Chapter Twenty-Six:
The Gray Wolf

Moving quickly down several hallways, Harry and Draco finally reached the hall that lead to the Great Hall. Harry's earlier remark was confirmed; there was a crowd of people standing in front of the entrance to the Great Hall, all of them talking in confused tones. Its large doors mysteriously closed, which was strange since they were always open until after supper for lights out.

"What's going on?" Harry asked aloud, not really expecting an answer as Draco looked around in confusion before striking up a conversation with another Slytherin that was nearby, asking a similar question.

"No one knows," spoke up a red-headed Gryffindor near him with a shake of his head, and Harry quickly recognized him as one of the Weasley twins, his twin standing at his side and staring up at the closed doors. With a sniff, Harry could tell that it was Fred, his scent spicy like cinnamon while his brother George smelled like brown sugar. "The doors won't open. Someone went for the Professors." He hummed in thought. "Maybe something's going on with Hogwarts - maybe it's doing something in there."

"What do you mean," questioned Harry, "that Hogwarts is doing something?"

"Hogwarts has its own magic and its own free will," put in the other twin. "It doesn't do a lot, but sometimes it will add a room, or alert Dumbledore to a problem."

"There was once a room that had exactly what my brother and I needed at the time," added Fred. "A place to hide from Filch."

"With snacks and a place to get comfy –"

"It was heaven!"

"We went back to find it again -"

"And it was gone."

"It's too bad -"

"That room was awesome," sighed Fred heavily.

"But, like my brother George said," went on George, and Harry tilted his head in confusion as he noticed the Gryffindor mislabel himself with no hesitation. "It must be Hogwarts doing something in there, otherwise the doors should open easily."

"Wait a minute," interrupted Harry, shaking his head. "Why did you call him George? He's not George." He pointed at the real George on the left and then his brother in turn on the right. "You're George, and he's Fred."

Both the twins turned to look at him, standing shoulder to shoulder and doing everything in sync from the tilt of their heads to the way they blinked at the same time; it was a little bit creepy and almost made Harry take a step back. "Oh? Are you sure?" they questioned together.

Blinking as the two red-head almost merged into one before his very eyes, Harry nodded. "Uh huh."

"How can you tell?" asked the twins together.

"Um, I just can?" It wasn't an explanation at all, but Harry didn't think they'd believe him either when he said he could smell the difference between them. He glanced around for a moment - where had Draco gone? He could use his help right now, stuck in the middle of the crowd and confronted by twins who pranks and tricks were already legendary.

"How about now?" the twins asked again in unison, earning back Harry's attention, and they had moved around and were in different positions now, grinning broadly. "Who is who?"

Harry glanced between the two boys, subtly sniffing the air. He pointed towards the boy on the left. "You're still George. You didn't switch places."

"Oh, he's good," Fred said with appreciation. "I like him."

"Well done, little Hufflepuff," praised George. "You're the only one that's been able to tell us apart."

"Not even our mum can really do that."

"Not that she hasn't tried –"

"There's a reason our sweaters were the labeled."

"So - how can you tell?" asked George again, both of them leaning in close. "Come on, you can tell us."

Harry opened his mouth to give another excuse, but everyone's attention suddenly turned towards the doors as they started to open, their loud groaning drowning out the chatter of the students momentarily. Taking the chance when the twins looked towards the doors, Harry slipped around them, merging into the wave of students that were rushing inside the Great Hall. But then they stopped, and startled, Harry stood on his toes, trying to see what had caused up the new holdup.

The Great Hall usually held five long tables - one for each of the Houses, and one at the far end of the room, raised up so that the professors could look over them. But now there was a sixth table, sitting between the four tables, dividing the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs onto one side and the Ravenclaws and Slytherin onto the other. It had rows of golden plates and platters, empty like the other tables, and there was a banner over it as well. But instead holding one of the four house crests, it held a new one - a solid silver shield with a gray wolf sitting in the middle, bright white eyes gazing down at the currently empty table. After a long minute, everyone slowly started taking their seats, whispering at they sat at their respected tables and frequently glancing over at new table. Harry moved along with them, but his gaze was on the banner, the white eyes following him.

"Where did that come from?" asked Susan as she joined him after a little while, Neville with her.

Shaking his head, Harry nodded towards the Head Table; the professors had just filed in and were taking their seats, but Headmaster Dumbledore staying on his feet, looking like it was about to address the curious students. "I don't know, but maybe he can explain it to us."

"Students! If I may have your attention, please?" Dumbledore asked loudly, and the voices died down so they could listen. "I sure that you have all noticed the new addition to the Great Hall this evening," he started out, gesturing towards the table in the center of the room. He didn't say whether it was his decision or not. "This area will now be known at the Gray Table, symbolized by the wolf on the banner above it. It is now a rule that this where any students, from any table and from any House during meals and free town, may sit together." People started to mummer again, startled at such news, but he silenced them again with a gesture of his hand. "This rule does not apply to the other tables, where students only belonging to their House may sit there. This is table is to be a neutral zone, so that we may start to form bonds between the four Houses, as a Founders intended. Other rules still apply - any fighting or rough housing, and the student or students responsible will lose points for their house."

"With that in mind, I invite any of you to sit our new table." Then Dumbledore sat down, and the once empty platters were filled with food, inviting everyone to start their meal. But no one dug in right away, like they usually did. They hesitated, waiting to see if someone, anyone, would take the first step and sit at the new table.

Harry stared at the empty table. Less than twenty minutes ago, he had questioned why people from two different houses didn't sit together. It was as if the castle heard him and decided to answer, giving him the opportunity. Would he take it?

Taking a deep breath, Harry stood up, and everyone's gaze snapped towards him. At his side, Neville hissed at him, "What are you doing?"

"You coming?" asked Harry, ignoring his friends panic and the chatter that started around them, as he stepped over the long bench they sat on and moved over to the next table, promptly sitting down. Sensing him, a tray in front of him was suddenly filled with hearty sandwiches, and another with chips.

"Oh, for the love of -" Huffing, Susan stood up from the Hufflepuff table and joined him, and not a moment later Neville did the same. "You just have to make a scene, don't you?" she said dryly when a bowl filled with chopped fruit appeared in front of her, and biscuits appeared in front of Neville. "You know, it's probably going to be just us -"

From the Ravenclaw table, a girl suddenly stood up, slowly, hesitantly, and she turned to the three Hufflepuffs. She looked to be around their age, so Harry guessed she was either a first or second year. She wasn't someone you took a second glance at, with chin length chocolate brown hair and shy grey eyes, but when she smiled at him briefly it was warm and bright. She gestured to another Ravenclaw sitting next to her, and with a heavy sigh a boy stood to join her, grabbing a book. He looked almost identical to her, with short brown hair and grey eyes the same shades as hers, though he had oval shaped glasses perched on his nose.

"Do you mind if we join you?" the girl asked brightly.

"Sure," spoke up Harry, and he smiled at her as she sat down across from them. "I'm Harry, and this is Susan and Neville."

"My name's Moon, Victoria Moon - but I go by Tory," she waved a hand towards the boy at her side, who was already settling down and cracking open his book back to his spot, "and this anti-social creature is my twin brother, Alexander, but he goes by Zander. We're both in second year." She smiled again at Harry, and her eyes flashed from gray to a warm golden brown. "Nice to meet you."

"Your eyes changed color," Harry said in surprised. "How did you do that?"

"Oh, sorry," Tory blinked, and her eyes were gray again. "They do that sometimes when I don't think about it. I'm a Metamorphmagus."

Before Harry could ask what that was, two more people appeared behind them. "Hey Harry," spoke up the familiar voice of Dudley, and when Harry turned around he saw that Hermione Granger was at his side, giving him a little wave, a book in her hand too. "Do any of you mind?"

"Not at all, the table is for everyone," chirped Susan, waving at them to sit down. It was a little lopsided at the moment, with five on one side and two on the other, but everyone was alright with it as they settled and started piling food on their plates, ignoring everyone else occasional stares. Across the tables, Harry could see Regina and Milli at the Slytherin tables, and he almost waved them over to join them, but Milli shook her head subtly; they weren't ready for it yet.

And even though he was disappointed, he gave a small little nod back and turned to join the conversation that had started. Maybe another time. After all, there had already been so much change today, he could wait for a little more.

Harry made his way out of the secret tunnel, stretching his arms high above his head. It was the next morning, the sun just peeking over the horizon, and the first morning of class for the new year, and not only did he want to take a run before everyone started migrating across the snowy lawn for classes, he also had to talk to Hagrid about his new alias as Phantom, which was the name Draco had suggested for him.

Transforming into his wolf form, just in case Flinch or another teacher was patrolling the grounds, Harry padded along the forest line towards Hagrid's hut. The large man was already up by the looked of it, a steady stream of smoke coming from the groundskeeper's tiny chimney, and he could hear the clatter of dishes inside. Going up the few stairs that lead to the door, Harry scratched at the door and gave a yip and a whine.

"Door, door! Master, there is a friend at the door!" howled Fang, who bounded to the door and barked his greeting. "I smell a friend!"

"Hang on, ya mangy beast, stop yer barkin' – who would be 'ere this early in the mornin'?" The door flung open, and Harry was greeted with the sight of the towering Hagrid, who was holding Fang back by his collar. "Blimey, Harry! Haven't seen you in a while – come on it! Looks like I'm popular this mornin'! Headmaster, look who it is!"

Stepping into the hut, Harry's pointed ears perked up at the sight of Dumbledore sitting at the groundskeepers table, a chipped cup of tea in hand. The Headmaster smiled at him. "Good morning, Harry – care to join us for a morning cup of tea?"

In a matter of moment, Harry was standing there as a boy, nodding his head. "I didn't mean to bother you," he said as Fang came over to him, free of Hagrid's grip and begging to be pet.

"It's quite alright – I try to make it a habit of visiting Hagrid for tea every so often, and I'd be delighted if you joined us. Please, take a seat. Hagrid, shall I grab him a cup?"

"I've got it," insisted Hagrid, thundering over to the cupboard in search for a fresh cup. "What brings you 'ere so early in the mornin', Harry?"

Harry took the closest seat, Fang plopping his heavy head on his lap and panting happily. "Well, I was hoping you could help me with something, Hagrid. One of the other students happened to see me in my… other form," he admitted, earning a look of surprise from Dumbledore. "It's alright thought, a friend who I told about, well, all this," he said this as he waved to himself, "covered and said I was your new dog, named me Phantom. I just wanted to see if you would go along with it if someone ask."

"Course, Harry," said Hagrid happily, setting a full cup of tea down in front of Harry. "I wouldn't mind at all – if it's alright with you, Headmaster."

"I don't mind at all," Dumbledore said with a chuckle, sipping his tea. "It was bound to happen eventually that someone would see Harry. Having an alias in place would be an excellent idea."

With a sigh of relief, Harry took his own sip of tea, taking a moment to let it warm his insides before he decided to bring up another topic. "Um, Professor Dumbledore?"

"Mm?"

"If I could ask… the table from last night, the one you called the Grey Table -"

"Ah." Dumbledore set down his cup. "I wish that I could take credit for the new addition in the Great Hall, but alas, I cannot. It seems that Hogwarts decided that a change was needed – though I don't understand what brought on this sudden motivation. It even produced the flag." He looked at Harry, eyes twinkling. "Quite the interesting choice in mascot, if I do say so."

As Harry's cheeks turned an embarrassing shade of red, Dumbledore stood. "Pardon me, Harry, Hagrid – I must be getting back to the school. Lots to look over now that classes are starting up again. But I will also be taking a chance to letting the other professors know about the new… addition to the grounds." He gave a wink to Harry and after bidding everyone, including Fang, a hearty good, he was gone.

"I like the name, Phantom," said Hagrid with a hearty laugh as he sat down. "I think it suits ya. How does runnin' in the forest feel? No one's givin' you any trouble, are they?"

"The centaurs ran me off once when I accidently crossed part of their land," admitted Harry. "But I've learned to stay clear of them. The wolves are rather nice, they let me run with them a few times, but I don't think they're trusting me just yet. I haven't seen a unicorn yet, though. Susan said there were some in the forest."

"Yah, usually they aren't so shy," grumbled Hagrid, looking surprisingly serious. "Even if yer in Animagus form, they know better, can just tell; so I was expectin' them to come out an' greet ya. But recently, there's been somethin'… strange in the forest that's been scarin' them off. I don't know what it is, but it ain't good, Harry. I'm worried about them." He shook his head, smiling again. "But nothin' you need to worry 'bout – how was yer winter break? I barely saw you, I was so busy with the grounds."

The two chattered for a while longer before Harry excused himself, mostly ready to go on his run before class and partially to avoid the rock-cakes Hagrid had just put out. He transformed without any hesitation, startling both the groundskeeper and Fang, who barked and started giving Harry a very through sniff.

"Friend, friend who is a wolf and not a wolf." Fang wagged his tail. "I like not-wolf friend."

"Well that's a neat trick there, Harry," chuckled Hagrid as he opened his hut door so that both Harry and Fang bounded out, giving Harry a chance to shake out his fur. "And it looks like Fang has a new friend," he pointed out as Fang bounced through the fresh snow, trying to get the wolf to play with him.

"Shadow!"

All three looked towards the voice that had suddenly appeared, and Harry was startled to see Regina standing down the path that passed the hut, her surprised gasp turning into a cloud in the cold air. Barking, Harry sat in the snow and wagged his tail, urging her to come closer.

"It is you!" said Regina with delight, rushing down the path, her boots crunching through the snow that had yet to be shoveled away. "Oh, I was so worried about you," she exclaimed as she reached Harry, kneeling down in front of him and ripping off a glove so that she could scratch his head. "Where have you been, boy, huh?"

"Ah, I see you've meet – err – Phantom before," spoke up Hagrid, his visible cheeks turning pink in the winter air. "He's my new dog, felt like Fang needed a companion to keep 'im young," he went on, rambling slightly. "And course we could use the extra protection around the castle."

"Oh, his name is Phantom?" Regina smiled at Harry, and he felt his heart thump a little harder at her warm and open smile, one that she rarely gave him or anybody else as a human. "I guess that makes sense, and suits you. At least Shadow was pretty close." She ruffled Harry's fur and stood, bidding both "Phantom" and Hagrid farewell as she continued down the path, pulling the hood of her cloak over her face; giving Harry only a brief moment to see her downcast eyes before she moved on.

With a worried whine, Harry trailed after her. She had tried to hide it, but he could see the sadness in her eyes again; which really wasn't surprising after everything she had told him since her mother had died. Maybe she need someone to comfort her, even if it was in the shape of a dog.

It took Regina another minute before she noticed that she wasn't alone, she paused and glanced back to see Harry several feet behind her. "Are you following me, Phantom?" she asked with a forced smile, and she waved a hand to her side. "Alright, come on, then. I'm not going to go much farther. I can't if I want to make it in time for Herbology." She shuddered. "Herbology this early in the morning must be considered torture, I swear."

With a yip, Harry bounded to her side, keeping with her as she made her way down to the large boulder where he had first met her as Phantom. And just like before, she sat against it, thought this time she cleared the ground with a simple spell beforehand.

"It's so pretty during the winter," Regina said out loud as Harry settled next to her, resting his head on her legs. Automatically, one of her hands went to his head, scratching the spot between his ears. "Everything is covered in white, and it sparkles when the sunlight hits it, making it feel… magical. Which is weird, when you think about it, since we can do magic with a flick of a wand."

"But at the same time, it's a little… sad. Everything's gone, without any real choice in the matter. They just get buried under a blanket of cold, forced to sleep until spring comes back." Sighing, Regina leaned her head back, letting it rest against the boulder. "I wish that I could do that right now – just sleep and not wake up until things get better."

Whining, Harry licked at her hand.

"Gross," laughed Regina, batting at him playfully. "I'm guess that's a little depressing, huh, Phantom? Sorry." She paused, taking a moment to collect her thoughts before speaking up again. "Things have just been… rough lately." She reached out a bare hand, letting the tips of her fingers trail the nearby snow. "My mom, the only person in the world who I knew would be there for me, is gone. I… I didn't even know she was so sick. And my last chance to see her would have been winter break, but she told me to stay here – said she didn't want me to get sick either." Regina rubbed at her nose with her other hand, sniffling, and Harry saw tears brimming in her eyes. "I never even got a chance to say goodbye."

She took her hand away from the snow, staring at her now bright pink fingertips. "And then I thought, now I'll have to stay with my father, who I had never seen before and that the only thing I knew about him was that my mom said I looked like him. I thought, maybe now he'll have to pay attention to me when he never had before."

Suddenly, Regina let out a short laugh. "I should have known. I should have known that this would happen. That he wouldn't even want me around him. That I would be such an inconvenience to him that he would try to brush me off on my half-brother's mother, his actual wife, who hates me more than anyone else in the world."

"Then, all of the sudden, the Headmaster tells me that the Malfoys – the bloody Malfoys, who are apparently my distant cousins now – have offered to take me in. I don't understand it at all," admitted Regina, shaking her head. "Why would they want to give me a home? They're all about blood purity, and here I am, the half-blooded child born out of wedlock." She gave a little shrug. "Sure, their son might not tease me like the others, but they've never even met me before. Soon enough… soon enough they'll hate me, just like all the rest, and then where will I be?" She wiped at her cheeks, trying to erase the tears that had rolled down her cheeks. "What will happen to me?"

His head still on top of Regina's legs, Harry stared up at her, his ears drooping. He wished that he had something - anything - to say to her. But even human form, how could he tell her that he had been partially responsible for the Malfoys decision to take her in? He had wanted to help her, but what if it had been a bad idea? He didn't think the Malfoys could be bad people if he was to judge them by their son, but then again...

"I'm guess that I'm not the best conversationalist," Regina said with a small laugh, noticing his discomfort. "Sorry. I guess that I'm venting a little bit. It doesn't help that I don't have a lot of happy things to talk about right now." She paused. "Well, except for Harry."

Unwillingly, Harry felt his ears perk up at his name.

"Harry has been pretty supportive throughout all this," went on Regina, glancing downward and brushing hair behind her ear, though it simply popped out of place again since it was too short to stay put. "He's really nice, and he listen to me. And when I told him about my ideas for the communicative mirror, he didn't put it down or anything! He even gave it a name, the Micro." She blushed a little. "I gave him one for Christmas as kind of a test. I'm really surprised it worked so well. I guess... I guess that I could call him a friend." She smiled. "It would be nice to call him that."

But than her smile dropped. "But what if he doesn't think of me as a friend?" she asked quietly. "Sure, he's nice to me, but that doesn't mean anything. He's Harry freaking Potter - he has Longbottom and Bones and even Malfoy. He has the guts to stand up to Labelle when I can barely say a word to Parkinson and her friends. So, what would he want to do with me? I'm probably just someone he feels sorry for - Phantom, what are you doing?"

Harry had gotten up, bouncing around her like an excited puppy and kicking up snow. He couldn't stand hearing being so sad and not being able to say anything to help her. He wanted to see that smile again, the one that was so warm and real. Barking, he buried his nose in the cold white fluff and flung it upward, letting it shower over Regina, who gave a little squeak of surprise.

"What are you – Phantom, no!" Squealing Regina rolled out the way as Harry repeated the process, clambering to her feet only to lean down and scooped up a handful of snow, tossing at Harry and missing by a few inches when he leaped out of the way. "Oh, come on now!" She gathered up more snow, and this time it hit Harry in his side, scattering white power across his jet black fur. He shook himself to dislodge it, pleased when Regina finally laughed. "Got you!"

He wasn't to give up that easily though. Harry playfully growled, and then he leaped up and snapped at the green and silver scarf that was loosely wrapped around her neck, grabbing it and dragging it off. At her surprised outcry, he started to run off, dragging behind in through the snow into the open ground closer to the castle. And just as he hoped, Regina started chasing, begging him to give it back.

"Wait, Phantom! No, give it back - ah!" Regina stumbled and fell face first into the snow. She yelped, scrambling into a sitting position so she could brush the snow off her face, and then suddenly fell backwards, going back to lying on the frozen ground. Harry stopped, tilting his head in confusion when she didn't get up. Then, he heard giggles, followed by soft laughter. He advanced on her, the long scarf trailing behind him until he plopped down next to her, tail wagging as he dropped the scarf.

"Alright, alright - you win, Phantom," Regina managed to get out, still giggling. She sat up, lifting a hand and ruffling the fur around his neck, showing him that smile that made his heart thump a little louder, a smile that contrast with her watery eyes. "I know you don't understand, but thank you." She leaned forward, and before Harry could understand what she was doing, she pressed a quick kiss to his nose. "For a few minutes, you made me forget about everything. You're a sweet dog."

"Well, well - look at this, girls."

Regina frozen, and Harry looked towards the voice. Pansy Parkinson and her two friends, Daphne and Tracey, were walking towards them, laughing. As their apparent leader, Pansy stood at the front, her arms crossed and her grin wicked. "Poor little half-blood," she sneered. "Can't make friends with real people, so she has to make friends with the dumb groundskeeper's dog." She snickered. "Maybe she's part dog, too," she suggested, earning a hackle from her friends. "Makes sense - her mother was a dirty muggle, after all -"

"Don't talk about my mother like that!" Regina yelled suddenly, on her feet faster than Harry could register. Her hands were clutched at her side, shaking badly. In response, Harry crouched and gave a low growl, but the girls seemed to be ignoring him - perhaps thinking him like Fang, who wouldn't hurt a fly on purpose. "Don't you dare!"

"And the bastard speaks," replied Pansy after a moment's pause, still smirking. "After months of us pushing and pushing you, and you finally speak. Just because we insulted your whore mother -"

"Shut up!" screamed Regina, startling the three Slytherins badly enough that they all took a step back. "Shut up about my mother!" She grabbed her scarf from the ground where Harry had dropped it and stomped forward, trying to bypass the girls and head back to the castle, apparently ignoring the fact she had to be at the greenhouse for class soon. "And leave me alone."

Apparently having other ideas, Pansy grabbed Regina by the arm and yanked her to a stop, and at the same time drawing her wand. "Oh no you don't, we're not done with you -"

Shouting wordlessly, Regina let her scarf fall out of her hand and threw a punch, but it missed Pansy by inches, and in response the bully pushed her hard to the ground, where Regina hit the frozen earth with a scream of pain, Harry hearing the crack of a bone breaking when she landed wrong. Barking angrily, Harry threw himself in front of his friend, baring his teeth with a snarl with Pansy tried to advance with wand in hand.

"Get out of the way, you stupid dog!" snapped Pansy, and she lashed out with a foot that Harry easily dodged. With a yell of frustration, Pansy pointed her wand at Harry, and before he could properly react, a jet of light slammed into his side, sending him soaring across the ground.

AN: If you hate me right now, I don't blame you at all.

If you're so inclined, please leave a review of your thoughts and feelings, and the next update is July 8th!