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 47: The Power of Friendship
10 May 1993
JIM POTTER SAVES THE DAY! SLAYS BEAST OF SLYTHERIN!
RETRIEVES ANCIENT RELIC THAT REVIVES PETRIFICATION VICTIMS
By Rita Skeeter, reporting for the Daily Prophet
Faithful readers have no doubt been following the nightmarish events that have taken place over the past few days at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. The recent petrifications of several students and a cat, followed by that of Headmaster Albus Dumbledore himself. The astonishing revelation that famed adventurer and author Gilderoy Lockhart was the architect of the petrifications followed by his shocking self-Obliviation here in the very offices of the Daily Prophet. And worst of all, the horrifying development that Lockhart's foul machinations survived even after his fall, as nearly the entire Hogwarts staff was petrified leaving the students defenseless.
Luckily, once again our hero and national treasure, Jim Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, was on the case. Taking the initiative when it was revealed that Aurors were unable to penetrate Hogwarts security, Jim bravely fought his way through to the legendary Chamber of Secrets where he personally slew Slytherin's Monster, which turned out to be a Basilisk! That's right, gentle readers, Salazar Slytherin created a Basilisk and hid it in the bowels of Hogwarts, no doubt for some malign purpose. Fortunately for all concerned, the Basilisk was only able to petrify rather than kill outright. It was this creature that Gilderoy Lockhart used against our children.
And then, the perfidious Lockhart found an even worse way to harm our younglings – turning them against one another. For it turns out that Lockhart had an unwitting accomplice, an innocent student to whom he had passed a book cursed with the darkest of magics, one which Confunded the child so that he would continue with Lockhart's masterplan even after his eviction from Hogwarts. The child's name is currently being withheld for privacy reasons, but authorities assure this reporter that there are no further signs of dark magic affecting the boy, who is the son of a respected Ministry official. In a brief interview conducted via Floo, Peter Pettigrew, solicitor and spokesman for the Potter family had this to say:
"When the teachers were all petrified and one of Jim's good friends was taken down into the Chamber of Secrets and the Ministry was unable to assist, of course Jim did what he had to do. He is the quintessential Gryffindor, and he does what is right instead of what is easy. The real scandal here is that his heroism came despite months of slander and defamation from across the nation over his Parseltongue gift, one he acquired as a result of his victory over You-Know-Who that saved our nation from destruction. Jim was only able to enter the Chamber of Secrets because he was a Parselmouth, and had he not possessed that gift, or worse, been afraid to use it because of the opprobrium of narrow-minded individuals, disaster would have befallen the entire Hogwarts student body. As Albus Dumbledore is fond of saying, 'It is our choices that define us, not our abilities.' I hope as a result of Jim's heroism, the people of Magical Britain will become more open-minded about Parseltongue which, while unusual, is clearly not inherently evil."
Mr. Pettigrew reassured the Daily Prophet that Jim is none the worse for wear from his titanic battle against the deadly 100-foot-long Basilisk and that Jim also wanted my readers to know of his personal gratitude to two people who accompanied him to the Chamber to provide moral support: his twin brother, Harry Potter, and First Year Slytherin, Jennifer Weasley.
For more information about Parseltongue as it is viewed around the rest of the world, see page 7.
The Hogwarts Great Hall
8:45 a.m.
"Jennifer? Jennifer?!" Ginny Weasley exclaimed in disbelief as she read Skeeter's article.
"Hey, at least you're in there," Amy Wilkes replied with a smirk. "I'm not mentioned at all."
Tracy Davis just shook her head. "See! It's like I told you. If you'd just been going by Ginevra all this time, they'd have gotten your name right." Astoria Greengrass nodded sagely in agreement while Daphne just shook her head.
The group was soon joined by Harry, Theo, and Blaise all of whom found the article endlessly amusing, as Harry had filled the other two in on everything that had happened down in the Chamber the night before. The specific word horcrux went unmentioned, but otherwise Theo and Blaise knew everything of importance.
"Well, well, well," said Daphne Greengrass. "The Silver Trio finally graces us all with their presence."
"The Silver Trio," Theo said incredulously. "Is that really something people call us?"
Blaise laughed. "I like it. I want to get T-Shirts made."
"That can be your project for the summer," Harry said before sitting down opposite Daphne. Casually, he took a small roll of parchment from his pocket and passed it to the girl. She gave him a bemused look and then unrolled it. As she scanned the sheet, her eyebrows rose in surprise. It was a list of everyone in the voting bloc Lady August had quietly assembled in the Wizengamot who supported elevating House Greengrass to Ancient and Noble status … a list to which House Malfoy and his vassals had been added. She looked up at Harry questioningly, and he winked at her. Without another word, she put the list away.
"Apropos of nothing, where's Draco today?" she asked.
"He didn't come back to the dungeon last night," Theo said. "Apparently, after he was revived, Lord Malfoy took him straight home for a few days. Pansy threw a fit over it."
Their conversation was interrupted when the Boy-Of-The-Hour, Jim Potter himself strode into the Great Hall, and immediately the entire Gryffindor table stood up to give him a standing ovation. He grimaced slightly but then took his seat without comment. In point of fact, the previous night had been rather tense in Gryffindor Tower. When he finally returned to his dorm, it was in the company of Professor McGonagall who read the whole House the riot act over how they'd all turned on Jim and acted like a mob during a moment of crisis. She'd also informed them that Ron Weasley had been influenced by a cursed object given to him by Professor Lockhart the previous summer, that nothing that had happened was his fault, and that anyone who found bullying Jim or Ron or anyone else in the future would be suspended.
Jim sat down next to Neville and Hermione and started loading eggs and bacon onto his plate.
"So how are you two?" he asked. "Recovered from the petrification?"
"Yes," Hermione replied. "It was a very odd sensation. I remember lots of people screaming and then big yellow eyes … and the next thing I know, I'm in the Infirmary being fed a potion. I'm just glad we were revived so quickly. Can you imagine if this had lasted until the end of the month and we'd have had no time to revise for exams?!"
Neville laughed. "I'm sure in that case they'd have made some arrangements. Maybe even cancelled exams altogether as a school treat or something."
Hermione looked at him aghast as if he'd suggested cancelling Christmas. Shaking her head, she turned back to Jim. "How's Ron doing?"
The boy shrugged. "He'll stay in the Infirmary for another day or so. There's no sign of any magical damage, but the whole thing was, well, let's just call it traumatic and leave it at that."
Breakfast preceded, but as Jim was leaving the hall for his first class, he noticed a familiar face giving him a dubious look. It was Harry, who stood waiting across the foyer with his arms folded.
"I suppose I should be grateful that the Prophet at least spelled my name right," Harry said drily, "unlike poor Jennifer. And incidentally, it was sixty-feet-long at most."
Jim waved his Housemates on and moved over to his brother. Soon, everyone else had gone ahead, leaving the two alone.
"I had nothing to do with all that, Harry. I just told my story to Uncle Pete – well, an edited version – and he passed it along to Skeeter. With … some embellishments, I suppose. That's Uncle Pete for you. Tell Ginny that I'll be sending a letter to the Prophet this afternoon correcting her name and making it clear that you and she gave a lot more help than just moral support. I don't know if it will help. The Prophet's pretty invested in me as the shining golden boy, but I'll do what I can." He studied Harry's expression.
"Are you … jealous over this article, Harry?" Jim asked hesitantly and with what seemed like a certain amount of embarrassment.
Harry scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous. Of course, I'm…." He frowned in consternation. "Alright, yes! I am jealous, okay? You went down to the Chamber with no plan, with no wand, and only survived because of help you got from other people, none of whom get any real acknowledgement from your adoring public. You'd have died three times over if Ginny and I hadn't come with you!"
"Yes, I would have," Jim said simply. "Thank you. I haven't really had a chance to say it before, so I'm doing it now. Thank you for saving my life and Ron's. I owe you and Ginny a great deal."
Despite himself, Harry was taken aback by the boy's obvious sincerity. "Yes, well… think nothing of it. If I'd just stood by and let you get killed by Slytherin's Monster, James and Lily would never have let me hear the end of it."
Jim laughed at that, and finally Harry chuckled as well.
"Well, we'd better get to class. Double Potions today. I'm sure Professor Snape will be extra cranky after having been petrified for two days." Harry nodded at his brother and then started down the hall.
"Come home with me, Harry," Jim said suddenly. Harry's head jerked around in surprise.
"What?"
"This summer. Come home to Potter Manor. Or if that won't work – and I guess after that fiasco at Christmas, I can't blame you – ask Lady Longbottom if I can come to visit there for a few weeks."
"Why?" Harry asked suspiciously.
Jim rolled his eyes. "Because you're my brother, and I want to get to know you better. I'm tired of us being at each other's throats because of what our parents did to split us up. What you said after that last detention with Lockhart? About how all we can hope for is to not be enemies? I don't accept that. I want us to be like brothers. I always have, even if I haven't been brave or honest enough to admit it."
"Always?" Harry said skeptically.
"Always," Jim replied in a firm voice. "Last year, in front of the Mirror of Erised?" He bit his bottom lip. "I didn't see myself as an only child. I saw our whole family together like a real family."
Harry said nothing. Jim rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment but then persevered.
"Granted, you were wearing Gryffindor robes and didn't have your hair all, you know, dandified like you wear it. But we are all together, and you and I were like best friends."
Harry remained quiet for a long moment. Then, he closed his eyes and sighed loudly. "Well, in the interests of disclosure, I suppose I can tell you that I saw us all together as well. Except that I was still a Slytherin and everyone was okay with that. Which is a problem because I think getting James Potter to accept a Slytherin son is on par with me getting resorted in terms of possible things."
"So screw James Potter!" Jim said to Harry's shock. "I mean, I love my dad and I always will – even though he's been a right pain all year about me being a Parselmouth – but he was wrong to send you away and he was wrong to reject you last year. And I was an ass to go along with it like I did. Brothers should stick together."
Harry's eyes widened in visible surprise at his brother's comments. "I'll … talk to Neville and then send an owl to Lady Augusta. And of course, James will have to sign off on it." Jim nodded appreciatively. Then, Harry looked thoughtful for a moment.
"I tell you what, though. If we're going to work at this being brothers thing, can I ask you for a favor?"
Jim looked at him suspiciously but not unkindly. "What?"
"Nothing major, I think. Have you decided what you want to do to Derrick and Bole over the way they jumped you before Christmas?"
The other boy was surprised. "No. Honestly, I'd forgotten all about it. Why?"
"Let me handle them instead. They're just a couple of minions anyway. It's the ringleaders you want."
Jim smirked. "Sure. I leave it to your Slytherin cunning and discretion."
"Thanks. I appreciate it."
"Any time." Jim paused. "Oh, one last thing Harry."
"Yes?"
"Can you underssstand what I'm sssaying now?" Jim hissed.
Harry stared at him blankly. "Was that supposed to mean something?"
Jim laughed. "Just an idea. At the door to the Chamber, you talked like you understood what I said to open the secret passage in Myrtle's bathroom. I've, um, been wondering if you might be a Parselmouth too but just unwilling to admit it."
"Why? Do you think it might ease the pressure on you if your Slytherin brother had the same power?"
"Nah, I just thought it would be cool to have something we could share besides bone structure and a surname. See you in class." He strolled past Harry whistling to himself. To Harry's surprise and amusement, the tune was God Save the Queen.
Office of the Minister of Magic
2:00 p.m.
"So there you have it," said Cornelius Fudge to his guest. "According to the current and incoming Chief Auror, Hogwarts in a time of crisis is generally off-limits to our law enforcement officials until after someone has been killed. Now, I have always had the utmost faith in Albus Dumbledore. But this incident has forced me to face the fact that the man is neither invincible nor infallible. There have been incidents nearly every year with the DADA instructor, not to mention the fact that Dumbledore keeps a 'reformed' Death Eater on staff. And now I find out that if anything goes wrong, the only defense for the future of Wizarding Britain lies in the hands of a bunch of school teachers who would have no backup of any sort until it was too late. It's intolerable!"
"I can certainly see why you find these matters upsetting, Minister. But, well I'm sorry, but I still don't understand why I'm here. I'm not in law enforcement. I'm just an archivist and a historian from the Department of Magical Education."
"That is precisely why you are here! I've looked through your file. Solid grades from Hogwarts. Not spectacular, but very solid. But more importantly, you hold a History of Magic NEWT, which I'm sad to say is somewhat rare. Such a pity that Cuthbert Binns is such an unengaging teacher, but what can one do? No, I've called for you because I need an archivist and historian and someone with expertise in the field of education. The treaties between Hogwarts and the rest of Magical Britain are old. The eldest of them predate the Norman Conquest! I need someone who can go through those treaties with a fine tooth comb and find for me any loopholes or ambiguities that will allow the Ministry to exercise greater control of Hogwarts. Our children's future demands nothing less!"
The woman paused before answering slowly. "So … you want me to begin researching the Hogwarts treaties in addition to my other responsibilities, Minister?"
"No, no, no," he said waving his hand dismissively. "I want to give you a promotion! With a commensurate raise of course. You'll work on this full-time and answer only to me. How does the title of Senior Undersecretary to the Minister sound to you, Madam Umbridge."
The plump woman sat up in her chair as her face lit up with a beatific smile. "Senior Undersecretary Umbridge! I do like the sound of that, Minister." Then, she tittered softly. "Though I would be just as pleased if you were to call me … Dolores."
Marcus Flint's room
7:00 p.m.
"You wanted to see us, Captain?" Lucian Bole stepped into Marcus's room with Peregrine Derrick right behind, when the two stopped short. Harry Potter was sitting in a chair next to the prefect and Quidditch captain, and neither looked happy.
"Yeah, Bole, I did. So what's all this crap about you two berks beating the crap out of Jim Potter last term and pretending you were Gryffindors doing it?"
Both boys went pale, but Bole decided to bluff his way out. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Flint," he said defiantly.
Harry sighed loudly. "Jim finally wised up and looked into a pensieve. He knows it was you two and not a pair of Gryffindors."
"Bullshit," Peregrine spat. "We put a bag over his head!" Immediately, Harry and Marcus both closed their eyes and started massaging their temples while Lucian thumped his friend and partner-in-crime on the back of the head.
"Pensieves combine memories and time magic, Derrick," Harry explained. "Even if Jim was blindfolded, anyone who looks into his memories can see what happened around him. That's why successful criminals either wear masks, glamour or disillusion themselves, or don't leave witnesses alive. The only reason you two haven't already gotten expelled is because Jim owed me a favor and gave me a few days to handle it in House. He's a Gryff so he's very big into giving people a chance to 'do the right thing.'"
"He expects us to confess?!" Bole spluttered.
"Yeah, and to McGonagall rather than Snape," Marcus snapped. "You're going to repent of your sins, throw yourselves on her mercy, and name names."
"What do you mean?" Derrick asked grimly.
"Oh come on," Harry said. "I think we all know that you two aren't the type to do something like this on your own. You're more the 'hex 'em from behind the bushes' types. Someone put you up to viciously attacking the Boy-Who-Lived, and you can either give up your mastermind or risk expulsion. So what's it going to be?"
The two Slytherins looked at one another for a second. "It was Warrington," they said in perfect unison.
The Slytherin Common Room
8:30 p.m.
Cassius Warrington was sitting alone reading when Harry Potter walked up. Warrington practically snarled at the boy's approach.
"What do you want, Potter?" he spat.
"To give you some friendly advice, Warrington," Harry said quietly but firmly. "When the time comes, blame everything on Bonnevie. It's your only chance."
"What are you talking….?" Warrington started to ask, but Harry had already walked off after delivering his warning. Cassius Warrington looked around the room nervously before returning to his reading.
11 May 1993
The Headmaster's Office
9:00 a.m.
Irma Pince sat stiffly in her chair and declined the Headmaster's offer of a sherbet lemon. She had not been in the Headmaster's Office in a very long time. In fact, she had seldom been seen anywhere in the castle outside of the Library in a very long time. Her rooms were attached to the Library, and she even took her meals there from house elves. She didn't care for the Headmaster's Office. While there were a decent number of books on the shelves, the room lacked the oppressively comforting smell of volume upon volume of musty parchment.
"I asked you to meet with me, Madam Pince, because I had a question about one of the books in the Restricted Section. Specifically, about the 1st edition of Hogwarts: A History. I took the opportunity to peruse my own copy of the inventory for the Restricted Section, and I don't see it listed there. I was wondering if you could explain that discrepancy for me."
"Certainly, sir," she said in a voice as dusty as her books. "That volume is customarily kept within that part of the Restricted Section known as the Forbidden Archive."
"The … Forbidden Archive," Dumbledore said as he studied the reclusive librarian over the top of his spectacles. He had always found Irma Pince an odd duck even by the standards of Hogwarts faculty members. For one thing, other than Binns, she was the only faculty member from his student days who was still on staff, though Binns was a ghost, which Dumbledore thought gave him an unfair advantage when it came to establishing seniority.
"Yes Headmaster," Pince replied in a vaguely condescending tone. "The Forbidden Archive."
"Could you, perhaps, expand on what this … Forbidden Archive is?"
She sniffed softly. "The Forbidden Archive consists of seventeen volumes in the Restricted Section which are kept in a separate location and concealed via powerful Notice-Me-Not Charms. I myself do not personally know what volumes are contained in the Forbidden Archive, as I am subject to a modified Obliviation Charm that causes me to forget about the Forbidden Archive except when the Headmaster specifically inquires about it, and to forget what volumes are in it unless one is specifically asked for by an authorized student or faculty member. I can tell you that the total number of volumes is seventeen and the one most recently checked out was Hogwarts: A History, first by Professor Lockhart on March 8th and then one day later by Harry Potter pursuant to a Restricted Section pass he presented and which had been signed by Professor Lockhart.
The Headmaster stared at the woman in amazement. "You have Restricted Books in the Library and you yourself do not know what they are or what information they contain?!" Dumbledore asked incredulously. "Who was responsible for Obliviating you of this knowledge?"
"You, sir," she sadly flatly, "at least with regard to the most recent addition to that section." And with that, she reached into the sleeve of her robe and extracted a rolled parchment which she handed over to the Headmaster. He unfurled the parchment, and his eyes widened even more as he read the contents which were written in his handwriting and on his personal stationary.
TO: A.P.W.B.D.
FROM: A.P.W.B.D.
RE: The Forbidden Archive
DATE: April 1, 1981
This memo is to confirm that on this date, I added a book which came into my possession to the Forbidden Archive. By the time you read this, I will have Obliviated myself of all knowledge of said book's presence in Hogwarts and will modify the memories of Madam Pince to ensure that the book can only be recovered under special circumstances. Please don't waste a lot of time trying to circumvent these protections. We both know I'm perfectly able to make myself forget something until such time as I need to recall it, so if you don't remember writing this memo, just assume that time has not yet arrived.
Oh, and no, this is not an April Fools prank. It is, in fact, a very serious matter of the gravest concern.
At the bottom of the page were additional words written in a special invisible ink that only Dumbledore could possibly have read.
Confirmation Code: Ariana likes woolen socks.
Dumbledore read the note three times to himself before exhaling loudly and returning it to Madam Pince.
"I do hope I haven't made it a habit of doing things like this to myself," he said with some minor irritation. "It is most vexing to find that one has been outwitted by one's own past."
Professor McGonagall's Classroom
2:55 p.m.
The Fifth Year Transfiguration Class was done for the day, and most of the students were already out the door when McGonagall noticed to her surprise that two Slytherins were nervously approaching her desk. It was Bole and Derrick, the two Slytherin beaters.
"Yes, Mr. Bole? Mr. Derrick? Can I help you two gentlemen?"
The boys looked at each other nervously before Bole spoke up.
"Yes, Professor. We'd actually like to speak to you in your capacity as Deputy Headmistress. You see … Derrick and me, well, we sort of got mixed up in something we shouldn't have. And after everything that's happened this year, we feel really badly about it." Bole licked his lips and summoned up as much sincerity as he could muster. "We want to do the right thing."
McGongall crooked an eyebrow and waited for the boys to continue.
Outside the Great Hall
7:00 p.m.
"Headmaster?" said Mr. Filch in a tight voice. "I was wondering if you knew why it was taking so long to get Mrs. Norris depetrified."
Dumbledore looked surprised. It had been two days since the students and faculty had been revived, and he'd quite forgotten about Mrs. Norris who he now remembered was on a shelf in his office. He'd carried the feline there just a few days after she was petrified on the previous Halloween to study her and see if he could figure out how the magical effect was accomplished. After several futile weeks, however, he was forced to abandon that line of inquiry, and he now remembered to his embarrassment that the kneazle had been left on one of the shelves in his office ever since.
Ten minutes later, Dumbledore entered the Infirmary with the frozen cat under his arm and a seething Argus Filch following behind. Using the Ewer of Hufflepuff, Madam Pomfrey soon revived the cat, which promptly had a sneezing fit due to a thin layer of dust that had accumulated during its time forgotten on a shelf.
"Thank goodness for the house elves who regularly clean my office," Dumbledore thought, "or the poor thing would be covered in dust an inch thick!"
Madam Pomfrey cast a quick spell to clean the animal.
"There you are, Argus," Dumbledore said, "right as rain."
"You forgot her," Filch said accusingly. "My only friend in the whole world, and you forgot all about her!"
Abashed, Dumbledore tried to apologize. "I am truly sorry, Filch, but after I was revived myself there was simply so much going on…." He never got to complete his apology, as the Caretaker scooped up his cat and strode quickly out of the Infirmary. Dumbledore turned to Pomfrey who gave him a reproachful glare to which he responded with an embarrassed Gallic shrug.
12 May 1993
The Potions Classroom
12:45 p.m.
The interrogation of Cassius Warrington soon led to the joint interrogation of Warrington and Sixth Year prefect Miranda Bonnevie which lasted most of the morning. Present were the Headmaster, McGonagall, and a livid Severus Snape. Weak defenses turned into bitter accusations and blame-shifting. Before everything was said and done, Bonnevie had painted Warrington as the ringleader of a plot to turn Jim Potter into a dark wizard and also that he'd really been behind the prank against the Slytherin Quidditch team for which Lockhart had inexplicably taken the blame. Then, Warrington one-upped her by revealing what he knew about Miranda cheating on her OWLS, about how Miranda had made money on the side illegally selling Pepper-Ups and Calming Draughts she'd illegally brewed to students prepping for exams, and about how her family had blackmailed Selena Harper, a fellow Sixth Year with better grades but a less impressive family tree into declining the prefect's position when it had been offered to her. And such crude blackmail at that! Apparently, Miranda's father had bluntly told Selena's father that her little brother Niles (who'd just started as a First Year) might not make it make it to his Sorting with both legs attached if Miranda didn't get the prefect's slot.
An hour later, the parents of Miranda and Cassius were in the Headmaster's office as well and were alternately pleading for mercy and threatening legal action against both the school and each other's families. An hour after that, Miranda and Cassius were in their respective dorm rooms packing, while Harry Potter was reading a message that his immediate presence was demanded in Snape's office. As soon as he entered, Snape got straight to the point.
"Miranda Bonnevie has just been expelled. Cassius Warrington has been suspended for the remainder of the school year and will likely have to repeat his Fourth Year. What was your involvement in these outcomes?"
"Begging your pardon, sir, but what makes you think I had any involvement?"
Snape snorted contemptuously. "These events were set in motion when Peregrine Derrick and Lucian Bole felt compelled to confess their own involvement and … do the right thing, a course of action so wildly out of character that at first I thought they must have been subjected to the Imperius. However, a brief discussion with Marcus Flint revealed that you met with them the night before their sudden and otherwise inexplicable turn towards ethical behavior. Now then, I shall ask again and rephrase the question. Since you are involved in these matters, I ask you how were you involved and what were your motives?"
Harry sighed. "I learned by happenstance that Warrington was behind the Quidditch prank and that he'd framed the Weasley Twins for it. Since I nearly got frostbite out of that, I took it personally. Later, Bonnevie provoked a confrontation with me a few nights ago and suggested that if she became Head Girl next year, she planned to make things difficult for me. When I learned that she was involved in Warrington's idiotic plan to turn Jim Potter into a dark wizard, I saw a shot and took it. To be honest, I'm amazed it worked so much better than I'd anticipated. I figured Slytherin would have just lost a bunch of House points with their names attached and that Miranda might lose her prefect's spot. I never dreamed she'd get kicked out of Hogwarts."
"And Derrick and Bole? They will be in detention for the remainder of the year, though thankfully, they will not lose their Quidditch spots. How did you ensure that they would do as you asked?"
Harry shrugged. "I told them that Jim knew or would soon know that they were the ones who jumped him and that their best bet for avoiding expulsion was to rat out Warrington. They're both fairly easy to predict."
"I've no doubt. I wish to see your memories of that conversation."
Harry nodded and looked around the room. "Do you have a pensieve handy, sir?"
"No," Snape replied while staring intently at the boy. "I wish to review the memory directly through your eyes. Will you permit it?"
Harry froze in surprise. Snape wanted to use Legilimency on him without him doing anything to resist other than guiding the man to specific memories and hoping he didn't abuse the privilege.
"Well, Potter? You told me once that you did not fear me knowing your secrets. Is that still the case or not?"
The boy considered Snape's words for a moment before nodding. He did his best to relax his mental shields despite his apprehension, although he did maintain those shields which protected his knowledge about the Prince's Lair and the Hydra. "LEGILIMENS." Instantly, Snape was inside Harry's mind reviewing his interactions with Derrick and Bole. But then, to Harry's surprise, other memories rose to the forefront of his mind, memories connected to those of Bole and Derrick in Marcus's room by tenuous connections Harry didn't immediately understand. He remembered telling Amy Wilkes that he had complete faith in her and earlier saying much the same thing to Draco Malfoy back during the Gryffindor-Slytherin Quidditch match. He remembered how with just words he reduced the specter of Tom Riddle to frothing anger and how, the year before, how he'd done the same to Quirrell. Finally, he remembered two of his first year interactions with Snape himself, the conversation in which Snape first introduced him to the concept of Occlumency and the conversation they had at the conclusion of Harry's very first Potions class about his upbringing with the Dursleys and his feelings about the Potters. Finally, Snape withdrew, and Harry reasserted his shields while simultaneously suppressing the sudden burst of anger he felt over Snape meandering through his mind far outside the areas he'd discussed.
"You saw quite a bit more than my conversation with Bole and Derrick … sir."
Snape did not respond at first. He sat with his elbows propped on his desk and his fingers interlaced together. His head rested against his hands which obscured the lower half of his face. His eyes were focused on Harry's.
"I reviewed your conversations with those two … which inevitably led me to other similar memories."
"Similar? How so?" Harry's asked with surprise. None of those other memories had anything to do with how he'd manipulated the two Beaters.
Snape didn't answer directly. "Tell me, Potter," he said instead. "What do you know about Legilimency?"
Harry shrugged his shoulders. "Not much beyond what I need to know to defend against it. It's a form of mind-reading that usually requires eye contact."
"Incorrect, or rather, inadequate. The term Legiliency refers to the art of using the mind to acquire information directly rather than through sensory input, while Occlumency refers to the art of using the mind to both organize and conceal information. Like Occlumency, Legilimency is a seven-tiered skill. But while the seven degrees of Occlumency must be learned sequentially, Legilimency is instead a cluster of closely-related skill sets, the most infamous of which allows the Legilimens to directly study the memories of another. I mention this because it is important you understand what you are doing and how, since it seems that you are a natural Legilimens in addition to all your other annoying forms of precociousness."
Harry shook his head. "What makes you think I'm a natural Legilimens, sir?"
"Well for starters, there's the fact that we are presently conversing, yet if you look closely, you will notice that my lips aren't moving."
Shocked, Harry reviewed his recent memories more closely, and sure enough, a closer inspection showed that the last few things Harry heard from his mentor had not been spoken aloud.
"You're projecting your thoughts to me?"
"I am allowing my unfiltered thoughts to be heard, Potter. And you are receiving them. I first suspected you might have latent Legilimency powers in November of your first year when you intentional broadcast a thought to me just to see if I could hear it. That is actually a common and useful Legilimency trick that allows two people trained with the skill to communicate non-verbally. I understand you did the same thing with the Headmaster the other night. That trick can only be done if both parties to the communication are Legilimens, although it can, obviously, be done with minimal or even no training. That was in part why I chose to offer you preliminary Occlumency instruction that day. Aside from the need to protect your thoughts from the Dark Lord, it was essential for you to develop a basic competency with Occlumency before you began to develop your Legilimency beyond the foundational level. Poor Occlumency technique can endanger your own mind. Poor Legilimency technique threatens the mind of everyone around you who thinks thoughts of which you disapprove."
Harry wiped his hand across his face as he sought to process this.
"Professor Snape, I've never had any experience I can recall in which I read someone else's thoughts."
"As I said, Potter, Legilimency is a cluster of interconnected but disparate skill sets of which mind-reading is only the most advanced and difficult. You may not yet have the power to read thoughts directly, but you show clear signs of two other common foundational skills. First, you have the magical equivalent of what Muggles would describe as 'deductive genius.' You analyze your surroundings and especially the words, reactions, and body language of those around you and synthesize those observations with seemingly trivial and unrelated prior observations in order to make remarkable intuitive leaps. It was this characteristic that led you as a mere First Year to realize that Voldemort was not only alive but actively possessing Quirrell. If you review your memories, you will no doubt recall other occasions in which you had sudden epiphanies as your mind assembled seemingly random facts into a coherent body of evidence."
Harry nodded slowly. Immediately, he thought of two: his realization in the Infirmary that Lucius Malfoy had given the Diary to Ginny Weasley and his later realization that Gilderoy Lockhart had actually been Regulus Black who was a Metamorphmagus.
"And the other skill?"
"You have a natural facility for manipulating people into doing what you want simply through the power of spoken words."
"I… what?!"
"Don't be coy, Potter. After I realized that you had a talent for Legilimency during your first year, I immediately realized that you had the skill of which I speak because you had previously used it twice on me without my realizing it at first!"
Harry stared in shock. "When?!"
"The first incident occurred at the end of your very first Potions class. At the start of that class, I was frankly inclined to hate you on principle simply because of your resemblance to your father combined with the personal umbrage I took from the idea of a Potter having been Sorted into my House. But as you were leaving, you just happened to say all the right things to divert my anger away from yourself and in such a way that I was offended on your behalf by your parents' abandonment of you. You did the same thing the following Halloween after the troll incident. As we left the bathroom for the dungeon, I was furious with you and inclined to dock you House points. While en route to the dormitory, you revealed your observations about Quirrell and about the Cerberus in such a manner that I became impressed by your intellect, your poise, and your sense of wit, so much so that I ended up giving points instead of taking them."
"Professor Snape, I promise you, I never intentionally …."
"Of course you didn't, foolish boy. Do you not understand what I am saying? This aspect of your power is entirely passive and uncontrolled. You do nothing at all to the person against whom you use this skill. You simply study them and intuitively know what to say in order to naturally instill within them the mindset you desire. That is why it is essential that you accelerate your Occlumency training this summer and that you also begin formal Legilimency training. Because according to the Headmaster, you casually used this power on Lucius Malfoy and Arthur Weasley to induce them to end a 200-year-old blood feud and did not even realize that you were doing so. And what's more, you recklessly did so in front of Albus Dumbledore and Rufus Scrimgeour, both of whom realized at once what you had done. You are getting noticed, Harry Potter. Noticed by people who remember the last wizard to publicly display such facility with both Occlumency and Legilimency."
"Voldemort," Harry said in a soft voice.
Snape nodded with a grave expression. "There were reasons why so many otherwise intelligent wizards and witches flocked to the banner of the Death Eaters despite the incoherent bigoted nonsense underlying their philosophy. By the end of the War, a sizeable percentage of those who opposed the Dark Lord nevertheless agreed with him on the 'natural inferiority of Mudbloods' because of the power of his persuasion. A power you seem to mimic."
Harry kept his face free of emotion as he assimilated this information. "What would you have me do?" he finally asked.
"You have a tutor already, Potter. A good one I am told though his identity is hidden. Discuss with him a training regimen for the summer to learn to control these powers. To learn to use them effectively and to learn how not to use them when doing so is detrimental or dangerous."
"Dangerous, sir?" Harry asked with a tight voice.
"Yes, Potter, Dangerous. Or have you forgotten that last fall you gave Draco Malfoy a pep talk during the Gryffindor-Slytherin Quidditch match that inspired him to use the Suicide Slam maneuver in a student competition?"
Harry went pale. He'd thought he was simply giving words of encouragement to a teammate. Only now that Snape was connecting the dots did Harry realize how much of a realignment had taken place in Draco's attitude over the past year. Then, a shudder went down his back when he recalled that night in the Prince's Lair after the first year Easter Break. Up until that night, Olivia Kolumbiko and he had exchanged less than a dozen words, yet after ten minutes in the Lair, she was ready to kill at his command! Granted, she seemed more in awe of the Hydra Throne itself than the impudent firstie who sat in it, but even that gave credence to Snape's claims – even before Olivia entered the Lair, he'd known about her ancestor who'd been Prince and suspected she might be suitably awestruck by the whole experience. Then, a nasty thought entered his mind.
"Professor Snape, could these … abilities … have anything to do with my … my Muggle problem?"
Snape spoke carefully. "I personally cannot see how. If anything, you should be able to manipulate Muggles even more easily than wizards and witches, since there is no possibility of them having any form of psychic defense. That said, your Muggle problem, as you call it, is so unprecedented that I cannot exclude any possible cause at this time."
Harry physically winced at Snape's use of the word "manipulate." He loathed mind control as a concept. The idea of twisting someone into doing something against their nature was sickening to him, partly because of how some inexplicable effect caused ordinary Muggles to a cruel hatred for him on sight, but also because of how a simple Confundus had tricked Neville and Hermione almost to their deaths the year before and how a pair of cursed mind-altering books had caused even worse havoc this past year. Then, an even worse thought occurred to him as another memory from his first days at Hogwarts popped into his head.
"I have three conditions, Mr. Longbottom" said Harry somewhat imperiously. "One: we do not sit anywhere near my brother unless absolutely necessary."
"O...okay, um, Mr. Potter," stammered the nervous boy.
Harry took a step forward. "Two: From now on, you keep your chin up, you look people straight in the eye, and you always speak with confidence, whether you feel it or not. Because you are Longbottom of Longbottom, Heir Presumptive to an Ancient and Noble House. Just as I am Potter of Potter. And if the two of us are going actually earn the legacies our family names have left us, we'd both better get started now."
And with that, he put his hand out. "And Three: You call me Harry."
Neville blinked several times. Then, he straightened his back, took a deep breath, and shook Harry's hand. "Just as you will call me Neville, I hope." Harry smiled. He wasn't sure, but he could have sworn the boy just grew an inch-and-a-half.
And so Neville had. He wouldn't complete his transformation until after the troll incident at Halloween, but it had started the first week of school with Harry's three conditions that had been offered as way to gain an ally ("Or maybe a minion?" whispered the most Slytherin part of his brain) instead of a friend. Harry looked up at Snape who gazed at him impassively.
"Well, Potter? Something is on your mind. Out with it."
Harry froze. How could he ask Snape about this? But if not Snape, who else?
"My friends, Professor. Neville, Theo, Hermione, Blaise, Marcus, and others. Are … are they really my friends? Or did I just … make them like me?"
"Potter … Harry... you have not been making anyone do anything against their will. This power is not like the Imperius or even the Confundus. It doesn't directly do anything to those you affect. The change is within you as you intuitively sense how to act and what to do and say to achieve the desired effect. You must learn to control it so that you do not use it in unintended ways that lead to unintended results. But there was already something inside of Draco Malfoy that was capable of using an insanely reckless Quidditch maneuver to secure victory. You simply … unleashed it."
Unfortunately, whatever this effect was called, it seemed obvious that Severus Snape didn't have it, as his desire to raise Harry's spirits failed completely.
"I see. Thank you, sir, for bringing all this to my attention. I'll discuss this with my Occlumency tutor this summer. Was there anything else?"
Snape hesitated and then shook his head and sent the boy on his way. Harry trudged back to the Slytherin dungeons, his thoughts in turmoil beneath his flawlessly composed mask. For ten years living with the Dursleys, he'd thought he didn't have a friend in the world. Now, for the first time since coming to Hogwarts, he worried that he might not have a single friendship that was real.
The next and final chapter of Harry Potter & The Secret Enemy will be posted sometime between June 8 and June 10.