Chapter 16. Learning is Hard
Anissa knocked on Minerva's office door, then peeked her head in before they were bid to enter. A huge smile covered Anissa's face as she skipped in. Harry calmly walked in behind her and closed the door.
"Hi, Min!" said Anissa in a sing-song voice.
"Hello, Min," added Harry.
Minerva smiled. She loved these weekly teas with her kittens. It gave her a chance to catch up and see how they were doing. Although now she supposed she should invite Mr. Malfoy to join them and get to know him better as well.
Her kittens had become quite close to the Slytherin, not that she minded, she was all for interhouse unity. Draco had also changed, and it was due to her kitten's friendship. She was very proud of all three of them.
Minerva held open her arms and was engulfed by two smaller sets of arms. She squeezed them back as she let her love for them flow out of her. It had taken months for them to trust her enough to let her do this, so she cherished each moment.
Minerva had gotten to know her kittens very well and she considered them her family. If Sirius Black had not been trying to keep them, then she would definitely adopt them herself. She loved them that much.
"How are my kittens? Anything new going on?" asked Minerva. She set down a tin of biscuits and poured them a cup of tea. Harry grabbed a biscuit and started munching.
"We are doing well, Min. Classes are going great, and Professor Flitwick says that with the way we are going, we might be able to take our O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s early." said Anissa.
"That is a good possibility. You two seem to soak up knowledge like a sponge. Are you having any trouble with your latest schoolwork?" asked Minerva, she was always willing to help them in any subject.
"No ma'am. We diligently keep notes and practice hard. Most things just come easy for us. Once we've got it with our wands then we learn it nonverbally. We're doing well, I think." answered Harry. Minerva nodded, she made sure to keep up with their progress through the other professors, she wanted to see them succeed.
"I am very proud of both your accomplishments. Nonverbal magic is difficult to learn and not really taught until your seventh year. I expect you to keep up the good work and to ask for help when needed." Her kittens nodded. "Now, I've noticed you have been getting quite a few detentions with Professor Snape lately. Would you care to explain?"
"They're not really detentions, Min. They're more of a rescue. Professor Quirrell keeps appearing wherever I am, and he's been more persistent on getting me alone. The detentions are an excuse as to why I can't meet with him. We just do our homework or study during that time. Remember when I told you that my scar hurt when I looked Professor Quirrell in the eyes? Well, now it hurts whenever he's around me." explained Harry.
Minerva sighed. She and Severus had been keeping an eye on Quirinus since Halloween. There was definitely something off about him. They just could not figure out what it was. She would have to talk to Severus about this latest development and find out what he knew.
"We think he's getting more desperate to get the Philosopher's Stone," said Anissa.
Minerva was so shocked she almost spit out her tea. She did choke a bit and put her hand to her chest as she gulped, hard. Harry shot an accusatory look at Anissa, but her eyes were on Minerva.
"How do you two know about the stone? No, don't answer that, I don't want to know. You two leave the welfare of the stone to the adults. It is very well protected. Now, there have been no more pranks between you two and the Weasley twins, am I correct?"
Minerva had had the misfortune of having been caught between the two groups during a prank. She would have been hit with the spell if her reflexes were not so honed. She magically grabbed all four of their ears and marched them to her office, where she gave them a set down that had left them all subdued for a week.
"No ma'am, you scared the pranks right out of us," assured Anissa.
Minerva nodded smugly, even as she eyed them, knowing there would be more pranks in the future, then her face turned thoughtful.
"I think it is about time that we invited Mr. Malfoy to join our weekly tea… that is if you two do not mind."
"That would be great, Min. Draco is like a brother to us, and I know he'd appreciate having another person he can turn to when needed. Although it will take time for him to accept you and open up." said Harry.
"I have noticed that Mr. Malfoy has seemed down lately. What do you know about that?" Minerva asked.
If she was going to bring Draco into the fold, then she needed to get to know him. Minerva was sure she would be seeing a lot more of him and that he would eventually become another one of her beloved kittens.
"Oh, that… Draco received a letter from his father," explained Anissa. "He is angry with Draco for befriending a Muggle-born. Although he didn't use that word, but the nasty one. He wants Draco to get rid of me and work on seducing Harry to the Dark side so he can become the next Dark Lord. Draco has been talking to Professor Snape, and I think that is helping him."
"We told Draco that no matter what happens, he is our family now. He is not alone, and we will be there to help him. Draco is going to use the excuse of working on bringing me to the Dark side to stay with us here for Christmas." added Harry.
Minerva was not sure what she could say to that. Apparently, she had more to discuss with the Head of Slytherin than she had thought. They chatted about normal things for a bit longer before she sent them on their way. Minerva had a lot to think about.
Harry had just escaped – again – from Professor Quirrell. This time Quirrell had actually grabbed his arm and tried to force him to come with him, which caused a shooting pain through Harry's head. (Saleena wanted to eat him, but Harry convinced her to leave him alone.)
Luckily a group of Hufflepuffs came by at the perfect moment and he was able to get away. His scar, however, was still pulsing with pain from his touch. He did not understand why Quirrell affected him in such a way. No other teacher made Harry feel the way the DADA professor did.
Harry put his hand on a blank wall and thought of Saleena. A door appeared with 'Queen of Snakes' written in Parselscript. Since Saleena had become his familiar, he has been able to call this passage to get to her from anywhere in the school.
He was not sure how it worked, especially when he was on the upper floors, but the passage always led to Saleena in the Chamber of Secrets. The passage was a lot easier than sneaking into the girl's lavatory on the second floor and opening the entrance found there. The first time he did, he was accosted by Moaning Myrtle, the ghost who haunted the bathroom. His ears rang for hours after from her wailing at his intrusion.
Harry visited Saleena as often as he could, usually late at night after he finished his homework. They had some great conversations, and she was very soothing to him. And when he could not visit, he found that he could talk to her inside his head through their bond.
The first time Harry had heard her comment on something in his mind, he thought he was going mad. She had given her opinion on something that he was learning at the time, and he fell out of his chair in surprise. She and Anissa still took the mickey out of him for that.
He also made sure he made time to visit Hedwig, so she would not become jealous since he had told Hedwig about his and Saleena's mind ability. Their bond was also strengthening rapidly, and their means of communication was becoming easier to receive and understand.
Saleena told him that she would like to be introduced to Hedwig and that later, he would be able to bring his friends down to meet her – once they had more trust in each other and their bond was more secure – and Harry was excited about that. He wanted them to get to know her as well.
Harry had also begun his daily lessons with Salazar Slytherin. He would go down to the Chamber every night after dinner (He usually brought Hedwig with him so she could watch and get to know Saleena.) until way past curfew.
How Salazar's portrait could move around the school and find him, Harry had no idea, but find him it did as he saw him often. He guessed it had something to do with Salazar being a founder of the school, a side perk for building the castle maybe.
Salazar was a hard taskmaster and did not like excuses, only results. He pushed Harry hard, until Harry was exhausted. Sometimes Harry wanted to quit, but his pride would not let him. Saleena did not sympathize when Harry complained to her, she understood why Salazar was the way he was.
Harry was working on a different kind of wandless nonverbal magic. To not use a wand or say an incantation but to use only his imagination and will. To use his affinity with magic to interact with his environment.
Harry knew that if he could get this right, he would never need his wand again, though he would still use it while at school. With this kind of magic, he could do anything he could imagine. The possibilities were endless.
He was already proficient in wandless nonverbal magic, but he still had to say the spell in his head to cast it, and Harry wanted to go further. Harry was determined to succeed. Their first day of training, Salazar had explained this kind of magic to Harry.
"Before there were wandsss, the wiccan usssed their affinity with magic to cassst their spellsss. For anyone able to visssualize precisssely what they want to achieve, the wand becomesss trivial."
"Ssso, I jussst have to picture what I want to do and… that'sss it?" asked Harry, surprised by the simplicity of the task.
"That'sss it." smiled Salazar cunningly. "Do not fool thyssself though. Visssualizing the impact thou wantsss on thy sssurroundingsss might sssound easssy, but I can assssure thee otherwissse."
Salazar was right. Harry's first task had been to lift a pebble. A stupid pebble. Levitation was one of the first spells he had learned. Harry had never felt so dumb in his life, and luckily Saleena had stayed silent about it. He had spent the whole time staring intently at the pebble, but nothing happened.
After some hard thinking and a Potions essay that had turned into an eye-opening learning experience, Harry realized that he needed to get back to the basics. Harry had to know what the pebble was, its weight and shape, what it would feel like in his hand and then visualize holding it in his mind.
When Harry had sat there one night and applied that to the rock, he had actually felt it under his fingers when he knew it was still on the chamber floor a few meters away. It was strange to feel the pebble without physically touching it, but Harry could clearly sense the pebble under his fingers.
He slowly lifted his hand and incredulously watched the pebble rise a few inches. Suddenly, Harry felt exhausted, and he slumped to the side, catching himself with his hand on the ground. He looked at Salazar in question. Salazar explained that it was normal at the beginning.
"Thou art usssing thine magic in a completely new way, and thou wilt need time to adjussst to it. To be honessst, I did not think thou wouldssst sssucceed ssso sssoon. Thou art doing well."
Harry was invigorated by the compliment, as Salazar did not give them freely, and soon Harry had moved on from the pebble to larger rocks, then rolling a rock around the room, and then moving more than one rock at the same time. He had been practicing spells as well, and soon he was beyond using spells.
During a later lesson, Harry asked Salazar about the difference between Light and Dark magic. Some of the spells Salazar had taught him were considered Dark by the Ministry. He wanted to understand how and why they were classified. Harry wanted Saleena's thoughts as well and asked her to contribute.
Their discussion was extensive, and Harry learned quite a bit about magic in general and came to the conclusion that there really was no classification for Light, Grey, or Dark magic. Power was power, regardless of Ministry classification or type.
It was the intent of the caster that made the spell Light or Dark. Harry could easily kill someone with a Tripping Jinx near the stairs or use Avada Kedavra to put a suffering animal out of its misery. It all had to do with intent.
Salazar was impressed with how fast Harry had been learning, the boy was like a sponge and soaked everything in. He had had other apprentices, but none had learned so quickly or was so eager to learn everything they could. Salazar suggested that Harry also train with Madam Pomfrey in the Healing Arts, as Harry had a natural affinity for it and he would undoubtedly need it in the future.
Harry was proud but exhausted after every lesson, but that did not stop his nightmares from coming. Harry did not have many good nights of sleep, but he was used to that. He could handle it. Then again, there were always potions he could take to keep him going without much sleep.
The Christmas holiday was here, and the school was nearly empty. It was quiet as there were probably only around twenty students left at Hogwarts and Harry preferred it this way. No one stared at him or tried to get his autograph. Everything was silent and calm.
Harry was just coming back from the owlery when his path was suddenly blocked. Out of the shadows stepped three figures with green ties. Harry frowned at them as he stopped walking and eyed the three Slytherins. He wondered what they wanted.
"Where you going, Potty?"
Harry sighed when he recognized Blaise Zabini, accompanied by Crabbe and Goyle. Zabini had taken over as head prat since Draco had become friends with Harry. He was not as vocal as Draco had been, but he was definitely more savage. He took to casting curses and hexes at Harry any chance he got.
"Leave me alone, Zabini, I have things to do,"
Harry made to move around them, he was not in the mood to deal with them today. It was the holidays, and he wanted to be with his friends. Zabini stepped in Harry's way and his goons moved to flank him.
"It just so happens that we also have something to do. We thought you might like to take a permanent trip to the bottom of the Black Lake."
Zabini's words surprised Harry, and his eyes flicked to the other two boys. He could feel Saleena's instant alertness in the back of his mind but ignored her so he could focus on what was happening. Harry recognized the move they were setting up.
It was the same one his cousin used with his friends during 'Harry Hunting' games. Harry knew they were about to grab him from both sides, but as soon as they twitched, Harry stuck Crabbe and Goyle's feet to the floor.
They both made a weird jerky move then fell flat on their faces. Saleena chuckled but was still alert. Harry smirked as he kept a watchful eye on Zabini. Zabini sneered at his fallen comrades. He had not seen Potter cast anything, so he figured they were just stupid. He ignored them for the prey he was really after. Zabini returned his glare to Harry.
"I don't know how you convinced Malfoy to join your little group, but your manipulation stops here. You won't curse anyone else, and I'll break whatever spell you put on Draco. It's time you were gone, Potter."
With a crazed look in his eyes, Zabini raised his red glowing wand and pointed it right between Harry's eyes. Harry could not believe it. Was Zabini really going to try and kill him? Harry did not wait to find out, he took off down the corridor. He ducked as a red light flew past him and hit the wall, where it left a sizzling black scorch mark. Zabini really was going to try and drown him in the lake.
He could hear Zabini running after him, and Harry put on a burst of speed. As he rounded the corner, he saw an open door, so he swerved in and plastered himself against the wall. Trying to smother his heavy breathing, Harry heard Zabini run past, his footsteps soon fading away.
It took a minute for Harry's heart to stop racing and his breathing to settle at the near miss. Harry sighed and looked around his hiding place. It looked like an unused classroom. There were extra desks, old mops, and a couple of buckets littering the ground.
But the thing that caught Harry's attention was the large mirror with an ornate gold frame in the center of the room. He could feel the power emanating from it, whispering for him to come closer. It did not look like it was supposed to be there, it was too clean and not covered in dust like everything else in the room.
There were words etched across the top of the mirror: Erised stra ehruoy tube cafru oyt on wohsi.
It was not a language Harry knew, so his eyes traveled to the mirror itself and Harry gasped and spun around, his heart beating madly. His eyes searched around him, but no one was there. Harry looked in the mirror again and there they were, a man and a woman standing right behind him.
Harry reached back. He would have touched the woman if she was actually there. 'In the mirror?' Harry thought. Harry touched the mirror, but it was just that, a mirror. Harry studied the couple, trying to figure out who they were.
The woman had long red hair and green eyes. Green eyes just like Harry's! Excitement flooded him with his thoughts. Harry's eyes flicked to the man. Black messy hair… round glasses… same mischievous grin.
"Mum? Dad?" whispered Harry.
The couple smiled lovingly and nodded. Harry gulped, a wave of longing hitting him hard. Here were the parents he had always needed and desperately wanted. He stared hungrily at their features, memorizing them. He could see himself in each of them and it made him happy to finally find that connection.
"I wish you were here,"
Harry laid his hand on the mirror, as if he could touch them by touching the mirror, and his mum placed her hand along his, aligning their fingers. Harry smiled. He felt a new rush of love for his parents.
This was what he wanted, this connection to his family. Harry could faintly hear a vaguely familiar female voice calling to him, but he was entranced by what he was seeing, and the voice soon faded away.
Suddenly, Harry saw a little face poking out from behind his mum. A brown-haired girl came out, dragging a shy red-haired boy of the same age. The boy also had Harry's eyes. These must be the siblings he would have had if his parents had lived. Tears filled Harry's eyes, here was the family he had always wanted. Harry then saw another figure materializing behind his family.
It solidified into Anissa and Harry choked. His dad reached out and brought Anissa to his side. He ruffled her hair and Anissa playfully slapped at his hand, laughing. It looked like Anissa was also a part of his family. The tears started falling in earnest. Harry sat down and feasted on his family, on what he wanted so very, very badly.
"Harry?"
Harry could hear a voice. It annoyed him that someone was trying to interrupt his time with his family. Harry did not look away from those wonderful faces. He was worried his family would disappear if he looked away. He could not let them leave him again. Not now that he had found them.
"Harry, please look at me." Again, Harry ignored the voice. He wanted to stay with his family. Needed to be here with them. "Anissa is very worried about you, Harry, will you come and let Anissa know you are okay?"
Albus stood next to Harry, he could see the haze starting to cover the boy's eyes, and he was hoping he could stop the enchantment before it ensnared Harry fully. He was already very far along. When Hogwarts had informed him that Harry was entranced by the mirror, he had come running.
On the way, he had met a distraught Miss King. She had not seen Harry all day and was getting frantic. Anissa could feel that something was wrong, Harry's presence was flickering in her mind. She was now standing against the wall, watching Dumbledore try to get Harry to look away from the mirror.
"She's right there. Can't you see her?" Harry pointed at the mirror.
"No Harry, I can't see her. Can you scoot over a bit so I can get a better look?" asked Albus softly.
Harry shrugged. He saw no problem with this. Besides, he wanted to show the friendly voice his family. Harry scooted over, and as soon as he did, his family started to grow fuzzy. Harry scrunched his brow as he squinted so as to see his family better.
Albus could see the fog lifting and reason slowly returning to Harry's eyes. He quickly stepped in front of Harry and Harry looked up at him, blinked slowly a few times, then frowned. He knew the old man standing over him, but why was he standing there, and why was Harry sitting on the floor?
"Grandpa?" Harry was confused, where was he?
Albus sighed in relief as he reached down to help Harry to his feet, and keeping himself between Harry and the mirror, he led him to where Anissa stood waiting for them. As soon as he was close, Anissa threw herself into Harry's arms, sobbing.
"What's wrong?" asked Harry into Anissa's hair.
Albus answered for Anissa since her face was presently pressed deeply into Harry's neck and her shoulders were shaking in sobs. Harry tightened his arms around her, confused and unsure as to what had caused his sister to sound so hurt. Whatever it was, Harry would fix it.
"You have been gone all day, Harry. Miss King here has been quite distraught."
"I just went to the owlery, but then Zabini and his goons cornered me, and I ran and hid in…" Harry trailed off, his eyes flicking to the mirror. "I've really been in here all day?"
Dumbledore nodded and Harry hugged Anissa harder. Essentially Harry had left Anissa, something he had promised to never do. Guilt flooded him. Then he remembered that female voice he had heard when he first looked into the mirror, and he could feel Saleena's worry, so he sent a reassuring message to Saleena that he was okay, before turning his attention back to Anissa.
"I am so sorry, Anissa." Harry whispered into her hair.
"The pull of the Mirror or Erised is hard to resist. Many have wasted away or gone mad looking into it. I assume you now realize what it does?"
The look on Dumbledore's face suggested that he had personal experience with the mirror, and Harry was curious. He looked at the top of the mirror and realized the words were backwards, he read them: I show not your face but your heart's desire.
"It shows us our heart's greatest desires," said Harry.
'Exactly, the happiest man on earth would look in the mirror and only see himself, exactly as he is." said Albus smiling, his eyes twinkling once more.
Harry shook his head, he never wanted to see that mirror again… but his family. Longing surged through him quite strongly and Harry felt a pull towards the mirror. He knew they were dead, and what he had seen was not real, but his desire for them was greater than anything he had felt before.
Harry then felt Anissa shift against him, and he tightened his arms. He realized that he had a family, he had two siblings and one of them was right here in his arms. He also had a suedo mum that called them her kittens, and a grandfather who liked to dress in outrageous outfits. His chosen family.
"Do not worry about the mirror. It will be moved to a new home, and I trust you won't go looking for it." said Albus.
"No sir. I have what I need right here." answered Harry, resting his head on Anissa's.
"Indeed." Albus's twinkling eyes brightened at the scene. "Well, we'd better be off. I'm sure there is a certain feline that will want to know about this so she can mother the two of you."
Albus looked at the mirror and a longing filled his eyes. Harry recognized that feeling and decided to risk his question. He really wanted to know.
"Sir, can I ask what you see when you look in the mirror?" asked Harry curiously.
"I? I see myself holding a pair of thick, woolen socks," Harry and Anissa shared a look of disbelief. Harry was sure he was lying, but did not press him. It was a very personal topic. "One can never have enough warm socks," said Albus. "Another Christmas and I won't get a single pair. I always get books."
"Now we know what to get him for Christmas," whispered Anissa, but Harry knew Dumbledore had heard her as a smile spread across his face.
Just as Dumbledore had predicted, Minerva was beside herself. She quickly pulled all three of her kittens into her arms. Draco had just been telling Minerva that Harry was missing, when they arrived. The group stayed in their hug for a long time. Dumbledore was gone by the time they moved. No one had heard him leave.
"I'm glad you are okay. I told Albus that mirror shouldn't be here." said Minerva.
"Why is it?" Anissa asked.
"Professor Dumbledore asked for it for a project he's working on. Do not worry about it." dismissed Minerva with a wave of her hand and a change of subject.
Anissa raised an eyebrow. Like that was not suspicious at all. A project like keeping a certain stone safe maybe? First Fluffy, and now the mirror, something big was definitely going on. The mirror was just another thing to add to the mystery that Anissa was determined to solve.
"Tell me about Zabini's threat. What happened exactly?" demanded Minerva. So, Harry told them about his altercation with Zabini, and they watched as Minerva's lips thinned and her fists clenched.
"Well. I'll be having a word with Professor Snape about his Snakes. From now on I want you three to be extra careful. Don't go anywhere alone. I don't want anything to happen to you." cautioned Minerva.
Draco was unused to being included in such mothering but was enjoying the feeling, though he would never say so out loud. Minerva ended up in the center of her kitten's hug. She gave them a quick squeeze and a kiss to the head before letting them go.
"Okay, okay. You had better head off to the Great Hall. I'll see you there shortly." Minerva shooed them out of her office, she had the Head Snake to talk to.
During dinner that evening, Harry and Anissa noticed that the rest of the Slytherins were quite subdued. They were sending glares towards Zabini's group. They did not appreciate being reprimanded by their Head of House during the holidays. Zabini completely ignored his housemates and was shooting murderous glares of his own at Harry.
"That won't be the last time we hear from Zabini you know," Anissa said as she leaned against Harry's side.
Since the mirror incident, Anissa had been constantly touching Harry in some way, like she had to check to make sure he was still there. It broke his heart that he had caused her to feel insecure. He felt horrible for scaring her and had been working on making it up to her.
Luckily for him, Saleena was also very understanding and only demanded his presence for an hour every night before he worked with Salazar. Salazar, after berating him for not being careful, dropped the subject and pushed him extra hard in his studies for the next week as punishment for his folly.
"I know, but now we know what he is willing to do and how far he will go. We will be ready for him," stated Harry.