Rise From Dust | Harry Potter

Nineteen

Chapter 19 | The White Dementor

3 August, 1993 

Emerald eyes roved over the newspaper, the Daily Prophet, as it detailed Ballycastle Bats victory against Montrose Magpies. Grunting in dissatisfaction, Harry flung the newspaper onto the table in front of him. He stretched out his hand for his cup of tea and sipped it. He was having ambivalent feelings over the news. For one thing, he was satisfied to know the Magpies scarcely got a chance to win. On the other hand, he was discontented by the fact the Bats had once more regained their past title as champions.

"Not quite a sight, eh, Harry?" Tom, the landlord of the Leaky Cauldron, struck a conversation with the young man. Hoisting his neck up, his eyes hit upon the bartender, Tom, whom was scrubbing the long table near Harry's. Presently, Harry was in the Leaky Cauldron. It was still early in the morning, and he was enjoying his breakfast meal. There were a few people babbling, laughing or minding their own business, and they failed to notice Harry was there amongst them. He was dressed in his signature deep brown coat that reached to his knees and his Ascot hat, along with his non-magical attire.

"Most of us were still quite mad on what the Magpies' beaters did to ya. Why, we ought'a hunt for their blood. We would if it weren't for you telling us not to." Harry smiled slightly at the wizened, toothless man. 

"As much as I crave retribution, it's not worth it. Besides, it says here, their skills are not nearly as close to Quigley's, far from it actually. That made my day a little brighter, and at the same it did not. I don't suppose it makes any sense, does it, Tom?"

"No, it makes perfect sense. You wish one rival team to lose badly, yet you don't wish another rival team to be the winner, am I correct?"

"Precisely," Harry muttered dryly, flipping the newspaper over to read it again. "Both teams could've ended in a draw, but the match has to be ended in both sides humiliating one another and by doing so, they make a fool out of themselves. That could've made my day much brighter." Tom grinned. 

"Only you would have such imagination, little Harry." Taking a vicious bite out of his breakfast meal, a deep growl rumbled from Harry's throat. Didn't the people in Diagon Alley ever get the message that he didn't fancy to be called little? For heaven's sake, he's taller compared to how he was back then! A sigh escaped from Harry's mouth. Some things would never change and sadly, one of it is how people in Diagon Alley view him. Curse his shorter height when he was young! Just then, an individual set foot in the Leaky Cauldron, and immediately seized Harry's attention.

"Captain!" Harry called out instinctively, springing up from the chair he sat on.

"Potter?" The person was flabbergasted to stumble upon the teen here of all places in the world. He, then, smiled benignly. "I don't recall being your captain since last year, Potter. A raven notified me you're the captain now, so am I to assume you want me calling you 'captain' from now on too?" Cheeks stained pink, Harry mumbled. 

"It's a habit, Barkin... It's hard to tone it down once you get used to it." Jeffery Barkin was previously the captain of Ravenclaw Quidditch team. He had graduated from Hogwarts at the end of Harry's fourth year. He was an extremely handsome young man with childlike striking features, almond bright eyes and messy brown hair. He was much taller than Harry, lanky with broad shoulders. If Harry's memory served him perfectly, Jeffery was one of the popular guys in Hogwarts and the sole male who behaved differently around Harry than the rest. What Harry meant by differently was Jeffery treating him harshly in training and pushing him to the limits.

Outside of training though, Jeffery was normally seen chatting with Harry without hatred or petty envy in his eyes. Secretly, Harry had always looked up to Barkin. Nonetheless, he would never acknowledge it publicly and would deny it vehemently if anyone divulged it to him. In Hogwarts, aside from Professor Flitwick, Jeffery was one of the few guys Harry deeply respected. During Harry's first three years in Hogwarts, Barkin took Harry under his wing and if Harry was to be completely honest with himself, most of his Quidditch skills along with his talents derived from his former captain. Jeffery laughed blithely. 

"I suppose you do have a point, Potter. Mind me joining you?"

Harry beckoned to another chair. The former captain took it, all the while requesting a Butterbeer from Tom and the old bartender to smirk slightly. 

"You kids ease yourselves up and don't ya worry, your order will be comin' right up. Me wife will bring it out for ya, Mr. Barkin." Shouts then ensued from behind the bar after the bartender withdrew himself to the back, prompting Harry to shake his head with a sincere smile on his face. He faithfully believed things would never change around here, which admittedly suited him just fine.

"So, I heard you've been very busy, Potter, joining Puddlemere United and all. Still in Hogwarts, and you've become a professional Quidditch player. That's a feat not many people could hope to top, or accomplish," affirmed Jeffery kindheartedly. "With your talents and outrageous flying skill on brooms, I can't say I'm astounded they recruited you while you were still in Hogwarts."

"Try to fool me all you want but you can't." Harry tossed him an amused look. "You were shocked and envious of my initial acceptance into Puddlemere, weren't you?" Face dramatically falling, Jeffery incoherently whispered something about 'arrogant lucky bastard'. "What about you, Barkin? What are you doing these days?"

"Working for Gringotts, just a lowly curse breaker with enough payment for necessities."

"Really?" Harry's eyebrows furrowed together. "My first thought is you auditioning for a spot in one of the professional Quidditch teams." Jeffery scratched the back of his head, embarrassment engraved in his features. 

"Yeah...well... it didn't go as planned."The pervious Ravenclaw captain let out an obvious huff of annoyance, doubt, and shame. 

"What do you mean?"

"Let's just say, I didn't get a spot..." Harry was stumped. 

"How the hell did that happen? You're a talented seeker. Even my brother had a difficult time with you and people say he's the most talented as well as the best seeker anyone has ever seen. You beat him during your last year in Hogwarts."

"Talk something else, Potter." Jeffery smiled gratefully in Tom's direction for fetching the Butterbeer to him.

"Okay..." Harry discerned his former captain chugging his drink away. "How did you wind up in Gringotts then? And as a lowly curse-breaker? Your results in NEWTs weren't that bad, it's actually the other way around. There are jobs with higher salary out there." Jeffery shrugged his shoulders. 

"We all have to make a living, Potter. What choice do I have? Apply for a job in the ministry? We both know that's not going to happen. You know how corrupted our government is. I just can't stand to work under those bigoted people even if I am a Pureblood," he snorted derisively.

"Still, there are a lot of choices out there..."

"Allow me to ask you this then, what are you going to do after Hogwarts?"

"I-I don't know..." Harry scowled gallingly. "It's still too early for me to decide. I've got two more years ahead of me."

"See? It ain't that easy." Harry blew out a frustrated sigh. 

"Fine, fine, it's not."

"I just thought it'd be best for me to work for Gringotts, earning experience and all," Jeffery carried on as if nothing had interrupted him. "It's only temporary."

"Yeah, right, temporary..." Harry was not utterly convinced. "And, how long have you been with Gringotts? If I have to guess, it must have been a year... No, it's definitely a year you've been with them. Have you ever got promoted?" Jeffery tousled his hair exasperatingly. 

"Fine, you make your point, you cheeky bastard. Sometimes you can be a right arse, you know that, Potter?"

"So, I've been told..." Harry mused, pushing away his now empty plate. "Tell me about your trials and no changing topics this time, Barkin." Jeffery took one last swig of his Butterbeer. 

"You do know how to force something out of people, don't you, Potter?"

"I picked it up from friends," as he said this, images of the girls drifted to his mind.

"It's not something I'm keen to talk about," said Barkin evasively.

"What team did you join?" insisted Harry.

"Bats. Ballycastle Bats." Harry whistled. 

"That's some ambition, providing how they won British and Irish tournament twenty-two times consecutively. Though, we managed to break their winning streak before they reclaimed it again this year," said Harry irritably.

"I can see how you're annoyed, Potter." Barkin chuckled at his wistful expression. "It really was a shame the Puddlemere was defeated by the Magpies. People had a wager going on, that Puddlemere was heading for victory again." He had a longing look on his face. "Wish I could play in front of hundreds of people. Just imagine the thunderous cheers from the crowds when I catch the snitch."

"Your dream? To become a professional player I mean?" Harry inquired, observing Barkin.

"It's more than just a dream, Potter... It's- It's... my life's goal... Some scouts from other teams offered, but I declined in favor of joining the Bats instead. It didn't work out due to the complications of many people signing up and I didn't get an opportunity to present my skills to them. By the time I attempted to join other teams, their offers had expired. You can safely say that I'm not as lucky as other people are, huh?" Barkin smiled sympathetically. "In a way, I envy you, Potter. You were given a chance to be a professional player at such young age. I wonder sometimes if life is unfair."

"I had help from above - someone with great influence. If not, I won't be where I am now." Harry justified smoothly.

"So we've heard. The owner of Puddlemere recommended you." Harry's head shot up so fast he gave himself whiplash. "I, along with many other people, heard how Lord Greengrass was the one responsible for your initiation to Puddlemere, but most of the work came from you, didn't it? You proved yourself in the official games. If it wasn't for you working so hard to rise up the ranks and get your skills recognized, you wouldn't be here now, would you?" Heavy sigh can be perceived. "Man, I do really envy you. I wish could say otherwise, but it's hard not to be jealous of you, Potter." Harry chose not to retort to the slight jibe and settled with drinking his tea quietly. Situating the cup down upon the table, he announced after few minutes of tension. 

"What if you were given another chance, Barkin? Would you grab it?"

"Huh?"

"You heard me..." Harry stood up, regulating his coat and hat appropriately. He left a couple of galleons on the table, deliberately paying it more. "Come with me. I'd like to introduce you to someone..."

"You strut to this building as if you own the place, storm into my office, overlooking the meeting taking place in this room and now, you're introducing me to a stranger! Blimey, kid! Learn some manners, will you?!" Philbert Deverill raved, his voice booming. An angry vein popped on his forehead. "Can't you see we're in the middle of something here?!"

"Of course, I can see that. I'm not blind." Harry eyed the several adults in the room, and afterwards disregarded their presence for the second time. Peter Gandalf was there as well, looking at them in mixture of curiosity and mirth. "But, this is important, Coach. If it wasn't, then I wouldn't have barged in without alerting you." The man massaged his temples, desperately minimizing the stress clobbering his head. 

"Even if it wasn't important, kid, you'll still barge in." Pondering it for a few seconds, Harry shrugged, readily consenting to the man's words.

"This had better be good, kid!" Deverill, in the end, snapped. "Or else, you and this bloke will be cleaning every inch of this building, without magic!" Barkin's back straightened in attention at this. Unquestionably, he now considered the man to be as frightening as hell.

"We still haven't solved our seeker problem, right?" The Puddlemere's coach bobbed his head in confirmation. "Well, this guy could be the key to our solution." Deverill leveled his fierce gaze on Barkin, criticizing him from head to toe. 

"Are you a seeker, son?"

"I-I'm g-good in other p-p-positions too-"

"Are you or are you not a seeker, Mr. Barkin?" Deverill pressed adamantly.

"Yes, I am." Barkin coerced himself not to stammer.

"Very well, we'll see if you're the right man for the task. Peter Gandalf here-" Deverill nodded to the said man. "-will escort you and help you prepare for the trial. Wait for us by the field and we'll judge your performance. If we deem you are worthy, then we'll offer you a membership to our club."

"T-Thank you, sir-" Deverill lifted a finger, interjecting the young man. 

"Hold it right there, Mr. Barkin. I didn't say we are going to make things easy for you, so hold your gratitude until after the result of your trial. You are fortunate that we even take you into consideration considering it's not our scout that is recommending you but one of our own players which hasn't heard of. Furthermore, just because you're joining us, doesn't mean we're permitting you to play in the official matches. There are procedures to follow. Gandalf, if you can, show the young fella to the locker room and suit him up."

"Why, of course! It'd be my pleasure!" Gandalf bounced from his seat. "Right this way, Mr. Barkin. You must be skillful to be recommended by Mr. Potter and if I may comment for both of us, that doesn't happen a lot. It's actually astounding for him to recommend anyone, I tell you. My, I rarely heard him ever compliment anyone..." The voice of Gandalf prattling excitedly to the young man could be heard.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing, kid?"

"I am, Coach," Harry asserted confidently. "He's my previous captain and has a lot of potential to become a professional seeker. It's a waste for him not to exploit his talents. Trust me, if he's given the right training, like I was, he will become one of the best seekers around. Just you wait, Coach."

"I hope you're right, kid. It's hard to come by good seekers these days. For you to have found one when we needed them most... it was just plain lucky."

"It might have been, or it might simply a coincidence for us to meet each other today. Luck had nothing to do with it."

"You don't believe in luck, kid?"

"I don't have to believe in anything. In the end, it's our effort that counts, not luck or something close to it. If we do rely on luck, we lose faith on our own abilities. You taught me that," Harry said, smirking. "See you next year, Coach. I'll be sure to preserve my body so it's in top condition by the time I get back." With that being said, Harry strode his way out of the room, leaving behind a smirking Deverill and several very impressed people behind.

"Nervous?" Thoughts shattered, Jeffery's head budged to the person beside him. 

"Not really. There ain't many people, since apparently, the players are allowed to take a break for four months after the tournament." said Jeffery, with calmness splashed all over his features. "And, I didn't hear you coming, Potter."

"Yeah, well, I had tendency to slink up to people," Harry answered in carefree, his hands jammed into his black trouser's pockets. Both of them were by the training field, with wind breezing them as they sat on one of the benches. Surveying around the field, Harry recollected his first time here and smiled ironically. He had done most of his extensive Quidditch training here, before transferred to another field with the main players.

"A curse may well be on your way if you keep on doing that to other people." Staring at him for a while, Jeffery swiveled his eyes back to the front. "I'm starting to wonder if this is a really good idea. Strictly speaking, I am still working for Gringotts and I supposed to be reporting myself at work by now..." He ran his hand nervously through his messy brown hair. "What if it turns out terribly? I hope my superior will excuse me for missing work just this once."

"Look, if you're so concerned with your work, I'll go talk with the goblins about it. I should be somewhere else after this, but I have a lot of free time to myself so I'll stop by Gringotts first. I'm sure they'll understand this um...predicament..." spoke Harry. "Who knows, with me speaking to them, you may have a promotion the next time you go back to being a curse breaker. Seriously though, a lowly curse breaker? You could achieve more than that." Jeffery looked skeptical and unsure at Harry's words. 

"Potter, goblins are nasty and greedy. They don't pardon you just for silly reasons, like pursuing silly dreams and all that. And, did I mention they're very strict? They don't care if you're going there on my behalf. If you're not written under employees or customers, they won't give a damn about you. Hell, they might even feed you to one of their security dragons for being involved in such things."

"Trust me, I have a pretty good relationship with the goblins and we go way back. Besides, you're being biased to them. If you get to know them, they're quite mischievous friendly little buggers. Just expect a letter by the end of the day and their response will sweep you off your feet," verbalized Harry with a touch of grin. "But, enough about that. Whoever said pursuing dreams are silly? For me, it is one of the most important things you must do in life. Without them, life will not be so stimulating. A dream is but a dream... But, everything began from a mere dream. Where there is life, there will always be a dream." A smile was threatening to split Jeffery's face. 

"Did you get that from experiencing what it feels like to be a professional player?"

"Nope, I learned it from an old man I'm very fond of, even if I loathed to admit it willingly." Wide smile warmed Harry's face. "Guess, I should be going." Harry stood up, brushing the soot of his coat. "I wish you luck in life, Barkin. We'll meet each other sometime soon. I do have a feeling though that we'll meet each other as teammates next year. See you around then." With a ghost of smile sported his lips, bright almond eyes loitered on Harry's retreating silhouette for a long while. 

"Damn him for saying that with such a cool expression. How can people say no to such expression? Thanks, Harry..."

Holding his hat in place as the wind threatened to procure his coat, Harry stood in front of the large ancient gates. His coat swayed violently. Emerald eyes were affixed on the huge ancient mansion that rested alone atop the hill. To him, it was so big, it kinda looked like what the old noble families in King Arthur's age used to live in. In Harry's opinion, the mansion was relatively in resemblance to what a castle looked like, its structure, its feature, the building and even its age. Nevertheless, so as not to arouse too much suspicion from the locals, Merlin might have changed the appearance. Thus, the conclusion of the construction was like a combination of a castle and an old English mansion.

"Harry, is that you?" Twisting his head around, a tiny smile tugged his lips.

"Mrs. Wayward! I see you're taking a walk with your dog again?" Subsequent to this, his gaze settled on the energetically barking creature, its tail wagging in joy. The thirty year old woman laughed, waving her hand in flippant manner. 

"Yes, yes, and I happen to like passing this hill with the wind blowing. It's very refreshing. And, I see you're visiting Mr. Carter again. How is he?" Mrs. Wayward said, with uncertain expression on her face. She wandered her eyes over the big frightening-like mansion and shuddered a little at the appearance.

"Oh, the old man?" said Harry distractedly, stooping down to chafe the dog's fluffy fur. "He's still the same as always." Noticing her expression, he emerged from his kneeling position. "Don't worry about it, Mrs. Wayward. It's just the outside appearance of the mansion that looks so terrible. The inside is actually luxurious, well, with dust and spider webs all over the place. Whatever horrible rumors have been concocted regarding the old man and his castle-like mansion are not true. I do acknowledge how creepy this place is, but that's just how it is. Other than that, it's pretty much normal."

"A-Are you sure, Harry?"

"I've been visiting him for years now," Harry assuaged her. "Besides, if it were true, don't you think your dog would've spotted it? I was told dogs have a canine sense and can detect dangers or any weirdness near them," Harry pointed out sensibly, patting the dog's head. It looked like to be enjoying the attention. "So, I assure you, no one from your neighborhood will be abducted and taken into the mansion, just to be transformed into a new version of Frankenstein."

"I-I suppose, you're right." Mrs. Wayward forced out a weak giggle.

"Do tell the rest of the neighborhood to not remark anything horrible about the old man again. He just doesn't have any interest in renovating his home into more of a modern style. He'd rather keep it the old fashioned way and what with him being alone in such large mansion, it's no surprise why he doesn't care such frivolous stuff. Just imagine living by yourself in big place, what with your age catching up to you."

"I guess we were all paranoid, since this mansion was built even before the neighborhood around these parts came along."

"It's okay, I would've felt the same way. This place has been handed down generation after generation in his family, that's all." Harry smiled brilliantly, inducing red tints on the woman's cheeks. Regardless she's already married, she could not contradict with herself on how truly appealing the teen is.

"Well, do send our apologies to Mr. Carter, that is if he ever heard one of our ludicrous rumors. Should I send him some muffins or something, Harry?"

"No!" Harry speedily recomposed himself. "It's just he's old now, therefore I don't think it will be an excellent idea for him to come down the hill and open the gates for you. It's not wired to electronics so it cannot open and close automatically. It has to be done manually. I think leaving him alone peacefully would be the best. I don't want to deteriorate his health further." A slight frown marred the woman's face. 

"Oh dear, if what you say is true, then it is best for him to rest as much as he can. But, how you will get in, Harry?"

"Oh, I have the key to open the gate so no worries, and there is another way for me to enter his home." Harry smiled credibly, which led to another set of blushes on the woman's cheeks. "Now, if you excuse me, Mrs. Wayward, the old man is probably waiting for me."

"Y-Yes, well, have a good day, Harry. I'd best be off as well." The blush on her face deepened further. "A-and um... I-if you wish, Harry. You can stop by my house and maybe, have some cookies or snacks. Sometimes I make too much for my children." It seemed as though the woman was trying to seduce Harry to come back to her house, even though he was under the notion that she was married.  Despite the internal conflicts, however, the smile still attached on his lips. 

"Thank you for the offer, I'll remember it the next time I visit the old man." The woman deflated. 

"O-Oh, very well... Come along, Mr. Snuggles." The dog whined, but dutifully obeyed its owner. Only after the middle-aged woman and her pet were out of view, did the smile on his face dissolve. Harry released a heavy sigh. The local people below the hill were constantly leery and apprehensive of the creepy mansion that stood alone by the hill. It was generally due to how long it had been there and how daunting it's appearance was. Though, Harry was confident half of it stemmed from the place ousting such an eerie aura, that even non-magical people were conscious of it and attracted to it.

The tall doors behind him closed with a loud clang, and Harry grumbled at it. Switching his awareness to the front, Harry casually greeted the regal looking elemental. 

"Hey, Skip." The response he received was a strange thrilling sound. "Good to see you too. Have you been taking care of my car?" A sound from the elemental reverberated throughout the hallway they're walking on.

"What do you mean it's not mine? It is mine, I found the car." The elemental ostensibly disputed at this. "Just because the old man converted it to a more of stylish expensive car, doesn't mean it's his! There's a saying you know, 'finders keepers', and I found it, not the old man, so it's mine! Stop taking his side and start taking mine!" The elemental emitted more noises.

"Why you... If you were more solid, I would dissect you into pieces, you stupid ethereal looking being." There were more thrilling noises coming from Skip. "Me, jealous of you?" Harry spat incredulously, frustration mounting. "I am not jealous of you, Skip! Just because you can't be harmed physically and magically, doesn't mean anything! Fine, I confess your magical prowess is on a whole different level and that, you're a very powerful being, but that's it!" The elemental looked so conceited of itself. "Oh, shut it. I'm conceding to the reality of how powerful you are, not awe of you." 

The elemental disagreed with Harry.

"That was a long time ago! I met you for the first time ever and I was what? Seven? Eight? I'd never seen or heard your kind before so of course I'd be in awe of you, anyone would be!" If the holy orb could grin, it would definitely be grinning right about now. "No, it still counts as nothing, Skip! You know what? Forget it. I don't want to squabble with you over trivial matters, just lead me to the old man. Where is he anyway?"

Thrilling sounds echoed.

"The basement? Again?" Skip explained it in its own elemental style. "Did you say he's working on something? Must be researching on the Basilisk..." The elemental clarified it more clearly. "He finished it a month ago? That's pretty quick... Why didn't he inform me of its progress?"

The reply from the elemental caused a twitch of irritation on Harry's eyes.

"Skip, what do you mean I'm not worthy enough?" The words were laced with venom, and another sound can be distinguished from the elemental. "Oh... 'Exactly what you mean', did you say?" Harry started calmly. Before anyone knew it, his hot temper had boiled to its highest point. "That's it! Come here, you daft creature! I'm going to enjoy my time dismembering you slowly! It's unheard of, but I'll be the first person to ever succeed in slicing up an elemental!"

At those words, the holy elemental whizzed forward, hurriedly distancing itself from the crazed young man.

"Get back here, you arrogant elemental!" yelled Harry angrily, chasing after it. "You wanted to know why I was in awe of you the first time?! It was because ever since I met you, I always wanted to do this! I'm sure the old man possesses the correct apparatus to cut you into pieces!"

Situations like this generated judgments in people on how insane it could be, if it were not for the hilarious sight of one of the most powerful magical creatures in history, being hunted down by an enraged youngster. In his frenzied state, Harry had wandlessly conjured a sword, and had taken upon himself on swinging it violently side to side, striving to reach the elemental. They were both halted in their tracks by a familiar ancient man ambling in the same hallway as them. 

"My, my, you two are energetic as always. If you two please, the many artifacts and ornaments paraded all over the hallways are very valuable to me. Some cannot be repaired with magic. Many, if not most, I have collected for long years, hence I would be grateful if none of them are spoiled." Skip snatched this opportunity to shelter behind Merlin, poking its glowing orb round to spy warily on Harry's movement.

"Step aside, old man! I'm going to slice that useless elemental!" hollered Harry, pointing the sword threateningly.

"Harry, please..." Merlin gazed upon the blade and it perished, disintegrating into nothing. "You are aware nothing can harm Skip, are you not?"

"Like hell I care!" Harry seethed. "That elemental has too much pride in itself!" A sword was, again, conjured into his hands, and once more, it crumbled into emptiness once more. Blinking his eyes owlishly, he glared fiercely at the culprit.

"Harry, do leave poor Skip alone. And Skip, stop antagonizing Harry, if you please." The elemental gave some form of gesture that he understood perfectly. "Excellent. Now, come with me, Harry. There is something I ought to show you before you depart to Hogwarts." If Harry was to look back at the elemental one last time over his shoulder, he could see the elemental was tantalizing him.

"That elemental infuriates me to no end!" groused Harry, folding his arms over his chest. "I should have carve it and be done with it!"

"Calm yourself, Harry. Anger is one emotion that can be uncontainable and it frequently controls us with our less than irrational thoughts. We must train ourselves not to allow our anger conquer us, for it will guide us to nothing but disastrous outcomes and it will compel us to do something we will greatly regret later on. What is more, our image is a reflection of our actions, so do not do anything that will fill you with the feeling of remorse, dear child."

"Yeah, yeah, old man, I get it." Harry brushed off glibly. "I'm just spewing nonsense. I didn't mean any of it. I know Skip was only teasing me. He loves it every time I get riled up over nothing." He was now in the basement of the mansion with the old man. Unlike the common household basement, Harry felt the old man's basement was more comparable to a dungeon. Dark, creepy, strange coldness trapped on the walls and more importantly, depression was all over the place. In place of the normal modern lights that even a majority of wizards used nowadays, torches could be seen. Nevertheless, in contrast to older dungeons, it didn't reek with death. In the room, there were jars with different colored contents on the shelves, and other apparatus was scattered across the floor, most of which anyone would imagine within a laboratory.

In addition to this, Harry could discerned many long bookcases and at the other end of the room only darkness could be spotted. These bookcases were packed with ancient books, spell tomes and knowledge that would make people salivate. Most of the ancient knowledge secrets could be uncovered here. Harry had once snuck to this place when he was nine and endeavored to read one of the books, except as soon as he opened the book, he couldn't locate any words within it. He was immediately caught red-handed by the old man and Merlin proceeded in elucidating him the reason behind it. Since Harry was not the owner of the books, he could not read it, in fact no one could, with the exception of Merlin himself. To top it all off, it was also the place where Merlin conducted his researches, as well as training Harry physically and mentally, etc. The place could also be depicted as a huge library that would put Hogwarts' to shame.

At present, the old man's back was facing Harry, as he was working on something. There would be a brief of glow here and there, and as intriguing it was during his childhood, it was developing into tediousness, seeing as all he could do was monitor the old man from afar. Idly, he approached one of the jars. He pounded the glass lightly, drumming it insistently. Yelping, Harry was confronted with two big bulbous yellow eyes. He hopped back from the jar, mechanically sealing his lids.

"Ah, I see, you have discovered the Basilisk's eyes. Fascinating, is it not, Harry? The sizes of those eyes are thrice larger than our own," Merlin butted in, looming behind Harry. "Do not worry Harry, its eyes cannot kill you any longer."

"I-I know that! It's just instinct..." Harry's whole body quivered. The sight of those eyes reminded Harry vividly of what transpired in the chamber. He cringed in the slightest at recalling the horrid experience. "But... it's strange... Momentarily, I could've sworn I sensed a pulse of magic in it."

"And that is where the secret lies, how it kills its prey with one single look." Harry was in rapt attention. 

"What do you mean?"

"Harry, the Basilisk existed before the founders of Hogwarts were even born. I will not deny its reputation as one of the most fearsome beasts history has ever known. And it is with a large possibility, the great serpent existed even before my time."

"W-wait, I thought this creature was first bred by some wizard named Herpo the Foul. He achieved it by hatching a chicken beneath a toad which resulted in the manifestation of the Basilisk." Harry tilted his head to the side as realization dawned to him. "Although, I don't know if the information was right at all. After spending years with you, old man, I'm beginning to lose faith in wizardry's historical sources."

"I am glad I have instilled some positive influences in you, dear child." Merlin smiled, a couple of books perpetually floating around him in circle. "What you say is, for the most part, true. Herpo was not the man whom first bred the Basilisk however, it was perhaps done ages ago. By who, I do not know."

"Whether it is positive or not, it is still widely debated. I even picked up a few of his habits these days." He, then, raised his voice, "Perhaps?"

"Stay with me, Harry, all your questions will be answered," Merlin urged, pacing back to forth. "Yes, perhaps... In my time, this creature was no longer sighted. I believed, by King Arthur's era, the Basilisks were extinct and it was possibly due to many reasons. Nevertheless, the faults can be largely laid to the people who hunted the beasts for fortune and such, or its kind was eradicated in King Arthur's great purge." He stroked his chin with his right hand, submerging into deep thought. "Yes, this may conceivably be the right fact. It is no wonder as to why Arthur and I never met such creature before."

"So, what are you saying is this Herpo guy...recreated the Basilisk by luck?" Harry asked tentatively. "Very silly name, I might add too." The old man looked up with a rare glint in his twinkle cerulean eyes. 

"Yes, that is what I believe..."

"Is there any evidence to substantiate your claims?"

"There is." Merlin indicated it to the Basilisk's eyes.

"The eyes?"

"Indulge my curiosity with an answer, Harry. Have you ever felt some form of repulsive magic pressuring your eyes when you stared directly at it?" Harking back the memories, Harry's expression morphed to grim. "By your reaction, it would seem you have indeed felt it." Harry was no simpleton, no, he was far from it. He instantly caught on to what the old man was implying. 

"Y-y-you're telling me, t-this... thing has the same Mystic Eyes as us? Impossible! It's a creature, old man, not a human being like us! You taught me the Mystic Eyes is another way of exploiting magic! What I experienced from the Basilisk is completely different." Involuntarily, a shiver ran up to his spine.

"Yes, it is undeniably a creature, but a magical one." Merlin motioned the youngster over to the jar. "Look closely, Harry, and tell me what the color of those eyes reminds you of." Harry studied the bulbous eyes very thoroughly. "Can you see it, Harry? Those colors are very akin to the color of Mystic Eyes."

"Nearly, old man," Harry retorted. "Those eyes are yellow, ours are in gold color, not to mention our eyes will glow a little whenever we employed the Mystic Eyes. Besides, it's cooler and makes us more mysterious that way, not creep-ish." A scowl etched his face. "On top of that, I refuse to be put in the same category with this thing if it related to magic."

"Harry, I hardly concern myself over how mysterious the eyes can be or how much 'cool' it is..." Merlin smiled at his pupil's attitude. "To contradict your words, those eyes are truly the Mystic Eyes we both came to know. I had acquired a theory on how their eyes underwent the color yellow instead of gold. For us, utilizing the Mystic Eyes only occurred each time we wished to activate it."

"Yeah, like a switch, damn handy too..." Harry talked softly in the background. Not heeding the murmur, Merlin went on. 

"Magic flowed to our eyes causing the abnormal changes of our eyes, but for us, the alteration is merely temporary-"

"That's not true," Harry interjected briskly. "Remember my fight with the Slytherin's pet? I had to maintain my Mystic Eyes to counter the Basilisk's deathly murderous gaze. If not, you would be conversing with my corpse right now."

"Ah, but remember, you preserved the Mystic Eyes with just enough time to slay it. Thus, in a manner of speaking, it still consider as provisional, Harry." Harry leaned to the Basilisk's eyes, tapping the jar with his knuckles. 

"So what are you saying, old man?"

"For us, the Mystic Eyes are more of temporary occurrence. For the Basilisk, however, I inferred their eyes are more of permanent. For that simple reason, the Basilisk's eyes gradually took the color of yellow, opposed to color gold like us..." Merlin inclined his body forward, peering over the Basilisk's eyes, adjacent to Harry. "There is a probability their colors are originally gold, and after months of sustaining the form of Mystic Eyes, the color changes..."

"Permanent? How?" Harry was baffled. "How is the Basilisk able to hold so much magic in its eyes for a prolonged time? That's insane. You know how excruciating it is when you channel your magic through your eyes? There is a reason as to why 'eyes' are regarded as the most sensitive part in our body. You told me yourself that even you have consequences if you retain your Mystic Eyes for a long period of time. Heck, you even warned me how it nearly blinded you after you tried it once!"

"The wonders of the mysterious is remarkable, is it not, Harry?" His eyes shimmered brightly, like a child having fulfilled their desires. "Even after I decapitated those eyes from its body, they were still imbued with magic. Even as we speak now, you can feel the pulse of its magic... Truly extraordinary..."

"Hmph," Harry harrumphed, recovering himself from his position. "I bet there were more powerful monsters in your time than the Basilisks. The only reason it is so powerful is because Slytherin did something to it, or you could say he mutated the Basilisk. I'm just thankful I survived and won against it... Which reminds me-" Harry twirled his head to the old man. "Whatever happened to the rest of the Basilisk's parts? You know the venom, its magically thick scales, fangs and its internal organs? What did you do to it?"

"It is stowed with the rest of the ingredients I have accumulated over the years from different kind of magical monsters."

"I bet the ingredients of those creatures are more legendary, powerful and some kind of creatures that people like me could only dream of. I'd even wager my life that Daphne would willingly exchange her soul for those ingredients." Harry puckered his lips. "Have you ever thought of yourself as a collector, old man? I noticed some of the artifacts you also collect are from Muggle history, the armor, the weapons and other things are from important events in Muggle history, like a big war or something."

"Hmm, I suppose you can portray me as such, Harry. I do love collecting historical objects, be it magical or non-magical. It assists me in connecting myself back to my time..." Merlin had a faraway heartrending expression on his face. In his stance, Harry fidgeted slightly, unease. 

"Y-you still haven't told me how the Basilisk can kill its prey with one single look." Secretly, Harry already knew how the Basilisk did it. He was merely distracting his mentor from revisiting his old memories, not having the desire to see him in pain. Merlin fluttered his eyes. 

"Dear me, Harry, I thought you would have understood how its eyes functioned. Well, never mind then, I will gladly explain it. Come, let us extract ourselves from this environment and adjourn ourselves to the garden." Harry tailed behind the ancient man, his brown coat was dangling on his right forearm while his Ascot hat tucked inside one of his trouser's back pockets. 

"I do actually understand how it killed its prey. Back when I battled it, I felt some sort of force- no, magic clashing with my own magic when I stared it directly to its eyes. It was as if it was trying to penetrate inside my body... My conclusion afterwards was the Basilisk's magic reacts differently inside other beings. Simply put, it's like Muggle chemistry. When you mix two disagreeable chemicals, it causes a reaction - a chaotic kind of reaction. I deduced that's how it is. I think we can agree and be confident on one thing. The Basilisk's magic is revolting and very much violent. No such being, human or inhuman, would want it inside it. And it is powerful enough to petrify us, just by catching its gaze through a reflection."

"You are correct, Harry. And yes, the Basilisk's magic is one of the most repulsive I have encountered in my life," he said with a hint of disgust. "I have analyzed every part of the Basilisk in many ways, each time attesting to most of my speculations, including as to how I am so convinced its eyes has the same Mystic Eyes as ours. Though, I must say I am very impressed on how Salazar could improve his pet into a more of a superior breed."

"You're thinking the Slytherin's pet is like a new and stronger breed than any of the other Basilisks, aren't you?"

"Indeed, I am, Harry. You have no idea how much magic the serpent has in itself. I believe Salazar also fed it with potent potions to make it more powerful. Even to this very day, the stain of those potions lingers in the serpent's body." In a steady pace, they had now elapsed many artifacts as they kept on sauntering through the hallways. "Nonetheless, the creature can still be regarded as average in comparison to the many creatures I have dealt in the past."

"It feels like he's mocking the present world and calling it weak, compared to his world," Harry thought out loud, with a poker face. "For some reason, I'm glad I wasn't born in King Arthur's age... Damn it, comparing Slytherin's pet like that, to the creatures in his time no less and saying the Basilisk to be average too... Did he think it was easy for me to beat it? It makes me question as to what kind of world he faced in the past. Can't say it's easy to picture..."

"Once you obliterate its lethal gaze by blinding it, it can be killed easily. Even a simple knight with a sharp sword could manage the beast all by himself. But, if it is Slytherin's pet, ten knights should do it." Merlin's smile lengthened at Harry's not-so-low tone. "And, child, daydreaming can be the source of your troubles in the future, so best not do it quite often."

"I do not daydream, old man!" Harry snarled, marching by Merlin's side. He blamed Callista for that. Over time, she could be found speaking to herself and Harry constantly caught onto her act. Additionally, he teased her whenever it transpired. Now, it appeared to be her habit rubbing it off on him. If she knew about this, their roles would be swapped and Harry was exceedingly certain she would do it mercilessly. "Anyhow, can you explain to me how the Mystic Eyes could do that? I mean, how the Basilisk could transfer its magic into a being? Is the Basilisk's Mystic Eyes a different version than us?"

"No, certainly not, Harry. As I informed you earlier, it is similar as us." He looked inquisitively at his mentor. 

"Then how?"

"There is a little bit of information I have failed to mention to you, Harry..."

"Which is?"

"Did you know the Mystic Eyes have more abilities than what they appear to? Applying magic is just one of its other functions."

"No, I think you forget to tell me about it," Harry grounded out through his gritted teeth. "So you're telling me it has other powers?"

"If that is the kind of word you use to illustrate it, then yes, it is."

"Seriously? Can you show it to me, old man?" Harry swiftly amended at his mistake, "N-not on me, of course! I want you to demonstrate it for me..."

"I am afraid I cannot do that, Harry." Harry was astounded to note the sheepishness in the man's tone. "Mine do not possess any other uses apart from exploiting my magic through my eyes. As a matter of fact, I do not know much in regards to the Mystic Eyes."

"What!" If Harry was astonished earlier on, it didn't match up to the feeling he's in now. "You, the Lord of Magic, who has supreme and infinite knowledge of magic, is telling me you don't know more about the Mystic Eyes apart from using magic through our eyes? Then, how come you are so sure about the Basilisk?" Harry cast him with a deadpan look, lips thinned. "Old man, I'm beginning to doubt of what you say is true at all. Or, you've just gone barmy after living in solitude for so many years." Merlin looked a bit affronted. 

"Harry, never doubt the information or facts that have churned out of my mouth. I assure you everything I said is true, child."

"Whatever you say, old man..." Harry couldn't fight the smirk from manifesting. "So you don't know much about the Mystic Eyes, but you still know a few things about it, right?" Harry shook his head. "No, no, that came out really wrong." Harry dropped his smirk, reflecting his words. "Knowing you and in translation to your words, it is not the knowledge you don't know, it's how to unchain these other abilities..."

"Would you care to hear a story, Harry?" Merlin chuckled heartily when Harry's eyes lightened up. In spite how he had grown, he still loved listening to old legends and ancient stories from the old man. "This story may well be related to the Mystic Eyes." Now, they were exiting the mansion and progressing onto the gardens. Birds were chirping, the sweet aroma of nature drafted across the atmosphere, gusts of wind blowing gently and the aura was differed to the basements. Internally, Harry expressed to himself how invigorating the place is. Eyes squinting, he shielded his eyes from the brilliant light of the sun, all at once scrutinizing the environment.

"Old man, you have got to do something about your garden. If Regine was here with us, she would faint within seconds. It's horrid." Harry's plain description spelled out everything wrong in the garden. Notwithstanding the feeling, the garden's appearance complemented the mansion's appearance. Withered trees with no green leaves, more brown than green amid the grass, and not a single flower bloomed beautifully. "See, this is the problem right here. How can you try not to attract any attention from the local people, if your garden and your mansion are like this! I know I'm not the most fashionable person ever, but it's not going to take a genius to tell you how hideous and spooky it is."

"You can say whatever you wish, Harry. I stand by my belief."

"Belief had nothing to do with this, old man." Sighing exasperatedly, Harry's shoulders slouched.

"Oh?" Merlin batted his eyelashes a few times. "Well, just overlook it as it is and concentrate on our previous discussion." Harry sat on one of the comfortable chairs set out in the garden. "Now, onto the story, shall we?" Merlin imitated Harry's action, procuring a seat for himself. "Do you know of Greek Mythology, Harry?"

"You mean, if I ever forget it? No, not really... I enjoyed hearing the tales of heroic deeds done by the heroes in that mythology. You always narrated it to me during my childhood, telling me in dramatic gestures and having special effects with your magic..." A smile instinctively lit up Harry's face at relieving such memories. "You even had Skip dress up like a Trojan soldier once." Harry freely slipped out a grin. "Skip was all for it though. I even thought he was caught up with the actions more than the story..." Merlin chortled delightfully at this.

"How about the tale of a gorgeous maiden converted into hideous creature?"

"Medusa?" Harry's eyes flashed in understanding. "Oh, I see how this connects. It was said people turned to stone when they looked at her monstrous face." His face scrunched up. "You're going to tell me Medusa is not how the tale makes her to be, right? You believe her owning the same eyes as to ours?"

"Medusa and her sisters are often portrayed in the form of snakes, but they are not what the legend or the modern cultures insinuate them to be. In truth, they are beautiful sisters that live on an isolated island. Men lusted after them, women grew envious of them and because of that, their existence was cursed by the people. And in time, it led to many people provoking them and ultimately, the actions turned into attacks."

"Because of those reasons, it propelled the Gorgon sisters to take refuge on an island, far away from their assailants. However, Medusa was not content, Harry. The disgrace left her bitter and spiteful towards humanity for treating her as such. This resentment intensified to the point where she killed invading men who lusted after her and her sisters, which from that point on is how the legend of monster 'Medusa' was created." At this, the boy couldn't help but scoff and grin ruefully. 

"I would've felt the same way if I was treated as such. She had done nothing wrong but she and her sisters were chased away from their birth place. It's true what they say then, envy is the ugliest thing."

"But, the most key point here is how she killed her victims. Just about all of her victims were turned into a stone. Listen Harry, Medusa was like 'us'. Like my generation of magical people, she was blessed with Mystic Eyes. Though the Gorgon sisters were blessed with many comparable things such as their beauties, or their beautiful long hairs, Medusa was more special than her older siblings. I believe Medusa was born with the highest rank of the Mystic Eyes which is-"

"...The Petrifaction?" prompted Harry.

"Exactly, Harry. It was said Medusa's eyes can transmute all living flesh under her gaze into a stone."

"Hmm..." Harry hummed, with a meaningful look on his face. "But, old man, you said the highest rank... I don't think it is the highest rank given that the Basilisks can petrify its victims with their gaze, even if it is through reflection."

"Ah, that is true, but a Basilisk's petrifaction can be cured. Medusa's petrifaction, on the other hand, cannot be cured..." Harry nearly fell off his seat. 

"What?"

"Basilisk's petrifaction purely petrified the outer of our body, not the inner. That is why it can be healed by means of potions. If your insides could not digest the potion, then there is no meaning to it. As you can see, Harry, a Basilisk's petrifaction influenced only the outside, not inside. Medusa's petrifaction, however, had an effect on both the inside and outside, thwarting any methods in nursing her victims back to health."

"That's truly d-dreadful..." Harry whispered. "I-I never thought of it in such a way... I just thought it's the same thing..."

"...I do suppose Petrifaction is not the highest rank of Mystic Eyes..." Merlin mumbled, briefly not paying attention to Harry. "Do you know of Balor, Harry?"

"Balor?" Harry perked. "The ancient Celtic god of darkness and great-grandfather of Cu-Chulainn? The true king of the giants' race? Yes, you told me all about him when I was little."

"It was mentioned in many ancient books how Balor possessed an unnamed eyes. Now, the description of the eyes had shown he possessed the same as ours, even though the name was never mentioned. Would you believe me if I told you that Balor can actualize the death of a target, just by glaring it?" Chocking on his saliva, Harry tumbled from his seat this time. 

"W-what? He had the same eyes as ours too?"

"Yes, it was the truth. As I told you before, Harry, the Mystic Eyes can indiscriminately cast magic upon anyone within sights, though the effect is vastly increased if your target meets your gaze. That is the basic of Mystic Eyes."

"Yeah, you told me about it." Harry crawled back to his seat.

"But, that is the common ability of Mystic Eyes. In my time, all of the magical people who acquired such eyes knew by instinct is to cast magic with it. Over long years, I learned that it retained more than one ability. The identified types of Mystic Eyes are Binding, Charm, Compulsion, Enchantment, Illusion and Whisper. If you wish, you can include Transfer, Petrifaction and lastly, Death." Hairs stood up at the back of Harry's neck, fear stabbed his heart. 

"It makes me wonder what kind of world was in the past. So much power and then more power..." Harry shivered. "I think we'll just skip the Mystic Eyes for now, old man. I think it's enough for me to know its other abilities. If you don't know how to unlock the rest of it, then I'm more likely to be clueless on how to do it." Like lightning struck his head, his eyes narrowed. "You're a liar, you old fox." Merlin was taken aback at the accusation. 

"What do you mean, child?"

"You said your eyes only know how to cast magic, but you're lying! You said one of the abilities is Whisper, right? And, I'm positive this Whisper is a hypnotic suggestion! And, damn it, you've hypnotized me many times into sleeping!" The old man hurriedly whirled his head away. 

"I have no idea what you are carping, child."

"At first, I thought it was your smile enthralling me into asleep, but truthfully it was your eyes, wasn't it?!"

"Again, I stress on the fact that I do not have any faintest clue on what you are saying, Harry." Harry grumbled, glaring. 

"Fine, don't answer me. It's not like it can affect me anymore if I can counter it with my eyes." With that, comfortable silence descended upon them. Not wanting to waste his time glowering all day, he chose to enjoy the scenery instead. Even though it was not the most wonderful sight, it had a sense of refreshment. Harry rocked his body on his seat, pursing his lips as a sudden thought thrust to his mind. He did have a promise to fulfill, firstly though, he had to verify something from the old man.

"Hey, old man." Harry squirmed in his seat uncomfortably, licking his dry lips. "D-did you have any uh... l-l-lovers back in your time?" Merlin had a perplexed expression on his face. In a snail's pace, his lips coiled into a captivating smile. For Harry, it was more of an evil smile. "W-what?" The ancient man concealed his mouth with the back of his hand, putting no effort in obscuring his amusements. 

"My, I did not know you are in need of love advice from me, Harry. Tell me, who is the lucky maiden? Is it one of those charming beautiful girls that are surrounding you so often, Harry? Has one of them managed to ensnare your heart, Harry? Or, is it all four? Hmm, you are so ambitious and greedy to have all of them to yourself. Then again, nothing is ordinary for you, Harry, and I am afraid it will never be. They do say a heart of a man can be big enough to love all four women."

"W-what are you saying, you old geezer!" Harry sputtered, blushing hotly. "How did our conversation end up like this? I-I... I m-mean they're..." Harry shook his head furiously, face drowned in red. "T-they're just my friends! They don't have deep feelings for me! And, I do not have any feelings for them, whatsoever! So, suck it up, you stinky old fox!"

"Oh, is it really? I am only watching it from the sides. How is it I can see right through it?"

"Y-You're so irritating, old man! What's with that knowing look, huh? Wipe it off from your face!" Harry flushed more deeply, muttering more inaudibly to himself. "Forget it, I was trying to be nice and ask him indirectly, but now, I'm in no mood for it." He looked to his side. "Say, what's the true reason you invited me to your place? Aside from regular training, I presumed it's something of importance. I can tell I'm not here just to have a chat with you." Merlin soundlessly handed him an open book. 

"What can you see, Harry?"

"What can I see? There's nothing in it, we both know I can't read any of your books... Eh?" A picture slowly materialized itself on the page, and words, bit by bit, became visible. "How? I thought I can't read any of it."

"I am only allowing you to read this book. The rest of them, I still haven't permitted it." Without much complaining, Harry pried the book from his mentor's hand. 

"This looks like a... Dementor."

"And, what do you know of them?" It was a question asked in a cold tone.

"They were considered amongst the foulest creatures that have walked in this world. They infest the darkest and filthiest places. They glory themselves in decay and despair. They also suck peace, hope and happiness out of the air around them. That's what it says in Wizard books."

"Not drain, but it is simply the aura they induced."

"It's still the same, old man..." Harry retorted, slamming the book shut and let it aside. "Do you know of their origin?"

"I know more than that. They are traitors-"

"Traitors?" Harry's eyes widened. "You're saying it is as if they were humans before they became foul creatures?"

"Yes, they most likely were. Care for another tale, Harry?"

"By all means, old man. I don't mind. So you do know them, don't you? The way you said it, it was like you knew them personally, like an acquaintance or an enemy. So what's the story behind the Dementors?" Harry was eager to unveil the mystery shading the Dementors.

"Yes, you could articulate it as if they were friends... or comrades." Wide childlike eyes, Harry scooted his chair closer. "Back in the time of war, where Arthur trampled over his enemies and victory was so near in his grasp, there was a group- a unit of specialized soldiers capable of using magic. They were the only troop which comprised people who had magic within them. They were the first and last magical troop to have been assembled by Arthur. I, along with your ancestors, was asked by the king to oversee such troops, as both of us were versatile in magic than anyone else in his armies.

"Nonetheless, they were very arrogant in their knowledge of magic, claiming they themselves were more superior to any person in Camelot, including Lady Morgana herself." A beat pounded Harry's heart at the name. "Honestly-" Merlin smiled coldly which was very unlike him. "In my entire life, I had never seen such conceit in one army. In spite, we were told to be in command of them, they never adhered to us. They were already led by a leader of their own and I must say he was powerful in the arts of magic."

"It sounds like they were a clan of magical people, instead of being gathered one by one by King Arthur."

"You guessed it right, Harry. In the middle of the Great War, we heard rumors of people, men and women, who survived from the Great Purge of King Arthur, and they had assembled in one island in which they made claim of to be their territory. They set up their own wards, barriers, fields or whichever you prefer, to prohibit people from entering their island. Arthur ordered an expedition to search for them and the expedition was a success. All of them joined up arms for the king and swore a magical oath to him. The Oath was that their magic would be in Arthur's hands if they ever betrayed him."

"So naturally, they did betray you all in a few years."

"Victory was so near, Harry, so close... We could end the years of raging war in that battle, that battle was a gamble for us. We were prepared to die for the victory. No more shedding blood, innocence would never be endanger, the country could be restored to its former glory and enemies of the King would eventually yield if we would just win that particular battle. But, not everything went according to plan, as the unexpectedness came from those traitors. They left the battle to ourselves, to die by the hands of our enemies. I lost many friends in that battle and the survivors were very few because of their betrayal. Arthur was outraged. No... rage could not even begin to describe to what I saw on his expression.

"With their oath on his hand, he cursed every one of them, he cursed them for the many lives that had been taken in the battlefield, he cursed them for their betrayals and continued to curse them till his rage faded. Arthur cursed them to not pass on to the afterlife, cursed them to suffer in the darkness for eternity, cursed them to seek only the filthiest place in the world, cursed them to only glory themselves in decay, cursed them to no longer feel the joy of happiness and the only thing that remained was despair. Arthur did curse them not to be humans, however, to be the lowest creatures imaginable. The effect was instantaneous as those people were never seen again. Rumors said they were trapped in their own island, with the curse binding them there."

"And that's where the Dementors were born? The island is what the present world knows as the Azkaban Island, isn't it?"

"Indeed, Harry." Harry was rendered speechless for a while, collapsing into the soft textures of the chair. He was left without any qualms that the words from the old man's mouth were truthful, every bit of it. He had known the old man was never one to lie on such things and judging from Merlin's face, it was easy to conclude everything was true. Moreover, Harry had no reason to not lay his complete trust to his mentor.

"I advise you not to go anywhere near them, Harry. It is best to stay far away from them as much as you possibly can."

"I got the feeling I knew that already. If I am truly the direct descendant of my ancestor, I think they will see me as my ancestor," said Harry. "Hey, old man, can the curse really work that way? I never heard of such thing..."

"Remember Harry, magic was at it's heightened peak in my time, coupled with the oath they swore to Arthur, it is possible such things can occur. If they had not given their oath, then they may have mercy to only be executed to death as punishment fit for their crime. But, they were too arrogant of themselves, too sure of themselves and in the end, they faced the consequences of their arrogance. Even the knights, who served Arthur and were very loyal to him, were too terrified of the consequences of such oath. King's words were a law to us and magic deemed us worthy to follow to those who lead us till death part us from our leaders."

"To them, it's more of blessing than a curse. They may look like they were obeying the minister's orders, but they were only looking out for themselves. In the first war, they may have used Voldemort as their puppet, just to suck more souls," Harry commented maturely.

"Yes, I should have destroyed them from existence. They only wreak the world with nothing but harm."

"Then, do it. What's holding you back?"

"They have already made a big impact in the world. If they were to suddenly cease to exist in one night without any reasonable explanations, it would instigate many people probing into such matters and one day, their search would have ended here, ended in knowing the existence of the ancient world. The world that had lay in deep slumber for many years," Merlin rationalized sensibly.

"Was it really important to ward off the knowledge of the ancient world from the present world? With the exception of me, don't they have the right to know?"

"Do not forget that power comes from knowledge and the more knowledge people gain, the more they improve themselves. If the knowledge is crucial and contains so much power, it could only bring disaster. I have witnessed many times how humanity brought the world to the brink of destruction, and I would condemn myself if it were to happen again. No, it is best for the world to remain oblivious of the power we held back in the old age." Merlin held out his left hand in soft gesture as a couple of birds landed on his fingers, singing melodically. "I do intend to destroy their leader... Without him, they are nothing but mindless beasts that needs to be guided. He is both foolish and smart to exclude himself from the world. No matter, once I do locate him, I will demolish him..."

"Leader?" Harry was overwhelmed by astonishment. "You mean those beasts have someone commanding them?"

"You said it, yourself, Harry. They fooled your ministry into thinking they could control them when they have their own leader observing the ongoing of the world. I did mention they have a powerful leader of their own, even before they transformed into such foul beasts."

"If that leader is only watching from afar, then what harm he could bring?"

Merlin peered closely over Harry with his cerulean eyes, causing him to feel awkward. "Regardless of his monstrous appearance, that leader is the only individual who is sane enough to withstand the King's curse for such a long time. He is more frightening than any of them. He is waiting for the right opportunity to devour hundreds of souls, Harry. Bear in mind, this event had once happened years ago. An innocent town was piled up with hundreds of bodies with no soul in it, men, women, children and even very young toddlers. The world simply labeled it as a disaster occurrence with no idea what was happening. I would not be surprised if he was more powerful and dissimilar than the rest of his underlings."

"An innocent town...piled up with hundreds of bodies, but no soul in them...?" A cold chill pierced his body. "Then, w-what are you waiting for, old man? If that is all he had done over a thousand of years, then how many victims have fallen to him? There could be more than thousands of victims already..." Harry's body trembled without him aware of it. "Innocent souls sucked up just to quench his desire and hunger..."

"What do you think I have been doing for the last years, Harry? I have been searching for him, yet he managed to shirk away from me... It appears that he knew I was coming for him, so he hid himself pretty well, merely waiting for the right opportunity to strike again..."

"You never told me of this before... Why?"

"If do mention it to you, then what are you going to do, Harry? Seek him out? Hunt him down? Look at yourself, your whole body is shaking in fear... He is not an opponent you could tackle with just your willpower, Harry... Consider him a being that is out of your world..."

"You are going to find him and annihilate him, right?" Merlin nodded his head, certifying his motive. "Then, show him no mercy. It's quite unforgivable for him to target innocent souls. Have you ever checked Azkaban?"

"Harry, that would naturally be the thing I would check first."

"How is it the curse didn't bind them on the island anymore?"

"Arthur's death liberated them from being bound to the island."

"I see. I could not imagine how magic function in your world, or the world before yours. One thing is clear to me, magic is a lot more powerful in ancient times than in the present times. How naïve magical people are these days... How naïve of me." Harry remarked in a soft tone. "Is there a reason of this discussion? If it is for only maintaining my distance from them, then I don't have to worry about that. They're in Azkaban right now. Unless their leader commands them to capture me, I don't think they will disobey the ministry. They will be keeping their usual appearance as it is." Merlin's right hand gripped the teen's shoulder tightly. 

"Harry, If you do encounter them, mainly their leader, then run. Run as far away as your legs can."

"Wha-" Merlin dismissed his astonishment. 

"You can feel it, can you not? Something inside you is on the verge of bursting, and right now, you are leaking magical energy everywhere you go. Normal magical and non-magical people are not aware of it, but people like us are, Harry. Those beasts will be drawn to you like a moth to a distant moon. One of the things they fear above all is something or someone jeopardizing their existence. So, please, maintain your distance from them. They will kill you without any signs of hesitation and they will do so without any mercy." Merlin shook his body at each word. "No doubt, you will be attracting other attentions as well...."

"I-I'll try, old man." Clasping his right hand on where his heart is, Harry could feel something was throbbing aside from his normal pulse. A flash of an enormous ethereal globe crashed into his mind. Holding his now dizzy head with his left hand, Harry grunted at the sudden intrusion. Lately, he had been getting those visions more frequently. He just hoped he would not be dead after all of this. He would not forgive himself if he's the one who make the girls cry. Strangely, the thought of death did not mind him the slightest. Taking into account his adventure into the realm in between life and death, it made him fear dying less.

A burst of green fire ignited from the fireplace of the Potter mansion. Lost in his thoughts, Harry landed on his feet, not conscious of his lack of fall after traveling magically. A short time passed, he blinked his eyes rapidly and looked down, realizing he had not fallen on his butt. A triumphant look was plastered all over his face, so smug of his success he was. That is, before he lost his balance and ineptly tripped on his own feet, plummeting to the ground with heavy thud. Grunting, Harry cursed loudly to himself, massaging his aching buttocks incessantly.

After countless incidents like this, it was now evident to Harry that there was a little devil scurrying around and pulling pranks on him. He can tell the devil's mock laughter was pounding his eardrum right about now, taking pleasure from Harry's demise. Harry shook his head, getting rid of such imagination. He must be losing his mind these days. Having taken off his coat and his hat, he exited the living room, showing himself right into the dining room. He stopped abruptly. His eyebrows knitted together in displeasure.

His family, along with his 'uncles', was having dinner on the long table, chattering amongst themselves, the big chandelier above the table shining brightly upon them. His little siblings were there as well. Stifling a growl, he tried not to produce too much noise, hoping not to give away himself as they were seemingly engrossed in the presence of each other. He should have gone home once everyone was asleep, late at night. Pressing his lips together tightly, he attempted to creep past them and tiptoed towards his room without a sound. Like everyone said, he was very good at sneaking around.

"Hawwy!" Of course, it was futile as ultimately, he would be spotted by one person. He cringed at his sister's voice, foot frozen in mid-air as he climbed the stairs. The noise from below ceased straight away. Shoulders slumping, he exhaled his breath noisily. He reeled around to face them, glaring halfheartedly at his sister's cheery face. She was sporting a huge grin on her face, waving her right hand giddily at him as if Harry was far away from her.

"Harry!" Lily lightly exclaimed from her seat, next to James. Standing up, there was a huge smile on her lips. "You must be hungry. Come, have a seat and-"

"No, thank you," Harry cut her off brusquely, still on the stairs. "I already ate. I'm exhausted and in need of good rest." Awkward silence greeted them all. "Now, if you excuse me, I'll just be on my way to my room. Um... good night." Harry garbled at the last part of his sentence.

"Harry, wait!" It was his father. Harry had to gnaw his bottom lips from groaning. "W-we need to talk, this is very important." Harry noted the hint of seriousness in his tone. Sighing, he circled his body around for the second time. "I think it's rude to discuss imperative matters in the middle of dinner. It can wait for another time," he said deceptively, not having any intention in conferring anything with his parents.

"Harry, this is very important." Harry wasn't paying attention this time, his beautiful emerald eyes were glued to the letters on the table. There was also a large square envelope. But, that was not what caught his attention. The envelope was slit open. Neat expensive folded parchment was on top of the envelope. His eyes narrowed, feeling suspicion surge throughout his body.

"Are those letters belongs to me?" In a flash, Harry picked up the letters one by one. The letters were from the girls, his two roommates, Jason Spum and Frank Brike, and surprisingly, Xi Li. It was not much of a shock he received a letter from Li since she had been mailing him with letters all summer and they've been keeping in touch with each other. What caught his attention the most was the large square envelope. It was his OWLs results. He snatched the expensive looking parchment and unfolded it.

__

Ordinary Wizarding Level Results

Pass Grades:

Outstanding (O)

Exceeds Expectations (E)

Acceptable (A)

Fail Grades:

Poor (P)

Dreadful (D)

Troll (T)

Harry James Potter has achieved:

Ancient Runes: O

Astronomy: O

Care of Magical Creatures: O

Charms: O

Defense Against the Dark Arts: O

Herbology: O

History of Magic: E

Potions: O

Transfiguration: O

___

Harry's eyes traced the parchment several times, wearing an expressionless face. He was not disheartened by the results of his OWLs. He had always known that he wouldn't get an Outstanding in History of Magic, given that he was reluctant to go through the history examination, sleeping after he deemed he had answered enough to pass the exam. The girls were irate at his lack of motivation in the history exam, even Sheila was irked at him. Callista was, more or less, apoplectic at him.

"You got nine OWLs, Harry, isn't that great? And eight Outstanding! That's more than great, it's actually amazing!" Daniel grinned in the direction of his elder brother. He knew if he planned to keep up with his brother, he had to work very hard in the future. A cold look from Harry was enough to discourage Daniel from opening his mouth for the rest of the night. The grin on his face faded in an instant.

"Why was it open?" Harry asked, a tinge of venom can be detected. "These are my letters, right?" No one dared to speak a word. They were bowled over by how much anger was in his voice. Mustering his courage, Remus finally answered it in behalf of everyone. 

"We were really curious and just wanted to see how you are doing."

"Then, you should contain that curiosity of yours and stop sniffing on other people's business. I supposed it is hard, considering how sharp your nose is. Then again, I don't know since I don't have one," Harry spat sarcastically, eyes perched on him. Remus was visibly shocked and appalled, though the latter he concealed it remarkably in front of everyone. He swiftly got the message on what Harry implied by means of his words. Harry rounded his parents and said in a much harsher tone than he intended it to be, "I will say it again! What rights do you have, opening my letter?"

"It's just one letter, Harry!" Sirius stated. He was a bit annoyed at the attitude Harry was displaying. "Look, we're sorry we opened it. But, how are we supposed to just ignore and restrain our urge in knowing your OWLs results, especially if all of us wanted to know how excellent you are in exams. You weren't around when the letter arrived, so we took the liberty in-"

"Am I speaking to you?" Harry disrupted his words indifferently, bearing cool expression on his face and not so much as glancing in Sirius's way. He was locking his gaze at both of his parents. "I believe I directed my earlier question to the two persons here, not you." Rosaline sunk lower in her seat, nibbling her lips in anxiety. Daniel was taken aback by his brother's aggressiveness. They had never seen this side of their elder brother and this was the first time they ever had. Of course, his brother had his moment of being cold and emotionless in other occasions, mostly in the past, but he was always in control of his emotions, and he was never like this. It was like his feelings were previously being repressed and now, the time had finally come to unleash all of it, like a time-bomb. Moments of tension passed by and Harry grew aggravated by their lack of response.

"Tch, forget it..." Cradling his letters to his arms, he placed all of them carefully inside his coat's pockets. His father rose from his seat, seizing his arm, foiling him from running off. 

"Harry, we're really sorry for prying your business, but, this is important, your mother and I have to talk to you." Harry's eyes blazed in fury at the word 'mother' and he shrugged his father's hand off him roughly.

"Then, out with it." Lily avoided Harry's eyes and addressed to the other two adults. 

"Remus, Sirius, why don't you each take Daniel and Rosaline upstairs." James nodded his head, silently suggesting silencing charm in their room, in case the 'fireworks' were too loud. They understood from the beginning that they would have an inevitable confrontation with their eldest son and it appeared that the time had finally come.

"No, I think I should stay, you two. If things could get-"

"Sirius, stop, this is for us, not you," James said firmly. "Just go... Lily and I want to deal with this by ourselves... We don't want anyone to interfere..."

"James, are you sure?"

"Yes, Remus, just please, go. This is something we must deal with no matter what." Remus elevated Rosaline from her seat and carried her to her room. Rosaline wasn't protesting much, just silently watching her parents and her brother in Remus's arms. Daniel eyed his parents and his brother, feeling unease at abandoning the three behind. He obediently tagged along with Remus up the stairs. He was wondering what in Merlin's name was going on between the three. He knew something was out of place with his parents and Harry, but he didn't bother much in investigating as to what, or why. Now, his own inquisitiveness was swelling. Sirius stubbornly held back, nevertheless after a pleading look from his best mate, he withdrew. Harry was looking somewhat impatient. By the looks of it, his frustration intensified by the second. 

"Put privacy charm around us, I don't fancy them eavesdropping on what's coming." Harry, himself, knew this was an event that could not be evaded. Lily was the one who cast the charm around them, albeit tentatively. "What do you want to talk about?" Harry said, looking away from them. A scowl etched his face. This was getting increasingly uncomfortable for him, but his anger was demanding him to face his parents. He could not continue eluding them forever. Sooner or later, it would've come down to confrontation whether he liked it or not. They may have wanted to talk to him regarding something of importance, but in the end, the conclusion of it turned out in a different way. If fate would have it, without having Harry letting loose his rage on them.

"Harry..." Lily started softly. She was cautious about saying the next part. "W-we um... we..." Although, her relationship with Harry was non-existent, she still didn't have any desire to push him away. Staring at his wife for a while, James decided he would be the one to disclose the news to his son. He was more than prepared for the upcoming storm. 

"We're going to revoke your visitation rights for Hogsmeade..." Harry froze on the spot at his father's words. The last bit of warmth fled from them, with the atmosphere sinking to ice. 

"What?" Lily faltered at Harry's tone. 

"W-we have no choice, Harry... We have our reason for doing it. This is something that we have to do to protect you..."

"To protect me, you say?" Harry breathed those words. He chuckled dryly at the ironic. "You know what's funny? I can't remember the last time hearing that from either of you. As far as I'm concerned, I was the one protecting myself. So, I guess my little brother will not be having his Hogsmeade privileges revoked, huh?" Lily's eyes welled with tears. She hastily wiped it, refusing to shed tears in front of her son. 

"Harry, w-we didn't mean for it to happen. We also aren't going to sign Daniel's permission for his Hogsmeade visit. This is something that we have to do in order to protect you both and not just Daniel alone. We have our own reason to do this..." Harry inhaled a deep breath to pacify the wild storm in him. 

"Enlighten me as to why then."

"No, this is not something we could just carelessly tell you-"

"Lily," James interrupted.

"James, no, you couldn't possibly want to tell him, knowing the danger-"

"Lily," her husband interrupted her again and murmured, "If you don't, you're just going to push him away more. We discussed this already, didn't we?"

"Yes, but..." Lily bit her bottom lips, unable to form words. James just detached himself from his wife and supplied Harry with the newspaper. Harry flipped the Dailey Prophet and felt inside him chilled, frosty as ice. Unconsciously, his hands clutched on the paper itself. There, on the front-page, a short man, barely taller than a fourth year, with filthy unkempt hair and a large bald patched on top. The indication of him being plump was there, but his appearance took more of a bony stature, after spending years in Azkaban. It was Peter Pettigrew. He had broken free of Azkaban. At Harry's look, James continued. 

"So, as you can see the reason behind it, we have no choice. Pettigrew is out there, somewhere, and it's a dangerous time for our family right now. He could be after all of us. Harry, I won't deny the look on his face is one of insane-looking. That's what you get after spending years in the company of Dementors."

"Or, he's only targeting the boy-who-lived," Harry reasoned spitefully, scowling. "Look, I don't see any reason for him targeting me at all. I think he hardly knew I ever existed in the first place, unless he's been reading the newspaper on the Quidditch section which I doubt the prisoners ever get the luxury of being given a newspaper to them daily."

"Harry-" the boy rebuffed Lily from starting.

"Do you think just because of this, you're not going to permit me go to Hogsmeade weekend? I can understand my little brother, but I can take care of myself just fine. I don't need any protection from anyone and if he ever does come for me, he'll be in for a big surprise."

"Don't take this lightly, Harry-"

"I'm not taking anything lightly," Harry intruded James from finishing whatever he was trying to utter. "Do you know in my third year, I'm the only who didn't go to Hogsmeade, because I don't have anyone signing my form? I remained in the castle while everyone in my year went to Hogsmeade. I had to wait in my fourth year to visit Hogsmeade." His parents felt a rush of guilty at this, both not meeting his emerald eyes. "I'm not going to repeat that again while my other classmates in my year enjoy themselves. This is ridiculous. He's not going to murder me in daylights, especially if I'm surrounded with lots of people. I know how stupid he is, but I don't think he's stupid enough to take unnecessary risks.

"The point here is not him, it's you two. Why, all of a sudden, are you two making decisions for me? No one has been making decisions for me in my entire life as far as I know. What rights do you two have in feeling the need to decide things for me now? Was it because you both are my parents? Not good enough!" Harry yelled angrily, his knuckles white and jaws tightened. "In case you two forgotten, you two weren't exactly there the whole time..." He was not holding anything back and Harry knew it subconsciously.

"Is that all?" He was desperate to get out of here as fast as he could. Something was not right with him. He had been like this since last year, but recently, the thing inside him was influencing his emotions as well, pressuring him to get more vicious. The last thing he wanted to do now was something he would deeply regret later on. He wished to make amends with his parents, not strain their relationship further. If they had to go through confrontation first, then he didn't need it to end it in a bloody mess. Regrettably for Harry, it was not progressing the way he aimed it to be.

"We're sorry," James blurted out.

"Sorry...?" Harry hung the word in the air, emotions subsided for a second. "For trying to revoke my Hogsmeade privilege?"

"For everything..." Lily, against her will, chocked out a low sob, tears trickling down her cheeks. "We're really sorry, Harry... for everything..." Something inside him snapped, every single of his emotion, anger, sadness, melancholy, loneliness, his inner child desire for his parents and so on, just erupted like a broken faucet. Additionally, right now, he had gotten another flash of enormous ethereal globe in his mind and inside him, something was bubbling dangerously. He was flaunting more magical energy than he usually was and it was compelling him to react more violent. He did his best to disregard the painful headache bashing his head.

"Sorry..." There was silence as Harry stared at the floor.  "Sorry..." he seemed to contemplate the thought behind the word, before his eyes narrowed.  "Sorry? did you say? SORRY!" roared Harry with his visions turned red. "If you think saying sorry will make everything right, then you both are in for a rude awakening! Do you know how the hell I survived growing up by myself, huh? I tell you, it wasn't easy! I began looking for myself by the time I turned five! I had to learn how to cook at the age of five! I remember how my hands burned from heating the pot! Hell, my brain even developed into mature from that point on!" His right hand was gripping his Ascot black hat, with his deep brown coat dangling on his right arm, whereas he had his left hand on his forehead, clenching his head tightly and fingers treading his raven locks, nails dug on his skin. The throbbing on his head was getting harder to ignore.

"I went to Diagon Alley at the age of seven without anyone by my side! I had to do lots of errands in Diagon Alley at the age of seven, to buy something I desired! At the age of eight, I knew the people in the Diagon Alley more than my own parents! My only companions in this bloody huge ancestral Potter mansion are books! And, my first friend is loneliness! Is that how a child should undergo his childhood? I don't even bloody know my own parents, or remember the time when they said they love me!" Lily was covering her mouth with both hands to suppress the sobs, tears openly seeping out of her eyes. James was hiding his eyes under the bangs of his raven hair, masking his shame look and probably his tears that were threatening to fall.

"We aren't proud of ourselves too. You were everything to us back then. You were my pride, my first born, and, to think, I've discounted you as if you weren't there for so long and you being independent to yourself all this time. When you finally clicked to my mind, I - we knew it was too late by then. It was funny how it was your first broom made me realize it and Lily realized it when she accidentally entered your room. We wish for it to have never happened, we really do, Harry, but it's wistful thinking. If one thing I deeply regret in my life is not having myself by my first son's side. I have to comment on one thing though, without a doubt, you're the most talented Potter in brooms, already at the age of three able to fly like a professional..." James smiled, chuckling sorrowfully. Harry discovered his father's speech to be mesmerizing. The rage, though, never wilted, and it was still flaring intensely. 

"We never hope for anything and honestly, we never hoped we could enter your life, even if we tried as hard as we could. We only wanted to express how sorry we are, and that's the only thing we can think of doing for you. I understand if you hate us for it and don't forgive us for leaving you to fend for yourself all this years. I know if it were me, I would've done the same thing. It's unforgivable. Just know we won't blame you for it, Harry." Out of the blue, a fist strongly collided James's face. He staggered several steps back and crashed to the ground. 

"James!" Gasping, Lily rushed to his side quickly, stray tears on both of her cheeks. Lips splitting, glasses skewed with a fracture on it and blood dribbled from his mouth. James knew he deserved it more than anything and he was slightly pleased his son was pouring out everything he's been bottling up until now. James touched his swollen lips delicately and winced at it. Damn, his son packed a good punch. It looked as if he had been training his whole life in hand-to-hand combat. Thankfully, he hadn't lost any of his teeth, all of it was still in one piece. Breathing heavily from hitting his father, Harry was stunned by his own action. Eyes as large as saucers locked onto his fist - a speck of blood lay on it. He didn't know what forced him to land a blow on his father, but he did it out of impulsiveness. He was even putting in as much as force as he could gather. He didn't mean to do that. 

"Who said anything about me hating you? Who said anything about me having not forgiven you? I never said that! Don't assume you ever know me! You think after saying sorry and me forgiving you two, everything will be easy and okay, is that it? Don't be naïve! Our relationship will be cursed to be strained for the rest of our lives and that's not even my fault to begin with! Whose fault is it?!" Suddenly, everything was spinning around Harry as he wobbled on his two legs and he had to grab hold on the long dining table to support himself. He was sweating now, struggling for each sweet gulp of air and a drop blood just dripped on the table. It was emerging from Harry's nose.

"Harry!" James and Lily regained themselves from the ground, approaching him hastily. "Stay where you are!" Harry shouted furiously, wheezing for air and his emotions drained from him. The sound of gritting teeth emanated from Harry. He was, again, assaulted by the vision and something was hammering his head. Enduring the painful headache, he wiped the blood from his nose. 

"If you want to be on my good graces, then don't start making decisions for me. Don't revoke my Hogsmeade privilege, I can take care of myself, I've been doing it for years. For the very least, I want to live as a teenager of my age for my sixth year. I had enough sulking around about not having parents being there for me. Don't try to come anywhere near me for now and don't make any silly attempts to get close to me. I need some space and cool myself down before having a proper conversation with you two. This conversation is far from over and we all know it. I need time. Yes, time..." 

Harry averted his eyes from his parents, knowing his eyes altered to the color of pure gold, glimmering faintly. It feels as if his magic was rebelling against him, activating the Mystic Eyes against his own will. With his back against his parents, he darted hastily towards his room. He passed his younger siblings on his way as they coincidentally exited Daniel's room. Twirling the knob of the door, he paused in his doorway and peeked over his younger siblings. As they caught a glimpse of his gold eyes, he hastily moved his head away from them and went to his room. He shut the door with a thump and locked it. Spinning his body around, he supported his back against the door. His body slid down, taking his coat and his hat with him. Both fell to the floor, with the letters sprawled out of the coat's pocket. Chests heaving up and down, he shook his head with his eyes closed, multiple sweats trailed down his cheek. He first verified his magic settling down and after confirming it, he opened his eyes. It turned back to the color of emerald, having his magic receded. With the newspaper still in his left hand, Harry brought it to his face, reading the front page one more time.

"Pettigrew..." The hiss penetrated the silence and his eyes were glinting chillingly yet dangerously.

.     .     .

1 September, 1993

King's Cross Station was crammed with wizards and witches seeing their children off onto the train. The train itself, Hogwarts express, a scarlet steam engine, was puffing a smoke from its chimney. Harry was there, having again convened with the Greengrass'. To say Harry was amused by Daphne's behavior, would be understatement. Whenever Lady Greengrass smothered him, Daphne would clear her throat loud enough for her mother to return back fussing over her daughter. If she succeeded in garnering her mother's attention, she would then shot a haughty look towards Harry's direction.

"There's a lot of Aurors here..." Harry thought out loud, his sharp eyes stared at another pair of them.

"I can't say I'm surprise, lad, what with Pettigrew business and all." William situated a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Harry..."

"I know, I know, Lord Greengrass. You don't have to remind me, I'll take extra precautions from now on and I'll watch over Daphne and Astoria as well." That's right, Astoria attended Hogwarts this year with them. "There's a probability Pettigrew would've come after me, since I'm a Potter."

"Glad to hear, Harry." He patted Harry's back, smiling appreciatively. "My advice is to not seek out trouble and stay away from it."

"When was I not?" William was looking disbelieving. "It's true!"

"Lad, I may delve most of my times in politics, but I did not survive them merely because my wealth is immense. I know of your exploits with your friends over the last years you're in Hogwarts." He grinned at Harry's looks. "My wife and daughters may be smarter than I am, but I do have my fair share of intelligence."

"And I can tell Daphne got hers from both of you."

"Thank you, lad."

"I am only speaking the truth, Lord Greengrass."

"Mother, father, it'd be best we get going. We opt to search for a compartment and Tori needs to adjust. I want her to feel comfortable and ease herself up before the Sorting ceremony." Daphne's voice ruined any muses. "It won't be long before every student bombard the train, so we'll have to go and I mean now."

"Yes, yes, you all should go." Elizabeth sniffed, tears brimmed her eyes. "My two girls have grown so big now, and with Tori leaving for Hogwarts, I'm going to be all alone in the big scary mansion. Poor me!" She burst into exaggerated sobs, and everyone looked awkwardly around themselves. 

"Now, now, dear..." William comforted, embracing his wife. He started patting her back, but shot a smirk to the two fifth years that were staring at the couple. "You still have me, your lovely husband."

"You're obsessed with working! How am I to know you're even there for me!" she hissed, elbowing his ribs. "You'd better accompany me a lot from this point on, you hear me, William Greengrass? Because if not, you're going to be sleeping outside the mansion!" The now trembling man nodded his head shakily. 

"Yes, sweetheart! Absolutely! Most definitely! From now on, I'll do my best!"

"Don't worry, mother, I'll write to you every three days," Astoria perked, smiling. "I don't think daddy will be much of a companion for you." Lady Greengrass smiled tearfully at her youngest, wrapping her arms around Astoria. 

"Oh, that is so sweet of you, Tori, and you're correct about your father. I wonder how I have fallen in love with such a douche-bag like him." The sound of 'I beg your pardon?' in the background can be heard.

"I, on the other hand, will write letters to you every week. One letter each week, mother." Elizabeth pouted. 

"You're always like that, Daphne. Why can't you interact with your mother more?"

"Forget Daphne, mother, you have me." Astoria's smile was a bit devilish to everyone's liking. Daphne huffed and gracefully glided towards Harry with her trunk in tow. Her wonderfully soft fingers didn't waste time entwining with his. She refused to look at him as Harry quirked an eyebrow in bewilderment at her gesture. Daphne's face tinged with tints of pink. "Come along, Tori. My patience is limited in waiting out for you. We already had our fair share of goodbyes so hurry up." Turning to Harry, she said in a commanding tone, "Let's go, Potter. I'm not going to wait for her any longer." She jerked Harry's hand doggedly, which led to Harry no other choice except to follow her.

"Go, Tori. Knowing your sister, she won't wait for you." She nodded, offering one last hug to her parents and hurriedly pursued her sister. William draped an arm around his wife's slender figure.

"Am I to comment anything about that?" William motioned his wife in the direction of his eldest daughter boldly clinging to Harry's hand, not setting it free. "I'd hate to play the role of overprotective father if my daughter winds up dating to a young man that I'm absolutely fond of. I do not believe my intimidating figure would work much on him as well."

"Oh, hush you..." Elizabeth smacked her husband's chests, smiling stunningly. "We both are aware of Daphne is very much hopelessly in love with Harry. She was quite smitten of him at first, but after years of spending so much time with him, there is no denying the love she has for him and I would not object if my future son-in-law is Harry. It's better than some nameless bloke I do not know of and do not trust. Harry would never hurt our daughter intentionally and he's a sweet gentle boy. Although, I don't think it would be simple for Daphne, given that Harry is pretty clueless of her feelings and not to mention, Daphne had fierce competition with their other three close friends. Harry appears to split all of his attention between four of them very fairly, yet he still does not know their true feelings for him. I hate to imagine the chaos it will result in if he chose one of them. I consider those three girls like my own daughters too as they've visited our mansion many times over the summers and I, for one, do not wish any of them to be hurt."

"Four girls chasing after one male? Now, how would you know that? In our time, I had to court just this one particular gorgeous woman, not girls flocking for me. She's quite invulnerable to any of my advances or to any other guys who persisted in wooing her..."

"Call it a woman's intuition, darling..." She grinned, patting his cheek gently. "Really? Chase her, did you? And, how did it end up? Did she reject you terribly?" Bending down his head, he planted his lips firmly on hers. 

"Oh no, I married her and have been blessed with two beautiful daughters. They are just like their mother, so beautiful..."

"Gorgeous, is she?" Elizabeth whispered, eyes sparkling mischievously.

"The most..." William didn't display any signs of hesitation, swooping down to claim her lips.

"Hah!" cried Sheila, triumphant. "I win again, Daph!" Blowing out her breath somewhat noisily yet frustratingly, Daphne threw the Muggle cards in her hands up in the air, all in a fit of irritation.

"Hey! Don't vent it out on the cards just cause you lose, Daph." Sheila collected the scattered cards.

"Like I care." Flipping her hair over her shoulder, Daphne crossed her arms over her chests. "You must be cheating if you are on winning streak all the time." Sheila stuck a tongue. 

"I'm a Gryffindor, Daph. Unlike you, my nobility prevents me to cheat my way through everything."

"I have you know, Jonnet, I do not resort to cheating to accomplish anything."

"Hah!" she snorted. "Like I believe you, or would ever believe you. After all, 'Once a slimy snake always a slimy snake.'" Just when Daphne started to chuck her most ruthless insults at Sheila, the compartment's door slid open.

"Perfect timing, wouldn't you say, snake?" Sheila whispered, grinning to her Slytherin friend who was narrowing her eyes dangerously in return. "Welcome back, you three. How was the Prefect meeting?" Harry skimmed past the girls and plopped in his typical seat, next to the window, across to Daphne's. Callista and Regine smiled at each other. 

"Boring." they reacted concurrently.

"So, all of you have already performed your duties then?" Daphne idly studied her perfect nails.

"Aside from people greeting us, or most of it Harry. Yes, we already did." Regine piped.

"I must say though, at the start of the meeting, it was, to a certain extent... interesting." Callista sat on her seat, beside the compartment's door. Regine looked at Harry, securing a seat in the middle of him and Callista. 

"Agree-"

"What? What happened?" Sheila was shuffling the cards accordingly in her hands. Daphne's attention budged from her perfect nails to them, looking equally curious.

"Harry happened." Regine revealed. Daphne and Sheila exchanged knowing looks.

"What did he do now?" Sheila quipped lightheartedly.

"He threatened the Head Boy." Callista shed a glance at him. Harry was bored out of his mind, ears gone deaf to any of their conversations. His eyes fixed on the window, gazing indifference at the passing nature. The scenery outside became wilder and darker while the clouds above, thickened.

"What!" Sheila exclaimed, her grasp on the cards slackened, dropping all of them to the floor. "You're kidding, right? Why did he do that?"

"Who is the Head Boy?" was Daphne's mild question.

"Percy Weasel..." Callista's mood dampened at once. "I mean Percy Weasel... Oh for goodness sake, W-Weasley, I mean!" Regine rubbed her friend's back in sympathetic gesture, added with a smile of hilarity. Her eyes, then, perched on her other two friends. 

"Weasel was abusing his position as the esteem Head Boy and trying to change the patrol's schedule. As you two have probably guess, he tried to put Callista's patrol together with him - quite a stubborn bloke, he is - and, that's where Harry intervened. He just ignored Weasel's order and rebuffed it offhandedly. When Weasel enforced it for the second time, that's when Harry literally snapped. He said that just because Weasel is the Head boy doesn't mean he'll abide to everything Weasel says. Harry said that the position of Head Boy can be stripped from anyone and can be appointed to another person with the agreement of three head houses or the headmaster alone, all in accordance to Hogwarts rules. Harry also said that if Weasel tries anymore of his foolish stunts in getting closer to Callista, Harry won't tolerate his behavior anymore, even if it means having his Prefect position being taken away from him. His subtle threats did work to everyone who was listening in and it did tune up Weasel's attitude."

"With mere threats?" Daphne was eyeing appraisingly at Harry. "I am impressed. I hexed Weasel countless times last year and he still didn't back down."

"This is no laughing matter, Daphne," Callista reproached her friend, eyes scanning Harry and perceived him napping peacefully, snoring softly. "It's the way Harry's tone when he said it. By way of just words, I doubt it's sufficient to scare the Weasel. It feels familiar seeing Harry like that. It's like he's-"

"Back to his old self..." Regine concluded, sharing worried looks with Callista.

"Now, that is not funny, you two," said Sheila solemnly. "I admit how much I missed his old self. Still, we do remember how he was like back then, right?"

"Cold, grouchy, prone to violence, not a very social person, much more aloof than I am, glaring at every person he met including us, pushing every person away, ejecting cold aura everywhere he went and most importantly, never put a smile on his face, just scowled a lot," Regine asserted, counting each with her fingers.

"I hardly blame Potter for that. He did not have the most pleasant childhood," said Daphne.

"Be real, Daph, it took a long time for him to change and for him open up to us. I know Harry had unlucky childhood, but I do not want him to revert back to his old self. I like him more the way he is right now no matter how much I missed his old self."

"I concur with Sheila. Remember, Harry completely transformed into a different person at the end of our fourth year and he didn't even start flirting until our third year," Callista soured up at recalling many of his flirt attempts. The girls apparently shared her sentiment, each grumbling at the memory.

"Hey, come' on, girls, this is Harry we're talking about." Regine smiled beautifully, lightening up the cabin. "No matter if he reverts back to his old self or not, he's still Harry. What's there to be scared of? I have complete faith in Harry." Daphne smirked, announcing in theatrical way.

"And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what I'd like to call a true loyalty, a loyalty solely reserved for a true Hufflepuff. Everybody, applaud, if you please." All three girls took their cues by presenting a round of applause, combined with a whistle from Sheila.

"Oh, be quiet, you three." Regine's face was rapidly matching her scarlet hair. In order to lessen the blush on her face, she chose to tickle Callista whom was the closest to her. Callista squealed softly and ducked at her attempts, hastening towards to her two friends which led to Regine impishly hopping at all three of them. The girls' giggles and laughter rang out in the compartment as a contest of tickles broke out, each aiming to outdo one another and to expose who is the ticklish out of four of them.

"Girls, would you stop buzzing in excitement? I'm trying to get a shut eye here. I didn't get enough sleep last night," Harry groused groggily, shrouding his front body with his brown coat, using it as a blanket. They all shushed up at Harry's disgruntled voice, giggling noiselessly to themselves.

"Anyway... Daphne, how is Noah settling in?" Apart from Daphne's little sister, Astoria, Regine's little brother, Noah, was also attending Hogwarts as a fellow first year. He was an awfully shy boy with small stature, thin body, an oval shaped cute face, white skin comparable to Regine's, and brown eyes unlike Regine's gold-yellow eyes. Astoria didn't resemble Daphne in the slightest and not splitting image of her older sister. Her silky hair took the color of raven, and whilst her hair was from her mother, she got her black eyes from her father's. She had petite form of body and porcelain skin, like her mother and sister.

She acknowledged her older sister is a lot more beautiful than her, bearing in mind that Daphne attained the best attractive attributes from their parents. From the time Astoria and Noah became acquaintances of each other last year, they had become pretty close. Taking into consideration of their same age and were always conversing together whenever the Greengrass' had one of their dinner gatherings with the girls' families, it was not much of a surprise. Unfortunately, Daphne wasn't very pleased on them being inseparable to each other.

"He's fine." Daphne scowled. "If he lays a finger on Tori, I swear I'll castrate him and skin him alive. I don't care if he's your little brother, Regine."

"Daphne!" Regine objected, moaning. "Noah won't hurt a fly, much less his first and closest friend!"

"As if I bother with such trifle information. Just wait and see! That boy will be dealt with and he will soon realize how frightening I can be. Not even Merlin himself can save him and stand up to my wrath." Daphne's eyes turned to glares. "I bet he has done something to Tori already! I should not have deserted them all by themselves! I knew the boy was not to be trusted in the first place! I was right all along! Don't stop me girls, I'm likely on my way to murder him!" Horrified, Regine had to lunge for Daphne, not liberating her from the compartment. "What are you doing, Regine? Release me this instant! Even if you are his sister, you will not stop me! You are only delaying me!" Following a pleading look from Regine, Callista voiced out. 

"Daphne, don't leap to a nonsense conclusion like that. They're too young to do anything. You're being paranoid. Besides, your sister has an innocent crush on Harry and isn't showing any interest in Regine's little brother, yet. Moreover, Noah is a gentleman and very polite, so end this silly charade of yours." There was slightest of amusement underneath her tone.

"Yeah, Daph, he's cute and such a nice kid." Sheila was reduced in a heap of giggles. "You know something, Daph? I kinda like this side of yours! So protective of your sister and beneath that cold exterior of yours, who knew big bad Ice Princess could be a softy!"

"I change my mind," Daphne declared after a few moments of silence. "The concept of killing Jonnet is too tempting now. I am afraid I cannot resist the benefit of it any longer and I did put it into consideration for some time now... I'll have to contemplate on covering up the body later on, so without further ado-" Daphne pounced for Sheila with a snarl. The other two girls rushed to her. Regine clutched her right arm. 

"Daphne, no!"

"Don't do it, Daphne!" Callista detained her other arm.

"Let go of me, you two! I'll slay her like a mongrel she is! Scourge her to dust with a flame of abyss! Exterminate her with the most deathliest poison I could create! Stuff her throat down with lots of her food, she will weigh tons! And, she will be plump for the rest of her miserable, wretched life!"

"You're just jealous of my awesome hot figure, since I'm way more athletic than you'll ever be! Just because you keep in shape by exercising every so often during the summers, doesn't mean you'll have a body like mine, Daphne!" To emphasize her point, Sheila was on her feet and proceeded in moving her hands over her body from up to down, waggling her eyebrows teasingly. Her action just vexed Daphne further. In the end, Callista and Regine had to pin down their blond friend, to stop her from tearing Sheila into pieces. Sheila was roaring in laughter, relishing every second of it and inadvertently provoking Daphne at the same time. Their other two friends mentally marveled at this particular event. Didn't this occur back in Daphne's mansion? The only thing they can differentiate was their positions swapped, with Sheila unintentionally goading Daphne and Daphne was out for Sheila's blood. In spite of all the commotion, Harry was still in a deep slumber, a lazy smile shaping his lips.

Yawning indolently, Harry ambled his way through the corridor of the train, with no direction in mind. The girls were as rowdy as ever back in the compartment and he was stretching the stiff muscles he gained from sleeping. He sighed under his breath. Now, feeling a bit hungry, he was searching for that nice dimpled lady with the food cart. He located her stopping at one of the many compartments, and upfront, there was a familiar person, Xi Li, who was browsing for food and chatting absentmindedly with the witch.

Her short navy hair was cropped and messy. She had allowed her hair to be longer than it normally was, for it passed down just below her shoulders. Not yet in her school robes, the casual clothes she was in, hugged her lean figure nicely and her eyes were as midnight dark as ever. Harry couldn't help his eyes raking all over her body. As if sensing him, her body went rigid. Eyes pivoted to him, tints of red surfaced her cheeks.

"Hey, Li," Harry greeted warmly.

"P-Potter!" Harry slanted his head to the side, amused. 

"Whenever I am close to you, you seemed to pick up a sense on me, even when your back was facing me. Is that some sort of a skill you developed, Li? Or, do you have some kind of special detector designed specifically for me?"

"You wish!" The pretty blush on her face escalated. "Don't get any wrong idea, Potter! You're just emitting an aura that's making me abhor you!"

"Really, or is that a denial I detect?" Harry arched an eyebrow, a cocky smile on his lips. "Is it really making you detest me? Or, is it the other way around?"

"What!" Her face was now a nice shade of crimson. "Y-you're full of yourself, Potter!" A melodic chuckle poured out from Harry's throat. 

"It's nice to see you, Li. I would've thought you have gotten used to me teasing you by now, what with the letters we've been exchanging during the summer." He smiled sincerely at the Chinese girl.

"Whatever." was her mumbled response. "Um... Nice to see you too..."

"Ah, young love..." The cart lady sighed dreamily under her breath. Her voice was loud for the two of them. The two teens flushed and looked away from each other. Harry pretended to not heed the lady, purposely dispensing her words and didn't bother to rectify her. Xi discovered her feet to be fascinating at the moment, because of the uncontrollable hot blush on her face. "Is there anything you would like on the cart, dear?"

"Uh... yeah..." Harry cleared his throat, face still pinked. "I'm kind of hungry. I haven't eaten anything actually since breakfast."

"Understandable... I dropped by the compartment you're in earlier and found you were sleeping. You looked awfully tired." Harry rubbed the scruff of his neck, laughing a little. 

"Yeah, I just didn't get adequate rest last night so I had to compensate for it..." He trailed off his words, as his head was assaulted by another round of wooziness. Grunting incoherently, he steadied himself by holding onto the cart from not falling to the ground. Arms looped around Harry's left arm, stabling him on his feet. Reflexively, his body leaned closer to the person.

"Hey, get a hold of yourself, Potter! Are you alright?" inquired Xi, very concerned for him. The cart lady was also worried of his unexpected condition. Harry bowed his head down, for fear of them seeing his eyes glowing in pure gold. He tightly squeezed his eyes shut to get rid of the Mystic Eyes. All of the sudden, there was a sudden violent shake in the train, all of it quaking as if the whole place was struck by an earthquake. There were small screams here and there, but luckily, it only lasted for a few minutes.

"What the hell was that about?" Xi wondered out loud, pressing herself to Harry more. Heads were sticking curiously out of their compartments. Penelope Clearwater and Su Li, Xi's little sister, were also outside. "You two should go inside, it's probably nothing, just a passing earthquake, that's all. Go back inside." Xi ushered them with words, still latching herself onto Harry. Reassured, the two retreated back inside, followed by the rest of the students. Panting, he held his head back up, coughing a bit. 

"Hey, Potter, are you alright? What's wrong?"

"You already asked me that question, Li." He detached his body from hers, disengaging their arms. "I'm fine..."

"No, you're not, look at yourself!"

"Huh?"

"Dear, your nose is bleeding!" said the cart lady.

"Oh?" Harry was about to wipe it with his hand, but Xi was faster than him. Digging out her handkerchief, she mopped it gently for him. "T-This is nothing..."

"It is not nothing, Potter! This is troubling..." Her worried tone was as clear as daylight to him. Harry's right hand bind Xi's left wrist, hindering her from moping his blood anymore. 

"Look Li, I appreciate your concern. But like I said, this is really nothing. I just didn't get enough rest so it might be from exhaustion-" The words hardly left him as the train abruptly decelerated. "Eep!" Xi tripped at such suddenness, falling forward. Harry instinctively embraced Xi, his arms enfolded around her lean muscular body. Her hot face was buried in his chests and she came to a realization on how built Harry is. Her nose gulped in a whiff of his cologne and her face blushed more hotly. Harry, however, wasn't paying any attention to her. He was having an ominous feeling at this point in time. The ominous feeling grew worsen. Harry felt his wand vibrating. In an instant, he understood the danger his wand was alerting. It was like the Chamber of Secrets all over again.

 "Both of you must get inside a compartment, now!"

"Potter, what-"

"Do not argue with me, Li, this is serious!" Seeing the grave expression, Xi shut up. She had never once confronted with a somber Harry Potter before. Harry steered the cart lady tenderly into the compartment. "Ma'am, you as well. I insist on you all staying in the compartment until it is safe." Xi wanted to protest. "As of right now, I'm performing my duty as a Prefect, so get your cute little arse inside, now!" He practically shoved her inside her compartment and ordered the occupants, "Lock this door and I mean not in a second-year spell, but in a really advanced spell!"

Harry slammed the door close with a thud. At students exiting the compartment, Harry growled in aggravation for them not grasping the gravity of the situation. Harry scurried his legs forward, thrusting his wand to his throat, whispering Sonorous to himself. "This is Harry Potter, a sixth year Prefect! I advise everyone to return back into their compartment, immediately! Lock it with a spell! Anyone disobeying me will get a week detention with Mr. Filch and twenty points deducted from their own houses! I'm not kidding around! Now, get inside! Lock the door while you're at it!" As a result of his professional hard tone, many students did as they were told. Cancelling the spell, he strolled the corridor with quick steps, harshly instructing those who were still outside to go back inside their own compartment. A few steps ahead, his brother was out of his compartment, along with a few lower years, presumably his friends.

"Harry, I heard your voice! What's going on?"

"If you have heard my voice, then you would have stayed in your compartment like I told you to! All of you inside, now!" he roared irately. The few of them scrambled back inside. Pushing his brother into his cabin, he poked his head inside. "If I find any of you still skulking outside, detention for a month, am I clear?" They nodded their heads quickly. There was a man, Remus Lupin, fast asleep next to the window. Harry refrained himself from asking why the man was here. He shook his head. "Hermione, lock the door with an advanced spell, not a spell that can be break easily by 'Alohomora', understand?"

He didn't wait for a response and simply slid the door close. He walked hastily, scouting for students who were out of their compartment. He found a few. He had to force Malfoy and his bodyguards to enter a compartment that belonged to the Weasley twins and their friend, Lee Jordan. He gave all six of them a loud firm yell to not go outside till it was secure and was dourly pleased to see them acting upon his orders, albeit with shaky nods. His stern posture was worthy of Professor McGonagall's when she was very angry. The train came to a halt with a jolt.

"Tch..." Harry clicked his tongue. He had a very bad feeling at this. Then, without a warning, the lights went out and everyone in the train was plunged to a total darkness. Harry stiffened in attention. Something was boarding the train and there was some sort of intense cold aura conquering the whole train. A chill stabbed Harry's heart. He swallowed the lump of his throat and beads of sweat formed his forehead. His senses were tingling in warning. In his trouser's pocket, his wand was vibrating more vigorously. There was a long low rattle growl behind him.

Hands formed to a tight fist, Harry made the mistake of wheeling his body around. His worst fear has been confirmed. It was a figure towering to the ceiling, donning a black creepy looking cloak and its face hidden under the cloak. The creature beneath the cloak was indisputably a Dementor. Harry studied every aspect of the creature, with each passing time validating it to have a structure of a human. He faced it more properly this time, taking a defensive stance. Harry took a step backward, hearing its growl, almost sounded angry.

That's when Harry noticed the Dementor in front of him was acting very peculiar. Soaring in the air, it looked at him with its head inclined to the side. Harry's eyes widened dramatically when he realized he was being scrutinized scrupulously by the Dementor. What is he doing? He should run, but he couldn't... It's not that he couldn't, it's just that he can't. His feet weren't responding to him, motionless on the spot. He felt cold sweat on his face. The growl from the Dementor was getting louder and louder by the minute. Harry watched in fascination as its slimy rotting hands raised and lowered its hood.

It opened its mouth, a shaping hole, sucking the air with the sound of a death rattle. Harry was expecting for it to suck his soul, but what he didn't anticipated was a very loud wail, shrieking so deafeningly that the glass around them splintered into pieces. Harry clamped both of his hands to two of his ears to block the loud piercing sound. There were fearful screams from the students, from the first years up to the seventh years. It's understandable considering a Dementor never acted in such a way before.

If you do encounter them... then run, run as far away as your legs can...

That was enough for him to snap and sprinted away from it. Nevertheless, within the train, there were no places to go, except for the compartments or at the very end of the train and that's where Harry thought of heading. His first priority was to get it far away from the people. The Dementor was hounding for him, not the innocent people in the train, so he didn't have any desire to get the people involved. If the people in the train were terrified, Harry was more than afraid of the Dementor. It was going to come after him and chances, it will suck his soul out of his body. He skidded to a stop and leaned forward to one of the long window, peering out. The window was without glass and bits of the rain contacted his skin, wind rushed towards him. That wasn't his concern, it's the horrifying scene outside. "My god..." There were hundreds of those things, gliding across the sky, accompanied with distant creepy shrieks from them. They were moving from every direction, encircling the train completely, obstructing Harry from parting the train. The screech from the Dementor earlier was not for nothing, it was intended for calling more of its kind.

Squinting with his eyes, Harry perceived one Dementor in the distance that appeared to be outrageously dissimilar, unlike the rest of them. Save for its typical appearance of a Dementor, it was the color of the cloak that was different. It was colored white and above it, there was ominous clouds tagging along. It was in the center of hundred of Dementors. Now, Harry was no expert, but there was a distinct possibility that was the Dementor the old man was searching for. Worst still, it was approaching the train, turning up for Harry, or it felt threatened by Harry's existence because of the thing inside Harry.

"Damn..." he cursed, his body quailing.

An innocent town was piled up with hundreds of bodies with no soul in them. Men, women, children and even very young toddlers...

Just by the sight of the white Dementor was making him feel hopeless. Its hand protruded from its cloak, it was as if its hand was reaching out for Harry. Even with such simple gesture, it was still a very disturbing sight for Harry. Sensing potential assailants nearby, Harry's eyes darted to it. He backed away from the four Dementors approaching him, with lurching steps. If only he knew how to cast Patronus charm. It's the only thing that was known how to counter these things. His only option was to run. He turned around to escape when a pair of strong clammy hands attached themselves around Harry's neck. Harry gasped, chocking, automatically his hands gripped the cold sticky hands. He was, then, smashed into the window mercilessly, shattering the glass.

The four Dementors proceeded in creeping up to him, enclosing in on him from behind the Dementor who was throttling him. Harry's upper body was jutting out of the train and his back bleed from the broken glass prodding his skin. He was suffocating and not just by getting strangle by some humanoid creature, but also from the effects the Dementors were stimulating on him. He felt his own breath catch in his chest at the intense cold. The cold was tunneling deeper into his skin. Many memories were flashing inside his head and not single one of those memories was the happy ones. When it suddenly came to a particular memory...

...You are ours... You will join us and will become ours... 

He snapped his eyes to fully open, feeling rage swept over him, eyes were glowing gold in color.

"Don't underestimate me, you pathetic excuse of a being!" With pure magic Harry desperately scraped from deep inside him, gold magic erupted from his body. The Dementors didn't have any chance to dodge it. Harry blasted all of them out of the train, resulting in an explosion to occur in the train. Fortunately, there were no compartments, any other important possessions, or people in front of Harry as a huge section of the train went missing. The screams from the students amplified at the sudden violent shake of the explosion. This time, every occupant took Harry's words more seriously, barricading themselves in each compartment they're in.

Eyes switched back to emeralds, he sunk to his knees and crouched on all fours, gasping for air. There was a horrible twinge in the pit of his stomach. Feeling painful importunate prick on his heart and something was rising up from inside him, Harry vomited the contents of his stomach. Blood blotched on the floor. That magic wasn't his at all. It was something more powerful and strong that do not originated from the present world. He couldn't believe the memory of 'the Ancients' was the one that pressured him to drag out such powerful magic within him. He had never drawn such magic before in his life and it had taken a toll out of his body. Using Telekinesis, he removed the sharp glass from his back. He hissed in pain when he did that, hands tightening into fists. The pain was nothing in comparison to the injuries he acquired back in the Chamber of Secrets, inflicted by Slytherin's pet, yet it was still unbearable as hell.

"Harry! Harry!" The urgent voice was from Remus, finding Harry in a bloody mess. "You're hurt..."

"What the hell are you doing here?" Harry snarled sharply through the pain he's in. "You should have remained with the rest of the students!"

"Whether you like it or not, you need my help! This is not the time to quarrel over the past, let's put it behind us for now-"

"This is something far beyond your comprehension!" Harry countered heatedly, glaring him.

"I know how to cast the Patronus, so I know how to counter them! And, I'm the adult here, so I should be the one protecting you all, not you!"

"Fine, then how would you consider on dealing that?" Harry nudged behind him in a violent gesture. Remus's breath hitched, face ashen white, blanched. "Your Patronus may work on normal Dementors, but not the one on the center!" Remus' eyes glued onto the white Dementor. 

"I-Is that a-a Dementor?"

Harry neglected the idiotic question. "Damn, we need the old man if we're going to survive this..."

"That's right, we need Dumbledore-" Harry wheezed out a dry laughter at this, now sitting on the floor.

"Professor Dumbledore? There is no way he could contain that vast of army, much less drive them away. You see that-" Harry pointed his finger at the white Dementor, coughing. "That is a being very different than your average Dementor, a being that is out of this world, a being that exist in time of Merlin, a being that no present magic could hope to defeat, a being you may as well regard it as one of the many ancient mysteries of the world that has been lay sleeping for so many years. A being that put Voldemort and the Headmaster in the category of an ant..."

"How do you know of this?" Remus asked in unmistaken astonishment. Eyes widening further, he was finally aware of the huge hole in front of them, undoubtedly caused by Harry.

"Why is the old man not here yet?" Harry said more to himself, now discounting Remus was even there with him. Harry winced at the several gashes behind him, carefully propping his bloody rear of body against the wall near him. "What the-" The floor he seated on, had been covered with ice and around him, everything was freezing to iciness. He examined his hand at a very close range, feeling the ice soaking his skin and he could now see his warm breath. It felt as if winter had just arrived in such abruptness manner. His body was now quivering, on account of the coldness. He's not the only one. Remus was in similar state as him, shivering. He looked over his shoulder, discerning the white Dementor was closing in on them. Then, there was a thud, denoting a person had fallen to the floor. There was no uncertainty as to who the person was.

"Hey, get up!" Harry roughly smacked Remus's head. "I don't have time to babysit you! You need to get the people out of here while I distract them!"

"Just leave him be, child, and do not worry. I have placed every person in this train into a deep sleep." Harry's fear alleviated considerately at the familiar tone. Merlin materialized in front of him and was stooping down to Harry's level. 

"Where were you, old man? We're in a dire situation here!"

"Yes, I can tell that. I was unable to sense you, for the reason of him blocking every of my senses."

"Can the white Dementor do that?" Harry asked weakly.

"It would appear he still retrained some of his superior magical skills. He must have set up a boundary field all around him to hide himself from my magical senses, which explains a lot as to why I could not track him all these years. The sole purpose as to why I am here, is caused by you discharging a lot of magical energy and with such large amount, they were lured to it..."

"I didn't mean to set off an earthquake, it'd just happened..." His breath became ragged now. "As of late, I couldn't control the magic inside me. It's influencing me and my emotions, old man... I'm starting to wonder if the magic inside me belongs to me at all... It's like I have another magic, different from mine... I didn't want you to worry of me, so I kept it to myself, thinking it'd be best for me to solve this mystery by myself..."

"Oh, Harry...If only I could shoulder the burden you are in..." The old man cleaned the blood from Harry's mouth with a conjured handkerchief. "Skip!" The holy elemental emerged majestically at the summons of his master. "Attend to Harry's injuries and any injuries you can uncover from the people in the train. I will handle those traitors. I will repel them away from here. This is neither the time nor the place to fight their leader. Innocent people will caught up in the crossfire and I am afraid I cannot allow such thing to happen... For the time being, I will tolerate his existence..."

Skip flew to Harry and hundreds of small holy rays attached to his body, nursing him back to health. Harry, though, was more captivated with Merlin's stance. His mentor, with his eyes sealed, commenced in muttering an incantation in a tongue Harry did not recognize. Below Merlin's feet, a circle was drawn by itself, lines tracing to wholly perfect the circle and it engraved onto the floor. It was glimmering in white as the incantation from Merlin's tone grew louder.

"Magic circle..." Harry breathed, looking in absolute delight and awe. Finishing the incantation, the pressure of magic was denser than the first time the spell was being invoked. A dazzling light pierced the sky, as if heaven was brought down to earth. Harry strained his eyes to look up at the sky. It was like a gigantic Lumos radiating the whole area and the effect it generated was overwhelming. Unconsciously, a smile worked its way across his lips and warmth spread all over his body. It was a spectacular sight. The light, itself, was like a sun purging the darkness.

"Old man, you have got to teach me that..." The anguish screams from the Dementors resonated all over the place and they fled as far away as possible from the grand light. One, however, lingered for a while longer.  It was pointing its slimy finger threateningly at both of them, before it too vanished from the plain sight. Shiver ran down Harry's spine. He felt as if he was being marked for death. The light above the sky gradually diminished until rain took over again and dark clouds, once more, ruled the sky. The ice that was developed by the presence of the white Dementor had melted way.

"With that large scale of magic, I just hope no one saw that."

"Of course not, Harry, we are in isolated region. I am confident not a single soul was aware of the holy light. I am also certain those beasts will not tell anyone as they do not even remember human languages. They spoke in a tongue that only their kinds could comprehend, not people like us. So, for now, the secrets remain safe."

"Holy light, huh?" Smile still etched his lips. "You mean, that was a holy type magic. Amazing..."

"Indeed." Merlin offered Harry a wide smile. "Now, let us sort things here. I will have to alter people's memories, including the man here, as well as repair the damages so not to arouse unwanted suspicious and attention. You go along with Skip and ensure every life on this train, are not in mortal danger."

"Will do, old man. I need to check up on the girls anyway." Harry ran after the elemental, trailing behind it.

Harry walked leisurely, each compartment he passed, every person was fast asleep. Presently, he was looking for the old man, wondering where he was. He could distinguished every glass that was shattered was restored back. The destruction he did formerly at the end of the train on one of the huge section had been patched up by Merlin and looking around, the train was back to how it normally was. It was as if the fight never transpired at all. Rose bloomed his cheeks after checking in on the girls. He shook his head to minimize the blush on his face. Now, at the very front of the train, Harry inserted himself to what it looked to be a room where the conductor spent most of his time in the train. The many buttons and levers were to be expected in the engine room. A snore from the man with round belly, showed the driver was fast asleep too. The old man was there, peering interestingly at different kinds of lever. 

"What are you doing here, old man? Have you done modifying their memories?" Merlin waved Harry off. 

"Yes, yes, it was a child's play for me to adjust the people's memories in the train." Merlin rotated his body around. "Oh my, what happened to you, Harry? Your face is all red." Merlin sent him a knowing look. "What did you do now, child?" His tone was humorous and puckish. Harry's blush deepened further at the insinuation. He thought he rid of the blush prior to meeting the old man, apparently, he was wrong. Merlin had to strain his ear to hear what Harry was saying. 

"What was that, child? I could not quite grasp it."

"I said..." Harry began exasperatingly, face smoldering red. "I-I checked up on the girls while they're in the process of changing their clothes..."

"Oh my," Merlin's smile broadened. "So, they are..."

"No! They're not starkers or in their knickers!" Harry protested embarrassingly, cursing his hormones for kicking in. "They're already in their school robes. It's just they weren't properly in their school uniform and had fallen asleep before putting their ties, their school blazers and robes completely on... They hadn't even buttoned their shirts-" He didn't dare to finish his sentence as his cheeks were reddening more and more.

"Oh, so you had seen them in their bras, is that it?" That served more red on Harry's face. "Do you not discover them to be attractive, Harry?"

"That's not true!" Harry said this angrily. "They're very beautiful and we both know that!" His blurt instigated the blush on his face to not receded anytime soon. Merlin was chuckling spiritedly, savoring the moment of teasing his pupil. Harry glowered at his mentor for toying him. "Why are we having this conversation anyway? Shouldn't we be focusing on the dilemma we had just luckily escaped with our souls intact?"

"Yes, yes, I suppose you are right, Harry." The look on Merlin's face told Harry, the old man was serious.

"They're now after me, aren't they?" The silence from the ancient man was sufficient for Harry to corroborate the answer to his question.

"Harry. Truthfully, your ancestor was the one responsible for Arthur cursing-"

"Save it." Harry sighed, raking his hand through his silky raven hair. "I had enough excitement for one day. Tell me all about it till the next time we meet again. For now, I just want to conceal my presence from those Dementors. They won't leave me in peace. As to how to do that, I don't know." That's where in split seconds and without warning, Merlin swooped and with his pointed finger, he speedily sketched some kind of rune and planted it onto Harry's chest, where the heart would be. "Ouch!" Feeling something burning, Harry lifted his shirt up and discovered a weird looking ancient rune engraved on the left side of his chest. The rune was slightly glowing in white.

"What is that?"

"That is a sealing rune to suppress your magic from spouting out. That rune will assist you in controlling the magic inside. I have been preparing that rune before I arrived here." Harry felt more lighthearted than his former condition and his head cleared away the stress, but still, Harry didn't think it would be that simple. "Your assumptions is correct, Harry. This rune will not do much, it will only help you just the tiniest bit. The rune will not last long and soon you will consume every last bit of magical energy in the rune. However, you do not need to be concern, Harry, as I will prepare you with something much better than this one. Just give me adequate time to come up with brilliant ideas."

"Thanks, old man. I appreciate it a lot. I feel slightly better now than my previous condition."

"I am glad I could be of help to you, Harry..." Merlin, then, clapped his hands, eyes shimmering excitedly. "Now then, with all the excitement and serious discussions away for now, I can return back to what I planned to do earlier on. There is something I have been meaning to do all my life." Harry cocked an eyebrow at Merlin's sudden change of attitude. 

"Old man, what are you doing?" In accordance to Harry's query, Merlin hauled down one of the cords and a loud whistle blew from the chimney of Hogwarts' train.

"You're acting childish, old man..." Skip popped out of nowhere, producing thrilling enthusiastic sounds. 

"Oh, do you wish to try it as well, Skip? Go ahead then." A single light ray disconnected from the holy elemental and it was, then, attached onto the cord. The cord, itself, was pulled down, and the loud whistle blew for the second time. Harry just watched them through half-lidded eyes and deadpanned expression. 

"You two are acting very childish now..."

"Come now, child, do not tell me you are contradicting with your desire on wanting to do it all your life. Just give in the urge, Harry." Harry didn't respond as he merely extended his hand forward, reaching out for the cord and pulled it down. When the third whistle blew much longer than the other two, a silly grin cracked Harry's lips. 

"Hey, old man... do you think we can keep this train in your mansion?"