Harry Potter in Changed Prophecy and the Philosopher's Stone -Book 01-

Harry stared at the bearded old man standing there. Flashes of disconnected memory suddenly appeared, and with that Harry quickly dictated:

- Albus! The Stone! It was Quirrell! He got the Stone...

- Calm down, boy, you're a bit late. Quirrell didn't get the Stone.

- So who got hit? Teacher? Me...

- Harry, please relax or Madam Pomfrey will have me expelled.

Harry swallowed and looked around. He realized he must be in the hospital wing. He was lying on a bed with white linen sheets and next to him was a table cluttered with what looked like half of the sweet store and hundreds of stacked letters.

- Gifts from your friends and admirers. - Dumbledore clarified, smiling.

- What happened between you and Professor Quirrell is an absolute secret, so, of course, the whole school already knows. - Dumbledore said with an indignant laugh at the school's high gossip system. - I believe that our friends, Mr. Fred and Mr. George Weasley, were responsible for trying to send you a toilet seat. I'm sure they thought you'd find it funny. Madam Pomfrey, however, thought it might be unhygienic and confiscated it.

- How long have I been here? - Harry asked with vivid, enlightening flashes spreading through his mind.

- Three days. Mr. Weasley and Mr. Longbottom and Mrs. Granger and Mrs. Tonks will be very relieved that you're back. Granger and Tonks will be very relieved that you're back to your senses, they were worried sick. Especially the latter, who didn't want to let you go at any time. - The principal said with an air of knowing very well what was going on in this castle. An air of knowing too much.

- But, Professor, the Stone... what happened?

- That's what I wanted to ask you, Harry... What happened in that hall? - Dumbledore asked, showing genuine curiosity, and instantly Harry felt all his mental protection being checked and put on high alert to prevent any invasion, but that soon ended when Albus noticed he was in an environment he didn't know about. - Imagine my surprise to arrive at the ministry and discover that I'd been the target of a prank before a fake meeting, to Apparate to Hogwarts, find my deputy principal a victim of the Imperius Curse, and find all my teachers on their way to the third floor.

- Not only that, accompanying them under the pleas and entreaties of their three friends and a Weasley left in the hospital wing, my biggest surprise was arriving at the destination of all this and finding all the protections open, a hall in ruins, one of my teachers completely injured on the verge of death, and one of my most committed students suffering from excessive magical drainage.

- So, I ask you, what happened that only Ojesed's mirror remained without any apparent damage? - Dumbledore asked, touching the object with his right hand, making Harry finally notice the mirror in the hospital wing.

Sighing deeply as he searched for some fixed point of what exactly had happened that night, Harry finally began his explanation, phase by phase. Challenge by challenge:

[ ... ]

- And as I was saying: - Harry said after steadying his breath from the prolonged explanation. - Quirrell went on to cast dozens of spells against me, all of them very complex and even some that reminded me of the night my parents were murdered.

- I can only faintly remember that point... and... that it all started in an uncontrollable rage of his, after I got the Philosopher's Stone and threw it at the black flames behind him.

- I've seen that you don't let yourself relax in a moment of tension. Your efforts were commendable in preventing the thief from reaching the Stone, and for a minute, when I got to the teachers, I thought I'd lost you. - Dumbledore thoughtfully mentioned what Harry referred to as dangerous, greenish magic, when in fact it was one of the deadliest in existence. - The Stone. Professor Quirrell couldn't get it out of you. As I said, it was commendable of him to throw it into the cursed fire, knowing that he wouldn't be able to return to capture it without a potion just like the one his friends had drunk earlier, but... unfortunately, it led to it being destroyed.

- WHAT? - Harry exclaimed without understanding. - But your friend, Nicolas Flamel.

 Ah! Have you ever heard of Nicholas? - Dumbledore asked, looking delighted, because at the beginning of this year he had really aimed to get everything he knew about the alchemist out of the library. - You really did the right thing, didn't you? I just didn't know that the charge and power of a cursed fire created by me was capable of destroying such a precious artifact... It was a surprise even to me, I think I underestimated the power of my wand. - The principal continued to explain, while twirling a wand very similar to Harry's between his fingers.

Seeing the silence of the Boy-Who-Lived, not once but twice before the fallen Dark Lord. Dumbledore finally sighed in a complicit smile at the younger man's enlightening silence:

 - Nicolau and I had a little chat over the last few days, and we agreed that this was for the best. Today he informed me that he was going to settle some final matters, and asked me to deliver this as a thank you for preventing a dark sorcerer from taking possession of his greatest creation.

Receiving a book on alchemy in his hands, Harry quickly flipped through it, where he noticed many handwritten notes and corrections:

- But this means that he and his wife are going to die, doesn't it? - Harry asked, after strangely reading a sequence of random numbers on the back cover.

- They have enough elixir to get their affairs in order and then, well, unfortunately they're going to die. - Dumbledore smiled complacently when he saw the surprised look on Harry's face.

- For someone young like you, I'm sure this sounds incredible and terrible at the same time, but for Nicolau and Perenell, it's actually like going to bed after a very, very long day. After all, for the well-structured mind, death is just the next big adventure. You know, the Stone wasn't such a good thing. All the money and life you could ever want! The two things that most human beings would choose in the first place. The problem is that humans have the condition of choosing exactly the things that are worst for them.

Harry lay there, unable to find an answer. At no time had he looked him in the eye, which Dumbledore again took to mean that Harry was sad or upset about what had happened, little knowing that there were even more things around him that were hidden from his comprehension.

Dumbledore hummed a little and smiled at the ceiling. He then turned back to the mirror thoughtfully, as if taking one last look at what it showed.

- Director? - Harry said. - I've been thinking... even if the Stone has been destroyed, Vol... I mean, Lord-Knows-Who...

- Call him Voldemort. Always call things by their name. The fear of a name increases the fear of the thing itself.

- Yes, sir. Well, Voldemort will try other ways of coming back, won't he? I mean, he's not gone for good, is he?

- No, Harry, it didn't. He's still out there somewhere, perhaps looking for another body to possess... without actually being alive, he can't be killed. He probably abandoned Quirrell when he sensed the teachers coming, and he shows the same lack of mercy to his allies as he does to his enemies. However, Harry, although you may only have delayed his return to power, next time we'll just need someone else who's prepared to fight what looks like a losing battle. And if he's repeatedly delayed, well, maybe he'll never regain power.

Harry nodded in agreement, but stopped immediately because the nod made his head hurt. Then he said:

- Director, there are other things I'd like to know, if you can tell me... things I'd like to know, the truth...

- The truth. - Sighed Dumbledore. - It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and must therefore be treated with great caution. But I will answer your questions, unless there is a good reason not to, in which case I ask you to forgive me. I won't, of course, lie.

- Well... Voldemort said that he only killed my mother because she tried to stop him from killing me. But why, after all, would he want to kill me?

Dumbledore sighed very deeply this time:

- What a shame, the first thing you ask me, I won't be able to answer. Not today. Not now... you'll find out one day... For now, put it out of your mind, Harry. When you're older... I know you hate to hear it... but when you're ready, you'll know.

And Harry understood that there was no point in insisting, in fact, right then and there he understood that if his safety and trust depended on this man, he could die because of the actions of others, it wasn't a childish judgment, in reality he needed answers in order to create contingency plans as he had always done in his life, but the principal wanted to continue seeing a child there, a malleable child who could enjoy his childhood, but abused children don't grow up adept at authority figures and heroic honors, as the principal was so proud of the gifts Harry received from the Hogwarts public, he wanted Harry to embrace this link in magical society by treating him as a hero, when all that was on his mind was how to avoid coming as close to death as he had in the last fight:

- But why couldn't Quirrell touch me? I mean, he almost lost his hand... and I still had to pierce him with my katana so he couldn't make contact anymore. - Harry said. - I know it sounds silly... but the one who was fighting me wasn't Quirrell, of course there was Voldemort there, but he seemed more like a human shell without a soul.

- And... in the end, I just wanted to be able not to end an innocent life simply because an enemy sworn to me wanted to affect me, taking anyone in his path. - Harry, who explained everything like a complete adult, and not like the innocent child that Dumbledore wanted to see and preserve, soon made the principal think that perhaps Harry was more than ready to know the truth.

But even so, his desire to preserve the greater good was evident... be it Harry's greater good, the greater good of the world, the greater good of his plans, the greater good of his student, or indeed the greater good of Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore.

- Your mother died to save you. If there's one thing Voldemort can't understand, it's love. He doesn't understand that a strong love like your mother's for you leaves its own mark. It's not a scar, it's not a visible sign... having been loved so deeply, even if the person who loved you has already died, gives you eternal protection. - The director wisely explained. - It's ingrained in our skin. That's why Quirrell, full of hatred, greed and ambition, sharing his soul with Voldemort, couldn't touch him. It was agony to touch a person marked by something so good and pure.

- I know... I shouldn't have thought of the greater good of my enemy. - Harry said. - But... to think that there was a man in there with his life ahead of him, being used as a puppet... I really believe that saving a soul like that isn't all bad, who knows... but just who knows... in the near future he might be able to help me with something good, am I wrong? - Harry asked the principal, surprised even more by his student's hidden intellect, and how this had already removed one of the boy's great suspicions, that the scar on him wasn't just a scar, but a soul trying to possess him, if not already possessed and just fooling everyone.

- Actually, Harry... you're quite right. - Dumbledore said nostalgically with a vision of his past self. - A long time ago, I had someone who was important to me, someone I wanted to save from the darkness, to give him a second chance if I can put it that way... but unfortunately, it was with the wrong person... I see light in you..., but I also see a thirst for general knowledge for the sake of your protection and what matters to you.

- I'd really like to see the soul you saved from the Dark Lord one day become a great ally against the evil that may one day appear.

Then Dumbledore took a keen interest in a bird on the windowsill, which gave Harry time to get out of bed, only to notice that he was without any upper garments.

Seeing dozens of scars on his chest, which certainly hadn't been there before what happened with Quilldemort. Harry immediately shuddered internally that someone else had seen this.

He knew that his body healed quickly, and almost seventy percent of his scars had disappeared, but there they were, completely exposed, as if something had hidden them until now without the victim's knowledge.

Harry, who was studying himself, could see marks from wires, belts, cuts, chains, welts, and many others that didn't give him a grotesque appearance, but rather indicated that his life had never been easy from an early age.

- Ah, my boy... about that. - Dumbledore began with a sorrowful look on his face. - Madam Pomfrey carried out a complete diagnosis on you under my supervision, we found a lot of things, the main one being an unconscious and accidental feat of magic, which allowed you to hide everything that made you suffer the most, keeping only your lightest scars visible, I really mean that for the first time I felt hatred towards the No-mag, based on what they did to you. - Seeing Harry's darkening gaze, Dumbledore continued while Harry didn't misunderstand what he was saying. - Apparently, I didn't understand the true evil of humanity that well, and unlike our society, they don't value the safety and existence of children and what they represent to the future of our history. Since the end of the year festivities, I've planned to travel to your aunt and uncle's house, I've studied your life there, the school environment, your medical examinations, what happened to you and whether everything you told me was true and without any concealment. - Dumbledore quoted. - I must apologize most sincerely for what your life was like with them.

- I know there are no words that can solve all this. And I don't even know how much pain you carry, hide, and keep aside for your own self-protection... I could really see that when your metabolism sped up overnight, it wasn't a gift, but an immediate reaction of self-safety that was only activated in a life-threatening case, I never thought that you would be in such danger being there...

- So I came up with a few plans... first, there are blood-protecting wards around that house, in reference to wards that are only fortified by your presence, thus preventing enemies from finding your uncles, and especially from finding you. These wards were created a long time ago, not by me, but by your mother.

 Sighing as he spoke and as Harry's gaze studied him in detail, not at all liking the way this conversation was going, especially in view of the fact that he had run away from home, the old principal recovered his voice and said:

- I also tried to fulfill his requests... but unfortunately the ministry refused hostilely in view of his lack of age.

- What I mean is... in compensation for not being able to pass on my guardianship to someone you trust. I aimed to change the blood wards on your house to something less rigid, unfortunately canceling those wards would be a great warning to any dark wizard who resents you for the fall of the Dark Lord years ago. - Seeing Potter's analytical look. The Headmaster soon came to the main point. - For the sake of this, I ask that you at least stay in that house for a month. That way, the wards inside will be fully fortified, charging a higher rate of magic, but in the end, allowing you to be free for the rest of the time, staying there for just one month and thus being able to go about your life as you please.

- Hm... - Harry muttered, seeing behind the old man's words that he might have been asking, but no, the way he delivered the facts represented that he had no say in the matter and everything had already been established. - All right... a month won't be a problem, it'll be enough time to talk to my little cousin, and as much as I hate those two pigs who claim to be the supremacy of reason and have an eminent desire to make them suffer for what they've caused me, I wouldn't do it, because it could result in something bad affecting my relationship with Duda.

Sighing with relief at Harry's response, the principal soon sensed that there was something wrong with the boy's maniacal grin:

- But... - That was what Dumbledore feared. Harry really did know how to be a great hidden manipulator, because ever since he was enrolled, not once had he seen a real smile on the boy, every smile, every laugh, every word seemed to be analyzed, calculated and used in the most effective way in front of the children of this school, with only the adults being able to see Potter's true calculating persona. - I'll still want that mirror... not for my own use, but as an act of good faith towards Gringotts, which was literally my first connection in this world, in which they showed unparalleled humility and loyalty.

- Hnpf... All right... - Dumbledore sighed as he looked at his reflection in the mirror, something in which a gray-haired man aimed a smile at him. - I think it's about time he moved on and overcame the illusion.

- And... - Harry dictated, causing the principal to look at him in confusion, because he really didn't know what Harry was trying to force him to accept.

A thousand things were going through the principal's mind, whether it was Harry wanting the Sorting Hat, some rare artifact from his office, or anything else circling around the inaccessible mind of this boy who seemed so simple at his computer desk, but at the same time so complex that, in almost a year, he had never once looked him in the eye, thus preventing the principal from at least getting a peek into his mind.

- Ever since you saw my scars from the "happy, joyful and peaceful" life I've had for the last eleven years? - Harry explained, shading his gaze in false seriousness. - I want you to deactivate the Alter Ego around you and show me who you really are...

- No manipulations, Dumbledore... For in this art I am not ignorant. Show me who you really are, and then I'll be able to give you a vote of confidence after all that I've received in your ridiculous job as magic guardian.

Seeing the principal's surprised look, Harry actually felt like laughing. But then the "old grandfather" simply discarded his humble and helpless countenance, while a glow seemed to take hold around him.

One moment, Harry had covered his eyes at the light spreading from the bearded old man in front of him, and the next, he was scratching his eyes as he saw a completely different image from the one he had imagined the principal to have.

It was a man of the same height as the director standing in front of him, his back to him as he stared at himself in Ojesed's mirror.

He was wearing black dress pants, a dark overcoat that was in line with what appeared to be a young and healthy body, and an elegant top hat above his head.

- Dumbledore? - Harry asked and the man turned as he smiled, but not the grandfatherly smile that Harry had become so accustomed to, but a simple smile, of someone who was extremely calm about showing who he really was.

His face was clean-shaven, and by not looking directly into the eyes of the man in front of him, Harry had been able to study him completely, his posture, his hand wielding a wand that gave off a feeling of pure power, and even his eyes, eyes that were as blue as those of the Weasley family.

Harry really appreciated having this ability to analyze others, without even moving his eyes around or focusing directly on one point. And clearly the principal in front of him smiled, he smiled as if he understood what Harry was doing, he smiled as if Harry could only study him because he wanted to, and at the same time, the principal seemed to be proud of something.

- Yes, Harry... that's me, really. - Dumbledore said, opening his arms at his sides. - Incredible, isn't it? The miracles of magic. While the No-mag aim to age quickly, we wizards have managed to raise this to the point where even some are a hundred and eighty years old and still look their best in their twenties and thirties.

- Yeah, but tell me... - Harry began. - Why hide?

- It's not about hiding, Harry... it's about adapting to what society expects of a powerful principal and wizard at such an advanced age.

- Just imagine, as incredible as it is to have a young and powerful principal at one of the most prestigious schools of magic and witchcraft... pretending to be a benevolent grandfather, who can give you both protection and advice, makes everything easier both here at the school and at the Ministry of Magic itself.

- Yes, as you said yourself... manipulations, but there is a big difference between manipulating for the greater good, and others who manipulate things for an imminent evil or catastrophe. - Dumbledore explained, waving his wand, and with a simple nod, a swift mallet was drawn to where they were standing.

With Harry recognizing him, Dumbledore smiled jokingly at the shocked look on the teenage-looking boy's face.

- Interesting case... would you believe that a good friend of mine had one just like it? - Dumbledore said to Harry, then looked at him without knowing what to say.

As much as he had asked the director to stop pretending to be something, he hadn't expected this drastic change of scenery. It was as if the bearded old man knew everything and everyone, and yet he didn't care about anything, as if things were going completely smoothly.

- Oh, don't mind... I'm not confiscating it or anything unreasonable, I'm just attracting it so that you can get dressed in a little while and put that mirror away, I believe the end-of-school-year appointment is taking place this evening, and you'll need to get ready quickly to collect your exam results before the final banquet.

- Let me get this straight... so you know everything? - Harry asked, receiving an understanding smile.

- You know... I've always felt an affinity with the great magical birds. - Dumbledore began. - There's a legend in my family that a phoenix will always help a Dumbledore in trouble, I have mine... and you, ah, the magical power of a wand in the right hands is incredible, am I right? - He explained everything naturally.

- It really was incredible when Hagrid told me about your wands, and how you created life from nothing with a wand that not even I had been able to choose for a long time? even more incredible when you smuggled a dragon from Hagrid's hut into your suitcase, and even more incredible, how you created an incredible commotion in the Ministry of Magic, just by the fact that they believed that a dragon was being smuggled out of Hogwarts by the Boy-Who-Lived, only for it to be a Weasley prank on the understanding of the ministry that confiscated a box containing a stone sculpture. - He said amusingly, as if that had made his day. - You really displeased one of the political powers there.

- Let's just say that I'm surprised by your first year and everything you've achieved. I know you're suspicious of me in relation to the Philosopher's Stone, but that really wasn't part of any plan. Nicolau is a great friend, he knew that there was no safer place than Hogwarts to keep the Stone, he just didn't expect that long before these plans were formulated, Professor Quirrell would already be under the control of a Dark Lord so weakened that he couldn't even be felt in the castle wards.

- I was keeping her safe, and it happened that you were targeted too, make no mistake. I feel bad about the destruction of the Philosopher's Stone, but with a good talk with my friend Nicolau, I was able to clear my mind and thoughts.

- You're still young, Harry. I really want to preserve your innocence and make you enjoy your youth as I once did, but I know it's a bit late for that. Because of this, I won't interfere in your life outside of school even though I'm your magical guardian, I ask that you be responsible with what you do away from your aunt and uncle's house, and when you return to it for a month, I ask that you make sure you notice that you're returning to your little cousin who really is someone who values you, and sees you as a source of inspiration.

- Your aunt and uncle were well warned by a certain bearded, stylish, blue-eyed man with a top hat on his head, who certainly didn't look anything like the old Hogwarts principal. - Dumbledore finally explained, mentioning every aspect of himself in his current form. - For this, I again ask forgiveness for my absence as your wizarding guardian, I ask forgiveness for what you went through in that house, forgiveness for your traumas... and finally, I ask that you do not fall or succumb to the wrong side of things, to a whole world for you to explore and enjoy, do not let the problems of a government delay your life as they delayed mine.

- You're a strong, intelligent, clever boy, and you certainly have a legion of fans and some women who are certainly attracted to you... don't give up a life of glory and happiness because of what your uncles have done, and don't go down the path of revenge against a Dark Lord either, because that would only make you slowly wither away.

- Wow... - Harry sighed heavily. - I really expected someone younger... but not someone with such a powerful magical presence. I must admit, your manipulations are great, and this Ministry of Magic would really be afraid when it saw you acting and speaking so directly.

- But all right... from now on we're going to start all over again and on the right foot. I don't know why you have so much emotional control, when if I were you, anyone would go mad and become a spoiled dark wizard wanting to cause pain and terror to others... but, really, I just want to forget 99% of what I had before my eleventh birthday, focusing only on the memories with my little cousin. - Harry explained, holding out his hands, which the principal shook firmly in greeting, still trying to look Potter in the eye. - And don't think that we're friends... don't think that you can quote a motivational speech and think that you've dragged me into some kind of war, don't think that I'm going to let you look into my eyes and read my mind like you tried to do when I woke up, and even less, don't believe at any time that I'm a puppet to be manipulated by you for your greater good.

- I have my own plans, I have my own ambitions, and until I truly believe that this "greater good" of yours is something truly worthy of my attention and trust, then until then you stay in your Dumbledore. And it doesn't matter if it's you, Voldemort or anyone else from this Mirror Dimension, I'll be the strongest wizard there is. - Harry dictated with incredible seriousness, in which Albus Dumbledore would only really understand that this was no joke when a potential of the same level as his was so suddenly exposed in a short period of time.

- You try to manipulate me, Dumbledore, and I respond by manipulating you... we'll see what this results in in the end, because I can really see that you're not what you should be, there's something there, I just don't know what it is yet. - For the first time, Harry said this time, answering Dumbledore's gaze with a challenging smile.

Immediately, his mind played audible electronic music in his ears again, with the director blinking in surprise and a certain pained grimace as he took a step back, but then smiled defiantly at the incredible mental defense that had just taken place.

- Well done... boy. - Dumbledore said jokingly, to Harry's laughter, and finally they both finished their debate.

[ ... ]

Dumbledore aimed a smile as Harry opened his trunk and took out a complete suit that he had bought before coming to Hogwarts, spread it out on a hanger and promptly studied the wand in the principal's hands, who was savoring one of the sweets that Harry had won.

She was unlike anyone he had ever seen, she had a strong presence like his own, and Harry didn't want to get into the subject of them, as he still didn't know what he could really do with his own and what the principal's could do.

Dumbledore, on the other hand, had never imagined the Potter boy being like that, he had thought of someone apparently older, perhaps more intellectual, but with an innocent mind, who needed a steady support to move on, or perhaps, given his suspicions about the unprecedented magic of his scar, that something was taking control of Harry and manipulating everyone before the slaughter, But no, after everything and the truths that had been thrown in his face, Dumbledore was certain that this was really the son of Lility, the Death Eater reaper who, in a state of madness, had slaughtered almost the entire inner circle of the Dark Lord during the last war.

There he was, a boy of only eleven, with the aptitude for four great houses of Hogwarts, with two exceptionally powerful wands, with a hidden and calculating intellect, greatly surprising one of the greatest wizards currently alive in the entire magical world. And this only made the principal yearn for more of this rivalry of ideals with his student and Boy-Who-Lived.

Harry turned behind his sympathetic grandfatherly mask and showed that he really wasn't afraid of this and wouldn't be manipulated into anything. If he was going to keep Harry by his side as an ally, he would have to stop acting as he had been doing since the last war, he would have to stop believing that everything he did was for the greater good, the fame that wizards brought to his name could really make everything go to his head, and since everyone expected something from Dumbledore, he had started acting alone to really achieve it, and now he would have to stop, or else he would really lose Harry Potter's trust, and that couldn't be fixed.

Harry was already coming back from his daydreams about wands and Dumbledore's ideals of peace. Harry soon asked, while there was still time:

- And the invisibility cloak? Do you know who sent it to me? - Harry asked, with the principal turning away. - Why do I ask, of course you know. - Harry continued, with the older man laughing.

- Ah, by chance your father left it with me and I thought you might like to receive it as a present. Don't look at me like that, it would be strange and extremely biased if out of the blue the principal appeared in plain sight and gave you a cape like that, and I didn't know if you'd be one of those spoiled children who go off thinking they've won something from someone. - Dumbledore's eyes lit up. - Useful things... your father mainly used it to sneak into the kitchen, steal food when he was here, or other things that he and his rowdy little group used to pull on everyone in their infamous pranks on the Naughty.

- And there's one more thing... - Harry said, watching the man raise his wand towards his own face.

- Go ahead. - The man replied.

- Quirrell said that Snape... - Harry tried to say, but the older man immediately rebuked him.

- Professor Snape, Harry.

- Yes, sir, he... It's true that he hates me because he hated my father. Is that really true? And if so, why has he been so meek compared to the other students when he sees me?

- Well, he and his father hated each other a lot, it was more like a rivalry for a lady's heart... and besides, his father did something that Snape could never forgive, just as Snape did things that he himself would never forgive.

- What? - Harry asked, curious to find out more about his father.

- Your father saved his life. - The director explained directly.

- Really? - Harry asked.

- Yes... - Said Dumbledore dreamily. - It's funny how people's minds work, isn't it? Professor Snape couldn't bear the fact that he owed his father. Likewise, he can't forgive himself for his past sins.

- I think he's been trying hard to protect you this year because he thought it would get him even with your father. That way you could go back to hating James' memory in peace.

Harry tried to understand, but felt his head throbbing from his still weakened state, so he stopped.

- But also, it was an incredible surprise for the potions master that the son of the person he hated the most was a potions lover... I think it really softened him up, and made him respect you in the slightest for all the hard work you've done during the school year.

- It may not seem like much, but of all people, I feared that his hostility would end up clouding his professionalism, so imagine my surprise to see that he has gradually grown fond of you, both for healing his leg with such advanced magic and for your extra work on potions.

- Yeah... but I hope that if you do talk to him at some point. You'll explain to him that such treatment has to be given to everyone, not just me.

- I even try not to give any indication of favoritism to any house when my initial choice was to be in Gryffindor, but it's no use when he turns his own Slytherin students against the others, and treats them as nobility while only harassing the other houses and especially Gryffindor.

- About that... I think you can really work it out. You know, be a Divergent, go through all the houses and dormitories. - Dumbledore said, turning green. - Imagine the repercussions, both from the students and from the Ministry, when they learn that the Gryffindor golden boy is having a friendly relationship with the Slytherins, who are always misunderstood and branded as rising villains. Great changes can come about over the years, and this with small acts of your own.

- Well... that wouldn't be a problem. I heard that Slytherin has private rooms for each student, so maybe next school year I'll decide to buy some green robes. - He replied with a smile.

 And, director, just one more thing...

- That's it? I still have to get back to being a "wise old man", and sort out a few things for the final ceremony.

- I see, I know that the Philosopher's Stone was destroyed by flames. - Harry dictated. - But how did I get the Stone out of the mirror? I mean, it was as if I held it, put it in my pocket in my reflection, and, as a result, the weight of the Stone actually appeared with me.

- Ah, I'm glad you asked me. It was one of my most brilliant ideas, and between you and me, it's something. You see, only a person who wanted to find the Stone, find it without using it, could obtain it, otherwise they would only find themselves producing gold and drinking elixirs of life. My brain sometimes surprises even me... - He said, touching his wand to his head in a funny way.

- Now, no more questions. I suggest you start eating those sweets. Ah, beans of all flavors! When I was young, I had the misfortune of finding one that tasted like vomit, and I'm afraid I've lost my taste for them ever since. But I don't think I'm in any danger with a nice caramel, do you? - And smiling, he popped a little dark caramel bean into his mouth. Then he choked and said:

- What a shame! Earwax. - Dumbledore finally said with a bitter face, and at that he shone brightly again when he touched the tip of his wand to his forehead.

- Again, I advise you to be careful with that case. I won't forbid you to use it... but I can't allow you to be caught with it either, there are too many hunters and bad wizards who would recognize it... that's why:

And with a flick of his wand for the last time, Harry finally saw that it had now been transformed into a new suitcase, adorned with dark choir and a Hogwarts symbol, along with a flaming Phoenix inlaid next to a Snowy Owl.

- Permanent Transfiguration, and Advanced Magic Concealment Spell... I think that's enough. - The principal explained, smiling with his grandfatherly air around him again. - And... don't forget the tricky little button, next to it there'll be another permanent reduction and expansion button to keep it easily with you. - Finally, he said, smiling playfully, as he showed the test of what he was saying and the tiny case intended to shrink minimally like a bracelet on his arm, only to shrink back to its original size under Potter's understanding.

And with that, he was finally out of the hospital wing, with Madam Pomfrey finally invading, treating the boy as if he had just come out of a war, having to redo all the diagnoses and his diets with nutritious potions.

[ ... ]

Madam Pomfrey: The head of the hospital wing at Hogwarts, she was a good person, a beautiful blonde he had known since the beginning of the school year, but... very strict.

- Please... just five minutes. - Harry pleaded after so many medical tests and vaccinations, now that his body was minimally healthy compared to the internal malnutrition that his aunt and uncle's home had brought on and which was hidden by the magical appearance.

- Absolutely not.

- You let Professor Dumbledore in earlier.

- Well, of course, he's the director, it's very different. And what's the point of him letting you eat that mountain of sweets? You need to rest.

- I'm resting, look, lying down and everything. Ah, please, Madam Pomfrey...

- Oh, very well. But only for five minutes. - And with a puppy dog look from him. Then she snorted. - All right... the owl can come in too, Merlin, it's like she's treating you like her baby, not the other way around.

And she let Ron and Hermione in who were carrying a snowy bird that had flown swiftly at its owner.

Pecking furiously under its head, everyone laughed at the intelligence of the bird, which surely knew that its owner had almost died days ago.

- Harry! - Hermione seemed about to hug him again, but Harry saw that she was holding back because his head still had an angry bird on it that seemed to be insulting him with its frantic pecking and noises.

- Ah, Harry, we were sure you'd get better... even though Dumbledore was so worried the night it happened.

- The whole school talks about nothing else. The Stone, Quirrell, Cerberus, everything. - Ron said, proud to be in the middle of the gossip. - But, really, what happened?

It was one of the rare occasions when the true story was even stranger and more exciting than the fantastic rumors. Harry wanted to tell everything..., but knowing that he couldn't be in the castle yet, he limited himself to what he had explained to the principal.

Ron and Hermione were good listeners, exclaiming at the right times and when Harry told them what was under Quirrell's turban, Hermione let out a scream.

- So the Stone was destroyed? - Ron finally asked. - Is Flamel just going to die?

- That's what I asked, but Dumbledore thinks... what was it again? - He thought about it. - That for the well-structured mind, death is the next great adventure.

- I always said he was crazy. - Said Ron, looking very impressed by the sheer madness of his hero.

- So what happened to you and the other two? - Harry asked.

- Well, I'm back without any problems. - Hermione said. - I took Ron to the hospital wing. Neville and Tonks went after Dumbledore, when I found her back on the third floor, all the teachers were there, and Dumbledore came running like someone his age wouldn't be able to, he already knew, and just said "Harry went after him, didn't he?", and stormed off to where you were.

- Do you think he wanted you to do that? I mean, he seemed very worried when he arrived in the hospital wing with you in his arms, but who knows? - Ron asked. - Did he send your father's cape and everything?

- Good! - Hermione exploded. - If he did that, I mean... that's horrible, you could have been killed.

- No, it's not horrible! I don't know if it was on purpose or not, but I discovered a lot of things today and that's enough. - Said Harry thoughtfully. - He's a funny man, Dumbledore. Manipulative as far as I can see, but not someone who's just plain evil.

- I don't think it was by chance that you let me find out how the mirror worked. It was almost as if he thought that I had the right to face Voldemort if I could... and that, in any case, only benefited me. - Harry explained as he lowered the mirror using magic.

- Girl... can you make me a very special delivery? - Harry asked while his owl hooted as if this were some kind of challenge, which it certainly was.

- Well done. - He said as the tiny mirror he had minimized and packed was placed in a gift box that Harry had summoned by pure basic magic, along with a small note with a blood signature that Harry had made on one of the sheets and envelopes contained therein. - Take it to Gringotts... there's a letter saying it's a bona fide gift. - Having finished explaining, the owl then pecked him affectionately, this time with a cheerful hoot that sounded more like relief for its owner, and finally left out of the window with the little gift box that would surely surprise the head of the largest magical bank.

- Well, since we've sorted everything out, I've taken the liberty of putting your things in your trunk and keeping them on your bed. The points have all been counted and Slytherin won, of course. You missed the last Quidditch match of the year, we were thrashed by Corvinal without you, and they came in second, a few points behind Slytherin.

- Yes, Harry, and I hope you get better soon. - Hermione said, hugging him and placing a kiss on his cheek, just as Madam Pomfrey burst into the room.

- You've been there for fifteen minutes, now get out. - Said the woman firmly, and Harry couldn't deny that seeing this authoritarian blonde was messing with his sanity. - Not you, darling. - She continued, exasperated, as Harry tried to run away with her, thinking that she wouldn't see someone so big in front of the children.

- Go on, guys. I'll show up for dinner... if I don't get discharged, I'll sneak out. - Harry said under the indignant gaze of the adult blonde, who was already taking a potion and making him drink it, under his wrinkled face. - Horrible as always..., send the other one.

Part 02 in the next chapter due to the word limit of the chapter post.