Chapter Fourteen
The next few weeks were some of the best that Harry could remember; with a single game, Harry had established himself not only as a fantastic Quidditch player but also as a master prankster. Harry's reputation was further elevated when to prove his claims that he could in fact fly without the aid of a broom, Harry led a group of Hogwarts students to the top of the tallest TowerTower and promptly leapt off of it to the horror of his assorted audience.
Before the students could do anything more than scream in shock at his apparent suicide, Harry reappeared before them, floating on air with his hands in his pockets and a wry grin on his face as his classmates stared at him in awe.
Predictably, word had spread like fiend fire, and within a day, the whole of Hogwarts had learned that Harry could fly without the aid of a broomstick. Naturally, the only ones who didn't seem to be in awe of Harry's abilities was the Slytherin house, who seemed to hold Harry in even greater disdain. They still hadn't forgiven them for getting Snape suspended, something Harry found amusing as the new Potions Professor (a man named Slughorn) was not only a better instructor but also more temperate of mood, as far as Harry was concerned.
It was during breakfast that Harry learned just how much Slytherin house hated him, or at least how much one Slytherin in particular did.
Harry was just finishing up his breakfast when he felt someone approach him; turning to see who it was, Harry found himself staring at the sneering face of Draco Malfoy, who was flanked by his two bodyguards, Crabbe and Goyle.
"Something I can do for you, Draco?" Harry asked in his most innocent voice,
"You think you're so special, don't you?" Draco sneered, causing Harry to raise an eyebrow at him.
"Not particularly," Harry replied in a bored voice, "You know who's special? Criss Angel! I saw him in Vegas once; dude was phenomenal!"
"What?" Draco asked in confusion as a few Muggleborns around Harry snickered in amusement.
Realizing that he was losing momentum, Draco turned red with embarrassment for a moment before snapping angrily,
"You're just a freak, Potter! Like the rest of your family! You and the rest of them should be driven from Hogwarts! There's no place here for your abnormality!"
"Aww, Draco," Harry said in a mock-sad voice, "Does this mean we aren't friends anymore? You know, if I thought you weren't my friend, I just don't think I could bear it."
The table burst into laughter at that, and Draco turned red with embarrassment and anger in equal measure as Harry looked at him with a sad expression that seemed to make his housemates laugh even harder.
"How dare you mock me, Potter! My father will-" Draco began before Harry cut him off,
"You know, I've noticed something about you, Draco," Harry said with a smile,
"And what is that?" Draco spat back,
"You only act tough when you're with your bodyguards." Harry replied with a wry grin, "Without your two gorillas, I doubt you'd have the balls to talk to anyone the way you do."
Instantly, the temperature of the table seemed to drop ten degrees, and everyone seemed to hold their breath as they waited for Draco to respond.
"I'll take you on any time, Potter! In fact, I challenge you to a wizards' duel! What's the matter? Never heard of it?"
"Of course, he has," Ron replied before Harry could respond, "I'm his second. Who's yours?"
Draco turned to his bodyguards and seemed to be sizing them up for a moment, before turning back to Harry and Ron,
"Crabbe," Draco replied coolly, "We'll meet tonight at midnight in the trophy room that's always unlocked."
"See you there, dear Draco," Harry replied with a wink that seemed to make Draco even angrier; without another word, Draco spun on his heel and stomped back to the Slytherin table as Harry turned back to his food.
"You're not seriously going to meet him, are you?" Hermione demanded as Harry reached over and pulled more food onto his plate,
"Of course not," Harry replied through a mouthful of bacon, "Prick probably won't even show up, and I'll most likely end up in detention for being out of the dorm past curfew. And on the off chance that he does show up, I already know I can beat him. I have nothing to gain by dueling him and far too much to lose, so there's no profit in it for me and, therefore, no reason to acquiesce to his demands."
Hermione nodded in agreement before returning to her book as the rest of Gryffindor house grinned at Harry.
"So, you basically just set him up," Fred stated with a laugh, "Either he shows up and gets caught, or he doesn't show up, thinking he just got YOU in trouble, which he hasn't. Either way, it's his loss."
"Exactly, my red-headed friend!" Harry replied with a wink that caused the twins to burst into laughter,
"Blimey, I'd hate to be your enemy, Harry," George said with a grin, "You're a devious one."
"Aww, You're going to make me cry if you keep flattering me like that," Harry said as he pretended to sniffle, causing his housemates to laugh even harder.
XXXX
As the weeks passed, Harry's fame gradually faded as the students began preparing for Christmas break; the Titans had decided to remain at Hogwarts for Christmas due to Cyborg going to visit his dad and Jinx paying a visit to an old friend, thus leaving Titans TowerTower empty for the holidays.
To Harry's delight, Ron would be staying for the holidays as well, due to his parents visiting his older brother, Charlie, in Romania. With no classes and unlimited time to goof off alongside his friends, Harry found that he was looking forward to the break.
The day that Christmas break began, Harry was tightly hugged by Hermione, who was about to leave with the others going home for Christmas break.
"Now, remember to stay out of trouble!" Hermione scolded as she released Harry from her hug, "I know that's difficult for you, but I do wish that you would try all the same."
"I give you my sworn oath!" Harry replied back, snapping to attention, and giving her a mock salute that made her shake her head in exasperation,
"I just hope Hogwarts is still standing when I come back," Hermione replied with a slight grin.
"I'll keep one or two towers up for you, how's that sound?" Harry replied with a wink,
"That would be greatly appreciated," Hermione replied with a smile before turning on her heel and following the rest of the school to the train station.
Once those who were leaving had done so, Harry joined Ron in a game of Gobstones; the common room was surprisingly empty, and Harry found that he quite missed his housemates, though this was quickly remedied when the twins decided to unleash their supply of fireworks, which turned the common room into a veritable battleground as everyone ducked for cover from the tiny missiles.
Once it was safe to come out again, the twins found themselves forced to run for safety as Percy Weasley and Professor McGonagall chased them out of Gryffindor tower while Harry and Ron watched and tried to breathe through their laughter.
XXXX
Raven breathed a sigh of annoyance as she tried to focus and lost concentration for the third time in less than an hour; she had been meditating in her quarters since dinner, yet her mind refused to comply with her wishes, much to her growing annoyance.
When Cyborg and Jinx told the Titans that they would be leaving the Tower for Christmas, it gave them the perfect opportunity to volunteer to stay at Hogwarts, if for no other reason than to monitor Quirrell.
For weeks since Harry's accident on the Quidditch pitch, Raven and the others had tried to keep a close eye on the Defense Professor, yet Quirrell was proving increasingly difficult to keep track of. Raven had attempted to use her abilities to keep an eye on him, only to discover that for some reason, whenever she attempted to focus on Quirrell, she would draw a blank, as if the Professor was somehow able to hide himself from her gaze.
That only made Raven more determined than ever to keep track of where Quirrell was at all times, and the Titans had decided to take shifts that would ensure that someone was watching Quirrell at all times.
To everyone's aggravation, it seemed that Quirrell was aware that he was being watched. However, it appeared he was unaware of who it might be and had taken to spending hours by himself, locked in his chambers with anti-listening wards surrounding it, thereby ensuring that the Titans had no idea what was going on in there.
Having decided that whatever Quirrell was up to involved whatever was on the third floor, Robin had paid a visit to the room in question with Beastboy a few days after Christmas break had begun.
When they returned a few hours later, Raven was ready to wring Dumbledore's neck; according to Robin and Beastboy, the third floor held a maze of one danger after another, ending in a seemingly empty chamber that Robin and Beastboy had scoured, only to come back empty-handed.
"Why would Dumbledore put such dangerous traps on the third floor and yet have nothing at the end worth guarding?" Starfire had asked once Robin and Beastboy had returned from their investigation.
"Maybe he hasn't put the thing in there yet," Beastboy replied, "Could be that he plans to put it in there later."
"What the hell will he be placing in there that needs such protection?" Raven had demanded as she imagined the three-headed monstrosity Robin had described as being the first of the traps he and Beastboy had encountered.
"Whatever it is, it's gotta be valuable to warrant such protections," Robin replied grimly, "We should keep a careful eye on the third floor and be ready when Dumbledore finally does put whatever it is he's guarding up there."
"How will we know when he finally does, though?" Beastboy had asked,
"When Quirrell makes his move," Robin replied grimly, "That's when we'll make ours as well."
Since then, the Titans had ensured that one of them knew where Quirrell was at all times, yet Raven couldn't help but feel as though she were missing something important. It was as though she were staring at a puzzle and yet was missing a vital piece that would ensure the whole picture could be understood.
With no classes to work with and nothing better to do, Raven had spent numerous hours locked in her quarters, meditating in the hopes that her powers would show her just what it was that she was missing. Yet, she was continually denied, much to her aggravation.
As Raven tried once again to center herself, a sudden banging on the door to her quarters caused her concentration to slip; with a grimace, Raven lowered herself to the ground and made her way to the door to see who it was that might be bothering her.
"Hey, Raven!" Harry cried happily as she opened her door, "The Weasleys and I are gonna have a snowball fight. Wanna come?"
Raven couldn't help but smile at her little brother's genuine happiness; since coming to Hogwarts, Raven had watched happily as Harry seemed to open up more now that he had friends who he could be completely honest with about his abilities and powers.
"Sure, sounds fun," Raven replied, smiling as she saw Harry's smile grow ten-fold, "Did you invite the rest of the Titans?"
"Yup! They're getting ready and are going to meet us outside in fifteen!" Harry cried happily, "It's gonna be epic!"
"I'm sure it will be," Raven replied with a gentle laugh, "Just don't blame me when you lose,"
"Oh, it is on!" Harry retorted happily as the two made their way outside.
After a furious snowball war that left everyone frozen and dripping, and in which Harry and the Weasleys lost spectacularly due to Raven creating giant snowballs that easily overcame the Weasley's defenses, the Titans and Weasleys made their way to the Great Hall for some well-earned hot chocolate before going to bed. The last thought Harry had before he succumbed to his exhaustion was that this was probably the best Christmas he had ever had; for the first time, he had friends that he could be totally open with and who didn't see him as a freak or gawk at him. To his new friends, he was just Harry, and though that might seem odd to others, to Harry it meant the world.
XXXX
Christmas morning, Harry was awoken by an ear-shattering scream of joy, followed almost immediately by someone launching themselves upon Harry, causing him to awaken with a painful "Oomph."
As Harry finally managed to extricate himself from his attacker, before promptly falling out of his bed and onto the floor, Harry saw that it was Ron who had divebombed him and was enthusiastically jumping on Harry's bed with a wide grin on his face.
"Have you gone mad!" Harry demanded as he slowly rose from where he lay and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes,
"It's Christmas!" Ron shouted happily, "And you took too long to get up!"
"Just because it's Christmas doesn't mean you should violently attack someone in their sleep!" Harry retorted, "What if I had accidentally attacked you?"
Ron paused in his jumping at that, before shaking his head nervously and leaping to the floor,
"You wouldn't have hurt me. I trust you, Harry."
Harry blushed at the comment and was about to reply when the door to his dorm opened up, and Raven walked in with a wry grin on her face,
"Oh good, you're awake. I was about to wake you myself, but I see Ron had first dibs."
Harry stuck his tongue at her, causing Raven to smile and gently rub his head for a moment before he shoved her hand away.
"I moved everyone's presents to the common room. We're opening them there so that everyone can be together," Raven said warmly, "Everyone is waiting on you two, so hurry up!"
Without another word, Raven turned on her heel and quickly walked out of the dorm; Ron and Harry promptly turned to each other and seemed to register Raven's words at the same time before huge smiles appeared on their faces, and they shouted in unison,
"Presents!"
A moment later, Harry and Ron were tumbling down the stairs to the enjoyment of the onlookers before landing in a heap at the bottom of the staircase. As Harry groaningly got to his feet, he saw a massive pile of presents with his name on them, waiting for him to open them, and he immediately began to tear into them with all the happiness that a child could express.
For the next hour, harry, the Titans, and the Weasleys opened the mountain of presents each had received; Harry (with Raven's knowledge and consent) had spared no expense in his purchases for the Weasleys, now that he knew how wealthy he and Raven were.
Ron had received a brand new Nimbus 2000 and had immediately tackled Harry in a hug as he repeatedly said how grateful he was. For the twins, Harry had purchased a trunk and stuffed it with enough prank material to keep them both occupied for at least a year, if not more. The twins had been almost beside themselves with glee at the present and had promptly adopted Harry into the Weasley clan in gratitude, baptizing him by pouring a cup of Butterbeer over his head, which left him sputtering but laughing all the same.
Knowing how studious he was, Harry's gift to Percy had been a voucher to Flourish and Blotts, worth five hundred galleons, to be used as he saw fit. Percy had been beside himself at Harry's present and had thanked him profusely as he carefully tucked the voucher away for safekeeping. Harry had sent the same gift to Hermione and was waiting on the return owl that would surely come, expressing her thanks.
When it came time for the Titans to open their presents, Harry could hardly sit still as he watched with bated breath, hoping they would like what he had bought them.
Robin had received an autographed poster from his favorite band, Queen; Harry had to spend a fortune to get it, seeing as the lead singer was dead, but the shocked look on Robin's face was worth it in the end, at least to him anyway.
Starfire had received a season pass to Hershey Park; due to her excessive love of chocolate, Harry knew that she would love her gift and was happily rewarded with a bone-crushing hug from Starfire once she had stopped squealing in pleasure.
Beastboy's gift had left the green changeling speechless as he looked down at the receipt for the next top-of-the-line VR game station that was set to come out next year; it was supposed to be stupidly expensive, and Beastboy had planned to wait until the price dropped, but Harry had decided to buy it for him immediately, which resulted in another bone-crushing hug of gratitude.
As Raven opened her gift, she felt her breath catch in her throat as her eyes began to water with unshed tears; Harry had spared no expense with his elder sister's gift, and seeing her expression now, he knew it had been worth it. For his big sister, Harry had bought a clasp for her robe, made of pure silver and shaped like a raven in flight; for an extra price, the silversmith that Harry had hired had managed to enchant the clap to actually flap its wings as though it were a real bird.
"Oh, Harry…." Raven whispered in reverence, "It's so beautiful, thank you."
Harry beamed at his friends as he saw the joy in their eyes; a moment later, he was tearing into his own presents with reckless abandon and marveling at what he had received, which included a book on Quidditch from Hermione, a dozen chocolate frogs from Ron, a crate of fireworks from the twins (which was promptly confiscated by Raven), new self-writing quill from Robin, a few new CD's from Beastboy, a new telescope from Starfire, and finally a brand new Gibson Les Paul electric guitar from Raven, that would be waiting for him when they got home for the summer.
But as Harry opened the last present, he heard Raven gasp in shock,
"It can't be…." Raven whispered as she walked over to him and stared at the cloak in Harry's hands,
"What?" Harry asked in confusion as he held it up, "It's just a cloak."
"That's not just a cloak, Harry," Raven whispered in awe as tears went down her cheeks, "It's dad's invisibility cloak."
Harry felt his jaw drop at the words and saw that the Weasleys were imitating him as they stared at the cloak with naked hunger, while Harry stared at the cloak with a more reverent eye as he ran his hands down its length; it felt as though it were made of liquid and yet shone like silver,
"I thought it had been lost," Raven whispered as she ran her hand down its length, "Who sent it to you?"
"I don't know," Harry replied as he checked the card that had fallen from it when he had lifted it up to get a better look at it; as Harry read the words, he found himself suddenly suspicious as to where the cloak had come from, for the note read simply,
'Your father left this in my possession before he died. It is time it was returned to you. Use it well.'
As Raven read the note, Harry could see that she felt the same as him,
"There's no signature," Robin observed as he leaned over to read the note, "Any idea who your dad could have lent it to?"
"There's only one person that dad would have given this to," Raven growled, "Dumbledore."
"Why would he have had this?" Beastboy asked, "It should have gone to you when your parents died, shouldn't it?"
"No doubt the old goat thought that since I wasn't James Potter's REAL kid, I wasn't entitled to anything of his," Raven growled as she crumpled the note into her hand and threw it into the fireplace. "I'll have to pay him a visit later and find out by what right he kept my father's cloak from me."
"Well, go on then, Harry!" Ron said excitedly, "Try it on!"
With an eager grin, Harry stood up and threw the cloak around himself, causing the onlookers to gasp in awe. As Harry looked down, he felt a gasp of his own escape his lips, for where had seconds ago been, his body was now nothing, causing Harry to appear to be nothing but a floating head.
"That is awesome!" Beastboy cried out as he stared wide-eyed at Harry's floating head,
"Can we borrow it, Harry?" Fred asked quickly, "We'll give you anything you ask for!"
"Be your slaves for a month!" George added,
"A year!" Fred added, making the room echo with laughter.
"Not a chance, boys," Raven said with a grin, "You two are already chaos incarnate. I shudder to think what you'd accomplish with this much power."
"We are offended by your totally accurate-" Fred began in mock outrage,
"-Statement of our tenure at this fine establishment!" George finished in likewise mock outrage, making the room laugh again.
As Harry pulled the cloak from around him, he couldn't help but stare at it with a mixture of awe and sadness; Raven seeing her brother's reaction, quickly put a comforting arm around him and said softly,
"Dad would be proud for you to have this, Harry. Just make sure that you don't abuse it too much, or I'll be forced to take it from you until you learn to be responsible with it, deal?"
"Deal!" Harry cried happily as he wrapped his arms around Raven's waist and hugged her for all he was worth.
"Well, looks like we're out of presents," Robin said with a grin, "What say we put our hoard away and head down to breakfast?"
There was a cheer of agreement as everyone quickly grabbed their gifts and began to make their way to the dorm to put them away; before Harry followed, he turned back to Raven with a sad expression that worried Raven.
"Raven, are you sure you don't mind me keeping dad's cloak? You're the eldest. It should go to you."
Raven felt her eyes water at the comment and had to quickly blink them away before kneeling down in front of her little brother and placing a comforting hand on his shoulder,
"Dad would have wanted you to have it, Harry. More so than me, I'm sure."
"But…" Harry began before he was cut off,
"But nothing! It's your birthright, Harry. So do as the note said and make sure you use it well."
Raven finished with a wink that made Harry smile happily before he turned on his heel and ran up to his dorm, with his presents tucked under his arms as the Titans watched with smiles.
Once he was gone, Raven's smile dropped, and a scowl took its place, which was mirrored on Robin's face as well.
"If he had your dad's cloak, I wonder what else he may have taken from your family," Robin said in a low voice,
"I wonder the same thing," Raven replied coldly, "And I intend to find out."
XXXX
Several hours later, after an incredible breakfast, followed up by an all-out snowball war that left everyone tired and sweaty, the Titans and Weasleys made their way down to dinner, and it was one that Harry would remember for the rest of his days. Harry in all his life had never had such a Christmas dinner. A hundred fat, roasted turkeys; mountains of roast and boiled potatoes; platters of chipolatas; tureens of buttered peas, silver boats of thick, rich gravy and cranberry sauce, and stacks of wizard crackers every few feet along the table. These fantastic party favors were nothing like the feeble Muggle ones that Harry and the rest of the Titans usually bought for Christmas before, with their little plastic toys and flimsy paper hats inside.
Harry pulled a wizard cracker with Fred, and it didn't just bang; it went off like a cannon that sent Beastboy tumbling off his seat and engulfed them all in a cloud of blue smoke, while from inside exploded a rear admirals hat and several live, white mice. Up at the high table, Dumbledore had swapped his pointed hat for a flowered bonnet and was chuckling merrily at a joke Professor Flitwick had just told him.
Flaming Christmas puddings followed the turkey; Robin nearly broke his teeth on a silver sickle embedded in his slice. Harry watched Hagrid getting redder and redder in the face as he called for more wine, finally kissing Professor McGonagall on the cheek, who, to Harry and Raven's amazement, giggled and blushed, her top hat lopsided.
When Harry finally left the table, he was laden down with a stack of things that had come from the crackers, including a pack of nonexplodable luminous balloons, a grow-your-own-warts kit, and his own new wizard's chess set. The white mice had disappeared, and Harry had a nasty feeling that they would end up as Mrs. Norris' Christmas dinner.
After dinner, the Titans and the Weasleys retired to the Gryffindor common room, where Harry broke in his new chess set by losing spectacularly to Ron. However, Harry suspected that he wouldn't have lost so badly if not for Percy trying to help him so much; afterward, Robin asked if he could play against Ron, and the match proved to be surprisingly even, with Robin barely managing to win. Surprisingly, Ron wasn't depressed about his loss; rather, he seemed overjoyed to finally find a worthy opponent and asked Robin if they could play again sometime, to which Robin happily agreed.
After a final treat of hot cocoa and smores, everyone was too tired to do anything else and decided it was time for bed.
It had been Harry's best Christmas ever, yet something had been nagging at the back of his mind all day; not until he climbed into bed was he free to think about it: the invisibility cloak and whoever had sent it.
Ron, full of turkey and cake and with nothing mysterious to bother him, had fallen asleep almost as soon as he'd drawn the curtains of his four-poster. Harry leaned over the side and pulled his cloak from under it.
His fathers…. This had been his father's; he let the material flow over his hands, smoother than silk, light as air. Use it well. That's what both Raven and the note had said.
He had to try it now; he slipped out of bed and wrapped the cloak around himself before looking down in awe as he saw only moonlight and shadows, it was a funny feeling, but a pleasant one, all the same.
Use it well.
Suddenly, Harry felt wide awake. The whole of Hogwarts was open to him in this cloak; excitement flooded him as he stood there in the dark and silence. He could go anywhere, and Filch would never know; Harry felt freer than he had since coming to Hogwarts, and his mind began to race to where he should go first.
Ron grunted in his sleep, causing Harry to turn to stare at him; should Harry wake him? Something held him back; this cloak had belonged to Harry's father, and he felt that he wanted to use it alone this time, the first time.
As quietly as he could, Harry crept out of the dormitory, down the stairs, across the common room, and climbed out of the portrait hole.
"Who's there?" The fat lady squawked, causing Harry to quickly walk down the corridor.
Where should he go? He stopped, his heart racing, and began to think, who cares? The whole of Hogwarts was open to him; with a laugh, Harry drew the cloak around him and set off to see what mysteries he could explore.
XXXX
Raven had just finished getting ready for bed when she felt it; something was wrong; she didn't know what, but something was about to happen that would put her little brother in danger, which was odd because he should be in the Tower at this time of night.
With a groan, Raven remembered that her brother had their father's cloak, which meant that he could be anywhere, and with Hogwarts being so big, it could take her hours to find him.
With a frustrated sigh, Raven rose from her bed and sat cross-legged on the floor as she closed her eyes and opened herself to her powers; as Raven began to rise into the air, her mind spread out, searching for her little brother.
As she suspected, Harry was not in his bed and Raven sighed in exasperation at how much Harry was like their dad; according to Lily, James would often be caught out of bed after curfew as well; he and his band of merry pranksters.
Letting her magic guide her, Raven found herself being drawn to a room on the fifth floor that held great power within it; as Raven zeroed in on it, she heard a sound that made her heart wrench.
Harry was sobbing in utter despair; something in the room had caused her brother such pain that she could feel it even from here, and the pain Raven felt made her almost weep before she managed to pull back from the link and close off her mind.
Quickly, Raven lowered herself to the ground and exited her chambers; whatever trouble her brother had gotten himself into was causing him terrible pain, and Raven needed to save him from it. Then, with a slight tremor of fear for Harry, Raven began to fly as fast as she could for the room she had seen, hoping she wouldn't be too late.
XXXX
Harry was having a blast; he'd spent the last hour exploring Hogwarts with wanton abandon, before finally ending up in the restricted section of the Hogwarts Library. Harry knew he shouldn't be here, but the urge to read some of the juicy stuff students weren't allowed was almost too tempting to resist.
The library was pitch-black and very eerie; Harry lit a lamp to see his way along the row of books, causing the lamp to look as though it were floating along in midair; even though Harry could feel his arm supporting it, the sight gave him the creeps.
The restricted section was right at the back of the library; stepping over the rope that separated these books from the rest of the library, Harry held up the lamp to read the titles.
This didn't help him much as many of the books were spelled in languages that Harry couldn't understand, their peeling, faded gold letters glistening against the light of Harry's lamp; some had no title at all, and one book had stains on it that looked horribly like dried blood.
As Harry continued looking along the rows, the hairs on the back of his neck began to prickle; maybe he was imagining it, maybe not, but he thought a faint whispering was coming from the books, as though they knew that someone was there who shouldn't be.
Deciding that he had to start somewhere, Harry carefully set the lamp on the floor and pulled out a large black and silver book that caught his eye. It took him a moment to pull it out due to how heavy it was, but as he balanced it on his knee and let it fall open, it issued a blood-curdling shriek.
Instantly, Harry snapped the book shut, but the shriek went on and on, in one endless unbroken earsplitting note; stumbling backward, Harry dropped the book and knocked over the lamp, which went out at once with a shattering echo.
Panicking, Harry quickly stuffed the still shrieking book back onto the bookshelf, the blood running from his face as he heard footsteps closing in on him. Then, quickly wrapping the cloak around himself, Harry ran for it, turning a corner and narrowly avoiding colliding with Filch, who had just entered the library and was sweeping his head back and forth, looking for the one responsible for the noise.
Narrowly avoiding Filch's outstretched hand, Harry streaked off up the corridor, the books shrieks still echoing in his ears.
He came to a sudden halt in front of a tall armor suit and leaned against it as he tried to catch his breath; he'd been so desperate to escape that he hadn't paid attention to where he was going. Perhaps because it was dark, he didn't recognize where he was at all; there was a suit of armor near the kitchens, but he must surely be five floors above that.
As Harry struggled to control his breathing, he heard something that made the blood rush from his face.
"You asked me to come directly to you, Professor if anyone was wandering around at night, and there's been somebody in the restricted section of the library," Filch must have known a shortcut because his soft greasy voice was getting closer. To his horror, Professor Quirrell responded, though his voice sounded much colder than usual, and to Harry's surprise, the Defense Professor seemed not to be stuttering.
"The restricted section? Well, they can't have gotten far, we'll catch them!"
Harry stood rooted to the spot as Filch and Quirrell came around the corner; they couldn't see him, of course, but it was a narrow corridor, and if they came much nearer, they'd knock right into him. The cloak didn't stop him from being solid.
As quickly and quietly as he could, Harry backed up, there was a door standing ajar to his left, and as the two adults drew closer, he realized it was his only hope of escape; holding his breath, Harry squeezed through the open door, praying that the adults wouldn't see him.
To his relief, Filch and Quirrell walked right past him, and Harry leaned against the wall as he heard their voices grow farther away. That had been entirely too close for comfort, so focused on slowing down his racing heart that it was a few minutes before Harry noticed anything about the room he was hiding in.
It looked like an unused classroom, the dark shapes of desks and chairs were piled against the wall, and there was an upturned wastebasket sitting on top of a large pile; But the strangest thing about the classroom was a large mirror that was propped against the far wall that seemed to be calling to Harry.
It was a magnificent mirror, as high as the ceiling, with an ornate gold frame, standing on two clawed feet; carved across the top of the mirror was a strange inscription that Harry couldn't make heads or tails of: Erised stra ehru oy tube cafru oyt on woshi.
His Panic fading now that there was no sound of Quirrell or Filch, Harry moved closer to the mirror, wanting to look at himself but see no reflection; as Harry stepped in front of it, he had to clap his hands over his mouth to stop himself from screaming. He whirled around, his heart pounding far more furiously than when the book had screamed, for he had not seen only himself in the mirror, but three other people as well, standing right behind him; but the room was empty, and Harry found himself alone.
Breathing very fast, Harry turned back to the mirror and saw himself reflected in it, pale and scared, but there behind him were three others smiling back at him.
"Raven?" Harry asked as he recognized his elder sister smiling back at him from the mirror; looking over his shoulder, Harry saw that he was still alone in the classroom.
Was that the trick of the mirror? To show invisible people?
"Raven, if you're there, this isn't funny!" Harry whispered furiously, "You nearly gave me a heart attack!"
Silence met his words, and Harry suddenly found himself afraid again as he looked back at the mirror and saw the two other people who were standing next to Raven; a woman was standing right behind his reflection and smiling at him.
Slowly, Harry reached out a hand and felt the air behind him; if she was really there, then he'd be able to touch her, their reflections being so close together, but he felt only air; she and the others existed only in the mirror.
She was a beautiful woman. She had dark red hair and her eyes….
"Her eyes are just like mine," Harry thought, edging closer to the glass. Bright green, precisely the same shape, but then he noticed that she was smiling but crying simultaneously. The tall, thin, black-haired man standing beside her put his arm around her. He wore glasses, and his hair was very untidy. It stuck up at the back, just as Harry's did. Harry was so close to the mirror now that his nose was nearly touching that of his reflection.
"Mom?" he whispered. "Dad?"
They didn't respond, just smiled at him and James Potter threw an arm around Raven's shoulder, pulling her against him with a laugh as Harry stared with a sick feeling in his heart.
The Potters smiled and waved at Harry, and he stared hungrily back at them, his hands pressed flat against the glass as though he was hoping to fall right through it and reach them. But, instead, he had a powerful ache inside him, half joy, half terrible sadness.
Slowly, Harry sank to his knees and began to sob in anguish as the cloak fell from his shoulder, rendering him visible; what kind of monster would create something like this? His parents were right there, he could see them, yet he couldn't touch them, something that he wanted more than anything.
"Harry?" A voice behind him called, causing Harry to whip around in panic, only to see Raven standing at the doorway and looking at him with a worried look on her face, "Harry, what's wrong? Why aren't you in your dorm?"
"Raven…" As tears ran down his face, Harry replied in a broken voice, "They're here, Raven. They're right here!"
"Harry, what are you talking about?" Raven said quickly as she dashed across the room and embraced her brother, "Who's here?"
"Mom and dad!" Harry sobbed, making Raven's eyes widen in alarm, "Look in the mirror. They're right there!"
Tearing her eyes away from her little brother, Raven looked into the mirror and gasped in horror; standing there smiling at her was Lily and James Potter, looking the same as they did the night Raven had lost them.
"Mom? Dad?" Raven asked in a small voice as a tear began to roll down her face,
"It's them, Raven!" Harry cried, "They're here!"
"No…" As anger replaced her awe, Raven replied, "It is not them, Harry. It's some sort of trick!"
Wrapping her arms tighter around her brother, Raven turned away from the mirror, pulling her brother with her, a difficult thing to do as Harry struggled in her arms to look again.
"Don't look, Harry." As Harry struggled to look at the mirror again, Raven said, "It's not real!"
"Unfortunate, but true," a voice said, causing both Harry and Raven to turn to see who had spoken, only for them to gasp at the sight of Albus Dumbledore staring at them from the doorway with a sad look on his face.
"What the hell is this thing?!" Raven demanded as she rose to her feet, holding Harry tightly to keep him from looking into the mirror again, "And why the hell does it show our parents?!"
Dumbledore sighed sadly before taking a step forward, his gaze fixed on the mirror behind them,
"The mirror of erised is perhaps one of the most dangerous magical objects ever created," Dumbledore said in a hollow voice, "It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest and most desperate desires of our hearts. For example, the happiest man on earth would look into the mirror and see himself just as he is."
Dumbledore stepped past Raven and Harry and ran a hand along the mirror's frame as he stared into it, fixating on whatever he saw for a moment before turning back to the pair and speaking again.
"But, this mirror can give us neither knowledge nor truth; men have wasted away before it, even been driven mad, not knowing whether what they see is real or even possible."
"And you thought a school was a good place for such a thing!" Then, Raven demanded, "Look what that damn thing did to my brother!"
Dumbledore cast a sorrowful eye on Harry, who was sobbing into Raven's cloak as he desperately tried to break free from her grip and look into the mirror again,
"It was never my intention to cause harm to you or your brother, my dear," Dumbledore said softly.
"Why is that damn thing here?!" Raven demanded, "Something that dangerous should be destroyed!"
"I wholeheartedly agree, my dear," Dumbledore said softly, "Unfortunately, the mirror is needed at the moment. But when that is no longer the case, I promise that I will ensure that the mirror is placed somewhere it can no longer harm anyone else."
"Your continued incompetence is beginning to become quite tedious, Dumbledore," Raven growled, "And I'm sick and tired of my little brother being placed in danger due to your secrets!"
"It's not my intention to place young Harry in danger, my dear," Dumbledore replied with a tinge of anger, "But Harry has a destiny that is more important than you can possibly imagine."
"He's a child!" Raven retorted angrily, "And whatever plans you have for him, stop here! My brother is not one of your chess pieces!"
"I don't see him that way," Dumbledore growled back, his usual calm voice taking on a harsh tone,
"Could have fooled me! Since coming here, Harry has nearly been killed twice, and now, because of your damned mirror, he's been traumatized by the ghosts of our parents!"
Dumbledore said nothing, but a sad expression came across his face as he stared down at Harry, who was still fighting desperately to look into the mirror again.
"One more slip up, old man," Raven growled, her eyes flashing red for a moment, "And I will pull Harry from Hogwarts permanently. Is that clear?"
Dumbledore said nothing and simply nodded his head with an aggravated look; Raven glared daggers at the headmaster for a moment more before dragging Harry from the room and slamming the door behind her.
Left alone, Dumbledore turned back to the mirror and stared sadly at the image he saw of his family, happy and whole, waving back at him. Then, after a considerable amount of time, Dumbledore finally turned away and made his way back to his office.
Harry Potter must remain at Hogwarts; the future depended on it, and if he was removed, then all the plans Dumbledore had for the future would be lost, and if Raven threatened those plans, then she was just another problem to be removed as soon as possible.
XXXX
Raven hugged her brother and gently rocked him back and forth as the two sat on Harry's bed; Raven had had to nearly drag Harry back to Gryffindor tower, and as she tried to calm her little brother, Raven felt only anger run through her at the thought of what Dumbledore had done to Harry.
"It was them," Harry sobbed, "Why did you make me leave?"
"Because it wasn't really them," Raven said gently, "As much as I would love to tell you differently, it wasn't them, Harry. It was just a cruel trick created by an evil object."
"It doesn't matter!" Harry nearly shouted, and Raven was happy that she had placed silencing wards around his bed when they returned, "I still want to see them! Why don't you?!"
Raven looked at Harry with a hurt expression, and Harry found himself feeling horrible for what he had said,
"I'm…I'm sorry, Raven." Harry said quickly, "I didn't mean that I swear!"
"I know, Harry," Raven said softly as she hugged him again, "It's just the mirror talking. I want more than anything to see mom and dad again, but they wouldn't want us to risk our sanity just for the chance to see them again."
"I'm sorry, Raven," Harry said in a small voice, "I just wanted to see them again."
"I know, kid, I do too."
Will you stay with me tonight?" Harry asked softly, "I don't want to be alone tonight."
"Of course, I will," Raven said gently, causing Harry to smile happily as he laid down, scooting over to make room for her; a few moments later, the two of them were asleep, holding each other tight.
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Author's Note:
Holy crap, this chapter ran long! I just couldn't stop, and every time I tried, I would get a new idea to put in here. Things between Dumbledore and Raven are coming to a head, and it won't be long before the two come to blows over Harry's safety and future destiny. Not going to lie, though. I'm having trouble writing Dumbledore this way, as he's one of my favorite characters.
To those who think that I'm going to fall into the trap that most writers do and just write the Harry Potter books without any change, allow me to offer you this *Blows Raspberry*
I fully intend to blow this story out of the water with my changes, but you'll have to wait and see what those changes will be.
I hope you enjoy this chapter, and as always, Stay golden Ponyboy!