1 Harry Potter and the Crystal Ball
by Hannah
2
3 Chapter Five ~ Beginning Term
It was now only two days before the students would arrive at Hogwarts. All was a-bustle in the castle: teachers planning lessons, setting up classrooms, cleaning dormitories, airing mattresses, and all the little things that just make it all the better.
Harry, too, was caught up in the whole ordeal. His office was shabby and worn, because he couldn't afford a new desk, chair, or anything else, for that matter, to furnish it with.
The carpet was an ugly gray, worn in most places and stained from long years of wear, the chair, desk, and cabinet were fashioned of an ugly walnut wood that was so scratched that the polish didn't even exist anymore, the walls were an ugly, smudged green, the one small window was streaked with grease, and the single torch sconce on the wall was of smoldered iron, twisted and deformed from long use. Harry couldn't believe how sloppy it had become in the past few days, either. Hardly any time had past since he had placed his few belongings within it and already it was a trash heap.
Of course, Alice had offered to help. "I can improve its appearance," she said. "It won't cost you a penny, either."
But Harry had some pride, or so he so rashly thought it, and refused her offer. "I can manage," he said.
Alice nodded, smiled, and gave him a look that said all too well 'you'll-regret-that-decision.' And she left.
And here Harry was with his trashy little office that shamed him.
He had been in her office several times to discuss the current situation of their lessons and other small matters. The first time, he had been flabbergasted. It looked incredibly like her bedroom. It had ebony floorboards, black walls with gold trim, black curtains and rugs with gold embroidery and tassels, and two beautiful chairs, a cabinet, a bookshelf, and a matching desk, all ebony with golden inlay. The bookshelf covered one wall, and a large window facing out on the Forbidden Forest nearly covered another. The ceiling had an elaborate, raised gold pattern in the middle. Four torch sconces, fashioned of etched gold, lit the room with a warm glow.
Harry was just walking from his office when someone called, "Harry, wait for me!"
He turned to see Frank walking in a long stride toward him.
Harry had come to like Frank quite well. At first, he had seemed somber and rather cold. Now, he was very open and friendly. He had come to be accepted as part of the group formed by Harry, Alice, and Lupin.
Frank was smiling as he reached Harry, who had stopped for him. They began to walk slowly down the hall.
"Where are you headed?" Frank asked him.
"The Great Hall. For lunch," Harry replied. He was very hungry.
"Great, me too. Have you seen Alice?"
"No, I'm afraid I haven't. She's been keeping to herself an awful lot lately."
"Yes, as I've noticed . . ." Frank seemed preoccupied. He appeared to be looking for something.
"What are you looking for?" Harry asked. Frank stood still and said, "I thought her room was somewhere around here."
Harry nodded grimly. "Yeah, it's that funny portrait of the woman in the hoop skirt. The password is 'operanda.' I'll come with you, see how she is."
"All right. I've just been somewhat worried about her, you know? She's been so reclusive lately . . ."
Frank walked over to the portrait, Harry just a step behind him.
The lady turned up her nose in disgust. "Who are you? Calling on Ms. Oak at this time of the afternoon? I believe she's taking a nap, anyhow. Besides, you don't know the password."
Harry stared her in the eyes, saying "Operanda." The painting reluctantly began to swirl into a black hole that they both stepped into.
Alice was sitting at the desk in a dressing gown, writing something. She glanced up, startled, as Harry and Frank came into the room.
She didn't look too good. Her hair was disheveled, as though she hadn't brushed it yet that day. Her eyes were swollen through crying, and her bed wasn't yet made. There was a small stack of papers on the desk, written in perfect handwriting.
She stood up and took a moment to compose herself. "Yes?" she asked.
Harry looked slightly uncomfortable and taken aback. "Well, we were just wondering if—you would join us for lunch."
"Oh." She looked down into her hands, which still held a large peacock plume quill. She placed it on the desk, put a stopper in the small bottle of Indian ink, and said, "Just one moment."
She muttered something and suddenly was dressed in her normal attire, her hair tidied and her eyes normal. "Ready," she said.
Frank was looking at her quizzically, not realizing that he was staring. Harry was also abashed, but he didn't show it.
"All right," he said. "Let's go. Frank, hello . . ."
"Oh, yes," Frank said, coming back to life. "Wow, that was weird. I just . . . forgot myself there, for a moment."
Harry was now slightly worried. Frank's face did have a blank expression, as though he had been completely mind-washed for a moment. As though he had forgotten himself. He brushed it aside.
"Weird," he muttered under his breath as they headed through the portrait hole, their robes swishing against their ankles.
They arrived in the Great Hall and sat down at a table that was empty except for Lupin.
"Finally," Lupin said. "I've been waiting for nearly a quarter of an hour now."
"Sorry," Harry apologized. "We were fetching Alice."
Alice sat down, one of the gold plates in front of her. The platters all filled with the food that they wanted: Harry found his plate heaped with chicken soup and dumplings. Lupin's plate had a large mushroom pastie and a side of cooked carrots. Frank's plate had a large slab of steak and a generous helping of mashed potatoes. Alice's had a plain roll and a few slices of apple.
Lupin looked at her plate with a questioning look on his face. "Is that all you want to eat?" he asked her.
"Yes," she said quietly, placing the slices of apple on the roll.
"Come on," Lupin said. "Eat something else. You can have a bite of my mushroom pastie. Or I'm sure that Harry would offer you a dumpling. Perhaps you'd like some of Frank's steak?"
Alice smiled, and said insistently, "Thank you, but I'm fine." She bowed her head in prayer, and a moment later took a small bite of her 'lunch.'
Lupin wouldn't let it alone. He stood up and said, "You starve yourself! For the sake of the Great Dragons, eat something!"
"Great Dragons—silly term . . . I am eating." Alice's voice had an edge of steel in it. She took another bite from the roll.
"You're eating hardly anything! A handful of berries one meal; a small dollop of mashed potatoes the next. What is your problem?"
She stood, her purple eyes flashing. The gold within them was like sharp pins that stabbed him. He took an involuntary step back.
"Listen, Remus. I eat what I wish. If you had been through what I've seen, perhaps you would think differently. Maybe someday you will understand my point. Meanwhile, let me be."
Harry glanced uncomfortably at Frank. Frank's green eyes seemed to agree with Harry. He stood up hesitantly and said with mock cheerfulness, "Come on, the both of you! Calm down, I'm sure this is all just some misunderstanding. Come on, eat what you wish and leave it at that."
Alice looked at Harry, and the pain in her eyes was so intense that Harry's own green eyes filled with tears. He turned away so that no one else saw them.
Frank spoke, his voice like soothing music. "Come now, Alice. I'm sure Lupin meant no harm. Eat up. That's a girl."
The three of them sat back down and ate. Alice picked at the roll. She only ate half of it. No one said anything throughout the whole meal.
Alice stood up before anyone else. Her eyes had a mad blaze in them Harry hadn't seen before. Her gown swished about her heels. "I'll leave now. I'll be out of my room in a few hours. Until then?"
Harry looked up from his meal. "I'll see you later, Alice," he said quietly. "Let's all get together. My room, five o'clock?"
Alice hesitated. Her eyes seemed to take him in, beyond his physical appearance: deep into the depths of his soul. She blinked once or twice and said, "Actually, that doesn't work so well. But Harry, I must talk to you. Will you meet me in my room at six?"
Now Harry hesitated. "Sure. I'll be there. Six."
"Fine then."
With that, she left, and silence reigned once more.
Harry was waiting outside of Alice's door. It was still two minutes until six o'clock, and he didn't want to be early. He was leaning against the wall, whistling tunelessly, when a young woman walked down the corridor.
Harry had never seen her before. She had beautiful black hair, dark skin, and dark green eyes that flashed in the light. Her robes were burgundy, and they were shorter than the classic robes that Alice wore.
She saw Harry and smiled. "Hello, Mr. Potter," she said. "I'm Emily Rightsee, and I'm one of the new teachers here. I've seen you several times, but haven't had a chance to introduce myself."
Harry shook her hand. "Hello, Ms. Rightsee. Are you enjoying yourself so far?"
She laughed, and then sighed deeply. "It's been hectic, these past few days . . . but I must say, I am truly enjoying myself."
"Me too," Harry replied honestly. He looked down at his wristwatch. He was now two minutes late. "Damn," he whispered under his breath, glancing back up at Emily. "I'm sorry, I have to go. I'm late."
"All right," she said, smiling again. "I'll see you around. Good luck!"
"Bye!" Harry called over his shoulder. "Operanda," he muttered, and the wall opened up.
Alice was standing by her bed, a smile lingering on her face. "So, you've met Emily, have you?"
Harry had learned not to be shocked anymore by Alice's superiority. "Yes, I have. She seemed nice enough."
Alice looked smug, but she didn't say anything. She looked weary, like she couldn't stand much longer.
Harry swallowed and said, "Sit down, you look utterly exhausted. Let me get some water."
"Don't bother," she said, gesturing to a pitcher sitting on the nightstand. She let herself fall onto the bed, raising her head to look at Harry.
"Sit, sit," she commanded, waving her hand in the direction of a comfortable looking chair by the bed. Harry made his way towards it and sat. The pitcher poured some water into a glass, which floated over to him and came to rest gently in his hands. He took a long draught of it and set it down on the floor by him.
"Coaster," she said, and a small golden coaster appeared beneath the glass. "I don't want the wood to stain," she explained to him. "So, what's on your mind?"
"I don't know," Harry admitted.
"I do." Alice shot Harry a wry smile.
"Yes, well . . ." Harry looked uncomfortable. "We're all just a bit worried about you, that's all. I mean—"
"Harry, trust me, I've been like this all my life. There's nothing that you can do to change it. I've always picked at my food. I've always enjoyed seclusion. And yes, I've always blown my top when anyone tried to change it. Just realize that that is who I am. I've come to realize who you are—can't you do the same for me?"
Her eyes seemed to plead with him to understand her. Harry was indecisive for a moment, but then his heart melted. "Okay, okay," he said. "You've got me. I won't try to change the way you do things. But really, I think that you should make an effort to eat a little more. It's worrisome."
She looked too tired to care. "Please, Harry, I have a terrible headache . . . don't preach on me, not tonight." She put her hand to her head and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.
"Are you all right?" Harry asked her.
"Fine, fine," she said. "This happens often. See why I can't be out and around all the time? It exhausts me. I perform so many spells in the day—even minor ones—that I lose more energy than I can gain. It takes more energy to perform an energy spell than I can benefit from it."
Harry felt a wave of pity sweep over him. "Alice, I wish I were more like you." He didn't mean to say it; it just came out.
She opened her eyes and looked at him, her gaze intense. "No, you don't. Deep down, you know you don't."
Harry was quiet. She would know . . .
"Harry, you don't realize what my life is. It is all one huge play, one major façade. You don't want to be like me. I would rather be one of God's lowest creatures than what I am."
Harry didn't understand. He just looked at Alice, his eyes troubled. "Is that really the way you feel?"
Alice let out an exasperated sigh. "I don't know, I don't know what I want anymore." She paused, and then her mouth twisted into a sardonic smile. "Actually, I do know . . . I have to know. But it's so confusing . . ."
Harry didn't know what to say. He didn't have anything that he could say. "I'm sorry."
She sat up slightly. "Sorry? For what?"
"That your life is so hard on you."
"No need to be sorry. It's the way it is: it's over, it's done, and there's nothing to be done about it. God only knows that I wish that there was something to be done, but of course, there's not, so . . . oh, I'm confusing myself, even!" She threw herself backward onto the bed once more.
Harry sat there for a moment, not knowing what to do. He picked up his water and took a sip, setting it gently back down onto the delicate coaster.
Alice spoke again, her voice small. "Please go, Harry. This has exhausted me. I need to rest. I'll see you for dinner."
Harry stood. "Yes, I think I will go." He walked to the doorway and this time didn't look back. He walked out and the wall closed up behind him.
He walked down the deserted hallway to his office. He had some thinking to do.
Alice was meticulously groomed and primped. Her hair was a perfect cascade of gold down her back, and she had her customary robes on. Harry, too, was wearing black robes, though his were plain in appearance. He had slicked his hair back as best he could, and had tried his best to look wonderful. He wanted to make a good first impression on the students.
Lupin, Frank, Emily, McGonagall, Dumbledore, Snape, and the other teachers were all sitting at the head table, talking and having cocktails. Alice and Frank were the only ones not drinking. The rest, including Hagrid, whom Harry hadn't seen before that night, were drinking wine and enjoying themselves wholeheartedly. Even so, Alice and Frank were having tremendous fun with the rest of them.
"God, can you believe that they'll be here in only two hours?" McGonagall asked the others, her face slightly flushed.
Emily laughed rather rowdily. "No! And then what happens, I ask. We spend the next year teaching them. Oh, what fun!"
Harry was sitting to her left, and Alice was to the left of him. She had turned somewhat somber.
"I suppose times won't be quite as good," she said, "but they will still be wonderful. Why else would we be here?"
"True, true," Frank responded. "I see your point, but I see theirs', too."
Dumbledore smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling. "Alice, would you perform that funny spell that suddenly will make everyone quite normal? I think we've allowed the merry-making to go a little too far."
Alice swept her hand gracefully and the room fell quiet. McGonagall blinked once or twice and coughed. "Well, that was interesting, I must say . . ."
"Yes." Harry sat quietly by Alice, slightly stiff in his chair. His stomach hurt slightly, but other than that, he felt completely normal. He figured it must be one of the side effects of the spell. He looked around the room and saw that others were also clutching their stomachs.
"Can't have you acting like that when the students arrive," Alice said cheerfully, standing. Well, I figure that we want to assign people to different tasks now, don't we? Who's going to handle the sorting ceremony? And the feast? And the introductions? The tours? The transportation to the castle?"
"Dumbledore, too, stood. "Minerva, will you handle the sorting? Hagrid, I want you to be in charge of the first years and the boats to the castle, as usual. And then . . . of course, I will make the introductions and speeches, but . . . the feast . . . hmmm . . . Harry? Do you want to handle the preparation of the dining hall? With Alice's aide, perhaps?"
"All right," Harry said, standing as well.
"Good, good. We'd all better get ready, then. Anyone without an assignment, please go to all the dormitories and so forth and make sure they're completely ready for the students. I'll see you in an hour and a half right here."
All the staff walked off to their posts. Harry and Alice stood alone in the Great Hall, ready to prepare the room for the feast.
The stood in silence for a moment, and then Alice said, "If I remember correctly, the plates fill themselves for the banquet. We'll have to conjure tables, chairs, and decorations, as well as table settings. The enchantments will take it from there."
"All right," Harry said, rolling up his sleeves and taking his wand from his belt. "Where do we start?"
Alice smiled and removed her wand from a deep pocket in her robe. "I believe tables would be the best. Repeat after me: apperilus mensae!"
"Apperilus mensae," Harry sputtered. Nothing happened.
Alice looked slightly perplexed. She had conjured up a perfect table, ebony and gold, as was her trademark. "Okay, let's try that again. I don't think yours is quite big enough, Harry . . ."
"Apperilus mensae," Harry said rather deliberately. Nothing.
"Come now, I think you just need to be a bit more sure of your talents, Harry. You know you're great. Shout it to the beams, come on!"
"All right . . . apperilus mensae!"
A small puff of yellow smoke erupted from his wandtip, and it turned into small snakes that coiled around in the air, twisting and shaping themselves until a very worn and scratched table sat before him. It was only large enough for about four people, and it looked like it could hardly stand on its own.
Harry glanced skeptically at Alice, but she didn't seem perturbed. She gave a like skip and clap of delight. "Oh, good! See, that's a start. Now, just a little bit of touch up . . ." Alice pointed her wand at it and it grew to match the length of her table, and it twisted and coiled to match it to the very grain of the wood.
"Okay, let's make three more—two for students, one for staff." They created them, Harry's still rather wobbly, but this time a polished mahogany that could probably seat twelve. Alice smiled. "See? You're learning already. And you, the teacher. You know what they say: the teachers learn from the students. Not that I'm you're student or anything. Well, I guess the next step is chairs. How many do you think we need?"
Harry groaned. "Too many to count. We'll never accomplish it in an hour and a half!"
"Oh, don't be such a pessimist . . . that's my job. Now, come, you don't think we'd really have to conjure up individual chairs, do you? We didn't have to with the tables, either, but that was good practice for you. We'll conjure up the first few chairs individually, and then the rest we'll do en masse. What do you say?"
"All right. What charm?"
Alice smiled. "It's fairly similar . . . apperilus sillas!"
A perfect chair appeared at the head of one table. It was ebony, of course, with a gold design etched into its legs and back. The top of the back had a golden dragon perched atop it. The seat was padded and covered in gold-thread fabric.
"Your turn, Mr. Potter," Alice said cheerily. "Remember, nice and loud. You're the boss."
Harry took a deep breath. "Apperilus sillas!"
There was a loud popping noise, and there were no snakes this time. Now, a chair very close in fashion to that of Alice's was seated at the other end of the table.
Laughing, Alice turned to him. "Wonderful, wonderful! How about producing a thousand more?"
"How would I do that?" Harry couldn't help but glow with pride. He'd done it! He'd made a chair that matched hers!
"Okay, here's what you do . . . do the usual charm, and then say 'mille' after that. Okay? You're ready?"
"I'm ready," Harry said, poised with his wand in the air. "All right . . . apperilus sillas ma--!"
Alice bent double and cupped her ears. Harry was about to ask her why she'd done so when the room was split with a deafening crack, like that of thunder. Harry felt his eardrums throb within his head.
He looked up, coughing and choking. The room was filled with pinkish- purplish-gray smoke, and he couldn't see a thing, not even Alice, who was just a few feet from him. He could hear her coughing.
"Alice!" he shouted. "What went wrong?"
"You (cough, cough) didn't say 'mille,' you said 'magnum.' So instead of a thousand chairs, we (cough) have one really large one!"
Harry looked back up, and the room was dark as pitch. "Lumos," he muttered, and saw that a chair leg as wide as one of the tables was long loomed before him. The gold etching, which looked so delicate on the smaller versions, was now as wide as he was tall. The chair seemed to have no end. It blocked out the light from the ceiling above, which was enchanted to look like the night sky.
"Damn," he muttered, and then, "Nox."
The light went out, and then Alice muttered something that Harry didn't catch, and a small ball of purple flame was suspended in the air between them.
"I was hoping that I wouldn't have to teach you the vanishing spell, but I guess that I will have to after all." She took a step closer to Harry, and her long robes rustled against his ankles. "All right, to make an object disappear, you simply say 'disapperilus.' Now let me warn you, it is a lot harder to make something disappear than to appear. But I want you to try it."
"After what I did?" Harry sounded skeptical. He looked into Alice's face. The flame created shadows that danced across it, but her eyes seemed to burn with a fire that caused them to glow continuously.
"Yes," she said with determination. "You'll never learn otherwise. Now give it a try."
Harry braced himself. "Disapperilus!" Nothing happened.
"Disapperilus!" he shouted. Nothing.
Harry took a deep breath that caused his lungs to quiver. He pointed his wand toward the heavens. "DISAPPERILUS!"
A large black object shot from the end of his wand. It seemed to fly all about him at once: it ricocheted off the chair's leg, flew up to the ceiling, and all about the room in a fraction of a second.
"Commandae!" Alice shouted, and the shadow seemed to fall to the ground, smothering and smoking. The chair had begun to shrink, and it had diminished down to nothing.
Harry blinked several times. "Wow," he finally managed to sputter.
"Yes, isn't it incredible? Now how about trying the chair-charm again?" Alice said, completely nonplussed.
Harry took a deep breath and shook his head. That's just how Alice was.
The sorting ceremony was done and over, glory be. Harry was completely and utterly exhausted. He could hardly keep on his feet.
Alice had managed to decorate the Great Hall quite nicely, of course, in her trademark style. Harry had learned quite a bit about magic. Then the others joined them. Harry had been surprised to learn that McGonagall no longer wanted to be the head of the Gryffindor house. So, they drew names: two. Each house now had two head masters/mistresses, because the houses had grown so much that the job was too much for one person.
Anyhow, Harry was pleasantly surprised to learn that he had been chosen, as well as Alice.
Now usually, to be the head of a House, one had to be in that house as a student. Therefore, teachers who hadn't attended Hogwarts at all in their youth were rather disappointed to learn that they couldn't even try. But Dumbledore made an exception for Alice: she was so brave and smart and responsible. She deserved the post more than anyone else did.
Anyhow, shortly after this, the students came into the Hall. All the first years were with McGonagall in another room, preparing for the sorting.
Anyhow, Harry decided that it felt good to just sit down at the head table and wait.
Shortly, the first years filed in, the sorting hat was placed on each student's head, and in turn shouted out one of the four houses: Gryffindor (for the brave), Ravenclaw (for the wise), Slytherin (for the cunning), or Hufflepuff (for the kind).
This was all followed by a gala feast with all imaginable foods: mashed potatoes, gravy, leg of lamb, roasted pork, steamed green beans, yams, cranberry sauce, steaming rolls, chilled preserves, pasties of a dozen varieties, and innumerable other goods, followed by desert: chocolate pie, mousse, ice cream, peppermint frogs, German chocolate cake, and more. Harry could hardly walk to the Gryffindor common room afterwards; he was so full of delicious food.
Harry and Alice led the students through the twisting corridors of the castle to the common room. The first years were somewhat frightened, it seemed, by the dark rooms and such.
The Gryffindor common room was accessible only by a portrait of a very obese woman in an overdone pink dress. Harry smiled at her. "Hello, pink lady."
"Hello, Mr. Potter. I hear you're one of the new Heads of House. Password?"
Alice said to the students, "Listen carefully, you need to know this."
"Liberi."
The portrait swung open to reveal the common room. It was a cozy place with a few large armchairs, a couch, and some smaller straight-backed chairs that surrounded tables. The small fireplace in the corner blazed with a welcome heat and friendly glow.
"Here's your common room," Alice said. To the left, up the stairs, are the girls' dormitories. Boys, yours are to the right. Now, if you don't mind, we're going to leave now. If you need any of us, just run over to either the portrait of the woman in the hoopskirt down the hall or to the statue of the one-armed soldier near the staircase on your left. Knock on the walls and one of us will come out. Good night. Sleep well; classes tomorrow!"
Alice and Harry left them with that.
Harry had gone straight to his shabby room and crawled into bed, not worrying in the least about the fact that his clothes were still on and he hadn't brushed his teeth. He'd fallen straight to sleep in the small, cramped quarters.
Alice, meanwhile, was writing.
by Hannah
2
3 Chapter Five ~ Beginning Term
It was now only two days before the students would arrive at Hogwarts. All was a-bustle in the castle: teachers planning lessons, setting up classrooms, cleaning dormitories, airing mattresses, and all the little things that just make it all the better.
Harry, too, was caught up in the whole ordeal. His office was shabby and worn, because he couldn't afford a new desk, chair, or anything else, for that matter, to furnish it with.
The carpet was an ugly gray, worn in most places and stained from long years of wear, the chair, desk, and cabinet were fashioned of an ugly walnut wood that was so scratched that the polish didn't even exist anymore, the walls were an ugly, smudged green, the one small window was streaked with grease, and the single torch sconce on the wall was of smoldered iron, twisted and deformed from long use. Harry couldn't believe how sloppy it had become in the past few days, either. Hardly any time had past since he had placed his few belongings within it and already it was a trash heap.
Of course, Alice had offered to help. "I can improve its appearance," she said. "It won't cost you a penny, either."
But Harry had some pride, or so he so rashly thought it, and refused her offer. "I can manage," he said.
Alice nodded, smiled, and gave him a look that said all too well 'you'll-regret-that-decision.' And she left.
And here Harry was with his trashy little office that shamed him.
He had been in her office several times to discuss the current situation of their lessons and other small matters. The first time, he had been flabbergasted. It looked incredibly like her bedroom. It had ebony floorboards, black walls with gold trim, black curtains and rugs with gold embroidery and tassels, and two beautiful chairs, a cabinet, a bookshelf, and a matching desk, all ebony with golden inlay. The bookshelf covered one wall, and a large window facing out on the Forbidden Forest nearly covered another. The ceiling had an elaborate, raised gold pattern in the middle. Four torch sconces, fashioned of etched gold, lit the room with a warm glow.
Harry was just walking from his office when someone called, "Harry, wait for me!"
He turned to see Frank walking in a long stride toward him.
Harry had come to like Frank quite well. At first, he had seemed somber and rather cold. Now, he was very open and friendly. He had come to be accepted as part of the group formed by Harry, Alice, and Lupin.
Frank was smiling as he reached Harry, who had stopped for him. They began to walk slowly down the hall.
"Where are you headed?" Frank asked him.
"The Great Hall. For lunch," Harry replied. He was very hungry.
"Great, me too. Have you seen Alice?"
"No, I'm afraid I haven't. She's been keeping to herself an awful lot lately."
"Yes, as I've noticed . . ." Frank seemed preoccupied. He appeared to be looking for something.
"What are you looking for?" Harry asked. Frank stood still and said, "I thought her room was somewhere around here."
Harry nodded grimly. "Yeah, it's that funny portrait of the woman in the hoop skirt. The password is 'operanda.' I'll come with you, see how she is."
"All right. I've just been somewhat worried about her, you know? She's been so reclusive lately . . ."
Frank walked over to the portrait, Harry just a step behind him.
The lady turned up her nose in disgust. "Who are you? Calling on Ms. Oak at this time of the afternoon? I believe she's taking a nap, anyhow. Besides, you don't know the password."
Harry stared her in the eyes, saying "Operanda." The painting reluctantly began to swirl into a black hole that they both stepped into.
Alice was sitting at the desk in a dressing gown, writing something. She glanced up, startled, as Harry and Frank came into the room.
She didn't look too good. Her hair was disheveled, as though she hadn't brushed it yet that day. Her eyes were swollen through crying, and her bed wasn't yet made. There was a small stack of papers on the desk, written in perfect handwriting.
She stood up and took a moment to compose herself. "Yes?" she asked.
Harry looked slightly uncomfortable and taken aback. "Well, we were just wondering if—you would join us for lunch."
"Oh." She looked down into her hands, which still held a large peacock plume quill. She placed it on the desk, put a stopper in the small bottle of Indian ink, and said, "Just one moment."
She muttered something and suddenly was dressed in her normal attire, her hair tidied and her eyes normal. "Ready," she said.
Frank was looking at her quizzically, not realizing that he was staring. Harry was also abashed, but he didn't show it.
"All right," he said. "Let's go. Frank, hello . . ."
"Oh, yes," Frank said, coming back to life. "Wow, that was weird. I just . . . forgot myself there, for a moment."
Harry was now slightly worried. Frank's face did have a blank expression, as though he had been completely mind-washed for a moment. As though he had forgotten himself. He brushed it aside.
"Weird," he muttered under his breath as they headed through the portrait hole, their robes swishing against their ankles.
They arrived in the Great Hall and sat down at a table that was empty except for Lupin.
"Finally," Lupin said. "I've been waiting for nearly a quarter of an hour now."
"Sorry," Harry apologized. "We were fetching Alice."
Alice sat down, one of the gold plates in front of her. The platters all filled with the food that they wanted: Harry found his plate heaped with chicken soup and dumplings. Lupin's plate had a large mushroom pastie and a side of cooked carrots. Frank's plate had a large slab of steak and a generous helping of mashed potatoes. Alice's had a plain roll and a few slices of apple.
Lupin looked at her plate with a questioning look on his face. "Is that all you want to eat?" he asked her.
"Yes," she said quietly, placing the slices of apple on the roll.
"Come on," Lupin said. "Eat something else. You can have a bite of my mushroom pastie. Or I'm sure that Harry would offer you a dumpling. Perhaps you'd like some of Frank's steak?"
Alice smiled, and said insistently, "Thank you, but I'm fine." She bowed her head in prayer, and a moment later took a small bite of her 'lunch.'
Lupin wouldn't let it alone. He stood up and said, "You starve yourself! For the sake of the Great Dragons, eat something!"
"Great Dragons—silly term . . . I am eating." Alice's voice had an edge of steel in it. She took another bite from the roll.
"You're eating hardly anything! A handful of berries one meal; a small dollop of mashed potatoes the next. What is your problem?"
She stood, her purple eyes flashing. The gold within them was like sharp pins that stabbed him. He took an involuntary step back.
"Listen, Remus. I eat what I wish. If you had been through what I've seen, perhaps you would think differently. Maybe someday you will understand my point. Meanwhile, let me be."
Harry glanced uncomfortably at Frank. Frank's green eyes seemed to agree with Harry. He stood up hesitantly and said with mock cheerfulness, "Come on, the both of you! Calm down, I'm sure this is all just some misunderstanding. Come on, eat what you wish and leave it at that."
Alice looked at Harry, and the pain in her eyes was so intense that Harry's own green eyes filled with tears. He turned away so that no one else saw them.
Frank spoke, his voice like soothing music. "Come now, Alice. I'm sure Lupin meant no harm. Eat up. That's a girl."
The three of them sat back down and ate. Alice picked at the roll. She only ate half of it. No one said anything throughout the whole meal.
Alice stood up before anyone else. Her eyes had a mad blaze in them Harry hadn't seen before. Her gown swished about her heels. "I'll leave now. I'll be out of my room in a few hours. Until then?"
Harry looked up from his meal. "I'll see you later, Alice," he said quietly. "Let's all get together. My room, five o'clock?"
Alice hesitated. Her eyes seemed to take him in, beyond his physical appearance: deep into the depths of his soul. She blinked once or twice and said, "Actually, that doesn't work so well. But Harry, I must talk to you. Will you meet me in my room at six?"
Now Harry hesitated. "Sure. I'll be there. Six."
"Fine then."
With that, she left, and silence reigned once more.
Harry was waiting outside of Alice's door. It was still two minutes until six o'clock, and he didn't want to be early. He was leaning against the wall, whistling tunelessly, when a young woman walked down the corridor.
Harry had never seen her before. She had beautiful black hair, dark skin, and dark green eyes that flashed in the light. Her robes were burgundy, and they were shorter than the classic robes that Alice wore.
She saw Harry and smiled. "Hello, Mr. Potter," she said. "I'm Emily Rightsee, and I'm one of the new teachers here. I've seen you several times, but haven't had a chance to introduce myself."
Harry shook her hand. "Hello, Ms. Rightsee. Are you enjoying yourself so far?"
She laughed, and then sighed deeply. "It's been hectic, these past few days . . . but I must say, I am truly enjoying myself."
"Me too," Harry replied honestly. He looked down at his wristwatch. He was now two minutes late. "Damn," he whispered under his breath, glancing back up at Emily. "I'm sorry, I have to go. I'm late."
"All right," she said, smiling again. "I'll see you around. Good luck!"
"Bye!" Harry called over his shoulder. "Operanda," he muttered, and the wall opened up.
Alice was standing by her bed, a smile lingering on her face. "So, you've met Emily, have you?"
Harry had learned not to be shocked anymore by Alice's superiority. "Yes, I have. She seemed nice enough."
Alice looked smug, but she didn't say anything. She looked weary, like she couldn't stand much longer.
Harry swallowed and said, "Sit down, you look utterly exhausted. Let me get some water."
"Don't bother," she said, gesturing to a pitcher sitting on the nightstand. She let herself fall onto the bed, raising her head to look at Harry.
"Sit, sit," she commanded, waving her hand in the direction of a comfortable looking chair by the bed. Harry made his way towards it and sat. The pitcher poured some water into a glass, which floated over to him and came to rest gently in his hands. He took a long draught of it and set it down on the floor by him.
"Coaster," she said, and a small golden coaster appeared beneath the glass. "I don't want the wood to stain," she explained to him. "So, what's on your mind?"
"I don't know," Harry admitted.
"I do." Alice shot Harry a wry smile.
"Yes, well . . ." Harry looked uncomfortable. "We're all just a bit worried about you, that's all. I mean—"
"Harry, trust me, I've been like this all my life. There's nothing that you can do to change it. I've always picked at my food. I've always enjoyed seclusion. And yes, I've always blown my top when anyone tried to change it. Just realize that that is who I am. I've come to realize who you are—can't you do the same for me?"
Her eyes seemed to plead with him to understand her. Harry was indecisive for a moment, but then his heart melted. "Okay, okay," he said. "You've got me. I won't try to change the way you do things. But really, I think that you should make an effort to eat a little more. It's worrisome."
She looked too tired to care. "Please, Harry, I have a terrible headache . . . don't preach on me, not tonight." She put her hand to her head and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.
"Are you all right?" Harry asked her.
"Fine, fine," she said. "This happens often. See why I can't be out and around all the time? It exhausts me. I perform so many spells in the day—even minor ones—that I lose more energy than I can gain. It takes more energy to perform an energy spell than I can benefit from it."
Harry felt a wave of pity sweep over him. "Alice, I wish I were more like you." He didn't mean to say it; it just came out.
She opened her eyes and looked at him, her gaze intense. "No, you don't. Deep down, you know you don't."
Harry was quiet. She would know . . .
"Harry, you don't realize what my life is. It is all one huge play, one major façade. You don't want to be like me. I would rather be one of God's lowest creatures than what I am."
Harry didn't understand. He just looked at Alice, his eyes troubled. "Is that really the way you feel?"
Alice let out an exasperated sigh. "I don't know, I don't know what I want anymore." She paused, and then her mouth twisted into a sardonic smile. "Actually, I do know . . . I have to know. But it's so confusing . . ."
Harry didn't know what to say. He didn't have anything that he could say. "I'm sorry."
She sat up slightly. "Sorry? For what?"
"That your life is so hard on you."
"No need to be sorry. It's the way it is: it's over, it's done, and there's nothing to be done about it. God only knows that I wish that there was something to be done, but of course, there's not, so . . . oh, I'm confusing myself, even!" She threw herself backward onto the bed once more.
Harry sat there for a moment, not knowing what to do. He picked up his water and took a sip, setting it gently back down onto the delicate coaster.
Alice spoke again, her voice small. "Please go, Harry. This has exhausted me. I need to rest. I'll see you for dinner."
Harry stood. "Yes, I think I will go." He walked to the doorway and this time didn't look back. He walked out and the wall closed up behind him.
He walked down the deserted hallway to his office. He had some thinking to do.
Alice was meticulously groomed and primped. Her hair was a perfect cascade of gold down her back, and she had her customary robes on. Harry, too, was wearing black robes, though his were plain in appearance. He had slicked his hair back as best he could, and had tried his best to look wonderful. He wanted to make a good first impression on the students.
Lupin, Frank, Emily, McGonagall, Dumbledore, Snape, and the other teachers were all sitting at the head table, talking and having cocktails. Alice and Frank were the only ones not drinking. The rest, including Hagrid, whom Harry hadn't seen before that night, were drinking wine and enjoying themselves wholeheartedly. Even so, Alice and Frank were having tremendous fun with the rest of them.
"God, can you believe that they'll be here in only two hours?" McGonagall asked the others, her face slightly flushed.
Emily laughed rather rowdily. "No! And then what happens, I ask. We spend the next year teaching them. Oh, what fun!"
Harry was sitting to her left, and Alice was to the left of him. She had turned somewhat somber.
"I suppose times won't be quite as good," she said, "but they will still be wonderful. Why else would we be here?"
"True, true," Frank responded. "I see your point, but I see theirs', too."
Dumbledore smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling. "Alice, would you perform that funny spell that suddenly will make everyone quite normal? I think we've allowed the merry-making to go a little too far."
Alice swept her hand gracefully and the room fell quiet. McGonagall blinked once or twice and coughed. "Well, that was interesting, I must say . . ."
"Yes." Harry sat quietly by Alice, slightly stiff in his chair. His stomach hurt slightly, but other than that, he felt completely normal. He figured it must be one of the side effects of the spell. He looked around the room and saw that others were also clutching their stomachs.
"Can't have you acting like that when the students arrive," Alice said cheerfully, standing. Well, I figure that we want to assign people to different tasks now, don't we? Who's going to handle the sorting ceremony? And the feast? And the introductions? The tours? The transportation to the castle?"
"Dumbledore, too, stood. "Minerva, will you handle the sorting? Hagrid, I want you to be in charge of the first years and the boats to the castle, as usual. And then . . . of course, I will make the introductions and speeches, but . . . the feast . . . hmmm . . . Harry? Do you want to handle the preparation of the dining hall? With Alice's aide, perhaps?"
"All right," Harry said, standing as well.
"Good, good. We'd all better get ready, then. Anyone without an assignment, please go to all the dormitories and so forth and make sure they're completely ready for the students. I'll see you in an hour and a half right here."
All the staff walked off to their posts. Harry and Alice stood alone in the Great Hall, ready to prepare the room for the feast.
The stood in silence for a moment, and then Alice said, "If I remember correctly, the plates fill themselves for the banquet. We'll have to conjure tables, chairs, and decorations, as well as table settings. The enchantments will take it from there."
"All right," Harry said, rolling up his sleeves and taking his wand from his belt. "Where do we start?"
Alice smiled and removed her wand from a deep pocket in her robe. "I believe tables would be the best. Repeat after me: apperilus mensae!"
"Apperilus mensae," Harry sputtered. Nothing happened.
Alice looked slightly perplexed. She had conjured up a perfect table, ebony and gold, as was her trademark. "Okay, let's try that again. I don't think yours is quite big enough, Harry . . ."
"Apperilus mensae," Harry said rather deliberately. Nothing.
"Come now, I think you just need to be a bit more sure of your talents, Harry. You know you're great. Shout it to the beams, come on!"
"All right . . . apperilus mensae!"
A small puff of yellow smoke erupted from his wandtip, and it turned into small snakes that coiled around in the air, twisting and shaping themselves until a very worn and scratched table sat before him. It was only large enough for about four people, and it looked like it could hardly stand on its own.
Harry glanced skeptically at Alice, but she didn't seem perturbed. She gave a like skip and clap of delight. "Oh, good! See, that's a start. Now, just a little bit of touch up . . ." Alice pointed her wand at it and it grew to match the length of her table, and it twisted and coiled to match it to the very grain of the wood.
"Okay, let's make three more—two for students, one for staff." They created them, Harry's still rather wobbly, but this time a polished mahogany that could probably seat twelve. Alice smiled. "See? You're learning already. And you, the teacher. You know what they say: the teachers learn from the students. Not that I'm you're student or anything. Well, I guess the next step is chairs. How many do you think we need?"
Harry groaned. "Too many to count. We'll never accomplish it in an hour and a half!"
"Oh, don't be such a pessimist . . . that's my job. Now, come, you don't think we'd really have to conjure up individual chairs, do you? We didn't have to with the tables, either, but that was good practice for you. We'll conjure up the first few chairs individually, and then the rest we'll do en masse. What do you say?"
"All right. What charm?"
Alice smiled. "It's fairly similar . . . apperilus sillas!"
A perfect chair appeared at the head of one table. It was ebony, of course, with a gold design etched into its legs and back. The top of the back had a golden dragon perched atop it. The seat was padded and covered in gold-thread fabric.
"Your turn, Mr. Potter," Alice said cheerily. "Remember, nice and loud. You're the boss."
Harry took a deep breath. "Apperilus sillas!"
There was a loud popping noise, and there were no snakes this time. Now, a chair very close in fashion to that of Alice's was seated at the other end of the table.
Laughing, Alice turned to him. "Wonderful, wonderful! How about producing a thousand more?"
"How would I do that?" Harry couldn't help but glow with pride. He'd done it! He'd made a chair that matched hers!
"Okay, here's what you do . . . do the usual charm, and then say 'mille' after that. Okay? You're ready?"
"I'm ready," Harry said, poised with his wand in the air. "All right . . . apperilus sillas ma--!"
Alice bent double and cupped her ears. Harry was about to ask her why she'd done so when the room was split with a deafening crack, like that of thunder. Harry felt his eardrums throb within his head.
He looked up, coughing and choking. The room was filled with pinkish- purplish-gray smoke, and he couldn't see a thing, not even Alice, who was just a few feet from him. He could hear her coughing.
"Alice!" he shouted. "What went wrong?"
"You (cough, cough) didn't say 'mille,' you said 'magnum.' So instead of a thousand chairs, we (cough) have one really large one!"
Harry looked back up, and the room was dark as pitch. "Lumos," he muttered, and saw that a chair leg as wide as one of the tables was long loomed before him. The gold etching, which looked so delicate on the smaller versions, was now as wide as he was tall. The chair seemed to have no end. It blocked out the light from the ceiling above, which was enchanted to look like the night sky.
"Damn," he muttered, and then, "Nox."
The light went out, and then Alice muttered something that Harry didn't catch, and a small ball of purple flame was suspended in the air between them.
"I was hoping that I wouldn't have to teach you the vanishing spell, but I guess that I will have to after all." She took a step closer to Harry, and her long robes rustled against his ankles. "All right, to make an object disappear, you simply say 'disapperilus.' Now let me warn you, it is a lot harder to make something disappear than to appear. But I want you to try it."
"After what I did?" Harry sounded skeptical. He looked into Alice's face. The flame created shadows that danced across it, but her eyes seemed to burn with a fire that caused them to glow continuously.
"Yes," she said with determination. "You'll never learn otherwise. Now give it a try."
Harry braced himself. "Disapperilus!" Nothing happened.
"Disapperilus!" he shouted. Nothing.
Harry took a deep breath that caused his lungs to quiver. He pointed his wand toward the heavens. "DISAPPERILUS!"
A large black object shot from the end of his wand. It seemed to fly all about him at once: it ricocheted off the chair's leg, flew up to the ceiling, and all about the room in a fraction of a second.
"Commandae!" Alice shouted, and the shadow seemed to fall to the ground, smothering and smoking. The chair had begun to shrink, and it had diminished down to nothing.
Harry blinked several times. "Wow," he finally managed to sputter.
"Yes, isn't it incredible? Now how about trying the chair-charm again?" Alice said, completely nonplussed.
Harry took a deep breath and shook his head. That's just how Alice was.
The sorting ceremony was done and over, glory be. Harry was completely and utterly exhausted. He could hardly keep on his feet.
Alice had managed to decorate the Great Hall quite nicely, of course, in her trademark style. Harry had learned quite a bit about magic. Then the others joined them. Harry had been surprised to learn that McGonagall no longer wanted to be the head of the Gryffindor house. So, they drew names: two. Each house now had two head masters/mistresses, because the houses had grown so much that the job was too much for one person.
Anyhow, Harry was pleasantly surprised to learn that he had been chosen, as well as Alice.
Now usually, to be the head of a House, one had to be in that house as a student. Therefore, teachers who hadn't attended Hogwarts at all in their youth were rather disappointed to learn that they couldn't even try. But Dumbledore made an exception for Alice: she was so brave and smart and responsible. She deserved the post more than anyone else did.
Anyhow, shortly after this, the students came into the Hall. All the first years were with McGonagall in another room, preparing for the sorting.
Anyhow, Harry decided that it felt good to just sit down at the head table and wait.
Shortly, the first years filed in, the sorting hat was placed on each student's head, and in turn shouted out one of the four houses: Gryffindor (for the brave), Ravenclaw (for the wise), Slytherin (for the cunning), or Hufflepuff (for the kind).
This was all followed by a gala feast with all imaginable foods: mashed potatoes, gravy, leg of lamb, roasted pork, steamed green beans, yams, cranberry sauce, steaming rolls, chilled preserves, pasties of a dozen varieties, and innumerable other goods, followed by desert: chocolate pie, mousse, ice cream, peppermint frogs, German chocolate cake, and more. Harry could hardly walk to the Gryffindor common room afterwards; he was so full of delicious food.
Harry and Alice led the students through the twisting corridors of the castle to the common room. The first years were somewhat frightened, it seemed, by the dark rooms and such.
The Gryffindor common room was accessible only by a portrait of a very obese woman in an overdone pink dress. Harry smiled at her. "Hello, pink lady."
"Hello, Mr. Potter. I hear you're one of the new Heads of House. Password?"
Alice said to the students, "Listen carefully, you need to know this."
"Liberi."
The portrait swung open to reveal the common room. It was a cozy place with a few large armchairs, a couch, and some smaller straight-backed chairs that surrounded tables. The small fireplace in the corner blazed with a welcome heat and friendly glow.
"Here's your common room," Alice said. To the left, up the stairs, are the girls' dormitories. Boys, yours are to the right. Now, if you don't mind, we're going to leave now. If you need any of us, just run over to either the portrait of the woman in the hoopskirt down the hall or to the statue of the one-armed soldier near the staircase on your left. Knock on the walls and one of us will come out. Good night. Sleep well; classes tomorrow!"
Alice and Harry left them with that.
Harry had gone straight to his shabby room and crawled into bed, not worrying in the least about the fact that his clothes were still on and he hadn't brushed his teeth. He'd fallen straight to sleep in the small, cramped quarters.
Alice, meanwhile, was writing.