Disclaimer: All characters and universe from the Harry Potter series belong
to JK Rowling and assorted corporations. Original characters and story
belong to the author.
Now sit back and enjoy dear reader . . .
Chapter Four
Harry grinned, a sheepish look on his face, and took out his wand. He touched the tip of it into the silvery liquid and felt that familiar spinning blackness.
The Hogwarts Trophy Room lay before him, dappled in late afternoon sunlight. Harry was standing in the doorway next to a third-year Praline. Her eyes were focused intently on a black-haired, teenage boy sitting smack dab in the middle of the room. He was surrounded entirely by Victory Cups of all shapes and sizes. He rubbed away at a particularly large trophy quickly, paying no attention to the young girl in the doorway. Ever so often he would remove a small flask from his robes, splash a little of its contents on his polishing rag and would continue rubbing away.
"What are you doing? I've been polishing those things for years and I know that's not the usual wax Filtch makes us use," Praline had approached the boy and now stood directly in front of him, her hands on her hips.
"What an observant young lady you are." Sirius Black looked up at his little supervisor and flashed a smile, not at all nervous. "Help me get some of these done before he comes back. I need to be through with these and on to something else so he'll end up looking that over instead of these." He indicated the mountain of silver and gold all around him.
"Not until you tell me what you're doing," she demanded. "What's in the flask?"
"Here, now hurry up and start polishing," he grabbed the flask out of his robe pocket and thrust it up at her. Fizzledort's Insulta-Wax 'Another Fine Trick From Dr. Fizzledort!'
"What exactly does it do?" Praline asked.
"You know, you ask a lot for a little kid. It changes all the inscriptions on trophies into insults about that person. It's a temporary charm, wears off after about a week," Sirius said, still polishing. "Look, see?" He held up the cup he had been working on for her to see. Praline read the fading inscription: Gibson Sisyphus - Head boy - 1926. The inscription however, was slowly changing to read: Gibbering Sissypants - Head case - 1926.
"That doesn't sound like a very nice thing to do," Praline said, a bit more primly then she intended to.
"Well that's why I only have the Slytherin cups out, alright?" Sirius said in a mock-girly voice. "I'm doing these first so I can hide them in with the others. Now come on, I spent weeks researching the names so I'd know who gets the wax. Ha, ha get it? Get the wax? Axe?"
Praline fought to hold back a chuckle but lost. "Ok, sounds like a worthy cause to me." She bent down to pick up a cloth and then stopped. "Wait a minute; this stuff actually waxes the trophies too, right?"
"Who cares?" Sirius asked. "We'll be gone by then."
"Easy for you to say," Praline muttered. "I'm in here all the time."
"Oh yea?" Sirius looked over at her; she had his full attention now. "What for?"
"Different stuff. Transfiguring things I'm not supposed to, morphing when I shouldn't be, making a Peeves kite, some of it I do intentionally but sometimes, it's really not my fault," Praline grumbled.
"What's a Peeves kite?" Sirius asked curiously.
When she told him he roared with laughter, falling backwards and knocking some trophy cups aside. "That's the greatest thing I've ever heard. I'd love to see that!"
Praline shrugged. "Well the next time he spills ink on me, I'll give you a yell."
"Please do," he said, wiping mirth-filled tears from his eyes. "By the way, the name's Sirius."
"Yea, I know who you are," Praline said. "You're in my house; a year ahead of me. You're friends with Lupin aren't you? He's ok. He helped me with some Charms homework last year. Nice guy. My name's-"
"Praline Podmore, right? Or was it Dumbledore, I forget. Yea, I know who you are too. They say you're pretty smart around the dormitory. Some say you should've been put in Ravenclaw instead."
Harry thought he saw a pleased flush cross Praline's face but she kept the same serious work expression. "The houses never mattered much to me, really. I have a few friends in every house. This whole rivalry thing is kind of overrated. I mean, who cares where your friends are from as long as they're your friends, right?" Praline looked to Sirius for confirmation.
He had stopped polishing some time ago and had sat watching her rant, a look of amusement across his face. "Praline, little lady, I do believe you're very right indeed."
They sat in the middle of the trophy room, heads bent laboriously over their work.
"So," Sirius glanced her way but didn't stop his furious polishing. "What kind of name is Praline, anyway? Is it a family name?"
"My mother came up with it." Praline answered simply.
"Did she now? Do you like it? You don't think it was a bit daft-"
"YOU'RE daft!" Praline snapped at him. "If you must know, it was my grandpapa's favorite ice cream at the time me mum had me! She thought it would make a lovely name! Are you satisfied? It's a Muggle thing and I don't expect someone like you to understand!" Two bright pink spots appeared high on the apples of her cheeks before she bent back down to her work.
But Sirius had ceased polishing and was holding his hands out in mock defense of himself. "Ok, ok I take it back; it's not daft, I am, I know, I admit it, I have this condition you see. I actually take medication for it- "
"Oh, bugger off," Praline grumbled.
"Seriously, I was being stupid and I apologize. I wasn't looking for a fight today, especially not with a fellow Gryffindor. After all, it's not like I can talk, is it? Not with a name like I have. I've heard my fair share of jokes, too. So what do you say, truce?" The young man held out his hand and turned on a 100-watt smile; the Sirius charm that had gotten him many female admirers in the past.
"Truce. And also, you've got a huge honking eye boogey just below your eye. No, the other one."
The room went black. Harry began to spin.
Harry was perched at the top of a winding staircase next to an even younger version of Praline than the last. The small child here was barely school age. She looked to be about six years of age. Harry watched as she clutched the bars of the banister and peered through them, watching the events taking place below.
"It will only be for the night, Dumbledore. Awfully sorry about the trouble but we think its best if he gets a little rest outside the house before going back. We'll come and pick him up tomorrow evening. Things should be sorted out by then I expect." A short, round wizard with curly brown hair stood in the front doorway down below. Harry realized that he must be Dumbledore's living quarters at the time. He didn't know for sure it this was a Hogwarts room but he imagined it probably was.
"The poor boy. He's had quite a time with this. It would be my pleasure to look after him. No hurry if it takes a couple of days. I imagine Praline will welcome a playmate, she'll have someone younger than me to talk to for a change," Dumbledore said warmly.
Below, on the doorstep, the unknown wizard continued talking in low voices with Albus Dumbledore. Praline however, rose and climbed up the few remaining stairs to the landing above. Harry followed her down a corridor and jerked to a halt when she stopped abruptly. She craned her little neck, listening carefully to a noise coming from a closed door to her left. From inside, came the sound of a young child sobbing quietly. Praline turned and reached out a chubby little hand and pushed the door open slightly. She stood in the doorway and watched the small boy curled up on a bed; crying.
"Please go away. Just leave me alone," he moaned, not opening his eyes to even look at her.
She stared at him a moment longer before backing out the door and closing it behind her. The young Praline turned suddenly and ran down a back staircase that lead directly into a kitchen below. House elves bustled about preparing food and doing household chores. The all stopped what they were doing the second she entered the room; their eyes wide with fear or expectation, Harry couldn't tell.
POP!
Praline sans a wand, Harry saw, had turned one of the many house elves into a fluffy, white rabbit that she picked up carefully in her arms before hurrying away. The remaining house elves stood frozen for a moment longer before going about their work once more; some looking decidedly scandalized and others looking mildly excited. Harry followed Praline back to the darkened bedroom where he saw her give it to what could only be a very young Severus Snape.
"What are you doing? I don't want your bloody rabbit. Get out of here," he said looking slightly confused through his tears. He watched as Praline deposited the bunny on his bed and left. Severus flopped over on his side, facing the wall. Harry followed her and watched in growing amazement as she made several trips from the kitchen to Severus's room, each time carrying a rabbit and towards the end, sometimes carrying two. She left the rabbits on the bed with Severus or merely opened the door and pushed them in. But on her final trip she entered the room and dumped her last rabbit directly on top of Severus's head.
"Wha- What are you doing? Quit bringing me rabbits! I don't bloody want them-" He had been laying on the bed with his back to the door, ignoring her repeated visits. As he sat up he saw the ocean of rabbits she had left for him. He gazed about the room in astonishment before his eyes came to rest on her small form standing at the foot of his bed.
"Where in the world did you get all of these rabbits?" he asked, amazed.
"Do you like them?" she asked politely, "They always make me happy when I'm sad."
"You did this to cheer me up?" he asked.
Praline nodded and broke into a sudden smile. "Would you like to see our phoenix? His name is Fawkes. He was just reborn so he's kind of shriveled right now. You should see him when he's in his 'prime' my grandpapa says, that's when he's quite breath-taking." Harry heard an unmistakable tone in her voice that made him think the child was directly quoting Dumbledore to impress her new friend.
Severus wiped his eyes quickly with the back of his grubby shirt. "I didn't know Dumbledore had a granddaughter," he said.
Praline nodded. "I live here with him now. He takes care of me."
"Oh." Severus said. "Hey, where did you get all these rabbits?" he asked, suddenly remembering why he had spoken to her in the first place.
"They're house elves," she answered, picking one up gently and placing it in her lap. She stroked its soft fur gently behind its ears and it settled calmly in her lap. "Most of them don't mind. I treat them very careful- like so they don't get hurt. It goes away after a little while." The small child surveyed the room before adding, "I've never done this many before."
True to her word, several moments passed before one of the rabbits transfigured back into a house elf with a small POP!
"That's amazing!" Severus cried, finally believing that she had actually done it. "You really can transfigure things! Turn them into something else! Can you make a dog? I've always wanted a dog!"
Praline looked doubtful. "I- I don't know. I've only ever made rabbits," she admitted.
"Well, do you think you can do it? Maybe you should just think of a dog instead of a rabbit," he suggested.
Praline chewed her lip in concentration and then nodded. She took the rabbit from her lap and placed it at the end of the bed. Sitting back on her legs, she focused on the rabbit.
POP!
But something had not gone quite as planned and even Harry gasped when he saw the house elf pop into view wearing the head of a dog in place of its own.
"Oh! Oh!" Praline gave a sudden furious shake of her head and the house elf turned back into a full elf. "I think I need to work on that one," she said, clearly embarrassed.
"That's ok. That was neat though. You know a lot about magic. Did it take you a long time to learn that?" Severus asked.
Praline looked at him; confused. "How do you mean?"
"Who taught you how to do that? Does Dumbledore teach you magic?" he tried once more.
Praline looked slightly amused. "He teaches me now, yea. But no one has to teach you how to change things, you just can," she said and gestured towards her rabbits who were slowly becoming house elves again and leaving quietly with a respectful nod at Praline who waved back cheerfully.
"You learned how to transfigure things by yourself?" Severus whispered, clearly impressed. "Not everyone can do that, I certainly can't," he admitted.
Praline smiled at him; somewhat sympathetically. She laid a hand on his skinny arm and moved to sit next to him. "Don't worry then. I'm here. I can do it for you," she offered as if it was no big thing.
Severus's young face finally broke into a smile. "Thanks, thanks that's really nice of you to offer." He reached forward to pet a rabbit on his pillow and disappeared as the spinning darkness returned and Harry was gone, flying once more.
Harry found himself standing beside what he recognized to be a fourth-year Praline, on the grassy lawn of the school grounds leading down to the pond. Directly in front of her, some distance away, was Severus Snape being held upside down, against his will, in midair, by Harry's father.
"I've been here before," he said aloud, recognizing the scene at once.
Harry watched as the young Praline raced towards her dangling friend and stopped suddenly when he crashed to the ground, still some distance away from her. Harry walked towards the scene and Snape's voice grew louder as he neared. Snape was yelling at a young Lily Evans, furious at what James had done and taking it out on her. When he called her a 'Mudblood' Harry noticed Praline freeze and go completely rigid. Her face went pale and she clenched her fists, tiny hands shaking with furious anger. Lily stormed right past them and Harry saw that Severus was back in the air and little Praline was on the move again.
What happened next, if Harry had blinked, he would have missed it. Without slowing her pace, young Praline drew her wand and hurled the proper counter curse at Severus who promptly found himself crumpled on the ground again. As quick as lightening and as fluid as water, she turned her wand on a surprised James Potter.
Expelliarmus!
Though the figures of Sirius and Lupin were partially blocking her line of sight, her aim was dead on. James's wand flew from his hands and landed inches from the edge of the pond. Praline walked directly up to them, too young and sure of herself to know better. She stopped immediately in front of James and gazed at him calmly.
"So whatta ya think Potter? Wanna have a go at it then?" Praline said a challenging gleam in her eye. She didn't have to say it out loud, her challenge made it clear that she was hoping for him to accept. James, Lupin, Peter and Sirius gaped at her; their jaws nearly hitting the green lawn with astonishment. Suddenly James burst out laughing and the others joined in.
"Are you crazy? I'm not about to fight a fourth-year girl from my own house! Run along- what's your name? Praline isn't it?" he smiled down at her. "Your big friend doesn't need your help, little girl."
"Call me 'little girl' one more time and the wand is in the pool before you know it. Touch Severus again and you and your little Moroners will be hanging from the trees. And if you so much as look at me wrong they'll be prying your wands from your crisp, still-smoking corpses," Praline growled. It was weird to hear her speak this way, Harry thought. Her young voice had a distinct chill to at, as if she were already utterly committed to what she was threatening.
"This school is my home and when you do things like this you scare all the little ones with your stupid stunts. Do you honestly think we get a kick out of mean tricks like this? You're a Hogwarts student! Not some cheap Muggle, parlor-trick magician working a sideshow. So quit behaving like one!"
The four boys fell silent, still quite shocked at her outburst and embarrassed they were being chastised by a bossy little girl who looked as if she couldn't be more than a first-year. "Alright, alright, you win," James held up his hands in defeat. "Let the lady have her way, a Gryffindor should never cross a fellow Gryffindor." He bowed low and grabbed a hold of Praline's hand and gave it a loud, squishy kiss before releasing it with a gracious flourish. Praline's mouth twitched but she held onto her serious expression.
"I know you," Sirius said suddenly. "You're Dumbledore's granddaughter, aren't you? I've heard that from several older students. I've always wondered if it was true or just a rumor but I know now, there aren't many fourth-years that quick with a wand."
"You're a fourth-year?" Peter exclaimed. "You don't look more than ten!"
Sirius gave him an elbow in the side which almost sent him sprawling. "Don't listen to dear Peter, he's recently been hit on the head and goes a bit loopy sometimes," Sirius rolled his eyes indicating Peter, and then eyed her curiously. "I've seen you in detentions before, you remember? I'm kind of surprised you'd be so concerned with school discipline seeing as how your favorite pastime is torturing Peeves," he said, more to his friends then to her.
Lupin's eyes widened, "What'd you do to Peeves?" he asked.
Praline hesitated, unsure whether this was the time to be telling the truth. Sirius however, decided to share. "She knows this spell that hooks Peeves to her wand with some kind of invisible string. I've seen her fly him up and down the hallway like a kite. It's fantastic!"
James and the others bent over at the waist with laughter, their eyes streaming. "That's marvelous! You've got to show us how you do that!" James begged through his tears.
"Promise you'll leave Severus alone," Praline said, undeterred from her mission.
"Oh alright, I was getting tired of him, anyway," James said dismissively, already forgetting what he had done moments ago.
Praline however, had not. Harry could see she looked eager to get away and probably check on her slighted friend. But she hesitated for a moment, wanting to ask them the question that bothered her the most.
"Why are you two always so mean to him? Is it really just because he exists? Are you honestly that cruel?" she asked.
At these words, Lupin hid a small smile and cast a sideways glance at his two compatriots who were now on the chopping block.
"No!" James replied heatedly. "He hates us just as much and for no reason at all! From the start he's had it in for us, he's constantly following us around looking for things to report us for. I can't even walk past the guy without him trying to hex me. It's annoying Praline, how would you like it if someone was constantly doing that to you?" he asked her.
"As if," she snorted and crossed her arms.
Sirius snickered at her reply but stopped when he saw his best friend's expression. "James is right, you're not in any of our classes, you don't know how it is. He gets away with anything in Potions and I, for one, am not going to take a face-full of bat boogey hexes lying down! If Snape wants to bully us we'll serve it right back to him on a silver platter, we're not going to take let someone like him push us around," Sirius said.
"Or follow us around for that matter," Lupin added quietly. "In my friends' defense, Praline, James and Sirius have never hexed anyone that hasn't tried to hex them first. They may go a bit overboard sometimes," he admitted ruefully, "but what can I say? They're loyal friends, that's for sure."
Lupin's words seemed to carry some weight with little Praline for she finally managed an almost imperceptible nod at him, showing she had heard what he said.
"You know he doesn't like half-bloods, do you Praline?" Sirius suddenly asked her, a slight furrow in his brow.
Praline gulped. "I heard what he said," she said softly.
Sirius nodded but said nothing more, not sure if she wanted him to say more on the subject. Praline didn't.
"Yea, well, my whole family's like that and I bloody hate it. Can't stand the summers when I have to be around the whole lot of'em. It's always filthy half-blood this, filthy half-blood that. It drives a person crazy! Think I'm gonna move in here with James pretty soon just to get away from. I'd rather put up with the smell of his feet than the rubbish that comes out of my mother's mouth," Sirius said jokingly.
Praline smiled thinly. She was still confused about hearing Severus call someone a 'Mudblood.' He had never called her that before. "I have to go," she finally said.
She turned on her heel and as she walked away, Sirius called out to her, "Pleasure talking with you again!"
"Git," Praline muttered under her breath, but she smiled. Severus, as she had figured, was long gone. However, Praline knew where to find him as she walked up the steps to the castle and directly into an empty classroom on the third floor.
"Did you mean what you said?" Praline's voice was low and calm. She stood in the doorway and watched a slumped Severus sitting on a low bookshelf and looking out the window. He didn't turn at the sound of her voice.
"Severus-"
"Go away."
"No I won't, until I know you're alright and . . . that you didn't mean what you said out there," Praline finished weakly.
"I meant every word of what I said out there!" he snapped.
"Even when you called Lily a-," Praline swallowed but couldn't bring herself to say the horrible word.
"Lily Evans is a filthy Mudblood, just like all her kind! Underfoot and substandard wizards at best! It burns me to think that Dumbledore coddles them like he does, if I didn't respect that man so much, I would be happy to be rid of them all!"
Praline blanched. "Then you would be rid of me as well?" she whispered.
This got Snape's attention. "What are you talking about? You're of Dumbledore's line, you're not Muggle-born," he said dismissively.
"My mother was a Muggle, Severus. Not a drop of magic in her," Praline said, rigidly. "So what do you think of me now? Now that you know the truth, will you call me Mudblood to my face?"
"You never told me that. Are, are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure you idiot!" Praline shrieked and stamped her foot. He had clearly asked the wrong thing. "I may not know where my mother is but I know who she is, thank you very much!"
"I didn't mean it that way! I only meant, well, how can you be so advanced? You're so different from the other Mud, half-bloods, you're-"
"How am I different, Severus? What makes me so special from the other, what else do you call them? Oh yes, I remember now, half-breeds, isn't it? Please, humor me for a second Severus, and tell me why, in a sea of Mudbloods, I'm . . . okay." Praline crossed her bony little arms across her narrow chest and glared at Severus, her anger heating her gaze like a boiler-room fire.
"You're smarter than any Mudblood I've ever known. You've been doing controlled, complex magic before any of these pathetic souls ever even knew what a wand was-" Severus said before Praline cut him off.
"I was raised in this castle you stupid git! I learned magic by watching and living with it, not because of my bloodline! Dumbledore could teach an army of Muggles to levitate if he really wanted to! My being good at magic comes from studying hard and pushing myself; not because my blood is somehow better than others." Praline argued.
"You are wrong," Snape said. "You're different and you know it. Maybe you are a half-, part Muggle, but you're an exception to the rule. Praline, you're above those cretins out there, you have to be because I . . . I," Snape did not finish but turned his gaze back to the window.
Praline nodded as if she had made up her mind and smiled grimly. "Fine, believe what you want to." She stomped back down the aisle and whirled around at the doorway to glare at him one final time.
"I thought you were my friend Severus, and now I know you're just a hateful, prejudiced fool who enjoys bullying and looking down at other people. I know that you try to torture James and his friends just as much as they do you. They say that you've always hated them and they don't know why. But they're not going to take it lying down and I don't blame them. If someone pushed me around enough, I'd push back too. And as far as hating Mudbloods? Well I can do without a friend like that. You hate my kind, you hate me. It's as simple as that." With those parting words, Praline slammed the door behind her and Harry was once again sent spinning.
He closed his eyes and when he opened them he was sitting in a seat at the Gryffindor table within the Great Hall. Little Praline sat a few seats away from him, staring morosely into her bowl of cereal. The adult Praline was seated next to Harry on his right, watching her younger self, a thoughtful look on her face.
"Merlin's beard I was so small," she said aloud to no one in particular.
The doors to the Great Hall banged open and the Marauders came crashing inside, laughing and slightly out of breath. They headed towards the Gryffindor table when Sirius spotted Praline sitting by herself.
"Podmore!" Sirius called out jovially and gestured for his friends to follow him. He plopped himself down next to her and clasped her shoulder gently. "Why the glum look?"
"Yea, Podmore, someone steal your owl?" James joked. He ran his hand through his hair and then rapped his fists on the table banging out a short beat. "Come on, you can tell us, we're you're mates now. Fellow Gryffindors and all."
"Come on, Podmore, spill it," Peter pushed, echoing his pals.
"S'nothin'," Praline mumbled.
Sirius, Lupin and James exchanged looks with Peter remaining oblivious to it all, distracted by food. Sirius cleared his voice and tried again, this time in a lower voice. "Praline, you know there's no hard feelings about the other day," he cleared his throat, "to be honest you did the right thing. I admit it, we were behaving like bullies. But regardless, if you're in trouble or something's wrong you can tell us. We'll help however we can." Sirius leaned over and gave her a warm hug, planting a playful kiss on the top of her head.
Praline looked touched and she blushed furiously at Sirius's attention. "Thanks you guys, really. But I'll be okay. There's really nothing you bunch could do to fix it. Someone idiots are just that and you can't change it. Best to just forget about them."
A faint hint of comprehension was dawning in Lupin's eyes; Harry saw it. But Lupin kept silent and said nothing.
"Well, our offer still stands if you change your mind and need some help," James said solidly. He looked to the others for confirmation and they all nodded at her.
Praline finally gave a sad grin. "Ok, I guess you Marauders are alright. Hey, you know what, there is something you can do for me on second thought," Praline said, a grin growing on her face.
"Name it," Sirius said.
"I want you to tear Slytherin a new one for me during this Friday's game," Praline answered, feeling just a tiny bit better.
"My lady," James got up from the table and bowed low with a wide grin, "consider it done."
"Time to go Harry," an adult-size Praline stood beside him next to the table. "I dare say we've had enough for one night, don't you?"
////////////////////////// Thanks to everyone who's reading. This is my first fanfic and I am really enjoying it. I love reading your reviews (and your stories!) so please post! Good or bad, constructive criticism is a good thing.
I had to cover a lot in this chapter so forgive me if it ran on. There was history involved and you know how that can get. But now we're in the know and see what happens next . . .
WingedUnicorn, thanks for all the encouragement, I'll keep writing if you keep readin'. Nymphean, thank you for such kind words, I've always liked Canadians ;) I'm also currently enjoying your work, Sky Blue and thought Tis the Season was quite funny and touching.
Once again, if you like what you read, please take the time to tell a friend or fellow writer. I would much appreciate it and will always do the same. Until next time . . .
Chapter Four
Harry grinned, a sheepish look on his face, and took out his wand. He touched the tip of it into the silvery liquid and felt that familiar spinning blackness.
The Hogwarts Trophy Room lay before him, dappled in late afternoon sunlight. Harry was standing in the doorway next to a third-year Praline. Her eyes were focused intently on a black-haired, teenage boy sitting smack dab in the middle of the room. He was surrounded entirely by Victory Cups of all shapes and sizes. He rubbed away at a particularly large trophy quickly, paying no attention to the young girl in the doorway. Ever so often he would remove a small flask from his robes, splash a little of its contents on his polishing rag and would continue rubbing away.
"What are you doing? I've been polishing those things for years and I know that's not the usual wax Filtch makes us use," Praline had approached the boy and now stood directly in front of him, her hands on her hips.
"What an observant young lady you are." Sirius Black looked up at his little supervisor and flashed a smile, not at all nervous. "Help me get some of these done before he comes back. I need to be through with these and on to something else so he'll end up looking that over instead of these." He indicated the mountain of silver and gold all around him.
"Not until you tell me what you're doing," she demanded. "What's in the flask?"
"Here, now hurry up and start polishing," he grabbed the flask out of his robe pocket and thrust it up at her. Fizzledort's Insulta-Wax 'Another Fine Trick From Dr. Fizzledort!'
"What exactly does it do?" Praline asked.
"You know, you ask a lot for a little kid. It changes all the inscriptions on trophies into insults about that person. It's a temporary charm, wears off after about a week," Sirius said, still polishing. "Look, see?" He held up the cup he had been working on for her to see. Praline read the fading inscription: Gibson Sisyphus - Head boy - 1926. The inscription however, was slowly changing to read: Gibbering Sissypants - Head case - 1926.
"That doesn't sound like a very nice thing to do," Praline said, a bit more primly then she intended to.
"Well that's why I only have the Slytherin cups out, alright?" Sirius said in a mock-girly voice. "I'm doing these first so I can hide them in with the others. Now come on, I spent weeks researching the names so I'd know who gets the wax. Ha, ha get it? Get the wax? Axe?"
Praline fought to hold back a chuckle but lost. "Ok, sounds like a worthy cause to me." She bent down to pick up a cloth and then stopped. "Wait a minute; this stuff actually waxes the trophies too, right?"
"Who cares?" Sirius asked. "We'll be gone by then."
"Easy for you to say," Praline muttered. "I'm in here all the time."
"Oh yea?" Sirius looked over at her; she had his full attention now. "What for?"
"Different stuff. Transfiguring things I'm not supposed to, morphing when I shouldn't be, making a Peeves kite, some of it I do intentionally but sometimes, it's really not my fault," Praline grumbled.
"What's a Peeves kite?" Sirius asked curiously.
When she told him he roared with laughter, falling backwards and knocking some trophy cups aside. "That's the greatest thing I've ever heard. I'd love to see that!"
Praline shrugged. "Well the next time he spills ink on me, I'll give you a yell."
"Please do," he said, wiping mirth-filled tears from his eyes. "By the way, the name's Sirius."
"Yea, I know who you are," Praline said. "You're in my house; a year ahead of me. You're friends with Lupin aren't you? He's ok. He helped me with some Charms homework last year. Nice guy. My name's-"
"Praline Podmore, right? Or was it Dumbledore, I forget. Yea, I know who you are too. They say you're pretty smart around the dormitory. Some say you should've been put in Ravenclaw instead."
Harry thought he saw a pleased flush cross Praline's face but she kept the same serious work expression. "The houses never mattered much to me, really. I have a few friends in every house. This whole rivalry thing is kind of overrated. I mean, who cares where your friends are from as long as they're your friends, right?" Praline looked to Sirius for confirmation.
He had stopped polishing some time ago and had sat watching her rant, a look of amusement across his face. "Praline, little lady, I do believe you're very right indeed."
They sat in the middle of the trophy room, heads bent laboriously over their work.
"So," Sirius glanced her way but didn't stop his furious polishing. "What kind of name is Praline, anyway? Is it a family name?"
"My mother came up with it." Praline answered simply.
"Did she now? Do you like it? You don't think it was a bit daft-"
"YOU'RE daft!" Praline snapped at him. "If you must know, it was my grandpapa's favorite ice cream at the time me mum had me! She thought it would make a lovely name! Are you satisfied? It's a Muggle thing and I don't expect someone like you to understand!" Two bright pink spots appeared high on the apples of her cheeks before she bent back down to her work.
But Sirius had ceased polishing and was holding his hands out in mock defense of himself. "Ok, ok I take it back; it's not daft, I am, I know, I admit it, I have this condition you see. I actually take medication for it- "
"Oh, bugger off," Praline grumbled.
"Seriously, I was being stupid and I apologize. I wasn't looking for a fight today, especially not with a fellow Gryffindor. After all, it's not like I can talk, is it? Not with a name like I have. I've heard my fair share of jokes, too. So what do you say, truce?" The young man held out his hand and turned on a 100-watt smile; the Sirius charm that had gotten him many female admirers in the past.
"Truce. And also, you've got a huge honking eye boogey just below your eye. No, the other one."
The room went black. Harry began to spin.
Harry was perched at the top of a winding staircase next to an even younger version of Praline than the last. The small child here was barely school age. She looked to be about six years of age. Harry watched as she clutched the bars of the banister and peered through them, watching the events taking place below.
"It will only be for the night, Dumbledore. Awfully sorry about the trouble but we think its best if he gets a little rest outside the house before going back. We'll come and pick him up tomorrow evening. Things should be sorted out by then I expect." A short, round wizard with curly brown hair stood in the front doorway down below. Harry realized that he must be Dumbledore's living quarters at the time. He didn't know for sure it this was a Hogwarts room but he imagined it probably was.
"The poor boy. He's had quite a time with this. It would be my pleasure to look after him. No hurry if it takes a couple of days. I imagine Praline will welcome a playmate, she'll have someone younger than me to talk to for a change," Dumbledore said warmly.
Below, on the doorstep, the unknown wizard continued talking in low voices with Albus Dumbledore. Praline however, rose and climbed up the few remaining stairs to the landing above. Harry followed her down a corridor and jerked to a halt when she stopped abruptly. She craned her little neck, listening carefully to a noise coming from a closed door to her left. From inside, came the sound of a young child sobbing quietly. Praline turned and reached out a chubby little hand and pushed the door open slightly. She stood in the doorway and watched the small boy curled up on a bed; crying.
"Please go away. Just leave me alone," he moaned, not opening his eyes to even look at her.
She stared at him a moment longer before backing out the door and closing it behind her. The young Praline turned suddenly and ran down a back staircase that lead directly into a kitchen below. House elves bustled about preparing food and doing household chores. The all stopped what they were doing the second she entered the room; their eyes wide with fear or expectation, Harry couldn't tell.
POP!
Praline sans a wand, Harry saw, had turned one of the many house elves into a fluffy, white rabbit that she picked up carefully in her arms before hurrying away. The remaining house elves stood frozen for a moment longer before going about their work once more; some looking decidedly scandalized and others looking mildly excited. Harry followed Praline back to the darkened bedroom where he saw her give it to what could only be a very young Severus Snape.
"What are you doing? I don't want your bloody rabbit. Get out of here," he said looking slightly confused through his tears. He watched as Praline deposited the bunny on his bed and left. Severus flopped over on his side, facing the wall. Harry followed her and watched in growing amazement as she made several trips from the kitchen to Severus's room, each time carrying a rabbit and towards the end, sometimes carrying two. She left the rabbits on the bed with Severus or merely opened the door and pushed them in. But on her final trip she entered the room and dumped her last rabbit directly on top of Severus's head.
"Wha- What are you doing? Quit bringing me rabbits! I don't bloody want them-" He had been laying on the bed with his back to the door, ignoring her repeated visits. As he sat up he saw the ocean of rabbits she had left for him. He gazed about the room in astonishment before his eyes came to rest on her small form standing at the foot of his bed.
"Where in the world did you get all of these rabbits?" he asked, amazed.
"Do you like them?" she asked politely, "They always make me happy when I'm sad."
"You did this to cheer me up?" he asked.
Praline nodded and broke into a sudden smile. "Would you like to see our phoenix? His name is Fawkes. He was just reborn so he's kind of shriveled right now. You should see him when he's in his 'prime' my grandpapa says, that's when he's quite breath-taking." Harry heard an unmistakable tone in her voice that made him think the child was directly quoting Dumbledore to impress her new friend.
Severus wiped his eyes quickly with the back of his grubby shirt. "I didn't know Dumbledore had a granddaughter," he said.
Praline nodded. "I live here with him now. He takes care of me."
"Oh." Severus said. "Hey, where did you get all these rabbits?" he asked, suddenly remembering why he had spoken to her in the first place.
"They're house elves," she answered, picking one up gently and placing it in her lap. She stroked its soft fur gently behind its ears and it settled calmly in her lap. "Most of them don't mind. I treat them very careful- like so they don't get hurt. It goes away after a little while." The small child surveyed the room before adding, "I've never done this many before."
True to her word, several moments passed before one of the rabbits transfigured back into a house elf with a small POP!
"That's amazing!" Severus cried, finally believing that she had actually done it. "You really can transfigure things! Turn them into something else! Can you make a dog? I've always wanted a dog!"
Praline looked doubtful. "I- I don't know. I've only ever made rabbits," she admitted.
"Well, do you think you can do it? Maybe you should just think of a dog instead of a rabbit," he suggested.
Praline chewed her lip in concentration and then nodded. She took the rabbit from her lap and placed it at the end of the bed. Sitting back on her legs, she focused on the rabbit.
POP!
But something had not gone quite as planned and even Harry gasped when he saw the house elf pop into view wearing the head of a dog in place of its own.
"Oh! Oh!" Praline gave a sudden furious shake of her head and the house elf turned back into a full elf. "I think I need to work on that one," she said, clearly embarrassed.
"That's ok. That was neat though. You know a lot about magic. Did it take you a long time to learn that?" Severus asked.
Praline looked at him; confused. "How do you mean?"
"Who taught you how to do that? Does Dumbledore teach you magic?" he tried once more.
Praline looked slightly amused. "He teaches me now, yea. But no one has to teach you how to change things, you just can," she said and gestured towards her rabbits who were slowly becoming house elves again and leaving quietly with a respectful nod at Praline who waved back cheerfully.
"You learned how to transfigure things by yourself?" Severus whispered, clearly impressed. "Not everyone can do that, I certainly can't," he admitted.
Praline smiled at him; somewhat sympathetically. She laid a hand on his skinny arm and moved to sit next to him. "Don't worry then. I'm here. I can do it for you," she offered as if it was no big thing.
Severus's young face finally broke into a smile. "Thanks, thanks that's really nice of you to offer." He reached forward to pet a rabbit on his pillow and disappeared as the spinning darkness returned and Harry was gone, flying once more.
Harry found himself standing beside what he recognized to be a fourth-year Praline, on the grassy lawn of the school grounds leading down to the pond. Directly in front of her, some distance away, was Severus Snape being held upside down, against his will, in midair, by Harry's father.
"I've been here before," he said aloud, recognizing the scene at once.
Harry watched as the young Praline raced towards her dangling friend and stopped suddenly when he crashed to the ground, still some distance away from her. Harry walked towards the scene and Snape's voice grew louder as he neared. Snape was yelling at a young Lily Evans, furious at what James had done and taking it out on her. When he called her a 'Mudblood' Harry noticed Praline freeze and go completely rigid. Her face went pale and she clenched her fists, tiny hands shaking with furious anger. Lily stormed right past them and Harry saw that Severus was back in the air and little Praline was on the move again.
What happened next, if Harry had blinked, he would have missed it. Without slowing her pace, young Praline drew her wand and hurled the proper counter curse at Severus who promptly found himself crumpled on the ground again. As quick as lightening and as fluid as water, she turned her wand on a surprised James Potter.
Expelliarmus!
Though the figures of Sirius and Lupin were partially blocking her line of sight, her aim was dead on. James's wand flew from his hands and landed inches from the edge of the pond. Praline walked directly up to them, too young and sure of herself to know better. She stopped immediately in front of James and gazed at him calmly.
"So whatta ya think Potter? Wanna have a go at it then?" Praline said a challenging gleam in her eye. She didn't have to say it out loud, her challenge made it clear that she was hoping for him to accept. James, Lupin, Peter and Sirius gaped at her; their jaws nearly hitting the green lawn with astonishment. Suddenly James burst out laughing and the others joined in.
"Are you crazy? I'm not about to fight a fourth-year girl from my own house! Run along- what's your name? Praline isn't it?" he smiled down at her. "Your big friend doesn't need your help, little girl."
"Call me 'little girl' one more time and the wand is in the pool before you know it. Touch Severus again and you and your little Moroners will be hanging from the trees. And if you so much as look at me wrong they'll be prying your wands from your crisp, still-smoking corpses," Praline growled. It was weird to hear her speak this way, Harry thought. Her young voice had a distinct chill to at, as if she were already utterly committed to what she was threatening.
"This school is my home and when you do things like this you scare all the little ones with your stupid stunts. Do you honestly think we get a kick out of mean tricks like this? You're a Hogwarts student! Not some cheap Muggle, parlor-trick magician working a sideshow. So quit behaving like one!"
The four boys fell silent, still quite shocked at her outburst and embarrassed they were being chastised by a bossy little girl who looked as if she couldn't be more than a first-year. "Alright, alright, you win," James held up his hands in defeat. "Let the lady have her way, a Gryffindor should never cross a fellow Gryffindor." He bowed low and grabbed a hold of Praline's hand and gave it a loud, squishy kiss before releasing it with a gracious flourish. Praline's mouth twitched but she held onto her serious expression.
"I know you," Sirius said suddenly. "You're Dumbledore's granddaughter, aren't you? I've heard that from several older students. I've always wondered if it was true or just a rumor but I know now, there aren't many fourth-years that quick with a wand."
"You're a fourth-year?" Peter exclaimed. "You don't look more than ten!"
Sirius gave him an elbow in the side which almost sent him sprawling. "Don't listen to dear Peter, he's recently been hit on the head and goes a bit loopy sometimes," Sirius rolled his eyes indicating Peter, and then eyed her curiously. "I've seen you in detentions before, you remember? I'm kind of surprised you'd be so concerned with school discipline seeing as how your favorite pastime is torturing Peeves," he said, more to his friends then to her.
Lupin's eyes widened, "What'd you do to Peeves?" he asked.
Praline hesitated, unsure whether this was the time to be telling the truth. Sirius however, decided to share. "She knows this spell that hooks Peeves to her wand with some kind of invisible string. I've seen her fly him up and down the hallway like a kite. It's fantastic!"
James and the others bent over at the waist with laughter, their eyes streaming. "That's marvelous! You've got to show us how you do that!" James begged through his tears.
"Promise you'll leave Severus alone," Praline said, undeterred from her mission.
"Oh alright, I was getting tired of him, anyway," James said dismissively, already forgetting what he had done moments ago.
Praline however, had not. Harry could see she looked eager to get away and probably check on her slighted friend. But she hesitated for a moment, wanting to ask them the question that bothered her the most.
"Why are you two always so mean to him? Is it really just because he exists? Are you honestly that cruel?" she asked.
At these words, Lupin hid a small smile and cast a sideways glance at his two compatriots who were now on the chopping block.
"No!" James replied heatedly. "He hates us just as much and for no reason at all! From the start he's had it in for us, he's constantly following us around looking for things to report us for. I can't even walk past the guy without him trying to hex me. It's annoying Praline, how would you like it if someone was constantly doing that to you?" he asked her.
"As if," she snorted and crossed her arms.
Sirius snickered at her reply but stopped when he saw his best friend's expression. "James is right, you're not in any of our classes, you don't know how it is. He gets away with anything in Potions and I, for one, am not going to take a face-full of bat boogey hexes lying down! If Snape wants to bully us we'll serve it right back to him on a silver platter, we're not going to take let someone like him push us around," Sirius said.
"Or follow us around for that matter," Lupin added quietly. "In my friends' defense, Praline, James and Sirius have never hexed anyone that hasn't tried to hex them first. They may go a bit overboard sometimes," he admitted ruefully, "but what can I say? They're loyal friends, that's for sure."
Lupin's words seemed to carry some weight with little Praline for she finally managed an almost imperceptible nod at him, showing she had heard what he said.
"You know he doesn't like half-bloods, do you Praline?" Sirius suddenly asked her, a slight furrow in his brow.
Praline gulped. "I heard what he said," she said softly.
Sirius nodded but said nothing more, not sure if she wanted him to say more on the subject. Praline didn't.
"Yea, well, my whole family's like that and I bloody hate it. Can't stand the summers when I have to be around the whole lot of'em. It's always filthy half-blood this, filthy half-blood that. It drives a person crazy! Think I'm gonna move in here with James pretty soon just to get away from. I'd rather put up with the smell of his feet than the rubbish that comes out of my mother's mouth," Sirius said jokingly.
Praline smiled thinly. She was still confused about hearing Severus call someone a 'Mudblood.' He had never called her that before. "I have to go," she finally said.
She turned on her heel and as she walked away, Sirius called out to her, "Pleasure talking with you again!"
"Git," Praline muttered under her breath, but she smiled. Severus, as she had figured, was long gone. However, Praline knew where to find him as she walked up the steps to the castle and directly into an empty classroom on the third floor.
"Did you mean what you said?" Praline's voice was low and calm. She stood in the doorway and watched a slumped Severus sitting on a low bookshelf and looking out the window. He didn't turn at the sound of her voice.
"Severus-"
"Go away."
"No I won't, until I know you're alright and . . . that you didn't mean what you said out there," Praline finished weakly.
"I meant every word of what I said out there!" he snapped.
"Even when you called Lily a-," Praline swallowed but couldn't bring herself to say the horrible word.
"Lily Evans is a filthy Mudblood, just like all her kind! Underfoot and substandard wizards at best! It burns me to think that Dumbledore coddles them like he does, if I didn't respect that man so much, I would be happy to be rid of them all!"
Praline blanched. "Then you would be rid of me as well?" she whispered.
This got Snape's attention. "What are you talking about? You're of Dumbledore's line, you're not Muggle-born," he said dismissively.
"My mother was a Muggle, Severus. Not a drop of magic in her," Praline said, rigidly. "So what do you think of me now? Now that you know the truth, will you call me Mudblood to my face?"
"You never told me that. Are, are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure you idiot!" Praline shrieked and stamped her foot. He had clearly asked the wrong thing. "I may not know where my mother is but I know who she is, thank you very much!"
"I didn't mean it that way! I only meant, well, how can you be so advanced? You're so different from the other Mud, half-bloods, you're-"
"How am I different, Severus? What makes me so special from the other, what else do you call them? Oh yes, I remember now, half-breeds, isn't it? Please, humor me for a second Severus, and tell me why, in a sea of Mudbloods, I'm . . . okay." Praline crossed her bony little arms across her narrow chest and glared at Severus, her anger heating her gaze like a boiler-room fire.
"You're smarter than any Mudblood I've ever known. You've been doing controlled, complex magic before any of these pathetic souls ever even knew what a wand was-" Severus said before Praline cut him off.
"I was raised in this castle you stupid git! I learned magic by watching and living with it, not because of my bloodline! Dumbledore could teach an army of Muggles to levitate if he really wanted to! My being good at magic comes from studying hard and pushing myself; not because my blood is somehow better than others." Praline argued.
"You are wrong," Snape said. "You're different and you know it. Maybe you are a half-, part Muggle, but you're an exception to the rule. Praline, you're above those cretins out there, you have to be because I . . . I," Snape did not finish but turned his gaze back to the window.
Praline nodded as if she had made up her mind and smiled grimly. "Fine, believe what you want to." She stomped back down the aisle and whirled around at the doorway to glare at him one final time.
"I thought you were my friend Severus, and now I know you're just a hateful, prejudiced fool who enjoys bullying and looking down at other people. I know that you try to torture James and his friends just as much as they do you. They say that you've always hated them and they don't know why. But they're not going to take it lying down and I don't blame them. If someone pushed me around enough, I'd push back too. And as far as hating Mudbloods? Well I can do without a friend like that. You hate my kind, you hate me. It's as simple as that." With those parting words, Praline slammed the door behind her and Harry was once again sent spinning.
He closed his eyes and when he opened them he was sitting in a seat at the Gryffindor table within the Great Hall. Little Praline sat a few seats away from him, staring morosely into her bowl of cereal. The adult Praline was seated next to Harry on his right, watching her younger self, a thoughtful look on her face.
"Merlin's beard I was so small," she said aloud to no one in particular.
The doors to the Great Hall banged open and the Marauders came crashing inside, laughing and slightly out of breath. They headed towards the Gryffindor table when Sirius spotted Praline sitting by herself.
"Podmore!" Sirius called out jovially and gestured for his friends to follow him. He plopped himself down next to her and clasped her shoulder gently. "Why the glum look?"
"Yea, Podmore, someone steal your owl?" James joked. He ran his hand through his hair and then rapped his fists on the table banging out a short beat. "Come on, you can tell us, we're you're mates now. Fellow Gryffindors and all."
"Come on, Podmore, spill it," Peter pushed, echoing his pals.
"S'nothin'," Praline mumbled.
Sirius, Lupin and James exchanged looks with Peter remaining oblivious to it all, distracted by food. Sirius cleared his voice and tried again, this time in a lower voice. "Praline, you know there's no hard feelings about the other day," he cleared his throat, "to be honest you did the right thing. I admit it, we were behaving like bullies. But regardless, if you're in trouble or something's wrong you can tell us. We'll help however we can." Sirius leaned over and gave her a warm hug, planting a playful kiss on the top of her head.
Praline looked touched and she blushed furiously at Sirius's attention. "Thanks you guys, really. But I'll be okay. There's really nothing you bunch could do to fix it. Someone idiots are just that and you can't change it. Best to just forget about them."
A faint hint of comprehension was dawning in Lupin's eyes; Harry saw it. But Lupin kept silent and said nothing.
"Well, our offer still stands if you change your mind and need some help," James said solidly. He looked to the others for confirmation and they all nodded at her.
Praline finally gave a sad grin. "Ok, I guess you Marauders are alright. Hey, you know what, there is something you can do for me on second thought," Praline said, a grin growing on her face.
"Name it," Sirius said.
"I want you to tear Slytherin a new one for me during this Friday's game," Praline answered, feeling just a tiny bit better.
"My lady," James got up from the table and bowed low with a wide grin, "consider it done."
"Time to go Harry," an adult-size Praline stood beside him next to the table. "I dare say we've had enough for one night, don't you?"
////////////////////////// Thanks to everyone who's reading. This is my first fanfic and I am really enjoying it. I love reading your reviews (and your stories!) so please post! Good or bad, constructive criticism is a good thing.
I had to cover a lot in this chapter so forgive me if it ran on. There was history involved and you know how that can get. But now we're in the know and see what happens next . . .
WingedUnicorn, thanks for all the encouragement, I'll keep writing if you keep readin'. Nymphean, thank you for such kind words, I've always liked Canadians ;) I'm also currently enjoying your work, Sky Blue and thought Tis the Season was quite funny and touching.
Once again, if you like what you read, please take the time to tell a friend or fellow writer. I would much appreciate it and will always do the same. Until next time . . .