Author's Note: There will be slight time jumps as I move this story forward from here on out. Nothing on the order of years, but certainly a few months at a time seem reasonable. Especially seeing as to how the story hasn't introduced Tom yet, and we are still a little ways away from that.
Hope you enjoy where I take this and thanks for the reviews and for following. I wish I could respond to everything, but some of you are very astute and I don't want to give everything away.
Here is my disclaimer that says I do not own anything Harry Potter related. Everything belongs to JK Rowling, except in universe 47837. Probably.
"Are you sure you want to stay at Hogwarts over the holidays?" Neville asked Harry again at dinner in the Great Hall.
They had made it through their first term at Hogwarts and those leaving for the winter break would be taking the Hogwarts Express immediately after breakfast the next day.
It had taken Harry a few moments to focus on what his friend had asked since his mind had been otherwise occupied with thinking about how he had made it to the Christmas holidays without losing his self-control.
It might not have seemed like all that much of an accomplishment, but Severus Snape was still alive and Harry hadn't given in to his increasing desire to teach the man a lesson. Yet.
"Oh, yes. I am quite content with remaining here at Hogwarts," Harry responded in his usual way. He liked to be direct and get straight to the point.
While he was more like his true self around Neville, he was looking forward to being able to have a few weeks to himself in which none – or very few – of his masks were required.
The final realization that Harry wouldn't be traveling with him caused a slight drop in Neville's countenance, for the young Hufflepuff had come to value his friendship with both Justin Finch-Fletchley and Harry Potter very much.
Before coming to Hogwarts to study magic, Neville Longbottom would never have guessed that the fabled child who was practically a living legend in their world would ever want to be friends with someone like him. However, as the year had gone by and the more time that he had spent in Harry's company, the more he was beginning to think that perhaps the Boy Who Lived actually had it worse off than he did.
Everybody knew what had happened to Harry's parents, but very few were aware of what had befallen his own. Which meant that he didn't have to deal with his family tragedy while under the weight of public perception.
And in the deepest parts of Neville's soul, he now just wanted Harry to be happy and free from the unfair expectations that had been placed on him. Because he had come to observe Harry over the past few months and was now more aware of the strain that came with being the Boy Who Lived than he thought Harry led on.
Most people thought of Neville as simple and incapable of performing the simplest of spells – which hadn't been that far off in the beginning. However, since he had become friends with Harry it had become easier for him to access his magic and he felt like he was able to do as well as any of the other students. Better even in some situations.
But his lack of confidence in himself hadn't prevented him from noticing how Harry appeared to act most of the time when he was around other people. At first it had hurt that Harry had worn a mask even when he was just hanging out with Justin and himself; however, it soon became apparent that that Harry was far more relaxed and natural than the one present in classes or seen interacting with the other students.
Which meant that Harry trusted Justin and himself more so than the others in his mind.
Neville hated to think how difficult it must be to live under the weight of being the Boy Who Lived and couldn't fault Harry for being the way that he was. If anything, Neville was slightly in awe of just how well Harry seemed to be coping with everything.
Especially with being in Hufflepuff, for that was something that Neville had struggled with since the beginning of the term. In time, he had been able to get used to the idea of not being sorted into the same house as his parents and mysteriously had grown more confident in his own skin and the inherent abilities that came with it. He was sure that being friends with Harry had had something to do with that, and for that he would always be grateful.
Besides, Neville just had this feeling that everything would turn out all right as long as he stuck with Harry. There was this sensation in his core that he couldn't quite explain; he felt it more and more as time went on, especially after times where he had been doubting himself the most only to wake up the next day and be inexplicably calmer. He liked to think that it was Harry rubbing off on him.
In fact, Neville had become so enthralled with Harry over the past few months and had seen just how much the boy's friendship had helped him to become more of the person that he wanted to be that it had gotten to the point where he had made the conscious decision to not worry about it anymore.
And Neville wasn't the only one that had been examining their friendship more closely as time had gone by.
"Neville, I'm fine with it. Really," Harry added after a few more minutes in which Neville was looking at him with a thoughtful expression on his face.
He had been inside the other boy's mind enough to know what he was likely thinking about and the sheer kindness of those thoughts at times alarmed him.
Neville was the closest that any person, besides his parents presumably, had ever come to giving him unconditional support. It didn't matter what Harry was doing or wanted to do since Neville would be right there next to him and that usually meant that Justin tagged along.
In fact, the three of them had become quite the trio during the first half of the year.
Which was a bit of a double-edged sword for Harry. On one hand, he had practically disappeared into the crowd at Hogwarts; however, on the flip side it was a bit harder for him to get away to what had become his private study area in the castle with how the other boys clung to his presence.
Meanwhile, Neville was still looking at Harry with a strange glint in his eye.
"Maybe next year you can come home with me for the holidays? I'm sure that Gran would love to have you," Neville then voiced excitedly.
Normally, that type of request would have resulted in an immediate and negative response from Harry, but he had come to learn that older families typically had extensive library collections. And that was quite tempting for Harry.
"Hmm, that could be an option," Harry replied in a friendly and patient nod of his head.
Whatever it was about the boy that made it so different and inexplicably easy for Harry to be around him still remained a mystery; one that Harry had all but given up trying to understand.
Neville's face brightened considerably with Harry's answer and he dug into the food that remained on his plate with new vigor.
"What about me?" Justin feigned being forgotten about from the other side of the table.
Neville's cheeks instantly grew a deep shade of red as he hastily tried to put together a response, much to Harry's amusement.
"Well… you see… I think… Gran would… of course… I'll ask," Neville fumbled out through a mouthful of potatoes.
A mischievous smile appeared on Justin's face. He had also grown close to Harry and Neville and finally felt like he belonged to his own group of friends, something that had always eluded him back home. Becoming a wizard and being able to use magic had literally opened up an entire new world for him in which everything now made sense.
"Relax Neville," Justin chuckled out. "I would love to come visit but don't feel obligated."
Before Hogwarts, Neville wouldn't have known what to do in this sort of situation and would have thought that he was being bullied or teased, but he knew that it wasn't the case. Even if his cheeks had a mind of its own and he couldn't quite control his stammering yet.
Just then, the hall grew increasingly silent and the three boys looked around to find the cause. It didn't take them that long though, because Albus Dumbledore had risen from his seat and his hands were in the air, commanding everyone to look his way.
Of course, in looking towards the teacher's table, Harry caught sight of Severus Snape and the man narrowed his black eyes in response to their shared glance.
Harry wanted to roll his eyes and again thought about how major of a victory it was that he had managed to hold his tongue and magic in check. Harry would have enjoyed nothing more than some one-on-one time with the man to straighten him out and find out what his deal was.
However, he consoled himself with the knowledge that he would have three long, glorious weeks without having to endure that man's vendetta against him. For it had become obvious that nothing that Harry did could change the man's opinion of him.
In Potions, Harry had remained outwardly pleasant and respectful towards the man and was sure that he was completing all of his assignments beyond what was satisfactory. Even if odd things did tend to happen to his homework or classwork that he turned in, only to find that they had gotten lost or had been graded by someone that didn't understand what a perfect potion was supposed to look like.
But regardless of the poor grades that he had been receiving, Harry was confident that he could sit for his Ordinary Wizarding Level examination in Potions and achieve at least an Acceptable. For he had been diligently studying ahead every night, if only to have a better idea of the questions that the man had begun asking Harry at the beginning of each and every lesson.
Although, despite now having knowledge that was years ahead of where he was expected to be, Harry hadn't been able to actually use any of it to respond to the man's progressively more difficult questions. Since Snape had become especially fond of drawing from the third or fourth-year curriculum, it would have gone against Harry's chosen path of remaining in the shadows for the near future to answer.
As such, the phrase, 'I don't know,' that he now uttered at least once per session had become nearly the only words that he ever spoke in Potions, aside from the few times that the man's queries had involved first-year material.
To which he of course responded correctly.
But even with the way that the man was looking at him now in the Great Hall, so similar to the intellectual inferiority that he tried to make Harry feel as often as possible in class, Harry simply stared back at him unaffected.
Potions had developed a patience in Harry that he never knew that he was capable of, and his eyes tore away from Snape's as Albus opened his mouth to speak now that he finally had the hall's attention.
"Another term over," the wizened voice sounded, echoing off the tall ceilings.
"I hope you have learned much over the previous months and are able to find a bit of relaxation and joy wherever it is that you spend your holidays. I myself hope to enjoy several hot cups of tea and some of my favorite lemon drops."
No one ever got the man's humor, if you could even call it that.
"But before I send you off all watered and fed to your dorms to pack and get ready for the train tomorrow, I wanted to share a bit of good news with you all. For you see, my dear friend Nicolas Flamel will be visiting Hogwarts in the spring. The astute among you will know – especially those partial to collecting Chocolate Frogs – that the man is a noted Alchemist and last year celebrated his six-hundred and sixty-fifth birthday!"
Excited whispers began within the hall almost immediately. Even by wizard standards, that was an impossible age to live to.
"Of course, his age is a remarkable achievement brought on by his discovery of the Philosopher's Stone, a legendary substance that bestows riches and immortality!"
The student populace was now well and truly mesmerized with every word that came out of the man's mouth. Even the Slytherin's, who normally rolled their eyes openly and scoffed at the Muggle-loving Headmaster, were quite taken with this impromptu little speech.
"Yes, it truly is exciting to have someone of such renown able to come and say a few words. In fact, I believe he is even going to bring the Stone with him, and it will be on display in this very hall. Now, of course something like this will be well-protected, but I trust that there is no one out there that will make Hogwarts look bad by attempting to steal such a storied object."
The man's gaze moved ever so slightly to settle over the Gryffindor Table, where Harry noticed twin redheads who had a slight smirk on their face. Everyone knew who Fred and George were, and it was quite obvious that the Headmaster had just given them a warning.
"What better way than to start the break off with that bit of news. Now, off to bed with you all!" Dumbledore smiled in his grandfatherly way.
The announcement struck Harry as odd for some reason. While he was most certainly excited about the prospect of hearing someone of such academic distinction speak, he thought it was incredibly risky to chance something like the Stone being put on display. Though Harry conceded that he didn't know anything as of yet about how the Philosopher's Stone actually worked, but he still thought it was folly.
It was exceedingly unusual to have something so monumentally valuable out in the open like the Stone was going to be. Harry would never have done such a thing, never mind if magic were going to protect it. He wouldn't risk it.
But Harry didn't have too much time to dwell on that thought at the moment as Justin and Neville tugged at his sides and the trio headed back to their dormitory.
Predictably, Justin and Neville had left all of their packing until the last minute. So while they got all of their belongings in order, Harry was lying on his back allowed his mind to wander.
It didn't take long for his thoughts to work back to the unusualness of having Nicolas Flamel, and his Philosopher's Stone, come to Hogwarts. Because one of the primary issues that Harry was struggling with after the conclusion of his first term in the castle centered around the state of progress in the magical world.
So it was all very odd to him how stagnant progress in their world seemed to be against the juxtaposition of this particular announcement. Harry couldn't help but wonder if it was really because Dumbledore wanted to expose them all to a man who had quite literally done something that no one else had been rumored to do – or if there was another purpose to Nicolas' visit.
Regardless of the reason, Harry was actually looking forward to hearing what the man had to say and seeing what other opportunities existed for him when he left Hogwarts in six and a half years. Perhaps he would do something just as extraordinary.
Currently he had had little time in his daily schedule to explore those avenues while pursuing his academic interests and practicing his magic so that his casting was always perfectly normal.
Though in truth, it had been more difficult for him to remain unnoticed in some of these classes than he had thought.
While in most situations, he was able to come off as studious but not outstandingly so, sometimes the sheer amount of boredom that he faced because he was so far ahead occasionally led his mind to disconnect from the world around him. And if he wasn't careful, sometimes he found himself mere seconds away from unleashing his magic about the room.
Generally that only happened in History of Magic, since Professor Binns had an uncanny ability to put everyone to sleep. After the first few instances, Harry had then needed to force himself to focus better, regardless of the situation and it only added to the superhuman level of patience that not killing Snape had started to develop in him.
In fact, Potions was such an outlier in testing his self-restraint, that the other classes didn't seem so bad in comparison.
His homework answers were all correct, for he would never stoop so low as to hand in something that was imperfect. But they didn't highlight the vast depth of his knowledge that he had acquired that allowed him to see more of the subtle distinctions and nuances that defined each and every spell.
'All in due time,' Harry had needed to tell himself repeatedly.
It helped that many of his classes were shared with Ravenclaw and the members of that house were apparently locked in a battle to the death to see who could get the highest grade on each and every assignment or test.
The student in the lead so far was none other than the girl who had busted into his compartment unannounced with Neville on the train while looking for the boy's toad.
Except that Hermione Granger was nowhere even close to Harry, and he was more than happy to sit back and let Hermione's obvious need for approval and validation take even more of the focus off of him.
When in reality it was actually quite humorous just how more advanced Harry was than his peers.
Which was blatantly apparent in the answers that Hermione, for example, would give in class. While technically correct, she never offered her own take on the material and simply regurgitated the text back to the professor, verbatim.
She missed the nuance and the implications of the magical theories that she was defining and no doubt peppered her homework with the same sort of drivel.
Harry had known others like her: the type that always thought they were the best students. And while they did have the capacity to understand the material, oftentimes they were too busy in broadcasting everything that they knew to really go beyond what was expected of them. These students often hung on every word that their teacher uttered and lacked the imagination to see the material as a starting point for furthering one's own intellectual curiosity.
And aside from Harry's written work, his spellwork was always cast perfectly as well. Though Harry did strive and wait until others in the class had first demonstrated the spell before he himself let his magic flow through his wand.
The challenging part for him was in the classes that required extensive wand work, and while he had made sure to practice not performing the spell silently the night before, it would only take a lapse of concentration in class for Harry to slip up and cast something nonverbally. Or worse, without a wand altogether, which he found happened on occasion when he was off by himself.
Therefore, when he was able to find time away from Justin and Neville to practice in his preferred area in that abandoned room that he had discovered, he had made sure to test out situations that would strengthen his concentration and focus. Which had the unexpected side effect of providing Harry better control over the way his mind worked.
While it had always been easy for him access his memories or rapidly recall the answer to something, he was finding that the more that he spent separating the internal part of him that made wandless and nonverbal casting so easy, the more it became apparent that maybe there was another part of his brain that he hadn't been using.
Perhaps this region had something to do with being able to use magic? He thought it likely. However, Harry had only gotten to the stage where he was able to separate some of his thoughts independent of what he was doing at the time. Though, his experience with this caused him to wonder if there wasn't something more to this, something that he couldn't perfect.
Although, that would have to wait until the summer, when he realized that he would need things to occupy his time without his ability to use his wand. Not that he really needed it, however.
And while he had no doubt that he would continue to test a few things out with the Dursleys, he had other things that would be a much better use of his time. Like raiding Flourish and Blotts.
As he lie there on his bed, thoughts of Privet Drive swirled around his mind again. Of course, he had briefly entertained the notion of returning for the Christmas holidays, but that fleeting thought went out the door the moment that he learned that he could remain at the school if he so desired.
Three weeks with unrestrained access to the library, not to mention having the ability to explore other parts of the school, had left Harry confident that he would be spending as many Christmas at Hogwarts as he could. Though, he supposed that Neville's recent offer hadn't been so bad, and perhaps Harry would take him up on it one year.
Which then led Harry to contemplate his friends.
Harry watched them as they finished their packing in their dorm room. Everything had worked out better than he had planned as neither Justin nor Neville were really a strain to be around.
In fact, Harry found it quite easy to tolerate them most of the time. While Neville had occasionally needed the positive reinforcement of Harry's magic, Justin seemed more or less able to keep up with the nightly study sessions that Harry insisted of the group. With his encouragement, he thought that they would go far and perhaps they would continue to be useful in the years ahead.
Although, now that he was actively thinking about them, he noticed that they were nearly finished with their packing.
By this time it was quite late, and nearly the entire school would be leaving after a quick breakfast in the morning.
Therefore, a few rounds of 'night' were exchanged before everyone quickly fell asleep.
Harry awoke on Christmas morning, reveling in the knowledge that he was the only Hufflepuff who had opted to stay at Hogwarts. While it would be odd for him not to have to spend the requisite amount of time with Justin or Neville, he was very much looking forward to the opportunity for some quality alone time for the foreseeable future.
As Harry looked around the empty dorm room that was normally full of the other boys and their belongings, he suddenly found himself acutely missing the feeling of being in the proximity of Neville's magic. While not on his level the boy's magic was quite strong compared to the rest of his class, and the sensation of the other boy's magic instantly deferring to his was quite the experience.
Again, Harry was left to wonder why Neville's magic reacted in this way. It was so different from anyone else that Harry had taken control of.
Of course, he hadn't had the opportunity to test his magic out on everyone that he would have liked, but the other boys in his dorm had provided a reasonable opportunity.
Like with Ron, their magic tried to fight his for control until Harry ultimately overpowered them. Though, with each new roommate that he had tested it out on, it kept getting easier and easier for him to overcome their pitiful resistance.
Justin remained somewhat of an exception. His magic hadn't immediately given way, but it hadn't exactly fought his either. And Justin's core wasn't as warm as he found Neville's to be, but it was not quite as cold as the other boys' felt.
It only made Harry hungrier to understand what was happening.
When Harry looked backed on his formative years, his relationship with Neville Longbottom and what it taught him about magic would forever provide the quiet boy a distinct place in his new world order.
But that was years from now, and Harry just couldn't be aware of the fruits that his little experiments with Neville would one day produce.
So ultimately, Harry moved on to a different topic.
For today was the first full day that he would be able to explore the castle as he pleased. With that thought, he quickly jumped out of bed and moved to get his toiletries so that he could get a start on his day when he noticed a small mound of wrapped presents sitting at the foot on his bed.
Even though he knew it was Christmas, Harry had never come to expect gifts. Mostly because he had done away with the silly notion that he would receive any after years of watching Petunia and Vernon spoil Dudley rotten right in front of him. Of course, then he had taken control of that house and everything changed.
But this wasn't Privet Drive and Harry wondered whom these were from. There were four packages in total and Harry eyed them suspiciously as he approached them. Two of the gifts he quickly discovered were from Neville and Justin and he made a face thinking about how he was now obliged to return the favor.
"Well, I can always owl-order them a book or something over the break," Harry muttered to himself.
He quickly unwrapped their gifts, discovering that Neville had given Harry a copy of his own favorite book on plants while Justin had chosen an assortment of wizarding candy.
The next gift made Harry smirk because it was from the Dursleys. It was nice to know that things were still running smoothly while he was away and he appreciated the bank statement that they had sent. Which was just the sort of gift that Harry had liked to receive since it showed that they had enjoyed a reasonable holiday and had not overspent like they had in the past.
His hold on them was strong even from this distance!
The last gift however remained a bit of an unknown as to what it was and where it had come from. There was a single card attached to the top, but it wasn't signed.
"You're father left this in my possession before he died. It is time it was returned to you. Use it well."
While it was true that the note was unsigned, Harry did have a sneaking suspicion as to whom his mysterious benefactor was. Only one person in his mind really stood out, and the exquisite penmanship was almost an exact match to the short note that had invited Harry to tea around Halloween.
Although that meeting had ultimately been canceled at the last minute on account of an emergency session of the Wizenagamot, the mere fact that the Headmaster had wanted to personally meet with him had given him a lot to think about.
For Albus Dumbledore had a very suspicious interest in his life, and this just seemed to emphasize it even more.
Harry stared at the package for a moment before unwrapping it to discover that it was a cloak. A simple cloak so far as Harry could tell, judging by the color and the lack of anything making it more special.
The fabric looked so ordinary and his mind was so focused on other things that he failed to notice the slight tingle that registered in his fingers, a sensation very similar to the way that other magical objects felt against his magic.
His first thought was why on earth would his father have loaned a run-of-the-mill cloak to Dumbledore. Something didn't add up, especially when combined with Dumbledore's suggestion to use it well.
And it remained a simple cloak for a fraction of a second until Harry drew it around himself in front of a mirror and watched as his reflection disappeared.
Once he realized the true nature of the gift that he had received, several thoughts flitted through his mind very quickly.
The first was the veritable goldmine that he now had in his possession. There were far too many uses for a cloak like this that it made Harry know instantly that it would never be far from his side.
However, his good mood was very brief as his mind began to question again why the Headmaster would ever give a student something so powerful and why his father would have ever parted with something so monumentally strategic.
Hadn't they been in a war? Hadn't Voldemort been after them?
It didn't make any sense in Harry's mind and only added to the list of questions that surrounded Dumbledore.
Finally, though very closely related to his second observation, was just how invisible was he under this cloak and, most importantly, could it be detected?
Perhaps Dumbledore had given Harry the cloak under the pretense that the boy wouldn't know that someone else could detect him! That would mostly explain why the Headmaster had given him a means for having an almost unlimited ability to roam Hogwarts undetected. Did the man want him to explore the castle?
Now that he thought about it in that way, Harry focused on his magic and quickly discovered that he could indeed feel the cloak's inherent magic with his own. It was faint, but it was there nonetheless. Next he had a thought, which made him wonder why he had never considered this particular idea before.
If his magic could feel something that he was touching, could it also detect something that was in a different location? Like with other magical cores?
Well, there was only one way to find out and Harry then placed the cloak on his bed before walking over to the other side of the room. When he had turned to face his cloak, he closed his eyes and instead of just focusing his tendrils as had become second nature for him, he let his magic loose in the general direction of his bed.
It was a different sensation as the edge of his magic crept over the various and distinctly normal items until it got to his cloak where he picked up the faintest of differences that registered in the far reaches of his mind.
Harry then opened his eyes and considered the new possibilities that now laid before him as he contemplated what other things could be sensed with his magic.
Letting his magic explore the room around him had felt so natural, an extension of his other senses that he soon began to regard it as his sixth sense. From there, he quickly committed to exploring this opened avenue to learn more about its strengths and weaknesses.
And it was that potential for weakness that dominated Harry's thoughts as he ran the cloak through his fingers.
His primary and immediate concern was that someone else would be able to detect him using magic in this way, which was no doubt something that would give his advanced nature away. He didn't even think most adults could do what he could.
He would have to be more careful from here on out until he was sure.
Although, there were several unanswered questions regarding the cloak that now lingered before him. With it all but confirmed in Harry's mind that Dumbledore no doubt had this ability to sense Harry if he had this cloak on, it also occurred to him that it would look very suspicious if he never used the cloak out of an abundance of caution to avoid being detected.
It would be very strange indeed if a child didn't use this to sneak out after curfew; in fact, it would almost be unheard of!
Therefore, Harry knew that not using the cloak was simply out of the question as well. He was sure that Dumbledore expected him to use it and so he would, but he would be careful as to what he used it for because the Headmaster would likely be looking to see what Harry did with this unexpected boon.
With some of his questions answered, Harry placed the cloak in his satchel and finished getting ready for breakfast, in which Dumbledore would no doubt be present. Which meant that Harry would have to have an appropriate mask on his face that fit the situation of someone who wasn't second-guessing all of the behind-the-scenes activities of Albus Dumbledore.
Curfew had just begun and it was time for Harry to test out his new cloak. He had spent all day deciding how he was going to use it. If Harry was supposed to use his cloak well, then it stood to reason that the first thing that any rational student in Hogwarts would have done was to see if the cloak could get them into the Restricted Section of the library. Which was what he would have done anyways.
Carefully, he exited through the barrel and put on his cloak before pausing to see if he could sense anyone watching him. He was careful though with how he used his magic and he kept it within a small radius of his center.
Then quietly, Harry made his way up the stairs and through the castle, more aware of the sounds that his feet were making as it was the quickest way that could give his position away. Someone wouldn't even need magic to know he was there if they listened closely enough.
However, people generally relied more on their sight than sound and to know that no one could see him, and only a few – after much deliberation on the skills required to sense magic – could ever hope to feel the faint pulse of his cloak was exhilarating.
In the dimly lit and quiet hallways, Hogwarts felt open to him like it had never before. It took him longer to reach his destination than it normally would have, but he had never traversed the halls in a state like this and the first time was always different, something to be savored.
It was how it had been with his other firsts. Like how he still could feel Petunia's awful china reform in his hands or the way dominating Ron with his magic still made the ends of his hairs tingle.
When he reached the library he felt almost giddy at the thought of extracting books without having to sign them out, since Irma Pince wasn't here to fulfill her duties. Pity.
But he wouldn't abuse this privilege; eventually, he would return some of the books. He didn't want to get in trouble for this and someone might be watching.
With the library open to him, he first headed towards the sections that he frequented everyday and quickly selected the books that he had wanted to check out before but because of their advanced nature hadn't thought it prudent while others were watching.
Still, just to throw off his scent if Dumbledore was watching him, his selection of books was well rounded and innocuous. During the summer was when he would try for the darker texts outside of Hogwarts.
He had deliberately saved the Restricted Section for last in case his presence did not go undetected. It would have been stupid of him to not at least pursue the less-risky books first and leave with nothing.
Carefully, Harry ducked underneath the rope that was supposed to keep out unauthorized students. The protection measured caused him to roll his eyes, but he wasn't about to chance the rope being charmed at the same time.
Who knew if there was magic inherent in a professor's signature that would allow one to touch the rope or pass through.
When both of his feet were firmly past the threshold, he exhaled the breath that he had inadvertently been holding. It seemed that nothing else was preventing a student from coming in here after hours – which he couldn't quite wrap his brain around!
Once he was sure that his presence would go unnoticed, he picked through several tomes that had seemed to him like a good place to start.
One of the first books that he selected had dealt with magic and the mind since he had been thinking about what had happened that morning throughout the day. Also, it just so happened to be one of the titles that was apparent on the spine and was easy to read.
Anyone would have grabbed for it.
Next, Harry did risk a few of the more questionable books, but only because they dealt with their world's dark history and included mention of himself and Voldemort. It was only natural for him to be curious in anything that he was involved in.
Of course, Harry was smart and had been writing down titles of books that he would owl-order or purchase during the summer that were more nefarious in nature. He wanted to learn everything.
Once he was certain that he had enough reading material for the rest of the year, and knowing that he could return if he ever really needed something, he turned and headed out of the library.
Everything seemed to be going as planned as he felt his bottomless satchel against his side and Harry then took to exploring some of the halls that he never had any reason to frequent.
But soon Harry realized that he had gone down a path in which another must have walked through only moments before.
Harry came to a halt as he heard the distinct sounds of footsteps in front of him. The meow of a cat gave the person's identity away and Harry saw Mrs. Norris come around the corner.
Knowing that a cat relied on its smell more than its sight sometimes, Harry could have shook his head at the irony that an animal of all things would be the one to give him away.
But at the same time, he began to wonder: could his magic take over the cat?
It was too interesting an idea to pass aside, and he was as sure as he could be that someone wasn't watching him.
Therefore, he let a tendril of his magic out in the direction of Mrs. Norris and quickly found no resistance. The cat was his to command and he noticed the incoherent nature of its mind that was filled with images instead of actual thoughts.
At the same time, Harry noted how different the animal felt compared to a human. But the sudden arrival of Filch moved that thought along and Harry placed an image of mice within the cat's mind on the other side of the castle.
Harry then released his hold over the cat and watched it take off, leaving Filch worriedly scrambling behind his 'sweet.'
When Harry was assured that he was alone again, he laughed quietly at the sight that he had just caused. He was sure that that wasn't the last time that he would enjoy running into that man and his cat.
From there, Harry continued his exploration of the castle. However, he had just passed one of the unused classrooms closer to the Great Hall when his mind suddenly felt strange.
At first, it was like an itch within the back of his head and it took every ounce of willpower that he possessed in not reacting angrily when he realized that someone's magic had touched him.
Never before had Harry been tested in this way and he knew that all of his careful planning in keeping his powers hidden were now at risk of being exposed.
It was in this moment that the control that he had developed in Snape's classroom saved him and he was able to swallow his bubbling rage and let the thought that had been forced into his mind to stick.
What was strange was that it wasn't a word so much as a destination had suddenly popped up in his mind, much like what he had just done to Mrs. Norris. And it made Harry feel like that was a very good place that he ought to explore. Like right now.
Someone – and Harry would have bet all of his gold that it had been Dumbledore – had tried to dominate his mind. But not following the suggestion wasn't an option and so Harry set off in the direction that he was supposed to.
However, in knowing that it wasn't an original thought of his, the situation was easier to stomach in knowing that he could have disregarded it if he had wanted to. Harry had performed this type of magic often enough that he knew what it was.
On his way there, he tried to listen closely to the man's presence, but he reached his destination without having heard or seen anything. Not that he had expected to since the man was obviously a master of many different branches of magic, such as Charms. In fact, Harry had disregarded his own application of some of the weaker ones at the last minute since they were a little advanced for a first year that was trying to blend in.
Curious as to why he had been led to this specific room, Harry looked around and noted that it was empty save for a long mirror on the far wall.
But it wasn't just any mirror because of the ornate carvings on its side and the weird script at the top that read: Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi.
"I show not your face but your heart's desire," Harry mouthed a few seconds later, aware that Dumbledore was likely in the room and watching him.
As Harry moved to stand in front of it, his reflection shimmered away and was replaced with a picture of the night sky. Harry could see galaxies and stars in such color and detail that for a moment he thought he was staring outside a ship's window in space.
But he knew for a fact that space travel wasn't exactly his greatest wish. It was what the image represented in his mind that caused him to reach out and stroke the mirror fondly.
His greatest desire was to know that he had no limits, and it was so magical to see an image that truly represented what he felt on the inside.
Harry knew that he could stare at this forever.
'Though, it only shows my desire and not the future,' Harry said in his mind. So he hadn't really learned anything.
Except that once he began to contemplate that, it made Dumbledore's alleged presence stick out all the more.
This was where the man had led him? Which could only mean that he was interested in what Harry would see. But Harry didn't think that Dumbledore could actually see what Harry was seeing. At least, he hoped that to be true.
With his hand still touching the mirror, a true smile came to his face. Oh, this was perfect; he couldn't have planned anything better!
Whatever the reason that Dumbledore was so interested in him and his life didn't matter in this moment because Harry had a chance to forever shape the way that the man looked at him. He had thought long and hard about what the man had and would think of him in the coming years that he knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
And it didn't take Harry long to reason through his options to arrive at his best angle on how he could influence the man.
"Mom… Dad," he whispered as if he was on the verge of tears as he traced over the galaxies in a way that would look like faces to Dumbledore.
"I miss you," he added for good measure.
And Dumbledore quietly breathed a sound of relief and left Harry in the room alone. All he could think of on his way back to his office was that the boy would be his to control.
Obviously, I am doing this a little bit differently and adding some of this and some of that. Hope you enjoyed and I would love to know what you are thinking!