The Wall of Stone
This Harry Potter story was written for fun. All rights belong to the wonderful lady (JK Rowling) who gave the world Harry Potter to read and enjoy.
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Chapter 13 Last Morning at Hogwarts (1995)The Weasleys were very quiet the last morning of the school year. Madam Pomphrey kept them in the infirmary for the entire night and they had to eat quickly to return to their dorm rooms and pack their trunks. Fred and George hoped to have time to retrieve their hidden stashes of hexes and jinxes before they had to leave for the train. Ginevra pouted because the Boy-Who-Lived had cursed her with a lizard tongue last night (reflected) and never apologised. Ron was starving and decided to eat three breakfasts in the time allotted. He would throw his belongings into the trunk with seconds to spare.
Harry sat with his friends, and they all dodged questions and accusations from the other students about the previous day's newspaper. Harry remained hopeful that today's edition of the Daily Prophet would present his side of the story and waited stoically for the newspaper to arrive.
Hedwig arrived first – sometime during the night she'd travelled to London to retrieve a letter from Padfoot for Harry. Ignoring breakfast for a moment, Harry opened the letter and as he read the words Sirius had written on the paper, a frown formed on his face.
Prongslet, I received a long letter from Dumbledore that described the resurrection of the Dark Wanker! I am sorry you had to feel that pain and see Lord Flees-From-Death again. My friend Remus Lupin visited Dumbledore at Saint Mungo's where Death Eater sympathizers are holding him hostage for another week. The Dark Lord must be planning to start up his insurrection once more! Remus shared with me the plan Dumbledore thought of to protect the members of the Order of the Phoenix and you!
Everyone is to come and live here at my house in London. It is very safe from Death Eaters and once Dumbledore is released from Saint Mungo's, he will cast a spell on the house that hides it from everyone except selected people. Molly and Arthur Weasley moved in yesterday and when they pick up the kids from the train station, they are to come here for the whole summer.
The headmaster says you must stay with your aunt and her family for at least a month to recharge the protections around the house from the Death Eaters and Lord Voldie-pants. There will be guards – invisible guards – outside the house all day, every day, starting tomorrow, to keep an eye on you. For your protection. After a month or so with the Dursleys, Dumbledore says you can come here until 1 September.
Oh, and he said that your owl has to stay in her cage all summer too. Give her to Ronald to bring to me or send her home with your friend who is the genius like your mum…
Displeased, Harry didn't finish reading the letter. He folded the parchment and put it into his pocket, turned to his owl and ordered, "Hedwig, never listen for Sirius Black again. I don't care what he says, never go get a letter from him again."
The owl stared and blinked a few times but nodded her head in understanding. Then Harry continued, "Girl, I want you to fly and hunt today. I'll call for you when I get home tonight. Okay?"
As Hedwig took off, Hermione frowned but said nothing about the strange conversation between Harry and his familiar, or about the letter her friend had received. He turned to her and asked, "Are you going on vacation with your parents?"
She nodded. "Tonight or as soon as tomorrow. Mum said we'd buy clothes in…"
"Don't tell me where you're going," Harry interrupted her. "I can't tell anyone what I don't know."
Studying Harry's face for minute, Hermione sighed and asked, "Will you be alright this summer…with your relatives?"
"Hermione, I am going to have a quiet, restful summer," Harry replied quietly. "I promise I will get my summer homework completed too."
Th brilliant witch glanced toward Ron before she whispered, "I imagine that before the end of August, Weasley will want to be friends again."
Harry nodded and added, "But only because he'll need someone's homework to copy."
Then the postal owls arrived with the Daily Prophet. The Great Hall was relatively quiet as the students read the headlines and first page.
Potter Says Dumbledore Confused!
Headmaster Befuddled by Acromantula Poison!
Corpse of Peter Pettigrew Found! Are All Death Eaters Dead?
The lead article included quotes by Ted Tonks, a respected solicitor in London who represented Harry Potter. "My client, Harry James Potter, has not spoken to Headmaster Albus Dumbledore since before the Third Task. Mr Potter did not say that the Dark Lord has returned. Mr Potter was kidnapped by a portkey on the trophy for the Triwizard Tournament and deposited in a graveyard where he was forced to defend himself from Peter Pettigrew who planned some sort of ritual. But Mr Potter survived the duel, and the protections placed on him by his mother saved him again when the ritual caused a terrible explosion that left Pettigrew dead of a broken neck."
This information about Pettigrew and his cause of death were confirmed by the DMLE. And the article including Ted urging Sirius Black to bring a lawsuit against the Ministry for Magic for false imprisonment for thirteen years.
At the conclusion of the article, the Daily Prophet went on the record and apologised to Harry Potter for printing Dumbledore's ramblings about the alleged return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
This apology segued perfectly into the next article that discussed the extent of Dumbledore's injuries (physical and mental) that the healers were treating at the hospital. The headmaster's left arm could not be reattached because the limb had been injected with a large amount of venom before it had been cut off. Doubtless the arm dissolved away or was consumed in the fire that burned the quidditch stands. The poison also affected the headmaster's magic and mental faculties, and the healers expected that it would be late August before Dumbledore was able to return to his jobs.
The next article contained a list of those persons still missing including Professor Minerva McGonagall, Professor Severus Snape, and Professor Alastor Moody. In an unrelated article, the Daily Prophet reported that Ministry Executioner Walden MacNair was missing. The list of injured persons still in hospital began to decline as wizards and witches were healed and discharged.
The final article on the first page included a list of names of all the 'reformed' and previously unknown Death Eaters who had died the same night as the Third Task. The list included all the Death Eaters imprisoned in Azkaban, the ones who'd been pardoned by the Minister for Magic, and several previously unknown members of the terrorist gang.
On page 2, the Daily Prophet reprinted the photograph of Cornelius Fudge using Undersecretary Dolores Umbridge as a shield from the Sphinx chasing a spider across the platform where the judges stood or sat. The magical photo clearly showed the Sphinx pushing Umbridge forward where she knocked into Fudge and they both fell into the fires burning below the platform. In the article that accompanied the photo, the Daily Prophet article stated that Dolores Umbridge had been arrested for the attempted murder of Minister Cornelius Fudge in the hospital.
On page 3, Harry noticed an advertisement by Gringotts Bank, that for five sickles, any member of a missing person's family could purchase a living or dead report from the goblins concerning their missing family member.
The students left the castle as soon as the meal was finished, climbed on board the train and departed Hogsmeade Station. None of the fourth year Gryffindors noticed that Ron Weasley missed the train because the boy was late collecting his trunk. An hour into the trip, Ron's absence was noticed by his siblings, and Fred spoke to the head boy. The graduating Hufflepuff sent his Patronus to Mr Weasley at the ministry with news about his missing son. The ever-patient Arthur used the floo to travel to Hogsmeade and search for Ron. Father and son met on the path between Hogsmeade and Hogwarts while Ron was dragging his trunk toward the tavern. The wizard shrank his son's trunk and then used the floo to take Ron to Grimmauld Place before returning to the ministry.
Before noon of the same day, Sirius Black regretted the decision to allow the Weasleys move into this house for the summer. Molly and Ron yelled in every conversation, and the boy ate every scrap of food not behind a secure lock. The sandwiches for lunch vanished before 11 AM, the biscuits for afternoon tea were gone before 1:30 and Remus was forced to bring take away to feed Padfoot and himself. Molly excused Ron's behaviour as 'nerves' and expected he would calm down in a week or two.
Padfoot flinched. 'A week or two? And there are three more Weasley kids to march into the kitchen before supper…and stay for the summer…Merlin, what have I done?'
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On the Hogwarts Express, Harry found himself relaxing. He sat in a compartment with Dean, Seamus, and Neville, while Hermione, Parvati, and Lavender sat in the compartment next door. Few of their classmates came by to visit and this lack of familiar faces didn't bother Harry. Dean and Seamus walked through the train and spoke to their acquaintances among the Puffs, Claws, and Slytherins.
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Plans Begin and Farewell DursleysIn the Great Hall at the school, the Goblet of Fire continued to burn and examine the different options available. It very quickly decided, 'We shall remain at Hogwarts. A place in the library perhaps? Or remain here in the Great Hall? And who do We summon to run Our school?'
Professor Sprout spoke once briefly to the head elf about maintaining the school over the summer before she departed for a long-planned excursion along the Mississippi River in America – the rumours of undiscovered magical plants in the Mississippi River Delta in Louisiana were as valid as those for the Everglades and the magical herbologists around the world were still writing papers and creating new potions with the fourteen varieties of magic fungus discovered in that wonderland one summer.
Professor Filius Flitwick departed for a summer of participating in duelling tournaments across Europe, Arabia, and Southwest Asia. He would spend the month of August in Japan and Korea at the international championships where he would compete against wizards from every continent in the world. He had no time to think about Hogwarts.
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The train arrived at Kings Cross Station at the anticipated hour and the students disembarked noisily as usual. A few of the seventh-year students shared tears of goodbye but everyone looked for the family to use the floo and leave or exited through the portal to the muggle side of the train station. Dean Thomas hurried to the tube – he would meet his family closer to home. Harry walked with Hermione for a short distance to where her parents waited.
The adult Grangers kept watching the people around them – Harry realized there were three individuals watching the family. With a determined look on his face, Harry walked up to the first wizard, an older man, turned and walked away swiftly. The second watcher was a young woman who stumbled and fell when she turned to flee.
Harry called out, "Tonks, I'm going to complain to Madam Bones and to your father about you harassing me!"
The witch looked panicked as she hurried away. The last watcher didn't try to run away. He was well known to both Hermione and Harry.
"Remus Lupin! What business do you have in Kings Cross today?" asked Harry with a growl. Hermione would have fussed at her friend for his tone, but her father stepped in front of her while her mother whispered to be quiet.
"Now, Harry, we're just here to see that you get home to your family safely."
Harry wanted to deny the Dursleys were his family, and he would never call No.4 Privet Drive his home, but rather than argue about that, he asked, "Where's Padfoot?"
"He's safe," Lupin replied without any details.
Crossing his arms and frowning, Harry stared at the werewolf, and the flashing green eyes reminded Lupin of an angry Lily Evans who could send the four marauders scurrying away when she threw over-powered stinging hexes at them.
Not willing to reveal that he'd had a letter from Sirius, Harry motioned for Remus to leave. "Go away. You're scaring Mr and Mrs Granger. And tell those other two I better not see them again this summer or there'll be trouble."
"Harry, Professor Dumbledore worries that the Death Eaters will be hunting for you and your friends this summer. "
"Don't you read the newspaper, Lupin? The Death Eaters all died earlier this month. Something about their arms exploding."
Remus replied, "Dumbledore says that's not all the Death Eaters. The Dark Lord has followers everywhere. You were there when Pettigrew brought him back from the dead. You saw it! Dumbledore says…"
"Shut it!" Harry ordered and the werewolf fell silent, surprised by the power in the teenager's voice. "Think about something Lupin. I haven't spoken to Dumbledore since way before the Third Task. When did I tell him about a resurrection that brought back Tom Riddle? I haven't talked to him! He's been poisoned by Acromantula venom and lost one arm. He imagined that the Dark Lord returned! Pettigrew's ritual blew up that night!"
Remus looked confused and remained silent. Then Harry added, "In his state of mind, Dumbledore probably believes Grindelwald is still alive too!"
"Where are your aunt and uncle?" asked the werewolf.
"In the car park," Harry replied. "They never come inside the station, now."
Now, Lupin did walk away, while Harry muttered about stupid minions. Mr Granger thanked Harry for this help and was surprised (and pleased) when the teen explained, "They were here to watch me and make certain I got into the car with my relatives."
Hermione asked, "Will you be okay, Harry?"
He smiled and said, "Yes. I'll wait until I hear from you before I send a letter. Have a good vacation but never tell anyone where you're going."
The Boy-Who-Lived walked away, heading toward the car park. Mr Granger grabbed the handle of Hermione's trunk and pulled it along, rolling it on the wheels he'd installed last summer.
"Aren't we going to the car park?" the young witch asked.
"We're checking your trunk into storage," Mrs Granger said. "Remember I wrote for you to put everything you wanted in your funny bag.
The Granger family removed two bags from a storage locker and left the trunk inside. Then they walked to another platform where they embarked on a train leaving for Paris via the chunnel.
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In the car park, Vernon and Petunia Dursley waited impatiently for the freak to appear. Finally, he did and hurried over to climb into the back seat of the car. Vernon asked, "Where's your trunk with the freaky stuff?"
"A friend has it," Harry replied.
"What about the stick?" asked Petunia, frowning.
Holding up his magic wand, Harry explained, "I got it here. And there's good news and bad news."
"Don't play with us, boy," warned the fat man.
"Vernon, I won't play with you…I swear on my magic."
Hearing a different tone in her nephew's voice, Petunia asked, "What is your news?"
"The bad news for you is that I am emancipated. I got drafted into a contest for adults last year and that meant the freaky government recognized me as an adult. So, I can do all the magic I want, and no one in our ministry will care."
"No!" Petunia insisted. "The head freak said you had to be seventeen before you could do that."
Smiling innocently, Harry explained, "Do you mean the head freak with the long white beard?"
His aunt nodded before Harry continued, "Dumbledore is sick…probably dying. I can do whatever I want."
Petunia and Vernon shared a look of dread and fear, but Harry's aunt managed to ask, "What's your good news?"
"As soon as we return to Surry enter the house, and close the door, I will be leaving and never ever coming back."
"What?" asked Vernon, doubting every word.
Petunia asked, "How?"
"Magic," Harry replied. "Now, there will be freaks watching the house all summer. If any of them come up to you on the street and ask where I am, tell them I went to the library or left for the day to visit friends."
Vernon asked, "What's to keep them from coming inside the house and looking for you?"
"The magical protection around the house has been magnified this year. I consider these watchers as threats to me and my safety. If one of them comes close to the house, a wall of stone will appear and throw them back about ten metres. They'll have broken bones and be concussed."
Again, it was Petunia who asked, "How is that possible?"
"My mum's magic is powerful even after all these years," Harry stated. "Don't be surprised if they do it several times before they learn to stay away. And you're right about them being freaks.
The remainder of the drive to Surrey was made in silence. At the house, Harry climbed out of the car but remained behind his aunt and uncle who hurried inside. Harry followed slower, aware of one of the watchers creeping closer. From the doorway, Vernon and Petunia saw a strangely dressed woman appear behind their nephew. There was a flash of stone for a moment, and the woman – witch – suddenly flew several metres and landed in the middle of the road. The witch tried to stagger to her feet but couldn't and just before a car hit her, she vanished.
"Bugger," Petunia cursed. "Freaks will be bouncing all over the neighbourhood this summer."
Harry stepped inside the house and closed the door. Vernon pulled Petunia behind him and said, "Well boy, you said you would leave. So, leave."
"Yes, Uncle Vernon. I'll leave," Harry replied. "Dobby!"
A small, ugly creature appeared and hugged the boy's legs. "Mr Harry James Potter ready to blow this joint?"
Looking at his aunt and uncle one last time, Harry added, "Goodbye. Let's hope we never see each other again…for your sake."
The freak and his freakish creature vanished without a sound.
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NOTE: The summer between Harry's fourth year and fifth year begins in the next chapter.