Chapter 04
Jo walked down one of the main corridors in UNIT HQ, a bag slung over her shoulder. After their fraught experience on the SS Bernice the Doctor had brought the TARDIS back to UNIT HQ stating that his repairs had been 'relatively successful', except that they hadn't arrived at the 'famed blue planet of Metabelis III'. The bag she had slung over a shoulder had some clothing and essentials, just what the Doctor had asked her to get.
Flashback.
The Doctor opened to door of the TARDIS gesturing. "Back home Jo, UNIT HQ."
"I thought we were going out to explore, now that the Time Lords have given you back the TARDIS and your knowledge of time travel theory?" Jo said looked back to the Doctor curiously.
"They have Jo they have, now…" He trailed off for a moment and then seemed to remember something he'd forgotten before turning to Jo. "Jo, could you gather some essentials, an extended mission, you could say."
Jo held back asking the Doctor what for, he seemed concerned and uncomfortable, the former she was used to, the latter she was much less used to seeing on the Doctor's features, he was always so confident when working with the Brigadier, or on his own, with her help.
"Of course Doctor, are we going some where in the TARDIS?" She tried tentatively.
"Yes Jo, thank you, I'll explain everything when we're on our way, I just need to get a few files from my lab." Then he followed her out of the TARDIS.
Present...
Jo walked into the Doctor's lab expecting to find him, and the TARDIS within and found neither. There was the slight marks on the floor where the TARDIS usually resided in the lab, with the requisite scuff marks caused my the various UNIT soldiers manoeuvring it in and out when in the past the Doctor had needed it outside of UNIT HQ.
Looking around her eyes fell on a card lying against a Bunsen burner.
In the garage
It said in the Doctor's neat flowing handwriting.
Jo picked up her bag again and walked out of the lab and down the corridor towards UNIT's underground garage, UNIT had several in fact, above ground and underground garages, the outside above ground ones were a short walk away from the main UNIT HQ storing all the UNIT land rovers and all the other equipment they used, plus some of the Doctor's experiments in large sheds. But there was also a smaller garage located underneath UNIT HQ where the Doctor last parked Bessie prior to their trip in the TARDIS, she assumed that was how they were getting to wherever they were going rather than the TARDIS.
As she entered the brightly lit underground garage she immediately saw the TARDIS parked incongruously in one of the parking spots, and Bessie in an opposite one. The TARDIS door was open and Jo assumed that the Doctor was inside, as she walked over she caught a glance of various files spread out over Bessie's bonnet.
Jo picked up one the cover said; 'No eyes only, Top Secret'. Jo felt a small tingle down her back. She'd only seen a few files like this, more than most people, even those who worked in the security services, they were files so top secret they technically didn't exist.
UNIT dealt with plenty of top secret things, but most of them, given how UNIT was integrated with the UN did exist in some form or another.
The top summary of the report read; 'Summary of investigation by MI5 and MI6 into activities of Voldemort, (see reports 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 3.7 for breakdown of crimes). See accompanying report 'breakdown and analysis of Statute of Secrecy'.
Jo stared at the report for a moment, she had never heard of a Voldemort and UNIT usually got a breakdown of a lot of the international investigations, generally because there was often an alien (or a Master) explanation or trail connected to many of them.
Jo closed it and looked around at the other files, there was the mentioned report into the Statute of Secrecy, whatever that was, she dropped the bag that she was still half carrying and picked up the file.
A lot of it was just basic introduction into which section of MI5 had compiled the report, who had been consulted and other things like that, it like the first was also labelled 'No Eyes Only'.
As she leafed through the report, which was more like a book, it had been wire bound and went into great detail.
This Statute of Secrecy thing seemed to have begun sometime in the 1690s, but there was a lot of complicated cross-talk alluding to various other reports, or parts of the report she was skimming through.
"Dry isn't it," Jo jumped, the Doctor was standing over he watching her read.
"Don't do that Doctor, you could have given me a heart attack," she said.
"Sorry Jo, I see you've found the beyond top secret files?" The Doctor said with traces of irony and humour in his voice.
"Sorry Doctor," she said a guilty smile "But you did leave them here for anyone to find." He smiled it that knowing way, it made her suspect that he left them there deliberately for her to find, still subtly teaching her in his own way. Just as being tied up by megalomaniacs, locked up and shut in a cell had made her use her escapology in ways she hadn't thought she'd ever seriously need to. Her uncle really hadn't explained exactly what she was getting into being the Doctor's 'new assistant'. Not that it was something she would ever give up.
"Jo?" The Doctor said softly
"Sorry Doctor," she paused "caught up in my thoughts."
"Very good, now, bring the files and we should get going." Jo nodded and gathered up the files and picked up her bag preparing to get into Bessie and then saw the Doctor walking over to the TARDIS.
"I thought we were going in Bessie Doctor?"
"No, no Jo, though Bessie is coming with us, come on." The Doctor led her through the TARDIS, she chucked her bag into a room the Doctor indicated she should use and continued to follow him down a corridor, at some point the reached a set of double doors that he pushed open, inside was a large empty room, with another set of doors on the other side of the room.
"Wait here, I'll return in a moment," he said mysteriously and disappeared through the doors they had entered Jo poked her head out of the doors and watched him walk up the corridor. A few moments later she felt the hum and movement of the TARDIS change, indicating that they had taken off, a moment (or less) later the hum of the TARDIS changed to the landing and in front of her Bessie materialised.
Jo stared open mouthed at it, she couldn't believe it, she just stared before realising she was about to drop the files in surprise.
"Jo?" The Doctor's voice asked throughout the room from some invisible speakers.
"Yes Doctor?"
"Has Bessie arrived in one piece?"
"Yes Doctor how…" Her question was cut off.
"Come back to the console room and I'll explain."
"Everything I hope," Jo said to herself still clutching the files as she walked out.
-/
The Doctor was already moving around the console pulling levers and every so often studying a little old leather book; diary sized that he had propped on the console. Jo put the files down on a bench on one side of the room and then walked over to look at the book that the Doctor was studying, it appeared to just have a series of numbers and mathematical formulas, though it seemed to make sense to the Doctor, she could see his own hand writing over the original writing.
"Doctor just what is going on?" She asked, watching as he moved around the console, he looked up for a moment.
"Just a second Jo, let me…" He flicked a few more leavers and the central column began to move and she felt the familiar hum of the TARDIS change as they dematerialised from UNIT HQ.
"Well? Where are we going, how did you get Bessie to materialise in the TARDIS and…" Jo paused thinking of a third question. "Why did I need to bring some clothing?"
"All very good questions Jo, as for Bessie, she didn't materialise, I merely dematerialised the TARDIS and re-materialised it around her." He made some grabbing motions with his hands. "A rather useful function, much more simpler than reconfiguring the doors."
"Why would we need to bring Bessie with us?" She asked.
The Doctor rubbed the back of his neck, Jo smiled to herself, whatever it was that they were going to do was going to be interesting.
"To visit a friend Jo, a young friend I have known for a while, he's just gone through a revelation of sorts," he explained.
"And we need the TARDIS to get there?" She asked.
"Yes Jo, a dozen or less years in your future." He looked away from her and returned to the TARDIS. "Ah we're landing, good old girl." He patted the TARDIS console.
Jo stared at him, aside from giving her some vague information in addition to the 'dozen or so years' line he hadn't revealed very much to her.
The console stopped moving and Jo stood by the doors waiting for the Doctor to open them up, he flicked the switch for the monitor on the wall, it showed a large courtyard.
"Ah, exactly where I wanted. Come along Jo."
Jo followed the Doctor through to the room where Bessie was, the Doctor operated a control box and the doors at the other end of the room opened.
"Come on Jo, no time to dawdle."
The Doctor started the engine and started driving forward into the blackness…and then they were outside, Jo looked behind her, they had just driven through the TARDIS doors, which was impossible, they weren't big enough to fit Bessie through.
"How? How did you do that?" She asked slightly open mouthed.
"Elementary transdimensional engineering my dear Jo." As if that explained everything.
The Doctor got out of Bessie and walked back over to close the TARDIS doors, it gave Jo a chance to look around, she was sure she'd been here before, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. It was a large house and courtyard, it looked like…then she remembered as a spark of memory hit her, about 2 months ago they had attended a dinner in London for something, or something else and it had finished rather late, too late to return to UNIT HQ, the Doctor had offered her his house to stay in; his London property.
The Doctor returned a moment later.
"Ready to go Jo?"
"No," Jo said shaking her head, the Doctor looked across at her slightly worried.
"No?" He asked raising an eyebrow.
"No, I want to know where we are and what precisely we're doing here," she crossed her arms.
The Doctor scratched the back of his neck again, this time looking uncomfortable before reaching behind their seats and giving Jo a bound together A4 report.
Across the front read 'Prime Minister's Eyes Only' and beneath it 'Introductory Briefing'.
"What sort of briefing Doctor?" Jo asked.
"Just have a browse Jo and I'll try explain," the Doctor said as he started up the engine, Jo turned over the first page.
She wasn't expecting to read what she did.
She read through the document faster than she initially thought she would, though there were several maps, diagrams and plans of what seemed to be buildings and spaces around England.
Then there was its subject matter.
Jo closed it, even though they were travelling moderately fast there wasn't much perceptible wind noise, one of the Doctor's gadgets no doubt.
"When we were in Devil's End you said there was no such thing as magic," Jo asked accusingly.
The Doctor seemed to be pretending to concentrate on driving.
"Well Doctor?" Jo challenged.
"I did clarify my position just before the fertility dance," he tried.
Jo blushed. "Is this correct Doctor?"
"It was the report given to the Prime Minister, yes," he answered after a moment.
"Is there a Ministry for Magic?" She asked again.
"Yes," he said simply.
"This friend we're going to see is he a…a wizard?" She asked tentatively.
"I believe that is the term they use for the specific outcrop of power they utilise," he answered awkwardly again.
"Is it magic Doctor?" She asked in a small tone.
"Not in the usual sense Jo, it's more of a science. A tele-psychic projection of energy," he smiled to himself at something.
"Are these aliens, like Azal and Chronovore the Master tried to use?" She tried as she attempted to wrap her head around what she had just read, and what the Doctor was saying.
"No. My friend, I think is 11," he answered.
Jo opened her mouth to ask how the Doctor could have friend, who was 11, yet they were in her future, but the Doctor continued, seemingly knowing her question.
"I met him a few lifetimes ago, he's an important individual, too much pressed upon him at youth, especially now that he knows much of this. I didn't know the truth when I first met him, not everything," the Doctor said, his voice taking on the wistful quality it did when the Doctor spoke of his 'childhood'.
Much of the rest of the journey was silent as Jo read into further detail the other files that the Doctor had with them, Jo found herself staring at the words on the pages, their cool statements plain on the pages, as though they were talking about peace talks or the latest Mars missions.
A short while later the Doctor slowed down from their dangerous (if it had been anyone but the Doctor driving) speeds and she looked around. All the houses were the same, with same driveways and gardens, Jo wrinkled her nose, they weren't similar in the classic sense, these had been deliberately almost forced to be exactly the same.
She looked over to the Doctor who had a similar expression.
"Like sausages Jo, all the same."
Jo nodded, if this was the future of housing, she was glad that she'd put most of her UNIT cheque into her own house, that felt like a house not these places.
They stopped outside what looked like the most identical of all the houses if such a thing were possible.
The Doctor looked at the pristine garden, a fixed grim expression on his face, he handed Jo a folded pass. It was one of their UN passes, they used for functions where they didn't say they were from UNIT.
"Follow my lead Jo," he said as he got out of Bessie and strode purposefully toward the front door, knocking loudly on it.
The door was wrenched open to reveal a rotund man who looked between them. "Who are you, what do you want?" He said as he took in the Doctor's clothing. "You're one of those freaks?" He sneered.
The Doctor held his cool expression and opened his pass, flashing it in the man's face.
"My name is Doctor John Smith, this is Miss Grant, we're from the UN Mr Dursley, we're here to pick up Mr Harry Potter for the remainder of the summer and to deliver him to transport to his education."
"You what?" Dursley sneered.
"Do we need to repeat ourselves Mr Dursely?" Jo said, trying to match the Doctor's cool professional conduct.
"You, you're taking the boy?" He stuttered.
"Yes, for the remainder of the summer. We will be speaking with him and then…" The Doctor paused.
"Then you're keeping him away from us?" The man pressed.
Jo tried to hide her shock at the man's greedy eyed eagerness, the Doctor had said these were his friend's relatives and that they were less than good.
"As his legal guardians he will be returned from school to your home, following his first distance education experience, we've been informed you would be less than amicable." The Doctor finished by barging through the door and walking up the stairs. Jo had a quick look around the house, it all seemed very…pristine, proper.
-/
The Doctor got to the door and looked at it, it had an extra lock on it since the last time he was here, he extracted his sonic screwdriver from his pocket and swiftly unlocked all the locks and knocked on the door.
"I can't do anything uncle about his tail!" Shouted a voice from behind the door. Jo exchanged the look with the Doctor but he seemed just as puzzled.
"Harry, it's the Doctor, can I come in?" The Doctor said just above a standard level, not enough to be heard at the bottom of the stairs, the door was wrenched open a moment later.
A thin boy with messy hair and very loose old clothing stood there, eyes wide in what looked like uncomfortable glasses, looking over both of them.
"Doctor?" He asked, uncertainly of him.
"Yes Harry, it's me I know, you know that is that I've changed a little since…" The Doctor started.
"A couple of weeks ago," Harry finished for him.
"Good grief, is it really only that long ago?" The Doctor said, mostly to himself.
"Where did you meet the Hermit?" He asked watching the Doctor's expression, the Doctor's face broke into a smile.
"Near my house, when I was a boy. Good Harry, this is Jo by the way," he said by way of an introduction.
"Pleasure to meet you Harry." Jo reached forward and shook his hand, as she got close she could see his bright green eyes that much more closely, and a strange scar on his forehead.
"Gather up all your stuff Harry," the Doctor said.
"Why Doctor?" Harry asked.
"We're taking you away, for the rest of the summer, I thought, after your awakenings of the world of magic you might like a more…open environment until school begins," the Doctor said.
"You know? About magic?" Harry asked surprised.
"Yes, of course," he smiled at him "some preparatory reading, just in case so…"
"My trunk is locked downstairs in the cupboard, Uncle Vernon said…" Harry trailed off. "…Said he didn't want it in here. He let me keep Hedwig here though." Jo and the Doctor looked to where an owl was sitting in a cage watching them.
"Fascinating," the Doctor walked across the room and opened the window and then went over to the cage. "Fascinating creatures owls, very intelligent," he said as he looked into the eyes of the white bird. "Do you think you can follow us?" A few travels ago Jo would have said something about the Doctor talking to birds, but now, now she just watched and believed that the Doctor spoke and went to help Harry take the remainder of his clothing into an old bag.
"Are these all your clothes Harry?" She asked.
He nodded. "Yes, all Dudley's old clothes."
"Something to sort our later I think Jo. Harry, Hedwig will meet us at our destination if that is alright with you?" The Doctor asked as he opened the cage, Hedwig flew over to Harry, landing on the chest of drawers and hooted. Harry looked at the owl that he had known for a week and nodded and watched as she flew out the window.
Harry followed the Doctor down the stairs and watched him remove a long cylindrical device from his pocket, the shape he didn't recognise, but it sounded like the Doctor's sonic screwdriver that he'd used the last time he'd visited.
"Come on Harry, let's get your things outside." Jo cast a look backward to the Doctor was facing Vernon Dursley again.
"We're leaving now Mr Dursley, remember Mr Potter will be returned here following his education at the end of this school year, throughout that time will we be looking into your past treatment of the young man and keeping a close eye on you for some time. Do I make myself clear?" The Doctor said, picking up Harry's trunk as though it weighed nothing.
"P-p-perfectly clear Doctor Smith," the man stuttered.
-/
Jo watched as the Doctor walked along the path back to Bessie where she and Harry were waiting, placing Harry's trunk carefully down on one of the rear seats.
"In you get Harry, Jo, time we're away from this place." The Doctor looked around grimly.
Jo sat into the backseat, receiving a warm smile from the Doctor as Harry got into the front seat alongside the Doctor.
"So, how did you find out Harry, a letter?" The Doctor asked.
"Hundreds of letters Doctor! Uncle Vernon took us away to this tiny little island and this man came, he's called Hagrid from Hogwarts!" Harry explained excitedly.
"School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," the Doctor finished.
"You know?" Harry asked. Jo could hear everything very easily, the Doctor having engaged his wind noise reduction gadget as they weaved through the traffic that was present around them.
"I know now, I've been working with the government. It's allowed me to do some research, to confirm some theories," the Doctor explained.
Harry nodded, seemingly taking in this information. Jo couldn't quite tell how uncomfortable he was (as she was seated behind him) but Harry seemed to be quietly digesting the information.
"So what happened?" He asked after several minutes.
"Happen Harry?" The Doctor asked curiously.
"To Jamie and Zoe and…" He trailed off.
Jo's eyes went wide, the Doctor had mentioned those names once or twice, but Harry seemed to be implying about the Doctor's appearance, the Brigadier had mentioned he could change but she'd never heard him really discuss it.
"I'm sorry Doctor I didn't mean to…" He started quickly after the moment silence.
"No, no, Harry. It must be confusing to see me one moment and then a couple of weeks later a different person."
"It's better than Uncle Vernon, he's just awful all of the time," his tone was incredibly bitter, to Jo's ears, he continued in a slightly modified tone "better now that I have a room."
The Doctor nodded and was silent for a few more moments.
"They returned to their own times…my people returned them," the Doctor said with audible distaste in his voice.
There was silence for another few moments, as Harry seemingly composed another question.
"The…Time Lords?" The Doctor nodded at his question. "They changed your body?"
"Very astute reasoning Harry my dear boy, very astute indeed, we'll make a thinker out of you in no trouble." The Doctor chuckled and then went onto add "Do you know I recently met the clown and the old man."
Harry laughed. "'Clown'? He wasn't that old, he was younger than you!"
The Doctor chuckled.
"So how? Isn't that against…your people's laws?" Harry asked.
"Only in the direst of emergencies," the Doctor began "it happened recently…"
Jo smiled as the Doctor described their recent encounter with Omega to the avid Harry Potter. It seemed very clear that this young boy had known the Doctor for some time and had obviously shared much of his history with him.
-/ - \\-
Jo closed the door to the room that would be Harry's room for the next month until he attended school, it was one of the house's many spare rooms, with its own en-suite bathroom.
After the journey back to the house and an early meal the Doctor had asked her to help Harry settle in while he…went off somewhere.
Jo padded back down the stairs into the lounge room where the Doctor was sitting, a bottle of wine on a tray beside him.
"Ah Jo, how is our young friend settling in?"
"He's a little overwhelmed by it all, though not I see with you." She fixed him with a stare, he did have the good graces to appear a little off put.
"Come on Jo, you know I have other friends, whom I have a shared history with. Would you care for a glass, it really is an understated yet punchy drop," he gestured warmly.
Jo mused for a moment before answering. "Fine, a small glass."
Jo sat quietly for a few while occasionally sipping at her wine glass, which held a moderate volume of wine, hardly a small amount in any case.
"You see Jo, I met Harry Potter some years ago in his timeline, and several years ago in my own, even then I knew that he would have a great burden on his shoulders…"
-/ - \\-
Harry stared out the window into the courtyard, it was early, that was how he always had to wake up; early enough to cook the Dursleys their breakfast and maybe eat a little before Dudley rolled out of bed for his three servings of bacon and fried eggs.
He ran a hand through his damp hair as he looked out the window again, making sure to himself that this wasn't a dream, he'd had several moments like this over the past week or so.
With all the letters and then Hagrid and Diagon Alley, magic, his wand and Hedwig…she was in the other room, his bedroom.
He was still amazed that the Doctor had come by so soon, but in another body, the last time he had changed he had said it was necessary, that through his experience he'd 'worn himself a bit thin', but this time, this time the Doctor seemed…different about the whole experience, after all he had been forced into it and then meeting himself or him selves again against Omega the way the Doctor spoke about him.
Outside was his TARDIS it seemed so normal, yet not, all of this he felt relaxed around the Doctor that he never felt anywhere else. When Hagrid had taken him through Diagon Alley he'd felt everyone's eyes on him.
Now at least he understood why. He looked at himself in the mirror, running a finger over the scar on his forehead before shrugging and going back into the bedroom to change into his least baggy and worn out clothing.
Downstairs he could hear the voices of Jo Grant and the Doctor.
"Morning Harry," Jo smiled at him as she took a bite of a piece of toast.
"Good Morning Miss…" Harry started.
"Jo please," she said around a mouthful of toast.
"Please refrain from speaking around your breakfast Jo," the Doctor tutted.
"Sorry Doctor," she said with a little smile.
"Good to see you're an early riser Harry," the Doctor said.
"I have to be," Harry answered.
"Why?" Jo asked now free of toast.
"The Dursleys," he said as Jo looked over to the Doctor who scowled slightly.
-/ - \\-
Harry leaned back into the back seat of the plush car that had rolled up to the Doctor's house.
Following breakfast the Doctor had shuffled them out of the house insisting that they needed to go and get him some new clothes.
"So Harry how did you meet the Doctor?" Jo asked after a moment, they were separated from the driver completely. The Doctor had said he had to organise some things.
Harry smiled, meeting the Doctor hadn't really been the first thing, it was meeting Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright and then the Doctor…some of the things he'd told him, it had been…amazing.
He told Jo just the same, she seemed like Ian, Barbara and Jamie and Zoe, who'd all travelled with the Doctor. As he told her about how he'd known the Doctor she told him, the places, the people, the aliens…
-/
Harry followed Jo in the door, unburdened by boxes and bags, all the shops they'd been to assured them that they would deliver their purchases. Most of the day had been a discovery for both himself and Jo in amongst the day she explained she hadn't been to London for…some time, it didn't seem like a lot, especially since Ian and Barbara had also been out of their times when he had met them.
"Ah Harry, come along, sit down there." The Doctor gestured a chair in front of an odd looking contraption.
"Doctor?" Jo started curiously as the Doctor sat down at the metal device.
"Yes Jo?" He asked.
"What is it?" Jo asked.
"Ah. It's from the planet Delphon, they're a race that communicate with their eyebrows, also they're also known for their optic surgical devices, I knew I had one of these in the TARDIS, somewhere."
"Doctor?" Harry spoke up worriedly staring at the odd shaped devices.
"Harry young man, I was thinking, with your new school and magic and so forth, that they might be a slight hindrance to you." The Doctor tapped the bridge of his nose, making Harry touch his own, where his glasses sat.
"My glasses?" He asked.
"Yes, with this I can perfectly correct your eyesight," he said gesturing his machine.
"Like with lasers Doctor? I read a research paper when we were in Switzerland about it," Jo asked.
"Yes that's correct Jo, though nothing so crude as lasers, this technique won't be trialed until at least the late 2900s on Earth," he explained.
"So I won't need my glasses?" Harry asked in an excited tone.
"No Harry." The Doctor smiled as Harry leapt forward and hugged him, the Doctor patted him on the back.
"Now just sit back Harry old chap and we'll get this worked out in no time. Don't be scared, I need to activate a force field to hold you steady through the procedure."
Jo saw Harry tense, even before the Doctor activated the force field.
"It's alright Harry we're both here and it's only for a little while," the Doctor looked to Jo who smiled to him.
Harry tried to nod quickly.
-/ - \\-
Jo found herself in a similar situation as the previous night, sharing a different bottle of wine with the Doctor discussing her day out with Harry.
"So Doctor what did you do all today, you can't have spent it looking for your eyesight machine?" She asked.
The Doctor mused staring into his wine glass. "Just some research."
"Into Harry?" She pressed.
"Into Harry, magic and Voldemort," he answered. "Some things missing from past knowledge."
"I thought you had the briefings from…" she began and trailed off unsure where his information had been from.
"Jo that was from when you're from," he paused "up to date information is what I need, fortunately contacts like mine stick around, mostly gaining even higher positions, or lower as the case may be."
Jo just nodded, she knew the Doctor went off to London, (before he'd regained the use of the TARDIS) and other places, according to the Brigadier the Doctor was a member of several clubs around Britain, not just London and had had a meal (or shared wine tips) with many influential people.
"Can one of your friends do something about his family? From what Harry has said they sound unbearable," she finished with a scowl.
"They are Jo, they are. Only small things I'm afraid Jo," he sighed.
After several minutes of silence she spoke up again. "I nearly forgot" she patted down her jacket pockets, it had been an oddly cool summer's day, though not one that necessitated a large coat for a day's shopping. "Your card back."
The Doctor looked and smiled. "Keep it Jo, emergencies or…keep it for a rainy day." He reached over for the bottle. "Another drink?"
"No thank you Doctor," she shook her head and put the glass firmly down beside her "Three glasses of whatever red this is enough for me."
"Quite right, everything in moderation, you know that's what I told my old friend…" Jo grinned to herself and settled into the chair, the Doctor's "my old friend" stories were always enjoyable and the way he told them really felt like who ever it was, was in the room with them.
-/ - \\-
Harry looked around in wonder at the large steam lorry and leaned forward to read the plaque.
The Doctor had brought him and Jo here, according to the Doctor it was a private museum of an associate from one of his clubs.
What exactly it was a museum of the Doctor hadn't really commented, just saying that he could have free rein to look around. There were a few other people.
From what Harry could tell everything in this large old warehouse, the museum had been involved in classic robberies, or murders or something else. When he'd told the Doctor what he thought he'd just smiled remarking "Very good deduction Harry." Though Jo had seemed very shocked at the very idea.
Harry looked around and saw Jo and the Doctor over at the other side of the room talking.
Harry walked onto the next thing, a steam-powered car when he felt a presence behind him.
"Good day Mr Potter." Harry turned around slowly and saw him, he'd met him a few times before, probably about the same amount of times as the Doctor.
"Magister!" Harry exclaimed, quietly and looked up at the man who was smiling as he offered his gloved hand to Harry who took it shaking it.
"How are you? I mean…" Harry started before stopping.
"Fine, fine, why young man?" The man with the gloves, dark outfit and beard said.
"I mean this means you escaped from prison?" Harry asked tentatively.
Magister chuckled. "Yes, of course. Your received my letter then?"
Harry grinned. "Yeah it scared Dudely so much he tripped down the stairs! But…"'
"But?" The man pressed.
"I didn't know how to write back to you, I thought you might want someone to talk with, you know when you were locked up like that…" Harry said slowly. He knew all about being locked up against his will. Magister patted him on the back.
"I had company Mr Potter," he smiled seemingly remembering something "Now, have you been practicing what I taught you?" Harry nodded.
He'd met Magister a short time after the Doctor had left, Magister said he'd come as a specialist working with children at the school, but after the first or so lessons Harry realised that Magister was…different, considering he stared at everyone and they very quickly started doing their work without making any noises or anything. Except him, he could do the work, just not the way the Magister had ordered.
Shortly after that the Magister told him about himself, and that he knew the Doctor, they were friends…of a sort he'd said.
Magister had visited him occasionally, teaching him some mental defences and other things. Magister had helped him not have the bad dreams any more, and the other things he'd taught him, not that he could do much; stop Dudley from kicking his door whenever he walked past. Altering behaviour the Magister had called it initially. Harry was impervious to most forms according to the Master and therefore a perfect candidate to learn.
"Of course, all the time! Dudley doesn't kick my door any more!" The Magister chuckled.
"Very good, very good Mr Potter," he praised "I see you've been made aware of your magical heritage."
Harry looked around. "How?" Harry asked.
"The wand in your inner pocket, shows a slight indentation on the outside, most would think you're just carrying around a pen, or a knife," Magister chuckled.
"You're not most though are you?" Harry smiled as he said it.
"Ah such praise from the youth," Magister said wistfully.
"Did you manage to free the lizard fish people things?" Harry asked curiously.
"Yes…and no…" Magister said with a quirk of a smile.
"Did you kill people?" Harry asked after a moment, it was one of the truths of his…association with the Magister, he had said after their establishment of a friendship of sorts that he was unlike…and like the Doctor in many ways and the Doctor was also often like him. Harry felt upon knowing this that he should have been scared of the Magister, but his frankness, his truthfulness, and his honesty about these things made him trust the Magister some what.
"Some, but the humans were in a far more murderous mood than I was Mr Potter," he explained.
Harry looked away turning back to the car.
"I see you're here with the Doctor and Miss Grant."
"Yeah, they got me from the Durselys, the Doctor also fixed my eyesight!" The Magister bent down to look him in the eyes.
"Yes, I see…Delphon technology, 14th span if I'm not mistaken…" he mused.
-/ - \\-
Jo looked away from where the Doctor was chatting with Sir…someone and across the room to where Harry was…chatting with…She did a double take, her eyes widening, it couldn't be…
"Doctor!" She exclaimed.
"Just a moment Jo," the Doctor said.
"But Doctor! It's Harry!" The Doctor paused for a moment stepping away from his colleague.
"Yes Jo?" The Doctor gave her his full attention.
"That's Harry, and that's the Master!" Jo said pointing across the room.
"So it is," he said and started off on a quick stride towards them.
-/
"Speak of the him and he cometh…." Magister commented idly, Harry also turned as the Doctor and Jo came running up to them.
"Ah Doctor and Miss Grant, fancy meeting both of you here at the same time!" He greeted with amusement.
"Harry, come over here quickly," Jo said with some urgency, though not moving beyond where the Doctor stood.
"Why?" Harry asked curiously.
"That's the Master!" Jo exclaimed.
"Oh…so it was you who…oh," Harry said after a moment as he recalled the Doctor telling him that UNIT had put a master criminal in jail.
"Yes indeed Mr Potter it was the Doctor who put me in prison. A short stay I must admit under guard of Britain's outsourced jailers," he smirked to himself.
"That was UNIT that put you in jail," the Doctor said carefully and then looked to Harry. "You know the Master Harry?"
"Mr Potter here and I have been, long standing acquaintances," Magister explained.
"But what would you want with him?" Jo asked.
"Perhaps I just wanted an associate who wouldn't attempt to lock me up or shoot at me whenever they saw me?" Magister asked.
The Doctor snorted.
"Mr Potter has several unique attributes that some might see exploited Miss Grant and the Doctor's teachings are somewhat limited in some respects. Perhaps I am an acquaintance of Mr Potter for the same reason the Doctor is?" The mused.
"I think you should leave now Master," the Doctor said coolly.
"Really Doctor?" The Master squatted down to be face to face with Harry, removing a hand-bound leather book from his trim black outfit. "A late birthday gift Mr Potter, a translation I did myself, with some useful notes and annotations, Sun Tzu was a bit of a bore sometimes."
Harry ran his hands over the cover it felt old, he could smell the ancient leather of the cover as he did so.
"Thank you Magister!" Harry held out his hand. The Magister hadn't ever been one for hugs. He shook it, standing back up to face the Doctor.
"A product of my imprisonment. Good day Doctor, Miss Grant. Be seeing you Mr Potter." He patted Harry's shoulder as he walked away. Harry fancied he could hear the sounds of the Magister's TARDIS in the distance.
Harry looked between Jo and the Doctor and slipped the book into one of his pockets.
"Well, I think after all that excitement some lunch is called for," the Doctor said after an extended amount of silence.
-/ - \\-
Jo was unsettled in her usual position later that night, throughout the rest of the day the Doctor had refused to talk about who they had seen at the museum and Harry's casual association with him.
"Doctor it was the Master, with Harry!" She felt she had to say something.
"I noticed Jo, I saw as you did the Master," the Doctor pondered his wine.
"And? It's the Master Doctor," Jo repeated.
"Whom Harry has known for possibly as long as I have, and obviously shares some affection for the young man," the Doctor acknowledged.
"You can't seriously think it's alright, he's evil!" Jo tried.
"Evil is a very strong word Jo, the Master is many things, but…" He took a sip of wine and replaced his glass on the table and took a cracker and a piece of cheese.
"The Master has obviously been in contact with Harry, and Harry seems to know some of the actions the Master has taken," the Doctor mused.
"Including those he's killed?!" Jo exclaimed.
"Including those I think," he said taking a bite of his cheese and cracker.
Jo fumed. "How can you be so casual about this Doctor, he's 11!"
"Jo, all actions we take shape us into the people we are, the people we meet and those we interact with. Some of the things the Master has been teaching Harry are of benefit to him," he reasoned, his words taking on an odd gravity and knowledge. "He's an intelligent young man, much more so than many his age, maturity as well. Harry trusts the Master, he knows what he's done, but trusts him based on several qualities."
"He said this when I was out?" Jo asked. The Doctor made upward inflection 'hmm' noise.
Jo leaned into the chair. "I still don't believe it, after everything the Master's done."
"What the Master has done has been…bad, but evil perhaps not. Mr Potter has experience of some horrible situations and I fear probably has not seen the last of those situations. Preparation is part of the key. If you feel so Jo, talk with Harry." Jo turned to the Doctor. "But, be careful Harry has grown to know the Master probably more then you do, he is not just what you have seen of him. He was once a great man and my friend."
Jo stared at the Doctor for a while before leaving him alone.
-/ - \\-
Harry went to get his trunk out of Bessie, the month had gone past so fast. He'd seen so many places around London, eaten in the same restaurants as recluses and politicians (not that he nor Jo recognised) and discovered a lot more about himself and the magic world. At that thought he smoothed his hair more down over his scar.
"Harry let the Doctor do that, he's just gone to get a trolley."
"Alright Jo," Harry said with a smile to her, after their meeting with Magister she'd wanted to dissuade him from ever seeing him again, telling him of many of the things she'd known him to do, many of them he hadn't known the Master had done, though he'd sensed that he was capable of them.
Flashback…
"But didn't the Doctor led to the deaths of those Sea Devils and Magister freed Kronos didn't he?" He'd asked after Jo's constant assertion that the Magister was 'evil'.
"But that's different Harry…"
Present.
Jo had let the subject drop after that day and hadn't brought it up again.
"Here we go Harry, we really must looking into putting some wheels on this trunk," he said as he lifted it onto the trolley, carefully placing Hedwig's cage on top of the trunk whistling a complex set of notes to her.
Jo had found the Doctor on at least two occasions doing this to the bird, Harry had told her that the Doctor had once said something like owls were at his home.
Walking through the station Harry kept looking around, looking for signs of magic, of wizards, like him.
As they approached the area between platforms nine and ten he saw a group of people all with flaming red hair, and started towards them.
As he was watching them he saw two of the tallest boys begin to run and disappear through a brick wall.
"Excuse me?"
"First time at Hogwarts? Ron's new too."
"Yes." Harry nodded eagerly. "The thing is, I don't know how to…" He was cut off.
"Get onto the platform? Not to worry, all you have to do is walk straight at the barrier between platform nine and ten. Don't stop and don't be scared you'll crash into it. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous. Go on, go now, before Ron."
Harry looked at the barrier and then back to the lady. "It's alright I'll let you go, I have to tell my friends first."
"Oh, friends dear?" She asked looking around Harry smiled and walked over to where the Doctor was gesturing grandly around at the station, no doubt he'd been here when they'd opened it.
Jo looked with some doubt at where Harry was waiting with the rather plump lady, her what she assumed to be daughter and young son.
"Fascinating Jo, truly fascinating," the Doctor said as he traced his hands over the wall. "A solid wall, most likely playing on your mind on the psychic level, turns impermeable with…" He pushed at the wall with his hand and it disappeared and then he removed it. "A small amount of force, instantly transferred through the molecular structure of the bricks," he explained.
"So it's not a force field?" She asked.
"No nothing so crude, this is a work of art." He walked over to Harry. "Perfectly safe Harry."
"Thanks," he grinned.
"Ready now dear? Alight, Ron'll go first and you can follow him."
As Harry walked at a brisk pace he felt his trolley impact with the wall, but instead of a jarring energy of the trolley continuing to impact with the wall the resistance disappeared almost immediately and then he was on the other side, a grand red gleaming steam engine was before him and there was a platform full of people.
"Marvellous isn't it Harry," said the Doctor's voice beside him.
"It's amazing, how can all this be here?" Jo said looking around.
"Shush Jo, you'll spoil the allusion," the Doctor said distractedly, looking around him, his eyes alight.
"Allusion?" She looked to him quizzically.
"A good magician's tricks aren't tricks," he said mysteriously before looking back to them as Harry started to walk towards the train as the Doctor's watch beeped.
"Time moves on it seems Harry old chap."
Jo shifted, the activity on the platform seemed to take another heave as more people arrived on the platform through the…barrier.
"Good luck with everything Harry." She bent down to hug him, Harry graciously returned the hug.
"Yes, good luck Harry for the year ahead. Remember I'll be here to return you to your relatives at the end of the year," the Doctor said patting him on the back, and lifting the trunk onto the entrance of the train carriage. "Someone inside should be there to assist you."
"Thank you so much, Doctor, Jo." Harry thanked them, his voice cracking with emotion as he did so.
"Off you go, you don't want to miss the train, goodness knows where Hogwarts is," Jo said.
"I'm sure the old girl could find it, with some guesswork," the Doctor mused.
Harry shook his hand and gave Jo one last hug before getting on the train.
The trunk was heavier than he thought, weighed down with books and files the Doctor had given him to 'keep him busy'.
"Want a hand?" It was one of the tall red headed boys he'd seen running into the barrier.
"Yes please," Harry said letting out a breath of air.
"Oy Fred! C'mere and help!"
With the twins' help Harry's trunk was at last tucked away in a corner of the compartment.
Harry dragged a hand through his hair.
"Thanks."
"What's that?" Said one of them, pointing at his forehead.
"Blimey," Said the other twin. "Are you-?"
"He is," said the first twin. "He is aren't you?" He added to Harry.
"What?" Said Harry.
"Harry Potter," they said together.
"Oh him," said Harry. "I mean yes, I am."
The two twins gawped at him and Harry began to feel the need to push his hair back down and wished he'd asked the Master how he managed to perfect his disguises.
Then with a relief a voice came floating, agitated as through in a microwave through the open door of the compartment.
"Fred, George are you there?"
"Coming mum!" The twins shouted and with one last stare at Harry they disappeared out the door.
-/ - \\-
Harry grinned to himself as he looked up at Hogwarts castle with Ron and the other first years as Hagrid called out to all the first years.
It had been some train ride.
He'd met again Draco Malfoy, the boy he'd met when he'd been in Diagon Alley, he hadn't been any more nicer this second encounter as the first.
He'd also felt the knowledge that existed of him, from another person, Hermione Granger who seemed to have read all the texts that he'd read and more, all unfortunately that featured him, though she seemed to think that meant she knew all about him, but she seemed nice enough; honest, he'd liked that about her.
And Neville, and his toad and Ron with his rat, he was glad he had Hedwig, he'd much rather her than a rat or a toad, he wondered if Hogwarts allowed snakes…
Thinking of that, Ron seemed very against Slytherin, though judging by some of the people around them that were walking off away from the train who were wearing Slytherin badges they seemed less friendly than others around here.
-/
"Potter, Harry." A chill ran down his spine as his name was called out and he walked, aware of the whispering around him as he picked up the old hat and placed it on his head, blanking out the hall. A voice made itself known in his head.
Not Slytherin. Harry thought to the presence in his mind, this was the sort of thing Magister had warned him of.
"I mean no malice Mr Potter. Such intellect, very observant, passionate."
Harry bit his lip, bringing himself away from the voice and concentrated again. Not Slytherin. Not Slytherin! He had seen and watched the Slytherins, it was not where he wanted to go, those that he'd met so far had been in Gryffindor.
"Are you sure? You could be great, you know, it's all here in your head, and Slytherin will help you on your way to greatness, no doubt about that – no?"
Harry stopped himself from arguing, Magister said you needed a clear head, or determination if you were to achieve what you wanted with your mind. At the moment there was too much for him to concentrate on with the hat speaking through his mind.
"Well if you're sure – better be GRYFFINDOR!"
-/ - \\-
Sarah looked along the platform. She couldn't see anything out of the ordinary, though they were a little early, the Doctor was a short way over from her, examining a brick wall.
The Doctor had been typically mysterious about why they were here, he'd landed the TARDIS on a corner in some storage facility and he'd slid a magnetic card through a reader revealing the Doctor's car he'd used during that business with the dinosaurs.
They were here to meet a friend of the Doctor's. A young friend by the Doctor's description.
He was at some boarding school 'Hogwarts', Sarah made a note to herself to check in with her editor and ask if she could go in and check their database of the 'weird and wonderful' that the paper usually kept, she had a feeling that was where it would be.
The Doctor had mentioned something about magic and she wasn't sure how he had meant the remark, he had seemed perfectly serious when he had said it, but she recalled on at least one occasion him remarking on the non-existence of such thing.
The people started to walk out of the brick wall.
"Doctor…" She began.
"Perfectly normal Sarah, perfectly normal."
Then Sarah found herself sitting next to Harry as the Doctor drove his 'car' through London, hearing about dragons and flying brooms and started to wonder if Harry had been at some outlandish creative writing school.
But the passion that he spoke with, it was the same tone the Doctor's voice took on when he was speaking about his other adventures.
Then Harry started to tell them about Voldemort, the Doctor pulled off into a village for them to stop and eat and for them to talk about it.
Harry let the Doctor run his devices over his hands, checking them for any after effects of his defeat of Quirrell.
It just felt relaxing sitting her in this quiet village in the sun, chatting. Sarah Jane Smith was nice. The Doctor said that Jo had got married to a scientist after they'd met after an encounter with giant maggots…he supposed it was no odder than dragons and trolls.
While the Doctor went back to his car to check his results he asked Sarah where and when she had been with the Doctor.
"You know that he's…?" Sarah began.
"A time traveller and an alien?" Harry asked as he sipped his drink.
Sarah blinked and nodded. "Yes. You really do know the Doctor."
"Yes. So…or are you from here?" He asked awkwardly.
"Earth?" Sarah wondered.
"This year?" Harry grinned.
"I don't think so, the Doctor just landed us here," she admitted.
"Where've you been recently?" He asked.
"It hardly tops a dragon! Down a mine on this other planet," Sarah began.
Harry had heard of Peladon, Jo and the Doctor had told him about it, it was nice to hear about it again and the Ice Warriors and the strange Alpha Centuri.
Harry couldn't believe that dinosaurs had walked in London though, it sounded mad that people thought they were blasting off to a new planet, under London and it had all been a fake. That was really mad, silly even that they would abandon the Earth so quickly, even if it was just a fake their intent was still the same.
Harry looked over as Sarah was telling him about the Exxilon city and the Daleks as the Doctor stalked back over to them.
"Anything Doctor?" He and Sarah said together, then laughed.
"Nothing, no traces of whatever effected you," he said. "There is some residual psychic traces, most likely from your encounter with Voldemort."
"Sounds horrible, existing like that leeching off of someone," Sarah shuddered.
"No," the Doctor frowned "not a particularly favourable way of existing Sarah."
"Do you think he's dead Doctor?" Harry asked.
The Doctor looked at them. "Hmm? From what I've found out Harry I hope so."
"But…?" Sarah asked noting the Doctor's face.
"But I would be prepared. This Voldemort wasn't alone, and cults like that tend not to die out easily, old Morbius was also like that," the Doctor pondered.
-/
Harry looked out of the curved windscreen.
"This is where you live Harry?" Sarah asked.
"Yes," Harry said in a dull tone.
"I think I did a story on one of these new sets of buildings, something about being built on an old waste dump, there was a big cover up by the government," Sarah mused.
"I wish it was the Dursley's house," Harry muttered as the Doctor raised the roof so they could all get out.
The Doctor lifted his trunk out, Harry noted that somehow the Doctor had managed to attach wheels to it.
"Just to make it easier for you Harry," he commented upon seeing Harry looking at it.
The man who let Harry in made Sarah think of calling child services, the way he glared at Harry.
"Oh, it's you," he said by way of greeting "get inside before anyone sees you."
"Mr Dursley, you remember me I trust?" The Doctor looked at the man carefully.
"Oh yes of course Doctor Smith." He made an attempt to smile at the Doctor. "If you'd leave us for a moment I will send Harry up to his room."
The large man walked back further into the house muttering to himself.
"Well, good bye Harry," the Doctor began "I'm sure we will meet again soon."
"But you're not sure when?" Harry smiled, he knew the Doctor well enough to know how random his life was.
"No," the Doctor chuckled.
"It was nice meeting you Sarah," Harry said.
"And you Harry, hopefully again at some point." Sarah said, hugging him good bye, as did the Doctor.
Harry waved at them from his window as they drove away.
-/
A/N:
For Jo and the Doctor this chapter takes place just after Carnival of Monsters and for Sarah Jane Smith and the Doctor at some point before Planet of the Spiders.
I couldn't have written a Third Doctor story without including the Master.
This is the Master as portrayed by Roger Delgado, the Master of the 1970s.
I never really considered making the Master evil, as in 'evil character' against Harry, it was always in my mind to have the Master in this story and not as an enemy for Harry.
I've got Harry calling him Magister, rather than Master, just because there is too much of the Death Eaters going around calling Voldemort 'Master'. So whenever Harry meets the Master he always calls him Magister.
In this chapter I've used some dialogue from The Philosopher's Stone; some of Molly's dialogue, some of the twins' and some of the Hat's dialogue.
Thanks for reading.
