Return to Hogwarts
February turned to March and Nyssa seemed to get over what had happened to her – though she often got nightmares and wouldn't go out at night unless it was either with Harry or with a group of her friends.
"Ah, you are just the man I wanted to see" the voice of the Fat Controller brought Harry out of his thoughts as he came walking over towards him with a man in the blue overalls of a shed worker.
"Sir?" Harry propped up the brush he was using and stood up to face the pair.
"This is Mr Liopel" the Fat Controller said, gesturing at the man beside him. "A couple of our Firemen have all retired at the same time and we're a little short on footplate crews" and Harry started to wonder but wasn't about to raise his hopes too high.
"I'd heard that some of the smaller branches had had their trains cancelled so the rest of the network had enough staff" he agreed.
"Now normally" the Fat Controller went on, "You would have to spend at least a few months to a year as a cleaner before becoming a passed cleaner and firing trains when needs must. However, I know that you've been helping the shunter from time to time"
"Yes, Sir" Harry replied, "Percy and Duck are great to talk to – even if Duck goes on and on about the Great Western"
"If you'd like" spoke Liopel, "You can take up duties starting next Tuesday on the morning shift from 6am. Until we can get a footplate examiner to fully pass you out as a fireman, you'll be restricted to shunting around the yard and small local trip workings"
"Thank" Harry grinned.
"Sir Topham Hatt has told me of your domestic arrangements"
"What about them?" Harry's grin fell, vanished and then started backing up into hostility.
"Just that you are looking after an underaged girl"
"She was abused by her own father whilst working for me" Harry said. "It seem the thing to do to give her a home"
"Indeed… Well we shall see how things go for now, and maybe change a few things around to help you a little. Good day" and he turned and walked away.
"I thought you were going to hit him" said the Fat Controller.
"About three seconds from throwing curses at him" Harry admitted.
"How is Miss Mayerle?" the Fat Controller looked around before talking quietly.
"Doing well… I have had a few mind healers come over and sort out her issues on the quiet, but it will be a long time before the nightmares go away"
"I can imagine. Look, why don't you go home and be with her? The schools should just about be coming out by now"
"Still got two hours of the shift to do" Harry said, gesturing to the piles of stones he was moving around.
"I'll have a word with the Chargehand" came the Fat Controller's reply. "I know that you spend every minute working when you are not trying to get her well again, and its not as if you need the money"
"True" Harry shrugged. Harry finished his little pile before both he and the Fat Controller flagged down a passing slow goods hauled by James to take them to the station. He went to the booking on place, informed them of his new job and then booked out and headed to the canteen for a well earned meal before heading for the platform to hop onto Thomas as the little tank engine was going light engine to the quarry to recover some broken trucks for repairs. Thomas was his best engine friend and they would sometimes talk to each other if they both had time to spare.
#
Nyssa was going round the house doing some dusting and polishing whilst listening to some music at a loud volume. School had been cancelled for the day and so she had taken the opportunity to restock the cupboards, fridge, freezer and pantry to Harry's liking. She'd even managed to get beer from the shop as Harry had set up a Standing Order that transferred the same amount each week to one of the off-licences and Nyssa was, therefore, merely picking it up. Stopping her task for the moment, she went into the kitchen and checked on the dinner that was bubbling on the stove top before bending down for a second to check on the garlic bread that was to go with the bolognaise.
"HAIL THE CONQUERING HERO!" Harry bellowed at the top of his voice. He was not drunk, but the quote served to prove to Nyssa that Harry was not some wizard or witch in disguise.
"You're home early" she remarked.
"I got the rest of my shift off and a new job" Harry replied, opening the fridge and pulling out a beer. After a couple of seconds filled with decision making, he pulled a second one out and gave it to the girl.
"Somebody is in a good mood" Nyssa opened the bottle and sipped gently from it.
"Got promoted to Fireman" Harry sank back into the chair, kick off his shoes and stuck his foot up on a footstool. "Fat Controller said that there was no point in me taking the normal route because I've been doing spare firing around the yard and doing some of the night classes"
"How?" Nyssa frowned as she sipped her beer again.
"Magic" Harry smirked and then dodged the pair of cushions that Nyssa sent flying towards him. "After the Ministry was back under our control, I decided to go through the debris and I stole a couple of Time Turners. I should have turned them in to the right people, but everything was such a mess of confusion and rumours. Even when Voldemort had been defeated, there were still pockets of his followers to clean up, copy-cat and glory attacks… A few of us didn't like what the Ministry was doing, so the surviving members of the group that formed to learn to fight back decided to keep knowledge of the Time Turners amongst ourselves"
"Can you… Can you go back in time and stop what happened to me?" Nyssa asked quietly.
"I can… But I won't" Harry replied. "What happened to you has made you stronger in yourself and your beliefs – I can't take that away from you, Nys, even if you pleaded with me"
"I know… I thought I would ask, though"
"I got the weekend off before starting doing the morning shift on Monday – anywhere you'd like to go or do?" he asked.
"There are a few things, sure, but I don't want to upset you by asking"
"I am not buying you a motorbike"
"Not that… I wanted to see where you went to school"
"Hogwarts?" Harry's hand froze in the action of taking another swig of his beer. "The exile for me is over, and I can return to the magical world, but what reasons do I have? Once more I am treated as a deity" he sighed and finished his bottle before setting it down on the table. "This weekend… If you still want to go, we'll go this weekend"
"Should I wear anything special?"
"Your uniform without the blazer" Harry shrugged. "Maybe a jumper or something" and then he grinned. "Actually, lets go tomorrow" he said.
"Why tomorrow?"
"Why not? Besides, weekend travel via Portkey and stuff is always a little busier – lets go to school and scare the living hell out of them"
"Scare them?"
"Well somebody like me should turn up in their best clothes – my best clothes include both metal and dragon hide armour, a dress cloak and a gold handled sword that has basilisk venom in it"
"A sword? You have a sword?"
"Did I never tell you?" asked Harry with a frown. "Hang on a tick and I'll get it for you" he took his wand out from the holster on his arm. "Accio Gryffindor's Sword" and there was a rumbling and rattling before the sword came down and hovered in front of Harry. "This is the sword of Godric Gryffindor – one of the founders of my school. It was made by Goblins over a thousand years ago" he reached out and took it out of the air and into his firm grip. "The first time I held it was to kill a basilisk to save a girl from death. After that, it was kept hidden away for fear that evil would gain hold and use it to create chaos from order. I never saw it again for years until the final battle at Hogwarts when one other called for its power and strength. Once it was all over, I took the sword and hid it away – leaving a copy in its place. Like the Time Turner, there was too much danger of it being used for evil and foul purposes…"
"You stole it?"
"Yes, but only to keep it safe. Nyssa, when I say I am a powerful Wizard, I want you to know exactly what I mean. Apart from the sword and the ability to travel in time, I also hold the three instruments of Death"
"I don't understand"
"I have three wands in my possesetion – my own, the wand I took from Draco Malfoy in a duel and the Elder Wand. The last I mentioned has the power to do almost anything you could ever wish for. I have also a cloak of invisibility that will hide you from everything – even from death" Harry turned the sword over in his hands. "The third item is a Resurrection Stone… A magical device, of sorts, that can summon the spirits of the dead. Use all three together, and you can bring somebody back from death – raise whole armies of the undead"
"Can I look at the sword?" asked Nyssa.
"Yes, but be careful with it" Harry warned. "For over a thousand years, no muggle has ever seen it – nor even touched it. I do not know what it might do to you"
"There's blood on here… looks like human blood" Nyssa gently pulled the sword from the scabbard.
"I know" Harry said quietly. "One time I took this into battle with me, I had to do something I am not proud of doing. It had to be done, don't mistake me, but I will never be proud of what I did"
"Will you tell me?" asked Nyssa.
"Maybe, but not tonight"
"Why?"
"Because its dinner time. I will tell you nearly everything, Nyssa Petronella Mayerle, but there are some things that, if you were told, could lead to a civil war and I want to avoid that. I have seen things you wouldn't believe. I have lost things you will never understand. And I know things, secrets that must never be told and knowledge that must never be spoken. Over time, I will tell you most, but some secrets must go with me to the grave"
"I think I understand" Nyssa whispered as she could feel the power in the sword that was held in her hands. She rose and went to the kitchen.
"The sword?" Harry held out his hand for it.
"Are you kidding?" Nyssa smiled, "This will be useful in cutting up the garlic bread" and she slipped into the kitchen.
"Destroyer of monsters, of Horcruxes, of hopes and lives… Now it's reduced to kitchenware" Harry shook his head, got up from his favourite seat and headed upstairs to change. Before Nyssa's request, he intended to have as little as possible to do with the magical part of his life, but her innocent want had caused him to rethink a few things. He was, after all, Harry Potter, and could do whatever he wanted. If he wanted to live and work like a muggle, then that is what he would do. If he wanted to walk into Hogwarts with one in tow completely unannounced, he would do that as well.
#
The Portkey landed them within feet of the gates of Hogwarts and Nyssa gasped at the size of the grounds surrounding the castle that still, even years after, bore scares of the fighting that had taken a heavy toll.
"It's one thing to see it in pictures" she said.
"But quite another to see it in real life. You remind me of the time I saw it before starting my first year" Harry chuckled.
"Do we knock?" she asked.
"Normally we would wait to be escorted to the castle" Harry replied, stepping forwards to open the gates, "But I am Lord Harry James Potter – I do not wait" and they walked up the long path to the castle. To Nyssa, it looked as if it was straight of a fairy tale and she could see moving dots in the distance. To her right, she could see the glinting of sunlight reflected off panes of glass as well as a hut of some sort that Harry seemed to not want to notice. "What do you want to do first?" he asked as they finally reached the castle.
"I want to see something cool" came the reply from the teenager.
"Hmm…" Harry mused, "Want to see my old House?" and Nyssa nodded. They opened the huge wooden doors and stepped inside, closing it quietly behind them and then walked along the stone corridors and up the many stairs before they came to a portrait of a large lady dressed in pink.
"Good Morning" Harry said, "Would you care to open up for me?" and the Fat Lady frowned and squinted hard at the waiting pair.
"I do not know her, but you seem familiar"
"I am familiar to you, but you can open up for me and my guest" Harry said calmly, brushing his cloak aside to reveal the sword sitting in its scabbard and hanging from his belt.
"Yes, Sir… Of course"
"Thank you – and tell the other portraits they are not to tell anybody of my arrival or who is with me"
"Yes, My Lord" and she swung open to admit Harry and Nyssa.
"Welcome to Gryffindor House" Harry grandly swept his hand around the room. "This is where I lived for all the time I was at Hogwarts. This is the common room where people would sit to relax, play games, do homework or have house meetings when needed". The red and gold furnishings were almost as Harry had remembered them, the chair that seemed to be the most squidgy still stood sentry in the corner, the Gryffindor crest hung on the wall over the unlit fireplace and a few pupils littered the room here and there. They looked up from their activities to see the strangers and eyes widened at the imposing figure that Harry cut. "You will tell nobody of my arrival, nor that of the person I am with – understand"
"Yeah" came the muttered replies.
"Good" Harry smiled inside. "Professor Flitwick is teaching, I presume?"
"The First Years, Sir" a Seventh Year said to him.
"Then off we go to Charms class" and Nyssa followed him out of the room and back to the corridor.
"Are the other three houses like that?"
"Sort of" Harry replied, "But each is decorated to the theme of that house. We're going to Charms and see one of the few teachers I actually liked here – Professor Flitwick"
"Why them?"
"He was fair to everybody, never favoured his own house too much" Harry said, remembering Snape always taking the side of a Slytherin other that of any other House. They went down the many corridors and Nyssa gazed with a wondrous expression at the moving portraits, suits of armour and tapestries.
"I would have loved to go to school in a place like this"
"Some of the best times of my life happened here" Harry replied, pushing open a door he was sure hadn't been there when he was a pupil. He was astonished to see three older Slytherins attacking a second year Hufflepuff girl.
"We'll teach you to be subservient to your betters…" one said. "Crucio" and the girl started twitching in pain before Harry withdrew his sword and stormed forward to smash the wand clean in two.
"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" he thundered.
"And who the fuck are you?" sneered one of the trio.
"I am Lord Harry James Potter – former Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, winner of the Order of Merlin 1st Class on two occasions, undisputed and undefeated world duelling champion and the saviour of this country… Who the fuck are you?"
"Three older classmen trying to teach those beneath us their place in society"
"Not today, you are not. In fact, I advise that you return to your dorm and start packing because you'll need your things to decorate the cells in Azkaban" Harry withdrew his wand pointed it at the trio. A quick flick of it and they fell into a heap and were bound up in thick ropes and levitated into the air so they resembled mummies.
"Are you okay?" Nyssa bent to the floor to help the pain wracked Hufflepuff. She'd seen Harry's anger before, but it had been nothing compared to that which she had witnessed.
"It hurts" the girl said.
"My name is Nyssa – whats yours?"
"Jennifer. Why did they attack me? All I did was bump into them"
"They're just bullies" Nyssa said. "My friend is an expert on bullies and he doesn't like them at all. I mean, he even has an Anti-Bullying sword!" and Jennifer smiled faintly.
"Is he going to chop their heads off?" she asked.
"Not… Not entirely sure" Nyssa replied as she helped her to her feet. Harry was talking quietly to the three Slytherins but it was clear that, whatever it was, it was some very dark threats indeed.
"What class were you supposed to be in?" Harry glanced behind him to Jennifer.
"Charms class. That's with Professor Flitwick. He's kind of cute, but looks like a winkled toffee with dust and fluff on it" and Harry burst into a hearty chuckle. He had to assume that he had gone back to the appearance he had sported in his first two years of being at Hogwarts.
"Well I was heading that way too" Harry said. "So lets go to Charms class, have some angry words with Professor Flitwick before going to see the Headmistress whom I am also going to have some very strong words with" but then he seemed to change his mind. "Hang on – forget that… Lets do that first part, then we're off to the Hospital Wing to get you checked out. You might seem okay, but I bet you'll feel bad when the shock wears off"
"Yes, Sir" Jennifer looked down.
"Harry"
"Sorry?"
"My name is Harry… All my friends get to use it" and then girl suddenly brightened up.
#
Filius Flitwick, Professor of Charms at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry had seen many things in his life from the Marauders to the Battle of Hogwarts. His classroom, being one of the two classes where people could be really badly injured was warded against explosions. He was, therefore, surprised to see the door and doorway explode and splinters of wood and shards of stone flew around as some dust was kicked up. To his surprise, three bound students floated and bobbed into his classroom followed by a young Hufflepuff, a girl wielding the sword of Godric Gryffindor he couldn't say he knew of and followed up at the rear by a furious Harry Potter.
"I do not know what sort of school you are running here" Harry thundered, magic crackling in the air and making spark dance all around him, "But it is not the school I was at. Class, I am about to have some very funny and very strong words with your Professor. However, those are not words that are suitable for children. You!" he pointed at an utterly terrified Sixth Year. "You will run to Professor McGonagall and tell her she is wanted in the hospital wing. When she asks you why, tell her that Harry Potter has returned. And" he added with an evil smile, "That he is seriously pissed at her. The rest of you, the class is dismissed" and the entire class threw books into bags and hurried away. "Professor, walk with me" and he turned round and led the group out of the classroom and towards the hospital wing. Flitwick stood in place shaking from head to toe before giving off a frightened squeak and then running after the group. It was clear to him that Harry had encountered the older pupils attacking the Hufflepuff on an unexpected and unannounced visit – though the girl holding the sword of Godric Gryffindor was hard to place. He was sure that he would get his answers soon enough.
#
GONG
The sound filled the hospital wing the moment Harry cast the sound and the office door opened and out came a now very elderly Pomfrey.
"A long time since I last saw you" she said, and then she noticed the floating pupils, the girl with the sword, a shaking Hufflepuff and Flitwick.
"Healer, this girl has been attacked with some unknown spells as well as at least one Crucio" Harry said. Anger was felt in every single one of the words he spoke and Pomfrey's gaze darted between him, the Hufflepuff and the floating stationary Slytherins.
"I see" and her expression turned dark. She guided the young girl over to the nearest bed and Nyssa followed them. "Please wait outside"
"Stay with her" Harry ordered.
"Aye, Aye, Sir" Nyssa grinned. Pomfrey sighed and closed the curtains around the bed and put up a silencing charm.
"I was under the impression that Hogwarts was, once more, a place of safety and of learning. I come by to show one of my friends and a protectorate of my Family where I grew up – only to find pupils not only bullying younger ones but using one of the Unforgiveables. I want an answer, Sir, or I will take this to the press and the Courts" and Flitwick was about to answer when Minerva McGonagall came rushing in.
"What is the meaning of this, Mr Potter?"
"Headmistress, I am here in my capacity as a Lord. I would appreciate it if you would refer to me by title" Harry replied.
"I apologise" McGonagall bowed her head. "Nevertheless, the question stands"
"I was showing a guest of mine around Hogwarts as part of an unplanned examination of the school. She'd asked to have a look around, being a muggle, and we were having a nice enough time until we came upon these three attacking a young Hufflepuff on her way to Charms class. I was amazed to see one of them cast Crucio on her. I am sure that if I had not taken action against them, they would have seriously injured her or worse…"
"That does not give you the right to attack my students, Lord Potter" McGonagall protested.
"Headmistress, are you suggesting that I send you word by a runner or portrait?"
"Well…" the Headmistress spluttered, "Well… No, of course not"
"Should I have asked them politely to stop what they were doing? I may no longer be a student here, but I seem to recall that casting of the Unforgiveables was an outright Expulsion as well as a full investigation by the Auror department"
"Something you destroyed last month" and there was a deadly silence and Flitwick flinched as he assumed that Harry would outright unleash a massive volley of obscenities.
"Professor, I do not know what you have gone through since I left this place, but the Professor McGonagall I knew would never have spoken to anybody like that. Moreover, I would have thought that you had wards alerting you to such an attack on pupils"
"We… We couldn't afford them"
"Six months" Harry sighed. "Six bloody months and the whole world has gone to pot! Shall we move on to why the Hufflepuff was out of class? Jennifer told me on the way to Professor Flitwick's class that she had been cornered for some time"
"That I my fault and my fault alone" spoke the diminutive teacher. "I should have asked the Ghosts to go looking for her or asked her housemates. I did not do that, and I allowed her to be cornered and attacked – Minerva, you have my resignation effective as of now"
"I refuse to accept it"
"As do I" Harry said, placing his wand back into the holster on his wrist. "Professor, you always told us to learn from our mistakes – perhaps you should take your own advice? Headmistress, I shall not go to the governors of the school or to the press. We lost a great many people to get Hogwarts back to her former glory, and I am not about to let that slide back"
"No, My Lord… Would you care to release them?" she asked.
"Not until the Aurors have been sent for" Harry replied evenly. "What happened was criminal in the highest regard, and I think they should be called. As it happens, Jennifer is under the protection of the Potter Family as of now – I shall be taking a great interest in her well being" and flicked his wrist and each Slytherin dropped down onto a bed and stayed there. "Now I promised my guest a tour of Hogwarts… Might I borrow a pupil as a guide? We'll stay for lunch, too, so we'll be dining with my old House"
#
Nyssa was good to her word and stayed with the Hufflepuff until Harry said otherwise. Aurors arrived to arrest the trio of Slytherins after McGonagall had publically expelled them and snapped two of the wands – the third being the sole survivor and needed in the trial that was sure to come. The pair sat at the Gryffindor table and ate a rather pleasant lunch – Nyssa being a source of great interest given her non magical heritage. Although the girl had seen Harry smiling and happy many times since she had first known him, she'd never seen him happier than to be with his old House and helping the youngest with last minute homework. The hour was almost up when Harry asked a First Year a question before turning to Nyssa and asking if she wanted to go flying.
"But I am not magical" she reminded him.
"The magic is inside the broom" Harry told her. "The brooms are fairly slow, not like my Firebolt, so you should be able to use it. If not, you can ride with me" and Nyssa agreed. However, this was not because she wanted to ride a magic broomstick, but because it meant she'd get to put her arms around Harry's strong chest.
'Where did that come from?' she thought.
"Can you pass me the soup?" Harry asked.
"Sure" Nyssa replied shakily. Harry raised an eyebrow in questioning, but he didn't ask her what the matter was – though the girl was sure he could read it from her mind if he so wished. As for Harry, it was clear that something was disturbing his young friend, but there was tomato soup to be eaten with fresh bread rolls. It was a long standing piece of history amongst Gryffindor House that, should Harry come to lunch, one never got in the way of tomato soup – people had actually died the last time it happened.
#
When Harry and Nyssa joined the students for the flying lesson, Hooch was nowhere to be found. After getting a passing ghost to start a look around the castle, it turned out that flying instructor had broken her leg and couldn't take the lesson.
"Might as well bloody do it myself" Nyssa heard Harry quietly. "For those that do not know my name, I am Harry Potter. I used to be the Chief Auror and head of the Department for Magical Law Enforcement. When I was at Hogwarts, I took the same lessons that you did and I played Quidditch better than anyone in my time… So you will agree that I am able to teach you simple flying skills. The girl with me is a Muggle" and there were some gasps. "However, she is a Muggle that is card carrying, is aware of magic and whom is also under my protection. If you are rude towards her, I will speak to Professor McGonagall who will be very rude to you. Now" he added, "What have you got up to so far with Madam Hooch?"
"Please, Sir, we got up to making turns at medium speed over the grass" a Ravenclaw First year said.
"I see… Well, get your brooms up and mount them. If you all do what I say, I might find time to show you a few tricks that might make you like me better than Hooch" and the children giggled with laughter. Harry spent the next hour teaching them some flying techniques as well as a few little tricks suitable for somebody their ages. Nyssa noticed how his eyes lit up at teaching and wondered if he would take it up at a later point of his life. She was so distracted by her thoughts that it took her a few minutes to realise that the lesson was now over and Harry was watching her with an amused expression.
"What?" she covered up her lack of awareness.
"I asked if you wanted to go for a flight of the grounds with me" Harry said. Nyssa nodded and she sat on the broomstick and put her arms around Harry's stomach and held on tightly. They lifted off gently and Harry did a gentle spiralling pattern upwards before heading out over the Forbidden Forest and then turning gently to the left and lower to skim the surface of the lake.
"Its magical…" Nyssa breathed in another dose of delight and wonder.
"Is it?" Harry chuckled. "I hadn't noticed" and then he told her to hold on tight.
"Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy" Nyssa soon found out why as Harry rolled the broom right round so her head was briefly under the water. "That was mean" but Harry just laughed with delight and pleasure – leading the girl to wonder just how much stress he had been under during this magic war and whilst in self-imposed exile.
"Sorry" he replied and then kicked in some speed and headed towards the Quidditch pitch and flying in and out of the rings at breakneck speed – taking great joy at Nyssa's screams filling his eardrums. He twisted the broom this way and that – delighting in the wind blowing through his hair and generally showing off his skills as a broom rider.
"Can we land now?" Nyssa begged.
"Alright" and Harry did a final loop before settling on the ground near the main doors to Hogwarts. Nyssa shakily got off the broom and wobbled around a bit until she got her bearings once more. She was tingling with excitement at having flown on a magic broom and it took several deep breaths before noticing Harry looking at her with a raised eyebrow and an expression that was both one of puzzlement and amusement. The girl noticed that Harry was staring at the front part of her skirt…
And she suddenly realised why she was tingling with excitement and why her head was not the only part of her that was wet…
A/N:
Another chapter for you to read and review – I hope you like it enough. If I did not reply to your reviews for the last chapter for this story, please say so in the view and I will deal with you first.
No bonus prizes for guessing what happened at the end
Regards
Pixel and Stephanie Forever
