Chapter 40: Causes and Baldness
Thanks for all the reviews.
I had to take a pain pill, so there might be a few mistakes left from editing.
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Luna, luckily, didn't sample the liquor. No one wanted to see what an intoxicated Lovegood was like. Therein lied badness. Or at least chaos. Who knows what magical mayhem would happen if an underage Luna lost control of her inhibition. Flying came to mind for some reason. Ivy just breathed a sigh of relief that Luna wasn't interested in finding out what getting drunk was like. She did wonder what a stoned Luna would do. Not that she indulged, but she knew people who did, and they could be quite funny when they partook.
That averted, they spent the night learning some of the basics of science, which Luna soaked up like a sponge. She thought that she might finally be able to find the illusive Snorkack if she could make a machine to find it. After all, magic was failing. That and she had dreams of making mechanical images of her creatures. She wanted a robot nargle. She could just see it in her head, a small metal nargle that followed her around and muddled peoples' minds.
Ivy left Luna to her dreams of metal creatures and called her twin cousin.
"I was thinking of taking up a cause," Ivy told Harry after they exchanged pleasantries. She had just had her first tutoring session with Luna and was winding down. The two girls would cuddle with a movie later, but it was Harry's time now.
"Oh?" Harry said in an inquiring tone. "I know what ever you choose it will be a good one." In his eyes Ivy was just goodness personified. She would take up only good causes. She would advocate for what she thought was right. "I'll help any way I can," he added.
"I was thinking about the mutants and how they need someone not associated with them to speak for them," she said, tapping her bottom lip in thought. "Laurie and her friends have a hard time of it. They can't really go anywhere without being harassed, if they are recognized. I think it is deplorable. They are just kids and didn't ask to be mutants. They were born that way," she said, getting passionate about it.
"I agree with you," Harry said quickly, holding up his hands to stop her tirade, hoping to cut her off before she got on her tangent. Not that he didn't agree, but they were limited on time. "What can you do about it?" he asked, hoping to get to the end part.
"I was thinking of holding a press conference with you, me, and Luna. Maybe some prominent members of the mutant society and a few other backers. Between the cute factor of the three of us, we could turn the tide of compassion," she said, making plans in her head. She could just picture it now. The three of them talking to the world about the abuse that was wrought on the mutants. They would sell it as a bad thing that needed to be stopped. She was sure it would help.
"When? I mean, I'm here and you two are there," he asked, wondering if it would work. He was a bit more pragmatic than his twin cousin. He knew it would help, but maybe not quite as well as she was thinking it would. That and there would be repercussions.
"Around Christmas," she said, thinking of the photoshoot she was planning and the key players that she would need to talk to. She'd have to call Laurie and Professor Xavier in the morning. Then she'd have to hunt down Magneto and his band of minions and talk them into it. She had all those owls; they could find anyone. She was sure when Magneto came to tea, she could talk to him.
"I'll call Siri in the morning. I'm sure she'd be happy to come to Malibu for the winter," Harry said, then cracked a huge yawn. "It's late. I'm going to let you go," he said, smiling at his sister cousin fondly. He didn't mind staying up for her, but it was getting late.
"Okay. Goodnight, Harry," Ivy said, blowing him a kiss and hanging up the phone when he said his goodnights. She got up and went to find Tony. He was in his office, going over paperwork. "Daddy, can we talk?" she asked, sitting on the chair in front of his desk.
"Is this something I'm going to hate?" he asked, looking up warily. It wasn't that he didn't trust her, but the older she got, the more… uncomfortable her request got. It was that they were of feminine nature, and he was male. Like when she needed shaving necessities. He had no idea why she didn't ask Pepper. It was like she liked to make him squirm. He wondered if Natasha put her up to it.
"No, I don't think so," she said, cutely. She tapped her finger to her chin in thought and nodded decisively. "I want to take up a cause," she said and explained what she had said to Harry. "Can the Avengers get behind that?" she asked, hoping to have some support. If the superheroes got behind it, it would carry more weight in the political arena.
"I'd have to ask them, but you have my support," he said, jotting down a note to hold a meeting with his housemates. They could discuss it in full tomorrow. "Jarvis, ask everyone to meet with me after dinner tomorrow," he requested of his AI. While his AI would tell them, the note was to remind him while he worked tomorrow. He could get too caught up in his paperwork and forget.
"Very well, sir," Jarvis said, and proceeded to do just that.
"Thanks, Daddy," Ivy said, going and kissing him on the cheek. "What are you working on?" she asked, hoping it was something fun.
"Just the reactor. I want to get it in homes soon," he said, showing her what he had done so far. While it worked in his chest, he had not gotten it to work as an energy source for houses yet.
"Why are you trying to make it so small?" she asked, noting he was trying to keep it the same size as his. She would have thought that they would have been the size of an HVAC unit. Something that would be hard to carry off.
"So it could be secured better. It would be easier to hide," he said, thinking that thieves would be harder pressed to find it if it was put somewhere hidden. The smaller the better. In his mind at least.
"I guess," she said, still going over the schematics. "If you do this," she pointed something out and then something else, then moved her fingers to two different places," and this, it will make it more effective," she said, smiling at him. It wasn't that she completely understood the diagrams, but that just made sense to her.
"Well, I'll be jiggered," Tony said, pulling up a hologram and doing what she said on it and running the diagnostic. It worked and he kissed the top of her head. "It's not done, but it's closer," he praised. It would mean making the finished product a bit bigger than he wanted, but smaller could come later. He really wanted these in houses soon.
Ivy yawned and smiled again. "I'm going to find Luna. We're going to watch Bambi. She's never seen it," she said, and left the room with a wave and an "I love you."
"Love you too, little bug," Tony said to her retreating back. He looked at the diagrams again and wondered just how smart his little girl was.
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Gandr met up with Harry and Neville the next morning. The Slytherins that had been trussed up the night before had been cut down by a very upset Professor Vector. However, she didn't do anything to Gandr, because Slytherins were to settle disputes between themselves. Unless things got bloody or outside the common room, then she'd step in. No one was hurt last night, short of their ego, so she let it go. She did warn Gandr to keep it to bloodless fights though and sent them to bed.
"What did you get up to last night?" Harry asked Gandr as they walked down the hall. He was well rested and had had a great evening catching up with his Hufflepuff friends. Neville was with them, and Star was wrapped around his neck like a stole.
"Nothing much," the other boy said as they walked into the Great Hall. "Just a bit of a powerplay. I won," he said, giving them a smirk, which they returned.
"I figured you would," Harry said, nudging his friend. He knew something like that would happen in that House. It was all about politics and hierarchy there. That and Malfoy was trying to rule the school from his seat there.
"You didn't hurt anyone, did you?" Neville asked, worried the boy might get kicked out.
"No, there was no blood drawn," Gandr assured him. He knew the sandy-haired boy was sensitive to such things. "I did get to meet Salazar Slytherin's portrait though. That was interesting," he said, and looked to Star and raised an eyebrow.
She looked back. "Did he tell you where the snake was?" she asked, hoping to get it all over with soon.
Gandr nodded as he sat at the Hufflepuff table. The other Puffs looked at Harry like he was crazy for inviting a Slytherin to sit there.
"He's a friend," the dark-haired boy said, taking his seat. He started serving himself up some eggs.
"I thought you met on the train?" Ernie said as he sat near them and poured himself some pumpkin juice.
"We did, but how are we going to get to know each other better if he's all the way over there?" Harry asked, pointing to the Slytherin table, which was right next to theirs.
Gandr just shrugged and got up and sat on the bench at his House table at Harry's back. "There, now we are still within talking distance," he said, not wanting to cause an issue on the second day of school. He started serving himself some breakfast and juice.
"Spoilsport," Harry said with a grin. He put a spoonful of beans in his mouth and started eating. They could talk later.
Everyone started serving themselves breakfast and talking about what classes they would be taking on Monday, and what they would be doing for the weekend, this being Saturday.
"We're going to show Gandr around," Harry said, pointing to him and Neville. Star meowed like she was the one who was going to be doing the showing. Harry just petted her, keeping her on the bench near him. He had removed her from his shoulders when he sat, not wanting cat hair in his food.
"You are so weak that you need a couple of Hufflepuffs to show you around," Malfoy said, obviously not smart enough to leave well enough alone. He was still stinging from the smackdown last night. He was sure it had been a fluke.
"No, I'm smart enough to take a veteran student up on their offer," Gandr said, tucking away some bacon. He did love the meat selection of the British breakfast. Sure, Tony had the same on his dinner table, but something about the way the British cooked it made it different. Meatier. "They offered on the train, and I said yes. Why? Were you going to offer?" he asked, smiling sweetly.
"I would not be seen with a mudblood like you," Malfoy said, sneering like he was superior. His cronies laughed and started serving themselves up their meal.
Harry waved his wand on the sly, and Draco's hair disappeared. He didn't notice it, but Pansy sure did. Everyone else started laughing as she started screeching, "Draco, your hair!" Crabbe and Goyle looked around like it was something they would find on the table. Nott was wondering if maybe he was backing the wrong boy and started sidling away from Malfoy and his minions.
"What about my hair?" Draco asked alarmed, putting his hand on his head, and screamed like a girl. He put his hand down and leaped over the table to get to Gandr. "Put it back!" he yelled, trying to get his hands around the other boy's neck.
He was being held back by Crabbe and Goyle. They knew better than to let him start fisticuffs at the table. Vector would have him in detention for months. Then Draco would blame them for not stopping him, hence them preventing him from making a fool of himself now. Besides, that Gandr fellow might hurt their 'fearless' leader.
"I have no clue as to what you are talking about. My wand is in my robe," Gandr said, holding up his empty hands. There was a smirk playing on his lips, like he knew who had done it and approved.
"Put it back!" Draco kept yelling, his hands scrambling to find a purchase on the smug boy's neck until Vector finally came to see what the commotion was about.
"What in Merlin's name is going on here?" she demanded, grabbing the back of Draco's robes, and standing him in front of her. "Mr. Malfoy, what happened to your hair?" she asked, her tone shocked at what he was seeing. She thought it might be the new boy, but she couldn't just out and out accuse him of it.
"He did it," Draco yelled, pointing at Gandr and moving to choke him again, only to be held back by Vector. She was pretty strong for a tiny woman.
"I most certainly did not," Lokison stated, his nose in the air. "I never touched my wand," he insisted, pulling said wand and showing that it had been in his robe sleeve the entire time. "You may check it if you must," he offered, knowing that the last few spells were cleaning charms.
Vector took the wand and checked the last few spells. Cleaning spells. The likes you would see for morning ablutions. Not seeing anything that would cause Malfoy's baldness, she started looking around at the crowd to spot the culprit. She saw Harry Potter, but the boy was looking just as innocent as he always did, with those big anime eyes. Were those hearts around them? She wasn't fooled for a second, but she couldn't flat out accuse the boy of doing it.
"What are you doing? Punish him," Draco demanded of the teacher. He was still trying to get to Gandr but was still being held back by Vector. He was very unused to being denied anything, and this morning and last night were foreign to him. When his father heard about this… Well, if he didn't get yelled at for letting it get this out of control, they would pay.
"I do not know how things work at your home, Mr. Malfoy, but you will find that here we do not kowtow to children. Watch how you speak to me," Vector said, looking down her nose at the boy. She knew the boy was spoiled, but damn. Then again, knowing who his father was explained a lot.
"My father…" was all Draco got out when Vector spoke over him.
"Go to the Hospital Wing and see if Madam Pomfrey cannot restore your hair," the professor ordered, giving the boy a push in the general direction of the exit.
The boy stumbled and then righted himself. He straightened his robes with a snap and stood to his full height. "When my father hears about this," Draco snarled to everyone. "You will all regret laughing at me," he said, stomping out of the Great Hall. Crabbe and Goyle were right behind him as was Pansy. Nott was obvious in his absence.
"I will find out who did that, and there will be punishment," Vector said, her dark eyes roaming the crowd again. She ruled out the Weasley twins, they were too far away. She glanced at the children again and sighed. She didn't know who had done it, but she would find out sooner or later.
"Isn't she a ray of sunshine," Gandr said, sounding like Tony for a moment. He then shook his head and vowed not to spend so much time with the man in the future. "I'm off," he said, standing and tapping the laughing Harry on the shoulder. "Coming?" he asked, standing and waiting. He didn't need to bring the other two, but he did want Star along. She might be of use if there was a fight.
"Yup," Harry said, shoving a piece of toast in his mouth and standing and picking up Star. He waited for Neville to finish his juice and they all left the Great Hall and started towards the second floor. Star was on Harry's shoulders again, like a fur wrap. She just hung there, relaxed. She, unlike Goose, loved the attention of the humans.
"What do you think we'll find?" Neville asked, the wariest of the three of them. He hoped that the snake was friendly, but he wasn't' putting much hope in it.
"I don't know for sure," Gandr confessed. "Salazar is most concerned about her. He did confirm that it was a basilisk and that it was his familiar. Her name is Isobel," he added, taking a corner, and spotting the loo they wanted.
"Isobel, huh? Well, that's as good a name as any," Harry said, moving towards the door to the girls' loo.
Neville was following behind, watching to make sure they weren't being followed. So far, he couldn't see or hear anyone around. The stone of the castle made it harder to hear leather shoes though. If they were hard-heeled boots, maybe, but the students' shoes were all softish leather.
"I am hoping she is amiable," Gandr stated, opening the door, and looking inside. "I'd really hate to have to kill her. I've never met a basilisk." He looked around the disused room.
The bathroom seemed to be abandoned. It was dirty and there was an air of unoccupancy to it. There were spider webs in the corners, and a layer of dust on everything. Grime covered the sinks and toilets in a grey and brown coat.
Suddenly, a female ghost came shooting out from one of the cubicles.
"What are you doing here?" she screamed, floating towards them at great speed. "This is a girls' bathroom!" she stated, stopping right in front of Gandr. "You're boys," she pointed out the obvious.
"I heard there was a secret chamber here," he told her the truth. There was no reason to lie. It wasn't like she could actually stop them. She was a ghost. A non-corporeal ghost. She couldn't touch them in any harmful way.
"Oh, I know where that is," she said, suddenly not angry. Her tone took on a playful manner. Like she was… flirting. "I died from something coming from there," she said with a giggle, pointing to the out of order sink. "I will bet that's where the entrance is." She giggled again, like the schoolgirl she was, and then floated behind them as they went to examine the sink.
Gandr spotted the snake and hissed at it. The fixture made a grinding noise and the whole thing started coming apart. It split into six pieces and moved out of the way showing a gaping hole.
"Open? The password was 'open'?" Harry asked, stunned.
"I didn't make it," Gandr said, holding up his hands in a 'what can you do' manner.
"Weird," the dark-haired boy said, looking to Neville, who just shrugged.
"Come on," Gandr said, going to the hole in the floor.
"Do we jump?" Harry asked, peering down the dark tunnel. It looked like a slide from hell. There was no light coming from below. It was pure darkness.
"I was told there were stairs," Gandr said, hissing for stairs. They started to form from the slide. Then he asked for lights. It was if the whole tunnel was illuminated with a glow stick. Light just appeared to glow from the walls. Not bright light, but enough to see by. "Come on then," he said, waving the other two boys to stay behind him.
"I think I'll stay here and guard the entrance," Neville said, not as brave as the other two. He didn't want to see the basilisk. He had come as far as he dared. Which was far farther than he would have a year ago. He thanked his friendship with Harry for that. Still, he would stay here and watch the tunnel in case they needed him to go for help.
"Okay, Neville, you do that. Why don't you try and get the story from the ghost. That will pass the time," Harry said, thinking it might be a good tale. She said she died by the basilisk, so maybe she knew how it got out last time. Well, he figured it was last time, judging by her uniform.
"Okay," Neville agreed, going to the wall near the door and started talking to the ghost. She was more than happy talk to the boy about the day that she died.
Harry made sure Star was secure on his shoulder and moved to the hole. They would find out one way or another if the snake lived or died. He hoped it was the former, but he was prepared for the latter. He hoped.
"Let's go," Gandr said as he started down the darkish stairs.