Harry Potter and the Green Flame Torch

After having talked to Ron, Harry was left feeling quite content and satisfied. He didn't wonder at all why Dumbledore wanted to meet him at the Ministry. There were so many things to cover; the will, his guardianship, and the whole Voldemort thing. He had a feeling that tomorrow would be quite tiresome.

Deciding to take a peek at the things Dumbledore had left him, Harry left to the kitchen where the books sat on the table. He carefully emptied the bag that read across 'Diagon Alley' in bold print. Inside he found a note:

Harry pulled his results from the static pink sheet. They read:

- Household Charms

- Charms for Stranded Situations

- Disguise, Concealment, and Foolery

- Simple Enchantments for Luxury and Happiness

N.E.W.T. Astronomy taught by Professor Aurora Sinistra

Harry stood in shock, his mouth agape. He, Harry, had not only passed Potions, but had got an Outstanding? He, Harry, had not failed a single O.W.L.? Harry felt he had done a lot better than he expected. Pulling his new eagle feather quill and a bottle of metallic green ink from the pile of supplies on the table, he moistened his quill and checked except for 'Using the Theory, the Useless B.S. You Learned Last Year', 'Household Transfiguration', Divination, and Astronomy. He knew it would be a lot of work, but he also knew that he had to beat Lord Voldemort. Feeling satisfied with his choices, he rolled the parchment up and sealed it with a wax "H" he had found in his pile of goods. He took Hedwig out of her cage, which had mysteriously relocated itself from his door to the kitchen, and tied the parchment to her claws.

"Send this to Griselda Marchbanks, girl," Harry said gently, stroking her feathers. He strode over to the window, opened it, and spread his arms out as Hedwig began to fly away in a flash of white.

Deciding that it would be wise to rest, seeing as he had to deal with Ministry officials in the morning, Harry chose to retire to a warm, comfortable bed that he had never experienced in a place he could call "home". Nearly falling over in exhaust, he managed to get himself to his bed. Not even bothering to take his clothes off, he retired to his bed, in his house, and to his world.

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Harry woke up around seven o'clock the next morning. For a moment, he did not quite remember where he was or how he got there until he saw his owl perched lazily on the top of his four-poster. Remembering that he had a Ministry meeting (which meant argument or conflict of some sort), he jumped out of bed to make himself presentable. He quickly removed his too-baggy tee shirt, trousers, and scrubby underclothes and made his way to his multi-faucet shower. As soon as he stepped in, the shower turned on and before he knew it, his hair was soapy, then clean. For a moment, he felt quite thunderstruck. While he was feeling surprised and in awe, his body became as soapy and white as his hair had been, then completely free of dirt or soap. The shower then shut off, and a towel was produced from thin air. It wrapped itself around Harry and nearly carried him to his bed, where he found himself completely dry and warm. Deciding that this house was insane and that he might as well enjoy it, he walked over to his closet (which opened on its own) and pulled out the most expensive-looking clothes that he could find. He put on a green silk shirt and black dress pants, complete with shiny black shoes. He also chose a dark green robe that shone the colour of his eyes in the light and a silver Padfoot clasp. He thought he looked quite smashing, if he wanted to say so himself. Hedwig gave a loud hoot in approval and fluttered to his shoulder.

After savouring the feel of the luxurious material on his skin, he remembered that he needed to disguise himself. While looking like he was the wealthiest man in England helped a lot, he was sure that everyone would be able to recognize his trademark messy hair with scar look. He walked slowly to the kitchen, not wanting to actually have to look at a book. There he found a Charms book for disguise and concealment.

He leafed through the volume before finding a few incantations that caught his eye. One was Coloratio Oculus Caelum, which turned his eyes sky blue when he performed the charm. Another was a hair growing charm called Coloratio Capillus Pallens, which made his hair turn a light blonde colour. Yet another spell called Coloratio Capillus Virga Terra made his hair become streaked with light brown. The last spell, his favourite, was Abscondo Maculo, which hid his scar.

When he found himself at the front door by him mirror, Aurora barely recognized him.

"You'll do well not to appear to your friends and say something that someone else shouldn't know," she warned.

Remembering that he had forgotten his cloak, he waited for a moment. He didn't want to have to walk all the way back to his room and get one. Then he was reminded of something.

"Aurora, do you know how my owl cage got to the kitchen?" Harry asked, feeling every bit as stupid as Malfoy's cronies Crabbe and Goyle.

"Don't be silly, boy. You're rich and you have a house elf. Just tell it you need a cloak!" she answered back in snappish motherly sort of way.

"How do I call it? Just say 'house elf'?"

"Precisely," the mirror replied as Harry heard a sharp pop behind him.

"Master Harry Potter sir called?" the house elf said eagerly. Harry recognized him instantly as Dobby, the house elf he had freed from the Malfoys in his second year.

"Dobby?" Harry questioned, astonished.

"Yes, I is Dobby and I is at your service, Master Harry Potter sir. What do you require?"

"I need my best black cloak," Harry answered. Before he had finished his sentence, the house elf instantly had a cloak in his hand and handed it to Harry.

"Thanks, Dobby," he said gratefully. Dobby bowed graciously and popped away. Harry checked the time as he heard the pop that Dobby made. It was nine o'clock on the nose. Dumbledore wasn't there.

"Ah, Harry. I should have known you'd be at the door. You aren't quite used to Floo, are you?" said a voice from behind Harry. He whirled around to see Dumbledore at his door.

"We aren't using Floo, are we? My closes will get absolutely filthy!" Harry reminded the Headmaster.

"No, I can assure you your clothes will stay clean. Wizard clothes have charms woven into them. So now, if you'll just make your way to your fireplace, we should be at the Ministry soon enough. Have you seen the Daily Prophet lately?"

"No. That paper's a load of dung and everyone knows it."

"Yes, well, it might do you good to check up on the load of dung every so often. They're calling an election, Harry."

"An election? Doesn't that meant that...that Fudge is sacked?" Harry asked eagerly. Dumbledore's eyes became a blue sky full of twinkling stars.

"Yes, it does. Fudge is no longer our Minister of Magic."