School had mostly gone back to normal. A few weeks after Potter's return, Dumbleore held a staff meeting. They talked about Voldemort, his return, security around the castle, and, inevitably, the topic turned to Harry Potter.
"What about Harry? That boy has changed since we last saw him," McGonagall brought up. "He is much quieter in the common room. Before, we could always count on the sound of him and young mister Weasley talking about Quidditch, or Ms. Granger badgering the two of them to study. Now, he spends much time thinking, and has been playing peace-maker to arguments in the common room. Also, I believe, he has become an excellent strategist. He can now beat all the Gryffindors in chess, whereas, before, he could barely scrape by trying not to lose too badly against anyone who wanted to play him." Snape snorted.
"Humph. That...boy," Snape spat, " has become abysmally good at Potions. It is as if he has gained an understanding of the ingredients and how they react to one another. He has the makings to be a great Potion's Master. He also seems to be spending a lot of time with my Slytherins. I have gained a small amount of respect for him, despite his father and his actions." Snape admitted, albiet grudgingly. Much of the staff looked shocked- Dumbledore twinkled.
"It's true. Harry seems to have gotten over his dislike of Slytherin house. He seems to be getting especially close to Draco Malfoy." Lupin spoke up. "I, personally, have no problems with this. Draco's father has been sentenced to the Dementor's Kiss, has he not?" Snape nodded the affirmative. "And Draco has announced his decision to fight against You-Know-Who along with Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, Blaise Zambini, and Pansy Parkinson. Harry has stopped numerous arguments from breaking out between the two houses. So, even if Ron and Hermione disapprove, I support their friendship. This could also be the bridge that will finally connect the two feuding houses of Hogwarts. We should be united in this time of war." Lupin's voice had dropped during the duration of his speech, and tension mounted in the room. Sprout gave a smile and tried to ease everyone's spirits.
"Well, whatever it is, Potter's grades have been rising. His Herbology scores are astounding! It seems like he knows exactly what he's doing, and he is completely at ease around all plants, even the more dangerous ones. It's like he knows they won't hurt him," the small Professor chirped, pouring herself a cup of tea. The room eased, almost as a whole.
"Teh animals seem ta be in awe of 'im," boomed Hagrid. "They seemta regard 'im as a bein' worth respect, even teh foreign ones I managed to get."
"Well, it does seem as if our young Mr. Potter has changed, and for the better." Dumbledore said genially. "I do hope this keeps up. I wonder where he was for the last half year though. Are there anymore changes to Harry?"
The Professors glanced at each other and one by one, shook their heads. Then, Lupin spoke up. "A few. Minerva," He turned to face the Professor, "You do not go up to the dorms often, so you do not know," He then turned back to the Headmaster. "I go up often to talk to Harry about Sirius, James, or anything else he wants to talk about." Lupin took a deep breath. "Harry has a corner bed next to the window. He has flowerpots in the corners, and even in the gloom, he manages to grow roses. Not normal roses that grow sickly after a few days, but his roses are vibrant red, and they climb."
"Climbing roses in dark, gloomy corners?" Sprout said incredulously. "That's impossible!"
"I know! And they go all around the window! It's a total maze of vines with thorns, but Harry never seems to get hurt." Here, Lupin looked a bit uncomfortable. "Also, on his desk, along with a picture of Lily and James' wedding day, Sirius' and mine, and a picture of him, Ron and Hermione, there's another picture of strange people. Not one of them is Harry, yet there's a redhead that kind of looks like him...just like him, but asian, and with a curl to his hair. He also has a tapestry on his wall. It's framed by the roses, who seem to know not to hurt it-"
"Lupin, they're plants! Not even remotely intelligent plants, but roses! How do they 'know' anything?" Snape snapped.
"I don't know!" Lupin answered, flustered. "None of the flowers go near the tapestry; they even leave a empty space of approximately an inch or so around it! When I asked, Harry said he doesn't take any blade to his flowers! So that must mean that either they know what they're doing, or someone is controlling them, but there's no trace of magic in the plants, I should know, I checked! And-"
"Remus, relax.you're rambling." Dumbledore injected gently. "I'm more interested in the tapestry. What does it depict?"
"It's strange, really. I don't understand it, though I've tried. In the four corners, there's a stag with lilies twined around its antlers, a wolf, a phoenix, and a large black dog. I'm assuming these represent James, Lily, Sirius, and myself, as well as you, Albus." Dumbledore nodded his head in acknowledgement. "What puzzles me is the large design in the center. It's a large Eastern dragon which seems to be made out of black fire and a silver fox. The tails of the dragon and fox are entwined around each other with a black, pearl-like gem between them. I do not know what the dragon and fox could represent, though I've turned many possibilities over in my mind. Harry seems to treasure this tapestry very much."
"Strange." Dumbledore mused over this for a while. The staffroom burst into quiet chatter, as the professors talked among themselves of this new development. The headmaster cleared his throat, and the room silenced. "Our young mystery may solve itself out. It is getting late. This meeting is adjourned."
AN: i know that kurama, in fox form, has more than one tail. i chose the fox for this tapestry to only have one tail to signify the 'vulpine spirit' of kurama in general. YYH shows up in the next chapter.