HARRY POTTER AND THE SECRET ENEMY
Harry Potter and all associated characters and situations are the property of J.K. Rowling. I make no claim to ownership.
CHAPTER 10: On the Necessity of Emotions
PANDEMONIUM AT POTTER MANOR!
BOY-WHO-LIVED NEARLY MURDERED AT BIRTHDAY BASH!
DEATH EATER SYMPATHIZERS AT LARGE?
by Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent to the Evening Prophet (July 31, 1992)
Earlier this afternoon, one of the most anticipated annual events of Wizarding Britain was marred by horrific violence as a deadly cursed artifact was unleashed at stately Potter Manor during the afternoon fete celebrating the twelfth birthday of James Potter, Jr., "The Boy-Who-Lived." While in the process of opening presents sent by well-wishers – indeed, presents intended for charitable donations to the underprivileged! – our young Jim was tricked into unwittingly releasing the artifact which took the form of a model copy of the Hogwarts Express, a cruel mockery of a cherished memory from our collective childhood. The model train came to life and went on a rampage, killing two aurors and a party guest before it and the various replicas of itself generated during the course of its killing spree were neutralized by the swift actions of Chief Warlock and Hogwarts Headmaster Albus P.W.B. Dumbledore. At a press conference, Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, revealed that the cursed artifact bears the markings of the infamous and long-deceased Death Eater Erasmus "Mr. Toymaker" Wilkes, one of the most notorious servants of You-Know-Who. [See page 3 for an article about the so-called Toymaker's reign of terror that ended with his death in 1980.]
Director Bones was unwilling to speculate as to how a gift sent to the Boy-Who-Lived by Peter Pettigrew, a longtime confidante of the Potter Family, was replaced by the cursed item, though she assured reporters that Pettigrew himself was not a suspect. Interestingly, this year's birthday fete also marks the first time ever that a significant number of school-aged Slytherin students were in attendance at Potter Manor, invited one and all by the twin brother of the Boy-Who-Lived: Hadrian Remus Potter. Faithful readers may recall that it was this same Potter sibling's unprecedented Sorting into Slytherin House last September which provoked a public reprimand in the form of a Howler from his father, Lord Potter, over concerns that young Harry might follow "the Dark Path." True, Harry Potter did speak to this reporter of his strong opposition to the ideology of the Death Eater movement, stating that "Slytherin House has more to offer Wizarding Britain than just the bigoted lackeys of a failed dark lord who was destroyed by my brother more than a decade ago." But it is striking that the first public appearance of Harry Potter alongside his famous twin should be accompanied by the first major Death Eater attack in nearly ten years. This reporter can only hope Harry Potter was sincere in his assertions that he harbors no ill will towards his family over his decade-long exile from Wizarding Society.
1 August 1992
Neville and Lady Augusta watched Harry uneasily from across the breakfast table, but neither felt comfortable saying anything to him. So far, Harry himself gave no sign of anger or offense over Rita Skeeter's remarks about him in the special edition of The Prophet rushed out the night before. Neville was furious on his behalf over the thinly-veiled suggestion that he might have had anything to do with the attack on Potter Manor. Augusta, who was older and wiser, saw that the article was a two-pronged attack: Insinuate on one hand that Harry was a budding dark wizard while at the same time quote him directly on the subject of "the bigoted lackeys of a failed dark lord," a provocative statement which was certain to brand him as a blood traitor in the eyes of the more reactionary Slytherins. Both of them, however, were more worried at the moment by the fact that Harry was reading the offending article without any apparent reaction at all beyond calmly munching on a scone. Neville was reminded of the unearthly calm and poise Harry showed on his first day at Hogwarts after James Potter had sent him the Howler mentioned in Skeeter's report. Augusta, however, was more concerned about Harry's forays into Occlumency, a discipline sometimes abused by the unwary as a crutch to avoid dealing with painful emotions. Sometimes, a young Occlumens would go too far in suppressing such unpleasant feelings and, as a result, unwittingly turn himself into a heartless sociopath rather than deal with the pain of living.
In point of fact, however, Harry was not using Occlumency to suppress his emotions at all at the moment. He did use Occlumency immediately upon reading the salacious article, but only to the extent necessary to control his anger long enough to study the article objectively. Having done so, his anger was soon replaced by curiosity. Mentally reviewing the old Prophet articles Augusta had provided, Harry recalled that Skeeter's earliest articles about the Potters starting back in 1982 were full of innuendo about possible marital troubles, suggestions that Lily was a gold-digger who had snared James with a love potion, rumors that James was probably cheating on her with some Pureblood, and eventually hints about accounting irregularities in the Jim Potter Charitable Trust. All of that lasted until Jim's fourth birthday party, after which Skeeter's coverage of the Potters abruptly changed from salacious to glowing and, at times, practically fawning ... until now.
"Obviously," thought Harry, "the Potters – or perhaps Pettigrew – have something on Skeeter to keep her in line. But is she going after me because I'm not part of the deal and attacking me is her way of getting back at the Potters? Or is she going after me at the Potters' direction while they pretend to my face that they want to make peace?"
Harry gave an internal shrug, as he didn't have enough information to guess which and wouldn't proceed against Skeeter until he had his answer. Anyway, while he stayed with the Longbottoms, he was fairly well inoculated against accusations that he was going dark, and he was planning on taking a more aggressive "anti-Voldemort" position in Slytherin House anyway, so in that sense, Skeeter was doing his work for him. Still, the woman was dangerous to his long term goals and would almost certainly be more so once he came of age. He mentally added "find out what's up with Rita Skeeter" to his to-do list and reached for another scone, politely ignoring the concerned expressions of Neville and Lady Augusta as he did so.
It was not until he reached the very bottom of Skeeter's article that he felt the need to reinforce his Occlumency shields so as to actively suppress his emotions. The last paragraph finally identified the three victims of the attack. Auror George Wyndham (Hufflepuff, 1988), Auror Xander Majid (Slytherin, 1982), and Madame Elizabeth Podmore (Gryffindor, 1950). The article listed their survivors, offered condolences to their families, and noted that funeral services for Mme. Podmore would be hold on Monday, August 3, with a public memorial service for Aurors Wyndham and Majid to be held the next day in Diagon Alley in the public forum in front of Gringotts.
9 August 1992
Harry and the Longbottoms attended Elizabeth's funeral together. James and Lily Potter were there, but Harry avoided them. Jim did not attend. It was a closed casket service, and throughout the proceedings, Harry tried not to think about what might be in that casket. Using the skills Mr. X had been teaching him. Harry had already isolated the memories of seeing poor George Wyndham die right in front of him so that those memories would not cause post-traumatic stress. But still, even with Occlumency, it was deeply troubling for the boy to think about the kindly woman he'd only just met dying soon after in such a horrible manner. At the funeral, he shook Artie's hand and gave his condolences, and the devastated man merely nodded and thanked him. Harry did the same for Artie and Elizabeth's son, Sturgis, who was noticeably cold in response. The boy suspected that Sturgis Podmore somehow blamed him for Elizabeth's death, and he was concerned to think that Artie might feel the same.
Harry's tutoring resumed on the evening of Tuesday the 4th (after the memorial service earlier that day). In most of his August lessons, Harry would be joined by Neville. However, Augusta had spoken with Hestia Jones, and the two had agreed that it might be best for most of their tutoring sessions with Tonks to take place at Longbottom Manor. Augusta, who was unwilling to trust her grandson's education to someone with no first name, contacted Andromeda Tonks who confirmed that her daughter had been christened as "Nymphadora." Suddenly more understanding of Tonks's preferences, Harry resolved never to tease her over her full name unless truly provoked. For security reasons, however, Harry's Occlumency sessions with Mr. X were still held in Room 13, although Hestia now oversaw them rather than Artie.
On Wednesday the 5th, Harry contacted Hestia to see if it would be possible to meet with Artie, and she told him that the older man would be back to work on the following Monday and she'd schedule an appointment for that afternoon. She'd argued with her boss and told him to take as much time to grieve as he needed to, but Artie had finally admitted that he found it difficult to remain home alone in the house he'd shared with Elizabeth for so many decades and that he needed some work to occupy himself.
The following Monday, Harry stepped out of the fireplace in the lobby of Podmore & Associates and immediately wished he'd picked another day to come. The embarrassed secretary asked him to take a seat and inquired whether he needed any refreshment while studiously ignoring the sounds of angry yelling that were emanating from Artie's office. It sounded like he and Sturgis were having a row, and if the bits and pieces Harry could make out were any clue, it was about him. Apparently, the younger Podmore had accepted Rita Skeeter's insinuations at face value and was furious with his father's involvement with "dark Slytherins." Then, after some more heated argument, Harry clearly heard the words "the reason Mother died." Dead silence followed. Harry swallowed and tried to ignore the cold sensation in the pit of his stomach. The next thing he heard was the sound of Artie yelling "GET OUT OF MY SIGHT!" at the top of his lungs. Seconds later, Sturgis Podmore exited of his father's office quickly, pausing just long enough to shoot Harry a hateful look before storming out of the building.
Artie stood in the open doorway and watched his son depart, his face still red. Then, he turned to Harry and, in a tired voice, politely invited him into the office. Taking a calming breath, Harry followed him inside.
"I'm sorry you had to see that, Harry. Sturgis ... well, he's not handling his mother's death as well as one might hope. It's been a difficult time for us both."
"I understand. In fact, that's kind of why I'm here. In light of ... what happened, I wanted to let you know that if you've reconsidered your agreement to represent me, I'll understand completely, and I'll be happy to release you and Hestia both from your vow."
Artie looked at the boy sadly. "Harry, what happened at Potter Manor wasn't your fault."
"Not entirely," Harry said quietly. "But would you and Elizabeth have been at that party if I wasn't your client? Besides, you and your son are both grieving. I don't want to come between you two at a time like this."
"And what about you, Harry? You saw George Wyndham die right in front of you, and you could have easily died yourself. How are you holding up?"
The boy shrugged. "I'm fine. That's why I'm paying for all these Occlumency lessons, isn't it?"
Artie looked at him strangely for a few seconds before finally speaking again. "Well, then. I appreciate your maturity and candor. I'll consider the matter carefully and let you know whether I'll be continuing your representation."
Harry nodded, but then Artie continued. "But for today, at least, I am still your solicitor. And while you're here, I have something for you. Something I've been meaning to get to you for weeks now, but one thing after another always got in the way. I think now is the right time." He stepped over to a cabinet from which he removed a small black marble dish that fit in the palm of his hand. He placed it on his desk, pulled out his wand and tapped the dish twice, causing it to instantly resize into a large bowl nearly three feet across.
"This, Harry, is your pensieve. You can resize it for portability by tapping it twice with your wand. And here's how you withdraw memories to place inside it for review or, if you wish, storage." He demonstrated by touching his wand to the side of his head, causing silver teardrops pour from his eye. With a gesture, he caused the silver liquid to float down into the basin. "There. The memory is now stored in the pensieve and is ready for viewing. All you have to do is lean forward and put your head into the bowl. Like this."
He demonstrated, and Harry followed suit. There was a blur of motion all around him, and then Harry and Artie were both standing in what appeared to be a large kitchen. To Harry's surprise, Elizabeth was there, along with another Artie who seemed oblivious to their presence. Harry gasped and took a step back, but the real Artie put his hand around Harry's shoulder, gently but firmly. "Shh," he said softly. "It's alright. Just watch."
"So," said Artie. "That's the boy's story. What do you think?"
"Well," said Elizabeth. "I think I want to know why you're telling me all this, dear. You don't normally keep me so well-informed about your clients."
Artie grimaced. "I've never had a client like Harry Potter. And while I have tentatively accepted representation, I thought you deserved to know what we'd be getting into before we got into it over our heads. He's the estranged son of Lord Potter and the brother of the Boy-Who-Lived. The circumstances of his placement implicate Albus Dumbledore. And when it eventually comes out that the brother of the Boy-Who-Lived was Sorted into Slytherin and his father sent him a Howler about it the very first day, the press will probably have a field day. And on flip side of all that, the very fact of his connection to the Potter family means that we'd risk attention from Pureblood bigots and Death Eater sympathizers just by associating with him. It's a lot to consider."
Elisabeth's eyes flashed. "Artemus. Lemuel. Podmore. Answer me this one question: If you were a bachelor right now and didn't for some silly reason think you had to worry over your wife's concerns, would you hesitate for one second to take this boy's case?"
Artie looked down at the table, abashed. "No," he said quietly. "No, I wouldn't."
"Well, then," she said crisply. "How dare you think that I would have any reservations on the subject just because we might incur the wrath of Purebloods or Wizengamot Lords or the mighty Albus Dumbledore! I'm the Gryffindor in this family, not you! And I was taught by Albus Dumbledore that you always do what's right instead of what's easy ... even if what's right includes going up against Dumbledore himself!"
She took a deep breath and spoke more calmly. "And while you were Sorted into Ravenclaw, husband, you've always had a lot of Gryffindor in you as well. That's probably why I married you." She reached out and put her hand over his. "Artie, from what you've told me, what was done to that child was ... monstrous. Simply monstrous. I don't think that you've ever told me of about a client of yours whose life story cried out for justice the way Harry Potter's does. I am proud to think that my husband might play a part in winning that justice for him. Just as I have always been proud to be your wife."
Artie smiled, took Elizabeth's hand in his own, and raised it up to his lips to kiss it. The room then became misty and indistinct as the memory ended.
Harry looked around to find himself back in Artie's office. Artie looked down at the boy and started to speak, but was completely unable to do so. He blinked repeatedly and then looked away, pulling out a handkerchief to wipe away the tears that were filling his eyes. Harry simply looked at him for a moment that seemed to stretch for days, his face an emotionless mask.
In each person's life, there are innumerable crossroads where one must choose a way forward. Often they are invisible crossroads – decision points that seem minor or even insignificant at the time but which have life-changing results. Many, many years later, Harry Potter would look back at this precise moment and realize that it represented one of the most important decisions of his life and, indeed, the very one about which Lady Serena had warned him. By now, through months of hard work, Harry was almost a second-level Occlumens. As such, by focusing his mind and running through a quick mental exercise, Harry could easily suppress the unpleasant feelings he was currently experiencing and lock them away. He could tell Artie once more how sorry he was for the man's loss. Perhaps even pat him on the back in an approximation of compassion before leaving the office. Had he done so, it was quite possible that he might never permit himself to feel a single genuine emotion again for the rest of his life. But as Harry studied the man who had done so much for him and was now in such pain, he thought about the memory he'd just witnessed and about why Artie had chosen to show it to him. And for the very first time in his entire life, Harry Potter wanted to cry.
Surrendering to anguish, the boy rushed forward and wrapped his arms around Artie at the waist and gave in to heaving sobs of raw emotion. Artie returned the embrace tightly and closed his eyes as his own tears flowed freely. They held each other for a long time before Artie finally spoke.
"After careful -sniff- consideration, Mr. Potter, I have decided that I shall continue to represent you and your interests as long as you desire me as your solicitor. And -sniff- I shall continue to be your friend for a hell of a lot longer than that."
The next chapter will be uploaded on Monday, September 28, 2015. "The Ice Cream Conference," in which the study group reassembles and takes stock. Theo! Draco! Gunther! And who's this Gilderoy Lockhart bloke people keep talking about!
AN 1: This was a short chapter. Sorry about that, but I simply could not bear to end with anything other than Artie's last line. Consider this a breather after last Monday's rollercoaster.
AN 2: To anonymous reviewer "Kelly," I may be totally misremembering high school physics, but IIRC, two Quaffles of different masses will fall at the same rate if in a vacuum. However, absent other factors, if two Quaffles of the same size fall in a normal atmosphere, the heavier one will fall faster because wind resistance will have more of an effect on the lighter one. If I'm incorrect in that, you can take it up with Mrs. Jumper, my 12th grade physics teacher. :)
AN 3: Happy Birthday shout out to reader "headphone harry" who was (briefly) immortalized as Xander Majid! The good news is you made it through the Auror Academy. The bad news is, you died due to a killer toy train. Ya win some. Ya lose some. :)