CHAPTER 3:
HOW DID HARRY SURVIVE AN INSTANT-DEATH CURSE?
After the latest test, GLaDOS had once more interrupted them (for the second time in a week, not that Harry minded: as fun as the tests were, he liked having a rest, and he knew Chell did too) and brought them back to her control room, saying there was someone she would like for them to meet. Harry was almost certain it was someone from this Hogwarts place, and as much as he enjoyed Aperture, he hungered for the novel. Aperture was big, true, but a lot of the inside was the same, merely shaped and customised to create the latest test.
He wanted to see more of the world outside, beyond what he had seen in the books he had devoured. Okay, on occasion, they were allowed outside, and it was nice to feel the sun on their face, but they always went back inside. Then again, GLaDOS was all Harry had of his family. She had once been his Aunty Caroline. Well, his great-aunt, but Caroline had always insisted on him calling her 'Aunty Caroline'. And while GLaDOS didn't want to be called Caroline anymore, Harry knew that his great-aunt was still there. Different, and obsessed with these weird tests and with looser morals, but if anything, she was more fun this way.
Chell could easily have escaped many times over during these times they were let outside. Harry once asked her why. She had responded, "I don't want to leave you behind, and I don't want to take you from your great-aunt."
Chell had privately been concerned that Harry had Stockholm Syndrome, or at least a variation thereof. Aperture Science wasn't a healthy place to raise a child even before GLaDOS was brought online. Now, it was the world's biggest playground…and one of its most dangerous. But she also realised that Harry was the one thing keeping GLaDOS sane and moral, for fairly loose values of sanity and morality. And between little sanity and morality, and none at all, well, Chell was willing to make sure the status quo was maintained.
Besides, what did she have? Her mother was dead, and her father didn't give a shit about her. All she had, frankly, was Harry as a little brother. She grew even more protective after that incident with Wheatley. Normally, she liked the enthusiastic, if a bit dim-witted Personality Core, but he had nearly gotten Harry killed. It took some time before she forgave Wheatley, and even now, he wasn't left alone with Harry.
Harry himself didn't think anything would happen at the time. Firstly, he didn't believe the Portal Gun had the range to reach the Moon. Secondly, he thought that there was a basic field that only allowed objects moving through it beyond a certain speed and force to pass through. Thankfully, he survived the experience a little wiser, and more willing to read the manuals.
Harry, upon exiting the elevator, was curious to see that the someone that GLaDOS wanted them to meet looked a lot like a stereotypical wizard, all purple robes and long beard, with a large red and gold bird perched on his shoulder. GLaDOS, who was in her gynoid body, gestured for them to come over. "Harry, Chell, so good of you to join us. This is Professor Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts. Dumbledore, this is Harry Evans, or Harry Potter as you know him, as well as Chell [NAME REDACTED]."
Dumbledore blinked. "Why did you say 'name redacted'?"
"Chell asked for it. She would prefer not to have the surname of the philandering son of a bitch who was her father, and unfortunately, we do not have her mother's maiden name on file."
"GLaDOS, that's another one for the swear jar," Harry said.
"In this context, 'son of a bitch' is not a pejorative, but rather, an accurate description, like calling a child born out of wedlock a bastard."
"Nice saving throw versus admitting you swore," Harry remarked. Noticing Dumbledore's look, he said, "We sometimes play tabletop RPGs. She's a really evil Dungeon Master."
"Oh. Say no more," Dumbledore said. It would turn out that he was aware of the existence of tabletop RPGs. Indeed, a small group of Ravenclaws, mostly Muggleborns and Halfbloods, had a group that played various tabletop RPGs on the weekends. He got to his feet, and shook first Harry's hand, and then Chell's. "It's good to see you, Harry, healthy and happy, despite your…unconventional guardian."
"Unconventional's one way of putting it," Harry said. "I mean, my great-aunt is an artificial intelligence. Well, a human mind uploaded into a supercomputer, but people tend to think 'A.I' first."
"And intelligent too. Your…guardian asked me why you warranted my personal attention. There were, admittedly, other options, but I felt, in the event, that some diplomacy was needed. And I believe that this choice was the right one. And in any case, Harry, there are…special circumstances about you."
"What do you mean?"
Dumbledore looked back to GLaDOS. "My dear lady, is it possible to furnish us with some more seats?"
"Certainly." Within seconds, two more chairs appeared from trapdoors, the desk receded into the floor, and both GLaDOS' chair (with her gynoid body still in it) and Dumbledore's moved until they were near the two new chairs. As a finishing touch, a perch rose from the floor for Fawkes. Fawkes, however, glared at GLaDOS suspiciously. "What? Are you afraid that I would try to capture you and/or test your species' reputed immortality?"
"Yes and yes," Harry answered for Fawkes, Chell nodding her head.
"Killjoys," GLaDOS remarked sullenly. "Well, sit down. Unlike the ones in the old facility, these won't give you tumours."
Not at all reassuring, Harry thought as he sat down. Chell did so as well. Fawkes opted to settle on Chell's shoulder.
Dumbledore, after sitting, asked, "Well, Harry, did your Great-Aunt Caroline ever tell you what happened to your parents?"
Harry shook his head. "She said she didn't know for sure how they died. She said my Aunt Petunia claimed either a car crash because they were drunk, or else they got blown up. I didn't think it was both, you know, like if the car blew up, or else I might have gotten more than this one scar."
"That's because your aunt was envious of your mother, her sister. Sadly, Petunia was a bitter woman, because your mother had magic, and she didn't. I will strive to be as brief as possible, and I will fill in any details later. Your mother was a witch, Harry, and your father was a wizard. However, Magical Britain, around the time your parents married, was undergoing a civil war. A dark wizard, who called himself Lord Voldemort, had gathered followers who believed, as he did, that purity of blood trumped any skill or ability in magic."
"So, he was basically a racist?" Harry asked.
Dumbledore nodded. "It is good that you understand what I mean, though I am a little disturbed that you know about this at so young an age. Blood purists detest Muggleborns, wizards and witches born to Muggles. Those are people without magic, or normal people to you and me. Your mother was a Muggleborn witch, while your father was a Pureblood wizard. Which makes you a Halfblood. Blood purists detest Muggles and Muggleborn, believing Muggles to be little better than cattle, and Muggleborns to be thieves of magic. Voldemort intended to take power, and put Muggleborns in their place. He gathered many followers, and began a series of attacks across Britain."
"So this 'Voldemort' and his followers were basically Nazis or Ku Klux Klan thugs with magic?" GLaDOS asked.
"Indeed. So great was the fear he caused, few would dare speak his name. Even now, he's mostly referred to as 'He Who Shall Not Be Named', or 'You Know Who'. While fear of the name gives rise to unnecessary fear of the thing that is named, I should point out that a few months before Harry's birth, Voldemort grew so bold as to use a Taboo spell on his name. If someone spoke it, he would dispatch his followers to murder them," Dumbledore said.
"So…it was Voldemort who murdered my parents?" Harry asked, as he tried to take this in.
Dumbledore nodded. "Your parents had been thorns in his side for some time. They went into hiding when they learned Voldemort was targeting them. However, the one person who knew where they were betrayed them, and Voldemort attacked. He killed your father, then your mother. He then attempted to kill you, Harry, but for some reason, he failed."
"Maybe he had poor eyesight," GLaDOS remarked. "Too few carrots in his diet. [SCIENTIFICALLY INACCURATE JOKE MODULE ONLINE](1)."
"No, that wasn't it. The Killing Curse, or Avada Kedavra, kills instantly on impact. There are no known countermeasures, save for getting out of the way, or making sure you have something solid between you and the curse. So, the question you would ask is, how did Harry survive an instant-death curse? The truth is, all I have is speculation, but I am almost certain it was love. Your mother, Harry, loved you with all her heart and soul, and she was also one of the smartest witches of her generation. I believe she found a ritual that would allow her to save you from the Killing Curse, but at the expense of her own life, fuelled by her love for you." He pointed to Harry's forehead, and to the fading scar on it. "That is the only sign of where the Killing Curse hit. After it happened, after my alarms on the Potters' hideout went off, I sent a trusted friend to pick Harry up, and bring him to a safe location, and then went to investigate. But I also knew that the seeds of his fame had been sown by his survival of the Killing Curse. People were already speaking of him as the Boy Who Lived, and they still do today. That was one of the reasons I initially left him with the Dursleys: I thought being raised by his Muggle relatives would shield him from their fame. Petunia, however, left you to Caroline Evans, and in retrospect, that is perhaps a better outcome."
Chell fished around in her jumpsuit, and then pulled out her electrolarynx. "Really? They are worse than GLaDOS?" she asked.
"Petunia Dursley was jealous of her sister's magic, and her husband, from what I gather, is a rather close-minded man, to say the least. Whereas Harry seems to be happy here."
"Well, to a kid, Aperture is basically a big playground," Chell said. "And you will find that he is educated to a high-school level on many subjects."
"Then perhaps he will be in Ravenclaw," Dumbledore mused. Upon their looks, he said, "There are four Houses that students belong to, and they are put into each one due to their personal qualities. Gryffindor is the home of the brave and valorous… and, to be fair, the impulsive. Hufflepuff is the home of the loyal, the hard-working, and the tenacious."
"That sounds like your house," Harry said, giving Chell a gentle nudge with his elbow. She smiled.
"Chell's tenacity was so high, she was initially refused as a test-subject," GLaDOS explained.
"I see. Anyway, Ravenclaw, which I mentioned, is the home of the studious and inquisitive. And Slytherin is the home of the cunning and the ambitious, though I am afraid to say that, due to its founder being one of the proponents of blood purity, it is also regrettably a frequent producer of dark wizards, including Voldemort. It goes without saying that not all Slytherins are bad, but unfortunately, there are many who support the less salubrious views of our society in that House."
"And which were my parents in?"
"Gryffindor, though I believe that your mother nearly went into Ravenclaw." Dumbledore steepled his fingers. He looked at GLaDOS with an arched eyebrow. "I'm surprised, given your mindset, that you accept magic exists."
"I accept that you possess abilities that can be construed by the ignorant as magic. To alter Arthur C Clarke's Third Law slightly, any sufficiently advanced ability is indistinguishable from magic. I am a scientist, though. I intend to quantify it and discover what lies behind it. Besides, if you said to your people that you had just met a metal golem with the soul of a woman inside her, and that we have created guns that can create linked portals, they would either think you crazy, or else believe it to be a different kind of magic."
"…Fair point," Dumbledore conceded. "So, are you willing to come to Hogwarts, Harry?"
Harry grinned. "Does Merlin have a big staff?"
"You know, I think he did. We'll have to make arrangements for you to purchase supplies in Diagon Alley. The United States has a few of the things you'll need in their magical communities, but some goods, due to import and export reasons, will have to be bought and used in Britain, such as potions ingredients and your wand. I regret I cannot accompany you, as I have a somewhat busy schedule. In addition to being the Headmaster of Hogwarts, I'm also Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, and Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards. In Muggle terms, it means that I am roughly equivalent to the Speaker in Parliament, or Congress, if you prefer, as well as Secretary-General of the United Nations(2)."
Chell raised an eyebrow. "That is a lot of power, Professor," she said through her electrolarynx.
"True. Admittedly, I was only elected to the role of Supreme Mugwump relatively recently(3). They tend to throw honours and titles at me, believing me to be the Leader of the Light. I only wish it were so simple. And to tell the truth, both roles don't have that much power in the end. They are elected roles that I can be voted out of any time. Only my tenure at Hogwarts is somewhat more secure. Anyway, I will send a trusted representative. It will either be Rubeus Hagrid, the Keeper of the Keys and Grounds, or the Head of Gryffindor House, Professor Minerva McGonagall, who often deals with either Muggleborns, or Halfbloods who are raised more in the Muggle world. I will send them over via Portkey, an enchanted object that allows for swift, instantaneous travel. I would have sent Fawkes with my representative…but he doesn't seem to have had a good experience here."
As Fawkes glowered at GLaDOS, the gynoid said, "If you have experienced any troubles with Aperture Science, its facility, its staff and/or its products, please feel free to ring our toll-free complaints number at 1-800-BURNING-LEMONS. Thank you for your time wasted trying to make life take back its lemons."
As Dumbledore stared dumfounded at the gynoid, Harry resisted the urge to facepalm. He also resisted the urge to bounce up and down in his seat in excitement. He was going to learn magic. And maybe he could learn more about magic…no, actually, remember, it's Will-based Transmogrification Force. And he might be able to uncover the mysteries and secrets behind them.
And hopefully, it would be as exciting (if not as dangerous) as Aperture! Harry could hardly wait!
CHAPTER 3 ANNOTATIONS:
So, there you have it. Harry's learned about his heritage and about Voldemort, and is off to Hogwarts! Next chapter, the Hogwarts Express, and the first meeting with, amongst other characters, Hermione!
Now, in case you're wondering why Harry and GLaDOS are so accepting of magic…well, see GLaDOS' own admission above. Since Harry can do magic, Harry and GLaDOS intend to learn how it works and where it comes from. A quote from Gregg Landsman's excellent Mass Effect fanfic Glorious Shotgun Princess (a crossover with Exalted, though it is marked as a pure Mass Effect fic) says it all: the story's version of Legion (called Wuffles: long story), when Shepard asks him whether the Geth are curious as to why she can do impossible things as a Solar Exalted, Legion/Wuffles replies (amongst other things), that while they have a number of theories about her abilities, "we do not dispute the existence of them."
1. It's a myth that eating carrots improves your eyesight, except in specific circumstances.
2. I'm guessing that these are equivalents to Dumbledore's positions in reality. And the Speaker's role is different in Parliament (in the UK and Australia) and in Congress.
3. I made that up, but thought it more fitting that he hasn't held that particular role for long.