Dumbledore was sitting at his desk with Ella standing by. They both had various parchments in hands, discussing the curriculum for the students. There was a knock on the door, in which Dumbledore called for the guest to come in. Dumbledore looked up and saw that it was Harry; he put down his papers and smiled, "Harry, you got my message. Come in. How are you?"
"I'm fine, sir," he answered as he approached the desk.
"Enjoying your classes?" he asked. "I know Professor Slughorn is most impressed with you."
"I think he overestimates my abilities, sir," he responded. Ella couldn't help but smile at Harry's modesty.
"Do you?"
"Definitely."
"What about your activities outside the classroom?" Dumbledore asked.
"Sir?" Harry questioned.
"Well, I notice you spend a great deal of time with Miss Granger. I can't help wondering…" he trailed off.
"Oh, no, no. I mean, she's brilliant, but we're friends, but no," Harry rushed out to say.
"Forgive me. I was merely being curious," he said, waving his hands around. "But enough chitchat. I summoned you here tonight. The answer lies here. What you are looking at are memories. In this case, pertaining to one individual, Voldemort or, as he was known then, Tom Riddle. This vial contains the most particular memory of the day I met him. I'd like you to see it, if you would." Harry was unsure of what to do and Ella noticed his indecisiveness.
"Harry, nothing's going to happen to you. Professor Dumbledore and I will be here once you've seen the memory," Ella explained. Harry nodded and immediately allowed himself to be drawn into the memory. He barely recognized Dumbledore but managed to follow him into unfamiliar building. Once Dumbledore made his introduction at the front desk, one of the nurses led him up the stairs to a hallway. He heard the nurse begin talking.
"I admit some confusion upon receiving your letter, Mr. Dumbledore. In all the years Tom's been here, he's never once had a family visitor. There have been incidents with other children. Nasty things," she explained as they reached the room where Tom was staying. She briefly knocked on the door and opened it. "Tom, you have a visitor."
Dumbledore walked in the room as the nurse left. Tom was sitting at his desk, not saying a word. Dumbledore decided to sit on the edge of the bed and asked, "How do you do, Tom?"
"Don't," he called out. He turned to Dumbledore and said, You're the doctor, aren't you?"
"No. I am a professor," he answered.
"I don't believe you," he retorted. "She wants me looked at. They think I'm different."
"Well, perhaps they're right," he responded.
"I'm not mad," he rushed to say.
Dumbledore replied, "Hogwarts is not a place for mad people. Hogwarts is a school. A school of magic. You can do things, can't you, Tom? Things other children can't."
"I can make things move without toughing them. I can make animals do what I want without training them. I can make bad things happen to people who are mean to me. I can make them hurt if I want. Who are you?"
"I'm like you, Tom. I'm different.
"Prove it," Tom challenged.
Dumbledore immediately set the cupboard on fire and said, "I think there's something in your wardrobe trying to get out, Tom," Dumbledore tried to grab something and saw that Tom had taken it away from him, "Thievery is not tolerated at Hogwarts, Tom. At Hogwarts, you'll be taught not only how to use magic, but how to control it. You understand it?" Dumbledore turned to leave but he was at the doorway when he heard Tom talk.
"I can speak to snakes too. They find me. Whisper things. Is that normal for someone like me?"
The memory faded before Dumbledore answered the question, Harry stood upright and asked, "Did you know, sir? Then?"
"Did I know that I just met the most dangerous dark wizard of all time?" Dumbledore asked. Harry nodded briefly, Dumbledore replied, "No. If I had, I… Over time, while here at Hogwarts, Tom Riddle grew close to one particular teacher. Can you guess who that teacher might be?"
"You didn't bring Professor Slughorn back simply to teach Potions, did you?" Harry asked. Ella knew that Harry would catch up immediately. She knew all too well how smart he was.
"No, I did not. You see Professor Slughorn possesses something I desire very dearly. And he will not give it up easily," Dumbledore said.
"You said Professor Slughorn would try to collect me," Harry commented.
"I did," he answered.
"Do you want me to let him?" Harry asked.
"Yes." Harry stood quiet for a moment, digesting what he heard from Dumbledore. He didn't even notice that Ella had traded places with Dumbledore until he felt unnecessarily cold.
"Are you feeling quite all right, Harry?" Ella asked as they walked towards the door.
"I'm confused and numb but I'm sure I'll figure out what it all means soon enough," he responded.
"It's times like now where you need to keep an open mind, Harry. Both Dumbledore and I are here for you if and when you feel overwhelmed, okay?" she asked. Harry nodded, grateful for the fact that she was there whenever he needed her.
Exams had been taken and students were either staying at Hogwarts or going home for the holidays. Those who stayed at Hogwarts were free to go to Hogsmeade. During one trip there, students were drinking and looking around at different shops. Harry, Hermione and Ron were walking back to Hogwarts after spending some time at Hogmeade but Harry couldn't help but overhear the conversation between two of his female classmates, "Katie, you don't know what it could be," Leanne commented.
Before he could hear anything else and noticed that Hermione was walking ahead, Ron called out, "Harry."
"What?" he asked.
"Did you hear what she was saying back at the pub about me and her snogging?" Ron asked.
"As if," he replied. Before they could finish their conversation, Leanne screamed as Katie went up in the air and stayed frozen for a moment before being pushed around like a rag doll for a minute before falling down on the snow.
"I warned her. I warned her not to touch it," Leanne responded. Harry, Ron and Hermione went up to Leanne and Katie to see how they were doing. Harry was looking at the package that Katie had opened.
He was just about to touch it when a voice called out, "Don't get any closer. Get back, all of you." Hagrid had picked up Katie and called back, "Do not touch that, except by the wrappings. Do you understand?"
"Leanne, go follow Hagrid and make sure that you inform Professor McGonagall what happened," Ella instructed as she picked up the wrapping paper and picked up the necklace. Edward had a brown paper bag ready for her to drop the necklace in. "Alice, make sure that Carlisle is at the infirmary with Madam Pomfrey," Alice nodded and left to Hogwarts. She looked at the three of them and sighed. "The three of you need to follow me." The three of them nodded and followed them silently with Edward following the four of them. Once they got to Hogwarts, Ella took the bag from Edward and turned to him and said, "Could you go get Professor Snape? He will confirm if there is a curse on the necklace," Edward nodded and left. The four of them went to McGonagall's classroom to see that Leanne was talking quietly to her.
"Miss Cullen, do you have it with you?" McGonagall asked.
"Right here," she said as she showed her the bag. Ella opened the bag and allowed McGonagall to draw it out with her wand. "Edward is retrieving Professor Snape right now." McGonagall nodded and was relieved that Ella had taken care of the situation at hand.
"You're sure Katie did not have this in her possession when she entered the Three Broomsticks?" McGonagall asked.
"It's like I said. She left to go to the loo, and when she came back, she had the package. She said it was important that she deliver it," Leanne responded.
"Did she say to whom?"
"To Professor Dumbledore," she answered.
"Very well. Thank you. Leanne. You may go," she told her and waited for her to leave. Once Leanne left, McGonagall turned to the three of them and said, "Why is it, that whenever anything happens, it's always you three?"
"Believe me, Professor. I've been asking myself that same question for the past six years," Ron commented.
McGonagall saw Snape's entrance, shortly followed by Edward, "Oh. Severus. What do you think?" she asked. He looked at the necklace and immediately knew that it was cursed.
"I think Miss Bell is lucky to be alive," he said.
"She was cursed, wasn't she?" he asked. "I know Katie. Off the pitch, she wouldn't hurt a fly. If she was delivering that to Dumbledore, she wasn't doing it willingly."
"Yes, she was cursed," McGonagall answered.
"It was Malfoy," Harry accused.
McGonagall turned her head at Harry and said, "That is a very serious accusation, Potter."
"Indeed," Snape agreed, "Your evidence?"
"I just know," Harry said, plainly.
"You just... know. You astonish me with your gifts, Potter. Gifts mere mortals can only dream of possessing. How grand it must be to be the Chosen One," he said as he stood close to him.
McGonagall diffused the situation by saying, "I suggest you go back to your dormitories. All of you." The three of them left.
"What should we do, Minerva? Should we wait for Albus to arrive from his trip?" Ella asked.
"We have no other choice but to wait," she sighed heavily.
"Who would do such a thing?" Snape asked.
"Can you think of no one?" Ella asked.
"Malfoy, you mean?" Snape asked.
"Not him. I mean, Voldemort. He's getting more and more creative by the day with how to kill Harry and those he loves," she clarified.
"She's right, Severus," McGonagall answered. "Malfoy is just a pawn in You-Know-Who's game. We don't know his ulterior motives and until we do, we need to keep this quiet." Everyone agreed. With her wand, McGonagall put the necklace back into the bag and hid it in one of her drawers. Edward and Ella left towards their house.
"I've read Malfoy's mind. The only thing that he's been told is to find a way to kill Dumbledore. It's an order from Voldemort. He doesn't think of anything else. Plus he's been thinking about finding a way for the Death Eaters to enter Hogwarts secretly. He tries to block his mind from me but I've managed to peek into his mind when he's not looking," Edward explained. Ella sighed. She figured that much already. "What should we do?"
"I honestly don't know. I fear that Voldemort may be working with nomads. We need to find allies to help us but we need to wait. I fear that Volturi will side with Voldemort," she told him. They entered their house with everyone in the living area.
"We should make some calls and see if anyone is on our side," Carlisle commented.
"I think we need to wait," Ella spoke up. Everyone looked at her like she was crazy. "The reason why I'm saying this is because I don't believe that Voldemort will actually be here."
"What do you mean?" Jasper asked.
"Edward said that the Dark Lord ordered Draco to kill Dumbledore. He's giving him a chance to do it. He won't make an appearance because he believes that Draco will succeed but he will send Death Eaters instead," Ella explained.
"Why would Death Eaters show up?" Rosalie asked.
"To witness the event," Ella answered. "And to see if Draco is anything like his father."
"What do you mean?" Emmett asked.
"Lucius is all bark and no bite whereas Voldemort is the opposite," she responded. "So far, Draco has been following his father's footsteps."
"I don't understand," Esme said.
"What I mean is that Draco uses techniques to kill someone without having to physically kill someone, just like Lucius. Lucius uses potions and spells and people to do the work for them, rather than doing it themselves," Ella explained.
"What can we do?" Jasper asked.
"Right now, nothing," Ella answered.
Everyone went back to their respective dorms after the Quidditch games. Gryffindor, in particular was celebrating their win but the attention went to Ron Weasley. Hermione actually believed that Ron had drank pumpkin juice in which Harry supposedly spilt liquid luck into but only to find out that Harry didn't do so. Lavender pulled Ron down from the makeshift stage and started to kiss him. Hermione felt disgusted and left the room. Harry looked back and decided to follow her. He climbed down the stairs and saw paper birds flying around Hermione. "Charms spell. I'm just practicing," Hermione explained.
"Well, they're really good," he responded. At that moment, Ella and Edward showed up, standing by the window and giving the space they needed. Harry sat down next to Hermione.
"How does it feel, Harry?" she asked and then went further, "When you see Dean with Ginny? I know. I see the way you look at her. You're my best friend." At that moment, Lavender's laughter floated through the air. Harry and Hermione looked up to see Lavender pulling Ron.
"Oops. I think this room's taken," she said. Lavender started to leave.
"What's with the birds?" Ron asked.
Hermione stood up and looked at Ron, "Oppugno." The bird chased after Ron who ran out. The birds destroyed themselves when they hit the wall. Hermione sat back down and latched herself to Harry's arm, sobbing.
"It feels like this," Harry said. Ella sat next to Hermione and gave her a tissue to wipe her eyes but said nothing. She knew that there were no words mend a broken heart. Hermione looked at Ella through her watery eyes and fell into Ella's arms and cried harder. Ella just sat there, hugging her, knowing that her presence spoke louder than anything she could ever say to Hermione.
Harry was following Hermione as she was putting the books in their rightful place in the library, "He's at perfect liberty to kiss whoever he likes. I really couldn't care less. Was I under the impression he and I would be attending Slughorn's Christmas party? Yes. Now, given the circumstances, I am contemplating on making other arrangements."
"Have you?" Harry asked.
"No, not yet. Why?"
"I just thought, seeing as neither of us can go with who we'd really like to, we should go together, as friends. But then I thought, well, I would feel safer and better if Ella and Edward were there. I thought that maybe we could ask them respectively," Harry explained.
Hermione was thoughtful about what was being offered and she realized that Harry was right, "I think you're right. It would be nice to have Mr. and Mrs. Cullen there with us. We should go and ask them soon."
Harry noticed that Hermione was acting a bit weird. "Hermione, why are you acting so strange?"
Hermione looked over to her right and then turned to face Harry, "See that girl over there?" she asked as she motioned to her left and Harry nodded. "That's Romilda Vane. Apparently she's trying to smuggle you a love potion."
"Really?" Harry smirked and stared at Romilda.
Hermione snapped her fingers in front of Harry, "Hey! She's only interested in you because she thinks you're the Chosen One."
"But I am the Chosen One," Harry said and Hermione immediately smacked his head with a newspaper. "Okay, sorry. Um, kidding. Let's go now and ask." Hermione nodded. As they left the library and walked towards the quad, they bumped into Edward and Ella who were chatting animatedly with each other. Harry motioned to Hermione about what he saw. They stood for a moment, watching them and couldn't help but smile at what they saw. They both were thinking about how both Edward and Ella were there for them at the times when they needed them and were grateful for that. Then Harry started walking towards them with Hermione following closely. When they got to them close enough, Harry couldn't help but smile as he heard Ella's graceful laughter. Edward and Ella looked up at Harry and Hermione.
"Well, what do we owe to the pleasure of gracing us with your presence?" Ella asked. Harry looked at Hermione and they were both smiling, "We have a favor to ask the both of you," Harry said. "We've been invited to Professor Slughorn's Christmas party and we thought of going together…"
"As friends," Hermione interceded.
"Right, as friends but I would feel better and safer knowing that both of you were there with us," Harry explained. Ella and Edward turned to each other and discreetly smiled at each other, waiting for them to finish their question.
"We know that the party is invitation only, so we thought that maybe Harry could ask Miss Cullen and I could ask Mr. Cullen to accompany us to the party?" Hermione asked, tentatively.
Ella looked over at Edward, smiling mischievously, "Well, Edward, what do you think? Should we escort Mr. Potter and Miss Granger?"
"Hmm, should we look at our schedule?" Edward asked back. Ella looked at the both of them. Hermione looked a bit down but Harry was grinning widely.
"Miss Granger, don't look so down," Ella said. "We would be more than happy to join you to the party. I'm truly honored that you thought of us."
"That's why you were grinning," Hermione accused as she smacked his arm.
"Will you stop hitting me?" Harry retorted plainly. Ella and Edward sat there, quietly laughing. "Anyways, we'll let you know more once we get the information."
"All right," Ella replied and everyone departed to their own separate ways.
Edward and Ella were both waiting at the Gryffindor entrance for Harry and Hermione. Edward had a corsage for Hermione in hand. They were both chatting quietly. Moments later, Harry and Hermione finally made their appearance. "Miss Cullen, you look beautiful," he said as he walked towards them with a corsage in hand.
"Miss Granger looks just as gorgeous," Edward said as he bowed towards her. Hermione blushed a bit. "Your corsage, my lady." He helped her put the corsage on her wrist as Harry did the same to Ella. Then they all went to the party together.
As they entered the room, they took in all the decorations and were approached by a waiter, "Drink?"
Harry saw who was talking and greeted him, "Neville."
"I didn't get into the Slug club," he said but quickly added, "It's okay, though. He's got Belby handing out towels in the loo."
Harry saw what Neville was offering and replied, "Oh, well, I'm fine, mate. Thanks."
"Okay," he then turned to Hermione, Ella and Edward and offered them a drink. Everyone respectfully declined. They began to walk around, greeting everyone. Slughorn saw Harry and Hermione with the Cullens and wanted a photo op with the four of them. Out of the corner of Hermione's eye, she saw Cormac being a waiter and looked at her somewhat evilly. She wasn't going to let him ruin her fun. She was glad that she took on Harry's advice and asked Edward to be her date and not Cormac. As the last photo was taken, the four of them went to mingle with other people. Eventually, they ended up in the balcony, taking in the night sky and chatting quietly before Cormac had appeared with a tray of Dragon Tartare.
"Dragon Tartare?" Cormac asked, offering the tray.
"No, thank you," Harry respectfully declined. Everyone else declined. Hermione made a point to tuck her hand onto Edward's arm. Knowing that Edward was there, it boosted her confidence. Cormac turned around and stopped shortly as he saw Professor Snape standing in front of him.
"Dragon Tartare?" he offered.
"No, now go away," he replied stiffly. Harry moved his foot in front of Cormac, in which he slipped and pushed the tray onto Snape's clothes. Everyone who saw what had happened muffled their laughter.
Snape just stood there and said, "You've just bought yourself a month's detention, McLaggen." Cormac picked the tray up and left the balcony.
"Professor Snape, how can I help you," Ella asked.
"I only wish to convey a message to Mr. Potter," he replied.
"A message?" he asked.
"From Professor Dumbledore. He asked me to give you his best, and he hopes you enjoy your holiday. You see, he's traveling, and he won't return until term resumes," he informed him.
"Traveling where?" Harry asked. At that moment, they heard a commotion and headed indoors to see Filch bringing in Draco.
"Take your hands off me, you filthy squib!" Draco reacted.
"Professor Slughorn, sir. I just discovered this boy lurking in an upstairs corridor. He claims to have been invited to your party," he conveyed.
"Okay, okay. I was gate-crashing. Happy?" he retorted.
Snape went up to Draco and said, "I'll escort him out."
"Certainly, professor," he said.
"All right, everyone, carry on, carry on," he said as Snape took Draco out. Ella looked at Edward and spoke privately as they heard the recent news about Dumbledore's absence as well as Draco's actions.