Chapter 5

Harry could only blink in surprise. It took nearly half a minute and the smile from the genial looking man to dim slightly before his brain could assimilate the information. Then he scrambled to his feet.

"Oh wow! Are you really? I was just reading your book! Glad to meet you, Professor Scamander! I have heard so much about you from Hagrid!" He gushed. Hey, nobody could blame him if he was a little starstruck standing in front of a man who was a genius of his field, and what a field it was. Talk about leading an adventurous life. But most of all, he was not at all like that ponce, Lockhart. Harry remembered Hagrid comparing him with the man before him, saying he was as much a trouble seeker as him and some group of people called Marauders, and since then Harry felt a kinship with the character Newt Scamander. He would do the same if he was to meet one of the Marauders, he was sure of it.

The man chuckled at Harry's enthusiasm, "Not a professor, I am afraid, Mr Potter. I have never taught anything to anybody in my life. But yes, I did write that book on your table among a few others." Mr Scamander indicated the copy of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them on Harry's table.

Harry shrugged, "You do have a mastery in Magizoology, don't you? And your books teach students of Hogwarts, in a roundabout way, you are a professor. If Snape can be called one, you are definitely one in my books."

Mr Scamander laughed heartily at that, "It is quite hard to not acknowledge an argument like that. Moreover," He leaned in conspiratorially, "I have met the man you mentioned and between the two of us, I quite agree with you." He gave him a wink.

Right with that sentence, Newt Scamander became one of Harry's favourite people in the world. Well, after Hermione, Ron and Hagrid – in that order.

"I can't help but notice that you have quite a few reading materials about magical animals on your table, Mr Potter. Are you researching about particular something?"

Harry paled at that question, what was he to reply? Granted, Hagrid was quite vocal about the man, and he did say that Newt Scamander was someone who had worked diligently with the Headmaster during the Grindelwald war. But then again, the praise came from a man who had thought that he could raise a dragon in his wooden hut. Harry had not had quite the trust in Hagrid's ability to decide what was safe or not. He shared a pint with Voldemort and earned the same dragon egg from that wanker – he thought. Although, he did some research on the magizoologist after Hagrid's burning praises. (Hey, what Hermione didn't know about what he did during his night-time strolls, or Ron for that matter, wouldn't hurt them. He was capable of reading a book or two in the library, during the night, hidden under the invisibility cloak). All these thoughts sped through Harry's mind, and in the end, he decided to test the water a bit, in a manner of speaking. (Newt Scamander didn't like Snape too!)

"Er…you see, sir…I was trying to find something about a particular snake…" Harry stammered.

"Oh? Would you mind sharing a little more detail about that? I may offer you some help." Mr Scamander asked interestedly.

"Er…sure, why not. Please, sir, do take a seat - " only after uttering those words did Harry realize that there was just one single chair at the table. Blushing at his blunder, he tried to make up for it, "Erm…please, take my seat…"

Newt chuckled again, "Don't worry, Mr Potter. I am quite capable of getting my own seat." With that, he brought out his wand and waved it to conjure a chair for himself. After seating down, he looked earnestly at Harry, "Now, what species of snake are you researching?"

Harry gulped as he sat down, this is it, either he will humour me because of my fame, or ridicule me – He thought. Clearing his throat, he began to speak –

"Well…it's a type of snake that has feathers, you see? Umm…poisonous, and probably can kill with its stare…" He finished mumbling.

Mr Scamander frowned, he waited for Harry to continue. But when he didn't provide anything more, he parsed his lips, "That's not much to go on with, Mr Potter. On the top of my head, I can only provide you with three kinds of being with the description you gave me. One – An Occamy, although they have the serpentine appearance, they are neither serpents nor poisonous, however, they are quite dangerous but cannot kill by stare only.

Two – A Quetzalcoatl or Kukulkan. A species of magical serpents who have feathery wings. They are quite poisonous but they are native to the deep forests of Southern America. They too do not possess the ability to kill with their stares.

And, finally, the third – A Basilisk. It checks almost all of the criteria you have provided. It is poisonous, it can kill by stare, and rumours of a plume seen at the crown of a full-grown male basilisk could be found in ancient works of literature. But a basilisk is an extremely dangerous creature that almost all of the governments of the magical world has declared illegal of its breeding without a license. Many even coined a basilisk to be a dark creature due to its power." He finished and look questioningly at the boy on the other side of the table.

Harry had an eager look on his face as Mr Scamander started to speak, but as his speech went on, Harry's demeanour started to change from eager to apprehensive to confused.

"I didn't see any plumage on its crown." He blurted out.

Scamander's frown deepened.

"Do you mean to say that you have seen a full-grown basilisk?"

Crap, thought Harry, I probably shouldn't have said that. What if he complains to the Ministry about it? What if they close down Hogwarts for good now? Would they arrest me and Dumbledore for not telling them about the bloody snake?

In his panicked state, Harry realized that the itchiness he felt last night was back again. It means that once more he was sprouting either fur or feather over his body, thankfully, he found that his face always changed later than the rest of his body.

Hurriedly, Harry pulled up his hood to hide his face as he jumped up from his chair, "Ah…I-I gotta go…thanks for your help, Professor Scamander, sir, really…" He hastily made his way towards the exit of the bookstore.

"Mr Potter…wait…" He heard Mr Scamander calling after him, but he was already out of the door by then. Stepping out in the open, he legged it, right towards the Cauldron.

He was about to step inside of the pub when a hand grabbed his shoulder from behind and stopped him.

"Mr Potter, please…I am not as young as I once was…please stop for a moment…" Mr Scamander whizzed.

Harry was trembling by then, not so much about the terror that he felt about the basilisk business, but the irritation of the fur/feather was getting to him.

Mr Scamander took a look at the trembling youth and thought he was scared about something in their conversation. Very slowly and in a soothing tone, he spoke to him –

"Mr Potter…I promise you, I have no ill intention towards you. If anything I've said back at the bookstore made you afraid of me, know this, it was purely unintentional. I give you my word as a wizard that you have nothing to be afraid of from me." He peered closely at his eyes which was semi-obscure under the hood of his jacket.

Something in his voice, or the manner he was speaking in, made Harry calm down a bit. He nodded his head.

Scamander continued, "Now, call it my instinct, but I gather that you have quite a tale to tell. I know you don't know me enough to trust me completely. And that posed as a problem with our communication. So to remedy that, I want to invite someone you know and probably trust. With this person acting as a mediator, we will have our conversation. Do I have your permission for that?"

Once again, Harry's heart started to beat in a faster rhythm, Scenarios after scenarios fleeted through his mind about what-ifs. He rapidly evaluated his interaction with the man before him. One thing stood out for Harry to consider – Newt Scamander did not give Harry Potter any empty platitude. He was upfront about what he wanted to say and do. Deciding to grab the charging bull by the horn, like the crazed Gryffindor that he was, he asked, "Who are you going to call?"

"Albus Dumbledore."

[TUP]

Professor Albus Dumbledore, Order of Merlin, First Class; Chief Warlock of Wizengamot; Supreme Mugwump of International Confederation of Wizards; and Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, was nursing a cup of tea as he sat thinking about the news that he received last night.

Apparently, Harry Potter had a bout of accidental magic and caused quite a devastation in his relative's home. Afterwards, he ran away from there. Thankfully, the Department of Magical Transportation informed the Minister's office that the Knight Bus had made a stop in the same neighbourhood which was flagged for excessive usage of magic in a muggle area, and the passenger had booked a ride to Leaky Cauldron. Thankfully, Albus was already at the Minister's office trying to find any news about his wayward student as soon as he was informed. He had then convinced the Minister, Cornelius Fudge to go and receive young Harry while he himself went to Harry's home to placate his relatives, in a bid that Harry was allowed to be back the next summer.

Dumbledore let out a tired sigh as he looked down on his desk which was laden with correspondences from the British Ministry as well as various missives from the ICW. In addition to that, Minerva had threatened him with dire consequences if he was to push off the school-related works any further. His absence from the castle last year when he was suspended for not preventing the petrification of muggleborn students had caused the parchments to pile up quite high. Albus couldn't blame Minerva, if it weren't for her, he didn't know what he was to do with his additional charges. He could feel the weariness seeping down to his bones and the apparently innocent reports of the last educational year started to seem more and more sinister with each passing second. Sometimes, it was not such an easy life for a person named Albus Dumbledore.

With a sigh, the aged scholar picked up his quill and reached for the top-most report from the stack when an ethereal beast swam into his office through the wall. He looked up with a bit of shock and found a rather playful kelpie floating around in the air of the room before coming to a stop in front of him. It shook its mane and opened its mouth. In a very familiar voice, the Patronus started to recite the message it carried –

"Good day, Professor Dumbledore. This is Newt Scamander. I am at the Leaky Cauldron with young Mr Potter. We would like it very much if you join us for a little heart to heart."

As the Patronus faded away, Professor Dumbledore jumped to his feet and waved his wand about him. His robes changed instantly and his hair and beard straightened from the mess he was woken up with. Whistling a cheery tune as he strode towards the fireplace, he spared a glance back on his desk. He most definitely was not running away from the parchment-works once again. No, he was simply very eager to catch up with his favourite student, and any chance to speak with Harry was surely treasured moments, so there. He threw a handful of green powder in the flame and called out his destination before stepping in. With a whoosh, he was gone from his office at Hogwarts. If the parchments on his desk were able to emote, they would have definitely pouted by the man's apparent reluctance to be near them.

[TUP]

Professor Dumbledore strode out of the fireplace at Leaky Cauldron and with a wave of his wand, removed the soot from his clothes. He gave a small smile to Tom the Barman and cast his eyes about the room for his old and not-so-old student. He found them soon enough, they were sitting at the back. It looked like they were busy talking about something or other. Newt was in his usual garbs while Harry was covered from head to toe. If Dumbledore didn't know the boy's identity and whereabouts, he wouldn't expect him to be here. As he neared them, he caught their conversation -

"What was that spell?"

"It's called the Patronus Charm. Quite a powerful spell as it requires a vast amount of magical energy. You'll learn about it in your NEWT years, because of its difficulty. It is the only known defence against dark creatures such as Dementors or Lethifolds. And also, as you saw, it can be used as a secure means of communication, sending short messages to your friends and family."

"There wasn't any wand movement…and the incantation…Ex-expecting -"

"Expecto Patronum. Roughly translated from Latin, it means I expect or require a protector. And yes, this spell doesn't need too many wand movements. Just a sort of forwarding jab as you incant. Yes, precisely like that…you got it down fairly quickly, young man."

"Yeah…er…spells come to me easy enough. It's the theory behind them that stumps me."

"Oh, I can understand that quite well. I never cared much about the theories myself. Professor McGonagall once threatened me to hang me by my feet if I didn't hand in a properly researched assignment."

Harry shivered hearing that, "She is still very scary."

Newt smiled down at the boy and gave him a wink, "You want to try that spell?"

"B-but I am not supposed to cast with my wand outside of the school!?"

Newt leaned in, "Let me tell you a secret, Mr Potter, the Ministry cannot identify Underage magic if it is performed in a place that is frequented by adult magical beings. Such as Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade. Only in the muggle areas, where there are very few wizards or witches around, they can trace the magic being used."

"That means that the pureblood students can practice during the holidays but we can't. Oooh, Hermione will be so pissed when she comes to know that."

"Your friend?"

"Yes, my best friend. And she is brilliant. Top of our year, she is."

"Impressive, and she is a muggleborn?"

"Yes, sir."

"All the more impressive then. Now, how about it, do you want to try casting the spell?"

Harry looked very eager to try this new piece of magic. Newt delved into the mechanics and mental requirements for the spell, "It's quite simple to cast, actually. Only the power requirement makes it a hard enough spell. You need to think about a happy memory. Infuse yourself with the feeling of happiness. When you feel that you are ready, just cast the spell."

Albus stopped in his tracks, he wanted to see Harry's attempt at the spell. As he watched, the young boy had his eyes closed, his frown was the indicator that he was thinking very deeply. Suddenly, there was a smirk on his face as he jabbed his wand forward and in a ringing voice, incanted –

"Expecto Patronum!"

Before Albus' unbelieving eyes, a few silvery wisps emitted from the end of Harry's wand. He couldn't stop himself from applauding.

"Bravo!"

Both of his students got up from their seats.

"Professor Dumbledore."

"Mr Scamander and Mr Potter, good day to you both." Albus nodded to them as he sat down in one of the spare chairs of the table. "Quite a brilliant display of magic there, my boy." He gave a beaming smile to Harry. The boy looked at him confusedly.

"But, Professor, I failed to make it work…"

Albus gave him a genial smile, "Yes, you failed to make a corporeal Patronus like Mr Scamander, which is what brought this impromptu lesson about if I am to guess." The two nodded their heads, "But what you don't realize is this spell, just as Mr Scamander told you, Harry, is quite beyond of your capabilities. People who have completed their NEWTs, often have problems in casting them. There are some high ranking Ministry officials who have never even managed to cast this spell, and the handful of those who do, it had taken them quite long to reach that level. For you to generate the few wisps you did, it only proves your magical abilities and willpower, because I am sure Mr Scamander here has expected you to fail in your first attempt." A sombre nod from the said man told Harry about the truth of the statement.

"Fret not, Mr Potter. I am quite sure if you keep practising the spell with the same amount of eagerness that you just showed, you will manage to cast it perfectly, and quite sooner than the rest if I am to gamble." He gave the boy a conspiring wink. He turned to give a small smile to the other man at the table, "Newt, it's been quite a while since we last had a chance to talk."

Newt Scamander gave him a nod with a smile, "Indeed, Professor Dumbledore."

"How many times have I asked you to call me Albus?" He mock frowned.

"At least one more time, Professor." He gave him a smirk.

Albus shook his head exasperatedly, "Now, not that I do not enjoy a break from my works, Minerva's complaints notwithstanding, but I do feel curious, why did you ask for my presence here?"

Albus found it quite strange the way Newt glanced at Harry, and the said boy seemed to cower down in his seat.

Newt cleared his throat before speaking, "I was looking for a book on herbs when I entered Flourish and Blotts this morning. The proprietor there was quite egregiously ecstatic claiming that two of Britain's most famous wizards visiting his store at the same time. Curious, I asked him and found that our friend, young Mr Potter was there back at the shop conducting some research. I felt that I should introduce myself to the young man and approached him. He was buried under quite a few tomes and I offered my help to him seeing he was interested to know about magical beasts. In the middle of our discussion, Mr Potter panicked and ran away from me after giving some loose excuses. I am not going to lie, I was intrigued by this development and pursued him, and as proof that I mean no ill intent towards him, I proposed that we continue our conversation with the presence of someone trustworthy to both of us. And here we are."

Albus turned his head towards the boy who by now slid so far down his chair that only his head was visible above the table. As he saw Albus turning his gaze towards him, he raised a hand to pull the hood of his jacket further down to hide his face. Albus found himself frowning, was that fur on Harry's hand?