A/N - JKR owns everything familiar.
A/N -Read, enjoy, review. Most importantly though, enjoy!
Chapter 52
Challenging Chore
Harry barely registered the Headmaster's last words to him. 'Harry, are you ready to find out what your task is?' He played them over in his head until he realized that everyone was watching him and waiting for his answer. If he was being honest with himself, he'd have to admit that he forgot anybody at all was in the room besides him and Dumbledore.
Summoning courage that Harry wasn't sure he felt at the present time he answered, "Yes I am." He was so focused on Dumbledore that he didn't realize that the room had gotten so quiet that the occupants were almost certainly holding their collective breath. The last several days he had spent thinking about this moment. It was all going to play out in the next few seconds. What would his task be? If Dumbledore had to defeat Grindewald to prove his worth then that left little doubt what Harry would have to do didn't it?
Dumbledore's voice woke Harry from his reverie.
"Harry, your task is to become the leader of the Order of the Serpents."
Gasps could be heard from around the room. The noise level was rising by the second. Harry definitely no longer realized that anyone else was in the room. All he could think about was the last fourteen words that Dumbledore said and what would happen to all of his friends if he failed in his seemingly impossible task. Witches and Wizards from the audience were calling out questions to Harry as well as to Dumbledore. Soon it became overly obvious that the crowd was not going to settle itself down.
"SILENCE!" Dumbledore commanded.
The volume and tone that Dumbledore used all but guaranteed that everyone would obey his wishes. And indeed the crowd fell silent. However, Harry barely heard Dumbledore's command.
All that Harry knew was that his Headmaster was saying something or other to someone but he had no idea what he said or how long he spoke. The next thing he knew he was back in Hogsmeade walking back to Hogwarts alongside his Headmaster. He had no idea how exactly he had gotten here or how long it had taken. He vaguely recognized that he was standing in front of the Fat Lady. He briefly wondered how the portrait had swung open since he hadn't said anything but he didn't dwell on it. Instead he went straight up to his bedroom, drew the curtains around his bed, and sat perfectly still for hours thinking about the task before him.
There was no twinkle in his eyes as Dumbledore escorted Harry back from the meeting. The young man was putting up a brave front, just like his mother and father would have done. He hadn't commented on the unfairness of it all. He hadn't even commented on how difficult this task was going to be. Unfortunately, he hadn't commented on anything at all. After letting Harry into his common room, the elder wizard knew it was time to return to his own office. If he had his way, no one would be waiting for him when he got there. But he knew that that would not be the case.
When Dumbledore entered his office, he was completely unsurprised to see Minerva, Remus, Sirius and Arthur Weasley all standing around waiting to pounce as he opened his own door.
And pounce they did.
"How could --- "
"Albus, really --- "
"Dumbledore, surely --- "
"Headmaster, please --- "
"Settle down everyone. Please take a seat and we can talk about this calmly like the adults we are." Besides his calming tone and demeanor, he had raised his hands to settle the witch and three wizards in his office. He waited for everyone to sit down and then he took his customary seat behind his massive desk and spoke in a tired voice that almost belied his age.
"Please realize, I have no more control over this than the rest of you. Also I don't like this any more than the rest of you."
Sirius got up from his seat. "We can't let him do this. He'll be killed -- - or worse!" Sirius paused briefly to look for any sign of acquiescence from the Headmaster. The gaze that met Sirius' was soft but unmoving. Sirius continued. "He's been through so much. We need to spare him this. Please!" With his final plea, Sirius collapsed into his chair trying not to cry in front of everyone.
Dumbledore looked sadly upon his former student. He looked nothing like the jovial prankster that once graced the halls of Hogwarts. Certainly the time in Azkaban contributed to that but anyone could see worry and sorrow etched on his face. Worry for his best friends' son. 'So much sadness,' Dumbledore thought while looking at the wizard who hadn't caught very many breaks.
"Sirius, I know that's how you feel. I'm sure that's how you all feel." He paused for a moment to look at every occupant in his office before continuing. "But you must think through the ramifications. The Order's ancient magic is binding. It's more powerful than anything we know of. This means that if Harry fails to complete his task, none of us will able to be together for the next several years. I can assure each of you that Voldemort will be unstoppable in that scenario. That also means, none of us could be near Harry during that time as he became a member after his last birthday."
The effects of his words were clear. Everyone became subdued as the realization set in. Harry had to complete his task. Each witch or wizard was lost in his or her own thoughts for the next few minutes. Finally, Arthur spoke up.
"Albus, what else does Harry know about his task?"
There was no mistaking the somewhat sad look that momentarily overtook Dumbledore's eyes. "Actually Arthur, he knows less than you all do. He became a little channelized on his task and I believe he missed the finer details that I passed along to everyone earlier tonight. He didn't feel like chatting on the way back here either I'm afraid. I escorted him up to the Gryffindor Tower where I am sure he will remain the night. In the morning, first thing, I'll talk to him again.
"Minerva, it's going to fall on you to arrange Harry's schedule. I believe he's going to be missing quite a few classes."
"Albus, that's the least of his problems."
"I know Minerva, but I want to be able to tell him that it's being taken of. The less distractions he has the better."
Sirius, who had his head buried in his hands for the last several minutes, got to his feet. "I'm going to him."
Dumbledore slowly shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't allow that."
"WHAT?!"
"Sirius, please respect my wishes on this. I know how close you are to him. But believe me when I say that he needs some time alone to absorb this. Just give him the night. You can be here in the morning when I talk to him."
Dumbledore threw a meaningful look to Remus, who took the hint. He walked over and put his hand on Sirius' shoulder. "Come on Padfoot. You know that everyone here loves Harry and is looking out for his best interest. Leave him be for the night."
At first, Sirius didn't say anything. After holding his friend's gaze for a few seconds, Sirius hung his head. He collapsed in the chair again. "He's been through so much," Sirius said softly.
Remus nodded his head knowingly as he once again moved beside his friend to try in vain to comfort him.
Dumbledore gazed around his office before saying, "I'm afraid there's nothing more to be done tonight. Now if there's nothing else --- "
The redheaded member of the group spoke up. "Molly's going to kill me. Albus, are you sure that there's nothing to be done."
"We'll all help Harry any way we can but I'm afraid his knowledge of this task already usurps my own. Remind Molly how strong a young man Harry is. And also, Arthur?"
"Yes?"
"I'm still waiting to hear from you about that little matter we discussed earlier. I will not retain the Minister of Magic title much longer."
"I know. I'll get back to you."
"Very well then. Friends, thank you for coming by tonight. I trust I will be seeing all of you soon. Take heart in all that Harry has accomplished and please take care in how you act around him. It will do no good to see everyone he cares about acting sad or doubting his abilities. He draws strength and confidence from each of you. Good Night."
It was a solemn and thoughtful group that exited the stairway guarded by the gargoyle.
The next morning, when Harry awoke, he noticed two things. The first was that everyone else in his room was still asleep. For this he was glad. He wasn't allowed to talk about the Order to any of his friends but he knew he wouldn't be able to think about anything else. He didn't know how he was going to make it through his classes today but he was pretty sure that it would involve losing points from his House.
The second thing he noticed was that Fawkes was perched at the windowsill. The Phoenix seemed to realize that Harry had woken up because he flew over and delivered the note he carried from the Headmaster.
"Harry,
Please come see me as soon as you wake up and get dressed. Don't worry about your classes or breakfast. We will eat in my office.
Albus Dumbledore"
He read the note twice then nodded to Fawkes. There was no point in putting it off. Harry slipped out from under the covers and performed his morning ritual. Functioning more on autopilot than anything else, the fifteen year old Hogwarts student made the familiar trek to the gargoyle and into the office.
"Harry, how are you?" Sirius asked while crossing the room to greet him.
Harry glanced around and noticed that only Sirius and Dumbledore were present. He was slightly relieved. He didn't quite feel up to facing a big gathering this morning.
"Hello Sirius," Harry returned weakly.
"Good morning Harry," Dumbledore said cheerily. "Let's all sit down and have a bite to eat shall we?" Dumbledore didn't really expect an answer, which was just as well since he didn't get one. Harry sat down almost solemnly and Sirius wouldn't take his eyes off his godson. Halfway through the meal, Sirius grew weary from watching Harry push his food around on his plate. He also tried to take to heart what Dumbledore had said the previous night about not acting depressed and defeated.
"Harry, aren't you hungry? You don't want to upset the house elves do you?"
With a little more prompting (which included threatening to tell Winky and Dobby that he didn't like their food) Harry finally ate a little bit off of his plate. When Dumbledore was satisfied that everyone had had enough, the dishes vanished.
"Well Harry, I know that I told you a lot of the details last night but permit an elder wizard some slack. Just to be sure I didn't leave anything out, I will cover everything again this morning. Please feel free to let your mind wander during those parts that you've already heard."
Inwardly Harry breathed a sigh of relief. He appreciated how the wizard in front of him would go out of his way to make others feel good. Harry didn't want to admit in front of either of the two gentlemen in the office that he didn't remember much of last night after learning about his task. He slouched in his chair waiting to hear the details, apparently for the second time in as many days.
"As far as how you're going to accomplish your chore, you know more about that than I do. As it showed me, I presume the book gave you some insight on how this will work. Now there are several things to cover. The first is the logistical side of the house. Although I myself don't know exactly how, I do know that the book will help you with this. For example, I didn't have to track down Grindewald, the book took me to him. Something similar happened for Nicholas and I'm sure it will for you as well.
Secondly, the timeframe issue. I don't know exactly when it's going to happen. What I can tell you is that Nicholas' test was two months after he was notified. Mine, however was three days."
"THREE DAYS!"
Godfather and Godson alike paled a few shades upon hearing this bit of unwelcome news.
"How long do you think Harry will have?" Sirius inquired. Harry was of course wondering the exact same question but he figured that it wouldn't do any good to ask. He was right.
"We won't know until it's time."
Sirius sighed.
Harry blinked.
Dumbledore continued.
"Next, I should make sure you know about the membership. We already told you that you became a member during the summer. But we may have --- er --- stretched the truth about the membership test. Actually, there is no such test. The training that we've been doing all year was actually to better prepare you for your leadership challenge."
Shocked was the best description for how Harry was feeling now. "You knew? You both knew that I was going to be chosen?" he asked incredulously looking from one adult to the other.
Sirius met Harry's gaze but didn't answer.
Dumbledore was the one who responded. "How could we not know? No one else even comes close to you when it comes down to who has had the most success against the Dark Arts."
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
Dumbledore searched the young wizard's eyes trying to tell if that question came from hurt, anger, or curiosity. He sighed heavily before answering.
"Perhaps we should have. But there is no point on dwelling on what you cannot control. I thought it best to try to let you have as normal a school year as possible --- for you that is --- while still preparing you as best as we could."
Harry considered their rationale. He realized that all year he had been wanting to be treated like an adult and now that he was --- it wasn't really a lot of fun. They had put some pressure on him by making him believe there was a membership test. However they hadn't put so much pressure on him that he couldn't enjoy the school year. He didn't know if he could have learned what he needed to if he had known all along. After all, he had learned to become an animagus, to become invisible, and how to Apparate. He finally nodded at the two wizards.
"Is that all Headmaster?"
"Er --- there's just a little matter left of your schedule."
Harry looked at his watch and groaned loudly. He was an hour late for Potions. Fate of the wizarding world or not, Harry knew that Snape wouldn't miss an opportunity to take points away from Gryffindor --- and not to mention how long it would take him to find the Potions Lab. That would probably earn him a detention on top of the points.
Dumbledore chuckled. "I'm afraid you won't be going to Potions today --- "
Harry visibly relaxed.
" --- or any of your other classes. Professor McGonagall is seeing to the matter of informing your Professors. I think it best if you research all you can about the Order of the Serpents. There are a few books in the Restricted Section on the subject. I also have a few books that might be of interest."
"Good idea Dumbledore," Sirius began. "We can all read up on it and prepare Harry to take the reigns."
For the first time in a while, Harry Potter smiled. Since he couldn't tell Ron and Hermione he was afraid that he would be going through this alone. He should have known better. Sirius was going to help him.
"Thanks Sirius."
"Don't mention it. But when it's my turn to become the leader of the two oldest magical societies known to wizardkind, I expect you to help me study. Got it?"
Harry smiled again and nodded.
Sirius eyed his Godson with mock anger. "What are you smiling at? It could happen you know."
Harry rolled his eyes but attention was diverted from him by the chuckling of the Headmaster.
Sirius eyed him with mock hurt. "Et tu Dumbledore?"
A smiling Dumbledore got to his feet. "Might I suggest an hour or so of free time? It's best to hit these things with a fresh start."
Harry looked at his Godfather. "Want to tour the outside of the castle with me?"
"Brooms or animals?"
Harry thought for a minute. "Brooms, I think. There's still one Quidditch game left this season and I need to make sure that we win it. A little extra flying practice never hurt anyone."
"Brooms it is. Dumbledore, we'll be back in an hour ready and roaring to go."
The twinkle was back. He liked seeing these two men happy. It seemed to happen so rarely these days.
Harry and Sirius had a great time flying around the grounds. They didn't talk much except to challenge each other to a race or to show off performing a silly maneuver.
"Race you to the lake Harry?"
"All right."
"On three. Ready?"
"One --- "
"Two --- "
"HEY! Come back Sirius! That's not fair!" Harry chased after him but it was no use. Sirius had too much of a head start.
Sirius was laughing heartily when Harry pulled up beside him. "Nice of you to join me."
"You cheated."
"Did not"
"Did too"
They both broke into fits of giggles as they continued to fly around. All too soon, recess came to an end. They landed and entered Dumbledore's office in much higher spirits than they left it.
"I trust you two enjoyed yourselves?"
"You bet! I beat Harry in a race!"
"Only because you cheated!"
"Did not"
"Did too"
They started laughing again and even Dumbledore permitted himself a chuckle as he watched their antics.
"Well then, shall we get started?"
Sirius and Harry nodded.
"Excellent. I've gathered all of the books in the school that have to do with the Order of the Serpents. I figure we might as well dive right in. Remus was up here right after you two left. He took a couple of books back to his room. He said he'd catch up to us at suppertime. We'll meet once or twice a day to discuss what we've learned. The first such meeting will be tonight. We'll take our supper here while we discuss things."
"All right sir." Harry looked to the medium sized pile of books amassed on the desk in front of him. "Which book should I start with?"
"It doesn't matter. I think I'll start with this lovely blue one."
Sirius picked up one or two books. "I'll take this one"
"Why?" His Godson asked. "Does it have a lot of picture?"
Sirius lightly cuffed the back of Harry's head. "Maybe"
Harry walked up to the pile and started to pick up the average looking book on the end. Instead of picking it up though, he fell into it.
A/N -Read, enjoy, review. Most importantly though, enjoy!
Chapter 52
Challenging Chore
Harry barely registered the Headmaster's last words to him. 'Harry, are you ready to find out what your task is?' He played them over in his head until he realized that everyone was watching him and waiting for his answer. If he was being honest with himself, he'd have to admit that he forgot anybody at all was in the room besides him and Dumbledore.
Summoning courage that Harry wasn't sure he felt at the present time he answered, "Yes I am." He was so focused on Dumbledore that he didn't realize that the room had gotten so quiet that the occupants were almost certainly holding their collective breath. The last several days he had spent thinking about this moment. It was all going to play out in the next few seconds. What would his task be? If Dumbledore had to defeat Grindewald to prove his worth then that left little doubt what Harry would have to do didn't it?
Dumbledore's voice woke Harry from his reverie.
"Harry, your task is to become the leader of the Order of the Serpents."
Gasps could be heard from around the room. The noise level was rising by the second. Harry definitely no longer realized that anyone else was in the room. All he could think about was the last fourteen words that Dumbledore said and what would happen to all of his friends if he failed in his seemingly impossible task. Witches and Wizards from the audience were calling out questions to Harry as well as to Dumbledore. Soon it became overly obvious that the crowd was not going to settle itself down.
"SILENCE!" Dumbledore commanded.
The volume and tone that Dumbledore used all but guaranteed that everyone would obey his wishes. And indeed the crowd fell silent. However, Harry barely heard Dumbledore's command.
All that Harry knew was that his Headmaster was saying something or other to someone but he had no idea what he said or how long he spoke. The next thing he knew he was back in Hogsmeade walking back to Hogwarts alongside his Headmaster. He had no idea how exactly he had gotten here or how long it had taken. He vaguely recognized that he was standing in front of the Fat Lady. He briefly wondered how the portrait had swung open since he hadn't said anything but he didn't dwell on it. Instead he went straight up to his bedroom, drew the curtains around his bed, and sat perfectly still for hours thinking about the task before him.
There was no twinkle in his eyes as Dumbledore escorted Harry back from the meeting. The young man was putting up a brave front, just like his mother and father would have done. He hadn't commented on the unfairness of it all. He hadn't even commented on how difficult this task was going to be. Unfortunately, he hadn't commented on anything at all. After letting Harry into his common room, the elder wizard knew it was time to return to his own office. If he had his way, no one would be waiting for him when he got there. But he knew that that would not be the case.
When Dumbledore entered his office, he was completely unsurprised to see Minerva, Remus, Sirius and Arthur Weasley all standing around waiting to pounce as he opened his own door.
And pounce they did.
"How could --- "
"Albus, really --- "
"Dumbledore, surely --- "
"Headmaster, please --- "
"Settle down everyone. Please take a seat and we can talk about this calmly like the adults we are." Besides his calming tone and demeanor, he had raised his hands to settle the witch and three wizards in his office. He waited for everyone to sit down and then he took his customary seat behind his massive desk and spoke in a tired voice that almost belied his age.
"Please realize, I have no more control over this than the rest of you. Also I don't like this any more than the rest of you."
Sirius got up from his seat. "We can't let him do this. He'll be killed -- - or worse!" Sirius paused briefly to look for any sign of acquiescence from the Headmaster. The gaze that met Sirius' was soft but unmoving. Sirius continued. "He's been through so much. We need to spare him this. Please!" With his final plea, Sirius collapsed into his chair trying not to cry in front of everyone.
Dumbledore looked sadly upon his former student. He looked nothing like the jovial prankster that once graced the halls of Hogwarts. Certainly the time in Azkaban contributed to that but anyone could see worry and sorrow etched on his face. Worry for his best friends' son. 'So much sadness,' Dumbledore thought while looking at the wizard who hadn't caught very many breaks.
"Sirius, I know that's how you feel. I'm sure that's how you all feel." He paused for a moment to look at every occupant in his office before continuing. "But you must think through the ramifications. The Order's ancient magic is binding. It's more powerful than anything we know of. This means that if Harry fails to complete his task, none of us will able to be together for the next several years. I can assure each of you that Voldemort will be unstoppable in that scenario. That also means, none of us could be near Harry during that time as he became a member after his last birthday."
The effects of his words were clear. Everyone became subdued as the realization set in. Harry had to complete his task. Each witch or wizard was lost in his or her own thoughts for the next few minutes. Finally, Arthur spoke up.
"Albus, what else does Harry know about his task?"
There was no mistaking the somewhat sad look that momentarily overtook Dumbledore's eyes. "Actually Arthur, he knows less than you all do. He became a little channelized on his task and I believe he missed the finer details that I passed along to everyone earlier tonight. He didn't feel like chatting on the way back here either I'm afraid. I escorted him up to the Gryffindor Tower where I am sure he will remain the night. In the morning, first thing, I'll talk to him again.
"Minerva, it's going to fall on you to arrange Harry's schedule. I believe he's going to be missing quite a few classes."
"Albus, that's the least of his problems."
"I know Minerva, but I want to be able to tell him that it's being taken of. The less distractions he has the better."
Sirius, who had his head buried in his hands for the last several minutes, got to his feet. "I'm going to him."
Dumbledore slowly shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't allow that."
"WHAT?!"
"Sirius, please respect my wishes on this. I know how close you are to him. But believe me when I say that he needs some time alone to absorb this. Just give him the night. You can be here in the morning when I talk to him."
Dumbledore threw a meaningful look to Remus, who took the hint. He walked over and put his hand on Sirius' shoulder. "Come on Padfoot. You know that everyone here loves Harry and is looking out for his best interest. Leave him be for the night."
At first, Sirius didn't say anything. After holding his friend's gaze for a few seconds, Sirius hung his head. He collapsed in the chair again. "He's been through so much," Sirius said softly.
Remus nodded his head knowingly as he once again moved beside his friend to try in vain to comfort him.
Dumbledore gazed around his office before saying, "I'm afraid there's nothing more to be done tonight. Now if there's nothing else --- "
The redheaded member of the group spoke up. "Molly's going to kill me. Albus, are you sure that there's nothing to be done."
"We'll all help Harry any way we can but I'm afraid his knowledge of this task already usurps my own. Remind Molly how strong a young man Harry is. And also, Arthur?"
"Yes?"
"I'm still waiting to hear from you about that little matter we discussed earlier. I will not retain the Minister of Magic title much longer."
"I know. I'll get back to you."
"Very well then. Friends, thank you for coming by tonight. I trust I will be seeing all of you soon. Take heart in all that Harry has accomplished and please take care in how you act around him. It will do no good to see everyone he cares about acting sad or doubting his abilities. He draws strength and confidence from each of you. Good Night."
It was a solemn and thoughtful group that exited the stairway guarded by the gargoyle.
The next morning, when Harry awoke, he noticed two things. The first was that everyone else in his room was still asleep. For this he was glad. He wasn't allowed to talk about the Order to any of his friends but he knew he wouldn't be able to think about anything else. He didn't know how he was going to make it through his classes today but he was pretty sure that it would involve losing points from his House.
The second thing he noticed was that Fawkes was perched at the windowsill. The Phoenix seemed to realize that Harry had woken up because he flew over and delivered the note he carried from the Headmaster.
"Harry,
Please come see me as soon as you wake up and get dressed. Don't worry about your classes or breakfast. We will eat in my office.
Albus Dumbledore"
He read the note twice then nodded to Fawkes. There was no point in putting it off. Harry slipped out from under the covers and performed his morning ritual. Functioning more on autopilot than anything else, the fifteen year old Hogwarts student made the familiar trek to the gargoyle and into the office.
"Harry, how are you?" Sirius asked while crossing the room to greet him.
Harry glanced around and noticed that only Sirius and Dumbledore were present. He was slightly relieved. He didn't quite feel up to facing a big gathering this morning.
"Hello Sirius," Harry returned weakly.
"Good morning Harry," Dumbledore said cheerily. "Let's all sit down and have a bite to eat shall we?" Dumbledore didn't really expect an answer, which was just as well since he didn't get one. Harry sat down almost solemnly and Sirius wouldn't take his eyes off his godson. Halfway through the meal, Sirius grew weary from watching Harry push his food around on his plate. He also tried to take to heart what Dumbledore had said the previous night about not acting depressed and defeated.
"Harry, aren't you hungry? You don't want to upset the house elves do you?"
With a little more prompting (which included threatening to tell Winky and Dobby that he didn't like their food) Harry finally ate a little bit off of his plate. When Dumbledore was satisfied that everyone had had enough, the dishes vanished.
"Well Harry, I know that I told you a lot of the details last night but permit an elder wizard some slack. Just to be sure I didn't leave anything out, I will cover everything again this morning. Please feel free to let your mind wander during those parts that you've already heard."
Inwardly Harry breathed a sigh of relief. He appreciated how the wizard in front of him would go out of his way to make others feel good. Harry didn't want to admit in front of either of the two gentlemen in the office that he didn't remember much of last night after learning about his task. He slouched in his chair waiting to hear the details, apparently for the second time in as many days.
"As far as how you're going to accomplish your chore, you know more about that than I do. As it showed me, I presume the book gave you some insight on how this will work. Now there are several things to cover. The first is the logistical side of the house. Although I myself don't know exactly how, I do know that the book will help you with this. For example, I didn't have to track down Grindewald, the book took me to him. Something similar happened for Nicholas and I'm sure it will for you as well.
Secondly, the timeframe issue. I don't know exactly when it's going to happen. What I can tell you is that Nicholas' test was two months after he was notified. Mine, however was three days."
"THREE DAYS!"
Godfather and Godson alike paled a few shades upon hearing this bit of unwelcome news.
"How long do you think Harry will have?" Sirius inquired. Harry was of course wondering the exact same question but he figured that it wouldn't do any good to ask. He was right.
"We won't know until it's time."
Sirius sighed.
Harry blinked.
Dumbledore continued.
"Next, I should make sure you know about the membership. We already told you that you became a member during the summer. But we may have --- er --- stretched the truth about the membership test. Actually, there is no such test. The training that we've been doing all year was actually to better prepare you for your leadership challenge."
Shocked was the best description for how Harry was feeling now. "You knew? You both knew that I was going to be chosen?" he asked incredulously looking from one adult to the other.
Sirius met Harry's gaze but didn't answer.
Dumbledore was the one who responded. "How could we not know? No one else even comes close to you when it comes down to who has had the most success against the Dark Arts."
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
Dumbledore searched the young wizard's eyes trying to tell if that question came from hurt, anger, or curiosity. He sighed heavily before answering.
"Perhaps we should have. But there is no point on dwelling on what you cannot control. I thought it best to try to let you have as normal a school year as possible --- for you that is --- while still preparing you as best as we could."
Harry considered their rationale. He realized that all year he had been wanting to be treated like an adult and now that he was --- it wasn't really a lot of fun. They had put some pressure on him by making him believe there was a membership test. However they hadn't put so much pressure on him that he couldn't enjoy the school year. He didn't know if he could have learned what he needed to if he had known all along. After all, he had learned to become an animagus, to become invisible, and how to Apparate. He finally nodded at the two wizards.
"Is that all Headmaster?"
"Er --- there's just a little matter left of your schedule."
Harry looked at his watch and groaned loudly. He was an hour late for Potions. Fate of the wizarding world or not, Harry knew that Snape wouldn't miss an opportunity to take points away from Gryffindor --- and not to mention how long it would take him to find the Potions Lab. That would probably earn him a detention on top of the points.
Dumbledore chuckled. "I'm afraid you won't be going to Potions today --- "
Harry visibly relaxed.
" --- or any of your other classes. Professor McGonagall is seeing to the matter of informing your Professors. I think it best if you research all you can about the Order of the Serpents. There are a few books in the Restricted Section on the subject. I also have a few books that might be of interest."
"Good idea Dumbledore," Sirius began. "We can all read up on it and prepare Harry to take the reigns."
For the first time in a while, Harry Potter smiled. Since he couldn't tell Ron and Hermione he was afraid that he would be going through this alone. He should have known better. Sirius was going to help him.
"Thanks Sirius."
"Don't mention it. But when it's my turn to become the leader of the two oldest magical societies known to wizardkind, I expect you to help me study. Got it?"
Harry smiled again and nodded.
Sirius eyed his Godson with mock anger. "What are you smiling at? It could happen you know."
Harry rolled his eyes but attention was diverted from him by the chuckling of the Headmaster.
Sirius eyed him with mock hurt. "Et tu Dumbledore?"
A smiling Dumbledore got to his feet. "Might I suggest an hour or so of free time? It's best to hit these things with a fresh start."
Harry looked at his Godfather. "Want to tour the outside of the castle with me?"
"Brooms or animals?"
Harry thought for a minute. "Brooms, I think. There's still one Quidditch game left this season and I need to make sure that we win it. A little extra flying practice never hurt anyone."
"Brooms it is. Dumbledore, we'll be back in an hour ready and roaring to go."
The twinkle was back. He liked seeing these two men happy. It seemed to happen so rarely these days.
Harry and Sirius had a great time flying around the grounds. They didn't talk much except to challenge each other to a race or to show off performing a silly maneuver.
"Race you to the lake Harry?"
"All right."
"On three. Ready?"
"One --- "
"Two --- "
"HEY! Come back Sirius! That's not fair!" Harry chased after him but it was no use. Sirius had too much of a head start.
Sirius was laughing heartily when Harry pulled up beside him. "Nice of you to join me."
"You cheated."
"Did not"
"Did too"
They both broke into fits of giggles as they continued to fly around. All too soon, recess came to an end. They landed and entered Dumbledore's office in much higher spirits than they left it.
"I trust you two enjoyed yourselves?"
"You bet! I beat Harry in a race!"
"Only because you cheated!"
"Did not"
"Did too"
They started laughing again and even Dumbledore permitted himself a chuckle as he watched their antics.
"Well then, shall we get started?"
Sirius and Harry nodded.
"Excellent. I've gathered all of the books in the school that have to do with the Order of the Serpents. I figure we might as well dive right in. Remus was up here right after you two left. He took a couple of books back to his room. He said he'd catch up to us at suppertime. We'll meet once or twice a day to discuss what we've learned. The first such meeting will be tonight. We'll take our supper here while we discuss things."
"All right sir." Harry looked to the medium sized pile of books amassed on the desk in front of him. "Which book should I start with?"
"It doesn't matter. I think I'll start with this lovely blue one."
Sirius picked up one or two books. "I'll take this one"
"Why?" His Godson asked. "Does it have a lot of picture?"
Sirius lightly cuffed the back of Harry's head. "Maybe"
Harry walked up to the pile and started to pick up the average looking book on the end. Instead of picking it up though, he fell into it.