Disclaimer: I am not J. K Rowling; therefore, I do not own Harry Potter.
"Harry" -Speech
'Ginny' -Thoughts
/Bill\ -Foreign/Non-human Language
Chapter 2: Friends, Lords and Foes
When Harry emerged from the Floo, he only fell to his knees this time, which he counted as a slight improvement over his rather embarrassing entrance to Gringotts.
"Ah, Harry my boy." a rather concerned looking Albus Dumbledore said as he stood from his desk, "Dare I ask if your meeting with Rockclaw has been…enlightening?"
"Yes sir." Harry replied as he stood and muttered, "Scourgify" as he pointed his wand at his robes, getting rid of most of the soot he had accumulated from his two Floo trips.
"I see…Sherbet Lemon?" Dumbledore offered him a bowl full of the sour boiled sweets. Harry politely refused and took a seat when the headmaster gestured him to it and sat back down on his own seat.
"Now then, I have all of a sudden recalled that I am a Secret Keeper for you as a result of the Line and Lineage Conquering Act." Dumbledore said, "Might I enquire if Rockclaw was responsible for my sudden forgetfulness?"
"Yes sir. He cast a temporary Fidelius Charm on the knowledge that you are a Secret Keeper." Harry replied, "He broke it, at my request, just before I left Gringotts."
"Ah, I see…" Dumbledore mused, "Yes, that does sound like Rockclaw. I presume he informed you of everything to do with the Line and Lineage Conquering Act, as well as the Bloodline Legacy Continuation Act?"
"Unfortunately, yes." Harry moaned, "How do these things keep happening to me?"
"Alas, it happens when one ventures into battle against the unknown." Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling merrily, "Why, one time in my younger days, I had just fought off a coven of Hags in a forest in northern Germany and was suddenly beset by a swarm of Doxys, swiftly followed by a herd of Pogrebins. Dear me, I had quite the time getting rid of them. At the end of it, I was awarded accolades from the locals for cleaning the forest of the Hags and Pogrebins and was given the honorary title of Defender of the Forest, which involved me getting married to the mayor's daughter. It took quite a bit of wrangling for me to get out of it, which is saying something."
"Lucky you." Harry groused, "I can't do that. The Sovereignty magic won't let me; especially considering Merlin himself cast the spells! I'm stuck."
"That is an accurate and to the point summation of your situation." Dumbledore admitted, "Did Rockclaw mention the, ah, consequences of not selecting your own wives?"
"He said that the Fidelius would be broken and the Wizengamot would be put in charge of selecting my wives." Harry said with a scowl, "Likely meaning I'd end up married to three daughters of Voldemort's supporters."
"Quite." Dumbledore nodded, "That would be, shall we say, sub-optimal for you in the long run, so let us bend our minds to ensuring that circumstance doesn't come to pass, shall we?"
"No arguments from me sir." Harry replied, relieved that Dumbledore was helping him.
"Very well then. First, might I ask what the marriage rules for the Slytherin, Potter and Peverell families are?" Dumbledore asked.
"The Potter family rules are the simplest. They state I have to love whomever I marry, no other restrictions." Harry recited, "The Slytherin rules merely state that whomever I marry has to be a Pureblood and must remain a virgin until her wedding night. The Peverell rules say that I can't marry someone who has 'unsightly blemishes' on her face, that she be magically powerful and be at least of an Ancient House."
"Hmm…so, two Purebloods and another lady of any heritage." Dumbledore mused.
"Yeah, but how in Merlin's name am I going to convince three girls to marry me at the same time?" Harry asked languidly, "They'd slap me and call me a womaniser or something."
"Pureblood families teach their children about the ancient laws the year before they attend Hogwarts." Dumbledore said calmly, "As do the scions of any Pureblood families who are married to Muggles or Muggleborns. They would, if not be happy about it, at least know that your choice in this matter is limited to when it happens, not if it happens."
"So Muggleborns are going to be out." Harry sighed.
"Not necessarily. If you show them the law and the letter you will doubtless recieve informing you of the law's activation on your behalf, that ought to defuse them, at least somewhat. Especially one as smart as Miss Granger." Dumbledore said with a small smile.
"Hermione? Oh damn, I forgot about telling her!" Harry rapidly paled as he realised his friend would not be happy about this at all.
"Miss Granger is indeed somewhat…strident…about making her opinion clear on any subject." Dumbledore conceded, "If you wish, I can provide a book on the subject for yours and her perusal?"
"That would be a big help sir." Harry said feelingly. Hermione was very prone to fall into logic, despite being in a magical world, so Harry knew that a sound and airtight argument would stop her from going off half-cocked to try and find a way out of it for him.
While he would greatly appreciate being able to get out of it, everything he had been told about the ancient laws made it clear to him that getting out of this was the next best thing to impossible, short of destroying the Sovereignty Magic that bound Magical Britain and who knows what doing that could do.
Dumbledore stood up, walked over to a blank stretch of wall, and said, "Cognitionem Vincit Omnis."
The wall sank into the ground, revealing a hidden bookcase. The headmaster examined the shelves for a moment before pulling three books from the assortment and stepping back, allowing the wall to slide shut again.
"This book contains a copy of every law passed by the Wizard's Council and Ministry of Magic." Dumbledore informed Harry as he passed the first volume over to him. It had a periwinkle blue cover with the title, 'The Laws and Ordinances of the Realm of Magical Britain'. It had no author's name.
"Ah, that is because it is a self-updating volume." Dumbledore told Harry when this was brought up, "It is linked to the master volume in the Chamber of the Wizengamot and adds or removes laws as is appropriate."
"Shame textbooks aren't like that." Harry said, "It would save the Weasley's a fortune every year."
"True." Dumbledore said with a smile, "Now, these next two books are for your personal perusal. This one has the history of Magical Lords in Britain and this one outlines the duties and responsibilities of a Head of House."
The second volume Harry was passed had a rich red cover, embossed with the legend, 'Lords and Ladies: the Definitive Edition' by Engelbert Highcastle, while the third was an eye-piercing shade of magenta entitled, 'Who Rules the Roost? The Duties of a Head of House' by Martina Steepchapel.
"I would take the time to read all of these before you introduce them to Miss Granger, otherwise you might have some trouble reading them." Dumbledore said gravely, his eyes twinkling in amusement.
Harry snorted in amusement as he nodded in agreement. Once Hermione got her hands on a book, trying to pry it away from her was an exercise in futility, similar to trying to get Gilderoy Lockhart to actually do something useful.
"Tell me Harry, do you know the other female members in your year well?" Dumbledore asked curiously once Harry had shrunk the books and pocketed them.
"Not really." Harry replied uncomfortably, "Aside from Hermione, I don't really speak to any of them unless we're working together in class, especially the ones from other Houses."
"A common situation." Dumbledore said with a nod, "I would advise that next year, you attempt to socialise with them more, even those from other Houses."
"No offence sir, but there aren't exactly many social events to do that kind of thing at Hogwarts." Harry said, "Besides, the Slytherins wouldn't give me the time of day."
"Young Mr Malfoy seems to have jaded your perceptions towards the House of the Cunning." Dumbledore observed, "Several members of Slytherin are actually from the Neutral aligned section of the Wizengamot however, Miss Daphne Greengrass in your Year for example. They stayed out of the last War, refusing to side with either Voldemort or myself. I encourage you not to let your previous bad experiences with Mr Malfoy cloud your judgement."
"I'll try sir." Harry said reluctantly, but knew that Dumbledore had a point.
"As to socialisation, I would suggest that when you pair up for learning spells or potions, you choose to work with someone other than Mr Weasley or Miss Granger." Dumbledore continued, "Indeed, next year you will be a Third Year and thus able to go to Hogsmeade Village, which is an opportunity for you, provided your guardians sign the consent form."
Harry privately thought that getting the Dursley's to sign the form would be very, very difficult, but decided not to inform the Headmaster of the possible slight hiccup in the plan.
"Speaking of which, Molly Weasley wrote to tell me of your daring escape from the Dursley's last year." Dumbledore said with a frown, "Would you mind telling me what the entirety of the circumstances were running up to the time you left the Dursley's care?"
"Do you remember Dobby, the Malfoy's House-Elf?" Harry asked. When Dumbledore nodded, Harry continued, "He knew, somehow, what Lucius Malfoy had planned and tried to keep me away from Hogwarts in order to keep me safe. First, he tried to make me think my friends had abandoned me by intercepting my mail and then having a talk with me."
Harry frowned as he remembered the outcome of that talk.
"I figured out he had intercepted my mail and refused to not return to Hogwarts. Dobby then decided to make sure I couldn't go back by using a Hover Charm in front of some guests to float a pudding." Harry continued, "This got me a warning from the Improper Use of Magic Office, letting the Dursley's know I couldn't use magic on them.
Uncle Vernon locked me in my room, put bars on my window and installed a cat flap so I could be fed. I was let out twice a day to use to toilet and shower, but was otherwise confined to my room. Three days later, Ron, Fred and George showed up and rescued me."
The twinkle had gone out in Dumbledore's eyes as he listened to Harry's tale. His face grave, he asked Harry, "Were you fed adequately?"
"I had a bowl of porridge for breakfast and a bowl of cold soup for dinner, all three days." Harry replied, somewhat grimly, "Hedwig had some owl treats, but I gave her some vegetables from the soup to keep her fed properly."
"I believe I shall have to go and have a word with your Aunt and Uncle about the manner in which you are treated, as well as visit the Improper Use of Magic Office." Dumbledore sighed, "Do you recall who sent you the letter, Harry?"
"It was…Mafalda Hopkirk I think." Harry tried to remember the letter from last year.
"Ah yes. A former Ravenclaw Prefect." Dumbledore mused, "Now she's Commander-in-Chief of the Improper Use of Magic Office. How time flies. Might I have a memory from you to prove your innocence?"
"A…memory?" Harry said uncertainly, "Ummm…how…?"
"Ah, pardon me. You will not have come across such a thing, I'm sure." Dumbledore apologised, "Allow me to demonstrate."
With a wave of his wand, Dumbledore summoned a shallow stone basin from a cupboard nearby. Harry looked at it in awe. The rim was encrusted with odd runic symbols that glowed with power and it was filled with a silvery liquid that glowed a luminescent silver colour.
"What is this sir?" Harry asked softly.
"This, Harry, is my Pensieve." Dumbledore told him with a smile, "This will not be the case for one as young as you, but occasionally, I feel as if I have too many thoughts and memories crammed in my mind. When that happens, I used the Pensieve. It allows me to view my memories either from the perspective of an observer from without or from within the memory as is needed. Links and patterns become much easier to chain together when viewed as such, when you can take the time and leisure to view them as you please."
"That silvery stuff's your thoughts?" Harry said in astonishment.
"Indeed." Dumbledore said, "Now, to draw out your thoughts, you press the tip of your wand to your temple and concentrate on the memory you wish to extract, then you gently pull the wand away and the memory emerges as a silvery strand affixed to the end of your wand. Allow me to demonstrate."
Dumbledore paced the wand at his temple for a moment, and then drew it back, a thin strand of pure memory emerging, which Dumbledore placed in the Pensieve. He then raised it slightly and swirled it around before putting it down and prodding at it with his wand.
Immediately, the silver liquid surged up and took the form of a beaming Gilderoy Lockhart, which began to rotate atop the Pensieve as the memory spoke in Lockhart's familiar, expansive, narcissistic voice.
"Hi! As I am sure you know, I am Gilderoy Lockhart, holder of the Order of Merlin Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defence League and Five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award!" memory-Lockhart said, flashing his teeth in his oft-used charming smile, adding a roguish wink at the end before continuing to speak.
"I heard through the grapevine that you're having a spot of bother filling the DADA position this year. I thought I would help you out and offer my services. I need no resume; merely look through my published works and you can see that I am the best man for the job. What do you say then, Headmaster?"
"That is quite enough out of you, Gilderoy." Dumbledore muttered and prodded the silvery memories again, prompting the figure to seep back into the tray.
"Was that his interview?" Harry asked curiously.
"An abridged version." Dumbledore replied, "He spoke at great length about his 'heroics' and it took quite some time to bring him to the point of actually asking for the job. Care to try and extract a memory?"
"Okay." Harry said and lightly placed the wand tip on his temple and focussed on when Dobby had visited him, from when Harry had walked into his bedroom to just after the Mason's had left. Feeling a warm sensation, Harry slowly drew back his wand, a silver strand attached to the end. He quickly placed it in the Pensive.
"Well done Harry. Now let's go in." Dumbledore said with a smile, "Merely touch the surface of the memories with your finger and you will be drawn into the most recent memory added."
Nervously, Harry reached out and touched the surface with his finger. He felt like he was being tugged into the silvery liquid. He fell through blackness before landing lightly in what he recognised as his own room at Number 4 Privet Drive, joined a few moments later by Professor Dumbledore.
"This kind of reminds me of Tom Riddle's diary, when he showed me when he framed Hagrid." Harry scowled at the thought of his first friend in the Wizarding World being framed by the person who would one day become Lord Voldemort.
"So Tom was able to recreate the effects of a Pensieve at the age of…sixteen or seventeen. Remarkable." Dumbledore said with a shake of his head.
The two of them observed the interactions of the past-Harry and memory-Dobby, ending just after the visiting Mason family was ushered out the door. Dumbledore drew Harry out of the Pensieve and the two returned to their original bodies.
"Well, that ought to make my visit with the Improper Use of Magic Office a swift one. An open and shut case if I've ever seen one, Harry." Dumbledore said as he drew Harry's memory out of the Pensieve and placed it into a conjured crystal vial.
"Sir…" Harry spoke uncertainly, "Would it be possible to try and get Hagrid's criminal record overturned? If I gave a memory of Riddle's memory talking about what he had done, that is?"
Dumbledore looked thoughtful. "I must confess the thought of having Hagrid proven innocent of all wrongdoing appeals greatly to me. Such a case would require not only the memory, but for you to testify in person, my boy. Would you be willing?"
"But I'm underage." Harry protested.
"In the Wizarding World, anyone who is the Heir to a Noble House or more, are thirteen and has claimed their Heirs Ring is allowed to testify as an adult, including questioning under the truth potion Veritaserum, which is all but infallible…as long as the person being given it is sane." Dumbledore replied.
"I'll do it then." Harry nodded firmly.
"Very good then. I'll arrange things so that you get a summons from the Wizengamot a few days after your birthday." Dumbledore looked pleased, "Cornelius isn't going to like it, but I daresay that very little makes him happy that is out of the ordinary."
"Sounds like my uncle." Harry remarked.
"Cornelius is considerably less…fanatical…than your uncle." Dumbledore said, "He merely prefers thing to remain as they are. Safe, stable, secure and with himself as Minister. Now then, I believe we have discussed enough of your issue with the ancient laws for one day. I believe that you should read those books and then come back to me with any questions you might have."
"Alright sir." Harry was about to turn and leave when a bright flash of fire bloomed over the golden perch next to Dumbledore's desk and a red-gold bird the size of a swan appeared.
"Ah Fawkes. I was wondering where you had gotten off to." Dumbledore said, eyes twinkling. The Phoenix sang a couple of notes that filled Harry with warmth, just as they had in the Chamber of Secrets.
Fawkes fluttered over to Harry and landed on his shoulder. Harry hesitantly stroked Fawkes' feathers, which were very soft and warm to the touch.
"Fawkes seems rather fond of you Harry." Dumbledore chuckled, "That speaks a good deal about your character, as phoenixes tend to avoid all but those who are good and true."
Harry flushed at the implied compliment and focussed on stroking Fawkes' feathers, making Dumbledore chuckle at the boy's humility.
After petting Fawkes for a while, Harry excused himself and headed off to Gryffindor Tower, to do some serious reading and thinking.
HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP
The Next Day - Morning
Second Year Dormitory, Gryffindor Tower
Harry lay back on his bed with the curtains closed. He was busy reading the second book Professor Dumbledore had given him, as he had flipped through the law book quickly the night before and examined the ancient laws section.
There were about a hundred ancient laws bound to the Sovereignty Magic of Britain, put in place by various members of the Wizard's Council upon their founding, the most recent laws added being that of Merlin the Magnificent, the two laws that concerned Harry.
Regrettably, the laws were exactly as Rockclaw and Dumbledore explained to him. There was absolutely no wiggle room in them at all, no ability to avoid them, as they were written to prevent the noble families of Wizarding Britain from dying out.
Frustrated, Harry had turned to the section on blood purity to see if he couldn't use the prejudiced was of the Purebloods to get out of it, only to find that Merlin had been very crafty and sneaky (unsurprising considering he had been in Slytherin) when writing his laws.
Under the Merlin Amendment, any person who was at least one-sixteenth blood related to a Noble Family was eligible to become Head of House. Not very many people knew of it, but it was there. Harry had throw the book to one side in disgust and gone to sleep.
Now he was reading the book regarding Lords of Britain, which was…illuminating, to say the least, especially the current section he was reading.
"…In Magical Britain, there are two types of Lords: Lords of Blood and Lords of Magic.
Lords of Blood (not to be confused with vampires) are the Heads of House of any Noble Family. The title permits any Head of House to sit on the Wizengamot and almost guarantees the status of Department Head within the Ministry of Magic should they be employed by the Ministry. Being a Head of House also grants a slight increase to the wizard's magic.
Being a Lord of Magic, however, is of a completely different nature. It is not by blood, money or land that one is deemed a Lord of Magic, but by the Sovereignty Magic of Britain itself. Long before the founding of the Wizards Council, long before the Founding of Hogwarts, yet after the Romans abandoned Britain in the Year 410, the country of Magical Britain was divided into small magical fiefdoms ruled by a Lord of Magic, who was literally one with the land, able to sense all who dwelled within their lands, be they muggles, wizardkind or any non-human race.
The power that the Lords of Magic possessed in those days was a frightening thing, magic so strong that they were well able to defeat any number of lesser wizards, even when the wizards were arrayed as a unified fighting force against a Lord of Magic.
As time went on, the various fiefdoms were conquered by other Lords of Magic and added to the conqueror's own lands. This time is known for frequent magical clashes of epic proportions, reshaping the land as Lord fought Lord, only one walking away from each clash, bloodied but triumphant.
The situation came to the point that only two Lords remained. One holding all of Britain above Hadrian's Wall, or present-day Scotland, the other ruling over all land south of the mighty edifice, namely England and Wales, although their names remain shrouded in mystery to this day. For a couple of decades, the two ruled their lands in harmony, each choosing not to engage the other for fear that the resulting clash would shatter the land once and for all.
Then, for an unknown reason, the two met in the wizarding village of Turup's Grove and began the duel to determine who would be the sole ruler of the land. From all accounts, the duel was long and drawn out, lasting for three days and nights and utterly destroying the village in which the clash began.
When the dust settled, the Northern Lord of Magic had fallen, leaving the Southern Lord as the victor, although he was heavily wounded and had lost an arm.
The years carried on and the Lord carried out research on the magic that bound him to the entirety of Britain. He discovered that, when he died, all of that magic would die with him, no other Lords having risen taking with it a great deal of the magical potential of the land, which would cause the potential for life to wither until the magic regenerated itself, meaning the crops that fed the people would die, as would a fair few animals, wild and domesticated, mundane and magical.
The Lord called together some of the brightest minds of the time and they worked tirelessly to create a solution to prevent this. The Lord despised Dark Magic, so any immortality solution was dismissed, as most attempts at such a violation of the natural order are classed as Dark.
Eventually, the conclave created a solution. Using a powerful ritual, they would anchor the Lord's magic, and the magical connection inherently a part of it, to the very land of Britain itself at the moment of his death, ensuring that as long as the land survived, so too would the connection.
Rather than wait for his death to occur naturally, the Lord bade the conclave to prepare the ritual at once, for he knew that every day that he waited was one more day that another Lord could rise up and challenge him, and there was no telling if a new Lord would even care about the future of Britain.
It is unknown, even to this day, what the ritual was or how it was performed, but the facts remain: the Lord died, the land was preserved and magic was eternally bound to the country of Britain.
In honour of his sacrifice, the Lord was given the title of 'Sovereign' by the Conclave, soon to become the first incarnation of the Wizard's Council, and the magic that binds and preserves the land was named after his title, becoming known as the Sovereignty Magic of Magical Britain.
After this time, there were relatively few Lords of Magic and they were significantly weaker than their predecessors as they were not Lords of something as solid as land anymore, but of obscure concepts and causes that required a great deal of personal belief as well as innate magical power, although the exact perquisites to becoming a Lord of Magic are, to this day, still unknown.
At the time this book was written and published, there are currently two Lords of Magic in existence. The first is known and feared as the Dark Lord He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, the Lord of Magical Darkness.
The second is Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, the Lord of Magical Light. Both of these wizards are known for their extreme prowess in the magical arts and are widely regarded to be the strongest wizards since Merlin Himself."
"Bloody hell." Harry muttered as he closed the book. This explained why destroying the Sovereignty Magic was such a bad idea, if it was even possible, as no one knew how it had been created in the first place.
"Harry!" a female voice called from the door of his dormitory. Harry poked his head out of his curtains to see his female best friend, Hermione Granger, standing at the door, her hands on her hips and a determined look in her eyes.
"Hey 'Mione." Harry said as he climbed out of bed and put the book into his trunk, "What's up?"
"'What's up'? You only have ten minutes of breakfast left, that's what!" Hermione said with an eye roll, "Ronald sent me up to get you as he was too busy eating half of the contents of the kitchen to come himself. And what was that book?"
She seemed suspicious, which was quite natural as Harry rarely read anything but textbooks and the occasional foray into 'Quidditch Through The Ages'.
"You do know Ron hates being called by his full name, 'Mione." Harry replied as he walked over to her, attempting to divert her from asking about the book.
She sniffed before answering, "Well if he'd stop calling me 'Mione all the time, I would stop addressing him as Ronald."
"I call you 'Mione as well." Harry pointed out as they walked down to the Common Room, "Should I stop?"
"EH?!" Hermione seemed taken aback, "No, I don't mind you calling me that, it's just that Ron calling me that is…irritating. I don't want him to take me for granted, even to do with names."
Harry glanced at Hermione as they walked to the Great Hall and said, "'Mione, he doesn't take you for granted. You should have seen him when we saw you lying petrified in the Hospital Wing. He took it really hard."
She smiled at him at his words and asked, "And you?"
"I felt like I'd just been hit in the head with a Bludger." Harry replied instantly, shivering as he remembered Hermione's petrified form lying in the bed, unmoving and unresponsive, "I was numb, because I…kind of blamed myself for you getting attacked."
"Oh, Harry." Hermione sighed, exasperated with her friends guilt-complex, "I'm a Muggleborn. I was already on the list to be attacked. It was just bad luck it happened to me, out of all the other Muggleborns in Hogwarts."
"No, the person behind the attacks chose to stalk you until you were alone, or close to it, and then attack you to make sure I'd go after him." Harry corrected her.
Hermione looked startled again. Harry had only given her and Ron the highpoints of what had actually happened in the Chamber, but perhaps he should elaborate on that after breakfast.
"I'll tell you after I've eaten something." he promised and Hermione nodded. As they entered the Great Hall, the two friends noticed Draco Malfoy sulking at the Slytherin table, still angry that his father had been sacked as a School Governor.
"Looks like Draco's still sour." Harry muttered to Hermione with a hint of satisfaction in his voice.
"Poor Draco." Hermione said with false sympathy, "My heart just bleeds for him."
The two of them laughed at that, earning a glare from the Malfoy Scion as the walked to the Gryffindor table and sat next to Ron Weasley, who was in the middle of his who-knew-how-many helping of an all English Breakfast.
" 'ello, 'arry." Ron said, his mouth full of food.
"Ronald, either eat or talk! Don't do both!" Hermione scolded him on automatic.
"Oh give over, Hermione!" Ron moaned as he finished his mouthful, "What are you, my mum?"
"I daresay Mrs Weasley would do worse than scold you if she saw the manners you display at the table in Hogwarts." the bushy haired girl replied instantly.
As his two friends settled into one of their regular (and frequent) quarrels, Harry got down to the serious business of eating what he could before breakfast was over. As he moved bacon, sausages and some toast onto his plate, he began to think about how to tell his best friends about his…well, his marriage problem was the best way to put it, he supposed.
The main problem was, the law that activated the Bloodline Legacy Continuation Act, the Line and Lineage Conquering Act, was under the Fidelius Charm, thus he couldn't tell them about it, which was…not good.
'Professor Dumbledore is one of the Secret Keepers for that law. Maybe he can help me explain it to them?' Harry though, unusually optimistic, 'At the very least, he can let them in on the secret.'
Cheered slightly by the though of having the help of the headmaster in telling his friends, Harry dug into his food.
Later -Empty DADA Classroom
"You-Know-Who was the one who possessed Ginny?!" Ron gaped in shock. For once, Hermione seemed to be on the same page as Ron, because she was white in shock, with her hazel eyes wide.
"Yup." Harry said not really looking at the pair of them, "Professor Dumbledore was quite impressed with how Riddle enchanted the diary at only sixteen."
"That makes four times that he's tried to kill you now Harry!" Hermione said, her voice rising in volume and pitch as she spoke, making Harry glad that she had cast several Silencing and Notice-Me-Not Charms on the door at his request.
Harry waved a hand at her. "Hermione, the Dark Tosser's had it in for me since I was one." he said impatiently, "I beat him as a baby; that's an insult he cannot let pass if he ever comes back. The point is that being around me is going to get more dangerous. Look at this year; Ginny was targeted because she is my best friend's sister and Hermione was targeted because she's my other best friend."
"Harry James Potter, don't you even dare think you are going to try and push us away 'for our own good'!" Hermione yelled at him.
"Too right mate." Ron agreed with Hermione, "Harry, my entire family are considered Blood-Traitors by You-Know-Who's followers. She could have been chosen because of that!"
"And as I told you before, I am a Muggleborn; friends with you or not, I am a target for V-v-v-voldemort." Hermione said angrily, only faltering on saying the name of Riddle's nom de guerre.
"I know." Harry said, sinking into a nearby chair with a sigh, "But you have to admit that if you aren't so close to me, you won't be targeted with as much…zeal as if you stay close to me."
"That doesn't matter Harry." Hermione said softly. She leaned against the desk and put a hand on his shoulder, "Ron and I are not abandoning you, regardless of what you say. Understand?"
"If you don't I can get Fred and George to prank the idea firmly into your head." Ron quipped as he grinned mischievously at Harry, who snorted and shook his head.
"Thanks, but I'd rather not wake up looking like Malfoy on a bad hair day." he said dryly, making Ron fake throwing up and Hermione wrinkle her nose.
"Mate, I so didn't need that image!" Ron said in disgust, "He looks bad enough on a good day; I do not want to see him on a bad day!"
"Agreed." said Hermione, looking rather green at the thought.
Harry laughed at the reactions of his two friends, but then became serious.
"Guys, there was a…consequence of sorts to what happened down in the chamber." he said, gaining their immediate attention, "Nothing life threatening or immediate, but…well it isn't something I'm happy about."
"What? What's wrong?" Hermione asked sharply.
"…I can't tell you all of it, because part of it is concealed behind a powerful Charm called a Fidelius." Harry replied slowly, "Until the Secret Keeper tells you two himself, I literally can't say anything about it."
"I've never heard of that Charm." Hermione furrowed her brow in thought, "What does it do? How does it work? What are its limits?"
"Blimey Hermione, let the man get a word in edgewise!" Ron interrupted her.
Harry smiled, as one of Hermione's strongest traits appeared: her thirst for knowledge. He briefly summed up what he knew of the Fidelius Charm, adding that he only knew the bare bones of what the Charm did.
"Talk about high security." Ron remarked, "So what're you going to do?"
"Ask Professor Dumbledore to let you two in on the secret. You need to know about the part I can't tell you right now to understand the part that I can tell you, but won't right now." Harry replied frankly, "I can say that the law in question is an ancient law bound to the Sovereignty Magic of Britain by Merlin himself. Nothing can be done to get me out of complying with it short of me dying."
Ron and Hermione exchanged alarmed looks. By the sounds of it, Harry had already tried to get out of it…and failed.
Ron tried to remember anything he had been told about ancient laws. He vaguely recalled his father teaching him about them when he was ten, but he hadn't really paid them any attention. The Weasley's were Blood-Traitors after all, and proud of it. None of the laws were likely to affect them, so why bother learning them?
Right now, he felt like an idiot for daydreaming about riding the Comet 260 or the Nimbus 2000 while his father had tried to teach him the laws.
Hermione was listing all the books she knew that had the laws of Wizarding Britain in them, and frowning as she could only list a handful that mentioned specific laws, rather than a general law book.
Harry knew his friends well and could read their faces like the pages of a book. He gave them a small smile and said, "Even if you knew the law beforehand, the Fidelius would prevent you from being able to speak about it to someone who isn't in on the secret."
They nodded at that, but Hermione had a stubborn look on her face that Harry and Ron recognised all too well: she was on a quest now, and nothing could stop her from researching the topic until all its secrets were laid bare before her.
"I have a book that Dumbledore gave me, an automatic-updating version of the laws of the Wizengamot." Harry told her, "But again, the Fidelius will hide the law from any who haven't been told by the Secret Keeper, so again, it would be better to wait until Professor Dumbledore tells you the secret."
Hermione didn't look happy about information being kept from her, but nodded in agreement.
"Now, I think we should go and visit Hagrid." Harry said, changing the subject to a more cheerful one, "It's been a while and I have some news for him."
Surprised, Ron and Hermione nodded and, after Hermione took down her charms, trooped after Harry down to Hagrid's Hut, where their half-giant friend was sitting outside his home with Fang, his pet boarhound, as he whittled a piece of wood with his overlarge penknife.
" 'ello, 'arry, Ron, 'ermione! Nice ta see ya!" Hagrid beamed at them, his black, beetle-like eyes twinkling at them over his large beard, " Nice of yeh ta drop in on me. Tea?"
"Sure." Harry nodded. As he and his two friends sat down Hagrid entered his small house and came out with a kettle and four mugs.
"How are you doing, Hagrid?" Hermione asked, noticing he still looked slightly worn and tired after his short stay in the Wizard's Prison, Azkaban.
"Be'er than I was when I left that damned prison." Hagrid said feelingly as he poured tea into the cups and passed them out, "Them Azkaban guards…I never wanna hafta go near 'em again."
Ron nodded in agreement, but Harry and Hermione looked perplexed. They looked at each other for a moment before turning back to Hagrid.
"Who are the Azkaban guards anyway?" Harry asked, "The way everyone talks about them, they seem to be the bogey-men of the Wizarding World."
Hagrid snorted. "Migh' as well be." he said, "See, most'a the Azkaban guards ain't human. Literally. There are a few human Aurors around, but most of the guards are…Dementors."
The half-giant shivered almost as bad as he had when he had told Harry Voldemort's name when he had given the eleven-year-old him his Hogwarts letter.
"What're Dementors?" he asked.
"Evil blighters so they are." Hagrid said as he took a slurp of his tea, "They float a foot offa the ground, an' wear a pitch-black cloak. That ain't the worst a' them. They suck the happiness outta yeh, every happy an' pleasant thought yeh have, until yer left with nuthin' but yer worst memories an' experiences. Nuthin' but despair."
"And they threw you in with those…those monsters!?" Hermione half-shrieked in anger, "You were innocent! There was no possible way you were Slytherin's Heir!"
"Ah knew that, Perfesser Dumbledore knew that an' you three knew that, but ol' Fudge didn't know or care. He jes' wanted someone ta blame so he didn't get accused a' incompetence by the parents." Hagrid told her sadly, a faint smile on his bearded face, "All that matters now is that ah'm out and ah'm not goin' back if ah can help it."
"Actually, I came to talk to you about that Hagrid." Harry said with a mischievous smile on his face.
"Uh-oh, ah know that look." Hagrid said in amusement, "Yer father looked almos' exactly like that when he was about ta do a big prank. He made Fred an' George look tame by comparison."
"Really?" Harry asked eagerly. He always liked to hear about his parents.
"Yeah, James was a right jokester, always plannin' somethin' or other." Hagrid said fondly, "I mind when he pranked Filch one time. Somehow dressed the ol' git like a ballerina, tutu, tights an' all."
Ron went green. "I really didn't need to hear that!" he moaned.
"Too right." Harry agreed wholeheartedly, "So, moving away from the subject of Filch, I've asked Professor Dumbledore to clear your name Hagrid."
"Tha's a nice thought 'arry, but even though someone else did it this time, even Perfesser Dumbledore'd need proof ta get ridda the accusations fifty year ago." Hagrid said with another sad smile.
"Which he has." Harry said with a grin, "A witness who heard Tom Marvolo Riddle confess to having opened the Chamber of Secrets the last time."
"What?! Who?" Hagrid exclaimed with his eyes wide, accidentally breaking his cup in is astonishment.
"Reparo" Harry pulled his wand out and repaired the cup with a single flick before saying, "Me. The memory of Riddle came out of the diary to confront me and pretty much followed his older self's suit in taunting me: blah, blah, blah, 'your mother was a Mudblood' , blah, blah, blah, 'you stand no chance against me Potter', blah, blah, blah, 'I opened the Chamber and framed Hagrid.'"
Hagrid looked at Harry in shock. "He…he told yeah that…but…" the larger than life man struggled with his next objection, "Yer not of age, 'arry. Yer memory can't be used as evidence!"
"Right now, yes." Harry acknowledged, "When I turn thirteen though, I can put on my Heir's Ring, which gains me a few rights, responsibilities and statuses. Chief among them in this case is the fact that the Department of Magical Law Enforcement has to treat any testimony given by me as one given by an adult. Unfortunately, they have to question me with the truth potion Veritaserum when they do that."
"Bloody hell!" Ron blurted, "That's the strongest truth potion in existence!"
"Ronald!" Hermione scolded on automatic while she looked at Ron with an eyebrow up in surprise. "How do you know that?" she asked. There was no way Ron looked it up from the NEWT-level coursework as he hated to study, so how…?
"Dad told me about one time when he had to testify in a case after being given it." Ron explained. Arthur Weasley was the Department Head for the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office at the Ministry of Magic, so this was probably one of the cases when he'd been on a raid and had to testify about what happened and what he found.
"He said that he couldn't hold anything back." Ron looked both fearful and disgusted by the fact, "Tasteless, scentless…a hundred percent effective and undetectable. That's why it's illegal for anyone to spike a drink with it. It earns you time in Azkaban if you're caught doing it."
"What matters here is that taking the stuff lets me testify that Hagrid is innocent!" Harry said with an eye roll.
"Yeh…yeh'd do that fer me?" Hagrid asked hoarsely.
"Of course!" Harry said, "You're my friend, Hagrid! Besides, Riddle has won every day that this stupid charge has hung over your head. I don't want him to win for any longer than is needed."
Hagrid, seemingly speechless with emotion, engulfed Harry in a vice-like hug that felt like it was snapping his ribs.
"Thank yeh, 'arry." He said once he let the last Potter go, "I dunno how I can thank yeh."
Harry, his ribs aching, nonetheless smiled at his first friend in the Wizarding World. "Just let me take you to Ollivanders once you're cleared so I can return the favour from before Hogwarts, alright?"
Once again, Harry was treated to the overenthusiastic hug of a half-giant, after which he had to go to the Hospital Wing in order to get a Pain-Relief Potion from Madame Pomfrey.
Later that Day…
"This is odd." Harry said abruptly. He, Ron and Hermione were sitting in the Library while the smartest witch of their year browsed the shelves for books on law, even conscripting the aid of Madame Pince to her cause.
"What is?" Ron asked. The redhead was reading 'Quidditch Through the Ages' yet again while eyeing Hermione occasionally as if she were mad.
"I was supposed to get an statement from Gringotts today about my vaults." Harry replied, "Did none show up with post for me before Hermione came to get me?"
"Nope." Ron replied, "Just Hermione's copy of The Daily Prophet and a letter from mum telling me to look after Ginny."
"Odd." Harry muttered, "Oh! How is Ginny anyway?"
"About what you'd expect." Ron said as he turned the page, "Quiet and a bit withdrawn. Not even Fred and George can get her to smile. Been like that since mum and dad went back to the Burrow."
"Should I have a word with her?" Harry offered, knowing full well what was causing the youngest Weasley's withdrawal from her family: guilt. She had been told by her father 'not to trust anything when you couldn't see where it kept its brain', but had ignored that advice when it came to Tom Riddle's diary and Harry -not to mention everyone who had been petrified- had almost paid the price for that.
"Nah, it'll be fine." Ron said dismissively, "Once she gets home, Mum'll help her get over it."
Harry and Hermione exchanged sceptical looks at the lazy reassurance from their friend. Harry made a note to track down the only female Weasley and straighten a few things out with her before they left on the Hogwarts Express the next week.
"Mr Potter." the precise speech of Professor Minerva McGonagall echoed across the Library, earning a scowl from Madame Pince, but no other reaction from the usually volatile librarian as the Transfiguration Professor walked across the Library towards Harry's table.
"Yes Professor?" Harry asked once she got close enough. He didn't want Madame Pince to take her anger out on him!
"Mr Potter, Professor Dumbledore would like to speak with yourself, Mr Weasley and Miss Granger in his office." the stern teacher informed him, "I am told that you know the password."
"Y-yes I do." Harry replied, his mind racing. What now? "Thank you for telling me."
Professor McGonagall merely nodded before striding out of the Library. Harry turned to Hermione and was amused to see that the bookworm was torn between which books to take out and which to put back on the shelves. He casually offered to let her use his own allotment of books, which earned him one of the bushy-haired girl's patented hugs before she tore off towards Madame Pince's desk with the large stack of books in tow.
"Blimey." Ron remarked, "Mental that one."
After Hermione checked out what seemed like half of the Library and deposited the books in her dorm room, the trio set out for Dumbledore's office. When Harry gave the password and the gargoyle jumped to one side, Hermione started muttering under her breath as she tried to figure out which spells made it move, which made Harry grin slightly.
"Ah Harry." Dumbledore greeted him from his desk as he finished writing something on a piece of parchment, "Mr Weasley, Miss Granger, I am pleased you both came along with Harry, as there are some things which you need to be informed of. Allow me to draw you both a chair."
The Headmaster did precisely that, conjuring a pair of squashy armchairs with a couple of careless flicks of his wand on either side of the chair already present in front of his desk. Harry was gestured towards that one, while Ron and Hermione sat in the other two.
"Now then, to start with Harry, your statement from Gringotts arrived." Dumbledore said, "I have, you understand, had a mail-diversion ward placed on Privet Drive and Hogwarts so that any malicious letters, fan mail and any other letters addressed to you from people you don't know are diverted to me."
"Thank you for that sir." Harry said, shuddering at the thought of a deluge of fan mail from unknown people, but… "Could you alter them so I can get statements from my Account Manager though? It would be a bit inconvenient for both of us if I have to have to pick them up from you all the time."
Dumbledore chuckled. "Quite so. I have since altered the Hogwarts wards thusly and will take care of your relative's wards when I visit them the day after tomorrow. In the meantime, here is your statement."
He passed to Harry a thick parchment envelope with his name of it and held shut with the Gringotts seal. Harry took it and placed it on his lap before returning his attention to Dumbledore.
"Moving on, might I enquire how much you have told your two friends here about your…situation?" Dumbledore asked tactfully.
Harry gave the Professor a rundown of what he had told Ron and Hermione, which he had to admit, was a series of tantalising hints and shadowy maybes.
"That was rather well done, Harry." Dumbledore observed once he had heard everything, "Doubtlessly frustrating for Mr Weasley and Miss Granger, but you did, I believe, tell them what little you could without being a Secret Keeper."
"Professor, Harry said that he wouldn't tell us what he could before we were told what he couldn't tell us." Hermione piped up, "Why is that?"
"Ah, an excellent question Miss Granger." Dumbledore said with a smile, "Part of the reason is that without the necessary background knowledge, what Harry has held back from telling you has little context and will be hard to understand. The main reason Harry has not told you what he can, however, is that he fears losing your friendship, Miss Granger."
This earned Harry a pair of smacks on the arm from both of his friends along with a glare from Hermione.
"Now then, Miss Granger, please read this piece of parchment and then pass it to Mr Weasley." Dumbledore passed a small piece of parchment to Hermione, who scanned it rapidly and then gasped once she finished it.
"Merlin!" she looked at Harry, a mix of pity and comprehension in her eyes. She absently passed the scrap of parchment to Ron who's eyes bugged out when he read the parchment.
"Bloody Hell!" he shouted.
"Ronald!" Hermione scolded.
"Hermione, I think that when your best mate pinches You-Know-Who's bloody Noble Title after kicking his arse three times in a row, worrying about swearing is a little daft!" Ron told her heatedly.
"But I don't understand!" Hermione ignored Ron and turned to the Headmaster, "Harry's only defeated You-Know-Who twice, once as a baby and once in First Year. The diary wasn't him, so why did the law invoke itself?"
"Evidently it was Voldemort, Miss Granger." Dumbledore replied calmly, ignoring Ron's muffled yelp at the name being uttered, "The magic that detects this sort of thing, Sovereignty Magic, is never mistaken. We should assume that there was something that we do not know about the diary that allowed the memory of Tom Riddle to qualify as Voldemort for the law to invoke itself…which caused another law to invoke itself."
"Another one?!" Ron exclaimed. One ancient law being invoked on someone was as rare as hen's teeth, but two? On the same person? It was nigh unheard of.
"Er…yeah." Harry said with a flush, "You see…I was already going to be the Head of the Most Noble and Ancient House of Potter, as well as the Head of the Most Noble and Most Ancient House of Peverell. Getting the 'Lord Slytherin' title activated the Bloodline Legacy Continuation Act-"
"-Meaning that Harry here is required, by ancient law, to wed three witches, one for every title he holds." Dumbledore smoothly interjected himself into the explanation, "He cannot get out of it and the consequences for ignoring it are…unpleasant, to say the least."
Hermione's mind had frozen. Harry, her best friend, had to marry three times? She was…unspeakably angry. Not with Harry or Professor Dumbledore, but they were all she had to take her anger out on, so she opened her mouth to start a tirade, when Harry raised his hand in a 'stop' gesture.
"Before you start 'Mione, remember what I told you before we went to visit Hagrid; I have tried to find a way out of this. I do not want it and did not try to get it. Short of me dying, I am stuck." Harry said before he settled back and watched Hermione carefully.
The bushy-haired witch closed her still open mouth with an audible 'click' and began to think. Harry didn't want to get married three times. He had told her several times in the last day how he had attempted -and failed- to find a way out of this situation. She really couldn't be angry with him.
"Professor, why is such an antique and out of date law still on the books?" Hermione asked coolly.
"Because, alas, the only way to remove it is with Merlin's own Keystone, which he hid somewhere shortly before the fall of Camelot." Dumbledore replied, "Before the Keystone, only a founding member of the original Wizard's Council could add or remove laws to the Sovereignty Magic. Without one of these, I am afraid we are rather stuck with them."
Ron, who had been sitting surprisingly quietly for him, spoke up then, "What are the consequences if Harry doesn't pick wives? If he does nothing?"
"By the time he turns seventeen, he is to be engaged to marry three witches." Dumbledore replied, "Should he not be, the Fidelius guarding the initial law, the Line and Lineage Conquering Act, will be broken and the Wizengamot will be put in charge of selecting witches for any unfilled titles. And, regrettably, they are likely to pick the daughters of members of Voldemort's supporters."
"So if he does nothing, it's checkmate." Ron said thoughtfully.
"Ronald! Harry is being strong-armed into marrying three witches!" Hermione lambasted him, "Aren't you the least bit angry about this?"
"No." Ron replied simply, "I've known that some laws are the will of magic itself since I was young. Harry didn't know about them, but he is still subject to them, as are you Hermione, at least those that don't specify any lower limits of blood purity."
"Quite right Mr Weasley." Dumbledore broke in, "For example, the Merlin Amendment states that someone has to be at least one-sixteenth of a blood descendent to be a head of house. Harry, as an exact Half-blood, is far more than qualified to be the Head of any Noble House, at least by those rules."
"But…but…this is wrong!" Hermione protested.
"We are aware of that Miss Granger, but beating our heads against a brick wall will not change the facts before us." Dumbledore told her solemnly, "Harry has trusted you both with this knowledge despite the fact he knows that you in particular Miss Granger are likely to disapprove of this. What he needs from you both is your support, not constant repetitions of 'this is wrong'."
The venerable Headmaster stood and walked around his desk and towards the door. "I shall loan you my office for a private conversation between yourselves for the next…five minute or so, while I fetch a snack from the kitchens." he continued, "I trust you will sort things out between yourselves in that timeframe."
With that, Dumbledore opened the door and walked out with a jaunty step. As the wooden door closed with a light click, the silence in the office began to become deafening until Harry snorted in amusement.
"That has to be the moist tactful 'make up now or else' command I have ever heard." he observed.
"Mum would have whacked us over the head with a spoon and stood over us while we said everything." Ron mused, "Then serve up a meal fit to feed all of Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff."
"It's all very well to tell us to 'sort things out between us', but this can't be sorted out!" Hermione said sourly, "My one of my best friends is being forced to marry three women at the same time! This law is sexist and demeaning towards women!"
"Hermione, didn't you listen to Dumbledore?" Ron asked slowly, "The only thing that can remove the law has been lost for hundreds of years. No wizard or witch who has tried to alter the Sovereignty Magic without Merlin's Keystone has survived the experience. The magic was too powerful for them and drained their magic until they died."
"I refuse to believe that there is nothing that can be done!" Hermione insisted stubbornly.
"Oi!" Harry yelled, getting the two out of their usual pattern of bickering for once, "Look, there are three things I can do here. First, do nothing. The result of which will be the likes of Lucius Malfoy choosing who I marry, from people like Millicent Bulstrode and Pansy Parkinson."
Hermione scowled at the mention of the two bullying girls who pandered and fawned over Malfoy like he was the Second Coming, while Ron looked green at the thought.
"Second, I can off myself, because that is literally the only way I am getting out of this, from everything that I have read and what my Goblin Account Manager has told me."
"Yeah, not happening." Ron said firmly, Hermione nodding frantically along with him.
"That only leaves me with the least desirable option: Find and marry three witches before I am twenty-one, getting engaged before I am seventeen." Harry shrugged helplessly, "I don't like it and wish I didn't have to go through with it, but given my choices, it is the only reasonable choice to make."
Hermione 'harrumphed' lightly but nodded reluctantly. "I hate to admit it, but you have a point." she sighed.
"Any clue who you're going to ask?" Ron asked shrewdly.
"Not a one." Harry replied, "Two of my…wives…have to be Purebloods, House Peverell and Slytherin. Peverell also stipulates that she be magically powerful and not have any 'unsightly blemishes on her countenance'."
"Eh?" Ron asked.
"She can't have boils or acne on her face." Hermione dumbed it down for him.
"Oh. Well, at least that rules out Eloise Midgeon." Ron remarked.
Harry frowned. "The girl with pretty bad acne?" he clarified.
"That's her." Ron nodded.
"OK then. Anyway, the only other stipulation from House Peverell is that she come from a family who is at least an Ancient House, like the Weasley Family." Harry moved on.
"Blimey. What about Slytherin?" Ron asked.
"Just…just that she be a Pureblood and that she remains a v…v…v-virgin until her wedding night." Harry flushed red at having to say this kind of thing in front of Hermione, who was also a bit red.
"And…House Potter?" Ron asked, oblivious to their discomfort, evidently still being at the girls-are-weird level of mental male maturity.
"I have to love her. That's it." Harry replied with a small smile.
"Right then." Hermione said getting her steely analytical look on her face, "So we know the criteria of each family requirements for marriage, plus the deadline, your seventeenth birthday. We have just over four years to find three girls that would be willing to share you with each other and aren't likely to betray you for You-Know-Who's agenda."
"That sums it up quite nicely." Harry noted.
"Well any of the Slytherins are out!" Ron stated.
"Dumbledore said that I shouldn't let my dislike of Malfoy tar all of Slytherin with the same brush." Harry countered, "He even mentioned one…Greengrass, I think her surname was?"
"Daphne? In our year?" Hermione checked. When Harry confirmed that, Hermione nodded in apparent agreement.
"Daphne is known as the 'Ice Queen' of Slytherin as she rebuffs anyone who approaches her. She is very smart, coming in very close to me in our year's overall rankings and I think she has a sister who is in her First Year at the moment." Hermione reeled off what she knew of her.
"Dumbledore also says that the Greengrass Family is one of the Neutral section of the Wizengamot." Harry added, "They weren't Voldemort -oh, stop flinching at the name already Ron!- Voldemort supporters or Death Eaters in the last war, they kept out of it."
"So…a possible?" Hermione asked delicately.
"I don't know her from a hole in the wall Hermione." Harry said, "And if she's anything like you, she'll have taken Study of Ancient Runes and Arithmancy, not Divination and Care of Magical Creatures. Although…"
He trailed off and looked thoughtful. "I've been thinking…" Harry continued slowly, "In First Year, we had Quirrellmort and the Philosopher's Stone and this Year we had the whole 'Heir of Slytherin' incident and the Basilisk. If things keep happening like this, I think I'm going to have to study a lot harder if I want to survive."
"Hate to say it, but you do have a point mate." Ron said with a grimace.
"So?" Hermione had guessed what Harry was going to say, but waited to hear him say it.
"Looking at it, I don't really think that Divination will help me much." Harry said firmly, "I mean, sure, IF I were a Seer, it would be useful, but I'm not. I think I'll speak to McGonagall and see If I can drop Divination and take Study of Ancient Runes and Arithmancy instead."
"Oh Harry!" Hermione squealed, "I am SO proud of you!"
She leaned over and hugged him as she spoke, then leaned back and beamed at him. She loved learning and was frequently alone in her seriousness in studying, even with the more mature members of her year, so she was delighted that Harry was finally taking his studies seriously.
"Blimey, mate. You want to take the maximum amount of classes you're allowed to take?" Ron asked in amazement.
Harry shrugged and said, "CoMC will be useful for any Dark creature s I have to face…like bloody Basilisks! Arithmancy is used to scientifically predict the future based on numerology, as well as create spells. Runes will let me make wards and improve my ability to enchant and augment items."
He caught Hermione and Ron's looks of amazement. "Hey, I've been thinking about this since just after I killed the Basilisk, alright…and doing some reading." he defended himself.
"I know." Hermione smiled, "You weren't exactly subtle about it, you know."
"To most people, I was subtle." Harry retorted, "You just know me too well."
"I would have to agree with Harry here." an amused voice said from the door. Albus Dumbledore stood in the open door, a tray of scones, jam and butter in one hand, his eyes twinkling in amusement.
"He is actually very stealthy and unobtrusive when he wishes to, particularly when he uses that rather magnificent cloak of his father's." the elderly man continued as he strode around his desk and placed the tray in front of the trio.
"Help yourselves." He invited as he spread a thick coat of butter across one scone and bit into it.
Ron needed no second invitation and eagerly dug in. Harry and Hermione exchanged a look of mingled fondness and exasperation with their gluttonous friend and silently agreed to put off any further discussion of Harry's problem until later.
"When did you get here sir?" Harry asked as he reached for a scone himself, "I didn't hear you come in."
"Around about the time you were discussing changing your electives." Dumbledore replied, "I must agree with your choices Harry. I have never liked the art of Divination myself and would have preferred to discontinue the subject. Alas, the Headmaster's Oath means that so long as I can find teachers for a subject, I must continue them."
"Do you mean the oath written by Rowena Ravenclaw just before she fell prey to the wasting sickness that killed her?" Hermione asked.
"The very same." Dumbledore nodded as he spread some raspberry jam over another scone, "But to be precise, she ensured that each Founder wrote a part of the Oath. Her own section of the Oath was 'I do solemnly swear to keep this bastion of knowledge available to all who would learn, and I do vow that all knowledge will be of equal standing and available to all students.'"
"I read that some subject have been removed from the curriculum by past Headmasters though." Hermione said with a frown.
"True, but that was in response to changing times." Dumbledore replied, "Sword Duelling was removed when Muggles outlawed any but the military from carrying them. Alchemy was discontinued due to the fact it was outdated and had long since been surpassed by other branches of magic, other than the Philosopher's Stone. Most of the textbooks are actually still in the Library, so feel free to study them if you wish."
"So…you think I am doing the right thing by changing my courses then, sir?" Harry asked.
"Oh, quite so." Dumbledore replied, "In fact, allow me to pass your course changes on to Professor McGonagall for you, dear boy."
"Thank you sir." Harry said in surprise.
"Think nothing of it." Dumbledore waved Harry's thanks away airily, "Now, I would suggest you three head back to your common room for a while, taking care to stay away from the Grand Staircase as Peeves has a rather nasty prank in mind for the next person who tries to ascend them."
"Thanks for the tip sir." Harry replied as he and his friends rose to leave.
"Bye sir." Ron said as he surreptitiously wiped the scone crumbs from his robes.
"Ron!" Hermione noticed despite his attempted stealth and quickly Scourgified the offending crumbs before beginning to scold him
As they left the office, still squabbling, Dumbledore was chuckling at the antics of the two friends and exchanged an amused glance with Harry before he followed his friends out the door.
"Hermione, the job of 'my mum' is already taken, so stop acting like her already!" Ron was saying to Hermione when Harry caught up with them.
"I'm not! I'm just making sure you know when you have been impolite!" Hermione fired back.
"Please see my last comment." Ron retorted. As the three crossed into a crossroad-like area of the school, a sneering voice called out from ahead of them.
"Well, well, look what we have here, it's Potty, the Weasel and the Mudblood." Draco Malfoy proclaimed as he strode forwards, his usual 'friends' (read: bodyguards) Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle Junior loomed behind him.
"What do you want Malfoy?" Harry sighed. He really didn't want to have to deal with the ball of spite that was the younger Malfoy.
"My father was disgraced because of you, Potter." Malfoy said angrily, "He said to say watch your back…as well as your friend's backs…who knows what kind of…accidents…could happen to them…"
As Malfoy's voice trailed off in an attempt at a threatening manner, Ron, who's face had been growing steadily redder as the arrogant scion of the Malfoy family spoke, tried to draw his wand, only to remember it was gone, destroyed in the Chamber of Secrets by the idiot Lockhart.
"Ah, what's wrong Weasel? Lost your wand?" Malfoy sneered.
"Malfoy, shut up and watch your mouth when dealing with your superiors." Harry said flatly, making Malfoy's jaw drop.
"'Superior' The Weasel? Hardly." Draco scoffed.
"The Ancient House of Weasley actually IS superior to the Noble House of Malfoy," Harry corrected him, "But I was referring to you threatening a member of the Most Noble and Ancient House of Potter…in other words, me."
"Wha…you…half-blood scum!" Draco spat out incoherently.
"What, does it get your goat Malfoy? The fact that, despite your family having lived in Britain for almost a thousand years, you are still not considered worthy of the title 'Noble and Ancient'?" Harry said softly, "Does it feel humiliating that Ron's family, who lost that title in the last two-hundred years, is STILL considered to outrank you? Oh, I think it does, doesn't it?"
"Serpensortia!" Malfoy screamed in rage as he pointed his wand at Harry, conjuring a large black snake that hissed at Harry threateningly.
"You have a really bad memory Malfoy." Harry smirked before turning his attention to the snake.
/Find the nearest window and leave this castle. Never attack a human.\ Harry hissed in Parseltongue at the snake.
/By your will, Speaker.\ the snake hissed and slithered away.
Malfoy flushed red at Harry's casual dismissal of his conjured snake, not even bothering to draw his wand to deal with it.
"Locomotor Wibbly!" he snarled, sending the Jelly-Legs Jinx at Harry this time, who dodged tot the side and drew his own wand.
"Mucus ad Nauseam Maxima!" he shouted, sending the most powerful version of the Curse of the Bogies at Malfoy in a jet of green light, which struck the white-haired brat in his chest.
"A-a-a-a-a-a-a-achooo!" Malfoy sneezed, spraying the ground in front of him with what looked like a pint of snot, making Ron go, "Ewww."
The half-trolls -pardon me, bodyguards began to move towards Harry threateningly, making him switch his attention to them.
"Partum est Puris!" Harry shouted, a loud 'bang' coming from his wand and his target, Crabbe, who reeled back as a large amount of sickening yellow pus erupted from his nose.
"Terit!" Goyle rasped, sending a Stinging Hex at Harry, who winced as his off-hand was struck and started to swell up like a balloon.
"Steleus!" he countered, hitting the mean-spirited boy with a series of green rings that made him sneeze uncontrollably.
Harry then returned his attention to Malfoy, who looked like he was having the most severe flu case in the world.
"I have heard your message, Malfoy." Harry said coldly, "Now, take one back to your dear old dad for me. Tell Lucy the Loser that if he so much as touches my friends, I will make your life at Hogwarts a hell from which you will not wake from. Tell him he is pathetic and a coward. Tell him he is a hypocrite who follows a half-blood. Look up the history of one Tom Marvolo Riddle Junior. That is whom he serves.
Now go to the Hospital Wing with your boy-toys and out of my sight!"
Malfoy and his goons staggered off towards the Hospital Wing, too bunged up with their various curses to even sneer at Harry as they went.
Harry turned back to Ron and Hermione, who were gaping at him.
"What?" he asked.
"Mate, was that first one the Curse of the Bogies?" Ron asked, almost reverently.
"Yep. Found the basic version in the Library, along with the more powerful version I just used on Malfoy." Harry replied, "Even with the counter-curse, he's still going to have a head cold for the next week, one that Pepper-Up Potions won't work on well."
"Remind me not to get on your bad side mate." Ron said as he shook his head, "And can you teach me that?"
"Sure." Harry laughed, "Once you get a new wand."
"Merlin, I hate not having my wand." Ron groused, "Even the broken one was better than this. Bloody Lockhart."
"Ronald! Language!" Hermione scolded, "And Harry, you might want to do something about your left hand."
"Oh, right." Harry saw that his hand looked like a blown up glove.
"Reparifors" he said, pointing his wand at his hand, causing it to reduce in size to normal.
"Good thing you looked that up after we learned the Stinging Hex, 'Mione." Harry said with a grin. The Reparifors spell was good at dealing with very minor magically induced afflictions, just like the Stinging hex.
"What would you two do without me?" Hermione asked rhetorically as she led the trio towards the Gryffindor Common Room.
"I don't want to find out." Harry muttered as they approached the Fat Lady.
A shriek came from the other side of the Fat Lady, in the Grand Staircase, which made Harry grin.
"Sounds like Peeves caught Malfoy in his prank." he remarked.
"My day is complete." Ron said happily.
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Next Chapter: Ice and Fire
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