Harry Potter and His New Standards

() Chapter 9 - Inspiration, Invisibility Cloaks, and Symbols ()

Holly was back on her feet the next day, as she came to breakfast that morning. Contrary to what she had predicted - no one was furious with her for "losing them the match". When the mail arrived, Harry received an invitation for he and the gang to have afternoon tea with Hagrid at 6:00. Holly got a couple owls from some of her friends back in the U.S. They split up after breakfast. Ron was going to see Professor Lupin about an essay he had finished early. Hermione sped over to her Shaveire Studies classroom to ask about their midterm exam. Holly had Ginny come with her to the common room so she could see if she got any birthday gifts over the past day. Harry set off for the library.

He was trying to find a book for his report on Emoskus for Divination. He read over the titles that madam Pince had suggested to him for the third time over and sighed. "Hey, Harry?"

Harry gave a small start. He was sure he was quite along in the library on a Sunday morning. He turned around to see Cho gazing up at him. "I'm sorry... did I startle you?" she asked.

"Oh! No..." Harry lied, "How are you, Cho?"

"I'm fine. But, since I met you here, I want to talk just a bit..." she said. Harry's heart skipped a beat. "Is that okay?"

"Uh, well, of course!" he stammered.

"I just wanted to tell you that what you did for your godsister the other day... at the match... that was really sweet. You lost a crucial game just to break her fall, you have no idea how good of you that was!" she said.

"Well, you know, it wasn't really that much of a sacrifice. She's like my only sibling, I don't only try and watch over her to keep her safe... it's to my benefit too. And Sirus', of course," Harry said.

"You are such a good person, Harry. I wish more boys were like you...I guess I've told you that before... anyway! You'd do anything for the people you care for... it's amazing," Cho stated, glowing at him.

Harry grinned and blushed. "Thank you..." he mumbled.

"I had a meeting with my team last night," Cho continued. "Our first match is against Slytherin and by seeing what they did to your team... what they did to Holly... they've all become pretty determined to beat them. Well, more determined than before. And I'm with my team-we must knock the Slytherins out of the running."

"What? Our team - inspired yours?" Harry asked.

"That's right. We also need to work on some new plays... your team is superb! I couldn't spot a flaw in your planning!" she said in admiration.

"Well... it was a lot of work, I guess. Thank you," Harry replied.

"Um... well that's all I wanted to say, really. I'll see you in class on Tuesday!" she closed out brightly.

"Yeah...bye," he replied. Cho waved at him shortly and ran off. Harry watched her go and went back to his list. He couldn't help but wish that the conversation had been on a different topic... he felt the same old sting swell up inside of him again, but tried to push it out of his mind.

*()*()*

An hour later Hermione, Ron, Ginny, and Holly were gathered around the fire. Holly was showing them the gifts she had received from Sirus. "That is so fascinating..." Ron said. He was holding her hollow glass ball that had tiny-model Quidditch players zooming around in a mini-Quidditch game. He had dubbed the globe "The Reds Versus The Purples", as those were the colors of the two 'team's' robes.

"Wonder where Sirus got that," Hermione said thoughtfully.

"I dunno, but it's pretty sweet. I guess he figures that I can't possibly hurt myself or anyone else with something like this," Holly replied.

"What else did you get?" Ginny questioned. Holly handed her the frame that was sitting in her lap.

"In Dad's note he said he'd roped his old friend Peter into taking the picture after they had graduated. That's Lily and my mom over on the right and on the left we've got... what did he call 'em... the Marauders. Minus, Peter... or Wormtail... well the guy who took the picture," Holly said.

"Shit they look really young," Ron said, as he gazed at the picture. "Harry sure does look like his dad... wow."

Hermione took the picture next. "I can't believe how much you look like your mum... that's creepy. Then again, Harry looks practically exactly like his dad too... but he's got his mother's eyes. I've heard people tell him that and when you look at this picture it's true. Hmm..."

"Ha! You should take this to Professor Lupin when you have your next Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson! Look at him there... Hey! Your dad just tripped him!" Ginny said, taking the picture from Hermione to look at it again.

"Seriously?" Holly asked, laughing. Sure enough, Lupin was scrambling to his feet and blushing. He stood next to James this time, shooting a menacing look at Sirus who shrugged and grinned.

Just then Harry came in. He was dragging his bag on the floor behind him after he clambered through the portrait hole and looking a tiny bit smug. "Hey, Harry," Ron said. "Alright?"

"You bet. I'm done with my homework, Cho says our team has inspired her to beat the 'serpent's' arses to the ground, and I've devised a new Beater maneuver. How about you?" Harry said, in cheerful reply.

"I'm alright. Come look at this picture," he said. Harry nearly fell over when he thought it was him standing in his Hogwarts robes with a diploma clutched in his hand in that picture. He shook his head and realized it was his dad.

"Where's Wormtail?" Harry asked grimly.

"Behind the camera. That's just too perfect," Ron snickered. Harry smiled weakly. "Check out Holly's Quidditch globe!"

They sat around and talked about any topic that popped up for a while, and much later Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Holly were all getting ready to go to visit Harry as Ginny ran over to talk with Cameron.

*()*()*

"The centaurs... they ar' angry 'bout somethin'... I think' it's the fact half' o' the other centaurs have fled already. Gone. Withou' a trace of where they're goin' to. Bizarre..." Hagrid said grimly.

"That's odd, Hagrid..." Harry said. They were trying to skim away from admitting they had read up on what acromantulas can sense, and what the current alignments of the planets signal. Holly had been staring at her tea, stirring it around and avoiding Harry, Ron, and Hermione's eyes as though determined to not get involved in 'this nonsense' again.

After they left Hagrid's hut, Harry turned to the others. "We need to go and search the forest. Tonight."

"Yeah right, have you lost the stuffing out of your comforter!? How in the world are we supposed to get into the forest without being seen? Doesn't that pose a problem? Besides, there's nothing in that forest that will come out of it," Holly said in a determined but pleading tone.

"I think that it's time we let you in on a little secret..." Harry said, dropping his voice as they walked.

*()*()*

"You have a fucking Invisibility Cloak and you never fucking told me?" Holly questioned in an outraged admiration. "Do you have any idea of all the shit I could have fucking gotten away with if you had told me about this earlier!?"

"Have you ever considered a career in poetry?" Ron asked.

"Holly, I'm sorry I never told you about the Invisibility Cloak... I just haven't had a reason to use it so far this year. Now, I think it will fit over all four of us..."

"You haven't had a reason to use it this year? Bull! You say you can fit it over all four of us? My lord! Pull a couple of careful maneuvers and don't roll around too much then you and Chhhhh-"

Harry glared wide-eyed at her as Hermione raised her eyebrows in a suspicious fashion, ready to hear more, and Ron had a grin spreading over his features.

"Chhhhha-Cha! Yeah that's her... you and Cha-Cha could play a little ball!" she covered.

"What kind of ball?" Ron asked, grinning mischievously.

"Hand ball!" Holly piped.

"Who's... Cha-Cha?" Hermione interrogated.

"She's... er... my, uh..." Harry gabbled.

"Porn!" Holly exclaimed as a stopgap. She elbowed Harry forward. He turned and gave her a sharp look and she sent back a shrug that only he saw.

"Yeah she's - erm - my favorite... st-... star," Harry faltered. Hermione wrinkled her nose in a royal we manner, Ron snorted and shook his head, but Holly burst out laughing.

"On with the plans then!" Hermione encouraged, looking a bit flustered.

"Right. We'll probably just have to wear the cloak outside of the castle. By the time we're halfway across the grounds we can have it off for sure, it's really dark there's no chance anyone would see us," Harry said.

"What about Hagrid?" Holly asked.

"We'll avoid his cabin... get pretty far behind it, there'll be no chance he'd see us. We'd see him if he's on the grounds - he's not hard to miss," he continued.

"I have a question - what exactly are we going to do in the forest? I'm not too keen on going to have a little visit with Aragog and his family...there's a lot of things I want to do before I die but, honestly, I've never felt the urge to have a look inside a giant spider's stomach," Ron said.

"Ron... if you gave yourself up to an acromantula to eat you, you wouldn't have much else to do because they'd probably rip you up," Hermione said.

"Point taken-I don't need details," Ron said.

"What we're going to do in the forest is look for clues. I mean, there is obviously a reason the centaurs are running away and the acromantulas are tense... if we're lucky we'll get to talk to one of the centaurs that are still around," Harry said.

"Like we'd get a straight answer, ya yutz," Holly said, rolling her eyes.

"You never know..." Hermione said.

*()*()*

Late that night Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Holly disappeared underneath the silvery Invisibility Cloak. It was definitely the most awkward and difficult journey Harry had ever experienced under that cloak. Not because of obstacles, just that there were 4 of them under it. They all had to crouch down so their feet and ankles wouldn't be visible, and walk in a tight group.

When they were out on the damp and dark grounds they took off the cloak and Harry hid it inside his robes. They started off to the forest at a jog. When they entered it and lit all of their wands, the darkness had gotten so intense that if it weren't for the light of their wands Harry would have been sure he had gone blind. They walked across the soggy path in silence for only a minute.

"I really don't like this..." Holly whimpered.

"Aw, are you scared?" Ron asked.

"No!" she snapped quickly, "I just don't... I just don't find this worth my time that's all. I'm going to be zonked out all through classes tomorrow thanks to you wackos."

"Right," Harry said sarcastically. They walked on in silence for a few more minutes before Harry came to a dead stop.

"What is it, Harry?" Hermione asked.

"Look at that tree..." Harry said. On the nearest tree were strange markings that looked as though they were written in a different language. They started at about 10 feet up and were carved into the bark all the way down to the tree's roots, only on one side.

"That's written in Centaur..." Hermione said, after stepping forward and examining it. "No doubt about that. Holly you studied Centaur in your old school didn't you? Holly?"

But Holly was standing behind them; she was stiff and looking tense. "Holly, what is it?" Harry asked. She didn't move.

"Do you hear that?" she asked in hardly more than a whisper.

"No..." Ron answered. But Harry heard it... there was an unmistakable rustle from somewhere behind Holly and to her right. She whipped around. The rustling had only lasted a split second. She pointed her wand in the direction of where the noise had come from.

"You have got to be kidding me," she said, her shoulders relaxing.

"What is it, Holly?" Hermione asked. Holly looked angry. She took a few quick strides into the trees. "Where are you going?!" Only seconds later they could hear her coming back, dragging something along behind her.

"Would you look at what followed us into the forest," she said. She became visible to them again, now, and from behind her she pulled someone by the arm. A tall, silvery-haired someone.

"Malfoy!" Ron hissed.

"Malfoy, what in the hell do you think you are doing here?" Harry demanded. Malfoy brushed some dirt off the sleeves of his robes.

"Just tagging along in the shadows, out of curiosity," he replied with a shrug. "No need to get worked up, Potter."

"How did you see us?" Hermione asked bitterly.

"Plain as day... you were running along the grounds! I saw you with my eyes, I must say they must be two of the greatest tools I posses. What are you doing here anyway?" he asked.

"Malfoy... if you tell anyone that we were out here I will make it my personal mission to-" Ron began.

"Save the threat, Weasley," Draco said lazily.

"Well, now that you're here you're gonna stick with us until we're out of here," Holly commanded. "And you don't need to know whey we're gout here. What were you saying, now, 'Mione?"

"You said you studied Centaur before, didn't you?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah..."

"Try and translate this," she said.

Holly walked up to the towering tree and held up her wand so she could see where the writing began and began to squint at it.

"If centaurs can speak English, why is it they would write something in all these symbols, a completely different language?" Ron asked.

"It's their native language," Hermione explained, "And they don't know how to spell out words in human languages... they're used to symbols like these. Each letter symbol is more like a picture than anything else."

"This is odd..." Holly said. "They're using some human symbols mixed in with their own... almost as though they wanted a human to read it..."

"Look, why don't you read it out loud?" Draco suggested.

"Fine. At the top we've got a straight line of the planet symbols in between conjunction symbols. Completely human, alright? Then it says... um... 'Those who flee are of sufficient cause - the why and wherefore. Evil perpetually lingers in these trees... but none so much as unceasing and puissant as the present existence. The alignment is fated; the course of all is aorist. Those implicated are... foretold although not abreast of the times.' I...I can't read the rest."

"I didn't understand any of that," Ron said blankly. Hermione stepped forward.

"Repeat the first line to me," she said to Holly. Holly raised her wand again and looked at the symbols again.

"'Those who flee are of good cause - the why and wherefore'," she said.

"Alright, so it says all the things that have run away from the forest have a good reason," Hermione explained.

"Thank you Herm," Harry said, "Keep going."

"'Evil perpetually lingers in these trees, but none so much as unceasing and puissant as the present existence'," Holly read.

"Well, evil has always been around in this forest, and always will be, but there hasn't been so much powerful and unwavering wickedness in the forest as there is right now," Hermione translated.

"Leave, Malfoy," Ron ordered. Draco shot him a dirty look but stayed where he was. He seemed interested in all of this too. And, besides, they forbade him to leave already.

"Go on," Harry said.

"'The alignment is fated; the course of all is aorist'," Holly recited.

"That means that whatever the alignment of the planets is supposed to mean will happen but... ugh I don't know what aorist is... it's Classical Greek or Sanskrit though," Hermione said.

"It means action without making clear when it will be completed... continued... maybe in this case started," Draco said.

They all stared at him. "Thanks for your input," Holly said slowly. Draco shrugged and leaned against a tree with his arms crossed over his chest.

"That doesn't make sense, though," Harry said.

"Why not?" Ron asked.

"Well... whatever is going to happen with this whole planet alignment is supposed to happen during the planets are positioned in this way... not a year later, you know," Harry said.

"Exactly...I don't understand it," Hermione said, shaking her head. Hermione hated not understanding things.

"Me either," Holly agreed. "To continue... 'Those implicated are foretold but not abreast of the times'," she finished.

"That means that the people... or things... that will be involved in this whole thing have been shown that they will be, but don't know it yet," Hermione said. At this Harry's stomach tightened into a very intense knot. That wasn't something you'd want to hear either.

"Are you sure you can't read the rest?" Hermione asked.

"Well... I'll try..." Holly said. "It looks like whoever wrote this started to get in a hurry..."

She stood, her eyes inches from the tree and unblinking, for almost 2 minutes without saying a word. "Anything?" Harry asked.

"Well... I can read a few words. It says 'nightfall' right here... and this word looks like 'eclipse'... that's all," Holly said. She turned to face them and shook her head. There was a loud rustling from somewhere ahead of them.

"What's that?" Draco asked as they all whipped around to watch. The rustling stopped after a couple seconds and was replaced by a clipping sound.

"That's it, I'm freaked..." Holly said shakily, "Let's leave."

"I say let's get out of here and fast," Ron agreed.

Harry nodded shortly but Hermione said, "But what if what's up there comes... comes after us?"

"Malfoy, you go in back," Holly said. "Can you run backwards?"

"I doubt it," he snarled.

"Well you check over your shoulder every once and a while for a many-legged monster or something along those lines, alright? We've got it covered, now let's move!" Harry said.

They all began running back down the path they had come from. The pounding of their feet and their panting was all they could hear as they tore out of the forest. It was the strangest feeling, Harry observed, as they ran with Malfoy, as though they were all one team. All on the same side. It was a nice change, but as they got out of the forest, he knew it wouldn't last for long.

"Malfoy, if you tell anybody we were in there-" Hermione began menacingly.

"I won't - alright? - God..." he panted in reply. The four of them all watched him, as though to make sure he wouldn't take off running for the castle.

"You sure as hell better not or it will be my self-imposed task to trample you to the ground and beat you," Ron said.

"Yeah... alright, Weasley," he replied sarcastically, "Potter's already done it."

Hearing Malfoy admitting (so to speak) something like that was very strange. He looked around at them all and grinned, which made it all even more abnormal. They all began to walk towards the castle, and four of them let Malfoy stride ahead. They disappeared underneath the Invisibility Cloak.

When Draco turned around, about to say something to them, and saw they were gone - he looked around open-mouthed for a moment. Then he took off running towards the castle.

"Okay," Harry whispered. "We've got to try and move, Malfoy still might rat on us and if McGonagall comes into one of our dormitories and see's we're not there she'll... she'll be pissed."

"But Malfoy will be out of bed after hours too! He'd get in nearly as much trouble as us, you know," Hermione replied.

"What if he goes to Snape? I bet it wouldn't matter to Snape how Malfoy saw us out of bed after hours," Ron hissed.

"Good point. Let's move," Holly said. They scrambled as quickly as they could into the castle then continued to scurry, trying not to make any noise. They made their way to the Gryffindor Tower entrance, said the password, and clambered through the portrait hole.

"Don't take off the cloak, he might have already squealed and a teacher could be sitting in here right now," Harry whispered quietly but frantically. They tiptoed further into the common room to find it deserted. "Okay," he whispered again, "Ron and I will walk you two up to your dormitory, just in case there's a teacher there we'll stay under the cloak."

They ascended up the stairs silently to find no one in the girls' dormitory than Parvati and Lavender, both fast asleep. "Goodnight, boys," Hermione said. The girls slipped out from under the Invisibility cloak in unison then hurried to change into pajamas and get to sleep.

Harry and Ron changed direction and headed towards the boys' dormitories. When they entered theirs to find Dean, Seamus, and Neville all fast asleep, they changed into their pajamas and crawled into their separate four-posters. "You don't suppose Malfoy'll tell, do you?" Ron asked.

"I'm not sure..." Harry replied.

"Well, if he did he'll have no proof," Ron stated, running his hand through his hair and yawning.

"You never know..."

"What? Do you think McGonagall is sitting in here right now and we haven't noticed her?" Ron asked, half-laughing.

"I doubt it. But, Dumbledore doesn't need a cloak to become invisible," Harry replied. Ron looked at him, horror-struck for a moment but Harry grinned back so they scratched that possibility.

Five students went to bed that night, wondering what was foretold to happen at their school and when it would.