Chapter 6
"So, not going back to your family for Christmas?" Charlie asked, handing over a mug of hot chocolate.
It turned out that—although they generally moved in different social circles—befriending one Weasley brother meant that you were at least a casual acquaintance of the other. Charlie was in his third year and was already demonstrating a keen interest in dragons. I sincerely hoped that I wouldn't have to be involved in a Norbertesque incident before my Hogwarts years were out. Or ever, preferably. I briefly thought of a certain dragon-loving witch and made a mental note to visit Canada at some point.
"Don't have a family. I was raised in children's homes. They're where muggles put children without anyone to look after them," I explained. "I could have gone back over the Christmas holidays, but Hogwarts is much nicer."
"Don't you have any friends there?" Charlie asked, oblivious to the pointed glare Bill was giving him.
"No, not really."
Bill abandoned any pretence of subtlety and tugged Charlie away and whispered furiously in his ear for a few moments, presumably telling him to stop rubbing in how alone I was. I didn't mind. I was more than used to being by myself. Other people were tiring to be around anyway. Alright in short doses if they were good company but I'd always default to solitude. Somehow, I didn't think that would find favour with the Weasleys though, so I kept it to myself and instead took another sip of hot chocolate.
The past few months had flown past. I'd continued to keep up in my classes, even if only barely doing so in Potions. The essays had begun to get longer, requiring more and more time to be spent inking them out. Transfiguration and Charms had moved onto more complex spells and had nearly caught up with the progress I'd made by myself. Soon I'd be barely keeping pace with the rest of the class, which was not a fun prospect.
I was almost halfway through the advanced Transfiguration textbook Professor McGonagall had given me. Most of the magic in it was still too advanced for me, but I was getting to grips with the theories behind it. The possibilities it offered teased me as they whispered of all the things I could accomplish if only I was a bit better at magic. If my Transfiguration professor had intended to light a fire under me and give me something to work towards, then she'd succeeded.
Even my progress in Transfiguration didn't compare with how I was doing in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Bill had loaned me his notes from his second year after I'd mentioned running out of things to study on the first-year course. At the rate I was going, I suspected I'd be starting the third-year material by the time I returned to Hogwarts next September. Unfortunately, given that the third-year course was focused more on practical methods of dealing with Dark creatures, my progress would likely stall there for a while. Even more regrettably, the current Defence teacher's condition seemed to be deteriorating more with every week that passed. I rather feared that she wouldn't even make it to the end of the year, never mind be able to advise me on my own studies.
When the majority of the student body had fled Hogwarts with the arrival of the winter weather, the Weasley brothers were among those that stayed. Bill cited his upcoming exams as his reason for staying and Charlie claimed to want to keep Bill company. While Bill's reason seemed, well, reasonable, I had my doubts about Charlie's. I rather suspected that the younger brother's reason for staying had at least as much to do with sneaking out to help Hagrid care for his animals as anything else.
Bill had commandeered the classroom we used for extra Potions for the length of the break and had somehow managed to sneak a small stove into it to keep the place warm. At his insistence, I met him there every other day to continue working on Potions. The rest of the time, he taught me a number of nifty spells he'd found that weren't strictly on the Hogwarts curriculum. I'd protested at first, but he brushed me off and claimed that it was good practice for him as well. Then Charlie had started joining us as well and I'd given up on my feeble protests.
It was... Nice. If you were to ask me what my ideal way of spending Christmas break was then 'curled up safe and warm in a Hogwarts with good books, hot chocolate and some friends, learning magic' was pretty high up on my list.
—tN—tN—tN—
Once Bill was finished scolding Charlie they re-joined me and pulled out their own textbooks.
"Any particular subject you'd like to look at today, Poe?" Bill asked, tapping his wand against a table absently.
"Would Defence Against the Dark Arts be okay?" I said, pulling my own Defence notes out of a pocket. "Professor Babic seems to be getting distracted these days and I've heard that Defence teachers can be, err..."
"Yeah, they can be pretty bad alright," Bill said, wincing at some unknown memory. "I've had two half decent ones in my years so far and Professor Babic is one of them. If the trend continues... well, I think we could all do with some extra practice on Defence. Alright, help me clear some space."
A few minutes later, the centre of the bare stone floor had been covered with a layer of cushions that Bill had conjured out of nowhere and the three of us were standing in a triangle with our wands drawn.
"Are you sure that Poe should be joining in with us, Bill?" Charlie asked, frowning. "No offence Poe, but you're only a first-year. We know a lot more spells than you do and—"
"Expelliarmus."
The Disarming Charm hadn't taken very long to learn, to my considerable relief. I wasn't entirely confident in it as this was my first time using it on an actual person as opposed to a posable mannequin but I was sure that I had the general form of the spell down.
My worries were unfounded as Charlie's wand was plucked straight out of his startled grasp and tossed against the classroom ceiling. The Gryffindor Seeker snatched it out of the air with ease as it fell but my point was made. Bill was grinning at his younger brother's expense so I decided to follow up by hitting him with a Full Body Bind.
With a muffled thud, Bill hit the cushioned floor, his expression caught midway between amusement and alarm. Charlie broke down laughing at the sight but still had enough presence of mind to dodge the Knockback Jinx I threw at him.
I exchanged spells with Charlie for a few moments, both of dodging the other's attacks until my feet slipped on one of the cushions and I caught a Tickling Charm to the ribs. I went down, laughing uncontrollably.
"Okay, okay, you made your point," Charlie said, cancelling the spell and undoing the Bind I'd put on Bill. "Your reflexes aren't half bad by the way. Have you considered joining the Quidditch team next year?"
"Absolutely not," I said, shaking my head so hard I made myself dizzy for a moment. "I can barely stay on a broomstick as it is. Flying's alright but I don't think I'll be on the House team anytime soon."
"Pity," Charlie said, shrugging and pulling his still-prone brother back to his feet.
"As I was about to say before Poe hexed me," Bill said, his voice dry. "Poe's already started on the second-year Defence coursework and has a list of other spells they got from the library. I will admit that I didn't expect quite that level of proficiency but I wouldn't have suggested that Poe join in unless I thought the could give as good as they got. Speaking of which, petrificus totalus."
I hit the cushions for the second time in as many minutes, this time unable to move a muscle while the two brothers went at each other with jinxes that seemed more intended for pranks than duelling. I made a mental note to get Bill back while I waited for one of them to release me.
—tN—tN—tN—
One of the downsides of gaining two friends in the run-up to Christmas was that I didn't have much time to get them gifts. I knew that the Weasleys—of all people—would understand the limitations imposed by a lack of budget and means but it still didn't sit right with me. As such, I turned to other possibilities for gifts.
There weren't many students in the Library and Madam Pince was clearly enjoying the peace and quiet. She did not appreciate being bothered by strange requests from nervous first-years. Nonetheless, I found some books and archived magazines with what I was looking for. A bit more searching uncovered some spells that would make the gift a bit more special.
In the privacy of my dorm room—where neither Weasley could intrude—I dug the last things I needed from my trunk: muggle art supplies.
I wasn't good at drawing or colouring in, a fact that I resolved to change in what little free time remained in my schedule. For the moment though, just being able to trace over an image would have to suffice.
Freezing the images I'd gotten out of the library, I carefully traced out the shapes of some dragons, an ornate tomb and the rough shapes of two wizards. After that came the box of watercolours that I couldn't actually remember packing. My painting was distinctly amateurish and I'd resorted to using Tergeo to remove some paint that went outside of the lines on a few occasions. Finally, however, I had two pictures.
One depicted a red-haired wizard atop the back of a rearing Hungarian Horntail, other dragons visible in the background. The other showed a different redhead standing before an imposing Egyptian-style tomb, bags of treasure at his side and dangerous runes scrawled all over the tomb. I'd actually had to double-check but there was no risk of accidentally creating a curse just by drawing magical runes, much to my relief.
The easy part was done. Pulling out my wand and checking the descriptions of the spells I'd found, I began casting.
—tN—tN—tN—
"Merry Christmas, Poe!" Bill laughed and raised a mug of Butterbeer that he'd somehow gotten a hold of. I nursed my own cup and took slow sips. The famed magical beverage that I'd heard so much about was delicious but was a bit too sweet for me to drink too much at once. I couldn't help but smile though.
Bill and Charlie—resplendent in their red and gold knitted jumpers—had collared me on my way to breakfast and dragged me to our usual classroom where they'd arranged their own range of food and drinks. I had my doubts about the nutritional benefits of the assorted pastries and snacks compared to my normal bowl of porridge but I'd gone along with them anyway. In truth, my cheeks were aching from grinning so much. We'd spent the morning using magic to decorate the room whilst drinking Butterbeer and telling jokes. A few brief duels had broken out as well but that'd just added to the fun.
Shortly before dinner though, Charlie glanced at his wristwatch and nudged Bill with his elbow. Bill straightened up a bit and set his Butterbeer to one side.
"So, Poe," he said, "we know you don't have many people back in the muggle place and I've noticed that you don't talk to many people here in Hogwarts either. I don't really know why that is since you've always been a pretty chill person to hang around with. So, since you mightn't have gotten much else this Christmas we thought we'd get you something."
Speech said, Charlie handed me a cylindrical package covered in shiny wrapping paper.
I held it for a few moments, hesitating. Then I set it to one side instead of opening it. Charlie started to protest when I pulled two small rectangular packages out of my own robe and handed them to the brothers.
"I don't have much and wasn't really expecting to have anyone to get gifts for, so I'm sorry if they're not much but—" I cut myself off to avoid rambling and settled for finishing with "Open them all on the count of three?"
The Weasleys had gotten me a quill coloured a deep purple colour. As I lifted it out of its wrapping paper, I felt it twitch slightly in my hand.
"It's self-inking and will take dictation," Bill said, seeing me look at it. "You said before that you had trouble making notes quickly and clearly so we thought that could help. You won't be able to use it in classes or exams, unfortunately, but we figured you'd find it handy. These, however..."
The pictures I'd traced out and sloppily coloured-in now moved and flashed with colour in places. The Horntail now breathed plumes of bright fire on occasion while the tomb's runes glowed and pulsed to an ominous rhythm.
"These are amazing, Poe," Charlie gushed. "Did you make these yourself? I didn't know you could draw. You must have learnt how to make them move just for these presents as well, didn't you?"
"The spells keeping them animated probably won't last long," I managed to get out, my face flushing and turned towards the floor. "They'll just be normal pictures in a few weeks. I didn't know what to get you so I was just trying to figure what I might be able to make. Those were the first thing I thought of, sorry they're not much..."
"No need to apologise, Poe," Bill said, voice soft. "We weren't expecting any gifts at all. The spellwork on these is impressive for a first-year and to think you were listening when we were talking about our dreams..."
We were all quiet for a few moments. They studied each others' pictures while I fiddled with the quill they'd gotten me. I wouldn't have minded if it had been completely inert, I still would have kept and used it until no magic I could conjure would keep it from falling apart.
"Happy Yule, Bill, Charlie," I said eventually. It was a good day.
—tN—tN—tN—
"Messrs Weasley, may I take it that you are responsible for young Poe's absence from the breakfast table this morning?"
Albus Dumbledore hailed us just outside the Entrance Hall. In spite of his stern tone, his beard was twitching as if barely-restraining a smile or laugh.
Charlie was startled and began to stutter an explanation but was talked over by Bill, who was more used to the Headmaster's ways.
"Ah, sorry Professor Dumbledore. We figured we'd keep Poe company today. It's Christmas, after all," Bill said, waving airily to indicate me then the festive decorations that adorned the entire castle. "Speaking of, Merry Christmas, Professor!"
"And a very merry Christmas to you too, Mr Weasley," Dumbledore said, no longer hiding his smile. "Ten points to Gryffindor for festive spirit, I think. Now, if you wouldn't mind proceeding to the most excellent Feast, I'd like a quick word with your younger friend."
If Bill was confused about why the headmaster would want to talk to a random first-year, he hid it well and left for the Feast with a somewhat-confused Charlie in tow.
Once the Weasleys were gone I waited for Dumbledore to cast some privacy charms, which he did with a flick of his wand.
"Merry Christmas, Poe," he said, stowing his wand again.
"Merry Yule, Pro— Albus," I replied, remembering his preferred address from me at the last moment.
"I trust you've been well since we last spoke?"
"I've been doing alright. Had to ask Bill for help with Potions but I've been fine otherwise. How about you? Has there been any problems with the— With the list?"
"I have been in good health, thank you for asking. And I have been making some small progress on the 'list' as you call it. I have regrettably had no more success in gaining entry to the Chamber of Secrets and may have to wait until Harry arrives to deal with its resident. The process to have poor Sirius released has been started quietly but is likely to take some time. I have convinced certain trustworthy members of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to reopen the case, but they've had to pursue the matter privately to avoid drawing Minister Bagnold's attention. She would likely be rather... unaccommodating in the matter, shall we say.
"I have, however, succeeded in securing the Gaunt ring. I appreciate your warning about the danger it posed, incidentally. Without that foreknowledge, I doubt I would be in quite such good health. Even now the temptation is there, to don it and see if the legends about the Stone are true..."
"To the best of my knowledge, Albus, they are," I said, speaking quickly. "True in their entirety, right down to urging anyone foolish enough to carry the Stone to commit suicide. If the temptation is too great, then please find somewhere to put it where you can not reach it easily. At least until the Horcrux is destroyed. The Stone should still be functional afterwards. Which... Honestly, that raises more than a few questions about the durability of the Stone. If it's apparently even harder to destroy than a Horcrux..."
I met Dumbledore's eyes and we reached a silent agreement to leave the topic there. The origins of the Hallows was a fascinating subject to be re-visited some other day. For the moment, we could not afford the distraction.
"What of the locket and the cup?" I asked, trying to break the awkward silence. Albus took the opportunity gladly, though his news on that front was less happy.
"Grimmauld Place is proving a rather precarious location to explore and I'm inclined to leave that particular item where it is until we have secured Sirius's release. If your information holds true, it will do no harm in the meantime. Hufflepuff's Cup similarly remains beyond my reach for the moment. I have sent discrete inquiries to the goblins of the bank on the matter but they are reticent to engage with me for obvious reasons. I fear that we may have to resort to less-than-legal means to retrieve it. I do hope you'll understand if I prefer to exhaust other options before resorting to thievery?"
"Quite. The Chief Warlock of the Wizenmagot robbing Gringotts would cause outrage and we'd never be able to handle a goblin uprising and a war against Riddle at the same time."
"We are of alike minds then. Onto less serious matters then," Dumbledore said, his serious expression replaced by a smile once more. "How have you been progressing in your extracurricular studies? You seemed to have some particular goals in mind if I haven't misjudged your focus."
"They're coming along slowly. Most of the spells I'd need, such as the Protean Charm, are rather advanced. The Room has supplied me with a good supply of objects to study in the meantime though, which is helping my progress on the theory side of things."
"Good to hear. It really is a most marvellous room. As before, please let me know if there's anything you require."
"I'll do so but I'm getting by alright as I am. Thank you for the books, by the way. They've been a great help."
I felt a twinge of guilt as I remembered that I'd never actually thanked the headmaster for the gift he'd left for me to find after our chat in the Library. I'd considered sending him an owl but decided against it on the grounds that it'd look odd. I hadn't had the chance to speak with him privately since then either and it felt wrong to arrange a meeting just to express gratitude like that.
"Again, I'm glad to hear it." Dumbledore smiled at me again. "I know what it's like to be separated from one's library. I must applaud your taste in literature, incidentally. You have quite a refined and discerning selection of stories."
I was, not for the first time, struck by curiosity over what Dumbledore made of me and my strange knowledge. I didn't feel comfortable asking though, so I let it be.
"Speaking of gifts, I originally called you away from the Weasley brothers to give you something. I hope you don't mind that I waited to deliver it in person. I rather feared that a gift from one such as myself might draw undue attention from your roommates."
"What? I mean, that's fine sir, you didn't have to get me anything. I mean, I didn't get you anything and—"
Dumbled— Abus laughed gently at my stuttering. He waited until my protests had subsided before pulling a wrapped parcel from under his cloak.
It was not—as I'd expected—a book. Instead, it was a silver-handled magnifying glass with minute runes inscribed around the frame.
"This," Dumbledore explained "is a glass of my own design. It will allow you to see through almost any kind of concealment placed under it and reveals anything hidden. I thought you might find it, if not of use, then of interest."
"Tha—thank you, Albus," I said, tripping over myself in spite of my care in enunciating each word properly. "This is marvellous. Amazing, really. Thank you."
Albus may not have expected anything in turn but I made a note to remember to get him something when I could. Even if I had to resort to socks.
