20-21

Chapter 20 Chaos Reigns

September 2, 1991, before Albus confronted Isobel

A short narration from Harry's POV

All the Hogwarts students, bar Gary and a few others, sat at their House tables. They were eating a filling lunch of sandwiches of all sorts, various meats, crisps and chips, Cornish pasties, and salads with dressings. There was the always present pumpkin juice, water and milk to drink. Harry happily loaded his plate with fish and chips, his favorite, added some salad with vinaigrette, and a glass of water. He'd have some milk and chocolate chip biscuits when he was done.

Gossip about the History class was sweeping through the tables. It even overpassed the parents' and officials' future visit. Talks of the third floor were also pushed to the side, and a lot of the upper-year students were excited for what was sure to be the only true History lesson they had ever received in this school.

As the word spread you could see that the Headmaster was not happy and ten minutes into lunch the man got up to go left the Hall. Harry figured he was going to go and meet the new teacher. The older twin couldn't wait to hear what his reaction would be. Sally could be very mischievous when she wanted to be. He did notice the House ghosts had settled down, so she must have talked to them and calmed their fears about her being here.

Gary finally showed up looking mulish and happy at the same time. He shared with his twin the talk the Headmaster and the new teacher had as he served his lunch. While he ate, he and Harry had a good mental laugh over the whole thing. Harry told him of his uneventful Potions class and soon enough lunch ended. The Gryffindor and Ravenclaw Mutineers got up and meet at entrance to go to the library. The Hufflepuffs and the Slytherins had had the first period off and now they had to attend the one more class. They would all meet later at the Hufflepuff table for studying.

The talks went on quietly through study time, with everyone wondering how the Headmaster reacted to the new ghost.

Fred and George were very excited when they came and sat with the rest of the gang. They said they learned the same History lesson the first years did. They told about how the Headmaster tried to stop it, but the teacher continued on as if he wasn't there. They relayed the great frustration the old man exhibited when he couldn't banish her. Everyone wonder why the Headmaster didn't banish Binns if he could do so. The Potter twins got small smiles at this question; it meant that people were seeing that the man was not a god.

Soon enough study time was over the Mutineers were quite proud of themselves, since most of them got their homework done, even the reluctant Ron and Seamus. Hermione and Dean were also with the group, along with Sally-Anne.

Gary tried to tell Hermione many times that she was making her history homework too long, but she brushed him off. Right now, the students were putting away their books and getting ready for dinner. Anticipation filled the air as they remembered the mirror calls from parents and guardians that were received that morning.

Hphphp

Dinner went on without interruption, and the kids were wondering if the adults had called off the… storming of the castle, so to speak. They ate and kept one eye on the door, but it wasn't until dessert that the doors slammed open and some official looking men, Madam Bones, twenty red robed Aurors, five men in blue robes, and a large group of angry parents marched into the Hall. Molly Weasley was at the front of the parents, she was moving her mouth, but no sound was coming out. She stopped when she realized she wasn't being heard and looked around. It was the stern look on Amelia Bones' face that made her back down.

The Head of the DMLE waved to the portly man and he stepped forward. The Mutineers knew this to be the new Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. They didn't much like him. He was a medium tall, pudgy man, dressed in a revolting green suit covered with an equally hideous green robe, carrying a lime green bowler hat. "Dumbledore, what the blazes is going on here?" the tubby man said, rotating his bowler hat between his hands. "I've been receiving owls and Floo calls all day; even the Muggle Prime Minister's portrait has been bugging me. I am a very important man, Dumbledore, and I don't have time for your games. These good people behind me have been receiving… mirror calls from their children. Now we've been dragged here to find out what the blazes is happening. Why did you tell the students they could die? Have you gone senile?" He got a happy look on his face as if that would be a good thing. He never liked that this man had more power than him.

"Ah, Minister, Governors, Madam Bones, and the rest of you good ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Hogwarts. Now, whatever the issue is I am sure we will sort it out. I am concerned that the students felt it necessary to contact their parents and get them into hysterics over nothing," the Headmaster said, sweeping his disappointed look over his half-moon spectacles towards the entire student body. He noticed that most were cowed, though a surprising number of first years looked on defiantly. He cursed himself for not remembering the mirrors. He had tried to get them banned, but was overridden by the Board.

Amelia Bones in her role as Susan's aunt, stepped forward and stated in a very firm voice, "Don't you pull that on us, Headmaster. Telling children not to go somewhere is like giving them candy and telling them not to eat it. I will tell you right now, if Susan had been hurt or killed by a 'painful death'. I would have hunted you down and shown you just what a painful death was," she said with the look of such a promise clear on her face, many of the parents behind her had similar looks.

Many of the Mutineers and other students giggled at this. There were a few that openly glared at the formidable woman for threatening the benevolent man.

Then switching roles to Head of the DMLE, Amelia walked up to the Head Table and slammed down some parchments. "These are orders to search the school for anything that can harm the students. You had better hope we don't find anything," she said smartly, and then turned to her Aurors. "You three," she ordered, pointing to the closest, "go find out what is on the third floor and get rid of it. Check to make sure that there is nothing else that will harm the students. The rest of you inspect this castle from top to bottom, if you find anything that should not be here, confiscate it and take it to the Ministry."

The Aurors she indicated dispersed to do as they were ordered. Three stayed behind to protect the Board and Minister and his lackeys. Madam Bones turned back to the front of the room to watch the fireworks, a satisfied look on her face.

Gary heard a small squeal from Ron's pocket, and wrinkled his nose that his mate would bring his pet rat to the table. He remembered his friend telling him that he found it in the garden a month before school started, and since they really couldn't afford a pet; his mum let him keep it. Gary thought it was an odd pet, but knowing Ron, well let's just say, it was a fitting one. The Potter twins hated it on principle, but this was their friend so they let it be. They did have a fleeting thought that it might be Wormtail, but figured the Weasley parents would have checked. He then brushed it off and paid attention to what was happening.

Once the law enforcement officers took off, all of the parents went to check on their kids. The Board, the Minister, his cronies, and Amelia were in the front of the room arguing with Dumbledore. Much to the disappointment of the kids they were behind a silencing charm. Snape was at the Headmaster's side, standing with his arms across his chest, looking like a bodyguard.

The two adult Potters, Sirius and Remus went to the Hall doors and motioned the twins to join them. The boys ran like they were worried and engulf their parents. They noted that a lot of parents that had multiple children also called them to the entrance.

"We have a plan," the mother whispered, while giving a hug to Gary. "I've been working on it all day. There is a powder that will expel a spirit from a person who is possessed. It won't kill them, but they may be in a coma for a while. What we need to do is get close to Quirrell. I want you two to sit here and wave your arms about and then point to him, like you are either mad at him or disappointed," Lily suggested quietly, after rising from the hug with a concerned look upon her face.

"After that your mum and I will go towards him looking like we're troubled. You two go back to your tables with your godfathers and friends and no matter what —stay there. I'd tell you to go to your dorms, but I think Amelia wants everyone to stay here until the Aurors are done searching," James said, also giving the boys an anxious look.

The twins nodded and did as suggested. Harry pointed to his scar on two occasions, and complained about the stuttering, all the while waving in the direction of the ever scared professor. The Potter parents glanced up to see Quirrell pale even more while Harry played his part. Just when he rose from his chair and it looked like he would run; the two adults turned and with a determined look on their faces moved to the front of the room. Their glares pinned the stammering professor in place.

Other parents watched them go and one or two got up and followed. The Potters stopped and waited for them. They didn't want to be the only ones around the man when the spirit left his body. Each godfather stayed with their godson to make sure they didn't run off to help their parents.

Unnoticed by everyone, a small cloud of clear dust was being pushed forward in front of the Potters. James was utilizing what little wandless magic he was capable of. You would only notice it if you were looking for the very slight shimmer the dust created, which would be confused with any other gust of dust. The dust won't hurt anyone who is not possessed, though it might make them a little yellow-skinned.

The turban wearing professor stood nervously by his chair, hands twisting around themselves, shifting his feet back and forth as if undecided whether to run or not. The parasite on his head wasn't worried; he felt these people were beneath him and that nothing could touch him in the state he was in. Voldemort cared little for the man he had taken unwillingly —Muggle Study Professor indeed. The self-claimed Dark Lord's only concern was getting the stone, so he ordered the wishy-washy man to stand still and listen to the parents' rant.

Just when Quirrell opened his mouth and raised his hands, to try and calm the parents coming toward him —the cloud hit. With his mouth opened, he inhaled some of the dust and the rest settled on his face, hands and clothes.

A high pitched scream was heard throughout the Hall, a second scream joined it. Everyone turned just in time to see the turban fly unaided off of the screaming professor as a dark wraith was being expelled from the back of the poor man's head. There was Dark magic coming for an ugly distorted face that hung in the air above the man who had passed out from the pain.

Sally, in her skeletal persona, herded the ghost to surround the wraith. She suggested that it would help keep it from harming the children. That and it would impede the spirit's view and hopefully make it flee. They were more than happy to comply.

Many children scrambled under the tables, yells of fear echoed everywhere. Others clung to their parents crying that they wanted to go home. Still others pulled their wands; shield spells were popping up everywhere as the upper-years tried to protect the younger ones around them. Parents started to do the same. Harry and Gary were standing at their tables, wands raised, ready to defend everyone. Many of the Mutineers joined them, though their parents, and godparents, held them back from rushing forward.

The Professors all jumped from their seats when the second note of the screams hit the air and were forming a circle around the falling professor. When they saw the specter, surrounded by the school ghosts, they too put up the strongest shields they knew.

The adults that had wanted to talk to the man, all had stunned looks upon their faces. They knelt down away from the screaming form of the dark wraith, all of them quickly duck-walking to their children.

Dumbledore, Amelia and the Board also had their wands out. Their lips were forming counter-curses for possession, to protect the rest of the Hall.

The Minister, and his cronies, was hiding under the Staff Table; the three Aurors were surrounding him in battle ready stances.

The phantom of Voldemort looked around, tried to bat the ghosts away and failing. He saw Sally and his eyes glared. He knew what she was and wanting nothing to do with Death he fled through the owl-post hole to parts unknown. The school spirits chased him to the wards. He was screaming his revenge on the entire way.

Amelia and the officials immediately turned to the Headmaster to find out how such a malevolent spirit entered the school.

Madam Pomfrey ran to the downed man and quickly started doing diagnostic spells. She looked up to the staff and gave them a nod of her head letting them know that he was alive. One of the Aurors came forward and put unbreakable cuffs on him just to be sure, and indicated that the nurse could take him away for treatment. He went with her after getting a nod from Madam Bones.

A large sigh of relief was heard all around the Hall, as was the scraping of beaches and tables as the children, the Minister and some parents slowly climbed out from where they were hiding. Fawkes flashed into the room and started singing. The crying slowed and screams stopped and after about ten minutes whispers started filling the air. You could see that a vast majority of the school was still scared, that had been Voldemort after all, but the danger was over for the time being. Plus in the form he was in he was mostly harmless, barring another possession.

Malfoy Sr. had a calculating look upon his face, though the fear in his eyes could still be seen. He had worked far too hard to get where he was to just go back to bowing to that man, and if his son's reports on rumors was anything to go by —a half-blood. He would have to make plans and soon. Everything else was inconsequential as of now.

A loud bang was heard and all eyes turned to the front of the Hall and landed on the imposing figure of the Headmaster. His face recomposed into the gentle grandfather façade he liked to portray.

"Now that the excitement is over everyone please take a seat and enjoy the desserts that the Hogwarts house elves are famous for. When I am done reassuring the Board and Madam Bones that all is well at Hogwarts, the children can toddle off to bed. It is a weekday after all," he said with his gentle smile and eyes twinkling away as if the wraith of Voldemort was an everyday occurrence and absolutely nothing to worry about. He then turned back to the people surrounding him, put up a silencing charm and started the argument anew, with his kind and gentle face still in play.

Many parents, forgetting what they were originally here for, took the Headmaster at his word and started to reassure their children. It wasn't until an Auror came running into the Hall and up to Amelia, whispering in her ear what they had found on the third floor that they remembered why they were at the school in the first place. Still, they wanted their children to not be frightened, so instead of using the Headmaster's words, they used the actions of the DMLE. Soon the satisfied families were enjoying the dessert and chatting about the new ghost teacher.

Once again the Marauders and Lily went to the front of the Hall and motioned the twins over.

"Are you guys okay?" asked James as his eyes took in every facial expression that went across the boys faces.

"Yeah, we're okay. I hope Professor Quirrell is alright," Harry answered for them, rubbing his forehead to dispel the slight pain in his scar. And it as true, the possessed professor had been their primary concern. The third floor could have been avoided, but teachers couldn't. Now that it was over, they really did hope the man would be okay.

"Okay, that's good, I'm glad you two are fine. That was kinda scary, huh guys?" Sirius said, ruffling the hair of the twins, trying to lighten the mood.

Lily smacked him lightly on his chest, giving him a smile to show she wasn't angry and appreciated his efforts. She then knelt and hugged the boys for a job well done. The way they pulled this off couldn't be tied to the Potters. There was nothing on their persons that would indicate they had anything to do with the expelling of the Dork Lord. They had confined the dust in a magic bubble, which had hung over James' head the entire time he was with the group that had descended on Hogwarts.

"Mum, Dad, you guys have to be careful. Susan said her aunt doesn't trust you all the way, because you are keeping her out of the loop. So she said the Madam Bones is going to be watching you. Just keep on the lookout, alright?" Harry whispered urgently as he cut a glance to the woman in question, who was still busy reaming the Headmaster.

"Don't worry, sweetheart, after what happened with Rita, we're being extra careful," Lily soothed, petting his hair back into place. They then joined the rest of the children and their families until they were told by the Head of the DMLE that they could go home, or to bed, as the case may be.

It wasn't until the next day that anyone knew what was on the third floor, or how Dumbledore was reprimanded.

September 3, 1991

It was during the Harry's first break that he heard his first bit of gossip. He was walking down the corridor to the Great Hall, to grab one of the snacks that were ever present on the tables when no meals were being served, when he heard Dumbledore's name. So he slowed down and leaned on the wall just around the corner from where he could make out two female student voices.

"So I heard that Dumbledore is on a years' probation," said an older female student's voice whispered in such a way that gossips do, where anyone within ten feet can hear them quite clearly. "If anything else happens in the school this year, he'll be retired. They said that since he has been here so long without issue that they are giving him a second chance."

"Yeah, dat's what I 'eard too," came the reply from another female, who sounded like her nose was stuffed.

"Did you hear what they found?"

"No, tell me."

"Well I heard from Steven, who heard from Penelope, who heard from Jacob, that they found a Cerberus in a room on the third floor. You know the one Dumbledore told us to stay away from," the first girl said and an awed and frightened voice.

"No, really, a Cerberus!? Why on earth would one of dose be in the castle?" came the shocked reply.

"I don't know, but that's what I heard. Then they said that there was a trapdoor it was guarding. Under the trap door was some baby Devil's Snare. They went down the hall leading away from that and found a room with keys all over the floor. Jacob said it took a while to find the right key to open the door that was at the end," said the first person, you could hear the excitement in her voice.

"What 'appened den?"

"Well, inside the door was a large room with a chessboard in it. It looked like it was growing. So they walked past it and found and empty room. They went into the next chamber and fire came up from the floor on both sides, but that's all there was. A freeze flame spell later and they came to the last chamber and in the middle was a large mirror."

"Do dey know what i' were fer?"

"Yeah one of the Aurors looked in it and suddenly he had the Philosopher's Stone in his pocket. So he took it to Madam Bones. And from what I heard she was as angry as a wet cat. I heard she chewed the Headmaster out but good and she took the Stone and was going to send it back to the Flamels. I hope she gets it to them before the Unspeakables come for it. I would hate to see them…" the first person's voice trailed off and Harry could hear them walking away as their voices got harder to hear and their footsteps echoed faintly in the hall.

With a smirk on his face, Harry turned and went to his next class. He couldn't wait to tell Gary.

Meanwhile Gary was hearing his own bit of gossip.

"So Susan told me that her aunt told her that Minister Fudge, even though he saw it with the rest of us, is stating that the wraith we saw wasn't He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. He said it was impossible, that You-Know-Who was dead and couldn't come back," Parvati said to Lavender, in that same gossiping whisper.

"Did he say what he thought it was?"

"Yeah, get this; he's trying to blame Dumbledore. He said something about the Headmaster setting it all up to scare the public. Like that makes any sense," the Indian girl snorted, while her family didn't like the barmy old man, she didn't think he would stoop so low as to scare a room full of students. Besides she saw what she saw, and the Potter twins confirmed it from their mother who was standing right in front of Quirrell when it happened.

"Well, everyone knows that Dumbledore has been saying for years that You-Know-Who isn't dead. So I can see where the new Minister might think that. Not that I'm saying it's true," Lavender said quickly holding up her hands at Parvati's indignant look. "Just that I can understand," she ended with a shrug.

Just then Professor Flitwick called the classes to attention and started his lecture on the color changing spell they would start tomorrow.

It was in their joint class of Herbology that they heard what the Board decided to do with Professor Watts. They were still repotting Snap-dragons, because Professor Sprout wanted them to be able to do it without getting bit, and then they'd move on.

"Did you guys hear what the Board decided about the new ghost?" Mandy asked in an undertone. All heads within hearing range, glanced her way. Not wanting to be bit by their plants, they only gave her part of their attention, which didn't help as you could hear one or two 'Ow's' coming from around the table.

"No," said Harry in a soft voice, "what did they say?" the closest students leaned forward as much as their plants would let them.

"I heard some upper-years saying that some of the Board attended her class of fifth years. She is still doing the same lecture, I guess she thinks it's important that everyone knows. Anyway, they were there and some of them questioned her on where she got her information. When she could cite three different books, they decided that she knew what she was talking about and welcomed her to the staff. I heard that the Headmaster was very upset by this. I also heard that it was one of the reasons he was put on probation, because while he didn't hide it, it wasn't something the Board knew when he was hired. If it hadn't been for years of good service they would have fired him on the spot," Mandy said as softly and quickly as possible, not wanting to loose points for talking in class.

"I heard from some of the portraits that those two got into a huge fight and that the Headmaster tried to banish her, but couldn't. Then there was something about a little girl that appeared and laughed at him. They said she morphed into a skeleton, but then she just disappeared," Parvati stated as she moved her plant.

Harry nodded his head indicating that he heard and with another inner smirk went back to his assignment. Sally was so cute when she tried to be scary. It would be lunch soon and then study time; he would mental talk to Gary then. They didn't like to do it while classes were in session, in case someone was doing something dangerous. They were still working on being able to mental chat and concentrate on the outside world at the same time. The Weasley twins made it look easy, blast them.

Same day, Gary's POV

It was during study hall that Professor McGonagall came to Gary with a note stating that the Headmaster wanted to see him.

"Professor, is it possible for you and Harry to join me? My mum doesn't want me to see the Headmaster unattended, because he tried to separate us when we were little," Gary said, putting a little bit of fear in his bright green eyes. He was hoping that his Head of House knew the history between the Potters and the old man.

"I don't see a problem with me coming with you, Mr. Potter. However, your brother was not invited. So I'm going to have to decline that part of your request," she answered with her lips pursed. As much as she admired Dumbledore, she never approved of him trying to isolate the Potter twins from each other.

"I guess that'll have to do, ma'am. Thank you," the younger twin stated with a nod of his head. He got up and gathered his books and papers. He then said his good-byes to the Mutineers, who were looking on in various states of confusion and worry. He left to a chorus of 'See ya, later' and 'Keep calm' as he followed his professor out of the Hall.

Harry said in his head, "Pull up your Occlumency."

To which he mentally scoffed, "Duh."

The student and professor continued silently through the halls to the third floor, where they came upon a gargoyle. The Transfiguration Professor gave the password of 'Toffee Éclair' and the stone statue moved aside revealing a winding staircase. The stairs moved on their own and soon the two were at the top.

"Enter," came the gentle voice of Dumbledore. "Ah, Minerva and Mr. Potter, come in, come in. Thank you, Professor, for seeing Gary here. You may go now," he said from behind his large and cluttered desk. "Gary, my boy, take a seat. Would you like a lemon sherbet?" he asked, waving to the chairs in front of his desk and then to the dish of candy that was on the corner of said desk.

"No, thank you, I just had some biscuits in the Great Hall," the messy haired boy answer as he perched on the seat indicated.

"Mr. Potter has asked me to be here," McGonagall stated, her lips thinning as if waiting for Dumbledore to contradict her, "and with the history of your interaction with his family, I don't blame him. I will be staying," she said in finality as she too took a seat.

"Very well," conceded the Headmaster, though you could tell by the dimming of his eyes he was not happy. But there was very little he could do, she was his Head of House and had every right to be there. "Now, Gary, tell me how your first few days of Hogwarts had been. Are you happy you came?" the old man asked.

Gary could feel the brush on his mind, but choose to ignore it. Although he did look away from the man's twinkling blue eyes and settled on looking at the old man's bushy eyebrows, which furrowed when shields met his probe.

"Oh, yes sir," the young boy said excitedly. "Me and Harry are having a lovely time being with all our friends," he said in deliberate improper grammar, "though last night was a bit of a scare. But, we're very happy to finally be able to study magic. The Muggle school was so helpful in helping me and my friends learn to study hard and remember things. All of us are extremely happy to be here," he gushed like the eleven year old he was. It was part of the plan, to portray themselves as naive as possible. It would hopefully throw the old man off, and make him think that Gary would be easy to control.

"Indeed," Dumbledore said in a slightly strained voice. He had not been in the Study Hall so he didn't know that most of the Potter twins' friends were studying together. He had hoped to break up that group when they all got sorted into different Houses.

"I for one think it is wonderful that that group of children have stayed friends," McGonagall stated as she gave Gary an approving look.

"Well, yes, indeed wonderful. I am delighted to know that you are not letting the tradition of separation of Houses waylay you from your friends. I did wonder if you would be joining the Quidditch team this year. I hear your brother is also very good on a broom. It is likely, you could both be chosen for your House teams." He figured he would start small, maybe set it up so Gary would get on the team this year, and then Harry would get jealous of his brother and the riff could start from there.

"Oh no sir, I have no ambition to be on the Gryffindor team. Even if for some reason I was offered to play this year, I'd have to turn it down," Gary said with a vigorous shaking of his head. "Studying is much more important," he said solemnly.

"Well, that is very smart of you, my boy," the voice got tighter still. Silence entered the room; the only noise heard was the snoring of the paintings that hung behind the desk.

"Well, Headmaster, if that is all, I have homework to complete. Should I tell my friends you're going to call them up too? Wouldn't want them to think you're treating me special or anything," Gary asked with as innocent a look on his face that he could pull off while laughing inside. He peeked to the right and saw his Head of House's lips quirk.

"Alas, my boy, I am a very busy man. You may tell your friends that I inquired about them through you," the old man sighed, his shoulder slumped slightly with defeat.

"Okay, sir, thanks for seeing me. Good-bye." And with that Gary and McGonagall left. Gary mentally relayed what happened to Harry and they both had a good chuckle, it was good to see their tactics working.

A week later at the Potter Manor

The Hunters gathered together to discuss where they were on their searches and research. Sitting in the dining room with high tea served, they all got comfortable and James started the meeting.

"Okay, welcome everyone. Let's get started shall we? Augusta why don't you go first and tell us what you've heard so far, and when you're done Lily and I might have something to add that could give you a helping hand in your gos… umm… teas," James said from the head of the table.

"Well, so far, most of the people I have talked to have not made the connection that You-Know-Who and Tom Riddle. I have tried to show it to them, but they are not listening and when You-Know-Who came back from wherever he went, he didn't look like Riddle anymore. All that Dark magic, you know? Since I have no evidence then I cannot sway them. I do not know if it is fear or senility, but they are being hard headed," the oldest Longbottom said with and exasperated sigh. She had had such high hopes of being helpful, but she was being met with resistance that she hadn't anticipated.

"And here is where we might help. Did Neville tell you about the new history professor?" James asked and waited for her to either confirm or deny. When she nodded her head that her grandson had, the messy haired man continued, "Well she gave a lecture about Riddle last week, told the whole student body who he was. When she talked to the board she cited two books that confirmed her knowledge. One was Legend of the Founders and Who They Sired, which is a self-updating family tree of sorts for all four founders. And the other was Paths of Europe's Dark Lords and Ladies, which as the title suggest is a history of all this country's Dark Wizards and Witches, including of course the most recent. So we have a copy of each of these so you carry them with you to your… teas," he finished with a smirk as he slid the two books toward her.

"Oh, my, yes that will be very helpful, indeed," Augusta said with a titter, glad to finally have something to back her gossip up. She picked up the magically lightened books and put them in her purse.

"Lily, what news do you have for us?" James asked, turning to his wife.

"Well, off subject for a minute, I heard from Severus that Malfoy Sr. contacted him and wanted to see if they could find a way to get the Dark Mark off their arms. He asked if I could look into it when I have the time. I told him I would do what I could," she answered, ignoring the Marauders blustering comments. She was quite use to them making a ruckus whenever her friend's name was mentioned. However, since they never did anything about their dislike, she let them be. "I thought we should know that there are some Death Eaters not willing to bow before the bastard when he returns. And while I don't believe for a minute they will turn 'good', it will still be one less person to face in a war," she finished with a shrug.

"Right, I'm not sure about all that. Malfoy Sr. is a right bastard and I for one don't want to help him. But like you said it would be one less person at the… man's side. Well, let someone else take care of that. We have enough on our plates. Speaking of which, how is the research coming?" James asked quickly to get away from that touchy subject.

"We're close to finding what we need to rid the containers of their soul pieces. That powder you two used on Quirrell is a good start," Albert answered enthusiastically. He was happy with how far they had come. They had even utilized the Potters' computers in their research and found a few fantasy sites that might be helpful. Who knew Muggle fantasy was so close to true wizardry.

"That's wonderful," the de facto leader said, slapping his hand on the table, also getting excited. That would be a big step in protecting the kids and making the Dark Bastard easier to take down. He then turned to the three hunters that weren't Marauders simply named Team One. "Have you guys found anything? Or heard anything?"

"Not yet," came the frustrated reply from Keaton, "but we really didn't have anything to go on. Now that we know where Riddle came from, thanks to those books, we have a place to start. We'll continue in Little Hangleton tomorrow."

"Is the crystal working for you then?" Sirius asked, making sure that they had the tools needed.

"Yeah," Wayne Sr. said, pulling out the crystal and an object that looked normal, but when he placed it on the table the crystal vibrated, "we took it around my house and discovered a hidden compartment in one of the walls. Someone, at one time, had put this Dark artifact in it. I never even knew it was there. It's not mentioned in any of the family journals. So that was disturbing, but a good test." He put both items back in his satchel. It was something to take care of outside of this meeting.

"Great," Sirius said and clapped his hands together once then rubbed them in anticipation, "my turn. It seems that dear old Mum left a portrait on the wall of Grimmauld Place and it's been giving orders to Kreacher, the old house elf. When we went to check out the house, the damn creature tried to attack me. Me! It's master. Well, that didn't go over well. Anyway, I gave it the order that it was never to come within one hundred feet of me, Remus or any of the parents really. Then I banned it from the house and told it to go to Narcissa and stay with her family," he said with a cackle. He really hated his family and that vile creature was just as bad. He took a deep breath to start again, but was stopped by Remus.

"Anyway," Remus interrupted his friend's tangent, "we went to the house, used the crystal and found a horcrux."

There were gasps heard from the unexpected news and then they all started talking as one about what should be done with it and where to store it.

"Wait, stop, come on guys settle down or we'll never get anything decided," James said, standing up, raising his voice to be heard and rapping his knuckles on the table. He waited until everyone quieted and then sat and sighed. "Okay, that's an oversight on our part. We never figured out what to do with these… things when we found them. Suggestions?"

"Well, at first I thought we could put them in the magic null rooms, but that might cause the soul pieces to separate and join the main soul. I don't think we want that to happen," Gifford said, he had been quiet until now mostly taking in and thinking about all the news that everyone was bringing to the table.

"Wait, if the rooms make the Dark books inert, then why would the soul piece escape?" Lily asked, not really sure how they came to that conclusion.

"We're dealing with souls, and no one really knows how they will react. Do you really want to take that chance?" Gifford said with a shrug.

Lily conceded, not wanting to point out that her son goes in one all the time and the horcrux was still in his scar. They didn't want that bit of information to get out. "You're probably right," she said with a sigh. "Maybe a lead box?" she suggested.

"That might work, but where would we get one? There's not much call for them in the wizard world. If you are seen buying one then you are marked as someone with something to hide," Sirius said and he would know growing up as he did.

The redheaded woman waved his concerns off, "Really, Padfoot, you should know by now that what you can't get in the magic world, you can always find easier in the non-magical. I'll take care of it. Until then let's wrap it up and put it in the freezer."

"I have one more thing to say before we break up for the night. Amelia wants in. She said after the fiasco of the first day of school, she no longer cares was Dumbledore thinks," Albert said, having been the one she approached at the Ministry. "I think it's a good idea."

"I don't know, she been pretty harsh on us up until now," James said with a shake of his head. "Don't get me wrong, I like Amelia, but we were warned to keep an eye out for her, that she didn't trust us."

"That may be so, but did you ever think that it's because she is an Auror. That and I know she only felt that Dumbledore would find out anyway. She actually doesn't like the man, and after… well you get the point. I know you had your reasons, and I agree with them, but the tide has changed and we can't afford to make an enemy out of someone that high up in the Ministry," Albert argued, determined to make them see they needed all the allies and supporters they could get. Yes, it was a large strong group they had. But, if war came then they would be fighting two sides —literally the Dark, and figuratively the Light — so no one could really be turned down.

"I think," Remus said considerately, "we should all take oaths. In this case it is not a matter of trust, it is a matter of not letting history repeat itself. Does everyone here remember how much we trusted Wormtail?"

Angry and thoughtful looks filtered around the table as everyone recalled the traitor. Nods were given and soon an oath was drawn and everyone around the table took it. History would not be repeated in this group.

"Okay," Lily sighed, bringing the topic back to Amelia, "if she takes the same oath, then we'll bring her in. Who knows, she might be helpful, she does have connections that we don't."

So it was agreed and the group idly chatted for a while and then broke up and returned to their homes.

A short narrative on what was happening at Hogwarts

It had been a rough week for the Potter twins. Somehow, and they were sure how, but couldn't prove it, it had gotten out that Gary would turn down playing Quidditch, so he wouldn't upset his non-celebrity twin. This had different reactions among the student population. Some were glad that he wasn't an attention seeker who used his fame to break the rules.

The Gryffindor team, sans the Weasley twins, was upset that he wouldn't play. Oliver Wood was adamant that the Boy-Who-Lived should give up on his studies and join, his twin's feelings be damned. Unfortunately for the Keeper, he said it in front of McGonagall. Who promptly told him if she ever heard him try to bully anyone on to the team again, he would be kicked off and put on academic probation.

Other teams, after hearing that the Potter twins were that good on a broom, were glad he didn't want to play. They had enough competition with the Slytherins cheating all the time. Though they did try and talk to Harry about joining the Ravenclaw team. That house was more sympathetic to his want to study and understood when he said no.

Both boys said if they did well this year on their end of the year tests, they might tryout next year. That seemed to placate everyone. It was also through the valiant efforts of Parvati and Lavender that these rumors were turned around in their favor.

Sadly this brought about the split of Ron and Seamus from the gang. Ron was highly upset that his friend wouldn't give up studying to play for the team. And Seamus followed along with his best friend. They never noticed that they could no longer talk about some of what the Mutineers stood for. They remembered being friend with the group, but stopped after Gary didn't join. The mirrors they had were also switched to the non-security ones. It made the Gryffindor dorm room a frosty place to be.

The study group had grown; Daphne and Tracey had brought the half-bloods they found in the Slytherin House. Susan and Hannah had brought a few upper-years and most of the first years of Hufflepuff. All of the first year Ravenclaws and some of their upper-years joined in, because hey, it was a study group. A few more studious Gryffindors also joined in. None of them were part of the core group of the Mutineers, just sat at the table with them to complete homework.

Dean was torn between joining the larger group, or sectioning himself off with the two sports fanatics. After a week he decided that though he enjoyed athletics as much as the next guy, he needed to pass his classes more. It would make his mum happy.

Hermione flitted back and forth between the two. She like helping people, so she spent a lot of time with the two ex-Mutineers, however she made sure to study with the gang when those two were busy. It was like having friends, and the bushy-haired girl was ecstatic that she was surrounded by many likeminded people.

Fred and George took the Potter twins aside and said they wanted in on the side group they knew the Mutineers had. The boys said they would bring it up with the rest of the gang and take a vote. Susan approached them for the same reason and was told the same thing.

With all these added people they took up an entire table. It was quite a feat to keep the large group on track with studying.

Sally kept them up-to-date on the movements of Voldemort, via her minions. After what happened in the Great Hall she had ordered them to question any magical person passing over that came from the UK to try and track him down. He was staying in Britain, for now, probably hoping to find one of the more susceptible Death Eaters to help him regain a body. Now that the stone had been returned to the Flamels, who quickly disappeared, that avenue was closed to him.

Mirror and crystals were used every night by a large part of the student body, and Dumbledore was finding it harder to manipulate anyone. Since the crystals were a form of guided self-help meditation; more and more of what used to be sheep were now becoming free thinkers and were finally seeing that maybe, just maybe, the Headmaster was getting too old to be in charge.

Chapter 21 Halloween and the Rat

October 31, 1991 Hogwarts

The month flew by with nothing important happening. School went on in it's usually manner of lessons and studying. The Mutineers were tighter than ever and all efforts from Dumbledore to break them up were negated by their favorite gossips, Parvati and Lavender, who made sure to counterattack whenever they heard anything bad being said. Those two were Merlin sent. They were very good at what they did. It was only the few times that it happened and it was more of the same. Gary was doing such and such as to not alienate his brother. The only people who seemed to be paying attention were those that hated the Boy-Who-Lived on principle.

So far they were being taught DADA by the Headmaster, who made sure to praise Gary every chance he got, and downplay Harry's accomplishments. He didn't do it often, just enough to get tongues wagging. The Gryffindor gossip queens were just as quick to stop the rumors.

It was now time for Halloween, which was a time of celebration for the Potter family. They felt this was the day that they survived and became stronger for it. They also knew that this was night when they gained a very special friend in Sally. So when the day started the Potter twins delved into it with gusto. They were so excited. They were going chat with their parents and Sally this night and share stories about years gone by. Not that they didn't mirror call their parents often, but on tonight Sally would bring those that died to join them. It was now an annual tradition.

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It was at lunch that a kink came up, which made the excitement a little less. A special edition of the Daily Prophet came with the headline:

The Boy-Who-Lived Turns Down Quidditch for Lesser Brother

By: Rita Skeeter

The article that followed blasted the Potters for the way they raised a selfish child and made the readers think that Gary didn't care about anyone else —except Harry. Rita had a way of twisting words to make the reader feel as if they should be more important than anything else, and that celebrities should be thinking of others, and not their fame or family. It had quotes —all anonymous of course— that stated that Gary was a stuck-up brat that only thought of himself and Harry.

This was only a minor bump in their day, the twins knew that their parents would sue the pants off this woman and in doing so it would make her look like a liar. The youngest Potter looked around the Hall and could see that a large majority of the student body were outraged on their behalf. He could only think that it was thanks to Pandora's crystals that they were thinking for themselves and not being led like sheep.

"Wow, she is really going to get in trouble for this one," Gary thought to his brother. He could feel Harry laughing his arse off through the link.

"You should hear what Padma is saying. That girl could peel rust off a pipe with the words coming out of her mouth," Harry sent back with a chuckle clear in the projection.

"Our Gossip Queens are already starting a rebuttal," the younger twin sent back, after looking at the two he mentioned, who had their heads together and were whispering frantically at one another.

"Look at Dumbledore," Harry thought to him. "He looks happy about this. I'll bet he was the one to leak the story. Too bad he probably did it via an unsigned letter and we'll never know."

"I wonder what took him so long. I am beginning to believe he has gone senile," the Gryffindor thought as he looked at the Staff Table. Sure enough the conniving old man did have a smug look about him. Gary nudged Parvati with his foot and jerked his chin towards Dumbledore.

She narrowed her eyes when she saw that face and her plotting with Lavender became even more excited.

The Headmaster turned his gaze to the red and gold table and his face morphed into one of pity, like he was feeling bad about the article instead of satisfied. So the younger twin gave him a hurt look, as if the paper had did what the man had been hoping for and made a dent in his bond with Harry. "Hey, if he looks at you try and look weak and pathetic, like you feel guilty for holding me back."

"Yeah, I can do that," came Harry's smug reply and his face took on such a look, to the confusion of the Mutineers around him. He just shook his head slightly and lipped 'later' so they would understand.

These actions actually garnered them more support. The students saw the forlorn faces of the twins, heard the gossip coming from the Gryffindor table, which said that the poor boys were being prosecuted unfairly. Many swore they would try and make them feel more welcome.

Meanwhile, the twins were laughing their arses off at whispers knowing that this was one more plot that didn't work.

Gary peeked to Ron and noted that he was behind the article 100%, which made him stop laughing. It was never easy to lose friends. He sent a mental prod to his brother to remind him that there were some that believed this garbage.

The rest of the day was spent fending off supporters on both sides. The Gryffindor twin was happy to hear Hermione berate Ron and Seamus for thinking exactly what Rita wanted them to. She still went back and forth between the estranged groups, never really settling for one or the other. She was more than happy to learn and help. Her bossiness dimmed some, but it was such a deep part of her that most learned to ignore it.

Gary had to wonder just what was said at the Weasley household that could make such an impression on the kids. They were like complete opposites, the Weasley twins were supporters of the Potters and Ron and Percy were supporters of Dumbledore. To the younger twin it only made sense that the adults in that house were equally divided. If he had to guess, it was Mr. Weasley that thought that maybe the Potters were right, while his wife took the Headmaster's side. He just hoped it wasn't important enough to split that family completely.

Harry was getting tired of play acting like the hurt brother, but was happy that the Mutineers defended the twins' right to choose what they wanted, and the rest of the Wizarding World could just bugger off.

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Later that day, study hall was a noisy affair and very little work got done. Gary slipped out early so he could get some peace and quiet and was wandering the halls. It was as he was roving that it came to him that Rita must have been in the school, yet he never saw her. Sure she probably got the tip from Dumbledore, but there were quotes from the students. Being the smart boy he was, he automatically figured out that the woman was an Animagus and made a mental note to tell all the Mutineers to check their maps daily to keep a look out for her. He was pulled from his thoughts when he heard his name called.

"Potter," came a male voice from behind as the sound of footsteps hurried to catch up with him.

Since he didn't recognize who was calling him, Gary's hand was at the ready to cast a defensive wandless spell if needed. He turned to the voice and saw an upper-year Slytherin approaching him.

The older dark-haired boy stood a good two heads above the shorter first year. His face was chiseled; giving him a hard appearance and making him look threatening. It also made Gary more cautious. He had nothing against Slytherins, but he knew that some of them were not to be trusted.

"Yeah?" the non-Boy-Who-Lived asked, trying to look innocent. His hand was hidden in his robe at his side still charged with magic, just in case.

"Forgive me if I startled you. I just wanted to introduce myself, and give you a belated welcome to Hogwarts. I was hoping that we could be friends. My name is Adam Goddard, please to meet you," the Slytherin said, holding out his hand.

Gary looked on the older boy's face and saw no falsehoods. So he released the magic back into himself, relaxed and took the offered hand. "Gary Potter, glad to make your acquaintance" he said with confidence as he shook with the boy's hand in a firm business-like manner, making sure to speak formally.

"Pleasure," Adam stated, returning the handshake in kind. "So… friends?"

"I would like it if we were at least not enemies. However, due to my very unwanted status I am very cautious about making instant friends," the messy-haired boy stated with a small smile. "You are more than welcome to join our study group and if you get along with everyone else, you will be welcome to the Potters as a friend of the family."

Being the pure-blood that Adam was, he knew just what the young man was saying about making immediate friends. It was much the same as his father told him over the years. So he nodded his head in understanding. "I will be more than happy to take you up on that offer. I wanted to make sure that you knew that not all Slytherins were out to get you. And that some of us would like to be in your… group. We feel that the House rivalry has gone on long enough. Some of us know that it has not always been such and want it to go back to the way it was before this great rift started," he stated hoping to convey that not all from his House were evil, like the rest of the school thought. To his surprise Gary chuckled.

Gary shook his head to ward off the hurt he could see in the upper-year's face and said in a much more casual tone, "No, no, I'm not laughing at you, but didn't you notice that there are over fifteen of your Housemates in our study group? We welcome all students as long as they get on well with one another. Hey, do you have one of the guided meditation crystals? I can hook you up with one if you want," he said as a peace offering for laughing at the young man.

"No, my father felt they were useless. However, I would be more than happy to take you up on that."

"Sure thing, come to the study group tomorrow, bring your friends, and I'll have a few I keep handy as gifts," Gary offered and gave a final nod of his head. "I have to get back to the group, they'll send out a search party for me sooner or later."

"Thank you for taking the time to speak with me. To tell you the truth, from what the paper was saying, I didn't think it would be this easy," Adam replied and with a nod of his head. He then turned and went back the way he came.

'Well that was different,' Gary thought and with a shake of his head started back to the Great Hall.

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It was later that night and tables were laden down with all sorts of sugary treats. The food was all made to look festive. There were Lady's fingers with sugar bandages, pumpkins filled with candy, grape eyeballs that moved, witches' hats that laughed, candy made to move like bugs, orange spiced biscuits shaped like pumpkins and bats, the occasional fruit bowl made to look like wiggling body parts, chicken legs made to look like zombie legs, ham cut in the shape of jack-o-lanterns, pasta made to look like either snakes or worms and other Halloween styled food. All this moving food was disconcerting for the Muggle-raised, but seeing the wizard-raised not batting an eye at it, they soon relaxed.

The Hall was decorated with large jack-o-lanterns instead of candles. Bats were seen in the light of the sky like ceiling. And every ghost in the castle was wandering about the tables, telling tales of Halloweens past. Children's laughter filled the air. Stories of deceased relatives were passed along; as it was wizard custom to honor the dead on this night.

The magic was so encompassing that everyone could feel its warm embrace. The castle seemed to literally sing with a song of happiness.

All and all it was a magical meal.

After the feast the Headmaster stood to give a speech. He waited until all heads turned his way and started. "Now that we have eaten our fill, a toast to Gary Potter, who on this night rid us of an evil Dark Lord," he said as he raised his glass towards Gary.

Gary blushed, shook his head, stood and held his hands up to stop the cheering. "No, don't toast me," he stated to the shock of the now quiet room. "I didn't do anything that warrants it. If you must recognize anyone, toast my mum. It was she that cast the spell to protect the children she loves. Or salute the people who died in that war. Give tribute those who lost their live while fighting against Voldemort. Praise the Aurors, who died protecting the Wizarding World. Remember those that fought other Dark Lords. But, don't give glory to a child that did nothing except sit in his crib and simply didn't die," he said in his loudest most passionate voice, conveying that he meant every word he uttered.

As one the Mutineers all stood and raised their glasses to the dead. Slowly others followed and soon statements such as 'To Mrs. Potter…', 'To my Uncle Stuart…', 'To my Mum…', and 'To Alexia Bones who died…' filled the air as they raised their glasses and paid tribute.

Gary nodded his head and joined in, glancing at the very disgruntled looking headmaster, and internally smirked.

After the acknowledging was done, a strange music surrounded the Great Hall. Everyone looked around to see where it was coming from. Suddenly twenty-two ghosts appeared in the front of the Staff Table. Some were recognized as relatives that were killed in the war. Others wore clothes or uniforms of old times. You could see battle wounds and reasons for death on many of them, though none too gruesome.

The presences were formed in tiers, like a choir, and they started to sing. They sang about love and devotion to family and moved on to wars gone by. Their voices were so beautiful that none of the staff tried to stop them. Soon enough there were only a few dry eyes in the room.

Harry and Gary noted that Sally was standing in front of the choir waving a baton and guiding them. They would ask her later what was going on.

After the choir was done, the spirits that had family in the student body moved off to join them. The others dispersed around the Hall and talked to whoever asked them a question.

Dumbledore was talking to Professor Watts, trying to find out how these specters appeared in his castle. Since they came the same way she did, he felt she would know. He regretted the fact that he couldn't read the minds of ghost. Isobel just kept shaking her head and stating she had nothing to do with it.

It was around ten p.m. that the feast ended, and the students went to their dorms, all excitedly chatting about what occurred.

After doing his nighttime ritual, Gary went to his bed. He cast a Muffliato, got his mirror out and activated the security rune—one can never be too careful. "Harry Potter."

"What's up, Gary?" his brother said, appearing in the mirror, in much the same manner of dress.

"Did you know Sally was going to do that?" Gary asked as he nestled down into his pillows, it had been a long day.

"Nope. Not a clue. She isn't there with you?"

"Nope. I was hoping she was there with you since it is your night. That's way I'm on the mirror. I wanted to ask her what the ghosts were all about," he answered.

"Hmmm, I wonder if she is keeping those new apparitions here," Harry mused, also snuggling into his pillows.

"Don't know, I hope so, maybe she is thinking they could be spies for us," Gary said thoughtfully.

"And you would be correct," Sally said as she appeared sitting cross-legged on Gary's bed.

"Are all of them from this past war?" Harry asked, perking up at that bit of news. Professor Watts had put the love of History in the boys and spirits were a fountain of information.

"No, some of them are from Grindelwald's war. They wanted to come and confirm what Isobel is teaching you guys. There are even some who knew Tom when he was here in Hogwarts," she replied, bouncing in place making her pigtails bob up and down, reminding Gary what he wanted to talk to her about.

"Hey, Sally, I was wondering. Do you always look like a six year old? I mean, I've seen your bony body, but…" he trailed off as he tilted his head to the side and waited for her answer.

"I can change my appearance to whatever I want," she quirked an eyebrow at him, making her look adorable.

"Well… don't get me wrong, you are cute, but I was thinking you could, ummm, you know, age with me and Harry. Or even a few years older. I mean I love you to death, no pun intended, but it is hard to take training serious when you're taking orders from a six year old girl," Gary said quickly, hoping he didn't offend her.

Sally got a thoughtful look on her lovable little face and slowly aged right before Gary's eyes. She still looked like an innocent child, but now appeared to be the age of the twins. Her tiny pigtail's grew longer and didn't bob quite as much. Her dress, while still in a baby-doll style, became longer in the skirt and straighter in the blouse, not quite as many ruffles. Her shoes and stocking remained the same.

"How's that?" she asked with a cute little scrunch of her nose.

"Much better, now I feel like you're equal to me, and not like I'm beating up some little kid," Gary answered and turned the mirror so Harry could see the changes.

"Yeah," Harry added his two Knuts' worth, "you look like someone I'd date, you know, if I was old enough." His cheeks reddened with embarrassment.

Sally just laughed and shook her head. "You mean if I was young enough. Remember, even though I look eleven, I'm as old as the earth," she said, reminding them just who she was.

"It is still weird fighting a girl," Gary added as he viewed her with a wary eye.

"There are female Death Eaters, get over it," she said sharply.

The boys nodded sagely and Harry brought the topic back to the ghosts. "So, those new guys are your spies?" he asked.

"Yup, they wanted to come back and look after the kids. They said if Isobel was given the chance, they wanted one as well. I tried sending Moaning Myrtle on, but she wanted to stay. I did learn some of her secrets though. I'm going to have Isobel give a lecture on those tidbits of information —next year," she replied with a conspiring wink.

"Not fair," came the twin replies and pouts. "You can't give us info like that and then make us wait. That's cruel."

"Too bad, you're just going to have to wait until next year," she said smugly and with a wave disappeared.

The two boys talked for a while and then signed off to call their parents. They told the Potters what happened during the day and were told that yes they were going after Skeeter and yes their solicitor told them she was in violation of the restraining order and she would more than likely get a fine and some jail time. They also told the boys that their rebuttal was already on the way to the Prophet and the Quibbler and they were going to do and interview with the Wizarding Wireless.

They all talked until midnight, and when the witching hour approached, they gave thanks to the dead. Sally brought some of the relatives, and they all had a nice reunion. It was about 2 a.m. that the twins signed off, started their crystals and went to sleep.

November 1, 1991

It was the next night and Gary was sitting on his bed, he had already talked to his parents and Harry. Now, he just wanted to lay down with his crystal and go to sleep. But he couldn't, it was his night with Sally, and she would be here any minute.

"Gary, all your dorm-mates are asleep, come on. Quietly," Sally said, holding out the invisibility Cloak. "Bring your map we're leaving the tower tonight. I've found a new place to go. I'll explain while we walk," she ordered softly. "You're probably going to have to wait awhile, but I don't want you to go to sleep, so to the common room with you."

Gary nodded to show he understood. He grabbed his mirror, his map and his wand. He took the Cloak, tucked it in his robes, and then followed Sally down to the common room. There were still a few people hanging about, one was Hermione. He went, sat across from her, and gave a nod in greeting.

"Why are you up so late?" the bushy haired girl asked, placing the book she was reading onto her lap.

"I just felt like sitting by the fire. I could ask you the same," Gary replied, making a show of warming up by sticking his feet near blazing fire. It was actually cold in the room so it was a good enough excuse.

"Doesn't your room have a stove? Ours does and it keeps the room warm enough," Hermione asked, tilting her head to the side in confusion. She thought all the rooms were the same.

"Of course it does, but there is nothing like looking into the flames of an open fire," Gary defended, turning to face her so as to not seem rude.

"Oh, well yes I guess I understand that," she said with a small blush.

"Thanks, by the way, for sticking up for me and Harry, about the article," the young boy said with a heartfelt voice, sincerity showing on his face and in his expressive jewel green eyes.

"That's okay," Hermione said, more pinkness staining her cheeks. "It was no bother. I just don't understand why Ron is so adamant that you play Quidditch. I can't seem to make him understand that studying and family are important. You'd think with a family as large as his he would understand that." She folded her arms and sat back on her chair with a slight huff.

"I don't either. I mean, I've never showed that I wanted to play. We've had been friends for years. We went to the same non-magical school. He used to hang out at our house and play with me and the gang. I'm not sure what happened, but once we got to Hogwarts he and Seamus just stopped hanging around us. I think it has something to do with some of the people in our study group being from other Houses," he said with a shrug, knowing full well that that was the reason, but not wanting to bad mouth his ex-friend to someone who hung around him.

"Well, that's just stupid," the bushy-haired girl said, flopping further back on the chair and pouting at the absurdity of boys.

"You didn't answer my question, why are you still up?" Gary asked, changing the subject.

"Oh, well I didn't know it was this late until you came down. I must have got caught up in my reading. This is one of the books Professor Watts recommended, the one that tells of the Dark Lords. You're in here you know. Only a sentence or two, but it is your name," she said excitedly, bouncing in place. It was always exciting meeting someone mentioned in her books.

Gary looked at her blandly and said, "Yes, I know."

"Aren't you excited that your name is in print?" she asked in a very confused voice.

"No," he deadpanned with a blank look.

Hermione's face took a crestfallen look. She looked thoughtfully at the book, then at Gary and wondered why he would react like that. There was a bit of hurt in her eyes that the messy-haired boy noted.

"Look, I'm sorry I was short with you," he apologized. "But fame isn't everything people make it out to be. Besides, my parents have been trying to tell the public for years that they have no idea which of us got hit that night," he explained, not wanting to alienate the girl.

This made the first year girl perk up. That was defiantly not something written in the books she had read. "Really, well then why do all the books say it was you?" there was a lace of doubt in her voice, but she was happy to talk to the source.

"Dumbledore," came the short answer, like it was supposed to answer everything about the situation. It did— to the Potters and the Mutineers, but not to an outsider.

"Well, if he says it must have been you, then maybe he knows. Why would he say it unless it was true?" she asked completely confused as to why the boy would be so… blank when it came to the famed man. Everyone knew that the Headmaster was the greatest wizard of this time.

"He wasn't even there," the boy said and then waved it away, "Look, I don't want to talk about this anymore, just don't believe everything you read about me, okay?" He looked back to the fire and ended the conversation.

Hermione harrumphed, grabbed up her book and stomped up the stairs to the girl's dorm.

The tired firstie glanced around the red and gold common room and noticed that everyone was getting ready to go to bed. Percy was making his way to the stairs, and stopped to remind him not to stay up late, then continued on his way.

Gary waited a good ten minutes before he donned the Cloak and followed Sally out the door. They made it to the Room of Requirements. The embodiment of Death happily explained how she had found the room with the help of the Founders and now it was going to be used for training.

The room Sally called up was nothing special, just a large open room with gym mats on the floor and walls. There were various items scattered about; like chairs, books, rocks of all sizes and statues, to use as shields or weapons. However, Gary made a note to investigate further when he wasn't training. If what Sally said was true, there were no limits to the type of rooms he could call. Maybe even a room with a pool.

Sally stood to the side and watched a dummy to start cursing Gary. She shouted encouragement or instructions on whether to duck or fight, which spell to use or which item was best to use as a shield. Gary would wandlessly and wordlessly call the items to him or banish them to the dummy. He would dodge the spell fire or send spells back if he saw an opening.

They worked out for about two hours. When they were done, Gary got an idea and asked the Room to provide him with a shower. After he cleaned himself off, he stood at the door and pulled out the map. Even though he had the Cloak, he didn't want to run into any roaming teacher. After his revelation about Rita yesterday, he took an extra careful look at the map. He looked at the path to the tower and saw it was clear.

And then he noticed it, out of the corner of his eye —a yellow dot, with the name of Peter Pettigrew.

It was in his room.

Ron's rat.

Gary pulled out his mirror. "James Potter" he whispered, like Peter was in the same room as him. He had to repeat himself three times, getting louder with each call. Finally his dad answered.

"Gary?" the sleep worn man asked as he gave a big yawn. "Why are you calling this late?"

"Dad, you need to call Madam Bones," the youngest Potter said, sinking to the floor in relief.

That got James' attention. "Why? Are you and Harry alright? What happened?" he asked, waking his wife to call the Head of the DMLE.

"Peter Pettigrew is in my dorm," he answered a bit calmer now that he was sitting and had his dad talking to him. He knew he could take on the man, but he was raised to let the adults handle adults.

"What?!" James shouted, startling his wife. Gary heard her asking what was wrong as she tried to wake Amelia. "Gary said that Wormtail is in his dorm," he relayed to her, and her calls got more frantic. The oldest Potter then turned back to his son. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yeah, I was on my way back to bed, after training with Sally—she found this super cool room— and I remembered yesterday that Rita Skeeter might be an Animagus. So I was keeping an extra look out for that. That's when I saw Peter's name. Dad, I can't stay here, someone will notice and ask why I'm out of my dorm," Gary explained, rubbing his hand through his hair. He really wanted to march to his dorm room and attack the traitor.

"Look at the map, is the coast clear?" his dad asked in a much calmer voice.

Lily was explaining to Amelia what was going on.

"Yes, there's no one on this floor. Snape is two floors down and Filch is three floors up," Gary answered, his eyes trained on any part of the map not his room.

"Good, be quick and go to your common room. If you hear someone, pretend you were asleep on one of the couches," James softly ordered.

"Okay, okay, I can do that," Gary said, standing up, donning the Cloak and taking another deep breath. He put the mirror in his pocket, still activated and he glanced at the map once again. Seeing the coast was clear, he folded it and tucked it away. He then quickly made his way to the dorm. He glanced around the halls, as if, any second now, the wanted man would jump out of the shadows and kidnap him. His wand was firmly gripped in his hand, if that unlikely scenario happened, he'd be ready.

"Quickly now," came the muffled advice from his pocket, even though his dad couldn't see a thing.

The firstie made it to the portrait of the Fat Lady, gave the password and ignored her inquiry as to who was there. He scrambled in the door, handed the Cloak to Sally, and swiftly made his way to the couch. He laid down and put a blanket over his legs.

Sally gave him a thumb's up and disappeared.

"Gary," came his mother's voice.

"Oops, sorry, Mum," Gary said, pulling the mirror from his pocket and then remembered to put the security on.

"Gary, Amelia wants to know how we know. So we had to tell her about the maps. Don't worry she has taken a vow not to reveal any of our secrets. Now, I want you to call her and show her his name. She is waiting for you. When you're done call us back and we'll keep you company until someone gets there. Don't go after Peter, you let the DMLE take care of it. We can't come. There is no logical reason that we can come up with for us to be there that we can give to the headmaster. Amelia can always say she got an anonymous tip, we can't," Lily said all in one breath.

Gary smiled and said, "Okay, Mum. I love you."

"I love you too, be careful. Call us right back. Done." And the mirror went blank.

The slightly nervous young man once again activated the security on the mirror. "Amelia Bones," he called and noted it was answered immediately.

"Mr. Potter, I hear you have a man in your room that my department is looking for," Amelia said with a raised eyebrow. You could tell she was roused from her bed as well. Her hair was out of the tight bun she usually wore it in, and she was still dressed in her night clothes.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Your parents told me you could show me his name on a… map?"

"Yes, ma'am," he said again, and pointed the mirror at the once again activated map and showed her everyone's name in his room. He then showed her where the headmaster was so she would see it was not a trick.

"Thank you, Mr. Potter. I'll take it from here. I want you to call your parents. Stay in the common room. Don't go upstairs for any reason. Do you understand?" she ordered in short and clipped sentences, already getting up to prepare to get a team together and go to Hogwarts.

"Yes, ma'am. Thank you, ma'am. Done." The mirror went blank once again and Gary called his parents. They had sat and talked for about a half an hour when Sally appeared and told him that people were coming. He said a hurried goodnight, told them he would call them when it was over, signed off, hid the mirror in the special pocket, laid down and pretended to sleep.

The portrait opened and quiet arguing voices drift through.

"My dear, I assure you there are no hidden criminals here at Hogwarts," the Headmasters voice stated as he, Madam Bones, Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape and six red robed Aurors came through the hole. "The wards would have let me know," he argued, and Gary could tell he was telling the truth. Maybe it was time to update the wards.

The Headmaster and Snape were still wearing the clothes they wore that day, so Gary could tell they hadn't been to bed yet. McGonagall, on the other hand, was dressed in an old-fashioned nightgown, with a long and heavy robe, her feet covered with slippers and a sleeping hat upon her head. She did not look happy about being here at this hour.

"I've already told you, Albus, I have to investigate. I received a tip that a wanted man was here and I must clarify that," she loudly whispered back, frustration clear in her voice, like she had been repeating the same thing since she got to the castle, and knowing Dumbledore she probably had.

"Albus," the Transfiguration Professor said frostily, "it will not hurt to take a look. Do you really want to take the chance with the children's lives?"

Dumbledore sighed in defeat and waved his permission to Amelia.

Gary made a show of stretching and loudly yawning as if he just woke up. "What's happening?" he asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"Mr. Potter, why are you in the common room and not in your bed?" his Head of House asked tartly.

"I must have fallen asleep watching the fire," he said, blinking tired green eyes at her. "I was talking to Hermione and then when she went up, I just got comfortable and I guess I drifted off. I remember Percy telling me to go to bed, but I was cozy."

"Young man, do you know if there is a rat in this dorm?" Madam Bones asked quietly, as if she didn't know exactly where it was.

"Well," Gary said, tapping his finger on his chin as he pretended to think, an innocent yet confused look upon his face, "Ron has a pet rat, but I don't know if anyone else does. Why would you be looking for a rat?"

"That is none of your concern, young man. You stay right here and let the adults do their job," Amelia softly ordered, with a sly wink.

Gary's face just got more confused, but he slowly nodded to show he understood. "Are you going to wake my friends?" he asked in concern.

"We can wake the other, but the Weasley boy will have to stay. You two go and get the ones besides the redhead out. You," she pointed to the shorter one, "stay there and protect the boy. I have no idea if he has a wand or not. If you can, stun him in his sleep, but wait until the room is clear of the other boys."

The two Aurors nodded and soon enough, Neville, Dean and Seamus were herded down the stairs. They sat with Gary and asked what was going on, only to be shushed by McGonagall.

"Now, I want every nook and cranny covered, we're chasing a rat. Seal them with magic, if you know how. If he runs try and stun him. No lethal spells. We're around children. If a student gets in your way let the rat run to the next Auror. I want him alive," Amelia ordered in a harsh whisper. "You three, with me, the rest of you stay here in case you're needed. If the children get up and come downstairs corral them into one part of the room, away from the portrait. If this is who I think it is, then he might use the children as hostage. Don't let him get the chance."

"Yes, Ma'am," came the response from the remaining Aurors. They stood ready waiting for a signal.

"Is this really necessary?" the Headmaster questioned —again. McGonagall shook her head and Snape pinched the bridge of his nose.

Amelia just rolled her eyes and started going quietly up the stairs, wand ready and her Aurors at her back. The Headmaster and the Professors followed.

Gary didn't know what was going on upstairs, but after a few minutes there were shouts of 'He's running,' and 'Don't let him get way.' The students were heard saying 'What's going on' and the running of feet sounded throughout the tower. Soon enough rest of the boys started coming down the stairs and were told to go to the far corner. Gary and his roommates joined them.

Scabbers scrambled down and stopped in fright at the sight of the Professors, who had already sealed the common room.

The students looked at the scene, whispering in confusion and when Percy started forward to pick up his brother's pet, he was ordered not to touch it.

Seven shots of red light were seen going towards the rodent, but it moved just in time and headed to the kids. Who, even though they didn't know what was going on, all shuffled to the side to keep the rat from getting in the middle of them.

A barrage of red light flew towards the moving target. Students and Aurors, plus Gary, all fired stunners at the same time.

Both Gary's and one of the other stunners finally hit the scrambling rat and it dropped to the floor in mid jump.

Gary smirked and thought, 'that'll leave a bruise.'

McGonagall transfigured a pillow into a cage and Amelia floated the rat into it.

"Well, now that is enough excitement for the night," Dumbledore said, turning to the still confused students. "I think, perhaps, it is time for you to return to your beds. I will make an announcement at dinner tomorrow to inform you of what you need to know."

The students all went up the stairs grumbling and moaning that they once again didn't know what was going on. Gary went to his bed and gave a full body shudder as to what he had been sharing his room with all this time. He gave a fleeting thought as to whether or not wake his brother, but decided to tell him in the morning.

"Why did they take Scabbers? I mean, what could they want with a common garden rat?" the poor confused Ron asked, looking forlornly at his bed, missing his pet already.

"I don't know," Gary lied, his innocent mask firmly in place. "I was asleep when they came into the common room. I think I heard something about a wanted criminal, but I'm not sure."

"That doesn't make sense," the confused redhead said, shaking his head.

"Well, Ron," Neville said thoughtfully, looking out of the corner of his eye at Gary and receiving a slight nod in return, "you know that the Marauders were all Animagus, right?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Ron, think… what type of animal was Pettigrew? And who would the DMLE be looking for in a rat form?" the sandy-haired boy asked, shaking his head at his ex-friend. They had all heard the story about the group of friends that terrorized Hogwarts with their pranks. So it was not hard to come up with that conclusion.

"You can't mean that I've been sharing my bed with Pettigrew?" the other boy all but shouted. His face and ears were turning an alarming shade of red.

"I don't know for sure, but that's what I think. It makes sense," the Longbottom heir answered with a careless shrug and once more climbed into his bed. "Just think about it. I'm going to bed." And with that he closed his curtains and was seen no more that night.

"I'm too," Gary mumbled, not offering his unwanted opinion. He was hoping to stay as far away from the rumor mill as possible. He closed his curtains, pulled the mirror out of his pocket and called his mum. "Lily Potter."

"Oh, Gary, are you alright?" she asked quickly, scanning her baby boy's face.

"Yeah, they got him. I stayed in the common room like you guys told me to," he answered with a yawn.

"Okay, sweetie, thanks for calling us and letting us know. Go to bed, it's late. Remember to turn on your crystal. You probably really need it tonight," she said softly, relieved that it was finally over.

"Okay, Mum, tell Dad I love him. Love you too. Goodnight," the tired young man replied as he rolled towards the crystal set up on the night stand. Casting a silencing charm, he started the crystal and as Pandora's voice filled the air he heard, "Love you too, sweetie. Done." The mirror dropped on to the bed and Gary fell asleep almost instantly.

Hphphp

Gary told Harry what had happened as soon as he woke. They mirror called the Mutineers and start a daisy chain, letting them know what really happened. Also making sure that because of this they really needed to keep a closer eye on those maps. They let them know Gary's theory about Rita so that they wouldn't be caught unaware if she was around. Maybe, they should set up a schedule so that at least one Mutineer was watching the map at all times. It was something to vote on.

It was at dinner that the Headmaster did indeed make a short announcement. "I know some of you had a fright in Gryffindor Tower last night. I just wanted to say that the Department of Magical Law Enforcement has everything under control," he said, after he got everyone's attention. He then sat back down and started a conversation with McGonagall. One thing the old man didn't seem to realize is that the less information he gave, the more children's imagination ran wild and the scarier the rumors became.

The following week it was those rumors that let them know that because it was the wards that were at fault and not the Headmaster, he was not to blame and was just on probation. Sometimes the Potters wondered if there was a large Confundus Charm on the entire population of Wizarding Britain. That man seemed to get away with everything.