Complexity
By ChocolateEclar
Disclaimer: I do not own these characters or places, although I do own this story and some elements of the characterizations of Al Potter, his siblings and their cousins, Ben, Abigail, and Dittany.
A/N: This chapter takes place on New Year's Day of Al's sixth year. Interesting things ensue and eight students go to the headmistress' office for help this time. Please review. :)
EDIT: Whoa. Ack. Fixed the pub confusion. Oh boy. That's what happens when I make a few rash decisions on placement at the last minute while listening to Pottercast. Thanks, whitehound.
Chapter Eight: Confidentiality
"Are you sure about this, James?"
The dawning of a new year brings several events. One of which is there are many portraits drunk on Ogden's Old Firewhisky and other drinks, while quite another is seven young voices arguing on the stairs up to the office.
"Al trusts him!"
"You're so naïve, Hugh."
"No one asked you, Malfoy!"
"At this point, we might as well just go to Madam Pomfrey," points out the sensible voice of a girl.
"We can do that if we don't get help here, Rose," insists James.
"Here's a plan," hisses another girl. Snape immediately recognizes her as the second Lily Potter. "Why don't you lot shut your mouths so we don't get caught? That is, unless you think we can fit eight people under an invisibility cloak or cast a disillusionment spell in under a second."
There is silence on the stairs after that, except for quiet grumbles between Scorpius and Hugo. When the door at the top of the stairs opens, eight students emerge, including Hugo and Rose Weasley, Scorpius Malfoy, Dittany Longbottom, Abigail Abbott, and the three Potters. However, there is something distinctly different about sixth-year Albus Severus.
Dippet is the first portrait to speak, although his eyes are a little unfocused from drink. "Children! Welcome to the office!" he says. This causes several giggles and chuckles from other portraits, while Snape rolls his eyes and Dumbledore sits sipping sherry with a giant, pointed hat with purple tassels running around the brim on his head. Despite the hat and the drink, Snape is positive that Dumbledore is almost completely sober. He is just being… Dumbledore.
"Let me guess," Snape says, "an Aging Potion gone horribly awry?"
The baby in Dittany's arms lets out a gurgle. He is wrapped in black robes with a distinctive Gryffindor prefect's badge on the front and has a mop of wispy dark hair on his head. Still, Snape gazes at the baby Al Potter pointedly.
"We were trying to get into the Three Broomsticks to help Hagrid out, you see, sir," insists Dittany. She is distinctly related to Neville Longbottom with mousy brown hair and wide eyes, but she also does not seem overly frightened by the sneer Snape gives her. Instead, the whole situation seems to be empowering her, as she fights to hold on to the rambunctious baby attempting to pull her hair. "Hagrid was really upset over Fang's death this afternoon and we were afraid he'd – "
"Act as foolishly as he always does in pubs," Snape finishes.
"And he was having some sort of memorial dinner there since he couldn't bear to cook in his hut," explains Rose.
"Thank Merlin for that," Hugo mutters. "He tried to feed me a stoat sandwich last I was there! I am not going to eat a weasel!"
"Oh, the puns," Scorpius whispers with a smirk.
"Shut it, Malfoy," James and Hugo retort.
"I'm sure you darlings have better things to do on the night of the New Year!" chirps the witch in the powdered wig. She downs a glass of elderflower wine and puts a delicate hand to her mouth as she giggles.
"Well, Hagrid is already back singing at the top of his lungs in his hut," grumbles Hugo.
"But we can't figure out how to fix Al without explaining what we were doing," Rose adds.
Abigail, a blonde Hufflepuff girl with trembling knees, whispers, "Please help us?"
"Yeah, he's an awfully annoying baby. Don't know how his mum didn't just drop him on purpose," Dittany grunts, as baby Al chews on his thumb.
The other students stare at her wide-eyed for a moment before she adds, "Merlin's knickerbockers! I wasn't serious."
"Well, good, because I was definitely going to tell your boyfriend that you hate his baby self when we got him fixed up," Hugo says.
"What is that supposed to – " begins Dittany in annoyance before Lily interrupts.
"Will everyone just close their overly large mouths so I can talk to Professor Snape?" she screams.
Impressively, all of the teenagers and the baby stop babbling, as fourth-year Lily steps up closer to Snape's portrait. She smoothes down her robes and straightens her green tie (decorative silver snakes really move across the tie and stick out their little thread tongues), before saying politely, "What potion can we use for Al, professor?"
"Perhaps I believe your little brother deserves some inquiries from Madam Pomfrey," Snape suggests.
"Perhaps," Lily agrees coolly, "but still, you must understand that we were not gallivanting off to get smashed. We just wanted to help Hagrid."
"And you researched possible solutions?" Snape asks.
"Well, short of getting into the restricted section at one in the morning, yes," says Rose.
"We would've asked Slughorn since he practically worships Lily and wouldn't say anything if she asked, but he was nowhere to be found today," Scorpius supplies. Snape notes that he is practically the clone of his father at this age. He won't admit it, but he remembers sixteen year old Draco Malfoy being told to murder Dumbledore and feels a little sickened suddenly.
Lily snorts and grumbles, "Ack, the Slug Club."
"I swear I would've made the potion if Al had waited a minute," James says. "I never knew he was that seriously terrible at Potions. I always thought he was exaggerating."
"Slughorn is always bemoaning the 'lost art of Potions in Al's blood' or some such nonsense," Lily points out.
"Can we focus here?" Rose asks. "Why don't we tell the whole story to sound a bit more convincing and not like a bunch of fools?"
"Fine," Hugo sighs. "First, Hagrid came to lunch all blubbery and we wanted to know what was wrong this time."
"Poor Fang," Abigail whispers.
"Yeah, and Fang had died, so Hagrid was holding a dinner at the Three Broomsticks," continues Scorpius with a roll of his eyes. "But of course he insisted on us not coming, as it would be after dark and off in Hogsmeade."
"And then Al cooked up the failed potion so we could be there as a bunch of elderly people so no one could recognize us," Lily sighs.
"And then he turned into a baby, so we went to find Professor Slughorn," adds Abigail. "Oh, and Professor Rosewater caught us hanging about Professor Slughorn's rooms."
"Why is she still teaching here? She obviously hates students!" Hugo hisses.
The baby Al laughs a little. There is an almost intelligent glint in his wide, green eyes, and when he grins at Snape a little cheekily, the Potions Master knows Al's mind is still fully present despite his appearance.
"You can put the baby down, Miss Longbottom," Snape states. "Mr. Potter is still very much aware of his actions."
Dittany's eyebrows raise in surprise, but she glares at Al and sets him down on the ground. He pouts and sticks out his tongue. Snape smirks and says, "I think Mr. Potter can figure out how to handle this on his own."
"What?" several indignant students yelp.
"Or the potion could just run its course," Snape continues. "I suspect he will be fine in five minutes or so. His hair is already starting to grow."
"So it is!" Lily yells, as Al tugs on his little black curls with one chubby fist.
"Why didn't any of us think of that?" gasps Rose.
"We have been running around the castle casting disillusionment charms and half wearing the invisibility cloak and getting points taken from us by Rosewater for the last four hours!" moans Hugo.
"What else would you have been doing, Hugh?" sighs Dittany. "Sleeping? Eating?"
"Eat-ing," says the baby slowly. "Defi-ly." Al's voice is high and slow, as he struggles for the words. He shakes his head and grimaces.
There is a little puff of purple smoke around him and then coughing erupts inside the cloudy circle. When the air is clear again, teenage Al is sitting, tangled in his robes. "I really could use some really hot tea now," he remarks. "I don't suppose one of you could do me a brew?"
"Why, you blighter," grumbles Hugo. "You could have got us in serious trouble with that stupid potion."
"Fine, fine," sighs Lily. "I'll go down to the kitchens and bring a cup up to your common room. C'mon, Abigail." Abigail follows the younger girl meekly down the stairs, cautiously glancing back at Al as if he were going to suddenly become an infant once more.
"Abby's disillusionment charm is surprisingly strong," Al remarks after the two girls are down the stairs. "Filch completely missed us on the way here."
"We should've known you were still all together," James mutters. "It's not like normal Aging Potions change a person's mental age."
"Not totally so," Al says. "My mouth didn't quite want to move right, and my brain was a little foggy."
"More so than usual?" grunts Dittany, as she crosses her arms.
"You're amazing, Ditty," replies Al with a grin. Dittany glares at him, but then just as quickly begins to smile a little.
"You probably put too much moonstone in," James sighs.
Snape is not even mildly surprised by this, as he has gotten used to this James Potter being good at his subject over the years. Not that it does not bother him, of course. However, James mostly shows polite neutrality whenever talking to Snape these days, so there are few opportunities for Snape to snap at him. It's almost as unnerving as Albus Severus' relative lack of response to his sarcasm.
"Sure," Al says flippantly. He does not shift his gaze from Dittany's.
"As wonderful as it is that Mr. Potter has returned to his normal self," says Snape sarcastically, "I think this visit has extended far enough."
Al shakes his head a little, as if to clear his thoughts, and finally looks away from Dittany. "Sorry to be a pest, but it's not like I suggested that they all tromp up here," he insists.
"It's fine, dear," says the purple-robed witch, as Phineas Nigellus barks, "You should all be reported one of these days. Trespassing in the office of the headmasters and headmistresses! Bah."
Al chuckles. "Well, why haven't you?" Hugo lets out a big, exasperated sigh at his cousin, while James just rolls his eyes.
Scorpius, whose hand is securely wrapped in Rose's now, mutters, "Barking mad, the lot of you. No tact."
"Preaching to the Gryffindors, Score," Rose whispers back.
"No, really, I've been wondering this for a while," Al says. "Why don't you tell Professor McGonagall?" His question is open to all of the portraits, as he looks around at them.
Phineas Nigellus grunts and hisses, "You made it so, boy."
Al grins devilishly and says, "I didn't do anything to your voices."
"But the moment Dumbledore lied for you that first night when Minerva McGonagall asked whether anyone had entered the office while she was gone, you were allowed by this office to enter as you like," Phineas Nigellus explains angrily.
"You knew it too," James says disbelievingly to his little brother.
"Not right away," Al admits. "But, during my second year, I did some research on the old headmasters and headmistresses and this office to learn more about the portraits. The office has fascinating charms on it. I wasn't sure if it would allow other people to go up here for me though, so I tested it out by sending Lily up when I got sick with scrofungulus a year later."
"That's risky, mate," says Hugo.
"Oh c'mon, she was a first-year and a sneaky little Slytherin so she could pull the innocence ploy with a bit of acting if she'd been caught," Al replies.
"You are the epitome of your name," sighs James with a roll of his eyes.
"Yeah, he's a right manipulative, sneaky, little prat," Hugo mutters.
"I should take offense to that, I suppose," Dumbledore states, but he is smiling a tad ruefully.
Snape coughs to hide the smirk that had played across his lips and only half succeeds. "I'm sure Mr. Potter has done his own share of mischief," he says.
Al nods and says, "Well, let's go, folks. We don't want to outstay our welcome or anything." He opens the door with a flourish and waits for everyone to leave before adding, "Happy New Year, headmasters, headmistresses." Then, he too runs down the stairs. Suddenly, there is a yelp as he smashes into Dittany at the bottom. The portraits can hear her yelling at him as they stand right in front of the gargoyle.
(Snape remembers Al saying confidently, "You're amazing, Ditty," and is almost certain about what is going to happen between those two as long as one of them does not become a servant of any dark lord or call the other some offensive nickname – or both, for that matter.)
"Fifty points from Gryffindor for being out of bed once again, Mr. Potter, Miss Longbottom! I think it's time for the headmistress to hear about this," Professor Rosewater's voice rings out.
"Oh, oh no, professor," says James Potter suddenly. Snape is sure that the boy had been waiting under the invisibility cloak with at least one other student and then decided to intervene by looking like he had just stepped around the corner. "They were just helping me out with some Head Boy duties. They are prefects after all."
"And yelling at the top of their lungs has something to do with that?" Rosewater replies coolly.
"Sorry, professor," Dittany says. "We were just getting into a little friendly fight, you know. We're very sorry for disturbing the quiet of the school."
"Yes, very," Al insists.
"Well, then I suggest you hurry off to bed now," Rosewater says, "before I consider discussing this with the headmistress. After all, this does seem like an overstepping, James."
"I do apologize, professor," answers James. "I just wanted to make sure there were no students sneaking off to get drunk and I wasn't able to talk to Maggie because the thought completely slipped my mind and she is in Hufflepuff after all, so it's a bit hard to talk to her after dinner." Snape remembers vaguely that he has seen the girl, one Margaret Finnigan, up in the office when discussing her Head Girl duties with McGonagall.
"Of course, so you decided to use two prefects instead of the Head Girl then," Rosewater says. There is a note of suspicion in her voice, but still, soon there is the sound of goodbyes and quiet walking away.
There is silence and then the sound of Dumbledore chuckling. "Oh, Severus," he says, "what have the names of the dead done to these children?"
"I think we can blame parenting more than any influence of ours," replies Snape. Dumbledore just smiles. "Besides, the dead should not haunt the living."
Dumbledore abruptly sighs and says, "If only that could always be so, my friend."
Unbidden, Snape thinks about Al saying, "You're amazing, Ditty," and stiffens. That life is no longer near his reach, but his namesake is just beginning to toss himself into the fray.