I do not own anything from the harry potter universe, unfortunately.
"Normal Talking"
'Thoughts'
"Parseltongue"
Dumbledore had never felt so powerless in a long time. He had only felt this alone and cut off once and he swore to never feel this way again, and yet here he was. He used to know every move that anyone made, what his teachers had for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. What they taught and how they taught it, who they favored and who they hated. He knew his students, who showed potential and who should be left by the wayside. Any, who didn't fit in simply faded into obscurity for him. They were inconsequential, unimportant.
Now?
Now all he had was the Daily Prophet and what was broadcasted on the wireless. He had spent so much time at Hogwarts that he considered the entire castle his own. He had almost forgotten his ancestral home, the one where he grew up with his brother... his sister. The house wasn't small by any means but it wasn't the grandness he had come to be used to. It had only been two days and already he felt like the walls and rooms were shrinking by the day. And he was sentenced to six years of this? Surely not! He would just have to wait for a while longer. The Aurors that had been assigned to him were strict and only spoke to him when necessary.
He needed Tonks or Shaklebolt, if one of them got assigned to his guard then he could work out a way out of this predicament. He needed to see Harry, to talk to him. What he had performed at the second task was disturbing. Before that display, he had his suspicions but couldn't confirm anything but the use of Protego Diabolica had been all the confirmation he had needed. He didn't know how but somehow in some way Harry had come into contact with Grindelwald or something left behind by Grindelwald. How that could have happened in Hogwarts of all places he had no idea.
"Damn." Dumbledore cursed there were too many things that he didn't know. Too many things had happened without his knowledge. He should've been more concerned when all of a sudden Amelia Bones showed up with orders to bolster security for the tournament. He hadn't thought of it, his own arrogance assuring him that nothing might have been going on that involved him. He had written it off as Fudge just wanted to show some political power in some way.
Then seemingly out of now where he was bound and under arrest. His belongings were seized and his office searched. Thankfully it would seem that Amelia had failed to find anything beyond the journals he had kept about Harry's first year. Not that it mattered, everything he had built up for himself over the many, many years of hard work on his part was torn apart within a single afternoon. His positions and powers were stripped and if that wasn't enough he had a lifetime ban on obtaining any positions of powers again, not to mention any jobs that dealt with minors in any way.
So he couldn't even return to the school for something as simple as a janitorial job if he grew so desperate. Not to mention that he was unable to perform the more advanced forms of magic since his wand was taken as well. His wand was another concerning matter altogether that he would have to deal with. Dumbledore sighed as he sagged in a chair, he would have much work to do in the future. They didn't understand, he was the only one who could lead them.
As opposed to this, Harry couldn't be happier at the moment. His girlfriends had come back and filled him in on the good news. He didn't read the paper since he wanted to hear it from them. However, everyone else did. Malfoy and his ilk were like giddy clowns at the news most in Gryffindor looked like someone had kicked their puppies. Ron was livid of course but hadn't made any attempts to approach Harry or his girlfriends yet. Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw students looked disturbed but largely unaffected and if the rest of the Slytherin students had opinions about it they didn't make them widely known.
The Heads of Houses had been quite shaken, McGonagall felt and looked betrayed and had started casting apologetic and regretful glances towards Harry. Snape had kept his usual demeanor but he had become a bit more reclusive, giving shorter answers to students and not spending a second more around people than he needed to. Flitwick and Sprout had both been thoughtful, often they would be found with their minds elsewhere.
His friends had needed a day to absorb the information but they supported him and what had gone down at the trial. His Gryffindor friends, Neville, and the Quidditch team took it the hardest but they too came around eventually. Harry was glad for that, he didn't want to go through another round of animosity with people.
Currently, Harry, Hermione, Daphne, and Susan were all enjoying the chilled air next to the lake on the Hogwarts grounds. They had set up a little picnic with a blanket complete with warming charms to keep the air a pleasant chill instead of the biting cold. Demona had gone to explore the shoreline and the nearby forest. He could feel her and her curiosity as she sniffed around the grounds. Occasionally sending him mental images of things she found. They had a few sandwiches in a bag and some tea, Hot cocoa for Harry. Don't tell anyone but he wasn't the biggest fan of tea.
He was currently laying flat his head resting in Daphne's lap with Susan and Hermione were on either side of him. Daphne was gently playing a soothing tune on her ocarina. The notes from the instrument rang beautifully through the air and seemed to wash over the group. This was perfect for Harry, he still had to worry about the tournament and what the last task might be, but for now, he could let all of that just fall away.
All that mattered right now were the three beautiful young women around him. Slowly the music came to an end and the gentle lull of the water rolling on the nearby rocky shore replaced it. Harry's eyes fluttered open as he looked up to see Daphne smiling down at him.
"I thought I had put you to sleep." Daphne said running her fingers through his hair.
"Almost, think you might've put the others to sleep though."
"Nope, close, but no." Hermione said her eyes opening up. Susan stayed quiet though as they looked at her to see that she had definitely fallen asleep cuddling up against Harry's other side holding onto his arm. Harry laughed lightly as he found her hand with his and interlaced their fingers. Yeah, this was something he could get used to.
"So what do you think about this honestly?" Harry said raising his left hand and examing the Grindelwald tattoo. Hermione took his hand to examine it a bit closer tracing the shape with her finger. To here she couldn't even tell the difference, usually with tattoos, there was a subtle texture change to the skin. This did not have that, it was just the usual, slightly calloused hands that she had come to love.
"I wish you would've waited for us, but we're your girlfriends, not your babysitters. Though this is going to cause a lot of problems if you think people are afraid of the name Voldemort just wait till you announce the name of Grindelwald to the world." Daphne had said.
"I'm glad you can talk about it with us now. It's nice to be in the know." Hermione said taking his hand in hers as she settled back into her position at his side.
"I thought you'd be more upset." Harry admitted honestly.
"I think you've had enough experience with people trying to control your every move and decision. Besides we trust you." Daphne said thinking of all that he had told him and the suffering he has had to endure because people manipulated him.
"So, when you're ready to take up your positions you'll claim Grindelwald along with Potter, you know we should head to Gringotts when we can see if there are any other family lines you are eligible to." Daphne suggested.
"You think I'm secretly the heir of an even older house?" Harry asked jokingly.
"It could happen. Perhaps it will turn out that you actually are the descendent of Salazar Slytherin after all." Daphne said referring back to his second year when everyone thought he was the heir of Slytherin. Harry chuckled at that.
"Wouldn't that be something. As soon as this tournament is over we can head to Gringotts, I think I'll need to head over there anyway. Dumbledore had full access to my family vaults and I hate to see what damage he has done."
Hermione shuddered at that, the idea that someone could have such unrestricted access to something that was meant to be secure without permission unnerved her. The damage he could've done was unthinkable, and they wouldn't be sure until they saw Harry's vaults with their own eyes. The goblins didn't like to talk about that sort of thing over letters. Speaking of letters, Harry started to get some. Quite a few Daphne had been prudent and had gone about checking them out and finding only a few that had nasty surprises.
It would seem that Dumbledore also had his hand in Harry's mail. They had made a note to look into that but they would just enjoy their victory for now.
"They got a date for Sirius's trial, should be a quick one." Hermione said.
"I saw, he's requesting to be dosed with Veritaserum can he do that?" Harry asked and felt Susan rouse from her sleep.
"He can, it's usually saved as a last resort if the defendant is unwilling to answer or found to be actively lying. But the defendant can request to be dosed from the start." Susan explained sleepily as she yawned and instinctively gently tightened her grip on Harry's hands.
"Have a nice nap?" Daphne asked and she nodded blinking the grogginess out of her eyes.
"Nothing beats sleeping with my boyfriend."
"Oh wow, didn't think you'd beat me to it. Harry, why didn't you say anything?" Daphne asked a mock tone of hurt in her voice. At first, the two were confused before it suddenly clicked with Susan as she suddenly woke up fully.
"That is not what I meant and you know it!" she said heatedly and it was then that Harry also caught up and he couldn't help it as his imagination began to fill his head with images of Susan in a dimly lit room in a rather enticing state of undress. Harry could then feel his pants begin to get rather tight as he suddenly sat up to hide his situation. It was nice that he was getting healthy now with Pomfrey's potions but he found that having a decent hormone function was giving him all sorts of new problems that he didn't have to deal with before.
"Harry? Are you okay?" Hermione asked being disturbed from her comfortable position. Harry could feel his face begin to warm slightly as he tried to calm himself though he didn't know the best way to do that.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Harry said a bit tightly. Daphne looked confused for a moment before her eyes started to widen in realization at what her teasing might have caused.
"Harry... are you...?" She wasn't going to voice it out loud but the reddening of his ears was enough to tell her she was right. Hermione and Susan looked to Daphne for an answer and she subtly gestured to down and then to Harry. It took the other two a moment before they caught what she was trying to say.
The group didn't really know what to say and were just stunned for a moment.
"Harry, you know it doesn't bother us right?" Hermione said gently, she had to sit through the sex-ed courses at home. Her parents might be a dentist but they were still medical professionals and that meant they wanted to make sure that Hermione had a proper education.
"I-I know that but still... I just never really had to, you know, deal with it before." Harry said embarrassed by his predicament. The girls didn't know what to say, they knew how it worked of course but they weren't experts. And knowing how it works doesn't mean you can properly understand. Hopefully, when Sirius was freed they could have a very meaningful discussion that was probably long overdue for Harry. Thankfully Harry's issue didn't last too much longer as he got it under control.
"Think we should head back to the castle?" Harry asked trying to get off the awkward situation. The girls nodded and began to pack up everything. Harry thought about talking to Pomfrey about his new issues but it was just so embarrassing to bring up to anyone and he had already gotten the talk from her once when she started him on this regiment of potions.
Shaking his head he mentally called Demona and she came bounding out of the forest line charging toward them. As she got close she dissipated into smoke and dove into his Shadow.
"Harry, I know this might be forward but I was wondering if maybe you'd be interested in spending the summer with me and my family." Daphne asked. Harry looked at her with wide eyes. He hadn't considered what was going to happen during the summer.
"That would be brilliant, but I think I want to wait for Sirius. He'll probably want me to move in with him since he's going to be freed soon." Harry admitted. The idea of spending the summer with Daphne, or any of his girlfriends would be a dream come true. But he had been yearning to hang out with his Godfather since he met him. And now with his trial on the way and freedom a certainty, he couldn't wait to hang out with Sirius.
"Okay, but our door is always open." She said with a smile.
"Mine too, any time you need it." Susan offered.
"Of course, you can visit me whenever you want." Hermione said.
"Well, perhaps you all can visit me, since I won't be living with the Dursleys anymore, I can invite people over." Harry said and the girls nodded. Before they could do anything for the summer they still had to get through this tournament. The group walked through the hall, most of the students were just hanging around, and classes would resume as normal tomorrow. For today the students were taking the day for themselves.
"Hey, Harry!" A pair of voices called out in tandem and Harry turned and grinned seeing the Weasley twins coming toward him.
"Hey Fred, George." He said nodding to each of the twins.
"He's Fred, I'm George." They tried and Harry rolled his eyes.
"No, You're Fred and he's George." Harry said causing the two to laugh.
"How can you tell?" Fred asked.
"George is better looking." This got George to grin as he went about straightening his collar while whipping his hair around.
"He's got a point brother."
"In your dreams, everyone knows that ladies prefer me." Fred countered doing a similar motion to George just in an opposite direction.
"What do you think ladies? The great Fred or boring George?" Fred asked pretending to flex and the girls just shook their heads. Before they could answer Jones suddenly appeared wrapping her arms around Fred and George and ruffling their hair.
"In your dreams, everyone knows that I'm the sexiest thing to ever grace the magical world." Jones claimed grinning madly. Harry laughed at that.
"Huh, that's weird, I didn't think it was opposite day." Harry joked getting a playful glare aimed at him from Jones.
"Oh haha, you think you got jokes huh?" Jones said as she began to creep forward. Harry easily sidestepped her lunge as she began to chase him around.
"You know you're not children right?" Hermione chastised the pair as Jones caught Harry and began to give him a proper nuggie. Susan and Daphne just laughed at the situation. Harry managed to get out of her hold and began to rub his head.
"That hurt!"
"It's what you deserve!"
Harry just shook his head as he turned back to look at the twins.
"So what's up?"
"It's the Quidditch pitch,"
"It's a right mess,"
"Everything's all torn up and the towers are gone,"
"We think that's where the third task is going to be." Fred and George explained in their usually switching way.
"Do you know what the task could be?" Harry asked but both twins shrugged.
"Afraid not, we only saw what they did to the pitch." Fred said and Harry nodded.
"Thanks for telling me, how's everything else?"
"Ron's still acting like a tosser,"
"Mum and Dad are still shocked,"
"Ginny is moody,"
"But beyond that nothing else is going on." Fred finished off.
"That's good... well not good but, you know what I mean." Harry said and the twins nodded.
"What are you three up to?" Jones asked.
"Just relaxing, it's been hectic for a long time and we figured that we deserved at least a short break." Harry answered and she nodded.
"That's good, you did shake up our neck of the woods quite a bit. I am very proud!" Jones grinned as Harry laughed. The group talked for a while as they walked eventually settling in the courtyard.
"So, Are you planning any cool stunts for this next task, or are you all out of tricks? Going to be hard to top what you did last time." George said.
"We'll see, I've still got a lot of time to get something together. Maybe I should summon a Volcano in the middle of the task." He thought out loud getting loud cheers from the twins and Jones.
"How about you just win and come home?" Hermione asked and Harry kissed her gently.
"Always." Harry assured her.
"We still don't know what the final task is going to be, all you got was a messed up Quidditch pitch." Daphne said and they nodded at that.
"Maybe we could help with that." The group turned to see Blaise along with Tracey, Neville, Luna, and Pansy.
"Hey, guys." Harry greeted them as they came in to join the others. "Decided to stick around Pansy?" Harry asked the girl who couldn't meet his eyes but nodded.
"Better company." She answered.
"All of us?" Harry asked again drawing Hermione closer to him.
"Harry, that's not necessary." Hermione said but she felt Susan lean against her side and from what she could feel Daphne was on Harry's other side and all three were looking at Pansy. She looked very uncomfortable at the moment. It was expected since it probably went against her pride to apologize to anyone, let alone Hermione.
"I... I am sorry, Granger. For how I acted and how I treated you. It was... inexcusable." She said doing a very good impression of a scolded child while she was. It took some effort on her part to get that out but Hermione nodded her acceptance. It was going to take more than that to be truly forgiven but it was a surprisingly good start.
"Thank you." Hermione answered back and Pansy took a seat with the group. She looked and felt out of place but she would adjust in time.
"So what do you guys know?" Harry asked and Blaise answered him.
"Well, from what I've heard it turns out a lot of the assets brought in for the original task are being kept there are too many and it would be a huge expense and waste of money to just return them. So if I'm right then the task hasn't been changed from what it was originally going to be." Blaise explained.
"Okay, do you know what they brought it?" Harry asked at this Blaise shrugged.
"I saw a pretty cat woman, she seemed to be very upset. Perhaps the Nargles are bothering her." Luna said as the group looked at her but they were used to her oddness by now.
"And that would mean?" Pansy asked as Luna began to braid grass together.
"I don't know. She liked to rhyme and riddle though."
"Rhyme and riddle? Wait, was it a sphinx?" Hermione asked as that was the only cat lady that came to her mind and Luna nodded.
"That's it! I forgot her name." Luna smiled.
"A sphinx? what a Dragon wasn't enough?" Harry groaned.
"I doubt these new organizers will allow the creatures free rain. Moody and Amelia especially. They'll have a plan to keep you safe while also giving you a challenge." Daphne assured.
"Let's hope, anything else?" Harry asked.
"I know that Sprout is being called on by the organizers recently, maybe you should brush up on your Herbology and look up some dangerous plants." Pansy stated.
"I can help you with that." Neville offered and Tracey smiled at him.
"Thanks, Nev." The group talked a while after that, talking about classes, new spells, or potions they were studying up. Harry couldn't describe how nice this was. Hanging out with real friends with his girlfriends around him. Yeah, there was still the tournament but for now, Harry felt like he had always wanted to feel. Loved and accepted by the people he cared about. It was hard to believe that when this whole thing started he was alone, ostracized by his own house and the person who he thought was his best friend, a decent enough wizard but never pushing his potential.
Now? He had not one but three girls who he loved dearly, true friends that would help him but also tell him when he was being daft. A girl who had quickly become an older sister to him. And for once, no more feeling like someone was yanking his chain around. He felt free and he couldn't have asked for more. Not to mention that he had accepted the legacy of Grindelwald which he was still sorting out how he felt about that but overall it had been positive so far.
After a while, the group began to separate to do their own things, and Harry with Daphne, Susan, and Hermione had left for the Room of Requirement. Wishing for a room meant for training they entered and found a large empty space with a padded floor and dummies lining the walls that could be used for target practice. Reaching into his robes Harry pulled out the Grimoire and began to flick through it.
"You know, I still find it a bit odd how you saw a book that looked like that and thought it was a swell idea to learn from it." Hermione joked being able to see the Grimoire was a foreboding text. However, they quickly learned that Grindelwald had fulfilled his promise but not in the way Harry had wished.
"Probably, but it's been very useful so far, just wish you could learn a bit from it." Harry said, yes as it turned out talking about the book and Grindelwald was one thing, but talking about the specific spells and rituals found within was still forbidden. When he tried to teach them the first spell he learned from the book the instructions he tried to tell them just came out garbled like normal and for them the pages were blank. He was annoyed at that but at least he could discuss it with them now.
"We'll practice our own thing over here, don't overwork yourself." Susan said as she and the other two girls walked off to the side to practice some of their DADA spells that Moody had assigned despite the no classes announcement.
Harry flipped over the pages passing the ritual and going to the next spell. He had flipped through the book as soon as he made the deal and found that unlike before every spell in the book was now available to him written out complete with instructions and diagrams. Though something interesting happened. The book referred to him specifically using his name and addressing him. It was a bit unnerving at first but after remembering that the Grimoire had a form of consciousness it probably made those changes to itself when Harry made the oath. Shaking himself from his thoughts he began to read the next spell.
"Tenelusus, You have felt the power of the elements before but you have also felt the touch of otherworldly elements that cannot be readily found within our world. I refer of course to the Flames of Purgatory and the Hellfire that your Hellhound produces. This spell functions in a similar fashion, you are calling upon magic not to simply mold and then to cast. You are calling magic to summon energies from other sources and then directing these forces. This specific force is going to be called from a realm in between our own and the realm occupied by ghosts. Yes ghosts exist in a different dimension, we might be able to perceive them but that is due to our inherent magical abilities. Muggles are unable to see ghosts because they lack that magic. This spell calls forth the energy of that realm and releases it in a concussive blast that normal shields will be ill-prepared to counter. These next series of spells will all deal with this energy but this spell will be the simplest of them all."
Harry then went to read the diagram and the wand movements for the spell. Making sure he had the proper form he summoned one of the dummies from the wall and got ready. Aiming his wand he quickly whipped it through the movements as he cast.
"Tenelusus!" He cast and the room suddenly felt very cold for him. Black energy gathered at the tip of his wand with purple flecks of energy flicking out from the energy. Harry was momentarily reminded of the Shadow raves but this energy was less like dust and more like whispy smoke. The energy then blast forward in a cone the force nearly toppled him over and the dummy didn't stand a chance as it suddenly gained something akin to scorched marks glowing slightly with purple light as it was flung to the far wall breaking apart as it did.
Harry shivered a bit as the sudden cold feeling faded from him and the energy that was left behind dissipated.
"What was that?" He heard Susan ask as he saw the girls looking at him.
"It was the next spell, it didn't affect you right?" Harry asked and the girls shook their heads.
"No, it just got cold for a second." Hermione said and Harry nodded.
"What are you girls working on?"
"Just a couple of jinxes, Moody doesn't seem to understand the concept of a break. He was the only professor that assigned any study work after McGonagall made her announcement. They're not difficult or anything but still." Daphne said with a shrug.
"Can I help?" Harry asked but the girls shook their heads.
"These aren't the most exciting spells, besides you should keep practicing with the Grimoire." Hermione assured and Harry nodded and returned to his spot. He continued to practice the spell and he started to get a feel for the magic. He imagined it like a water spout and every time he cast the spell he would open the spout and let the magic through. The magic had become more controlled after he did that. Instead of a huge blast, it was more concentrated so much so that the spell broke the dummy instead of just flinging it off. Even though it still sent it flying.
The coldness became more controlled as well, no longer blanketing the room but being concentrated on the area that the spell passed over. It was an odd feeling, he could usually feel the magic flowing through him and outwards. The only thing that felt like this was when he used his empowering technique but even then that was to augment his own magic. This spell came from a completely different source, so maybe it was more like a summoning spell in that regard.
Flipping to the next spell he began to read the text.
"Tenelancea, a more concentrated version of Tenelusus. This spell with have high velocity and power but it will also require greater control and aim. You trade a rather wide area of effect spell for precision. You will find that molding the magic into a lance or spear will aid you greatly with the casting of this spell."
The explanation was short but it was just a different more refined version of the last spell so that was expected. The diagram was similar as well to the wand movement but there were subtle changes such as a thrusting motion added to the end of the original wand motion. He practiced the motion a few times and it felt different but familiar.
"Tenelancea!" He cast getting that same chilled feeling but from the practice with the last spell, it was more controlled. The same energy appeared but this time it twisted instead of pulsed around the tip of his wand. He continued with the thrusting motion and the spell launched from his wand and gave harry a considerable kickback as his hand went sailing back from the force. The spell traveled like a dark spiraling spear as it impacted a new dummy, it didn't send it flying like the first spell but it did do a lot of contained damage and traveled much faster. When the spell faded the same scorched march was present but in a more spiral pattern and a fine slightly purple glowing hole was pierced through the center of the dummy.
Harry grinned to himself, he still had to practice with the spells a bit but they were more than worth it. He would never use it in a common duel but if he was ever attacked again he would have more options than just stunners to fall back on. Harry continued to practice the two spells while the girls worked on their assigned spells. Hours passed before they decided to call it a day on the training. Dinner was a normal affair, students continued to intermingle more regularly which was a nice thing to see. It wasn't until after dinner did Jones gather up Daphne, Susan, and Hermione for a bit of girl time as she put it.
It was a bit of a surprise but the girls were happy to talk with Jones. They kissed Harry and he left with their friends heading back to the Slytherin dorm. The girls didn't need to walk very far before they found a secluded classroom and Jones locked and secured the door.
"So... how's he doing?" Jones asked, she had been by Harry for the majority of his recovery but she wanted outside opinions.
"So far, so good. He's getting healthier by the day, he's already grown about two inches and he's put on some healthy weight." Daphne said.
"He's also doing really well with his magic. He's gotten stronger and he's practicing more." Susan said and Jones nodded. It was what she expected and she could see it in him, especially the physical aspect.
"And what about you guys?" Jones asked and at first, the girls looked like they were just going to shrug but then Hermione thought of something.
"Well, actually there is something I think we should ask you, you know since you're older." Hermione said.
"What's that?"
"Well... you see that Harry's becoming healthier with his potions. But that's not all." It was here that the other two caught on to what Hermione was talking about as they nodded.
"Right, you know he was malnourished, that affected him more than just making him shorter and thinner. His hormones were affected." Jones nodded.
"Yeah, that happens with malnutrition, and other things can affect... oh... OH! Wait, is he?" Jones asked not being able to help the amused grin that grew on her face.
"Well, he is and he isn't. It doesn't bother us but it can get awkward when certain things... arise. We just don't know what to do." Susan admitted.
"Really? Even you Daphne?" Jones asked.
"I'm a flirt not a slut! And besides, knowing what to do and actually doing it is... more daunting than I thought it would be." Daphne said. It's not like they were clueless about what they could do, but they've never had a real discussion about it.
"Shouldn't this be something you bring up with your mothers?"
"Oh, bloody hell no!" Hermione said surprising everyone with her cursing. The idea of going to her mother to ask for sexual advice to help with her polyamorous relationship was more mortifying than she could ever imagine.
"Yeah no, my mother would give me way too much information that can only be received with experience and I would like to be able to look my parents in the eyes for at least the foreseeable future." Daphne said and Susan nodded.
"My mother would just turn it into a lecture and talk me out of it. She likes me to be independent but not that independent."
"Well I should talk you out of it too, sex is a huge leap in any relationship and it shouldn't be rushed."
"It doesn't have to be sex, I don't want to do it too soon either, but perhaps other things..." Daphne said as all three girls gained a slight blush at their conversation, they couldn't help it.
"I don't get paid enough for this." Jones said rubbing her eyes. Why did she have to be such a trusted role model!?
"Sorry, if it's too much just forget it." Hermione said going to stand but a quick flick of the wand had her sitting back down.
"Nope, cat's already out of the bag." She then took a seat herself and took a deep breath. She really should request payment for this sort of thing.
Back with Harry, he was currently going over some potions with Blaise and Pansy. Tracey was still out hanging with Neville which was great and Luna had skipped off somewhere.
"You know if you paid attention more in class you'd be pretty decent at potions." Blaise said to Harry who shrugged. They were just going over some potion books and Harry had recognized many ingredients and formulas.
"Well to be fair Snape and I only just now have gotten on speaking terms."
"It probably helps that the weasel isn't hassling you for every moment of attention he can squeeze out of you." Pansy said.
"Yeah, who can imagine hanging off someone's arm and begging for their attention." Blaise jabbed and Pansy flinched a bit.
"I've learned my lesson."
"Let's hope so, I don't know about Harry but I don't give out second chances." Blaise warned. He was still guarded around Pansy which was completely understandable.
"I'm pretty forgiving but lately I've learned that not everyone deserves a second chance." Harry said. Before he might've been more willing to accept Pansy entirely but after everything that happened, it was going to take time. The group continued to study potions but that came to an end as it started to get late. Blaise bid Harry a good night and Pansy said her farewell as she retired as well. The common room was empty except for him. He was waiting for Daphne so that he could tell her and Susan, and Hermione good night. They were taking a bit long though, normally he would be worried but with Dumbledore out of the picture he felt much more secure.
Eventually, he heard the entrance of the dorm open, and in walked Jones.
"Harry. How are you doing?" She asked as she sat next to him.
"Good, and you?"
"Apprehensive."
"Why?" Jones looked at him before sagging into the sofa. She then took a deep breath as she turned to him.
"Okay, Harry I know what's going on with you."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm referring to little Harry." Jones said and Harry was confused for a moment before his eyes widened."
"W-what!?" He spluttered out embarrassedly.
"Look this is just as awkward for me too."
"We are not talking about this right now."
"Hey, if you want to wait for your Godfather that is great. But his trial isn't until next week and besides him who else do you have to talk about this stuff with. And no, no one your own age counts or is acceptable." Jones asked and Harry wanted to answer but found his answers coming up empty since besides Sirius there weren't any other adults that he was comfortable talking to. Maybe Pomfrey but that was just medical, not emotional.
"What do you want to say?" He said bracing for what was coming.
"Look, I'm giving you the talk here, you already know that. I'm just going to tell you to be... receptive. Don't let yourself be pushed around, if anything starts that you are uncomfortable with then you say so do not hold it in and stay quiet. Also, don't be pushy yourself, if a girl doesn't want to do something then don't force her."
"I wouldn't do that!"
"I know but it still has to be said."
"I'm not even doing anything with them." Harry said, it was obvious who they were talking about.
"I know, but that's not going to last especially now that you're starting to... function normally. You are going to get urges, be appropriate but don't bottle them up." Jones said and Harry just buried his face in his hands.
"D-did they ask you to do this?" Harry asked knowing that Jones had been with his Girlfriends for the past while.
"No, this is all me. Though they did ask for advice from me. You're lucky I'm so nice." Harry nodded but he was curious about that.
"Why are you so nice to me? To us?" Harry asked.
"Would you prefer otherwise?"
"No of course not. But I was just curious, at first, you were just acting as the Prefect but after that, you stuck around and you went far beyond what anyone else would have." Harry said as Jones sighed and looked thoughtful for a moment.
"Dumbledore has been messing with your mail, you probably already guessed this, and I suspected this as well. I've sent you letters from when I was a kid."
"Why, just because I was the Boy-Who-Lived?"
"No, well kind of but not entirely."
"So what was it then?" Jones was quiet for a moment before she answered.
"My parents were death eaters, my mother more than my dad. My dad loved my mom something fierce, when she went and joined those lunatics he followed her. He didn't agree with anything they did, of course, he would just cause mayhem and burn down a few houses. He acted mad and random which is why so many people called him Dizzy Jones. He was really careful with it. But my mum was a completely different story, she bought into everything they were selling. She agreed with it and enjoyed it, she was a monster." Jones said her voice becoming tight with emotion as she spoke and Harry placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"It's okay, you don't have to keep going."
"No, I want you to know. It was like this for a while and eventually, they were assigned to do some terrorizing together. My dad thought they could just cause some destruction and go but my mum was satisfied with that. She... She..." She took a deep breath "She tortured a muggle family, and after she got bored she slaughtered them. They had kids! When my dad saw that he knew that woman he loved was a lie. They fought and he had to kill her, she hit him with a curse though. It was slow-acting and meant to really hurt him, to kill him slowly." She turned to look at Harry eyes misty with emotion.
"The very next day news broke out, Voldemort had been defeated by the Boy-Who-Lived! I was so happy, my daddy was going to come home and stay. He was really happy too, that's when I sent my first letter, I was so happy and wanted you to know. Of course, you were just a baby then so I might've been a bit early. As I got older I started to realize that it was a bit silly but I still wanted to thank you. Even if you didn't have anything to do with his defeat directly you were at least a part of it." She smiled at him.
"You gave my father a few years of peace that he was able to spend with me. When I saw you for the first time I wanted you to come to Slytherin, I wanted to befriend you and protect you. But you went to Gryffindor and wanted nothing to do with any Slytherin students." Harry felt a bit guilty about that but Jones waved off his apology.
"It's in the past, besides we got here eventually. I know it might be silly but..." Jones didn't know what to say, all logic told her that Harry couldn't have had anything to do with the Voldemort's fall, he was just a baby. But even still she couldn't help but feel protective of him. Harry equally didn't know what to say, he idly wondered if other students felt like Jones did but just haven't come forward.
"What happened to your dad?" Harry asked and Jones gave a sad watery smile.
"The curse claimed his life last year."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be, the bitch that killed him died a long time ago." Jones said and the pair just sat there quietly, nothing needed to be said. Everything that needed to be said had been said now they just needed to process.
"Thanks, for everything, Big Sis." Harry said smiling at Jones who laughed.
"No problem." She said and ruffled his hair affectionately "Just don't make me and aunt too soon you hear?"
"Yes, Ma'am."
_SCENE_
Here it is! Chapter 18, nothing major this chapter. Just some more practicing and romantic progression with Harry, Daphne, Hermione, and Susan. I'm trying to make it feel as natural as I can without it just being straight up smut. Hope y'all enjoyed and until next time this has been you Average, Ordinary, Everyday Fallen Angel!