Chapter 8: A colourful run in
Now three weeks into Hogwarts, things with Snape have improved. Well, perhaps improved isn't the right word, but he sticks to glaring at me rather than insulting me. I haven't seen Dumbledore in his office since my first week, but I'll be sure to thank him.
Between lessons and trips to the library, I have been working on my ability to see the magic some around things. I now have little doubt it is anything other than seeing magic. Sadly, I've not found any references to such a skill in all the books I have checked so far. I even tried to find a book about the Sorting Hat, hoping it might shed some light on what I'm working towards. Most of my efforts to further my ability have resulted in intense headaches, but I have managed to strip back the fog to look more like glowing instead of smoke.
"Harry!" Hermione whispers harshly. History of Magic, the bane of my life. There is probably something poetic about my hatred of the subject given my ability. I roll my head in my arms to face left, looking up at Hermione's frowning face.
"Hermione!" I whisper back with the same urgency, causing her to rolls her eyes.
"Wake. Up." She sayings, returning her attention to Professor Binns.
"If I were asleep, I assure you this conversation would be far less thrilling." I raise myself away from the desk and recline against the back of my chair. Binns drones on about some sort of Goblin rights reformation as I look around the room, it seems I'm not the only one to rest my eyes in this lesson. Cuthbert Binns might just be the single most boring being in existence.
Hermione drops her quill off the table, it coils down and lands by my foot. "Even your quill is falling asleep." I smile as I reach down to retrieve it. As my fingers brush the feather, I get a first hand account of Hermione's notes for this lesson and the letter she wrote to her parents this morning – replied to. It's her birthday. I pass the quill back to her. "Happy Birthday." I suppress the urge to laugh.
"How did you..."
"We all have our methods." I say mysteriously.
"That doesn't even mean anything." She huffs.
"Please put your books away, the lesson is now over." Binns drawls. I'm surprised he even noticed. I pull my bag onto my shoulder and make for the door. Keith and Penelope await us at the end of the corridor. Rather than going with them, I feel like doing some exploring – the kind that involves the third floor.
"Not coming with us, Potter?" Keith asks; I shake my head.
"I'm going to scenic route." I gesture down the corridor leading away from the stairs.
"Suit yourself." Penelope says. I watch as they walk up the stairs. I've definitely changed my opinion of the skirts and stairs combo. Whilst they are dropping their bags back at the tower, I'll be finding out what 'painful death' awaits me on the third floor.
I quickly head down the corridor, taking a short flight of stairs at the end. After following the spiral down completely, I arrive at a door and open it onto the third floor – it's not even locked.
The corridor has no lighting at all, the only window along the right-hand side doesn't help matters at all. "Lumos." I whisper. A wide beam of light pours from the tip of my wand, making it act like a torch.
Suits of armour line the right side of the hallway. A couple of doors open to reveal incredibly dusty and mouldy classrooms. Hardly impending death. I close the second room and carry on down the passageway. I'm kind of expecting a dinosaur to jump out or something. Do wizards have dinosaurs? I shake the thought from my head and continue on.
"Mraaw!" I jump into the air at the sudden noise. I whip my wand around to face … a cat.
"Christ! You stupid cat." I bend over, panting heavily in an attempt to recover from my heart attack.
"Mreow?" I cocks it's head.
"What do you want?" I glare at it. "You're Filch's cat." My blood turns to ice.
"Mrs Norris?" A gravelly voice calls out. Not good. I quickly turn and dash around a corner, running straight into something – someone.
"Bwah!" The stranger and I tumble onto the floor. "Ow! Ge' off me!" I try and untangle myself whilst relighting my wand, pointing it at the girl. Nymphadora Tonks.
"Tonks?"
"Who are you?"
"Harry." I say. "We have to go." I start walking, lighting up the corridor .
"Woah, slow down. What are you doing here?"
"Something similar to you I'd guess. Filch is com-"
"Filch?!" She grabs my hand. "Why didn't you start with that? Come on!" She pulls me into a run. My wand flails as I try and keep passage lit. How can she even see? "In here." We stop at a door, she points her wand at it as I lean. The door houses a giant dog.
"Tonks, not this room." I plead.
"What? It's fine, just need to unlock it." She yanks on the handle.
"There's a-"
"I'll find you. Shouldn't be up here!" Filch's voice echoes down the hallway. Filch or the dog?
"Alohomora." I flick my wand at the door, the lock clicks and Tonks pulls it open and we quickly get inside. I close the door as quietly as possible. "Tonks." I whisper.
"Wha-" I put my hand over her mouth to stop the shout and point my lit wand at the sleeping dog.
"Not. A. Sound." I whisper in her ear, removing my hand. Her hair flushes black; Her clothes confirm that she is a metamorphagus as I'd heard.
"Nothing here Mrs Norris, Let's get you something to eat." Filch coos outside. His footsteps get quieter as Tonks and I stare at the giant, three-headed dog with bated breath. I idly notice a magical harp as I turn around.
"Tonks." She looks at me as I reach for the handle and slowly open the door, allowing us to slip out. I can't help but smile as I slump against the wall beside the door, trying to get my breathing under control. I open my eyes and look at Tonks, currently sitting beside a suit of armour on the opposite side of the corridor. She is smiling widely.
"That was brilliant!" Tonks says once we are clear of the third floor.
"We didn't get eaten by a giant dog and we didn't get caught by Filch. I'd say that's a job well done." She shoots a smile at me.
"Never thought I'd run into Harry Potter breaking the rules." She laughs, her whole body moves as she talks. Possibly the most lively person I've ever had the pleasure of meeting.
"Quite literally ran into me too." I add.
"Hey! You were the one that was running!" She pouts. "What were you doing on the third floor anyway? Didn't you hear Dumbledore's announcement at the start of term?"
"Of course I did, why else do you think I'd be there?" She adopts a knowing smiles. "Where are we going?" I've just been following her where ever she decides to turn, seemingly at random.
"A shortcut to …" She pushes open a door and we exit a broom cupboard. I turn back and see that it just looks like a broom cupboard.
"How the hell?" I turn back to a smirking Tonks. "And to everyone else it looks like we've just exited a broom cupboard stupid smiles." She laughs and her smile widens.
"I knew you Ravenclaws were quick on the uptake." She links her arm with mine. A wand holster? Leather from a cow. Aptly named – it holsters one's wand. James had a much more expensive one made from the hide of a Norwegian Ridgeback. An Auror.
"Planning on being an Auror?" I ask casually.
"What?" She frowns.
"Your wand holster." I tap the inside of her wrist. "Nobody else has one."
"You're very observant, aren't you? And you're right, I'm going to enroll in the academy next year." She says happily. We stop in the entrance of the Great Hall. Everyone is here for dinner and they turn to stare at us, arms linked. I'm sure this is going to be the beginning of a very strange relationship.
After cooling down from that round of gawking, I am approached by Professor Flitwick.
"Good evening Mister Potter." He greets.
"It is, isn't it?" I smile as Hedwig hoots with amusement.
"Quite." He nods, smiling. "Have you eaten?"
"Yes sir."
"Good, good. Professor Dumbledore would like to meet with you in his office. Do you wish for me to escort you?" I shake my head. "Very well. The password is 'Ice mice'."
"Ok, thank you Professor." I scoop my bag up and watch Hedwig hop up to the table. "I'll see you in a bit." She nips at my thumb before taking flight. As ever, people watch me as I leave the hall. Whilst I still get lost occasionally, I do remember the way. I wouldn't mind getting my hands on James' map. I have small glimpses of it's creation, but he wasn't the one to do most of the charmwork. His role was testing and creating the pass phrases. 'I solemnly swear that I am up to no good' and 'Mischief managed" to clear it. It's likely that it's long since been destroyed.
The rest of the journey to Albus' office is uneventful.
"Ice mice." I say to the gargoyle, feeling silly when it doesn't respond. Eventually it decides to turn sideways, revealing the stairs to me. I readjust my back and walk up to the door atop the stairs. It's dancing with small wisps of magic which congeal around my hand when I knock four times. A muffled 'Come in' passes through a moment later. A small blue pulse flickers away from the handle. If I were to guess, I'd say it just unlocked itself. I open the door. "Hello." I say lamely as I close the door behind me, stepping onto the carpet.
"Take a seat." He gestures to the armchair. My next step tells me that his previous visitor has only just left.
"Meetings with the Minster of Magic?" I ask. The echo of Cornelius Fudge shimmers into view before my eyes. "Although you cannot see him, the Minister's echo is right here." This has Albus stepping behind me.
"Where?" I look over my shoulder to see his intrigued face.
"It looks like he's talking, it's all a bit fuzzy." I watch as the Minister walks towards the large desk, waving his hands as he talks. "An argument? I don't have sound." I step beside the ornate chair and lay my hand on the arm, causing an echo of Albus to coalesce in the vacated spot. "You tried to calm him?" Echo-Albus stands up and the two of them walk towards a large cabinet in an alcove of his office. Their heads dip through the glass as they continue to speak. I reach out and lay my hand of the cabinet. A pensieve lies within, used to view memories. Albus created the cabinet himself, a very intricate conjuration that took two days of work to shape completely. The pensieve itself is behind the locked door, so I can't find out much about it. "Your pensieve. You showed him a memory?" The echoes vanish and I turn to the real Albus.
"You have an amazing gift." He tells me. I snort
"I wasn't thinking that when I was perusing a charity shop." I scrunch up my face. "Scarred me for life, I'm telling ya." He chuckles as he returns to his ancient chair. A gift from a friend of his – Claus Sal. I drop my bag beside my chair and sit down.
"How are you today?" He asks me.
"Good." I nod. "I made a friend in shorter time than I thought possible." Near death experiences might have that effect.
"That is good news. Professor Flitwick has expressed concern over your lack of social activity." He watches me closely.
"He did?"
"Filius takes the welfare of his students very seriously." He explains as I lean back in the chair. "Does this concern you?" I shake my head.
"No. It's just … odd to have people looking out for me after all these years." I shrug. "I read a book about wards and associated Arithmancy." I look over at the golden cube, once again floating above it's stand. "I don't think it's the most efficient monitor ever, but if it works then it works."
"I shall take your word for it." He smiles. "It has yet to fail me." He turns his attention back to me. "Madam Pince has told me you spend much of your free time in the library."
"I am in Ravenclaw." I smirk. "I like to touch a couple of books and put on my Herbology gloves so I can read at a normal pace."
"Ingenious." He nods and turns to watch Hedwig fly in through his open window, she circles the room and lands on the arm of my chair.
"I thought you'd gotten lost." She looks as me as if I'm insane. She could never get lost. "You're far too clever for that, right." She nips at my fingers affectionately. "I think most of my 'Social activity' is with Hedwig."
"I can see the two of you share a special bond." He smiles with his ever present twinkle in his eyes.
"Any news on Sirius?" I ask, returning my attention to Hedwig.
"He is a delicate subject amongst many. For some, his incarceration marked the end of the war, along with the tragic death of your parents. I have yet to make any headway." He finishes somewhat sadly.
"Overturning what has already been a decade of prison time in Azkaban isn't something that can be done in a few days, I understand." I exhale slowly. "Is there a chance that he will be ok? I've read that a few months have turned people insane, but over a decade?" I trail off.
"Sirius was a remarkable young man and innocent. I believe if anyone were to leave Azkaban relatively intact, it would be Sirius Black." He says firmly.
"Relatively intact?" I laugh. "I suppose one doesn't go through Azkaban unchanged. Did you know the library has the original copy of a journal kept by a guard who served in Azkaban for 17 years? Morbid and chilling stuff to experience the emotion behind each word. The pages were tainted somehow. Herman Krouse; a strong man." I look at Albus. "Dementors sound foul."
"I believe foul is an inadequate description for such beings."
"You've been near them?" I ask, before thinking on it. "Of course you have." I shake my head slightly. "I hope to never encounter one for as long as I live."
"Many a man has wished for the same thing, but life often holds it's own agenda."
A/N: Another hop, but i didn't want the story to be a day-by-day account of everything.
Let me know if you have any suggestions or feedback. Enjoy!