"Wait a second I will ask for permission first." After throwing the floo powder, Albert disappeared from his office, leaving Harry and Hermione alone there.
It was the first time Hermione looked at someone floo-travelled and she stared at the powder and at the fireplace with a face full of fascination. However, for Harry who misplaced himself to the Knocktun Alley last summer, he shuddered, trying to get away as far as possible from the fireplace. Instead of indulging Hermione's non-stop theory about the floo, his mind flies to Albert's explanation before.
'If the Potter family was big before I was born, how come I've never heard about it before? Is there anyone from the family who is still alive? Why did nobody ever tell me about my family?'
Question after question kept flashing, creating a tangled thread without the edge inside his head. However, after pondering for a few seconds, he scowled, unhappy with himself.
'No matter what is the reason why anyone had never reached out to me to talk about the Potter family, I shouldn't be passive at all! It is my own family, for Merlin's sake! I should take the initiative and ask around! It had been a year since I came to Hogwarts and yet, what have I done? Nothing!'
Yeah, Harry still cursed himself for his foolishness. He blamed himself for forgetting to search for any information about his parents, something he desperately tried when he was still at the Dursley. Inwardly, he vowed to himself that after this conversation, he would try to ask more of the people who probably knew about his parents.
"Thank you for waiting." Albert suddenly appeared again with a small folder in his hand. "Since you both want to talk about the Potter Family, instead of talking about it from a general perspective, I decided to retrieve their O.W.L and N.E.W.T results from the ministry."
"You can do that?!" Hermione's mouth gaped wide.
"With the right connection, of course, you can." Albert shrugged. He grinned when he saw Hermione's outraged and disapproving gaze directed at him. "Normally, I wouldn't encourage you to do like I just did. But since Mister Potter wants to know his family more, I thought for a moment and asked, why not?"
Hermione huffed, not being able to refute his argument.
"But since this is their personal record, Mister Potter would have the right to decide. Do you want to read it alone or together with Miss Granger and me?"
Harry was startled by the question before answering, "I don't mind, Professor."
He had known Hermione for a year and trusted her unconditionally. And it wasn't like the personal record in front of him had something taboo in it. It was just their exam result. And he could ask directly to Albert directly if there was something popped inside his head.
"Well, since Mister Potter agrees, let's see…" Albert waved his hand upward and suddenly, the small folder in front of him enlarged three-fold. "It is the reverse of the shrinking charm. You can see it for yourself in the fifth year's book." Albert smiled at Hermione's unasked question.
Harry stared at the folder for a moment, unsure about what he would find inside. There was a small fear lingering inside his head, what if whatever was inside was far from his expectations? What if this would change the perfect image of James Potter and Lily Potter inside his head? Should he open the folder?
Being a true Gryffindor though, Harry finally took out the first parchment out of the folder. What he found out though, was different from his expectation. It was the record of a person with the same family name as him, yet he was not familiar with it.
Charlus Henry Potter
"Ah, that is your grandfather's file," Albert explained. "One hell of a warriors. Charlus Henry Potter made a huge contribution to the war against Grindelwald in 1945 and together with Arcturus Black, they both defended Great Britain from the opponent's tropes for a full week when the headmaster had his fateful duel with the dark lord Gellert Grindelwald."
"Really?!" Hermione widened her eyes, astonished.
"Yeah." Albert nodded, a soft smile formed on his face. "If you ask who was the biggest idol in the wizarding world twenty to thirty years ago, besides Albus Dumbledore, the names of Charlus Potter and Arcturus Black would always be there. Those two defended the English Channel from the sporadic attack from the giants and vampires and killed almost 90 of them just by themselves."
"Wow…"
Harry stared at the record intently, especially after hearing Albert's story. Even though he only read the paper in front of him, the glaring eight Outstandings for the OWL and seven for the NEWTS were enough to convince him how brilliant his grandfather was.
"How did he die?" Harry whispered softly.
"I don't really know, unfortunately." Albert apologized. "I was in Greece at that time to do my rune mastery. But from what I heard, someone breached the Potter Manor in the night and tried to kill him. You can be proud though, since it took Lord Voldemort himself to kill your grandfather after he annihilated 28 of his followers."
Honestly, this was the first time he had ever thought of his grandparents. In the past, the thing he focused on the most was always his parents, which was not his fault. But after hearing that his grandfather was another one of the dark lord's victims, he clenched the parchment on his hand tightly, hate and anger rushed into his head.
'It seems Voldemort didn't take away just my parents from me.'
The information about the Potter Manor seemed to slip out of his mind.
"Harry.." Hermione tapped his hand softly, looking at him worriedly. Harry took a deep breath before giving her a weak smile, "Sorry, Hermione. I am okay."
Then, he took out another paper, but was greeted by a name he had never heard at all before.
Dorea Constante Black
"That is your grandmother," Albert explained. "One of the best healers in the century, some people say. She died a few years earlier than your grandfather, fighting for the cure of Dragon Pox. Her marriage with your grandfather created a storm in the Wizarding World at that time."
"Why?" Hermione asked.
"Because the Potter and the Black family were the two most prominent families in Britain at that time." He replied. "With them being an ally, no one would be able to stop their coalition when they decided something."
Harry took a note inside his head to find out more about this Black family. His eyes were never left the parchment though, as he was impressed by the big O's written several times there. After counting silently, he could see 9 OWLs and 9 NEWTs with outstanding results, a better result than his grandfather.
Then, when he opened the next report, he finally saw a familiar name.
James Charlus Potter
"Honestly, I don't know a lot about him," Albert said. "Even though I was close with your mother, we had something in common, which was academic matters. But your father was more interested in quidditch and pranks, something that Messrs Weasley would appreciate for sure."
Harry chuckled when he heard the last part. He was surprised though when he found out his father passed 9 OWLs and 7 NEWTs with the majority of them being outstanding and only a few Exceed Expectations, nothing below that.
"Is getting a good result this easy in OWL and NEWT?" Hermione couldn't help but ask.
Albert chuckled a little before explaining, "Well, based on the result you just saw, of course, you would think it was easy. However, usually, people who pass more than 5 OWLs would be considered top students, and getting more than 3 outstandings is pretty rare. If anything, this just proves that no one from the Potter Family was bad at academic matters."
Harry bowed silently, ashamed of himself. He shook his head at his own academic performance and the disappointment he was feeling. It was even worse when he saw all of them receive honors with distinction when they graduated.
Harry felt like a failure.
He had failed his parents and he had failed himself so far. He placed the parchment on the desk with the others and looked at the final one, the one he guessed belonged to his mother. He opened it already knowing he would feel worse, yet didn't expect to feel as bad as he did right now.
Lily Marie Evans
Breaking the 78-year record set by Albus Dumbledore with 14 Outstandings in her OWLs and NEWTs with the addition of two O+ for potion and charm, following Albert Adrian Shafiq's path to be the only two people in history to gain two O+ in the major class. She even achieved a charm mastery when she finished at Hogwarts, the feat only Albus Dumbledore in Transfiguration achieved in history.
Harry clenched the parchment in front of him once again. But instead of rage and hate, all he could feel now was shame. Harry was ashamed of his lackluster performance and felt sick of it. His parents and grandparents would be appalled by his grade if they were alive. He placed the folder with the others and stood. He needed to change himself; needed to do much better if he wanted to live up to his family name.
He left the room quickly, not even bidding farewell to his professor and his best friend. Hermione looked like she wanted to follow him, yet she was stopped by Albert. The professor just shook his head, preventing the bushy-haired girl from confronting Harry right now.
"He needs to process what he just saw for a moment, leave him alone, Miss Granger." He spoke softly. "I am sure you will find a pleasant change from him in the near future."
Hermione bit her lips worriedly, yet still nodded at him. She knew that Albert was right. This would be the turning point of Harry's academic career.
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"You look like a crap, Harry."
A familiar voice suddenly snapped Harry from his thoughts. Harry blinked for a moment before realizing he had been walking heedlessly since leaving Albert's office to the point he didn't know where he was right now. With how massive the castle was, this was not his first time getting lost inside it.
"Alicia?" Harry blinked a few times more to ensure his sight didn't fool him. "Luna? What are you two doing here?"
Even though Harry knew the team grew closer to Luna after several times visiting Albert's office, it was strange to see one of the team members spend their time alone with the blonde girl. Usually, it was either the chasers bringing her for what they said 'girl thing' or the twins who would join her exploration.
"It should be me who is asking the question, what are you doing here?" Alicia rolled her eyes. "This wing is reserved for the arithmancy class, so I doubt you come here deliberately. Did you get lost?"
"What? No way!" Harry denied it quickly, a bit embarrassed to admit it to the girl. "And you haven't answered my question yet. What are you doing here? And with Luna nonetheless? Not that there is something wrong with you, of course, Luna. But usually, Alicia would only hang out with either Katie or Angelina." He added the last part quickly, didn't want the younger girl to misunderstand him.
"I have already said it, Harry, I am here for arithmancy business." Alicia sighed annoyedly. "I have just finished my homework and checked it personally with Professor Vector. It was just a coincidence I met Luna here. She is exploring the castle, looking for Blibbering Humdingers or whatever that is, so I decided to go with her." She rolled her eyes once again.
"Blibbering Humdingers?" Harry asked confusedly.
"It is a creature that loves to bask under the sun," Luna answered seriously. When Harry turned his head to Alicia, his teammate just shook her head, not really understanding what the younger girl said.
"Well, that's good," Harry said genuinely. Even though he didn't know what Blibbering Humdingers was, at least he could still try to understand the girl's interest. "Did you find what you wanted to find?"
Luna blinked for a moment before saying, "You are really nice, Harry Potter."
"Eh?" Harry also blinked, not understanding.
"You are the second one who asked genuinely about it after Professor Shafiq. Even though I haven't found it yet, I appreciate the question."
"Thank you?" Harry was still confused, unsure what just happened.
"Anyway, what makes you feel blue like this?" Alicia turned the conversation back to the original topic. "Even though I know you like to sulk alone, it is not healthy, you know?"
"I am not sulking," Harry replied immediately.
"Sure, try to convince yourself."
"You are surrounded by a lot of wrackspurt, you know? It could make your head dizzy and make you lose your mind." Luna added with a serious tone.
"See? Even Luna agrees with me!" Alicia giggled teasingly.
"I am not sulking!" Harry insisted stubbornly. When he received the gazes from those two, though, he wilted like a wet paper and finally sighed. "I just feel so crap right now."
Alicia and Luna didn't say anything, waiting for Harry to explain. It didn't take for too long before he exploded, telling the full story from A to Z. From his frustration for himself for forgetting about his parents, his anger toward the dark lord for killing his family, and to his shame for the crappy academic performance he had until now.
He didn't know why, but all of his problems came out of his mouth so easily that he was surprised he could be so open like this. It seemed he really needed to vent out and tell someone about it.
"Hermione is right, you know?" Alicia finally spoke after a while, her tone was soft. "It is better late than never, right? And the fact that you are angry just proves that you care about your parents. And whether they would be appalled or not about your grade, I wouldn't act like I know them at all. But if they were alive, do you know what they would say to you?"
"What?"
"They would say your grade doesn't matter as long as you are happy," Alicia said with full conviction.
"How do you know about that?" Harry frowned.
"Well, do you know anything about the Spinnet family?" Alicia asked back. When Harry shook his head, she explained, "Even though our roots in the society are not as deep as the other pureblood family like yours, we have been a pretty successful businessman since the late nineteenth century, trading potions to the other family outside of the country. We are a family full of potioneers, and sometimes it puts me under a lot of pressure. When I said that to my father, he just chuckled, patting my shoulder reassuringly while saying, 'It doesn't matter whether you are good or not. Business will come and go, but your happiness is what matters the most.'. I think your parents would say something similar to that."
Harry choked, tears built up from the corner of his eyes. He didn't expect Alicia's words would affect him that much, and suddenly, his memory brought him back to when he was in front of the mirror of erised, facing his parents who looked at him lovingly. While he was still upset with himself for his academic performance, the thing he felt the most right now was how he missed them both, wishing that it would be them who said all those words to him.
He had not even realized that he was engulfed in Alicia and Luna's tight hug as the girls also had watery eyes, couldn't imagine what Harry felt right now.
"You can cry, Harry." Alicia choked, her voice trembling. "It is okay, to miss them, you know? It is okay to cry for them. It is okay…"
Hearing that, for the first time ever since he could remember, Harry did something he always thought he was not capable of.
He cried.
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"Sorry, Alicia," Harry mumbled softly, bowing his head embarrassedly.
It took about ten minutes before Harry finally calmed down, and the first thing he noticed was the dried tears on Alicia's robes. Alicia waved her hand nonchalantly, reassuring him that it was alright while waving her wand and incantated something before the trace of the tears vanished from her attire.
"That is a drying charm, you will learn it probably this year," Alicia said when she saw Harry's fascinated look.
"That's handy," Harry commented, impressed. Then, he cringed a bit when he remembered his cry earlier before apologizing again. "Sorry once again, Alicia. I don't know what's got into me."
Before Alicia could say anything, Luna suddenly said, "You don't have to apologize, Harry Potter. The fact that you cried showed how much you love and care about your parent. Not to say you didn't love or care about them before, but there is an emotional connection built the moment you cry for them."
Harry nodded, knowing what Luna said was right. He was surprised that outside of her nonsense creature, Luna was a good listener. She would listen to the end of the story before giving her opinion, and to his surprise, it somehow touched his heart. Not to mention the strange calmness radiated from her that could soothe his explosive feeling, Harry didn't understand how such a lovely girl was bullied by her housemates.
"Thank you, Luna." Harry wiped the trace of tears from his eyes.
Alicia smiled, satisfied with the interaction between two teenagers younger than him. "Just remember, Harry. While I might not be the best person to say this since I don't know them, I know your parents will always be proud of you. But if you still feel you somehow disappoint them, be better. Study harder. Don't slack off. You are still in your second year, there are six more waiting for you. Make them proud, Harry. Be the best among the best, just like they were in the school."
Harry nodded, determination flaring through his clear green eyes. Alicia was right. He needed to stop slacking off. While there was nothing wrong with having fun here and there, he needed to up his study. He couldn't bring more shame to his parents. Moreover, he also needed to be better, to live up to the family name he wore.
Clenching his fists, Harry raised his head straight, looking as if it was his first time looking at the outside world. It was a fair comparison since Harry knew he just found his life purpose. All he wanted to do right now was run to the library, read all the books, and study all the classes he didn't take seriously last year.
His goal this year was simple, at least to be on the same level as Hermione. And Harry knew - no, not know. He believed that he could do it.
However, the moment he was about to say goodbye to the two girls in front of him, his ears suddenly caught something disturbing. It was a voice, a voice to chill the bone-marrow, a voice of breath-taking, ice-cold venom.
"Come … Come to me … Let me rip you … Let me tear you … Let me kill you …"
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Author note
I make a site for anyone who want to support me. If you are willing to help, you will also be able to read this story up to chapter 22. If you are interested, you can visit patre0n/BlankNotes04. Please, support this work too! I hope that you are satisfied with this story! Thank you!