A/N: Another chapter! **Gasp** Have I finally got this up and running well? ;-) Gees, I hope so! Thanx 4 ur reviews, their really cool!
Disclaimer: Mine, all mine!!! **Evil cackles** Sue all ya want, I don't care!!!
Dedication: Silvermoon, a.k.a. Skywalker. **Snickers** U readin' this? Also, lilmissperfect (See, you now have 2 dedications!), and also Jewels (continued A.S.A.P!).
Harry Potter and the Crystal of Dreams.
"Is it me, or are we getting more and more work?" Ron asked in a low voice, which unfortunately was heard throughout the silent Potions dungeons. Snape swept over like a lethifold, an unplesant sneer on his lips.
"Please keep your complaints about your own stupidity for after class, Weasley," he hissed acidly. "Ten points from Gryffindor."
Just as he was about to head off to terrorize Neville, there was a gasp of pain next to Hermione as Shannon accidently sliced her finger instead of the Bobotuber roots she was cutting up. Eyes glittering maliciously, Snape turned to her.
"And a further ten points from Gryffindor for Miss Parks's decision to disobey my requests as soon as I had laid them down." The sneer grew until Snape's top lip was in danger of toppling over into his nose. Shannon's eyes narrowed at his turned back as she sucked her cut finger.
Snape was halfway across the cold room to Neville when there came a jaunty knock at the door. He twisted around, look becoming increasingly sour as he glared at the door. Another rally of cheerful knocks.
"Enter!" he shouted angrily. The door opened slowly to reveal a blonde woman no taller than the student he had been expecting to be standing there. Harry was the only one to recognise her as Chloe- with a mischievous glint in her eyes that made the genuineness of her polite smile extremely poor.
Snape was certainly more displeased with the person there than with any student. He swelled up in a mixture of anger and dislike, and Harry wondered if he'd explode. It would definitely make the class more interesting. Unfortunately, the Potions master did not blow up, but instead said something, voice poisoned with the severity of his hatred.
"Miss Taylor, I would appreciate it greatly if you would learn some manners and not interrupt my classes like this!"
Chloe's impish look grew as she replied, "At least I knocked. I have come to ask if I could borrow Mr Potter for a while please? It's important." Her cat-like eyes surveyed the watchful class until they rested on Harry, an instant before she looked back at Snape.
"Potter has another half hour of Potions to complete. As you are not a teacher, I suggest you achieve the permission of an authority before you come barging into classes in progress."
"Alas Sn...Severus," Chloe said sarcastically as she came further into the room, correcting her mistake. "There are indeed more important people than you, and it is the permission of one such authority that I have." She turned from Snape to Harry. "Come along, Harry."
Harry pushed back the bench, the scraping of the legs against the flagstones echoing in the dankness. He exchanged a glance with his friends before sliding his books into his bag and walking out to join Chloe. Her smile was real now as she lead him outside into the corridor. Once the door had shut behind her, she put her finger to her lips, warning him to stay silent. She opened the door again rapidly, gaining the entire class's attention yet again.
Harry could only imagine the pure fury on Snape's sallow face as Chloe said, "Oh, and Severus? It was really great seeing you again. You haven't changed a bit." The door banged shut as she pulled it closed and they began off again.
"Well, I'm pleased with myself," Chloe announced as they started off up the stairs to the next floor. "Twelve years and I can still annoy Snape like hell."
Harry laughed. "Don't think I'm not pleased to see you, Chloe, but...what are you doing here?"
"Ah, you remember the other time we met?" Harry nodded. "About those murders near Rodez in France?" A pause and then another nod. "Well, we'd like you to meet some people who've been researching into that, and we want you to hear the answers. OK?"
"Fine."
There was silence for the rest of the way to the office. Both of them wanted to start a conversation, but didn't know what to say. Eventually, the stone gargoyle loomed up ahead.
"Liquorice allsorts," Chloe said. The gargoyle sprang to life and out of their path, allowing them to go through to the staircase. She shook her head. "Wonder who chooses these passwords."
"Dumbledore I guess." Harry replied. A moment later, they were knocking on the door to the study.
"Come in." Dumbledore called. They obeyed, and Harry found Dumbledore chatting with two women, again about what his mother's age would be now. They watched him with a mixture of reminiscence, delight, and sadness in their eyes.
"Harry," said Chloe, "I'd like you to meet Lucinda Boot and Nina Johnson, also good friends of your parents."
Lucinda was a little taller than Chloe, quite studious-looking with rich brown hair that flowed to her shoulders and bright brown eyes behind black-rimmed glasses. She smiled as she stood up to shake Harry's hand. She said, "Prongs walks again. I'm really glad to meet you again, Harry."
"So am I." The next person to shake his hand was a tall woman with long black hair and light brown skin. He did a mental double-take. Nina- for that was her name- was almost exactly an older replica of Angelina Johnson. In the next moment, the name similarity hit him.
They seated themselves in the row of four chairs in front of Dumbledore's desk once he had also bade Harry welcome. Dumbledore pressed his long fingertips together, light blue eyes surveying his three ex-pupils and one current student. Eventually, he spoke.
"Nina, Lucinda, I believe you have some news for us?"
The two newcomers exchanged a quick glance before facing the other three. Lucinda spoke up first.
"After the reports of the murders in Rodez, as you all heard about, Nina and I were requested to do a little investigating. We went to France as representatives of Professor Dumbledore and we were welcomed at the French Ministry of Magic in Paris."
Nina continued, "They seemed quite polite but almost as if they didn't want us to find out too much about it." She gave a short laugh. "If you ask me, they've been talking too much with Cornelius Fudge. Seem to think that magical people will just eat up the same story the muggles were given- natural causes, possibly carbon monoxide poisoning or whatever. But we then went further down the country to the actual village."
"We told them at the mortuary we were friends of two of the deceased," Lucinda said. "It was easy enough. They didn't ask for proof, but they shouldn't because we seemed perfectly normal. But we viewed both bodies before they were to be taken away for burial by the families a few days later and viewed some records, and guess what we found?"
Three intrigued expressions faced the reporting women. Lucinda sighed tiredly, pushing back a strand of her brunette mane as she took a quick look at Nina. Nina sighed too.
"What we found was absolutely nothing. No marks on the bodies, no abnormalities, absolutely nothing that would seem...well, like a death by muggle causes. All the signs point to a curse. Most likely..."
A silence hung where Nina had meant to finish 'Avada Kedavra'. Thos two words stung bitterly in the hearts of them all.
Chloe broke the uncomfortable stillness. "Well, you certainly did a good job. I think what we need to find out is what reasons Voldemort would have to do something like this and see if they fit the circumstances."
"Very good, Chloe." Dumbledore said, a small smile hovering under his moustache. "Your skills and perception are still as sharp as they used to be."
Chloe's returning smile was a little embittered. "You don't work as an Auror for eighteen years and learn nothing, even if Fudge is convinced that some of us are working against him."
Harry said gloomily, "He thinks I'm lying about seeing Voldemort coming back."
Chloe squeezed his hand briefly, her smile now comforting. "Fudge is an idiot. He believes that if he can ignore a problem, it'll just go away. And it doesn't work that way."
"Despite the rumors," Dumbledore cut in. "The majority of the wizarding world are still doubtful of Voldemort's rebirth."
Lucinda pushed her glasses up a bit. "Three people have been suspended from the Ministry for speaking of such things. Fudge accused them of scare mongering."
"The blindness of one man cannot stall us." Dumbledore said gravely. "We are not against him, for our enemy is a common one, but we shall have to carry out things he will not like."
Nina looked thoughtful. "You know what? I would have thought that Rita Skeeter woman would have picked up on a story like this. She seems to love having a go at anything and anyone."
Harry looked down somewhat guiltily as Dumbledore's eyes flickered briefly to him- almost as if he knew how Hermione had threatened to reveal the atrocious bottle-blonde reporter as an illegal Anamagi if she carried on writing her exaggerated and vicious reports. He didn't feel sorry for Rita, mainly due to the fact he had been her favourite victim for the past year, but it was hard not to feel a tiny bit guilt-ridden when Dumbledore seemed to know already about what had happened. It felt almost like lying to him.
"Ms Skeeter has curiously not been seen since last summer." Dumbledore said, glancing again fleetingly at Harry. "Perhaps it is for the best that she is not involved in this."
"Too right." Chloe muttered under her breath, so that only Harry, sitting next to her, could hear her. But he had the distinct impression that Dumbledore was also listening to her words.
"I suggest that perhaps this meeting is drawn to a present close soon." Dumbledore said. "Unless anyone else has anything to say? Harry?"
Harry shook his head as two pairs of blue eyes and two pairs of brown eyes watched him. "Er, no, I don't have anything to say."
Chloe glanced at her watch and stood up suddenly. "Oh damn, I've said I'd meet Arthur Weasley and some others in about ten minutes. I'd better leave...may I use your fireplace, professor?"
The headmaster nodded. "Of course, Chloe. Travel well."
She smiled. "I will." To Harry, she said, "Keep safe, sweetie, I'll see you soon." To her friends, she said, "I'll catch up with you later, OK?"
"Sure. See you later, Kat." Nina replied. Lucinda nodded.
Chloe went up to the fireplace and drew a small bag from the pocket of her jeans. From within it, she excavated some Floo powder and threw it into the flames. The fire became a scintillating emerald as she replaced the bag and glanced back with a quick smile. Chloe stepped into the fire, yelled, "Auror's Department!", and vanished. The fire returned to its usual scarlet.
"Nina, Lucinda," Dumbledore said, "I assume that you would not pass off the chance to greet your children now that you're here?" Interest sparked in both womens' eyes as they too stood up. "If you hurry you may be able to catch them on their way to lunch."
"Certainly, professor," Lucinda said. "Nina and I will try to look further into this matter, and then report to you as soon as we can." She smiled at Harry, as did Nina. "It was really good to meet you, Harry, as I said before."
"Yeah." Nina continued. "We'll see you soon." She turned to Lucinda. "Here, Luci, can you imagine my Angelina's face when she sees me?"
Harry's wonders were brought back to the front of his mind again. "Do you know Angelina then?"
"Of course," Nina said with a widening of her smile. "She's my daughter. Tells me you're a great Seeker."
"Thanks." Harry didn't know what else to say.
"And Lucinda here is the mother of a boy in your year." Nina said. "Terry Boot, Ravenclaw?"
"Er...yeah, I know him."
"Great. We'll see you later then."
Harry watched them leave before Dumbledore said, "Harry?"
Harry turned back to the headmaster. "Yes, professor?"
Dumbledore watched him gravely before continuing, "Harry, if there is at all anything troubling you, I want you to come immediately to a teacher or to an adult you can trust. Do you understand?"
Part of Harry felt a little indignant. Did they think he wasn't capable, that he couldn't look after himself for five minutes? It made him feel weak.
The other part of Harry felt relief. Relief that he knew that he could come to somebody about things worrying him.
The emotions conflicted for a minute until he replied, "I understand. Thank you."
*****
;-P The next chapter wuz gonna be added onto this, but heck, it'd make it too long I reckon. So, now review. If you're wondering why, here's a chemical equation:
Reading a chapter + reviewing = Happy Shadowz + Quicker writing/uploading
So go 'head! Cheers!
Disclaimer: Mine, all mine!!! **Evil cackles** Sue all ya want, I don't care!!!
Dedication: Silvermoon, a.k.a. Skywalker. **Snickers** U readin' this? Also, lilmissperfect (See, you now have 2 dedications!), and also Jewels (continued A.S.A.P!).
Harry Potter and the Crystal of Dreams.
"Is it me, or are we getting more and more work?" Ron asked in a low voice, which unfortunately was heard throughout the silent Potions dungeons. Snape swept over like a lethifold, an unplesant sneer on his lips.
"Please keep your complaints about your own stupidity for after class, Weasley," he hissed acidly. "Ten points from Gryffindor."
Just as he was about to head off to terrorize Neville, there was a gasp of pain next to Hermione as Shannon accidently sliced her finger instead of the Bobotuber roots she was cutting up. Eyes glittering maliciously, Snape turned to her.
"And a further ten points from Gryffindor for Miss Parks's decision to disobey my requests as soon as I had laid them down." The sneer grew until Snape's top lip was in danger of toppling over into his nose. Shannon's eyes narrowed at his turned back as she sucked her cut finger.
Snape was halfway across the cold room to Neville when there came a jaunty knock at the door. He twisted around, look becoming increasingly sour as he glared at the door. Another rally of cheerful knocks.
"Enter!" he shouted angrily. The door opened slowly to reveal a blonde woman no taller than the student he had been expecting to be standing there. Harry was the only one to recognise her as Chloe- with a mischievous glint in her eyes that made the genuineness of her polite smile extremely poor.
Snape was certainly more displeased with the person there than with any student. He swelled up in a mixture of anger and dislike, and Harry wondered if he'd explode. It would definitely make the class more interesting. Unfortunately, the Potions master did not blow up, but instead said something, voice poisoned with the severity of his hatred.
"Miss Taylor, I would appreciate it greatly if you would learn some manners and not interrupt my classes like this!"
Chloe's impish look grew as she replied, "At least I knocked. I have come to ask if I could borrow Mr Potter for a while please? It's important." Her cat-like eyes surveyed the watchful class until they rested on Harry, an instant before she looked back at Snape.
"Potter has another half hour of Potions to complete. As you are not a teacher, I suggest you achieve the permission of an authority before you come barging into classes in progress."
"Alas Sn...Severus," Chloe said sarcastically as she came further into the room, correcting her mistake. "There are indeed more important people than you, and it is the permission of one such authority that I have." She turned from Snape to Harry. "Come along, Harry."
Harry pushed back the bench, the scraping of the legs against the flagstones echoing in the dankness. He exchanged a glance with his friends before sliding his books into his bag and walking out to join Chloe. Her smile was real now as she lead him outside into the corridor. Once the door had shut behind her, she put her finger to her lips, warning him to stay silent. She opened the door again rapidly, gaining the entire class's attention yet again.
Harry could only imagine the pure fury on Snape's sallow face as Chloe said, "Oh, and Severus? It was really great seeing you again. You haven't changed a bit." The door banged shut as she pulled it closed and they began off again.
"Well, I'm pleased with myself," Chloe announced as they started off up the stairs to the next floor. "Twelve years and I can still annoy Snape like hell."
Harry laughed. "Don't think I'm not pleased to see you, Chloe, but...what are you doing here?"
"Ah, you remember the other time we met?" Harry nodded. "About those murders near Rodez in France?" A pause and then another nod. "Well, we'd like you to meet some people who've been researching into that, and we want you to hear the answers. OK?"
"Fine."
There was silence for the rest of the way to the office. Both of them wanted to start a conversation, but didn't know what to say. Eventually, the stone gargoyle loomed up ahead.
"Liquorice allsorts," Chloe said. The gargoyle sprang to life and out of their path, allowing them to go through to the staircase. She shook her head. "Wonder who chooses these passwords."
"Dumbledore I guess." Harry replied. A moment later, they were knocking on the door to the study.
"Come in." Dumbledore called. They obeyed, and Harry found Dumbledore chatting with two women, again about what his mother's age would be now. They watched him with a mixture of reminiscence, delight, and sadness in their eyes.
"Harry," said Chloe, "I'd like you to meet Lucinda Boot and Nina Johnson, also good friends of your parents."
Lucinda was a little taller than Chloe, quite studious-looking with rich brown hair that flowed to her shoulders and bright brown eyes behind black-rimmed glasses. She smiled as she stood up to shake Harry's hand. She said, "Prongs walks again. I'm really glad to meet you again, Harry."
"So am I." The next person to shake his hand was a tall woman with long black hair and light brown skin. He did a mental double-take. Nina- for that was her name- was almost exactly an older replica of Angelina Johnson. In the next moment, the name similarity hit him.
They seated themselves in the row of four chairs in front of Dumbledore's desk once he had also bade Harry welcome. Dumbledore pressed his long fingertips together, light blue eyes surveying his three ex-pupils and one current student. Eventually, he spoke.
"Nina, Lucinda, I believe you have some news for us?"
The two newcomers exchanged a quick glance before facing the other three. Lucinda spoke up first.
"After the reports of the murders in Rodez, as you all heard about, Nina and I were requested to do a little investigating. We went to France as representatives of Professor Dumbledore and we were welcomed at the French Ministry of Magic in Paris."
Nina continued, "They seemed quite polite but almost as if they didn't want us to find out too much about it." She gave a short laugh. "If you ask me, they've been talking too much with Cornelius Fudge. Seem to think that magical people will just eat up the same story the muggles were given- natural causes, possibly carbon monoxide poisoning or whatever. But we then went further down the country to the actual village."
"We told them at the mortuary we were friends of two of the deceased," Lucinda said. "It was easy enough. They didn't ask for proof, but they shouldn't because we seemed perfectly normal. But we viewed both bodies before they were to be taken away for burial by the families a few days later and viewed some records, and guess what we found?"
Three intrigued expressions faced the reporting women. Lucinda sighed tiredly, pushing back a strand of her brunette mane as she took a quick look at Nina. Nina sighed too.
"What we found was absolutely nothing. No marks on the bodies, no abnormalities, absolutely nothing that would seem...well, like a death by muggle causes. All the signs point to a curse. Most likely..."
A silence hung where Nina had meant to finish 'Avada Kedavra'. Thos two words stung bitterly in the hearts of them all.
Chloe broke the uncomfortable stillness. "Well, you certainly did a good job. I think what we need to find out is what reasons Voldemort would have to do something like this and see if they fit the circumstances."
"Very good, Chloe." Dumbledore said, a small smile hovering under his moustache. "Your skills and perception are still as sharp as they used to be."
Chloe's returning smile was a little embittered. "You don't work as an Auror for eighteen years and learn nothing, even if Fudge is convinced that some of us are working against him."
Harry said gloomily, "He thinks I'm lying about seeing Voldemort coming back."
Chloe squeezed his hand briefly, her smile now comforting. "Fudge is an idiot. He believes that if he can ignore a problem, it'll just go away. And it doesn't work that way."
"Despite the rumors," Dumbledore cut in. "The majority of the wizarding world are still doubtful of Voldemort's rebirth."
Lucinda pushed her glasses up a bit. "Three people have been suspended from the Ministry for speaking of such things. Fudge accused them of scare mongering."
"The blindness of one man cannot stall us." Dumbledore said gravely. "We are not against him, for our enemy is a common one, but we shall have to carry out things he will not like."
Nina looked thoughtful. "You know what? I would have thought that Rita Skeeter woman would have picked up on a story like this. She seems to love having a go at anything and anyone."
Harry looked down somewhat guiltily as Dumbledore's eyes flickered briefly to him- almost as if he knew how Hermione had threatened to reveal the atrocious bottle-blonde reporter as an illegal Anamagi if she carried on writing her exaggerated and vicious reports. He didn't feel sorry for Rita, mainly due to the fact he had been her favourite victim for the past year, but it was hard not to feel a tiny bit guilt-ridden when Dumbledore seemed to know already about what had happened. It felt almost like lying to him.
"Ms Skeeter has curiously not been seen since last summer." Dumbledore said, glancing again fleetingly at Harry. "Perhaps it is for the best that she is not involved in this."
"Too right." Chloe muttered under her breath, so that only Harry, sitting next to her, could hear her. But he had the distinct impression that Dumbledore was also listening to her words.
"I suggest that perhaps this meeting is drawn to a present close soon." Dumbledore said. "Unless anyone else has anything to say? Harry?"
Harry shook his head as two pairs of blue eyes and two pairs of brown eyes watched him. "Er, no, I don't have anything to say."
Chloe glanced at her watch and stood up suddenly. "Oh damn, I've said I'd meet Arthur Weasley and some others in about ten minutes. I'd better leave...may I use your fireplace, professor?"
The headmaster nodded. "Of course, Chloe. Travel well."
She smiled. "I will." To Harry, she said, "Keep safe, sweetie, I'll see you soon." To her friends, she said, "I'll catch up with you later, OK?"
"Sure. See you later, Kat." Nina replied. Lucinda nodded.
Chloe went up to the fireplace and drew a small bag from the pocket of her jeans. From within it, she excavated some Floo powder and threw it into the flames. The fire became a scintillating emerald as she replaced the bag and glanced back with a quick smile. Chloe stepped into the fire, yelled, "Auror's Department!", and vanished. The fire returned to its usual scarlet.
"Nina, Lucinda," Dumbledore said, "I assume that you would not pass off the chance to greet your children now that you're here?" Interest sparked in both womens' eyes as they too stood up. "If you hurry you may be able to catch them on their way to lunch."
"Certainly, professor," Lucinda said. "Nina and I will try to look further into this matter, and then report to you as soon as we can." She smiled at Harry, as did Nina. "It was really good to meet you, Harry, as I said before."
"Yeah." Nina continued. "We'll see you soon." She turned to Lucinda. "Here, Luci, can you imagine my Angelina's face when she sees me?"
Harry's wonders were brought back to the front of his mind again. "Do you know Angelina then?"
"Of course," Nina said with a widening of her smile. "She's my daughter. Tells me you're a great Seeker."
"Thanks." Harry didn't know what else to say.
"And Lucinda here is the mother of a boy in your year." Nina said. "Terry Boot, Ravenclaw?"
"Er...yeah, I know him."
"Great. We'll see you later then."
Harry watched them leave before Dumbledore said, "Harry?"
Harry turned back to the headmaster. "Yes, professor?"
Dumbledore watched him gravely before continuing, "Harry, if there is at all anything troubling you, I want you to come immediately to a teacher or to an adult you can trust. Do you understand?"
Part of Harry felt a little indignant. Did they think he wasn't capable, that he couldn't look after himself for five minutes? It made him feel weak.
The other part of Harry felt relief. Relief that he knew that he could come to somebody about things worrying him.
The emotions conflicted for a minute until he replied, "I understand. Thank you."
*****
;-P The next chapter wuz gonna be added onto this, but heck, it'd make it too long I reckon. So, now review. If you're wondering why, here's a chemical equation:
Reading a chapter + reviewing = Happy Shadowz + Quicker writing/uploading
So go 'head! Cheers!