Chapter Eight: Meetings and Accidents
The Order meeting was carried off without fireworks this time for which everyone was grateful. Dumbledore was quieter and more respectful of Harry, addressing him as Knight Potter when he talked to him and he made no mention of Harry possibly turning Dark. Harry was also grateful for the quietness; he hadn't liked the confrontation earlier and wanted a bit of peace between them. He had wondered at the absence of Hikari and also Neville Longbottom until he heard that they were at St Mungo's.
He smiled; it would seem that Neville was going to take advantage of having a mind healer around to see if his parents could be brought out of their insanity. From what Hikari had said, it was possible that the two Longbottoms were trapped in their minds, having withdrawn to protect themselves from the torture that Bellatrix Lestrange had inflicted on them. Harry wished Neville luck; it would be good for him if he could get his parents back. He spared a brief moment to wish he could do the same, before telling himself that in a way, he already had. Although he couldn't hug them or really touch them, they were with him.
Harry shook himself out of his thoughts as he realized that the meeting had broken up, with the general decision being to look into anticipating the attacks and preventing as many deaths as possible. Harry thought it odd that there hadn't been more deaths yet, this current Dark Lord seemed more bent on gaining the public's obedience through fear, not through mass casualties. He also thought it odd that the deaths so far had been caused through people being hurt as they panicked and ran away from the attackers. No deaths had yet been caused by the Unforgivables which Harry was interested by.
"What are the Unforgivables Master?" Anakin asked, having heard Harry's musings. Harry turned to him and replied, "The three curses that are known as the Unforgivable Curses are the Imperius curse which gives the caster total mental control of the victim. The Cruciatus curse causes horrible agony and can drive the victim insane or kill them if it's held long enough. The final Unforgivable is the Killing curse, which is pretty self explanatory. If you use any one of those three curses on a human being you get an automatic one way ticket to prison, with a life sentence."
"Interestingly enough, the curses were at one point used in Healing, and they are only Unforgivable now when used on a human being" Draco pointed out, having heard the question and its answer. Harry and Anakin turned to look at him, Anakin looking shocked while Harry looked thoughtful.
"Yes I can see how they would be used in Healing" he said finally. Draco smirked before adding, "I wonder what the Ministry would say if they knew that Parseltongue spells were used as Healing spells in ancient times. There is a reason why the ancient symbol of medicine was a snake wrapped round a staff after all."
Harry nodded in agreement. Draco grinned, a challenging gleam in his eyes. "Potter, can you still fly a broom? I'd like to see if I could finally beat you." Harry grinned, and then replied, "I could outfly you on the first day of flying lessons in our first year, and I'd never been on a broom before. Of course I can still fly a broom."
Draco held out a broom, which Harry saw was his Firebolt. "How, how did you get this, I thought it was burnt" he said, shocked. Draco smiled slightly.
"Ginny saved it, along with your photo album and the invisibility cloak. Take it Potter, let's see if you're still as good as you once were."
Harry smirked before slinging the broom over his shoulder and heading towards the front doors, Anakin following him. There was a mass exodus following them once word got round that Harry Potter was about to take to the sky again.
"Are you sure this is safe Harry?" Obi-Wan asked. Harry smirked before replying, "Relax brother, I'll be fine. Watch."
He threw a leg over the broom and took off, reveling in the feel of the wind rushing through his hair. He couldn't help himself when he let out a whoop of sheer delight. He performed rolls and dives, getting used to the feel of the broom again.
Turning sharply he noticed Draco flying near him. "The Snitch is being let out Potter, want to try and beat me?"
Harry snorted. "I should be asking you that Malfoy, who was it that lost every game to me that he played?" Draco narrowed his eyes.
"We'll just see who the better player is now then won't we" he snapped as he flew off to the other end of the field. As the Order gathered below, the two rivals waited for the Snitch to show itself. They circled the pitch, eyes darting everywhere, too caught up in the search to spare the time to insult each other, even though they were taking it as friendly insults and neither really meant what they were saying.
There was a flash of gold to Harry's left and he flew after it, sensing Draco coming up behind him in hot pursuit. Up and around the towers, around the gardens and straight towards a window before veering sharply right they flew, with Harry gaining on the Snitch.
The golden ball then flew upwards and leveled off at a respectable height before diving. Harry and Draco followed it, neither giving up.
Down below the spectators were almost breathless at the daring flying display that was being enacted. The Jedi in particular were awed.
"He's even better on that broom than he is in a starfighter" Mace murmured. Qui-Gon nodded in agreement before replying, "Yes, I wish Adi could see this, she'd be green with envy." The pair chuckled before picking up Obi-Wan's comment to Anakin, "Your Master is crazy. I thought his driving and piloting was hair raising but this is suicide."
Anakin shook his head. "I disagree Knight Kenobi; he's in full control and loving every second of it. I wish I could fly like that."
Obi-Wan looked at him in horror. "In a few more years you might very well be able to, and then we'll have two dare-devils to contend with. I will admit that he is very good at what he does though."
Anakin shook his head and returned to watching Harry fly. "It's like he was born with wings" he murmured. Sora, who had come down from the hospital wing where he'd been discussing Harry's past injuries with Poppy Pomfrey, spoke from behind him.
"He should have been. Poppy has told me that he's always been happiest when he's in the air. He seems relaxed, happy, and alive. It's good for him."
Just then there was a shriek as Ginny closed her eyes. "They're going to crash" she yelped. Draco and Harry were indeed very close to the ground. Draco pulled out of the dive, only just skimming the grass. Harry, however, pulled up his broom, when it was almost too late and decided to do a bit of broom surfing. Jumping up onto the broom, he leaned forward reaching for the Snitch.
He grabbed the little ball out of the air and stopped the broom by gently pressing the back down a bit. The broom stopped and Harry jumped off it, dropping the Snitch into Draco's hand.
"You lose again Ferret" he said with a smile. Draco snarled in frustration and said, "Go back to your Republic Potter, and leave me to rule the sky here in peace."
Harry laughed and slung his broom over his shoulder, turning to face the crowd that had gathered to watch. He didn't care so much about the Order members but he had to laugh at the shocked and slightly sick look on Obi-Wan's face, as well as the admiring one on Anakin's. The other Jedi had hidden their outward reactions but the awe and pride clearly radiated through the Force. Anakin walked quickly towards him and the first thing he said had the senior Jedi groaning.
"Can I have one of those Master?" he asked. Harry smirked. "If we go to Diagon Alley and if my accounts have enough money in them then yes I suppose so" he replied easily. Anakin's eyes lit up and Harry wondered if he might not have made a mistake. He quickly added a condition to what he'd said.
"Anakin, if I see you flying it down the corridors or anything like that, then I'll confiscate it, understood?"
"Understood Master, but I could always outfly you" the Padawan replied with a grin. Harry shook his head. "Were you not watching just now Anakin? The chances of you outflying me are very slim and I would advise you not to try."
Anakin merely snorted before asking, "Can we go to Diagon Alley now?"
Harry shrugged and 10 minutes later, courtesy of a Portkey supplied by Dumbledore, a group consisting of all the Jedi, Tonks, Ron and Ginny were standing in Diagon Alley. Well, everyone but Harry was standing, as Harry had managed to once again land in an ungraceful heap on the ground. He rose and dusted himself off, while his friends were politely trying not to laugh. Harry merely growled inwardly and walked off towards Gringotts Bank with the rest of the group trailing behind him, the Jedi looking round in wonder at the all the shops. Once inside the bank they got in a cart and rode down to Harry's vault. The trip to the vault was exhilarating for Harry and Anakin, and terrifying for the rest. Only the two speed demons could enjoy the break-neck pace the cart set and all of the rest looked rather sick when the cart finally stopped outside Harry's vault. Harry jumped out and looked curiously at the vault the goblin was standing beside.
"This doesn't look like my usual vault" he said. The goblin smiled, showing two rows of sharp teeth. "That's because the vault you previously used was your trust vault Mr Potter, this one is your family vault. Just step up to the door, place your hand inside the circle and state your full name."
Harry did as ordered, and felt a rush of warmth from the door as it recognized him as a Potter. The door creaked open and Harry stared into a hall-like room, holding lots of weapons, money and other things scattered around. Harry walked to the back, where there was a piece of parchment that detailed the contents of the vault.
Reading over it he saw that there was more than enough money for a whole Quidditch team's worth of brooms so getting one for Anakin was not going to be a problem. Thinking for a minute he grabbed a bag from the floor, which appeared to be enchanted to be bigger on the inside than the outside and started filling it with galleons. After he'd put about a quarter of the available money in it he handed it to Anakin.
"Keep this safe, we'll need it later" he said before turning back to examining the vault contents. One thing he found was a beautiful sword, which he took out of its sheath and held up. Testing the balance, he found it was almost perfect for him. Shrugging he put it back in its sheath and attached the sheath to his belt. He might as well take it with him, even if he didn't find any immediate use for it.
Grabbing another bag he put some more money into it and then walked out nodding to the goblin who closed the door behind him.
"Let's go back to the surface, we have some shopping to do" he said, grinning as Obi-Wan looked decidedly unenthusiastic about climbing back into the cart. For that matter, so did the rest. After another wild cart ride they arrived at the lobby and walked out of the bank.
The first stop was Quality Quidditch Supplies where Harry got Anakin his own Firebolt. Although there were faster brooms now available, he preferred the Firebolt, as if Anakin tried any idiotic stunts on it, then he would be able to catch him easier than if Anakin was on a faster broom. With a broom in hand, Harry led the way to Madam Malkins. There he was fitted for a dragonhide vest, boots and pants. Anakin ended up being fitted for the same things. There were charms on the clothing designed so that it would grow with the wearer. This would not be necessary for Harry but for Anakin it was a necessity. The rest of the Jedi declined the offer, as did Tonks and Remus.
As they exited the shop and headed back to the Leaky Cauldron Mace decided to question Harry's shopping choices. "Harry why did you get that dragonhide armor?"
"Dragonhide is very resistant to spells, so it makes sense that they would protect us from laser bolts as well. It's merely a bit more protection that's all" Harry answered absently. He was looking forward to returning to Hogwarts and giving Anakin a lesson in broom flying. Anakin was also looking forward to it as well.
They took another Portkey back to Hogwarts, and Harry snarled as once again he landed ungracefully on the floor. This time there was no mistaking the muffled snickers coming from the group behind him and he turned round with a deceptively mild expression on his face. With one slight movement of his hand he Banished them all to the lake, before heading up to the Hospital Wing. He wanted to make sure that everything was in working order, and he needed to talk with Ginny.
He found his way to the hospital wing easily enough, recalling the many times he'd walked, or been levitated along, this path before. He entered to see Poppy Pomfrey and Ginny Weasley talking about a new potion for headaches. They broke off the conversation when he entered though. Poppy stood up and came walking over to him.
"Harry Potter, I never would have thought I'd see the day that you'd come in here willingly" she said, but she had a smile on her face so Harry didn't feel annoyed. He grinned and sat down on one of the beds, before swinging his legs up and lying back saying, "Ah, my favorite bed, did you ever put that plaque up like you threatened to do Madam Pomfrey?"
"It's Poppy, Harry and no I didn't. While you're here though I want a full medical scan, I want to see if those Jedi Healers know what they're doing" the nurse replied, before she began running a series of diagnostic scans on him. Harry rolled his eyes but submitted to the scan, knowing that she wouldn't stop until she was finished. He took the opportunity to look at Ginny properly for the first time since he'd returned.
The first thing he noticed was her height. She'd grown taller, and developed more in certain areas than she had when she was 15. Her self-confidence and bossiness had grown as well, if her actions when she'd first spoken to him this time were any indication. Gently probing her with the Force, the Jedi Knight realized two things, one she was a strong, confident woman, more than capable of standing up to him if he chose to pursue a relationship, and two, that she was still in love with him, but was unsure about making the first move. Sighing, Harry realized that he would have to make a decision while he was here, first, whether he truly loved her or not, and if he did, what he was going to do about it. Harry wasn't about to engage in a long-distance relationship as he thought it would be unfair to both himself and Ginny. Just then their eyes met as she sensed his gaze.
"What are you thinking about Harry?" she asked softly. Harry blinked and replied just as softly "You actually. You've changed Ginny. So have I."
"I still love you though" Ginny said, her eyes fixed on his. Just then Poppy interrupted with a cough. "As much fun as it is to see the courting habits of a Jedi Knight, you can continue this outside the hospital wing. You've got a clean bill of health Harry, you can go. Both of you shoo."
Grinning, Harry got off the bed and walked out of the Hospital Wing, with Ginny by his side. They walked down to the front doors, wanting to continue the discussion outside and were met at the door with a group of sopping wet Jedi and Aurors. Harry took one look at their faces and mock-shivered.
"Ginny, would you like to go for a fly?" he asked. Ginny looked at him and nodded.
"OK but why are you," she squeaked as Harry grabbed her, Force leaped over the heads of the wet group in front of them and dashed out of the doors. Tonks and Kingsley tried to stop him but Harry transformed into his griffin form in mid air, and flew up into the air, with Ginny on his back. Anakin decided to give chase; he grabbed his new broom and took off after Harry and Ginny.
For a few minutes Anakin chased the griffin form of his master, wondering why Harry had headed for the Quidditch pitch. He found out as Harry dropped Ginny on the stands and transformed back, taking his shrunken broom from the pocket of his robe. Unshrinking it he took off again, this time reveling in the chase, leading Anakin on a mid-air dance, forcing Anakin to follow him. The first broom flying lesson was on and though it wasn't supposed to be at high speed, Harry wanted to see if his apprentice, who had been Podracing at nine years old could handle the speed. On the level, when he was going straight it would appear as though he could, although turning provided a few wobbles until he got used to it. Harry wasn't about to try diving yet though, that would be left for later.
Suddenly Anakin noticed the small group of people watching in the stands, Ginny had been joined by her brother, Ron, Tonks, Kingsley, Mace and Remus. Shaking off the knowledge that they were being watched, he focused on Harry again, whohad turned and begun descending towards the ground, at a leisurely pace. Swinging his broom around, Anakin followed, passing Harry who was diving at a shallower angle. He was caught up in the exhilaration of the dive, not realizing how close the ground was getting.
Up above him Harry could see that Anakin was going too fast to be able to pull up in time. His Padawan had seemingly forgotten to use the Force to gauge distance and speed the way that Harry had taught him. Fearing that Anakin would kill himself in a crash, Harry dove after him, his experience allowing him to catch up with the Padawan.
The spectators could only watch in silent horror as Anakin lost control of the broom he was riding, and fell off. They then watched as Harry caught him but was too close to the ground to safely pull out of the dive. In a cloud of dust and dirt the two hit the ground, Harry turning them in mid air so he hit first, and acted as a cushion for Anakin.
When the dust cleared, Anakin moved slightly, rolling off Harry. In a daze he looked round before spotting his master. He crawled closer to Harry and shook him.
"Master? Master wake up. Please." Harry wasn't responding though, and his eyes were closed. As Anakin shook him more frantically, the spectators came running up, Ginny and Mace in the lead. The Jedi Master pulled Anakin away from Harry and held him while Ginny scanned him quickly. Both Jedi slumped in relief when she turned and told them, "He's unconscious but not badly damaged. He'll need to go to the hospital wing immediately though."
She silently conjured a stretcher and placed Harry's unresponsive form on it. Anakin reached out and picked up one of Harry's hands. "Master? I'm sorry." He was about to drop the hand when he felt a brief squeeze and then the tired mental voice of his master came through their bond.
Anakin. Don't be sorry. You lost control of the broom. It means you need more flying lessons and you need to use the Force when flying a broom the way you do when flying a speeder or a starfighter. I'll be fine, just ask Poppy. Now I need to sleep though. See you later.
With that Harry's hand went limp again and his mental voice faded out. Checking their bond Anakin was relieved to find that Harry was indeed not in much danger, just unconscious and in a healing trance. That didn't stop him from walking up with Ginny though.
As the stretcher left the Quidditch pitch Ron said with a deadpan expression, "Things never bloody change do they."
Author Note
Hello. I have had a few good suggestions for Griffin names, and that will be decided next chapter. As for his appearance, he is fairly large, larger than a normal lion. He has an eagle head and neck with black feathers, melding into a golden yellow lion body, and the tail is a lion's tail with a black tuft at the end of it. His eyes are green and he has a small patch of white feathers on his forehead where his scar would be. I have also been informed that Farsight is apparently a character from the Narnia series. I didn't know this when I wrote it, it has been a long time since I read the books. It was not intentional, I was merely thinking about a falcon's eyesight. Chapter nine will be started soon, once I recover from writing this one. I will be busy for the next couple of weeks so don't expect a very fast update on it. I will write it as soon as possible though. Thankyou for all of your reviews, I do take them seriously even if I don't reply to each and every one. They are all appreciated though.
May the Force be with you
Padawan Lynne
