The Last Riddle

Harry woke up with a start.

He sat up in bed and rubbed the scar on his forehead. It wasn't like him to wake up so suddenly. He glanced at the window and then at the clock on his bedside table. 9:00 A.M., it read. He sighed and got out of bed, as he wondered why he wasn't feeling more excited. In two hours, he would be on board the Hogwarts Express, starting a new stage of his life. He put on his black rimmed glasses and went to his wardrobe to pick some Muggle clothes. He stumbled into the bathroom and changed. When he went out, he felt a sudden adrenaline rush and almost against his will, he strode towards his trunk and lifted it. This was easy because his father had put a Feather-light charm on it. He opened the door, picked up Hedwig's cage with the sleeping owl inside, and rushed down the stairs. He left both the cage and the trunk by the front door and went into the kitchen to have some breakfast. His parents were already there.

"Morning, Harry," greeted James looking up from the Daily Prophet. "We were about to wake you."

Harry smiled at his father and sat down. "Anything interesting in the news?"

"Same ol' crap," said James without thinking.

"James!" snapped Lily. "Don't curse. Would you like some toast, Harry?"

Harry nodded.

"Don't rush me, Harry," said Lily with a frown. "I know you're hungry."

Harry blinked with confusion and then he noticed he was drumming his fingertips on the table. He stopped. "I... I'm sorry, mum... I didn't... mean to..."

Lily raised her eyebrows and James peeked at Harry from behind the newspaper.

"I'm sorry. I guess I'm just nervous," Harry tried to explain. His parents 'Ohed' in understanding and went back to what they were doing. Harry ran his hands through his messy locks. 'What's wrong with me?' he thought. His mother placed a plate in front of him.

"Don't worry, Harry," she said smiling. "You'll love Hogwarts. After a few days you won't want to leave."

James put down the Daily Prophet and looked at his son. "Yeah. Hogwarts is like a second home. You'll meet all kinds of people, make new friends, prank the teachers..." Lily sent him a death glare. "... okay, so you won't prank the teachers, only Snivelly 'cause you know how greasy he is."

Lily picked up the newspaper and used it to hit James. "Don't listen to your father, Harry. It's better if you stay out of trouble."

Harry smiled at his parents and bit into his breakfast. He chuckled to himself. His parents always bickered over things like this. James was always prompting him to prank others (cough, the Slytherins, cough), but Lily, who apparently still felt like she was Head Girl, was always trying to convince him to stay out of trouble, study hard, set the example, that kind of stuff. To be completely honest, he was more like his mum. Sure, he loved to play little pranks on Draco Malfoy and his friends when they met at the social parties he and his parents loathed, but he rather stayed out of the spotlight. His brother would have probably turned out to be the prankster.

"Is your trunk packed?" asked Lily.

"Yes."

"Your owl?" asked James.

"Asleep."

"Good," said Lily with a smile. "We leave in about half an hour, so double check you don't leave anything behind."

They finished breakfast in silence. Apparently his parents were nervous as well, they just didn't show it. "I'm a bit dizzy," he told his parents. They stared strangely at him. "Yeah," he continued. "Like when you stop breathing for a while. He! I must be more nervous than I thought."

Lily looked at him with concern. "Are you sure? Don't you want a pepper up potion?"

Harry shook his head. "Nah. It's all right, mum. I'll go check my room." He stood up and walked up the stairs. With each step he took, his scar prickled more intensely. He rubbed it furiously until he reached his room. He pushed the door open and stood in the doorway. This had been his room ever since he could remember. The cradle had only been replaced by a bed and the colour of the walls had changed, but it was the same old room.

The room in which he had survived the Avada Kedavra.

He started to yawn and found he couldn't make the air pass through his throat. He stopped the yawn and started breathing normally, then tried to yawn again and his scar throbbed painfully, accompanied by a second rush of adrenaline and a set of emotions that weren't his own. Fear, anger, relief, and... was that happiness? His scar throbbed again and he had to bite his cheek to stop himself from crying out loud and scaring his parents. Besides, the pain was nothing new. He had always felt prickles, but they were so slight he hadn't bothered his parents with them. Today was different, though. His scar had never hurt him this much before, and he was starting to doubt whether he should keep quiet on this one. He sat on his bed with his hand on his forehead. Then the pain stopped. He took that a signal to keep quiet.

Harry sighed and stared off into space. He knew he was missing something he just didn't know what. He swept the room with his emerald gaze once more and his eyes stopped on the wardrobe. He stood up and went to open the door. Nothing. Where had he put it? He went to his desk and started opening drawers. Empty. The book shelf... Nil. Harry scratched his chin in thought and then snapped his fingers. He went back to his bed but this time he removed the mattress, and there it was: an old wizard photo with two little boys and a baby girl in it.

Harry sighed with relief as he took the photo and set the mattress back in place. Unlike other wizard photos, this one was coloured. The boys looked to be about one and both had messy black hair. They were identical except for the eyes. Harry's were green. Alan's were blue. Harry had been puzzled about this since neither of his parents had blue eyes, but then Lily had told him that her mother had had blue eyes, and the mystery was solved. The girl had short red hair and green eyes. Harry smiled at the picture of Kristy when she was five months old. This was the last picture that had been taken of Harry, Alan and Kristy together. Baby Harry was smiling at the camera and then looking back at his twin, who was looking at Kristy curiously. Kristy was laying on her stomach and trying to turn her head so she could see the blue eyed boy. Harry noticed that Alan was the palest of the three and that he looked tired. 'He was sick already,' he thought sadly.

"Ouch!" he cried, as he felt a stab of pain both on the left side of his head and on his scar. 'Great,' he thought. 'Now I have a headache.' He put the picture in the pocket of his jeans just as he felt a dull throb start on his left side, just below his ribs. He touched his left side and frowned. What on Earth was happening to him!? He was definitely telling his parents now, because the scar had never caused him so much trouble. He glanced at the clock. 10:14 AM.

"Harry!" called Lily's voice. "Come down now! We have to get to King's Cross and that's far away!"

"I'm coming, mum!" he called back. He stood on the doorway once more, drinking in all the details of his room before turning around and shutting the door. It was time to move on.

---

He moaned and then sighed tiredly. His head and chest hurt and he felt like he hadn't slept in years. He was laying on something soft and warm, and there was a bandage wrapped tightly around his chest. What had happened? He remembered fire, screaming, pain, Selven, the explosion, the Horcrux... His eyes popped open. The Horcrux!

"My father's alive!" He intended to shout it but it came out as a whisper. He blinked and looked at his surroundings. He wasn't in a hospital, he was sure of that. Light streamed in from the windows, though not enough to hurt his eyes. The walls were painted dark blue and the wall opposite to the bed he was laying on was covered by bookshelves made out of ebony. On the wall to his right were a door and a couch. On the wall to his left were a wardrobe, a window, and a desk. He knew this place. It was his old room! At Riddle Manor!

"I'm dreaming," he told to himself. "This last three years have been a nightmare, nothing else."

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, Jack, but they have been very real."

Jack turned his head to the right so fast he cried out in pain. He had to shut his eyes so he didn't manage to see who had spoken.

"Easy, young Padawan," said the voice. "It will be a few hours before you go back to normal."

"Andor?" asked Jack wearily without opening his eyes.

"Who else would call you Padawan?" Andor asked kindly.

"A Jedi Master probably," laughed Jack opening his eyes. He didn't care if laughing hurt him, he was just glad that he was back with Andor. "What happened?"

Andor, who had come in through a door beside the head of the bed, sat on the couch and stared intently at Jack. "I rather told you when you get better. You must rest."

Jack shot him a dirty look. "Yes, but how am I going to rest if the question of what happened will be nagging at me?"

Andor grunted. "Fine. You're right. As always. Are you laying comfortably? Then I'll begin. A few hours ago, yes it was only a few hours ago so don't look at me like that, Selven and a group of Urgals, I'm sure you caught a glimpse of them, went into downtown Ebur looking for the Bloors..."

"Wait a sec," cut Jack. "I met Selven and he said he had been looking for my distant relatives and found me instead. Are you telling me the Bloors are my relatives?"

Andor looked confused. "Didn't your father ever tell you? I'm sure he must have... he would have never kept something as big as this from you... unless... never mind."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" cried Jack, ignoring the pain this caused him. "Unless what?"

Andor looked uncomfortable. "Let me tell you what happened first and then I'll explain about the Bloors. As I was saying, Selven was looking for the Bloors. You just had the bad luck to be at the wrong place at the wrong moment ('And I thought my good luck was returning,' thought Jack with an eye-roll). It was Reuben Bloor who found Selven torturing you and told you to run away. Then, I don't know what possessed you to go so near to a burning building, but the building exploded and you were caught under the rubble. If Paris, an old vampire friend of mine, hadn't seen the building fall on you, then you would surely be dead. He healed your wounds to the best of his abilities and watched over you until I arrived. For some unknown reason, Selven retreated and once the all clear was given I brought you here. Mainly because the hospitals were full. That was around... one o' clock in the morning."

Jack's mind was swimming with questions. His head gave another painful throb and he winced. "Can you tell me about the Bloors now?"

Andor leaned back on the couch and sighed. "I'll go straight to the point. You do know you are Salazar Slytherin's Heir through your father, don't you?" Jack nodded and Andor continued. "Well, the thing is Salazar had two sons: Sheridan and Sebastian. Sheridan, or Shay, was the older of the two. You and your father descend directly from Shay, while Reuben and his sons descend from Sebastian. So that would make you distant cousins."

Jack blinked. "Okay... so now I know how I'm related to the Bloors, now, could you tell me why my father didn't tell me about this?"

Andor grimaced. "I was hoping you had forgotten about that. It's mainly classified information so I'll do my best. Reuben Bloor, Tom Riddle, David Cineris, Diego Hawkins, Audrey Pike and a score of others discovered something when they were young. As the years went by, the group split. They each followed their own paths, but then, a few years before you were born, rumours of their deaths started spreading through the underworld. It was dangerous for them to try to contact each other, for fear of their whereabouts being discovered, so maybe your father thought Reuben had died and he didn't see the point in telling you about him."

"There's more to it," said Jack with a thoughtful expression. While Andor was telling the story, Jack had managed to sit up and was now leaning in with interest. His eyes had turned glacier blue in concentration. "Father would have told me even if Reuben Bloor had died. He did mention him, though; he just never said we were related."

"You're sharp, Jack Riddle," said Andor, and Jack had the decency to blush slightly. "Yes, there is more to it, but this is not the place nor am I the right one to speak of the matter."

Jack grimaced but didn't ask more questions. He knew when a matter was closed. He glanced at the clock on his bedside table. It read 8:11 AM. He was about to lie down again when he remembered something. "Andor!" he cried. "I've got a Horcrux! I can bring my father back!"

Andor frowned and stood up. "You have a Horcrux? Let me see that..."

Jack reached inside his shirt and pulled out a silver chain. He showed Andor the yellow gem and for the first time in his life he saw Andor Grigio's jaw hit the floor. "How... how did you come to have this?"

"My... my father gave it to me," replied Jack. Andor seemed to be struggling for words. He stepped closer to examine the gem and took a deep breath. Jack magically made the chain longer so Andor wouldn't get so close and so he didn't have to take the gem off for Andor to see it properly. Andor took the gem in one trembling hand. "Andor, are you alright? Not even I reacted like that..."

Andor shook his head. "Do you have any idea of what this is? But... could it be?" he asked weakly.

Jack's face darkened. "I'm starting to suspect it isn't a Horcrux, and that my father is really dead."

Andor released the gem and looked sadly at Jack. "I'm sorry Jack. It... it's not a Horcrux."

Jack sighed in defeat and fell into the pillows. He should have known better than to get his hopes up. Now he felt like he had lost his father all over again.

"Jack," said Andor. The boy looked up. "I know this is not the best time but I desperately need to know something. Could you please take the gem and concentrate in turning it violet?"

Jack sent Andor a look that plainly said 'What the heck!?' but since Andor truly looked desperate, Jack set his emotions aside and grabbed the gem. 'Turn violet,' thought Jack dully, looking at the gem. 'Violet. Violet. Violet. Violet. Viole...' Jack broke the eye contact with the gem and looked at Andor. "This is stupid," he grumbled. "I can't feel anything happening."

"Try harder," prompted Andor. "Picture the gem going violet in your mind and then try again."

Jack shook his head. "You're insane," he muttered, but he closed his eyes and imagined the gem turning violet. Then he snapped his eyes open and concentrated on the gem once more. Violet. Violet. Vio... "Whoa!"

Both Jack and Andor had to shield their eyes from the intense violet light that sprouted from the gem. Jack wrapped his hand around its cool surface and the light dimmed enough for them to be able to see properly again, although the light still filtered through Jack's fingers and he was pretty sure he could see the bones of his hand against the light.

"Andor..." he said weakly. "What is this thing?"

Andor's face was solemn. "That Jack, is a sunstone."

"A sunstone? What's a sunstone?"

Andor seemed to be battling with himself. He decided to answer. "A sunstone, Jack, is a stone that gives light; of different wavelengths and intensities. But this sunstone in particular is a Key."

Jack asked the obvious. "What does it unlock?"

Andor looked seriously at Jack. "What I am about to tell you is very dangerous information, and you should never disclose it without consulting me first. Understood?"

Jack nodded, but he stopped because it made his head hurt.

Andor went back to the couch and started collecting his thoughts. "There are seven sources of power," he started. "Seven very big sources of power. They are called the Keystones, and they are represented by the seven different colours of the spectrum. Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. Violet being the one that holds the most power. The key your father happened to give you unlocks the Violet Keystone. Before you start asking questions again, let me finish.

"I have no idea how Tom managed to get his hands on the Violet Key, or why he passed such a powerful thing on to you, but I know this: Selven now knows that you are the Keeper of the Violet Key and he will hunt you down until he has it. I don't know why he wants to unlock the Violet Keystone but it can't be good. Under no circumstances is the Key to fall into Selven's hands, do you understand?"

Jack shuddered at the intensity of the look Andor was giving him. "A-Andor... how am I going to be able to protect the Key from a Shade? He managed to... to kill Father... how is he not going to be able to kill me?"

"You forget something," said Andor with a knowing smile. "Your father thought ahead again. He charmed the chain so that only he or you could take it off willingly. Selven needs you alive and willing to give him the Key, just like you reminded him when he attacked you."

Jack frowned and glanced at his violet coloured hand. "I don't know, Andor. It's too much responsibility... maybe you should take it," he suggested hopefully.

Andor shook his head. "No. Things of this magnitude don't just happen, Jack. You were meant to be the Keeper. The reality is you will eventually become the Dark Lord and people everywhere will begin to fear and respect you. The Key would be safe with you because no one would dare to take it from you." Andor's expression turned dark. "I expect the Key to be protected from yourself."

Jack nodded in defeat and watched as the violet light faded. "I just got two last questions, and if you answer me I promise to go back to sleep," he whispered. At Andor's nod, he continued. "Do you know who the other six Keepers are?"

Andor shook his head. "No. You are the first Keeper I have encountered. And you must be very careful of not being discovered by anyone else. Not even by your most trusted friends. What's the second question?"

Jack sighed in disappointment before asking, "Where are the Keystones?"

Andor leaned back on his seat. "No one knows. Actually, no one has known of their location for at least one thousand years. There are no books speaking of them, not even legends... all clues have been lost over time. The only ones who know of the Keystones' existence are the Key Keepers, the Headmaster or Headmistress of Ingoldstadt, and Selven himself. Now sleep. I'll wake you up when it's time to go."

Jack let himself fall on the pillows again and as his eyelids began to droop he asked, "And how did you get to know about the Keystones?"

Andor smiled mysteriously. "You said two questions. Sleep."

Despite his troubled thoughts and his injuries, Jack smiled and his eyes turned sapphire blue with amusement. "You'll never change," he said, before drifting off into a dreamless sleep.

---

Harry pushed the trolley ahead of him. He had only been at King's Cross once before so he could hardly remember the way to Platform 9 and 3/4. He was lucky his parents and the Weasleys knew its location by heart. They weaved in and out of the Muggle crowds; trying to escape the weird looks they were given. Hedwig was surprisingly still asleep, and Ron's rat, Scabbers, was silent in his cage. James and Percy the perfect prefect marched in front, followed by Harry and Ron who in turn were followed by the twins. Lily, Molly and Ginny brought up the rear.

"Here we are," announced James. "Percy, you go first."

Percy puffed up and walked straight into the barrier that separated the Muggle world from the Magical one. Fred and George followed and then came Harry's turn. His father stood beside him and told him how to cross, "You just run straight for it, like I've told you before. Once you're on the other side wait for us, alright?"

Harry nodded and took off. The brick wall melted around him when he passed and he caught his first glimpse of the Hogwarts Express. At least one hundred families were on the Platform, saying their good byes to the children and teens that were boarding the scarlet train. A few seconds later, Ron joined him in the Platform.

"It awesome, isn't it?" Ron said. Being the sixth Weasley he had seen the train before.

"It's really cool," replied Harry with his eyes glued on the train.

Then the three adults and Ginny crossed. "...re too young, Ginny," Mrs. Weasley was saying. "You'll go next year."

Ginny pouted and the Potters joined their son. "So... what do you think?" asked James.

Harry looked at the crowd again and smiled. "I feel better already," he said. Lily ruffled his hair fondly. She had discovered that grooming it was a waste of time a long time ago.

"Go find a compartment, then come back, okay?" she said.

"OK," said Harry. "C'mon, Ron. Let's get a compartment before all of them are taken."

Ron nodded and followed Harry through the crowd. They climbed into the train, helping each other with their trunks, and found an empty compartment at the end of the train. They put their trunks inside and went back to the outside to search for their parents. While looking for them, they came across the Longbottoms, the Bones, the Smiths and other families they had met before. When they spotter Molly Weasley's red hair and got closer they didn't see one, but two redheaded girls.

"Kristy!" called Harry.

Kristy whirled around and her face broke into a smile when she saw Harry.

"I thought you weren't going to make it," he told her when he caught up with the group. Sirius and Orion were there as well.

"Yes well," she babbled. "I wasn't going to come, actually..." She blushed at his slightly betrayed expression. "You know I don't like good byes..." she explained blushing harder.

"Liar," muttered Orion. Ginny scowled at the younger boy and pulled him away from the conversation by the neck of his shirt. The train's whistle was blown and children started boarding the train.

Mrs. Weasley hugged each of her sons and James and Lily took turns to hug Harry, then Mrs. Weasley hugged Harry. Twice. Sirius hugged Harry as well and ruffled his godson's hair. "Have a good year, kiddo," he said.

"Remember to prank Snivellus," whispered James in Harry's ear.

"Be a good boy, darling," said Lily. "Study hard."

Harry smiled at his three favourite adults and was about to follow Ron and the twins into the train when Kristy caught him and hugged him as well. Then she discretely kissed his cheek with a quick "Bye, Harry." and went to stand behind her father, blushing furiously. Harry went slightly pink and touched the spot were she had kissed him.

"C'mon, Harry!" called Ron from the train. "The train's leaving!"

Harry climbed into the train and looked out one of the windows. His mother and Mrs. Weasley were crying. Sirius and his father had proud smiles on their faces and Orion was jumping up and down as if he were possessed. "Bye, Harry!" he hollered. "Bye, Ron! See you next year!"

The train lurched forwards and the whistle was blown again. Harry and Ron waved good bye to their families just like the other children were doing. Ginny and Orion ran after the train but then the train turned a corner and both children disappeared from view.

Harry sighed. "Well, let's go back to our compartment."

"Yeah," said Ron.

They picked their way through the small crowd of teenagers. 'Being small first years has its advantages, too,' thought Harry as they slipped through the small spaces between the larger bodies. They finally made it to the end of the train and when they entered the compartment they found a chubby boy kneeling on the floor. He was facing the floor so he didn't se them enter.

"Neville?" asked Harry.

Neville jumped about a foot in the air and hastily stood up. "I'm... I-I'm so sorry, Harry. I didn't mean to intrude it's just... well..."

Harry smiled. "Why don't you seat with us Neville? By the way, this is Ron Weasley. Ron, this is Neville Longbottom. I've told you about him."

Ron scrunched up his face and sat down beside the window. "You're the kid that's always following Harry at the parties, right?"

Harry sent Ron an exasperated look and sat down opposite the redheaded boy. Neville sat beside him. "Yeah," he said slightly embarrassed. "That's me."

"Oh, well... nice to meet you," said Ron offering a hand.

Neville's face broke into a smile and took the offered hand.

"What were you doing here, Neville?" asked Harry.

Neville blushed. "I was looking for my toad, Trevor. He got lost when I was saying good bye to my mom."

"Oh, well," said Harry. "I'm sure it will show up, sooner or later."

"Thanks, Harry."

Harry turned to look at Ron. He was staring at the window and drumming his fingers on his lap. "What's bothering you?"

"Nothing," answered Ron a little too quickly.

"C'mon, Ron. I know you," said Harry. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, really. Just Fred and George being silly again..."

"What did they tell you?" asked Harry suspiciously.

Ron spun his head around, as if making sure that no one was spying on them. Then he leaned in and whispered something.

"What?" said Harry.

Ron beckoned Harry and Neville closer and whispered, "They said You-Know-Who's son is coming to Hogwarts this year!"

Harry rolled his eyes and sat back. "Of course he won't. Dumbledore wouldn't allow it."

Neville paled and looked at Harry. "Are you sure?"

Harry took in his friends' scared faces and frowned. "Oh c'mon," he said. "Voldemort's son at Hogwarts?" Ron and Neville flinched horribly. "Stop it guys. He's dead, remember? Gone."

"So?" said Ron defensively. "He was scary. Who's to say his son won't be the same?"

"Voldemort's son is not coming to Hogwarts," said Harry through clenched teeth. Ron and Neville flinched again.

"Please don't say his name..." whispered Neville.

"Oh but he is coming to Hogwarts, Potter," drawled a voice from the compartment's door. "And I must say we're best friends. Almost like brothers."

Harry rolled his eyes again. "Get out of here, Malfoy. Besides, I'd bet you hadn't even heard of him before we did."

Draco Malfoy straightened and was about to fire a comeback when Harry stood up and shut the door in the blond boy's face. Then he locked it. "There," he said before going back to his seat. Ron and Neville still looked uneasy so Harry took a deep breath and said, "Listen. Whatever Malfoy said, he was bluffing. Besides, Dumbledore's smarter than that. He would never allow someone as dangerous as the Heir to attend Hogwarts. We can trust him."

"If you say so..." said Neville. Ron still looked uncertain but let the matter drop. They hadn't been alone for five minutes when there was a knock on the door. Neville, who was closest to the door, stood up and opened it.

"Have you seen a..." started saying a bushy-haired girl who was already wearing her Hogwarts robes. "Oh, it's you, Neville. I'm sorry; no one on the train has seen Trevor. Who are you sitting with?"

"I'm Ron Weasley," muttered Ron.

"Harry Potter," said Harry.

"Are you really?" said the girl. "I know all about you, of course - nobody in my family's magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course - I've learnt all the course books by heart, of course, and I got a few extra books for background reading, and you're in Modern Magical History and The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century - I'm Hermione Granger, by the way." She said all this very fast.

Harry and Ron shared a look.

"Um..." said Harry uncertainly. "It's nice to meet you, I guess. I-I didn't know I was mentioned in so many books..."

"Well, you are," said Hermione from the doorway. "Do any of you know in which house you will be in? I hope I'm in Gryffindor, it sounds like the best. Dumbledore himself was in Gryffindor; though Ravenclaw doesn't sound bad either. Do you mind if I come in?"

By the look in Ron's face, Harry knew that his best friend would like nothing better than to push Hermione Granger off a cliff. But Neville seemed to like her so Harry decided to give her a chance. "It's alright. You can sit here if you like." Harry ignored the look of betrayal Ron was giving him.

Hermione closed the door behind her and sat down in front of Neville. "Did you read the news this morning? Someone broke into Gringotts!"

Ron finally seemed interested. "Yeah, I heard. Weird, right?"

"What happened to them?" asked Harry. 'Same ol' crap,' he thought. 'Sure dad.'

Ron was in his element, for now he held the attention of the other three. "Nothing. That's why it's such big news. Apparently whoever broke in didn't take anything, either."

Harry frowned. "But who could break into Gringotts and come out unharmed?"

"Someone Dark, surely," said Ron. "Or at least that's what my dad said. Isn't it a bit odd?" he added as an afterthought. "That suddenly the Dark Heir is announced in the news and a while later someone Dark tries to rob Gringotts?"

Harry shook his head. "You're obsessed, Ron."

"But, Harry, just think about it!" insisted Ron. "What if it was him who broke into Gringotts?"

Hermione gave him a superior look. "How is a boy our age going to break into the most protected building in Britain? It's illogical."

Ron glared at her. "Well he's the Dark Heir. He would be powerful enough."

"Ron," sighed Harry. "Just drop it, will you? Fred and George lied to you. The Dark Heir is not that powerful. Hermione's right: he's just a boy our age."

Ron huffed and went back to looking through the window. Hermione sighed and stood up. "Do you want to keep searching for your toad, Neville?"

Neville nodded gratefully and followed her through the door. "Bye, guys," he said. "It was nice to meet you, Ron."

"Likewise," grumbled Ron without looking at the round faced boy.

Harry shook his head at his friend. "Bye, Neville, bye Hermione," he said. Then he looked back at his silent friend. Honestly, Ron could sometimes be a drama Queen.

---

Jack felt shivers run up his spine. Each time he shivered, he remembered his mother and what she'd told him. She had been a slender woman. Fair haired and grey eyed, Tom would often tease her and tell her she was Lucius Malfoy's long lost sister. She wasn't very pleased with the comment so she teased him back, saying he looked too much like James Potter to be a Slytherin. That always shut him up.

Jack smiled at the memory of his parents' everyday bickering. Yes, Voldemort was a formidable Dark Lord, but when it came to his son and his soul-mate he became a completely different person. For one thing, he went back to looking like Tom Riddle. The snake-face, as Jack called it, was just a mask to scare people. His father seemed to love theatrics. But the 'mask' also gave him freedom. It was always mighty fun when both he and his father took a stroll through the Light communities in Ebur. Needless to say, these were the communities that supported Dumbledore. The people would wave and smile at the handsome man and his young son. Jack snorted softly. If only they knew...

"Jack, are you ready?" asked Andor pulling him out of Memory Lane. "Move it, kid. The ship sets sail in half an hour!"

The boy sighed and pulled a black shirt over his head. "I'm almost done, Andor," he called. The Grey wizard had woken him up a few minutes before and had given him a last check up. All the bruises had healed amazingly fast, except for his ribs. Andor said it was strange since Jack hadn't taken any potions. He was immune to most of them and his wounds wouldn't have healed at that rate without them. Jack agreed that it wasn't normal, but then again, what about him was?

Jack pulled on a robe and walked out of the room, where Andor was making a Portkey with a piece of parchment. "Take your bag and put a finger on the parchment," he told him without looking up.

Jack did as he was told. "I hate Portkeys," he muttered before feeling the familiar tug below the navel and landing in a crouch at Port Aquila.

"This way," said Andor. The man's strides were so long Jack had to jog to keep up.

"Hey," said Jack. "Why the rush?"

Andor didn't answer Jack's question. Instead he pointed a white ship and said, "That's the White Dragon. It will take you to Arx Crystallus. There will be someone waiting for you at the ramp. His name is Shancus Von, and he will be starting his second year. I have to go now but I'll owl you tomorrow. Good luck and have a good year." Then he Apparated to Heaven knows where.

Jack stared at the place Andor had been in a few seconds before. "He's nuts, he is," he muttered to himself. He kept walking towards the White Dragon, which was a big ship with huge sails. Andor was right; the ship was getting ready to go. He sped up his pace when he saw families saying their good byes. Some families were normal looking, but others he couldn't even begin to describe. He saw the ramp right away and made a bee-line for it. On the ramp were two girls and one boy. One of the girls was normal looking: dark-skinned and dark-haired. He couldn't say much for the other two, though.

The second girl had green hair, green eyes and her skin had a green tinge. The boy was half-human, half-something. Very thin with shoulder length yellow-green hair, narrow eyes, strangely webbed fingers; his body was covered in scales of green, gold, yellow and blue. The boy caught sight of Jack and called, "Jack Riddle?"

Jack nodded, then shook his head to clear it and climbed the ramp. The boy smiled and took a step forward. "My name's Shancus Von." He held out a brightly coloured hand and Jack shook it. Shancus' palm felt slippery, but dry. A few of the scales came off and stuck to the black-haired boy's hand when he let go. They were like scraps of coloured dead skin. "Welcome to the White Dragon," he said.