A/N: And back to where we left off. Well, kind of. Back to Harry at any rate. Last chapter was so much fun to write. I hope that you are still enjoying this story. I'm feeling creative at the moment, so let's press on, shall we? I really do love getting to tell this tale, I'm just so rarely in the mood to write.
Chapter Six: Distraction
Monday, May 4, 1998: Late Afternoon
The black-haired man barely managed to stay on his feet when the large boar hound licked him on the nose. His pleas for it to get the bloody hell off him went unheard. Or at the very least, it chose not to listen. There was a woman standing next to him attempting to control her face. However, after a few seconds of Harry's strangled cries, she broke out into raucous laughter that would have made George Weasley proud. She watched the young man struggle for a short while, then stepped forward and heaved the beast off him. What she really wanted was to watch the entertaining scene all day, but would have regretted not helping.
Harry had taken Aed out after lunch to show her the expansive Hogwarts grounds. They had not gotten very far before the dog decided to make an appearance, much to the woman's amusement. She seemed to be getting along well with everyone, Harry noted. That was good. It wouldn't do to have her at odds with his friends and acquaintances.
"Thanks," muttered Harry. He began patting himself down as if to make sure he was still all there. Then, he hastily pulled out the Elder Wand and performed some basic cleaning spells. He wasn't very good at this branch of magic, and hoped that the extra boost of raw power would yield a better result. He prayed to Merlin that Aed wouldn't notice, but of course, she did.
"Isn't that a different wand than the one you used to Obliviate Will? And are those domestic spells?" She could remember her mother performing similar magic to tidy up the house. Aed had always thought of it as cheating, especially as her parents always insisted on the equal delegation of chores. It just didn't seem fair that she had to grind herself to the bone in order to complete the mundane tasks, when they could simply wave a stick and achieve the same result. And with Meredith attending Hogwarts during their teenage years, most of the work had been left to her.
Harry inclined his head and gave a noncommittal grunt. She could make of that what she wanted; he certainly wasn't going to explain the Hallows to her. The matter was long-winded and complicated, requiring a lot more than the children's tale to convey the entire story. In any case, it was hardly as if she needed to know. He decided to answer the second part of her question in an attempt to distract her.
"Yes, they're just some cleaning spells I'm working on. I've got a long way to go yet; they don't really teach this stuff at Hogwarts." Aed looked surprised at this piece of information, but Harry just shrugged. He always thought that there should be a subject for magic like this. Practical spells. It would have been bloody useful to him over the past couple of years, and was more than a bit irked that there had never been a way to learn domestic spells at school. As he so often did, Harry thanked Merlin for Hermione.
The very large dog was sitting obediently at Harry's feet, rubbing himself against the slightly annoyed wizard. Aed had to suppress a grin and hold back the giggles threatening to burst from her lips at her companion's obvious discomfort. In an uncharacteristic stroke of brilliance, the young man changed the subject to something less precarious.
"This is Fang," he said, receiving a look of polite interest in response. "He's the pet of a friend of mine. Pity he's not licking your face off," he went on irritably. "I wouldn't mind watching that." She narrowed her eyes at him, and the younger man grew slightly pink. "I mean," he added quickly, "it would be a nice change, that's all. Anyway, my friend, his name's Hagrid, went off to do some stuff with the other giants, but he should be getting back soon. I think you'll like him, most people do."
A small smile had crept onto the young man's face as he spoke about this Hagrid person. Aed thought that she would very much like to meet them. Anyone who could tease this reaction out of somebody so kind was definitely alright by her. The word 'giants', coupled with 'other' struck her as strange and somewhat terrifying, but the calm manner with which Harry had spoken eased her mounting trepidation.
They spent a while longer walking together outside, Harry occasionally answering one of Aed's questions, or pointing out some significant landmark. "That's the Quidditch pitch," he had said as they passed it. At her raised eyebrow he went on. "It's kind of our only sport. Wizards I mean. I don't want to bore you with all the rules, but trust me, it's fun. We'll patch it up eventually, it got burned up a bit, so it doesn't look quite as nice as it usually does."
Aed liked the hoops at the end of long poles some one hundred feet in the air. They reminded her of massive bubble blowers, and idly wondered about what kind of ball was used for such a bizarre scoring system. Perhaps it was enchanted to seek out the hoops somehow, but that would make the game remarkably easy. The rest of the pitch looked quite similar to any other sports field, though perhaps containing more ash than most she had ever seen. She was surprised that Quidditch had never come up at home. Just another thing her parents had hidden from her.
The pair did not go as far as Hagrid's hut. Harry thought it impolite to barge into someone's house if they weren't in. There was something off about the small dwelling, but unable to come to a concrete decision at this distance, Harry dismissed the feeling. Vaguely, he wondered how Fang had gotten out, but he supposed that Hagrid had provided the boar hound with some means of escape in case of an emergency. He showed her the pumpkin patch, and some notable duelling locations from the recent battle, but mostly they just enjoyed the fresh air and each other's company. The sun beat down on them, and they felt the heat spread through their bodies. Harry felt good for the first time in a while, as he could finally enjoy the things he never had time to before.
They were not outside for very long, as it would soon be time for dinner. Harry kept an eye out for the Muggle that had accompanied Aed to Hogwarts, but there was no sign of him. The memory charm he had used must have been effective. Harry guessed that the young man had probably reached his home by now, and would not venture out here any time soon. No memory charm was permanent, and it certainly wasn't his intention to take away a person's lived experiences. He would remember everything eventually, but he was sure they would figure out what to do with him when that time came. As they passed the huge boar hound on their way back to the castle, Harry coaxed it into following them with the promise of food. He did not think the house elves would mind preparing a little something for the ravenous beast.
They found Hermione milling about the Entrance Hall with several other witches and wizards, and she greeted the pair warmly. She offered to introduce Aed to their roommates, and upon her eager affirmation, led her up the Grand Staircase. Harry was now alone again, and with nothing to do. He did not much care for more moping and self-reflection, so he entered the Great Hall, which had become a main hub of sorts, and asked the Headmistress if he could help with anything. He passed grieving families and harried-looking Aurors on his way, but did his best to avoid their bloodshot gazes. She told him that he was not needed at the moment, so he decided that he would take that nap after all.
As he lay on the old four-poster that had been his for six years, an idea struck him. "Kreacher!"
He sat up as the elderly house elf appeared with a loud CRACK! "Can Kreacher help Master with something?" He bowed low, his nose almost touching the stone floor.
"Remember how I told you that calling me 'Harry' was fine? You don't need to bother with that 'Master' stuff." He tried saying this as politely as he could, but the elf still gave him a withering look.
"Kreacher has no choice in the matter, sir. These are the only two ways in which a servant can refer to their Master."
Harry sighed, disappointed but unsurprised at the elf's explanation. "Very well," he said. "Would you mind bringing me some tea please? And have you heard anything interesting? Where have you been lately anyway?"
The elf looked slightly overwhelmed at all the questions, but got to work on answering them right away. "Kreacher will have your tea ready in a moment. Kreacher has heard nothing of note from the other house elves. Kreacher has been preparing food and cleaning the castle under instruction from the 'senior' Hogwarts elves." At the word 'senior'', he gave Harry a look that showed him just what he thought of the title. After he finished speaking, the elf bowed low again, and disappeared with another loud crack before Harry could respond.
Lying back down, Harry stared at the red and gold hangings around the other beds in the room. He was sharing the space with four other men he did not know very well. They were nice enough to him, and he was polite in return. He didn't much care for making friends at the moment. Getting through each day was hard enough.
He felt deflated at the elf's lack of interesting information, but it was certainly good that Kreacher was managing to keep busy, and seemed to be having a decent enough time. He wanted to get the elf a thank you gift for everything he had done for them over the past year. Hermione said that positive behaviour should be rewarded, but it would just offend the old elf. Best to just be polite and treat him with the respect he would anybody else. Not knowing what was going on reminded him of the Summer after Voldemort's return. He did not like it then, and he wasn't feeling any differently right now.
(=)
Thursday, May 7, 1998: Mid-Morning
Over the next few days, Harry worked on fixing up the grounds to stave off the boredom that clung to him like a shadow. It got him outside which he enjoyed immensely, and made him feel like he was doing something productive. He was unsure if Hagrid would be angry at him for taking over his responsibilities, but couldn't honestly see the half-giant minding very much. He removed weeds, replaced the scorched patches of grass, and watered the sections that were still green. He focused his attention on the Quidditch pitch, which had sustained more damage than he thought was possible, as it had not been a major duelling location at any point in the battle.
The time passed quickly, and before he knew it, the grounds were looking a lot better. He had some help from other former students who couldn't handle being kept indoors either. George, Lee, Luna, Neville, and Parvati all pitched in, resulting in the work being completed much faster. They had their own sections to focus on, and everyone attempted to stay out of each other's way. Harry felt good working with his friends. It distracted him from thinking about all the people he would never see again. The dark thoughts tended to come upon him at the most inconvenient times. It felt like all of the horrors he had bore witness to were attempting to drill him into the ground.
It wasn't until today that he was bored again. Aside from giving a statement to some Ministry official earlier that morning, Harry had wandered the grounds talking to Luna. He thought that asking Headmistress McGonagall for something to do would go over better than it did last time, as he had proven himself at least somewhat useful as of late.
"Actually," she said, nodding to herself, "there is a job I have for you. Go visit Andromeda and spend some time with your godson. I think it would be a good idea to acquaint yourself with him sooner rather than later." There was a twinkle in her eye that Harry didn't much like. It reminded him of Dumbledore, and any resemblance one bore to that man now made him acutely uncomfortable.
It took a moment for Harry to make sense of her words. When it finally clicked, his eyebrows almost reached his hairline. He had not been expecting that, but seeing Teddy Tonks-Lupin for the first time struck him as something he definitely wanted to do. "Erm…" he began. "How am I going to get there?"
Headmistress McGonagall seemed to physically restrain herself from rolling her eyes. "There is a fireplace in my office, Mr Potter. You are aware of the Floo Network, I hope. 'Andromeda Tonks' should suffice to guide the flames. Hurry along now, I am sure they are eagerly awaiting your visit."
"Yes, Headmistress," said Harry quickly. He planned on returning to the school later that year to complete his education, so referring to her in this way would be a habit he should attempt to maintain. His gazed roamed over all of the broken people around him, though their morale had improved over the past few days. Turning on his heel, Harry exited the Great Hall without being stopped. The last thing he heard before the double doors closed behind him was a fragment of conversation, something about a missing Gobstone that had still not been found.
Harry made his way to McGonagall's office with quick, hurried footsteps, suddenly too excited to move any slower than a trot. He had spent years traversing the castle's many shortcuts and hidden passageways, and that knowledge was proving its worth in spades. Navigating the labyrinth of corridors and floors almost disorientated him at times, but he did not slow his pace in the slightest.
He was about to meet his godson. This must have been how Sirius felt when he escaped from Azkaban. Knowing that he was so close to being with his family... Well, those twelve years locked up must have been difficult. He hoped the baby would like him, he had no idea what he would do if they didn't get along. Best not to think about that though, he reasoned. Positivity was key here.
After what felt like no time at all, he reached the gargoyles standing in front of the ornate wooden door. "Dumbledore," he said before they had the chance to ask, and the ugly stone men sprang apart to admit him. He stepped onto the moving spiral staircase, grateful that the password had not yet changed since his previous visit. Harry cast his mind back to the memories he had seen in the Pensieve. The hours before his death felt like a lifetime ago. Well, he reasoned, it had been, in a way. He thought that it could just be his imagination, but one of the gargoyles appeared to be muttering under its breath. "Children these days… can't even adhere to the formalities…" It continued to speak, but the rest of what it had to say was lost as he ascended.
Once inside her office, Harry pointed his wand at the empty fireplace and shouted: "Incendio", completely ignoring the many portraits lining the walls. The entire room filled with a blazing, flickering light that felt welcoming and safe. Harry knelt in front of the roaring fire, took a pinch of green powder from the mantle above it, and threw it into the flames. As they turned green, he shoved his head in and said: "Andromeda Tonks!" with all the clarity he could muster.
Over the years, he had become more confident with this form of travel, and as a result only swallowed a few bits of ash. As the spinning started, Harry flung the rest of his body into the fire and felt himself whirling through space. He passed dozens of fireplaces and chimneys until he came to the one he needed. Next thing he knew, Harry was sprawled out on a thankfully soft, thick rug. A baby started to cry.
A/N: And thus ends another chapter. A bit shorter than usual, but that's just how it goes sometimes. Hopefully it wasn't too boring. Please let me know what you think. Unless it's mean, then please don't. Don't we just love unobservant Harry? Will the next chapter be more eventful? Are these A/Ns going to get less cringey? Find out on the next episode of— wait that's not it. See you next chapter!