Harry Potter and the Students of the School of the Sphinx

Harry Potter and the Students of the School of the Sphinx(16/?)

By Angelina Johnson

Chapter 16

Untitled

    The remainder of their time at the Burrow passed very uneventfully. Tara showed up at the Weasley home only a couple of times, otherwise staying either at work or at her own home with her father. Everyone managed to call everyone by the right name, and there were no more attacks. Voldemort seemed to have been laying low since Halloween. Harry was not sure if this were a good or a bad thing. He was afraid that in the absence of attacks Voldemort was planning something really horrible for later on.

    At the end of the holiday, Mr. Weasley borrowed a car from the Ministry to take Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Alex to King's Cross. Harry noticed that ever since Voldemort's rise had been recognized, the Ministry had been going out of it's way to do things for Harry and the Weasley's. Mr. Weasley had gotten a raise at the Ministry, and along with success of Fred and George's joke shop, the Weasley family was no longer in financial trouble.

    The ride back to Hogwarts was short. They arrived back at school just in time for dinner. Alex bid them farewell and headed reluctantly off to the Sphinx table, while Ginny, Harry, Ron and Hermione slid into seats at the Gryffindor table. It looked as though most everyone was back from their holiday, although the Creevey brothers and several others were still missing.

    Melissa grinned at Harry from the staff table. He grinned back. It was still hard to believe that Melissa and Sirius were now his guardians. It had to be the best thing that had ever happened to him.

    After dinner, Harry and Alex went to talk to Melissa.

    "So, how was the honeymoon?" Harry asked.

    "Yeah, I've always wondered what Ireland was like," Alex said. Melissa grinned.

    "It was fun. I'd always wanted to go there, and Sirius figured that this was the perfect excuse for us to go. How was the Burrow, then?" Melissa asked.

    "Interesting," Harry said.

    "And what's interesting supposed to mean?" Melissa asked them.

    "Have you met Tara Blake?" Harry asked.

    

    "As a matter of fact, I have met Tara Blake," Melissa said.

    "That's what I meant by interesting," Harry said. Alex looked puzzled, and Harry realized that only he and Ginny knew.

    "Wait, what's this about Tara?" Alex asked. Melissa shook her head.

    "It's nothing that concerns you. You don't need to know about it," Melissa said.

    "Then why does Harry know?" Alex asked. Alex seemed confused rather than angry, as Harry was sure that he would have been if things were being kept from him.

    "That's what I'm wondering," Melissa said.

    "Oh. Well, I'll take that as my cue to leave," Alex said. She smiled at Melissa before leaving.

    "Well, Harry, I'm not sure how you know about Tara," Melissa began.

    "She told me," Harry interrupted.

    "Well, I'm not sure WHY she told you, Harry, but I suppose you of all people have a right to know. I just want to make sure that you don't tell anyone else, not even Ron, Hermione, Ginny, or Alex," Melissa said.

    "Tara told Ginny, too," Harry said.

    "Oh. Well, I suppose I understand that as well. She might have to train..." Melissa began.

    "Train? Train for what?" Harry asked.

    "It's not important. Not yet, so don't ask, and don't worry about it until we know for sure. For now, it's not something that you need to know," Melissa said.

    "Fine," Harry said, "I won't ask."

    "Good. Harry, please make sure that you don't let what you know about Tara slip to anyone else. Tara is one of the most important weapons we have in this war. Aside from Snape, she's our most valuable spy, and she's the Seer we need. If someone finds out about her identity, it could put her in danger, and that's one of the last things that we need," Melissa said.

    "I understand. I was just wondering..." Harry began. He wanted so badly to try and find out what was going on. Why had Hermione and Ginny been calling him Godric, why had he sometimes been feeling like he had no control over him, over what was happening>

    "You were just wondering what, Harry?" Melissa asked.

    "It's nothing," Harry said quickly. Although Melissa was his godmother, and his guardian, he didn't feel as though he was ready to confide his fears and his concerns in her yet. What he wanted was to talk to Sirius, but there was certainly no way for him to do that. He had broken the damn mirror. He had told Sirius about it at Christmas, and Sirius had said that he would try to repair it while Harry was at school. However, while Sirius still had both mirrors, there was no way for him to talk to Sirius. The Floo Network was too risky, and it wasn't like Sirius could come to Hogwarts.

    "Are you sure? Because if you want to talk, I'm here. Or, if you would prefer, I could get Sirius if you need to talk to him," Melissa said. Harry looked at her hopefully. It was as if she had read his mind.

    "But wouldn't that be a problem..." Harry began.

    "It would be no problem at all. I understand that it's probably much easier for you to confide in Sirius, simply because you've known him longer. You and I are alike in that way. For years, I would go to James with my problems instead of Lily or Julie, simply because James was my cousin and I had known him my whole life, while I had only been close to Julie and Lily for a short amount of time," Melissa said.

    "Oh," Harry said stupidly.

    "Would you like to talk to Sirius, then? I've been looking for an excuse to get him here to Hogwarts anyway," Melissa said with a wicked grin.

    "Yeah. Yeah, I'd like that," Harry said. Melissa smiled at him and led him to her office. She threw a handful of Floo Powder into the fire, yelled 'Number 12, Grimmauld Place', and stuck her head into the fire. Harry didn't hear the conversation that went on on the other end, but after a minute or so Melissa pulled her head out of the fire, and Sirius appeared shortly afterward.

    "I'll leave you two alone for a while, then," Melissa said, and she left her office.

    "I brought you this, for next time," Sirius said, and he handed Harry the mirror, which was newly fixed.

    "Thanks," Harry said.

    "Now, what exactly is going on? You've only been back for about an hour, what could possibly have happened already?" Sirius asked him.

    "Well, it didn't happen today, exactly. It's just, there are some things that I don't understand," Harry said.

    "What kinds of things?" Sirius asked suspiciously.

    "Well, I don't think that it has anything to do with Voldemort, but lately there have been times when I haven't felt like myself. Times when it feels like there's someone else inside of me, someone sharing my body. I would think that I'm just going nutters, like the Ministry said, but Ginny and Hermione have been feeling the same thing. And, well, they've both called me 'Godric' at least once. Ginny said that she called Hermione 'Rowena' several times, and I called Ginny 'Mary' the other day," Harry said.

    "Well, if it were just the names thing, Harry, I'd tell you that you were getting paranoid, but you say you feel like you've been possessed?" Sirius asked.

    "Not possessed, exactly. I haven't done anything against my will, and I've always been aware of what I'm doing, it's just that sometimes I feel like I'm looking through someone elses eyes, like I'm sharing someone elses memories," Harry said.

    "And your friends have really been feeling the same things?" Sirius asked.

    "Well, I haven't actually talked to Hermione about it, but that's what Ginny said when I talked to her," Harry confided. His godfather looked at him through narrowed eyes.

    "Godric, you say? And Mary, and Rowena? I've heard something about this, but why now? Why you? What's the use? Unless..." Sirius said. Harry looked at him.

    "Unless what? What do you know?" Harry asked.

    "Well, Harry, I would think that by now you would have known something about prophecies," Sirius said.

    "Yeah, I suppose I do. What does that have to do with anything, though, Sirius?" Harry asked.

    "Prophecies must be fulfilled," Sirius said. He seemed distant.

    "I still don't understand, Sirius," Harry said.

    "You're a smart kid, Harry. I would think that you would be able to put the pieces together," Sirius said.

    "What pieces?" Harry asked, puzzled. Sirius usually was straightforward and blunt, rather than cryptic and evasive like he was being now.

    "The founders," Sirius murmured.

    

    "What about the bloody founders?" Harry asked him.

    "Why, Harry, you yourself told me over Christmas break. I believe it was Ginny who told you that the founders live again in you," Sirius said.

    "Ginny never said that the founders live again in us. She told me last October that Hermione was talking in her sleep, and that she said 'they live again, they live in us. It is only a matter of time before they show themselves. The time will come, and all.... All will be lost.' But knowing Hermione it was just some thing that she had read somewhere," Harry said with a shrug.

    "Then how do you explain what you've been feeling? How do you explain that your friends have been calling you Godric, and that you've been calling Ginny Mary? It all fits, Harry," Sirius said.

    "But that had to have been something that Hermione read somewhere," Harry said. He refused to believe that the Founding Four were living again through him and his friends.

    "Perhaps. Or maybe it was something that Hermione saw," Sirius said.

    "Hermione's not a Seer," Harry said.

    "No, Hermione is not a Seer. I didn't mean See like that. I meant that maybe Hermione saw something when she was watching Voldemort. You know, Tara Blake's a great actress, but when she has a vision, it doesn't matter what her appearance, she will predict things. She may be a useful spy for us, but unfortunately, sometimes Voldemort learns things from her that we would prefer he now know," Sirius said.

    "So you mean Tara predicted, in front of Voldemort, that the founders were going to live again, through other people?" Harry asked.

    "Well, no, but Tara has made other predictions in front of Voldemort that Hermione has seen. However, that particular prophecy, Harry, was deep inside the School of the Sphinx, in a chamber not unlike the Chamber of Secrets. Only a Slytherin could enter, and only a Slytherin could contain the spirit within," Sirius said.

    "So that's what he wanted from the School of the Sphinx? He wanted that prophecy?" Harry said.

    "Well, that's part of it," Sirius said.

    "Sirius, what did you mean by the spirit within? Mary Slytherin didn't have a basilisk running around her school, did she?" Harry asked.

    "No, Mary Slytherin didn't hide a basilisk in her school. She hid something much more dangerous," Sirius said.

    "What's more dangerous than a fifty foot snake that kills you just by looking at you?" Harry asked, half sarcastic, half serious.

    "Her soul," Sirius said.

    "What do you mean, her SOUL?" Harry asked Sirius.

    "Her soul. Her spirit. The essence of Mary Slytherin was preserved inside of that bloody school of hers, and Voldemort set it free. He wants to interfere. The reason that the founders were going to live again was to help, to aid in the defeating of Voldemort. Unfortunately, the one thing that could prevent their aid is Mary Slytherin. As long as his little sister wasn't involved, Salazar Slytherin cooperated with the others well enough, but Voldemort's bloody unleashed the spirit of Mary Slytherin to stop them from working their magic," Sirius said.

    "But we don't really need the Founders to defeat Voldemort, do we?" Harry asked.

    "No, you don't NEED the founders, but they would have been a help, I can promise you that. It's too late now, you just have to make sure that disaster doesn't ensue. Don't let history repeat itself, Harry," Sirius said.

    "What do you mean, don't let history repeat itself?" Sirius said.

    "Look, Harry, I don't understand this much more than you do. All I know is that the presence of the Founders will change everything, and that you need to be careful. The Founders may have been great people, but they caused bad things," Sirius said. Harry nodded.

    "So you really think that they're inside of me and my friends?" Harry asked.

    "It looks like it, doesn't it? I can't help you much more, Harry, just be careful and make sure that your friends are as well. From what you've said, you must be Gryffindor, Hermione should be Rowena Ravenclaw, and Ginny, I suppose, is Mary Slytherin," Sirius said.

    "So what do I do?" Harry asked.

    "Harry, I've already told you that I can't really help you any. Like I said, be careful. And try and figure out who Hufflepuff and Salazar Slytherin are," Sirius recommended.

    "Did anyone know that this was going to happen? Is this another one of those 'things that totally concerns Harry that we can't tell him because we THINK that it's for his own good'?" Harry asked. Sirius looked at him seriously.

    "Look, Harry, I know that there are things that have been kept from you in the past that were important, and things that you should have been told, but this isn't one of them, and you can't blame Albus for not telling you, he was only looking out for you. He thought he was helping you. Everyone makes mistakes," Sirius said.

    "Not everyone makes mistakes that nearly end up with you dead," Harry muttered.

    "Well, Harry, I hate to break it to you, but I think that particular honor belongs to you, not to Dumbledore," Sirius said with a small grin.

    "But if Dumbledore had told me..." Harry protested.

    "He learns from his mistakes, Harry. I assure you, no one had any idea that this particular prophecy concerned you as well," Sirius said.

    "Fine. I believe you," Harry said.

    "Good. Then go to bed, Harry, it's getting late. I'll talk to you soon-but make sure that you use the mirror rather than sticking your head in a fire," Sirius said.

    "I will. G'night, Sirius," Harry said, grinning at his godfather. Sirius ruffled his hair before sending him on his way to Gryffindor tower.

    Harry was nearly back to Gryffindor tower when he ran into Nearly Headless Nick.

    "Hullo, Nick," Harry said to the Gryffindor ghost. The ghost gave him a rare grin.

    "Hullo, Harry! I haven't talked to you in a while," Nick said.

    "How have you been?" Harry asked. He wanted to talk to Ginny and Hermione about what he had just been told, but he didn't want to be rude to Nick, who was a likeable ghost.

    "All right, I suppose. The Bloody Baron's been particularly unbearable, lately, with the rise of You-Know-Who," Nick said.

    "Why would the Bloody Baron be interested in Voldemort?" Harry asked.

    "Well, the Dark Lord's a descendant of Slytherin, as is the Bloody Baron. That's why he's the Slytherin ghost," Nick said.

    "But does that mean that all of the ghosts are descendants of the Founder whose house they represent?" Harry asked curiously.

    "Well, now that you ask, I think so. I've never actually asked the Grey Lady if she's related to Rowena Ravenclaw, but she looks an awful lot like Rowena did, so I assume that she is," Nick said.

    "So that means that you're related to Godric Gryffindor?" Harry asked.

    "Indeed," Nick said, "Why? Is there anything that you need to know from me?" Nick asked.

    "No. No, not yet," Harry said.

    "Well, g'bye, Nick," Harry said and he ran the rest of the way to Gryffindor tower.