La Blue Wizarda HP fanfic by canoncansodoff

A/N: I’ve been bad about not mentioning it before, but my thanks need to go out to the small, but devoted group of readers who have been more than willing to bounce story ideas and plot points back and forth in the 3_or_4_Part and Seel’vor Yahoo! Groups. 

No revenge here, but plotting o’ plenty. 

Disclaimer: Not my characters, no money being made, etc., etc.

oo00OO00oo 

Chapter 12 : Post-game Interviews

It only took the code phrase “octo-incident” for Poppy Pomfrey to forget what Harry Potter had first said when he entered the Hogwarts Infirmary with Hermione Granger in his arms. She blanched, hurried her young charge towards a bed, and cast the strongest silencing charms that she knew upon drawn curtains. 

“Oh, Harry,” the Matron finally said, as he placed his friend onto the bed. “I had hoped that you’d at least make it to your fourth or fifth year…and she’s so young! Weren’t there any older girls that caught your eye?” 

“What? You think that I….Oh, Merlin,” he replied, running a hand through his hair. “I didn’t transform to do her…I transformed to save her. There was a twelve-foot tall Mountain Troll…remember?” 

“Well, erm…right, my mistake,” Poppy said. “I’m sorry dear, it’s just that…when you said…and this girl was in your arms….” 

“My name is Hermione Granger,” the Muggleborn informed the Matron from the bed. “Things are kind of…fuzzy…but I can hear both of you.”

“Erm…excellent,” the Matron replied. “So can you tell me what happened, dear?” 

“Well, Harry ripped off his robes…and grew these tentacles…and he wasn’t wearing clothes, and…he whacked this Troll with a club…and he was naked, and…” 

“Yes, we’ve established that, dear,” Poppy said with a smile.

“I don’t think she was injured by the Mountain Troll,” Harry offered. “But she fainted after she saw me…go octo…might have hit her head…” 

“I’m okay,” Hermione weakly protested.

“Let me be the judge of that, Miss Granger,” replied Poppy. She then turned to Harry and asked, “What in Merlin’s name was a Mountain Troll doing in the castle?” 

Harry shrugged his shoulders. “Dunno…Professor Quirrell entered the Great Hall during the Feast and just announced that one was in the dungeons.” 

Poppy frowned. “Mountain Trolls running rampant in a school full of children?…It’s outrageous…sort of thing that the MLE should be made aware of, don’t you think?” 

“Erm…yes, Ma’am?” Harry asked. 

The Matron sighed, and once again reminded herself that Harry was still an eleven-year old boy. 

“Is the Troll still at large?” 

“No, Ma’am…at least it shouldn’t be…I left it unconscious in the lavatory with the Headmaster, Snape and Auntie Minerva.” 

“I see…so they are very busy at the moment…perhaps too busy to notify the proper authorities?” 

“Too busy or too unwilling?” Harry snarked. 

“Now, let us assume the former, young man,” Poppy said with a smile. “So why don’t you go help the Headmaster with that notification before it slips his mind?” 

Harry worried his lower lip with his teeth. “But…that was only for emergencies…” 

Poppy arched an eyebrow, glanced towards Hermione and asked, “And this doesn’t qualify?” 

The black-haired wizard snorted. “Yeah, when you look at it that way…” 

“Does he have to leave?” Hermione asked, in a very small and very nervous voice. 

The Matron patted her patient’s leg. “Well, dear…I’ll need to remove your robes to check for bruising, and…” 

“S’okay,” the young witch said a snort. “Not like I didn’t see 'The Full Harry' a little while ago…” 

“No, that’s okay, Hermione, ” Harry quickly replied, blushing bright red. “It’ll only take me a few minutes, then I’ll be right back…and we can talk about….you know…” 

“Yes, that’s best,” said the Matron. “Do you have charges left on your inhaler, Harry?” 

“Erm…well, not with me…used all three at once to get back to base form…got some back in the dorms, though.” 

“Well, can’t have you walking between here and there without a back-up in hand, can we?” Poppy asked with a smile. “If you go into my office, I’ve got a charged cartridge in the lower right-hand drawer.” 

This comment allowed Harry to forget the situation for a moment, and to smile. 

“In your office, Poppy?” he teased. “Is that where you….” 

“Never you mind, young man,” Poppy chided.

“Will I have to pop it out of the collector?” Harry asked with a waggle of his eyebrows. 

“Oh, why must you be such a lad!” Poppy asked with a huff.

“Because embarrassment loves company?” Harry asked. 

“Leave!” Madame Pomfrey exclaimed, with a firmly set finger point. 

Harry snorted, and turned towards Hermione as he lightly grasped her knee. 

“No worries,” he said with a grin. “She’s really well-qualified. I’m the only one she treats with this kind of bedside manner.” 

Harry ducked Poppy’s attempt to cuff him on the ear, then squeezed his friend’s leg again, and got serious. 

“Hermione, in case the Headmaster or Auntie Minnie, or Snape arrives…I told them that you fainted before I arrived, not during…so…I know we need to talk, but…you didn’t see how I fought the Troll, or how I changed…or what I looked like…please? At least for now, Hermione?” 

The bushy-haired witch gasped at the sudden change in Harry’s demeanor…from cheekiness to real fear, and…vulnerability. She reached out and covered his hand with her own, and gave her best friend a reassuring smile. 

“You can count on me, Harry,” she asserted. 

The green-eyed wizard probed his best friend’s brown eyes for a few moments, looking for…something. He found it, smiled, and…shocked the twelve-year old witch by leaning down and pulling her into a tight embrace. After holding that hug for a few moments, he turned his face towards her and lightly kissed her cheek. 

“Thanks, Hermione,” he whispered. “You’re a life saver.” 

The bushy-haired witch shook her head as she wrapped her own arms around her Champion. 

“No Harry…you’re the one that saved my life.”

Harry smiled, and leaned back so that he could hold Hermione’s gaze once more. 

“Then we’re even,” he replied brightly, before slipping out underneath the curtain. 

oo00OO00oo 

While Harry rushed to Gryffindor Tower to dig a two-way mirror out of his trunk, his “Auntie Poppy” had a heart-to-heart talk with the latest to learn his secret. 

“Are you certain that you weren’t injured during the attack, Dear?” she asked, as she waved a wand over Hermione’s body. 

“Yes, Ma’am,” Hermione replied. “Harry arrived and…transformed…just in time.” 

“You were very lucky, then,” noted Poppy. 

Her patient nodded. “He saved my life…I’d have been killed if he hadn’t been there to rescue me.” 

Poppy nodded slightly, and added “called-in life debt” to the list of options that was forming in the back of her head. 

“Harry is a very special young man,” she stated. “A special young man with special gifts…gifts that I and a handful of others have helped him keep secret for all of his young life.” 

Hermione mulled over the Matron’s comment with incipient wariness. “So…are there many witches or wizards that have secret superpowers like he does?” 

“Superpowers?” 

“Erm…the tentacles…that’s what you meant by his special gifts, right?” When Poppy nodded, Hermione added, “Guess the easiest way for me to think of it is in terms of comic book heroes.” 

“Ah, yes, I see…Muggleborn?” the Matron asked. When Hermione nodded, she added, “That’s an excellent analogy, and the answer is no…there is only one other British wizard that I’m aware of that shares these gifts.” 

“Why must they be kept secret, though?” Hermione asked. “Was some dark ritual needed to gain them, or….” 

“No, no…not at all,” Poppy replied. “I can assure you that Harry was born with these gifts.” 

Hermione thought about this for a moment, then reflexively crossed her legs. “He came down the chute that way?” 

Poppy snorted. “My you are a perceptive young girl, aren’t you? This is really his story to tell, and his Mum’s…I’ll just say that his Mum is still alive, and Harry has younger sisters, and leave it at that.” 

The bushy-haired witch nodded. “Yes, I’ve corresponded with Mrs. Potter. She’s been very kind to me.” 

Poppy nodded. “And now you have the opportunity to repay that kindness.” 

Hermione worried her lower lip. “By keeping her son’s…gifts…a secret?” 

The Hogwarts Matron smiled. “Exactly.” 

“But why, if he was born this way, need it be kept a secret?” 

A sad look crossed Poppy’s face. “You are a First Year Muggleborn, Miss Granger…perhaps you aren’t yet aware of the prejudices that exist within the Wizarding World.” 

Hermione shook her head. “No, Ma’am, I’ve already had personal experience with bigoted Pureblood witches and wizards.”

“Ah, yes, well…the amount of prejudice and discrimination is far, far greater for those whose blood lines are not fully…human.” 

There was a moment of silence, while Hermione processed that carefully phrased statement. She then turned deathly white and asked, “So Harry is…part-squid?” 

Poppy stared down at her patient for a moment with a look of disbelief in her eyes…then burst out laughing. 

“No, no…no squid or octopus ancestry within the House of Potter,” she replied after a hearty chuckle. “But we really are getting ahead of ourselves…we need to discuss our options here.” 

“What options?” 

Poppy turned serious and stated, “I don’t think that I’m far off the mark when I say that you now hold your friend’s life in his hand in much the same way that he held yours…if the Headmaster were to learn of Harry’s condition…Harry would have to register as a ‘dark creature’ at the Ministry, and most likely expelled from Hogwarts. His family would be shunned…his parents would lose their jobs in the Ministry…his sisters might even face forced sterilization.” 

“That’s…that’s horrible!” Hermione exclaimed. “His sisters…does that mean it’s inherited, and that his father….” 

“First things first, Miss Granger,” Poppy stated. “Those of us who already know Harry’s secrets have taken steps to protect our minds, so that those secrets are shielded from mental attack.” 

Hermione’s eyes lit in recognition. “You mean Occlumency? Harry told us about that weeks ago, when he warned us off of direct eye contact with the Headmaster and Professor Snape. He’s even started my dorm mates and me on some simple meditation exercises.” 

“He has, has he?” Poppy asked (wondering if Harry had already chosen his harem and had begun to train it). “And how good are your Occlumency shields?” 

“Not very good, I’m afraid,” Hermione admitted. “Harry refuses to use mind probes on us to test them, but I’m still certain that they wouldn’t hold up to an attack.” 

“And there’s the problem,” Poppy replied. “It is not normal for a First Year wizard to defeat a twelve-foot tall Mountain Troll, so the Headmaster will be looking for explanations beyond whatever story Harry might have concocted.” 

“So they’ll try to invade my mind and see what I might have seen?” 

“We can’t discount the possibility.” 

“That’s really horrible!” Hermione exclaimed. “I thought that Harry might be a touch paranoid when he warned us off, but…” 

“He has very legitimate concerns,” Poppy stated.

“So what can I do to keep them out of my mind?” Hermione asked, using a very worried tone of voice. 

The Hogwarts Matron desperately tried to think of a viable solution that didn’t involve memory charms, cashed-in life debts, or Unbreakable Vows.

“If only there were a way to get you out from under the Headmaster’s nose, and get you some expert training on Occlumency….and to inform your parents…and give you a chance to discuss this with them…perhaps…” 

Poppy looked down at Hermione and asked, “How well are you doing in your classes, Miss Granger?” 

The young witch furrowed her eyebrows. “Well enough, I guess…” 

“Well enough to survive a one- or two-week leave of absence?” 

Hermione thought for a moment. “Well, I’m caught up at present, but I’m not certain what assignments would be made in the near term, and I’m only a month or two ahead in the readings…” 

The Matron chuckled. “That does seem more than adequate, Miss Granger. So if we were to…” 

Poppy swore under her breath, and touched a button that was vibrating on her Healer robes.

“That’s a permimeter ward, informing me that more than one person is just down the hall, and heading our way,” the Matron whispered, as she canceled the silencing charms. “Start screaming for me, Hermione…scream as if another Troll was about to enter the Infirmary.” 

“What?” 

“Scream!” Poppy hissed. 

Hermione nodded, and began a full-voiced reenactment of her response to the Troll’s visit to the lavatory. 

“Help! Oh, help! Somebody…there’s a monster….Yeeeeaaaah!” 

Poppy nodded in encouragement, and waved her hand in a circle, goading the young witch to continue.

“Miss Granger!” Poppy then shouted. “You must stop! There’s no Troll here in the Infirmary! You are safe….” 

“Yeeeahhh! Troll! Yeaaaaaaaaaah!” 

The Hogwarts Matron gave Hermione a “thumbs-up”, and pulled a small potions vial from a pocket. 

“Miss Granger! You must calm yourself! There is no….here, drink this, then!” 

Hermione nodded in response to the instructions, yelled one final time, then swallowed from the vial held to her lips. Poppy kept one hand on the back of the young witch’s head, so that when the Dreamless Sleep potion took hold, she could ease the unconscious witch back onto the pillow. 

The Matron then stood back upright, took a few deep breaths, and prepared her “game face” for those who were waiting just outside the curtain. 

oo00OO00oo 

If looks could kill, Percy Weasley would have been dodging Unforgivables. The Fifth Year Prefect had yelled at Harry Potter for not arriving at the Tower sooner, and for shorting the head count. The green-eyed wizard brushed-off the git’s whinging as he bounded up the stairs to make a mirror call to his dad from behind silenced bed curtains. But once the call was completed, and Harry ran back down the stairs, there was no ignoring the pompous Prefect who blocked his return to the Infirmary with a sneer on his face and a wand in his hand. 

Harry’s insistence that the danger had passed fell on deaf ears…the Prefects had been ordered to keep all students in their dormitories until they were released by their Head of House, and Professor McGonagall had not yet done so. And any thoughts of just stunning Percy and blowing past were thwarted by the other three prefects who blocked the portal, and by threats of detentions during the first Quidditch match of the season (which Harry thought Percy was just petty enough to attempt to enforce). 

The standoff lasted just over two hour’s time, ending only after someone other than their Head of House came past the Fat Lady. 

“I need to speak with Harry Potter,” the visitor loudly announced. 

The First Year in question popped his head up from a hearth-facing sofa and cracked a smile. 

“Auntie Alice?”

“That’s Auror Lieutenant Longbottom to you, Mr. Potter,” the uniformed witch said sternly. 

Harry caught the sparkle in his godmother’s eyes, however, and knew not to overreact to the tone of voice. 

“Yes, Ma’am,” he replied, casting his eyes down in mock respect. 

Neville’s Mum nodded curtly then turned towards Percy and the other Prefects.

“I am taking custody of Mr. Potter so that he can answer some serious questions about his actions this evening,” she stated. 

Percy’s eyes lit up with the thought that Christmas had just come early. He turned towards Harry and shot him a “You’re in so much trouble!” smirk. 

“I understand, Auror Lieutenant Longbottom,” he then intoned. 

Alice nodded, and continued in-character. “I am also here to convey a message from your Headmaster…while the situation has been brought under control, there is an ongoing MLE investigation that makes restarting the Feast impractical. Therefore, all students are to remain in their Houses for the evening, and arrangements will be made to bring the Feast into each of the Common Rooms. Do you understand?” 

Percy stiffened his back and replied, “Certainly, Auror Lieutenant Longbottom. We shall follow your instructions to the letter.” 

A corner of Alice’s mouth curled up into a half-smile. “Of that I have no doubt…carry on then.” 

“Ma’am, Yes Ma’am,” Percy replied smartly, punctuation this response with a click of his boot heels. 

Alice grabbed her godson by the shoulder and pulled him “roughly” out of the door. The touch became much tenderer, however, just as soon as the Portrait-covered entrance closed behind them.

“Oh, Harry, I’m so glad that you’re safe,” Alice cried, as she pulled the young wizard into a bear hug. 

“I’m fine, Auntie,” protested. “What’s happening?” 

Neville’s Mum pulled her head back and gave it a quick shake. 

“Not here,” she mouthed, nodding towards the magical portrait. 

Harry nodded in recognition, and allowed his godmother to take the lead on the way towards his Head of House’s office. He was expecting this to turn into an “Auntie Talk” involving his godmother, Minerva and Poppy, so he was pleasantly surprised to find a different pair of interrogators waiting for him. 

“Dad! Sirius!” he said with a joyful voice, as Alice and he entered the office.

Auror Captain James Potter smiled as he held up a “wait one minute” finger, then shut the door with a nifty bit of wandless magic. Silencing charms were reapplied before anyone finally spoke. 

Harry made a pointed glance at the magical landscape painting that hung behind McGonagall's desk.  "What are you guys doing here?"  

James smiled and  waggled his eyebrows. "The MLE received an anonymous tip about a Troll running rampant within the Castle.  I'm leading the investigation, with Auror Lieutenant Longbottom's and Auror Private Black's assistance.

“Taking down a Mountain Troll, eh Harry?” Sirius asked with a grin. “I would have expected Snivellous to have been at the front of your ‘to do’ queue, but…” 

“That’s Professor Snivellous,” Harry barked back, using his best Headmaster voice. 

Sirius slapped his forehead with the palm of his hand. “Oh, of course…where are my manners?” 

“Probably wherever you left your pips,” Harry quipped, as he inspected the sleeves of his godfather’s robes. “Busted back down to Private again, Sirius?” 

The wizard shrugged and gave Harry a rakish grin. “Eh, well…easy come, easy go…and go, and go…wouldn’t have gotten caught if she hadn’t been multi-orgasmic, but…” 

“Sirius Black!” Alice spat. “I’ll not have you speaking that way to my godson…to your godson!” 

The pony-tailed wizard winked at Harry, then apologized for his “unacceptable behavior.” 

Alice wasn’t fooled for a moment, but nobody really expected that she would be. 

“So, Dad…what’s happened to Hermione? And where’d the Troll come from?” 

James Potter held his hand out. “One at a time, son…one at a time…” He then caught Harry’s gaze and flicked his eyes almost imperceptibly towards Sirius. 

“The young witch that you found in a dead faint is fine, for now,” he stated. “Madam Pomfrey was forced to administer some Dreamless Sleep potion…apparently the girl wouldn’t stop screaming, or imagining that there were still Trolls running about loose.” 

“But…” 

“Unfortunate bit of timing, I’m afraid,” James pressed on. He placed the his right index finger against the side of his nose and tapped it a few times. “The potion was administered just as the Headmaster arrived at the Infirmary to interview the young witch.” 

Harry’s head shot back a bit and he furrowed his eyebrows…he caught his father’s hand signal, but what did it mean?

“Yes…that is too bad…so she was screaming and screaming?” 

“Apparently so,” James replied with a serious nod. “Poppy has diagnosed the poor girl with a severe case of mental distress.” 

“She has?” Harry asked. 

“That’s right, pup,” Sirius said, waggling his eyebrows. “So serious that the Matron doesn’t think that she can treat her here at Hogwarts.” 

“Is that so?” Harry asked, as he mentally assembled jigsaw puzzle pieces. “So what’s to be done?” 

“We’ve been in contact with one of the best mind healers at St. Mungo’s,” James replied. “She’s got specialized training in blocking these sorts of imaginary monsters from taking hold of her mind.” 

Harry paused, and strung together the words that his father had emphasized. He nodded once he began to catch on. 

“So she’s to be taken out of the Castle for this treatment…where will she stay…St. Mungo’s?” 

Alice smiled and wrapped an arm around Harry’s shoulder. “It might take one or two weeks for her to learn how to relax, and clear her mind of this attack. It would be best if she were at home with her parents for this treatment, but since they’re Muggles, and don’t have access to the floo…” 

“We offered to have Hermione and one or both of her parents stay in Aber with us,” James said with a smile. “The specialists can come and go via floo, but the house is mostly muggle, and your Mum is Muggleborn, so it might be a good way of meeting the Grangers half-way.” 

“And maybe convince them that their daughter is safe in our world, despite the evidence to the contrary?” Harry asked. 

His father nodded. “From all accounts she’s a rather brilliant young witch…it would be a shame if her parents decided to pull her from Hogwarts, wouldn’t it?” 

“Absolutely,” Harry replied. “So can I see her before she leaves?” 

James shook his head. “The potion will keep her knocked out until morning. Your Uncle Frank has already visited with the girl’s parents, and her Mum has agreed to come to Wales to stay with her daughter. Poppy thinks it best that we transport the patient while she’s still asleep, so that her mum is by Hermione’s side when she wakes up.” 

“Ah, that makes sense,” Harry said, giving his dad a sly smile. “So…her mum is the one that's staying with you, eh?” 

His father gave him a short scowl. “Yes, it was their decision…apparently her parents are both dentists, and one has to stay behind to mind their Surgery, at least during the week.” 

“Of course,” Harry replied, rolling his eyes a little. “So what does the Headmaster think of these arrangements?” 

Sirius barked out a laugh. “So a Troll runs free in Hogwarts and attacks a student, and the newspapers will scream to know why and how, but the student who might have some answers is pulled from school for a couple of weeks, while a second student is saying that it was Professor Snape who was the hero, rather than himself. Hmmm….what do you think?” 

“Yes, I see your point.” 

“So why’d you do it Harry?” Sirius asked. “Why make the greasy haired git a hero when it was you who conked the Troll with his own club?” 

Harry’s eyes darted towards his father, who once again had a finger resting alongside his nose. 

“Well that was the Headmaster’s idea,” Harry explained. “I was pushing for Professor McGonagall to get the credit, but…” 

“But any chance to buff up his boy, right?” Sirius asked. “But why not take credit yourself? Think about how your heroism would play with all of the young witches… or with the witch that you rescued?” 

Harry snorted. “Two things, dogfather…first, who says that I’m interested in being fancied by all of the young witches? I’m only eleven, for Merlin’s sake. And second…if I was looking to score with the ladies, why would I need anything more than what you’ve already taught me?” 

Sirius Black stared at his godson for a few moments, then roared in laughter. 

“Well, you’ve got me there, pup…you got me there!” 

“So Harry, this really is supposed to be an official interview,” James stated, as he sat up straight in McGonagall’s chair. “Are we to assume, then, that everything you told the Headmaster is an accurate accounting of what took place?” 

James’s son, mindful of the finger on nose, nodded his head. 

“It’s just like I said…except…” 

“Yes?” 

“Well, to be honest, I first tried to cast a blasting curse at the beast, but that didn’t work too well.” 

“Ah, well….no shame in that,” Alice offered. She tussled Harry’s hair and added, “You are just an Ickle Firsty, right?” 

“That’s right,” said Sirius with a nod. “An Ickle Firsty whose first Flying Lesson has made such a memorable impression on the entire school.” 

“Business first,” James stated. “We were dispatched here to investigate how a Troll got loose in the castle.” 

“Any answers yet?” Harry asked. 

“Now, son…you know that I couldn’t tell you anything that I learned while I was on-duty, right?” James asked, a wide smile on his face. 

“Oh, right…sorry I asked,” Harry replied with a wink. 

“But now that the Troll questions are out of the way, I can take my Auror’s hat off.” 

Harry gave his father a curious look. 

“And put on what…your dad’s hat?” 

“More like Head of the House of Potter hat,” James replied. “The news of what took place in your Flying Class was distressing enough, but to hear about this latest prank…” 

“Not the work of First Years, I’ll tell you that,” Sirius said, well…seriously. 

“You saw, then?”

All three adults nodded. “The pictures were still playing when we arrived at the Great Hall.” 

“Why am I not surprised?” Harry stated. 

“Well, to be fair…the professors did have a Troll to worry about,” said Alice. 

“So let me guess…they’re still there?” 

“Nope,” said Sirius. “Blasted the pumpkins into orange mush, just as soon as we ran diagnostics on the charms that had been set.” 

“Any clues on who did it then?” asked Harry. 

“Not really,” his godfather admitted. “It’s N.E.W.T level enchantments, so it had to be more than just the First Year Snakes involved…might have even had Snape’s help.” 

“Now Sirius, it is irresponsible to make unfounded accusations against Hogwarts faculty,” James replied, in a Percy-sounding voice that fooled nobody within the room.

He then turned towards his son and said, “Harry…I know you’ve expressed a reluctance to fight back in your letters home…” 

Harry’s eyes shot up to confirm that his dad’s finger was still beside his nose.

It was. 

“But you’ve got yourself in a prank war,” Sirius added. “And things haven’t changed around here one bit from when your dad and I were in school. If they hit you, you’ve got to hit them back.” 

“You think so?” Harry asked, with an arched eyebrow. 

His godfather nodded, and gave Harry a wink. “It’s just like I said in my letter...you and your friend were the victims, so it’s got to be you and your friend that strike back.” 

“It’s almost become a matter of family honor,” James added. “Nobody is going to blame you for trying to get back at them…the phrase ‘young wizards will be young wizards’ applies to you as well.” 

Wheels turned in Harry’s head. “So, it’s up to me to prank back, and you and Mum won’t be upset if I get caught and get a detention or three? Even though you’re on the Board?” 

James smiled. “That’s exactly right, son,” he replied, tapping his nose. “And it’s because I’m on the Board of Governors that I can’t be involved.” 

“We’ve trained you well enough to go it alone, haven’t we?” Sirius asked with a smile. 

Harry snorted softly, and he nodded his head. “Just don’t expect anything until after the match with Slytherin…I don’t want to give Snape cause to keep me from playing.” 

“Good thinking,” said Sirius. “I can’t wait to see you play, and teach those Snakes a lesson about messing with the son of a Marauder!” 

“I’d settle for seeing you catch the snitch,” James admitted with a smile. 

Harry’s eyes brightened. “So you’ll be there to watch, then?” 

“It’d take a pack of nundus to keep me out of those stands,” James replied with a smile. “My son…youngest Seeker in a century!” 

“Yeah, thanks…don’t make me nervous or anything,” Harry groused in faux protest. 

James stood, walked around the desk, and gave his son a hug. “Your Mum and I will be proud of you, Harry…no matter what happens.” 

“Thanks, Dad.” 

“Right then…let’s get you back to the Tower,” said James. “I’m sure that Hermione’s dorm mates are going to be anxious to hear about her condition.” 

Harry frowned. “It’s late enough that they might already be in their dormitory.” 

“So?” asked Sirius. 

“So the slide is still in place, godfather,” Harry said with a sigh. 

“So?” 

Harry rolled his eyes, and led the three Aurors out of the office.

Ten seconds later, an oil-painted echo (that Harry and the others had all assumed had been spying on them) popped up from the foliage of the magical painting that hung behind the desk. The spy, who held a quill in one hand, and parchment scroll in the other, congratulated itself on the completeness of his transcription, then ran off of the edge of the canvas so that it could give his report to the Headmaster.