Hogsmeade
The winter holidays were starting. Harry and his friends were at the station getting ready to board the train to go home. The Weasleys had joined him and he was sure that they would have some good times together.
As Sirius had told him about the Marauders, Harry took the last car for himself and his friends with all of them slipping into different compartments. He was joined by Neville, Susan, Hannah, Hermione, Ronald, Ernie, Lisa and Michael. He had asked Isobel to join them but the Ravenclaw had refused saying that since she lived in Scotland, it didn't make any sense for her to go to London just to come back to Scotland again. Her father was coming to pick her up. She would be home before Harry and his friends were in London.
Ernie asked him, "Do you have any plans for Yule, Harry?"
Harry shook his head, "I don't have any plans of my own since my plans are often dictated by Lord Black, Remus and, I guess, Sirius now. If they decide that we're going somewhere then that is where I'll go. However, I do think that we'll stay for Yule in London. Maybe we'll be spending the rest of the holidays out of Britain. What about you, Ernie?"
Ernie enthusiastically told him, "We're going abroad this evening. We'll be back in time for Yule. I guess we'll be meeting then".
Ron asked him, "If you're going out of Wizarding Britain, why did you ask us to join you?"
Harry said simply, "You are invited by Lord Black. I don't think he would make any plan that would leave you people behind. He is a very gracious host who cares for the comfort of his guests. However Ronald, I am cautioning you that you need to be on your best behavior with him. He is a pureblood Lord who cares for the mannerisms required of scions and heirs of houses. Besides, he is the brother of your grand-mother".
Ron grumbled, "Some brother! Never thought about taking us back into the family, did he?"
Harry said to him a bit sternly, "Do not say anything like that about Lord Black in my hearing again. I won't hear a word against him. I am sure that if you ask him about it, he will answer you".
Neville decided to break the tension in the situation, "Who's up for exploding snaps?"
Ernie, Hannah, Neville, Ronald and Michael joined him in playing exploding snap. Hermione was reading her favorite book so far, "Hogwarts: A history". Michael and Lisa were discussing something about Bulbadox powder, putting it in someone's clothes. Harry mentally shuddered at just the thought.
Susan was the only one who was not doing anything. He turned to her, "What are your plans for Yule, Susan?"
She replied off-handedly, "I guess I will be at the Manor alone since Auntie is the minister now. She can't manage to make time for me out of her duties".
Harry said to her jovially, "Why don't you come over then? I am living in the middle of London. The more the merrier. Lord Black has asked me to invite every friend of mine to the house for Yule. I have already extended my invitations to everyone else. It's just you remaining now".
She nodded, "Alright. I'll talk to Auntie. I'll come over, if she agrees".
Harry had in fact invited every one of his friends while at school. Sirius had told him that starting next year, they would have a Yule Ball as they used to have before the war. This year, they would have to do with a simple celebration. It was an occasion to make connections with everyone who was of some importance in the wizarding world.
About mid-way during the ride, the trolley witch came. Those in that car had almost emptied her cart buying everything that caught their fancy. After they had stuffed themselves full, Harry decided to take a walk. While he was in the corridor, Malfoy and his goons made their appearance. Lately he had not bothered Harry except bickering here and there but nothing concrete. Harry was satisfied that he had stayed within his limits.
When Malfoy spotted Harry, he sneered, "Look who it is boys. Saint Scar-head himself".
Harry sighed, "Really Malfoy? Did it take you most of the term to come up with that one? Can you actually do anything without these two trolls to back you up?"
Crabbe grunted something inaudible but it surprised Harry. Crabbe's voice was very thin in contrast to his bulk. Goyle did not say anything but kept looking at the two of them as if he could not understand why he was there in the first place.
Harry turned to Malfoy, "Really, I just came by to say hello. But, if you want to fight, then you are welcome to do so. Tell me Malfoy, do you have sufficient people behind you to fight with me and my friends?"
Malfoy drawled, "I see one of you. There are three of us".
At that moment, many of the firsties in that car walked out of their compartments with their wands in hand. Harry smirked, "You were saying Malfoy?"
Malfoy was gaping like a fish, "I will teach you a lesson someday, Potter-Black".
Harry waved him off, "If I were to fear the likes of you, I may as well snap my wand and go into hiding".
Malfoy hastily made his exit. He was not such an idiot that he would try to take up arms against 20 of them with only two of his house mates at his side.
When the train came to a halt at Platform 9 ¾, Harry got off the train to find Sirius and Remus on the platform waiting for him and his friends. They were standing with Augusta Longbottom and Amelia Bones on the platform.
Harry ran into the arms of Sirius and Remus. After they had fussed over him, Sirius asked him, "Where are the others?"
Harry introduced everyone to him. Then he went to greet Augusta. He did not bow to her as was custom but instead hugged her tightly, "Hello Gran! I missed you so much. Hogwarts is such a dreary place without a witch of your temper to boss the students around".
She asked him mock sternly, "If you missed me so much, why didn't I see so much as a single letter from you? Neville's letters were woefully short about you and what you were up to".
Harry knew her complaint was genuine. He said to her fondly, "I promise it will not happen again. Now are you joining us for Yule?"
She mussed his hair, "I wouldn't miss it for anything. We will be there at the appointed hour".
He also greeted Amelia performing a proper bow for her. She raised an eye-brow, "I assume it is thanks to Lord Black's upbringing that you are versed in our manners and customs. James and Sirius were as uncouth as street urchins".
Sirius protested, "I was more suave than him, Amelia".
She asked him, "Exactly when did you or James show proper respect towards me? I remember your exact words when I asked you both about it. Do you want me to recall those words in front of these children?"
Sirius huffed, "Alright you win this round". He turned to the children gathered around, "It's time we get going. Since I do not have a car, nor do I personally like the Knight Bus, and we will look strange on the road dragging those trunks behind us, we are going to floo to the house. The address is #12, Grimmauld Place".
While Harry was busy having a word with everyone, Neville was busy meeting the Marauders, paying his respects to them. However, the Marauders were having none of it.
Sirius had embraced him first. Then he said, "Remember Neville, you are as dear to me as Frank was. You are like a nephew to me. I would rather spoil children than make them learn these customs and mannerisms".
Neville smiled inadvertently while Augusta asked Sirius, "is that why Frank said that James and Sirius together were bad company? Because you two together meant trouble?"
Sirius sheepishly smiled, "Do you honestly expect me to answer that?"
In the meanwhile, Harry was saying good-bye to his friends for the winter holidays. Hermione wanted him to come meet her parents on the muggle side but he had to refuse her. He invited her for Yule asking her to bring her parents over. She regretfully told him that she was going to the continent for the winter vacation. Harry told her to visit the magical area of the city telling her its location. He said that she would find it interesting. As she went towards the barrier into the muggle world, Harry walked towards the floo network in the station. He went first followed by the Weasleys and lastly the Marauders.
Since he arrived first, Arcturus picked him up, hugged him tightly saying, "I missed you child. This place felt like a haunted house without you here".
The first of the Weasleys to come was Percy who bowed low to Arcturus, "Greetings Lord Black. I, Percival Ignatius Weasley of House Weasley pay my respects to you".
Arcturus kindly smiled at him, "Welcome Percival. It is an honour to be able to host you and your brothers under my roof".
The twins came through next. He did not even allow them to bow. He said to them, "You don't need to stand on formalities with me. You are all my grand-nephews, practically family. Just tell me your names though".
One of the twins said, "I am Gred". The other added, "I am Forge".
Arcturus chuckled, "I can see why Harry thinks so highly of the both of you. You two were named after your uncles, I presume. The Prewett twins- Fabian and Gideon?"
The twins asked him, "Did you know them?"
He shook his head, "I only knew them by reputation. My sister Lucretia was fond of them though. I heard that they were bested in an ambush involving 10 death eaters out of which only 4 survived".
By this time, Ron had come. Arcturus turned to him at last, "I assume you are young Ronald who is one of Harry's new friends". He turned to everyone, "Welcome to Black Townhouse all of you. There are no rules beneath my roof. Live, enjoy as if you were at your house. The only rule is that I ask you to try to ensure that the house remains standing, despite all the pranks which I am sure you will be pulling on each other".
He raised his voice and called, "Kreacher". The ancient elf appeared before him, "Master calls?"
Arcturus turned to him, "Kreacher, these fine people are our guests for this winter vacation. You are being entrusted with the responsibility to look after their comfort. Ensure that they are not lacking in anything. Now please show them to their rooms".
Since there were enough rooms in the Townhouse, separate rooms were given to all of them except the twins who refused to take separate rooms, claiming that they could not sleep alone.
Kreacher served them with butterbeers for refreshments before they were shown to their rooms. When the Twins had finished their butterbeer, they found the bottle was transparent. There was a message on the glass which read, "A gift from the Marauders".
The twins were horrified with the implications of the message but nothing seemed to happen… right away. Kreacher showed them the way upstairs. as soon as they were in their room, Fred started crowing like a rooster while George started neighing like a horse. Their butterbeers had been hexed!
The first evening was spent with them eating in the kitchen of the Townhouse while the elves served them. Everyone was present at the table except Arcturus who said he was tired. He retired early when in fact he was trying to keep himself out of the way of the children with all the fun they would be having.
When they all headed toward the table for dinner, the twins, as they exited their room, found themselves stuck to the floor. Despite all they could do, there was no way that they could move. They were horrified about the situation but there was no way they could free themselves. They were sure that they had been fixed to the floor with a sticking charm but they could not undo it for they had left their wands in their trunks.
Sirius appeared out of nowhere before them grinning. He said, "I heard that you two lads found the map in Filch's office. I also heard from a little birdie that the map insulted you two. It also came to my knowledge that you consider yourselves to be some sort of legacy carriers of the Marauders' name. You also had the audacity to call our precious map a rag of a parchment? I am formally challenging you both to a prank war on behalf of the Marauders". With that he walked down to the kitchen.
The twins could not free themselves of their predicament they had carelessly left their wands well out of reach. They stood stuck in place waiting for someone to come by for about 15 minutes before Kreacher came looking for them.
He bowed low and said, "Master Harry is calling you two sirs to table".
The twins tried to be nice to him, "The thing is, Kreacher that Mr. Black has left us stuck here. We are not able to free ourselves. Can you free us?"
Kreacher snapped his fingers and released them. While they went downstairs, they planned for retaliation against the Marauders. They had dropped in on them unannounced. Gred and Forge would be damned if they did not even the score.
At the dining table, Travistor was serving Harry and the Marauders while Kreacher looked after the Weasleys.
Ron expressed his astonishment at seeing the elves, "Blimey Harry! You have two elves".
Harry chuckled, "Two? These are just the elves who are personally bound to us. I guess there are more who take care of business at my other concerns".
When dinner was done, Sirius took them into the meeting room to talk. The twins pounced on the Marauders now that they had the chance, "Is it true that you hold the detentions record for your pranks? Will you teach us some of your tricks?"
Sirius chuckled at their antics while Moony smiled at them. Before they could say anything, Percy interrupted, "pardon their insolence, Mr. Black, Mr. Lupin.". He turned to the twins, "Behave, you two".
Remus waved him off, "It's alright Percy. They are children. It is not good to suppress their curious nature". He turned to the twins, "Yes we do hold the record for the most detentions but I believe most of them are in the names of James Potter and Sirius Black. I had the fortune to feature in very few of them. It comes with the territory of being the clever one who can avoid detection. But we do not take on any apprentice unless they have proven themselves to us".
Sirius had his wand out, "Talking about proving yourselves, here is something for you to mull over. Find a way out". He shot a hex at them which caused one of them to grow hair which went way past his waist. In a few moments, it was long enough to cocoon him in. The hex at the other forced him to change humanoid appearances from human to elf to goblin, then the same again.
Moony relieved them of their predicament after a few minutes of watching the twins trying to relieve themselves of the hexes. When they were free, they turned to Sirius, "We accept your challenge, Mr. Black.".
Harry groaned inwardly. If they engaged in a prank war, he could only pray that the house would remain standing and that Lord Black would not hex them into oblivion.
After that, talk turned to the Marauder's time at school. They were careful not to mention the map though. It was a closely guarded secret. Percy was a Prefect so it would drastically curtail their activities if he knew of the little piece of miracle.
The Prank Lord
The next day, they were all in for some surprises. When they were all sitting for breakfast, Arcturus was late in coming to the table. When he arrived, he took a seat at the head of the table. Suddenly, manacles came out of the chair and bound him to it. Everyone was shocked. This was not supposed to happen. They were to prank each other but not him. Even the twins looked worried at this. They shared a look among themselves as if asking if they had done this. Padfoot was asking the same question from Moony. When it was clear that they all had nothing to do with the prank, they turned to the last prankster in residence, that being Harry who looked scared and confused. He was also looking at the four of them to determine if they had something to do with this.
Percy misread the situation. He took the twins to task, "That was not proper, Fred and George. He is our elder. You should have shown respect to him. I will have to complain to Mother about it".
By this time, Sirius had freed Arcturus. The old wizard admonished Percy, "It's alright Percy. You are all children. It's perfectly agreeable if they get up to their shenanigans at times. In fact, I am impressed with their guts to try and prank me".
After that, breakfast passed peacefully enough for a while.
Harry knew the twins had not done it. Maybe the Marauders had done it just to enrage the twins. Other than them, only 3 possibilities existed. Harry had not done it. He knew it was complex magic which could not have been done by a first year student so Ronald was also out. That left only Percy who was certainly knowledgeable enough to do something like this. Harry had to snort at his own line of thought. Percy was the perfect Prefect. He was a stickler for rules. He revered authority figures besides working at making as many contacts as he could. He was certainly ambitious. He would not do anything to destroy his reputation with someone as powerful and influential as Arcturus Orion Black.
After a while, one of the marauders decided that things were getting boring. As one of the twins picked up his plate, the legs on his chair vanished. He fell. The other scramble to pick him up but he found himself hovering in the air.
Arcturus growled at Sirius, "Is that how you have been taught to deal with those who cannot reply to you?"
As it turned out, Sirius had his wand under the table. He had cast the spell at the chair and vanished its legs. Then he had shot the hovering charm at the other twin's clothes.
Sufficiently admonished, Sirius took a seat. He sat quietly after he had let George down. The twins however were incensed. Nobody had ever scored so many on them without them making the score even.
Arcturus could understand what was going on in their minds. He told them, "You two can answer him in kind, if that is your wish. I don't mind you casting spells unless you are a threat to others or yourselves". The twins grinned in response.
The rest of breakfast passed without incident then. But the day was far from over. After breakfast was done, Sirius turned to the children at the table, "Alright, since we have a full day ahead of us with nothing to do, I thought maybe we could go around Muggle London, see the city for ourselves".
Since it was a new experience for all of them, they all agreed. The Weasleys knew nothing about the Muggle World. Ron told him in an undertone that the Weasley patriarch was fond of muggles and everything muggle.
Sirius turned to Harry, "Harry, why don't you call your friends on the floo. Invite them over. They can join us, if they wish to".
Harry nodded. He threw a pinch of floo powder into the kitchen fireplace and began to invite his friends. Of those he wanted to invite, Isobel had not given him a floo address. Ernie and Hermione were away. Justin's house was not connected to the floo network because he was a muggle-born. Lisa was a half-blood who lived somewhere in Muggle London. He could not get in contact with her. Michael was also at his Grand Parents' in the Netherlands. That meant it was just Neville, Daphne and Susan for today.
He flooed Neville first. He was met with Slinky, the Longbottom elf. Slinky saw his head in the flames, squeaked excitedly, "Master Harry!"
Harry smiled at the elf, "Hello Slinky. Would you please fetch Neville for me?"
Slinky disappeared. He returned a second later lugging Neville by the collar with mud flying everywhere. When Neville got his bearings, he asked Slinky, "Why did you do that, Slinky?"
Harry called out to him, "Come over as soon as you can get rid of the urchin look. We're going for a tour of muggle London".
Harry carefully pulled his head back through the flames. He called the next address, "Greengrass Manor".
Astoria Greengrass was in the floo room when he connected. She squealed, "Harry! Come over. Let's play together".
Harry shook his head, "Maybe later, little trouble. Right now can you call Daphne?"
As it turned out, Daphne was in the entrance hall sitting in a chair with her back to the floo. She turned to glare hard at him while Harry thought in his mind, "Uh oh... Here's trouble".
He tried to flatter her, "Hello trouble... Err... Daphne, I swear you are looking so cute with that look..." He stopped speaking mid-speech because he realized his words had no effect on her. Astoria was giggling at his pathetic attempt to make her smile. Finally he mellowed down his expression. He asked her sweetly, "What is the problem, Daphne?"
She growled, "Mother kept waiting for you to notice her at the Platform yesterday but no! The mighty Hadrian Potter-Black could not be bothered for a trifle like that".
"I hope that you aren't giving him a hard time over yesterday, Daphne", said Cynthia Greengrass who had just entered the room. She saw his head in the flames and turned to him, "Hello Harry dear. I know you were busy yesterday. You didn't notice me. I am not angry with you".
Harry smiled in response, "Thank you for not thinking otherwise, Auntie". She had once told him that she would not have him call her Lady Greengrass every time. He was to call her Auntie or Cynthia. He preferred Auntie.
Harry turned to Daphne, "We are planning to take a tour around Muggle London, Daph. Would you and Astoria like to join us? Neville is coming over. I am going to ask a few more people".
She replied, "Alright, we'll be coming over in 10 minutes".
With that Harry flooed to Susan next. She was sitting with Hannah listening to songs being played over the wizarding wireless in the background. It took him shouting at the top of his voice to get her attention. She brightly smiled when she noticed him, "Hi Harry. Come over, if you want".
Harry shook his head, "No, actually Sirius has asked me to invite you and Hannah for a tour of Muggle London we are taking. Can you both come over?"
Susan gave a bright smile, which kind of accentuated her cuteness, "Sure Harry, we will be there in 10 minutes".
Neville came over about 10 minutes later grumbling, "I swear Slinky loves you more than me. He even listens to you more than me. He does your bidding no matter how hard the task is".
Harry chuckled, "Yeah, you're the one to complain. Didn't Tipsy follow your orders more than mine?"
Susan and Hannah were next. Daphne and Astoria came last. Astoria squealed when she saw him. She lunged for him, hugging him, tackling him to the ground. When finally Harry could get her to control her excitement, he patted her head then asked her fondly, "How are you, little trouble?"
She pouted, "I'm fine. I waited for a letter from you but you didn't send one. Did you forget me when you were in school?"
Harry could hardly control himself from giggling at her antics, "No but I got regular news about you from Daphne. Now run along, little Trouble. Neville is in the meeting room with the others".
Astoria ran ahead of them. When Harry was escorting Daphne to the meeting room, he told her in an undertone, "Just to let you know, the meeting room is full of Weasleys. I don't think that anyone other than Ronald would mind though".
When Daphne entered the meeting room, Ron was on the balls of his feet. He shouted, "What is she doing here?"
Daphne answered indifferently, "The same as you, I guess. Harry has invited me over for a tour of Muggle London".
The twins' expressions were the most comical. They were looking at Neville and Harry in turns. They found their voice after a full minute, "Is that how you both have all the inside information from the Serpent's pit?"
Harry chuckled, "Right in one. She has been our friend for about 6 years now".
Ron was still not placated. He hissed at Harry, "But she is a Slytherin, mate".
Harry raised an eye-brow, "Still? Ron, how many times do I have to remind you that your grand-mother was a Slytherin? This house where you are standing belongs to a family which has been Slytherin through and through. Besides what is wrong with Slytherins? If you say they are death eaters then remember that Peter Pettigrew was a Gryffindor. There have been a couple of people from other houses who have been death eaters. I want you to give me a genuine reason to think Slytherin are evil. If you cannot give me one decent reason then please abandon this line of thought".
Percy spoke, "Well said Harry. Someone's house colour does not define their allegiances. In fact Ronald, the hat had debated with me before sorting me into Gryffindor. It said that I could do well in Slytherin but I did not want to break with tradition and be the first Weasley to enter the house of Serpents".
The twins decided to take the mickey out of him, "Was it really because you didn't want to break with tradition or was it that you were concerned for your rat, who turned out to be a bloke, that he would be devoured by the snakes?"
Percy snapped at them, "One more joke about the rat and I'll be writing to mother about it".
The twins grinned but said nothing more. Perhaps mentioning Mrs. Weasley was a strong deterrent to them.
Sirius broke the tension, "Cheer up, you kids. Uncle Sirius is taking you all for a real treat. I can imagine that most of you have never been in muggle London. It would do all of you some good to see it at least once. I don't want any of you squabbling while we are out. We are to have fun. Anyone being disruptive will be grounded in the Townhouse for the rest of the holidays".
Percy had other plans. He asked Sirius, "Mr. Black, I hope that you won't be offended. I wished to spend some time with Lord Black. Maybe I could pick up some useful tips about my career in the future".
Sirius nodded. With that, he led the party out of the Townhouse. Moony had made the arrangements already. He had booked two taxies for them to take them around the city showing them the remarkable monuments.
Sirius had planned many activities for them in the two days that they had before Yule. Since House of Black was a follower of the old ways, they celebrated Yule however he had not forbidden others from following whatever tradition they wanted. The day before Christmas was to be spent in Diagon Alley shopping for gifts for people.
Today was spent sight-seeing around the city. There were so many things to see that Harry lost count. He wished there was more time to see it all. He knew of the muggle life since he had gone to Muggle School but that had been in Bulgaria. Here, it was the first time he was venturing out in the Muggle World.
The spot that they had liked the most was the zoo. The zoo housed a lot of animals and they had been fascinated with them. A few of the animals like the wolves behaved peculiarly in the presence of Remus. A few were very friendly with him while a few ran away from his scent. Harry understood that they could recognize that he was a werewolf. They were skittish on being confronted with a magical creature.
They saw the aquarium where there were a lot of different fish, of almost every colour. The twins were excitedly watching everything and they were taking note of everything that impressed them. Harry knew they were perhaps looking for tricks that they could use in their pranks.
Astoria had not left Harry's side all through the trip. She would often grab his hand when she was scared. Harry was very protective of the younger girl. While Astoria was a real trouble maker and at times, she harassed him yet she was endearing to him. Often he would take her side if she and Daphne quarrelled and she knew it. It wasn't as if she did not exploit it. She took full advantage of the fact that Harry doted on her. She would often seek a fight when he was around to save her. Also, she loved him like a brother. She had been little when the Greengrass daughters had been introduced to Harry. Since she did not have a brother, she started thinking of him as such. At times, Daphne told her that he was not their brother yet Astoria did not budge in her opinion. Nicholas and Cynthia did not curb it but always encouraged Astoria which infuriated Daphne.
"Pup, now we just have the snake enclosure left", Sirius said.
Harry immediately refused, "Sorry godfather but I am not going in there".
Astoria pouted, "But I want to go in. Please Harry, come with us".
Neville pacified her, "He is a wimp when it comes to snakes, Tori. You can come with me. Hold my hand if you feel scared".
Harry remained in the cafeteria while the others went in. He ordered some food. He got a sandwich and a glass of juice and settled down at a table. He was mid-way through making short work of his sandwich when he noticed that the others were running out. Neville was dragging Daphne out. They were followed by the Weasleys but Sirius and Remus were not with them.
He realized that something was amiss. He abandoned his meal then ran towards Neville shouting, "What happened Neville? Where are the others?"
Neville spoke between gasps, "In the enclosure... boa constrictor. Tori..."
Harry grabbed Neville by his shirt and they ran inside. There was a scary scene inside the enclosure. Astoria was backed up in a corner and a boa constrictor was stalking her, ready to lunge.
Harry immediately started making some hissing and whispering sounds which made the snake stop. It turned towards Harry and it's eyes spread in surprise. It made the same sounds as Harry however none of them could hear it except him.
When Harry saw that the Boa constrictor was ready to lunge for Tori, he yelled, "Stop! I command you!"
The snake turned towards him. When it noticed Harry, it dipped his hood very low to Harry, "A Speaker? Greetings Speaker."
Harry was angry, "What do you think you were doing? You were going to kill a child who is my sister".
The snake shuddered, "I seek your forgiveness, speaker. I am ready for whatever punishment you will give me".
Harry continued saying, "Go away. Never harm a human again".
The snake slithered away out of the zoo, saying something about freedom, being honored to meet a speaker.
"You can talk to snakes!", shrieked a zoo-keeper however Harry noticed that no one else seemed to have heard him. He was confused for a moment before he saw Sirius subtly slipping his wand in his sleeve.
Before the man could say more, his eyes rolled back in his head and he had a dreamy expression on his face. Remus however was herding them out, "Come on you lot. Let's go back now. It is getting late".
With that they all returned to the Black Townhouse where Arcturus noticed from the expressions on their faces that something was amiss. He asked, "What happened?"
Sirius who had not spoken during the whole journey turned to Harry, "Exactly when were you going to tell me that you are a parsel mouth, Prongslet?"
Arcturus remained impassive while the students waited for him to speak. Susan decided to break the silence, "Are you a parsel mouth, Harry?"
Harry nodded, "Yes, I am a parsel mouth. Is that a bad thing in your book?"
Susan shook her head, "Not at all, Harry. It is in our blood, a gift of magic. It is just that you-know-who could also speak to snakes so some idiots may start being suspicious".
Harry turned to the others, "Does anyone else have any problem with it or think that it is a trait of dark wizards?"
Almost nobody spoke. The silence was finally broken by Percy, "These things do not really matter, Harry. You have a gift. You should be glad of it. There is nothing more to it".
Harry was watching everyone's face. No one looked like they were going to hate him for it. However he noticed that Daphne was frowning. He asked her, "What is wrong, Daph?"
She said tersely, "You are a parsel mouth yet you never told me in all these years of our friendship. Why? I suppose that was the reason that you did not want to go to the snake enclosure?" She then turned to Neville, "A wimp? Isn't that what you had said? You too knew this yet you never told me?"
Neville had the audacity to grin, "Of course I know. We had decided to never tell others. Now my minion here will tell the rest of the story."
"Oi mate, didn't we agree that you would be the minion when it comes to Daphne?", Harry protested.
Neville smirked, "There are many fine people here and not just her, so today, you will be the minion".
Daphne glared at them evilly before turning to Sirius, "These two always do this, talking among themselves to infuriate me".
Sirius addressed Harry and Neville, grinning, "I want you two to get one thing straight, you are both minions when in the presence of the marauders. Now start speaking".
Harry shrugged then turned to Sirius, "About 4 years ago, Neville was visiting our other residence where I was living at the time. As you well know, there are some well kept greenhouses at that place. Mr. Green thumb here wanted to work in them. So one day while we were dealing with Dragon dung, a snake slithered into the green house".
Harry kept silent for a moment to see who would snap first. Daphne did not disappoint him. She snapped, "Get on with it".
Harry grinned then continued, "The snake was about to bite him when I do not know how but I started talking to it".
Sirius encouraged him, "go on, we are listening".
Harry kept speaking, "I asked it to stop. The snake turned to me. It quivered saying, 'speaker'. I asked him what that meant. It told me that I had the ability to talk to snakes. It also said that it was in my blood. That I had the scent of people of old in me.
We were both a bit freaked out by the incident and we decided that we would never bring it up again. It so happened that I came across snakes a lot more times after that. The snake I met the first time used to return often just to talk to me. Once I asked him why he was spending so much time around me, it told me that it enjoyed my company. It also told me that any snakes I met would be compelled to do as I bid them except may be Basilisks. I learned to be able to control this ability later. Now I can speak it of my own volition however I do not think I can speak it in the absence of a snake".
Sirius heard everything then turned to Remus, "Did you know about it?"
Remus shook his head, "That is a secret he kept even from me. I never would have thought so".
Arcturus however was smiling, "I knew about it. I walked in on them talking to a snake about 3 years ago. I understood what was going on".
Sirius asked Arcturus, "Where did he get this ability?"
Arcturus growled, "He's the first Black in over 200 years to be a parsel mouth. Our idiot ancestors almost bred out most of our gifts by inter-marrying".
Arcturus then turned to the others, "I will appreciate it if you all can keep this to yourselves. This is something looked upon with scorn in much of the Wizarding World. Unless there is some emergency, I do not want anyone of you to speak about it".
They nodded in agreement. There was still one thing which confused Harry. He turned to Sirius, "The zoo-keeper saw me talking to snakes. I don't think that anyone heard him when he shouted at me about it. Was I dreaming or did that really happen?"
Sirius was grinning, "I shot a spell at him so no one else around could hear him. Also, Moony obliviated his memory of the event so that he cannot ever talk about it".
Of course no one was about to go talking about this anymore. Harry had become their best friend in the last few months. Besides most of them were allies. They would not go around telling other's secrets.
A day in Diagon
The next day, they planned a trip to Diagon Alley. Neville had come along with them telling them that Augusta had given him a pouch of Galleons, telling him to shop for Yule. Sirius had asked him to check with his other friends to see if they were amenable to come along. As it turned out, Daphne and Astoria were going to their Grand-parents for the rest of the holidays. Susan was going shopping with Hannah's parents. So it was just Harry, Neville and the Weasleys. Or so he thought. When it came right down to it, the Weasleys did not want to go shopping. Harry was confused until he realized that it was likely because they had little or no money. The Weasleys were a very proud bunch who would not take money from anyone no matter what.
Sirius had convinced them to come along, telling them that if they did not want to shop they could at least take a walk in the alley. When they were about to floo, Percy turned to Sirius, "Mr. Black, would it be okay if I remained behind?"
Arcturus chided him, "You can talk to me later, Percy. We will have plenty of time together later. For now go, enjoy the day".
This time Sirius decided that it was time they stopped hiding Harry. If he were to apply glamour every time, he might as well get a mask made for himself. Sirius went first, followed by the others.
When Harry exited in the Leaky Cauldron, Sirius was already talking to Tom. Not thinking twice, he walked up to Sirius tugging at his arm, "Sirius, we need to go".
Sirius who was still talking to Tom said, "Tom, I presume that you already know Harry here".
Tom saw him. He blinked several times to make sure that he was not dreaming. Then he exclaimed loudly, "Merlin's Beard! Harry Potter-Black in the Leaky Cauldron!"
Almost everything went silent at once. Harry mentally sighed. Tom the bar-keep ran out from behind the bar, bowing low to him. He started to kiss his hand saying, "Welcome to the Leaky Cauldron, Mr. Potter-Black.".
With his proclamation, there was a rustling of chairs among the patrons of the bar to rush to him and greet him. So many people came to shake his hand or to bow to him that Harry lost count. A few of them even told him that they fondly remembered his parents who were the heroes to have stood up to you-know-who. Harry was inwardly glad for them to have said so. It felt like a small piece of recognition was being given to them.
After about 10 minutes and a butterbeer each, they all walked out towards the Alley. He had asked Daphne too but she told them that she was going to her Grand-parents' the next day. As such, she was busy packing. Harry noticed that Percy kept sticking with Remus, talking to him. Remus was humouring him, answering his queries patiently. Sirius was telling them of his exploits as a child when he used to visit the alley as a student.
"There was one time when I and James were trying to get into Flourish and Blotts but the shop was packed so we could not get in. James, who had just restocked our supply of Stink Pellets and Dung bombs, let loose a few of them in the shop. Presto! The shop was empty in a minute", he finished. When he looked at the twins looking at him in fascination, he added as an afterthought, "I would advise you both against it however because I was visiting the shop with Great Aunt Dorea and Lord Potter. They doted on the two of us. I do not know about how your parents would react".
Percy had taken off to one side in the Alley towards a book shop. Remus followed him. Sirius shouted over to him to meet them in an hour in Florean's cafe.
Sirius led them into Gambol and Japes Wizarding Joke Shop. It was a joke shop full of a wide assortment of joke items which fascinated the twins. Even Harry was in awe of it. He could not visit the first time because Arcturus was there with them. This time, he intended to stockpile their products. The man behind the counter had a white beard and moustache. He cheerfully waved to Sirius yelling, "Sirius Black! The Marauder extra-ordinaire in person in my quaint humble little joke shop, bringing me even more patrons! Oh this is my lucky day".
The twins were startled. They turned to Sirius, "Do you know him?".
Sirius was guffawing, "What? You claim to be the legacy of the Marauders and you don't assume that we already know every joke shop owner in wizarding Britain? Of course I know him. We were his most favourite patrons once upon a time".
Sirius introduced him to them, "Everyone this is Mr. Gambol of the famous duo of Gambol and Japes. Mr. Gambol, allow me to introduce you to Hadrian Potter-Black, Neville Longbottom, Gred and Forge Weasley (they snickered) and Ronald Weasley.".
The old man was scrutinizing each of them closely before he started speaking, "Of course I know these two (the twins) who aspire to become pranksters themselves. They have been coming here for neigh on 4 years now. I remember how they fell out of my floo near 4 years ago when they were visiting to buy stink pellets from me". He turned to Harry, "I have heard about you lad that you are the next generation of pranksters with this one (he pointed towards Neville). While I knew your father well, his father never visited this shop even for a look around". He turned to Neville, "I would like it if you would continue giving your patronage to Gambol and Japes." He finally turned to Ron, "It is never too late to start pranking people, young master".
After stocking up on things that they wanted from Gambol and Japes, the party made its exit but they could not go far because Percy was next door in Obscurus Books with Remus. Remus was telling him something. When they made their way in, they could hear Remus speaking, "It's too early for you to start thinking so far into the future, Percy. When you are done with your OWLs come and find me. I'll start guiding you towards the most suitable job for you".
"Are you trying to convert his faith and make him a Marauder, Moony?", Sirius asked jovially.
Since the rest of them had no books to buy, they made their exit while Remus lingered behind to buy some books. Sirius took them methodically through every shop discussing every fine point about each place with them. He also encouraged them to look for themselves. Harry found it curious that any place where they showed a slight interest in something, Remus stayed behind to finish some errand at that place.
Quality Quidditch Supplies was next favourite shop for them. It was a shop which sold brooms and all other Quidditch related paraphernalia such as Keeper's Armour, beater's bats etc. They all stopped to appreciate the Nimbus on display then moved on. Harry noticed Ron giving a longing look to the Chudley Cannon's fleece jacket which had just arrived. Out of Ron's hearing, he made a request to Remus who disappeared for some time before joining them in Fortescue's.
Florean Fortescue ran an ice-cream shop where he served ice-cream in such rich variety that it simply boggled the mind. There were at least 10 different kinds of ice-cream he served and every one of them was delicious. However since it was the middle of winter, they chose to forego the ice-cream in favour of hot Chocolate. They had enjoyed their day out. It was a lot more fun and educational than being cooped up in the Black townhouse.
Ministry of Magic
While Harry and his friends were in Diagon Alley enjoying the day, Arcturus Black was in the Ministry of Magic. As he wished to see Minister Bones, her secretary led him in without an appointment. Perhaps she knew what happened when one ignored Arcturus Orion Black.
"Minister, Lord Black is here to see you", she announced.
"Send him in, Evanna", replied Amelia.
When Arcturus entered, she rose from her seat. She offered a chair to him, "Please take a seat, Lord Black."
When he had made himself comfortable, she asked him, "What can I do for you?"
He asked her, "Did you conduct an investigation on Barty Crouch Senior? He was also responsible for sending Sirius to Azkaban without a trial".
She shook her head, "Lord Black, I had him investigated under Veritaserum about your grand-son's illegal incarceration. In fact he insisted that I use the serum on him. It came to my knowledge that he was busy with his wife's illness at that time. The tribunal sent him orders to sign to ship Sirius Black to Azkaban directly because he was said to be the Potters' secret keeper. There was also the issue of Peter Pettigrew's alleged death and the killing of 12 muggles besides. There was little to no evidence to the contrary. His son's complicity in the Longbottom's torture incident was also coming to light at that time so he was emotionally and mentally spent. He trusted that the Minister and the Head of Aurors would have made a proper investigation before they condemned Sirius to Azkaban. After the veritaserum test, there was nothing that could be used against him in respect of Sirius's illegal incarceration".
Arcturus sighed, "If he is innocent in the whole affair then I am glad about it. As it is, he is the last descendant of my sister Charis. She would not have been too happy that he had acted towards imprisoning his own cousin without due process".
Amelia did not say anything. However she felt Arcturus had not come to simply ask after Barty Crouch Senior. She kept waiting for him to speak. He eventually started speaking after a few moments, "Amelia, I want your help with something in the Wizengamot".
Why do we fight?
When they gathered for dinner that night, there were a few more pranks waiting for them. This time the target was Sirius. Perhaps being a marauder, he had thought himself to be beyond reproach. His illusions however were shattered as he took a seat and immediately he was glued to the chair he was sitting in. Someone petrified him a moment after his petrification.
Moony noticed that Sirius was looking like he was crafted out of stone. He called him a few times before he realized that Sirius was not even moving a finger. Looking into his eyes, he realized that someone had petrified his friend. He whipped his wand out and freed him. Then he turned to the others, "Who among you petrified him?"
The twins raised their hands in surrender, "We didn't do it. May be Harry did".
Remus turned his glare on Harry who was looking befuddled. He obviously had not done it. A prank was the last thing on his mind at the dinner table.
He shook his head, "if I was going to do it, I would have already done it".
Remus then turned to Percy but did not ask him a question. Perhaps he too realized that asking anything of Percy was futile since he was perhaps the last person who would joke with someone.
Lord Black attracted their attention towards him, "How was your day, you kids? Did you all enjoy it?"
During the two course meal, chatter turned towards something Harry had been thinking. He asked Arcturus, "Grand-uncle, why do Slytherins and Gryffindors fight?"
Sirius snorted while Arcturus looked thoughtful at his question. He took some moments to ponder, to collect his thoughts before he started speaking, "I do not know much about it, lad. What I know for certain is that at some time in the distant past, these two houses held a great fondness for each other since they all possessed similar qualities. Something happened which has not been documented anywhere. Things got sour between the two houses".
Harry whistled, "So we are carrying a grudge, the reason for which is lost in antiquity. We just do it because it is some sort of misguided tradition?"
Sirius nodded, "Exactly. I tried to find the answer to this question but came up with nothing."
Harry nodded before he started speaking again, "In all this time, has no one ever tried to change the order of things?"
Arcturus shook his head, "A few people have tried at times but barring a few, none of them were successful. Add to that the propensity of Slytherin students rallying in support of the reigning Dark lord. That just widened the gap between them and the other three houses. However, when we are out of school, these differences tend to blur. We mingle freely".
Harry did not say anything more on the subject. He was thinking about something. He needed the Slytherins on his side. His current way of treating them would not get him what he desired.
Christmas
Christmas was not celebrated in the House of Black in the usual way. They celebrated Yule but Lord Black had allowed one concession. There were gifts for everyone for Christmas morning.
Harry woke up to a massive black dog licking his face. He muttered 'gross' before rolling the dog from his bed. Sirius who had transformed was mock glaring at him, "What was that, pup?"
Harry was grinning, "Fun". He ran to the bathroom before Sirius could retort. Sirius told him to come down as soon as he could manage, that if he failed to come down soon, Sirius would open Harry's presents for himself.
Harry appeared in the meeting room within 10 minutes where a large pile had been set aside for him. The first gift that he opened was from Arcturus. Like always, the old wizard gave him a gift which mesmerized him. This time, he had gifted him a very old book which had a snake on its cover. It was titled, "The language of Snakes." It was a book which had been in the Black library for generations. It had not been used for the last two centuries. Arcturus had brought it out after the conversation at the dinner table last evening. It was only right that Harry learned to use the gift he had previously scorned because others did not approve of it.
Sirius gave him a lot of gifts. There was a special pack of goodies from Gambol and Japes for him. There was also a set of Quidditch robes in Gryffindor colors with the arm guards and a broom-stick servicing kit. Remus gifted him an album containing all the photos which he had taken since he boarded the Hogwarts Express except for the photos which had the rat in them, of course. Ron gave him a slab of Honeydukes chocolate. Hermione sent him a packet of box of Bertie Bott's every flavor beans. Susan sent him a book titled 'Which Broomstick' which gave a detailed description about every broom available on the market. Ernie sent him a stack of packs of Chocolate Frog Cards. Justin sent him some chocolates which his father had bought for him while abroad. Hannah sent him a packet of chocolates. Hagrid sent him a flute. Isobel sent him a book on stories about famous Wizarding personalities. There was another package in the pile of gifts which surprised him. It had no name whatsoever on it. He turned to Sirius, "Sirius, who sent it?"
Ron, who was sitting at the table, opening his own considerably shorter pile, as his ears turned red, muttered, "I think I know who sent it. I wrote a letter to mother about how we are friends and all. I think that she sent it".
Harry opened the package. True enough, there was a maroon, hand-knitted jumper in it with a golden snitch worked into the front of it. The twins whistled. George said, "Harry got a Weasley jumper too".
Fred who was touching it, checking the quality of the work and the thickness of it said, "His is better than ours".
George said, "Yeah, she really makes an effort if you are not family".
Harry sent his gifts in advance to them. He could not give a gift to Arcturus because Lord Black had once said that since everything he owned was Harry's anyway, there was no sense in it. He had given a bracelet to Sirius which he had purchased in Hogsmeade since he just could not give him a bottle of mead again. As was tradition, he gave a massive gift hamper of Honeydukes ready for Remus. To Susan, he sent a little silver chain, the same for Hannah, a packet of finest Honeydukes chocolates for Justin, the Chudley Cannons Fleece Jacket for Ron, a book about the traditions of Wizarding world to Hermione and a pair of silver ear-rings for Isobel. He also sent a ticket to Hagrid which would get him entry into the Dragon Reserve in Wales where he could see the Welsh Green Dragon to his heart's content. He knew that Hagrid secretly harboured hopes of having a dragon of his own someday.
"Thanks Harry", Ron said as he was inspecting the Fleece Jacket which Harry had gifted to him. He knew Ron's favourite team was the Chudley Cannons. It would have been the best gift for him.
He however had not sent any gifts to Neville or Daphne yet. They had made a pact among themselves to not confine them to gift buying only for birthdays or certain days in a year. They could ask anything of the other anytime they wished. Also, Harry preferred to ask what they wished for before he bought anything for them. As for Astoria, he always gave her gifts in person rather than sending them through owls. Since she was visiting her grand-parents, he had not sent anything.
They spent the day around the fireplace enjoying their gifts, toasting and eating marshmallows. They also talked about the coming year, about the homework which needed to be completed before holidays ended. Arcturus told Harry to finish his homework by Yule, then repeated the same for other children in the house. Since Harry obeyed him at once, they too followed suit.
Let's fly
That night, Sirius crept into his room. He woke Harry up silently. When he woke up, Sirius motioned for him to follow him downstairs. Silently they walked in the garden where there were a few sheds for keeping horses, if they had any. In one of the sheds was parked a classic motor cycle with a side-car. Harry was instantly awake when he saw the motorcycle. It took a while for him to find the words to express his surprise and wonder, "Is. Is that dad's motorcycle? I – I used to have dreams about flying on a motorcycle".
Sirius was offended, "Prongslet, this is my motorcycle. James and I pooled our money to buy this but I did the enchantments to it".
Harry looked at him quizzically, "If you are so good at enchanting, why did you join the Aurors?"
Sirius said matter-of-factly, "The conditions at that time were such that it was more important for me to stand up to the tyrant who was a threat to us than to indulge myself in enchanting. Now that I'm free maybe I can take it up as a vocation."
Harry asked him "That's all well and fine, Sirius but what are we doing out here? I mean it's snowing, for Merlin's sake."
Sirius grinned, "We're going for a ride, Prongslet".
So they went for a ride in the middle of the night. They spent almost three hours out of the house, flying through the skies. Sirius had the presence of mind to put a warming charm on Harry but even with that, Harry felt chilled to the bone by the time that they finally returned.
He ambled up to his bed, where he promptly crashed, dreaming of flying on a motorcycle then racing against it on a broom.
Yule
The next day was Yule. Arcturus asked Harry and his friends to go out and enjoy themselves as much as they could. Since they knew nothing in muggle London, they decided to go to the Three Broomsticks. Harry had already called Neville on the floo to join him there. There were Yule celebrations in the Black household but they would not be until evening that day so the day was free for them. Percy however chose to stay back saying that he wanted some more of Arcturus's wisdom.
Arcturus recognized the boy for who he was. While Percy was sorted to Gryffindor, he was the most Slytherin like Weasley to have ever existed. Sometimes Arcturus could see a lot of Cedrella in him. Somehow, Arcturus could see that Percy was different than any other Slytherin though. While he had dreams for himself, he was certainly ambitious with an instinct for self-preservation, yet he cared for his family, something which Cedrella did when she chose Septimus Weasley over the House of Black.
Hogsmeade
The children had no definite plans for the rest of the day. They had a day to do with as they pleased. The twins went to visit Zonko's while the trio of Neville, Harry and Ron visited different shops.
When they were in Honeydukes, Harry asked Ron, "Haven't you visited the village before today?"
Ron replied off-handedly, "Mother never allowed us to. She told us that we can come in third year. I have heard loads about the village from Bill, Charlie and Percy though".
He and Neville decided to not let him know that they had visited the village already. It was perfectly innocuous for them to visit the village by sneaking out of the castle and Ron would have insisted that they should have brought him with them.
They spent the day looking in various shops for things which could be useful to them in a prank. They intended to create more havoc in the coming term. They had barely done anything in the last term that could be called a grand spectacle.
When it was 3:00 in the afternoon, they (he and Ron) returned to Grimmauld Place to get ready for the celebration that evening.