Harry shuffled his feet and peered around the others at the notebook. He couldn't read most of the big words anyway, and now that the excitement was over, he was getting antsy.
"Can we go see if the ice is gone now?" he asked, tugging at Charlotte's sleeve. "Please?"
Bill chuckled and carefully tucked the notebook away. "Good thinking, Harry. We should check if breaking the vault actually worked."
They made their way back through the vault entrance, Harry skipping ahead eagerly. The corridor outside was completely clear - not a single patch of ice remained where before it had covered almost everything.
"It worked!" Penny clapped her hands together. "Look, even the frost on the walls is gone!"
They hurried down the misty stairs and through the Icy Corridor, finding every trace of cursed ice had vanished as if it had never been there.
"We did it!" Charlotte whooped, throwing her arms around Harry and lifting him off his feet in a spin. "And it's all thanks to our tiny fire wizard here! Without you, those knights would've carved us up like Christmas turkeys!"
Harry giggled as she set him down, pleased with the praise. "It was fun! Except for when Bill got hurt. That was scary."
"Speaking of which," Penny crossed her arms, "we should get that shoulder looked at properly, Bill. The potion helped, but Madam Pomfrey should still check it."
Bill nodded, then ruffled Harry's messy hair. "Thanks again, mate. You really saved our skins back there."
"No problem! Thank you all for letting me help!" Harry looked at them with big wide green eyes. "If you find more Vaults, can I come too? I promise I'll be super careful!"
Charlotte laughed and shared a look with the others. "We'll see, little hero. But first we need to figure out what these notes mean."
After they parted ways, Harry transformed into his eagle form with a quiet pop. His wings spread wide as he took off, soaring through the castle corridors. Grandpa had told him to come straight away whenever those special words showed up in his head, and Harry wasn't about to forget.
He swooped through the Grand Staircase, letting out sharp cries that made several students jump. One Ravenclaw even dropped his book bag, papers scattering everywhere. Harry let out what could only be described as an eagle's laugh before flying out through the castle's main doors.
The afternoon sun warmed his feathers as he circled up to the Headmaster's Tower. Finding the window open as usual, Harry glided in and landed on the back of his favorite chair. The office was empty, but moments later a burst of flames announced the arrival of Fawkes and Grandpa.
Harry changed back to human form so fast he almost fell off the chair. "Grandpa! Guess what? All the cursed ice is gone! Every single bit!"
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he settled behind his desk. "Is that so? And would you happen to know anything about how that came to be?"
"Well..." Harry squirmed a bit in his seat. "Me and Charlotte and Bill and Penny found this ice vault thing, and there were these scary knights, but I helped beat them with my fire! And then we found a broken wand and some papers and when we left all the ice was gone!"
"Also," Harry added, bouncing slightly in his seat, "those special words showed up in my head again! But don't worry, I said no 'cause it wanted to make me all gross like a zombie!"
"I see," Dumbledore said, though his eyes had lost their usual twinkle. "And this adventure you mentioned - were you hurt at all?"
Harry shook his head quickly. "Nope! Bill got a cut from one of the ice knights, but Penny had this green potion that fixed him up. I was super careful and stayed flying most of the time. Only came down when I needed to use my fire to help!"
"That's... good," Dumbledore said distractedly, clearly more concerned about something else. He leaned forward in his chair. "Harry, about these words - I need you to tell me exactly what they said. Try to remember every detail."
"Well..." Harry swung his legs, looking up at the ceiling. "It was called... Zombie Phy-si-ol-ogy from Marvel Zombies. And it said I could pick what kind of zombie I wanted to be, but only from the original ones. Something about being a... disciple of Hunger Gospel?"
Harry wrinkled his nose. "It said I'd keep my brain working right, but I'd be all dead and gross. And I wouldn't feel pain anymore, which sounded kind of cool I guess. But then it said I couldn't die unless someone smashed my head, and even if someone cut off my arms or head, I'd be fine!"
He shuddered. "But the worst part was that it said I'd be super hungry ALL the time, and my face would look like a skull 'cause my lips would disappear! That's so yucky! And it was free, but I still said no 'cause I don't want to be a monster."
Dumbledore knelt in front of Harry's chair, his blue eyes serious behind his half-moon glasses. "Harry, if those special words ever offer you something like that again - something that would change what you are in such a manner - I want you to reject it right away. It might even make you lose your magic. No more mist, no more fire, and no more special painting magic in the future. You wouldn't want that, would you?"
Harry's breath caught in his throat as he imagined not being able to control his fear mist anymore, create warm flames when he was cold or learning painting magic. Small tears welled up in his green eyes as he shook his head frantically. "No! I don't want to lose my magic!"
"Come here," Dumbledore opened his arms, and Harry practically jumped into the hug, sniffling slightly. "You did very, very well rejecting that offer. I'm proud of you."
After a long moment, Dumbledore let out a deep sigh and gently ended the hug. "Harry, I think it's time I taught you something. Something very important."
Harry perked up immediately, tears forgotten. "What is it? Is it a spell?"
"Not exactly," Dumbledore smiled. "It's called Occlumency."
"Ock-lu... what?" Harry scrunched up his face, trying to wrap his tongue around the strange word. "What's that?"
"It's a way to protect your mind," Dumbledore explained, settling back in his chair. "Like building a wall around your thoughts to keep them safe."
Harry's eyes went wide. "Can people look at my thoughts? Is that how you always know when I sneak out to the astronomy tower after curfew?"
Dumbledore chuckled. "No, that's because the portraits report to me. But yes, there are wizards who can look into other people's minds if they try hard enough."
"That's not fair!" Harry crossed his arms with a pout. "They shouldn't be allowed to peek at my thoughts. Those are mine!"
"Exactly right," Dumbledore nodded. "That's why I want to teach you how to keep your thoughts private. Especially with these special words that keep appearing in your head. We need to make sure no one else can see them."
"Will it help keep the zombie words away too?" Harry asked hopefully.
"Perhaps," Dumbledore said. "At the very least, it will help you understand your own mind better. Would you like to learn?"
Harry nodded eagerly. Any new magic was exciting, even if it wasn't as cool as throwing fireballs. "Yes please! When do we start?"
"But first, dinner," Dumbledore smiled, getting up from his chair. "I imagine you're quite hungry after all that excitement today."
Harry shook his head. "Not really. My tummy's okay."
"Even so, let's head down. And Harry?" Dumbledore's voice turned serious for a moment. "Try not to look directly into the eyes of adult wizards you don't know well. The eyes can be a pathway for those who read minds to see your thoughts."
"Like a window?" Harry scrunched up his nose. "That's not very nice of them."
"Indeed it isn't," Dumbledore chuckled as they walked down the spiral staircase. "Just be careful, alright?"
Harry nodded, skipping every other step on their way to the Great Hall. When they reached the teachers' table, he slid into his special seat between Dumbledore and Uncle Filius.
"Hi Uncle Filius! Hi Aunt Min!" Harry waved cheerfully at the other teachers, purposefully keeping his eyes away from the scowling Potions Master at the far end.
"Good evening, Harry," McGonagall smiled warmly. "You seem rather energetic tonight."
Harry beamed and looked out at the four long house tables, spotting his friends scattered among the students. He waved enthusiastically at Charlotte, Bill, Penny, Tonks and Chiara, who all waved back.
While the other teachers filled their plates, Harry just sat quietly, listening to their conversations about classes and assignments. He didn't feel hungry at all - probably because of that mouse he ate recently.
Suddenly, Dumbledore stood up and walked to his golden owl podium. The Great Hall gradually fell silent as students noticed him waiting.
"Good evening, everyone," Dumbledore smiled gently. "I have wonderful news to share. As you all know, our castle has been plagued by mysterious cursed ice these past two years. This ice proved particularly troublesome, adapting to resist even our strongest spells."
He paused, eyes twinkling. "However, thanks to the bravery of several students, this curse has finally been broken. The ice has vanished completely from our halls."
Excited whispers broke out across the tables.
"To Miss Charlotte Whitewood, for your determination in solving this mystery - 150 points to Gryffindor!"
The Gryffindor table erupted in cheers.
"To Mr. Bill Weasley, for defending your fellow students even at personal risk - 150 points to Gryffindor!"
More whooping from the red and gold table.
"To Miss Penny Haywood, for quick thinking and excellent use of healing potions - 150 points to Hufflepuff!"
The Hufflepuff table burst into applause.
"And finally," Dumbledore's eyes crinkled with warmth, "while we cannot award house points to young Mr. Potter, I must thank him for his crucial role in saving his companions when they needed him most."
The hall exploded with excited chatter. Harry shrunk down in his seat a bit as hundreds of eyes turned toward the teachers' table, his cheeks turning pink. The attention felt different this time. Usually when people stared at him, it was because of something he couldn't even remember doing as a baby. But this time, Harry knew exactly why they were looking at him - because he'd actually helped stop those scary ice knights, saved Bill and stopped the cursed ice.
"Harry," Flitwick spoke quietly beside him, his voice unusually serious. "Did those students pressure you into going with them? You know better than to go into dangerous places."
Harry shook his head quickly. "No! I wanted to help! The ice was being super annoying and kept getting in the way when I wanted to paint at the tower."
"That is not a good reason to put yourself in harm's way," Aunt Min cut in sharply from Dumbledore's other side. Her lips were pressed into a thin line that Harry recognized as her worried-and-trying-not-to-show-it face.
"But I was careful!" Harry protested. "I stayed up high most of the time, and only came down when Bill got hurt and needed help!"
"William Weasley got hurt?" Sprout asked, leaning forward with concern. "Perhaps we should send him to the Hospital Wing to be checked properly."
Flitwick was still frowning, reaching over to check Harry for injuries. "Are you certain you're not hurt anywhere? No scratches or bruises?"
"I'm fine!" Harry squirmed away from Flitwick's fussing hands. "Really! The icy knights couldn't reach me when I was flying, and my fire worked way better than their spells did!"
That turned out to be the wrong thing to say. Multiple heads snapped toward him so fast Harry worried they might hurt their necks.
"Your what?" McGonagall asked in a dangerously quiet voice.
Harry gulped. Maybe he should have kept that part secret for a bit longer.
Dumbledore cleared his throat softly. "Perhaps this discussion would be better continued after dinner? In my office?"
The other professors nodded reluctantly, though they kept shooting concerned glances at Harry throughout the meal. Harry picked at his food, not really hungry but knowing Aunt Min would worry more if he didn't eat anything.
He had a feeling this was going to be a very long evening.