A Strange Acquaintance

The look of his friends on the back of his neck seemed to burn as hot as the embers in the hearth. However, whether Ron and Hermione had chosen to ignore Sirius's last comment or hadn't caught its violence, they left Harry alone and soon, they headed towards their respective dormitory.

But Harry couldn't sleep. What was Sirius's problem?! He had faced more that any fifteen years old teen had ever faced in their life. He still had a dark lord hunting him down and a mentor avoiding him. Wasn't it enough?

He sat on his bed, feeling his anger rushing through his veins. Remembering that Dumbledore was avoiding him had pushed him over the edge. A bold idea crossed his mind and without thinking he grabbed his Invisibility Cloak and his broom. Soon, he was off through Hogwarts corridors.

So, he wasn't the type to take risks? Well, his godfather would have to answer this in a face-to-face conversation. He had decided to go at Grimmauld Square tonight and confront Sirius about his harsh words. It was as bold as stupid, but Harry wasn't thinking straight. An eye on the Marauders Map to avoid the patrols, he climbed the stairs until he reached the seventh floor and headed towards the staircase leading to the top of the Astronomy Tower. He had used it in his first year to save Norbert, he would use it tonight to leave the school discreetly. His broom was fast enough to make sure he would be back before dawn.

As he was walking through the corridor, he stopped dead in his track.

What was he doing? All he had wanted from Sirius were guidance and advice on his situation. His pathetic, miserable situation. He turned back while shaking his head.

He was about to reach the stairs when the little voice in his head nagged him.

'So, you're not exactly a risk-taker, are you? I guess Sirius was right.'

Harry hesitated and turned again towards the Astronomy Tower. What was this compared to everything had already done? A simple round trip flight. All he needed was a little help. And since Dumbledore couldn't give it to him, he had to turn to the only person willing to speak to him. The same one who had just dismissed him. Harry saw red again. Yeah, he would go to Grimmauld Square tonight and speak up to Sirius! He was no stranger to risk and had gone back in time to save him. After all that had happened to Harry, how could anyone blame him for being careful?

His hand was almost on the doorknob when he stopped it midway. He really needed to work on his temper.

Back before dawn? He had absolutely no idea on how to reach London. Besides, had he really thought he could have left Hogwarts on his broom? Surely this had already been tried by other students before him and the only thing he would achieve would be to raise the alarm, bringing an unwanted attention on him.

He sighed and let his hand fall alongside his body. Even if had managed to show up on Sirius's doorstep, the Order would have caught him there and immediately dragged him back to school. He turned his heels for the last time, heading back to the stairs.

Maybe he could find a way to get the help he needed on his own. Surely the library would have some useful books on Defence Against the Dark Arts. Then he would need to find a place to train… One thing at a time. First, he had to get back to his dormitory while avoiding the patrols.

As he was crossing the corridor for the third time, he heard a strange noise coming from the wall on his right side. Was he dreaming? He could have sworn the door he was seeing in front of him hadn't been there seconds ago. He checked the map and saw, bewildered, a room drawing itself on the parchment.

He raised his hand and opened the door to find a dark room behind. He stepped carefully in it and closed the door before getting out of his Invisibility Cloak. As soon as he became visible again, the place lightened, and four figures emerged from the shadows.

The room was oval and had the size of a classroom. But apart from the figures who had just appeared, it was empty. The light in the room seemed to be of magical origin, for Harry could not make out any windows. He squinted his eyes, considering the four wizards and witches who were looking straight at him.

One of the witches had a wide smile and was wearing a yellow dress with brown trim. Behind a jovial look Harry could feel a strong aura that would have been unwise to challenge. The second witch was slimmer and her strict attitude reminded him of McGonagall. Her eyes were sparkling with intelligence and, for a second, Harry felt like he couldn't hide any secret from her. When he glanced at the two wizards, he had no more doubts about the idetity of those people. It was quite unbelievable.

'I should have bet it would be someone of my House,' exclaimed one the wizards, a muscular man with a lion-like mane of wavy red hair and a beard to match. His magnificent robe was of a red fabric with gold embroidery. A lot of energy surrounded him.

'You could have,' said the smiling witch, 'if you hadn't already lost everything when we bet about the first House to win the Cup.'

'This is no betting matter,' said the stern witch while frowning. 'May I remind you that if we are here today, it's because the hour is grave.'

'Now, now, my dear,' smiled the last wizard. 'Just because you lose every time doesn't mean you have to stop our friends from having fun every now and then.' He turned towards Harry and the two wizards considered each other. The man was bald with a long white beard that could have rivaled Dumbledore's one. However, this beard was very well groomed and neatly trimmed. In fact, everything about this man seemed orderly and his clothes looked expensive however unvarnished. The only visible adornment was a fine silver jewelry that looked like a snake meandering around his beard. His green eyes were fixed on Harry, a brief smile on his lips.

Harry was stunned. How was this possible? The Founders were supposed to be dead! He was so deep in his thoughts he never heard them calling him to step closer so they could evaluate his abilities.

'Did we get ourselves a deaf one?' Asked Godric with a laugh.

'He looks like he's been petrified,' added Rowena.

'And I thought that those of your House were brave folks,' sighed Salazar.

Helga approached the young boy and smiled kindly to him while nodding in a reassuring manner.

'I am sorry,' said Harry trying to gain some composure back. 'But this isn't the encounter one can expect especially when you are supposed to be… hem.'

'Dead?' Finished Rowena with a smirk. 'You are right young man, but death doesn't mean we have to stop walking through the living.'

'Are you saying that you are ghosts?' Asked Harry still a bit puzzled.

'In a way,' smiled Rowena pleased with the boy's curiosity.

'We are spirit guardians that we left behind to ensure our school safety through time,' corrected Helga.

'So more like Patronus,' said Harry trying to understand.

'When we built the school,' said Rowena, 'we embedded many protections in its core. We knew that such a place would attract the attention of dark forces, but our goal being the education of young wizards and witches, we had to make sure they would always be protected.'

'Therefore,' continued Salazar, 'we decided to add something else to its protection. Something that had never been done before so that if Hogwarts was threatened, we could ensure its safety.'

'We discovered a branch of Arithmancy that had never been explored before,' added Helga. 'Paired with History and Social Sciences of wizards and witches we were able to explain the origin of the behavior of individual, groups and even nation. We used this to predict every time History would take a turn leading to the endangerment of Hogwarts.'

'If we present ourselves to you tonight,' added Godric in a grave voice, 'its because we set out on the road that will lead to Hogwarts destruction. And we need you to avert this crisis.'

The fours Founders were looking at him with calm look like they had just offered him a nice walk through fairy woods. Harry was speechless. There were a lot of questions he would have liked to ask. The possibilities offered by this magical science were immense. Therefore, why wasn't it used on a larger scale than four Founders protecting a school? He shook his head and breathed deeply, trying to reorganise his thoughts.

Wait a damned minute.