Harry Potter and the Ethereal Flame

Author's Note: Okay, last chapter received some positive feedback and so I decided to write this chapter and release it fairly soon after chapter 2. Also, it's my birthday! I am officially sixteen since July 30th and I am all happy and giddy! Anyway, I'll respond to reviews and post a bit of news concerning this chapter at the bottom of the chapter. Enjoy…

Chapter 3: Preparation

The soft lingering light of day illuminated the small thatched cottages and rural looking buildings of Etherfield Village in northern England. A thick blanket of quiet had descended upon the village as the empty streets slithered through the cosy community; an eerie feeling lathering the village as night descended. Smoke, almost ghostly, permeated the night sky and masked the stars, seeping from the chimneys of the village houses, as the faint clinging smell drifted about the area with contented ease.

Bang!

The quiet of the village was shattered with the thunderous arrival of a scandalous looking triple-decker bus; painted a shocking purple. The arrival of said bus was an unheard of event in Etherfield, though that is really no surprise since the village was purely muggle. With a jutting sound, the doors of the bus opened and a cloaked figure leapt nimbly from the steps. The figure's face was hidden behind the shadows created by the overly large hood that framed the face and he briefly looked back through the doors where he gave a slight nod.

The pimply face of one Stan Shunpike leaned precariously from the bus as he bade the figure a good bye before pulling back, causing his stringy hair to fly about his head wildly, and shouting to the driver of said bus to start up again.

Once the bus had left, the cloaked figure cautiously pulled back the hood of his cloak to reveal messy black locks and piercing green eyes. His features were becoming more defined and it was clear that this figure was a teenager. Pulling a small wad of papers from the folds of his cloak, Harry Potter began to slowly make his way down the main road of the village towards what would be his new home.

Harry had found the papers, information pertaining to a Potter-owned property, in a cabinet in his family vault previously that day and after much deliberation, had decided that to train and take control; he had to be totally independent. A home of his own would be highly beneficial and so he was currently walking through Etherfield Village to where his new home was apparently situated. As Harry walked through the village, he was cautious as the evening light smothered the comfort that daylight provided, but he also took notice of the various buildings and shops that lined the main road. There was a rather shabby looking pet shop to his right and one shop that he took particular notice of was a rather modern looking gym to his right. He assumed that this was a gym used by all the nearby villages as it did look out of place in such a small community, still, he took note of the gym and decided that he may visit it throughout the summer.

Looking down at the papers, he reread the important information to ensure he knew what he was doing.

Potter Cottage
Original Owner: Eresea Potter (mother of Calamity Potter)
Location: Adaptable-Fidelius Charm – Near Etherfield Village (northern England)

I, Eresea, was the one to construct Potter Cottage as I worked as a wizarding architect. The cottage in itself is made for the simple use of preparation.

The Cottage also comes with a mass of land of which may be used as the master sees fit.

EDIT: I, Lily Evans-Potter, have visited the Cottage and found that it was a little out of date. I modernised it some and I hope that whichever Potter you are, that you use it well.

To find the Cottage, you must firstly travel to Etherfield Village and make your way down the main road. Carry on through Etherfield until you are travelling a road through some wooded area. Here, if you are a Potter (adaptable-Fidelius), you will see a small footpath leading into the woods to your right. Follow this and you will come to a statue of a stone lion. Here, you must accept the adaptable fidelius and then you shall be master of Potter Cottage.

Adaptable-Fidelius Charm: This is highly similar to the fidelius charm, however, this charm is bound to a family line. If a Potter were to die who were master and keeper of Potter Cottage, then the Cottage would stay hidden until a Potter could accept the charm on the property. This is a very strong charm and useful for family generations. However, it does have its drawbacks. The charm will fail if the master/keeper dies and there are no other family members alive to accept the charm. Also, to accept the charm, one must firstly be of Potter descent and be given the location of acceptance.

The stone lion is the acceptance point and you must place your want tip on the forehead of the lion and utter the following incantation (note: this is not magic as you are only accepting the location of the property and that is the magic. The incantation is only releasing the magic):

Domus locus ingravesco celo accipio cognomen

Do not take this lightly and use the Cottage well!

This information was all he really needed to get access to the Cottage and he was looking forward to it immensely. The fact that the place was already hidden was a bonus as he would not have to spend a lot of time trying to hide his home from Voldemort and Dumbledore. The apparent mass of land that accompanied the property was also a bonus and secretly, the fact that his mother had had a hand in the Cottage's current state, had swayed his decision.

Having now left the village, walking down the road through the wooded area, Harry couldn't help but feel nervous. Seeing the footpath to his right, he quickly took it as thoughts suddenly assaulted his mind. What if he was not accepted by the house? What if the ministry found out he had accepted some form of magic? How long would it be before the Order found he was no longer at Privet Drive? It was all rather nerve racking but he steeled himself, knowing that if he was going to go toe-to-toe with a powerful dark, no, evil wizard, then he was going to have to toughen up. He didn't know where that just came from, he had always thought of Voldemort as a dark wizard, but did dark actually mean evil? After all, couldn't light magic be used in the same manner as supposed dark magic? He would have to think on this another time, as he saw the stone lion statue just ahead.

The statue of the lion radiated a sense of pride and dignity which Harry couldn't help but admire; even though the statue itself was chipped in places and looking rather worn. Taking a deep breath, Harry steadied himself whilst drawing his wand. It might have just been his imagination but he could have sworn that the statue seemed to be evaluating him. Shaking the thought from his head, Harry placed the tip of his holly wand on the forehead of the lion. Boosting his confidence with the fact that he was a Potter, Harry began to release the magic.

"Domus locus ingravesco celo accipio cognomen!" he roared.

At first, nothing happened, but then after a moment or two in which Harry was considering his failure; the lion began to vibrate gently. Then, after another moment or two of this in which Harry stood by hesitantly, the lion rose from its lay down position into a sitting stance; head held high and body resting on its haunches. Harry looked on as the lion's mouth suddenly opened and it gave a magnificent roar of approval. It was as the lion roared that Harry felt a weight settle on his mind; he figured that this was the fidelius charm, the secret! The phrase, Potter Cottage is home to the Potter Line, flashed through his mind and then seemed to settle with his mental burden; Harry assumed that this was the secret location name of which was the key to keeping his new home secret and safe; much like that of 12 Grimmauld Place.

Harry was distracted from his musing as much like 12 Grimmauld Place did when he first entered; the gate to Potter Cottage began to squeeze into existence in front of him. At first, the lion seemed to duplicate as another joined it to its left, but then a gate began to stretch between the two made from black metal, he assumed the same metal as his vault door, with the Potter crest emblazoned in the centre. He could not see over the gate or the fence of trees that supposedly surrounded the property, probably infused with magic for privacy and boundary establishments, and so he did the only thing that came to mind.

"Open!" he commanded in what he meant to be an authoritative voice, but came out as a hesitant mumble partly due to his awe and the slight fear that troubled his mind.

The two lions, either side of the black metal gate, rose in unison and gave their roars of which strengthened Harry's resolve, before the gate split down the middle and opened inward with a creak. What Harry saw before him almost made his heart stop; he was in complete awe!

An expansive grassy land stretched before him, surrounded by wooded area. Directly in front of him lay a crude path of stone slabs that led to the front door of a small and cosy looking cottage. It was a two floor, square shaped cottage with a light thatched roof and large windows. A small chimney jutted from the thatched roof and soft light seeped from the windows. Someone was at home?

As he walked up the stone pathway, the metal gate closed behind him though it didn't worry him too much as this felt like home, as much as Hogwarts did at least. Looking around as he approached the cottage, he took notice of just how big the surrounding land he owned was. To his right, he could see a small area which he assumed was a wood chopping area; since he could make out the gleam of dimming light reflect upon the blade of an axe, embedded in a tree stump. To the back of the land was a small lake of clear water, standing out in front of a small wood. Harry didn't really have much time to look around but he promised himself that he would the next day, hopefully accompanied by a nice day of sunshine.

Standing before the front door of his new cottage, Harry was about to knock on the front door when it hit him that he owned this property and according to Dumbledore, he had no other relatives, so he reached out and opened the door. Stepping into a small porch, he found a small mirror on the wall and some hooks on the opposite wall, supposedly for coats. Hanging up his ratty cloak and about to proceed into the household via the wooden door in front of him, he finally noticed a small tray on the floor to his right that was white, decorated with only one word; Shoes. Deciding to go with it, he pulled of his trainers which were now covered with a healthy layer of mud and grime; he placed them onto the shoe tray. As soon as they were left upon the tray, the shoe tray vibrated slightly for a few seconds before settling again, leaving his trainers clean and shiny; though still ratty. Smiling to himself over the genius of such an item, Harry opened the door and stepped inside; greeted with a cosy warmth and smell of roasting chicken. Now his mind was definitely on edge since he should be the only one here and yet it was obvious that this place was being inhabited. Drawing his wand slowly from his jeans pocket, Harry lowered his body slightly into a somewhat crude duelling stance, before slowly advancing through the hallway.

A staircase rose upward to the right of the hallway and there was a mahogany door to the left of the staircase. The soft lighting of the house allowed Harry to see that the hallway continued a short while past the staircase to another mahogany door. He had a few options here; go upstairs, take the left door, take the door to the end of the hallway or get the hell out of there. Deciding to go through the door to his left since the most light seemed to be emanating from there, he cautiously twisted the doorknob before throwing the door open and launching himself into the room; of which he later realised was quite stupid. Still in duelling stance, he almost fell over when he saw who was stood shyly in front of him.

There, clad in a white woollen gown of crude workmanship, stood a house-elf in all its wide-eyed glory. The house-elf was obviously female and resembled Winky to a large degree. To say Harry was shocked was an understatement; he wasn't expecting this in the least!

"Er, you be my new master, sir?" asked the house-elf, wringing her hands and looking down at her feet continuously.

After a minute or two in which Harry stood completely dumbfounded, he found it in himself to answer her. "Yes, well, erm…no. I am owner of this cottage if that's what you mean? What's your name by the way?" asked Harry, his curiosity peaked.

"My name be Elle master and I be bound to the master of the cottage. I here to serve, sir," Elle replied.

"Yes, well, I guess this could work, but call me Harry please?"

"Yes Harry Potter sir, you be great wizard and it be an honour to serve you Harry sir!" she squeaked.

With a resigned sigh and shake of the head at house-elf antics, Harry stood up properly and began to look about the room. It showed that his mother had been involved in the decoration of the cottage as he looked about. The room he was in currently was two rooms connected by an archway; in effect making it one large room. The half of the room he was in now was more of a chill-out zone he figured as there were some comfortable looking sofas and chairs along with a muggle television to his left. To his right there was an expensive looking pool table that looked like a lot of fun and some books shelves, stacked with some, albeit out dated, muggle fiction, lined some of the walls.

Looking to Elle, Harry began to think of how hungry he was after his long and tiring day.

"Elle, is it possible for you to cook up some dinner please? I want to look around the cottage and if you could, then that would be great!" inquired Harry.

"Of course master Harry, I will get on it right away!" she asked with slightly watery eyes at how polite Harry was, and just before she popped away Harry could distinguish her muttering derive from what an honour it is to serve.

Again, shaking his head, Harry made his way into the second half of the massive room. Directly facing him was a huge fireplace with a mantelpiece bearing a few delicate ornaments and a decent sized pot of what he assumed, contained floo powder. In front of the fireplace were some cosy chairs a nice hearth rug. Also about the room were various bookshelves and an ornate chess table with opposing high backed chairs that made the game seem so…majestic! The large windows to the left of each half of the great room looked out toward the gate of the land and not much light filtered through since night was setting in; but the atmosphere was snug and comfortable. As he looked to the simmering embers on the fireplace, he noticed the mahogany door to his right. Walking through it he passed into the kitchen of the cottage where Elle was busying herself preparing food and drink. It was a very nice kitchen, quite modern of which he put down to his mother. There was a large, rounded table to his right where he assumed about eight people could eat comfortably. To the very bottom right of the kitchen was another door leading past a wall that created a square room in the kitchen.

When he asked Elle about this she shyly replied that it was her quarters and so moving directly right from coming into the kitchen he walked along the kitchen and the extremely small corridor that Elle's quarters created in the kitchen and through a mahogany door on the right. Walking through this he found himself back in the hallway and discovered that this door was the one he saw at the end of the hallway, past the staircase when he first entered the cottage.

Very content with the downstairs of the cottage, Harry made his way upstairs onto the first floor of the cottage. Upon arriving at the top of the stairs, he was greeted with a wall that belonged to a large room. To the left of the staircase was a door that led into the room. Standing in front of said door, there was a corridor to his left that led further on and to the very left another door leading into a decent sized room. Deciding to firstly enter the door he was in front of, he discovered a huge library that was stacked to full with books and bookcases. Deciding he would visit this later, he made his way to the other door just on the other side of the corridor. Walking through this he found a large bathroom with a shower, toilet, and bathtub and all in all, it was very luxurious. It was mainly comprised of green marble tops for the counters and a tiled floor; with a nice fur rug on the floor for warmth. Stepping out of the bathroom he ventured into the short corridor. It only led to a small dead end with a nice plant there for decoration. On either side though were rich mahogany doors. The closest door was the one on his left and so he entered. In all it looked to be a spare bedroom with only the essentials, but by no means shabby. It had a large bed and cupboards and a large desk to name a few. Stepping out he walked up to the second door which was on his right.

Walking inside he immediately knew that this was his room. Opposite of where he had entered, there was a large window that looked out onto the land and provided an amazing view of the lake, the wood and he knew this was heaven for Hedwig (who he was expecting to arrive soon since she was his familiar). The room was actually quite airy and radiated a feeling of freedom which Harry didn't entirely put down to the fact that there were three windows to the room. In the far left corner was a large bed that looked very inviting and in the alcove to his left sat a regal looking wardrobe. There were cupboards and an empty bookshelf in his room as well as an ornate desk that held some stores of ink, parchment and quills. A fur rug lat on the floor and all it needed now was a bit of a personal touch. For that however, he would need all his possessions from the Dursley's and also from his planned shopping trip the following day.

Remembering a line or two of information that was written in the sheaf of papers including the deed to Potter Cottage and some additional information, Harry began to make his way back to the library. The bit of information had included an interesting statement from Eresea telling of some powerful magical architecture that she added to the cottage. Harry was very excited to see this.

Once inside the library Harry walked over to the wall looking out onto the back of the cottage and searched for the book entitled; Open Your Mind to Magical Architecture by Eresea Potter. Once he had found it, he quickly tapped it with his wand as indicated in the papers and the bookshelf creaked inward revealing a large room spanning the width of the cottage. Although this extra space was clearly not visible as a part of the cottage on the outside, it was an added space on the inside, very useful but ridiculously difficult to do. Thinking on that he had to smile with pride over his family's capability.

Walking inside the magical space, he found one long room that was divided by an archway, similar to the living room or games/chill-out rooms. In the first and larger part of the room was what Harry could only describe as a duelling space. It had a slightly raised platform on which to duel and the room was also home to many books concerning defensive and offensive magic in regards to duelling. The room also had man-shaped metal cut-outs upon the wall. He assumed that you had to fire spells at these; probably to discern spell power (AN: he's so perceptive isn't he, lol?). Walking into the second part of the room, Harry was filled with a momentary dread, but it soon disappeared as his resolve smothered it. He was not stood in what could best be described as a potions lab. Work benches and stools were polished and ready for use. All necessary potions supplies were ready for use and there was a small stock cupboard in which he assumed ingredients and more supplies were kept. Deciding that his requested food was most likely prepared by now he made his way back to the kitchen, fully pleased with the home he had chosen for his summer activities.

Entering the kitchen, his nostrils were coerced with the smell of chicken (cooked previously), roast potatoes, steaming vegetables, stuffing and all of it coated in nice layer of piping hot gravy. This was all mouth watering food and topped off with a mug of butterbeer and a chocolate pudding on standby; Harry had the intense feeling that he was being spoiled, but decided why let such culinary delights go to waste? Sitting down at the large circular table he dug in with vigour before noticing Elle standing by the table looking uncomfortably at Harry who assumed it was because she was not used to company. Deciding to do something, Harry immediately took action.

"So Elle, would you care to join me? After all, it was you that cooked such fine food, you must be hungry as well, why not join me?" asked Harry, trying to persuade Elle into joining him.

At first she looked decidedly uncomfortable, but after a puppy dog gaze from Harry, the masterful house-elf took a seat across from Harry. Harry continued to eat and compliment Elle on her talents in the kitchen at which she would blush or brush them off as if she did not deserve the compliments.

Deciding to be a little sneaky here, Harry became inspired by his dining table to lead Elle to a new way of thinking; though he highly doubted that Elle would take to it soon.

"So Elle, have you ever heard of the tales of King Arthur?"

"Yes, Harry sir," she replied, thoroughly unsure of where this conversation was headed.

"Well, you know that they believed all men were equal yes?"

"Yes Harry sir," she answered even more confused.

"Do you know how they symbolised this belief Elle?" he asked, tilting his head as if in thought as he spoke.

"No Harry sir."

"They sat at a round table," he said in a devilish voice.

Elle was momentarily confused before she realised what shaped table they were both sat at. Her eyes went wide and she scampered from the table and stood to attention in front of Harry, her eyes pleading forgiveness. Quashing his feelings of guilt, Harry addressed Elle.

"Listen Elle, I may be your new master, but that doesn't mean that I am better than you. If I am out of line, I want you to tell me. If you ever need help, I want you to tell me. After all, just because you serve me, doesn't mean we can't be friends eh?"

Elle seemed to mull over this before nodding hesitantly. Harry beamed at her and then she some what reluctantly climbed back into her seat at the table. After a beautiful meal in which Harry and Elle discussed things concerning the grounds, cottage and Etherfield Village, Harry once again addressed Elle once she had cleared away the dinner dishes magically.

"Elle, could you do me a favour please?" he asked politely.

"Of course Harry sir," she replied with great enthusiasm, ready to undertake whatever task Harry had for her.

"I want you to travel to number 4 Privet Drive in Surrey, England and fetch my belongings. They are in the smallest bedroom of the house and they are all within a school trunk. Could you do that?"

"Yes, Harry sir," she replied before popping away.

After about a minute, Elle returned with his school trunk, bulging slightly from containing all the items within, floating magically behind her. He asked her to place it in his room and once done, bid her a good night before going upstairs to the library; he had one more thing to do before he could go to bed for some much needed sleep.

Stepping into the library, he closed the door securely behind him. If the ring that was currently attached to his left hand was as rare and powerful as the card from Calamity claimed, then he didn't want the knowledge that he has such a ring to pass to anyone; including Elle if he could help it. Turning the second protruding band on the ring a half turn clockwise, hearing the small clicking sounds as he did it, he felt the magic of the ring take effect. The ring emitted a light glow for a few seconds before Harry began to feel light headed until the ring stopped shining the slight white colour.

Still slightly disorientated, Harry looked up to see a mirror image of him standing there. The figure bore all the same features as Harry though instead of flesh, his embodied mind seemed to be made of a semi-physical white mist. It was not a shining white mist, but instead was a rather dull white which made it seem more real. It was hard to think that this was actually his mind, but he guessed he would have to get used to it so he greeted it with a smile of which it was returned.

Harry instructed his mind, as he didn't feel comfortable calling his embodied mind, Harry, that he should scour the library to determine where the library was weak and where it was strong as to decide what texts he should purchase the next day when he went shopping. His mind did as he asked and so Harry left the library, closing the door behind him before retiring to his room after a quick brush of the teeth. That night Harry fell asleep rather quickly, though not purely because he had had a tiring day, but because his ethereal counterpart was slowly draining his energy as he slept.

Author's Note: Okay, third chapter here and I would appreciate it if you could tell me what you think of it? I was going to make this much longer and go onto the next day's shopping but then I thought that this was a good enough length for a reasonably quick update. I will post the next chapter within 5 days! I promise! It should be very interesting actually.

Also, if anyone would like to see a floor plan of Potter Cottage and a sketch of the surrounding lands etc. then just go to my yahoo group and files; I posted two things there! Also, there are some slight spoilers of things to come in the two plans.

Also, any of you artists out there fancy drawing the ethereal ring quite detailed to put on my yahoo group? If you can, let me know. You can contact me at:

Also, does anyone know what the following words mean in order and in English, if yes, then post the answer in a review. This is just for fun to see who knows it and to deepen your understanding of the spell.

Domus locus ingravesco celo accipio cognomen.

Yeah, so there you go! Now, onto review responses:

kateydidnt – Thanks for reviewing. As for the funeral, there won't be a body; it will be more like a memorial. I have plans for that, oh yes, it all comes together.

TuxedoMac - Thanks for the review and I am glad you like my story. I'm glad you got the ring as well; bit confusing, but this chapter should make it a little clearer as well as future chapters.

Yugioh/Potter/Pokemon fan – Thanks for the review and yes, they were deeds but with a little extra info. If you like Harry doing things for himself, you should like the next few chapters quite a lot; not saying anymore though.

Serpent of Light – Wow! What a review eh, you made me quite uncomfortable with how close you are hitting towards things in my plot, lol. Since you took the time to post such a long review, I think I will treat you to a bit of info; although it may not seem like it, it is not the last time that Harry will see the Dursleys, though it is quite far off. Anyway, I agree with everything you said, lol. The ethereal magics and the ring as far as I know are original material and I wanted to bring something different to my story, I hope you like them. They will develop and you will learn more about them in then coming chapters. As for the title, Ethereal Flame, this fits in with that and is quite quintessential to my plot. I have hinted towards its meaning slightly but you shall find out. As for mastering ethereal magic, we'll see. The ring is more than it seems. I was surprised you picked up on that as I thought most would skip past it but you are uncannily perceptive you know? I was hoping to develop it in secret but anyway, the ring will pose problems though it will be beneficial. And apart from this, it is also a device; two birds with one stone and all that eh. I also like adjectives by the way, I like reading really imaginative works that are quite descriptive; I also look out for them. Yours isn't weak on adjectives either, you seem to have found a balance that pleases the reader either way; something I am aspiring to. Erm, I think when I eventually go back to each chapter to correct spelling etc. I may include more info on Stan as I realised he wasn't defined enough in the previous chapter. I did put a slight description in above, but not much. As for transport; let's just say numerous things eh? At least you didn't pick up on every hint I put in the previous chapter, some things are still secret : ) Anyway, thanks for reviewing and I hope that you enjoyed my third chapter!

BloodRedSword – Thanks for the review! This will not be slash and Harry will not get with either Hermione or Ginny. I do have plans for some romance (not sloppy hopefully) in which will develop realistically (in my mind) through out the story.

Thanks everyone for reviewing and tell me what you think of this chapter! REVIEW! Erm…please /blushes/

Serpentine Phoenix