14

Chapter 14

"This is what I am going to miss the most during the break, I swear" said Ernie to no one in particular, while giving his broom back to madame Hooch.

"I seem to remember you were complaining about our school's brooms, once" she commented, in a sardonic tone.

"Well, those could still be improved. But even them are better than no flying" answered Ernie, embarrassed.

"You are such a flatterer, Mr. MacMillan. Go, go" she said, turning to the next kid in line.

"Way to go, Ernie" said Zacharias, shaking his head. Still, everyone else was just amused. To celebrate the last evening of flying before the Christmas break all the first year boys had a quidditch tournament using half of the official pitch, courtesy of madame Hooch's request to the headmaster. They did not win – the honor went to Slytherin – but they still got a respectable second place.

Overall, it had been a nice end of the school year; sure it was freezing cold outside, but madame Hooch kindly offered warming charms to anyone who wanted them, and the weather had been even sunny enough, for being winter time in Scotland. The snow seemed softer than usual, at least.

"If we keep trying we are going to defeat even Slytherin eventually. We were so close this time, eh Harry?" said Justin, friendly.

"Once or twice you could leave the keeper's spot, you know. We could switch, you don't have to do it every time" said Wayne.

"Thanks guys, but I really don't mind it. Beside, I am doing pretty well there" was Harry's answer. And indeed, he had got used to playing as a keeper which for him was a good mix between being a simple watcher of the game, and playing enough to brighten his day. When he felt like flying at his usual capacity, he could wait for normal fly times.

"Can't deny that, Harry. Have you noticed Nott's face when you stopped his 3rd throw in a row?" said Ernie, turning towards them.

"Ooohh, that was great! He seemed so angry!" said excitedly Justin.

"Serves him right, honestly. Those Slytherins are way too full of themselves" said Zacharias.

"Not without reason, come on. They are truly good, especially Malfoy" said Wayne.

"Ok, but..." started Zacharias, only to stop when another voice startled him from behind.

"Does this mean they kicked your ass?" said Megan in an happy tone.

"Because we won, you know? Not to brag" added Susan, smiling. At her sides, both Hannah and Sally-Anne were looking at the boy's groups with smiles on their faces; Harry could swear he could hear Hannah whisper "Not at all" to Sally-Anne.

"...you beat all the other girls?" asked Ernie in an incredulous tone.

"Well, sort of? There were no Slytherins, so we had to mix the teams" added Hannah defensively.

"We got one of the Patils while we played against the other Gryffindors and Ravenclaws" added Megan.

"...we still won, two times straight" said Sally-Anne in a small voice.

The boys seemed surprised, with no comment to add. Ernie eventually spoke first.

"Well done, I guess."

"We arrived second" said Wayne.

"Beaten by the Slytherins?" asked Megan again.

For a second, no one answered; a couple of the boys just looked embarassed.

"You are really enjoying this moment, eh?" said Harry smiling.

"Of course!" answered Megan. "We are the best!"

Before the inevitable bickering could start, a small commotion in a corner of the field draw their attention. No one seemed to be surprise by the red and green uniforms of the kids there.

"Someone wants to bet on who is responsible for that?" asked Zacharias in a dismissive tone.

"Sure. What do I get if I guess right?" answered Wayne.

"I wonder why those two likes fighting so much" said Justin. Harry rolled his eyes to the sky while some of the kids, less diplomatic, huffed more loudly than necessary.

"I would not mind some action. Should we go and watch?" asked Wayne, starting walking immediately after. Everyone followed him towards the two groups of first year's kids.

First years Gryffindors and Slytherins were facing each other, and while there were no wands in sight, the tension was palpable. Maybe because it was a 'special' occasion but all the students from both houses were present: even Hermione, as Harry noticed with a certain surprise, was standing behind the other Gryffindor girls.

"You have no right to speak, Parkinson, you didn't even play" said Parvati Patil with an irritated tone in her voice.

"I have no interest in playing, Patil. I still enjoyed seeing Gryffindor being crushed" answered Pansy Parkinson, a smile of superiority on her face.

"I said it already, you damn snakes, we weren't last!" half-shouted Ron Weasley.

"Might as well be, Weasley. When the only house you can defeat is the bookish one..." commented Draco Malfoy, who was right next to Parkinson.

"So what, Malfoy? Even if winning at Quidditch, you snakes are still the shame of Hogwarts" countered Lavender Brown.

"We are not the one who got beaten by Hufflepuff, girl" said Theodore Nott, calmly, but looking over the shoulders of the kids in red uniform towards the approaching group of Hufflepuffs.

"Which I heard also defeated both you and the Ravenclaws, too" added sarcastically Blaise Zabini.

"We are ten times better than those losers! They won only because of Potter!" almost screamed Ron Weasley, unaware of the sniggers on the face of the Slytherin kids – and the frowns on those of the Hufflepuff.

"So we are losers, eh, Weasley?" asked Zacharias, startling the group of Gryffindor from their focus on Slytherins.

"I distinctly remember winning, this evening" said Susan, quite angry.

"Two times, and no Potter with us" added Megan.

"You were certainly not better than us, red head" said Justin venomously.

"Oh. Wait, I didn't mean... that" said Ron weakly. The other Gryffindors didn't abandon him, but seemed quite ashamed on their own. 'Poor Ron', was Harry's only thought. He knew he must had just spoke out of anger, but there was no way to save him from the other Hufflepuffs.

"Leave quidditch comments to your older brothers. You know, those Weasleys that are at least worth something" added softly Zacharias, folding his arms and staring straight at him. Ron turned as red as his uniform and left immediately for Hogwarts, followed by cheers and shouts of "Cry, Weasley, cry!" from the nearby Slytherins.

"That wasn't nice, guys. Ron didn't mean to say that" said Seamus Finnigan.

"Maybe not. He certainly thought it. Too many do" answered Ernie, his face darkening at his last words.

"You Gryffindors are way too full of yourself, Finnigan. As in, full of trash" commented Malfoy, looking in the air but with a smile in his face.

"Listen, you snake..." started Dean Thomas, but stopping immediately. And in fact, there was nothing he could add.

"Give up, Thomas. Ron just ruined the day, don't help him" said Harry, shaking his head and walking towards Hogwarts himself. The voices coming from behind him though were proof that all the other kids were still fighting. All except one.

"That was a good way to end this school term, eh Potter?" said Draco Malfoy, who apparently had started walking with him. Harry did not answer.

"Come on, don't tell me he didn't deserve that. Or you like being insulted?" he insisted.

"Technically, he complimented me" answered Harry.

"True that. Well, he insulted your house."

"A fight is not how I wished to spend the last day here, Draco."

"So, you have decided to go back to those... muggles? As if it wasn't bad enough we celebrate a muggle holiday" sneered Draco, on both uses of the word muggle.

"Yes. They are still family, and all that. Plus, staying here would be boring" answered Harry, while walking towards the castle. The voice of the kids from the other houses were now unintelligible behind them.

"I am still planning to invite you in the coming weeks. As I promised."

"What it will all be about, anyway?" asked Harry, a genuine interest in him.

"Nothing elaborate; before I came here, my family let me invite all my friends at home between Christmas and new year's eve, and it became a sort of tradition. Just show at 10 in the morning on the 27th."

"No muggleborns, I assume" said Harry, his voice as neutral as possible.

"Obviously not. But you will not be the only half blood, don't worry. As long as one belong to a true wizarding family we have to be tolerant, I guess."

'The irony' thought Harry. Still, he kept a polite face on.

"Well, thanks for the invite Draco. I will be present. With a present, if needed."

"For what, an exchange? Don't bother, someone always bring his best toys from Christmas to play with, but no one leaves them" said Draco, amused.

"Eh, makes sense. I'll see you later, I have something to do before dinner."

"At dinner, or straight in the train. Later, Potter" said Draco, separating from Harry the second they were back inside the castle. Harry kept walking, trying to focus himself: as Professor Sprout told him right after their last herb care session post lunch, Dumbledore wanted to see him and would be waiting one hour before dinner. Roughly, now.

'I must not mess this up' thought Harry with conviction. He may be forced to be pushy and a little rude during this meeting, but there was no way he would get out of Dumbledore's office without his Gringott's key. Sure, he may have not followed up with his original idea of going occasionally to Hogsmead or Diagon's Alley these months, mostly out of laziness and no genuine interests, but he still had been way too much patient with Dumbledore.

So, Harry kept walking along the stairs and hallways of Hogwarts, finally stopping in front of the Gargoyle statues that marked the entrance to the headmaster's office. After he pronounced the password Professor Sprout gave him ('Lemonade... go figure' he thought) and seeing the statues move aside, he walked in all the way to the inside door and knocked.

"Come in, Harry" said a voice from inside. Calmly, Harry stepped inside.

Dumbledore's office was, surprisingly, still fascinating to Harry's eyes. Sure, he now knew what some of the objects inside did but that actually picked his interest over what the other, mysterious artifacts were and what their capabilities could be. 'No wonder he is so respected' thought Harry, painful aware of the general ignorance of the magical world towards the higher levels of magic. He, too, could recognize mostly the few items linked to offensive magics and curses, plus the ones of which was aware for different reasons like the Pensieve, so Harry felt humbled by thinking on how each one of the remaining artifact probably represented a branch of magic he had only a Hogwarts-level of preparation at best. Was Dumbledore really a master in all branches of magic as some claimed?

'He certainly does not look like it' though Harry, turning his stare towards the man itself, sitting at his desk and smiling benevolently towards him. In a roundabout way, the magical world had been really lucky to have a Dumbledore there to protect them when Grindewald first and Riddle later started their plans. Honestly, Harry knew that in a fair fight he stood no real chances against any of the three.

'Fair fights... eh' he thought. Being fair had not been a requirement when he was catching criminals as an auror, and there was no reason to think that a fight to the death would be nicer than that. Striking fast, hard and from the back of your sleeping target was the way to go.

"Come in Harry, sit down. Don't just stand there, I won't eat you" said Dumbledore kindly. Harry awoke himself from his thoughts, trying to focus again. This was not a good moment for stray thinking.

"Yes, sir, thank you" said Harry, sitting down in the chair in front of the desk. For a moment, no one spoke.

"So..." started Dumbledore, still smiling.

"So. Thanks for listening sir, especially as I know you still disagree with my request" started Harry.

"Oh, you are most welcome Harry. And please don't be so formal, there is no need to be nervous here."

"Yes sir. As you know, I want to take back the key for my account at Gringott. I am grateful for your custody until now, but it's time for me to manage my parent's money."

At these words, Dumbledore closed his eyes and shook his head.

"Harry, I am sorry, but I still don't agree with that. You are too young to be trusted with so much money, which you don't really need while at Hogwarts."

"There are always ways to use money, sir. For example, I have been invited to a party and I would like to show up with a present. Also, just being able to buy an ice cream whenever I want would be nice."

"I am not opposed to you having some pocket money, dear boy. I fear what could happen if you suddenly had at your disposal your whole vault and the precious heirlooms inside it. In two or three years, maybe, you could receive your key but not sooner" said Dumbledore, resting his back on his chair.

At this, Harry frowned internally: he had obviously decided already, and was only trying to sweeten the pill for him. Luckily, he had prepared a couple arguments exactly for this situation. Dumbledore's guilt for placing him with his uncle and aunt was first in the list, of course.

"I could really use it now, sir. I was also planning to use some of the money on my relatives, for this Christmas. That could help me a lot."

At this, Dumbledore seemed speechless for a second, before taking a sad expression.

"You can't buy people's affection, Harry. They should love you for who you are."

"I agree, sir. But, in the meantime, a gift and proof I won't burden them with my expenses anymore would go a long way in making at least one Christmas pleasant."

'Still not enough, eh?' thought Harry, when Dumbledore did not cave in immediately. At least he had not refused either, not yet, so Harry resigned himself to give in a little ground.

"Sir, if the problem is just the vault, I would be happy for now to just get a big sum... five hundreds galleons, maybe. I could do what I wish, and you could ensure the rest remain safe"

"It's a huge sum for an eleven years old, Harry" said Dumbledore, unsure.

"If my reasons are good, and you trust me to use the money only for them, then the amount itself doesn't matter. It's the money my parents left for my needs, after all. Unless you don't trust me even that little much, sir" said Harry, adding the last part with an almost hostile tone. His patience was at its limit.

"Very well, Harry. I am not enthusiastic, and I strongly urge you to consider carefully every single purchase, but I'll do what you proposed."

"Thank you for understanding, sir. I will be waiting for... Hagrid, I guess, or an owl if they are dependable enough for this. I am sure you are busy, but please don't leave me waiting for too long" said Harry, trying not to smile now that he got at least something out of a difficult man like Dumbledore. The less he looked childish at the moment, the better.

"I will not. Before you go, please tell me one thing: you said you have been invited to a party. By who?"

"Draco Malfoy, sir, a first year from Slytherin" said Harry, internally smiling at the half alarmed expression that crossed Dumbledore's face for a second. He covered it up instantly, though.

"Mister Malfoy? I was aware you two were acquaintances, but an invite... Is he a good friend of yours, Harry?"

"Not particularly, sir. He offered to introduce me to other kids he knew, and I accepted. I don't exactly have other plans for this holidays."

"Still, being alone at his house... nevermind. I am sure you will have fun among your peers. Is there anything else you want to tell me today, Harry?"

"No sir, and I took too much of your time already anyway. I'll go back to my common room" said Harry, standing up.

"Very well. Have a nice Christmas back at home, Harry" said Dumbledore.

"Thanks, sir, for everything. Good bye" and with those words, after a last second glance at Fawkes that was watching him from his perch, Harry left the office.