CHAPTER 10

(A/N: another equally, abnormally long chapter)

With the equipment in place, and the tapestries now up in the various rooms, Harry asked the founders about any tips they might have for his training program as he sat on his bed.

"We can help ya," Helga said cheerfully, "I recon we've all got special talents in different areas."

"Very true," Salazar agreed smugly. Godric rolled his eyes.

"So dontcha take lessons with us?" Helga finished.

Harry looked at them, "You'd do that?"

They nodded. "You are the first person we've seen in a long time Harry," Rowena reminded him, "It will give us something to do."

"All you gotta do is ask." Godric said.

Harry grinned, "Will you teach me?" he asked. They nodded.

"Potions and Offense are mine." Salazar said quickly.

"We wouldn't dream of taking them from you," Godric told him dryly, "I'll do Animagus and Defense then."

"Charms an' 'erbology!" Helga piped up.

"Arthrimacy and Ancient Runes you will learn from me." Rowena finished.

"I haven't taken either of those," Harry said, "But Hermione talks about them all the time."

"Hmmm, what about history?" Helga asked, looking at her colleagues.

Godric shuddered, "Not unless it's Quidditch."

"I will do wizarding history," Rowena offered.

"You'd better do Hogwarts history Slyth," Godric said, earning a glare, "Since we don't know what you all put in there."

The green-eyed portrait sniffed, "All for the better." he said haughtily, "I will teach it."

"Um, do any of you know about magical creatures?" Harry asked.

The other three founders all said simultaneously, "Helga."

She blushed, but smiled at Harry, "I'll teach ya that."

While they debated about a schedule, Harry went into the study and grabbed a quill, ink and parchment to write it all down. When he'd come back, they'd agreed on something.

On Mondays he would wake up, practice Occlumency, then go downstairs and work out for half an hour, after that he'd shower, and eat breakfast. His first class would be Potions with Salazar; then Herbology, Arthrimacy, then lunch. After that, he'd have Defense, Charms, Hogwarts History, Animagus Training, and dinner. His last set of lessons would be Ancient Runes, and Quidditch (Harry still had to go and get a new broom, and figure out how in the world Godric was going to manage teaching him), then CoMC, Offense, and Wizarding History. The rest of his evening was free, and before he went to bed he'd practice Occlumency again; none of his classes would go past half an hour.

Tuesdays and Thursdays, Harry would spend entirely with Salazar and Godric. His normal Occlumency, workout, shower and breakfast routine came first. After that, his lessons were an hour long. Animagus Training would be first, then Potions, Defense, and Lunch. Harry would get an hour of free-time, then go to Quidditch, and Hogwarts History. There were no classes after dinner, and all Harry had to do was Occlumency.

His classes with Helga and Rowena would be on Wednesdays and Fridays. The morning routine would pass, then came Charms, Arthrimacy, Herbology, and lunch. Those would be followed by an hour of free-time, Wizarding History, CoMC, and Ancient Runes. Again, all Harry had to do in the evenings was Occlumency before going to bed.

"An' the weekend'll be free," Helga added once Harry finished writing it all down.

"Alright," he said, "And thanks-- I can tell this is going to be better than school." Godric grinned, Helga blushed, Rowena smiled, and Salazar just nodded.

"Oh, you should look at that family tree," Gryffindor suggested, "You'll find yourself related to some interesting people." Harry promised he would do so, after he went to buy another broom.

"Then do that now-- I can't wait to see your reaction!" Godric urged.

This made Harry a bit uneasy, but he shrugged in answer and teleported to the alley behind Gringotts. He walked through Diagon Alley, and asked a passing witch if there was an eyeglass store; she pointed him to a new shop that was right before Knockturn Alley. With a quick word of thanks, Harry walked down the road and entered 'Blurnof's Eyestore'.

It was a lot like a muggle eye store, Harry'd only been in one once, with glasses frames displayed on racks everywhere, and mirrors beside them. A sixteen year-old girl with black hair that fell to her shoulders and suntanned skin was at the counter, writing with a quill.

As the bell on the door sounded, she looked up at him with dark green eyes, "Welcome to Blurnof's Eyestore," she said, "We've got all your visual needs." Harry bit back a laugh, her introduction was weird.

She seemed to have caught on to his hidden amusement, because she grinned at him,

"Sorry about the speech, store protocol. How can I help you?"

Harry grinned back, "I was wondering if you had anything like muggle contact lenses."

She nodded, "Regular or customized?"

Thinking of Mad-Eye, Harry glanced quickly out the window-- nobody was near the store. Hoping she was trustworthy, he took off the ski cap, revealing his scar; she didn't even blink. "I get into a lot of trouble, so I need something that'll help me out a bit."

She tipped her head to the side slightly, "I know what you mean." With a snap of her fingers, a measuring tape levitated itself into her hand. "Pop a seat," she told him, gesturing to one of the stools in the room.

Harry did so, and she began to measure his head and face. Not once did her eyes stay to Harry's scar while she measured; it was strange for him, and a bit unsettling. "Can I see you glasses for a minute?" she asked once she'd finished. Harry nodded, and took them off, holding them out to where he guessed her hand was. She returned them soon after. "Be right back," she promised, and went into the back room.

As she left, the paper she'd been writing on fell off the counter. Trying to be helpful, Harry picked it up. As he started to put it back on the counter, Harry saw that it was a sketch of a broom. Intrigued, he looked closer. In small, but neat handwriting were descriptions of each part; various equations for stuff Harry didn't know; and small notes. The top was labeled 'Bludgeoner: Mark 3'. A beater's broom? Harry wondered. Hearing the girl come back, Harry quickly set the paper on the counter and returned to his seat.

Seconds later, she emerged from the rear room, two boxes in hand. She brought up a second stool, and sat on it, facing Harry. "These are regular glasses," she explained, holding up a box, "Well, maybe 'regular' isn't the best word. See, they're enchanted with an anti-destruction charm, a spell-seeing charm, and have transition lenses."

"Transition lenses?" he repeated.

"Yeah, when you're inside, they're normal; when you go outside, they tint, like sunglasses." Harry nodded in understanding, and she continued, "Now in this other box are our most advanced, and most expensive, contact lenses. We've only sold them to aurors, and only two of 'em actually, but I'll keep quiet if you do." Harry agreed.

She smiled, and went on. "You can sleep with them on, they never dry out, etcetera. They'll automatically change to match your prescription, and you won't even notice them after a while. By focusing on a color in your mind, they'll change you eye color to match, it's fool proof. The next feature is night-vision, which is self-explanatory. The lenses can also see though invisibility cloaks and spells, illusions, most walls, and Polyjuice potions," Harry's jaw dropped, and she chuckled, "I'm a genius, I know." Harry stared at her, did she just say she made them? Before he could ask, she went on. "If someone is using one of those things, they'll appear blurry around the edges, giving you a heads-up. Now, the last thing is spell sight. It's the only thing you have to verbally activate. Simply say 'sight' in any language, and I mean any," she inclined her head, "even Parsletongue, and the lens will allow you to see any spells that are within a fifty foot radius. It won't do you any good if you don't know what the spell or guards look like when they're cast though," she warned, "'Cause they show up just like that. To end the spell, say 'end'-- again, in any language. Any questions?"

"How'd you know I speak Parsletongue?" he asked.

She laughed, "Well, I was talking about the lenses, but- in answer to that, I read the papers. Don't always believe them, but I do read them."

"Oh, well, I'd like to buy the contacts, how much?"

"Fifty galleons," she said with a shrug, "Expensive, I know but-"

"I'll take it," Harry finished.

She smiled, "Alright then, I'll ring 'em up." she took the box of contacts, and rang them up on the register. After Harry grabbed fifty galleons out of his magic money bag and paid her, she gave him the contacts, and suggested that he try them on.

While he opened the box, Harry asked her what her name was. "Alexandriaz," she answered with a regretful grin, "Alex, for short."

He smiled, "Alex it is then." Alex then showed him how to put them on his eyes, without poking himself. She laughed when he did anyway. Despite the twinge in his eye, Harry laughed too. "They work great!" Harry told her once he'd gotten both in correctly. It was true too; everything seemed sharper, his vision was clearer, and there were no limits like his old glasses had caused. He changed his eyes to blue, black and even orange, then back to their normal emerald green.

"Glad they're working alright," she said, "anything else?"

Harry debated silently with himself, "Well, I was wondering about -er-- well,"

She raised an eyebrow, "Spit it out,"

"Your sketch fell off the counter, and I looked at it," he mumbled, "Well, I didn't purposely look at it, it just-- caught my eye." he stumbled over the last bit, and to his relief, Alex just laughed.

"And you were wondering what it was?" she finished for him.

"Yeah," Harry answered. "I play seeker, but I'm guessing that's a broom for beaters?"

She nodded, "Follow me. I've got something that might answer your questions." Harry followed her into the back room, and up a small staircase.

"Do you live above the store?" he asked.

"Yeah, I haven't found a decent place to live in London yet, so Mr. Blurnof lets me stay here, and I work to pay rent. It's not a bad deal really."

"So what do you do in your free time?" he asked.

She grinned at him, and opened a door to her right, "This."

Harry's jaw dropped at her workshop. Several boughs of wood, and piles of twigs lay on long tables. Carving tools held down plans and sketches. Four finished brooms hung on a rack on the wall. "You make brooms?" he whispered.

Alex nodded, and walked over to the complete brooms. Taking one off the rack, she turned and offered it to Harry.

It was made of pine, and had a long, slender form. The tail was created of finely trimmed birch twigs, all arranged to aerodynamic perfection. Its handle was polished, and somewhat darker than the rest. The words 'Star Blazer', were etched in silver on the handle. "Try it out," she said.

Though there wasn't enough room to fly, Harry mounted the broom-- he barely noticed it under him. The broom didn't waver at all, and changed direction the moment Harry twitched his knees. "Perfect balance, exceptional handling and can go from 0-250 mph in just fifteen seconds." Alex said proudly.

He stared at her, "That's faster than a Firebolt!"

She nodded, "Only drawback is that the broom's really light. Made only for seekers who can get out of the way without getting hit. A tossed quaffle could make you lose balance."

"Hmm, bad thing for chasers." he agreed, then dismounted, "When are you going to release it?"

"I'm not officially releasing any of them until I finish the entire line- kinks and trick free." she answered.

"And you only have the beaters' brooms left?"

"Yeah, I should be done in November."

Harry's shoulders dropped, "Well, I'll be counting down the days." he promised. A spark lit up in Alex's eyes, "Tell you what, I'll give you this broom now, for only ten galleons-- enough to make another-- but only if you agree to something."

Harry gripped the broom tighter, "Name it."

She smiled, "I want you to write me a letter about its handling, performance, and difficulty level after your first flight and following Quidditch matches and practices, that's all."

Harry thought about it and stuck out a hand, "Deal."


(A/N: And now for that question: who is Harry's living, disastrous yet hilarious, relative?)

He promised to come back after he rode it, and Alex reminded him about his hat. Blushing faintly, Harry hastily put it on, then left the store, the broom hidden in a rectangular case. Once out of sight, he teleported to Black Manor.

He ran upstairs and greeted Hedwig, then found Godric and showed him the broom. "Nice one!" Godric said, "Doesn't look as sharp as some, but if it can do what the girl says it can then..." he didn't need to finish, Harry knew what he meant.

The question Harry'd been thinking to ask popped up in his head, "Uh- Godric? What kind of Quidditch are you going to teach me?"

"The history of course, and some plays and moves that have probably been forgotten by now. I used to be a seeker too." he answered.

"How are you going to do that?"

"I noticed a chalkboard in one of the frames. I'm not that bad an artist you know," Harry held back a chuckle, "And well, I've got a broom in my portrait too-- we'll see which works best."

"Ah, okay, thanks."

Godric nodded, "No problem, now go check out that family tree!"

Harry laughed at his persistence, but put the broom away in his room, then went into the study. Harry started at the top, and worked his way down for quite some time. Godric was near the top, as was a 'Merlineus', whoever that was, and Harry was the very last person on it. Instead of looking at his immediate family, Harry looked at his distant relatives, the ones that could possibly still be alive. 'Most of the pureblood families are related,' Sirius had once told him. Harry shuddered, I hope I'm not related to Malfoy, he thought. Passing over the names, Harry saw the name 'Weasley, Carl.' "I'm related to Ron!" he cried excitedly, "Wait 'till they find out!" Harry jumped around for a few seconds, needing to spend some of his energy, then returned his focus to the tapestry, eager to see who else he might be related to. The Black family wasn't on it, even though Sirius had been 'Molly's second cousin or something.' Disappointed a tiny bit, Harry continued down the tree. The third line from the bottom displayed a name that made Harry choke-- 'Snape, Algor'. Frantically, Harry looked below it; sure enough, the name 'Snape, Severus' was right underneath it. Harry groaned, not bothering to look if Snape had any perhaps nicer relatives. According to the tapestry, Harry's least favorite professor was James Potter's second cousin-- which made Harry Snape's third cousin, or something like that.

"Found anyone of interest?" Godric asked, all too innocently.

Harry groaned a second time and threw a book at the portrait, missing by a few inches. "Don't let Rowena see you do that," Godric warned him with a grin, "She'd never speak to you again."

"Is that so horrible? I wish you would never speak to me again," Salazar said, entering the frame as well. He then looked at Harry, "Why did you throw a book at him?" he asked, "Not that I blame you."

Harry pointed weakly at the tapestry, "I'm related to Snape." Salazar raised an eyebrow and smirked in silent amusement, while Godric roared into fits of laughter.


(A/N: So, did you like Harry's distant relatives? One good, one bad; bittersweet I'd say.)

Coming Up:

First Lessons

First Forms

Then:

More lessons

The Riddle of the Chimera: Part Two

(G.B. strikes again grin)

The Will of James and Lily Potter