4. Harry started some fights
Harry made the journey to Hogwarts in a carriage with three Hufflepuffs in his year: Susan, Hannah and Megan. He enjoyed the ride. The girls were easy to talk to, very friendly and were very impressed with his abilities, having seen both the elimination of the dementors and the healing of Patricia. Susan had contacted her auntie, Amelia Bones, head of the DMLE, while still on the train, telling her the peril they were submitted with the foul creatures.
"Potter, the headmaster wants you in his office as soon as the feast ends. Don't make him wait for you" was the welcoming message of Snape to him.
At Ronald's frown seeing him entering the Great Hall, he opted to seat at the end of Gryffindor's table for the feast. Strangely Hermione wasn't there yet. Maybe she was denouncing him to one of the teachers for killing dementors, or Romilda for calling her a bitch. He was sure he would discover quite soon.
They had to wait a longer time than usual until professor McGonagall came with the first-years. At the same time Hermione came running to seat by Ron's side.
Harry applauded every one of the new students as they were sorted, no matter what house they were selected to, which cause some intrigued looks his way, but he was happy when many others took the clue and started to also cheer for each new student sorted. The New Harry was tired of many things, and the long feud between Hogwarts' houses was one of them. He had vowed to no longer hide his opinions and go with the majority as Old Harry so usually did.
.o0o.
"Albus, have you noted how different this sorting was?" asked Minerva to the headmaster.
The old headmaster look about. He hadn't put too much attention at the sorting, as he was distracted by the arrival of several minister officials, including the Ministry himself and the director of the DMLE. He was certain of the reason, as there was no record in history of a dementor being killed. He concluded his superficial search and answered his deputy: "I see Gryffindor has gained an unusual share of students."
"Very unusual in fact, and very unbalanced too" assert Minerva. "Only three of the twenty-one boys, but fourteen of the twenty-two girls."
The headmaster looked again at the Gryffindors, and realized his deputy was right. And in the middle of all those first-years was Harry Potter, the dementor's exterminator, chatting with all of them. The headmaster hadn't discovered yet that his mail-redirection charm was inactive, nor that the boy had answered all the letters he had ever received. He was intrigued by this sudden interest of Harry in the youngsters, and his detachment from his two best friends.
"Minerva, could all this interest in our resident hero be due to his accomplishments in the Express only?"
"I think it is possible. I talked with Remus. He said Harry has healed a girl in a most unusual way. Wandless, in front of a pack of the first-years. Maybe the same pack that is now surrounding him."
"Wandless you say? This is most unusual. I'll have to talk with Mr Potter extensively about it. But I'll have to wait for a more private moment. I don't want to reveal too much to our current guests."
.o0o.
"Boy, you have destroyed valuable ministerial properties! What do you have to say in your defence?"
'Not the greeting I was expecting', thought Harry while entering the headmaster's office. He knew very well who that man was. Lucius Malfoy, the guy responsible for all the danger last year, who was now trying to intimidate Harry. But Harry wasn't a sheep any more. He wouldn't back down in fear, nor let his anger escalate the situation into a confront that could ends bad to him.
Before starting to decide how to answer to the insolent man Harry calmly look to each one of the others present, trying to access how many allies Lucius have. He was expecting for Dumbledore, Snape, McGonagall and madam Bones to be there. The ministry, two aurors, Malfoy and a man who looked like Hitler's lost grandson with the same horrible moustache were not expected.
He had saw the ministry last year 'doing something' while sending Hagrid to Azkaban for no other reason. The man was nervous. He was a professional politician, he knew how bad things could turn out to him if this case reach the papers in a bad angle. He was someone that could be persuaded by the right arguments. He was probably the weakest point in whatever Malfoy's plans were.
Turning to Dumbledore, Harry started to play the game, even if he hate it: "Headmaster, there are several people here I don't know. Could you please introduce them and what they add to the present situation?"
Albus wished he could dance a jig right now seeing Harry keeping his calm instead of jumping in a confrontation with Lucius, but contented himself in pinprick Lucius: "It seems Mr Malfoy, in his eagerness, committed an enormous rudeness. Let me correct this."
While Dumbledore introduced each one, including Hitler's grandson Mr Crouch as ex-director of DMLE and a specialist on dementors, and senior-aurors Proudfoot and Shacklebolt, Harry elaborated his strategy which he put in action as soon as the headmaster finished. He walked to the minister and offered his hand to shake while saying: "What an honour, Ministry! I have some really bad news to tell you, I'm afraid! Some of your employees, certainly ignoring the security procedures I'm sure you stipulated for them, left a group of dementors board the train on themselves, without an escort to contain the foul creatures! I'm glad that you are personally conducting an investigation of the facts! It could have been a huge disaster, with so many heirs to important families there totally unprotected!"
"Uh... Yes... Yes, you're right, my boy! Such a grave mistake required my personal attention, for sure..."
"I'm glad I could help to avoid a tragedy, sir!" interrupted Harry just to make the minister think a bit more of the consequences he had escaped while applying a fatal blow to Malfoy's initial accusation.
"Uh, yes... Yes, I see you're really a hero, Harry!"
Malfoy had couched Fudge to ask for reparations in a way to open the way to the boy's vaults and to pay back for the lost of his elf some months ago. He could have succeeded if this was still the same Harry to whom he lost Dobby. But, after seeing the Minister taking another road instead of following his plan, Malfoy lost interest in the conversation. He was defeated by the boy, again! Instead of wasting more time he walked to Snape and started to chat with him in low voice. Harry was glad. He took this as a victory and now with two enemies away from the main conversation, he felt a lot more calmer.
"Minister, did you already sent order to collect the other dementors? You know, this kind of accident would certainly hit the ears of the parents of the students, and I'm sure they would be more amenable if the notice that the school is now free of dementors reach them at the same time. They'll be very grateful for your prompt action!"
"Your idea has merit, Harry! Amelia, do you think you can dispose of enough aurors to guard the school?"
But Albus was not happy with Amelia having her people around: "Cornelius, I really don't think it is necessary..."
"But it is, headmaster!" intervened Harry. "Think how worried the students' parents will be with that Black guy on the run and the accident with the dementors! We need to move the dementors back to Azkaban but also calm them about Black."
"Exactly! It is something I need to do in order to keep the electors happy!" said Fudge closing the matter. He turned to the aurors but reconsidered and turned to Amelia instead. "Amelia, would you please make the arrangements?"
Madam Bones dispatched one of her aurors to Hogwarts's grounds to start the withdrawing of the dementors and the other to headquarters by the floo connection, to summon the aurors who would take first shift patrolling Hogwarts.
A fake cough from Mr Crouch caught Minister Fudge's attention. Cornelius nod in return, he knew what the man wanted and it was really important. Turning to Harry the minister said: "Well, Mr Potter, I felt I'm really in debt with you for your marvellous actions of today, but I really need to bother you with a request... We would like to know how you destroyed the dementors, as they are told to be indestructible."
That was an excellent opportunity!
"Maybe we can make it an exchange of favours, Minister, so that none of us need to feel in debt with the other. I think mine is a sensible request that could benefit all Hogwarts' students, and I can take care of any costs it causes, so that the ministry wouldn't incur in any expenses."
The minister interrupted Albus from interfering and asked: "What that would be, Harry?"
"Minister, is it too expensive to apply the exams for a specific subject and year? Last year the people from the Department of Magical Education needed to apply the exams for Defence due to some indisposition of the then professor. Was it too expensive or too demanding from your people?"
The Minister thought for a moment before answering: "Not demanding at all and not too expensive either. I think it was less than three hundred galleons total between extra wages and expenses. Why do you ask?"
"Well, because there is something that I really want, but it would be wrong of me to be the only one favoured. So I propose the following: every Hogwarts' student would have the freedom to chose between taking regular classes or do self-studying. For those doing self-study they can chose between doing their exams with the professor of the subject or with an official of the Department of Education. In the case of the official be chosen, a fund that I will create will pay in advance the tax for the exam before it is applied. What you think?"
"You coward!" screamed Snape, reaching the conclusion that such new opportunity for the students was directed against him.
Before Snape could started a flow of hard words in the boy's direction, Mr Crouch decided to act. He had a past as head of the DMLE and a hate against all Death Eaters. He knew Snape's past and was angry with Dumbledore to have spared the man from his just punishment. Seeing the chance to put the man down and out and make some points with the Potter boy in the process, he didn't hesitated.
"Mr Snape, your presence here isn't required and was only allowed in respect of Mr Dumbledore's request. But you proved yourself to have an unhealthy antagonism against Mr Potter, so I feel obligated to ask you to leave."
"Headmaster..." Snape was trying but was doubly refused with Crouch's "Now!" and Dumbledore's "Severus, please".
The man turned and walked to the door with his long nose hold high, as the drama-queen he was known to be.
"Well, minister, it seems my presence here is also no longer required. If you excuse me?" asked Lucius before following Snape out of the office. He refused to see the boy's smile any longer. It was too tempting to hex him, and that wouldn't be recommendable in current presence.
"Harry, your idea has some merit..." started Dumbledore "... but as your guardian I'll not permit these disbursements..."
"I don't care for your permission, headmaster. And about my guardian, no, you never were. You never checked on me before I came here, and you never gave me the attention or the informations I need after I came, so no! I don't consider you my guardian and would prefer if you don't try to interfere more in my life. You already harmed me too much." Turning to the Minister Harry continue "Don't worry, Minister. My offer to refund all the expenses of these exams stay valid, just the money will come from some Foundation instead of in my name. And, for your security, I offer to pay in advance. As soon as we know how many individual exams will be need each year, I will provide the funds."
"I really think it would be better if we thought of this with calm..." was trying Dumbledore when Harry cut him off: "What better way to see if it works than putting it to test! We can re-evaluate it later if necessary, but I'm sure it will be beneficial to all students!"
"Well, on this terms I accept to make this concession, and as Albus had already said your idea has merit, we have a deal!" and here Cornelius turn a pressuring look over Dumbledore to ensure the old man didn't walk back on his words.
"Well, now that the deal is sealed, how did you kill the dementors?" asked Crouch as soon as Dumbledore had, much against his will, approved the new right for the students.
"With a sword embedded in basilisk's venom" answered Harry, also much against his will.
"And where is this weapon?" insisted Crouch, but Dumbledore intervened with a guess: "Gryffindor's sword?" while walking to the shelf were he had put the sword to rest at the end of the previous school year. "It is not here any more!" he told them.
Harry hurried to give his version of events so they wouldn't require him to deliver them the precious weapon: "I think Gryffindor's sword has some special place to rest in the castle where it returns when no longer needed. It came to me when I needed it and as soon as I killed the last dementor it vanished from my hand. But I'm sure any goblin made blade imbibed in basilisk venom would show the same results."
"Yes, I think so too" said Dumbledore to Harry's relief. Crouch was clearly disappointed as their chances of obtain the valuable artefact drop to none, but Fudge was satisfied and quickly used the floo to get out. Only Harry, Dumbledore and madam Bones remained. Dumbledore tried to dismiss madam Bones so he could talk to Harry alone, but the boy was smart and eliminated the chance.
"Well, what a night! I'm sure anything more to do can wait until tomorrow. Goodnight, Headmaster, madam Bones."
He was already leaving the office as he heard madam Bones saying to Dumbledore: "I'm also going, but before, I need to exchange some quick words with my niece, to calm her down. Goodnight, Dumbledore." Harry was sure the woman would like to talk to him without the supervision of the headmaster. As this was also his will, he walked slowly letting her easily catch up with him.
"Mr Potter, please listen carefully" she said as she reached him. "I, Amelia Ophelia Bones, swear on my magic and life to keep the contents of our present conversation in secrecy as long as the facts exposed do not put the life of anyone in danger. So mote it be. Now, just a precaution" she said as she put some anti-eavesdropping wards.
After the glow indicating the effectiveness of the vow and the ward vanished, she then ask "Would this be enough so you could feel comfortable to answer some questions?"
Harry thought for a moment before answering "Yes, for some questions", so Amelia started with "Was Slytherin's monster a basilisk and did you really killed it?"
"Yes and yes, and I used Gryffindor's sword to do it. It was how it ended imbibed in basilisk's venom" he answered easily, as he really wanted people outside Hogwarts to know about it.
"What did you do with the carcass? It is your by rights and it is very valuable" she told him.
"Until now, nothing. I tried to negotiate it with the goblins, but they were too greed to offer me a reasonable price. So, I search for an alternative and found Lord Greengrass. We will probably seal the deal during this week."
"Good choice. I think Lord Greengrass will give you good conditions. His fame is of a just and honourable man. I heard what you told Dumbledore about his behaviour as your guardian. Would you like to discuss this matter in more detail, perhaps during a Hogsmeade visit? Maybe I could be able to help you."
Now Harry was really happy with the woman at his side. His condition as a minor under Dumbledore's guardianship was his weakest point at the moment, and he would really appreciate any help he could obtain to solve it.
"Yes, I would appreciate very much any help you could give me, madam Bones. What would you like in return for this help?"
"I'm sure that you were involved in many incidents here at Hogwarts. Several times I wished to come here and investigate, but Dumbledore refused me permission every time. My niece couldn't give me this information, as she was too far away from the facts and sometimes too scared to involve herself in acquiring them. But I need to know, even if just to discard them as inconsequential, but I doubt that would be the case. What little still reached me was too many and too serious to be the sole fruit of Hogwarts' gossip mill."
"You are right" said Harry, and madam Bones immediately turned pale having her suspicions confirmed.
"Susan told me you had finally answered her letters to you. Would a mail-redirection ward be one of the illegal acts performed by the headmaster without your knowledge or consent?"
Receiving his confirmation, Amelia proposed to Harry "Would you be amenable to tell Susan about your adventures and whatever you know about the strange events around here, so she could pass it to me?"
Harry felt her sincerity and wished to help her to help the students. There was a lot to tell, but the place and time were wrong, he was too tired and Dumbledore has too strong a control over the school. Portraits and ghosts report to him. Lucky the elves connected to the school in a way that prevent them to invade the privacy of the students. He dropped the major bomb right now over her head, to keep her interest on and to help her start her own investigations.
"Voldemort is still alive. I saw him myself. He is no more than a wraith right now, but he is searching for ways to regain a body. Research whatever you can about fractured souls. It must be related to how he survived that night. I will talk to Susan and tell her the details you need. There were many things wrong occurring inside Hogwarts, but Voldemort must be our main focus for now."
With that, he bowed to madam Bones, wished her a good night and went to his dorm. He was knackered and in need of rest.
.o0o.
He entered Gryffindor's common room to the sound of quiet sobs from a sofa in a corner. He went there and found one of the first-years girls feeling homesick. He seat in a corner of the sofa and made the girl rest her head over his lap, and started to gently run his hand over her long hair. Soon the girl was sleeping, but so was Harry too, in that uncomfortable position.
They wake up in the morning under the sounds of the rumble of the crowd encircling them. During the night Harry had ended lying over his right side, with the girl wedged at his front, also over her right side. His left hand was over her chest, keeping her close to him.
"Harry James Potter, what was the meaning of this!"
By Merlin, this definitely wasn't the greeting he was expecting this morning! How could he had withstand Hermione's abrasiveness so far?
At least he didn't need to answer her. Hermione was being admonished by almost the entire house. Harry even heard that Romilda girl again telling Hermione to 'Begone, bitch!'.
Harry helped his slumber partner to stand up, apologize for any inconvenience, received a kiss on the cheek as a thank you from the girl, and went to prepare for a new day. He was still sleepy and didn't notice the chorus of 'Ohs' and 'Ahs' that the tender moment and his caring for the little girl extracted from most of the audience.
.o0o.
As he came down from his dorm, he found Sonia Malcolm, Gryffindor's fifth year female prefect, waiting for him at the basis of the stairs.
"They wanted to wait for you to go for breakfast" she told him, signalling the crowd of first-years, and several second-years, waiting for him. They left the common room and went their way down. At each floor a different couple of girls took his hands, walking at his side, in a continuous swap. He found it cute the way they were taking turns so everyone have their chance to talk a little with him. A peaceful and fair solution to a potential stressing situation.
.o0o.
As professor McGonagall delivered his schedule of classes she told him the headmaster wanted to see him immediately after breakfast. A look at his schedule told him he has Charms right after breakfast and free time after until lunch, so he told her he refused to miss classes, suggesting 10:30 for the meeting. She didn't like the change, but accepted it as a sensible decision.
Professor Flitwick, as usual, used the first class for a revision of last years' spells. Instead of sitting with Ronald and Hermione, he chose to partner with Morag and Lisa. And instead of using the different spells to change an object's colour (one per colour!) he used only his 'mutare', silently.
"Harry James Potter, what are you doing?"
Merlin, couldn't him get a break?
"Changing the colours as the professor asked us to do" he answered with his most bored tone, as if losing time explaining something he knew she wouldn't understand or accept.
"And how are you doing it so fast and easily, and also silently?"
No, he couldn't get a break.
"Wand and incantation aren't necessary to perform magic, as you must know by now. Only Power, Visualization and Determination are essential" he answered while returning to his practice.
"But... Wand?... But..."
"That is correct, Mr Potter, but something that is only expected you to know in your NEWT's years. Take five points to Gryffindor for the knowledge plus five more for a fine example of silently magic" intervened Flitwick, silencing (but not calming) Hermione for a while.
The class continued, and with the professor's tacit approval, by its end Morag, Lisa, Padma and even the shy Su Li where changing the colours of the several items around them quickly, using only his 'mutare' spell silently. He was sure they could also do it wandless, they were some of those who had advanced the most during the summer, but it was too soon to reveal that.
Hermione wasn't a very happy witch right now.
.o0o.
"Take a seat, Mr Potter. We have much to talk" welcomed the headmaster.
Harry took the seat and waited in silence. If the headmaster was expecting for an opening from his part, Harry wasn't willing to comply. He was in the defensive, and wished to reveal the bare minimum to the old man.
"First, I must congratulate you for your calm display yesterday with the Minister and his entourage. Mr Malfoy was really eager to attack you in any way possible, but you disarmed him quite effectively from the start."
"Thank you, headmaster, I'm trying to act in a more mature way."
They were again in silence for a long moment until Dumbledore decided to continue.
"Professor Lupin said he was witness to a very unusual form of healing yesterday."
"Patricia was amazing! I only direct her to collect her magic and direct it to the local of the bruises, thinking it could help. Soon after she did it and they start to vanish, and then she was completely healed! Amazing, really!" he commented, diverting attention from his full involvement in the case.
Again a long silence until Dumbledore once again changed the topic of the conversation: "I think I saw a falling out between you and your best friends yesterday."
"Oh, it is just Hermione, sir. She is pestering me criticizing every one of my actions. I think in a couple of days she will see how much her over-demanding ways affect me and we will be good again."
Another silently interruption. Albus was intrigued. For each of his questions the boy returned an acceptable but unsatisfactory answer. As always, Harry has acted promptly and decisively against a perceived danger. He thought about trying to make the boy ashamed for the annihilation of so many lives, but he was unsure if dementors were really alive and couldn't himself feel pity for them or their fate. He felt happiness knowing the boy was still in good term with the youngest Weasley son and hoped to solve the situation with Hermione soon, erroneously thinking everything was normal between the two boys.
The headmaster chose to let things be as they were for a while. Just one more point to deal today, a very sensible one. Amelia Bones was too smart for her own good, and had time and again tried to enter Hogwarts to do some bothersome and inconvenient investigation on what happened here. He knew the two had talked, the paintings had notified him of that, and now he need to know what they talked about, as the paintings were unable to tell him.
"I hope madam Bones didn't pestered you too much either" he said, and immediately sent a legilimency probe to the boy, not confident he would elaborate his answers to the level of detail Albus wanted.
Pain! Albus was thrown back with a terrible pain that put him unconscious.
.o0o.
Harry had his first class of DADA that afternoon, soon after Transfiguration, where he had once more succeeded in helping the Hufflepuff girls with the use of 'mutare', scheduling a meeting with Susan for after dinner. He liked the way professor Lupin jumped straight to a practical lesson with a boggart. Compared to Quirrel and Lockheart, it was quite refreshing.
A reissue of Dumbledore's 'accident' that morning occurred during the lesson, though. Fay Dunbar went in panic when a personification of Death itself was assumed by the form-shifting creature and Harry, before the professor could act, put himself between the frightened girl and the boggart. As the boggart tried to read his mind in search for his greatest fear, it retreated back to its cabinet screaming in pain.
An untrained person have no protection against legilimency. A trained occlumens channelled some magic from their cores to create a shield or a fake mind-space to entrap invaders. Those who have their magic spread all around their body have no internal space to be invaded. The magic of two different people couldn't occupy the same space, and to dislodge the resident magic of a body was impossible under normal conditions. If they were physical objects, the invading magic would just bounce off its target, as occurred in the attack against a normal occlumens, as they willed their magic into a shield with physical properties. Painfully, yes, but tolerable. But in Harry's case, what happened with his two attackers was that their probes weren't deflected. They were kind of incinerated by the contact with the boy's magic, so being much more painful for the attacker while the attacked person only feel a kind of pressure in his brain lobes.
The result over the poor boggart was that they had to wait a quarter of hour until they could proceed with the lesson. The boggart refused to get out of its cabinet for that while, and treat a quick return there every time Harry came near.
.o0o.
After dinner Harry had his walk around the grounds with Susan. They walked hand in hand and, even Harry doing most of the talk, Susan also revealed a little of herself to him, specially in the way of contrasts between how they had lived so far, her being a girl raised in the wizarding world and so on.
She was a good listener, and as Harry really wanted to make a good impression with the Bones' women and ensure their help, he didn't hesitate to start with the grievances of his relatives with the way he was imposed over then. Susan was horrified with the callousness of the headmaster letting Harry on a doorway, without exchanging a single word with the Dursleys.
But what really sensitized the girl were the many times Harry's life was in danger during his first year. She didn't know of most of them, and had only a vague and downplayed notion of the others. She hugged him tightly when she discovered that Voldemort was still around, and cried for some time until his reassurances finally calmed her down. The adventures of second year will need to wait another opportunity.
Author's Note: My thank you to all of you who favourited and/or reviewed this story. The feedback is a great incentive to continue and to improve.
Added 05/05/2023: Chapter 4 was re-uploaded this date with a minor correction. I made use of the term 'horcrux' in a situation where Harry still didn't know about it. Thanks to scyfly for pointing the mistake.