Harry Potter and the Soul Shifter
By: Alex Lyons3
Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter and everything in the wonderful world of Hogwarts. Disney owns Brooklyn, the gargoyle. I own Jessica "Jess" Cotten.
Author's Note: Originally, I started on a story about Harry's sixth year before J.K.R. released OotP. Sadly, when Sirius died, so to did my ability to write that fan fiction. So, I've salvaged some characters and added some cross over points and re did the whole thing. I really didn't expect Sirius to die. Truthfully, I should have. Just for the record, the time line is going to be a bit iffy since most people put it up as Sirius died in 1996. I'm going to say that Harry didn't even start Hogwarts until 1997, so Sirius didn't die until 2002. Did I lose anyone? *A few hands are raised* Okay! Simply, first book published in 1997. So, that's when Harry starts as far as I'm concerned. Harry's fifth year would be 2001-2002, so Sirius (at least in my mind) does not die until 2002. Okay? Anyway, on with the story.
Chapter 31: THE Potion
The Christmas holidays had dawned clear skied and sunny bright. Far too cheerful in Harry's point of view. He went to the window on this cold crisp day and looked out over the bright snow as he watched some of the other students play. He felt as though none of the students should be allowed to play and he wondered vaguely where Professor Snape was when he was needed to dock points off the annoying prattle of students below the Gryffindor dorm window. Almost as though Harry's thought had summoned him to the grounds, there stood Snape in all of his infamous glory. Harry had never been happier to see the 'greasy git' as he snapped at the students to go and work on his paper before their brains emptied of any and all coherent thoughts. Harry had a small smile still plastered on his face as a few first years came trudging in clearly being some of those students Snape had just berated.
Hermione and Ron came in after the few first years and sighed. They talked lowly as they took their cloaks off. They turned, both wearing identical scowls on their faces, to talk to Harry. Their expressions changed from righteous indignation to curious amusement. Whatever had made Harry even just barely smile these days had to be something, almost worthy of Fred and George. The two of them sat down on either side of Harry both clearly wanting in on the joke.
"Harry, what are you grinning about?" Ron asked, clearly hoping that it was an excellent prank or perhaps he had been told Dumbledore was getting better or maybe Lupin escaped from You-Know-Who and was now safe at Grimmald Place or Hogwarts.
"Snape." Harry said simply now humming to himself because he couldn't think of anything that had ever made him happier than seeing Snape tell those children off.
"Snape?" Hermione said, rather confused. She had no idea that Harry had seen what had transversed down below nor did she know that the children below had been the cause of Harry's annoyance and Snape had come as a bit of salvation for what was left of Harry's sanity at the moment.
"Yes." Harry said dreamily, obviously lost in La-La Land now still humming the tune to The Star Spangled Banner which over in England is the tune to a rather obnoxious drinking song sung by drunken sailors.
"What did Snape do to make you so happy, mate?" Ron asked, clearly thinking either Harry had played some awful prank on Snape that had yet to unleash itself or Snape had come in here and told Harry something about Dumbledore.
"He told off some students outside." Harry said, moving on to the tune of God Bless America, which is God Bless the Queen over there in England.
Hermione looked extremely worried for her dear friends sanity. "Harry, he always tells off students. That's nothing new and usually your furious."
"I know." Harry said now humming Come All Ye Faithful.
"So, why did this make you happy, mate?" Ron asked, eyeing Harry suspiciously thinking his best friend needed to go to St. Mungo's.
"They were being too cheerful." Harry said coldly, he stopped humming Noel and glared at the first years that were huddled on the other side of the room playing Exploding Snap.
Ron looked at Harry like he'd grown another head, but Hermione knew what Harry was thinking.
"Oh Harry, I'm sorry. We should have seen it." Hermione apologized, close to tears now.
"It's all right, Mione. It is just, I'm so tired right now and I can't sleep and I'm not hungry, yet I eat and it feels like a dead weight in my stomach and it makes me feel sick to my stomach and I can't keep my mind on any of my lessons and I feel as though I'm going to fail and that everything is crashing down around me and I can't stop it and when I try it just makes things worse and I don't have anybody, like a parent, to talk to anymore because Sirius is dead and Lupin is captured and Dumbledore's in a coma and...and..." Harry was about to dissolve into tears right then and there, but just then Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape walked into the common room and stood before the three of them. The first years saw Snape and quickly yet quietly filed out of the room before they could be yelled at again.
McGonagall noticed that Harry did not look well at all and addressed him about it primly.
"Mister Potter, what ever is the matter?" She asked curiously and quite motherly.
Ron spoke up after a few failed attempts on Harry's part. "Professor McGonagall, Harry's upset because of what has happened with Dumbledore and every body else that he's known."
McGonagall looked to Harry who just merely nodded his head in assent. She had known that things were looking glum in here, but she had never expected to see Potter wallowing around in self-pity. Then again, he had a lot to deal with lately, what with finding out what the prophecy had said about him; He-Who-Should-Not-Be-Named coming after him; Sirius' death; Lupin's capture and Dumbledore's illness. Not to mention what that horrid Umbridge woman had done to him while he was in her detentions. Anger boiled up in her at that thought, but she quickly put a lid on it.
"Well, Mister Potter, I believe we may be able to relieve your mind of one of its many worries. Professor Snape has devised a cure for Professor Dumbledore's illness. He, however, needs someone to go collect the things he needs before he can begin. You three are to help him in any way possible."
The three of them nodded and rushed Professor Snape who wasn't standing more than a few millimeters away from McGonagall. Each asking what could be done in an instant. Professor Snape looked at McGonagall with a look of utter contempt and told each of them to hurry down to the dungeons and he'd tell them while he was in his office. The three hurried down as quickly as possible with Snape following quickly behind after he exchanged a few words with McGonagall about how well the plans were going to get Lupin free and how they were hoping that this worked to cure Dumbledore.
Snape entered his office just a few seconds after Harry, Ron and Hermione did. Each of the three students looking eager and ready to please, bouncing in place on the balls of their feet. Harry looked extremely happier knowing that he could do something for Dumbledore. Snape studied Harry carefully wondering what would be best to do about him. He had never been the bast of the teachers with children and Harry was not one of his favorite students. This was one of the few times Snape wished Lupin had not been captured.
"You will all be collecting ingredients out of The Forbidden Forest, since each of you have gone in there at one point. The ingredients are as listed." Snape handed Harry the list of ingredients.
A bushel of aconite.
Two bits of acromantula web
A tea spoon of Centaur tears
Two bits of Boomslang skin
Three cups of Slug slime
The three of them looked at the list and then at each other. Ron gulped reading the second item on the list. They looked up at Snape, expecting orders on how to get all this.
"Those ingredients are the ones I do not have and I'm going to be busy brewing the rest of the potion. The one at the top is the one that'll be added first. Now, go. We dare not waist any time."
Harry nodded and took off with Ron and Hermione following in his wake.
"Okay," Harry said, "I think it'll be best if we all go and gather the aconite. Then, I'll gather the web, while one of you gets the centaur tears and boomslang skin. We'll all look for the slug slime. All right?"
Ron and Hermione nodded and went into The Forbidden Forest to look for aconite. An hour later they had a whole bushel of aconite and Hermione had found some boomslangs during her wanderings and skinned two of them. While Ron had found the three cups of slug slime that was needed. Hermione took the ingredients that they had up to the castle while Harry and Ron looked for the last two ingredients they had yet to collect.
"You go after the centaur tears. I'll handle the web. Now, be careful. The centaurs are not really are friends right now. I don't know if they'll be willing to help us." Harry told Ron quite seriously.
Ron nodded, knowing from having Firenze up at the school that centaurs were a bit weird. He went off in the direction that Harry pointed out as where the centaurs lived. Harry walked off towards Aragon's lair.
Ron found the centaur's grove and carefully walked around until he found a way to make one of the younger centaurs cry. He gathered the tears and ran through the woods with the sound of hooves just behind him.
Harry was a bit quicker and made his get away easier. Of course, he didn't need to get tears from any centaurs, so it was easier to get webbing from the acromantula with out being seen. Harry caught up with Ron half way out of the forest. He heard the pounding of several hooves all coming towards Ron.
"Come on!" Harry yelled to Ron, as he grabbed his friend and took off down one of the paths that were used by other beasts that lived in the forest. They ran down the path. Harry handed the webs to Ron. "Go! I'm going to create a diversion!"
Harry turned around and charged through the herd of centaurs getting their attention pulled from Ron and on to himself. They gave chase as Harry ran back towards their grove.
Ron rushed into the dungeons with the last of the ingredients held securely in the pockets of his robes. He handed them to Snape. Snape inspected them, gave a curt nod and then looked at Ron giving him a look that clearly asked as though Snape had voiced the very thought, 'Where's Potter?'
"Harry, he's still out there in The Forest." Ron said nearing hysterics. Snape gave a curt nod added the ingredients to the carefully simmering pot and some others that he had. He looked at Hermione.
"Ms. Granger, you will keep an eye on this. The potion must simmer for another thirty minutes. Afterwards, if for some unseen reason I do not return turn down the heat by five degrees, then take it off the heat and let it sit for twenty minutes. Am I clear?"
Hermione nodded and Snape swooped from the room quickly.
Snape had entered The Forbidden Forest five minutes ago and he was beginning to worry about Potter's safety as well as his own. Who knew what lurked in the cold shadows beyond? He heard a sound, much like hoof steps. His breath quickened and soon caught in his troat as he peered around the edge of a great tree that stood just outside a small clearing. Within the clearing, there was about twenty centaurs. All of them looked extremely angry and each of them were wailing that the human should die. Harry was held by a large centaur in the middle of the clearing. Snape recalled that the centaurs name was Bane and Bane despised humans. He was a true believer in whatever the stars told him was likely to happen. Snape knew of some of the laws and customs dictating how centaurs ruled their own. Professor Dumbledore had seen to it that all of his teachers had at least known how to deal with one of the magical beings they were likely to encounter. Centaurs had been at the top of the list. Snape had seen to it, in the seventeen years he'd worked for Dumbledore that he'd gotten through most of the list. He had finished up his banshee study and would be starting gargoyles next summer.
Snape strode into the middle of the herd as though he belonged there, as though he were one of them. He stood tall and proud and arrogant, just as they did. The leader, Magorian, stared as though shocked into stupidity.
'Obviously, he only thought Dumbledore knew how to act like one of them. What an idiot!' Snape thought scathingly. He turned his head ever so slightly in the direction of Harry. He looked into those emerald green eyes and saw a great deal of surprise there. Snape stifled a smirk. So, Potter believed he was going to left to the tender mercies of the centaurs. As if Dumbledore or Potter's friends would allow such to happen.
Magorian regained his composer quickly.
"Human, you are not wanted here in our forest. Leave now." He said in his sweeping baritone.
Snape looked down his aquiline nose. His black eyes, like tunnels, bore into Magorian as though he were a piece of cardboard.
"You have one of our foals, centaur." Snape's soft, silky voice radiating a cold arrogance only matched by a centaur.
The centaurs pawed the ground nervously, except for Bane who snarled savagely.
"He wants the boy. Let him come and take him from me." Bane tossed his head, his eyes a blaze with anger.
Snape had hoped that he would have been capable of grabbing Potter and running with him, but Bane made it clear that it was now a near impossible task. He stood quiet and still as the minutes ticked firmly away. Snape stared with a cold rage boiling up inside of him at Bane's arrant stupidity.
"I need Potter. I sent him in here on an errand, unless you wish to kill him and, by which you would be doing me a great service, I suggest that you let him come with me." Snape said cooly, as though Bane had the right thought of things and should kill Harry in a trice. Harry looked extremely frightened and angry. Angry mostly, but no little frightened. Snape glared at Bane coldly. Bane put Harry down angrily.
"I do not enter into the servitude of men." He snarled, "Take the foal."
Harry ran over to Snape's side and Snape ushered him out of the forest. His dark eyes searching for any disturbances under the leafy canopy after they were well away from the dangers the forest presented. He saw nothing out of the unusual and let out a long low sigh of relief.
"Come, Potter. The potion should be nearing completion." He said as he led Harry towards the castle and into the dungeons to finish with the day's task.
* * *
To radarPLO: Thanks, I'm glad your still enjoying it.
To Butler: Thanks.
To hermionegreen: Yeah, Harry does indeed, but remember he lost Sirius by not thinking things through. He's not likely to make the same mistake twice. Thanks for the awesome review!
To Porphyrophobic Grape: Thanks. Yeah, school is definitely a bummer.
To Jade of Darkness: Oh, I can't tell. That'd ruin it for you guys. I will say that you aren't crazy thinking that he's one of them. Not to worry though, Brooks moment of reveling is coming up. Very soon!
To All my reviewers: I know I've said it before that who Brian really was would be coming up soon, but this time I mean it. I've already written the chapter!