Hello one and all!
Sirius: And the people after all
Whisp: Don't mind him, he has mental problems.
Sirius: I do NOT! *bonks Whisp*
Whisp: Ouch, that hurt. *bonks back*
Sirius: *rubbing his head* Mean.
Whisp: As you have eagerly a waited the lunatic calling begins in this chapter! So enjoy!
Thank you to all my reviewers: potter_hal, Gia, surlyse, Jessica Black, vmr, Lavender Ice, Vegeta Jr., Potter-Pikachu, Tschubi-chan, Gina, Sarah, Alexa Black, Immia, summersun, Sandrine Black, sweets, Lin-z, Sophie W., Calder Lynch, Jocelyn Magus, and . . .
A special thank you to Wolf of Solitude whose birthday is today so . . . HAPPY BIRTHDAY WOLFIE!
Thank you to my betas Essence of Magic and Immia who are as crazy as I am!
Sequel to Harry Potter and the Emerald Eye. (I suggest you read that first, but you don't have to, it's just a good idea.) Harry's in for quite a year when he starts seeing things that no one else can, is it a dream? Or is he really going crazy? Questions start arising like what did Voldemort do to his victim after he killed them? This has it all; mystery, insanity, a lot of Sirius and Remus, and everyone calls Harry a lunatic at least once! ;)
Disclaimer - This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. I own the plot and a few original things. The explanation Trelawney gives can be found at Dreampower Tarot. The passage Sirius reads is from The Lord of the Rings: Book I, The Fellowship of the Ring and any other excerpts, and Elven itself all belong to the master himself J. R. R. Tolkien. And Wonderland belongs to Lewis Carroll.
Chapter 6: Late Night Lessons
The story of what happened on Halloween night spread through the school like wildfire. Every time it was told the creature became another foot longer, and the battle became more daring. But every story-teller agreed on one thing; that Potter and Black fought as though they shared one brain.
"What was that thing anyway?" Ron asked as he, Harry, Hermione, and Sirius strolled around the lake the early next morning.
"It was an Ericthonius," Sirius said in a sleepy voice. "You'll learn about it and other multiple hearted creatures during the spring term."
"Could you give us a preview?" Harry said hopefully as Apollo tried to steal his bagel. "Oh for the love of Quidditch," he grumbled, tearing the bagel in half and tossed one half of it as far as he could across the lawn. Apollo chased after it.
Sirius chuckled, "I'd love to, but then you'd be late for your first class."
Harry and Ron cringed prompting Hermione to say, "I hate to I told you so, but . . ."
"Don't say it," Harry said sharply.
"Not a word, Hermione," Ron warned.
"What's going on?" asked Sirius confused.
Harry and Ron gave Hermione pleading looks which she ignored. "Their first class is Divination," she explained.
"So?" Sirius said blankly.
Harry jumped forward, grabbing Hermione's sleeve and tugged her toward the castle.
"Let go Harry, he was going to find out sooner or later," she snapped, yanking her sleeve out of Harry's grasp.
"Find out what?" Sirius's eyes narrowed at Harry.
"Harry's going to be cremated, that's all," Hermione snickered.
"What?" Sirius laughed.
Harry turned scarlet as Hermione explained that every year Professor Trelawney predicted that Harry would die and every year Harry survived.
"The old bat is still doing those?" Sirius asked with raised eyebrows.
"Old bat? You mean she was your professor too?" said Ron.
Sirius shook his head, "No, came in a year after I graduated, but I came here to talk something over with Dumbledore and she had an observation so I got an extra hour of tea leaves and mystic triangles."
"Fun, fun," Ron joked.
"Yeah, I lasted forty-five minutes before wanting to make sure my I. Q. hadn't dropped ten points."
Hermione nodded, turning to Harry and Ron, "I still don't understand why you don't just quit that class and take up something else."
"What other class can you do the homework to meet the teacher's personal taste?" Ron demanded.
Hermione shrugged, "But how many time can you predict that you were shredded to bits by a rabid hippogriff?"
"Last time it was a mentally challenged Chimera," Harry grinned.
Sirius snorted, "A what?!"
"Last time I was ripped in half and my intentional tract was used as breakfast by a mentally challenged Chimera since he couldn't find any sausage."
Hermione snickered, "I bet she loved that."
"Got me an A," Harry looked at Sirius expectantly.
"It was . . . creative," his godfather said with a crooked smile. "But tell me, where does a Chimera get sausage from?"
"Jimmy Spleen?" Ron guessed.
"The Lycia outlet," Harry added.
"I heard that they . . ." Sirius began but was cut off by the gonging of a bell.
"We're going to be late!" Hermione yelped.
Sirius paled, digging in his pocket for something. "Wait, here," he handed them each a late pass 'just in case.'
"Thanks!" they chorused before dashing up the castle steps. Once inside, Harry and Ron took the left staircase toward the North tower while Hermione hurried down the corridor toward Airthimancy.
After a steep fifteen minute climb Harry and Ron finally emerged via a circular trapdoor to a room that looked like a cross between an attic and a coffee shop. Mismatched chairs and round tables covered with frilly cloths filled the room. The air reeked of perfumed oils which always made Harry sleepy.
Professor Trelawney stood in the front of the room looking like an oversized, glittering dragon fly with all her bangles glistening in the candlelight. "Today, my children we will be learning about the mysterious world of the Tarot."
"The what?!" Ron snapped in disbelief.
"Tarot!" Parvati Patil squealed, bouncing in her seat at the word.
Ron rolled his eyes, "Tarot, little pieces of cardboard with funny pictures on them. Fascinating."
Harry snorted as Trelawney handed out little packs of cards. He opened his pack and his mouth dropped.
"They're stark naked!" Ron said, jabbing at one card.
Harry nodded, skimming through the deck, half of the cards showed naked people. He didn't realize that he was staring at the Water Goddess card until Trelawney announced that she was going to do a Tarot reading on him.
"Bad luck mate," grinned Ron as Trelawney walked in her airy-fairy way over to Harry.
"Your cards Mr. Potter," Trelawney said, holding her hand out for the cards.
Harry handed them to her and watched as she shuffled them. He would have bet his bottom Knut that one of his cards would be the horrible, terrible, death card.
Trelawney dealt his cards face down because she said it gave the fates one more chance to cast their magic on them. (Ron nearly choked himself trying not to laugh.)
Harry watched as Trelawney flipped over the cards one by one.
"Oh dear, the Gate, and the Reaper, not good, not good at all," she said showing Harry his cards.
Harry seemed unphased as each card was worst than the last.
With some fake trepidation Trelawney flipped over the last card and gasped.
Harry's eyes narrowed in amazement.
"H-how quite . . . er, odd," Trelawney said, voicing Harry's amazement. "It is the Child of Messengers."
Everybody's mouth dropped, Trelawney had predicted something other than Harry's death.
"This card shows that," Trelawney said in an oddly tight voice, "the child riding on the back of an eagle. We see this being in profile, sitting happily on the back of the huge bird and waving to us. This is the most human of the Messengers in appearance and has long natural light brown hair.
"This image embodies all child or child-like contacts of air with the following qualities: quick to learn; eager to explore and achieve new horizons; talkative and bright; carrier of messengers for others; inspires through enthusiasm. The eagle indicates that this child has potent allies and hidden powers, and should never be underestimated." She finished in the same tight voice.
"Now that sounds more like Harry," Ron said aloud not noticing that Harry's face was a deep red.
Lavender and Parvati were whispering behind their backs at a record speed. "Professor," Parvati spoke up, "does this mean Harry has an Aura?"
"Yes, my dears," said Trelawney in her usual mystical voice. "Mr. Potter has a great Aura about him, it is very strange. The fates have dealt him quite a hand, but very strange. Very, very strange."
This statement was punctuated by the ringing off the bell.
"Dismissed," Trelawney said, gliding back to her desk as the students gathered their books and left.
As soon as they had reached the first landing, Ron snorted in disgust. "Let me see that card Harry."
Confused, Harry handed him the Child of Messengers, whispering, "What did she mean by 'strange'."
Ron examined the card closely before mimicking Trelawney's voice, "I do believe that this the fate's way of telling our esteemed Divination Professor to take a hike."
~~~~
Two days later, Harry found himself still thinking about that Tarot reading. It was
the first time Trelawney hadn't found someway to predict his death.
"Forget about it Harry, we all know she's three baby steps from the physic nuthouse," Ron had told him that morning during breakfast, but Harry couldn't forget.
So there he was still wondering about it as he stared out the window during Defense Against the Dark Arts.
Gudgeon was talking about how certain Dark Wizards had used dragons to destroy entire cities by hypnotizing them to think that the city was really a giant horde of gold, but to Harry this was only a dull buzzing in the back of his mind.
What had she meant by she felt a great aura around him? Aura of what? Harry though, drumming his fingers on the desktop in thought. Strange things she had said, right? How strange?
"Now, for you test next Friday," said Gudgeon, finally breaking through Harry's wall of thought. "You will need to copy the notes on the board."
Sighing, Harry filled his quill, unrolled his parchment and turned toward the board to copy the notes. His quill fell to the floor.
Harry's eyes had landed a small section of wall. It was about two and a half feet wide between the top of the board and the ceiling. It was white but yellowed in some spots with age. Harry had never paid much attention to it before but now he could not take his eyes off it.
On that small section of wall, exactly one inch apart, eyes rolled over white, tongues lolling out, with blood dripping down their foreheads were heads. The heads of all the professors.
Harry must have screamed because he felt dozens of pairs of eyes staring at him.
"Mr. Potter?" Gudgeon called sounding as if he was miles away.
Harry gibbered senselessly, jumping to his feet, and pointing at the heads that loomed over the blackboard.
"What?" Gudgeon asked at the same time Gudgeon's head opened its mouth mouthing what.
"Heads!" Harry screamed.
"Heads?"
Harry looked at Gudgeon, still pointing at the space of wall above the board, "Dead! You, everybody! Dead!"
"What?" Gudgeon sputtered.
"The heads above the board!" Harry shouted urgently. "Don't you see them?!"
Gudgeon shook his head. A chill ran up Harry's spine.
"You don't see them? But! Ron! You see them, right?"
"Er, no Harry," Ron whispered.
Harry whirled around to face the class, "Does anyone?!"
The entire class shook their heads.
Harry started to tremble; no one saw the heads but him. He glanced over his shoulder his eyes met the cold, lifeless ones of Dumbledore.
Without another word he ran from the room. Alarm bells went off in his head like fireworks, Tell Sirius! Tell Dumbledore! Tell Remus! Even tell Hedwig if she'll listen!
Harry ran out the door and unto the grounds. Not too far off he saw Sirius sitting on the ground surrounded by a gaggle of third years; he raced toward them his heart in his throat.
Sirius looked up to see his godson running toward him, looking like he had seen a Death Eater. "Be right back," he muttered to the third years as he got to his feet. "Harry?"
"Sirius!" he godson shouted his voice tight and terrified.
Sirius covered the distance between them in two long strides. "What's wrong" he asked placing his hands on Harry's shaking shoulders.
"S-Sirius," Harry's voice trembled, "D-dead?"
"Dead?"
"E-everybody d-dead."
Confused, Sirius tightened his grip on Harry's shoulders, "What do you mean buddy?"
Harry whimpered as he felt the world tilt on its axis, everything was swimming in and out of focus, his stomach churned. Before his legs gave way he shouted, "I saw the professors' head above the Defense board dead!"
Then the world went black.
~~~~
Harry's eyelids fluttered as he felt somebody run a finger across his scar. He cracked one eye open but slammed it shut again; pain signals went off inside his head like fireworks.
"Hey," a soft voice called.
Harry turned away from it, but was pulled back by a firm hand. "My head hurts," he mumbled.
"Mary Poppins is mixing up something for that as we speak."
"Who?!" Harry said.
Sirius smirked, "My new name for Madam Pomfrey, although she's far from a cheery disposition."
Harry smiled slightly as Sirius handed him his glasses. Harry put them on and looked up at his godfather expectantly.
"You fainted," he replied blatantly. "Something about heads and dead professors."
"Well, when you're expected to be the star of the class . . ."
"Harry."
Harry sighed, "You know already?"
"Was flying around the faculty room like bees around honey," Sirius muttered.
"I know what I saw Sirius, I'm not lying. You believe right?"
Sirius's eyes went to the ceiling.
Harry's own eyes narrowed, "Sirius? You do, don't you?"
A long, uncomfortable silence passed between them, a kind that made the hairs on the back of Harry's neck stand on end.
"Siri?" he whispered.
"I . . .," Sirius stopped as Madam Pomfrey bustled in, a goblet in hand.
"Well, it's about time," the matron huffed at while making shooing motions at Sirius. "Now that your godson is up you may leave, Mr. Black."
Without a word, Sirius stood up and left.
"Well, that's miracle," Madam Pomfrey muttered as she watched the door swing closed on its hinges.
"Yeah," Harry said half-heartedly as Madam Pomfrey handed him the goblet filled with a slushy red liquid that smelled sickening sweet. "Do I have to take this?"
"No," she replied, "you can just survive the night with a migraine."
Harry swirled the potion around once before shutting his eyes and downing it in one gulp.
"There, that wasn't so bad," Madam Pomfrey said while taking the empty goblet from Harry.
"No, it was horrible," he grumbled, standing up shakily. "Can I go?"
Madam Pomfrey looked down her nose at him, "Fine, I'll be seeing you again soon enough no doubt."
That was good enough for Harry, in the blink of an eye he was out of the hospital wing and down the corridor. Halfway down the hall he spun around when he heard two voices call . . .
"Harry!"
Ron and Hermione ran up to him, their chests heaving.
"I'm I that late for dinner?" grinned Harry.
Ron, trying to catch his breath, could only shake his head.
"No, not exactly," Hermione said, rocking on the backs of her heels. "But I was thinking that maybe we should eat outside today."
With raised eyebrow Harry asked, "Outside?"
"Yeah," Ron gasped, "El' fresco?"
"Okay," Harry said offhandedly. "Just let me get my food."
Ron stepped in front of him, "No, let's go outside first."
"I'm sure the house elves will bring it to us," Hermione pointed out.
"Is this the girl who started S. P. E. W.?" Harry said before pushing passed Ron. "Don't worry; I'll be in and out in five minutes." With that Harry walked briskly into the Great Hall. "See," he said to Ron and Hermione as they came up behind him, "nothing out of the ordinary."
Ron nodded weakly as the usual dinnertime din reached his ears.
Harry reached the Gryffindor table and grabbed an empty plate, spooning some mash potatoes and mushrooms on it. "Hey Dean, pass the pork chops."
Now this was a simple question, but the effect it had on the hall was far from simple or ordinary, the noisy hall had gone completely silent. Everybody turned toward to the Gryffindor table as Harry's face turned the color of a Quaffle.
A faint mumbling and then snickering could be heard from the Slytherin table as Harry looked at them. More particularly one of them. Draco Malfoy.
Malfoy smirked, "So, Skeeter was right Potter? You are really off your rocker? You're a raving lunatic!" The whole table cackled maliciously, shouting, "Potter's off his rocker!"
Harry's eyes flashed dangerously at Malfoy's laughing form.
"Think fast Malfoy!"
A mucky, white glob skyrocketed at Malfoy's face, hitting him dead on.
"FOOD FIGHT!"
~~~
As every good prankster knows you never stay long at the scene of the crime, only long enough to see the effects of your masterful work. And that was just what Harry did.
He ascended the stairs to his dorm, complete with a blob of applesauce on his shirt and smear of ketchup on his cheek as a badge of courage and a smirk. He entered a deserted dorm room feeling oddly exhausted. After kicking off his sneakers, Harry pulled back the scarlet bed curtains and gasped.
On his pillow lay a grubby piece of parchment tied up with a red ribbon. Now to anyone else it would seem like a normal scrap of dirty parchment but to Harry it more precious than gold. It was the Marauder's Map.
Harry picked up the map with trembling hands; he never thought he'd see it again. He had loaned it to (who he believed to be) Mad-Eye Moody, but Moody was an imposter who had been working for Voldemort. When Moody's office had been cleaned out Harry was sure the map had been either thrown out or destroyed. But here it was in his hands . . . but just to make sure Harry tapped it with his wand whispering, "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good."
Lines spread across the surface of the parchment with helpful spots that pointed out exactly where the secret passages were. Another line showed up on the map, a bright, bold, red one that lead to a section of Hogwarts that Harry didn't know existed. He touched were the line stop and the surface of the map rippled. The map disappeared and was replaced with a message written in bright, bold red ink:
BE THERE TONIGHT.
"What?" Harry asked himself as the writing was replaced by the map again. He study the map for several minutes before he heard what sounded like a heard of mustangs galloping up the stairs. The other boys were coming.
Quickly whispering, "Mischief managed," wiping the map and shoved it under his pillow right before the door was flung open and four boys with various food particles stuck to them tumbled in.
~~~~
That night Harry desperately tried to fall asleep but by the time he reached the one thousandth and twenty sixth sheep he gave up. Quickly, he pulled a robe over his pajamas, grabbed the invisibility cloak and the map, and went off into the castle.
The map's directions took him to a part of the castle that he had never been to before. The walls were covered with oil paintings of forest animals; wolves, bears, and unicorns. Then, suddenly, the directional line stopped, leaving Harry in front of a painting of a black wolf sleeping in front of a stone cave.
Frowning, Harry thought as he consulted the map again. A speech bubble appeared next to his dot: Sothis.
"Sothis," he whispered.
The dozing wolf yawned, getting to its feet, and stepping away from the cave entrance, revealing a portrait hole.
Hesitantly, Harry scrambled through the hole, tumbling out the other end. Getting up, he saw the wolf lie in front of the entrance again, blocking it.
While pocketing the map, Harry took a look around the circular room; it was set up like a smaller version of the Gryffindor common room except it was an absolute mess. Papers, books, clothes, and quills were scattered every where. Harry noticed that he was standing on a piece of paper with red marks scrawled all over it in a familiar hand. Sirius's.
He knelt down to retrieve the paper when he noticed a ray of light coming from a door at the other end of the room that was slightly ajar. He suddenly felt like he had entered Wonderland and any moment a scrap of paper would float out with COME IN written on it .
Making a quick decision, Harry slipped into the study, not wanting Sirius to know that he was there. He padded over to the winged armchair, and started to read over Sirius shoulder, the language the scroll was written in was foreign to him, but the letters were fiery.
"You know better than to go sneaking around," Sirius said quietly, his eyes never leaving the scroll.
Harry jumped. "How did you know it was me?" he demanded.
"Because you are the only person who doesn't stomp in here like they own the place," Sirius flicked his wand and a chair came skidding over. "Join the party."
Harry sat down, and was able to get a clearer look at the parchment; he still couldn't make a single word out. "You can read that?"
"Elven isn't hard once you get use to it."
Harry nodded, and cocked his head to one side. "What's it say?"
Sirius grinned as if in on a private joke. "It says:
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them.
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
Three rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
"Recognize it?" Sirius asked curiously.
"It's from the Lord of the Rings, right?" Harry said thinking back to when he was younger used to steal Dudley's books, (which Dudley never read) and read until he couldn't keep his eyes open.
"Supposedly this is the original text Tolkien copied from," Sirius said, running a hand over the scroll as if caressing it.
"No way!" Harry gasped.
"Yes way!"
"Then that would mean . . ." Harry trailed off.
Sirius nodded.
"Elven is real?!"
Sirius nodded again.
Harry's eyes lit up, "Can you teach me to read some? Please?"
Sirius shrugged, "Sure, if you like."
Harry gave Sirius a huge smile, "Thanks Sirius!"
"It's nothing, really," Sirius shrugged again, trying to sound modest. "When do you want your first lesson?"
"Is now okay?"
Sirius looked at his watch, "It's late."
"Please?"
"All right, go get me that book. Yeah, the one with green cover."
Harry obediently got the book, handing it to Sirius before sitting down again. For the next hour or so Sirius taught Harry to say several easy words.
"It's not that late," Harry protested when Sirius said that that was it for tonight.
"It's past three, you need to get some sleep," Sirius said, keeping his voice firm.
Harry didn't want to leave, but he knew better than to protest.
"See you at twelve, tomorrow night?" Sirius said while placing the book back on the shelf.
"Tomorrow? Really?" asked Harry hopefully.
"Yeah," Sirius grinned.
This nightly routine went on for several days without any inferences. Harry was picking up on Elven very quickly, much to Sirius's amazement.
"I still feel like I'm back in first year primary," Harry sighed, closing a book while yawning.
"You're doing very well Harry," Sirius said, not looking up from the stack of papers he was grading
"I still can't translate the last sentence though," Harry groaned, opening the book again.
Sirius got up from his desk and walked over to Harry, "What do you think it says?"
"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious?" Harry grinned weakly.
Sirius smiled, but said, "No, try again."
"I can't."
Sirius shook his head, "It's not a question if whether you can or you can't, it is a question of whether or not you want to."
"I want to, but it's . . . hard."
Sirius pulled his chair next to Harry's, "I'll give you a hand."
"It's this one," Harry said, pointing out the sentence to Sirius. "Ennya Durin Atan Moria: pedo mellon minno."
Sirius burst out laughing.
"What?" Harry asked expectantly.
"You've read The Fellowship of the Rings, right?" Sirius said once he had gained control over himself.
"Yeah."
"Remember the inscription on the Doors of Durin?"
"Yeah, speak friend and enter or something like that, right?"
"And what is the Elven word for friend?"
"Mellon," Harry said simply.
Sirius pointed at the sentence again.
Harry's eyes widened, "Oh, I'm an idiot."
Sirius smiled, "No you're not. You're just tired."
Harry gave him a sleepy smile.
Sirius smirked, looking at his watch, "Geez, it is late I should have told you to scat hours ago."
"I'm not that tired," but Harry's statement lost some of its meaning since he yawned halfway through it.
"Yes you are, and besides you have a match tomorrow and I'm sure Katie would be thrilled if you fell asleep on your broom."
Nodding, Harry gathered up his things and woke up Apollo. "Sirius?" he asked before leaving.
"Yes?"
"You're going to come tomorrow, right?"
"Maybe, if I get through this mountain of tests," Sirius gestured to the stack of tests he still had to correct, but noticed the look of disappointment on Harry's face. "Of course I'll be there."
"Really? I mean you don't have to come if you don't want to, it's just that . . ."
"You want me to know you're making good use of the Firebolt?"
"Yes," Harry grinned playfully. "See you tomorrow then?"
"Don't look for me, look for the Snitch!"
"I will," Harry promised before scrambling out the portrait hole.
Sirius: And the people after all
Whisp: Don't mind him, he has mental problems.
Sirius: I do NOT! *bonks Whisp*
Whisp: Ouch, that hurt. *bonks back*
Sirius: *rubbing his head* Mean.
Whisp: As you have eagerly a waited the lunatic calling begins in this chapter! So enjoy!
Thank you to all my reviewers: potter_hal, Gia, surlyse, Jessica Black, vmr, Lavender Ice, Vegeta Jr., Potter-Pikachu, Tschubi-chan, Gina, Sarah, Alexa Black, Immia, summersun, Sandrine Black, sweets, Lin-z, Sophie W., Calder Lynch, Jocelyn Magus, and . . .
A special thank you to Wolf of Solitude whose birthday is today so . . . HAPPY BIRTHDAY WOLFIE!
Thank you to my betas Essence of Magic and Immia who are as crazy as I am!
Sequel to Harry Potter and the Emerald Eye. (I suggest you read that first, but you don't have to, it's just a good idea.) Harry's in for quite a year when he starts seeing things that no one else can, is it a dream? Or is he really going crazy? Questions start arising like what did Voldemort do to his victim after he killed them? This has it all; mystery, insanity, a lot of Sirius and Remus, and everyone calls Harry a lunatic at least once! ;)
Disclaimer - This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. I own the plot and a few original things. The explanation Trelawney gives can be found at Dreampower Tarot. The passage Sirius reads is from The Lord of the Rings: Book I, The Fellowship of the Ring and any other excerpts, and Elven itself all belong to the master himself J. R. R. Tolkien. And Wonderland belongs to Lewis Carroll.
Chapter 6: Late Night Lessons
The story of what happened on Halloween night spread through the school like wildfire. Every time it was told the creature became another foot longer, and the battle became more daring. But every story-teller agreed on one thing; that Potter and Black fought as though they shared one brain.
"What was that thing anyway?" Ron asked as he, Harry, Hermione, and Sirius strolled around the lake the early next morning.
"It was an Ericthonius," Sirius said in a sleepy voice. "You'll learn about it and other multiple hearted creatures during the spring term."
"Could you give us a preview?" Harry said hopefully as Apollo tried to steal his bagel. "Oh for the love of Quidditch," he grumbled, tearing the bagel in half and tossed one half of it as far as he could across the lawn. Apollo chased after it.
Sirius chuckled, "I'd love to, but then you'd be late for your first class."
Harry and Ron cringed prompting Hermione to say, "I hate to I told you so, but . . ."
"Don't say it," Harry said sharply.
"Not a word, Hermione," Ron warned.
"What's going on?" asked Sirius confused.
Harry and Ron gave Hermione pleading looks which she ignored. "Their first class is Divination," she explained.
"So?" Sirius said blankly.
Harry jumped forward, grabbing Hermione's sleeve and tugged her toward the castle.
"Let go Harry, he was going to find out sooner or later," she snapped, yanking her sleeve out of Harry's grasp.
"Find out what?" Sirius's eyes narrowed at Harry.
"Harry's going to be cremated, that's all," Hermione snickered.
"What?" Sirius laughed.
Harry turned scarlet as Hermione explained that every year Professor Trelawney predicted that Harry would die and every year Harry survived.
"The old bat is still doing those?" Sirius asked with raised eyebrows.
"Old bat? You mean she was your professor too?" said Ron.
Sirius shook his head, "No, came in a year after I graduated, but I came here to talk something over with Dumbledore and she had an observation so I got an extra hour of tea leaves and mystic triangles."
"Fun, fun," Ron joked.
"Yeah, I lasted forty-five minutes before wanting to make sure my I. Q. hadn't dropped ten points."
Hermione nodded, turning to Harry and Ron, "I still don't understand why you don't just quit that class and take up something else."
"What other class can you do the homework to meet the teacher's personal taste?" Ron demanded.
Hermione shrugged, "But how many time can you predict that you were shredded to bits by a rabid hippogriff?"
"Last time it was a mentally challenged Chimera," Harry grinned.
Sirius snorted, "A what?!"
"Last time I was ripped in half and my intentional tract was used as breakfast by a mentally challenged Chimera since he couldn't find any sausage."
Hermione snickered, "I bet she loved that."
"Got me an A," Harry looked at Sirius expectantly.
"It was . . . creative," his godfather said with a crooked smile. "But tell me, where does a Chimera get sausage from?"
"Jimmy Spleen?" Ron guessed.
"The Lycia outlet," Harry added.
"I heard that they . . ." Sirius began but was cut off by the gonging of a bell.
"We're going to be late!" Hermione yelped.
Sirius paled, digging in his pocket for something. "Wait, here," he handed them each a late pass 'just in case.'
"Thanks!" they chorused before dashing up the castle steps. Once inside, Harry and Ron took the left staircase toward the North tower while Hermione hurried down the corridor toward Airthimancy.
After a steep fifteen minute climb Harry and Ron finally emerged via a circular trapdoor to a room that looked like a cross between an attic and a coffee shop. Mismatched chairs and round tables covered with frilly cloths filled the room. The air reeked of perfumed oils which always made Harry sleepy.
Professor Trelawney stood in the front of the room looking like an oversized, glittering dragon fly with all her bangles glistening in the candlelight. "Today, my children we will be learning about the mysterious world of the Tarot."
"The what?!" Ron snapped in disbelief.
"Tarot!" Parvati Patil squealed, bouncing in her seat at the word.
Ron rolled his eyes, "Tarot, little pieces of cardboard with funny pictures on them. Fascinating."
Harry snorted as Trelawney handed out little packs of cards. He opened his pack and his mouth dropped.
"They're stark naked!" Ron said, jabbing at one card.
Harry nodded, skimming through the deck, half of the cards showed naked people. He didn't realize that he was staring at the Water Goddess card until Trelawney announced that she was going to do a Tarot reading on him.
"Bad luck mate," grinned Ron as Trelawney walked in her airy-fairy way over to Harry.
"Your cards Mr. Potter," Trelawney said, holding her hand out for the cards.
Harry handed them to her and watched as she shuffled them. He would have bet his bottom Knut that one of his cards would be the horrible, terrible, death card.
Trelawney dealt his cards face down because she said it gave the fates one more chance to cast their magic on them. (Ron nearly choked himself trying not to laugh.)
Harry watched as Trelawney flipped over the cards one by one.
"Oh dear, the Gate, and the Reaper, not good, not good at all," she said showing Harry his cards.
Harry seemed unphased as each card was worst than the last.
With some fake trepidation Trelawney flipped over the last card and gasped.
Harry's eyes narrowed in amazement.
"H-how quite . . . er, odd," Trelawney said, voicing Harry's amazement. "It is the Child of Messengers."
Everybody's mouth dropped, Trelawney had predicted something other than Harry's death.
"This card shows that," Trelawney said in an oddly tight voice, "the child riding on the back of an eagle. We see this being in profile, sitting happily on the back of the huge bird and waving to us. This is the most human of the Messengers in appearance and has long natural light brown hair.
"This image embodies all child or child-like contacts of air with the following qualities: quick to learn; eager to explore and achieve new horizons; talkative and bright; carrier of messengers for others; inspires through enthusiasm. The eagle indicates that this child has potent allies and hidden powers, and should never be underestimated." She finished in the same tight voice.
"Now that sounds more like Harry," Ron said aloud not noticing that Harry's face was a deep red.
Lavender and Parvati were whispering behind their backs at a record speed. "Professor," Parvati spoke up, "does this mean Harry has an Aura?"
"Yes, my dears," said Trelawney in her usual mystical voice. "Mr. Potter has a great Aura about him, it is very strange. The fates have dealt him quite a hand, but very strange. Very, very strange."
This statement was punctuated by the ringing off the bell.
"Dismissed," Trelawney said, gliding back to her desk as the students gathered their books and left.
As soon as they had reached the first landing, Ron snorted in disgust. "Let me see that card Harry."
Confused, Harry handed him the Child of Messengers, whispering, "What did she mean by 'strange'."
Ron examined the card closely before mimicking Trelawney's voice, "I do believe that this the fate's way of telling our esteemed Divination Professor to take a hike."
~~~~
Two days later, Harry found himself still thinking about that Tarot reading. It was
the first time Trelawney hadn't found someway to predict his death.
"Forget about it Harry, we all know she's three baby steps from the physic nuthouse," Ron had told him that morning during breakfast, but Harry couldn't forget.
So there he was still wondering about it as he stared out the window during Defense Against the Dark Arts.
Gudgeon was talking about how certain Dark Wizards had used dragons to destroy entire cities by hypnotizing them to think that the city was really a giant horde of gold, but to Harry this was only a dull buzzing in the back of his mind.
What had she meant by she felt a great aura around him? Aura of what? Harry though, drumming his fingers on the desktop in thought. Strange things she had said, right? How strange?
"Now, for you test next Friday," said Gudgeon, finally breaking through Harry's wall of thought. "You will need to copy the notes on the board."
Sighing, Harry filled his quill, unrolled his parchment and turned toward the board to copy the notes. His quill fell to the floor.
Harry's eyes had landed a small section of wall. It was about two and a half feet wide between the top of the board and the ceiling. It was white but yellowed in some spots with age. Harry had never paid much attention to it before but now he could not take his eyes off it.
On that small section of wall, exactly one inch apart, eyes rolled over white, tongues lolling out, with blood dripping down their foreheads were heads. The heads of all the professors.
Harry must have screamed because he felt dozens of pairs of eyes staring at him.
"Mr. Potter?" Gudgeon called sounding as if he was miles away.
Harry gibbered senselessly, jumping to his feet, and pointing at the heads that loomed over the blackboard.
"What?" Gudgeon asked at the same time Gudgeon's head opened its mouth mouthing what.
"Heads!" Harry screamed.
"Heads?"
Harry looked at Gudgeon, still pointing at the space of wall above the board, "Dead! You, everybody! Dead!"
"What?" Gudgeon sputtered.
"The heads above the board!" Harry shouted urgently. "Don't you see them?!"
Gudgeon shook his head. A chill ran up Harry's spine.
"You don't see them? But! Ron! You see them, right?"
"Er, no Harry," Ron whispered.
Harry whirled around to face the class, "Does anyone?!"
The entire class shook their heads.
Harry started to tremble; no one saw the heads but him. He glanced over his shoulder his eyes met the cold, lifeless ones of Dumbledore.
Without another word he ran from the room. Alarm bells went off in his head like fireworks, Tell Sirius! Tell Dumbledore! Tell Remus! Even tell Hedwig if she'll listen!
Harry ran out the door and unto the grounds. Not too far off he saw Sirius sitting on the ground surrounded by a gaggle of third years; he raced toward them his heart in his throat.
Sirius looked up to see his godson running toward him, looking like he had seen a Death Eater. "Be right back," he muttered to the third years as he got to his feet. "Harry?"
"Sirius!" he godson shouted his voice tight and terrified.
Sirius covered the distance between them in two long strides. "What's wrong" he asked placing his hands on Harry's shaking shoulders.
"S-Sirius," Harry's voice trembled, "D-dead?"
"Dead?"
"E-everybody d-dead."
Confused, Sirius tightened his grip on Harry's shoulders, "What do you mean buddy?"
Harry whimpered as he felt the world tilt on its axis, everything was swimming in and out of focus, his stomach churned. Before his legs gave way he shouted, "I saw the professors' head above the Defense board dead!"
Then the world went black.
~~~~
Harry's eyelids fluttered as he felt somebody run a finger across his scar. He cracked one eye open but slammed it shut again; pain signals went off inside his head like fireworks.
"Hey," a soft voice called.
Harry turned away from it, but was pulled back by a firm hand. "My head hurts," he mumbled.
"Mary Poppins is mixing up something for that as we speak."
"Who?!" Harry said.
Sirius smirked, "My new name for Madam Pomfrey, although she's far from a cheery disposition."
Harry smiled slightly as Sirius handed him his glasses. Harry put them on and looked up at his godfather expectantly.
"You fainted," he replied blatantly. "Something about heads and dead professors."
"Well, when you're expected to be the star of the class . . ."
"Harry."
Harry sighed, "You know already?"
"Was flying around the faculty room like bees around honey," Sirius muttered.
"I know what I saw Sirius, I'm not lying. You believe right?"
Sirius's eyes went to the ceiling.
Harry's own eyes narrowed, "Sirius? You do, don't you?"
A long, uncomfortable silence passed between them, a kind that made the hairs on the back of Harry's neck stand on end.
"Siri?" he whispered.
"I . . .," Sirius stopped as Madam Pomfrey bustled in, a goblet in hand.
"Well, it's about time," the matron huffed at while making shooing motions at Sirius. "Now that your godson is up you may leave, Mr. Black."
Without a word, Sirius stood up and left.
"Well, that's miracle," Madam Pomfrey muttered as she watched the door swing closed on its hinges.
"Yeah," Harry said half-heartedly as Madam Pomfrey handed him the goblet filled with a slushy red liquid that smelled sickening sweet. "Do I have to take this?"
"No," she replied, "you can just survive the night with a migraine."
Harry swirled the potion around once before shutting his eyes and downing it in one gulp.
"There, that wasn't so bad," Madam Pomfrey said while taking the empty goblet from Harry.
"No, it was horrible," he grumbled, standing up shakily. "Can I go?"
Madam Pomfrey looked down her nose at him, "Fine, I'll be seeing you again soon enough no doubt."
That was good enough for Harry, in the blink of an eye he was out of the hospital wing and down the corridor. Halfway down the hall he spun around when he heard two voices call . . .
"Harry!"
Ron and Hermione ran up to him, their chests heaving.
"I'm I that late for dinner?" grinned Harry.
Ron, trying to catch his breath, could only shake his head.
"No, not exactly," Hermione said, rocking on the backs of her heels. "But I was thinking that maybe we should eat outside today."
With raised eyebrow Harry asked, "Outside?"
"Yeah," Ron gasped, "El' fresco?"
"Okay," Harry said offhandedly. "Just let me get my food."
Ron stepped in front of him, "No, let's go outside first."
"I'm sure the house elves will bring it to us," Hermione pointed out.
"Is this the girl who started S. P. E. W.?" Harry said before pushing passed Ron. "Don't worry; I'll be in and out in five minutes." With that Harry walked briskly into the Great Hall. "See," he said to Ron and Hermione as they came up behind him, "nothing out of the ordinary."
Ron nodded weakly as the usual dinnertime din reached his ears.
Harry reached the Gryffindor table and grabbed an empty plate, spooning some mash potatoes and mushrooms on it. "Hey Dean, pass the pork chops."
Now this was a simple question, but the effect it had on the hall was far from simple or ordinary, the noisy hall had gone completely silent. Everybody turned toward to the Gryffindor table as Harry's face turned the color of a Quaffle.
A faint mumbling and then snickering could be heard from the Slytherin table as Harry looked at them. More particularly one of them. Draco Malfoy.
Malfoy smirked, "So, Skeeter was right Potter? You are really off your rocker? You're a raving lunatic!" The whole table cackled maliciously, shouting, "Potter's off his rocker!"
Harry's eyes flashed dangerously at Malfoy's laughing form.
"Think fast Malfoy!"
A mucky, white glob skyrocketed at Malfoy's face, hitting him dead on.
"FOOD FIGHT!"
~~~
As every good prankster knows you never stay long at the scene of the crime, only long enough to see the effects of your masterful work. And that was just what Harry did.
He ascended the stairs to his dorm, complete with a blob of applesauce on his shirt and smear of ketchup on his cheek as a badge of courage and a smirk. He entered a deserted dorm room feeling oddly exhausted. After kicking off his sneakers, Harry pulled back the scarlet bed curtains and gasped.
On his pillow lay a grubby piece of parchment tied up with a red ribbon. Now to anyone else it would seem like a normal scrap of dirty parchment but to Harry it more precious than gold. It was the Marauder's Map.
Harry picked up the map with trembling hands; he never thought he'd see it again. He had loaned it to (who he believed to be) Mad-Eye Moody, but Moody was an imposter who had been working for Voldemort. When Moody's office had been cleaned out Harry was sure the map had been either thrown out or destroyed. But here it was in his hands . . . but just to make sure Harry tapped it with his wand whispering, "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good."
Lines spread across the surface of the parchment with helpful spots that pointed out exactly where the secret passages were. Another line showed up on the map, a bright, bold, red one that lead to a section of Hogwarts that Harry didn't know existed. He touched were the line stop and the surface of the map rippled. The map disappeared and was replaced with a message written in bright, bold red ink:
BE THERE TONIGHT.
"What?" Harry asked himself as the writing was replaced by the map again. He study the map for several minutes before he heard what sounded like a heard of mustangs galloping up the stairs. The other boys were coming.
Quickly whispering, "Mischief managed," wiping the map and shoved it under his pillow right before the door was flung open and four boys with various food particles stuck to them tumbled in.
~~~~
That night Harry desperately tried to fall asleep but by the time he reached the one thousandth and twenty sixth sheep he gave up. Quickly, he pulled a robe over his pajamas, grabbed the invisibility cloak and the map, and went off into the castle.
The map's directions took him to a part of the castle that he had never been to before. The walls were covered with oil paintings of forest animals; wolves, bears, and unicorns. Then, suddenly, the directional line stopped, leaving Harry in front of a painting of a black wolf sleeping in front of a stone cave.
Frowning, Harry thought as he consulted the map again. A speech bubble appeared next to his dot: Sothis.
"Sothis," he whispered.
The dozing wolf yawned, getting to its feet, and stepping away from the cave entrance, revealing a portrait hole.
Hesitantly, Harry scrambled through the hole, tumbling out the other end. Getting up, he saw the wolf lie in front of the entrance again, blocking it.
While pocketing the map, Harry took a look around the circular room; it was set up like a smaller version of the Gryffindor common room except it was an absolute mess. Papers, books, clothes, and quills were scattered every where. Harry noticed that he was standing on a piece of paper with red marks scrawled all over it in a familiar hand. Sirius's.
He knelt down to retrieve the paper when he noticed a ray of light coming from a door at the other end of the room that was slightly ajar. He suddenly felt like he had entered Wonderland and any moment a scrap of paper would float out with COME IN written on it .
Making a quick decision, Harry slipped into the study, not wanting Sirius to know that he was there. He padded over to the winged armchair, and started to read over Sirius shoulder, the language the scroll was written in was foreign to him, but the letters were fiery.
"You know better than to go sneaking around," Sirius said quietly, his eyes never leaving the scroll.
Harry jumped. "How did you know it was me?" he demanded.
"Because you are the only person who doesn't stomp in here like they own the place," Sirius flicked his wand and a chair came skidding over. "Join the party."
Harry sat down, and was able to get a clearer look at the parchment; he still couldn't make a single word out. "You can read that?"
"Elven isn't hard once you get use to it."
Harry nodded, and cocked his head to one side. "What's it say?"
Sirius grinned as if in on a private joke. "It says:
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them.
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
Three rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
"Recognize it?" Sirius asked curiously.
"It's from the Lord of the Rings, right?" Harry said thinking back to when he was younger used to steal Dudley's books, (which Dudley never read) and read until he couldn't keep his eyes open.
"Supposedly this is the original text Tolkien copied from," Sirius said, running a hand over the scroll as if caressing it.
"No way!" Harry gasped.
"Yes way!"
"Then that would mean . . ." Harry trailed off.
Sirius nodded.
"Elven is real?!"
Sirius nodded again.
Harry's eyes lit up, "Can you teach me to read some? Please?"
Sirius shrugged, "Sure, if you like."
Harry gave Sirius a huge smile, "Thanks Sirius!"
"It's nothing, really," Sirius shrugged again, trying to sound modest. "When do you want your first lesson?"
"Is now okay?"
Sirius looked at his watch, "It's late."
"Please?"
"All right, go get me that book. Yeah, the one with green cover."
Harry obediently got the book, handing it to Sirius before sitting down again. For the next hour or so Sirius taught Harry to say several easy words.
"It's not that late," Harry protested when Sirius said that that was it for tonight.
"It's past three, you need to get some sleep," Sirius said, keeping his voice firm.
Harry didn't want to leave, but he knew better than to protest.
"See you at twelve, tomorrow night?" Sirius said while placing the book back on the shelf.
"Tomorrow? Really?" asked Harry hopefully.
"Yeah," Sirius grinned.
This nightly routine went on for several days without any inferences. Harry was picking up on Elven very quickly, much to Sirius's amazement.
"I still feel like I'm back in first year primary," Harry sighed, closing a book while yawning.
"You're doing very well Harry," Sirius said, not looking up from the stack of papers he was grading
"I still can't translate the last sentence though," Harry groaned, opening the book again.
Sirius got up from his desk and walked over to Harry, "What do you think it says?"
"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious?" Harry grinned weakly.
Sirius smiled, but said, "No, try again."
"I can't."
Sirius shook his head, "It's not a question if whether you can or you can't, it is a question of whether or not you want to."
"I want to, but it's . . . hard."
Sirius pulled his chair next to Harry's, "I'll give you a hand."
"It's this one," Harry said, pointing out the sentence to Sirius. "Ennya Durin Atan Moria: pedo mellon minno."
Sirius burst out laughing.
"What?" Harry asked expectantly.
"You've read The Fellowship of the Rings, right?" Sirius said once he had gained control over himself.
"Yeah."
"Remember the inscription on the Doors of Durin?"
"Yeah, speak friend and enter or something like that, right?"
"And what is the Elven word for friend?"
"Mellon," Harry said simply.
Sirius pointed at the sentence again.
Harry's eyes widened, "Oh, I'm an idiot."
Sirius smiled, "No you're not. You're just tired."
Harry gave him a sleepy smile.
Sirius smirked, looking at his watch, "Geez, it is late I should have told you to scat hours ago."
"I'm not that tired," but Harry's statement lost some of its meaning since he yawned halfway through it.
"Yes you are, and besides you have a match tomorrow and I'm sure Katie would be thrilled if you fell asleep on your broom."
Nodding, Harry gathered up his things and woke up Apollo. "Sirius?" he asked before leaving.
"Yes?"
"You're going to come tomorrow, right?"
"Maybe, if I get through this mountain of tests," Sirius gestured to the stack of tests he still had to correct, but noticed the look of disappointment on Harry's face. "Of course I'll be there."
"Really? I mean you don't have to come if you don't want to, it's just that . . ."
"You want me to know you're making good use of the Firebolt?"
"Yes," Harry grinned playfully. "See you tomorrow then?"
"Don't look for me, look for the Snitch!"
"I will," Harry promised before scrambling out the portrait hole.
