Disclaimer: All charcters and world concepts are property of J.K. Rowling

Disclaimer: This is not the work of CNG25 but that of Lilausty, originally published on harrypotterfanfiction-dot-com.

Chapter 18: Words of a Mentor

The following weeks passed quickly, with the Christmas holidays only a week away. All of the students were getting excited, and not even Voldemort could put a damper on the spirit. The last Hogsmede trip was in a couple of days, and Harry still had no idea what he was going to get his friends. He was particularly stumped for what he was going to get Ginny. There was always the old chocolates and flowers, but he did want it to be special. He had considered jewellery, but thought it was too ordinary, with all boyfriends getting their girlfriends glittery things.

However, all those things were not what kept a sad expression fixed upon his face. As Christmas got closer, his demeanour got more and more serious, and the founders were starting to get worried.

It was decided amongst them that Salazar would talk to him, because of all the founders, he was able to ask the difficult questions delicately, and could always get an answer. Harry had just finished his morning run and had returned to Phoenix's Nest while Ginny went back to Gryffindor for some clothes, when Slytherin gestured, "Harry, come and sit for a moment."

Immediately a wary look appeared on his face, and his stance turned defensive. Salazar laughed, "Don't worry, this is not a trick to get you to lower your guard. I want to talk to you, I promise I will not attack you. Now come and sit down?"

Harry shrugged and sat down next to him, "What's up?"

Salazar looked intently at him, "I was going to ask you the same thing Harry. What's up?"

Harry forced a confused look onto his face, but on the inside he had frozen, "What do you mean? Nothing is up as far as I know."

While Salazar's actual expression didn't change, Harry could sense a shift in his attitude, "Harry, I have noticed a steady decline in your focus over the last week. I think the others have too, and that includes Ginny. You have been distant and spend all of your spare time apart from everyone. Now, I want to know, what is up?"

"Look, nothing is up that can be fixed ok? I am sorry I have been moody, I'll try and be more cheerful, is that better?" Harry replied, forcing a happy expression onto his face.

Salazar rolled his eyes, "No Harry, that is not alright, because whatever is bothering you is still eating away at your soul. Now I am not Helga, I am no touchy feeling individual who thinks that every emotion should be shared and explored. However, I am of the opinion that when a person's performance is being affected, the emotion becomes a problem because it turns the person into a danger to his own side. You are distracted Harry, and it is time for the distraction to be apparent to the rest of us. As Ginny says, spill!"

For a moment, Harry was going to argue but realising how pointless it would be he sighed, "Alright, fine, you win."

Salazar smirked, "I always do."

"It is about Dumbledore, I-I still miss him. I don't want to seem ungrateful, after all, you have been dragged away from your homes, time and everything that is familiar to you and still you find it in your hearts to help me. But Dumbledore was, in everyway that counts, my grandfather, and he had been a solid rock for me to lean on whenever I had troubles, which was quite regularly." Harry stared at his hands, fighting the burning in his eyes.

He couldn't bring himself to look at Salazar, already imagining the look of disgust on his face. He was surprised when he felt a hand under his chin raising his head. He reluctantly looked into Salazar's eyes, and was surprised to see only compassion and sympathy there.

"You were afraid that we would deem you selfish if you admitted your grief?" Salazar asked softly.

Harry nodded.

The snake founder shook his head, "Harry, grief is nothing to be ashamed of. It shows that you are still human enough to feel pain. It is what separates you from Voldemort, as he cannot feel anything except hate. I – we understand that we can never replace your guide, how could we? We are here to help you in your quest, to point you and pick you up when you fall. But, we are not him, and we understand that. Do not feel guilty."

Harry gave a shaky smile, "Thank you Salazar that helps more than you know. It doesn't fix the fact that I miss him, but at least I know you don't think less of me."

"Harry, considering everything else, how could we think less of you over such a small thing?"

Harry shrugged.

"The answer is, we couldn't." After a moment's silence, Salazar clapped his hands, "Right, now onto fixing the problem!"

Harry looked confused, "How can the problem be fixed? He is dead, and there is no spell that can reawaken him, he told me so himself."

"Quite right to, many foolish wizards have tried, and many have died themselves. Death is not something to be meddled with. However, there is a way that you can speak to him. I believe you are aware of the tradition of placing a portrait of past Headmasters in the Head Office?"

Seeing where this was going, Harry nodded, "Yeah, but last time I was up there he was sound asleep."

Salazar nodded, "yes, they do that a lot. However, I am sure that we could wake him up to talk to you. It wouldn't be exactly the same, as they cannot 'think' in the same way as a normal person. They have all of the existing memories of the person, and their attitudes and beliefs up to the point of their death. However, aside from any programmed thought processes if an action occurs, they do not provide guidance or intelligent insights into the world around them."

Harry struggled to understand the concept, "So anything that happened before his death, he will be able to explain to me? But if something happens tomorrow and I ask him for his opinion, he won't be able to give it to me?"

"Correct, unless he had specifically programmed in a response. Like I said, it is better than nothing, but it is no where near perfect." Salazar nodded.

Almost to himself, Harry muttered, "But it is enough."

"Well, all we have to do is get your current Headmistress out of the Office so you can talk to him. We need a distraction of some sort, to keep her busy. We should talk to Godric, he is the prankster of the group." Salazar said, rubbing his hands with glee.

A mischievous look came into Harry's eyes, "Salazar, you and Godric think you guys are good at being pranksters, but I am going to introduce you to the masters of mischief. After my father of course!"

Intrigued, Salazar grinned, "This I have got to see."

Harry called out, "Fawkes!"

The phoenix appeared, "Yes Harry, what is it? You seem to be in better spirits today. I assume you have told Salazar about your grief?"

Harry smiled, "Yes, it seems you aren't the only one that can make me talk. I need to write a letter then can you please deliver it to the Weasley twins? If they agree, please bring them back here immediately."

"Sure, but I thought you wanted to keep the Founder's presence a secret?"

Harry paused for a second before shrugging, "The founders can stay in the back rooms, the twins don't need to see them. They won't know where the room is, so we don't have to worry about that. You can flash us to wherever we need to go."

He looked at Salazar, "You don't mind hiding while they are here do you?"

He shook his head, "No, I'll let the others know and we will be in Godric's room if you need us. Call us when you wish to go to the Head Office." He walked out and Harry summoned his parchment and ink.

Dear Gred and Forge,

Hope everything is going great.

I wish to employ your mischief making services immediately. If you agree just tell Fawkes and he will flash you to Hogwarts. No one must know of your involvement in my little scheme, so secrecy is the word!

Hope to see you in a minute or so!

Harry

He passed the letter to Fawkes who took it in his beak and flashed away. He walked into the lounge room where Ginny was sitting by herself looking quite confused. When she saw him she opened her arms and hugged him, "Harry, what is going on? Salazar came and took the others away but told me to stay."

"It's ok Gin, its just I have invited your brothers to come here and I didn't think it would be a good idea if the founders were lazing around in plain view."

"Which brothers?" she asked, looking confused.

"Oh, Fred and George. I need them to exercise those mischief making muscles of theirs to get McGonagall out of the Heads Office and to keep her occupied for a while. Remember Umbridge?"

Ginny giggled, "How could I forget? But why do you want her out of there?"

Harry lowered his eyes, "I want to speak with Dumbledore's portrait, and I doubt she would allow me to without her in the room. The Founders can get me in there undetected but I need her distracted. Fred and George were the first people to spring to mind. Assuming they agree of course."

No sooner had he finished then there was a great flash of flame and the twins appeared, grinning from ear to ear. "Harry m'boy, so great to see you! Quite a surprise to hear from you to be sure, but we are always happy to oblige our backer!" Fred said, patting him on the back.

Ginny meanwhile had gotten up and given George a hug, "It's good to see you two! What did you think about being flashed? Quite fun eh?"

They nodded, George replying, "Indeed, I am curious to know if we could come up with a similar type of travelling for our shop. It would be quite popular, particularly since it is illegal to use portkeys without government permission."

Harry frowned, "Just watch who you sell to. It could be a very handy weapon for the other side."

The twins turned sober and Fred nodded, "Good call mate, hadn't thought of that. You would think we would have learnt our lesson from last year."

Harry waved his hand, "Eh, don't sweat it, I didn't drag you here to berate you, more like beg for your help."

"Happy to help, what do you need?" Fred asked.

"I want you to pull a similar stunt like you did with Umbridge, to get McGonagall out of her office and kept busy for a little while. You will have help from the DA I am sure, but considering it is McGonagall and not Umbridge, I think it may be a little harder. After all, she does know a bit more about magic." Harry explained.

Meanwhile the twins had whitened slightly, "Are you nuts? If she catches us she'll skin us alive! After all, we aren't even supposed to be on school grounds, let alone running amok around the hallways."

Harry nodded, "I know it is a risk, but you guys have disguises that you can use and it is really important that I get her out of the office."

"Why?"

Harry quirked an eyebrow, "So I can get into the office. Without her."

Fred winced, "You know that if she catches you, famous or not, there won't be enough left of you to fill a cauldron. She is not a lady to cross, particularly now with the war going on."

Harry nodded, "I know, but this is important for the war. Will you help?"

Fred looked at George who shrugged, "'Course. Just let us get some of our stuff from the shop. How much can Fawkes carry in one flashing?"

Harry looked at the bird "Fawkes?"

"I can take as much as they need when Flashing as long as some part of them is touching me, and they are touching whatever they wish to take. But it will take its toll on me, so don't expect much for a couple of hours afterwards!"

Harry looked back at the twins, "As much as you like, just make sure you are touching everything and he is touching you."

They nodded and in a flash were gone. Harry looked at Ginny who was biting her lip, "Alright Gin, what is it?"

"You shouldn't involve the DA in this." She said immediately.

"Why on earth not? You can't expect your brothers to do it all!" Harry replied, surprised.

"At the moment, the DA is relatively covert. She doesn't know what we are doing in our meetings, but if we start to draw attention to ourselves, she may decide to take a more active role, or disband us all together if she thinks we are working against her." Ginny explained.

"That doesn't explain how they are supposed to do this without help Gin. Unlike with Umbridge, the other teachers will help McGonagall and I need her to be distracted for quite a while. And remember, McGonagall has the bond with Hogwarts which means she will be able to fast track her way to the trouble. The founders can hide Fred and George's presence but that is all."

"I'll help them. Since starting training, I know this castle just as well as you and probably better than the twins. My record is relatively clean, so the teachers are not going to think I am up to no good." Ginny replied.

Harry frowned, but couldn't argue, as Fawkes arrived with the twins and a heap of boxes. The phoenix, obviously tired, flapped over and landed on Harry's lap. He grinned at the twins, "You two planning on waging a war? I asked for a distraction, but from the looks of things, I am going to get much more than that."

They grinned back, "Well, we do aim to please, besides, what better way to advertise our products?"

"Um, shouldn't you be trying to remain anonymous?" Ginny asked, trying not to laugh.

"What! Absolutely not! We don't want her to realise that we were here, but we want the credit for the mayhem!" Fred exclaimed.

Harry nodded, "Well, Ginny doesn't want the DA involved, so only she will be helping you. Is that ok?"

George shrugged, "Probably better that way. If there are lots of people running around, more likely for them to get caught. Just let them know to try and get in the way of the teachers, particularly the older students."

Harry nodded and turned to Ginny, "Can you quickly go and run and tell the leaders? Fawkes looks too tired to flash you. They will spread the word, and make sure they understand that this is not to be leaked to anyone."

She nodded and rushed out of the room, pausing slightly and smirked, "Don't start the party without me! I'll be back as quick as possible."

Once she had gone, Harry rubbed his hands together, "So, do I get a sneak peak at what you have got in there?"

Fred grinned, "Considering you own a third of it, I don't see why not. I still wish you would let us pay you back, or at least give you a share of the profits."

Harry shook his head, "Not a chance, besides, what would I do with the money? I have to much as it is! Anyway, give us a look at what you have in there!"

"As you command!" Fred popped the lid of one of the boxes and pulled out a very cute looking ball of fluff, "This I think is our greatest invention, we call them Fertile Fluffies." To Harry's surprise, the ball moved and turned to him, and he saw two very large cute eyes staring at him.

He gave a wry smile, "What is it going to do? Coo at me? I would laugh if I hadn't learnt that underestimating you guys is stupid."

"Wise man. We got the idea for these little fellas off a muggle television show called, um, Star Trek I think. Anyway, there were these little balls of fluff, very cute, but they bred very quickly and within a very short time there were so many of them that the people were wading knee deep in them!"

Harry nodded, "Go on."

George took up the explanation, "Well, these guys breed quicker, put two of the same colour together and poof, got 30 more. What is better though, is that they are quick little things, able to crawl up walls and into the smallest crack. We have had to be extremely careful with them as you can imagine, imagine if they got loose!"

Harry was starting to look wary, "But you are thinking of letting them loose. Aren't you?"

George nodded, "Yeah, they are still in the experimental stage but they work well enough. Also, we added a little enchantment that means they cannot be vanished and if one tries to destroy them in anyway they will go absolutely berserk."

Harry raised an eyebrow, "Sounds like you have been inventing spells."

Fred winced, "yeah, but keep that quiet. You know as well as we do that any inventions have to be registered as well as the counter spell, and we haven't yet managed to get to the ministry."

Harry rolled his eyes, "Of course I'll keep in quiet. You guys are too brilliant to go to jail. Besides, what sort of investor would I be if I ratted out my partners? So, I assume you do have a plan of getting rid of them once they have finished their task?"

Fred and George glanced at each other, "Yeah we have a method, and it has been tested to a certain degree."

"Oh?"

"Well, we haven't let them loose on such a large area before. We have a spell, Pleddos Vilrod, which causes them to become sterile, and those that haven't been implanted with a beozar die. The spell theoretically has a range of 3 square kilometres, but we haven't tested its full range yet." Fred explained.

Harry nodded, "Well, if we have any problems, you can just go around the castle casting the spell several times over. Can you summon those that have been implanted straight back here? Or do you need to find each one separately?"

"We can summon them no problems, but we need to do it quickly, and sort them very fast, because the spell will ware off, and then they start breeding again. They make great pets though, as long as you have different coloured ones, they don't breed at all!"

Harry laughed, "I'll consider it later. Apart from your spell, is there any other way that they can be killed en masse?"

"Not that we are aware of, we fire and water proofed them and there aren't too many other spells that can be used unless they want to put the student's lives in danger as well."

"Sounds good! So you plan on tipping the boxes in the hallway and letting them loose. It should take McGonagall 10 minutes or so to get moving. I'll watch her office and break in as soon as she leaves." Harry planned.

At that moment, Ginny ran in, completely puffed, "A-Alrig-t, I to-ld th-em. Wha-what do yo-you need me t-to do?"

"Catch your breath would be a good thing I think. You brothers have everything well in hand, I am not even sure you need to help them, apart from keeping watch over things." Harry replied.

She nodded, "O-Ok that's fine."

"Well, no time like the present to make some mischief!" Fred said, rubbing his hands together with glee. He and George got up and grabbed two boxes each. Harry and Ginny both copied them and took them out of Phoenix's Nest.

Harry paused once the other three were out and looked back to see Godric peering out at him. He grinned, "I'll come back and get Fawkes to flash us if he is up it." Godric nodded, and withdrew into the shadows.

In the hallway Fred and George were already opening one box and emptying the contents on the ground. There were so many different coloured balls of fluff that Harry's eyes were dazzled. No two were alike, for obvious reasons, but when Fred opened the next box he muttered, "Get ready for some horny little fluff balls." And tipped the box onto the floor.

Immediately there were little squeaking noises and where there were 30 balls of fluff there were, well, a lot more! Fred and George were frantically opening the other boxes and tipping them out, already up to their knees.

George grinned at Harry, "Now, just a little spell to scare them to get them moving. Explitalse!"

There was an enormous BANG! And suddenly the cute little fluff balls were absolutely frantic, shooting off in all directions.

Fred nodded grimly, "Perfect, we will be hearing the screams in no time! You had better get going Harry, if you want to get into that Office."

Harry grinned, "Thanks guys, try not to enjoy yourselves too much!" He turned and ran back into the room, where the founders were all sitting around Fawkes, Rowena shooting some sort of spell at him.

They looked up and grinned, "Ready to go? Rowena was just giving him a little pick me up, transporting so much is really tiring for a Phoenix."

Harry nodded and they all touched the beautiful bird. Immediately he flashed them to the outside of the Head's Office before flashing himself back to Phoenix's Nest. Harry looked up at the founders, "Are you able to disguise Fred and George's presence as well as our own? Or is that too much? It's just I do not want them to get into trouble."

Rowena nodded, "Shouldn't be too much of a problem, it will require a bit of concentration though."

Harry nodded and turned to the Gargoyle. Taking a deep breath he said softly, "Absidian." As soon as the door was opened he walked through, the founders following him.

"HOW DARE YOU BREA….Oh it's you Mr Potter." A short man with a red coat said from one of the paintings.

Harry smiled nervously at him, "Sir, I-I am just here to see Professor Dumbledore's portrait."

The portrait's eyes however were fixed upon the founders, and he was gasping, "H-How can th-this be p-p-possible?"

Helga smiled, "It is a long story and we really do not have time. If you would be so kind, can you please keep a look out and when the Headmistress looks like she is going to be coming back here, could you let us know?"

The portrait immediately nodded and rushed out of his frame. Harry smiled thankfully at Helga before entering the office.

Exclamations of surprise met his ears as the past Heads saw the founders. Harry however had eyes only for a pair of twinkling blue ones staring back at him.

Dumbledore was awake, and obviously quite alert. Harry walked over to the portrait but found that he had lost his voice completely. He did not have to say anything however, his eyes spoke volumes, the emotions there were plain to see.

"Hello Harry, it is good to see you. I find myself surprised with the company you are keeping. It would seem that since my departure you have been doing very well for yourself." The portrait said, smiling benignly.

Harry immediately felt guilty and looked at the floor. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up into Godric's sympathetic face. Dumbledore's eyes meanwhile had lost some of their twinkle, "Oh dear, that was not a comment of jealous and resentment Harry, but one of great joy! I did not want my death to be a burden on you like Sirius's was."

"Sir, we-we don't have a lot of time I should think. Professor McGonagall is being kept busy at the moment, but I have no idea how long that will last." Harry said, shifting nervously.

Dumbledore looked amused, "I sense the works of the Weasley twins eh? I guess old habits die hard. And I guess you broke in here?"

Harry nodded and Dumbledore chuckled, "Ah Harry m'boy, you truly are a delight to an old man. Well, a dead man now, but oh well."

Harry winced, "Sir, I-I wanted t-to tell you, just how sorry I am. I-I don't think that I can move on from your death without your forgiveness sir."

Dumbledore looked confused, "Why on earth would you need my forgiveness Harry? I have always been so proud of you."

Now Harry looked confused, "B-because I forced you to drink that potion! If you had never done that you could have fought off those Death Eaters and S-Snape couldn't have killed you!"

Understanding crossed the past Headmaster's face, "Oh Harry, you couldn't be further from the truth! None of what happened that night was your fault, you have nothing to be sorry for. The only person responsible for my death was myself, you see, I was already dying."

The confusion on Harry's face became even more pronounced so Dumbledore proceeded to explain, "Apart from the fact that my 100 years bestowed upon me by my great friend and first phoenix Glacier had run out, I am sure you remember my injured hand? Well, it was a particularly nasty curse that caused it, and unfortunately it could never be cured, only slowed down. I had asked Severus to kill me, to secure his own position as a spy as well as to protect Draco. There was also a purely selfish reason as well, as I didn't particularly want to be the plaything of Fenrir and Bellatrix."

Harry couldn't help but shudder, "S-So it was all an act? The pleading, the hatred? Snape is actually a good guy?"

Dumbledore smiled, "Yes Harry, I still trust Severus Snape, and I always will."

Harry was absolutely dumbstruck. The person that he had spent the last few months detesting was actually on the same side as himself, and not only that, he had performed the hardest task that anyone could be asked to do.

Dumbledore meanwhile was examining the founders, "I must say Harry, I am curious as to how you managed to get them here. Time travel on that sort of scale is unheard of. Could you please enlighten me?"

Harry (with help from the founders), explained about the eclipse and their first meeting; several of the Head's snickered when he told them about attacking the founders, but Dumbledore had merely smiled. Godric and Salazar then proceeded to explain what they were teaching Harry, and how they expected to destroy the horcruxes when they found them.

Dumbledore confirmed what they believed regarding the basilisk imbued swords, which lifted a weight off of Harry's shoulders.

Many fond words were exchanged between the former Headmaster and Harry, before the man who had been keeping watch rushed in, quite puffed, "she is on her way back here now! You should get going!"

Bidding a hasty farewell, the founders walked to a wall and applied pressure to a panel. It opened, revealing a passageway which they hurried down. Harry took one last glance at Dumbledore who, as always, was smiling with a twinkle in his eye. Firmly turning away, Harry followed the founders through the passageways and back to Phoenix's Nest.

"You had better hide, I do not know how long it will take for Ginny and the twins to get back here." Harry said.

They nodded and walked out of the lounge room. Harry sat down, feeling drained, yet somehow lighter. He didn't have to wait long before the door opened at three red haired people tumbled in, all laughing deeply.

He grinned at them, "I take it everything went well?"

Fred nodded vigorously as George burst out, "Oh yeah! She was running around like a headless chicken. I kind of feel bad, but it was so funny. She didn't catch us, but neither could she clear away the Fluffs."

Ginny agreed, "I think she is probably going to be pissed off for the next few days, so don't expect her to be kind and accommodating. She can't prove who it was, but I bet she suspects us, or more specifically, you."

Harry shrugged, "I'll try and steer clear of her for the next few days then. She can't prove anything though, unless the portraits say anything, and I don't think they will."

"Well my dears, it has been a pleasure creating havoc with you, but we really need to be getting back to our shop. There is money to be made!" Fred said. He paused before staring at Harry, "Um, how are we getting back to our shop?"

Harry winced, "I am not sure if Fawkes is up to it right now, he is pretty tired. I can make you a portkey though if you want."

George frowned, "Um Harry, they are illegal you know."

He rolled his eyes, "Since when has that ever stopped you? Don't worry, it won't be tracked, you'll be fine." He grabbed a cup that was sitting on the table and tapped it with his wand, "Portus." It glowed blue and vibrated before settling down. Harry smiled at the twins, "Thanks so much for your help, it means a lot. If you need anything from me just say so and I'll do my best to accommodate."

The twins looked at each other and shrugged, "our pleasure Harry, it's the least we can do. Your offer works both ways, always remember that." They said goodbye touched the portkey and disappeared instantly.

The founders immediately joined the two remaining teenagers in the lounge room and made themselves comfortable, Helga saying, "Well, that went well, much better than expected actually. How are you feeling now Harry?"

He thought about her question and examined his own attitude and found himself surprised. He smiled, "Good, really good, first time in a long time actually."

"You look much more at peace with yourself, like a huge weight has been lifted off of you." Rowena said in agreement.

Harry nodded, "Not only did I find out that his death wasn't my fault, but that we have another ally, even if he doesn't know it yet."

Ginny looked confused, "Who?"

Harry focused his gaze on her, "Snape."

"WHAT? HOW THE HELL COULD HE BE AN ALLY?" she exploded, before turning red at her loss of control.

Harry couldn't help but laugh, "Easy Gin, its true. He didn't murder Dumbledore as first believed."

"B-But you were there, you said that you saw him kill him!" She exclaimed in confusion.

"Yes, he did kill him, but he didn't murder him."

"Aren't they the same thing in this case?" she asked.

"No, you see, Dumbledore asked Snape to kill him. He was already dying and he didn't want Malfoy to kill him. Snape performed the hardest task anyone could be asked to do. I almost feel guilty for hating him for the last few months if not for the fact that it was what was meant to happen." Harry explained.

Ginny's eyes were wide, "So he is actually a good guy after all?"

Harry's mouth twitched as he glanced at Salazar, "Well, he is a Slytherin, so I don't know if good is the word to descri…OUCH! Salazar, that hurt, I was only telling the truth."

"You deserved it." Salazar returned. "Anyway, you probably have missed most of your first class, but you should try and get to the second one. Particularly since McGonagall will want to stick the trouble that occurred onto you. Go on, scat!" The other three founders nodded in agreement.

Suitably dismissed, the two teens waved goodbye and rushed out of the Phoenix's Nest and to their respective classes after giving each other a quick kiss.