Harry Potter and the Gaia Spring

                Harry Potter and the Gaia Spring

                     Chapter 3

                 Good News and Bad News

    Harry's night did not improve. His stomach ached from Dudley's cruel joke, and he slept fitfully, haunted by fragments of the dream. He tried to convince himself that it was just that, a dream, but the images of the viscous bug and the grim knight were not so easily dismissed.

    Dawn came slow for Harry, and it brought little sleep, and less answers.

    Vaguely, Harry realized he heard running water. Since Dudley was still in bed, and Vernon and Petunia had their own shower, Harry knew it must be Hermione.

    Harry's stomach was still aching and he thought longingly of the settle-mint resting in the drawer in his room. He could probably get it before Hermione came back.

    So, feeling guilty for reasons he couldn't explain, Harry slipped down the hall and into his room. He opened the drawer in the nigh stand, moved aside the plush dragon and the box which held the bracer, and triumphantly took out the settle-mint. One quick drop and he felt much better.

    Until he heard the scream.

    He was just putting away the bottle when he heard it. It was Hermione and it was loud and long. Harry jumped to his feet, managed to free his wand without getting it tangled in his sleeve this time, and bolted out the door.

    Harry froze at what he saw. Hermione, clad only in a towel and bright red from embarrassment and anger, was yelling at Dudley, who was eyeing her lecherously.

    "How dare you!" Hermione seethed. "If I catch you trying to look at- Eyes up here, pig boy! If I ever catch you even THINKING about looking at me, I'll turn you into a toad!"

    "You're not allowed to do magic out of school," Dudley leered.

    "I'll have you know, as a Junior Member of the Order of the Phoenix, I am allowed to practice combative magic as allowed by Educational Decree 31."

    "You're bluffing," Dudley said, though he paled notably. Hermione spotted Harry, and marched over to him. She took his wand from his upraised, shock-frozen hand, spun around and gave it a twirl and a flick.

    "Cykronus!"

    Dudley's eyes went wide as he began to spin, slowly at first, then faster and faster. Soon he was just a fat blur. Shortly after, Hermione brought the wand across in a cutting motion.

    "Finite Incantatem."

    Dudley came to a halt. He took two staggering steps, then fell flat on his face.

    Hermione eyed Dudley's prone body like it was a giant slug. "He'll probably be out for at least twenty minutes, but could you guard the door while I change? Just in case?"

    Still rather stunned, Harry managed to nod. Hermione blushed, then quickly fled into Harry's room. Harry shook his head to get his senses back, resisted the urge to kick Dudley in the stomach, and leaned against the door.

    *Ron will kill me if he ever finds out about this.* Harry thought chuckling. *And the fool won't even know why.* Another part of him added bitterly. Harry frowned and shook his head. To stop that train of thought he focused on what just happened.

    Why? Why did he always blow little things out of proportions? And yet, when the real attack came, he was almost completely unready for it. If he wanted any chance of taking Voldemort down with him, he had to calm down and be more alert.

    Harry demonstrated this new resolve of awareness by failing to hear Hermione call out that she was ready, and then crashing onto his back when she opened the door he was leaning on.

    "Harry, are you okay?"

    "Yeah, I'm fine," Harry said sheepishly. He glanced back at the hall. "I doubt Dudley will tell on us. They might ask him what he was doing to make you attack him. But we should probably get breakfast before something else goes wrong.

    Hermione agreed, so the two made their way downstairs. The house was unusually quiet. Vernon was already at work, and Petunia had gone off somewhere, leaving a note to Dudley saying she'd be back shortly and that he should dress sharply.

    Not knowing when Petunia or Dudley would show up, they had a quick breakfast of toast and cereal, although Harry did treat himself to Dudley's expensive sugary cereal, instead of the cheap styrofoam stuff they bought for him.

    While they ate, Harry's mind processed what had happened just moments before. One part troubled him.

    "Hermione," he asked between bites of toast. "Is it true, what you told Dudley?"

    "Don't be silly, Harry," Hermione said as she poured a glass of orange juice. "We haven't learned how to transfigure people yet. That's a NEWT level class."

    "I meant about being a junior member and being able to cast spells."

    "Yeah, finally," Hermione rolled her eyes. "I mean, they passed the decree ages ago, but apparently there are a ton of checks before the ministry will officially recognize anybody. Mr. Kingsley just gave me my notification last Thursday. I'm sure you got yours... weeks... ago..." She trailed off as she noticed Harry's clenched teeth. "You didn't get a notice?"

    "Of course not!" Harry yelled, throwing down his toast. "Since when am I important? I'm just the one who stopped Voldemort in the first place, delayed his return TWICE, and am destined to stop him once and for all. Clearly, Dumbledore can get on fine without me. After all, he has you!"

    "Enough, Harry!" Hermione snapped. "I didn't ask to become a junior member, and I certainly ask for you not to be. So stop treating me like your enemy!"

    "I'm sorry, Hermione," Harry apologized. "It's just that Dumbledore..."

    "Knows what he's doing, Harry," Hermione finished. "Trust him."

    Harry was about to admit that Hermione was right, when the front door opened and Aunt Petunia called out, "Dudikins! Look who's come to visit!"

    Harry groaned. It was Annie. Harry's first thought was to bolt out the back and hide in the yard all day, but then he remembered Moody's instructions not to leave the house. Normally, Harry would've taken any warning from Moody with a grain of salt, but after last night, he wasn't about to risk it. Annie may be a pain, but she was better than dark wizards any day.

    Harry was still trying to think of a way past her, when she spotted him.

    "HELLO HARRY! HOW ARE YOU TODAY?!" She shouted, loud and slow, as if Harry was not only near deaf, but also struggling with English, and needed time to process each word. "AND WHO IS YOUR LITTLE FRIEND?"

    "Hello, Barbie," Harry sighed, accepting defeat. "This is Hermione. Hermione, this is Annie."

    "Please, call me Barbie. Everybody does," Annie giggled in a manner that made Lavender and Parvati's giggling sound like theologians laughing over a joke about Einstein. There were two strong theories on why "everybody" called her Barbie. Dudley and his gang figured it was because she was tall, blonde, and slender. Harry thought it was because her head was hollow and made of plastic. "Hello, Hermione," she said in a patronizing voice. "It's so nice of Mr. Dursley to hire another one of you." She took off her white fur coat, which she wore even in this dreadful heat, because "that's the price of beauty," and held it out to Hermione. "Here, you may take my coat."

    "What?!" Harry cried out in surprise. Hermione was just staring in shock.

    "I SAID SHE CAN TAKE MY COAT!" It was Harry's tendency to respond like this to her insane requests and idea's that led her to think he was deaf in the first place.

    "Barbie, you can't just do that," Harry said frustratedly.

    "Oh, I didn't know you cared so much," Barbie cooed. "Well, if it means so much to you, you may take it." She thrust the coat into Harry's arms.

    *Then again, at least the dark wizards would be quick and quite painless in comparison.* Harry thought as he dropped the coat in the cupboard that used to be his home. He slammed the door, to make sure some spiders would fall, then hurried back before Barbie could do anymore damage. Hermione was still staring. Barbie had just finally noticed.

    "Oh, you like my eyeshadow?" She asked, completely oblivious to the nature of the stare. "It's 'Essence of Robin's Egg.' If you do a good job, Mr. Dursley might give you enough money to buy some for yourself. It might even make you a little pretty."

    *Too late.* Harry groaned. He hurried over and grabbed Hermione before she could do anything. "Come on, Hermione. Let's go get Dudley."

    "Give me your wand," she hissed, pawing at his sleeve.

    "No, Hermione," Harry whispered.

    "Come on. Just one quick spell. Please?"

    "She's not worth it."

    "Oh, she's worth it."

    Harry made his way up the stairs awkwardly, his left hand guiding Hermione forcefully by the arm, while he kept his right hand, and the wand contained up its sleeve, as far away from her as possible. She gave up about halfway up the stairs and allowed Harry to lead her into his room, where she exploded into a full rant.

    "The nerve of... If I could... she'd better... GAHH!" Hermione screamed, trying to put a sentence together. "Where does she get the idea that she can just boss you around like a... like a..."

    "House elf?" Harry suggested helpfully.

    "Yes, exactly! Now maybe you'll take your SPEW duties more seriously. Oh, I wish you hadn't stopped me!"

    "Tell, her ssshe'sss prettier ttthan ttthat airhead," a dry voice called out. "And pleassse be quieter. I'm trying to read."

    "Did you hear that?" Harry asked, looking around.

    "The radiator hissing?" Hermione asked confused. Harry didn't get it at first, then it hit him like icy water. If he heard a voice, when all Hermione heard was a hiss, then it was a...

    "Snake," Harry mouthed as he looked around. There, on the other side of the bed, basking in a sunbeam, lay a giant cobra, reading today's Daily Prophet.

    "What are you doing here?" Harry asked in Parseltongue, ignoring Hermione's shudder.

    "Calm down Harry. No need to ssspill your dragonsssblood," Harry's eyes went wide as suddenly the snake was gone. In its place, a tall, skinny, sleepy looking man lounged, still reading the paper. He had a flat face, and an extended jaw, which made him still look like a snake. "I'll sssay it again for the lady'sss benefit," he said, his voice still surprisingly snake-like. "It'sss 'Dragon'sss Blood.' Now will you relaxxx?"

    "You sneak into our room as a snake and you want us to relax?" Hermione flattened herself against the wall.

    "I'm also a parssselmouttth. But I would have ttthought ttthe great Harry Potter, and ttthe clever Hermione Granger would know to sssee beyond appearancccesss."

    Hermione and Harry shared a guilty look. He was right, they should know better than to judge him on appearances. Wasn't one of his best friends a half giant? Wasn't he taught by a werewolf? Wasn't his own godfather thought to be a viscous murderer for the better part of fifteen years?

    "So that means you are-" Harry started, before the man, without looking up from the paper, held up a hand for silence.

    "Careful Harry," he said, casually flipping the page. "You almost gave away important information for free."

    "I'm afraid I don't follow you, sir," Harry said, scratching his head.

    "My name, Harry. My name. If I am who I sssay I am, ttthan I ssshouldn't need you to tell me. But if I'm not..."

    "I just helped you fill in the holes in your story," Harry finished.

    "Exxactly. Now, I am, indeed, Sssmirl. Oh, and congratulatttionsss, Hermione, on making Junior Member."

    Maybe it was because Harry didn't know Smirl, or maybe it was because he could turn himself into a poisonous snake, but Harry actually managed to bite back the anger surging through his chest. "Um, excuse me, Mr. Smirl, but-"

    "You were wondering why Dumbledore didn't make you a Junior Member?"

    "Um, yes, sir."

    "Pleassse, ssstop calling me sssir. Missster Sssmirl will do. And I ttthought you'd have figured out how Dumbledore'sss ssslippery mind worksss by now. I'd sssay there are two ssstrong reasssonsss you weren't chosssen. The firssst, and officccial reassson, is that your best defenssse isss not Dumbledore'sss ssspell, for any ssspell can be overcome, but ttthat You-Know-Who doessssn't know where you are. But if you were to be allowed to cassst sssignificant amountsss of magic, ttthen hisss detectorsss would eventually pick up ttthat you were here, and narrow down the sssearch field. Make no missstake, Potter. He isss looking to find you alone. Ttthat isss why I mussst asssk you, Missss Granger, to not cassst anymore ssspellsss while you are here."

    Hermione nodded. Harry supposed that made sense, but couldn't Dumbledore at least told him that.

    "Um, you mentioned a second reason, si- I mean, Mr. Smirl."

    "Yessss. Remember ttthat ttthe Junior Membersss are not full membersss. They are not chosssen for their ability to aid ttthe caussse, but rattther to be allowed to practiccce to defend ttthemssselvesss in cassse ttthey are attacked. Nevelle wasss firssst on ttthe lissst. Hisss parentsss put away a lot of Deattth Eatersss, and after lassst ssspring, the remaining onesss are afraid that Neville will follow in their footssstepsss. Poor little Neville will need all ttthe help he can get. You, Potter, on ttthe ottther hand, well, if my guesss isss correct, Dumbledore figured you didn't need ttthe practiccce nearly asss much asss ttthe ottthersss. Doesss ttthat anssswer sssatisssfy you, Potter?"

    "Yes, Mr. Smirl," Harry said a bit sheepishly.

    "Now, ttthe ottthersss are ssstill cleaning up from lassst night. I ssslipped out after the excitement ssso I could check on you. Nobody elssse will be able to make it until tomorrow at bessst, ssso you're ssstuck wittth me for ttthe time being."

    "Why will it take them so long?" Harry asked wondering if Moody and Kingsley and the others were alright.

    "Let'sss jussst sssay ttthey can't loossse Deattth Eatersss asss fassst asss my form can. And ssstop trying to ssspot my markingsss, Hermione. I have none."

    Hermione appeared not to hear the last part, for she still studied him and she asked, "Is that why you chose the snake for your form?"

    "There are many reasssonsss I chossse ttthisss form. It offersss ssspeed, power, resssilienccce, and deattth. Being a Parssselmouttth, I wasss alssso already fluent in ttthe language. But yesss, the ability to hide and move where mossst cannot were high on ttthe lissst. Now, if you'll exxxcussse me, I mussst make my roundsss. If you need me, jussst hisss."

    "Wait!" Harry called out. "What happened last night?"

    Smirl paused, one foot out the window. "Read for yourssself," he said, tossing the Daily Prophet to Harry. Harry caught it and held it out so both he and Hermione could read it. The picture on the front was again of Eliza Thumpgood. This time the other wizards were sedating her with spells and there was a crack across the picture. She must have punched the camera as the picture went off.

Fourth Azkaban Breakout

Ministry's Competence in Question

    Yet another breakout from Azkaban prison leads us to wonder what the Ministry is doing that is so much more important than the safety of their citizens.

    Sir Victor Drakkis, the famous dragon-hunter gone rogue who escaped yesterday, returned in full armament, slaughtering five out of six of the still active dragons, and then proceeded to attack the Azkaban guard wizards. He then led ten of his fellow Death Eaters to assault the prison, freeing the vampire, Lord Vargos, the last Death Eater imprisoned in Azkaban for helping You-Know-Who before his fall. He then lead the Death Eaters in an attack on the inner sanctum of Azkaban, where the Death Eaters who were caught in the Ministry battle this spring, including the former aristocrat, Mister Lucius Malfoy, were being held. At this point, Dumbledore's band of violent vigilantes known as the "Order of the Phoenix," showed up in a vain attempted to stop the carnage. The so-called "Order" did turn away the evil wizards, but only after massive casualties, and allowing the Death Eaters to liberate four more prisoners in their retreat.

    This report is continued on pages 3-7.

    "Is all this true?" Harry asked in disbelief.

    "Mossst of it. Ssshe put a bad ssspin on it, of courssse. Mossst of the casssualtiesss were Deattth Eatersss. We only lossst one, the Lady Sssonid. Pluss, she jumpsss to sssome conclusssionsss, sssuch asss Drakkisss being a Deattth Eater. Of courssse, ssshe alssso omitted cccertain factsss that refute her ssstory, sssuch asss Drakkisss'sss absssenccce during the raid on the inner sssanctum."

    "He didn't help try to free the Death Eaters Harry caught?" Hermione asked puzzledly. Harry was about to point out that he didn't catch any Death Eaters when Smirl spoke.

    "While ttthe Deattth Eatersss were attacking ttthe inner sssanctum, Victor wasss liberating ttthe non-Deattth Eatersss ssshe mentttioned, all of which were Drakkisss'sss old cccellmatesss. Alsssso, worttth noting, isss that all the guard wizzzardsss he encountered were merely knocked out, not killed."

    "So he's not a Death Eater," Harry said with relief. He didn't like the idea of facing a man who killed dragons singled-handedly for fun.

    "He might be, he might not. We don't know for sssure. Rita jussst emphasssizzzesss ttthe negative becaussse it sssellsss better. Look what ssshe sssaysss about me. And to ttthink, we usssed to date."

    "You dated Rita Skeeter?" Hermione choked, sounding repulsed at the thought.

    "Yesss, agesss ago. Back when we were ssstill in Hogwartsss. Now, I really mussst make my roundsss." And before either of them could ask another question, he had slipped out the window, a snake sliding down the rain gutter.

    Harry called after Smirl, but he was already gone. Meanwhile, Hermione had already begun flipping through the Daily Prophet.

    "Aha! Here it is, on page 7. 'Perhaps the most questionable of Dumbledore's "Order" is one Mr. Salizz Smirl. A known Parselmouth, Smirl has often been seen near dark wizard gatherings.' Honestly! He's an auror! He's supposed to be near dark wizard gatherings. Oh! And listen to this! 'Reliable sources say he was not even present to repel the assault on the inner sanctum.' Ooh! I bet she's the source herself! Hiding as a retched bug!

    "Why not report her?" Harry suggested, wanting nothing more than to be rid of her horrible articles forever.

    "Because she hasn't violated our arrangement. And I'll kiss Malfoy before I let her have moral superiority over me."

    Harry wanted to point out that nobody would know but them, but he could tell by Hermione's clenched jaw that it wasn't enough. So instead he looked at the paper.

    "What's this list next to the article?"

    "Oh, I think it's a list of the freed convicts. Let's see." Hermione's eyes flicked down the page, reading rapidly. Then, as she reached the bottom of the page, her eyes went wide and her face grew pale.

    "Harry, it's... it's..." Rather than finish the sentence, she thrust the paper at Harry. Adjusting his glasses he scanned the article.

    * Vargos Vildred, the Vampire Lord (Next to him was a drawn picture of an angular faced man) - imprisoned for mass murder, aiding He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and refusing to register himself as a Vampire

    * Gaddock, the Goblin Outcast (next to the name was a picture of a goblin hissing and growling at them. The left side of his face was badly burned, and he was missing his left arm and leg.) - imprisoned for murder, illegal use of a wand, and embezzlement from Gringotts.

    * Xu Xiang, the Assassin (This one showed a plain-looking Chinese woman dressed in blue staring impassively out the picture. She was rather large, with a flat nose, narrow eyes, and no hair, save for a scalp lock) - imprisoned for twelve acts of murder, wand concealment, and carrying unlicensed weaponry

    * Matthias the Mad Muggle (It was next to a picture of a young, but bald man, dressed in a blue shirt and trench coat with a matching hat and wrap around shades. He was smiling brightly, as if he got a joke nobody else did) - imprisoned for attempting to rob Gringotts, massive cases of resisting arrest, and for twelve breakouts from lesser containment area's.

And finally...

    * Paula "Wolfbane" Pettigrew

    "Harry," Hermione whispered, finding her voice. "It's Wormtail's sister!"

    Harry studied the picture. She didn't much resemble her brother. Unlike Peter, Paula didn't have any rat-like features. Instead, she possessed a soft fairness, which Harry thought might have been beauty once, before Azkaban worried her brow, and the Dementors sunk her cheeks. Her picture revealed a surprisingly feral nature, as it prowled about its frame, growling silently, revealing fang-like teeth and golden eyes. Harry read over the charges:

    * Paula "Wolfbane" Pettigrew - Imprisoned for five acts of destroying Ministry property, twenty acts of aiding fugitives, and numerous cases of resisting arrest.

    A shiver ran down Harry's spine as he looked over the list. Thieves and murderers, and Wormtail's sister, all of them skilled at eluding the Ministry, and led by one of the greatest warriors of the modern wizarding world. Harry hoped Smirl was right about the odds of Drakkis not aiding the Death Eaters, because he was very against the idea of facing a group like this. Harry's eyes came to rest on Matthias's picture.

    "Hmm, I wonder why his picture doesn't move," Harry said tapping it.

    "I'm more interested in why they're holding a muggle in the first place."

    "Says here that he tried to rob Gringotts."

    "Honestly Harry," Hermione sighed, "You'll never be an auror if you don't learn more. Ministry law states that a muggle who commits a crime gets his memory modified and is imprisoned in a muggle jail for a dressed up version of his crimes."

    Harry had no response for that, so he shifted the topic to Dumbledore's request for names of people who could do Padronuses. Hermione, who was desperate for wizarding news too, was eager to hear about it.

    "Let's see," Hermione mused. "There's you and me, of course."

    "Ron will kill us if we don't put him on the list. We'll train him up a bit once we meet up. Seamus also pulled it off."

    "Barely. I still don't know what form Seamus's has. I reckon it's some kind of rat. Don't forget Zacharius Smith."

    "I was hoping we could," Harry groaned, remembering the snot nosed Hufflepuff. While on the subject of people he wanted to forget, he added. "And Cho had her swan."

    "And there's Alicia and Katie. Oh, but Alicia graduated, didn't she?"

    "Yeah, and our quidditch team's all the worse for it."

    "Focus, Harry. There's also Anthony... Gold-something."

    "Goldstien," Harry commented. "Oh, and Ernie Macmillan. He must have told me a dozen times."

    "And Neville makes ten."

    "What?!" Harry coughed. "Neville learned Padronus?"

    "Yeah. He practiced some over the summer. I reckon Lupin helped him. We've been in contact a bit."

    Harry smiled and added Neville's name to the list. He'd be sure to congratulate him once he saw him again. Neville's wand skill had increased tenfold last year and it had mostly been due to Harry's guidance. He rolled up the paper and gave it to Hedwig, who nipped him affectionately and then flew off through the now-curtained window.

    Harry's stomach grumbled. He thought longingly of the leftover hamburger in the fridge, but then shuddered knowing that Barbie was down there. Finally his stomach won out.

    "I'm going to go downstairs and get our dinner from last night."

    "I'll come with you," Hermione offered.

    "Uh, no need," Harry said a bit too quickly. The last thing he needed was for Hermione to do something rash to Barbie. "I'll just be a moment and I want to avoid being noticed. It's easier if I go alone."

    Hermione's eyes narrowed, but she didn't press it. Harry slipped out of the room and made his way downstairs, stepping over the squeaky step. He looked quickly around and sighed in relief as he spotted Dudley and Barbie loudly watching television in the other room. He crept into the kitchen and began microwaving their food.

    Harry hastily stopped the microwave before it could beep, but his presence was revealed anyway when suddenly the phone rang, causing Dudley and Barbie to look over at him. Sheepishly he picked up the phone. "Hello?"

    "Harry?" A confused, somewhat familiar voice said on the other side.

    "Mr. Scornsby?" Harry asked, guessing at the voice's owner. His guess was answered by a click and a dial tone. Stunned he hung up the phone and stared until Barbie snapped him out of revere.

    "OH, HELLO HARRY! BRING ME A SODA, OKAY?"

    "Bring me one too, ol' chum," Dudley said in his horrid accent. Harry rolled his eyes, but decided now was not the time for a confrontation. He took out his hamburger and started zapping Hermione's teriyaki pasta before opening the fridge and taking out two cans of soda. He juggled them deftly as he brought them over.

    "Here you go," he said with a forced smile.

    "THANK YOU HARRY!" She smiled as if talking to a dog.

    Harry choked back a nasty retort, and went back to get the food. As he left, he heard Barbie call out to him. "YOU SHOULDN'T LET HERMIONE EAT THAT! IT WILL MAKE HER GET FATTER!"

    Harry caught Hermione halfway down the stairs, this time with her own wand in hand. Harry grabbed her by the arm and once again forced her up the stairs.

    "It's not fair!" She fumed as Harry led her into his room. "She deserves a good hex or two. Stuck-up, airheaded, ill mannered-"

    "You're prettier than she is," Harry interrupted, remembering what Smirl had told him in Parseltongue. "I'm sure Ron would agree," he added as an afterthought.

    "That's not the point, Harry!" Hermione exclaimed defensively, but she calmed down nonetheless.

    Just then, there was a loud shriek downstairs, presumably Barbie had just opened her cola. Harry laughed and Hermione looked at him for explanation.

    "Harry has done a most dreadful thing," Harry said, wringing his hands and doing his best Dobby voice. "Harry shall have to iron his hands."

    "Stop it!" Hermione said, failing to hold back laughter. "That's not funny." But soon enough they were both doubled over laughing.

    "It's not fair," Hermione hiccuped. "How come you get to punish her, and I don't?"

    "Because I didn't use a wand," Harry pointed out, and Hermione blushed slightly and dropped the subject.

    They ate their meals quickly. Harry's bun had become soggy and Hermione's chicken was a bit cold, but they didn't complain. Afterwards, they set up Harry's new game station to one of Dudley's old TVs. It had a broken antenna, but otherwise worked just fine. Soul Caliber turned out to be a game where you played a warrior and beat up another warrior. Harry and Hermione were both equally abysmal at it. They liked the second game, Monster Rancher, much more, and spent most of the afternoon raising a wolf they named Lupin.

    When Hermione's watch beeped out that it was four, Hermione declared it was time to study and Harry, who normally studied late at night so as not to be disturbed, happily agreed to it. It was so nice to finally have a friend to study with that Harry didn't even mind Hermione's near constant tutting about how much he didn't remember from last year. Well, he almost didn't mind, anyway.

    At seven, while Harry was double-checking the ingredients for a pungence potion, the door bell rang. Curious, Harry put down his quill and crept down the stair. Barbie must have left earlier, as Dudley way currently entranced his his newest video games in the living room. Uncle Vernon opened the door to reveal...

    "Mr. Scornsby," Harry said in surprise, remembering the mysterious phone call earlier.

    "Hullo, Harry," Jim smiled with uncharacteristic nervousness. "I'm here to finish some red tape on Vern's promotion."

    "Yes, yes, of course," Vernon said eagerly

    "Oh, and this is my daughter, Summer," Jim said stepping back to reveal a small blonde girl. "Summer, this is Harry Potter."

    "Hullo, Summer," Harry said cheerfully as he came the rest of the way down the stairs. Summer was a tiny slip of a girl, even skinnier than Harry was at her age, although she was obviously better fed. She was just naturally small. She had long blonde hair pulled into a braid that fell to her waist, and a smile that threatened to split her face in two. "Pleased to meet you."

    Summer giggled. "We've already met, Harry."

    "We have?" Harry asked. Summer merely nodded.

    "Where's Hermione?" Jim asked.

    "I'm here," Hermione said in her Japanese accent, as she came down the stairs, ignoring the half-hidden glare from Vernon. "Hello Summer."

    "You look very smart," Summer beamed.

    "Thank you, Summer," Hermione blushed.

    "Summer," Jim said lovingly. "Why don't you play with ol' cousin Dudley for a bit, while I talk with Harry and Hermione about something.

    Summer's warm smile quickly disappeared. "Do I have to?" She asked softly, so only her father and - unknowingly - Harry's sharp ears could hear. "He's mean."

    "I'm sure you'll have fun," Jim smiled.

    "Dudley," Vernon said eagerly, "Let the girl have a go at some of your video games."

    Dudley's face scrunched up at the concept of having to share, but he knew better than to complain. With a grunt, Dudley handed Summer the controller.

    "Now, let's have a look at that-" Vernon started, but Jim ignored him. Once he was sure that Summer was happily blasting away aliens, Jim ushered Harry and Hermione upstairs, completely ignoring the stuttering Vernon.

    "What's going on?" Harry asked, but Jim didn't say a word until they were in Harry's room. The moment they were in the room he shut the door, but that was the only decisive thing he did. He opened his mouth, then closed it, as if he were about to say something, then thought better of it. He paced the room, looking into Hedwig's empty cage, and idly rustling the instruction books left out on Harry's desk. Harry and Hermione exchanged worried glances. They hadn't known Jim long, but they knew that this nervous lack of confidence was rather unlike him.

    "Are you alright, sir? I mean, Jim," Harry asked.

    Jim swallowed and blurted out, "Your school... what did you say its name was?"

    Hermione looked at Harry and Harry spoke up.

    "Um, I don't think we mentioned the name," Harry lied.

    "You didn't?" Jim said in surprise. "Then. what is its name?"

    Seeing Jim at such a loss seemed unnatural, and Harry felt a surge of concern. The name of the school couldn't hurt, could it? "Its Hogwarts, sir."

    A wave of relief washed over Jim's face. "So it's real then? This isn't some kind of scam?"

    Again, Harry and Hermione shared glances. "What isn't Jim-san?" Hermione asked.

    "Well, when I got home yesterday, Summer had received this," Jim took out a letter made of old yellow parchment. Harry could make out Summer's name in emerald green letters.

    "That's a Hogwarts letter!" Hermione exclaimed.

    "Summer is a witch!" Harry shouted.

    "Oh what a relief," Jim sighed. "Ever since Venus, my wife, died, I've tried to be levelheaded, for Summer's sake, but I'm just no good at it.

    "I'm afraid I don't follow si- Jim," Harry said confusedly.

    "School of magic and levelheadedness don't exactly go hand in hand, Harry," Jim smiled, regaining much of his control and cheer. "But it's all true then, right? Magic does exist?"

    Hermione again looked to Harry, as if waiting and Harry realized that she was deferring to him. For once in his life, he was in charge of the situation and not the boy being kept in the dark. For this, he was extremely grateful to Hermione.

    "I suppose a little demonstration would be okay," Harry said. "Perhaps a disarming spell?"

    Hermione nodded and picked her wand up off the bedside table. She flicked it slowly and said, in a soft voice, "Expelliarmus."

    The results were less than spectacular. A feeble flickering bolt hit Jim in the chest, causing him to stumble backwards and the envelope to jump out of his hands, landing a mere half foot away. Though the spell was feeble, Mr. Scornsby's reaction was not.

    "I knew it!" He exclaimed. "Deep down, I've always known magic existed," Jim beamed and Harry was happy to see the energetic Jim from yesterday.

    "I'm not surprised," Hermione said knowingly. "Unless I'm mistaken, you're a Mergolis."

    "A what?" Both Jim and Harry asked at the same time.

    "A Mergolis. It's an abbreviation of 'Merlin's Muggles' but it's been bastardized over time. Its origins are a bit vague. Many believe that Merlin made the Mergolis by casting spells on Muggle knights, while other's believe that he just brought awareness to a group that already existed. Of course, there are some who reckon that Merlin had an affair with Morgan de Fey and they had a squib son and the whole thing was named posthumously, but the-

    "Hermione," Harry interrupted. "You're babbling.

    "Sorry. Anyway, a Mergolis is a muggle who has a magic ability like some wizards have, such as your Parseltongue, Harry. Mr. Scornsby is a Spelltale. He can sense the basic personality of a-"

    Hermione cut short as both she and Jim stood straight up, a mirrored look of worry on each of their faces. Hermione's wand fell from her fingers without her noticing.

    "What's going-" But Harry was talking to air as both of them raced out of the room, Jim crying, "Summer!"

    Harry quickly followed then as they raced downstairs, where his eyes met with an odd scene. Summer was cowering behind Dudley, who was in turn hiding behind Aunt Petunia, who was similarly ducking behind Vernon, who was smiling as if today were his birthday.

    Their looks of fear, and Vernon's odd look of joy, were directed at a strange man standing in the doorway. Harry was inclined to agree with the trio's fear. He was a large man who looked, like Dudley, as if he had once been fat, but the fat had been burned and starved into muscles. His clothes were ragged, filthy, and loose on him. His eyes were sunken and his nose broken, at least twice, probably more. His beard and hair were both horrid jungles of knots that reached his waist, and might have been blonde once, if not for what appeared to be ten years of dirt, dust, and mud covering them.

    Hermione and Jim appeared not to have noticed the man yet, as they both were still rushing towards Summer and fussing over her.

    "Are you alright?" Hermione asked, her fake accent dropped.

    "Are you hurt, dear?" Jim flustered.

    "Calm down, everyone!" Vernon insisted, but nobody listened. Not even the mystery man, who stepped over the threshold, right past Vernon and to the foot of the stairs, directly in front of Harry. He locked eyes with Harry, and Harry saw something familiar in the expression of the stranger's eyes. A kind of awe, like a man seeing light after spending years in the dark. Harry had seen this look before, but could not remember where.

    "So this is Harry Potter," the man said in a gravely voice. It was not a question.

    "I'm afraid it is," Vernon said in disdain. "But how do you-"

    "Die," the man said in a calm voice as he grabbed Harry's throat and began squeezing the life out of him.