Chapter 71. Opening the Gates
Harry himself did not notice how he stopped paying attention to Jeanne's harmfulness and started listening to her words as though they were the opinions of an independent person. However, she often amazed him with her inconsistency. Only she could call candy a useless waste of money and then devour it with both cheeks when no one was looking. He often noticed the combination of her incredible appetite and fragile figure. He was already taller than her, and only a few knew why he was so afraid of her. He almost never seriously considered the danger posed by the Death Eaters. If any of them turned against him, no one would protect him from them. But that wasn't why he was afraid of her. To this day, he couldn't get the dream out of his head that came to him the night after the Yule Ball. She was the one who first killed the head of the family. She killed the young mother in front of her child. Harry couldn't forget that horrible moment when she raised her sword to strike the poor orphan. At that same moment, the dying scream of his mother echoed in his heart.
As Harry pondered on Jeanne Alter, he remembered the confusion on her face and her probing question - was it him who threw the note with their names into the Goblet of Fire. It became even more disgusting to him after her brief but meaningful hint - she had added her name to that note and put it back in the Goblet of Fire.
"Why did you do that, Jeanne?" he recently asked her when they were left alone in the Gryffindor common room in the evening. "Why didn't you take that note out of the Goblet of Fire?"
"Oh, Harry!" she exclaimed with a smile devoid of warmth or joy. Her eyes sparkled with a cold fire and her cheeks were flushed. "He had already infiltrated Hogwarts with his own person. Do you really think Tom Riddle is so foolish and didn't come up with an additional plan? He has always been cunning and calculated, like a snake."
"But...you could have killed him then...right there, in the graveyard!" exclaimed Harry, not believing his ears. He remembered that night when he and Jeanne confronted Voldemort and his Death Eaters. He saw Jeanne fighting them alone, destroying their spells with her fire magic. He saw her approach Voldemort and plunge her sword into his chest, which was glowing with red flames.
Jeanne laughed coldly in response. She turned away from Harry and looked out the window, where Hogwarts was visible.
"Back then, you didn't know about his horcruxes, and it seemed logical to me - you can't just kill him if he didn't die that night and has reappeared again. I decided to play cat and mouse with him, make him experience fear and pain. I wanted to break his spirit before destroying his body."
"But...what about the Death Eaters then?" asked Harry, feeling his throat go dry. He couldn't understand how she could be so cruel and heartless.
"The Death Eaters are like a hydra. They have children, and the children have friends..." Jeanne shrugged, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. "I won't pity them or spare them. They chose their side, and they must be held accountable for it. I won't stop until I rid the world of this plague."
"But I saw in my dream how you... Since when do you love people like that?"
Jeanne exploded like a volcano, and her eyes blazed with fiery anger. She grabbed Harry by the collar and brought his face close to hers, so he could almost feel her breath on his cheek. She hissed into his ear like a snake:
"You're mistaken. I do what I want and what I must. I feel nothing towards other people and their emotions. I think of them as obstacles or tools for my plans and actions. I am someone who trusts no one and holds nothing back."
Harry felt his heart freeze with fear. He saw the same Jeanne in her eyes that haunted him in nightmares, the one capable of the most terrible deeds. It was the gaze of a ruthless predator, devoid of love, compassion, or conscience. In that moment, he wanted to escape from her, hide behind the thickest walls of Hogwarts or even in Hell itself, just to avoid her catching up to him, as even Hell seemed less terrifying than her anger. But he couldn't move, as if she had tethered him to herself with her gaze. He questioned himself - what if she had already lost her humanity forever and become something else? He lifted his head and looked her straight in the eye, which appeared to him as two black holes.
"No."
"What do you mean - no?"
Harry couldn't believe it himself, but he felt an incredible strength inside him. Calmly, while looking into her eyes, Harry reached out and smoothed the rebellious strand of hair on Jeanne's head.
"Do you remember when we were walking back then after the prefects' bathroom?" Harry asked, gathering his courage and looking her directly in the eye. "If it weren't for you, Mr. Crouch would be dead now. If it weren't for you, Sirius would still be on the run. You changed the course of history, Jeanne. And I don't know what I would do without you..."
He fell silent, waiting for her response. But Jeanne didn't answer. She pursed her lips and turned away from him.
"That's enough!" she suddenly exploded.
Her cheeks reddened, and tears rolled down from under her eyelashes.
"I don't want to save anyone or change anything! I don't want to be a heroine or a miracle! I just want to be myself!"
"But you've already done that," Harry objected thoughtfully. "You've already become a part of our world. You've already helped so many people. You've already..."
"Goodnight, 'arry!" she interrupted him.
She jumped off the bed and grabbed her textbook and homework. She rushed towards the door of the girls' bedroom but before disappearing behind it, she turned to Harry and looked at him in a way that sent a shiver down his spine. There was no anger, joy, or pride in her eyes. They were filled with fear and despair.
"Forgive me, 'arry. Forgive me for everything."
And she vanished from sight, leaving Harry completely puzzled. He didn't understand what was happening to her. He didn't understand why she reacted that way to his words. He didn't understand what she meant by her apologies. He only knew that he was deeply worried about her and that he wanted to help her. But how?
Harry entered the Room of Requirement. He expected to see Fujimaru there and was quite surprised when he saw Katie Mallowhate instead, standing in front of a large mirror and holding a wand. She was wearing a Gryffindor uniform with a red and gold emblem, and her face expressed concentration.
"Hello, Katie," greeted Harry. "What are you doing here?"
Katie turned around and smiled at him.
"Hi, Harry," she replied. "I'm just practicing a new defensive spell that I came up with myself. Do you want to see?"
Harry nodded and approached her.
"Sure. What is this spell?"
"It's called Skitumscopus," explained Katie. "It creates an invisible shield around you that reflects any attacking spells back to the opponent. It's very useful in battle."
"Wow, that sounds amazing!" exclaimed Harry. "How do you pronounce it?"
"Like this: Skitumscopus!" said Katie and directed her wand towards the mirror.
A glowing arrow shot out of her wand, hit the mirror, and bounced back towards Katie. But before it reached her, it collided with an invisible barrier and dissipated.
"See?" said Katie proudly. "This is my shield. It lasts for a few seconds after the spell is cast and protects the target from any attacks."
"That's impressive," repeated Harry. "You're very talented, Katie. How did you come up with this spell?"
"Thank you, Harry," blushed Katie. "I've always been interested in defensive magic and have been studying various books on the subject. I found a really interesting book in the Hogwarts library called 'Secrets of Ancient Defensive Spells.' It had many interesting facts and theories on how to create your own spells. I decided to give it a try and experimented with different words and wand movements. And voila, I came up with Skitumscopus."
"That's very impressive," said Harry. "I would also like to be able to create my own spells. But I don't know where to start."
"Well, you can start by reading this book," suggested Katie, handing him the book she had been holding under her arm. "It's very interesting and helpful. It has a lot of tips and examples."
"Thank you, Katie," said Harry, taking the book. "I will definitely read it."
"You're welcome, Harry," said Katie. "I'm glad to help you."
Harry opened the book and began flipping through its pages. He saw many unfamiliar words and symbols that piqued his curiosity. Harry turned the pages and then remembered Sectumsempra. He looked at Katie with interest and asked, "Katie, do you know what Sectumsempra is? I recently came across this word in an old book on defense against dark arts. It said that it is a spell for enemies."
Katie frowned and shook her head. "No, I don't know. I've never heard of such a spell. Are you sure it exists? Maybe it's just something made up by the author."
"I don't think so," Harry replied. "I saw him use it in his notes. He wrote that he slashed his opponent's face with this spell."
"Slashed his face?" Katie asked in horror. "That's awful! How can that be a defensive spell? It seems more like an offensive one!"
"Yes, I think so too," agreed Harry. "But I'm curious about how it works and how to pronounce it."
"Well, I don't know, Harry," Katie said. "And honestly, I don't want to know. I don't think it's a good spell. It seems very cruel and dangerous to me. I don't want to risk my life or anyone else's out of curiosity."
"But what if we have to use it?" Harry argued. "What if we come face to face with Voldemort or his Death Eaters? Maybe it's the only way to defend ourselves against them?"
"Harry, I understand your feelings, but let's approach this rationally and find a peaceful solution," Katie said. "We can't use such a spell against other people, even if they are our enemies. It would be unfair and cruel. We have to act carefully and not harm innocent people. Justice should be merciful."
"What if they won't be merciful to us?" Harry asked.
"Then we will defend ourselves in other ways," Katie replied. "There are many other defensive spells we can use. For example, Protego, Expelliarmus, Stupefy, Impedimenta, Reducto, or..."
Katie continued listing various defensive spells until Harry interrupted her.
"Okay, okay, I get it," he said. "You make a convincing argument, Katie."
"Thank you, Harry," she said. "I'm glad you agree with me."
"But I still want to learn more about Sectumsempra," Harry admitted. "Maybe I'll try it on one of these wooden mannequins. That way, I'll see what it does."
He opened the book and found the page with information about Sectumsempra. He read it and repeated the words in his mind.
"You can't be serious," Katie said skeptically. "You're not going to use this spell here and now, are you?"
"Why not?" Harry answered. "There's no one here except us. And we won't harm any living being. It's just a wooden mannequin."
"But you don't know what this spell can do!" Katie objected. "It might explode it into pieces or roast it or turn it into something horrible!"
"Well, then we'll find out," Harry said and raised his wand. "Sectumsempra!"
A dark flash shot out of his wand and hit the wooden mannequin. The mannequin trembled and cracked, and a mixture of resin and oil flowed from it.
Harry and Katie froze in horror.
"Oh my God!" Katie exclaimed. "What have you done?"
"I... I don't know..." whispered Harry. "I didn't expect this..."
They looked at the mannequin, which was mutilated with deep wounds and drenched the floor with resin and oil.
"This is awful!" Katie repeated. "This is not a defensive spell! It's an evil spell! Who came up with this?"
"Half-Blood Prince..." muttered Harry. "I think that's his pseudonym..."
They looked at each other with fear and confusion.
"Who is he?" Katie asked.
"I don't know," Harry replied. "But I want to find out..."
From a huge ancient wardrobe, covered in dust and tattered tapestry, the blanket was slowly pulled back, revealing its ancient wooden doors. Fujimaru examined the Vanishing Cabinet intently. Ritsuka's spell instantly swept away the dust, giving the cabinet a sense of novelty and freshness. Peering into the Vanishing Cabinet, Fujimaru turned to Harry with a curious expression on his face, adding a hint of enigma to his voice:
"So, Tesla thinks so?" he whispered. "Interesting. But did he not tell you that John Taitor could simply be someone's prank?"
Harry frowned, raising an eyebrow in contemplation.
"It seems irrelevant to me," he dismissed, stepping closer to the cabinet. "All we know of this event is that this person was supposed to appear in the year two thousand, and we learned about him earlier than intended."
Ritsuka, looking at the board with an image of Tesla, pensively picked up a piece of chalk. He unexpectedly jumped to the board where the sketch of the scientist remained and swiftly moved the chalk, creating airy lines, as if dancing with it on the board.
"I don't understand how he could have traveled through time if Haldy showed us the imminent destruction of humanity..." Ritsuka muttered, as if deciphering a riddle. "It can only be possible if... but what is the probability of each outcome?"
Silently concentrating, Ritsuka jumped to the board and began drawing lines emanating from a single point, as if a fan unfolding before his eyes. Each line was meticulously developed, as if representing potential developments.
"Exactly!" he exclaimed, smiling with enthusiasm. "This has happened in some movie. One historical event gives rise to, in a way, two timelines. In one, everything ends well, and in the other, it ends badly... and perhaps there's a third line where nothing happened at all, or it ended neutrally," pointing to the board where now three forks appeared. "Maybe we live in one of these lines, and John Titor comes from another?"
Fujimaru stood before the board, excitement and joy filling his gaze, as if he had just discovered a great secret. It seemed he was so thrilled that he could jump on the spot with pure delight.
But then his enthusiasm seemed to wane, and he pointed to the branching on the board before him. A sense of sadness appeared on his face, as if he realized they hadn't reached the point where they could find all the answers. What awaited them ahead and which event would be decisive and determine their future remained unknown. If only they could know in advance...
Fujimaru sadly lowered his head and gazed at the board with a challenging expression. In his eyes, one could read his determination not to lose, not to give up an inch.
Suddenly, Harry heard a sound behind him and turned to see Malfoy, who asked with a hint of arrogance in his voice:
"So, Sir Fujimaru, what do you intend to do? How do you plan to win if you don't know what will happen tomorrow?"
Fujimaru, pausing for a moment, stared intensely at Malfoy. His eyes gleamed with intelligence and determination, while his face conveyed some inhuman cunningness. He calmly replied, as if carefully choosing each word:
"You're right, Mr. Malfoy. We cannot know what will happen tomorrow, and we cannot predict everything. But that does not make any preparation useless. We will prepare and exert all efforts to achieve victory."
Malfoy looked at Fujimaru with a hint of skepticism in his eyes, but couldn't hide a certain amount of respect for his confidence.
"Well, sir, I hope you know what you're worth. It will be interesting to see how you handle challenges when they inevitably arise," Malfoy added with a clearly ironic smile. "But don't think I want to hinder or set you up. I just enjoy putting everything to the test. And if you really can change the course of history for the better, I'll be glad to help you. You're not one of those who are afraid to take risks and take responsibility for their actions, are you?" He looked at Fujimaru with a challenging yet friendly gaze. "You're not like Dumbledore, are you?" he lowered his voice and added, "I know he wants to help me, but he's too cautious and secretive. I can't fully trust him. But you... you seem more open and honest to me. You say what you think and do what you believe is necessary. You're not afraid of the Dark Lord and the Death Eaters. You're ready to fight for your cause until the end."
Fujimaru turned to Harry and Malfoy and motioned them to come closer.
"Let's see what's with this cabinet," he said quietly. "We need to fix it as soon as possible and as inconspicuously as possible."
"Why are we only starting the work now?" Malfoy asked, looking suspiciously at Fujimaru.
"Professor Dumbledore said that together we will fix this cabinet very quickly and without any unnecessary delays," Ritsuka replied. "It will look suspicious, as the task is designed for one student. Besides, the cabinet should be used shortly after it's fixed, am I right?" He looked at Malfoy with a penetrating gaze.
Malfoy nodded and turned away, not wanting to meet his gaze.
"But that's only half the problem," Fujimaru continued. "The main question is what to do with it afterwards. How will we control its usage? How will we prevent the Death Eaters from infiltrating Hogwarts?"
A tall man with a lion-like face entered the Room of Requirement. He walked towards the Vanishing Cabinet, accompanied by a dozen aurors. His gaze darted over Draco's suddenly pale face. He quickly approached Malfoy and lifted his sleeve. After a moment of looking at the Dark Mark on the young man's wrist, he clicked his tongue and muttered to himself:
"Well, you're in a mess, kid. But we'll help you get out of it." He put his hand on Malfoy's shoulder and winked at him.
Then he glanced at Ritsuka Fujimaru and quickly turned his gaze to the Vanishing Cabinet.
"So, the Death Eaters' plans include infiltrating Hogwarts through this cabinet?" he asked loudly, for everyone to hear. All three of them nodded in agreement. Scrimgour deeply pondered.
"This is very serious," he said. "If the Death Eaters can breach Hogwarts through this cabinet, they can cause terrible damage to the school and the entire magical world. We must prevent this at any cost."
"But how can we do that?" Harry asked. "How can we stop them?"
"I don't know, Harry," Scrimgeour admitted. "I don't know how this cabinet works and how to disable it. Maybe you know?" He looked at Malfoy and Fujimaru hopefully.
"No, we don't know either," Fujimaru replied. "We just started repairing it. We don't know how it is connected to the other cabinet in Borgin and Burkes."
"Can't you just break it?" Harry suggested.
"No, that would be too dangerous," Scrimgour objected. "We don't know what consequences such an action might have. And we can't know if the Death Eaters have a backup plan in case this one fails."
"Then what do we do?" Harry asked.
"I think we need help," Scrimgour said. "We need someone who understands this cabinet and the Death Eaters."
"The Death Eaters?" Harry asked.
"Yes, the Death Eaters," Scrimgour confirmed. "You know they use Servants for their purposes? They brought them along to attack the Ministry of Magic and the British Prime Minister. They wanted to seize power and they will try again."
"Yes, we know," Harry said. "But they were stopped by King Arthur Pendragon and his knights."
"Yes, that's true," Scrimgour said. "But do you know why he was able to stop them?" He looked at them with a serious expression. "Because he, too, is a Servant."
Scrimgeour sighed and rubbed his forehead.
"What a strange time we live in," he said. "Legends of the past come alive before our eyes and myths become reality. Who could have thought that King Arthur Pendragon would return to our world? And that he would turn out to be a Servant - a creature that can change the course of history?"
"I am at your service," Ritsuka addressed Scrimgour. "Please explain your plan."