train with us… I don't know about you lot, but my Patronus isn't looking too great," Reinhard looked around the cabin as he spoke, wiggling his wand between his overly large fingers.
Clara laughed nervously, "We don't need to use that if we make the room unenterable — Cora could cast some obscure charm, Alisa could use her transfiguration or Aster could be bait; if time were on our side, I'd even set up some wards."
Only one member of the cabin had a problem with her ideas as it turned out, and as such, the group began setting all but one into motion.
All but Harry, that is. He on account of his age and Aster on his general incompetence at the required tasks were content to sit at the furthest edge of the enlarged cabin, whispering all the while about Quidditch. While it seemed odd as it happened, Harry credited the normal conversation with assisting in keeping him calm, for screaming surely would've attracted the deadly Dementors.
"We should be alright," Reinhard exclaimed, looking the sole entrance into their cabin up and down while crossing his large arms.
"You hope," Clara quipped, another nervous laugh coming from the girl for the briefest of seconds until Cora began to speak over her — she would get interrupted not even one syllable into her sentence with a loud, girlish scream that echoed throughout the train.
That occurrence was all the group needed to enforce their silence and inactivity, not one of them moving an inch despite any growing itch or sense of discomfort; not until three or four agonisingly slow minutes passed by and a Professor eventually knocked on the door to their cabin.
He asked after introducing himself as Professor Lupin, "Anybody within was harmed?"
Smartly, the unfamiliar, likely new Professor to the school hadn't attempted to open the door, the man only quickly calling out to the occupants instead.
Two or three short seconds passed with all of them in silence, the time being needed for their brains to switch from a sense of flight to that of normalcy — Aster would react first, probably seconds before the man made a second attempt to call out, and he replied that everything was fine as well as asking if anything happened.
Professor Lupin said everything was under control, to remain in the cabin and that they'd be to Hogwarts within the hour; no major delay had resulted from the random boarding of Azkaban's guards.
"Who'dya think screamed?" Aster asked, nudging Reinhard when nobody responded and then switching his attention to Harry when everything still remained in silence, "Maybe Malfoy eh? Could give that pompous prick some taste of his own medicine."
"Knock it off, even if it was the Malfoy Heir, nothing good would come out of him being taken by the Dementors. Honestly, Aster, use your head — Lord Malfoy still has major sway on the board of governors despite his position having been taken away. Odds are, he'd have the school shut down and we'd all be delayed in our graduating," Cora didn't sound at all pleased with the idea, but Harry didn't know entirely why if the school would be this dangerous for the third year in a row.
"Surely combined we coul…"
Harry began to drown out the conversations around him, thinking more about the creatures that were going to be 'guarding' Hogwarts this year on account of his parents' murderer being loose.
It was incredibly likely more attacks would occur because of their presence if this was any sort of indication. And if it was, that could make this year the most dangerous he'd faced yet; that in on itself was saying something, considering the multitude of challenges he'd faced while attending the ancient, historical school.
September 2, 1993
Thursday Morning
"Harry!" He heard Ginny a millisecond before the shorter girl slammed into his left side, her speaking continuing when she'd wrapped her arms around him, "Can you believe what happened in the train? Ron told me he nearly died, Hermione too, would have if it weren't for that Professor too! What about you? Are you alright, I swear I saw one pass by my cabin!"
Her rambling and spouting of questions was hard for him to follow, but he did so just barely, realising at that same time that must've been the girlish scream they'd all heard while nodding along as he returned the hug and answering when she'd finally finished.
"I can't believe the Ministry would send Dementors, Cora and Stuart both said it was dumb!" Harry was paraphrasing in both instances, the former having been ever so sophisticated even during her criticizing of the Ministry's tactics while the latter was very colourful in his language despite Harry's age, "Ron told me the same too, said he could barely move when the thing was in the cabin with him; Professor Lupin was the man, right? Heard he's pretty powerful if he could cast a Patronus. I'm fine too, don't think any of them made it near my cabin… are you alright too?"
Ginny looked a little shaky when she responded with a 'yes' but just as quickly as she'd been discussing the creatures that'd attacked the train, she switched to Quidditch, and then how her family wanted to invite him to their home for a meal in the coming holidays.
While more than a little jarring, Harry felt happy that the girl he'd helped save wanted to be friends with him, going so far as to invite him to her home. She was incredibly kind-hearted, told good jokes and seemed more like a sister than anything; Harry pictured her as the opposite of Cora in every regard, but he couldn't help but think the Weasley girl living with them both would've given him an amazing playmate while Cora could further take on the role of tutor.
"Oi! You paying attention or are you spacing off like Fred and George when they loo-"
"Ginny!" Hermione's voice stopped Ginny mid-sentence, the older girl looking disapprovingly at the younger for a reason Harry didn't yet know (and only later when directly asking Hermione would he ever).
"Yeah, yeah, sorry… anyways Harry, what'dya think about coming over a few times during the summer? Could probably get a pick-up game of quidditch going if you did!" Ginny was bouncing in her seat, having waved off Hermione's chastising as quickly as the girl had given it.
Amusing as it was to see the narrowed-eyes of Hermione staring daggers into the back of Ginny's head, he wasn't too fond of getting caught up in any early-morning arguments — that being his thinking, Harry nodded and said he'd think about it before picking up his satchel, making his exit from the Great Hall while shaking his head fondly at his newest friends' antics.
October 31, 1993
Sunday Evening
"You holding up alright, Harry?" Stuart asked, the older boy along with his usual two companions of Loma and Nina having slid in between Harry and his year mates during the chaos of Gryffindor's march to the Great Hall; their reason being to have all four houses sleep under the watchful eyes of the Professors until Sirius was caught.
He nodded a few times, his left fist — the one the older students couldn't see from where they were standing — clenched as he did so.
Harry felt fine, truthfully, he did. That clenching of his fist and the slight adrenaline coursing through his body was more out of potentially having the murderer of his family brought to justice felt very nice. If it happened, Harry would feel at peace once again, the feeling being fleeting ever since he'd found out the killer was alive while his family wasn't.
"You're sure mate? Can always talk to me or Loma…" Stuart looked over his shoulder and saw the two Gryffindor girls talking, thus, he leaned in to whisper solely for Harry's ears, "Nina too, but she can be a rig-" he jolted back to a straight posture, "right proper witch that would be more than willing to help you with anything."
Tilting his head in the opposite direction from where he'd thought the boy was going, Harry only made out the slightest motion of Nina's hand returning to herself while she remained mid-conversation with Loma; Harry wasn't sure how she'd heard Stuart's words, but she had, and based on the older boys looks, she hadn't been very friendly.
Harry chuckled for a few seconds at the discomfort of the older boy and then used that time to ask a question.
"Do you think they'll find him? He was right outside Gryffindor Tower, they've got to have some sort of way to track him right?"
Stuart shrugged, "Maybe Headmaster Dumbledore does, nothing sticks out that I know could track somebody, especially not a person so trained in the Dark Arts as Black is said to be — whole family's that bad though, suppose it makes sense really."
It didn't, not to Harry at least; why would his father trust a man so openly known to be into the Dark Arts? Or from a family as infamous as the Blacks from all the information he'd heard regarding violence or madness?
"Hurry along now!" Percy's voice — the head boy — called out to the slow-moving Gryffindors, his attention going solely to Harry when the smaller boy was noticed, "You especially Harry, in fact," Percy hopped down from the crate he'd been standing on and made his way right over to the Potter boy, grasping his upper arm and moving him quickly to the front of the group, Harry only being able to wave to Stuart as it happened while Percy explained during the movement, "Dumbledore saved you a spot right towards the frontmost part of the Great Hall, Professor McGonagall and Sir Nicholas will be watching over you throughout the entirety of the night; have no fear Harry, Black will be caught before long and you'll be safe."
Harry hoped the former portion of the Head Boy's words were fulfilled far more than he'd wished for anything in a long time; he'd give everything up except his family just to make sure the evil man was brought to justice.
It irked him to no end that there was nothing he could do on that front… at least for now.
COMMENT REPLIES:
Clavyus: Thank you!
DeadDredd: Thank you very much, and yes, Harry will definitely show more indepence and strength as he grows - likely 4th year is when it'll really start, while 6th and 7th is when he'll be very well off! Probably to some degree too!
StarwindX: Could've been a test, could've been her niavely trusting him, who knows? Thank you!
TheGreatBubbaJ: I do too! Unfortunate that haha.
x-kid11: Thank you very much! I appreciate your liking and I'm glad you like what I've done thus far; the Beta's are a huge help!
Sammy9992: Merci Beaucoup! Truly! I'm glad you like it and he definitely will, third and fourth year is when he'll begin changing from cutesy to more teenage boyish!
BBryant: Good pickup, thank you very much! Can't believe we all missed that haha.
Matt9917: I appreciate that so much! It's very fun to write!
Sinisterfox666: tyvm Stuart haha
Otagema: It'll eventually be Harry/Cora for sure! Thank you, I love doing that in all my one-shots/fics of length; feels fun haha. Appreciate that!
Zamasu Black: Thank you, hope you enjoyed this one too! Glad you like it!