Categories > Books > Harry Potter > The Roaring Snake
The Best Birthday?
0 reviewsHarry meets the Malfoys and has his birthday celebrated. Gets advice from Minerva about his year at Hogwarts.
1Ambiance
The Roaring Snake – 2
(Author's Note: The whole bit about there being only two factions essentially – a 'Light' and a 'Dark' – is a little too simplistic, in my opinion. This story will contain more than two factions, and every faction has its own agenda. Harry being an important catch, many factions will be vying for his favour. It also struck me as pretty ridiculous that people of significance like Lucius Malfoy try to attack Harry (verbally or physically) rather than entice him with useful offers. Scrimgoeur in HBP was the only one who offered Harry some goodies in exchange for cooperation. Given the tumultuous reaction Harry received in Diagon Alley when he arrived for the first time, does it not strike anyone as strange that no one tried to approach Harry for favours afterwards?
As usual, all criticism is welcome)
The Best Birthday?
“I'm sorry”, muttered Harry, looking bemusedly at the aristocratic man with pale, pointed features. “Do I know you?”
“I don't believe we've met before, Mr. Potter. I'm Lucius Malfoy”, the blond man introduced himself. Two other figures had followed Lucius Malfoy, and the Malfoy patriarch introduced them as well, “My wife, Narcissa”. The tall, regal, blond haired woman inclined her head politely, even if the bow was perfunctory and had been tempered with more than a tinge of haughtiness. “And my son, Draco. He will be in your year.” A sneering boy of Harry's age nodded coldly at Harry.
“Nice to meet you all”, returned Harry politely, accepting the hand Mr. Malfoy had put forth.
“I believe today is your birthday, Mr. Potter?”, queried Lucius Malfoy.
“Yes, but how ....”
“Harry, most of the wizarding world has sent you at least greeting cards on your birthday”, giggled Susan, interpreting his question correctly and handing him her own greeting, even as both Daphne and Anthony did the same. “Surely you've got them before?”, Susan continued, surprised at Harry's frown.
Harry shook his head in mute denial, which raised eyebrows from all the adults and Amelia Bones asked rather sharply, “Do you mean to imply that you've never got greeting cards from the wizarding world before?”
Harry shook his head, and although there were raised eyebrows, exchanged glances and frowns from McGonagall, Emmanuel Goldstein, and Lady Greengrass, none of them said anything. “Not even Ministry correspondence? There are many things that should have reached you, Mr. Potter.”
Once more, Harry shook his head in denial, as Amelia muttered, “I shall have this looked into. It may be a simple mistake, of course, ..”
“Tsk! Tsk!”, deplored Narcissa in her cool voice. “I've always held that those muggles should never have been accorded guardianship of Mr. Potter. I trust, Minerva, this proves to you Dumbledore's folly of allowing muggles control over wizarding children, much less someone as prominent as Mr. Potter here.” Minerva flushed at the comment, as Hagrid returned, “I'm sure Dumbledore had 'is reasons for puttin' Harry with 'is aunt.”
In the meantime, Lucius Malfoy had turned towards Prof. McGonagall drawling coldly, “I think, Minerva, we should have a nice birthday cake here to celebrate Mr. Potter's birthday. It would be remarkably ungrateful of the wizarding world to ignore the birthday of its saviour.” He had managed to inject a lot of spite into something so benign.
“We've arranged to celebrate Mr. Potter's birthday later, Mr. Malfoy”, returned Minerva quietly. “We still have a bit of shopping to do, and today would be most inconvenient to spend time on a party.”
Narcissa's eyes had lighted upon the shopping bags of the children, “Pardon me if I'm wrong, Minerva, but you seem to have completed most of the shopping. In fact, I cannot see anything you've missed!”
“We need ter get the pets for the kids, and potion stuff”, boomed Hagrid.
Lucius sneered coldly, looking at Hagrid as if he was something unpleasant on his shoe, “That will not be a problem, Hagrid. There are still several hours of daylight, and you were anyway about to have lunch. Surely, you can spare a few minutes after the lunch to give Mr. Potter a well-deserved birthday party.”
“Lucius, there are these other children to think of, and Mr. Potter is my charge today ...”. objected Minerva desperately.
Lucius overrode her objections in style, as he countered, “Of course, I would not dream of depriving you of your charge, Minerva, nor of denying these children the chance of celebrating with Harry Potter his birthday. They are all invited as well.” There was a world of sarcasm as he continued smoothly, “We all know the importance of integrating the muggle-born children into the wizarding world, don't we, Minerva?”
Minerva bit her lip – acknowledge the courtesy she would not; refuse it she could not. Even worse, Minerva was conscious of the glares of the others she had invited. This had not at all been planned, and she was in a quandary. She wanted to introduce Harry gently into the wizarding world – to show him its complexity, its wonder. A quiet lunch, with a frank and candid discussion about the wizarding world and Hogwarts was her idea of celebrating Harry's birthday. Making a song and dance out of it in the form of an ostentatious spectacle, courtesy the Malfoys, was not her idea of a good birthday for Harry.
Harry, on the other hand, had been floored. He was rather happy that at least someone had remembered his birthday. On the other hand, if Susan Bones were to be believed – and he had no reason to disbelieve her – the wizarding world had always remembered his birthday and sent him greetings. Why had he never received any of them over the years? What had become of them? He resolved to ask Prof. McGonagall, who seemed to be in-charge of the group, later on. Instinctively, Harry had been slightly repulsed by the Malfoys' manner of taking people for granted. Harry had also noticed the snobbish attitude of Lucius and Draco Malfoy – the way they looked at the muggle-born kids as though they were bits of dirt. Harry had never taken to elitism very well – his experience of it with the Dursleys left him with a suspicion of anyone with that attitude. However, he could not deny that the Malfoys had been most generous in offering to select his birthday. He then remembered Quirrell's warning – he should be cautious if he wanted to live long enough. Well – that was sensible advice. He would be on his guard around the Malfoys.
Coolly taking Minerva's silence for assent, Lucius Malfoy, in the meantime, called to Florean Fortescue, “Mr. Fortescue, I take it that your halls upstairs are ready?”
“Certainly, Mr. Malfoy. Everything's ready.”
“Excellent!”, replied Lucius Malfoy. “In that case, you can bring us all lunch and then we'll go upstairs to celebrate Mr. Potter's birthday.”
A simple lunch was served and Minerva quickly steered the conversation into territory she wanted. She spoke about the education at Hogwarts and the kinds of magic they would learn. She also spoke of the four Houses at the school.
“What House is the best, Professor?”, asked Justin.
Minerva shook her head, “There's no 'best' House, Mr. Finch-Fletchley. Every House has its strengths. Gryffindors are brave and chivalrous, Ravenclaws are prized for their intelligence and wit, Hufflepuff are known for their hard-work, loyalty, and fairplay, while Slytherins are famed for their ambition, resourcefulness, and determination. All four Houses have produced some outstanding wizards and witches. In fact, at this very table, you can see some of the finest example of all of them.”
Lucius Malfoy drawled, “Well – Slytherin is an excellent place for wizards of good ancestry and it teaches us to prize our heritage. It is the place ideal for all budding leaders.”
Hagrid's voice boomed, “It's a grea' place fer dark wizards, Malfoy.”
“Dear, dear, Hagrid – I suppose it would be futile to ask you to recognise the greatness of the House for wizards and witches of good breeding”, sneered Lucius. He looked Hagrid up and down slowly, “All things considered, it is no surprise”, he murmured silkily.
Minerva's whip-like voice cut in. “Please, Lucius. If you'd let me explain, I'd be obliged.”
“Of course, Professor McGonagall. Feel free to take the stage”, he waved his hand in a mock invitation.
“Well, as I said – at this very table are some of the best examples of all four Houses. Amelia here was in Hufflepuff, and she is the not only the Director of Magical Law Enforcement, but also one of the best Aurors ever.”
“Auror?”, echoed Mandy Brocklehurst blankly.
“Aurors are, I believe, the equivalent of the muggle 'police', Ms. Brocklehurst.”, returned Prof. McGonagall, as she continued, “Mr. Goldstein here, one of the most successful businessmen in our world, was a Ravenclaw. He is also one of the finest Enchanters in this country.”
Emmanuel Goldstein bowed. “You flatter me, Minerva.”
“It is the truth, Emmanuel”, smiled Prof. McGonagall. “And finally, we have Lady Greengrass, one of the best examples of Slytherins. She is among the finest ever Healers in St. Mungo's hospital.”
Priscilla Greengrass smiled as Hagrid cut in acidly, “You-Know-Who was also a Slytherin, as were most of the Death Eaters.”
“The previous Dark Lord, Grindelwald, was a Gryffindor”, snapped Priscilla in return. She looked around quietly as she leant back in her chair, “Dark wizards have come from all the Houses, and are not the privilege of any one House in particular.” Hagrid squirmed – this was going completely contrary to what Prof. Dumbledore had wanted. The headmaster had asked Hagrid to bias Harry against the Slytherins, and here was the conversation going completely out of control.
Harry, who had not failed to observe that Prof. McGonagall had completely overlooked the Malfoys, wondered if there was any animosity between the two, or whether in Prof. McGonagall's assessment, the Malfoys did not rate high because they did not deserve to rate high. However, he queried, “What about Gryffindor, Professor?”, queried Harry.
“The present headmaster, and the greatest wizard on earth, Prof. Dumbledore was a Gryffindor.”
“And you as well, Minerva”, smiled Emmanuel. “You sell your accomplishments short”, he added, shaking his head.
“As Emmanuel remarked, I am the current head of Gryffindor”, completed Minerva.
“What House were you in, Mr. Malfoy?”, asked Justin.
Lucius Malfoy looked at the boy as if he was a bit of dirt, before replying in his supercilious voice, “Slytherin, of course. It is, as I commented before now, the best place for students of good talent and parentage.”
Minerva cut in, “Lucius, please! I had not finished yet!” She looked at the muggle-born students and Harry, “If you have any questions about the Houses, you may ask the best authorities on them”, she smiled, waving towards Mr. Goldstein, Mme. Bones, Lady Greengrass and herself. A babble of questions from Justin, Harry, Mandy and Hannah followed the announcement of Prof. McGonagall. They all asked what kinds of things they could look forward to in the Houses, what was lauded, what was discouraged, House rules in particular. Also in the list of questions were the facilities in the Houses, the Heads of the Houses, and what was expected of the newcomers, and so forth. The group invited by Minerva cheerfully answered all the questions.
Harry had been seated between Emmanuel Goldstein and Minerva McGonagall, and he murmured to Prof. McGonagall, “Professor, what House were my parents in?”
“Both of them were in Gryffindor, Mr. Potter.”
“You knew them?”
“I taught them both. Your father was one of the best in Transfiguration, and a superb Quidditch player.” Minerva's lips quirked as she continued, “He had a whole lot of admirers and friends who followed him all round the school. Your mother on the other hand was a model student – clever, and determined at her work. She was also a most accomplished Charms mistress and a potions brewer. Emmanuel here can tell you more about your mother though, Mr. Potter.”
Harry turned expectantly to Mr. Goldstein, who chuckled at Harry's curious expression and began relating a number of small incidents about his mother. Finally, lunch was finished and the cold voice of Lucius Malfoy cut across their discussion, “Mr. Potter, if you would please follow us.”
The whole group trooped upstairs and Harry gasped at the colourful decorations in the hall. To say that the setting was opulent was a complete understatement, and Harry was completely flabbergasted. He had seen the Dursleys entertain their guests in style, but nothing he had seen compared with the show the Malfoys had put up for his sake. The entire hall was adorned with fairy lights that looked alive. A soft and calming tone was playing in the background, and the ceiling was decked with red and white flowers that set themselves into various patterns. At present, they read, “Happy Birthday, Harry Potter!” A monster of a cake was laid on the table, and Harry was invited to blow out the candles and cut it.
As the pieces of the cake were distributed, Narcissa and Draco had flanked Harry, and the Malfoy matriarch was quizzing him about his home-life, quietly but firmly. Harry tried to give her evasive answers, but he got the feeling that the aristocratic lady had seen through all his answers and knew the truth. Draco, meanwhile, had been peppering Harry about the achievements of the Malfoys and their wealth. The talk turned towards muggle-born and Draco expressed the conviction that muggle-born witches and wizards should not be allowed into Hogwarts.
Harry shrugged indifferently, and was more than a little confused at the vehemence of Draco's sentiments regarding the muggle-born. Harry was mostly non-committal – he had little love for muggles as most of those he had known had been unpleasant to him, but he also had just made a muggle-born friend in the form of Justin – probably the first in his life and he bore no hatred against the muggle-born. Seeing that the job of getting Harry to think on the issue had been accomplished, and fearing that Draco might do more harm than good by trying to bias Harry with his own prejudices, Narcissa came to his rescue. “Draco, let us speak of something more pleasant!”, she remonstrated with him softly, but firmly.
“Like what?”, asked Draco.
“Like Quidditch”, returned Narcissa with a hint of amusement. Turning to Harry, she remarked, “I think your father would be proud if you were to play the game well, Harry.” Narcissa looked closely at Harry as she proceeded, “You do look a lot like James, but you have Lily's eyes.”
Harry who had been desperate for any information regarding his father, instantaneously seized upon that. “You knew my parents?”
Narcissa shook her head, “Not very well, I am afraid. I was several years ahead of your parents at Hogwarts, and afterwards, we lost touch with each other.”
Seeing Harry's crestfallen expression, she continued, “But, I do know a bit of your family history. Your family is one of the noblest in the country, Harry. I am sure they will be looking to you to uphold the tradition of a thousand years”, she smiled, drawing a book on important pureblood families of Great Britain from her robes and handing it to him. “Your birthday present”, she remarked, her lips quirking in a slight smile. “You will find much information about your ancestors in the book.”
Of course, what was unknown to Harry was that it was a volume on pureblood history that had been written by an author biased towards the Malfoy family – one which portrayed the Malfoys in terms far more flattering than any author in his right mind would care to use regarding the Malfoys.
Harry was stuttering worse than Quirrell when he accepted the gift from Narcissa. He protested that they were too kind and they need not go to that expense for him, but was told that it was no problem, and was just what he deserved.
For the remainder of the party, despite Harry's numerous attempts to involve the rest of the group in the conversation, Draco monopolised Harry's attention, while his parents distracted the others. Draco bombarded Harry with information about Quidditch and its various rules.
Finally, the party came to an end and the Malfoys told Harry that he was welcome at their Manor if he wanted to spend the rest of his holidays with them. The offer had elicited gasps of horror from the other adults. Minerva wanted to desperately stop this somehow, but she need not have worried as Amelia Bones came to the rescue, “I am afraid, Lucius, that Mr. Potter will need to be at his relatives' home over the next few days at least. He has reported that he has not got any mail from the wizarding world, including the Ministry correspondence, in the last ten years. We'll need to perform a few tests at his aunt's home, and that requires Mr. Potter's presence there. Finally, given his peculiar safety considerations, you need to have his magical guardian's signature to invite him to your Manor.”
“Surely, Amelia, you can perform most of the tests without requiring his presence? And I promise to bring him to his aunt's home whenever he is required to be there. As for the guardian's signature, I am sure that a compromise can be arranged”
“I am sorry, Lucius, but his presence at his relatives' home is mandatory as we complete the investigations. Finally, as Head of DMLE, you cannot expect me to countenance breaking the law, especially when Mr. Potter's safety considerations are concerned.”
“Are you insinuating that my home is unsafe, Mme. Bones?” Lucius was at his intimidating best.
“Lucius, you know perfectly well that taking a child without the permission of the guardian constitutes kidnapping”, snapped Amelia. “In this case, I must insist that even in your case, you procure the consent of the guardian. Of course, should you be able to convince his guardians of the benignity of your request, I will stand aside.”
“I see, Amelia. I am rather disappointed about your quibbling over technicalities, but I will not press my invitation for now. It is most unfortunate that you should be so bureaucratic.”
Amelia Bones said nothing, but her scowl indicated how little she relished getting into a tiff with Lucius. Harry cut in diplomatically, “It is alright, Mr. Malfoy. Thanks for the party and the invitation. Maybe I'll be able to visit you sometime.” Lucius and Narcissa were plainly disappointed that their plan to get Harry to visit the Malfoy Manor had not fructified, but there was nothing to do but to accept the situation as it was.
With the Malfoys gone, Harry and the remainder of the group completed their shopping quickly. Harry, Justin and Hannah all bought owls at the Eyelops Emporium and then purchased their potions supplies. Harry promised to write to Anthony, Susan, and Justin over the remainder of the holidays and they in turn to him. Susan, Anthony and Daphne left with their parents, and Professor McGonagall asked Quirinius Quirrell to take the muggle-borns back by portkey. It was obvious that Quirrell wanted to talk a little more with Harry, but he did not dare disobey McGonagall directly. Minerva took Harry back to the Leaky Cauldron and they had a cup of tea. Over tea, Minerva spoke, “Now that you've seen the Wizarding World, Harry, what do you think of it?”
Harry was startled at the usage of his first name, but spoke punctiliously, “It's very interesting, Professor. Would you mind if I ask you a couple of questions?”
At the older witch's encouraging nod, Harry began hesitantly, “Professor, Susan mentioned that she and many others had sent greeting cards to me. Why did I never receive any?”
Minerva could very well guess the reasons for this, but evidently thought it prudent not to mention her suspicions. “Amelia is going to be looking into it. I will keep you informed, Harry.”
Harry nodded, as he continued, “Why does Mr. Malfoy dislike Justin and Hannah?”
Minerva looked sharply and anxiously at the boy, “What gives you the idea?”
“Professor – please – the way the Malfoys were looking at Justin and Hannah told me they thought little of them. And Draco told me that he thought muggle-borns should not be allowed in Hogwarts.”
Minerva sighed, “I was hoping you would not have to see this aspect of the wizarding world so early, Harry. There are several wizards and witches of magical ancestry in this country who believe that magical education should be limited to witches and wizards of magical parentage. However, that has never been the dominant opinion and muggle-born mages have always been admitted at Hogwarts.”
Harry could, in a way, understand the sentiment that muggles should be kept away from the witches and wizards. The muggles he had lived with hated and tortured him for being a wizard. At school, he had always been neglected and ignored, and his magical talents – which had caused some 'incidents' had always caused him to be looked on with suspicion. It was only understandable that wizards should return the hatred that the muggles seemed to have for wizards. He filed away the information for future use, and proceeded, “I see, Professor. Another question. What was that about Death Eaters?”
“Death Eaters were followers of You-Know-Who, Harry. They perpetrated numerous outrages in the last war.”
“Harry”, she continued looking very anxious and serious, “I promised your father that I would care for you if anything happened to your parents and I intend to take my promise seriously. You are an icon, a celebrity in the wizarding world. This means that you will have a large number of people vying for your favour. Almost everyone in the wizarding world has an agenda regarding you – including the people you met today.” She gently placed her hand on the boy's shoulder, “You need to be careful, child. People will try to control you, to manipulate you. You need to understand the wizarding world very well. Even those who are not your enemies and mean you no harm have their own goals as far as you are concerned. I see that you've bought a few volumes on wizarding culture, history and the previous war. May I recommend that you pay attention to recent events in history – in particular, the last war?”
Harry nodded earnestly, and Minerva, looking old and tired, continued, “Harry, may an old woman offer you some pieces of advice regarding the wizarding world?”
“Of course, Professor.”
“Apart from history, and tradition, you will need to concentrate on Defence against the Dark Arts. You won us the last war, but it was a most unexpected victory for us. With the Dark Lord gone, many, if not most of his followers, slipped back amongst us. Nothing could be proven against them, and those that are still around hate you. You should be safe enough at Hogwarts, and at your aunt's place, but one can never be careful enough.”
Once more, Harry nodded, “Harry, you should also be acquainted with the current events.” At this point, she reached into her bag and took a small envelope. Starting tomorrow, I have bought you a subscription of the Daily Prophet – the most common magical newspaper in Britain – for one year. Read the events and keep yourself up to date. Not for long will you be able to keep your neutrality, Harry, and everything you do will have much more bearing. You will be watched and every action of yours catalogued. You will have to make some choices soon enough. Whatever you decide, I want you to make informed choices, and I want you to be happy with them.” She squeezed his shoulder gently. Harry thanked her for the gift, and Minerva finished her tea and rose to her feet. She was back to the Professor mode as she handed him an envelope, “You'll need to come to Hogwarts from the King's Cross station in London on the first of September. Inside, the envelope are the ticket and instructions on how to get onto the platform. Now, it is time for you to return to your aunt. If you have any problems, you can send us a letter through your owl. She'll know where to find us.”
She took Harry into the muggle train station and then saw him off back to Little Whinging on a train. As the train departed, Minerva eyed the disappearing train for a moment, and smiled wistfully, “Be safe and happy, Harry. Good luck”, she muttered. She shook herself out of her reverie and disapparated back to Hogsmeade with a small pop.
---(End of the Chapter)---
(Author's Note: The whole bit about there being only two factions essentially – a 'Light' and a 'Dark' – is a little too simplistic, in my opinion. This story will contain more than two factions, and every faction has its own agenda. Harry being an important catch, many factions will be vying for his favour. It also struck me as pretty ridiculous that people of significance like Lucius Malfoy try to attack Harry (verbally or physically) rather than entice him with useful offers. Scrimgoeur in HBP was the only one who offered Harry some goodies in exchange for cooperation. Given the tumultuous reaction Harry received in Diagon Alley when he arrived for the first time, does it not strike anyone as strange that no one tried to approach Harry for favours afterwards?
As usual, all criticism is welcome)
The Best Birthday?
“I'm sorry”, muttered Harry, looking bemusedly at the aristocratic man with pale, pointed features. “Do I know you?”
“I don't believe we've met before, Mr. Potter. I'm Lucius Malfoy”, the blond man introduced himself. Two other figures had followed Lucius Malfoy, and the Malfoy patriarch introduced them as well, “My wife, Narcissa”. The tall, regal, blond haired woman inclined her head politely, even if the bow was perfunctory and had been tempered with more than a tinge of haughtiness. “And my son, Draco. He will be in your year.” A sneering boy of Harry's age nodded coldly at Harry.
“Nice to meet you all”, returned Harry politely, accepting the hand Mr. Malfoy had put forth.
“I believe today is your birthday, Mr. Potter?”, queried Lucius Malfoy.
“Yes, but how ....”
“Harry, most of the wizarding world has sent you at least greeting cards on your birthday”, giggled Susan, interpreting his question correctly and handing him her own greeting, even as both Daphne and Anthony did the same. “Surely you've got them before?”, Susan continued, surprised at Harry's frown.
Harry shook his head in mute denial, which raised eyebrows from all the adults and Amelia Bones asked rather sharply, “Do you mean to imply that you've never got greeting cards from the wizarding world before?”
Harry shook his head, and although there were raised eyebrows, exchanged glances and frowns from McGonagall, Emmanuel Goldstein, and Lady Greengrass, none of them said anything. “Not even Ministry correspondence? There are many things that should have reached you, Mr. Potter.”
Once more, Harry shook his head in denial, as Amelia muttered, “I shall have this looked into. It may be a simple mistake, of course, ..”
“Tsk! Tsk!”, deplored Narcissa in her cool voice. “I've always held that those muggles should never have been accorded guardianship of Mr. Potter. I trust, Minerva, this proves to you Dumbledore's folly of allowing muggles control over wizarding children, much less someone as prominent as Mr. Potter here.” Minerva flushed at the comment, as Hagrid returned, “I'm sure Dumbledore had 'is reasons for puttin' Harry with 'is aunt.”
In the meantime, Lucius Malfoy had turned towards Prof. McGonagall drawling coldly, “I think, Minerva, we should have a nice birthday cake here to celebrate Mr. Potter's birthday. It would be remarkably ungrateful of the wizarding world to ignore the birthday of its saviour.” He had managed to inject a lot of spite into something so benign.
“We've arranged to celebrate Mr. Potter's birthday later, Mr. Malfoy”, returned Minerva quietly. “We still have a bit of shopping to do, and today would be most inconvenient to spend time on a party.”
Narcissa's eyes had lighted upon the shopping bags of the children, “Pardon me if I'm wrong, Minerva, but you seem to have completed most of the shopping. In fact, I cannot see anything you've missed!”
“We need ter get the pets for the kids, and potion stuff”, boomed Hagrid.
Lucius sneered coldly, looking at Hagrid as if he was something unpleasant on his shoe, “That will not be a problem, Hagrid. There are still several hours of daylight, and you were anyway about to have lunch. Surely, you can spare a few minutes after the lunch to give Mr. Potter a well-deserved birthday party.”
“Lucius, there are these other children to think of, and Mr. Potter is my charge today ...”. objected Minerva desperately.
Lucius overrode her objections in style, as he countered, “Of course, I would not dream of depriving you of your charge, Minerva, nor of denying these children the chance of celebrating with Harry Potter his birthday. They are all invited as well.” There was a world of sarcasm as he continued smoothly, “We all know the importance of integrating the muggle-born children into the wizarding world, don't we, Minerva?”
Minerva bit her lip – acknowledge the courtesy she would not; refuse it she could not. Even worse, Minerva was conscious of the glares of the others she had invited. This had not at all been planned, and she was in a quandary. She wanted to introduce Harry gently into the wizarding world – to show him its complexity, its wonder. A quiet lunch, with a frank and candid discussion about the wizarding world and Hogwarts was her idea of celebrating Harry's birthday. Making a song and dance out of it in the form of an ostentatious spectacle, courtesy the Malfoys, was not her idea of a good birthday for Harry.
Harry, on the other hand, had been floored. He was rather happy that at least someone had remembered his birthday. On the other hand, if Susan Bones were to be believed – and he had no reason to disbelieve her – the wizarding world had always remembered his birthday and sent him greetings. Why had he never received any of them over the years? What had become of them? He resolved to ask Prof. McGonagall, who seemed to be in-charge of the group, later on. Instinctively, Harry had been slightly repulsed by the Malfoys' manner of taking people for granted. Harry had also noticed the snobbish attitude of Lucius and Draco Malfoy – the way they looked at the muggle-born kids as though they were bits of dirt. Harry had never taken to elitism very well – his experience of it with the Dursleys left him with a suspicion of anyone with that attitude. However, he could not deny that the Malfoys had been most generous in offering to select his birthday. He then remembered Quirrell's warning – he should be cautious if he wanted to live long enough. Well – that was sensible advice. He would be on his guard around the Malfoys.
Coolly taking Minerva's silence for assent, Lucius Malfoy, in the meantime, called to Florean Fortescue, “Mr. Fortescue, I take it that your halls upstairs are ready?”
“Certainly, Mr. Malfoy. Everything's ready.”
“Excellent!”, replied Lucius Malfoy. “In that case, you can bring us all lunch and then we'll go upstairs to celebrate Mr. Potter's birthday.”
A simple lunch was served and Minerva quickly steered the conversation into territory she wanted. She spoke about the education at Hogwarts and the kinds of magic they would learn. She also spoke of the four Houses at the school.
“What House is the best, Professor?”, asked Justin.
Minerva shook her head, “There's no 'best' House, Mr. Finch-Fletchley. Every House has its strengths. Gryffindors are brave and chivalrous, Ravenclaws are prized for their intelligence and wit, Hufflepuff are known for their hard-work, loyalty, and fairplay, while Slytherins are famed for their ambition, resourcefulness, and determination. All four Houses have produced some outstanding wizards and witches. In fact, at this very table, you can see some of the finest example of all of them.”
Lucius Malfoy drawled, “Well – Slytherin is an excellent place for wizards of good ancestry and it teaches us to prize our heritage. It is the place ideal for all budding leaders.”
Hagrid's voice boomed, “It's a grea' place fer dark wizards, Malfoy.”
“Dear, dear, Hagrid – I suppose it would be futile to ask you to recognise the greatness of the House for wizards and witches of good breeding”, sneered Lucius. He looked Hagrid up and down slowly, “All things considered, it is no surprise”, he murmured silkily.
Minerva's whip-like voice cut in. “Please, Lucius. If you'd let me explain, I'd be obliged.”
“Of course, Professor McGonagall. Feel free to take the stage”, he waved his hand in a mock invitation.
“Well, as I said – at this very table are some of the best examples of all four Houses. Amelia here was in Hufflepuff, and she is the not only the Director of Magical Law Enforcement, but also one of the best Aurors ever.”
“Auror?”, echoed Mandy Brocklehurst blankly.
“Aurors are, I believe, the equivalent of the muggle 'police', Ms. Brocklehurst.”, returned Prof. McGonagall, as she continued, “Mr. Goldstein here, one of the most successful businessmen in our world, was a Ravenclaw. He is also one of the finest Enchanters in this country.”
Emmanuel Goldstein bowed. “You flatter me, Minerva.”
“It is the truth, Emmanuel”, smiled Prof. McGonagall. “And finally, we have Lady Greengrass, one of the best examples of Slytherins. She is among the finest ever Healers in St. Mungo's hospital.”
Priscilla Greengrass smiled as Hagrid cut in acidly, “You-Know-Who was also a Slytherin, as were most of the Death Eaters.”
“The previous Dark Lord, Grindelwald, was a Gryffindor”, snapped Priscilla in return. She looked around quietly as she leant back in her chair, “Dark wizards have come from all the Houses, and are not the privilege of any one House in particular.” Hagrid squirmed – this was going completely contrary to what Prof. Dumbledore had wanted. The headmaster had asked Hagrid to bias Harry against the Slytherins, and here was the conversation going completely out of control.
Harry, who had not failed to observe that Prof. McGonagall had completely overlooked the Malfoys, wondered if there was any animosity between the two, or whether in Prof. McGonagall's assessment, the Malfoys did not rate high because they did not deserve to rate high. However, he queried, “What about Gryffindor, Professor?”, queried Harry.
“The present headmaster, and the greatest wizard on earth, Prof. Dumbledore was a Gryffindor.”
“And you as well, Minerva”, smiled Emmanuel. “You sell your accomplishments short”, he added, shaking his head.
“As Emmanuel remarked, I am the current head of Gryffindor”, completed Minerva.
“What House were you in, Mr. Malfoy?”, asked Justin.
Lucius Malfoy looked at the boy as if he was a bit of dirt, before replying in his supercilious voice, “Slytherin, of course. It is, as I commented before now, the best place for students of good talent and parentage.”
Minerva cut in, “Lucius, please! I had not finished yet!” She looked at the muggle-born students and Harry, “If you have any questions about the Houses, you may ask the best authorities on them”, she smiled, waving towards Mr. Goldstein, Mme. Bones, Lady Greengrass and herself. A babble of questions from Justin, Harry, Mandy and Hannah followed the announcement of Prof. McGonagall. They all asked what kinds of things they could look forward to in the Houses, what was lauded, what was discouraged, House rules in particular. Also in the list of questions were the facilities in the Houses, the Heads of the Houses, and what was expected of the newcomers, and so forth. The group invited by Minerva cheerfully answered all the questions.
Harry had been seated between Emmanuel Goldstein and Minerva McGonagall, and he murmured to Prof. McGonagall, “Professor, what House were my parents in?”
“Both of them were in Gryffindor, Mr. Potter.”
“You knew them?”
“I taught them both. Your father was one of the best in Transfiguration, and a superb Quidditch player.” Minerva's lips quirked as she continued, “He had a whole lot of admirers and friends who followed him all round the school. Your mother on the other hand was a model student – clever, and determined at her work. She was also a most accomplished Charms mistress and a potions brewer. Emmanuel here can tell you more about your mother though, Mr. Potter.”
Harry turned expectantly to Mr. Goldstein, who chuckled at Harry's curious expression and began relating a number of small incidents about his mother. Finally, lunch was finished and the cold voice of Lucius Malfoy cut across their discussion, “Mr. Potter, if you would please follow us.”
The whole group trooped upstairs and Harry gasped at the colourful decorations in the hall. To say that the setting was opulent was a complete understatement, and Harry was completely flabbergasted. He had seen the Dursleys entertain their guests in style, but nothing he had seen compared with the show the Malfoys had put up for his sake. The entire hall was adorned with fairy lights that looked alive. A soft and calming tone was playing in the background, and the ceiling was decked with red and white flowers that set themselves into various patterns. At present, they read, “Happy Birthday, Harry Potter!” A monster of a cake was laid on the table, and Harry was invited to blow out the candles and cut it.
As the pieces of the cake were distributed, Narcissa and Draco had flanked Harry, and the Malfoy matriarch was quizzing him about his home-life, quietly but firmly. Harry tried to give her evasive answers, but he got the feeling that the aristocratic lady had seen through all his answers and knew the truth. Draco, meanwhile, had been peppering Harry about the achievements of the Malfoys and their wealth. The talk turned towards muggle-born and Draco expressed the conviction that muggle-born witches and wizards should not be allowed into Hogwarts.
Harry shrugged indifferently, and was more than a little confused at the vehemence of Draco's sentiments regarding the muggle-born. Harry was mostly non-committal – he had little love for muggles as most of those he had known had been unpleasant to him, but he also had just made a muggle-born friend in the form of Justin – probably the first in his life and he bore no hatred against the muggle-born. Seeing that the job of getting Harry to think on the issue had been accomplished, and fearing that Draco might do more harm than good by trying to bias Harry with his own prejudices, Narcissa came to his rescue. “Draco, let us speak of something more pleasant!”, she remonstrated with him softly, but firmly.
“Like what?”, asked Draco.
“Like Quidditch”, returned Narcissa with a hint of amusement. Turning to Harry, she remarked, “I think your father would be proud if you were to play the game well, Harry.” Narcissa looked closely at Harry as she proceeded, “You do look a lot like James, but you have Lily's eyes.”
Harry who had been desperate for any information regarding his father, instantaneously seized upon that. “You knew my parents?”
Narcissa shook her head, “Not very well, I am afraid. I was several years ahead of your parents at Hogwarts, and afterwards, we lost touch with each other.”
Seeing Harry's crestfallen expression, she continued, “But, I do know a bit of your family history. Your family is one of the noblest in the country, Harry. I am sure they will be looking to you to uphold the tradition of a thousand years”, she smiled, drawing a book on important pureblood families of Great Britain from her robes and handing it to him. “Your birthday present”, she remarked, her lips quirking in a slight smile. “You will find much information about your ancestors in the book.”
Of course, what was unknown to Harry was that it was a volume on pureblood history that had been written by an author biased towards the Malfoy family – one which portrayed the Malfoys in terms far more flattering than any author in his right mind would care to use regarding the Malfoys.
Harry was stuttering worse than Quirrell when he accepted the gift from Narcissa. He protested that they were too kind and they need not go to that expense for him, but was told that it was no problem, and was just what he deserved.
For the remainder of the party, despite Harry's numerous attempts to involve the rest of the group in the conversation, Draco monopolised Harry's attention, while his parents distracted the others. Draco bombarded Harry with information about Quidditch and its various rules.
Finally, the party came to an end and the Malfoys told Harry that he was welcome at their Manor if he wanted to spend the rest of his holidays with them. The offer had elicited gasps of horror from the other adults. Minerva wanted to desperately stop this somehow, but she need not have worried as Amelia Bones came to the rescue, “I am afraid, Lucius, that Mr. Potter will need to be at his relatives' home over the next few days at least. He has reported that he has not got any mail from the wizarding world, including the Ministry correspondence, in the last ten years. We'll need to perform a few tests at his aunt's home, and that requires Mr. Potter's presence there. Finally, given his peculiar safety considerations, you need to have his magical guardian's signature to invite him to your Manor.”
“Surely, Amelia, you can perform most of the tests without requiring his presence? And I promise to bring him to his aunt's home whenever he is required to be there. As for the guardian's signature, I am sure that a compromise can be arranged”
“I am sorry, Lucius, but his presence at his relatives' home is mandatory as we complete the investigations. Finally, as Head of DMLE, you cannot expect me to countenance breaking the law, especially when Mr. Potter's safety considerations are concerned.”
“Are you insinuating that my home is unsafe, Mme. Bones?” Lucius was at his intimidating best.
“Lucius, you know perfectly well that taking a child without the permission of the guardian constitutes kidnapping”, snapped Amelia. “In this case, I must insist that even in your case, you procure the consent of the guardian. Of course, should you be able to convince his guardians of the benignity of your request, I will stand aside.”
“I see, Amelia. I am rather disappointed about your quibbling over technicalities, but I will not press my invitation for now. It is most unfortunate that you should be so bureaucratic.”
Amelia Bones said nothing, but her scowl indicated how little she relished getting into a tiff with Lucius. Harry cut in diplomatically, “It is alright, Mr. Malfoy. Thanks for the party and the invitation. Maybe I'll be able to visit you sometime.” Lucius and Narcissa were plainly disappointed that their plan to get Harry to visit the Malfoy Manor had not fructified, but there was nothing to do but to accept the situation as it was.
With the Malfoys gone, Harry and the remainder of the group completed their shopping quickly. Harry, Justin and Hannah all bought owls at the Eyelops Emporium and then purchased their potions supplies. Harry promised to write to Anthony, Susan, and Justin over the remainder of the holidays and they in turn to him. Susan, Anthony and Daphne left with their parents, and Professor McGonagall asked Quirinius Quirrell to take the muggle-borns back by portkey. It was obvious that Quirrell wanted to talk a little more with Harry, but he did not dare disobey McGonagall directly. Minerva took Harry back to the Leaky Cauldron and they had a cup of tea. Over tea, Minerva spoke, “Now that you've seen the Wizarding World, Harry, what do you think of it?”
Harry was startled at the usage of his first name, but spoke punctiliously, “It's very interesting, Professor. Would you mind if I ask you a couple of questions?”
At the older witch's encouraging nod, Harry began hesitantly, “Professor, Susan mentioned that she and many others had sent greeting cards to me. Why did I never receive any?”
Minerva could very well guess the reasons for this, but evidently thought it prudent not to mention her suspicions. “Amelia is going to be looking into it. I will keep you informed, Harry.”
Harry nodded, as he continued, “Why does Mr. Malfoy dislike Justin and Hannah?”
Minerva looked sharply and anxiously at the boy, “What gives you the idea?”
“Professor – please – the way the Malfoys were looking at Justin and Hannah told me they thought little of them. And Draco told me that he thought muggle-borns should not be allowed in Hogwarts.”
Minerva sighed, “I was hoping you would not have to see this aspect of the wizarding world so early, Harry. There are several wizards and witches of magical ancestry in this country who believe that magical education should be limited to witches and wizards of magical parentage. However, that has never been the dominant opinion and muggle-born mages have always been admitted at Hogwarts.”
Harry could, in a way, understand the sentiment that muggles should be kept away from the witches and wizards. The muggles he had lived with hated and tortured him for being a wizard. At school, he had always been neglected and ignored, and his magical talents – which had caused some 'incidents' had always caused him to be looked on with suspicion. It was only understandable that wizards should return the hatred that the muggles seemed to have for wizards. He filed away the information for future use, and proceeded, “I see, Professor. Another question. What was that about Death Eaters?”
“Death Eaters were followers of You-Know-Who, Harry. They perpetrated numerous outrages in the last war.”
“Harry”, she continued looking very anxious and serious, “I promised your father that I would care for you if anything happened to your parents and I intend to take my promise seriously. You are an icon, a celebrity in the wizarding world. This means that you will have a large number of people vying for your favour. Almost everyone in the wizarding world has an agenda regarding you – including the people you met today.” She gently placed her hand on the boy's shoulder, “You need to be careful, child. People will try to control you, to manipulate you. You need to understand the wizarding world very well. Even those who are not your enemies and mean you no harm have their own goals as far as you are concerned. I see that you've bought a few volumes on wizarding culture, history and the previous war. May I recommend that you pay attention to recent events in history – in particular, the last war?”
Harry nodded earnestly, and Minerva, looking old and tired, continued, “Harry, may an old woman offer you some pieces of advice regarding the wizarding world?”
“Of course, Professor.”
“Apart from history, and tradition, you will need to concentrate on Defence against the Dark Arts. You won us the last war, but it was a most unexpected victory for us. With the Dark Lord gone, many, if not most of his followers, slipped back amongst us. Nothing could be proven against them, and those that are still around hate you. You should be safe enough at Hogwarts, and at your aunt's place, but one can never be careful enough.”
Once more, Harry nodded, “Harry, you should also be acquainted with the current events.” At this point, she reached into her bag and took a small envelope. Starting tomorrow, I have bought you a subscription of the Daily Prophet – the most common magical newspaper in Britain – for one year. Read the events and keep yourself up to date. Not for long will you be able to keep your neutrality, Harry, and everything you do will have much more bearing. You will be watched and every action of yours catalogued. You will have to make some choices soon enough. Whatever you decide, I want you to make informed choices, and I want you to be happy with them.” She squeezed his shoulder gently. Harry thanked her for the gift, and Minerva finished her tea and rose to her feet. She was back to the Professor mode as she handed him an envelope, “You'll need to come to Hogwarts from the King's Cross station in London on the first of September. Inside, the envelope are the ticket and instructions on how to get onto the platform. Now, it is time for you to return to your aunt. If you have any problems, you can send us a letter through your owl. She'll know where to find us.”
She took Harry into the muggle train station and then saw him off back to Little Whinging on a train. As the train departed, Minerva eyed the disappearing train for a moment, and smiled wistfully, “Be safe and happy, Harry. Good luck”, she muttered. She shook herself out of her reverie and disapparated back to Hogsmeade with a small pop.
---(End of the Chapter)---
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