A/N: 3 chapters 3 reviews, all from the same dude, love you my dude. Steve, this one is dedicated to you.
Harry sat in the Great Hall at the end of the Gryffindor table working on his Transfiguration Essay. The teachers were still at the head table, finishing their breakfast as he worked, having already cleared two plates and a small bowl of fruit. It had been a quiet evening the day before, after Snape had cleared out, Harry hadn't seen hide nor hair of the man until late into dinner, he seemed to still be fuming as the night went on. Harry had quickly ate and begged off as soon as he could, desperate to be away from the volatile man. Now, however, the man had seemed to calm down, still visibly upset, but by now means seconds away from an explosion like yesterday.
In other news Flitwick, the Charms Professor, had returned to the school, apparently he always took a few weeks off after grading finals in order to return to Gringotts's and visit his family. He had exchanged pleasantries with Harry as soon as the man had entered the hall at Breakfast, and was one of the first to sit down with Harry that morning. It had taken almost and hour, but slowly the rest of the teacher's had began to show up.
Just like the previous day the hall was loud as everyone tried to talk over everyone else, the main topic being the professor's return. As Harry was the last first to enter he was also the first to finish, so he had taken his books out of the bag he had brought, and begun working on his essay. It was fine for a while, he welcomed the noise that came from up high, and really he relished the company, even if it was from people far older than him.
As he scribbled away at his parchment, and checked the books as he wrote on the Theory of whatsitcalled by whoever wrote it, a burst of light appeared over himself, and he felt his side warm as the light landed beside him.
Harry grinned as he turned towards the familiar light and raised a hand to stroke the bird's chest. "Hello Fawkes." The bird trilled as his small fingers dug into the bird's feather's scratching an itch it didn't know existed, before he could say anything else; however, he noticed with dread a red envelope attached to the Phoenix's leg, and it was smoking heavily. The bird took flight and flew over the Headmaster as it dropped its now shaking letter. Harry winced as he prepared for his ear's to begin ringing, but it never came. Instead a hard, yet quiet voice rang through the hall as Fawkes flew back to land beside him.
"You owe me, Albus." The voice was slightly muffled as it came through the howler, it wasn't like Mrs. Weasley's screeching. There was a hint of anger in it, but he couldn't tell if it was directed at the Headmaster, or whatever she was doing. "Michael, go deal with Jonathan."
The voice continued, apparently, she was at work judging from the quiet voices that echoed from the howler's… lips? "I'll say this only once so listen carefully, You're mine for the next millennia, anything, and I mean anything I want at the next million ICW meetings you and your block are gonna vote for, or so help me, even Merlin won't be able to get my boot out of your ass." Harry openly gaped at that, as did several others at the head table. Though McGonagall and Hagrid were beginning to turn red with anger.
"I won't be able to pick him up by the week's end like you wanted, you'll have to settle for Tuesday at the earliest, I've got to work on the wards, make sure they don't turn him into a puddle when we portkey over. Need to clean up some of my experiments too, I've got my House Elves hunting down any escapees in the dungeons so hopefully they don't breed by the time he gets here. You've really forced me into a bind here you know?" She shouted something unintelligible at someone else, maybe a coworker or even a House Elf. "Tuesday, 6 pm, make sure he's ready. Jordan! I told you not to fuc-" The howler shredded itself before the sentence could be complete, and honestly Harry couldn't decide on whether he was happy that the woman didn't seem like a crazy old cat lady, or angry about the way she had talked to the Headmaster.
"Wait," Harry voiced out loud to the quiet hall, "Did she say escapees?"
Fawkes seemed to laugh at the boy's question as it took off to stand on the back of the Headmaster's seat
"Albus!" McGonagall shouted, "Why would you think it a good to ask that wicked woman to look after Mr. Potter. Why I never-"
Her Scottish accent was thick as she let loose a tirade that was quickly put quiet by Hagrid's bellow of rage. "Who does that woman think she is, talking to the headmaster that way, why I outta- I outta- GAAAHHHH!"
"Now, now my friends," Albus interrupted the group, "It is quite alright, I'm surprised she only asked for a few votes in the ICW for this, I am asking quite a lot of her."
"But Albus, she could make you vote on anything!"
"She could, but she wouldn't, while our views are of different extremes, our votes generally land in the same categories."
"Still , the way she talked to you."
"It's refreshing I know!" The man laughed, "It has been some time since I've been challenged in such a way. Why it brings me back in time, it makes me feel quite a bit younger to be yelled at like that."
"What?" Harry voiced everyone's question.
"Yes of course she was slightly rude, but I've known Ashleigh for quite some time, longer than anyone else in the castle, except maybe Binn's and the portraits." He began chuckling at his own joke. "Ah yes, Mr. Potter I'm sure you'll enjoy your stay with her very much, be sure you go with a healthy appetite for knowledge, Mrs. Ashleigh I'm sure hasn't changed much from when she was student. So be prepared to take notes my boy.