Chapter 14: …And Back

Chapter 14: …And Back

"Wake up, hairy Gary!" Janie yelled, shaking the boy, "You have to get up or you'll be late!"

"Oh, I don't wanna go," he groaned, tugging the sheets over his head sleepily.

"Oh c'mon. School's fun."

"Not muggle school," he muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Groggily, Harry sat up, giving his head a shake. He fumbled around for his glasses, slipping them on lazily. Looking around the room, he realized that the only indication in it that it was a school day was the fact that Eric wasn't still sprawled in bed. He stumbled down the stairs and grinned a drowsy good morning at Mr. and Mrs. Riley. Eric was already at the table and looking like he was about to take a nap on his bacon. Harry sat next to him and tried to keep his eyes open as he ate.

"I sure pity your teachers," Mrs. Riley smiled, "They'll probably have to speak throw a megaphone just to keep your guys awake."

"Setting off firecrackers would work better," Janie chirped in.

"Hurry and eat, you three, or you'll be late for the bus."

Eric and Harry managed to wake up enough to devour the food and then they hurried upstairs and got ready. When they came back downstairs, Mrs. Riley took Harry aside, wanting to speak with him alone.

"You sure you're okay with this, Gary?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, it's no problem."

"Just your parents and I feel that it would be better if you continued learning, even though you're past fifteen. Besides, you wouldn't want to hang out here by yourself all day."

"I'm fine with it, really. I'll just miss sleeping in."

"Oh, you're a wonderful boy, Gary. Now you'd better get going or you'll be late."

He, Eric, and Janie headed out the door a few minutes later and got to the bus stop a little ahead of the bus. As they waited, Harry couldn't help but think of Hogwarts. Everyone would be on the trains right now, heading back to school. He wondered if they knew that he was gone and what they would do when they found out. The Ministry seemed relentless in their search for Harry, so the boy figured he'd be here for a while. Away from school, away from quidditch, away from his friends and…

As the bus pulled up, he quickly wiped his eyes, realizing tears had come to them. Eric must of seen this and realized Harry missed his old school, for he quickly pulled Harry over to a group of boys.

"I'll introduce to my friends, Gary. They're a bit younger than you, but they're really cool."

Harry spent the trip listening to the friends talk about Christmas, New Year's, and, of course, football. As they pulled up to the dull, brick building, Harry's heart sank. For some reason, even vague to him, he had expected a castle. The square building with a wrought iron surrounding the dreary grounds was as un-Hogwarts-ish as you could get.

After getting a few things from Eric's locker, he and Harry wandered the halls a bit, Eric informing the boy of what classes they would have.

"First there's European history with Mr. Martin. He is the coolest teacher that has ever lived! And then there's English with Mrs. Gouter. I'm depressed just thinking about it. And then there's Chemistry with-"

The bell rang suddenly, cutting Eric off.

"I'll tell you later. Let's get to class."

When they entered the class, Harry found quite a few kids already there, talking adamantly. He glanced up to the front of the class, and then did a double take. Standing there was what he could only take to be the teacher. He had a big brown bushy mustache and hair that would almost rival Bill Weasley's. His eyes looked almost black in color, but twinkled in much the same way as Dumbledore's. Of course, his face wasn't what made Harry stare; it was his clothes.

Harry could swear that he had seen such clothing somewhere before, but couldn't quite put his finger on it. Perched on the man's head was what looked like an old-fashioned admiral's hat. His pants were past his knees and too tight to be in style, while what looked like his socks came right up and met the pants. The rest of the outfit simply defied description in Harry's mind.

"Is that Mr. Martin?" he muttered to Eric.

"Yep."

"Er…are all the lights on upstairs?"

Eric laughed. "Yeah. Mr. Martin just has a different way of teaching."

The bell rang and the teacher turned around, looking down his nose at all of them.

"Goot morning," he began in a false French accent, "I shall be your substitute today. My nam' iz Napoleon Bonaparte," a little titter came from the class, "Qviet! 'Oo dares laugh vhen Napoleon iz speaking? Zis iz your varning not to do it again!"

He pulled out a paper and glanced down at it. "I am now supposed to be seeing if you are 'ere, so say so vhen I say your name."

'Napoleon' began to call role, making a little comment about each name.

"Anderson, Julia. Vat is vith zat? 'Oo vould name 'er son 'Julia'? 'And 'er son, Julia.' Zat sentence iz even a fragment! Ackroyd, Floyd. Floyd Ackroyd; tongue tvister if I ever 'eard vun."

The whole class was chuckling. He made his way down the list, reducing the class to laughter with each name.

"Trotter, Gary. Ah, Gary Trotter, Gary Trotter. Vhere iz 'e, vhere iz 'e? Trot up 'ere now, Gary Trotter. Up, up!" the man said, gesturing impatiently.

Harry wavered, unsure if he was really supposed to go up.

"Up 'ere, Gary Trotter! 'esitate for Napoleon any longer, and you shall no longer be able to 'esitate."

At this, Harry hurried up. The teacher took him by the shoulder, making him face the class.

"Zis iz Gary Trotter. 'e iz sixteen and iz visiting Eric Riley. Vhere are you from, Gary Trotter?"

"Er… England," Harry answered nervously.

"Ah, Inkland, land of ze tea drinkers. You are really from zer? Oh, zen you 'ave my pity, Gary Trotter. Inklanders are not nearly as refined as ve French."

Harry laughed, his nervousness fading.

" 'urry back to your seat, Gary Trotter, for I am no' used to being near such a being of inferiority," Mr. Martin said, his nose high in the air.

Harry sat back down next to Eric and Mr. Martin continued the role taking. As soon as he finished, he put down the paper with a slap and began to slowly pace the room, his hand in his shirt.

"Vell, since I am not ze superbly ingenious 'istory teacher zat Mr. Martin is," he said solemnly, "I shall tell you experiences of my life. Vat vould you like to 'ear about?"

"A battle!" Eric yelled out quickly.

"Ah, but I have vun so many glorious battles, it vould be 'ard to choose vun."

"Waterloo!" someone else cried out.

"Vaterloo? I don't recall zis Vaterloo. Pick anozer."

"But Waterloo was when you-"

"I said I am no' remembering zis Vaterloo! Pick anozer!" he cried, nostrils flaring.

Harry was a little alarmed, but the rest of the class just laughed. Apparently it was normal for Mr. Martin to get so into his roles. The rest of the class period passed much the same, and Harry found it very easy to actually remember what he had learned. He mentioned this to Eric, who didn't act surprised.

"That's the coolest thing about Mr. Martin. He tries to make things fun and so we actually learn. Oh, but I have English next," he groaned, "Set your mind to 'bored'."

"Huh?"

"You'll see."

When Harry entered the next classroom, he expected to see an old ogre-like creature sitting at the desk. Instead there was a woman with blond hair who looked more like Professor Connerly than McGonagall. She looked pleasant enough, reading a book through round glasses perched on the tip of her nose.

After the bell rang, she put the book away and called role. Then she told everyone to take out his or her book and she gave one to Harry. Oliver Twist. He'd read it a couple of summers ago, it being one of the numerous untouched books on the shelves of Dudley's 2nd room. Being able to identify with the main character, he'd rather enjoyed reading it. He imagined, though, that it was possibly what Eric found so boring about the class.

Then Mrs. Gouter began to read aloud to the class, and Harry knew why the class was boring. It wasn't the book's fault. Mrs. Gouter read in such a monotone voice that Harry felt himself trying to keep awake before they had finished five pages. He even tried to block out her voice, but its dullness penetrated any attempt. By the end of the class period, Harry's brains felt like mush and he had no idea what they had just read.

"That was horrible," he remarked to Eric as they headed for lunch.

"If you think that was bad, wait 'till chemistry with Ms. Snape."

Harry stopped dead in his tracks. "Ms.-Ms…Ms. Snape?"

"Uh, yeah. What is it?"

"Er…I had a chemistry teacher with the last name 'Snape'," Harry answered, trying not to panic.

"Hey, I wonder if they're related."

"Yeah, I wonder…"

They sat down to lunch and again Harry thought about Hogwarts, and its wonderful feasts. The stuff on his plate right now was just depressing. Having no desire to eat, Harry chatted with Eric and his friends, all seemingly in awe that a sixteen-year-old was willing to talk to them.

The carefree air, however, was shattered when a barn owl suddenly soared into the cafeteria. Gasps rose from every mouth, along with a couple of screams. Harry felt the color drain from his face as it headed straight for him. It landed on his plate, scattering food everywhere, and then held out the letter tied to its leg. He quickly snatched the parchment up and the owl took off once more, a few people ducking away from it.

"What in the world was that?" Eric gaped, the whole student body staring at Harry.

"Uh, my friend John's pet owl. He's, um, trained to carry letters. I guess John wanted to surprise me, hehe," Harry said, trying to laugh it off.

"What is going on over here?" a voice came suddenly, "Who let that bird in? You, boy!"

Harry turned around to find what could only be Ms. Snape. There was no doubt about it, she and Snape were related. She looked just like him, except her hair wasn't so greasy and her nose wasn't so hooked.

"What is your name?" she spat.

"G-Gary Trotter," Harry stuttered, making sure his bangs covered his scar.

"And what do you think you're doing letting an owl in? Did you think it would be funny? Decided to have a good laugh, hm?"

"I-"

"What is that you have there? Give it to me," she commanded, holding out her hand for the letter.

"But it's personal!"

"Then you shouldn't have had an owl deliver it. Hand it over now!"

"Vat iz going on 'ere?"

To Harry's relief, Mr. Martin just arrived, still decked out in his Napoleon outfit.

"Napoleon demands an answer!" he continued.

"This boy had a note delivered via owl," Ms. Snape answered, looking at the man coolly.

"My-my friend sent it, Profes-er, Mr. Martin! He does strange stuff like this all the time, but I promise it won't happen again."

"Vell zen, Napoleon iz satisfied. Care to join me for zis delightful meal, Juniata?" he asked, leading her away by the shoulder.

"You're a mental case, Tyron," she sighed, letting him escort her.

"You are SO lucky that Mr. Martin came along!" Eric exclaimed as soon as the teachers were out of earshot, "She probably would have read it aloud to all of her classes."

"I'm gonna go to the bathroom, okay?" Harry asked hastily before taking off down the hall.

It didn't matter that he didn't know where the bathroom was. All Harry wanted was a quiet spot to read the note. Sirius had been adamant about only muggle contact, so this had to be important. With a thumping heart, he opened the letter.

YOU CAN'T FOOL ME, HARRY POTTER. ENJOY YOUR TIME WITH THE RILEYS, BUT HEED THIS WARNING. BEWARE THE DEATH EATERS' APPROACH, FOR THEY FOLLOW YOU AND WILL LET NO ONE GET IN THEIR WAY.

Harry's hands shook visibly and his breath became labored. Then tears came to his eyes, traveling down his cheeks. He leaned against the wall and slid down, unable to hold himself up. He stared at the note in his hands and then angrily tore it into pieces, throwing it to the ground. Holding his knees tight, he sobbed into them.

"No…no, it can't happen," he cried, "I'm Gary Trotter. Harry Potter is gone; he's gone. Oh why does this have to happen to me?"

The bell rang and Harry quickly wiped his tears, finding Eric still in the cafeteria. They headed to chemistry, Eric oblivious to Harry's silence. They took their seats near the back of the room, Harry praying that Ms. Snape wouldn't recognize him. As soon as the bell rang, she whipped out a test, much to the class' dismay.

Harry stared blankly at the paper for the whole period. He knew he'd fail it, but didn't care. It wouldn't affect his future in the least. After chemistry, they headed for math. The teacher was Mrs. Knetch, but insisted that they call her Frita. She was almost as much fun as Mr. Martin.

On the way home, Harry's thoughts fell once again on the note. For the first time, he wondered how they had gotten it to him. After all, no one but Arabella and Sirius knew where he was. If this person could find out with such apparent ease, then Voldemort… Harry shuddered to think.

But he was able to forget his worries once more when they arrived home. Mrs. Riley had made cookies to celebrate their surviving their first day back and he and Eric talked at the bottom of the stairs while eating them.

"Gary, Gary, Gary!" squealed a voice as Harry felt something pounce on his back and hold on.

He stumbled, but managed to stay standing, realizing it was Janie who was hanging on him.

"You just have to hear the tape my American pen pal sent me! It is so-o cool!"

"Maybe I can if you stop choking me," Harry laughed, slightly raspy.

She quickly hopped off, grabbing his hand and pulling him up the stairs.

"You coming, Eric?" Harry called over his shoulder.

The boy just sighed and trudged up the stairs in his I-can't-believe-I'm-related-to-her way. Janie rushed into her room, nearly pulling Harry off his feet. Harry could barely hear himself think through the music. Janie didn't seem to mind, though.

"Oh, oh! This is such a cool song! I love the lyrics!" she yelled and then, as if to prove her point, she stated singing along, dancing around the room, "If you wanna be somebody else… If you're tired of losing battles with yourself… If you wanna be somebody else, change your mi-i-i-ind!"

Eric came in, shaking his head at what he saw. Harry walked over to him, beaming. Yelling over the music, he remarked, "Now this is my kind of song!"

Sirius-

I figured I ought to write to you about my first day at muggle

school. Hehe, I'll get you for this. It's actually okay. Some of the

teachers are pretty…interesting. There's one in particular that I wanted

to ask you about. Her name is Juniata Snape and she teaches chemistry.

I was wondering if you knew if she is related to Snape, because they look

like twins.

I got an owl today. It was one of those prophecy notes, you know

the ones I told you about? It's kind of grim. Well, keep me updated on the

wanderings of the wizarding world.

-Harry

Harry read over the letter once more, feeling satisfied. It sounded nice and casual, not too rushed. He didn't want to worry Sirius, but didn't want to keep anything from him either. He sealed it up in its envelope and turned off the light, determined to send it the next morning.

"Your dad sent you a letter today," Mrs. Riley informed Harry when he got home sometime the next week.

Harry eagerly took it upstairs, reading it in the bathroom so Eric wouldn't happen to glance over his shoulder and read what he shouldn't read.

Harry-

Juniata Snape is your chemistry teacher? Ha, poor little Juni.

She's Snape's little sister and a squib (yes, Snape has a squib in the

family, however unbelievable that may be) and we Marauders made a

point to terrorize her each chance we got. A chemistry teacher? Man, I

almost feel sorry for teasing her all those years. Almost.

How in the world did they send you an owl?! That's not a good

sign, Harry. I know you're sick of hearing this, but be careful. Don't do

anything I would do.

Well, I hope you're enjoying yourself. My search has yet to yield

something, but I'm hopeful.

Your godfather,

-Sirius

After he got over the surprise of finding Snape had a sister, Harry felt pretty relieved. First of all, he was almost afraid that Ms. Snape was actually Snape in disguise. That fear assuaged, Harry was glad that Sirius was able to joke about the note. It was more than comforting. That night he fell asleep quickly. However, his dream that night didn't help the situation.

~*~*~

A/N: Er… Okay, if I totally messed up on the Irish school system thing, just kick me. Figuratively speaking, oc. ^-^ The only thing I could really find on it was that they're only mandatory to 15.

Well, hope you enjoyed it. I'm SO looking forward to writing the next 2 chapters. ^_^

Thanks to all my reviewers!

Princess: Thanks. H&A forever! ^-^

Vmr: Thanks!

Jona: Well, thank you for getting your stuff up, but more! ^-^

Abbey: Yep, he's at school. I must say, though, I never expected Snape's sister to be there.

Jewels: Heehee… I have plans for our dear Hermione…

Daydreamer: Er…well, I bagged the research and flew by the seat of my pants instead. Oh well, it's up.

Lady Grizabella: Oh good, I try and put emotion in and I'm glad I've succeeded. And I have more plans for Ronnikins, too…

Indigo: O.O A little harsh, don't ya think? Oh well, if you think I'm that mean, then I'm doing good.

Tmd: *resists urge to give away the ending* Thanks!

Lukie Robinson: Thanks!!!

Kelly: Thanks! Er…maybe you can guess what the dream is gonna be? ^-^

Katrina Skyfrost: Thanks! I'm still debating whether or not the Rileys will ever know he's a wizard… hm…

The Raven of Death: Wowsers, thanks. I love making stomachs to flip-flops. ^-^

Moon Warrior: 'And party on, dudes!' Yep, I got that from the movie. Thanks; your stuff is good, too. I have to finish it still, though. ^-^

Rose Weasly: It may be a few more chapters before the end. Hehe…poor Fudgie. ^-^

Jannah: Climax is a bit of a while off. This is just a bit of a sidetrack. ^-^ Thanks!

Jake: Thanks!

Sweets: Thanks! Sorry for the wait.

Herm: Thanks!

Inscriffany: Thanks!!!

Angie: I will!

The Unicorn Tamer: Thanks!

You guys are great! Well, hopefully I'll get the next part up soon. (Hopefully)

Be excellent to each other!

-Ady