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\begin_body

\begin_layout Chapter
Humanism, Part IV
\end_layout

\begin_layout Initial
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status open

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T
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status open

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he
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 last tip of the Sun was sinking below the horizon, the red light fading
 from the treetops, only the blue sky illuminating the six people standing
 upon the winter-dried and snow-spotted grass, near a vacant cage on whose
 floor lay an empty, tattered cloak.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Harry felt… well, 
\emph on
normal
\emph default
 again.
 Sane-ish.
 The spell hadn't undone the day and its damage, hadn't made the injuries
 as if they had never been, but his hurts had been… bandaged, meliorated?
 It was hard to describe.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Dumbledore was also looking healthier, though not fully restored.
 The old wizard's head turned for a moment, locked eyes with Professor Quirrell,
 then looked back to Harry.
 “Harry,” Dumbledore said, “are you about to collapse in exhaustion and
 possibly die?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“No, strangely enough,” Harry said.
 “That took something out of me, but a lot less than I thought it would.”
 
\emph on
Or maybe it gave something back, as well as taking…
\emph default
 “Honestly, I expected my body to be hitting the ground with a thud about
 now.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
There was a distinct body-hitting-the-ground-with-a-thuddish sort of sound.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Thank you for taking care of that, Quirinus,” said Dumbledore to Professor
 Quirrell, who was now standing above and behind the unconscious forms of
 the three Aurors.
 “I confess I am still feeling a bit peaky.
 Though I shall handle the Memory Charms myself.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Professor Quirrell inclined his head, and then looked at Harry.
 “I will omit a good deal of useless incredulity,” said Professor Quirrell,
 “remarks to the effect that Merlin himself failed to do that, et cetera.
 Let us go straight to asking the important question.
 What the sweet slithering snakes was 
\emph on
that?
\emph default
”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“The Patronus Charm,” Harry said.
 “Version 2.0.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“I rejoice to see that you are your usual self again,” said Dumbledore.
 “But you are not going 
\emph on
anywhere
\emph default
, young Ravenclaw, until you tell me what exactly was that warm and happy
 thought.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Hm…” said Harry.
 He tapped a contemplative finger on his cheek.
 “I wonder if I should?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Professor Quirrell suddenly grinned.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Please?” said the Headmaster.
 “Pretty please with sugar on top?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Harry felt an impulse and decided to go with it.
 It was dangerous, but there might not ever be a better opportunity until
 the end of time.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Three sodas,” Harry said to his pouch, then looked up at the Defense Professor
 and the Headmaster of Hogwarts.
 “Gentlemen,” Harry said, “I bought these sodas on my first visit to Platform
 Nine and Three-Quarters, on the day I entered into Hogwarts.
 I have been saving them for special occasions; there is a minor enchantment
 on them to ensure they are drunk at the right time.
 This is the last of my supply, but I do not think there will ever come
 a finer occasion.
 Shall we?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Dumbledore took a soda can from Harry, and Harry tossed another to Professor
 Quirrell.
 The two older men each muttered identical charms over the can and frowned
 briefly at the result.
 Harry, for his part, simply popped the top and drank.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The Defense Professor and the Headmaster of Hogwarts politely followed suit.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Harry said, “I thought of my absolute rejection of death as the natural
 order.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
It might not be the right kind of warm feeling you needed to cast a Patronus
 Charm, but it was going into Harry's Top 10 nonetheless.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The looks he got from the Defense Professor and the Headmaster briefly made
 Harry nervous, as the spilled Comed-Tea faded out of existence; but then
 the two of them each glanced at the other and both apparently decided that
 they couldn't get away with doing anything really awful to Harry in the
 other's presence.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Mr.
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Potter,” said Professor Quirrell, “even 
\emph on
I
\emph default
 know that is not how things are supposed to work.”
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\begin_layout Standard
“Indeed,” said Dumbledore.
 “Explain.”
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\begin_layout Standard
Harry opened his mouth, and then, as realization hit him, rapidly snapped
 his mouth shut again.
 Godric hadn't told anyone, nor had Rowena if she'd known; there might have
 been any number of wizards who'd figured it out and kept their mouths shut.
 You couldn't forget if you 
\emph on
knew
\emph default
 that was what you were trying to do; once you realized 
\emph on
how
\emph default
 it worked, the animal form of the Patronus Charm would never work for you
 again 
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\begin_layout Plain Layout

--
\end_layout

\end_inset

 and most wizards didn't have the right upbringing to turn on Dementors
 and destroy them 
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--
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\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Erm, sorry about this,” said Harry.
 “But I've just this instant realized that explaining would be an 
\emph on
incredibly
\emph default
 bad idea until you work some things out on your own.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Is that the truth, Harry?” Dumbledore said slowly.
 “Or are you just pretending to be wise 
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--
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”
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“
\emph on
Headmaster!
\emph default
” said Professor Quirrell, sounding genuinely shocked.
 “Mr.
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Potter has told you that this spell is not spoken of with those who cannot
 cast it! You do not press a wizard on such matters!”
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“If I told you 
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--
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” Harry began.
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\begin_layout Standard
“No,” Professor Quirrell said, sounding rather severe.
 “You don't tell us 
\emph on
why,
\emph default
 Mr.
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\backslash
 
\end_layout

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Potter, you simply tell us that we are not to know.
 If you wish to devise a hint, you do so carefully, at leisure, not in the
 midst of conversation.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Harry nodded.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“But,” said the Headmaster.
 “But, but what am I to tell the Ministry? You can't just 
\emph on
lose
\emph default
 a Dementor!”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Tell them I ate it,” said Professor Quirrell, causing Harry to choke on
 the soda he had unthinkingly raised to his lips.
 “I don't mind.
 Shall we head on back, Mr.
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Potter?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The two of them began to walk the dirt path back to Hogwarts, leaving behind
 Albus Dumbledore staring forlornly at the empty cage and the three sleeping
 Aurors awaiting their Memory Charms.
\end_layout

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\emph on
Aftermath, Harry Potter and Professor Quirrell:
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
They walked for a while before Professor Quirrell spoke, and all background
 noise dropped into silence when he did.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“You are exceptionally good at killing things, my student,” said Professor
 Quirrell.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Thank you,” Harry said sincerely.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“I am not prying,” said Professor Quirrell, “but on the off-chance that
 it was 
\emph on
only
\emph default
 the Headmaster who you did not trust with the secret…?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Harry considered this.
 Professor Quirrell already couldn't cast the animal Patronus Charm.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
But you couldn't untell a secret, and Harry was a fast enough learner to
 realize that he ought to at least 
\emph on
think
\emph default
 for a while before unleashing this one upon the world.
\end_layout

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Harry shook his head, and Professor Quirrell nodded acceptance.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Out of curiosity, Professor Quirrell,” said Harry, “if your bringing the
 Dementor to Hogwarts had been part of an evil plot, what would have been
 its goal?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Assassinate Dumbledore while he was weakened,” Professor Quirrell said
 without even hesitating.
 “Hm.
 The Headmaster told you he was suspicious of me?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Harry said nothing for a second while he tried to think of a reply, and
 then gave up when he realized he'd already answered.
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“Interesting…” Professor Quirrell said.
 “Mr.
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Potter, it is not out of the question that there 
\emph on
was
\emph default
 a plot at work today.
 Your wand ending up that close to the Dementor's cage 
\emph on
could
\emph default
 have been an accident.
 Or one of the Aurors could have been Imperiused, Confunded, or Legilimized
 to exert an influence.
 Flitwick and myself should not be excluded as suspects, in your calculation.
 One notes that Professor Snape canceled all his classes today, and I suspect
 he is powerful enough to Disillusion himself; the Aurors cast detection
 charms early on, but they did not repeat them immediately before your turn.
 But most easily of all, Mr.
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Potter, the deed could have been plotted by Dumbledore himself; and if he
 
\emph on
did
\emph default
, why, he might also take steps in advance to cast your suspicion elsewhere.”
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\begin_layout Standard
They walked on for a few steps.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“But why 
\emph on
would
\emph default
 he?” Harry said.
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The Defense Professor stayed quiet a moment, and then said, “Mr.
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Potter, what steps have you taken to investigate the Headmaster's character?”
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\begin_layout Standard
“Not many,” said Harry.
 He'd only recently realized… “Not nearly enough.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Then I will observe,” said Professor Quirrell, “that you do not find out
 all there is to know about a man by asking only his friends.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Now it was Harry's turn to walk a few steps in silence on the slightly beaten
 dirt path that led back to Hogwarts.
 He'd really been supposed to know better than that already.
 Confirmation bias was the technical term; it meant, among other things,
 that when you chose your information sources, there was a notable tendency
 to choose information sources that agreed with your current opinions.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Thank you,” Harry said.
 “Actually… I didn't say it earlier, did I? Thank you for 
\emph on
everything
\emph default
.
 If another Dementor ever threatens you, or for that matter, slightly annoys
 you, just let me know and I'll introduce it to Mister Glowy Person.
 I don't like it when Dementors slightly annoy my friends.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
That got him an indecipherable glance from Professor Quirrell.
 “You destroyed the Dementor because it threatened me?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Erm,” Harry said, “I'd sort of decided on it before then, but yes, that
 would have been sufficient reason by itself.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“I see,” said Professor Quirrell.
 “And what would you have done about the threat to me if your spell 
\emph on
hadn't
\emph default
 worked for destroying the Dementor?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Plan B,” said Harry.
 “Encase the Dementor in dense metal with a high melting point, probably
 tungsten, drop it into an active volcano, and hope it ends up inside Earth's
 mantle.
 Ah, the whole planet is filled with molten lava under its surface 
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--
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”
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\begin_layout Standard
“Yes,” said Professor Quirrell.
 “I know.” The Defense Professor was wearing a very odd smile.
 “I really should have thought of that myself, all things considered.
 Tell me, Mr.
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Potter, if you wanted to lose something where no one would ever find it
 again, where would you put it?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Harry considered this question.
 “I suppose I shouldn't ask 
\emph on
what
\emph default
 you've found that needs losing 
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--
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”
\end_layout

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“Quite,” said Professor Quirrell, as Harry had expected; and then, “Perhaps
 you will be told when you are older,” which Harry hadn't.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Well,” said Harry, “besides trying to get it into the molten core of the
 planet, you could bury it in solid rock a kilometer underground in a randomly
 selected location 
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--
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\end_inset

 maybe teleport it in, if there's some way to do that blindly, or drill
 a hole and repair the hole afterward; the important thing would be not
 to leave any traces leading there, so it's just an anonymous cubic meter
 somewhere in the Earth's crust.
 You could drop it into the Mariana Trench, that's the deepest depth of
 ocean on the planet 
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--
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\end_inset

 or just pick some random other ocean trench, to make it less obvious.
 If you could make it buoyant and invisible, then you could throw it into
 the stratosphere.
 Or ideally you would launch it into space, with a cloak against detection,
 and a randomly fluctuating acceleration factor that would take it out of
 the Solar System.
 And afterward, of course, you'd Obliviate yourself, so even you didn't
 know exactly where it was.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The Defense Professor was laughing, and it sounded even odder than his smile.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Professor Quirrell?” Harry said.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“All excellent suggestions,” said Professor Quirrell.
 “But tell me, Mr.
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Potter, why those exact five?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Huh?” said Harry.
 “They just seemed like the obvious sorts of ideas.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Oh?” said Professor Quirrell.
 “But there is an interesting pattern to them, you see.
 One might say it sounds like something of a riddle.
 I must admit, Mr.
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Potter, that although it has had its ups and downs, on the whole, this has
 been a surprisingly good day.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
And they continued walking down the path that led to the gates of Hogwarts,
 quite some distance apart; as Harry, without even thinking about it, automatica
lly stayed far enough away from the Defense Professor not to trigger that
 sense of doom, which for some reason seemed unusually strong right now.
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\emph on
Aftermath, Daphne Greengrass:
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Hermione had refused to answer any questions, and as soon as they'd passed
 the split leading to the Slytherin dungeons, Daphne and Tracey had peeled
 off at once, walking as quickly as they could.
 Rumor traveled fast in Hogwarts, so they'd have to go to the dungeons right
 away if they wanted to be the first to tell everyone the story.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Now remember,” said Daphne, “don't just blurt out about the kiss as soon
 as we walk in, okay? It works better if we tell the whole story in order.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Tracey nodded excitedly.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
And as soon as they burst into the Slytherin common room, Tracey Davis took
 a deep breath and shouted, “
\emph on
Everyone! Harry Potter couldn't cast the Patronus Charm and the Dementor
 almost ate him and Professor Quirrell saved him but then Potter was all
 evil until Granger brought him back with a kiss! It's true love for sure!
\emph default
”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
It was ordered storytelling of a sort, Daphne supposed.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The news failed to produce the expected reaction.
 Most of the girls glanced over and then stayed in their couches, or the
 boys simply kept reading in their chairs.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Yes,” said Pansy sourly, from where she was sitting with Gregory's feet
 in her lap, leaning back and reading what seemed to be a coloring book,
 “Millicent already told us.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard

\emph on
How 
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\begin_layout Standard
“Why didn't 
\emph on
you
\emph default
 kiss him first, Tracey?” said Flora and Hestia Carrow from their own chairs.
 “Now Potter's going to marry a mudblood girl! 
\emph on
You
\emph default
 could've been his true love and gotten into a rich Noble House and everything
 if you'd just kissed him first!”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Tracey's face was a picture in stunned realization.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“
\emph on
What?
\emph default
” shrieked Daphne.
 “Love does not work like that!”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Of course it does,” stated Millicent from where she was practicing some
 sort of Charm while looking out a window at the swirling waters of the
 Hogwarts Lake.
 “First kiss gets the prince.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“
\emph on
It wasn't their first kiss!
\emph default
” shouted Daphne.
 “Hermione was 
\emph on
already
\emph default
 his true love! That's why 
\emph on
she
\emph default
 could bring him back!” Then Daphne realized what she'd just said and winced
 internally, but as the saying went, you had to fit the tongue to the ear.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, what?” said Gregory, swinging his feet off Pansy's lap.
 “What's this? Miss Bulstrode didn't tell that part.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Everyone else was also looking at Daphne, now.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Oh, yeah,” said Daphne, “Harry shoved her away and shouted, `I told you,
 no kissing!' Then Harry screamed like he was dying and Fawkes started singing
 to him 
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--
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\end_inset

 I'm not sure which one of those happened first, actually
\begin_inset space ~
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--
\end_layout

\end_inset

”
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\begin_layout Standard
“That doesn't sound like true love to 
\emph on
me,
\emph default

\begin_inset Quotes erd
\end_inset

 said the Carrow twins.
 “That sounds like the 
\emph on
wrong person
\emph default
 kissed him.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“It was supposed to be 
\emph on
me
\emph default
,” whispered Tracey.
 Her face was still stunned.
 “
\emph on
I
\emph default
 was supposed to be his true love.
 Harry Potter was 
\emph on
my
\emph default
 general.
 I should've, I should've fought Granger for him 
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status open

\begin_layout Plain Layout

--
\end_layout

\end_inset

”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Daphne spun on Tracey, incensed.
 “
\emph on
You?
\emph default
 Take Harry away from Hermione?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Yeah!” said Tracey.
 “Me!”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“You're nuts,” Daphne stated with conviction.
 “Even if you 
\emph on
had
\emph default
 kissed him first, you know what that would make you? The sad little lovestruck
 girl who dies at the end of Act Two.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“
\emph on
You take that back!
\emph default
” shouted Tracey.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Meanwhile, Gregory had crossed the room to where Vincent was doing his homework.
 “Mr.
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Crabbe,” Gregory said in a low voice, “I think Mr.
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\end_inset

Malfoy needs to know about this.”
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\begin_layout Standard

\emph on
Aftermath, Hermione Granger:
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Hermione stared at the wax-sealed paper, on the surface of which was inscribed
 simply the number 
\emph on
42.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Quote

\emph on
I figured out why we couldn't cast the Patronus Charm, Hermione, it doesn't
 have anything to do with us not being happy enough.
 But I can't tell you.
 I couldn't even tell the Headmaster.
 It needs to be even more secret than partial Transfiguration, for now,
 anyway.
 But if you ever need to fight Dementors, the secret is written here, crypticall
y, so that if someone doesn't know it's about Dementors and the Patronus
 Charm, they won't know what it means…
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
She'd told Harry about seeing him dying, her parents dying, all her friends
 dying, everyone dying.
 She hadn't told him about her terror of dying alone, somehow that was still
 too painful.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Harry had told her about remembering his parents dying, and that he'd thought
 it was funny.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Quote

\emph on
There's no light in the place the Dementor takes you, Hermione.
 No warmth.
 No caring.
 It's somewhere that you can't even understand happiness.
 There's pain, and fear, and those can still drive you.
 You can hate, and take pleasure in destroying what you hate.
 You can laugh, when you see other people hurting.
 But you can't ever be happy, you can't even remember what it is that isn't
 there anymore… I don't think there's any way I can ever explain just what
 you saved me from.
 I'm usually ashamed to put people to trouble, I usually can't stand it
 when people make sacrifices for me, but this one time I'll say that no
 matter what it ends up costing you to have kissed me, don't ever doubt
 for a second that it was the right thing to do.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Hermione hadn't realized how 
\emph on
little
\emph default
 the Dementor had touched her, how small and shallow had been the darkness
 into which it had taken her.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
She'd seen everyone dying, and that had still been able to hurt.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Hermione put the paper back into her pouch, like a good girl ought to.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
She'd really wanted to read it, though.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
She was frightened of Dementors.
\end_layout

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\end_inset


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\begin_layout Standard

\emph on
Aftermath, Minerva McGonagall:
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
She felt frozen; she shouldn't have been so shocked, she shouldn't have
 found Harry so hard to face, but after what he'd been through… She had
 searched the young boy in front of her for any signs of Dementation, and
 failed to find them.
 But something about the calm with which he had asked such a foreboding
 question seemed deeply worrying.
 “Mr.
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status open

\begin_layout Plain Layout


\backslash
 
\end_layout

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Potter, I can't possibly speak of such matters without the Headmaster's
 permission!”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The boy in her office took this in without changing expression.
 “I would prefer not to disturb the Headmaster over this matter,” Harry
 Potter said calmly.
 “I 
\emph on
insist
\emph default
 on not disturbing him, in fact, and you did promise that our conversation
 would be kept private.
 So let me put it this way.
 I know that there was, in fact, a prophecy.
 I know that you are the one who originally heard it from Professor Trelawney.
 I know that the prophecy identified the child of James and Lily as someone
 dangerous to the Dark Lord.
 And I know who I am, indeed everyone now knows who I am, so you are revealing
 nothing new or dangerous, if you tell me only this: What was the 
\emph on
exact wording
\emph default
 which identified 
\emph on
me,
\emph default
 the child of James and Lily?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Trelawney's hollow voice echoed in her mind 
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status open

\begin_layout Plain Layout

--
\end_layout

\end_inset


\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard

\emph on
BORN TO THOSE WHO HAVE THRICE DEFIED HIM,
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard

\emph on
BORN AS THE SEVENTH MONTH DIES…
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Harry,” said Professor McGonagall, “I can't possibly tell you that!” It
 chilled her to the bone that Harry knew so much already, she couldn't imagine
 how Harry had learned 
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status open

\begin_layout Plain Layout

--
\end_layout

\end_inset


\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The boy looked at her with strange, sorrowful eyes.
 “Can you not sneeze without the Headmaster's permission, Professor McGonagall?
 For I do promise to you that I have good reason to ask, and good reason
 to keep the question private.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“Please don't, Harry,” she whispered.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“All right,” Harry said.
 “One simple question.
 Please.
 Was the Potter family mentioned by 
\emph on
name?
\emph default
 Does the prophecy literally say `Potter'?”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
She stared at Harry for a while.
 She couldn't have said why or where she got the sense that this was a critical
 point, that she could not lightly refuse the request, nor lightly accede
 to it 
\begin_inset ERT
status open

\begin_layout Plain Layout

--
\end_layout

\end_inset


\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
“No,” she finally said.
 “Please, Harry, don't ask any more.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The boy smiled, a little sadly it seemed, and said, “Thank you, Minerva.
 You are a good woman and true.”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
And while her mouth was still open in utter shock, Harry Potter got up and
 left the office; and only then did she realize that Harry had taken her
 refusal as an answer, and the true answer at that 
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status open

\begin_layout Plain Layout

--
\end_layout

\end_inset


\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Harry closed the door behind himself.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The logic had presented itself with a strange diamondlike clarity.
 Harry couldn't have said if it had come to him during Fawkes's singing,
 or maybe even before.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Lord Voldemort had killed James Potter.
 He had preferred to spare Lily Potter's life.
 He had continued his attack, therefore, with the sole purpose of killing
 their infant child.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Dark Lords were not usually scared of infant children.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
So there was a prophecy about Harry Potter being dangerous to Lord Voldemort,
 and Lord Voldemort had known that prophecy.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard

\emph on
“I give you this rare chance to flee.
 But I will not trouble myself to subdue you, and your death here will not
 save your child.
 Step aside, foolish woman, if you have any sense in you at all!”
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Had it been a whim, to give her that chance? But then Lord Voldemort would
 not have tried to persuade her.
 Had the prophecy warned Lord Voldemort against killing Lily Potter? Then
 Lord Voldemort 
\emph on
would
\emph default
 have troubled himself to subdue her.
 Lord Voldemort had been 
\emph on
mildly
\emph default
 inclined not to kill Lily Potter.
 The preference had been stronger than a whim, but not as strong as a warning.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
So suppose that someone whom Lord Voldemort considered a lesser ally or
 servant, useful but not indispensable, had begged the Dark Lord to spare
 Lily's life.
 Lily's, but not James's.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
This person had known that Lord Voldemort would attack the house of the
 Potters.
 Had known both the prophecy, and the fact that the Dark Lord knew it.
 Otherwise he would not have begged Lily's life.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
According to Professor McGonagall, besides herself, the other two who knew
 of the prophecy were Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Severus Snape, who had loved Lily before she was Lily Potter, and hated
 James.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Severus, then, had learned of the prophecy, and told it to the Dark Lord.
 Which he had done because the prophecy had not described the Potters by
 name.
 It had been a riddle, and Severus had solved that riddle only too late.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
But if Severus had been the 
\emph on
first
\emph default
 to hear the prophecy, and disposed to tell it to the Dark Lord, then why
 would he also have told Dumbledore or Professor McGonagall?
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Therefore Dumbledore or Professor McGonagall had heard it first.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The Headmaster of Hogwarts had no obvious reason to tell the Transfiguration
 Professor about an extremely sensitive and crucial prophecy.
 But the Transfiguration Professor had every reason to tell the Headmaster.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
It seemed likely, then, that Professor McGonagall had been the first to
 hear it.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
The prior probabilities said that it had been Professor Trelawney, Hogwarts's
 resident seer.
 Seers were rare, so if you counted up most of the seconds Professor McGonagall
 had spent in the presence of a seer over the course of her lifetime, most
 of those seer-seconds would be Trelawney-seconds.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Professor McGonagall had told Dumbledore, and would have told no one else
 about the prophecy without permission.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Therefore, it was Albus Dumbledore who had arranged for Severus Snape to
 somehow learn of the prophecy.
 And Dumbledore himself had solved the riddle successfully, or he would
 not have selected 
\emph on
Severus
\emph default
, who had once loved Lily, as the intermediary.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Dumbledore had deliberately arranged for Lord Voldemort to hear about the
 prophecy, in hopes of luring him to his death.
 Perhaps Dumbledore had arranged for Severus to learn only 
\emph on
some
\emph default
 of the prophecy, or there were other prophecies of which Severus had remained
 innocent… somehow Dumbledore had known that an 
\emph on
immediate
\emph default
 attack on the Potters would still lead to Lord Voldemort's 
\emph on
immediate
\emph default
 defeat, although Lord Voldemort himself had not believed this.
 Or maybe that had just been a lucky stroke of Dumbledore's insanity, his
 taste for bizarre plots…
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Severus had ended up serving Dumbledore afterward; perhaps the Death Eaters
 would not look kindly on Severus if Dumbledore revealed his role in their
 defeat.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Dumbledore had tried to arrange for Harry's mother to be spared.
 But that part of his plot had failed.
 And he had knowingly condemned James Potter to his death.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
Dumbledore was responsible for the deaths of Harry's parents.
 
\emph on
If
\emph default
 the whole chain of logic was correct.
 Harry could not, in justice, say that successfully ending the Wizarding
 War did not count as extenuating circumstances.
 But somehow this still… 
\emph on
bothered him a great deal.
\end_layout

\begin_layout Standard
And it was time and past time to ask Draco Malfoy what the 
\emph on
other
\emph default
 side of that war had to say about the character of Albus Percival Wulfric
 Brian Dumbledore.
\end_layout

\end_body
\end_document