Talking to Dumbledore was, for lack of a better word, tiring.
I could see that the old man, despite being manipulative, was not the damned dark wizard in search of something evil, but rather an idiot with a Merlin complex, a powerful know-it-all, arrogant and boastful that he knows more than the world.
After that, it was time to face the last day at Hogwarts, for the Quidditch and House Cups, as well as the wishes for happy holidays and things like that coming from Dumbledore. In the meantime, a week had passed since the farewell with Lupin.
But it was not a week without good news for me.
Remus was a neighbor of the Granger house, after he and Sirius, somehow, and hopefully without magic or illegalities, convinced the former residents of the house to sell it for a good price. Not only that, Sirius also used his family money to hire Gringotts to put protections on the said house.
As for the Ministry, since the house was in Remus' name, they didn't care much, other than stamping the receipts. Last but not least, Remus got a lawyer friend, a Muggle-born wizard, to draw up an adoption contract, just waiting for the signatures and the registration to be attached.
On a side note, Ron was enjoying his new friend, Pixitinho. The small but cheeky owl had been invading breakfast ever since she arrived, as an apology from Sirius to the guy, because of the rat, to steal some food.
Of course, Ron was seeing it as a made enemy. Stealing food that is in his line of sight is an affront to the guy. But it was still fun to see him trying to fight the little super fast ball of feathers.
I took advantage of this week to also solve a big problem that, may or may not, arise in the future.
A frank and direct conversation with Gina, who at first was quite sad and helpless, but when she realized that I saw her as my sister, and nothing would change, she accepted things like a mature woman, and moved on.
At least, she was trying. And on a side note, it wasn't difficult to talk to the girl, despite her young age, she was intelligent and mature. Unlike her brother. Our friendship grew a little stronger, and we even talked sometimes, about lessons and trivialities.
After a ride in the carriages pulled by Thestrals, which by the way, I can see, and a peaceful train ride, if it weren't for Malfoy and his insistence on wanting to be my whore, I went to the prison/house of my aunt and uncle.
Unable to use magic, I spent the first week at my aunt and uncle's house to practice my skills given by ROB, I mean, the roulette and the one I chose. The one I chose would be very close to magic, so it would be dangerous to use.
The Ministry could very well end up on my doorstep, due to Misuse or erroneous indication of its system, confusing things and believing that it had used some kind of Unforgivable. I don't want to risk it.
My ability with Space was something fun, I won't deny it. I tried using teleportation, it would be very useful for escapes and surprise attacks, but it takes time, like anything else. I think that with MUCH more training, I can one day do the instant thing.
But it's still very useful. Although it takes a while, teleportation is much safer, there's no risk of limb separation and it still allows me to be ready to both attack and defend myself. It doesn't cost me anything physically or magically, I just need to work on the timing.
Then I trained my Dimensional Storage, or as I called it to mislead, my bottomless pocket. Some things I discovered: I'm capable of almost anything, as long as I'm touching it. Technically, I could store a building or plane in it, but taking it out later would be a pain in the ass.
Imagine how much strength it would take to pull these things out of my pocket and put them in a suitable, unfeasible place. I could also store living things, BUT, when I took them out, they would be dead, since the place is the literal space controlled by me.
Trying to explain it easier, it's like I have a piece of 'space', where the stars and planets are, but without them. Confusing, I know, I went in to see, and since I'm not affected, I could see with my own eyes.
Another thing I discovered was that I had much more energy now. My body, even with the little food provided by the Dursleys, was still gaining beautiful physical contours. I was not the skinny, malnourished boy, but a boy of almost 14, with an athlete's body.
I can run for kilometers, having reached 30 so far, at most, and not even sweat or breathe heavily. Besides, I believe, but I need to test it. I could be in magical combat for days on end and still be fine.
Tests for when I return to Hogwarts and find that special room, or use the Chamber of Secrets.
With the races, I had time to think about some things, and I came to some conclusions. I will do it for old Harry, who despite everything, would still like to protect his uncles and cousins from a horrible death.
I started to prepare myself psychologically for the conversation I would need to have with my uncles. It would be one of the most difficult tasks, since they are not the most sane or intelligent people in the world. But sometimes, a man has to do it, even if it costs him a little.
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JULY 16, 1994
I was sitting that Saturday morning, at the table where breakfast was served. My uncles were trying hard not to look in my direction, while my cousin only looked at the food in front of him.
Gathering all my self-control, I began...