Author's Note: I love school vacations! The family stress, the drama, and the traffic! Happy Holidays and New Year to all of my readers and reviewers!
Harry rolled over in bed and ignored the sounds the doctor made as he shut down the infirmary for the evening. He was not tired and he felt fine. He didn't see what everyone thought was so important in keeping him in the infirmary tonight! Okay, so he had exhibited some pretty different symptoms that still puzzled the Muggle doctor, but even Paul had said that he was fine! No one ever believed Harry when it counted. Harry scoffed a bit and rubbed his face with one hand.
He sat up and abandoned hope of sleep. Harry figured that his body was feeling that it had slept long enough and did not need more of it. Well, Harry agreed! He leaned down over the railing of the hospital bed and pulled out his book bag from the storage area. If his memory served him correctly (and he sincerely hoped it did. He had been away several weeks, after all), he should have some drawing supplies in his bag. Drawing was always good for boredom when he could find nothing else to do.
He sharpened one of the pencils Hermione had given him for his birthday and opened his sketchbook to a new sheet of paper. He relaxed his shoulders and set the pencil to paper, allowing his mind to wander as his hand shifted lines into images. Bleys. He felt odd, knowing that Bleys would not be waking him in the morning, that they would not be having a lesson. Bleys was gone. He hesitated to say that he missed Bleys, but he still felt strange, knowing that Bleys was no longer there. He had told everyone he had not remembered what had happened while he was sleeping, because he did not want questioned endlessly about his time with someone Harry could not produce, and waseven less sure about his own feelings about the man.
He felt conflicted. Bleys had been a great mentor to him before The Curse. Harry smirked at himself as he realized he was using capital letters to refer to the event in his own head. Bleys was great before The Curse. He was patient, understanding, and tolerant. He explained things just enough to allow Harry to learn something on his own, but also left enough room for questions and answers that did not make Harry feel slow around his teacher. The man's way of teaching differed greatly from the teaching at Hogwarts. His professorsthere explained everything in steps and then helped any students whom were struggling to follow those steps. Bleys had not even bothered with explanations. He just told Harry the end goal and left his student to it, horribly frustrated, yet engaged in the work. When Harry did accomplish the task, he felt an immense satisfaction, more rich than any triumph at Hogwarts could ever inspire. Even Voldemort explained things in steps! Bleys had tapped an innate ability in Harry and had nurtured it with such a subtle hand that Harry was only now aware of it.
There were other things that Harry liked about Bleys, but these feelings were harder to work through than others. Bleys had cared for him, and taken care of him, like no one else in Harry's life. Harry was not exactly sure what a father was like, and he hesitated naming the relationship asfather and son.He would say that it wasvery close to such a relationship.Bleys was nurturing and caring, but also taught Harry a bit of self-reliance in some things in which he had not had before. Harry knew he was more independent than others his age, which made him think that a little neglect was better than all the coddling in the world, but Bleys again had influenced him in a way no other had managed. He was…calmer? That wasn't the right word. More thoughtful, perhaps?He thought about things now, and looked at everything from different angles before proceeding with his choice. He wasn't sure what word he was searching for. He had the skills and he knew what he was doing. He could not describe it. He turned the page away from Bley's cottage (he had no idea how that had appeared on his paper) and started another drawing.
He had heard everyone come into the infirmary while he was still dressing. He used wandless magic to get his Mini-Messenger and questioned Hermione about everything he needed to know. He was surprised to find that Hermione had known that he was in a "coma" of some kind and he thanked her for her worry. Wandless magic put the book back where it was supposed to be after he had finished talking with Hermione. Hermione's messages told him all he needed to know. Draco Malfoy and Severus Snape had disappeared from the castle with a hasty note stating that Draco had "manor business" that required his attention. Snape accompanied him as his mentor and advisor and neither had returned. Harry told her that the two of them were at his school and that he wondered if he could trust Draco. Snape, yes. The man had already proved his abilities. Draco was an unknown and Harry did not know if he should reveal himself to the blonde boy. Hermione had reassured Harry that Draco was a member of the PPs and that he was more likely to keep Harry's secrets, just to see how Harry would react to the Slytherin's presence. Hermione told him that Draco was more subdued this year and what to expect when he spoke to him. She also warned him that Draco was insisting that Harry Potter could not have a normal year. It was "out of his reach" and Harry agreed with him. He had yet to have a normal year at Hogwarts.
Hefound himself surprisedwhen Draco's first comment was something about Harry having a normal year. Harry bantered right back with Hermione's comments about the bouncing ferret joining the Light Side. Something had passed between the two of them in that instant that told the two of them that they were, if not friends, allies. Harry liked the feeling of having such an ally and wondered how much Draco knew about things going on at Hogwarts. He had, after all, access to places that Hermione did not. He would hear and see things differently than a Gryffindor. Harry's hand stilled as he realized he was drawing the person of his thoughts. Draco Malfoy's face stared out at him from the paper. The scar was prominent and looked painful. Harry had seen that the first second he had looked at the other boy. No one else, it appeared, had seen the fine lines that denoted pain around his mouth and eyes. All Harry had to do was look at the scar to tell that it was no ordinary scar and was still causing Draco pain whenever he moved his head to one side or moved his mouth to talk. Someone had cursed it to cause the pain and Draco Malfoy felt that pain.
A simple wish for his magic to end the curse and physical contact dispelled the curse and left only scar tissue behind. Harry had hoped to be so discreet that no one would hear him, but Draco had heard the whispered comment, and worse, had felt Harry working the magic. It appeared that no one had heard the truth of it from Draco. No one had asked Harry what he did. He wasn't inclined to enlighten anyone, even if they asked.
He had played "confused" when the adults had questioned him about what had happened to him. He didn't want everyone knowing about everything right away. He would tell Paul, of course, and Remus after a while, once the men had some distance to their own feelings of worry (Harry had seen it, even if others had not). He was unsure of whether or not he should tell his aunt. She did seem more accepting (she had said the word MAGIC) and worried about him. Aunt Petunia had shown a different side of herself when Harry had watched her through scrying and he had scryed more than once, just to watch her. He liked seeing the way she looked at him while he was asleep. It was almost the same look she wore when Dudley was sick. Worried, and concerned, but also very caring. Harry shut his eyes against the memory and fought back his feelings on the subject. He was not ready to approach that subject! He could worry about that once Voldemort was gone. He was startled when the door opened to the infirmary and three familiar faces peeked around the door.
"Over here!" He whispered to Sparky, Bug, and Chef. The three heads turned as one and Sparky left the other two behind as he made for Harry's bed. "What are you doing here?" He whispered to the three.
"We came to see you." Bug said as though it was fairly obvious. "None of the teachers, nurses, or doctorswere talking when we asked about you." He pulled Harry's file from its holder and started paging through it.
"What happened, Evan?" Sparky asked.
"I'm not sure. One minute, I was having a nightmare. The next, well, I wake up here under the 'tender mercies' of Dr. Lansky." Harry shrugged and put his sketchbook back into his bag and tossed it on the floor. "Get your feet off the floor." He told the rail thin boy next to him. "Dr. Lansky will probably blame me if you get sick, Sparky."
"Um, we're all sick!" Sparky explained as he climbed onto the end of Harry's bed. "That's why we're here!" The four boys shared a smile and Chef relaxed enough to sit in the chair next to Harry's bed. Harry raised the head of his bed a bit more to allow him to sit up, rather than recline and pulled his feet towards him.
"How's the eating coming?" he asked Sparky as he tossed a pillow for the other boy.
"It's okay." Sparky shrugged. "I eat something at every meal. I don't like to eat, but I'm doing it."
"That's great, Sparky." Harry told him. "Eating is important." Harry nudged an extra blanket towards Sparky and his friend accepted it with a smile. Sparky, due to his being so thin, was always cold, no matter how much clothing he wore. He even wore a jumper during the summer months!
"Can you even read that?" Chef's voice broke Harry's thoughts and he looked up in time to see Bug nod as he paged through the rest of the file.
"Hmm. Yes, I can." Bug said absently in response to Chef's question. "I never told you guys, did I?" He asked as he flipped through the pages. "Part of the reason I am here is that everyone at my school hated me. I'm kind of gifted, or something. People don't like different people." Bug said as he gauged his friends' reactions. Sparky smiled and shrugged, while Chef gave a slow nod. Harry mumbled that he certainly understood being different.
"People are stupid, dangerous animals." Sparky said in a whisper. "We must hide from them." The four boys exchanged glances before breaking into stifled laughter. They did not want to be caught by the doctor.
"So, Evan." Harry looked up at his three friends. "Why are you having such bad nightmares that they send you to the infirmary?" Bug asked. Sparky nodded while Chef's eyes told Harry that he was interested as well. Harry thought about his new friendships with these boys and wondered how much he could tell them.
"It's hard to explain." He started. Sparky scooted closer to Harry to allow Chef and Bug space on the bed. Harry continued after they had settled. "My parents died when I was really little and I sort of remember it happening. The person who killed them is thought to be dead, but he's not. He's after me now." He stopped and wondered how far he should explain. His friends seemed to be taking this rather well.
"Why would he kill your parents?" Chef asked.
"He's a terrorist, but not quite." Harry tried to explain. "He thinks that certain people are better than everyone. He started to kill people who didn't quite fit his profile of what a person should be and my parents tried to stop him. They were both police officers." Harry figured a little white lie to enable them to understand the situation would not hurt them too badly.
"Hitler." Bug said in a sad voice. "Hitler did the same thing during the second war world." Harry nodded. He remembered studying the war just last week in history class (without the mention of Grindelwald).
"He's like that, then. He has a few followers, but thankfully, not many. Not enough to get to me wherever I go. I usually attend the same boarding school both my parents went to and that's how he found me. He has almost killed me several times."
"How many?" Bug asked.
"Actual attempts or where I have seen him and he has seen me?" Harry asked in a calm voice.
"Attempts?" Bug seemed unsure. Harry nodded and counted mentally.
"I'd say about five times that I know of." Harry told his friends. "Maybe six, but I'm not really sure about that last one." He shrugged. A whispered question from Chef made Harry pause.
"Why?" Chef's question was a good one, and indeed, one Harry wanted answered. Why was Voldemort trying to kill him? What was so important about a prophecy and the actions afterwards? So Harry had some great luck and managed to escape Voldemort several times over. Why would he continue hunting Harry now?
"I...don't know." Harry admitted. "He tried to kill me when I was baby and gave me this." Harry gestured towards the scar. "I managed to survive and he left for a while. He's still trying to kill me, even though I'm not much of a threat. I would leave him alone if he left me alone, but I don't think he'd go for that. I think he's a bit mad." Nice understatement there, Harry. Brilliant.
"No wonder you have nightmares!" Sparky hissed. "Someone trying to kill you." He shook his head and sighed. "So, that's why you have two different names." Harry's head snapped up.
"How'd you know about that?" He demanded. If Sparky was magical and had been leading Harry on this whole time…
"I overheard Paul talking to some guy wearing black clothes in the middle of the night. Iwent for something to drink in the kitchens and they passed by me." He wrapped his blanket around his shoulders and looked at Bug's face. "What? I'm allowed in the kitchens when ever I want!"
"I think I've just found my new best friend." Bug said with a greedy glint in his eye. Bug was currently in a growth spurt and constantly hungry."How much ice cream can you carry?"
"What is your real name?" Chef asked, stopping Bug's interest in Sparky's unrestrained kitchen access.
"You can't use it or tell anyone." Harrry cautioned them. "You have to promise you won't. He can't find me. There is no protection here outside my anonymity. Do you all swear?" The three boys nodded. "Okay. My real name is Harry Potter."
"I like Evan better." Sparky told him. "I'll be happy to continue using it."
"That's fine, Sparky." Harry gave his odd young friend a smile. "Just don't tell anyone." Sparky gave his solemn promise that no one would find his friend if he could help it. Harry leaned back against the pillows and smiled. He had friends here, friends who did not care that he had kept so much from them. They just accepted that he had reasons and understood that he would tell them more when the time came. He liked that. No one had exploded, no one had demanded he tell them, and no one had thought less of him for keeping secrets. A sneaky little voice in the back of his mind said not like Ron; he ignored the voice and accepted the idea of a game of cards.
"Hurry, Draco. Wewere away long enough." Draco rushed after him and up the path towards the castle. Severus knew that Dumbledore would be wanting to know where the two of them had been for such a long time and he had no ready answers. His brain conjured and dismissed as many possibilities as there were Bertie Bott's Flavors, each more unlikely than the last. What in the world was he going to tell Dumbledore?
"Ah, Severus. There you are." Dumbledore met him and Draco at the main doors with a kindly smile on his face. "If you would report to my office…"
Draco stepped away from Snape and held up his backpack. "Thank you for helping me sort that out, Professor. I am in your debt." With those words, Draco turned and hurried away.
"Draco?" Dumbledore called after him. Draco turned and looked at the man. "With what has Severus helped you?"
"A situation at my manor." Draco explained. "It is a private matter." He elucidated to his headmaster. "I'm sure you understand, sir." He turned back to his head of house. "Thank you again, Severus."
Snape knew at that moment exactly whom would be the next Head of House for Slytherin, with all the signs about Draco flashing in his face. He only had to wonder how he would break it to the boy. Snape nodded at Draco and made the hand signal that said that they would talk later. Draco smiled and rushed away to his classes.
"You are doing wonders with that boy, Severus." Dumbledore said as he stepped up alongside Snape. "What, precisely, was the problem?" Dumbledore tried to appear completely nonchalant, but Severus knew what that look meant for him. Dumbledore was digging for information.
Snape shook his head and sighed. "I cannot tell you, Headmaster. You know that." Snape hedged. "I am not allowed to reveal my advisee's matters to anyone not directly involved. And you are not." Snape folded his robes around himself and nodded to the headmaster. "I will resume my classes now, headmaster." Snape swept away from Dumbledore, thanking every deity he knew of that Draco was such a smart lad.
"How were your classes?" Snape asked as Draco entered their quarters. Draco dropped his book bag in its customary place next to the door and sank into the couch. He loosened his tie and put his feet up on the coffee table. "Feet down." Snape said without looking. Draco lowered his feet to the floor with a smirk and sat properly.
"They were okay." Draco told him with a sigh. "Hermione and Ginny wanted to know where I was this morning." Draco shrugged off his heavy outer robe and tossed it over the end of the couch. Snape rolled his eyes at this display of teenage rebellion for the rules of tidiness and banished the robe to the boy's room.
Snape turned to Draco with a smirk on his face. "Turning into quite the ladies' man, are we?" He poured out a drink for himself and held up the bottle.
Draco shook his head at the offered drink. "Ladies' man?" He asked with a touch of sarcasm. "That's right, Severus. I need to beat them off with sticks. Just like you."
Snape snorted and took a sip of his drink. "Well, with your charm and charisma, I thought you would have had a girlfriend by now."
"I'm too busy protecting my life." Draco sneered at him.
Snape looked over the practiced expression and nodded. "Better, but you need a bit more loathing in that voice when you do that." Snape relaxed into his own armchair and considered his charge. "When did Miss Granger and Miss Weasley become 'Hermione' and 'Ginny'?" Snape asked.
Draco shrugged and removed his tie. "It is hard to continue calling 'friends' by their last names." Draco explained. "They both know where I was. Potter was in communication with them sometime today." Snape nodded. It was most likely through the Mini-Messengers. "How did you and that Sensei guy meet?"
Snape saw the technique for what it was and decided to indulge the boy for now. "Leonard?" Snape thought back to days he thought best forgotten. "Leonard and I met when I was a little younger than you." Snape relaxed back into his chair and closed his eyes. "I had been tormented by Potter's father and his friends most of my life. Once I reached thirteen or so, I decided to do something about it, but I wasn't sure what." He shrugged and sipped at his drink. "My father suggested self-defense lessons. I was, of course, horrified that he would suggest a Muggle method to fight magic and told him as much." Snape snickered to himself and shook his head. "How wrong I was." He told the boy. "I had no choice after that. My father signed me up for classes and ensured that I attended every one, whether I wanted to or not."
"I was not impressed the first two weeks. I saw nothing I could use against bullies with magic. Even less that I could use against anyone physically attacking me." He shrugged as though to ward off his own thoughtlessness. "It remained like that for the first two weeks of my summer vacation until an assistant teacher, a rather young assistant teacher, appeared. That teacher was Leonard."
"He is half-Japanese and half-English. He spent some time in both countries as a child and retains a rather different view of life because of it. His grandfather taught him many things during his visits in Japan and he passed some of that on to a rather annoying, petulant teenager who thought he was better than everyone else." Snape nodded to himself. "He saw something in me that the regular teacher did not and changed my classes to everyday, for three or four hours. I had a hard time reconciling myself to learning from someone just a few years my senior, but he thumped me soundly until I started fighting back, and then he continued pushing me until I forgot that a person was supposed to exist without pain and bruises covering most of his body."
"Leonard adopted me as his 'little brother' and he made sure that I was more than able to defend myself once September first came up. The train ride was different that year. I did not back down from the bullies and if they happened to get a curse on me, well, they were given fitting retribution later. Potter's arrogance worked against him then. He could not admit that someone shorter than him had beaten him without a wand. A few other benefits happened as well, on a Hogsmeade weekend when I allowed myself to wear Muggle clothing and several female classmates saw what the workouts did for me." Snape chuckled to himself at the memory and drained his glass before setting it aside. "They were nice benefits." He chuckled to himself again and decided that he had no need for more alcohol. Draco must have felt the same, for he stood and moved the glass away from Snape.
"Leonard was waiting for me when I returned home the following summer. He allowed me exactly five minutes to store my trunk away and say hello to my parents before he dragged me off to the dojo, bemoaning the fact that I had somehow lost speed over the school year."
"Dojo?" Draco questioned the foreign word.
"School. It is Japanese for school." Snape explained. Draco nodded and Snape continued with his story. "He and I trained together, and caused our main teacher so much grief, for several years, until I became a Death Eater, of course." Snape brushed away the memories of that time. "I had no idea he was still alive. He always said that he would infuriate our sensei so much the man would run him through one day." Snape shrugged. "A small world that Potter managed to find him and became his 'deshi'."
"Sorry? Deshi?" Draco interrupted again.
Snape fought a sigh and closed his eyes, asking for patience from every force out there. "A 'deshi' is a student, but more than a student. It is more like an apprentice or disciple. The relationship is much closer than student and teacher. It iscloser to what we are, you and me." Snape explained, hoping that Draco would understand. The boy still looked confused. "You are not this slow. Let me try again. Leonard took a special interest in Potter and decided to teach him directly, one on one, to pass on his knowledge. Just as I am doing with you. He is probably teaching Potter things that are practical, rather than the traditional ranks. Potter will be able to fight, coming out of the training, rather than just compete. Do you understand now?"
"I think so. Potter won't just be a fighter, will he?" Draco asked as he looked at his teacher for confirmation.
"Exactly as Leonard did with me. He will come out of training much more than a fighter. He will emerge a warrior, Merlin help us all." Snape muttered.
"And you're teaching me the same things he taught you?" Draco asked from the couch.
"Yes." Snape saw Draco fit all the pieces together in just a few seconds. He nodded as Draco looked at him again. "It can only benefit you. A person who knows only one way to fight will only fight one way. You have at least three ways to fight now. We only have to hope that Death Eaters will have only one way to fight." Draco nodded in agreement and thought that knowing more than one way to fight could save him some day. Being a warrior, having the same skills as Potter, and maybe something more, would help that survival.
Paul sat in his office, burning the proverbial midnight oil with flames large enough to show to outer space. He was worried about Harry and he was trying to find some magical answer by paging through his notes, hoping that somehow, an answer would present itself to him. Harry hadn't said much about his nightmares, but the two of them had talked a bit earlier in the day. Something was wrong with the boy, but he was not sure what it was, or more importantly, what had caused it. Paul was determined to find out what was troubling his young patient.
The phone rang and broke him out of his concentration. Paul reached out a hand and snapped the receiver up to his ear. "Yes?" He demanded of the caller, just a little upset that someone would be willing to interrupt him. He heard a frantic voice on the other end, explaining what was going on. "I'll be right there." Paul said in a rush as he got to his feet and replaced the phone in the cradle. He ran out his door and down the hallway, desperate to reach his patient with the most speed possible.
The scene inside the infirmary told him all he needed to know within seconds. Harry was trapped. Nightmare or vision, Paul wasn't sure, but he was trapped inside his own mind. The doctor was confining Harry to the bed, but that only seemed to increase Harry's thrashing and screams. Paul noticed all of this in the seconds it took for him to reach Harry's bedside. He slipped a quick hand into his pocket and turned on the tape recorder. Harry needed to hear how bad his nightmares were to believe it. "Harry!" Paul motioned for the doctor to release Harry's arms and the doctor did as he was asked with a shrug. "Harry! Wake up!" Harry rolled off the bed and scrambled for shelter behind it. "Harry!"
"Leave me alone!" Harry's voice rasped out from behind the headboard. "I don't want to do this!" Paul glanced at the doctor.
"Could you please get some lukewarm water and flip the switch for the lights?" Paul asked his colleague. The man nodded and did as asked. Paul could see Harry's feet poking out from behind the headboard. "What is it that you don't want to do?" Paul asked Harry calmly.
"This stupid tournament! I'm too young and I don't want to do it!" Harry snapped at Paul's question.
"Do you know who I am, Harry?" Paul asked. Something about the way Harry was speaking gave Paul a few clues to what was going on.
"Of course I know who you are, Professor!" Harry's voice had a quality of 'why such an obvious question' to it.
"Well then, tell me who I am." Paul told Harry. Harry took a deep breath and answered with a "Professor Dumbledore" in a panicked voice.
"I don't want to do it. Please don't make me, sir." Harry pleaded with his therapist. "I already have everyone staring at my scar. I can't do this too! Please!" Harry's voice panicked again and Paul decided that it was time to end this dream.
"Please come out from behind there, Harry. Everything is going to be alright." Paul said as he bent down on one knee near Harry.
"Really?" Harry's voice came again, as petulant as a child and just as hopeful. Paul ached to hear such trust in a question. Harry had truly believed that Dumbledore was able to fix everything.
"Really. I've got you now. It's going to be okay." Paul coaxed the boy out from behind the headboard and into his arms. "It's going to be okay, Harry." He dropped his voice to a calm level and repeated the statement several times until Harry stopped shivering. "Wake up, Harry." He tapped Harry on the shoulder several times, in the most annoying fashion possible he could devise. "It's time to wake up." He told his patient. Harry pulled away from the touch and groaned. "That's it. It's time to wake up. The dream is over." Harry shook his head. "Come on, wake up." Paul advised. "Wake up."
Harry's eyes opened slowly and he looked up at Paul with a bewildered expression. "Do you know me, Harry?" Paul asked in a calm voice.
"Paul?" Harry squinted up at Paul. "What happened?"
"What do you remember?" Harry shook his head and sat up on his own.
"I…" He shook his head to clear it and took a sip of the water Paul held to his lips. "The Triwizard Tournament. Just after my name came out of the cup. I was scared. Everyone said people have died during past tournaments. I was too young to compete, but someone wanted me to, anyway. I didn't want to compete."
"I know you didn't want to compete." Paul told him. "You were having a dream. It's okay now." Harry nodded and handed the glass to Paul. "Why don't you get up in bed?" Paul suggested to Harry. Harry looked around as though he had not seen the floor before.
"How did I get down here?" Harry asked in confusion. "I was sleeping." Harry sounded very young when he was confused.
"You rolled off the bed and dashed for cover. It's okay. Do you want something to help you sleep?" Paul asked as he gave Harry a hand back to his bed.
Harry pulled the covers over himself and thought about it. He knew what that meant. Sleeping pills. Dreamless Sleep. "Yes, please." Paul nodded and motioned for the doctor to retrieve them. "Paul?" Paul looked down at Harry. "Do you think I seek attention?" Harry asked in a quiet voice.
"No." Paul told him. "If anything, I think you don't seek enough attention from the adults around you." Paul accepted the pills from the doctor and motioned for Harry to sit up. Harry obeyed the signal and took the glass of water. "What makes you ask?"
"The newspapers." Harry said as he popped the pills before drinking water. "Urgh. Can't you make them taste better?" Harry asked as his sipped a bit more water.
"Why would the newspapers say you seek attention?" Paul asked Harry as the boy set the water down on his nightstand and closed his eyes.
"Fudge." Harry answered. "Can I go to sleep now?"
"Go ahead. I'll see you in the morning." Paul watched over Harry until he was asleep.
"Fudge?" The doctor said. "What has fudge to do with seeking attention and nightmares?" Paul looked at the doctor and sighed.
"I wish I knew. Please don't say anything about this until I talk to him tomorrow." The doctor nodded.
"I hope I get to hear about this Triwizard thing he was talking about." He commented as he made a note on Harry's chart. "You should get some rest, too, Paul." He explained. "Harry, or Evan, or whatever his name is, will need you tomorrow."
"Thanks for understanding. I'll explain as soon as I am able to do so." Paul said as he shook his colleague's hand.
"You'd better. That boy is an enigma, and I always liked puzzles." Paul smirked and bid the man a good night and went to his own quarters. Harry had presented many things tonight that needed addressed as soon as possible. He shut off the tape recorder and sighed. How was he going to approach Harry?
Author's Note: Okay, all! That's it for now. I don't know when the next update will be. I have a million things to do before school starts again. Thanks for reading!