Kapitel 23: Secret Organization
Harry and Charlotte started walking back towards the castle, the evening air growing colder. They both stopped short when they spotted a dark figure floating in the Bell Tower Courtyard.
"Not again," Charlotte whispered, reaching for her wand.
Harry could already feel the unnatural cold seeping into his bones. The memory of his mother's voice threatened to overwhelm him, but he refused to just stand there helplessly this time. He gathered the magic from the world, letting it flow through his Po Soul, be shaped by his Hun Soul and finally manifest as mist in his palm. Harry carefully directed it towards the approaching Dementor.
But something was wrong. The mist passed straight through the hooded figure as if it wasn't even there. Harry frowned - his mist always gave him some kind of feedback when it touched something living, even plants. This felt like throwing water at empty air.
Not willing to give up, Harry gathered the mist again and tried to wrap it around the creature's hooded head from behind. Yet the Dementor continued gliding forward, completely unaffected.
Charlotte raised her wand. "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"
Thick silvery mist poured from her wand tip, and for the first time the Dementor seemed to hesitate. But after that brief pause, it kept coming, just a bit slower now.
The cold intensified. Harry felt the memory trying to drag him under again - green light, his mother's desperate pleas. But he remembered his training with the mental interference bracelet. Instead of fighting the interference, he let it happen in the background of his Hun Soul while doing his best to stay focused on the present moment.
Harry knew his mist wasn't working, but maybe fire would. He concentrated on the chi flowing through his body, directing it down his arm in a controlled spiral. The energy built up as it traveled through his shoulder, elbow, and finally gathered in his palm. With a sharp downward motion like slashing with a sword, Harry released a whip-like stream of blue flame.
The fire poured over the 12-feet high Dementor's tattered black robes but seemed to have no effect at all. The hooded figure didn't even slow down.
"None of our magic is really working," Harry said, backing away. "And I don't think this is a real Dementor."
"What do you mean?" Charlotte asked, still maintaining her misty Patronus shield.
"My mist went right through it. That's never happened before, not with anything alive or even magical creatures. It's like there's nothing actually there...
But the cold kept getting worse, and Harry could hear his mother's voice getting louder in his head. Whatever this thing was, it definitely felt real enough.
"Real or not, we need to stop it," Charlotte said, her wand hand shaking slightly as she maintained the misty shield. "It could hurt someone."
Harry nodded. He could turn into an eagle and fly away, and Charlotte could escape as a cat, but other students wouldn't have that option. If this thing found someone else, they might just freeze up and...
"Harry," Charlotte's voice cut through his thoughts. "Can you keep it busy for a minute? I need to focus properly."
He hesitated for a long second, then nodded. If he had to guess, she probably wanted to attempt the charm again with all of her focus. And that would be difficult to do with a Dementor going straight for them…
"Hey! Over here!" Harry shouted, waving his arms. "Come get me instead!"
The Dementor turned toward him, its tattered robes flowing as it changed direction. Harry waited until he was sure it was following him before running away, keeping an eye behind him. The creature was fast - faster than he'd expected. He pushed himself to run quicker, jumping over a bench in his path, then another.
While running, he checked on Charlotte. She stood completely still, eyes closed, wand raised. Clearly, he needed to buy her more time.
Harry leaped onto a nearby fountain, spun around, and focused on his chi. He felt it building up inside him, different from the spiral movement he had used just now. This time he let it rush straight through his arm, building pressure at his wrist before punching forward with a sharp motion.
A concentrated ball of blue fire shot toward the Dementor. Like before, it passed right through without effect.
"Great," Harry muttered, flipping backward off the fountain and starting to run again. At least the thing was still following him instead of Charlotte.
"Harry!" Charlotte called out.
He immediately changed direction, running back toward her in a wide arc. The Dementor was barely ten seconds behind him now.
Charlotte took a deep breath, and shouted, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"
The silver mist exploded from her wand, but this time it took shape - a massive tiger made of moonlight that roared loud enough to make Harry's ears ring. The Dementor immediately turned and fled as the tiger charged after it.
"We have to follow it!" Harry urged, already moving. "Make sure it doesn't go after anyone else!"
Charlotte nodded quickly, and they chased after her Patronus, watching as it drove the Dementor further and further away from the castle grounds and into the Forbidden Forest.
Harry slowly stopped running when it became clear it was gone. "That was amazing! Your Patronus turned into a real tiger!" He grinned at Charlotte. "And you learned it so fast too - way faster than Tonks said most people do."
But Charlotte wasn't celebrating. She stared back toward the courtyard, frowning. "Harry, doesn't it seem weird to you? That's the third time we've seen a Dementor in exactly the same place."
"You think the courtyard has a clue?"
"Has to. Come on!" Charlotte started running back toward the courtyard, her wand still ready.
Harry followed close behind. The cold feeling was completely gone now, replaced by the normal evening chill. Charlotte moved quickly through the area, checking behind benches and under bushes.
"Found it!" She pulled a black quill from beneath one of the stone benches. Charlotte drew her wand, pointing it at the quill. "Reparifarge!"
The quill shimmered and transformed into a sealed letter. She broke the wax seal and read aloud: "Congratulations, you passed. - R"
Harry felt a familiar tingle from the Hero's Journal - that same gentle nudge telling him that this 'R' was very important somehow. This time though, he wanted more details now. He unclipped the Journal from his dragon-hide belt while speaking to Charlotte.
"That's really suspicious," he said, frowning at the letter. "And I guess the Dementor was real after all... it wouldn't run away from your Patronus if it wasn't."
Harry opened the Journal, its pages warm against his fingers. He quickly flipped past the parts written from his perspective - those were less helpful since they just showed what he already knew. The really useful bits were always in the omnipresent narrator sections, where the Journal seemed to know things nobody else did.
His eyes widened as he found what he was looking for:
'Charlotte Whitewood stood in the courtyard, holding a letter from someone who had been watching over her progress for a long time. The same person who had guided her brother Jacob toward the Cursed Vaults. Unbeknownst to the siblings, R had plans within plans for them both.'
"Charlotte," Harry started to say, but stopped himself. He couldn't tell her what the Journal revealed - that would lead to too many questions he couldn't answer. Instead, he asked, "Do you think R might be connected to your brother somehow?"
Charlotte stared at the letter in her hands. "This isn't the first one," she said quietly. "R has been sending me letters for a while now. There was one that led me to the Ice Vault, and a few weeks ago they warned that they would 'unleash it' - which must have meant the Dementor."
She pulled another crumpled piece of parchment from her robe pocket. "Tonks and I found this one at the Three Broomsticks earlier. Listen to this: 'As requested, I've brought the Dementor to Hogwarts. It has already made contact. Despite an encounter with the Hogwarts staff, I ensured that it eluded capture. I will continue to keep an eye on the situation. So far...'" She trailed off, shaking her head. "That's where it ends."
Harry frowned, thinking hard. Someone was deliberately testing Charlotte with a Dementor, and they had enough power to control one. That seemed really dangerous, especially since Charlotte was still just a student.
"And now this new letter says I passed their test," Charlotte continued, rubbing her temples. "But I don't understand what they want. Why send all these cryptic messages? Why test me with a Dementor of all things?"
The mention of tests made Harry think of Rakepick's earlier offer to help. Maybe she could figure out who R was? He'd have to mention this to her the next time they met.
"Did Jacob ever mention anyone called R?" Harry asked carefully. "Or getting strange letters before he disappeared?"
Charlotte shook her head. "If he did, I don't remember. But..." She looked at the letters again. "I haven't seen Jacob in a long long time now. Anyway, whoever R is, they know about the vaults. They knew where to find the Ice Vault, and now they're watching us. I just wish I knew why."
Harry wanted to tell her what the Journal had revealed - about R's plans for both siblings. But he couldn't. Not without explaining how he knew, and that would lead to too many questions about where his Journal came from. Sometimes having special powers meant having to keep secrets, even from friends.
"We should be really careful," he said finally. "Someone who can control Dementors is really dangerous."
Charlotte nodded absently, tucking both letters into her pocket. "I should go check on Tulip and Tonks. Maybe Tulip noticed something weird before she started sleepwalking."
"Good idea. I need to talk to Grandpa anyway," Harry said, thinking about the Dementor and how his mist had passed right through it. That seemed like something Grandpa should know about.
He watched Charlotte hurry off toward the castle before transforming into his eagle form. Flying was faster than walking, and right now he really wanted to sort through everything that had happened. The wind under his wings helped clear his head as he soared up to the Headmaster's office window.
Sometimes Harry felt bad about keeping secrets from his friends. The Hero's Journal was probably the hardest one to hide - especially when it gave him important information that could help people. But he was smart enough, especially now, to recognize that he should be careful about who knew what. Only Grandpa knew about his special offers, and it should stay that way for a long long time. Grandpa was the most powerful wizard alive, so he could protect himself. But not everyone was unbeatable like his Grandpa, and what if someone wanted to hurt his friends to know more about him? He couldn't take that risk…
Landing on the window ledge, Harry changed back and knocked on the glass. He could see Grandpa sitting at his desk, already turning to open the window with a warm smile.
"Come in, come in," Grandpa said, waving his wand to float a comfortable chair closer to his desk. "I was just thinking about you."
Harry hopped down from the windowsill, but didn't mention anything about the Dementor chase or R's letter. That was something for Madam Rakepick to handle - she was the curse-breaking expert after all. Instead, he had a different question burning in his mind.
"Grandpa, would my mist work on a Dementor?" Harry asked, settling into the chair. "Just wondering."
Grandpa's eyes twinkled as he smiled. "Ah, a theoretical question then?" He adjusted his half-moon spectacles. "I suspect not. You see, Dementors are quite peculiar creatures. They don't have souls of their own, which is why they're always trying to steal happiness and eventually souls from others. Like an empty cup trying desperately to fill itself."
"But my mist needs a soul to work on?" Harry leaned forward, eager to understand.
"Precisely. Your mist is made of both magical and soul energy, and it affects the soul directly to create fear. Without a soul to target..." Grandpa spread his hands.
"It just passes right through," Harry finished, both relieved to understand and annoyed at the limitation. First his fire could be stopped by a simple Flame-Freezing Charm, and now this? He needed more ways to protect himself and his friends. What if he ran into something that could block both his abilities again?
As if reading his thoughts, Grandpa reached under his desk. "That reminds me - those books you asked about have arrived. A friend in China was kind enough to share some fascinating texts about Hun, Po, and the concepts of Yin and Yang."
Harry's face lit up instantly. He'd been desperate to learn more about his souls ever since getting that offer to transform his soul. What did Dense and Ethereal actually mean? How did Yin and Yang work? He didn't really know, and that annoyed him to no end.
"Really?" Harry perked up slightly in his seat as Grandpa placed several old books on the desk. Some were bound in red silk, others in leather that looked ancient.
"Thank you!" He carefully placed the books in his pouch, already excited to start reading. Finally, he'd understand what was actually happening with his souls instead of just guessing.
But Harry paused when his eyes darkened, and familiar text appeared in his mind.
[Elixir of Life - Generic Alchemist] – Costs 300CP, 375CP available to spend.
A tiny phial of glowing, clear liquid that is the elixir of life. By ingesting this liquid, a person's aging ceases entirely, they are returned to the prime of their life, and they become immune to disease. You gain one of these elixirs every ten years.
Harry froze in his seat. His eyes darted up to look at his grandfather figure sitting across the desk. Dumbledore's long white beard and hair seemed especially stark in the evening light shining through the tall window. The wrinkles around his eyes were more pronounced as he watched Harry with that familiar concerned expression, probably wondering what special offer he had gotten this time.
This wasn't just any potion - this was THE potion. The one that could stop someone from getting old, sick, weak and leaving Harry. He quickly accepted the offer, not hesitating for even a moment. A small crystal phial appeared in his hand, filled with softly glowing liquid that seemed to shift and swirl on its own.
"Grandpa!" Harry thrust the phial toward Dumbledore, nearly knocking over an ink bottle in his excitement. "You need to drink this right now!"
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein