OLD MAGIC

Chapter 20: A Scary and Informative Meal

"Now that's settled, how about sitting down to eat, hmm?" Agatha Hagrid asked, smiling benevolently down at the boys. She moved so silently they'd not heard her until she stood right behind them. Draco nearly jumped out of his skin but Harry was used to her ways and smiled up at his adopted mother.

"Brilliant! I'm starved!" Harry exclaimed rising and following in her wake towards the table. Draco wasn't that far behind him but Harry stopped suddenly and turned to the blond who eyed him quizzically. "I'm sorry, bad manners on my part. She is my foster mother and her name is Agatha Hagrid. Her son is my foster father and is our own Professor Hagrid. The guests you will meet will introduce themselves if they wish you to know their names." Draco blinked at him a moment trying to absorb the fact of just who Harry's mysterious caretakers were.

"Wow, I would never have guessed that," Draco finally managed. Harry grinned and continued on to the table taking one of two seats not far from a window, gesturing Draco to sit next to him. The rest of the guests were already taking their seats.

Draco shook his head in amazement. The table fairly groaned with as much variety of food that was offered regularly at Hogwarts. He wasted no time in serving himself. Despite his rather abrupt method of arrival here, he was already feeling happy and relaxed.

The air was filled with conversation as people served themselves. By tacit agreement, no one spoke about the kidnaping or the problems Harry was having with a certain evil spirit. Instead the conversations dealt with problems encountered within the forest and, to Draco's surprise and confusion, the doings of muggles.

After listening for some minutes, Draco turned to a male elf sitting beside him and asked, "Why would any of you be concerned about what muggles are doing beyond the barrier? They aren't a threat."

Conversation instantly stopped. All eyes turned to Draco in consternation. He was confused by their reaction and it unnerved him but forced himself to sit there and meet their gazes bravely.

"What?" he blurted when no one offered an explanation after the silence became rather uncomfortable.

Harry sighed and turned more toward him, a serious expression on his face. "Draco, despite what your father and others might believe, muggles aren't harmless nor stupid. They pose a very real threat to wizarding kind."

Draco's face scrunched up in disbelief. "Oh come on . . . you've got to be exaggerating. None of them can do magic nor can they find us so how much of a threat can they be?" he scoffed.

"They may not have magic, Draco but they have something much more scarier . . . science. They know how to design diseases that can wipe out all mankind including wizards and bombs that can burn our world to a cinder in the blink of an eye. Magic could not stop disaster befalling us in time because our kind ignore muggles so aren't aware of just how much of a threat they can be. But even without knowing that, there's their numbers. They breed faster than us and presently outnumber us by more than a million or more souls to one. With numbers like that they could overwhelm us easily," Harry stated solemnly.

That gave Draco pause but he wasn't entirely convinced. "How do you know all this? What's your proof?"

"It was felt I should attend their schools for a couple of years so I wouldn't have the same blind bigotry the rest of wizarding kind does. I read their books, played with their children, watched how the adults interact in larger cities, took in their movies, TV, and news. Listened to their scientists, humanists, political leaders, and saw and used their technology. They are a mighty race and we're just an unknown and dangerous speck in their eye," Harry said grimly. "If they should discover us, they would not hesitate to try to subjugate or experiment or destroy us utterly because they would be afraid of us. They have the capability to do just that though it might have the fallout of destroying our planet in the process.

Draco gaped at Harry then shook his head. He couldn't believe this but if it was true then the Dark Lord was an idiot to think he could take over England then the world. "No, I refuse to believe such a thing is possible."

Leaning close, Harry said firmly, "It doesn't matter if you believe me or not. Muggles are a terrifying force if frightened especially of things they don't understand or people who are not like them. They are much worse than Voldemort and his Death Eaters when their fear is aroused. He's a fool to think he can tame or enslave them when they could simply blow him and his army to dust as well as the land all around them with their nuclear bombs. They know more about war and have developed advanced weaponry that dwarfs anything used in World War II that Voldemort knows nothing about because he's too arrogant to think them capable of defeating him. What an ass!"

Draco blinked at Harry's use of such language and boldly speaking Voldemort's name but no one corrected him or looked shocked. All the faces at the table were as grimly serious as Potter's was. A shiver of fear slid down his spine. Was his father wrong? Were muggles that great a threat?

Seeing Draco's doubt, Harry said, "I think you need to see for yourself, Draco, so we'll take a brief trip into the muggle world. The parts I doubt you've ever seen or been before. You need this wake up call."

He's right young fellow," Darius interjected. "However, not everything and everyone is dangerous in the muggle world. There are lots of people trying to protect nature and make life better for all mankind, just like in the wizarding world. It's just too bad people with evil intent or power mad are the ones to make things miserable for all. Especially the ones who prefer to make war over differing ideologies, religion, politics, lack of food and water, as well as greed. But as Harry said, fear is the single most dangerous thing about us. A mob has no brain and when it's filled with fear it's a monster that destroys everything in its path. Learning there are people out there that can do real magic would make you a target of that fear. It's a sad but true fact of life. So to me it seems truly ignorant and arrogant for a whole race to pretend they are more superior when they're very much in the minority in population and not nearly as powerful as they think ."

"Educating wizarding kind on this very thing is my goal in life, Draco. Our people need a wake-up call that we aren't the most dangerous thing in this world. If muggles learn of our existence thanks to Voldemort, then heaven help us all. With the weapons and technology they have at their disposal they will obliterate us in an effort to destroy what they fear. Just like in the dark times of the world, fear made people think all witches were evil and burned them at the stake or drowned them," Harry said gravely.

Draco shook his head. "We heard about that in school but there's nothing to fear from such a thing happening again because we put up a magical barrier between us and them," he said with certainty but faltered when all the heads around him shook them in the negative.

"That barrier is holding against their technology and we're still screened from their radars and such but just barely, because they are pushing forward with their technology and we seemed to have done nothing to ensure our defenses are updated to handle those changes. They have eyes and ears all around the world because of their satellites in space. They don't need brooms to get from place to place as they have jets, bullet trains, and even the beginning of space travel that helps them to get around the world quickly. Plus they have communication devices that are much more efficient, portable, and instantaneous than our owls, wireless, and newspapers," Harry said.

"But we can apparate and they can't," Draco interrupted, wanting to stop all this terrible information that was beginning to scare him.

"Yes that's true but not for long, Draco. While we stand still in time, muggles have been moving ahead at a rapid pace. They might not be able to apparate yet but probably a couple of centuries they'll find a way to scientifically teleport people and things just as swiftly as we do. For certain, they'll find us with their advanced technology before then or begin another one of their endless wars only on a much bigger scale that could annihilate us all." Harry sighed and paused to drink some milk.

Agatha broke the momentary silence. "Young fella, we've had no war that can possibly match the deadliness of a muggle one not even that ancient nonsense of a goblin war. Yes we can kill with a word and kill our target but muggles don't single out one person, oh no. They kill thousands at a time in very bloody fashion and rip up the landscape while they're doing it. And don't forget wars destroy supply lines, communications, transportation, and bring devastating diseases in their wake, killing millions more."

"Under those conditions, it would be kinder to just be blown up. Even wizards wouldn't be able to escape the fallout of such a war. So far muggles have managed to avoid starting one like World War II but not from lack of trying. There are many hot spots out there where peace is very shaky at best. All it would take would be one little thing like finding out about your kind or an assassination of one of their leaders or fights over water rights that could set off another world war," Darius said shaking his head. "I sincerely hope I'm not alive should such a thing ever happen."

"That's where I'm hoping wizarding kind can sweep in and force peace but very carefully. We have to be very aware of all the factors that led to the disagreements before we can find a way to end it. It's a very delicate balance we need to find if we are to keep wizarding kind safe and to keep our planet clean and healthy," Harry said, knowingly. "We need to be the watch dogs of the world, keeping the peace while keeping our existence secret."

Draco stared at Harry in amazement. How did someone as young as Harry know such things, much less understand it?

"You're right Harry. Instead of living in the dark ages, all magical kind must take an active role in protecting the world as a whole not just our magical one and that means keeping abreast of what muggles be doing at all times." Agatha nodded in agreement.

"I'm sorry but I'm finding all this really hard to believe," Draco admitted, looking troubled.

"I understand, Draco. I doubt I would have believed it myself if I hadn't lived among them and saw it with my own eyes and heard it with my ears. But since I had the advantage of such an education, I find it shocking how far behind our kind are. I mean we still use quills, fireplaces, candles, papyrus, and fire calls for goodness sake while muggles are more than a couple of centuries ahead. Wizarding kind must know the danger and understand it before it reaches out and destroys us utterly," Harry said passionately.

Draco sat back and stared at Harry speculatively. "Well, then based on what you fear, perhaps, the Dark Lord is right. Wizards should rule the world instead of muggles. Of course, not the way he's going about it though."

"Och, now, listen to the laddie," the elf said in disgust, shaking his head.

"That would mean world war three as the muggles would fight to the death to keep their freedom and would rather blast the earth to pieces than be subjugated. Weren't you listening? No matter how powerful we seem compared to them, they have the numbers, the fierceness, and the weapons to make us pay dear for trying such a thing," Darius said, flatly.

Draco frowned. They were making too much sense for him to ignore their warning. He looked at Harry with new eyes. It was obvious Harry truly believed every thing he'd said and everyone here seem to be in sync with him. Draco had an odd feeling that Harry Potter could become a force of nature with that kind of passion pushing him and this kind of support behind him. He reluctantly admitted that he was nearly convinced himself now.

Letting him absorb what they had told him, everyone went back to their food and began talking about all the advances muggles had made recently and it sounded almost too fantastical to Draco but they spoke with absolute certainty and apparent experience. He ate with less appetite now as he listened and gathered in all this new information. He couldn't believe how much all these creatures knew about muggles that wizards didn't. Maybe Harry was right . . . their bigotry and arrogance could get them killed by remaining ignorant of what muggles were capable of.

By the time dessert arrived, a marvelous selection of incredible pastries, cakes, and chocolates, Draco made the decision to take Harry up on his offer. It was time he went out and saw things for himself rather than believe in what his father had taught him.