Harry smiled "One day, Hermione, I promise. John's time will come."
A few minutes previously, John Potter marched away from the Library in a bad mood. Getting back with Hermione was his best plan for sniffing out information on Slytherin. If she wasn't willing to let him near her, as much as that hurt, then he'd have to try other tactics.
He walked up a flight of stairs and down a corridor. Maybe he'd go talk with Susan during History of Magic. She'd have some ideas. It was just annoying they were in different houses so he couldn't have her around all the time.
He was just walking by the hospital wing, lost in thought, when the main door to the wing opened and who should walk out, but junior death eater number one.
John smirked and slowed down as Malfoy turned and spotted him. "Well, hello there."
"Potter," Malfoy spat. "What do you want?"
"Not much." John looked Malfoy over. "What were you doing in there? You don't look ill." "None of your business."
Did Malfoy just blush?
John grinned. "Heh, bet someone just hexed your annoying arse."
"T-that's…"
"Oh Merlin, they did! HAH! Who was it? I need to thank them."
"They were just lucky!"
"Sure, they were." John smirked. "If they were so lucky, how about you duel me? I could really do with letting out some frustration."
Malfoy gave him a deadpanned look. "I'm not duelling you, Potter. I've heard the rumours of how powerful you are."
John raised an eyebrow. There was the good old Hogwarts rumour mill hard at work again. "And you… believe them?"
Malfoy folded his arms. "Yes, I do."
Wow. That was surprising. He smirked. "So, Slytherin is ready submit before the might of Gryffindor?"
Malfoy smirked back. "Hardly."
"Hardly?"
"Yes." Malfoy turned his back on him and started to walk off. "After all," he glanced back once more before walking off again, "we have our own Potter." John stared after him with his mouth hanging open. Then he started to laugh — huge belly laughs that erupted from deep within him and echoed away down the large stone hallway. As if his pathetic little Slytherin twin brother could ever win in a duel, against him.
Daphne stood in front of the massive mirror that Harry had hung on the wall of the shrieking shack. Behind her, Harry and Hermione sat at the small divination classroom desks, the former working on paperwork, the latter switching between two different books, the first, 'The healer's Art Twenty-sixth Edition,' and the second, 'If You Cant Beat Them, Prank Them.'
By Daphne's side, Angelystor gave her an encouraging smile.
Daphne shut her eyes, passed her magic through her inner eye, formed the intent of the spell, made a delicate wand motion towards the mirror, and focused on the three Ds of apparition — destination, determination, and deliberation.
The mirror's surface blurred, and the next moment, was showing her not her own head and body, but Harry's, still bent over his desk.
She grinned.
"Well done, Daphne!" Angelystor clapped. Daphne let out a deep breath.
"You got it?" Harry had set his quill down and looked up.
Daphne preened. "Yes, I did."
"Excellent. It's all range and control from here on then?"
Angelystor nodded. "Yes, although, because the mirror spell can't pass through wards, even weak ones, we'll have to practise range from outside of the fidelius charm."
Harry frowned. "That's… I'm not sure I'm comfortable with that."
"Oh, Harry." Daphne made doe eyes at him. "I'm sure it will be safe if we do it just outside the shack. Then, if danger comes we can just duck back inside the charm. I can even keep casting the threat seeing spell on my crystal ball, just to make sure nothing dangerous is going to happen."
"Well, I'm not too comfortable about relying on that threat seeing spell like that. Exactly what it sees as a threat might be suspect… buuuttttt…." Daphne continued to make doe eyes at him.
"Oh, alright. As soon as we get the mirror set up."
Daphne smiled brilliantly at him. "Thanks, Harry!"
"But not tonight. I've got an appointment soon."
Daphne smiled and turned back to the mirror. That was fine with her. She would get this whole divination thing working perfectly and then she'd finally stop being the team member whose only use was as a Daughter of the Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass.
Harry left the Shrieking Shack in high spirits. Daphne's divination studies were coming on amazingly well. At this rate, they'd be ready to start exploring all the bits of the third floor corridor in just weeks. Once they knew exactly what they were up against, they could hatch a plan to crack it wide open and swipe the ultimate prize, right under Dumbledore and Voldie's big-fat and non-existent noses.
He chain apparated all the way to his secret cave safe in the Hebrides, grabbed seven-thousand galleons (£350,000) of Afghan white, popped an ageing potion, transfigured his face to his Malfoy-esque smuggler persona, and then chain apparated to a spot not far away from his trade spot.
The night was perfectly still. Clouds moved across the sky, alternatively bathing the land in moonlight, or cloaking it in darkness. The chill air tried to bite though his warming charms, and made visible his long slow breaths.
Slowly letting his body wash away the accumulated toxins from chain apparating up and down the country, Harry walked down the country lane, with its hedgerows on either side, and into the forest, on the other side of which, was his meeting point with Curtis' men.
"Homenum revelio."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Ready to lose yourself in an epic tale? Download the full PDF now and start reading from page one!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
https://fictiontopia.tiendup.com/