Chapter 5: Back Again
As Percy began to walk towards him, hand outstretched, with a smile on his face, Harry felt anger again piercing his insides. Percy was disloyal. He was against him all this time and like the Minister of Magic himself, thought he, Harry, was a lunatic or a madman. Harry could not bear to look at him. It reminded him of the Death Eaters who returned to the good side saying they didn't know what they were doing, and that they were under a spell, a trance. But just then, Harry couldn't help it: he backed up with a look of fury on his face.
"I'm out of here," he said, eyeing Percy with dislike. "Idiot," he said, turning and walking back up the main steps, leaving everyone speechless. He went in and sat on Ron's bed, because his was already occupied.
"Hello Fred, hello George." He said in a flat tone. He could hear quick footsteps below him, which must be Ron and Hermione coming to get him.
"What was that all about?" Fred asked.
"Yeah, Harry, are you okay?" George added.
"Fine." He said rudely.
"You don't have to get upset with us."
"We're not the ones who've made you're life miserable."
"Sorry," he said in a distant voice, "I know I just can't believe him; Percy I mean."
"Well you have a reason to hate him!" Ron said stumbling into the room and falling flat on his face.
"Yeah Harry, cheer up," said Hermione, stepping over Ron and helping him up.
"As long as Percy's not still down there, I want to see my exam results." Harry said as Ron got to his feet, brushing himself off.
"Don't worry, he left just after you bolted," Ron said, "Anyone could tell from the way he announced his leaving like he was the King of the world or something."
"Ok, then let's go."
The five of them trudged back down both sets of steps and entered the cavernous kitchen, to find both Ron and Hermione's parents chatting over tea.
Mr. Weasley leaned back on his chair and started the new conversation.
"Hello again, we were wondering when you'd come down, (clearly Mr. Weasley had no idea what had happened a few minutes earlier,) here's your letters Ron, Hermione, Harry." He said, handing them all out.
Harry and Ron gave each other awkward glances and slowly opened their letters. There on top was his school list. Underneath was the bit telling him once again to board the Hogwarts express from platform 9 ¾ at eleven o'clock on September first. With a furtive look around him at everyone else, he put his attention on the last piece of parchment, which was folded and shut with the Hogwarts seal. He ripped it open and looked at it, shocked.
These were not his exam papers. He didn't have a clue how this could be in his envelope. It was a message, a poem, written in silver ink, as though it was unicorn blood itself:
I know you feel death has taken over a life
But please don't forget that yours is in sightMy wounds may not heal; my end may have been near
But I can still live without a true fear
Of now you do know what things that I speak
Help will be coming by the one you can't seek
For a long year has passed and memories have crashed
But you must hold on even if you're out lashed
So remember this note it is important, I swear,
Or all hope is lost it's now within your care.
Harry's heart skipped a beat. Who had written this? It wasn't Dumbledore or anyone he knew, it wasn't their handwriting. It was a majestic in type, but calm and smooth all the same. Harry wondered who it could possibly be. No one he knew wrote in this way. He couldn't tell if it was a warning or just a simple poem. But it somehow connected with him instantly, and he didn't know why. He looked at Ron who was pouring over his exam with his mouth hanging open and at Hermione who seemed slightly put out about something. He wouldn't tell them, not yet anyway. He made to put everything back into the envelope but noticed that there was another piece of parchment inside. He pulled it out, and there were his O.W.L. results.
Astronomy ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ A Care of Magical Creatures ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ECharms--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- E
Defense Against the Dark Arts -------------------------------------------------------------------------- O
Divination ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ A
Herbology ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- E
History of Magic ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- P
Potions ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ E
Transfiguration ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- E
"What?" he said out loud.
"What's wrong Harry?" Ron asked him.
"Nothing, nothing…" but it was something. Somehow he had passed Potions and had miserably failed History of Magic. Well, that was the one he fell asleep in after all. But how, how did he get an E of all grades in Potions? He didn't know how to explain to the two, so he just gave his results to Ron to read aloud.
"What!" Ron said equally astounded.
"I don't get it either," Harry said looking back at the letter as though it might have changed in the past few seconds.
"Might as well ask dear old Snape when we get to school, eh?" Ron whispered in Harry's ear.
"Will you two knock it off?" Hermione said looking over at them with a suspicious glare in her eyes.
"What's up with you?" Ron asked a little too forcefully.
"For your information, I only got an A in Astronomy, and it was all because of that Umbridge woman! If she hadn't been after Hagrid," she said.
"Yeah, we all know the story Hermione," Ron intervened.
"Fine, but I still can't believe it, I got O's and E's in everything but that subject, and I would have done well if not for that horrible woman!"
"Well you did perfectly fine in everything else, so quit whining already," Ron said softly when she turned away.
"I'm going back upstairs, you guys coming?" Harry asked.
"Yeah, sure, hang on a second." Hermione responded. She stuffed her results back in the envelope and handed them to her mother. Ron did the same, and then they began walking out to the foyer. As they did so, they realized what was missing.
"Where did Fred, George, and Ginny get off to?" Ron wondered aloud.
"I dunno." Hermione said anxiously.
"Well, Fred and George are almost always at their shop," Ron said," so they probably left to go to work again. Ginny, on the other hand…"
"Oh lighten up you two," Harry said trying to cheer them up, "she's probably out back or something."
"You're right." Ron and Hermione said together.
They all headed back up the many steps until returning to the antique room where Ron and Harry were staying. Harry walked in and finally got his wish to flop down on the bed with his hands behind his head, still clutching his O.W.L. papers in his right.
"I got something strange with my letter," he told them.
"What, a stamp?" Ron said sitting on the second bed.
"Ron," Hermione said coming and sitting next to him and giving him a skeptical look.
"Sorry Harry, go on."
"Yeah, well, I'll let you guys read it, I already did." He took out and handed it to Ron. Hermione leaned over and read it with him. The longer they read, the more confused they seemed to become.
Finally, Hermione spoke: "I don't get it."
"Me either," Ron said.
"Who sent it to you?" Hermione asked.
"I don't know… it was just in with my letter from Hogwarts. And it can't have been something bad, right? Whoever wrote it must have been close to Dumbledore to have been able to put it in the envelope," Harry said, turning from them and gazing absentmindedly out of the bay window. Just then he saw something that almost made his heart stop. A great black dog was sitting in the front yard, staring through the window right back at him. In the time it took for Harry to blink once, the massive dog was gone. Harry shook his head. Sirius was getting to him again. He'd been having these hallucinations ever since he left Hogwarts.
"You know what Harry," Hermione said not noticing his strange behavior, "I think Dumbledore himself might have put that in your letter. He was the only one who could have anyway. Besides, why would someone like Voldemort write you a poem?"
"Yeah, that would be kind of weird," he said with a slight chuckle.
"Exactly," Hermione said matter of factly.
"Hey, and maybe it's in poem form because he thinks it could be intercepted or something," Ron said quickly, his eyes open wide.
"Of course…" Hermione said. "Harry, you should try to figure out what it means, until we go back to school, that's the only thing you can really do right now."
"I'm going with Hermione on this one Harry," Ron said looking at Hermione with a smile on his face. A bond of something shot between their eyes, and it befuddled Harry for a moment.
Their gaze returned to normal. This was beginning to be a very strange day for Harry. All of this had to add up, but how? He sat there in silence for at least five minutes getting awkward stares from Hermione and Ron, but he was unaware of them. His thoughts stopped altogether when the doorbell rang. It seemed to jog him back to his senses. The room was darker, and Harry realized that the evening was creeping near.
Apparently it was one of the Granger family's neighbors, because they were welcomed easily and Hermione said happily, "Finally, I thought the Fergusons would never arrive!"
"Who're they?" Ron said quickly.
"We met them on holiday in France a while ago."
"Oh yeah, that was when…" Ron retaliated, but he stopped at the look on Harry's face.
"Never mind," he mumbled.
"Let's go meet them." Harry said to get them to stop talking; memories kept drifting back to his consciousness that he didn't want.
The three of them, yet again, made their way down the numerous staircases. Harry felt like they were at Hogwarts he had to walk so much. Looking throughout every room, wondering which one the family might be in, they finally found them in the formal living room, sitting around the marble table in the center. All the heads turned at the sound of their footsteps, and Ron, Harry, and Hermione sat on one of the two couches not already occupied.
"Hello!" the parents said, while their daughters sat and stared at Harry.
"Hi," Ron and Harry said unenthusiastically, while the girls were still speechless. Hermione must have been having a great summer, because she greeted them with the opposite attitude of Ron and Harry.
Instead, Harry focused his attention on the girls across from him. One was very small and thin. She had blue eyes and pink cheeks. Her black hair was short, about an inch above her shoulder, and she seemed no more than eleven years old. He shifted his eyes to the other girl, and watched her laugh along with Hermione. She was skinny, with strawberry blond hair. Freckles stretched across her cheeks and nose. She also had bright green eyes just like his, and for some strange reason, he didn't mind it when she looked back at him and smiled. He held his gaze for a few minutes, even after she jerked her head to look away; her eyes astounded him. He had never seen them on anyone else. The mother, noticing Harry's gaze, said, "I'm sorry, I don't think we've met. I'm Marianne, and this is my husband, Frank, and my daughters. Ashley's in your year, I believe, she's turning seventeen in September, and my youngest is Paige, who just turned eleven and will be starting school this year."
Marianne was short with blonde hair and seemed very strong, though she was so small compared to her husband, who towered over everyone in the room. He seemed to have perfect black hair that sat in waves on his head. It reminded Harry of Sirius. Harry quickly shook himself and turned his eyes away.
"Er, my name's Harry, Harry Potter And these are the Weasleys."
"Ah, yes, we've already met the Weasleys. My husband works for the International Wizards Confederation in the American Ministry of Magic. It was they, who got us such a great home here."
After many introductions, the three families moved into the dinning room, and ate the somehow already prepared dinner. It consisted of long lost conversations and marvelous dishes. Towards the end, the Fergusons changed the subject to schools.
"Ashley is going to Hogwarts for her two remaining years, and Paige will be starting there this year," Frank said.
"Where did Ashley go to school before you moved here?" Mr. Granger asked.
"Featherheart Academy of Maryland." Ashley said, before anyone else in her family could. Her voice, like the rest of her family, was pure American.
"Cool," Ron struggled to say through a mouth full of ham.
"It was really small though, compared to Hogwarts of course."
"You've already seen it?"
"Yeah, well, a picture of it. My friend Sam is Dumbledore's granddaughter or something, we met her in France too."
Ron sprayed his potatoes onto Ginny and said, "Dumbledore has a granddaughter? Since when?"
"Well, his wife died a long while ago, and they had a child really late, Sam's dad. They probably keep it secret because of all the emotional stress they had to go through," she said.
"What emotional stress?" Hermione asked, looking puzzled.
"Dumbledore's wife died, Sam's mom and dad divorced, her father died of a heart attack, her other grandparents died due to old age, and Dumbledore and her mom are the only living relatives she has left."
"Sounds kind of like me," Harry said, drawing a slight grin at his own response.
"Why, what happened Harry?" Ashley asked, a curious expression appearing on her face.
"Well, you've heard of Voldemort, haven't you?" Harry asked.
Everyone but Harry, Hermione, Ron, and the Fergusons flinched.
"Yeah, he's that really evil guy that kills for fun, right?" Paige replied.
"That's him. He's the one who killed my parents…" Harry said, adding "and my Godfather."
"Oh, Harry, I'm so sorry," Ashley said, and she truly looked it.
"It's ok; I'm used to it by now."
The conversation continued as the sun set, and everyone's energy was running low. The group set off to bed in shifts that night. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ashley were the last to head up, after finishing their conversation about the return to school.
The next few weeks went by quickly, and as usual, Harry wished it had lasted much longer. Of course, going back to Hogwarts would definitely have its advantages. He couldn't wait for Quidditch, classes, tea with Hagrid, everything. He would even welcome a chat with Snape about his Potions grade; after all, he did get an E. Altogether, he was excited about leaving Hermione's home, and to get back to the one he truly belonged; Hogwarts.