The next two months at Hogwarts seemed to fly by. Harry and Daphne again spent a lot of time in the Room of Requirement studying. Harry, of course, was way ahead and was now more than halfway through the seventh year material. It was going at a slower rate than he would have liked, but NEWT material was quite difficult. His target was to finish the NEWT material before Yule, so he was working rigorously. Daphne wasn't any less, who was now close to finishing fourth-year material.
So far, Peter Pettigrew hadn't been spotted by anyone, and the Magical Daily was quick to point out that he might have escaped the country. Unfortunately, Minister Fudge was not buying it and was convinced that Pettigrew would attack Harry, and so the dementors were still placed at Hogwarts, much to everyone's displeasure.
On Halloween, there was a Hogsmeade trip scheduled. Harry and Daphne were looking forward to go on a date to the village. That morning after breakfast, the couple stepped outside the castle, on their way to Hogsmeade when someone shouted "Mr Potter!"
Harry groaned silently and turned back. Professor McGonagall was looking at him with an annoyed expression on her face. "Where do you think you're going, Mr Potter?" she asked.
Harry simply raised an eyebrow. "Hogsmeade, Professor" he replied slowly. "Is there a problem?"
"I didn't receive a letter from your guardian saying that you could go, Potter" said McGonagall in a no-nonsense voice. Daphne got a distinct feeling that Minerva McGonagall could very well have been like Hermione Granger when she was in school. Her attitude really was very annoying.
"Besides" she continued. "The Headmaster doesn't think it is appropriate for you to go to the village during these troubled times. So in you go."
Harry simply stared at her. Daphne was about to say something, but Harry squeezed her hand, letting her know that he would handle it.
"Professor, let me remind you that I'm emancipated" said Harry calmly. "That means I don't require a guardian's permission for anything, which includes going to Hogsmeade. Professor Flitwick, my Head of House knows this, and he has no objection in me going to the village. And please clarify as to what troubled times you're talking about. As far as I'm concerned, the past two months have been quite peaceful."
McGonagall's eye twitched. "I'm talking about Peter Pettigrew" she said stiffly. "He is after you, and the dementors are here solely for your protection and it is irresponsible for you to - "
"Sorry to interrupt you Professor" said Daphne. "But there is absolutely no proof that Pettigrew is here and wants to attack Harry. That was a story built by Minister Fudge. It is also a misconception that the dementors are stationed here at Hogwarts only for Harry's protection; it was done by Minister Fudge again who wants the people to know that 'he is seen to be doing something'. Personally, I feel that the dementors are more of a threat than Pettrigrew, as we don't even know how many of them are guarding the castle. If they attack, we're all in trouble. As for the Headmaster's opinion, please thank him for caring about my fiancé's well-being; unfortunately, his decision to act as Harry's guardian comes several years too late. Thank you for your time, Professor McGonagall" she said, grabbed Harry's hand tighter and pulled him away from the shocked Transfiguration teacher.
"Wow" whispered Harry. "You really know how to throw a mean punch."
Daphne smirked. There was a reason her Patronus had taken the form of a Nundu and her animagus form was what it was. Harry had bet ten Galleons that he would figure out what her form was. She knew without a doubt that she would win. While she had met her animal form, it was a slow process to merge with it. So far, there was little progress, but she was confident that she would be able to do it.
The couple walked around the village, exploring the various shops. As Daphne had a sweet took a mile away, Harry bought her a large bag of chocolates at Honeydukes. They went to Zonko's but didn't purchase anything. They knew that Filch was just waiting to confiscate something they brought back in; besides it didn't suit their needs. After looking around and talking for more than an hour, they entered The Three Broomsticks, a popular pub in Hogsmeade.
They made their way to a table, and Harry ordered two glasses of butterbeer and some light lunch. Once it was served, Daphne put up a silencing ward around them.
"So, were you successful?" she asked eagerly.
Harry grinned.
FLASHBACK
Harry was walking around a deserted part of the castle. He was on the fifth floor, searching for something. After ten minutes and waving his hands and extending his senses to search for a ward or a magical enclosure, he struck gold. His hand was touching a particular piece of stone that he knew didn't belong there, even though it looked perfectly normal to the naked eye.
He placed his hand on the stone and closed his eyes. Just as he had suspected, there was a blood ward in place. He moved his hand a bit, and said in a low voice, "Open in the name of Lord Gryffindor."
The Gryffindor ring flashed and a pedestal appeared in the wall, creating a cavity. Harry waved his hand over his palm, and a deep gash appeared. He let the drops of blood hit the pedestal and healed the wound. After a few seconds, there was a rumble and the stones parted to reveal a stone passageway. Harry lit his wand and entered. He flicked his wand and the ancient lighting charms flickered into existence, bathing the staircase with light. Harry climbed up the stairs until he reached a door, with a lion engraving. The lion looked at him and roared. Harry calmly showed the lion his ring. After passing through another blood ward, the door opened. Once he stepped inside, Harry gasped.
Inside were mounds of gold and other precious metals and gems. There were also several tomes of books on shelves. Further along, there was a study and a bedroom. This was clearly Godric's private chamber if he wanted complete solitude. He must have filled this place with treasures and books just before he moved to Potter Castle.
When he entered the study, he realised that there were preservation wards woven into the room. His eyes went wide when he saw a thick diary on top of the desk, with the Gryffindor crest on it. When he reached for it, the ring once again flashed and the diary opened. There was a message written on the first page. It was clearly written in old English, so Harry cast an advanced translation charm on it.
Dear descendant,
I am Godric Gryffindor, and if you're reading this, then it means you are the descendant of my daughter Geraldine and her husband Alan Potter, and you have obtained my sword from the Sorting Hat. I congratulate you on your success, as I had instructed the hat to only pass it on to a descendant of mine whose values matched what Hogwarts stands for – bravery, intelligence, loyalty and ambition.
I have gone through a lot in my life. I have experienced hardship, happiness, love, and despair. This is the book that gives you the information about my life, and how this school came to be. All my properties and treasures now belong to you; use them well. If you're interested in knowing about my life, go ahead and read this journal. If not, well, can't stop an old man from hoping his grandchild would want to read it someday.
This is the last time I would be at Hogwarts. My health has deteriorated rapidly after the death of my dear friend Salazar, so I'll be staying with my dear daughter and son-in-law at Potter Castle; I just can't bring myself to go back to Gryffindor Castle; not now. At this age, having so many feeling buried within me, I won't be able to survive alone at that place. I'm sure the Headmaster I've hired is more than up to the task of running the school as I'm just not able. How ironic; it is the greatest curse for a battle mage to become so weak. Salazar always warned me about it, but I never considered it. My dear friend would probably be laughing now. Oh, how I wish I could meet Helga, Rowena and Salazar one more time before I leave, even if it is to hear them laugh at me.
Learn from my mistakes, child, and do not repeat them. Do your best to take care of this school that we have built to keep the knowledge of magic alive.
May the Goddess Magic bless you and may you find peace in your life which I could never achieve.
Godric Gryffindor
Tears formed in Harry's eyes as he read the first page. This was a message from his ancestor Godric Gryffindor, for him. He touched the journal to his head and stood in silence for several seconds. He kept the book down and looked at the mountains of treasures and books around him. It was safer to transfer them all to Potter Castle. He didn't want them here at Hogwarts where Dumbledore's influence remained.
"Toby" he said.
The elf popped in front of him. "What can Toby do for Master Hadrian?" he asked in a calm voice.
Harry cleared his throat and said, "Toby, this is the secret chamber of Godric Gryffindor, at Hogwarts. As you can see, there are tonnes of gold and other precious stones, along with books and weapons. Do we have an empty high-security vault at Potter Castle where we can store this?"
Toby looked around in awe and answered "Yes, Master Hadrian. There are very little treasures in High-Security Vault 12. We can remove it and place all this there."
Harry nodded. "Good. Get the other elves to assist you. Also, find out about the state of Gryffindor Castle. It may be in a state of disrepair. In any case, we can't start on any repair work until Sirius and Amelia's wedding. So for now, transfer everything here to Vault 12."
Harry then proceeded to the diary. He used a powerful copying charm on it, and his ring flashed again. A copy of Godric's journal appeared on the desk.
"Take this diary and place it in the vault in my study, Toby. I don't want this going into the main vaults" he said, handing the diary gingerly to the elf.
"It will be done, Master Hadrian" said the elf.
END FLASHBACK
"Wow" said Daphne, taking a sip of butterbeer. "I can't believe you found the journal of Godric Gryffindor himself! It would definitely answer a lot of questions about what truly happened at that time. For one, are you sure he said that Salazar was his friend?"
Harry nodded. "That was something he mentioned more than once. I'm really curious about that because according to our history, Godric and Salazar didn't get along at all. I wonder what that was about . . ." he said, his voice trailing off.
They finished their lunch, explored more of the various shops in the village and then proceeded to the castle. The dinner that night was fun and after a hearty meal, Harry went back to Ravenclaw tower. Once everyone was asleep, he came back to the Common Room and sat on a comfortable armchair in front of the roaring fire. He opened the photo album that Daphne had given him almost a year back and started flipping through the various pictures of his parents.
It was nearly midnight when Harry finished looking through all the pictures. He hugged the photo album to his chest and stared into the fire, idly accessing the memories which showed his parents from when he had been an infant. Just then, he sensed that he wasn't alone. He looked around and saw Luna Lovegood, who seemed to be searching for something.
"Luna, what are you doing out of bed? Have you lost something?" asked Harry curiously. He had tried to keep an eye on Luna, but between his intense study sessions with Daphne and searching for Godric's chamber, it proved to be difficult.
"Hadrian Potter" said Luna in a dreamy voice. "I was looking for my possessions; it looks like the Wrackspurts have taken them again. They also seem to have taken the picture I have of my mother which was kept on my nightstand, so I want to find it soon."
Harry clenched his fists. Anger bubbled in his gut as he realised what had happened to Luna's possessions. He saw that Luna was wearing flimsy clothes and no shoes as well; as a result, she seemed to be shivering. He also knew that Luna's mother had been a spell crafter, and one of her experiments had gone wrong and had died as a result. Harry had observed that Luna could see the Thestrals as well; so it was pretty clear that she had seen her mother die. And now, she was being bullied by her own housemates.
Harry cleared his throat. He flicked his wand to his hand and cast warming charms on her body and feet. "Don't worry, Luna. I'll take care of it. Why don't you go back to bed? All your items which the Wrackspurts have taken from you will be returned to you. I'll make sure to deal with them" he said kindly.
"Thanks, Hadrian!" said Luna happily. She skipped to the other end of the common room and paused. She turned back and said, "Thank you for your help, Lord Gryffindor."
Harry's eyes went wide. "Luna, what are you talking about?" he asked.
"The Nargles told me that you're now Lord Gryffindor" she said simply. "With four Lordships, I'm sure you can implement your ideas better, Hadrian."
"Four Lordships?" asked Harry sharply. "Luna, I only have two, and please don't tell anyone about the Gryffindor one."
"No, it'll be four. You'll find out soon, Hadrian. Good night" said Luna, and skipped up to her room.
Harry watched her go with confusion. What the hell was that all about? He shook his head. Maybe she was just toying with him. Either way, he had a bullying problem to solve.
"Sally" he called.
The Hogwarts elf popped in front of him. "What can Sally do for Master Hadrian?" she asked happily.
Harry smiled and bent down to the elf's level. Sally swooned, but Harry said, "Sally, there is a student named Luna Lovegood in second year. Her housemates are stealing her things, and she can't seem to find them. Could you and the other elves please find them all and give it back to her? And please compile a list of what all had been stolen and by whom. I would greatly appreciate it Sally."
"Of course, Master Hadrian!" said Sally eagerly. "We be doing it at once."
Harry smiled. He went back to the armchair and started reading Godric's journal. Three hours later, Sally returned. And she wasn't happy.
"Master" she said unhappily. "We be finding all of Miss Lovegoody's things. This be the list of things stolen and who be keeping them. Shall we be giving them all back to Miss Lovegoody?"
"Yes, please do Sally" he said, taking the piece of parchment from the elf. "You and the other elves did a good job. Thank you".
Sally beamed and disappeared with a pop. Harry looked at the piece of parchment with fire burning in his green eyes. This was no prank; this was all out bullying. More than one fourth of the Ravenclaws were tormenting Luna indirectly, and at least twenty of them were doing it directly. The list spanned clothes, shoes, personal items, homework and others. Harry wondered if Luna had anything left with her at all. He would have to do something about this. But what?
An evil smirk slowly formed on his lips. A fitting punishment indeed.
HP*LIGHTNING LORD*HP
The next morning, Cho Chang woke up to find that many of her possessions were missing. She frantically tried to find her stuff, but they had all disappeared! She only had one set of her uniform! Nothing else! She heard someone harshly knock on her door. She opened it to find Marietta Edgecombe standing in front of her with a furious and scared expression on her face.
"All my possessions are gone!" Marietta screeched.
Cho pulled her into her room and said, "So have mine! What happened here?"
"I don't know. I've tried a summoning charm, but it wouldn't work" said Marietta, freaking out.
"Do you think Lovegood is behind this?" asked Cho in a low voice.
Marietta scoffed. "Loony? Please, like she is capable of something like this; she's insane. This is the work of someone else. We have to go to class soon. What do we do?"
Finally, without a choice, they dressed in their only pair of uniform and went to the Great Hall without their bags or books. They both didn't notice the agitated looks of various other Ravenclaw girls as well.
A furious Professor McGonagall stepped down from the teacher's table and said "What is the meaning of this?"
Cho looked at the furious teacher and frowned. "What do you mean, Professor?" she asked confused.
"Why aren't you all dressed in your uniforms?" asked McGonagall crossly.
Many of the girls looked at each other and finally, Marietta said, "We are wearing our uniforms, Professor. And all our possessions seem to have disappeared."
Many of them in the hall had their jaws on the floor. McGonagall went red in the face. "Five points from Ravenclaw, Miss Edgecombe. I suggest you all head back to Ravenclaw Tower and change into your uniforms. I won't tolerate such behaviour again" she said and marched back to her seat.
"What did I say?" asked Marietta, confused.
"You said that you don't want to wear the uniform as the dress you're now wearing makes you look sexy, and you want the boys to notice your boobs and arse" said Cho in a frightened voice.
"What? That's not what I said!" said Marietta, freaking out.
"What is happening to us?" asked another girl angrily.
No one had an answer. Nobody saw Harry smirk slightly. Legilimency and a Confundus charm to not notice that the clothes they were wearing was not their uniform and a compulsion to not mention about their misplaced belongings was a wonderful idea. By the time the day was over, the entire group would have lost Ravenclaw a hundred points and would have hated by their fellow housemates. Wasn't Mind Magic wonderful?
HP*LIGHTNING LORD*HP
In two days, Ravenclaw had lost more than a hundred points. The entire gang of girls who loved to torment Luna Lovegood were shunned by the entire house as no one could figure out why the girls were doing such a thing in the first place. They had not changed into their uniforms, had come to classes without their books and wand, had spoken in derogatory language in front of the teachers and worst of all, acted as though they were the victims! The entire house was furious with them as not only had the bunch of nearly twenty girls got detention, but they had also lost more than a hundred points from Ravenclaw, removing them from first place.
The girls had all tried to explain to their teachers that their stuff was stolen but to no avail. This lasted for two more days, until finally after serving multiple detentions, they each found a note in their pocket. It read –
If you want your possessions back, come to the empty classroom on the third floor, on the right side. If you inform the teachers or anyone in authority, say goodbye to your belongings.
The note was not signed. By this time, the entire group of girls was both scared and furious. After dinner, they marched to the empty classroom and went inside. The room was dark and dusty. Just when they had lost patience after waiting for nearly an hour, the door to the classroom snapped shut. The girls shrieked, but suddenly, there was a movement near the door. The disillusionment charm lifted, and suddenly, in front of him stood Hadrian Potter leaning on the door, his arms folded and looking at them with an expressionless face.
"Potter, what are you doing here?" asked Cho crossly. She didn't like Harry because she felt that he had stolen her spot from the Ravenclaw Quidditch team.
Harry simply raised an eyebrow. "I thought you girls wanted your stuff back" he replied calmly.
"It was you?" screeched Marietta. "You're the one who is responsible for stealing our stuff? You're responsible for us being punished by the teachers?"
Harry tilted his head a bit and asked "Are you the one bullying Luna Lovegood? Are you the one who stole her possessions? Are you the one who destroyed her homework? Are you the one who locked her out of the tower?"
There was silence. "Who the hell cares about Loony?" snapped Marietta. "I want to know about - blauh". Suddenly, bubbles sprouted from her mouth and the rest looked at Harry in shock.
"Tsk tsk" said Harry mockingly. "You really shouldn't call someone insane, when you yourself are demented, my dear. If I had done something like that, I'm pretty sure my mother would have washed my mouth with soap were she alive."
He cancelled the charm on the girl and suddenly the temperature dropped. Harry extended his aura and his skin radiated a faint white colour and his eyes glowed an intense green. The group was unnerved by the display of power.
"You know who else is dead other than my mother?" asked Harry coldly, looking at the group. "Pandora Lovegood; Luna's mother. She was a spell crafter, and when Luna was about nine years old, one of her experiments backfired. Luna watched as her mother died right in front of her eyes."
"You all have parents don't you?" snapped Harry, looking at the girls with cold eyes. "How would you feel if they died? Worse yet, how would you then feel if you were called insane and were bullied by a bunch of more than twenty girls older than you? How would you feel if someone stole a picture of your dead mother?" The girls flinched at the tone.
"Luna is eccentric" said Harry. "That doesn't give you the right to bully and harass the poor girl. The last four days have given you a pretty good insight into what you've been doing to her. Her belongings have already been given back to her. If you apologise to her and never try to bully her again, your possessions will be returned to you. Do we have a deal?"
Cho sneered. "Well, it looks like someone is cheating on his girlfriend" she said snidely. "What's the matter, Potter? Greengrass not good enough for you? Though I'm surprised you've chosen Loony of all people. Looks like Greengrass has lost her charm."
"I agree" said Marietta snidely. "She's nothing but an uppity bitch that spreads her legs for any bunch of boys in Slytherin."
Suddenly, there was a flash of light and both girls fell down in pain. Cho and Marietta looked at each other's faces and gasped. There were boils all over their faces forming the word 'BITCH'. They heard gasps all around them and turned to look at Potter. Their eyes widened when they saw Daphne Greengrass standing next to Potter, with her wand in hand.
"I'm the bitch?" said Daphne, with a smirk on her face. "I think there has been a minor confusion; you might want to check your faces first. Even idiots like you can figure it out."
Daphne turned to look at the other girls. "We're not here to trade barbs with you. We're here to let you know that unless you cease your attacks on Miss Lovegood and apologise to her, you won't be getting your stuff back. And as you've observed over the past four days, you won't be able to inform the teachers either. Try to act funny and you'll end up worse than those two pieces of filth over there. Do we have a deal?" she asked coldly.
"F-fine" stammered a girl, speaking for the entire group.
"Good" said Harry. "If you've apologised and learnt your lesson, you'll find your possessions back by tomorrow morning. Now get out. This conversation never happened."
The door opened and the girls all left, with Cho and Marietta shooting hateful looks at Harry and Daphne as they went along.
Once they were alone, Harry put his arms around Daphne's waist and pulled her into a hug. He leaned down and captured his lips with hers. They kissed until they broke apart, gasping for air.
"Remind me never to get you mad at me" said Harry, grinning at Daphne.
"Oh, my dear Harry" whispered Daphne. "Do you think I would use such a direct means to get my way with you? I would do it in such a way that you would admire my subtlety and have no choice in the matter once I'm done".
Harry chuckled and kissed her again. "I love you" he whispered, nuzzling her face.
"I love you too" whispered Daphne, hugging him closer.