2B
Fortunately for him, the room he shared with the other boys was empty. He assumed everyone had gone down to breakfast. Since Ron knew that he was going to talk to Dumbledore, no one would miss him for at least an hour, and since it was Saturday and the last Hogsmeade weekend before the vacation, most of his friends would be too busy to notice for even longer. He dug through his trunk and found a fairly shabby rucksack that he'd had no occasion to use in a while. He levitated all his normal clothes in, and was surprised to find that he really didn't have that many of them. Pulling off his school robes, he inspected the jeans and shirt he was wearing under them. Clean enough for the trip, he decided. By now, the bag was more than halfway full. Tucking his wand into his back pocket, Harry started sorting through his other belongings as well. Over the summer he'd taken to disguising some of his more important school books as Muggle books, which he knew his uncle and aunt would have no problem with, and he did the same spell now on two or three of them. Magical books that they were, they shrunk themselves to fit into the bag. Harry added a small packet of every flavor beans, and, with a pang of regret, realized that he'd have to leave his Firebolt behind. He wondered if they played Quidditch in the States.
There weren't many things that he thought he'd need now. He thought about taking some parchment and quills, but decided to get used to pens and paper again- he could get those at any stationary store. He threw in toiletries and an extra pair of shoes. Then his eyes fell on the album Hagrid had given him at the end of his first year, and he added that as well. There really wasn't very much room left in the bag now. He tucked in his pocket Sneakoscope for good measure, then closed the bag.
Now that he was finished, Harry's brain started working again and he realized several things: 1) He was going to live in the States for a while, 2) None of his friends were going to know where he was- he even thought that Dumbledore might do a Fidelis charm, and most disturbingly, 3) He was going to have to live with Snape and not kill his or get killed by him. While he was fairly certain that the potions teacher didn't quite want to kill him anymore, the fact remained that they hated each other still, and that Voldemort was offering an exchange- Harry's life for Snape's. He knew Dumbledore wouldn't send either one of them away without being completely sure it was safe, but the coming weeks were certainly going to be difficult. Well, Harry decided, he could always do what he usually did at home and stay silent and out of the way as much as possible. With any luck, Snape would let him go exploring outside a bit.No, of course he wouldn't. Not safe. Harry was starting to feel sorry for himself, but stopped when he noticed that he only had a few minutes left to go up to the owlery and say goodbye to Hedwig. He knew there were bound to be at least one or two students in the halls, but with the invisibility cloak, no one would bother him.
Harry gave Hedwig her orders, as well as Ron and Hermione's Christmas gifts to deliver a few days after he left. The snowy owl didn't look too unhappy with her duty- it was understandable that Harry couldn't take her with him. She'd be happy in the school owlery, and would join him in a week.
On the way back downstairs, Harry noticed a distinct chill in the air, and remembered that he hadn't packed a coat- didn't have one, in fact. He'd used his school cloaks at Hogwarts, and hadn't needed a coat over the summer. He was going to be quite cold, he realized, unless.He slipped back into his dorm, snatched his cloak from a hanger. They had studied object-to- object transfigurations, and while he wasn't too good at them, he could manage cloak into coat. The garment stayed black, but had proper sleeves and buttons now. Satisfied that he was as prepared as he'd ever be to mix with the 'normal' world again, Harry returned to Dumbledore's office, and made his way up the stairs. Snape was already there, in heated conversation with the headmaster.
"Is the absolutely no other possible place, Albus? And no other person?"
"No, Severus. Our biggest advantage over Voldemort is that we have contacts with the muggle world. I trust Monique implicitly, and Seattle is the farthest away I can send you and still be in touch. I could send you to Avalon, but, well, after the last time." Snape scowled, "Besides, you'd have the Unseelie court to handle there. The States it is."
"But I don't like Americans. They're ignorant boors." Snape sighed. Harry was very, very glad, once again, of his invisibility cloak. Avalon sounded very interesting.
"Would you prefer getting tortured and killed by Voldemort?" Dumbledore asked with a note of impatience much like the one Harry had heard the previous summer. Snape shook his head in reply.
"Ask me again in two weeks." He sat down. Harry snuck outside again, took off the cloak and reentered. Dumbledore smiled at him.
"All packed, Harry? Excellent." He checked his watch again. "You have about four hours before your flight leaves. Unfortunately, all I could get at this short notice were first class tickets, which are considerably more expensive, but I think you can both handle it. Besides, if you have to fly, do it in style. Fortunately, it's a direct flight. Here are your tickets."
"Sir," Something occurred to Harry just then that, once again, made him very worried, "I just realized, I don't have a passport- I don't have any papers at all, really, except my wizard ID." Harry had gotten one on his fifteenth birthday, delivered by a Ministry owl, as had all his friends on their birthdays. Dumbledore nodded, smiling.
"Yes, I thought about that. Fortunately, I have a friend who deals with just these things. I had a new one made for you as well, Severus, as your old one probably expired." The headmaster handed each of them a British passport. Harry inspected it- it looked completely real and legal. Being a wizard with wizard friends was useful sometimes. It had his picture, a muggle still one, and his name.
"Can we use our read names, Professor? I thought we're hiding. Don't we need, um, false ID's and such?" Harry asked after hesitating for a moment. The whole hiding thing was making him uncomfortable. The truth was that he didn't want to escape. He wanted to stay and fight, and letting himself be sent away seed a cowardly thing to do. Still he knew that he had no choice. He'd never want anybody else to be hurt on his account. The further away he was from the school, the safer everybody was. Snape sneered at him.
"This isn't a James Bond movie, Potter. As much as it may surprise you, not many people know who you are outside of England. It might take you a while to get used to not being a celebrity." The teacher's face was unreadable, except or the constant sneer. Harry was too stumped by Snape's casual Muggle reference to respond.
"Now, now, Severus. A simple explanation would have been enough. You two need to leave. I've contacted Monique- she knows you're coming, and she will wait for you at the airport. Harry, do you know how to get to the airport from your uncle's house? You can Floo there."
"Um, I don't think that's such a good idea, Professor." Harry interrupted, "My family.they won't be very happy about it. They don't like wizards." He looked at Snape out of the corner of his eye. Did he have to look so interested in the conversation? "Also, my uncle bricked up the fireplace after last year, so we can't use it anymore." And had gotten more angry than Harry had ever seen him during the first week of the summer vacation. Visiting the Dursleys now would be a very bad idea indeed.
"Why on Earth would he do that?" Dumbledore wondered aloud, and Harry shrugged, not wanting to repeat any of the things Uncle Vernon had said about 'those filthy, sneaky, horrid housebreaking bastards.' "Well, I do have an alternative. Remus Lupin is living in Muggle London at the moment, and I'm sure that you can use his fireplace. He is already connected to the Floo network. Let's see if he's home."
Harry hadn't known that. His spirits rose immediately. He liked Lupin a lot, and there was also a chance that the former teacher had a way to tell Harry's godfather about what was going on. Snape's scowl deepened. It was turning out to be a very bad day for him, but he said nothing. Dumbledore through a pinch of powder on the fire, which turned green briefly. "Remus Lupin's house." He called. Not thirty seconds later, the familiar face appeared.
"Albus. How nice of you to call." Lupin seemed tired and slightly ill. Harry counted back and realized that it was only two days after the full moon. Even with the wolfsbane potion, the transformation took a lot of energy out of the werewolf.
"I know, Remus, and I'm sorry to bother you at such a bad time, but this is an emergency."
"How can I help?" Lupin was instantly alert, and Snape sneered again. They were all like eager little puppies, willing to through themselves into a task before knowing what it was. It was a wonder they survived childhood, let alone adulthood.
"I need to send two people to Muggle London, as quickly as possible. Can they Floo over to your place? It's safe- the Floo network in and out of the school can't be monitored. They'll just take a taxi to the airport." Dumbledore didn't tell Lupin who the people were, or why they were being sent away, and Lupin nodded in understanding.
"Of course they can come. Are they allergic to dogs, by any chance?" Harry grinned. Snuffles would be there! He sneaked another look at Snape, who was now sending a death-glare in the direction of the fire. Suddenly he felt less sure about their safe arrival. If Sirius and Snape started fighting again, they'd never leave, much less arrive.
"No, not at all. Although," Dumbledore hesitated, shaking his head in exasperation at Snape, "It might be advisable to send him out for a walk or lock him in the bedroom for a while. I'll send them in about half an hour." Lupin nodded again and blinked out. The fire returned to its former state, burning cheerfully.
"Headmaster, this simply can't-" Snape wanted to scream, but held himself back. There was, after all, a student present. Dumbledore stopped him before he could get into his tirade.
"No Severus, it is the only safe option. You'll simply have to avoid Sirius, and for once ignore him, if you can."
"I've bee trying to ignore him for over twenty years, Albus. He always starts something." Snape sighed and gave up, knowing that this was one argument he didn't want to get into again; not when they were racing against time, anyway.
"I'll trust you both to act your ages for once." Dumbledore said. Snape snorted in disbelief. Even Harry wasn't quite sure about it, but he said nothing. "Now, if we're all finished with that, I need to procure some Muggle money for you. Tap your wands here." He pulled a large square box out from under the sofa, and pointed at a blue button on one of the sides. Harry did so. Streams of smoke flowed out of a chimney-like opening and arranged themselves to read '711'. The smoke blinked red, then turned blue. "Would you like to make a transaction?" a disembodied voice asked. Harry stared, unsure of what to do next.
"Tell it how much money you want." Dumbledore explained, "Specify Muggle currency. I think two hundred should be enough for a while."
"Um, I need two hundred pounds, British." Harry said hesitantly. The smoke turned green, then disappeared. A small stack of bills came out of a slot at the bottom of the box. "Thank you." Harry said before he could think, but the machine surprised him even further when it answered.
"You're welcome. A fee of one galleon will be deducted from your vault for this transaction. Would you like to make another transaction?"
Snape tapped his wand on the button, and drew money from his own vault. Since no one looked like they were going to explain, Harry asked.
"What is that, anyway?"
"That, Harry, is the magical equivalent of a Muggle automatic teller machine. It is connected to the Hogsmeade office of Gringots, and we can use it to get money without going all the way there. To avoid stealing, your vault can only be opened by you personally, a person with a written permission, or your wand signature through one of these boxes. It's very ingenious really. Now you are nearly set to go. Severus, go see Madam Pomfrey before you leave, please. We'll wait here."
"I don't see why, headmaster." Snape said stiffly.
"Because you're not well, because you need to, and because I'm asking nicely. Go." Dumbledore replied, meeting Snape's glare with one of his own.
"I'm fine, Albus. I have everything I need. It would be better if we could just leave as soon as possible." And get this over with, Snape thought sullenly. He was tired, sore, worried and repressing the previous night as well as he could. Having Poppy fussing over him would do nothing to improve it. Dumbledore sighed.
"Very well, Severus, I'll say it another way." He was obviously losing his patience. "I have a few things to say to Harry privately. Could you give us a few minutes?"
Snape glared at the headmaster, then at Harry who shrank back involuntarily. He stood up, turned away without saying anything, and stomped outside, slamming the door hard.
"With all due respect, Professor, that was kinda stupid. Now he's going to be angry with both of us for the next millenium." Harry said. And I'll be the one who'll suffer most of it, he added silently in his mind.
"No, he'll cool off soon. As soon as you're safely in the air, I'd imagine. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I know that you two don't much like each other-"
"Understatement of the year." Harry snorted.
"Maybe, but you need to at least trust each other if you want to stay alive. Will you make an effort, Harry?" Dumbledore looked straight into Harry's eyes, his gaze almost disturbingly calm and earnest. Harry nodded.
"I'll do my best not to annoy him too much. I'll just avoid him if I can."
"I doubt that'll be an option, Harry, but I trust your patience and maturity. Now, there are a few things you need to know before you leave. First of all, what I said about not using your wands- I meant it. Use them only in emergencies, please, for your own safety. Except in one case, which might not seem like an emergency, but will necessitate wand using." Dumbledore now looked deathly serious. "You know, of course, that the Dark Mark is more than just a symbol." Harry nodded.
"Voldemort said he uses them to summon the Death Eaters." He shuddered at the memories of the previous summer. "Wherever they are, they have to Apparate to him when he calls."
"Exactly. Now, the call is usually strong enough to find even such people who don't use their magic, even very far away."
"Professor Snape, you mean?" Harry asked.
"Yes. It can also be quite painful and distracting. What Voldemort and most Death Eaters don't know is that there is a charm to soothe the call, and the pain. It's complicated, but I think you should try to learn it. It'll help you in the long run. Are you willing to learn it?"
"Yes." Harry said, "but will Snape actually let me?"
"Professor Snape, Harry, and try to remember he is still a teacher, might put up a bit of a fight, but if it works once he'll probably learn to accept help. Now, hold your wand like this-" It didn't take Harry more than ten minutes to learn the basics of the charm, which involved a long incantation and careful positioning of the wand. Dumbledore gave Harry a scroll with training instructions. "The most important element in this spell is the caster's sincere wish to help and to counter Voldemort's power. I don't think you'll have any difficulties with that. Now I think you should both be on your way." He raised his voice slightly, "Severus, you can come back in now."
"Thank you." Snape said coldly, still glaring daggers at the headmaster. "Can we leave now, before you remember any other 'useful tips', headmaster?"
"Quite, Severus, quite. Good luck to you both. If you need to contact me, send messages through one of Monique's contacts in England." Dumbledore shook their hands thoughtfully and opened a small box of Floo powder. Snape went first, snarling 'Remus Lupin's house' at the fire before disappearing. Harry did the same.
The wave of vertigo that came over him reminded him just how much he hated traveling by Floo. He came out of the fireplace in an ungraceful heap, panting and covered in ash. He pulled himself up and came face to face with Snape's glower.
"Don't waste time, Potter. Let's go."
"Welcome, Harry." A much more welcoming and cheerful voice came from behind the irate teacher, and Harry looked around to see Lupin sitting on the couch on the other side of the room. 'Why don't you stay for a cup of tea? And tell me why you're both leaving Hogwarts in the middle of the year?"
"We don't have time for interrogations, Lupin. Our plane leaves in less than four hours." Snape replied, "If Dumbledore'd wanted you to know, he would have told you, I'm sure. Now let us pass."
"I'm really sorry, but professor Snape's probably right. I don't know how long it'll take us to get to Heathrow from here, and how long we'd need for check in and such. I'd tell you, but." It felt weird to be worried about traffic and checking-in, both things Harry knew very little about, really. It struck him how out of touch with the 'normal' world he was. "It's a real emergency, though."
"I'm sure it is, if you're leaving so suddenly. I suppose you'd better leave, then. Before Sirius comes back, anyway." Lupin looked as worried as Harry felt about a confrontation between the two old enemies. "I sent him to the grocery store for supplies. Do you need anything?"
"A taxi." Harry said before Snape had a chance to say something hurtful. "We have pretty much everything else we need. Can you call one for us or should we get one outside?"
"There aren't too many taxies in this neighborhood most of the time. I'd better call." Lupin replied and walked into the next room to call. The tense silence was broken by Sirius Black's cheerful call no more than a minute later.
"Honey, I'm home!" The renegade wizard called, then stopped cold when he saw his visitors. "What's he doing here?" He asked, his voice filled with loathing, "And Harry? Is something wrong?"
"You can say that, yeah." Harry gave him a quick hug, "We were hoping we wouldn't bother you too much. We're only using Lupin's place as a stop. We need to get to the airport."
"We? You're leaving with him?" Black's voice was disdainful, "Has Dumbledore finally realized he's traumatized enough students? And where exactly are you taking my Godson?" He asked.
"Someplace safe, Black, which will be even safer since you don't know about it and aren't in a position to-"
"Don't say it!" Harry yelled.
"-betray us." Snape finished, a cold sneer on his face. Sirius snarled and drew his wand. Lupin held him back as Harry jumped between the two as a buffer.
"He didn't mean it, Sirius!" He said quickly. "Lupin will explain, but we're really late. Ask Dumbledore- he'll explain. Thanks for your help!" While Sirius struggled against Lupin's hold on him, Harry caught Snape by the sleeve and physically dragged him out of the apartment and into the street.
"Get your hands off me, Potter!" Snape ordered angrily. "How dare you manhandle me!"
"It was that or risk a duel between you two, and neither one of you is supposed to use your wands." Harry said, too distraught by the near- catastrophe to remember who he was talking to, and that he should be terrified. "That was a really, really stupid thing to say."
"I don't need your help in picking my words. I say what I mean. Thirty points from Griffindor for assaulting a teacher, and I'll make it fifty if you open your mouth again before we get to the airport." The older wizard snapped. Harry wanted to point out that they weren't in school anymore and Snape couldn't take away house points, but refrained. He wanted to survive the trip with his head still attached, after all. Silently, he entered the back seat of the cab.
Fortunately for him, the room he shared with the other boys was empty. He assumed everyone had gone down to breakfast. Since Ron knew that he was going to talk to Dumbledore, no one would miss him for at least an hour, and since it was Saturday and the last Hogsmeade weekend before the vacation, most of his friends would be too busy to notice for even longer. He dug through his trunk and found a fairly shabby rucksack that he'd had no occasion to use in a while. He levitated all his normal clothes in, and was surprised to find that he really didn't have that many of them. Pulling off his school robes, he inspected the jeans and shirt he was wearing under them. Clean enough for the trip, he decided. By now, the bag was more than halfway full. Tucking his wand into his back pocket, Harry started sorting through his other belongings as well. Over the summer he'd taken to disguising some of his more important school books as Muggle books, which he knew his uncle and aunt would have no problem with, and he did the same spell now on two or three of them. Magical books that they were, they shrunk themselves to fit into the bag. Harry added a small packet of every flavor beans, and, with a pang of regret, realized that he'd have to leave his Firebolt behind. He wondered if they played Quidditch in the States.
There weren't many things that he thought he'd need now. He thought about taking some parchment and quills, but decided to get used to pens and paper again- he could get those at any stationary store. He threw in toiletries and an extra pair of shoes. Then his eyes fell on the album Hagrid had given him at the end of his first year, and he added that as well. There really wasn't very much room left in the bag now. He tucked in his pocket Sneakoscope for good measure, then closed the bag.
Now that he was finished, Harry's brain started working again and he realized several things: 1) He was going to live in the States for a while, 2) None of his friends were going to know where he was- he even thought that Dumbledore might do a Fidelis charm, and most disturbingly, 3) He was going to have to live with Snape and not kill his or get killed by him. While he was fairly certain that the potions teacher didn't quite want to kill him anymore, the fact remained that they hated each other still, and that Voldemort was offering an exchange- Harry's life for Snape's. He knew Dumbledore wouldn't send either one of them away without being completely sure it was safe, but the coming weeks were certainly going to be difficult. Well, Harry decided, he could always do what he usually did at home and stay silent and out of the way as much as possible. With any luck, Snape would let him go exploring outside a bit.No, of course he wouldn't. Not safe. Harry was starting to feel sorry for himself, but stopped when he noticed that he only had a few minutes left to go up to the owlery and say goodbye to Hedwig. He knew there were bound to be at least one or two students in the halls, but with the invisibility cloak, no one would bother him.
Harry gave Hedwig her orders, as well as Ron and Hermione's Christmas gifts to deliver a few days after he left. The snowy owl didn't look too unhappy with her duty- it was understandable that Harry couldn't take her with him. She'd be happy in the school owlery, and would join him in a week.
On the way back downstairs, Harry noticed a distinct chill in the air, and remembered that he hadn't packed a coat- didn't have one, in fact. He'd used his school cloaks at Hogwarts, and hadn't needed a coat over the summer. He was going to be quite cold, he realized, unless.He slipped back into his dorm, snatched his cloak from a hanger. They had studied object-to- object transfigurations, and while he wasn't too good at them, he could manage cloak into coat. The garment stayed black, but had proper sleeves and buttons now. Satisfied that he was as prepared as he'd ever be to mix with the 'normal' world again, Harry returned to Dumbledore's office, and made his way up the stairs. Snape was already there, in heated conversation with the headmaster.
"Is the absolutely no other possible place, Albus? And no other person?"
"No, Severus. Our biggest advantage over Voldemort is that we have contacts with the muggle world. I trust Monique implicitly, and Seattle is the farthest away I can send you and still be in touch. I could send you to Avalon, but, well, after the last time." Snape scowled, "Besides, you'd have the Unseelie court to handle there. The States it is."
"But I don't like Americans. They're ignorant boors." Snape sighed. Harry was very, very glad, once again, of his invisibility cloak. Avalon sounded very interesting.
"Would you prefer getting tortured and killed by Voldemort?" Dumbledore asked with a note of impatience much like the one Harry had heard the previous summer. Snape shook his head in reply.
"Ask me again in two weeks." He sat down. Harry snuck outside again, took off the cloak and reentered. Dumbledore smiled at him.
"All packed, Harry? Excellent." He checked his watch again. "You have about four hours before your flight leaves. Unfortunately, all I could get at this short notice were first class tickets, which are considerably more expensive, but I think you can both handle it. Besides, if you have to fly, do it in style. Fortunately, it's a direct flight. Here are your tickets."
"Sir," Something occurred to Harry just then that, once again, made him very worried, "I just realized, I don't have a passport- I don't have any papers at all, really, except my wizard ID." Harry had gotten one on his fifteenth birthday, delivered by a Ministry owl, as had all his friends on their birthdays. Dumbledore nodded, smiling.
"Yes, I thought about that. Fortunately, I have a friend who deals with just these things. I had a new one made for you as well, Severus, as your old one probably expired." The headmaster handed each of them a British passport. Harry inspected it- it looked completely real and legal. Being a wizard with wizard friends was useful sometimes. It had his picture, a muggle still one, and his name.
"Can we use our read names, Professor? I thought we're hiding. Don't we need, um, false ID's and such?" Harry asked after hesitating for a moment. The whole hiding thing was making him uncomfortable. The truth was that he didn't want to escape. He wanted to stay and fight, and letting himself be sent away seed a cowardly thing to do. Still he knew that he had no choice. He'd never want anybody else to be hurt on his account. The further away he was from the school, the safer everybody was. Snape sneered at him.
"This isn't a James Bond movie, Potter. As much as it may surprise you, not many people know who you are outside of England. It might take you a while to get used to not being a celebrity." The teacher's face was unreadable, except or the constant sneer. Harry was too stumped by Snape's casual Muggle reference to respond.
"Now, now, Severus. A simple explanation would have been enough. You two need to leave. I've contacted Monique- she knows you're coming, and she will wait for you at the airport. Harry, do you know how to get to the airport from your uncle's house? You can Floo there."
"Um, I don't think that's such a good idea, Professor." Harry interrupted, "My family.they won't be very happy about it. They don't like wizards." He looked at Snape out of the corner of his eye. Did he have to look so interested in the conversation? "Also, my uncle bricked up the fireplace after last year, so we can't use it anymore." And had gotten more angry than Harry had ever seen him during the first week of the summer vacation. Visiting the Dursleys now would be a very bad idea indeed.
"Why on Earth would he do that?" Dumbledore wondered aloud, and Harry shrugged, not wanting to repeat any of the things Uncle Vernon had said about 'those filthy, sneaky, horrid housebreaking bastards.' "Well, I do have an alternative. Remus Lupin is living in Muggle London at the moment, and I'm sure that you can use his fireplace. He is already connected to the Floo network. Let's see if he's home."
Harry hadn't known that. His spirits rose immediately. He liked Lupin a lot, and there was also a chance that the former teacher had a way to tell Harry's godfather about what was going on. Snape's scowl deepened. It was turning out to be a very bad day for him, but he said nothing. Dumbledore through a pinch of powder on the fire, which turned green briefly. "Remus Lupin's house." He called. Not thirty seconds later, the familiar face appeared.
"Albus. How nice of you to call." Lupin seemed tired and slightly ill. Harry counted back and realized that it was only two days after the full moon. Even with the wolfsbane potion, the transformation took a lot of energy out of the werewolf.
"I know, Remus, and I'm sorry to bother you at such a bad time, but this is an emergency."
"How can I help?" Lupin was instantly alert, and Snape sneered again. They were all like eager little puppies, willing to through themselves into a task before knowing what it was. It was a wonder they survived childhood, let alone adulthood.
"I need to send two people to Muggle London, as quickly as possible. Can they Floo over to your place? It's safe- the Floo network in and out of the school can't be monitored. They'll just take a taxi to the airport." Dumbledore didn't tell Lupin who the people were, or why they were being sent away, and Lupin nodded in understanding.
"Of course they can come. Are they allergic to dogs, by any chance?" Harry grinned. Snuffles would be there! He sneaked another look at Snape, who was now sending a death-glare in the direction of the fire. Suddenly he felt less sure about their safe arrival. If Sirius and Snape started fighting again, they'd never leave, much less arrive.
"No, not at all. Although," Dumbledore hesitated, shaking his head in exasperation at Snape, "It might be advisable to send him out for a walk or lock him in the bedroom for a while. I'll send them in about half an hour." Lupin nodded again and blinked out. The fire returned to its former state, burning cheerfully.
"Headmaster, this simply can't-" Snape wanted to scream, but held himself back. There was, after all, a student present. Dumbledore stopped him before he could get into his tirade.
"No Severus, it is the only safe option. You'll simply have to avoid Sirius, and for once ignore him, if you can."
"I've bee trying to ignore him for over twenty years, Albus. He always starts something." Snape sighed and gave up, knowing that this was one argument he didn't want to get into again; not when they were racing against time, anyway.
"I'll trust you both to act your ages for once." Dumbledore said. Snape snorted in disbelief. Even Harry wasn't quite sure about it, but he said nothing. "Now, if we're all finished with that, I need to procure some Muggle money for you. Tap your wands here." He pulled a large square box out from under the sofa, and pointed at a blue button on one of the sides. Harry did so. Streams of smoke flowed out of a chimney-like opening and arranged themselves to read '711'. The smoke blinked red, then turned blue. "Would you like to make a transaction?" a disembodied voice asked. Harry stared, unsure of what to do next.
"Tell it how much money you want." Dumbledore explained, "Specify Muggle currency. I think two hundred should be enough for a while."
"Um, I need two hundred pounds, British." Harry said hesitantly. The smoke turned green, then disappeared. A small stack of bills came out of a slot at the bottom of the box. "Thank you." Harry said before he could think, but the machine surprised him even further when it answered.
"You're welcome. A fee of one galleon will be deducted from your vault for this transaction. Would you like to make another transaction?"
Snape tapped his wand on the button, and drew money from his own vault. Since no one looked like they were going to explain, Harry asked.
"What is that, anyway?"
"That, Harry, is the magical equivalent of a Muggle automatic teller machine. It is connected to the Hogsmeade office of Gringots, and we can use it to get money without going all the way there. To avoid stealing, your vault can only be opened by you personally, a person with a written permission, or your wand signature through one of these boxes. It's very ingenious really. Now you are nearly set to go. Severus, go see Madam Pomfrey before you leave, please. We'll wait here."
"I don't see why, headmaster." Snape said stiffly.
"Because you're not well, because you need to, and because I'm asking nicely. Go." Dumbledore replied, meeting Snape's glare with one of his own.
"I'm fine, Albus. I have everything I need. It would be better if we could just leave as soon as possible." And get this over with, Snape thought sullenly. He was tired, sore, worried and repressing the previous night as well as he could. Having Poppy fussing over him would do nothing to improve it. Dumbledore sighed.
"Very well, Severus, I'll say it another way." He was obviously losing his patience. "I have a few things to say to Harry privately. Could you give us a few minutes?"
Snape glared at the headmaster, then at Harry who shrank back involuntarily. He stood up, turned away without saying anything, and stomped outside, slamming the door hard.
"With all due respect, Professor, that was kinda stupid. Now he's going to be angry with both of us for the next millenium." Harry said. And I'll be the one who'll suffer most of it, he added silently in his mind.
"No, he'll cool off soon. As soon as you're safely in the air, I'd imagine. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I know that you two don't much like each other-"
"Understatement of the year." Harry snorted.
"Maybe, but you need to at least trust each other if you want to stay alive. Will you make an effort, Harry?" Dumbledore looked straight into Harry's eyes, his gaze almost disturbingly calm and earnest. Harry nodded.
"I'll do my best not to annoy him too much. I'll just avoid him if I can."
"I doubt that'll be an option, Harry, but I trust your patience and maturity. Now, there are a few things you need to know before you leave. First of all, what I said about not using your wands- I meant it. Use them only in emergencies, please, for your own safety. Except in one case, which might not seem like an emergency, but will necessitate wand using." Dumbledore now looked deathly serious. "You know, of course, that the Dark Mark is more than just a symbol." Harry nodded.
"Voldemort said he uses them to summon the Death Eaters." He shuddered at the memories of the previous summer. "Wherever they are, they have to Apparate to him when he calls."
"Exactly. Now, the call is usually strong enough to find even such people who don't use their magic, even very far away."
"Professor Snape, you mean?" Harry asked.
"Yes. It can also be quite painful and distracting. What Voldemort and most Death Eaters don't know is that there is a charm to soothe the call, and the pain. It's complicated, but I think you should try to learn it. It'll help you in the long run. Are you willing to learn it?"
"Yes." Harry said, "but will Snape actually let me?"
"Professor Snape, Harry, and try to remember he is still a teacher, might put up a bit of a fight, but if it works once he'll probably learn to accept help. Now, hold your wand like this-" It didn't take Harry more than ten minutes to learn the basics of the charm, which involved a long incantation and careful positioning of the wand. Dumbledore gave Harry a scroll with training instructions. "The most important element in this spell is the caster's sincere wish to help and to counter Voldemort's power. I don't think you'll have any difficulties with that. Now I think you should both be on your way." He raised his voice slightly, "Severus, you can come back in now."
"Thank you." Snape said coldly, still glaring daggers at the headmaster. "Can we leave now, before you remember any other 'useful tips', headmaster?"
"Quite, Severus, quite. Good luck to you both. If you need to contact me, send messages through one of Monique's contacts in England." Dumbledore shook their hands thoughtfully and opened a small box of Floo powder. Snape went first, snarling 'Remus Lupin's house' at the fire before disappearing. Harry did the same.
The wave of vertigo that came over him reminded him just how much he hated traveling by Floo. He came out of the fireplace in an ungraceful heap, panting and covered in ash. He pulled himself up and came face to face with Snape's glower.
"Don't waste time, Potter. Let's go."
"Welcome, Harry." A much more welcoming and cheerful voice came from behind the irate teacher, and Harry looked around to see Lupin sitting on the couch on the other side of the room. 'Why don't you stay for a cup of tea? And tell me why you're both leaving Hogwarts in the middle of the year?"
"We don't have time for interrogations, Lupin. Our plane leaves in less than four hours." Snape replied, "If Dumbledore'd wanted you to know, he would have told you, I'm sure. Now let us pass."
"I'm really sorry, but professor Snape's probably right. I don't know how long it'll take us to get to Heathrow from here, and how long we'd need for check in and such. I'd tell you, but." It felt weird to be worried about traffic and checking-in, both things Harry knew very little about, really. It struck him how out of touch with the 'normal' world he was. "It's a real emergency, though."
"I'm sure it is, if you're leaving so suddenly. I suppose you'd better leave, then. Before Sirius comes back, anyway." Lupin looked as worried as Harry felt about a confrontation between the two old enemies. "I sent him to the grocery store for supplies. Do you need anything?"
"A taxi." Harry said before Snape had a chance to say something hurtful. "We have pretty much everything else we need. Can you call one for us or should we get one outside?"
"There aren't too many taxies in this neighborhood most of the time. I'd better call." Lupin replied and walked into the next room to call. The tense silence was broken by Sirius Black's cheerful call no more than a minute later.
"Honey, I'm home!" The renegade wizard called, then stopped cold when he saw his visitors. "What's he doing here?" He asked, his voice filled with loathing, "And Harry? Is something wrong?"
"You can say that, yeah." Harry gave him a quick hug, "We were hoping we wouldn't bother you too much. We're only using Lupin's place as a stop. We need to get to the airport."
"We? You're leaving with him?" Black's voice was disdainful, "Has Dumbledore finally realized he's traumatized enough students? And where exactly are you taking my Godson?" He asked.
"Someplace safe, Black, which will be even safer since you don't know about it and aren't in a position to-"
"Don't say it!" Harry yelled.
"-betray us." Snape finished, a cold sneer on his face. Sirius snarled and drew his wand. Lupin held him back as Harry jumped between the two as a buffer.
"He didn't mean it, Sirius!" He said quickly. "Lupin will explain, but we're really late. Ask Dumbledore- he'll explain. Thanks for your help!" While Sirius struggled against Lupin's hold on him, Harry caught Snape by the sleeve and physically dragged him out of the apartment and into the street.
"Get your hands off me, Potter!" Snape ordered angrily. "How dare you manhandle me!"
"It was that or risk a duel between you two, and neither one of you is supposed to use your wands." Harry said, too distraught by the near- catastrophe to remember who he was talking to, and that he should be terrified. "That was a really, really stupid thing to say."
"I don't need your help in picking my words. I say what I mean. Thirty points from Griffindor for assaulting a teacher, and I'll make it fifty if you open your mouth again before we get to the airport." The older wizard snapped. Harry wanted to point out that they weren't in school anymore and Snape couldn't take away house points, but refrained. He wanted to survive the trip with his head still attached, after all. Silently, he entered the back seat of the cab.