OMG Revenge of the Sith OMFGOMFGOMFG
Okay, now that my inner child has exhausted himself. Oh. My. God. Go see it. Even if you hate Star Wars (which I doubt many of you do), go see it. The special effects just will blow you away.
I am in apology mode for not having time to update on Friday this week. That stupid thing called real life interfered and set me back a few days. Just look at it like this: the next update will seem much sooner now. ::wink::
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Chapter 4: Hogwarts is Where the Heart Lies
"Excellent, Harry!" Dumbledore shouted from across the room. Harry was leaning over, hands on his knees, his heart beating much faster than what he thought was normal.
"And why...exactly...is it...excellent?" he asked, hyperventilating.
"I didn't hit you once that time," Dumbledore said, walking over to him. "Much improvement over yesterday."
"You didn't exactly warn me that you were going to start firing off jinxes at me yesterday," Harry said.
"Constant vigilance," Dumbledore replied with a smile.
"And making me run all over the place improves vigilance?" Harry panted. "Getting me once or twice would be enough, I have quidditch for stamina."
"You had quidditch for stamina," Dumbledore countered. "You'll find that playing on a house team will be rather difficult once you start teaching."
"If I start teaching," Harry replied, standing up straight.
"You will," Dumbledore replied. "I talked with Minerva today."
"You did?" Harry asked.
"Yes. Come, let us talk about this over tea."
Harry followed his mentor into the study where Dumbledore conjured a pair of cups and a teapot with a wave of his hand. Another wave and milk and sugar appeared.
It was now a week that Harry had been with the former headmaster, and the anticipation of whether or not he was going to be able to teach had started creeping up on him. That, and the anticipation of being close to Hermione again.
"Two spoons?" Dumbledore asked as he was pouring the tea.
"Yes, please," Harry replied. Dumbledore scooped two spoonfuls of sugar into Harry's cup and handed it to him. Albus added a small amount of milk and sugar to his own before sitting down behind his desk. "So...did she say anything?"
"She is rather skeptical about your abilities," Dumbledore admitted. "But my word does go a long way these days. She will give you an interview, and if she feels you are acceptable for the job, she will hire you."
"An interview with Minerva McGonagal," Harry chuckled. "Now that won't be difficult, will it?"
"Being pessimistic does not get anything done, Harry," Dumbledore said wisely.
"I suppose not," Harry replied in a down tone. There was silence for a moment while both of them sipped on their tea.
"What's troubling you?" Dumbledore asked. "Hermione, still?"
"Yeah," Harry sighed after a moment.
"Would you like to talk about it?" Dumbledore asked. Harry shrugged.
"Part of it is the fact that she felt alone enough to want to kill herself," he said. "I know if I hadn't done what I did, we'd all be dead. That doesn't lessen the fact that I feel somewhat responsible." There was a pause as the former headmaster considered this.
"You know, for the first time in many years, I can think of no appropriate answer for a statement like that," the headmaster replied. "You did what was right, what was needed to be done."
"Over these past few days though," Harry said, "I can't help wondering what would have happened if we had all died at the hand of Voldemort. You said yourself that death is nothing but the next great adventure."
"Ah, but I am one of few who are actually of that belief," Dumbledore said. "Many people fear death wrongfully."
"Is it wrong to fear losing those you love?" Harry asked.
"Not in the least," Dumbledore replied. "But many people fear death for themselves, not for others. It is truly one of the saddest flaws of the modern world."
"Modern world?" Harry asked.
"People weren't so self-absorbed in the old days," Dumbledore said. "Only in the past six or seven decades have they started to think like that. Since Grindelwald, actually."
"Why Grindelwald?" Harry inquired.
"How much do you know about him?" Dumbledore asked.
"Only that you killed him," Harry replied. Dumbledore nodded thoughtfully.
"You'll find that although not all Dark Lords share the same views, they all share the same goal: absolute power."
"You mean immortality," Harry stated.
"Yes...and no," Dumbledore answered. "Absolute power is to be able to control everything around you to such an extent where you get whatever you want, whenever you want, no questions asked. Once you achieve that, then immortality seems like a reasonable goal."
"But Voldemort -"
"One of Voldemort's flaws, perhaps his most exploitable, is that he truly believes that he is right, no matter what the subject. Although I think what happened in Godric's Hollow all those years ago probably put him in his place a bit," Dumbledore interrupted with a small smile. "He thinks that immortality should come first, and then he can go about conquering the world without resistance. He fails to recognise that there is a very noticeable difference between immortality and invincibility."
"Being?" Harry asked.
"To be immortal only means you cannot die," Dumbledore said simply. "Quite a bit off from not even being able to be harmed."
"So then, wouldn't the optimal scenario be to let him think he's invincible and then capture and strip him of his powers?" Harry asked.
"It would, if Tom Riddle was even capable of becoming immortal," Dumbledore said. "But cheating death is such a feat that only one in history has ever accomplished it, and it was with help."
"Who?" Harry asked.
"Do you need to ask that question?" Dumbledore returned with a smile.
"Me," Harry sighed after a moment.
"Quite right," Dumbledore said.
"What about Flamel?"
"Nicolas only succeeded in prolonging his death. He did not cheat it entirely."
"But the curse rebounded on Voldemort," Harry said. "How could I be the only one to have cheated death if he lived through his own Avada?"
"The killing curse is fueled by nothing but pure hatred and the desire to kill," Dumbledore said. "Your mother showed unconditional love when she sacrificed herself to save you. Thus, when the curse rebounded upon Voldemort, it had been touched by her love, and was therefore no longer pure. The fact that the curse was able to do what it did to Voldemort, given the impurity, is simply a testament to his raw power. Being the heir of Salazzar probably has something to do with it also. Getting back on topic though, Tom Riddle has never even come close to achieving immortality, even though he believes he has. It was because of your mother's love that he lived that night, not his own magical ingenuity."
There was silence for a minute or two while Harry let these words sink in. Dumbledore simply sat behind his desk and sipped at his tea while Harry thought.
"But we've gotten off topic," Dumbledore said. "We were talking about why Grindelwald sparked the wave of selfishness that still exists today."
"Yeah," Harry said.
"Well, like I said, Grindelwald was trying to go about attaining absolute power the right way, by conquering first. He was really vicious when it came to dealing with those who opposed him. Especially when they were families or couples. He would force one person at wand-point to kill off everyone else, and then he would murder the last remaining person. Less messy, apparently."
"That's horrible," Harry said shaking his head. "Don't tell me people actually killed their own families trying to save their own skins?"
"That's precisely what I'm telling you, Harry," Dumbledore said.
"Why would anyone ever do such a thing?!"
"There were two reasons for it," Dumbledore said. "The first reason was that the people who didn't do it the way Grindelwald wanted them to, died much worse deaths than the ones who did. He invented his own form of torture, similar to that of the Chakra. Are you familiar with that?"
"Not really," Harry replied.
"In short, it involves probing the nine energy centers of the body in such a way to cause extreme pain while keeping the victim alive."
"Energy centers?" Harry asked.
"Like the heart, lungs, or genitals," Dumbledore said. "Suffice it to say, 'Crucio' would have been a more pleasant way to go for those people. The other reason, though not as influential, was that not all love is as pure as yours is for Hermione. People could exist without those they love, unlike you two. And Lily and James, to make a point. The combination of those two reasons, along with the fear Grindelwald struck in the hearts of the millions he affected has still carried over to this day."
Harry sighed and leaned back in the armchair. They sat in a comfortable silence for about a minute and then Harry asked, "How did you kill Grindelwald?"
"It was a rather nasty affair," Dumbledore admitted. "There were some complicated potions involved, but mostly it involved my spell deflecting one of his curses back at him. I killed him rather quickly after that."
"Did you use the killing curse to kill him?" Harry asked.
"...No, and for right now, that is not something I wish to talk about," Dumbledore said. "Suffice it to say, I wanted him to suffer for what he had done."
Harry understood that part of the conversation was over, and was about to open his mouth to ask another question when Fawkes appeared on the desk with a loud bang, causing Harry to spill his tea all over himself. Dumbledore, however, remained stoic as though expecting it.
"I see it is time for us to part for the day," Dumbledore said with a smile while waving his wand to dry Harry's pants and shirt. "Fawkes will take you to Minerva's office now."
"I'm doing that interview now?" Harry asked, mouth slightly agape.
"You will need time to prepare a course load and select a suitable book," Dumbledore replied with a smile. "It's almost August as it is."
"Er...all right," Harry said hesitantly as Fawkes shook his tail at him.
"Good luck, Harry," Dumbledore said.
"Thanks," he replied. With a deep breath he grabbed onto Fawkes' tail and disappeared with another loud bang.
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He landed in a soft armchair in front of the headmistress' desk. He gave Fawkes a quick nod of thanks and could've sworn that the phoenix winked at him before disappearing.
"Glad to see you're at least punctual," a stern female voice from behind him said.
Harry turned his head around and saw McGonagal peering over the top of her spectacles at a series of books in one of the bookshelves.
"Er...sorry about the loud entrance," Harry said, not sure of what else to say. McGonagal, however, waved him off.
"Nonsense," she said. "What with Albus popping in and out of here almost every other day, one gets used to it. Ah, there it is." She smiled and pulled a dusty old book from the shelf. "Here you are dear."
"Thank you," another female voice, although much softer, replied. Harry jumped at the realisation that there was someone else in the room, and his heart nearly stopped altogether when he saw who it was.
"You're quite welcome, Miss Granger," McGonagal replied. "And off the record, I'm personally quite glad to have you teaching here."
"Thank you, Minerva," Hermione replied.
"Oh, I don't believe the two of you have been introduced," Minerva said, motioning Harry to come over to them. Shakily, Harry stood and was thankful his legs didn't give out from under him as he walked over to the two women. "Hermione Granger, Harry Potter."
"Nice to meet you," Hermione said with a smile that made Harry want to melt into the floor. Instead, he composed himself and took her hand.
"You too," he replied with a shaky smile. He expected Hermione to let go of his hand, but instead she held on, giving him a very appraising look.
"Do I...know you?" she asked, cocking her head to the right. Harry had to restrain himself from gasping when he saw the three-inch long scar on the left side of her throat.
"I...I don't think so," he choked out.
"Are you feeling okay?" she asked concernedly. "You just paled there considerably. Perhaps he should go see Poppy."
"No, I'm okay," Harry said quickly, turning to face McGonagal, who was standing there with her arms crossed. "Really, I am."
"Well, all right," Hermione said. "Nice to have met you, Harry."
"You...you too."
He stared at the back of her head longingly as she turned around and walked out of office, closing the door behind her. A moment later he heard a slight cough and turned to face McGonagal who was giving a the same appraising look that Hermione had, only much colder.
"Care to explain that?" she asked
"I...no," Harry said decisively. "Sorry, I just thought I remembered her from my former life."
"You thought you remembered her?" McGonagal asked walking around behind her desk and sitting down. "Albus told me your entire story, Harry."
"You believe him?" Harry asked, slightly surprised.
"An old fool, he may be," McGonagal replied with a smile. "But he is not senile, and I doubt he ever will be."
"I'm sorry," Harry said. "It's difficult seeing her again. She has absolutely no idea who I am."
"I hope she will not be a detriment to your teaching here?" the headmistress asked.
"My teaching?" Harry asked, surprised. "You're already giving me the job?"
"I must say, you certainly seem qualified enough, given what Albus has shown me in his pensieve," McGonagal asked. "My only question to you is do you think you'll be able to concentrate with Miss Granger so close to you all the time?"
"I do indeed," Harry said with a smile.
"How do you plan on doing that?" Minerva asked curiously.
"If I plan on getting her to fall in love with me again, I'll have to be able to show her that I know how to properly teach a class," he said with a smile.
McGonagal stared at him with a steely expression for a while, and for a moment Harry thought he had said the wrong thing. However, a moment later her expression softened and she held out her hand to him, which he shook.
"Good answer," she said. "Welcome to the staff." Harry released the breath he didn't realise he had been holding.
"Thank you very much," he said with a smile.
"I'll let Albus know to transfer your things to the teacher's quarters," McGonagal said. "The entrance is in the East Tower, under the painting of Merlin. Tap the second block under the center of the painting to get in. You'll be in room five."
"Thank you very much," Harry said appreciatively.
"Now be off," McGonagal said. "You need to start on a lesson plan right away."
"I will, headmistress."
"Oh, and Harry?" Harry stopped on his way out and turned around. "You may feel free to call me Minerva." Harry said nothing in reply, he only smiled and nodded as he walked down the stairs to the hallway below.
Harry nearly skipped all the way to the East Tower and wasted no time in tapping the correct block to gain entrance to professors quarters. He spent a minute looking around at the common room he was in; it looked similar to the Gryffindor common room in most respects, with the exception of having beautiful oak doors line the circular wall. Each had a small gargoyle holding a number above them. Harry quickly walked over to number five and put his hand on the knob.
"Password?" a gravelly voice above him said. Harry jumped back and looked up to find the gargoyle staring him in the face.
"Password?" Harry asked. "Er...I don't know."
"Then you can't get in."
"But this is my room," Harry explained. "I was just hired here, no one told me the password."
"Sure, sure."
"Look, if I wasn't a professor here, how would I know how to get into the professors quarters anyway?" he asked.
"Don't know, don't care."
"Ugh, let me in you infernal stone."
"Nope."
"Please?"
"Nope."
"What's going on out here?"
Harry jumped a foot in the air and spun around to find Hermione's head peeking out from the door directly to the left of his.
"I...I, er...the headmistress hired me and gave me this room, but it wants a password and I don't know it."
"Oh, honestly," Hermione huffed stepping outside of her room. "Haven't you ever read Hogwarts, a History?"
Harry couldn't stop the wide grin that appeared on his face at hearing the famous question again. Hermione, though, looked at him as if he were about to have a stroke. Realising he couldn't stand there smiling like an idiot, he shook his head.
"Well, you have to create a password for it," she said pointing to the gargoyle who just looked on in annoyance. "If it's the first time, whatever you answer for the password will be the one you use all the time. Unless you change it, of course."
"Thanks," Harry said with a smile. He turned to face the gargoyle and opened his mouth to speak when Hermione spoke up.
"Wait!" she exclaimed. "You don't want to let me hear it, do you? Let me go back inside my room and give you some privacy."
"I don't mind," Harry said truthfully. "I may not have read Hogwarts, a History, but I trust everyone who teaches here." Hermione smiled at him and watched on in amazement as he turned back to the gargoyle.
"Password?" it huffed.
Harry thought for a moment and then smiled.
"Chudley Cannons."
The gargoyle rolled it's eyes at him but nodded all the same. Smiling he reached out to grab the doorknob and opened the door to his room. He turned back to Hermione who was still watching him with rapt attention.
"Thanks for that," he said with a smile.
"Hmm? Oh, you're welcome," Hermione said, blushing slightly.
'I know that blush,' Harry thought. 'She does that whenever she's been caught doing something she's not supposed to be doing.'
"You're blushing," Harry stated with a grin. This caused her to blush even harder.
"Oh...I'm sorry," she said in a small voice.
"Were you...staring at me?" Harry asked with a smile.
"Well, I...I...you just look so bloody familiar!" she said, frustrated.
"If it's any consolation, I think I've met you somewhere before," Harry said, enjoying just being able to talk normally with Hermione again. That feeling was quickly dismissed, though, as the two of them fell into an awkward silence. "Well, I'll just be going then."
"Wait," Hermione said quickly. "Would...would you like to work on a lesson plan together, or something? I think it would be a great idea if we could come up with something for the sixth or seventh years that combined both Transfiguration and Defense."
"Like animating something to block a curse for you," Harry said, remembering the Department of Mysteries incident from four years prior.
"Exactly!" Hermione said, excited.
"I think I could fit you in somewhere," Harry said casually, but with a smile.
"Then does tomorrow fit into your schedule?" Hermione asked.
"That would be great," Harry replied.
"I guess I'll see you then," Hermione replied with a smile, closing her door softly.
Harry could barely contain his elation as he jumped into his room and fell onto the bed. Staring up at the hangings of what seemed to be a very familiar four-poster, he gave a sigh of relief.
'Well,' he thought to himself. 'I guess I'm home again.'
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And there it is. I think this story is going to be longer than I had originally anticipated. I'm guessing somewhere
between 12-15 chapters now. More story for you all to read then! Again, sorry about the late update, and assuming there
are no problems, I'll be ready for the 27th, back on schedule. Until then!