Harry Potter and the Ancient Order

Chpt. 21. False Alarm

"Wait, what do you mean disappeared?" Ron asked Harry. Ron and Hermione had waited for Harry to return as promised and he wasted little time in sharing his conversation with Xander with his two best friends.

"That's all he had time to tell me, before he got shot," Harry responded. His mind was still half on Cho, but he chose to keep this conversation private. "He said something about a raven on the windowsill, and that Dumbledore wanted me to know, but didn't want to draw attention to me."

"I'll bet Dumbledore staged the conversation," said Hermione thoughtfully. "I mean, have you ever seen anybody sneak up on Dumbledore, or overhear anything important? I'm sure he expected Xander to tell you. But why Xander?"

Harry shrugged, this question only adding to the jumble of thoughts running through his head. With all that had happened tonight, he wanted little more than to think about something else. Losing a Quidditch match, the Feast, the shooting, and Cho's comments were about all he could handle.

"What about the raven, though?" Ron asked. "They're not exactly a common pet."

Ron cut off his train of thought as Alicia entered the Common Room looking very tired indeed. Her eyes were a very dark purple, but she was at least smiling.

"How's Xander doing?" Hermione asked, covering up the dropped conversation.

"Sleeping, now. He kept trying to get out of bed, so Madame Pomfrey gave him a sleeping draught to knock him out. His stomach is already starting to heal," she said wearily. "She wouldn't let me stay the night. Told me to come back in the morning." She yawned loudly.

"Why the smile?" Hermione questioned slyly.

Alicia's grin broadened. "He looks so cute when he's sleeping," she said, blushing as Harry and Ron rolled their eyes. "He looks so much younger when he doesn't have those worry-lines lining his face."

"He's rather young to have worry-lines," Hermione thought out loud. "I'd love to know what goes on in his head," she continued as Ron scowled slightly.

"You and me, both," Alicia said wearily. "Anytime I ask about his past, he gives one word answers and changes the subject as soon as he can." Harry recalled the strange greeting Xander received from the Russian delegation a week ago, and remembered his silent promise to question Xander about it after he brushed off everyone's inquiries at the time.

"By the way," Alicia said, "do any of you know who has a dog as a pet? There's a huge shaggy black dog sitting outside the portrait hole," and she walked up to bed.

"Sirius?" Harry said excitedly as he opened the portrait. "What're you doing here?"

The big black dog trotted into the Common Room and sat near the fire, looking around the room. No one else was present, so he transformed into Harry's godfather.

"I saw what happened outside the front doors," Sirius said to Harry steadily. "I had to make sure you were fine." His eyes were still darting around the room. Hermione jumped up and stood at the bottom of the staircase, ready to warn him if anyone was about to come down. She held her finger to her lips, indicating that they were talking too loudly. Ron had stationed himself at the portrait hole so that nobody could surprise them. Harry was very grateful that his friends would go to such lengths so that he could talk to Sirius.

"I'm fine, Sirius," Harry whispered. "You didn't have to risk being caught to check on me."

"Yes, I did," Sirius argued. "It's my job to make sure that your safe. I want to tell you," he looked into Harry's eyes now, "that was a very noble thing you did, helping out that boy like that. I'm very proud of you."

Harry grinned. "I know you didn't come all the way up here to tell me that."

It was Sirius's turn to smile. "No, you're right about that. I came to tell you about Professor Sprout."

"Oh, we know already," Harry said. "Xander told me right before... you know."

"Indeed?" Sirius raised his eyebrows. "How did he find out?"

"Overheard Dumbledore talking to some of the other teachers," Harry informed him. "Hermione thinks that he staged the conversation so that Xander would overhear, that way I would find out without raising eyebrows," Harry finished, his eyes flicking up to Sirius's raised eyebrows.

Sirius smiled. "She's very clever, that one," he said, motioning with his head towards Hermione. She blushed a little, but smiled proudly.

The portrait hole opened up just then, and Harry heard Ron ask loudly, "What're you doing here?" Before Harry could even speak, Sirius had changed back into a dog.

"I believe I live here," Xander's voice carried over in a very curious tone.

"But, you're supposed to be in the hospital," Hermione responded, moving next to Sirius in an attempt to hide him. To make matters worse, Alicia came back down from the girls' dorms.

"Forgot my-" she started before she saw Xander. "What're you doing here?" she asked when she saw Xander.

"What, is there an echo in here?" Xander asked with an innocent smile. "I never had the chance to say good-night to you," he finished, grinning slyly.

"You really know how to make a girl feel guilty," Alicia told him. "Now go back to bed, you should be resting."

"You first," said Xander, running his fingers lightly over the bags that had taken residence under her eyes. He grabbed her hand and walked across the room, stopping when he noticed Sirius.

Oh, no, thought Harry. He couldn't just insist that Xander not come any closer as that would be too suspicious. He was highly aware of a pocket Sneakoscope whizzing away on one of the tables and silently vowed to smash it to bits the first chance he got.

"O.K., you got me," Xander said, looking at the Sneakoscope. "I was really hoping for a good-night kiss," he said shyly, looking at Alicia, who blushed furiously.

"If I go to bed, will you go back to the hospital wing?" she insisted.

"If you get some sleep, yes," he answered. To Harry's horror, Xander walked up to Sirius. "How're you doin' buddy?" he asked, patting the giant black dog on the shoulder before continuing on up the stairs.

Harry let loose the breath he had been holding as Sirius transformed again. Harry was surprised to see him smiling. "He's good," Sirius commented with a nod of his head.

"She's been smitten with him since he got here," Ron told Sirius, indicating the couple who were now out of earshot.

"So I'm told," Sirius said to no one in particular. "So I'm told."

Harry wasn't sure if he liked Sirius's tone of voice. He seemed to be hiding something. "What do you mean?" he questioned his godfather.

"Nothing," Sirius said, but Harry didn't believe him.

"Sirius," Harry began, "What's the deal with these ravens this year? This isn't the first time there's been one inside the school."

"Really, now," Sirius said, tilting his head slightly to the side. "When were there more?"

"The first week of classes," Hermione said. "There was one sitting on the window sill in the Common Room, and Xander got really upset when he saw it and threw a dictionary at it." She looked as if she was going to say more, but they heard a door close upstairs.

"I'd better go. Look, I'm glad you three are all right. And I must insist, stay put for the rest of the night." He gave Harry a pat on the shoulder, transformed, and trotted out the portrait hole that Ron held open for him.

Xander appeared downstairs again, his journal clutched under his arm. How'd he get it back already? Harry thought. Didn't Dumbledore have it?

"Odd, isn't it, that a dog found it's way up here?" Xander said. "Friendly, really. Always happy to see me."

"What, you've seen him before?" Harry asked, astounded.

"First saw him at Hogwarts when I had that detention with Hagrid all week," Xander said. "Been hanging around the Forest most of the year. Likes to watch everything the students do when they're outside." Xander waved at them. "I gotta get back before Madame Pomfrey finds out I'm gone. 'Night." He walked out the portrait hole.

"Ever get the feeling that someone knows something that you don't?" Harry asked out loud as he threw the Sneakoscope against the stone wall.

* * *

Compared to the night of the Feast, December passed by without major incident. Xander remained in the hospital wing until the following Monday afternoon, and thoroughly enjoyed the Creevey brothers' excitement as he allowed them to examine his scar, and even let them take pictures of it. If he clenched his abs, the scar appeared to move, which he did to gross out several first years whenever they bugged him to touch it. He had mounted the bullet that he insisted on saving inside a silver hourglass charm and wore it around his neck, saying that it was a reminder on how fast your remaining time on earth could be snatched away from you so that you appreciate each day.

Madame Sprout's disappearance was explained away as a family emergency and Dumbledore told the school that she would be gone indefinitely. Harry didn't like to see Dumbledore avoid the truth, but he reasoned that it was, in a way, the truth. If she had gone missing, then her family would certainly have an emergency on their hands. To everyone's shock, Dumbledore announced that Neville would substitute in her place, as he had become her top student this year. Professor Snape shook his head in disappointment when Dumbledore made the announcement, but kept silent the rest of the day. Even the Slytherins didn't give him too much trouble, as Neville now had the authority to assign detentions, which he did his very first lesson when Goyle had thrown a Bouncing Bulb at him, and they feared he might take enough points away to keep them from winning the House Cup if they pushed him any farther, though it didn't stop their muttered insults and their attempts to make a fool of him. In Harry's opinion, Neville handled himself admirably and the job had done wonders for his self-esteem.

Harry saw less of Ron and Hermione over the course of the month, with the extra studies added for their O.W.L.'s, and their budding relationship. They still argued over petty differences, which at first Harry was slightly concerned over, but Xander kept insisting it was just adolescent hormones. There may have been a point there, as they seemed to make up rather quickly and easily.

Harry wasn't exactly alone, though. He enjoyed the time he got to spend with Cho, who was helping him get through his O.W.L. studies. Harry marveled at her ability to help him and prepare for her N.E.W.T.'s simultaneously. Technically, they hadn't advanced beyond friendship, but they often exchanged hugs as a greeting and Cho continually complimented him on his "startling green eyes" that had the ability to make Cho "lose herself in if she wasn't careful". As much as these compliments encouraged Harry, he still hadn't drawn up the courage to repeat his kiss.

They spoke at length about Harry's thoughts and feelings regarding the Cedric Incident, which he found easier to do with Cho since she also had a personal connection to the situation. He had difficulty describing the connection of their wands with anybody and avoided this part. He merely said that he knew for certain that Cedric wanted him to bring his body back to Hogwarts, and made it sound as if he surprised Voldemort by summoning the Triwizard Cup before he could be stopped, which wasn't exactly a lie. He thought that if he elaborated any more on the subject, he would have to describe his conversation with his parents, and he felt that was too personal to share with anyone else just yet. Besides, if they were in fact "just friends", he needn't be so personal.

Dumbledore informed them that the International Scholastic Quidditch Cup would begin match play the first weekend back from Christmas holiday when it was time to determine who was staying for the break. Xander had said that Krum was insistent on his desire to continue training sessions over Christmas, which made the rest of the team moan loudly, none louder than Malfoy. Xander said that he didn't care, as he was staying over at Hogwarts anyway. When Ron asked why he wasn't going home to see his family, Xander stated that they were "unavailable" and said no more on the subject. Ron apologized for intruding, but Xander told him to think nothing of it and retreated to an empty corner to work in his journal. Brandy, who spent a good deal of her free time with Alicia, confided that he rarely answered any questions about his family and that pursuing the topic was a losing battle.

Alicia and Xander had a minor argument the day she was to leave for home for Christmas. She was going to skip the train and stay at Hogwarts, but Xander wouldn't let her. He had given her an extraordinary gold necklace with a marvelous emerald pendant for her Christmas gift. When questioned where he got such a beautiful gift, he only said that he had it specially made for her, explaining that when she held the pendant (which was roughly the size of a matchbox) in her hand and thought of him, that his hourglass necklace would turn red so that he knew she was thinking of him. With reluctance, she agreed to go home, but not without trying to post one last argument. As she walked out the front doors, Xander's hourglass charm glowed red, and he spent the remainder of the day avoiding conversation.

Harry was very happy that his two best friends had decided to stay, as he wasn't looking forward to spending the holidays alone. Ron said that his family would be busy helping Percy move into his new home, and Fred and George were banned from helping as Percy insisted that they would curse his toilet seat to bite. The twins took it more as a compliment than an insult, and promised to carry out the threat in the future.

Harry woke up Christmas morning to Ron jumping on his bed. "Pres-sents! Pres-sents! Pres-sents!" Ron was chanting on each hop. Harry gripped his pillow, but he needn't have bothered. A well-timed and very hard shot from Xander's pillow muffled Ron's cry and he fell off the bed as he struggled to pull the pillow off his face.

"Go back to sleep," Xander murmured sleepily, covering his ears with his remaining pillow.

"Sorry, mate, but I got my orders," Ron said, massaging his hip where a red welt was forming. Hermione, Ginny, Fred, and George entered the room now, carrying armloads of presents with them. The twins noticed Xander's feeble attempts at sleep, and tossed a Fillibuster No-Heat firecracker on his bed, laughing heartily as he jumped an easy three feet off his sheets. He had what Harry considered an odd habit of sleeping in Muggle clothes instead of pajamas, wearing windpants and a baseball jersey that Harry had never knew existed but often piqued his curiosity. It said "Psychopathic Records" where the player's name usually went, and had a wild-haired man running with a hatchet for a logo. When Seamus had asked where he acquired the jersey, Xander told him "some friends back in America." He fell out of bed, his jersey unbuttoned, and Ginny giggled madly at his naked and well-defined torso.

"Dicks," Xander scowled.

Harry felt slightly guilty as Xander had by far the smallest pile of presents, but he had a pile of holiday cards that was bigger than his pile of presents. Hermione set her pile down near Ron's bed, and handed a small parcel to Xander.

"Here, this came for you this morning," she said as he accepted it. "It was sitting in the Common Room when I woke up."

Xander tore off the roll of parchment first, which turned out to be a lengthy letter from Alicia. The rest started in on their own gifts, Harry opening Hagrid's first. It turned out to be a tin full of Christmas cookies that were burned around the edges but were somehow still raw in the middle. He noticed a rectangular present that was signed in Xander's neat, tight handwriting, surprised that he had gotten Harry a gift for Christmas. Looking over at Xander to thank him but seeing him deeply immersed in his letter and his necklace glowing red again, he thought it best to leave him be and opened his gift.

It turned out to be a book, which wasn't what surprised Harry about the studious young man's gift. It was the title of the book: The Marauders' Manual of Original Pranks and Revenge Tactics. The author's name was given only in initials, reading "M.W.P.P." Harry had a sense of deja vu; he knew he had never heard of the book, but felt as if he should know.

"Look at this," Harry said proudly, holding it up for Ron to see. Fred and George had just pulled Ron's Weasley Sweater over his head, and Ron wore a scowl as he came over. His eyes brightened immensely when he read the title.

"Cheers, Xander," Harry grinned, and Xander looked up from his letter to wink at Harry. He went back to reading for a few seconds before muttering "Uh-oh" much louder than he thought. Everyone stopped opening presents and looked up.

"What is it?" asked Ron, tearing his eyes away from the book. He was very eager to crack it open.

"Alicia's parents are coming to the first match next weekend," Xander said evenly, not looking up from the letter. "They want to meet me after the match and go out to dinner." His voice had a sense of foreboding in it, and he looked up with a pleading look in his eyes.

Hermione was fighting very hard to keep her giggles back. "That's a good thing, though. That means Alicia is talking a lot about you." Xander shook his head, insinuating that Hermione was missing the point.

"No, you're not getting it. Her parents are rich," Xander said in such a tone that indicated this should answer all questions. Fred ignored the insinuation.

"So?" he said, shrugging his shoulders. "We're not. You know rich people and you know poor people. You're a very well-rounded individual now," he said in mock seriousness, doing his very best McGonagall imitation.

"I'm not rich, either," Xander said, ignoring Fred's cheek. "Miranda's family was. Whenever I was around them, they made it quite a point to make me feel inferior because of it. It made for some miserable days of my life. I'm not looking forward to a repeat performance," he said, shaking his head.

"I'm certain that nothing like that will happen," Hermione said. "I mean, has Alicia ever acted superior to anyone?" she asked the group. They all shook their heads.

"We've known her for seven years, mate," George said. "Money's never come up at all. If anything, her parents are tightwads. Alicia's had to use the same broomstick for six years because they won't get her a new one."

Xander only gave a small chuckle that said We'll See before continuing on with his letter. Everyone else assumed the topic closed and resumed opening their gifts. It wasn't long before Ron gave a whoop and hugged Hermione, having opened his gift from her, which was tickets for two to a Chudley Cannons Quidditch match. Harry tried to hide his smile and busied himself with his gift from Sirius (a Foe-pin; it glowed when an enemy was near). Hermione's gift was no less satisfying. She gave Harry a book entitled Why Wands Work, and told Harry that Krum recommended it for his O.W.L. exam, but this wasn't what Harry was truly interested in. It might help him understand how he had come across a wand so similar to Voldemort's, and maybe even explain more about what happened in the graveyard just six months ago.

Even the Dursley's gift surprised him. They had sent Harry a fruitcake that was so old that it dented the hardwood floor when he dropped it, accompanied by an actual Christmas card. Harry's suspicions were confirmed when he opened the card, however, as it had a short, hastily written note telling Harry to ask the Weasley's if he could spend the whole summer at their house since he always ended up there anyway.

Harry and the Weasley's had their ritual Christmas Day snowball fight that afternoon, highlighted by Ron pegging Hermione upside the head when she laughed at him for being knocked clear off his feet by a Xander-thrown snowball. Hermione couldn't stay angry for very long and even joined in after that, though she spent most of the time exchanging hits with Ginny. Everyone else spent most of the time dodging Xander's throws, as he was showing again exactly why he was the best player on the Hogwarts International team. Harry found out the hard way and was left with a bruise on his chest that lasted for two weeks afterward.

Once they were all tired and thoroughly soaked, they retreated back into the school for the Christmas Feast. Harry was left feeling guilty when he received a Christmas card from Cho as he hadn't sent her one. In the end, he decided that stretching the truth a little was best, and wrote back saying that Hedwig was off delivering a letter to a distant friend (which was somewhat true as he had sent Sirius and Lupin a letter). Cho's card only further confused Harry as she said that she was thinking of him often and missed his company, but was still signed Your Friend. He felt it proper to close his letter in the same manner, though he told Cho that he missed her too and hoped to see her again when she came back. His thoughts were interrupted when a first year girl jumped up on the table screaming.

"A rat!" she shrieked, pointing to a corner of the Great Hall. Harry whipped his head around, and Ron jumped clear over the table in the direction she was pointing.

"Imobilarus!" Ron cried, pointing his wand at the rat. His aim was true, as the rat froze in its tracks, heading for a crack in the doors. Harry joined his friend a second later, anxious to get a good look at the rat. Professor Dumbledore was hot on Harry's heels.

"It can't be, can it?" Harry thought out loud. He waited for Ron's answer as Ron closely examined the rodent, knowing that he would know his old pet before anyone else would.

"No," Ron said finally, shaking his head. "It's not him." Professor Dumbledore was also shaking his head in agreement. "I'd know him when I saw him," Ron added.

"I do not doubt as much," Dumbledore said, "but I'm sure it wouldn't offend you if I made sure?" Ron shook his head and stepped back as Dumbledore brandished his wand and muttered something under his breath. Nothing happened.

"Minerva," Dumbledore said, "Could you possibly find a couple of house elves to patch up this crack? And Hagrid," he continued, looking around for the enormous man. "I do believe that some traps are in order."

"Yessir," Hagrid slurred, having had a bit too much mead for dinner. "I'll get rid 'o this one fer yeh."

"We may all now return to our dinner," Dumbledore told the Hall.

Harry wasn't very much hungry after that and retired early for the night. Having the wits scared out of him once in one night was more than enough for him.