Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
A/N: Thank you to all my awesome readers for coming back to the next instalment, and hopefully those new to this story.
This and my other stories are not abandoned, unless marked as such. Life is busy and this is a fun past time, so my FanFic writing takes a back seat at times. Please enjoy this chapter and I am unsure what my posting schedule will be
03 December, 2022.
Today's story: Waking magic, plans for the future and talks of Durmstrang
-oOo-
Chapter 16
-oOo-
August 14, 1993
Isla Nublar, Costa Rica
Harry lay on the bed. Early morning light filtered through the narrow window with the bars across it. Today was a day off, so he took his time to look at the grey cement wall. He had noticed how the employee apartments were built more like a bunker, having thought about why, but never appreciating it until recently.
The past few days had been a whirlwind of action. He had been drawn into meetings, drawn into labs, drawn into a fight with Lex and her mother when they had been found in a heavy snogging session on her grandfather's couch. Harry wasn't happy about the fight, and the subsequent conversation, but he had been happy that she hadn't seemed to notice Harry's hand up Lex's shirt.
Sirius hadn't made it much better when he was pulled in and made a comment that they were teens and Harry knew how to protect them from having any children before they were ready. Since then, Lex and him had hardly been able to find any time together. If her mother hovered again today, Harry was going to use his invisibility cloak.
Getting up, he took a shower, then got dressed. The Sword of Gryffindor, his wand in the holster and the belt with the few pouches lay next to his clothes. Harry put the scabbard across his back with the strap firmly tightened across his chest. He hadn't gone anywhere without his wand, the backup wand that had come from the Hogwarts collection or the sword ready to use since Tuesday. When he knocked on his godfather's door, he shrugged when there was no answer. Sirius was either sleeping in or had already left the apartments. Not wanting to walk, he stepped back into his own apartment, then turned. A blink of an eye later, he was in an out of the way area just outside the Visitor Centre.
Unsure if Lex was stirring or not, he went to the bungalow that her grandfather owned. As he approached, he could smell food cooking. He knocked on the door. He waited perhaps thirty seconds before it opened. "Good morning, Mrs Murphy," he said.
"Good morning, Harry. Lex isn't up yet. Maybe you should come back later," the woman told him.
"I'll be in the Visitor Center," he replied. He sighed when the door closed. The woman had been very frosty towards him and Sirius since Tuesday, even more so since she had found Lex and him on the couch.
On his way to find Muldoon in the guard office, he passed Dr Bones in one of the labs. Harry stopped, back pedalled, and then did a double take. Susan Bones was sitting in a chair. He knew her immediately, even if she was thirteen, maybe fourteen now, he would never forget her distinctive auburn hair, slightly plump face at that age, or the developing curves that had every boy drooling since their third year at Hogwarts. Harry had to admit that he had found her attractive during their DA meetings but had never felt more than teenage hormones. She was a nice girl, but a little to meek at times for him.
Now though, his mouth slightly open, he was looking at Susan Bones, a face that he frankly thought he would never see again.
The girl looked up to him, her blue eyes finding his. After a moment, a slight flush crossed her face. Dr Bones had been running a small device over Susan that Harry recognized as an electrical wave detector before looking up to see what her daughter was looking at. Harry knew something big had been going on the last few days but hadn't been told about it. Sir Lockwood said there would be a meeting about it today. With the look on Dr Bones face, the detection equipment on the table and how Susan was here, Harry had a sinking feeling.
Dr Bones gestured for him to join them. Harry looked away from the blushing girl to enter the lab. He was grateful his employee card let him in without a fuss.
"Hello, Harry. I would like you to meet my daughter, Susan. Susan, this is Harry Potter," Dr Bones said.
Susan averted her eyes away from him before looking back up. "Hello," she said a little shyly.
"Hey," Harry replied, unsure what to say. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, he indicated all the probes and instruments. "What's going on?"
Susan bit her lip. "Mum says I have magic. Can you believe that?"
Harry rocked back a bit. He shot his eyes to Dr Bones, who just nodded. "Susan was flown in last night. I've been trying to tell her about what we have learned so far, but I am hoping that you and Sirius will be able to tell us more later. Her magical radiation levels have been slowly climbing over the last few days. If it keeps going, she'll have the same levels as Alexis Murphy in a few months."
"Bloody hell," Harry muttered. "How?"
"Is it a bad thing? Do you have magic? Why are you wearing a sword?" Susan asked.
Harry shook his head. "No, Susan, it's not a bad thing. I just don't understand how."
"Benjamin is going to have a talk with us all later today, but it appears that you and Sirius have started a cascade event, waking dormant magic in some," she said, running the probe over herself. She had a thoughtful look. "I'm not increasing as fast as Susan, but I do show an increase."
Harry's mouth was catching flies. Susan looked a little worried. "What does this mean, mum. Harry, right? You say magic isn't a bad thing?"
Harry shook himself. "No. It's not bad. Pretty brilliant, actually. Ah, Dr Bones, are you saying that Sirius and I have caused this?"
"It would appear so. I should be done here soon. If you wouldn't mind, would you show Susan around the island today? I hear we are expecting another guest or two as well," she told him.
Susan looked at him rather hopefully. Harry felt a little anxious. The last time he saw Susan looking at someone like that she had just about jumped Ernie when he asked her out after a D.A. meeting. "Uhm, sure. I need to go see Muldoon first, then we can find Lex and Tim. I'll see if Dr Timmons or anyone is heading out into the park."
"What type of park? I saw the signs for Jurassic Park, but it was too dark last night to see anything when mum met me at the helicopter," Susan said.
Harry took on a wry grin. "Well, if you find it hard to believe in magic, you're in for a surprise."
Dr Bones gave a laugh, though it sounded a little strained. "I don't want to shock her too much in one day. You know how I've been doing research into genetics and cloning?" she put to her daughter.
Susan looked to her mum. "Yeah. Why?"
"Well, Sir Lockwood and Mr Hammond are years ahead of where I am. They have found ways to clone extinct animals," she said.
"You mean like that sheep thing you were telling me about?" Susan enquired.
"Try more like animals that have been extinct for sixty-five million years," her mother said softly.
Susan blinked, as though unsure what was being said before her eyes widened comically. "You mean dinosaurs?"
"Got it in one," Harry said.
Susan snapped her head to Harry. After a moment, she said, "This has to all be a big joke."
"It's not a joke, dear," her mother said softly.
Susan's mouth opened and closed a few times before saying, "This is all a joke."
Her mother sighed. "Harry, could you show Susan something? Maybe that patro-whatever thing we saw on the videos?"
Harry frowned. "You aren't going to try to test me or anything?"
Dr Bones shook her head. "I understand why you and Sirius don't want to do all this anymore. Benjamin does too. We just ask for your help, especially now that I think Susan and I will be able to use magic in the near future."
Dr Bones had never led him wrong, and she had always treated him nicely. He had noticed that it had only been her and Sir Lockwood that had been at the island the last few days. The rest of his research team had been kept away from them. After a moment, he nodded. Taking his wand out, Harry thought of Lex as he said, "Expecto Patronum!"
For the third time this week, the six-foot tall, ethereal tyrannosaur leapt into existence from the tip of his wand. Harry was a little disappointed it wasn't his father's stag anymore, but he wasn't disappointed it was Rexy. Susan jumped back in her chair as the dinosaur looked around, as though expecting to find dementors or something else. After a moment, it threw its neck out and gave a roar before dissipating into wisps. Susan had turned white. He caught her eyes roll back into her head and rushed to catch her as she slumped over.
"Bloody brilliant," he snarked to himself as he lowered her to the floor.
Dr Bones was at his side. "It didn't roar last time," she said, checking on her daughter.
"I find my Patronus acts a lot like Rexy. It was trying to say it was the king and would protect everyone around here."
Dr Bones shook her head. "Perhaps I'll ask you to lead with something not so traumatizing next time."
Harry raised an eyebrow. "Next time?"
"Yes. From what I understand, there is another teenage girl and her family that will be joining us here today, and if Benjamin is right, she is showing signs that magic is growing in her too," Dr Bones said. "They are going to ask you and Sirius to meet them and introduce them to magic."
"Really? Who?" Harry had to ask.
"I think their last name is Granger," Dr Bones told him.
Harry sat hard on his bottom. "Granger? You mean Hermione Granger?"
Dr Bones looked up to him. "You know her? I thought you said everyone was left behind where you came from?"
"They were. I knew a Hermione Granger. I also knew a Susan Bones," he admitted to Dr Bones for the first time.
The woman regarded him for a few. "I get a feeling there is a lot you and Sirius haven't told us."
"You have no idea," Harry said, still trying to process that Hermione, a Hermione that was almost three years younger than the Hermione he knew, and didn't know a lick of anything about magic, was on her way. The fact that Susan, and her mother, were both magical was shocking enough. Now one of his best friends... well, she had been his best friend in a life that felt so far away now. Would they be friends again?
Dr Bones was still regarding him. "I need to know if this is dangerous to Susan."
Harry snorted. "Magic? No. It's just part of us. What some can do with magic and things that could happen around magic... I don't know. Sometimes it is. Sometimes it isn't," Harry told her. He put his head into his hands. He thought he had finally been letting go of all his fears of what had happened to his friends that night in the Department of Mysteries, but now they were coming back.
-oOo-
A few hours later...
Lex was looking at Harry as they rode in the jeep out to the helicopter pad. Since Tuesday he had been very protective of her and others. The sword over his back was proof of that, but today he was someplace else. Ever since that girl, Susan Bones, had joined them for a tour, Harry had looked distracted. He was tense, but this was a tenseness from something in his head, not the tenseness of the hunter she was starting to see him as. It had her worry some.
He was looking out the side of the jeep, one arm folded against the canvas top, the other propping his head up as they bounced along the road.
Sirius was in the front seat. He looked worried too.
Something was going on with Harry and his godfather and she didn't know what it was.
Speaking of which, there was something large going on. More than just what happened with Dennis Nedry. She admitted that she had been somewhat distracted with helping Mr Arnold get the computer systems back up and to fix some of the issues, so Harry could have been going through this already, but she didn't think so.
She was also dealing with her mother in a way she wasn't used to all week. Her mother had been struggling some with Lex having magic. Now she was snapping at everyone. Lex had seen her arguing with grandpa, Sirius and Mr Lockwood. Later today they were going to have a meeting with them, and Lex hoped she would find out why her mom was being such a bitch right now. Lex knew this was about her mother's time of the month. It was close to her time of the month too. Sometimes they clashed when they were both having their periods, but this was different.
Seeing such a serious look on Harry's face had her poking her finger into his side.
Harry grunted, turning to look at her. "What did I do?"
"Nothing. You just look really serious right now," she said.
Harry gave her a sad smile. "You know who we are going to meet, right?"
Lex nodded. It was the girl that she felt a little jealous about, even though she had never met Hermione Granger. Her mind told her this wasn't the girl that Harry had told her about, but her heart said this was a potential rival... Lex shook herself. She could tell that Harry wouldn't do that. Harry had told her many times that he saw her as his sister, but still... Hermione Granger. The Hermione from his past life had a chance to come back. Would he still see her as his sister?
In the end, Lex decided that she would be the good girlfriend. "Hermione and you could be friends again."
Harry turned to look out the window. "I don't know if that is best."
She really hadn't seen him in this mood before.
Lex wasn't sure either, but this girl had been very important to Harry. She could see Hermione still was.
The two jeeps rolled up to the helipad. There were three helipads on the island, and she couldn't understand why grandpa and others usually insisted on using this one for visitors until Harry pointed out that coming in from the south-west didn't allow anyone to see the dinosaurs and allowed for the visitors to be driven through or by the valley, ensuring that the dinosaurs in the valley would be seen. He had said Sirius referred to it as an 'awe' factor to sell the park.
It had seemed to work. Dr Grant and Dr Sattler were enthralled with the island, offering to be permanent advisors. Most of the issues had been hidden from them, but Dr Malcolm didn't seem satisfied. He had pestered everyone for details as to why they had been locked in the compound before he left.
"I hear the helicopter," Harry told her. He really did have superb senses, having heard it a good moment before she did. Lex took his hand.
"You okay, pup?" Sirius asked.
"Yeah. Fine," Harry replied.
Sirius put a hand on Harry's shoulder for a moment before focusing on the white helicopter with the blue InGen logo on it. It landed. Harry's hand squeezed hers a little uncomfortably before letting go. A moment later, the pilots got out and opened the doors. A bushy hair girl was immediately at the forefront. A rather tall man in his later fifties with a good physique and a woman in her thirties with tied back hair like her daughter's got out.
Sirius walked forward, with Harry and her following.
"Hello, Mr and Mrs Granger. I assume this is your daughter, Hermione?"
"Hello. Yes, you can call me George if you want. This is Helen and our daughter Hermione. English? We've only talked with American's so far," Mr Granger said.
Sirius extended a hand to the man. "Good to meet you. I'm Sirius Black. I'm born and bred English, though we live here now."
"Hello, Mr Black," Mrs Granger said. Sirius took her extended hand and leaned over to kiss her hand.
"Sirius, please," Sirius told her.
"Sirius. You said we. Are either of these two yours?" the woman asked.
"I wouldn't exactly say mine. This is Harry Potter, my godson, and his girlfriend, Alexis Murphy. I would call her Lex though. She's the granddaughter of John Hammond," Sirius introduced them.
Hermione was quiet. She was staring at Harry, making Lex a little nervous. Harry had said the girl liked to talk and usually charged into situations. She had a feeling Hermione staying quiet was not usual.
"Very nice to meet you," Mr Granger said, moving to shake their hands. "Lex, your grandfather invited us out here as a shareholder weekend and was a little cryptic about something with our daughter? She may have won a scholarship?"
Lex took the man's hand. "You would have to talk to grandpa about any business, but I do think he has something to offer your daughter. Hello, Hermione," she said to the girl.
Hermione shook her head, as though breaking from a trance as Lex greeted her. The girl flushed at the look Lex was giving her. It was a look almost any girl would recognize as 'stay away from my man'. Her mother seemed to catch the look and her daughter's staring.
"Harry, correct?"
"Yes, Mrs Granger."
"I notice you have a sword on your back. Is that for a reason?" Mrs Granger asked, probably using that as an excuse to take the attention away from her daughter.
Harry shrugged. "Some of the local animals can get out of hand at times. Muldoon, our Games Keeper, lets me keep it just in case."
Lex wanted to palm her head. The Grangers all looked a little worried.
Sirius laughed. "You'll have to excuse him. I may have dropped him on his head a few times when he was young."
"Oi! You said you didn't," Harry complained. Lex smiled at them as the Grangers relaxed a little.
"If you want, your daughter can ride with the kids. I have some stuff that Hammond wanted me to talk to you about on our way to the main compound," Sirius offered.
Getting into the jeep, the younger girl finally found her voice. "I've never been on a private helicopter or jet before. Is it usually that bumpy coming in?"
"It can be a little rough at times," Harry agreed.
"Where did you grow up in England? We are from Baker Hill, in Surrey," Hermione put to him.
"Lex grew up in Washington, D.C. I come from Little Winging in Surrey," Harry replied.
"Oh, that isn't far from where I live. Are you planning to go back or are you going to go to university in the United States? Mum and dad took me there a few years back. The museums around the mall were brilliant. What is your favourite?" the girl questioned, not caring that they were now moving.
"I really like the National Gallery and the Technology sections," Lex told her.
"Mum really liked the National Gallery. How about you Harry? Did you see all the antiques in the American History Museum. I bet you did with that sword. Is it real? Have you used it? What type of animals would you need to worry about to need a sword?" she kept on going.
Harry had a slight smirk on his face. Lex felt annoyed with this little girl. She obviously was focusing on Harry, much like Susan had earlier, and she talked a mile a minute.
"I think you'll see in just a moment what type of animals. As far as using it, not really yet," Harry replied.
"So, when you were in Washington, did you go to the Natural History Museum?" Lex inquired.
Hermione didn't look as impressed. "Yes. My father likes all that. If he hadn't become a biologist, I think he would have become a palaeontologist. He loves all that old stuff and fossils. Mum is a dentist and only found the teeth interesting."
Harry snorted. Hermione gave him an unimpressed look. "And you find that funny?"
"You have no idea. Yvonne, do I need to get out the tranq guns?" Harry asked the woman in the driver's seat. The woman looked like she was enjoying the grilling.
"Not right now. Muldoon said we are to get back to the centre," Yvonne replied.
"Tranq guns? Why would you need those? You do mean like tranquilizer guns, right?" Hermione questioned.
They were coming over the ridge on the main road, able to see down into the valley now. Yvonne slowed the car. Lex enjoyed pointing out the side of the car at the calls from the lake. The Parasaurolophus were singing to each other. The car came to a stop while Hermione turned her head to the sounds and her mouth dropped open. Her mirth was in the girl's reaction. "Dear, God, are those robots?"
"Noooopppppe," Harry said in a long tone, popping the 'p', and obviously enjoying seeing the girl's reaction. "They're real. Dr Wu calls them clones."
Hermione's mouth moved a few times. "Impossible," she stated. "There is no way that DNA would be able to be preserved during fossilization. They can't be real dinosaurs."
Harry laughed, as though he was enjoying teasing the girl. "It's not impossible. Highly improbable, but not impossible."
Hermione took her eyes off the dinosaurs. "But, how?"
"My grandpa found that some bugs and such that were fossilized in amber were actually frozen in time. There are ways that have been found to take those samples, extract the DNA and then clone them," Lex told the girl. She had found that Harry only vaguely understood some of the science. She found it fascinating. Not as much as computers, but science had always been fascinating. Now throw in her magic, and everything had changed for her in the last few weeks.
Hermione looked perplexed. "That isn't possible," she said. "I've been in advanced biology and chemistry classes. Organics can't withstand fossilization. Even my father has looked into it. They can get some DNA from frozen mammoths, but dinosaurs? They all died sixty-five million years ago."
"Most of the ones you are looking at went extinct long before that," Harry said. "The edomontosaurus are out today."
Hermione looked down. Lex didn't like to think she was a petty person, but she had accepted all this far easier than Hermione. "How?"
"Would you believe in magic?" Lex asked.
"I doubt card tricks did this," Hermione scoffed.
Harry shook his head. She saw him pull out his wand. "No card tricks. Wingardium Leviosa," he said, swishing and flicking his wand. It was one of the spells that Sirius and him had been working on with her this week.
Hermione's eyes went as large as saucers to see a rock levitate from the side of the road and to her face. "How are you doing that?"
"Magic," Harry said easily.
Hermione moved her hand. It went all the way around the rock, as though she was trying to find a string or something else that was making it float. "That's impossible. Are there magnets or something here? You stopped the car in a specific spot. Is this some type of test to see if I am good enough for whatever scholarship Mr Hammond is offering?"
"Not a joke. If you want, you can pick anything you can see and I will levitate it over," Harry told her.
Hermione gave him an unimpressed look. "Fine. That twig right there," Hermione demanded. Harry just swished his wand this time. The twig rose and hovered next to the small rock. She repeated moving her hands around the stick, then this time touched it. "Oh," she exclaimed, feeling the pull on it. As she tugged on the twig, Lex saw an excitement come over the girl. "This should be impossible. What about that rock?"
Harry levitated the rock. "Anymore?" her boyfriend asked.
Hermione pulled and pushed on the rocks. "This is incredible. Why are you showing me this? How does it work?"
Lex chuckled to see the wonder in the girl's face. She may feel a little jealous of a girl that Harry didn't know in this life, but she could appreciate that this Hermione was showing the same curiosity that Harry described her as having. Hermione turned to her. "Can you do this?"
"I am just learning," Lex told the girl.
"I'm not sure if you can do this yet. Dr Bones said that she and her daughter were only at about fifteen percent of the power they can measure from me. Sirius and I can see if a wand may respond to you, but it didn't for them earlier," Harry told the girl.
Lex could see the gears turning in the girl's head. "You mean you emit some type of radio wave that can be detected? How? What frequencies? If you can do this, why aren't we taught about this in physics?" Hermione questioned.
Harry laughed at her enthusiasm. "I'm sure Dr Bones and Sir Lockwood can help explain it."
From the car behind them an angry male voice yelled out. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN MY DAUGHTER IS A WITCH!"
-oOo-
At the Visitor Center...
John was standing at the door to the restaurant. Harry and Alexis were talking with the two younger girls and Tim. Both had their wands out. Harry was helping his granddaughter do something that had a fork on the table wobbling, and every once in a while lifting a little. The redhead was giggling while the bushy hair one kept up a steady stream of commentary and questions.
A few tables away, Erica Bones and the Grangers were talking with Sirius. Linda was just sitting back, listening. The last few days had been very hard for his daughter. Between the near collapse of the park, finding out that she and his grandchildren were magical and trying to mesh that with her beliefs had her very out of sorts. John didn't like seeing her this way, but her mother would be the same way at times when things challenged her beliefs.
A taller man with a lean body stepped up next to him. "What do you think, Benjamin?" John asked.
"That everyone that is reacting to exposure to Harry and Sirius are strengthening. The adults, like Linda and Erica, are gaining strength at half the rate as the teens and your grandchild. Since arriving, Harry has increased in output by almost ten percent. He is emitting a background level electrical field equivalent to three-point-two kilojoules, but that increases exponentially when he is using some of his magic. We've measured spikes into the tens of thousands of kilojoules. Sirius has remained relatively steady at just over three-point-six kilojoules. Given that he is an adult and the rate we see in Linda and Erica, I am unsure if they will ever be powerful enough to use a wand. I don't know what the threshold is, but fifteen percent of Harry's original power is not enough to get a response, according to Sirius," Benjamin stated. John was used to this. His partner of almost twenty years was a very scientific and straight forward person when it came to his research.
"What about Timothy?" John had to ask.
"He's shown a significant growth since the first time we were able to get a reading. He's about fifty percent of Harry's original levels and was able to use a wand. Harry and Sirius haven't decided if they will give him one yet or wait a little while longer. As for Lex, she's at seventy-two percent of Harry's current level, and about sixty-four of Sirius. I see she isn't having much of an issue using her magic," Benjamin said, his eyebrow raising to see the fork now steadily hovering about two feet above the table.
John smiled. "Yes. She's been spending as much time as she can with Harry, and they have been practicing basics."
Benjamin gave a thoughtful 'hmmm'. "John, looking at the videos and seeing what Harry and Sirius have done in the last few days, I don't think we even know a tenth of what is really going on or what they are capable of. Harry took me out to the tyrannosaur paddock yesterday. He actually talks to them." Benjamin sounded like he was still shocked. "I thought the little one was going to eat him when Harry called him to the doors of the paddock. Instead he just rubbed its muzzle, then let it out. The big one poked its head out but didn't try to escape. Frankly, it's quite spectacular what they have done in the past week, and it scares me some."
John looked to the man. "Are you scared they will do something?"
The man frowned. "I don't think so. Harry and Sirius appear to be what they are. I don't get that they are playing games. They talk about themselves as family. Harry appears to really love it here. He talks about Jurassic Park as his home and the dinosaurs like he's on a fun safari. They are still hiding stuff though. I just don't know if what they are hiding is dangerous or not."
John looked at Harry. He was smiling and laughing with the others. Lex had let the fork down. Harry touched his wand to it and a hedgehog was suddenly wandering around the table.
"Incredible," Benjamin said in a low breath.
John smiled. He liked Harry and Sirius. He trusted them with his family. Harry had been a huge factor of Jurassic Park recovering. Yes, he was having to deal with the two dead people, but one of them had betrayed him, the other was just in the wrong spot. He had a feeling he would be able to convince the board that the new safety measures would make the park safe enough to have guest come see their crowning achievement. All that would not have been possible without the two wizards in the room.
"Benjamin, I don't think we need to worry about them. If they have secrets, I don't feel like they are doing it to sabotage or bring any harm to us. I have a feeling there is a whole magical world that is hidden to us, and possibly them. Have you located anyone else?" John queried.
Benjamin shook his head. "No. The only ones we have found have had direct contact with them, except Erica's daughter. I'm not sure if it's just Harry and Sirius that is awakening dormant magic, or if the others will, once they gain their full powers."
"Alexis has been able to use a wand for close to a month now. I have suspicions she may have since shortly after Harry visited us in D.C. back in April. No one she interacted with has shown signs?" John was curious about that.
"No one that we can find. We can detect their magic signatures from about a hundred feet away. We are trying to figure out how Susan became active. As far as we know she was never exposed to Harry or Sirius," Benjamin said. "She is the only one that doesn't fit the pattern at the moment."
Timothy was chasing the hedgehog around now as the girls were all talking with Harry. Benjamin and him watched the scene for a while.
"What are your plans now that you got them all together?" Benjamin asked.
John hadn't really thought about it, being so busy with Jurassic Park. Alexis had been key in recovering their systems. Raymond was suggesting she apply to colleges already. Alexis was only going into eleventh grade. As smart as she was, he doubted Linda would press Alexis to enter university early. "You are certain that Timothy and the girls will be able to use magic?"
"Tim already can, John. Giving the rates they are increasing, I would say by Christmas that Ms Granger and Ms Bones will be able to wield a wand if the fifty percent threshold is the key, but it is more likely lower than that," Benjamin said.
John nodded his head as he thought. "We own the other islands around Isla Sorna. I don't know if it is wise to keep them here. Everyone on the island is accepting of them, but I don't know what would happen if guests see them all using magic."
Benjamin nodded his agreement. "I agree."
John gently hit his cane on the floor. "I am going to personally fund this. I don't want the board to have any control over them."
"I have some other news I haven't told you," Benjamin said.
John looked to him. Benjamin looked at him. "Charlotte has started to show. She is still very weak, but the sensors are picking her up. She needs to be protected, John. Whatever you need from me, I will do everything I can."
John had the proverbial lightbulb go off in his head. He now understood why Benjamin didn't show with his whole team. His long-time friend and business partner was protecting his daughter, like John was protecting his family. "We'll find a way to keep them safe. I give you my word."
Benjamin nodded at John's declaration.
-oOo-
That night...
Harry stepped outside onto the deck of Hammond's bungalow. It had been a long day. One that Harry had found quite emotional, and then to have the after dinner meeting they just had, he wasn't sure what to think.
Sirius and him had thought they were alone as the only wizards left. He had been starting to come to terms with that, then Lex had touched his wand. The sparks from that still seemed to be having ripple effects not even a month out. Now, Harry was finding out that Sir Lockwood and his team had been able to identify ten others besides them now. All of them, except Susan, had had some type of direct contact with them. Hermione had been near that one day he had to see her in England, the others were three construction workers on the island, Dr Bones, Tim, Mrs Murphy and potentially Charlotte. For now, it had been decided not to tell the workers unless they showed signs of increasing their power, which they had not yet.
Harry was unsure how he felt about that.
The Grey Lady's story of the Inquisition and some peoples' reactions to finding out about magic, specifically Mrs Murphy's, had Harry wondering if the church didn't still have some bias towards wizards and witches. He was starting to really understand why the magical world had a Statute of Secrecy. He had always thought it a little naive and mental of wizards, but there might be much deeper-seated fears and issues that really caused that to come about.
Part of the conversation tonight had been establishing a new 'colony' on one of the smaller islands around Isla Sorna. His worry about keeping Lex and Sirius safe had Harry agreeing. He would be able to apparate to Isla Sorna relatively easily. Apparating across water significantly shortened the distance that apparation could go. On land, they could apparate a good hundred to two hundred miles in a single hop. Over water, it was only a tenth of that. If Sirius and him could figure out how to make portkeys, then Isla Nublar would be just a short hop away. Even better would be to make a helicopter or something else that could move like the Knight Bus. As much as he hated that thing, the ability to move many of them at the same time, and even transport items if they found other magical places, would be huge. He wondered if they could find a way to lessen the uncomfortable popping of the bus, which must be some type of portkey itself.
Lost in his thoughts, Harry didn't hear the door open behind him. The first inkling that someone else had joined him was Lex's arms wrapping around his waist. "Are you alright?" she asked. She kissed his ear.
Harry gave her a small smile. "I've no bloody clue," he said honestly. The last five days had been a whirlwind of activity and issues.
She leaned her head on his shoulder. "Is it Hermione?"
Harry snorted. "I think she is just the icing on the cake. Why didn't Lockwood or your grandfather not tell us about all this until today?"
Her hold on him tightened. "I don't know. I didn't know Tim would be a wizard until yesterday."
Harry shook his head. "Yeah, about that, you sure we should trust him with a wand?"
"Definitely not," she said without delay. Then she sighed. "We can't not, though."
"I know," Harry said, leaning his head against hers.
They stood there for a few. When Harry spoke, he knew his voice was filled with emotion he had been trying to keep down all day. This was Lex though. Out of everything to happen to him in the last few months, Lex was among the best of them. "Hermione is so much like the Hermione I knew, but she is very different too."
Lex shifted to kiss his cheek. "It's been eating you up all day, hasn't it?"
Harry moved to kiss her forehead. "I think it's just hitting me again that Sirius and I are in a different place. Everything I once knew and the people that were part of my life just aren't there anymore. I have Sirius, but even he is acting differently. He's more mature now. Well, not that I had a lot of time to spend around him before now anyways."
Lex squeezed harder. "Do you wish you could go back?"
He wasn't sure. All he had back there was an insane wanker that was trying to kill him and his friends. There was a prophecy that he had no clue what it said. Death Eaters and others wanted to see him discredited or dead. Everyone around him suffered or died. No one ever really stuck up for him. His relatives hated and abused him at times. Most of the wizarding world either looked at him as the next Dark Lord or their Saviour.
Kissing Lex's forehead again, he came to the epiphany that here he had just the opposite. He was building new relationships with people that cared for Harry just because he was Harry. No one really cared, or even knew, that he was the Boy-Who-Lived. Lex honestly enjoyed his company. Harry really enjoyed hers. He also loved the dinosaurs. People around him looked out for his wellbeing. Those that had survived the Inquisition were all safe, happy and doing well.
His lips moved down until they found Lex's lips. It was a soft, passionate kiss. Harry could feel the way Lex was concerned and cared for him, as well as her attraction to him. It was so much better than those two kisses that Cho Chang had given him.
When he pulled back, Lex's blue eyes were searching his. She was still waiting for an answer. Harry pecked her lips. "No. I don't want to go back. I wish I knew how some of my old friends are doing, but I don't want to go back."
Perhaps that was selfish of him, but for once Harry was truly happy. Having Hermione back in his life was confusing though. He knew she wouldn't be like the Hermione he called his sister, but there was enough of her there to make him yearn for his old friend. Lex must have seen the emotions and thoughts on his face. "I'm sorry you can't see them anymore, but you could make friends with Hermione again."
"Maybe," he said, unsure if it would hurt too much or not. "Sirius and I need to find a way to teach them. It may be better that I am just an older student."
Lex took on a sultry look. "If you are the teacher, what else do you have to teach me today?"
Harry felt the blood start to rush in him. "You could use some more kissing lessons."
"Are you saying that I don't kiss well?"
"On the contrary, it is very nice how you kiss, but practice makes perfect," he teased.
Lex moved to stand before him, her hand moving to his chest. "Good thing I don't mind hard work," she replied, her hand moving up and down his shirt. Harry groaned as she pressed her body against his, highlighting something else that had just become hard as her mouth found his...
-oOo-
Inside the bungalow...
The lights from the house made the large windows semi-mirrored, reflecting the people around the table and only showing the shadowy outline of two people on the deck. Sirius was watching the shadowy figures that were moving to kiss. Linda was sitting next to him. She had searched him out a few times this week. She was very distraught about her children being able to use magic, and that she may be able to at some point herself. Sirius had not told Harry about some of the stuff he had learned until tonight. His pup and his pup's girl had been very busy this week helping Hammond with the park.
Linda swirled some wine in her glass as the others got up from the table.
"They have gotten close," Linda stated, looking in the same direction.
"His father and my great Uncle were the same way. They both met the one they were to marry early. Then they married early. James used to say it was part of their family magic. The Potters were involved in every major conflict there was in our world for hundreds of years. He once told me that a Potter living over the age of thirty-five was a rarity, thus, they married early and had kids early. Carrying on the family is very important to most wizards and family magic is very important, and often has a life of its own," Sirius said.
"Are you saying he will get Lex pregnant soon?" she asked, her voice rising dramatically.
Sirius shook his head. "Harry knows the proper spells to make sure that doesn't happen. I don't think it will happen anytime soon. Linda, Harry talked to me about the row you've been having with your daughter. I am not saying I want two sixteen-year-olds to have kids, but if you try to push her away from Harry, I think you will push her more into him."
Linda adverted her eyes to her glass. After a moment she sighed. "I was sixteen the first time I slept with someone. I came home from Spring Break my junior year in college pregnant with Lex. I don't want her to struggle like I did. If my mom hadn't helped, I never would have gotten through Grad school."
Sirius looked to her. "I feel like there is more to the story."
Linda put her wine glass to her lips and tipped her head back, downing what was in the glass. She reached for some wine in a carafe of ice before saying, "Lex doesn't know that my ex-husband isn't her real father. I got rather drunk. Met this gorgeous man that had the sexiest English accent and voila, ten months later I was holding the most beautiful girl I had ever seen." Linda motioned towards the dark figures that were kissing on the deck.
Sirius brow raised. After a moment, he asked the very attractive blonde woman, "Are you ever going to tell her?"
"I will eventually. I married Phil when Lex was about two. She took to him right away. Tim came a little over two years later. Phil is a good man to our kids, but somewhere we fell out of love and the bastard was found sleeping with one of his grad students. I never got that memo that we had fallen out of love. Lex and Tim don't know why we got divorced."
Sirius put a hand over Linda's. "I'm sorry, Linda. What about Lex's father?"
"I recently learned he died about the time I married Phil," she said, looking up to him and giving him a curious look. Sirius could swear he just felt someone walk over his grave. He shivered. "Of course, that is what happened to her birth father. I never thought I would see the man again. We had a wild romp after getting royally pissed with my girlfriends on a Spring Break to England."
Sirius felt a pit form in his stomach. Linda's blue eyes didn't leave his. In response, Sirius took his mostly empty wine glass, filled more than halfway with the same wine Linda was working through, and downed half of it.
Linda was watching his reaction. Eventually he said, "Bloody hell, are you telling me that the Sirius that is from this place is Lex's father?"
Linda took a good drink before answering, "Pretty sure. You aren't quiet as handsome as that young cop I slept with, but you are easy on the eyes."
Sirius smirked. His eyes roamed up and down her body as hers did the same to him. The woman was still trim for her age, with a nice rack, wide hips and lines on her face that spoke of someone that smiled a bit. "You aren't bad yourself."
Linda smiled back. "It's been a bit since I thought someone thought that. They are getting close."
He looked out the window. It looked like Lex and Harry were talking again. His godson, technically a third or fourth cousin, he wasn't entirely sure, was dating a girl that could be his daughter... It was outside the taboo areas of family incest, but... "Bloody hell."
"Dad's done some research on the Sirius Black I slept with. There is no link to the Potters that he can find, except they were friends. I know you said he is your godson and mentioned once that your father and him were cousins," she said.
"Yeah, a few generations apart. James was more like my brother. But, bloody hell. Does this make her my daughter?" Sirius asked.
"I don't think so. Dad asked Benjamin to investigate. You both share DNA, but it's more like you are a grandparent, than her parent." Linda finished off what was in her glass, then attempted to fill it. Only a quarter of the glass filled up as she emptied the bottle. Linda sighed. "I've not been handling all this well. I like your godson, Sirius. He's more put together than any sixteen-year-old deserves to be. Lex is mature for her age, but I'm not totally sure she is ready for how serious he seems to be. I don't want to see her or Harry hurt. I also don't know what to think about wizards and witches. It's just not natural according to the Bible and the Church. I love Lex and Tim though. My mom didn't throw me out when I came home from college that year. I was afraid she would. I was twenty-one. There was no reason for my parents to help me, but they did. I can't abandon my own children."
Sirius looked at the woman that looked like she was suffering over all this.
He put his hand on Linda's again. "Harry is a good boy. Unfortunately, it has more to do with the shite life he's had, than anything I've had to do with that, but he is. I know the type of person he is, because his mum was the same way. Once Lily Potter decided you were family, she would do anything in her power to protect and help them. Harry does the same with those he considers family. I will never walk away from him, no matter what he does in his life. You sticking by your daughter will earn you his faith for life. I will be here for him. I'll be here for you if you need also."
Linda gave a small smile. "He is lucky to have you."
Sirius shook his head. "No. I'm lucky to have him. He has saved my life a few times now. I see some of his parents in him, but he reminds me more of his grandfather."
Linda moved her hand to squeeze his. "Is magic really that much of a good thing?"
He gave her an easy smile. "I like it."
She chuckled. "I figure you did the way you talked with the Grangers earlier. You just about had me convinced that magic is a benign force that witches can manipulate. It just isn't what the priests preach."
Sirius shrugged. "Magic can do many wonderful things, but it can also be scary and deadly. It is all in the intent of the wizard or the magic behind the caster. Lily once said it was like someone with a gun. One person can wield it to protect, while another can use it to kill indiscriminately. Magic can do that, and so much more. This was always one of my favourite transfigurations when I was in school."
He took out his wand and tapped it on a glass of water. The water turned into some fragrant flowers.
Linda looked at it and smiled. "Impressive. I bet all the girls liked that."
Sirius gave a short laugh. "It isn't as effective when the witches can do the same thing."
Linda smiled. "I suppose not." She gave a sigh. "I'll give them another fifteen minutes. I'm sure dad's staff would like to clean this all up."
"Probably. Listen, there is a lot more to magic out there and what we know. If you decide to stay, I can tell you all about it," Sirius offered.
She pondered it for a few. "I may take you up on that offer. Tim and I are going back tomorrow. I think we will be back out here next weekend. Perhaps over a nice lunch or dinner you can answer more of my questions?"
He rubbed a hand over his neck. "As much as I would love to have a dinner with a beautiful woman, I think Harry and I will be gone for the weekend, perhaps longer. We have someplace to look at, perhaps to find more magic."
She looked at him questioningly. "Are you taking Lex?"
"No. She isn't ready for something like this. Personally, I would leave Harry behind, but I need someone else who knows how to handle a wand and he's far better than I was at his age," Sirius said with a little pride.
After a moment, she nodded. "Should Lex come home until you are back?"
"Up to her. I think we will only be gone for a few days. That is what I am planning, anyways," he told her.
"Where are you going?"
"Norway. There used to be a few large magical schools in Europe. I've been able to track down three of them and I wanted to explore one called Durmstrang before the winter sets in," he told her. "After going to Hogwarts, this isn't a trip that I should do alone."
"Hogwarts was the school that you and Harry were taught at?" Linda enquired.
"Yeah. It was a huge castle. It's just ruins now. I can tell you all about it the next time we meet. Maybe we can come through Washington D.C. on our way back," Sirius offered.
After a moment, Linda nodded. "If you do, let me know. You are always welcome at the townhouse and there are some nice restaurants around the area."
Sirius felt an unfamiliar sensation he hadn't for years. There was a stirring in him. Linda was a very attractive woman about his age. As much as he teased Harry, Sirius hadn't felt attracted to a woman since escaping Azkaban. "Let's call it a date. I'll let you know when."
She gave him a soft smile. "Sounds good. Would you mind breaking them up? I don't want to get into another fight with Lex. I'll talk to her before we leave tomorrow."
"Sure. I think we'll be busy tomorrow. Your father wants us to take the others through the park and Harry wants to introduce them to Rexy. If things work out the way this meeting went tonight, I think we'll have a few others here by Christmas. I would like to visit the other schools by then," Sirius told her.
She sighed. "I'm going to have to talk to my father about a job. I don't see how Tim and I don't move out here."
"It's not a bad place. The lizard-dragon thingies grow on you after a while."
She laughed. "Are there real dragons?"
"There used to be. Harry is hoping we might find some," Sirius told her truthfully.
Linda looked surprised. "Oh."
-oOo-
As requested, my listing of Dinosaurs and numbers to date. This is all the ones called out in the story so far. It may not be the full list.
List of Dinosaurs:
Isla Nublar
T. Rex, Stegosaurus, Triceratops, Brachiosaurus, Diplodocus, Edomontosaurus, Parasaurolophus, Gallimimus, Hypsodonpholon, Velociraptor, Dilophosaurus, Compsagnathus, Ankylosaurus
Isla Sorna
T. Rex, Pteranodon, Compsagnathus, Tapejara wellnhoferi, Allosaurus, Carnataurus, Spinosaurus, Magyarosaurus, Ankylosaurus
-oOo-
Next Chapter: Norway and the search for Durmstrang
