The Truth Comes Out
Nearly fifteen minutes had passed since the Sikorsky took off from Isla Nublar, as the sun was setting lower in the sky. Harry must have felt the sun in his eyes as he awoke when they were crossing back over the Costa Rica shoreline.
Either that or he felt Lex leaning rather hard on him, still fast asleep. Unfortunately, Harry wasn't the only one awake at the moment, either.
"He's already waking up," someone murmured,
The sentence was barely audible, but opened his eyes to find Hermione peeking over the back of her seat, rolling her eyes at him. Now, his ears should have been working much more clearly.
"Ugh," Tim snickered. "What an image!"
Harry smiled, shaking his head as he gently shook Lex's shoulder.
"Lex," he whispered. "Wake up, we're almost there."
Lex stretched and yawned, jabbing her arm into the side of Harry's chest. Harry slightly winced, feeling something somewhat sharp prodding into him. Dr. Grant must have heard him, since he too was awakening, brushing back the strands of hair that fell into his face.
As Lex moved her arms away, Grant noticed Harry reaching into his shirt pocket, curling his fingers.
"Hiding something in there?" he teased.
"Yeah," Harry exhaled. "Something I wedged out of my shoes when we crawled through the vent."
Harry drew his hand from his pocket, uncurling his fingers to discover a couple of pointed, hook curved objects in pale yellow with dry red marks on the ends.
"They're some kind of teeth," Harry observed.
"Don't you recognize these things, Harry?" Tim gasped. "They're raptor teeth!"
"I think the key thing here was that you pulled them from your shoe," Grant interjected.
"I must have taken them out when I kicked that raptor's mouth," Harry reasoned.
"Wow, way to go, Harry!" Tim complimented, slapping Harry on the shoulder.
As Harry admired the teeth in his palm, Lex cupped her hands over her mouth, while Hermione's eyes zeroed in on his claim.
"Now what do I do with these?" Harry pondered.
"Ordinarily, I'd expect someone like Dr. Grant to deliver those things to a museum," Hermione suggested.
"I think I'll stick to digging up dead bones, Miss Granger," Grant declined. "This was taken off of a live one that shouldn't have been. It'd be the envy of all the tooth necklaces makers in every tribe."
Harry stroked the teeth, breaking into a somewhat slyer grin over the last thing Grant had spoken about.
"Personally, I think whoever wins a trophy like this should decide what to do with it," Grant added. "What do you say, Harry?"
"Sure," Harry replied, shrugging.
He tightly stuffed the teeth back into his pocket, feeling another jerk downward. Harry peered out the window again to find the Sikorsky hovering the San Jose helipad, getting ready to land again.
"Yahoo," Harry heard Hammond mutter.
He leaned over his seat, watching Mr. Hammond remove another card from his pocket protector, then dial a telephone connected to the wall.
A chorus of clicks were heard as everyone fastened their seatbelts, some people having to share; Grant extended his to fit Tim, while Harry did the same for Lex.
Harry didn't see Hermione furrow her eyebrows, but her hand stretched out over the back of her seat before her parents pulled her down.
When the Sikorsky's wheels finally touched the helipad, Phipps and Fobbs climbed out, but others sat irritably as they awaited the two limousines to pull out of the left shed.
When they were waved to, everyone sluggishly climbed out as the sky had become a tinged orange. As Harry was the last to exit, he watched Hammond sheath the phone back into a wall pocket.
Harry watched as the boots to both cars opened before Phipps and Fobbs ran back to the Sikorsky to open the bottom hatch.
"Need a hand?" Harry offered. "Or an extra foot? It'll take much less time."
He squeezed between the two of them, fishing out three rucksacks, easily working out which belonged to who; the first was made from beige canvas, the second from tan suede, and the third from black leather.
After loading them into one car, Harry felt something round jab him in the shoulder. It was Mr. Hammond awaiting behind him, raising his walking stick, while Phipps and Fobbs loaded the Grangers' suitcases into the other car.
"I figured we'd all want to pick up after ourselves after that," he explained. "So I've put us back up at the Doña Inés. Same rooms, same meals, same lack of expense spared."
As Hammond walked away to open the door, Harry felt himself being cornered by Phipps and Fobbs into the open doors of the right shed.
"While we have you Mr. Potter, we haven't noticed anyone missing, have we?" Fobbs questioned.
"For an example, that headmaster of yours, the eccentric millionaire?" Phipps added. "I suppose this was too 'out in the open' for a man of his… taste, shall we say?"
"No, you would be correct," chuckled a familiar grandfatherly rasp. "This would seem a bit too Royal Air Force worthy, would it not?"
Dumbledore emerged from the dark shed with raised eyebrows and a wide grin. But his slightly lowered eyelids didn't block out his Father Christmas-esque glint.
"Professor!" Harry choked. "We couldn't help but wonder whether or not you all came at the best time..."
"So it seems, Harry," Dumbledore confirmed. "But now, the time has come to clear things up, as promised earlier. Thus, we have found an empty room so we may avert any extra eyes."
"I think by now, you realized there's a bit of a problem there, sir," Harry cleared his throat.
He no longer leaned against the shed, as he gestured behind them. The others had gathered by both limousines, watching the argument with whatever expressions of impatience their face muscles could manage.
Lex and Hermione were at the forefront, with the Grangers and Dr. Sattler directly behind, while Hammond and Dr. Grant carried Malcolm into the Silver Spur on the left.
"I believe you've found, Harry, that in events such as this, we have our own means of waving it off to suggest they never happened," Dumbledore reminded him. "However, this is an example where we might want to make an exception. After all, there is one person here with family connections, as we may describe them…"
Dumbledore gestured to Hammond, whose face had turned slightly pink, probably sensing the same level of charisma in Dumbledore's speech that he had at the beginning of the tour.
"Three guesses where the others are, Professor?" Harry interjected, twirling his finger inside the shed.
"Only one, Harry," Dumbledore replied.
He waved the group into the shed, where the other members of his search party awaited. All were seated on half a circle of white folding chairs, except for Hagrid.
Dumbledore's seat was at the middle, not unlike the teacher's table at Hogwarts, as he gestured to a throng of white plastic folding chairs forming the half awaiting the others.
Harry tried seating himself on the edge, but he saw two arms link themselves with his, as Phipps and Fobbs dragged him to the middle seat opposite Dumbledore.
They seated themselves on Harry's left so they could get a view of the Hogwarts professors and Ministry officials, much more oddly dressed than the non-professors at Dumbledore's right.
Those with doctorates sided with Phipps and Fobbs, so the children and parents could sit close to Harry, most likely for the emotional support a scientist could not provide.
Harry noticed Hermione roll her eyes as Lex claimed the seat to his left and had to sit next to Tim. But she shrank back in her seat at the expectant look in her parents' eyes.
"If we are all seated," Dumbledore began. "Then before we begin, I must take one final measure to ensure our privacy. This will hopefully provide some background for those we walked in on last night…"
Harry noticed Hermione's eyes alight with excitement, being the only other member of his group who knew what Dumbledore was doing. Together, they leaned in closely, watching Dumbledore twirl his hands in the air before bringing them down to his sides.
He held them there as they appeared to emit a white light, which grew until it surrounded the group, encasing them in a large dome, before bursting into individual spots and vanishing, one by one.
Harry couldn't tell what had just happened, Hermione was on the edge of her seat, Paul's hand upon hers, Jane's hand upon his shoulder. He'd felt Lex and Tim nudge closer to him, holding onto each other, while the other adults were leaning forward in disbelief.
"Would anyone care to explain what I have just done?" Dumbledore requested with a triumphant grin.
"Yeah," Malcolm grumbled, stretching across two folding chairs. "Not that any of us were particularly enamored with the concept, but you brought us in here for a light show."
"Perhaps Miss Granger can tell you the correct answer, Dr. Malcolm," Dumbledore suggested.
"I could," Hermione offered. "But what you just saw is rather difficult to explain. I mean, more than what we saw yesterday."
"Is that so?" Malcolm scoffed before turning his head toward Hammond. "Maybe you can have that in your little park, John. I'm sure it'll be a great way to kick off the tour, add a little smoke and mirrors."
"Can't you see?!" Hermione cried. "What he just did was blend us in with our surroundings! He simply covered us with spots that change into the colours and textures of our environment!"
She drew a few stares, but the silence was cricket-worthy since the others looked less stunned than when they first saw the brachiosaur.
"That shot of morphine must be getting to me by now," Malcolm muttered into Sattler's ear.
"Perhaps I haven't quite made my abilities clear," Dumbledore pondered. "Professor McGonagall, why don't you present them with one of yours?"
McGonagall stood up, slightly scowling at Dumbledore before pulling from her sleeve what looked like a sleek, thin stick, about nine and a half inches long to the people of science.
She waved Dumbledore aside before waving the stick at him three times.
Dumbledore began to shrink, growing black hair on his body, though his beard stayed white. His glasses dissolved into his face as his nose widened, flattened and pursed outward with his cheeks and mouth. Finally, he bent forward, landing on his hands as his legs shortened to about the same length before sprouting a long tail with a small black tuft at the tip.
The non magical audience members leaned forward, gasps and awe returning as the chittering Dumbledore bore a set of vampire gnashers. McGonagall picked him up, as she noticed the glint in his eye remained.
"Somehow I knew even he might be a little cheeky," she muttered to herself.
If that didn't attract a few laughs, then seeing her blocking his lips from her cheek definitely had.
"It was mainly from the witches and wizards behind them, including Hermione, covering her mouth to restrain herself. Tim, next to her, grabbed ahold of Lex's arm, who held onto Harry's, each with looks of genuine fright, while Grant, Sattler, and Malcolm remained silent.
"That's a bearded macaque!" Hammond gasped, getting up from his seat.
"No, that's a lion tailed macaque," Hagrid corrected, rising from a squat. "That's a bearded macaque."
He stretched out his dustbin handle-sized index finger to a pink tinged Hammond. Harry and Hermione, seated to his opposite were laughing harder, unlike Dr. Sattler, leaning into Dr. Grant's ear.
"A history of evolution, Dr. Grant?" she whispered.
Now, Dr. Grant only showed a hint of a grin, barely holding back a sputtering fit, making the witches and wizards laugh harder still. But the group recovered as Hammond sat himself back down, wiping his forehead, while Harry stood up.
"Very funny Professor," he panted. "Now come on, change Professor Dumbledore back!"
McGonagall's face soured as Harry reseated himself, gesturing in Mr. Hammond's direction. Monkey Dumbledore had climbed into Hammond's lap, flinging his arms around his neck.
Some more stunned cries were stifled as McGonagall waved her wand another three times, causing Dumbledore's transformation to reverse until a man in purple robes with a long white beard was sitting back on Hammond's lap with an arm around his shoulders.
Another round of spit takes ensued, though it didn't take long for anyone to recover since Dumbledore didn't look the slightest bit fazed by all of that.
"What you have all just seen was one of the finest bits of transfiguration ever accomplished," Dumbledore replied.
But there was whispering amongst the professionals, who failed to notice Harry still leaning on the edge of his seat, while Hermione sat back, clapping her hand to he forehead, covering her eyes.
"Transfiguration?" Sattler muttered, presenting Harry with a look to match McGonagall's.
"You want me to confess that I spiked that ice cream last night?" Malcolm whispered into her ear.
Harry clenched the edge of his seat before crying out in frustration, getting up to address the group, ignoring Hermione trying to wave him back down.
"I didn't want to have to admit this," Harry sighed. "But what Professor Dumbledore is trying to say is that was a form of magic, what she did."
He waited another beat to try and relieve the stress, but Malcolm was able to put a foot on the ground.
"The Hammond effect seems to have rubbed off on you, hasn't it?" Malcolm accused. "There's no such thing as magic!"
"Really?!" Harry retorted. "Then how did she do it?!"
Malcolm drew his foot back onto his chair before going back to zeroing in on Harry, Dumbledore, and McGonagall with the rest of the group.
"Look," Harry interjected. "I know yesterday shook you all up a bit, but Dumbledore's a wizard, that's why he's dressed that way! McGonagall's a witch, and so are Snape, Mr. Weasley, Hagrid, all but Miss Figg. Magic really does exist and whatever you know about witches or wizards is probably true!"
"Like flying around on broomsticks, kidnapping kids, and turning them into chipped beef?!" Lex retorted, clutching her brother closer.
"Alright, maybe only the first bit," Hermione huffed, standing up from her seat. "Anyway, the point is, Harry and I go to a school up in Scotland called Hogwarts for witchcraft and wizardry. Most of the other people you see here are either teachers or people who work in the Ministry of Magic…
Hermione paused as Harry cleared his throat, gesturing to Dumbledore, who gestured to Madam Bones behind them.
"Right," she sighed. "I forgot about that, but, maybe I should let Madam Bones tell you instead."
Dumbledore motioned them back to their seats, waving Madam Bones forward.
"I realize I must be brief on this subject," Bones began. "But we have our own Ministry system of governing in London. Throughout history, we've been eyed with suspicion from the Muggle, or non magical world, particularly in Salem around three hundred years ago, when accusations rates were quite high. Thus, our primary concern is to maintain a level of secrecy and security from your world. I myself am the head of our Department of Law Enforcement. You've met Moody, one of my officers and Tonks, one of my cadets."
"And you're telling us this, because?" Malcolm requested, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, many among us are born to Muggle families," Bones explained. "Namely Miss Granger, and even Mr. Potter had a similar upbringing by his aunt and uncle. These families are required to know and with a certain turn of events this weekend, we suspect you've all grown quite close to them."
"While we're discussing family, Amelia," Dumbledore interrupted. "Perhaps Mr. Potter could do with some consolation for his relatives."
"Actually, I haven't seen them anywhere since yesterday," Harry clarified. "Why?"
Sattler glanced at him with maternal unease, holding up her hand to silence the others.
"Harry…" Sattler began. "I'm not sure how to tell you this… but your relatives didn't exactly survive last night."
"You mean?" Harry requested.
"Basically, they got turned into Rex chow," Malcolm rephrased.
"They were lucky they didn't go out like Muldoon," Grant added.
"They did?" Harry asked, blankly. "Well… that's lovely."
Harry stiffened, nervously rolling his eyes back and forth, rubbing his forehead where his scar was cut. He was unlucky to recall who sat on his left, each removing a pair of Oakley Juliet sunglasses.
"Mr. Potter," Phipps began. "Is there anything you want to tell us about your home life?"
"Not really," Harry replied, sinking into his seat.
"Good," Fobbs complimented. "That's the sign our observations have pointed to. Now tell us the basics from the beginning."
"Okay," Harry sighed in defeat. "I suppose the first thing I remember is…"
"What was that, Mr. Potter?" Phipps requested. "We didn't quite get that."
"…being locked in the cupboard, when I was five!" Harry finished.
This time, there erupted more than just gasps.
"What were you doing in a cupboard?!" Jane requested.
"Uncle Vernon threw me in there when I asked him if Harry Potter was really my name," Harry explained.
"How could he do such a thing?!" Hermione shouted. "Or you not even known your own name?!"
"Most of the time, all they called me was 'boy' or 'freak'!" Harry cried. "Once, I was running from Dudley and his gang and ended up on a roof. Uncle Vernon threw me in the cupboard for a week with no meals."
"Did you know about this?" Fobbs demanded, staring pointedly at Dumbledore.
"I placed my trust in the only family he had," Dumbledore replied. "But there was a reason far greater than that. Years ago, the Potter family was targeted by a dangerous wizard who called himself Voldemort. Both of Harry's parents perished, yet his mother had sacrificed herself, invoking a sort of protection I hadn't seen before. To further ensure Harry's safety, I brought him to his aunt's home, placing protective wards that operated through his thriving relation to her. But now, I see that is no longer the case."
"What about Hogwarts, Professor?" Harry asked. "Will I be able to go back?"
"Of course Harry," Dumbledore confirmed. "It's the only place left in Britain that will offer you complete safety for now."
"Which reminds me…" Jane interrupted. "Hermione, is there anything you haven't been telling us?"
"Yes," Hermione whined. "I haven't written to you, because I've been petrified! A monster was set on all the students with non-magic parents! I stayed there at Christmas because Harry and I were trying to work out what it was! I didn't want to tell you because I was afraid you'd try to remove me!"
"I can assure you, we came fairly close to sending our students home," McGonagall replied. "But it was Potter and Miss Granger's efforts that saved us, I shall say that much."
"I assume you'll be contacting parents more often," Paul suggested, drawing his wife and daughter closer. "They'll want you to double down on security, should their kids run into a dragon or whatever."
"We've been there, done that," Harry assured them.
"Is that true?" Grant requested, leaning from his chair. "Do dragons really exist?"
"I'm afraid so," Harry confirmed. "But I'm sure you've heard we've run into worse than dragons last year."
"Terrific," Grant sighed, leaning back. "When you're a kid, you see something that excites you, and then, as an adult, you end up hating it for whatever reason. I mean, there's tooth and claw, and then there's fire."
"Regardless," Dumbledore interrupted. "We hope you parents and guardians will pardon us for all this trouble, and Harry, it seems I have failed to provide you with a normal childhood."
"Don't be Professor," Harry assured him. "If I got this lucky, things will go uphill from here, won't they?"
"Until then, what would you say to a summer with me?" Sirius shouted from across the room.
"Anything," Harry replied. "I'm glad know to I've got other family."
"It seems like only yesterday I held you for the last time," Sirius gushed, running to embrace his godson. "I shouldn't have let Dumbledore take you, then you wouldn't have been part of all the madness, right Moony?"
"It's only just begun, Padfoot," Lupin chuckled from across the room.
"But just some warning," Sirius continued. "You don't want to spend the summer at my old family home. It's a drab, dreary place, really and house hunting takes awhile."
"You could come and spend the summer with us," Lex offered, releasing Tim from her grasp.
"No Lex, I can't bother your parents that way!" Harry insisted.
"Yes you can!" Lex insisted.
"Would your parents say 'yes' to a rumouredly deranged would-be killer running around her home," Sirius teased.
"What?!" Lex cried.
"That's not even funny!" Tim added.
"Wait, what?!" Harry requested. "What's that about?"
"Well it's a bit of long story, that," Sirius replied. "Shall I tell you on the way?"
"Give it to us back over at the hotel," Paul requested, leaning over. "I'm sure we'd all love to hear it from your account."
"Don't mind if I do," Sirius agreed.
"Well then, it looks like Dumbledore gave us part of the larger picture we were looking for," Phipps resolved.
"So, if you don't mind, we have a hotel to return to," Fobbs added. "So Mr. Potter can give us the rest, and we can make necessary arrangements to freshen up for a safe trip home."
"Very well," Dumbledore replied. "We should have plenty of time for further discussion before you leave, so we send our best wishes to all of you. Good luck."
A swirl grew from Dumbledore hand, throwing the muggles into another daze, watching him and his people disappear from the shed. But Harry saw that Sirius had stayed behind, grinning as he and Hermione went around, shaking the others by the shoulder to snap them out of it.