To my dear readers, thank you for your patient waiting these last few weeks. I sent the chapter to Aggiebell several weeks before Christmas, but due to the holidays and some computer problems, I had to wait just as patiently as all of you. Aggiebell, I’m thankful that you’re up and running again. Your comments are always encouraging. I also need to thank my pre-betas, jedi34 and GhostWriter who always offer the best advice for saying things the way I want them expressed. A final thank you goes to all my faithful reviewers. I love reading your comments and appreciate the time you take to write them. I look forward to what you have to say about this chapter.
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Summer Story | ||||||
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Category: Post-OotP, Buried Gems Characters:None Genres: Action/Adventure, Fluff, General Warnings: None Story is Complete Rating: PG-13 Reviews: 392 Summary: Summer at the Dursleys’ is typical for Harry Potter who hopes his stay with his relatives will only last two weeks at most. In this sequel to You’re Still You and New Year, New Hope Harry learns that his role as “savior” of the Wizarding world is more complicated than he thought and that he needs his friends and mentors more than he ever imagined. Hitcount: Story Total: 135433; Chapter Total: 4066 Author's Notes: |
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Chapter 26: The Last Adventure New Year’s Eve morning dawned clear and cold as Harry, Ron and Hermione emerged from the warmth of the Burrow and stealthily made their way past the gate and into the lane leading towards Ottery St Catchpole, Hermione erasing their footsteps in the snow with her wand as they went. At a bend in the lane, Harry turned around for one last look at the house. A wave of emotion engulfed him, causing him to stop completely as he recognized the familiar feeling. The guilt that he was once again leaving Ginny behind ate at his insides, but he thrust the feeling away knowing that to dwell on it would distract him from his ultimate goal of finding and destroying the last three Horcruxes. Deep down, he knew Ginny understood... at least he hoped she would. “It’ll be all right, mate,” Ron said bracingly, tugging at Harry’s sleeve. Harry bowed his head as he turned back around. “I just hope she understands why I left her behind again,” he said bleakly. “Did you leave her a note like you promised?” Hermione inquired. “Yeah, but I’m not sure she’s willing to forgive me for leaving her behind without telling her first,” Harry responded. “She will, Harry. Both Ginny and Mum have cottoned on to the fact that what we’re doing is important to the war effort,” Ron said. Another wave of guilt swept over Harry as he thought of Mrs Weasley and all she had done for him these past few months. He pushed it away and concentrated with all his might on Apparating onto the hilltop in Godric’s Hollow Cemetery. When the Potter Family crypt loomed large in his mind’s eye he said, “Let’s go.” Both Ron and Hermione nodded curtly and the three Disapparated from the lane, leaving only a trampled place in the snow to mark their point of departure. They landed in front of the Godric’s Hollow church instead of the little mausoleum marked “Potter.” Hermione asked, “Anti-Apparition charms?” Harry nodded. “Amongst other things. I should have remembered that,” he said. “I suppose this place is protected by all sorts of enchantments.” Hermione smiled her agreement and stood aside to let Harry pass through the graveyard gate. With a quick nod, Harry led the way up the hill, drawing his wand when they neared the Wizarding part of the cemetery. The magical graves appeared and Harry walked purposefully towards the top of the hill, Ron and Hermione hurrying after him. Ron put his gloved hand on Harry’s shoulder as they approached the Potter crypt. “Do you want us to go in there with you?” he asked. Harry shook his head, taking in the supportive expressions on his friends’ faces. “Thanks, but no,” he said. “This is something I have to do by myself.” “We’ll wait out here, then,” Hermione said, her eyes zeroing in on Ron. He ignored her. “We’ll keep an eye out for anything suspicious,” he said, hesitantly removing his hand from Harry’s shoulder. Harry smiled at them. “I appreciate it,” he said sincerely and walked away, leaving his friends to draw their wands and begin circling the small building. Harry took off his gloves and placed a trembling hand upon the cold metal of the iron gate, feeling it warm a little under his touch. Dumbledore had explained that he would feel this, for the magic cast upon the gate was identifying his magical signature. The lock clicked and the gate swung open, allowing him to pass into the crypt. The air was slightly warmer inside only because the little window on the back wall blocked the wind and allowed the feeble sunlight that streamed in to warm the stone ledge beneath it. Harry shut the gate and quietly drew Gryffindor’s sword from the sheath he’d conjured the night before. His eyes raked the window ledge where he knew Nagini would most likely be. He was right. She was coiled tightly on the sunniest patch of stone, in position to drop onto his parents’ headstones if she needed to. “S-s-so we meet again,” the serpent hissed. “I knew you’d be here. Tom is so very fond of snakes,” Harry responded, stepping closer and shuddering inwardly as the Parseltongue rolled off his lips. The tip of the sword scraped metallically across the floor, catching Nagini’s attention. “How did you get in here?” he continued, drawing the snake’s attention back to himself. “No one is supposed to be able to get past Dumbledore’s enchantments.” “Oh, you naive boy,” Nagini hissed, “You had no idea how much I followed you on my visit las-s-st July. You and Dumbledore led me right to the place. The res-s-s-t was s-s-simple.” Harry didn’t comment, afraid that if he did, Nagini would have time to ready herself for a fight. Instead, he stepped further into the crypt, careful to keep the sword’s point from scraping the floor again, and locked the gate behind him. She now raised her head, preparing to strike, but a cold snake is a lethargic snake, and Nagini was a cold snake. With one swift movement, Harry swung the sword in a wide arch. It connected with Nagini’s body, neatly beheading her. As her head sailed out the door, Harry heard the slightest of whimpers coming from the body. A tendril of vapour followed it, causing Harry to shudder. The living Horcrux was no more. Harry dropped the sword with a clatter and slumped to the crypt floor as the adrenalin left his body. One down, two to go, he thought. I just hope Dumbledore was right about the location of the other two… Without warning, his scar began to throb and his surroundings changed abruptly. Harry was now no longer in the crypt, but alone in a dark room. He sat in an over-stuffed armchair watching the flames dance in the grate and waiting for Nagini to bring him news. But she was overdue. She always appeared at his side at day break, tired and in need of food and a nap on the rug before the fire. Instead, deep inside him he felt a searing pain that caused him to cry out while his long white fingers clutched at his breast. “Nagini!” he cried. “What has he done to you that is causing me such pain?” He could hardly stand it. His head now felt as if it would explode and he dug the nails of one hand into his skull, seeking to dig out the thing that was causing his agony. Then he remembered, remembered what it had felt like to possess Potter, remembered the white-hot lightning bolts that suffused his soul and forced him to vacate the mind he so desperately longed to plunder for its secrets. But if that was not meant to be, then why was he feeling such pain? The answer came to him in a flash of enlightenment so brilliant, he was nearly blinded. Potter has killed Nagini! He clutched at the arms of the chair, digging his nails into the fabric and hearing it rip. If Nagini was dead, then what had become of the other Horcruxes? Were they still safe in their hiding places? Or had a fate as heinous as Nagini’s killing been heaped upon them? He had to know, he had to be certain. Rising from his chair, he began to pace in front of the fire, his anger building as he reviewed the hiding places in which he had secured his Horcruxes. The diary was no longer in existence, Potter had seen to that. He feared his family’s ring had gone the way of the diary, this time at the hands of Albus Dumbledore; he had felt something back in June when his ancestral home had been razed and he had not been able to find a trace of the ring in the ashes. He laced his fingers behind his back, thinking hard. A malicious smile curved his lips as he thought of the hiding places where Salazar Slytherin’s locket and Hufflepuff’s cup rested; no one would have dared to try breaching the defences he’d set up around them. He felt certain, too, that the location of Ravenclaw’s wand had not been discovered; only someone who could speak Parseltongue, like Potter, could open the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets. Harry Potter! There was that name again! He was behind all this pain! “YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS, POTTER!!!” he roared, storming to the door of the room and flinging it open. The morning light, shining through the windows of the dwelling’s corridors, blinded him momentarily, and then he turned in place and Disapparated to the old derelict mansion on the outskirts of Little Hangleton and began ransacking the upstairs room, looking for Hufflepuff’s cup, only to find it gone... The vision ended as suddenly as it had begun. Harry lay where he was, afraid to move, lest the throbbing of his scar redouble with the return of Voldemort’s wrath. Ron stuck his head close to the gate and whispered, “You all right in there, Harry?” His friend’s voice helping to revive him, Harry answered, “Yeah. That was easier than I thought.” “The head flew clear over the gate,” Ron said, sounding somewhat awestruck. “Hermione’s gone to get it.” He paused. “I’ll let you get back to it.” “Thanks, Ron,” Harry said, kneeling in front of his parents’ headstone and already beginning to focus his attention on the next task at hand. Ron’s voice came to him as if from the far entrance to a tunnel. “I wish I could help you…” Harry nodded in agreement as he brushed dirt and the shrivelled bouquet he’d conjured on his last visit away from the grave. “I wish you could, too, but Dumbledore made it clear that this was something only I could do,” he said. Ron said nothing and Harry knew he had accepted that, due to Professor Trelawney’s Prophesy, Harry was the only one who could carry out the next part of the adventure. The light this near the ground was too low for Harry to see anything properly, so he lit his wand and stuck it between his teeth. Moving swiftly, he prodded the headstone until he found the corner that rocked slightly under his touch. He pushed harder and gasped as the heavy stone suddenly floated upwards and deposited itself beside him on the floor of the crypt. He swallowed and shown his light inside the hole. Inside were two metal urns, a cloth bag and a box containing a large stone bowl. Dumbledore’s Pensieve... It’s all here, exactly as Dumbledore indicated. Harry breathed a sigh of relief and lifted the bag and the box out of the hole. The bag was light, the bowl heavier than he expected as he deposited them on the floor. He turned when he heard the marble slab scrape against the floor as, once again, magic he had no knowledge of levitated the headstone. Just before it dropped into place, Harry stuck his hand back in the hole to gently caress the lids of his parents’ urns. A moment later, with a soft ‘thump’, the stone settled slowly into place, concealing what was left of his parents. He then steeled himself for what he had to do next. Harry now cast a series of spells Dumbledore had planted in his memory to eliminate any Dark curses that might have been put on the contents of the bag. Then, with fingers shaking with excitement, he opened the drawstring and pulled out a large glass phial filled with a silvery substance followed by the Horcruxes: Slytherin’s ring, Hufflepuff’s cup, Ravenclaw’s broken wand and finally the locket. “Gotcha, Tom Riddle!” Harry said grimly as he picked up the sword. He raised it high over his head, preparing to plunge the tip into the last two Horcruxes. His movement stirred the air and something fluttered about on the floor. Putting down the sword, Harry picked it up and discovered it was a letter from Professor Dumbledore. He began reading eagerly, but the longer he read, the worse he felt… My dearest Harry, You have finally reached the point of no return. If you have indeed dispatched the snake, Nagini, you have up to an hour to finish the task and leave before the crypt is surrounded by Voldemort and his Death Eaters. If your friends are with you, remind them that only you can touch the gate safely; anyone else will be cursed. Also, although no one can Apparate into the crypt, anyone inside can Disapparate out of it. I have placed the appropriate spells for your safety. Depending upon the circumstances of the moment, use this information to your advantage. Harry, I am so very sorry that I cannot be with you in the approaching battle. It seems that life has determined that we are not to fight together for the common good. Therefore, I have left you this final copy of my list. Riddle’s Diary–destroyed (May 1993) Slytherin’s Ring–deactivated/destroyed (June 1997) Slytherin’s Locket–destroyed? Hufflepuff’s Cup–destroyed? Nagini the snake–beheaded/destroyed? Ravenclaw’s Wand–destroyed (July 1997) Unknown Object 2–Yes, Harry, there most definitely is an eighth Horcrux. Please empty the contents of the vial into your Pensieve and have a look inside my memories for an explanation. You have done very, very well, my friend. I hope you will forgive this old man his mistakes and his shortcomings when it came to you, your feelings and your safety. It is with a heavy heart that I ask you to view these last memories. If I could go back in time and change what has happened to you, I would, for no one deserves to be put through the things you’ve been asked to bear. However, there is one thing I would not change and that is the time I have spent getting to know you. I have cherished every minute I could watch you grow and mature into the man you have become. You are a remarkable wizard, Harry, so strong of spirit, so kind, so selfless, and so worthy of belonging to our noble House of Gryffindor. Now, as you complete this final task, please keep in mind that even though I am gone from this earth, I love you with all my heart. If I can, if my next great adventure allows it, I will be watching over you, just as I know James and Lily and Sirius will be watching, too. All of us are incredibly proud of you. Good luck... Signed this 30th Day of July 1997 with all my love, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore When he finished reading, the parchment fell from his limp fingers. Harry’s knees buckled and he groped for the wall of the crypt to steady himself as the finality of the situation hit him fully. A strangled whimper escaped his lips, “Oh, God!” It was time. Ever since he had read the amended list back in Dumbledore’s office Harry had felt that the headmaster was holding something back, something critically important having to do with Voldemort and himself. In a matter of seconds, he would have his suspicions either confirmed or nullified. Harry sank to his knees, his breathing shallow. His hands shook terribly as he drew Dumbledore’s–no, his– Pensieve towards him. Am I Gryffindor enough to do this? Harry asked himself. However, he already knew the answer; Dumbledore wouldn’t have spent all that time preparing him, wouldn’t have willed him the Pensieve and wouldn’t have written such a passionate letter if he expected Harry was going to walk away and leave the Wizarding world to Voldemort. The letter had made that plain. There was only one thing left to do. Harry drew his wand and Summoned the vial. When it reached his hand, he poured the contents into the basin. Then he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, leaned forward, and touched his nose to silvery memories swirling inside. Instantly, he fell forward into the memory. His feet touched the ground and he found himself standing behind Professor Dumbledore’s chair in the Great Hall. A line of terrified-looking first years was being paraded before the teacher’s table. A Sorting, but not one I’ve seen, Harry thought. He scanned the children’s faces and discovered six he knew: Severus Snape stood quite close to, almost touching, Lily Evans near the end of the line of students; Peter Pettigrew was sandwiched somewhere in the middle between two unknown students, as was a boy who looked like Remus Lupin; and then Harry spotted two boys with black hair, one wearing glasses–his father, James Potter–standing near the head of the line. He watched eagerly as Sirius Black was Sorted into Gryffindor. His mother soon followed him and as she left the three-legged stool she waved to young Severus, who looked sadly at her. They must be friends, Harry thought as the next student approached the three-legged stool. I wonder how they know each other. Dumbledore’s attention wavered from the Sorting as Madam Pomfrey asked him a question Harry could not hear. At length, the headmaster nodded to the boy now being Sorted and the two adults clapped politely as Remus Lupin walked over to take his place at the Gryffindor table. The ceremony continued. Several minutes later, Severus Snape joined the Slytherin table, his expression sour and his shoulders slumped. He sat as much apart from the other first years as the older students would allow and Harry wondered whether Severus had even had someone to talk to his first few nights at Hogwarts... The scene dissolved and reformed to show Lily and Severus standing in front of Professor Dumbledore’s desk next to a very wet and bedraggled James Potter and Sirius Black. Their heads were bowed guiltily and Lily had tears in her eyes. Professor McGonagall and an unknown wizard clad in the green and silver robes of Slytherin House stood on either side of the headmaster’s chair. "Mr Snape and Miss Evans,” Professor McGonagall said, her voice rising as she spoke, “I cannot believe the two of you are the masterminds of this heinous trick. Antagonizing the giant squid... angering it to the point that it grabbed other students... that is untenable! At the very least, I demand you apologize to Mr Potter and Mr Black.” She turned to address the headmaster. “Professor Dumbledore, Professor Slughorn and I do not condone such behaviour, especially since it involves the members of our respective houses. I leave the punishment of these two,” she pointed at Lily and Severus, “in your hands. I am through disciplining these four for their retaliatory pranks, as is Professor Slughorn. Once you have assigned their tasks, we will be writing letters to their parents advising them of what has happened.” “Very well, Professor McGonagall,” Professor Dumbledore said gravely. He looked at the four first years. “As of this moment you are on probation until the beginning of the Spring Term. Letters advising your parents of the situation will be sent out tonight.” Lily gasped and began to sob. Severus glared stonily at the Professor while James and Sirius tried hard not to look too smug until they realized that they were to suffer the same consequences as the other two. The Headmaster continued, looking at each student as he named them, “Miss Evans, Mr Snape, Mr Potter, Mr Black, I cannot risk having my other students injured by the pranks you set for each other. You must understand that. There is enough animosity between the Houses of Slytherin and Gryffindor and what you have done this afternoon is not acceptable here at Hogwarts. If the four of you continue to prank each other and your other classmates, you will be asked to leave this school. Have I made myself clear?” The four students nodded woodenly. “Then you are dismissed.” Severus, Lily, James and Sirius solemnly exited the office and the memory ended. The Great Hall appeared next; it was decorated for a Valentine’s Ball. Professor Dumbledore was watching a crowd of older students dancing in the middle of the room to the music of a live band. Something caught his attention and Harry looked to see what it was. A pair of fourth years, the girl dressed in the finest of dress robes while the boy’s were old and ill-fitting, stood the edge of the crowd, looking as if they were trying to ignore a group of three boys who were obviously teasing them. Professor Dumbledore sidled closer to catch their verbal exchange and Harry’s eyebrows shot into his fringe. Lily Evans and Severus Snape were facing off with James Potter, Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew, who, by the look of it, had abandoned their dates to heckle the Gryffindor/Slytherin couple. Harry heard James ask, “Lily, how can you even think of attending this Ball with a git like him? He’s obviously too poor to dress properly.” Lily’s face was stormy as she answered, “Severus is my friend, which is more than I can say about you!” She glanced at Snape as she said, “I don’t care how he’s dressed; it’s how he treats me that counts. And you certainly don’t know how to treat your date!” She pointed to a girl sitting several tables away who was crying into a handkerchief. “I can’t help it if she wants to dance and I don’t,” James retorted defensively. Sirius jumped in. “How does this toe rag treat you, Lily? I’d like to know.” Lily squeezed Snape’s hand. He smiled back at her. “He treats me like a gentleman should,” she said haughtily. “He has manners and knows how to show me a good time.” Harry watched as Snape’s pale face darkened with embarrassment. This made the three Gryffindor boys chortle and James elbowed Sirius in the ribs. “I can show her a good time, much better than this Slytherin twit can. Can’t I, Sirius?” he asked. Snape drew his wand. Harry never heard Sirius’ reply because at that moment, Professor Dumbledore stepped in and suggested the five either go back to dancing or return to their common rooms. Lily pulled Severus onto the dance floor and the other three boys quickly left the Great Hall. This memory was followed by several short scenes showing the demise of Lily and Severus’ friendship. In one, he used Dark Magic on Lily when his spell, meant for James Potter, hit her and sent her running for the hospital wing with Snape hot on her heels, yelling apologies. In another, very familiar scene that Professor Dumbledore witnessed from the window of his office, James Potter cast a spell that hoisted the Slytherin into the air in front of Lily Evans and her friends. As the scene below played out, the other girls surrounded their ginger-haired friend and led her back into the castle. James eventually dropped Severus on his head and followed the girls, leaving the Slytherin lying where he fell. The last of these memories was of an argument Dumbledore overheard between Lily and Severus as she patently refused to accept his apologies for calling her a Mudblood earlier in the day. “I’m through making excuses for you, Severus,” Lily exclaimed, her voice rising with every word. “I gave you a choice the last time this happened and you seem to have conveniently forgotten your promise. I can’t be friends with someone who is as prejudiced as you!” With that, she stomped away and Snape sank down on the plinth of the nearest statue with his head in his hands. Dumbledore went back to his office, shaking his head sadly. Miss Evans was a good influence on Mr Snape, but lately he’d made a few less-than-stellar choices and it looked as if their inter-house friendship had fallen apart for good. The next memory showed the adult Severus Snape standing in a corner of the empty Hog’s Head bar. He was begging Professor Dumbledore to do something. Harry stepped closer. “Severus, why should I believe you?” the headmaster was asking. “You’ve just confessed to telling your master the entire contents of the Prophecy. I appreciate your honesty, but why come to me when the damage has been done?” Snape hung his head. “The Dark Lord will be going after Lily Potter,” he choked. “He knows it’s her son who must be eliminated; he wishes to minimize the threat against his life.” He hesitated, finally looking up at the Hogwarts headmaster. “I implore you to protect her.” “I already have,” Dumbledore snapped. “And her husband and son as well.” Snape looked relieved. “Thank you,” he breathed. Then, he asked, “Will you protect me, too?” “What?” Dumbledore’s eyes widened. His tone was acidic as he replied, “Why should I do anything for you when all you’ve done is heap heartbreak and tragedy upon Lily and James Potter? Yes, I know you were in the raiding parties who killed Robert and Marigold Evans and James and Henrietta Potter. You can’t deny it. There were witnesses who saw your hood fall off during the fighting at both estates. And it was you who cast the Dark Mark over the Evans’ home in London!” Snape crumpled to the floor as Harry gaped, completely stunned by what he was hearing and seeing. Snape helped murder my grandparents? he asked himself in disbelief. No wonder Aunt Petunia resents wizards so much. She actually has a reason to hate them... to hate... me... “I admit to everything!” Snape sobbed. “I know I can’t take back my actions, but I want to repent. I want to help save Lily! I love her! I’ve loved her since we were children.” Dumbledore drew himself up to his full height. “Is Lily Potter the only one whom you wish to save?” he thundered, causing Snape to look up, his face deathly pale. “Do you not wish to save her husband and son?” Snape turned bleak eyes on the headmaster. “I suppose not, sir.” “Do you mean to tell me that you think they are expendable? ” Dumbledore’s contempt was palpable. “No! No, I’m not saying that at all,” Snape back-peddled desperately. “I — I just never thought about it... Wh-What the consequences would be.” “Well you had better do some quick thinking about what you’re asking me to do for you,” Dumbledore spat out. “It sounds to me as if you’re just trying to save your own skin and not that of Lily Potter and her family.” Tense silence spread between the two during which Dumbledore pulled out his watch and consulted it. Finally, sounding desperate, Snape said, “I’ll do anything you ask, Headmaster. Anything to help save Lily and her family.” Dumbledore raised an eyebrow and then stared into Severus Snape’s eyes for a few moments. Breaking the contact, Dumbledore said, “Very well. In return for information about Lord Voldemort’s activities, I will provide you with protection. Professor Slughorn wishes to retire as Potions Master at the end of this term. You will be hired as his replacement and will live at the castle. Are these terms agreeable?” Snape nodded. “Then, so be it.” Dumbledore turned on his heal, waved his wand at the patrons who were now sitting at the bar and walked out the door. Harry followed him into another memory, his mind reeling with the implications of what he had learned. They entered Dumbledore’s office. Outside, a storm raged and within the circular room a keening sound filled the night. “They’re gone! She’s gone! ” the voice cried in unmistakable anguish. “Apparently, you were misinformed!” Dumbledore exclaimed acerbically. “All my information to date has been correct!” Snape cried, jumping up from his chair to face the headmaster. “Where did I go wrong? Lily’s GONE, Professor! GONE!” He crumpled onto the chair again, his head in his hands. Dumbledore walked behind his desk and sat down in his chair, his expression thoughtful. “You did everything correctly, Severus,” he said. “However, just as you have come to understand that you put your fate in the wrong hands, James and Lily seem to have done the same. The one they trusted most to keep them safe, to keep the knowledge of their whereabouts protected from Lord Voldemort has betrayed them and they have been killed. “However, their son, Harry, lives.” Dumbledore’s bright blue eyes bored into Professor Snape’s black ones. Neither wizard flinched until Dumbledore broke the contact. Then, he asked, “Do I have your promise, Severus, that if I continue to employ you and keep you out of Azkaban, you will do all in your power to help me keep Lily’s son alive, and do whatever it takes to protect him from those who wish him harm, especially when he is old enough to come to Hogwarts?” Snape looked up at Dumbledore with puffy, red eyes. A tear rolled down his cheek as he choked, “I promise, Professor.” He paused and then added, “Lily, I promise, with everything that I am, that I will help Professor Dumbledore keep your son alive and safe from the Dark Lord.” “Thank you, Severus,” Dumbledore said kindly. He pointed his wand at a cabinet and Summoned a crystal decanter of Firewhisky and two glasses. He poured a measure into each glass and passed one across the desk to Professor Snape. They held their glasses aloft as Dumbledore made a toast. “In memory of James and Lily Potter...” As the memory faded, Harry hugged himself, breathing hard. He couldn’t understand why Dumbledore thought it necessary for him to know his mother’s history with Professor Snape. There had to be a very good reason, but at the moment it wasn’t very obvious. A sudden thought startled Harry. If things had been different, Professor Snape could have been my father! He loved my mother... he still loves her! He’s been “protecting” me because he promised her he would! He thought of all the cynical, abusive remarks the Potions Master had made to him over the years. A nice way to show it, he thought bitterly. To be continued… |
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