Chapter 9 is here...
Sorry for the delay ladies and gents! I have been extremely busy, and I just never found time to upload the chapter. Enjoy!

It has been an eventful couple of weeks. It obviously began with Harry getting that invisibility cloak and that wretched mirror of erised. I took a break from class for a day, but I didn't tell anyone about it. Turns out, they were worried about me, but I managed the situation pretty well.

"Hey, guys, what's for dinner?" I asked, trying to sound cheerful and excited.

"John! Where have you been? Did Filch see you yesterday?" asked Harry.

"We were worried about you, mate. Where were you?" asked Ron.

"No, Filch didn't see me. I was just bored, you know? That's why I didn't come to class." Ron and Harry sighed in relief, though Hermione didn't have any noticeable reaction. Later, after dinner, she asked me what I saw in the mirror.

"So, John, did you see the mirror? What did it show you?"

"I did! It was interesting. I saw myself sitting in a mansion, you know the type that muggles own? It was near a beach. It's funny, I have always wanted to live like that." I replied. Hermione did not look entirely convinced, but she didn't prod further. I don't think anybody suspects or knows what a wreck I was.

The next few days, I saw Harry leave at around midnight. I suspected he was sneaking off to see the mirror. I tried to talk him out of it but didn't work.

"Harry, what are you doing?"

Harry didn't respond, he seemed to be lost in a completely different world.

"Harry!" I called out. Harry heard me this time,

"Were you saying something?" asked Harry nonchalantly.

"I uh, no. Actually, I was going to ask you when you were planning on forgetting the mirror!" I replied.

"You know?" he asked, looking sheepish.

"Hard to miss really, that mirror is not doing you any good."

"You don't understand, none of you understands!" he replied sounding annoyed.

"I don't understand? I lost my parents when I was young, and I think about them every single day. So, Harry, I understand."

"I'm sorry! You do understand, then why should I stop seeing that mirror?"

"Because, these past few days, you've been really out of focus in a lot of things, quidditch included. I heard Oliver telling you yesterday that you were not at your best during the practice session. He doesn't know that you are spending most of your time either thinking about something that you can never have." Harry obviously still went to see the mirror that day, and the next, but then came Dumbledore. That man is God, knows everything that goes on at the castle.

"So, back again harry?" asked Dumbledore. Harry was so engrossed in his thoughts, that he had not even noticed Dumbledore sitting on one of the desks in the room while entering it.

"I uh… I didn't see you, sir."

"Strange how short-sighted being invisible can make you," said Dumbledore, and Harry was relieved to see that he was smiling.

"So," said Dumbledore, slipping off the desk to sit on the floor with Harry, "you, like hundreds before you, have discovered the delights of the Mirror of Erised. I expect you've realised by now what it does?"

"It… well, it shows me, my family..."

"And it showed your friend Ron himself as Head Boy."

"How did you know?"

"I don't need a cloak to become invisible," said Dumbledore gently. "Now, can you think what the Mirror of Erised shows us all?"

Harry shook his head.

"Let me explain. The happiest man on earth would be able to use the Mirror of Erised like a normal mirror, that is, he would look into it and see himself exactly as he is. Does that help?"

Harry thought for a moment and replied, "It shows us what we want, whatever we want..."

"Yes and no," said Dumbledore quietly. "It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts. You, who have never known your family, see them standing around you. Ronald Weasley, who has always been overshadowed by his brothers, sees himself standing alone, the best of all of them. However, this mirror will give us neither knowledge or truth. Men have wasted away before it, entranced by what they have seen, or been driven mad, not knowing if what it shows is real or even possible. The Mirror will be moved to a new home tomorrow, Harry, and I ask you not to go looking for it again. If you ever do run across it, you will now be prepared. It is not advisable to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that. Now, why don't you put that admirable cloak back on and get off to bed?"

The next morning, Harry told everyone what had happened the previous night. Everybody was now in agreement that the mirror of erised was something that was evil. Few days passed and everything was back to normal. And then one evening, Harry got bad news. He came into the common room tired, drenched in sweat and extremely frustrated.

"Snape's refereeing the next quidditch match."

"Harry, that's bad. Don't play the next game," said Hermione. Just then I came into the room after my Charms class (Not) with Professor Flitwick.

"Yeah, pretend that you have a broken leg," suggested Ron. "Or actually break your leg!" he added.

"I can help you with that Harry," I chuckled, but stopped after I got a glare from Hermione and Harry.

"Gryffindor doesn't have a reserve seeker, if I back out, that's it, we're lost." replied Harry dejected.

"What's up, guys?" I asked.

"Snape's refereeing the next game," said Ron.

"So?" All 3 of them glared at me as I had said something extremely unreasonable. "I'm not kidding this time, I actually don't understand what's the problem. Yes, he'll be biased against Gryffindor, but when isn't he?"

"It's not quidditch we're worried about, it's Harry," said Hermione.

"You guys don't actually think? Oh, not you too Hermione?"

"Why is it that you're so sure, Snape will not attack Harry?" asked Ron.

"Because of Dumbledore! Snape won't last a minute alive if he attacks Harry. Plus I don't even think he wants to in the first place."

"Didn't stop him last time, did it?" replied Ron. Just then, Neville toppled into the room. He had hopped from the library till here as Draco had put the leg locker curse on him. Hermione and I, both had our wands on him instantly.

"Go on," I said, putting my wand down, and she performed the counter curse easily.

"Neville, have this" and I offered him and the others each a chocolate frog. "And Harry, if you happen to die, don't worry, I'll be your reserve seeker," I said. All I got was an angry stare from Hermione and a look of confusion from Ron. Harry however was focusing on the card that he got in his chocolate frog.

"I knew it! I knew that I had seen his name somewhere before," said Harry excitedly and handed the card to Ron. I knew they had to find out someday, I wasn't planning on it being then. Ron read the card out loud,

"Professor Dumbledore is particularly famous for his defeat of the dark wizard Grindelwald in 1945, for the discovery of the twelve uses of dragon's blood and his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicholas Flamel".

On hearing these words, Hermione ran up to her dormitory and brought down an enormous book.

"Hermione, what's going on?" asked Ron impatiently. Hermione flicked through some pages and said,

"Nicholas Flamel is the only known maker of The Philosopher's Stone!" she replied and kept flicking the pages of the book she was holding.

"The what?" asked Harry and Ron at the same time.

"Elixir of Life" I replied growing impatient.

"What do you mean?" asked Ron confused. Hermione then went on to read a big passage about Flamel's works.

So yeah, that's all happened in the past 2 weeks. I was also actually meaning to ask something. Does Severus have a grudge against Harry? As far as I know, he absolutely loves him, well, in his own way. And another thing, is Harry in trouble? Find out and tell me as soon as possible.

With Lots of Love

21815

PS - Just curious, but has anyone yet been able to crack what 21815 means?