To Ride the Carousel Again
Chapter 18
Disclaimer, disclaimer.
Need a fancy disclaimer to show how witty I am.
Sigh,
I got nothin'.
The Harry Potter characters belong to JKR and whomever.
Questions, questions and maybe some answers.
Maybe.
/*
Approx. 5,500 words.
/*
"We assumed that Snape had already drank the vial that allowed him to go on. Yet it was filled when we got there. So, it had to be an automatic refilling vial. I think this means one of two things."
"One, after I drank, if we had waited, another dose would have appeared in the vial."
"Or two, allowing another person to drink the refill, meant there would be two people in the mirror room. The thief and . . ."
Hermione shivered as she processed his last unfinished sentence.
She could swear his eyes were blazing as his mouth opened to state the question she was positive would dynamite her world view.
"Why was that bottle set up to refill, Hermione?"
/*
He had broken her. From her expression of betrayal mixed with disbelief, Harry was becoming horrified that he had harmed his best friend.
As her expression morphed to absolute anguish, and she started to collapse into herself, he rolled over to her and gathered her against his chest.
It took many minutes for Hermione to cry herself out this time. Harry thought he understood why. The trust that they as children had given the supposed greatest hero of the wizarding world had been betrayed.
And Hermione's absolute belief that authority figures automatically gained respect, because, well, they were authority figures, had just been blown sky-high.
Many times, Harry had wished he had his friends' absolute belief in adults being dispensers of swift and fair justice. But his experiences with the adults in Little Whinging had discouraged him of any grown-ups helping him. Neither teachers or neighbors has ever helped him. Almost all had preferred to believe his Aunt's and Uncle's lies.
Four years of dealing with the many odd and ineffectual teachers at Hogwarts had done nothing but reinforce his belief that most adults when dealing with him as Harry Potter were at best ineffectual, or at worst outright enemies.
McGonagall had lost a lot of placement in his respect line from her draconian enactment of their punishment for being caught after their help in sending the baby dragon away. The brush-off she gave the trio when they warned her about the attempt to be made to steal the stone had then removed her farther down the queue.
And then Upper Management had gifted him with the knowledge that Forest Quillermort had killed him due to Hogwarts adult stupidity . . .
As he held her, Harry reflected he had had more examples for Hermione but that was from his three extra years of Dumbledore's 'You are not old enough to understand, Harry' or 'there is nothing I can do about this, Harry.' Those useless platitudes delivered in a regretful, world-weary voice were usually trotted out just before or after Harry had put his life in terrible danger.
So, he sat there and in his now vast maturity, (at least as he thought of it.) he would hold his friend as long as needed because he was the cause of her anguish.
As Hermione's crying jag continued, Harry had a thought that came out of nowhere. He must not be a very good friend, because, like Ron, he always seemed to make her cry.
He lost track of time before she managed to reduce the loss of one of the largest props of Hermione World to hiccups and snuffles.
"It was a set-up, wasn't it?" she snuffled.
"Yeah, I think it was," Harry said quietly, reflectively. " When we started it was almost a lark. Fluffy was sleeping, the Devil's Snare was easily taken care of, and the key was, well, sorry, kinda fun."
He felt her stiffen in his arms. He would have bet that for a moment she wanted to drive some common sense into him by beating him about the head with one of her beloved books.
"The chess set was actually dangerous, I think. If the white queen had to move so I had a clean cast at the king, then she had a straight cast at me. Instead, she picked Ron who was our leader at the time and had the king in check at that point.
We also have no idea how Quirrell got past the chess set. Any damaged pieces would recover and reset just like an ordinary wizard's chess set. For all we know, he just blasted his way through."
Hermione remained silent as Harry gathered his thoughts. "Looking back, I remember that we were happy not to have to fight the troll. But, it was unconscious. Not killed. He told me he had a special gift with trolls. Maybe that was the last of his humanity showing up."
"We both know what happened in the potions puzzle and I told you last spring what happened in the last room," he said raising his hands and staring at them. "If it hadn't been for my mother's protection that she gave me that night long ago, Voldemort/Quirrell would've killed me."
"Good thing that in the castle he wasn't wearing gloves and a heavy cloak. He'd already killed me once in the forest, right? I can't remember how he did it. Everything just went black," Harry thought.
"And part of the reason why I was in that room was because all those obstacles were 'dumbed down.' Even if we are, were?, really, really good at . . . Hermione, what's the word for someone young who's very smart and fantastic at something?"
She frowned for only a second. "Prodigy?"
"Yeah, that's it. As I said before, why were a group of First-Years, even if we were prodigies at something, able to overcome Hogwarts professor-made obstacles that were supposed to stop or severely slow down a very powerful dark wizard?"
Harry waited to see how Hermione would handle the, in his mind connected, two assumptions. Erzelkendis, and his notes, had been correct about everything so far.
While Harry sat holding her, another vagrant thought flitted through his mind. He figured that no matter how much time spent there, she was going to find no answers in the library. Research was not going to help. This was instinct mixed with logic.
And his instinct and logic were screaming that any possible help had been removed from the library a year ago.
Feeling Hermione starting to shift, Harry loosened his hug which enabled her to slide over to her backpack.
Reaching into its depths, she pulled out a couple of parchments. She still was not saying much, when she suddenly gave a heavy sigh and silently handed the parchments to Harry.
There in her neat, tiny script, were all the questions Harry had been dreading, but she had not asked. It had been out of character for her not to have broken out the bright lights, manacled him to an uncomfortable chair, and become the 'bad bobby' when he took her to the Manor.
And with his memories of fourth-year Hermione learning about house elves, when she had been introduced to Ypres and Peama, the fact that she had not immediately interrogated him about everything he knew about the new and hereto unknown magical species should have been a stronger warning.
The Harry List
1: Harry appears to be unhappy, even angry with Professor Dumbledore. Two months ago, he
was saying how grateful he was that Dumbledore had managed to save him.
What has created this sudden change in Harry's attitude? He is upset, yet seems to have a plan.
Harry has a plan? The world must be ending.
2: Also, he has become confident in himself. Until danger reared its head, or Malfoy opened his mouth,
Harry has mostly abased himself.
3: Where did he learn about the Knight Bus? I have never heard of it, or read anything about it.
4: Where was Harry staying before he found his manor? From the way he talked last year, his relatives
never let him out of the house to go anywhere.
5: Why did he have me checked, in fact insisted I get checked for Tracking Charms on my first trip to his
manor? Why would someone want to apply them to me?
6: Harry is practically thrumming with power. How did he get so much more powerful in five weeks?
7: How did we change the two house elves when we 'fed' them magic? And why did one of them use
me as a source of their power-up? Why do they call him Master Harry? And me, Mistress
Hermione?
8: To repeat myself, he has talked as though Gringotts goblins and house elves are the only people he
has spent time with. Yet he has undergone a drastic personality change. Case in point, he brought
homework for me to check at my house during summer holiday. Without me nagging him about
doing it.
9: Part of his change is he sounds and acts older than he did only five weeks ago. He has started using
adult words during explanations. Another part is the confidence to buy his own clothes. Last year I
never saw him wear a piece of new clothing except for school uniforms. Yet he seemed to have
money for little luxuries last year.
10: He's initiated holding me or my hand me several times these last weeks. Harry never
touches anybody except by accident.
11: Somehow he has developed some very fast DADA reflexes with his wand. Was Lupin that good a teacher?
12: Why is Harry hiding his new trunk, clothes, and backpack from everyone?
13: It may be minor, but when has Harry ever known the answer to a History of Magic figure? Particularly
a goblin leader?
Harry read the list as fast as possible. He looked up into the face of his friend just as she was finishing cleaning her face with a handkerchief hauled from her backpack's side pocket.
"In case you are wondering," she said. "There was no point in asking about the money you have inherited. It's obvious you knew nothing about it until this summer. And from the way you talked about it that first visit to my house, Headmaster Dumbledore had something to do with your ignorance? Or possibly, everything?"
"A-a-and as much as you were trying not to blab your 'secrets', you've told me many of them. I assume that you were scared the Headmaster would find out about them? After all, he was the one you kept mentioning when you talked to me about having to virtually hide from him."
She stared at him intently. Harry just looked back, absolutely brain-muddled, his rising panic thoughts ricocheting around in his skull.
"What does she know?" he thought wildly, "Does she know enough to figure out I'm older? Or that I came back from the dead? Or there is an Uppe . . . ."
With a sigh, she started. "The first time you visited, you were emphatic that Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape could read my mind if it was not protected. That's a skill called Legilimency. You even knew the person who can perform it is called a Legilemencer."
She frowned at him. "Don't try to explain it by saying you read about the skill or who can do it from your wonderful library. During your first visit to my house, you left to 'go to your relatives'. The second time you said that you were going to start living in your house the night after you took me to your Manor for the first time."
"So, from what library did you find out those two could do mind reading?"
He opened his mouth and then snapped it closed when realized he could not tell her the answer. The truth.
"Second", she continued as it became apparent to her he was not going to answer. "You showed me your Potter Lordship ring. I now know the fact you have that ring is a very big deal. Your library is very informative. Why you kept that a secret, and are still keeping it a secret, I don't know. Yet."
"Third, you told me you were influenced by a potion and a curse last year. What you didn't tell me, again, was how you found that out."
She made a small face. "I've made the assumption that becoming Lord Potter is how you found out about owning your manor."
"And of course, there was our duel. The speed your spells traveled caught me by surprise. They hadn't traveled that fast during our practices. I've read several books that say spell speed is directly related to our magical power and intent. Your spell speed is way faster than a twelve-year-old should be. Why do I suspect that you were holding back during our lessons with Professor Lupin?"
With that, she fell silent, stopped looking at him, and leaned back into her cushioned bit of wall.
"Harry, you've told me what happened and you want me, to tell you, why it happened. Don't you think that you should return the courtesy and tell me why you have done these things this summer and why they happened?"
She gave him a raised eyebrow and a small off-centre smile. "Look on the bright side, Harry. At least you already answered parts of questions four and five. Only eleven-and-a-half answers to go."
With the last, she leaned back against the wall and regarded him steadily.
The only thought that kept circling through Harry's mind was how much of his supposed secret information he had unwittingly babbled to Hermione. And now his loose lips were coming back to haunt him with a vengeance.
Re-focusing on the list in his hands started slowing Harry's thoughts. Well, he could fake the first two, or maybe even tell her the truth about Dobby.
He started talking quietly. "Just before my birthday, I had a, a .. .. What's the word for a life-changing thought?"
She frowned as she thought. "An incident? An epiphany?"
"That's it, an epiphany. Both my parents were considered very smart, very talented students while at Hogwarts. Let's be honest, I have not been performing in class nearly as well as my pedigree says I should."
He lifted his head to look at her. "You know I have a cousin my age." She nodded.
"We were in the same class at primary school. If I came home with a better grade than he did, I was screamed at and told I was a worthless freak who must have cheated. That was no way I could possibly be smarter than darling Duddikins. And when I was stupid enough to say I hadn't cheated, I was called a liar and thrown into my cupboard to be locked away for days with no food."
Harry stared back at the floor again. "I soon learned to become dumber than my cousin. The few times I slipped up, I was swiftly punished, so I learned to do poorly better."
"And here at Hogwarts, my first friend has an allergy to studying and merely does just enough to keep from failing his classes. I spent last year going along with his attitude. I didn't then, and still don't want to have him angry at me, because I'm a better student than he will ever be."
Harry looked up at Hermione. "Unfortunately, since I've decided I am going to become intelligent this year, I figure Angry Ron is going to be around for a while."
Hermione wanted to jump up from the floor and high-five herself. She had suspected Harry was being abused at his relatives, now that he had confirmed it, much of how he interacted with his classmates became more reasonable. "Not right," she thought, "but more understandable."
"So, I think answering your list of questions as a list will be almost as boring as a Binns goblin rebellion lecture," Harry said with one of his trademark off-centre grins.
"How about I recap my summer and we can fill in what I accidentally skip over later, or if you want more information at a later time. After all, I still want to know the why of what happened."
As soon as an eager Hermione had her pen and a new sheet of paper ready, Harry started talking.
He told her about Dobby and how the elf had intercepted his mail and told him about some terrible event that was to occur at Hogwarts this year. Instead of Dobby elf apparition he had a letter from Gringotts, that the elf had intercepted, tell him about how to use the Knight Bus to get to Diagon Alley.
He spoke about his goblin account manager and how he was definitely not a friendly person, er, goblin.
His stay at the Leaky Cauldron and his vault searches were mentioned but glossed over. Harry skipped the list of houses he now owned and the huge amount of books that were stashed in the family vault. Right now, he didn't need her distracted by thoughts of even more old and rare tomes and scrolls she might get to read.
He was only a little sorry when he had to nullify the avid look in her eyes as he described his mother's journal and its wonders by telling her it was charmed to only be read by someone named Potter.
She immediately blushed bright, almost glowing red. Harry just passed it off as frustration. Actually, Hermione was intensely embarrassed by the instant thought that if her name became Hermione Jean Potter, that might give her access to that journal.
He ascribed his seeming bloom in maturity to having promised on his parent's memories that he would change. That he would become someone worthy to be known as their son.
Her teary-eyed look changed to looking at him as though he was insane as he described his supposed second trip on the Knight Bus to find Potter Manor. He then explained the elves nearing death due to magical starvation. He had found out from them that if the Manor had not been built over the intersection of two minor ley lines, Ypres and Peama might have died before he found them.
He flat told the excited young girl that there were some things he did at the Manor that day that were secret and no matter how hard she badgered him, he would not talk of them. It was Lord Potter stuff he told the pouting girl.
As for his new magical power he seemed to have, well, while she was enjoying being a tourist in France and Italy, he had put in over two weeks of intensive spell practice. And yes, Lupin was a very good teacher.
"And of the last things you wanted to know was why am I still dressing like Harry Potter of last year? And hiding anything that shows I now have access to money?" Harry said somewhat wearily. He had been talking for over an hour straight.
She could see he was growing tired of all this explaining about his life 'stuff', and it was time to take the information he had given her and try to produce some 'why's' to his 'what' happened.
"Because until tonight, it was possible for certain well-connected, powerful individuals to contest my ascension to being Lord Potter, and with enough chicanery and bribery to res . . . rescind? my emancipation, then if they could become my magical guardian, they would control me and MY house."
The last was said in a tone that spoke to his rising temper.
Hermione wondered where this fervor for his House had come from.
"No longer will I allow others to take advantage of my name or status."
He stood which indicated to Hermione that their "Harry List" talk was over for the day. "On Monday everyone will understand that I am now Lord Harry Potter."
Oooooo vvvvvv oooooO
The next morning, as they finished breakfast, Hermione announced she was off to the library for some research. Harry, who had made it a point that the two of them sat next to Neville, leaned over and quietly asked if he could have a private talk with the suddenly worried-looking sandy-haired Gryffindor.
Harry figured they had time as it was Saturday.
The pair made their way to the Grand Staircase's fifth floor where Harry stopped and did a repeat of yesterday. Guerna was the elf who appeared and when asked if Neville or he had any tracking or listening charms on him or his clothes, did his arm waving and suddenly the boy's shoes, belt, and wand glowed with pale blue lights.
Harry, had gained three new glows that day. He had deliberately worn yesterday's glasses, belt, and shoes, and each one had a new tracker attached.
This time he was prepared. He had brought his first-year Astronomy text, and another transfigured silver and acromantula silk pouch to hold the text.
He politely asked elf Guerna to place the trackers on the book, which Harry put in his pouch as the elf popped away.
All this went on while Neville looked in shock. Rather than explain in the corridor, Harry steered the boy down to the third level and into the ex-Fluffy room in silence.
After doing the Cushioning Charm thing with the floor and wall, he eased the still-in-shock boy down and then sat on the other side of the corner facing him.
"Sorry for all the secrecy, Nev, but you have just seen part of the reason why I've started taking precautions. Someone with an entirely too long, crooked nose seems to have an unhealthy need to know everything about me. From all those blue glows it looks like you're in his line-of-cast also."
At that point, Harry took ahold of his almost three years of extra maturity and went quiet.
In a couple of minutes, Neville spoke. "Those were tracking charms?"
"Yep."
"And you somehow got that house elf to remove them?"
"Yep."
"How did you know they were there?"
"My Head Elf found me covered from head to toe in the damn things this summer. I had him remove them. Yesterday, I brought Hermione here just like I did you. We both had a fair few show up on us. A week ago, my new Facilitator and tutor showed me how to detect them, and then remove them."
He shrugged. "Frankly the elves do a better job of removing and transferring them to something harmless."
"I've not shown Hermione how to do either yet," Harry continued with a touch of fear in his voice. "And I'm really hoping she finds out how to do both while she's doing some research for me. If I have to tell her that I could have done what the elf did for the three of us, well, you did say she scares you worse than I scare you. Welcome to the club, mate."
Looking at Neville, Harry saw the moment when the Heir Longbottom started connecting the dots.
"You have a house elf? And a Facilitator? AND a tutor?"
"Before I answer those questions, Heir Longbottom, may I inquire as to whether you have any forms of Occlumency shields?"
Neville gave Harry a wide-eyed stare. "According to my Gran I can detect a legilimency attack, but not keep out a determined attack. She said that I could keep out a quick surface attempt."
Neville's voice was puzzled as he kept speaking. "Harry, Occlumency is a skill that should be taught to every Heir of a House. Houses all have secrets that they expect the heirs to keep. Didn't any of those tutors you had at your castle try to teach you occlumency?"
Harry did a facepalm. When he looked up again, Nevile flinched at the hardened expression in his eyes.
"Heir Longbottom, please tell me you don't believe that those books that portrayed me as living the adventurous life of some child hero have any truth to them? You saw how I dressed and acted last year. Did I act like an overindulged, catered-to boy hero?"
Harry's voice was starting to rise. "Don't you think I would have brought at least one of my adventurous companions to Hogwarts with me? Or brought a couple of those marvelous tutors into Hogwarts so I wouldn't have to put up with Binns or Snape?"
Neville just looked back in bewilderment and then dropped his eyes in embarrassment.
"Heir Longbottom, I've been raised by muggles who hate magic and have treated me worse than Purebloods treat squibs. Wasn't the way I dressed in obvious castoff clothing a clue as to how I was living before Hogwarts?"
"Um, not really," the flaming red-faced boy muttered. "We all know the Potter family is one of the old, wealthy families in Britannia. Everybody except Hermione finally concluded you were just making some sort of fashion or lifestyle statement."
He struggled but managed to look Harry in the eye. "I've heard my Gran talk about how when anyone who knew your parents asked Dumbledore, how is Harry Potter doing, he always says you are well and happy."
Neville looked away from Harry. "I guess you don't know that there are several people that my Gran knows who have been very unhappy with how Professor Dumbledore has hidden you away for years."
Comments from Erzelkendis about his needing allies floated into his mind.
"When Hagrid picked me up and took me to Diagon Alley for my school supplies on my eleventh birthday, that was my first contact with anyone from the magical world. Anyone, Neville," he emphasized with a snarl at the floor.
"Heir Longbottom, can you tell me who are these people who were interested in my welfare but have been stonewalled by the Headmaster?"
Startled by Harry's reaction to his comment, and his return to formality, Neville stuttered a bit before speaking. "G-g-ran has said that Madam Bones, Lord Cornfoot, Lord Lovegood, and Lords Ogden, Greengrass, and Castleward have all tried at one time or another to get to see you.
Apparently, with no one seeing you, and no tutors having said they had worked with you, rumors about where you have been seen, or what you have been doing, are widespread and some of them are crazy."
"Gran says that the crazier the rumors are, the more people seem to believe them. And of course, all those books about you. They were really, really popular. Lots of wizards think they might be real, and almost every young witch wants them to be real."
"Gran says it's because no one knows anything about you that anything is believable."
The pair sat in silence, each contemplating a patch of floor in front of them for a few minutes.
"Neville, did you ever write your Grandmother about me? I mean about things I was involved in last year like Hermione and the troll that almost killed her. Or when my broom was cursed in the first quidditch match, or when we lost all those points saving Hagrid's dragon?
It surprised Harry that Neville pondered his question before answering.
"No, Harry, I have not," Neville replied in a slow, thoughtful manner, that somehow belied his young years. "And now that you have mentioned it, I should have been. My Gran wanted to know everything I could tell her about you at the beginning of the year."
"She wants to restart the Potter-Longbottom-Bones-McKinnon Alliance."
"The what?" was Harry's confused response.
"House Longbottom and House Potter are two houses of several that have had a long-standing alliance. Gran has certainly harped enough about it. The alliance has become inactive due to your parents being killed and mine are . . . Well, you know," Nevile's voice trailed off into incoherence.
The even more confused Harry opened his mouth to say "No, he didn't know," when the look of anguish on Neville's face stopped him cold. Whatever 'you know' was, it must be bad.
Harry decided that silence was the best course at the moment and to just let Neville sit and ponder.
Harry only lasted five minutes before he shifted, which brought Neville's eyes to him.
Clearing his throat, Harry decided that the day had become painful enough. He stood and extended his left hand to pull Neville up.
Harry willed his Lord of House ring into visibility. "Neville, as Lord Potter, I request a boon from Heir Longbottom. I need a tutor in the forms and expectations I will need to use, and meet, on Monday when I reveal my taking up of my Lordship."
Neville stared at the ring for a moment and then expostulated, "Merlin on a stick, Harry! You don't do anything by halves, do you? He paused for a moment, "How have you managed to claim your Lordship without everybody knowing about it?"
"Paid the goblins some 'extra fees' to ensure quiet filing of the parchmentwork."
Neville winced. "Must have been some very healthy extra fees. Gringotts goblins do nothing out of the goodness of their non-existent hearts."
"My account manager and I have an understanding," Harry said with a small smirk. "He doesn't try to bugger me, and I'll work with him to get his Senior Account Manager status back."
Harry frowned as he said the last. "I'd appreciate it that that little arrangement didn't get around, Heir Longbottom."
The return of formal language warned Neville that Harry was trying to act like he thought Lord Potter should act.
Neville agreed with a rather formal reply invoking House Alliance to keep Lord Potter's secrets.
After being still for a few moments, Neville drew himself up, at least as tall as the somewhat pudgy twelve-year-old could, and formally, officially, Heir Longbottom spoke to Lord Potter. "Lord Potter, is there some driving reason behind your wanting to make your new lordship public on Monday? I seriously do not believe I can turn you into a Lord, or at least someone who will not embarrass himself without more time."
Harry thought for a few minutes. "It's not like Monday is a critical day. Whether I announce it, or let it slide a few days, the time is past where the Great Fumbledork can have my lordship annulled."
"And the thought that the Ferret will probably say something supremely stupid that I can then force lowly Heir Malfoy to grovel and apologize for does have its attractions. Lupin did say that the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter was much higher on the social and prestige scale than the merely seventy-four years in existence Noble House of Malfoy."
"I think Lupin figures I could pull off a massive prank against Draco that would also leave no doubt that I am Lord Potter. It will announce to the school to not mess with me, or I will bury you."
"I'll take as many days as you can give me, Neville. You're probably correct when you think that I will be a disaster at trying to copy Malfoy as a role model."
/*
It was half an hour before curfew when Harry was waiting out by the guardian hog statues near the main gate hidden under his invisibility cloak. There was a slight pop as a dirty, rag-dressed house elf popped into existence.
"Hello, friend Dobby. How are you this evening?"
Those words almost gave the meeting away as the elf started to run at Harry to embrace him.
"Dobby! Stop! If you touch the wards. There will be an alarm."
Fortunately, Dobby stopped before running straight into the Hogwarts wards, which would have set off an alarm, bring one or more professors to the gate.
"Now, friend Dobby, let's talk about Halloween night."
/*
A/N:
This is one of those chapters the author is happy to be done with. Took two months to write and rewrite. Still not happy with it.
Yeah, Hermione's questions were bleah. I think 12-year-old Hermione could ask better questions than me.
However, Hermione will be on board soon. Neville, and the soon-to-be-introduced Susan Bones, will be drafted next.
Interesting. I seem to have a review writing critic who apparently cannot differentiate between JKR written Canon, and common Fanon tropes.
Through Chapter 11, by my count I've only had two Canon events occur between the appropriate characters at the Canon time.
As I said, interesting.