Hey everyone. Disclaimer is in chapter one and warnings are in the summary. In this fic Sirius came back through the viel, Snape hasn't been heard of since the night of Dumbledore's death but Draco was found under the Imperius curse a couple of days after. There are plenty of secrets and surprises in this chapter, can you figure them out? Hope you aren't all oblivious...shippers O.o lmao k I'm done now, Enjoy! Oi and I'm doing this without a beta so don't be too harsh! Anyone who notices irregularities in cannon or prose flow let me know!
James
Harry Potter and the Universal Truth
Chapter Two - Oblivious Wizards
Harry awoke the next morning to Hermione shaking him. They had stayed at the Leaky Caldron the night before and hadn't had much sleep due to a party going on in one of the rooms above them.
"Come on Harry, we're going to be late for the train!" She urged.
Harry grumbled from beneath the sheets before dragging himself out of bed.
He was anxious that he hadn't recieved an attunement session. Worrying thoughts plagued his mind as he redied for the trip to King's Cross Station.
The two finished grabbing their things and were out of the pub and into Muggle London in a flash. They took a Muggle cab, thoroughly amazing the driver with Hermione's ability to fit an angry Crookshanks along with two huge trunks and a caged owl into the back of his car.
They arrived with minutes to spare and rushed through the barrier, barely stopping until they heard their names. The two companions turned around to see a red head darting through the crowd of witches and wizards.
"Ron!" Hermione yelled jumping up and down before being enveloped in a hug by the youngest Weasley son. Mrs. Weasley was closely in tow, casting furtive glances and muttering about how You-Know-Who could be lurking anywhere.
Ginny also came to give her greetings after Mrs. Weasley had finished mothering Hermione and Harry.
Ginny had grown up over the summer. Now in her fifth year she had filled out. Her bright red hair framed her face like ringlets of fire and she had managed to pull off rouge lipstick quite nicely. Her eyes sparkled a maturity that hadn't been there the last time Harry had seen her.
"Hi Harry! Hi Hermione!" Ginny laughed embracing them both.
They all caught up on what had happened during their respective summers before Mrs. Weasley ushered them and their things onto the train.
"Be careful Ronald Weasley. Take care of your sister! All four of you better come back in one piece!" Mrs. Weasley called through the window as the train began to take off. She wiped the tears off her face and blew her nose in a bright pink handkerchief before turning back through the barrier.
"That woman does not let up!" Ron scowled as the three friends found an empty compartment.
The great Hogwarts Express rumbled beneath their feet, letting out a loud whistle as it sped up leaving the station behind in a matter of seconds.
"Honestly Ronald she's only concerned for our safety!" Hermione admonished.
"Obsessive is more bloody well likely..." Ron mumbled as they sat down and slid the door shut.
"What's this Harry?" Ron asked.
Harry turned around and his eyes immediately fell to the picture Malfoy had given him for his birthday. His insides went cold with fear.
"It's nothing!" Harry snapped grabbing it and stowing it away.
"Doesn't look like nothing, looks like a gift to me." Ginny said suspiciously.
"I got the picture from the scrap book Hagrid gave me and I decided to have it framed..." Harry explained, lying through his teeth.
The matter was quickly dropped as Ron and Hermione got into a debate in regards to the appropriate amount of study time needed for a test. Harry shuddered and looked to Ginny in exasperation. She simply smiled and nodded towards the door of the compartment and they both made a quick escape. Ginny laughed with her back against the now closed compartment door.
Harry tried not to snigger himself but lost all control and howled with amusement when a book was thrown at one of the opaque windows. Hermione's shrieks could be heard at the defecation of a perfectly good, hard copy edition of 'Hogwarts: A History".
After the two had regained control, they went off down the hallway in search of another compartment to hide in until they arrived at Hogwarts. They had been holding on a relatively steady conversation until Harry went silent in the middle of a sentence, having seen a flash of blonde.
"What is it Harry?" Ginny asked as Malfoy walked towards them.
Harry didn't answer her and ran as fast as he could in the opposite direction. The compartments blurring together as he went.
"Potter, wait!" Malfoy called out to him, sincerity clear in his voice.
Malfoy would have ran after him if Ginny hadn't have used a leg locking jinx, causing the blonde to fall ungracefully to the ground. Harry could hear Ginny shouting as he struggled for his fallen wand.
Harry only stopped once he had safely locked himself in an empty lavatory.
A certain green-eyed boy came out of the bathroom a good time later, and went back to his compartment fully changed into his school robes and fully confused.
Ron was staring moodily out the window with his arms crossed, and Hermione's flushed face hid behind a large book upside down book. It looked like neither of them were talking to each other. Ginny thankfully didn't mention the earlier incident and for that, Harry was grateful.
They stayed quiet for the remainder of the train ride. Harry joined Ron in staring out the window; the rolling hills had taken on a dark look as clouds threatened in the sky, successfully hiding the sun from view.
He rested his scar against the cool window, feeling a hollow ache in his chest. Of all the people who could touch his brave Gryfindor, heart so gently, it just had to be Malfoy. Harry sighed as unwanted thoughts about the blond sloshed around in his head.
'At least no one's died yet' he mused darkly.
It didn't take long for the train to reach Hogwarts, and Harry's thoughts were interrupted as he waded his way through the chaos of students scrambling to get their pets and belongings off the train all at once.
The ride up to the castle in the bewitched carriages was a short one. Hermione worried over the poor first years who had to brave the Black Lake in little rickety boats with Hagrid. It was normally a pleasant experience, but it had started to rain and a howling wind had picked up.
It was in weather much like this that Ron, Hermione and Harry had arrived for their first year of Hogwarts. The fact that this year was to be his last, brought on a wave of nostalgia.
Hermione muttered something under her breath about Ron and his 'moronic idiosyncrasies' as they walked into the Great Hall. He chuckled sadly, relieved that some things would never change.
Professor Flitwick was charming thick black mud off the disheveled first years as they came in the door. It didn't take long for McGonagall to lead them away from the rest of the students who made their way to sit at their respective house tables.
The roof of the great hall above them looked stormy and put Harry on edge. Perhaps it wasn't the Great Hall. Although, he could have sworn he hadn't remembered the castle filled with so much thrumming energy.
He was interrupted from his thoughts as one of the staff members brought out the old sorting hat and placed it on its stool. The great hall shushed as it opened its mouth and began to sing.
Count your blessings for you're not dead
As many are this year
Simply put me on your head
You'll get it back, don't fear!
A strange alliance this year sprouts
Between Slytherin and Gryfindor
Rivalry will cease, no more shouts!
For Slythindor is here!
Poor Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw
You'll be the last to know
Never worry, do not fret
For you will also grow
Alas! A new Hogwarts!
Many have left us blue
Their spirit shall live forever
Through these great halls!
Let it ring true...
The whole school was shocked into silence. No one knew what to do with themselves. An alliance between the two most rivaled houses in the history of Hogwarts? It sounded ridiculous. The Slytherins were already starting to glare and curse silently.
Suddenly the sound of someone clapping broke the silence.
"Bravo! Bravo! Wonderful song don't you all think! Professor McGonagall if you please?" A young woman bellowed. She began gesturing for Minerva McGonagall to begin the sorting.
All through the sorting, Harry studied this young woman. She had long chestnut brown hair that came past her shoulders in faint natural curls. She had pale smooth skin and a familiar twinkle in her brown eyes that Harry couldn't quite place.
Harry shrugged to him self and decided not to mention it, anything he would say would be drowned out by the roars of the Gryfindors as they added a second new student to their midst. By the end of the sorting, any awkwardness of the Sorting Hat's words had passed and everyone's cheers were deafening.
Slytherin had added two new members; a blonde haired girl named Mageli Jeffreson and a brown haired boy whose name Harry had missed. Gryfindor added four new members (Harry couldn't remember their names), Hufflepuff gained three new students and Ravenclaw gained five members. The noise died down and the same brown haired woman got up to speak.
"Before we begin the feast I'd like to introduce myself as Rachael, the new Headmaster of Hogwarts! I wish I could accept this post under different circumstances. Circumstances that do not involve sadness, war and the death of the only man Tom Riddle has ever feared! I am not Albus…but I will do my best to live up to his beloved memory here at Hogwarts." The great hall was so astounded they couldn't speak.
"Now since we are adding so many new professors this year I will take a moment to introduce them to you. We have Professor Oreli Fireh who will be taking the post of Defence Against the Dark Arts and head of Slytherin house." She said ignoring the still shocked student body and motioning to a petite woman with sharp teeth, glittering black eyes and a blue tinge to her pale skin.
"Now, we have Professor John Hemingway who will be teaching our new Alternative Magiks class this year." She continued introducing a Jamaican man with long dreads and a big smile.
"I am proud to welcome back Remus Lupin to start teaching our new Meditative Balance and Theory class."
"Harry did you hear that, Professor Lupin is back!" Ron whispered excitedly.
Harry nodded his head and applauded with the rest of the school.
"We have our own Madame Pomfrey teaching a new course this year, Medical Healing 101 and Arthur Weasley will be taking over for Muggle Studies. Last but not least we will have Sirius Black teaching potions. His charges have been cleared and he has come a long, long way to be here with us this year!" She finished with a mischievous smile.
The great hall was stuck between the need to applaud Ron's dad and reacting to the horrifying idea of having an e-convict teaching classes. The great hall resulted to clapping politely while breaking out into discussion.
Harry internally groaned, knowing it was going to be a long, confusing year.
"Now tuck in!" She finished before sitting down.
Mountains of food appeared out of nowhere to the astonishment of the new first years. Turkey, ham and roast beef littered the golden plates, along with vegetables, fruit and many different kinds of cheese and bread. Pumpkin juice flowed into the many goblets like golden rivers from the air.
"Honestly she can't be more than twenty-five!" Hermione grumbled while heaping baked potatoes onto her plate.
"'Looks cute to me." Ron sprayed through a mouthful of corn.
"Honestly Ronald!" Hermione snapped.
"Doesn't the new defense against the dark arts teacher look a little…terrifying?" Neville piped in quietly, afraid that she could somehow hear their conversation.
"I'm more concerned about that arse Malfoy! He should be in Azkaban…" Ron argued.
"He was cleared o' charges Ron. They had him under the imperious curse. Or so me relatives say!" Seamus Finnegan interjected.
"I don't care he's still the same old git he always was." He continued stubbornly.
"Ron just shut up." Harry snapped.
The other Gryfindors went quiet before Seamus and Dean Thomas started telling off colour jokes to the rest of the table. Harry, Ron and Hermione remained silent through out the feast.
By the time Yorkshire pudding and the like came around, gossip had died down and conversation was turned to classes. Harry's mood hadn't been lightened with the rest of them.
He stared moodily at his Googleberry Trifle and stirred the sauce so it made intricate two-tone purple swirls on his plate. He glanced up across the Great Hall to see Malfoy sitting at the Slytherin table looking just as upset. Their eyes locked for a split second and Harry felt icy hot needles prick his entire body, the room fell from focus and his vision swam.
Taking a deep breath he willed himself to calm down as the room returned to normal. Thankfully no one had noticed the episode. If they had they'd be just as confused as he felt about the whole experience.
Dinner was promptly brought to a close as the food disappeared, leaving the golden place settings sparkling clean. Professor Racheal stood up and the great hall fell silent once more.
"What a wonderful feast, make sure you thank any House Elves you come across within the next few days for their wonderful services! Mr. Filch has added products from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes to the list of items banned at Hogwarts. If any of you wish to see this list, it is posted on the wall beside the main entrance. Good-bye to those who step foot in the Forbidden Forest this year, for I doubt any of us will ever see you again. For the rest of you I will see you bright and early in the morning! Bonne nuit!" She dismissed.
"Oh Harry did you hear that! Do you think I should ask her to join S.P.E.W?" Hermione asked hopefully as she stood to lead everyone up to Gryfindor tower.
Ron groaned, praying that she wouldn't rekindle the flames of her almost forgotten 'save the house elves' campaign while Harry sniggered.
"Password?" The fat lady asked sagely once they had reached her portrait.
"Yellow Yaffelhumps."
"Are you perhaps Mr. Longbottom taking a polyjuice potion?" The portrait asked smartly.
"Yellow Yaffelhumps." Hermione stated crossly.
"Terribly sorry dear but that's not the password!"
"Yes it is! I'm Head Girl and Professor McGonagall told me herself." Hermione stated airily.
"I'll let you in this time dear, but for future references the password is 'Oblivious Wizards'."
"Oblivious wizards indeed! Oblivious portraits is more like it. The damn thing should show me more respect as Head Girl…" Hermione fumed as the portrait swung open. She was having a hard time being undermined by a piece of canvass and oil in front of the younger students.
Harry was the last to go into the Gryfindor common room, having stopped to stare at the fat lady whom had now switched portraits and was whispering in Madame Carine Olivier's ear. They stopped whispering having noticed Harry. The fat lady turned and gave him a wink before disappearing through the other side of the portrait.
He shook his head and made his way to the boys' dormitories. Harry Potter was sick of the surprise, suspense and secrecy that the castle seemed to be full of that night.
It took Harry until well after midnight to fall into a restless sleep with flashes of blonde and scenes of the Forbidden Forest running through his dreams.