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The Yankees Nephew and the Philosophers Stone	By : Wilde_Guess Category: Harry Potter > General > General Views: 5806 -:- Recommendations : 5 -:- Currently Reading : 5
Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter Universe I am making no money from this fanfiction

Chapter List
- 8
- 9
- 10
Chapter 9. Visitors and Visitations.

Saturday the eleventh of September 1982 saw Number Four in mostly a September Saturday morning routine. The school age kids were finishing up their homework while entertaining their younger siblings. The older kids planned to rehearse later in the day for a concert they had the following Saturday. They would get only two rehearsals with David, A.D., Andy, and the Stock Brothers, one Friday evening at Number Two, and the second one at the venue in Paris four hours before Showtime combined with the sound checks. So, beyond practicing, they were determined to get in more rehearsal time so they could better integrate the Stock Brothers into their band.

Danny happened to be closest to the telephone when it rang, so he was the one to answer it.

“Hello?”

“Yes. Is this the Dvorak Residence? I’m a professor at David’s school; and while we don’t normally telephone, I wanted to set up a conference with David’s parents?”

Danny answered the voice, “Hold on, I’ll have you talk to my Dad.”

Danny said in a raised voice, “Dad, telephone, the caller claims to be from David’s school.”

John Dvorak quickly accepted the receiver from his eldest son and spoke into it, “Hello?”

“Mr. Dvorak, my name is Severus Snape. You might remember me from almost a year ago, when I helped Headmaster Dumbledore do some ‘maintenance’ at one of your properties?”

“Perhaps. What did you call your childhood friend’s elder sibling growing up?”

“Tuney.”

“Fair enough. You obviously aren’t at your school right now. Why did you call?”

“Sir, I called to discuss your adopted son, along with his cousins, for whom you are also the local guardian. I can call at your house whenever it’s convenient today?”

“Professor, you may Apparate discreetly to my back garden after we ring off, if you’re able to do so?”

“That will be fine, sir. I’ll see you in just a moment.” Click.

John proceeded from the lounge, collecting Pet, a saucer, a slice of bread, and a saltshaker as he went. He explained, “Pet, Professor Snape just telephoned, asking to visit for an informal Parent-Teacher Conference. I invited the voice to Apparate to the back garden. If he’s for real, I would like you to brew a pot of tea for the three of us. If he’s not for real, and if the wards don’t fry him to a crisp, I want you to let me know.”

“John, Professor Dumbledore pointed him out to you that night, even if you didn’t speak to him, and even though he didn’t actually help the Headmaster cast and anchor the wards in the first place. But he couldn’t have changed that much in less than a year. So yes, I’ll watch from the back door.”

They both heard a near-silent crack from their back garden, which was not followed up by any screaming in agony, but was followed up by a knock-knock on the back doors.

Pet looked through the peephole before opening the door. She stated, “Severus, it’s been six years. Leave your shoes in the genkan, and put on a pair of slippers if you don’t want to walk in stocking feet. My husband and I will meet with you in the kitchen while I brew us a pot of tea. And I prefer ‘Pet’ or ‘Mrs. Dvorak’ these days.”

“You’ve changed a lot, yet not at all Tuney… Pet, sorry.”

“I prefer ‘not at all yet quite a lot’ myself, Severus. And I know about the blood slur at Lily at the end of your fifth year, your murdering your father, and giving part of the Prophecy to the Terrorist before you knew whom it was about. Lily told me all about it. She eventually forgave you, so I forgive you. But you are on thin ice with me still just the same. And do come in.”

Suitably admonished, Severus Snape entered John and Pet’s house, switching his shoes for house slippers in the back genkan just like he was asked to do. He walked into the kitchen without saying anything, to be met by John with the saucer now containing a noticeable amount of salt, and the slice of bread.

Snape opined, “You do indeed observe many formalities Lord Dvořák, granting Guest Rights. Well done.” While accepting the bread, dipping it in the salt, and eating it, he continued; “I am visiting partly to satisfy my own curiosity. But I’m here primarily to discus your adopted son and two wards, particularly the younger ward.

“All three boys, along with their Weasley and Muggleborn friend, are actually doing quite well in all their classes, particularly including mine. Their two American friends aren’t doing quite as well in their years, but that is mostly down to the two boys applying themselves. It’s your concern only if you make it so.

“Hogwarts is employing a house elf from Ilvermorny who is also a qualified Professor to teach Magical Theory along with the Latin classes your brother had quietly advocated for. Professor Athelstan is quite impressed with all three of the boys you’re directly responsible for along with their work.”

John replied, “You may address me as ‘John,’ and I would address you as ‘Severus.’ Please have a seat at the kitchen table while Pet makes a pot of tea for the three of us, and Danny takes all of his siblings next door instead of trying to eavesdrop.”

John was answered by, “Dirty Hair Man?” and “Harry, don’t go into the kitchen!” before Harry and Aaron ran into the kitchen, the older boy chasing the younger. Harry was wearing a white t-shirt and blue bib overall shorts. Aaron was wearing a grey t-shirt and blue jeans.

Aaron stated, “Sorry, sir; he heard your voice and was off like a shot. And Harry, don’t call anyone ‘Dirty Hair Man,’ even if you think their hair is dirty, which the Professor’s is not. It’s disrespectful and mean. You’d be sad if a grownup barged in and started calling you mean names, so don’t go insulting Mom and Dad’s guest, okay?”

Harry looked at Snape and speaking carefully, asked, “What may I call you, sir. When you tried to wake first-Mommy after the evil monster murdered her, you never introduced yourself.”

Snape got out of the chair he’d taken and crouched down to Harry’s level. He told the boy, “You may call me ‘Severus’ for now, Harry. Your ‘first Mommy’ and I were the closest of friends since your Mommy now; your first Mommy, and I were children just a bit younger than your brother is now. Your first Mommy and I had a really bad quarrel and didn’t even talk to each other for a couple of years, but we’d just forgiven each other right before the monster murdered her.

“You will call me other things when you’re older, and your Dad will tell you what you need to know.”

“Okay, Severus. Do you still miss Mommy, too?”

“She was your mommy, Harry. Since you were her only child, and your first Daddy died that night too, no one can miss her like you do. But I miss her a lot too, and I will for the rest of my life.”

Harry toddled up to the crouching man, hugged him, and kissed him on the cheek. He told Snape, “Okay, you visit Mommy and Daddy now. Bye, Severus.”

Without any further explanation, Harry left, with Aaron keeping an ear on him while looking at his father for instructions.

John told Aaron, “Take Harry over to Number Two, where the rest of your siblings should be going if they aren’t already there. You need to rehearse as well as keeping Dudley, Harry, and Lily supervised and entertained. You can finish your homework later today if it’s not already done.”

“Yes, Dad” answered both Danny and Aaron. Danny added, “Delilah’s taking Lily, and Pixie’s helping her. Saria’s got Dudley.”

The house was child-free about three minutes later, and the three adults resumed their conversation seated at the table, while Pet continued to make a pot of tea and set out some biscuits.

Severus inquired, “How is Harry able to speak so well at his young age?”

Pet answered, “On John’s advice, Lily and I never made ‘baby-talk-noises’ to either Harry or Dudley, and we never let anyone else do it, either. We always spoke affectionately, soothingly, and clearly to and around them. By the time Harry and Dudley were at the stage where they wanted to communicate, they knew what the ‘noises’ were supposed to sound like. So, they quickly became understandable as they learned to talk.

“David was also a very good older brother to them. They followed him around everywhere, but he was always patient, friendly, and encouraging to them, teaching them new words, names for stuff, and the like. He also taught them to only use English to any visitors or me, unless they spoke Latin first.

“Delilah, the oldest girl we’re caring for, is also teaching them the Czech language, which he only uses for Danny, John, and her right now – unless he’s really upset. Then, you get a mix of English, Latin, and Czech; and only John can actually understand him then.

“Dudley’s pretty much the same way, but he ‘slips’ out of English more easily, since he’s always heard English, Latin, and Czech, where Harry only heard English for his first fifteen months. And Harry was trying harder than he usually does to speak well around you. So, at least for now, he does hold you in his esteem.”

While Pet brought the tea to the table and joined them, Severus offered, “Harry’s ability to speak at his age is quite impressive. I’m also impressed by your son David and younger ward A.D. both having some understanding about how a school is run, or at least is supposed to be run. David was at Hogwarts for less than two days before he figured out that I’m having to use a Time-Turner to teach all the class periods I’m required to teach; something I didn’t figure out Professor Slughorn was doing until my seventh year.”

John remarked, “David can be very perceptive sometimes, even with being an eleven year old boy. But he did lose his birth father, my next older brother, when he was fairly young, and he’s always been protective of his younger siblings. And while neither he nor the girl closest in age to him I’m fostering expressed any interest in the profession of teaching before this week, the girl’s mother and maternal grandmother, who was also related to David by adoption before my brother died, were teachers. The grandmother was also a high school principal, who was working on her Doctorate in Education. You’d call the principal of an American school the deputy head over here.”

“A.D.’s father and late uncle, my two oldest Dvorak brothers, were both PhD tenured professors of English Literature at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. A.D. basically grew up at a university, and took up his father’s interest in education and English Literature. Had A.D. not been magical, he would almost certainly have followed in his father’s footsteps. Even with the Wizarding World, A.D. is interested in education.”

Severus informed John and Pet, “And that’s the bigger part of what brings me out here. David has become determined to get a Magical History Mastery and a DPhil in History from Oxford in order to replace our current History Professor, who frankly should have been replaced a dozen decades ago or more. And A.D. is determined to earn his Potions Mastery, along with an unrelated DPhil in English Literature from Oxford, and become my assistant. They also intend to do all of this before Harry is supposed to start school in 1991.

“The only reservation I have with either boy’s goals is that I fear the boys are trying to take on too much academic effort too quickly, and that they’ll burn themselves out. You know both boys, along with their abilities and limitations, far better than me. If they really are taking on too much, they will listen to you far more readily than they will me. If they can handle the work, they’ll need support at home as well as at school. Once again, you will be better placed to provide that support, above and beyond whatever tricks Lord Floyd and you have to do to get the boys into one of the Colleges at Oxford.”

Pet asked, “How are they actually doing in class, Severus?”

He told John and her, “It’s only been a week and a half, but so far all the boys are doing well in all of their classes as I’ve already mentioned. Since I’m not their Head of House, I don’t see them in their common areas, nor can I track their behavior beyond what I personally observe. But their grades in all of their classes are quite good, and the other teachers speak well of them, particularly David.

“I brought along Gemino copies of their first homework assignment, an essay on the Boil Cure Potion. I brought a Gemino copy handed in by a student in my house as a comparison.”

Severus passed John and Pet the homework copies, which Pet quickly scanned and John quickly read. Pet commented, “I don’t know anything about Potions beyond the basic concepts, as you’d well know. But the ‘un-named’ student from your House didn’t do as well. Their points are weak even to the casual educated observer. Their penmanship is barely better than Tom’s, and he got days of practice at most with quill-penmanship before arriving at Hogwarts. Was the Slytherin a Muggle-Born?”

“No, Pet. Just an average student raised in a Wizarding home, by two parents who both attended Hogwarts and live full-time in the Wizarding World. Whomever John and you got to teach your son and wards how to use a quill did the job right. They write more legibly than some fourth years. Bill Weasley and the Stock Brothers also write legibly; the Stocks clearly use the script taught by Ilvermorny. A.D. and David both wrote better papers than any other students turning this assignment in. And this year, though I normally assign this paper only to first years, I had all seven years do this assignment. A.D. and David’s work surpassed the seventh years, with A.D.’s paper being marginally better than David’s. A.D. also brews just a little bit better than David, though both boys, their cousin Andy, and Bill Weasley all excelled. How long did the four of them study under Professor Slughorn?”

John told him, “We started the boys studying the core magical subjects at the start of the year, including potions. Remus Lupin helped the boys study potions along with Professor Slughorn.”

Severus opined, “Since you know both Black and Lupin, you probably understand that they and I never got along, and that I’ll likely never get along with Black, even while I’m glad that his name was cleared as quickly as it was. Neither man is a dunderhead, though. And while Lupin’s brewing was only so-so, his theoretical understanding of Potions and his ability to teach to a level beyond his personal ability in any given subject he set his mind to is quite formidable.

“If he wasn’t one of the facilitators of my seven personal years of hell at Hogwarts and a werewolf on top of that, I’d actually be proud to have him on the faculty with me. And while it was my mother who first taught me how to brew, Professor Slughorn was my Potions instructor at Hogwarts, along with his being one of the Potions Masters who helped me learn and earn my mastery as quickly as I did. And the boys applied themselves for both them and me, which makes all the difference in the world.

“But once again, even if the boys weren’t also professional musicians trying to earn as much money as possible while the public is actually buying their records and concert tickets, I’d still be worried about the two younger boys taking on a much higher workload than they can reasonably handle; particularly with A.D. pursuing two unrelated mastery-level and beyond degree programs.”

John replied, “David and A.D. would be starting no-Maj high school early this year were they not going to Hogwarts. They and Andy are all taking high school correspondence courses in addition to whatever Hogwarts is teaching first years. Age-wise, David is the only one of the three of mine actually starting Hogwarts on time. A.D. should have started Ilvermorny last year, but the MaCUSA people who notify ‘first-born’ wizards and witches were heavy-handed enough that A.D.’s father and late uncle refused to send him; along with their having concerns about not having any other family members present at Ilvermorny. Remember, under MaCUSA law and treaty, House Dvořák is a cadet house of House Floyd, and is treated exactly the same.

“Andy has dyslexia, and his is pretty bad. Ilvermorny had no provisions for Special Education already in place for Andy, and had no intention of starting ‘just’ for him two years ago. Were Hogwarts not willing to provide him assistance, he wouldn’t have attended there, either.

“But all three boys, along with their related-by-blood older siblings have near-genius I.Qs, are very creative, and they’re no strangers to sustained hard work. The two boys who were always mine had been content with passing one year at a time together, but they are now on track to enter college a year early. And, Professor McGonagall had wanted A.D. and Andy to try catching up to their age-cohorts at Hogwarts.

“As for your advice, I will heed it gratefully. I don’t want the boys ‘burning out’ any more than you do, and I’ll be more watchful for any signs of it. But they’re smarter and harder-working than most kids their ages, so even if I have to have them slow down, they will still go far and do it quickly.

“I’ve also cautioned both boys that I wouldn’t allow them to burn themselves out, or quit now that they’ve both declared and started this effort. I don’t punish failing if one has truly given their best efforts. I also don’t punish abandoning a position when that position becomes untenable or no longer makes any sense to hold. I do not abide quitters, and both boys know this. Even under the gentlest of circumstances, quitters never prosper, nor do those obliged to rely upon them.

“Many times in my own life, I’ve had to fight and overcome the temptation to quit. Had I quit, I would have been destroyed by my life’s circumstances. By not quitting, I’ve prospered and I’m raising a family in material comfort, and I’m also able to emotionally support those who depend on me.

“Likewise, beyond combat, I’ve only been obliged to abandon an untenable position once. You’ve already met one of the two reasons, and you’ll likely meet his younger brother Michael later today.

“Changing subjects for a moment, has Headmaster Dumbledore mentioned anything to you about the Cabal?”

Severus showed no ‘tells,’ at least none that would be easily noticed by most people. John Dvorak was not most people. After an extra moment’s silence, Severus replied, “The Headmaster has not given me anything I may pass along to you at this time. Did you find out about them through MaCUSA or Black?”

John replied, “Both, actually, along with Moody. Although if the Cabal was actually doing anything in North America, I haven’t been told about it. What can you tell me about Jacob Peregrine Kowalski?”

Severus replied, “Since you’ve been told more than some about me by the Headmaster, I can share some observations about Jacob and his father. Peregrine was the War Hero Jacob Kowalski’s second son, being born in 1942. He was a Gryffindor during his time at Hogwarts, and a Battle Mage with the Department of Mysteries before he disappeared in the late 1970s.

“His son Jacob Peregrine was in Gryffindor, three years behind me. He was a troublemaker, but not a bully or much of a prankster. He generally got along well with students in all of the houses, including mine. As a student, I generally got along well with him, actually. I didn't have him as a professor. He was expelled in mid-spring of 1981, and I didn't take over for Professor Slughorn until that September. From what I observed as a student helping Professor Slughorn, Jacob was a competent brewer, which is more than I can say for most students.

“Peregrine’s younger son Judah is supposed to start Hogwarts in two year’s time, the year before your son Aaron, who I’m guessing accompanied Harry a few minutes ago?”

John answered, “Yes, that was Aaron, my brother Rick’s middle son when Rick was still alive. He’s a lot like David, for both good and ill. We might have Aaron start Hogwarts early, even though that isn’t routinely done. His magical stamina is rising, and he has the academics down cold, at least as far as we’ve taught him. He’s decided he wants to become a Healer when he graduates Hogwarts. He certainly shows an aptitude for it so far.”

Severus asked, “What do you know about healing?”

“I was a Special Forced Medic for most of my time in the US Army. I was only a Team Chief during the battle where I was awarded the Medal of Honor and lost part of my lower left leg. So, I can tell if someone is dedicated and can gain the skill to save lives whether by mundane or magical means.”

Severus stated, “Right. He’ll want to pay particular attention to Potions when he attends Hogwarts, beyond whatever extracurricular instruction he might receive from Madam Pomfrey. Potions are related to Wizarding healing the same way that the science of Pharmacy is related to Muggle healing.

“Back to the Kowalskis, the Dark Lord did not like either Kowalski. While he had never admitted to encountering Jacob Peregrine, he had encountered Peregrine himself, much to his own cost. The Dark Lord did not cooperate with the Cabal, ever; nor they with him. More than a few Death Eaters actually feared the Cabal more than the Order of the Phoenix or the Ministry, since the Cabal ignored the law; and they knew and used the Dark Arts with virtuosity.

“The Dark Lord and the Death Eaters were never able to find where the Kowalskis lived. And as far as Professor Dumbledore had told me, Peregrine and Persephone Kowalski, nee Knight and herself a Gryffindor have been estranged for years. Neither she or Judah are known to have seen Jacob since before he disappeared.”

“Severus, what can you tell me about the Cursed Vaults?” John asked.

“I truly wish they had never existed!” Severus opined. “There are five of them that we know of for sure. We don't suspect any others, but with Magic you always keep a watch out. Three are in the school proper, one is in the ‘Forbidden Forest’ next to the school, and the last one is under the Black Lake, and requires magical diving means to approach. Jacob Peregrine Kowalski had attempted to enter most if not all of the Cursed Vaults. His tampering with them caused many problems, particularly in the years between when I passed my NEWTs and when I returned to Hogwarts to replace Professor Slughorn. But we’ve gotten those problems solved, at least for now.

“At first, Headmaster Dumbledore actually encouraged Jacob and his friends to explore and attempt to find and break the curses on the Vaults. However, Jacob had supposedly become obsessed with the Vaults to an unhealthy degree. Only then did Headmaster Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall attempt to curb Jacob’s exploring.

“The actual reason Jacob Peregrine was expelled, though, was because of a death. He had badgered his friend and fellow ‘explorer’ Duncan Ashe, to brew an overpowered Erumpet Potion in order to breach the defenses of one of the vaults. In case you don’t know, the Erumpet Potion is an explosive, it’s particularly difficult to brew, and it has several restricted ingredients not sold to minors beyond the Erumpet Horn and other Erumpet parts themselves.

“Ashe was a better brewer than Jacob. Since Ashe was a Slytherin, he was better situated to steal volatile ingredients from what was then Professor Slughorn's stores. The Hogwarts Potions Lab is a commercial grade Potions Laboratory, not just a ‘school chemistry lab’ like a Muggle school would have. Hogwarts brews its own Healing and other needed Potions, and we sometimes help St. Mungo’s. I teach and have the fifth year students brew the ‘regular’ grade Erumpet Potion, and at least one question relating to that potion which can only be answered correctly by someone who’s actually brewed the potion at least once shows up on the Potions OWL every year, and has done since at least Professor Slughorn’s time.

“Unfortunately for everyone involved, Duncan Ashe was only Duncan Ashe, and not another Half-Blood Prince; my mother was cast out of the Prince family for marrying my abusive Muggle father. The Princes’ Family Magic gives us an extreme natural talent and affinity for Potions brewing if we apply ourselves, as I had and my mother did before me. So, when Ashe tried brewing the overpowered Erumpet Potion, he ended up blowing himself up and dying. Worse yet, he became a Ghost instead of moving On.

“The boy refuses to appear to me, in spite of the fact that if anyone would be be angry at Duncan's mistake, it would be Professor Slughorn. He got the 'privelege' of writing the Letter of Condolence to Duncan's parents; Denzil and Euphemia Ashe, not me. For that matter, he stays away from almost all the living occupants of the Castle. Sir Nicholas, the Gryffindor House Ghost; and Friar Tuck, the Hufflepuff House Ghost are helping him ‘adjust,’ since I’ve been told that Duncan is still frightened of the ‘Bloody Baron,’ who is the Slytherin House Ghost.

“Believe it or not, Duncan Ashe is only the third ‘student ghost’ at Hogwarts that I’m aware of. The first was in life a sixteen-year-old Ravenclaw boy who died in the early 1800s, and the second was a fourteen-year-old Ravenclaw girl who died in the 1940s.

“Sadly, the two student ghosts aren’t really any help for Duncan, either. The girl mostly haunts one of the girls’ toilets, sometimes bothering ‘popular’ girls but otherwise keeping to herself. The boy isn’t nearly so sociable, though he sometimes haunts the old art classroom or one particular corridor. Friar Tuck and Sir Nicholas keep an eye on both of them, along with Duncan.

“Their own house ghost, the “Grey Lady” from Ravenclaw, has also tried to help over the years. Simon Talmadge seems well adjusted for being in his circumstances, though he’s been dead for well over a century and a half. But ‘Moaning Myrtle’ Warren has mostly ignored her. The rest of our ghosts all died elsewhere and returned to Hogwarts as ghosts after they died.

“But back to Jacob Peregrine. Headmaster Dumbledore called in the Aurors to investigate Duncan’s death. They determined that while Jacob had badgered and pestered Duncan into attempting to brew the Erumpet Potion, he had not used any actual force or coercion against Duncan or anyone else, so Jacob couldn’t be criminally prosecuted. But, Headmaster Dumbledore did expel Jacob, since Jacob’s obsession had become patently dangerous to other students. Several months later, Jacob Peregrine Kowalski himself disappeared. And neither the Dark Lord nor any of his Death Eaters had anything to do with it. I would know if they had.

“Headmaster Dumbledore, while he isn’t going to block Judah Kowalski’s attending Hogwarts, is concerned that Judah might try following in his older brother’s footsteps. The two brothers, despite their differences in age, were supposed to be quite close. I remember that when I was a student with Jacob, that he would always talk and frequently brag about his younger brother Judah. I truly doubt that the affection and admiration ran in only one direction. So, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Judah tried to explore the Cursed Vaults, if for no other reason than to try figuring out what happened to his older brother.

“When Jacob Peregrine was a student, he had an adult Gringotts curse-breaker named Patricia Rakepick helping him hunt for the Cursed Vaults from time to time. Rakepick had looked for the Vaults herself while she was a student without any confirmed success. She was a Gryffindor Fifth Year when ‘Potter’s Gang,’ Lily, and I started school.

“Rakepick is actually starting to get favorable publicity in the Daily Prophet for her exploits working for Gringotts. Rumour has it that she’s moving up through the ranks open to humans at Gringotts very quickly, and that she might even become their Head Curse Breaker in the next two or three years. Her skills at Curse Breaking and defeating Curse attacks are that good.

“Headmaster Dumbledore trusts her. While it’s usually unwise to question the Headmaster’s judgment without substantial evidence, that doesn’t mean that you should trust the woman yourself should you ever encounter her. The Headmaster also trusts Mundungus Fletcher, and while Fletcher has never stolen from the Headmaster, he would and was convicted of stealing from his own mother.

“Also, Potter’s Gang sincerely hated her guts, which was truly saying something. While I could give as good as I got when they were bullying me, Rakepick routinely gave out much more, and she was in their house. So, you might want to ask the Mutt and Wolf about the woman.”

The three adults were interrupted by a knock at the door, followed immediately by the locks being unlocked with a key and muffled voices. As the door swung open, David’s voice was heard explaining, “It’s just like I told Professor Dumbledore and you, ma’am. If Dad can’t or won’t host Joe, Max, Bill, and Tom, we’ll all go back to school. But you’ve already looked at all of our assignments and reading notes, so you know we’re all doing good and ahead of the others in our years. Andy and A.D. need a ‘music break,’ and we need this extra rehearsal time for Paris next weekend. Bill helps us backstage, Joe and Max are joining the band, and Tom’s interested in music even if he can’t actually do music. And Max is weak in Latin, so getting him some immersion with more than one native speaker will only help him catch up to where he can, and it’ll help Joe out, too. Dad?”

While Severus clearly looked like he wanted to leave, or at least cast a Disillusionment Charm upon himself, he remained seated and visible while John announced, “In the kitchen, David, along with Professor Snape. Bring Professor McGonagall back and explain why you’re home on an ‘extra’ weekend, please?”

Knowing that John’s request was no request at all, David chivvied the rest of his friends along with him into the kitchen, followed by Professor McGonagall herself.

David told John, “Sorry about the lack of advance notice, Dad. But like you might have heard me repeat to Professor McGonagall, all of us kids are well ahead in our studies, and we all needed a break along with us in the band needing more rehearsal time together. Joe and Tim are also stuck on a song they’re writing together that if they can get it unstuck just might be another number one hit both here and in the US.

“Max, and to a lesser extent Joe, are also having to work really hard on their Latin, and I thought that if they were talking in Latin to more than just me that it would help them. Andy needs to think without looking at writing, and we’ll teach some music appreciation to Tom along with Latin. Joe, Max, and Tom’ll get to phone home, and Bill’ll get to floo home to check up on his younger siblings.”

After a pregnant silence, John replied, “I would have appreciated more advance warning, if you had actually had the time to give it. Keep that in mind, David. Otherwise, well done. I already have permission from both the Daleys and Stocks to board and feed their children on the weekends where you visit, along with the Weasleys if Bill doesn’t spend tonight with them. So, if Hogwarts approves, I approve, and the Stocks, Daleys, and Weasleys also approve.”

Professor McGonagall supplied, “It was only the timing that had me uncertain, Lord Dvořák, since the Daleys, Stocks, and Weasleys have already sent their Letters-of-Permission to Professor Dumbledore. I’m surprised though, that my colleague is meeting with you this morning.”

“I’m not” David interrupted. “And while the ‘eleven-year-old’ part of me doesn’t exactly like it, the rest of me is impressed that Professor Snape is doing the right thing as best as he understands it for a student who isn’t even in his house rather than ignoring ‘other peoples’ problems’ or bowing to the whims of children. Bravisimo, Professor Snape.

“Dad, it’s just like I’ve written to you. We’re all pushing just as hard as we can, but Professor Snape is concerned that we’re pushing too hard. But all the teachers, particularly Professor Snape, are watching us at school, just like Mom and you are watching from home. A.D. and I will need you to watch the both of us even closer, so we don’t burn ourselves out or slack off. There’s too many people relying on us to get it right the first time for us to not accept adult guidance.

“Right now, Andy is working hard just trying to catch up with his year mates. If he decides to do more, we’ll deal with it then. Bill and Tom are keeping up with the rest of us, but they’re working more for better mastery of the material, since they don’t have any particularly strong reason to try graduating early. And Joe and Max are keeping up with their material for the years they’re in, plus keeping up with the Latin classes they’d only thought they’d left behind in Massachusetts. Since Professor Athelstan told them and us that if Joe and Max went back to Ilvermorny they’d have to catch up with their yearmates in Latin to keep off of academic probation, they’re both well-motivated to keep up.”

After a moment’s silence, John asked, “David, remind me again why you are trying to do all you’re trying to do quickly?”

“A.D. and I have both talked it through together. We both want to be done with both our no-Maj DPhils, our Wizarding Masteries, and teaching at Hogwarts before Harry, Dudley, and Ronnie start school in 1991.”

After a pregnant pause, Severus opined, “If A.D. was still determined to earn his DPhil in English Literature, he might be able to do so part time after completing his Potions Mastery, assuming that Headmaster Dumbledore would hire him, and that the Board of Governors would let him have two Potions Masters teaching, like he should have had for the past forty-seven years. Professor McGonagall could set his younger-year classes in either the mornings or afternoons, allowing A.D. to do his coursework and student teaching at whatever college at Oxford the rest of the time.

“But you intend on studying both Muggle and Wizarding History at the same time, and they’re not quite the same thing.”

A.D. spoke up, saying, “David and I plan to attend the same college at Oxford at the same time, since a lot of our undergraduate studies will overlap. This will give each of us the other as a study partner who also knows and at least somewhat understands the Wizarding World.”

David added, “There are four things a historian and history professor needs to know to be successful. They need to know the history, know how to study and rediscover history, know how to correctly interpret history, and know how to teach history both for general understanding and to attract new generations of historians. From that standpoint, there is no difference between Wizarding and no-Maj History; just ‘extra’ facts the Wizarding Peoples need to have forgotten by the no-Maj Peoples generally to maintain the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy. As a good Wizarding Historian, I will need to learn the ‘extra’ facts we’ve hidden from the no-Maj Peoples, the facts they know that we Wizards tend to forget or ignore, and how it all ties together and influences life today.

“No one is actively offering a formal Mastery in Wizarding History in the UK today. Bathilda Bagshot hasn’t taken on an apprentice since the 1950s, and Madam Marchbanks has actually had to borrow some test graders from Australia a few years ago. Beyond that, what historians we do have are either mostly retired, not particularly good as historians, or both. So, while I’ll learn our History in the Wizarding World, likely including some travel abroad, I’ll also need to learn how to be a proper historian, and I’ll need to earn rock-solid grades and certifications to show that I’ve done it.

“Oxford or Cambridge would fit the bill, but few other institutions in the UK would. Since I’m effectively re-introducing the discipline of History to the Wizarding UK, I’ll have to do so from a position of Academic Strength, rather than ‘that kid at Hogwarts said this.’ And ‘why me?’ Simple; no one else is doing it. If I don’t do it, it won’t get done, and we’ll be stuck with ever-aging Bathilda Bagshot books rounded out with the stunning factual and historical accuracy of Rita Skeeter.

“I’m not happy that I’ll be doing this at eyeball-glazing social life destroying break-neck speed as part of my contribution to helping Harry finally win the war when it starts again. But it is my ‘ticket into the game,’ and I’ll damn well do it on time, and right the first time, even while performing my music where and when I can to keep some of my own money coming in rather than depleting trust funds or selling off assets.”

A.D. offered, “If it gets to be too troublesome otherwise, I could ‘dual-mastery’ in Potions and History, and take all of David’s Oxford classes with him. I want my DPhil in English Literature to honor my Dad and the memory of my late Uncle William. But unless I had to go back to the no-Maj world, I’d never use it to make a living. Studying English Literature, for that matter, requires you to study a lot of English History, along with the histories of the other English Speaking Peoples. So, I could go back to school for a second DPhil in English Literature later on if I still wanted to.”

Joe interrupted, “Mr. Dvorak, may Max, Tom, Bill, and I go over to the other house and start rehearsing if we aren’t being sent back to school? You ‘generals’ and ‘company commanders’ are talking top-level stuff that us corporals and privates probably don’t need to know. If we do need to know something, and if David is allowed to tell us, he will.”

John laughed while Pet looked non-plused and Professors McGonagall and Snape looked frustrated. John told Joe, “That’s a great idea, Joe. And tell Michael that he’ll be cooking over there, and to make enough that if Professors Snape and McGonagall are able to, that we’ll be able to feed them, too.”

“Yes, sir!” Joe answered. It only took a minute for Bill, Tom, Joe, and Max to clear out and over to Number Two, leaving the two Dvorak boys and Andy Floyd to deal with their parents and professors.

After sighing again, Professor Snape stated, “When you get together with your friends, unless we say something else in the next few minutes, there really won’t be anything ‘sensitive’ talked about here, at least not in front of the three of you. By the way, Andy, do you have any career plans for after Hogwarts yet?”

Andy replied, “I’m thinking seriously about becoming a Healer. But right now, I’m still working on catching up to my age-mates while getting top grades doing that. And while I know you can run an army, run a TV Show production company, fly a helicopter, or run a military or civilian helicopter flying company, I don’t know if you can become a Healer with dyslexia.”

Severus told the boy, “Then pay particular attention to Potions. You’ll need a passing NEWT in Potions in order to qualify for an apprenticeship at St. Mungo’s. Madam Pomfrey can also help you, and some St. Mungo’s apprentices rotate through the Hogwarts Hospital Wing.

“As for David and A.D., we, or at least I am not saying ‘no’ to your goals or dreams, though Headmaster Dumbledore will have to say ‘yes’ to actually hiring either or both of you when you get to that point. And you’ve both demonstrated this morning that you’ve at least thought things through, and that you both know that you’ll be working much harder than your peers to accomplish what you plan. If, or possibly when you start getting in over your heads, you will need to let your father and Professor McGonagall know at once. We will help you do your best even when you falter, but we might miss if you’re struggling if you don’t tell us.”

“We’ll be sure to, Professor Snape” David assured him. He added, “And Dad, A.D. and I are still ‘on pace’ to ace our GCSEs next spring. We’ll be sure to let you know right away if we start getting bogged down on them, or anything else.”

John replied, “If you’re sure, that sounds fine to me.”

Pet added, “Just be sure to make quality time for Dudley, Harry, and the younger ones. Saria might understand, and you’d better have been at least writing to her about this, since both your lives will be turned upside-down with your schoolwork. Dudley and Harry are too young to understand, and they’ve been pestering Aaron almost non-stop about where you’ve gone and when you’re coming back.”

Pet’s point was illustrated by a “snap Crack! Waaah!” from the lounge. Everybody ran into the lounge to find Harry crying in fear and Dudley crying in pain. Dudley had Splinched when he Apparated after Harry, who was scared for his cousin but otherwise unharmed.

“David! Duddy’n’me slyšeli velus domum. §$ss S$§sH Pop like me, hoc est malum!”

“S$§ssth s$ sthS$§. Calm down, Harry; and you too Dudley” their favorite brother told them.

Dudley’s answer was, “§$ss S$§sH! Waah! Bolí mě to!”

Pet only cared about Dudley being hurt. John noticed the ‘extra’ language, but he was more concerned with Dudley being Splinched from ‘accidental’ magic that usually didn’t happen to that degree at Harry’s and Dudley’s ages. Professor McGonagall was stunned to silence.

Severus acted. He cast, “Adfero Poppy Pomfrey Poppy, get your red kit and Apparate to John’s house. You were out here last December with Pepper-Up Potion. It’s an emergency, so come straight into the lounge. Call back if you can’t make it right now. Adfero.”

About half a minute later, Madam Pomfrey Apparated into the lounge with a medium-loud “crack!” carrying her Splinching Healing Kit. Looking at Harry and Dudley, she remarked, “I guess it figures.”

She crouched down while she opened up her kit and asked, “Dudley, Harry, do you remember me?”

““s§s$shs tSs§sH$?”

“Dudley, I don’t speak ‘snake talk,’ and I know you can speak English.”

“Sorry! I hurting, other talk make me think. Hurt less. Latina?”

“Ita Dudley. Ubi eras prius hic papaver?”

“In triclinio iuxta portam. Ego dolens et terrebis. Sniff.”

“Te simul redimus et sentientes bonum quam celerrime possumus, Dudley.”

§§§

Dudley’s Splinching was actually fairly minor as far as Splichings go, leaving behind three toes on one foot and two on the other. After being healed, both Dudley and Harry were given a stern talking-to about not ‘popping,’ even if Dudley seemed to do it just as easily as Harry for shorter distances. After that, they were given cups of strawberry flavoured milk to calm them down before being sent upstairs to take a nap, with a promise that David would join them just as soon as the grown-ups were finished with him.

After Pet and David got the toddlers settled in and come back down, David asked, “Dad, I thought our Family Magic only copied other Family Magic, not giving it, too? And Uncle Frank told me that we’d sought out multiple Gaunt women in the early 1800s and married them into the Family before their inbreeding drove them completely nuts. We did that because we wanted Parseltongue speakers in the family, and that Parseltongue is only inherited, not learned. He told me that maybe one in ten Floyd Wizards and Witches could speak Parseltongue today, and to not ‘brag’ or speak it publicly because of the Terrorist being a Gaunt on his mother’s side.”

John stated, “Madam Pomfrey, you will need to forget part of what you just heard after you leave here. But you are right on your understanding, David.”

Turning his attention to the rest of the group, John asked, “Did the Potters have any Slytherin or Gaunt ancestors? Or any other Parselmouths in their lineage?”

Pet added, “And how recessive is this ‘Parseltongue,’ anyway? Lily really was the only witch or wizard in our family going back on both sides for at least three generations, and I know Lily couldn’t speak it.”

Professor McGonagall answered, “Professor Dumbledore might know more about the Potters. But in the Gaunts, Parseltongue was actually dominant, not recessive. And while any magical ability can randomly ‘pop up,’ just like magic itself, Parseltongue is not known to have done so in the UK anytime in the past two hundred years or so.”

Severus added, “Parseltonge has a bad reputation in the UK because the… Terrorist spoke it, and also because the Gaunts became famously Dark in the early 1500s or so. The Gaunts descended from John of Gaunt the younger, who was born to John of Gaunt and Blanche of Lancaster in 1368. The child was deliberately reported to the Muggles as a stillborn girl instead of a wizard of legitimate royal blood. He attended Hogwarts as a Slytherin. His son Edward married the last known descendent of both Cadmus Peverell and Salazar Slytherin in the female line, and the Gaunts were very prolific for several generations.

“All of the Gaunt children after Edward’s marriage, and almost all of their descendants were Parselmouths. Even Isolt Sayre Steward, one of the four founders of Ilvermorny, could understand it. The commonly accepted ‘rumour’ is that her daughter and only magical child Professor Rionach Steward was a Parselmouth, and that she refused to marry or bear children so as to try ending the Slytherin line because of the evil her great aunt Gormlaith Gaunt had wrought upon her parents when Rionach was a baby.”

Madam Pomfrey opined, “You’ve had me thinking. While I examined Harry earlier, as well as last December, I checked his scar along with everything else about him. The scar still feels just as wrong as it did the night his mother was murdered. While Dark Magic Curse residue does linger in scar tissue for decades, it also fades, and fades rapidly at first. Otherwise, you’d never be able to heal a Dark Magic Curse injury at all. But this does not feel like that. I can’t describe it, but it just feels wrong.

“I asked Professor Dumbledore about it, since he has actually studied Soul Magic, unlike me. He assured me that it was nothing to worry about, and that Harry truly had survived the unsurvivable Killing Curse, but he refused to say anything else about what it was.”

John told the group, “Hold that thought, I need to make a phone call.”

John made the call, and was called back in about two minutes. After talking quietly on the phone, a faint crack at the front door was followed up by the ringing of the doorbell. A few moments later, John led War Chief Jonah Walking Cloud into the lounge.

After being introduced as an Apache Shaman as well as one of John’s supervisors, Chief Walking Cloud asked, “Madam Pomfrey, can you describe to me what you felt when you’ve examined Harry’s scar?”

She replied, “The Dark Magic residue in Harry’s scar wouldn’t purge out, and it just felt wrong. Obviously Dark Magic residue would feel like it didn’t belong lodged in a wound on the forehead of a fifteen-month-old boy, but this felt wrong even beyond that.”

Chief Walking Cloud opined, “I’ll need to examine the boy before I can say or even guess anything.”

David told him, “Then you’re in luck. Harry and Dudley have mostly snuck down here, since I wasn’t quick enough to join them for their nap.” Raising his voice gently, David told the boys, “Harry? Dudley? You’re not in trouble. Dad’s boss from work is a different kind of Healer than Madam Pomfrey, and he would like to meet you and look at Harry’s stubborn forehead boo-boo.”

Harry and Dudley toddled the rest of the way back into the living room, with Dudley actually pushing his brother-cousin gently and telling him, “They fix my toes, now fix your head.”

Harry was not happy seeing all the people in the lounge now, not that Dudley was right then, either. Sitting on the floor in front of the twenty-six and twenty-seven-month boys, David reassured them, “You guys are not in trouble. Dad works for the guy with the long grey braid. That guy is like Madam Pomfrey, but he uses a different kind of magic to make you feel better. He wanted to look at your forehead boo-boo and see if he could make it better.”

With David’s assurance, Harry shyly walked over to Chief Walking Cloud. The Shaman asked, “SsSs§ç s$ssSths?”

Harry replied, “t’Ss§ sH$s ssSs§çs tS$S§ s§sH$ tSs§sH$. He say steal my tongue.”

Chief Walking Cloud carefully felt Harry’s forehead without any visible reaction. He told the boy, “I can feel ‘him.’ Your first mother’s love, along with the love of your mother now and your brothers and sister protect you from him. But, he is a liar, and he will hurt you any chance he gets. I can get rid of him without hurting you, and I promise that he won’t steal your tongue. Do you want me to remove him?”

“Yes, please remove him. He laughs at the green light.”

Chief Walking Cloud told the others present, “I can remove the taint from Harry’s scar now, and you need me to. Normally, I would need to make many preparations to do this, but the taint’s grasp on Harry is particularly weak right now.

“Pet, I’ll need you to bring your daughter Lily into the room with us. She will not be in any danger, nor will anyone else. But it’s your love, Dudley’s love, and baby Lily’s love that are helping weaken the taint’s hold on Harry, so if you’re all here, I’ll be able to remove it completely more easily.”

Delilah walked into the house carrying Lily, with Danny guiding her, and Saria following so quietly that only David noticed her. Danny told his father, “Dad, I’ve just had a feeling that Delilah and I needed to bring Lily over. What’s going on? I thought you said that Madam Pomfrey had put Dudley back together?”

David told Danny, “Good call, Danny. We need Lily in the room while Chief Walking Cloud ‘Shamans out’ Harry’s scar.”

Harry asked, “Velká sestra? Mladší sestra?”

Delilah assured Harry, “Ano, Harry. Velká sestra a malá sestra jsou tu pro vás.”

Chief Walking Cloud told the group, “John, I’ll need you to put a sofa cushion on your coffee table and have Harry lay down on that. I’ll need Pet to hold Harry’s right hand, and both Dudley and Lily touching Harry’s left. I’ll be at Harry’s head. While a blessed cloth would be better to put over Harry’s eyes while I work, a regular one will do.”

While clearing his coffee table and putting a sofa cushion on it, John asked, “Will a Catholic Priest’s Purple Stole work? On a whim, I borrowed one with the priest’s permission yesterday.”

Chief Walking Cloud replied, “Since you had Harry baptized, that will be perfect. After we get Harry laying down, we can drape it over his eyes.”

After setting up the table, John helped Harry lay down on the cushion. Harry asked, “Do I need to have my eyes covered, Daddy?”

John assured him, “Yes, Harry. This will keep the taint from hurting your eyes when we get it out.”

With Harry lying down with his eyes covered, Chief Walking Cloud told him, “Harry, I’ll be chanting in several languages. I’ll also need to cut your scar so we can get the taint out of it. It will sting, but it shouldn’t be awful. We’ll all need you to be brave, though; and not cry out. Can you do that for us, Harry?”

Harry choked back a sob, but he answered, “Yes, Shaman.”

Chief Walking Cloud instructed, “Madam Pomfrey, when I nod to you, you may clean any residue from Harry’s scar and heal him. Stay well clear until then.”

With Pet holding his right hand, Dudley and baby Lily holding his left hand together with him holding all of theirs in turn, and with the rest of the group watching, Chief Jonah Walking Cloud started to chant in his native White Mountain Western Apache. As the Shaman chanted, Harry slipped into a light healing trance.

The Shaman chanted for about two minutes before drawing a small ceremonial knife from inside his jacket. He carefully and gently cut the entire length of the scar on Harry’s forehead, cutting just into the scar itself.

While making the incision, Chief Walking Cloud increased the intensity of his slow melodic chant and chanted a little louder. A tar-like yet fluffy black substance slowly slipped out of Harry’s scar, leaving nothing of itself behind. The Shaman’s chanting caused the substance to hover and float up, and away from Harry, with Harry whimpering quietly for just a moment as it left, before Harry calmed back down into his healing trance. A wave of cleansing magic passed through the room, and seemed to travel towards Number Two after washing over everyone in the lounge of Number Four.

While continuing to chant, Chief Walking Cloud nodded towards Healer Pomfrey as he stood up fully, and walked the hovering ball of fluffy tarry evil towards the front door. Several moments later, after hearing the front doors open and Chief Walking Cloud step outside, they heard a quick ungodly scream followed by a fwoom!, as if a bucket of gasoline had been ignited.

Chief Walking Cloud walked back into the lounge. His forehead was beaded with sweat before he wiped it with a handkerchief, and he was breathing as if he had just sprinted a short distance, but he was otherwise unaffected. Healer Pomfrey was just finishing bandaging Harry’s forehead, and Harry was just starting to wake up.

The Shaman asked, “Is everyone alright?”

Pet replied, “Dudley, Lily, and I are fine as far as I can tell. Harry’s mostly woke up now.” Everyone else in the room agreed that they were all unharmed.

Harry finished waking up and told Chief Walking Cloud; “The Great Horned Serpent appeared to me after you got him out of my scar. He told me that he gave me a new and clean tongue to sS§’ath with, and that he cleansed the tongues of my closest family here. I need to take a nap now.” While Harry didn’t pass out, he looked exactly like any other twenty-six-month toddler who was late for his nap and wanted to go to sleep.

David asked, “Dad? Tell me what happens while I’m napping with them, please? And I might want to tell Bill the truth since he’ll be fighting later on, but the Stock Brothers and Tom Daley don’t need to know. So tell me what you tell them so we’re on the same page, please?”

John told him, “I’ll take care of it, David. You look like you need a nap too, so Danny and Delilah will help the three of you upstairs while they take care of their sister.”

The six children went upstairs to the bedrooms, with Danny taking the lead while carrying Dudley, David carrying Harry, and Delilah carrying baby Lily.

§§§

An hour later, John and Pet were entertaining Chief Walking Cloud, Madam Pomfrey, Professors McGonagall and Snape, Remus Lupin, Sirius Black, and Headmaster Dumbledore.

Dumbledore was actually the first of the three ‘newcomers’ to arrive, having been summoned by Chief Walking Cloud and John; neither of whom was exactly happy about what Dumbledore didn’t quite manage to mention about little Harry’s scar. John and Jonah did allow Dumbledore to perform a quick scan of Harry’s forehead, before David decided that the three boys would get a lot more rest next door at Number Two.

At Number Two, everyone was told that Harry’s scar split open while they were healing Dudley’s splinching. After a quick look from David, both toddlers went along quietly with the story. In the mean time, Joe Stock had borrowed some Wizarding money for the Knight Bus, and had fetched both of his parents along with his brother Peter. After that, he retreated to the basement Music Room with Tim to finish their song with Michael, since they were now completely unstuck, and were refining the song while writing it into sheet music.

Michael also made lunch for everyone at Number Two, including for David, Dudley, and Harry after they had napped for a bit. The “grown-ups” managed to fend for themselves for lunch at Number Four. John had summoned both Sirius Black and Remus Lupin, believing that Sirius rightly deserved to know what had happened with his godson. After being told and later reminded by John that Professor Snape was present under Guest Rights, and that the wards would fry Sirius if he wasn’t mindful of his behavior, Sirius managed to keep himself on his best behavior. With a very dirty look from Pet when Sirius wasn’t looking, Severus was also suitably admonished.

The adults were all gathered around the Dining Room table, since the kitchen table wasn’t quite large enough to accommodate them all. They were dining on salads, pasta, and red wine along with water and tea while talking. Dumbledore, while still looking somewhat embarrassed, was also still looking at least as grateful as he truly was that Harry’s ‘scar problem’ had been solved, even if the solution happened more or less on the ‘spur of the moment.’

John asked Dumbledore, “So, when exactly had you planned on telling me that my twenty-six-month old adopted son and nephew-by-marriage had a soul fragment of a madman lodged in the scar on his forehead?”

Dumbledore answered easily, “Since things were going the way they were going, it would have been at least a couple more years. Remember, that in the British and European study of Soul Magic, which is all I knew, I didn’t know of any way to remove Tom’s Soul Fragment without killing Harry. And I genuinely couldn’t stoop to killing a fifteen-month-old child or taking the chance of anyone else doing so, thank Merlin.

“On that basis, if you think about it, you can also understand why I said nothing to any of you prior to today. I stilled my own hand from harming Harry. I had no intention of having anyone else wish the boy any harm at all.

“Had Pet been the person I thought she had been instead of who she actually is now, I would have been pressing my luck just getting her to accept Harry enough for the blood wards to take hold and protect Harry. As things were actually turning out, your being American had me re-study several fields of knowledge I was only aware of in passing before, including Louisiana Voodoo.

“I started correspondence with Doctor Jean-Pierre Montanée, the prominent Louisiana Voodoo Priest. Despite my best efforts, he guessed Harry’s identity with my first letter. As far as I know he has no way of finding Harry, whether for good or ill. The blood wards block scrying as well as most other magical methods anyone wishing to harm Harry would or even might use.

“But we have nothing to fear from ‘Doctor John the Younger’ in any case. He’d assured me that I had been absolutely right in not killing Harry, and that he would be able for certain to exorcise the soul fragment without harming Harry or Harry’s magic—but that Harry would have to be at least five and preferably seven, but no older than seventeen for him to do, it. He also told me that I would have to bring Harry to Louisiana for him to do it, where Tom’s magic would be relatively weak and his own magic being most powerful.”

Chief Walking Cloud opined, “I know ‘Doctor Jean-Pierre,’ and I’m very well versed in his magic and discipline, at least for an outsider. Using his magical discipline, he should have been able to do exactly what he promised, since he’s in the full strength of his power. He’d have probably even been able to remove the soul fragment if Harry had been Hogwarts-age and raised under less nurturing conditions. But, you would have had to have known to get in touch with him; and without Americans getting involved, it sounds like you wouldn’t have.”

Dumbledore agrees, “Exactly. Before I had restarted my research outside of European disciplines, the only hope I had was to trick Tom into using Harry’s blood to create his new body, have Harry destroy all but one of Tom’s Horcruxes, and have Tom use the Killing Curse on Harry. With the blood connection, the last Horcrux might allow Harry to survive with Tom’s soul fragment going On in Harry’s place, thus allowing Harry to destroy the last Horcrux and kill Tom himself.”

To everyone else’s looks of contemptuous astonishment, Chief Walking Cloud countered, “As screwed up as that sounds talking it out, it would have probably worked. But there are so many places where that could have failed that we should all be thankful that we aren’t having to try it. And remember, Dumbledore didn’t just kill Harry out-of-hand when he discovered and recognized the soul fragment. Without the knowledge and experience of removing Adverse Spiritual Possessors I have, I’m not nearly so sure that I would have had the same restraint.”

Changing subjects slightly, Chief Walking Cloud asked, “So, Albus, did he go for six or ten? We both know he didn’t do just one or two, your soul doesn’t get fragile and splintery like Tom’s was from just one or two. Seven’s a more powerful number, but eleven isn’t a number to scoff at – and it would give him four more Horcruxes besides.”

To everyone else’s looks of either horror if they knew what a Horcrux was, or confusion if they didn’t, Dumbledore replied, “It could be either, and he might not have gotten to his planned final number before he tried to murder Harry. I think my friend Horace Slughorn knows or strongly suspects, but he’s refused to honestly answer me even now.

“For those of you who either don’t know, or only suspect what we’re talking about, a Horcrux is the act of splitting off a piece of your very soul, and putting it into a container that is not your body. This makes you immune to the ravages of time and disease, and more besides. Even if you suffer a fatal injury, or even if your body is completely destroyed, you will still not die; you might need help healing or re-creating your body, but you will live on, and with help return to the fullness of your power.

“But this is done at a terrible price. In order to splinter off a piece of your soul, you have to murder for the joy of murder itself, not merely in self-defense or even for material or personal gain. After this murder, you have to perform a ritual over the container into which you place the fragment cleaved off of your soul. The murder and the ritual, along with the deliberate disfigurement of your very soul… damages you. You eventually lose any comeliness you may have had, your mind clouds and dulls with insanity, you become less human, and the price is collected anew with each and every Horcrux you make.

“Before Tom Riddle, no one has been known, or even suspected, of making more than one Horcrux, and few would even dare to make one. Even Herpo the Foul, the ancient Greek who perfected the Ancient Egyptian technique and made a Horcrux, was said to recoil at the thought of making even one more Horcrux, and he was eventually destroyed by Spartan Wizards who destroyed first his Horcrux, and then Herpo himself some four hundred years after Herpo was born in Athens.”

John opined, “So, we have to figure out how many Horcruxes the Terrorist made, along with what they are and where he hid them?”

Dumbledore replied, “Exactly. But with no more worries or suspicions that Harry himself might be anchoring Tom on this plane, we should be able to prevail. Since the murder must be committed first, and then the ritual over the container, Harry might not have been helping anchor Tom to the mortal plane at all. And Tom wouldn’t have used a dead victim’s body for a Horcrux, since dead bodies by their very nature are already destroyed and the ritual spell won’t take. But that is magic best not tested or even suspected. Along that path lies sorrow at best, if not madness.”

Deciding to strike while the iron was hot, John asked, “What will you tell me about the Cabal?”

Dumbledore replied, “They call themselves ‘R,’ and our greatest blessing is that they and Tom’s gang loathed each other.”

John asked, “Sirius, Remus; what can you tell me about Patricia Rakepick?”

Sirius answered, “So far, Moody and I can’t find evidence of her being involved with the Cabal, but she’s absolutely the type. She’s also a master Curse Breaker, and if she is with the Cabal, she’s dangerous as hell…”

§§§

Much later that night, Saria and David lay in each other’s arms in their second bedroom at Number Two, after over an hour of passionate and almost desperate lovemaking, wearing only each other. Harry and Dudley had both gotten their ‘fix’ of ‘David Napping Time’ during the day, and were asleep in Number Four. Beyond getting Harry’s scar taken care of, they actually did get some rehearsal time in, as well as putting on a short impromptu concert for the four Hogwarts Staff Visitors, whom had all left around suppertime.

John, after seeing to it that the Stock family were all occupied along with Tom Daley, told Bill Weasley and all the ‘Dvorak kids’ over the age of three what was going on both with what really happened with Harry, and what was going on with the “R Cabal.” He also cautioned Andy, A.D. and Bill to follow David’s lead and suggestions. John also reminded Aaron and Paul to not tell their ‘best friends’ anything without getting his permission first.

David suggested to John that if anything started happening with the Cabal that Charlie, Fred, George, and Percy Weasley would have to be told at least that, along with the Daley and Stock families, so that the Stocks and Daleys would have at least the chance to change Wizarding Schools if their parents didn’t want to become involved.

Paul opined that nobody needed to know what happened to Harry’s scar. He also said that while his Uncle Junior and Uncle William had been in the Army, that ‘Mr. Joseph’ and ‘Mrs. Terri’ were soldiers, and that all three of their sons would join the fight against the Cabal if that started. He added that his friend Marty might eventually get involved with fighting the Cabal anyway since his parents probably wouldn’t move, and that Jeff’s dad was ASIS, so he might need to be told about the Cabal, just so his dad had some warning to ‘join in or get out.’

Beyond several rounds of lovemaking, David and Saria had also talked out David’s relatively new future plans. While Saria was backing David completely, she still wasn’t happy, not that David himself entirely was, either.

“I don’t like the years of being overworked you’ve volunteered yourself and us for.” She told him while they lay on their sides facing each other. ”Will it help if I go to Oxford and study history with you?”

“If it will help you, Saria, it would sure help me. But, even with me teaching you the Wizarding History, I don’t know if you could use it in a classroom.”

“I could use the pen, David. Even as good as you are at writing, you know I can keep up with you. As far as that goes, providing I had a student work any stuff in the classroom that actually needed magic to work for me, it’s History. I don’t have to be able to cast spells to teach kids about the past and why it’s important today. And, while I prefer fixed-wing airplanes, I don’t have to do that for a living like I’d planned on before, and I really like choppers, too.”

“So long as you keep liking a chopper pilot, I’ll be happy. Will you be ready to take your GCSEs this spring?”

“Probably more ready than A.D. and you. But I’ve only started reading the magic stuff beyond Bagshot, and I’m not all that confident about following that American House Elf’s example on just learning the theory and taking my OWLs and NEWTs on just that.”

David assured her, “Getting ready to get in and keep up at a college at Oxford’s more important anyway, Saria. But knowing magic theory, even if you can’t actually do magic yourself; will help you out a lot, especially when we finally start a family together. And if you do study and learn it good enough to pass the theory and written side of the OWLs and NEWTs, that would be even better.”

The two lovers kissed deeply, only to be interrupted by a quiet crackcrack. “David? Dudley’n’me got lonely, and we both did it right this time.”

While Saria pulled the blankets up to her chin in deep embarrassment, David quietly replied, even while getting at least his pyjama bottoms onto his body. “Harry, Dudley, this wasn’t you guys having nightmares, and Aaron was in his and my room at Number Four if you needed someone. You’re here, so I won’t send you back. But you guys knew that Saria needed to be with me too, and you interrupted her time.

While he silently sent an Adfero next door, David added, “We forgive you. But, Saria and I need to get the bed ready for you guys to share it with us. So, why don’t I take you downstairs and make us some hot chocolate? Saria will be down to share some with us in just a bit, and we’ll all get to bed after that, okay?”

“Guess so, David” Dudley answered. “We won’t be in trouble for Popping, since I didn’t get hurt this time, will we?”

As David got out of bed, wearing both his pyjama top and bottom, over a naked body that could really use another shower, he told his younger brother, “That’s up to Mom and Dad, Dudley. And I had to send them a Dragon to let them know you were over here. Mommies and Daddies get scared when they don’t know where their kids are, and it’s mean to scare Mommy and Daddy. Right?”

“Right, David” Harry answered as the three boys left the bedroom, to allow Saria to find a set of clean boy’s pajamas and more modest underwear to wear under them, plus a shower and older magical sibling to ‘fix’ the bed.

§§§

Harry recovered quickly enough and completely enough from having his scar ‘cleaned out’ that all the boys, including David himself, returned to Hogwarts just in time for Sunday supper in the great hall the next evening. Most of the students were unaware that he and his friends had even left.

They spent the week attending classes, doing homework, and studying. In the cases of Andy, A.D., and David, this included studying ahead and also doing their Muggle Correspondence assignments.

The seven boys left Hogwarts again late on the afternoon of Friday the seventeenth to rehearse in Little Whinging, and to travel to Paris the next day. The evening of Saturday the eighteenth of September saw the Paris Concert turning out to be an incredible success. Theirs was the musical debut concert for the Parc des Princes in the 16th Arrondissement of Paris, and they had a sell-out crowd well in excess of 80,000 spectators.

The Treasures had some very discrete help in the form of John, Frank, and Albus Dumbledore discretely casting the occasional Foreign Language Speaking Charm to keep all of the band members ‘parle-vousing in Francais.’ David, between his native fluency in Latin, having studied French a little, and actually having heard more conversational French than John had realized, had needed the charm only once the previous Sunday, and was natively fluent ever since. His brothers and cousins weren’t quite as good, but John and Headmaster Dumbledore were present under disillusionment charms just in case. The girls, along with both Stock Brothers, needed a bit more spell work to keep going, but they were also keeping up at least for the performance.

The reasons for the “charms help” were readily apparent. While The Treasures performed their own compositions and ‘normal’ cover songs in English, the band also performed several French songs, along with both David and Michael wanting their ‘stage banter’ to be in French, to better entertain their mostly French audience.

Their use of French started with David opening the concert by performing the entire French National Anthem, all seven verses of it. The stadium lights were lowered, and the stage remained dark. A spotlight brightened onto David alone. He announced, “Bonsoir mesdames et messieurs. Merci beaucoup d'avoir rejoint mes amis, ma famille et moi pour une soirée de musique et de divertissement. Veuillez vous lever et rendre hommage à l'hymne national.

“Allons enfants de la Patrie,
Le jour de gloire est arrivé!
Contre nous de la tyrannie
L'étendard sanglant est levé,
L'étendard sanglant est levé
Entendez-vous dans les campagnes
Mugir ces féroces soldats?
Ils viennent jusque dans vos bras
Égorger vos fils, vos compagnes!

“Aux armes, citoyens,
Formez vos bataillons,
Marchons, marchons!
Qu'un sang impur
Abreuve nos sillons!... “ ¹

David’s La Marseillaise caused the entire stadium to cheer and applaud for even longer than the five minutes the song itself took to perform, along with more than a few other parts of Paris and all of France as well, since the French Public Broadcasting Company had bought the rights to broadcast the concert live on both television and radio.

The Treasures debuted three new songs that night, along with playing their already-released hits, other songs from their first album, and multiple English and French cover songs. The concert itself would be released as a double-album in December.

The WWN also bought a license to simulcast the concert in the UK, to great enthusiasm from their audience, even with a lot of the conversation between songs being in French and with the translation charms being only mostly effective.

These were the “great” thoughts going through Saria’s and David’s minds while they sat in their promoter-provided room at the St. James Paris later that evening, after the band had left the venue by Portkey. They had any number of “not so great but it could be much worse” thoughts, too. This started with the fact that while The Treasures’s share of the gross was an almost insane $1.9 million, that their share was only $124,000 each, since there were now thirteen performers in the band, plus one extra share to Michael for starting and running the band, and one more share to John for managing and promoting it.

Of course, John’s efforts got them the $1.9 million between getting a much higher percentage of the ticket sales than most new bands, and getting almost all of the license fees from the French Broadcasters and the WWN. And the $1.9 million wasn’t counting their income from the licensed merchandise and ‘concert sales’ albums that was being sold at their concerts. Minus Uncle Frank’s share for keeping counterfeiters and pirate merchandise sellers mindful of their health and not selling unlicensed merchandise and lowering the band’s income, and John’s share for managing the sales, they were making some serious money there, too.

Saria and David were splitting a bottle of Champagne and talking about the concert and whatever else to calm down from the ‘high’ of performing before a live audience of almost 100,000 people, many of whom couldn’t speak English. They were also playing “Strip 21,” with Saria dealing and each removing the other’s clothing, for ‘foreplay.’ Saria, who had started ‘nice,’ was ahead in the game. She had David barefooted, wearing only his t-shirt, jeans, and underpants. David, who started ‘naughty’ by undressing Saria from the top down, had her bare-chested but wearing her jeans, panties, shoes, and socks.

“You’ve got seven showing, David. How do you think we’ll do for the concerts for the rest of the year?”

“I’m good, Saria. If they’re like this one, we should do great. And Dad’s also told all of us that he’d invest our money for us, so our trust and regular savings accounts will be doing really good, too. I have eighteen” he finished, turning his ‘hidden’ ace of hearts face-up.”

She replied, “Rats!” while turning her ‘hidden’ ace of clubs up for only seventeen. She stood before David. He sensually unfastened her belt and jeans, and pulled them down to her knees. She sat back down, and he carefully removed her jeans from over her shoes, leaving her wearing her trainers, footie socks, and a pair of panties that were more ‘suggestion’ than covering. She shuffled the cards and dealt again. She had a nine of hearts showing, where David had a five of clubs.

David told her, “Dad’s said that we’re doing really good on the concert t-shirts and other stuff, including the ‘concert sales’ albums he got Columbia to give us. And, even with Columbia taking a good chunk of the regular album sales, we still own our own music and stuff, which not a lot of new bands can say. Plus we are getting paid nicely from them, too. Hit me.”

Saria dealt David the king of spades. “Damn!” he exclaimed, turning over his hidden queen of diamonds.

“Serves you right, David” Saria quipped while she stood in front of him and removed his t-shirt. “How are the other guys doing at Hogwarts?” she asked while sitting back down and dealing again.

“Andy and A.D. are both working ahead. With A.D. and me helping Andy with his dyslexia, we’re all thankful that he’s keeping up with A.D. and me. If we can keep up the pace, we might all be fully into third year stuff before Hogwarts lets out for the year in June. Having Joe actually in third year and studying with us is helping, along with Max being in second year and studying with us. And, I’ll split this pair of aces” he finished, turning up his hidden ace of clubs to match his dealt showing ace of diamonds.

Saria, who had the ten of clubs showing, dealt David two more cards face-down and took a sip of her Champagne. David turned up his two hidden cards, matching a seven of clubs with his ace of clubs, and the eight of spades to match his ace of diamonds. Saria turned over her ace of hearts, and David swallowed hard.

David reluctantly stood in front of Saria, and she reminded him about why he was reluctant while removing his ‘doesn’t count’ belt from his jeans. “You said that if I lost that you’d spank me with your hand, one ‘stinging’ swat for each piece of clothing that you had left; and that if I won, that you’d let me give you two hard swats with your belt for every piece of clothing that I had left.”

“I remember all too well, Saria” he answered glumly while she sensuously removed his jeans.

While she continued erotically with his underpants, she told him, “I’ll have you lay over the edge of the table, facing towards the wall, with your feet dangling and your arms stretched out. I’ll put a piece of clothing in front of you and ‘collect’ for it. And, if you straighten your legs out or your feet go above your knees at all, I’ll add ten swats, reset the total count to zero, and start again.”

“Okay” David almost gasped quietly. He was hard and glistening, but he was also just a little bit afraid. And, they’d also agreed to be quiet, since neither of them wanted to be heard outside of the hotel room nor ‘interrupted’ by anyone hearing shouts of pain or crying.   Saria helped him up on the table with a towel padding the edge. The somewhat tall table was just tall enough to let his feet dangle freely while he laid over the edge of it, with his arms stretched out in front of him.

She got behind him and where he couldn’t see her, with his belt ready to use on his bottom. But he could hear quite well when Saria untied and removed her left shoe. She tossed it, and it landed in front of his face. He barely had time to react before he felt the Whack! Whack! of his belt striking his bare bottom with all the force Saria could deliver. With some effort, he kept his legs and feet relaxed, even while he gasped in surprised pain. Saria wasn’t playing around.

David heard the near-silent sound of Saria removing her left footie sock. To ‘play’ with David’s imagination, she made sure to drag it across the slight calluses of her feet while she took it off. It landed in front of his face on Saria’s left shoe, and with no other warning he felt the Whack! Whack! of his belt striking his now much more sensitive bottom two more times. This time, his legs twitched, and he almost picked his feet up, even while gasping and barely holding back a sob.

He heard Saria quickly pulling down her panties and undoing her right shoe. She told him, “Keep laying there, but I’m not swatting you again. Unlike me, none of your parents spanked you when you misbehaved ever, so it just isn’t the same as if I had you spank me for us being ‘naughty,’ like Mom and Grandma had done to me a few times before ‘that night.’

“But when I let you get up, I want to trade places with you. I had Delilah get me a tube of lube for us. I’ll want you to eat my butthole, give me a few stinging swats with your hand to ‘distract’ my butthole, and take my butthole for the first time. When you finish, we’ll get cleaned up and make love in the shower before going to bed…

§§§

An hour and a half later, the two young lovers were in bed and each other’s arms, wearing only each other. David asked her, “Have you worked your ‘frustrations’ out with me?”

“Mostly. And I know why you’re doing what you are. I wasn’t kidding last week about working by your side when and where I can. Harry’s my brother too, after all, even if the two of us refuse to be siblings when we can have so much more. But why did you have me start reading Fagan’s In the Beginning: An Introduction to Archaeology?”

“Saria, when you’re exploring and rediscovering lost, forgotten, or misrecorded history, you need to work with archaeology and archaeologists, whether you’re in the Wizarding or no-Maj world. We read mentions of the City of Ur in both Gilgamesh and the Bible. But it’s the archaeologists who told us that Ur was really real.

“And sometimes, it works both ways. It was the historians ‘re-discovering’ the Vinland sagas who inspired the archaeologists to search Eastern Canada. And while they haven’t found the exact location of Vinland for certain, they have found traces of Vikings exploring, trading, and lingering on the Eastern Canadian Seaboard.

“On the Wizarding side, while the Goblins aren’t quite as good at documentation as Howard Carter, they do document their discoveries quite well, so they can get the highest prices selling the artifacts they extract from the magical tombs they excavate and explore. Their publications on their discoveries in situ are of sufficient scholarly quality that they also earn the Goblins money.

“And, sometimes you get really lucky, like with the Dead Sea Scrolls in the ‘40s and ‘50s. Those discoveries helped both historians and archaeologists in their studies of the Second Temple period. So, while they are different disciplines, historians need to understand archaeology, and archaeologists need to understand history.”

With that thought shared, the late night and fine Champagne caught up with the two young lovers as they drifted off to sleep.

^1. La Marseillaise, the French National Anthem. Now owned by France if by anybody.
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The Yankees Nephew and the Philosophers Stone