The Founding of Happiness
by Healer Pomfrey
All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes.
COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC! Time travel!
It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, don't read it.
Reviews are very welcome, as they inspire my muse. Thank you very much for the kind reviews for the previous chapter!
In the morning, Harry sat at the Gryffindor table together with Hermione and Neville as far away as possible from Professor Snape. Half through breakfast, he saw the Grey Lady hovering behind the Ravenclaw table, grinning.
"Watch Snape," Harry whispered to his two friends, and together they watched the professor's features as they changed to those of a house elf. Each part of his body that was not covered by his black clothes, held a light pink colour, and his large floppy ears were overwhelming. Within seconds, the Great Hall became utterly quiet before the students suddenly erupted into peals of laughter.
Harry tried not to laugh too much, but when Hermione blurted out, "He looks so cute," he couldn't hold on any more.
Five minutes later, the headmaster stood from his chair and announced, "Today, all first period classes are cancelled due to an urgent staff meeting that requires the presence of all teachers. Please return to your common rooms until the second class of the day commences."
"Harry, are you coming with us?" Hermione enquired, while everyone stood from their seats to return to their House Common Rooms.
"No Hermione, I'll go to my room and see you when classes begin," Harry replied, grinning inwardly. He hurried back to his room and straight into Rowena's and Godric's living room, knowing that there was a door, which led straight into the staff room, ending behind a large tapestry. Nobody except for the founders and Harry knew about this connecting door, which was so thin that every word that was spoken in the staff room could be heard in his parents' living room. Knowing that nobody would discover him, Harry made himself comfortable on the sofa in his parents' living room and prepared himself to listen to his teachers' staff meeting.
ハリーと幸せの願い
After a few minutes, he heard the teachers filing in and heard murmured voices that died down quickly as the meeting began.
"Severus, do you have any idea, who could have done this to you?" the Headmaster asked.
Minerva snorted, and Harry could hear Severus ask back, "Who could not?"
"Well, it doesn't seem to be a spell; otherwise Minerva and I would have been able to cancel it when we tried together," the Headmaster said thoughtfully. "Therefore, I believe that it probably was a potion. However, when I asked the house-elves, I was told that nobody brought a potion to the kitchens, neither last night nor this morning."
"The person could have spelled the potion straight into Severus' stomach," Poppy suggested. "I often do that to my patients."
"But who knows that spell?" Albus enquired gently.
The room remained quiet for an instant, until Minerva resumed, "Well, it can only have been someone, who is adept at brewing potions and knows healing spells."
'Oh no,' Harry realised, inwardly groaning. 'She thinks that I did it.'
"Well, the first years won't be able to brew such a difficult potion, especially if there's no recipe around," Filius Flitwick threw in.
"We could ask all sixth and seventh year students under Veritaserum," Severus suggested, grumpily. "And Potter," he added as an afterthought, causing Minerva to let out an angry snort.
"Severus, I know that you hate Mr. Potter, but even if he is very adept at the brewing of potions, he wouldn't do such a thing," she defended Harry vehemently, and a huge smile spread across Harry's face.
"Severus, you can't just question students under Veritaserum, as you well know. Only if they agree, you'll be able to question them. And where would you want to begin? Do you really want to take the time to speak with each of the sixth and seventh year students?" the Headmaster asked gently.
"Well, then at least let's ask Potter," Harry heard Severus demand.
"Why do you suspect Mr. Potter?" Poppy asked gently.
"Because he is too adept at brewing," Severus replied hesitantly. "He brews like my NEWT students, and when I made him brew two potions during one of his detentions, he brewed both of them at the same time, and he even knew one of them by heart. None of my seventh years would be able to do that. Furthermore, both of them were healing potions."
'Oh no!' Harry groaned. 'If they question me under Veritaserum, I'll be done for. I can't fight that. Or maybe... is there an antidote in Daddy Salazar's book?' he mused, while the teachers remained quiet for a moment. 'On the other hand, I didn't brew it, and I didn't give it to him; so it's not my fault. Well, I better look for the antidote, just to be sure.'
The Headmaster sighed. "Severus, you can't pick Harry out of hundreds of students and question him under Veritaserum, apart from the fact that he has to agree to it."
"Maybe he would agree, if he was as innocent as Minerva claims," Severus sneered, and Harry could well imagine how he raised an eyebrow at Professor McGonagall.
"Severus, when would Harry have brewed the potion?" the Headmaster asked gently. "He spent the whole winter holidays at his relatives' house in a muggle neighbourhood. When and where would he have been able to brew such a potion?"
"Well, the second class is due to commence in a few minutes," Minerva interrupted her older colleague's musing, causing Harry to jump up, startled.
'Oh, I have to run to the Charms classroom,' he remembered and hurriedly left the room.
The last afternoon class Harry had was Potions, and the class had to try hard not to giggle all the time when their eyes caught a glimpse of the teacher's new house elf form. Finally, the professor saw red.
"Potter!" he barked. "Did you give me the potion to drink that turned me into a house elf?"
Harry looked straight into the teacher's face and replied, "No sir."
"Who did?"
"One of the ghosts, sir."
"Did you brew the potion?"
"No sir."
"Who brewed the potion?"
"Salazar Slytherin, sir."
The whole class erupted with laughter.
"Two hundred points... no, detention with me until the end of the school year for your insolence!" the teacher roared.
"Why don't you just give me detention until the end of my seventh year? Then you don't have to remember what dates you already assigned one?" Harry replied, angrily.
"That's enough. Class dismissed. Potter, you will accompany me to the Headmaster's office NOW," Professor Snape shouted in absolute rage.
'This would be a brilliant time to take him to the past,' Harry mused. 'But unfortunately, I still don't have experience flashing other people along with me. I might arrive in the Ice Age together with that man, and that definitely wouldn't be something that would help!'
He slowly trailed after the teacher into the Headmaster's office.
"Hello Severus, Harry," Albus greeted them. "To what do I owe the honour of your visit?" he asked curiously, offering them a lemon drop at the same time.
"Thank you, sir," Harry politely accepted, knowing that it would drive his Potions professor mad if he sucked on one, while the Potions Master threw his colleague a disgusted glare.
Severus quickly explained what had happened in the Potions classroom, while Harry was calmly sitting on his seat sucking on the lemon drop.
"Is that what happened?" the headmaster asked gently, looking at Harry.
"Yes sir," Harry replied, carefully occluding his mind, before he turned his eyes to the professor.
"Harry, may I ask you one question?" Albus asked, giving the boy a warm smile.
"Yes of course, Professor," Harry answered, curious as to what he was going to ask.
"Where did you learn to brew potions?"
"Somebody taught me," Harry replied carefully.
"And who would that be?" the headmaster enquired gently.
"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you that." Harry inwardly sighed in relief, glad that Dad Godric had put a charm on him, so that he could only tell people about his home, whom he really wanted to tell about it. 'Veritaserum will override that charm though,' he thought anxiously. "However, Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey know everything, and they can assure you that everything is all right."
"Very well my boy. Now Severus and Harry, I want both of you to abandon your grudges against each other and treat each other with respect. Do you understand me?"
"Yes sir," Harry replied politely, thinking, 'It won't do to anger the Headmaster.'
"I will only agree after questioning this insolent boy under Veritaserum," Severus growled, giving the child a menacing look.
Albus sighed. "Harry, would you agree to answer a few questions about the incident concerning Professor Snape's present features under Veritaserum?"
"You don't have to ask the dunderhead," the Potions Master countered, seeing that Harry thought about the matter.
"No sir. He has to ask me, since you can only use Veritaserum on me if I agree," Harry replied firmly.
To the Headmaster he said, "I trust you, Professor Dumbledore, and if you promise that you only let him ask questions concerning the recent incident, I don't mind."
"Thank you my boy. All right. However, I shall give you only one drop of Veritaserum; that should be enough." A small phial flew from the book shelf into the Headmaster's outstretched hand, and Albus administered one drop of the liquid on Harry's tongue.
He soon felt everything become a bit blurry and gave the Headmaster a weary look. "I believe that we can begin," Albus stated and asked, "What is your name?"
"Harry James Potter."
"Your birthday?"
"31st of July, 1980."
"All right," Albus said, giving Severus a short nod.
"Very well; Potter, who administered the potion to me that made me look like a house elf?"
"The Grey Lady," Harry replied, surprised at his own words that seemed to have left his mouth on their own will.
The Potions Master threw him a suspicious glance and asked again, "Who brewed this potion?"
"Salazar Slytherin."
"You insolent little brat!" Severus jumped up from his chair. "One drop is obviously not sufficient, Albus. Who taught you Potions, Potter?"
"My father," Harry replied truthfully, because he was of course not able to fight the Veritaserum.
"That's enough, Harry," the Headmaster threw in. "It won't help if you provoke Professor Snape."
"Yes sir," Harry answered politely, before Albus gave him the antidote against the Veritaserum.
By the time the Headmaster had finished reprimanding Severus and Harry, dinner was already over, and Albus offered his guests to have dinner together in his office.
"No thank you," Harry declined and when the Headmaster dismissed him with the good news that he wouldn't have detention that night, he went back to his room to begin with his homework and happily noticed that his friends were already waiting for him.
"Ah thank God, you're still alive. I thought Professor Snape was going to eat you alive," Hermione said in relief when Harry entered his room. "Nevertheless, you're very early today."
"No, he only dragged me to the Headmaster's office for a talk, and I don't have detention tonight," Harry replied. "All right, let's do our homework."
Later in the evening, when Minerva came to check on him, he told her that he had been questioned under Veritaserum.
"And what did they find out?" Minerva asked in concern.
Harry laughed. "Well, I had to tell them that the Grey Lady spelled the potion into his stomach, and that Salazar Slytherin brewed the potion, but they seemed to think that I was lying around the Veritaserum. And when he finally asked me, who taught me to brew potions, and I replied, 'my father,' he was ready to explode."
"Let's say you were extremely lucky," Minerva said dryly. "All right Harry; it's time to go to bed."
"Yes Professor. Good night."
ハリーと幸せの願い
As could be expected, the relationship between the Potions Master and his student did not improve at all, and the prospect of spending every evening during the whole year in the Potions classroom doing detention was grating on Harry's nerves. He was constantly tired now since he always had to finish his homework late at night, and he hardly ate anything anymore, because he was too tired to feel any hunger.
His friends, Minerva, and Poppy watched him in concern. One evening, Harry looked outright ill, and Minerva resolved to speak to the Headmaster about the continuous detentions the child was serving in the Potions classroom. However, before she could speak with the Headmaster, something happened that made her postpone the talk for a while.