Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all its characters belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing but the original characters I create.

"Dialogue"

'Thoughts'

-Author notes-

Chapter 132: Surprise delivery

"Mister Potter, the Headmaster would like to see you in his office," Professor McGonagall informed him on Saturday morning.

It was a good thing he was alone in the common room. Hermione would have jumped to wild conclusions.

Harry was about to order the gargoyle to move out of the way when he remembered his promise to the Headmaster.

"Password…," the statue demanded.

"Let's see…. it was… wine gums, whatever those are." It was the one that McGonagall had given him.

"Correct… you may come in." The gargoyle rotated around and revealed a set of stairs.

"Professor, you wanted to see me?" Harry went inside the office and got comfortable.

"Yes, I wanted to inform you that…" Dumbledore pulled something from a drawer. "Your new wand core is ready." He placed the pristine Phoenix feather on the table.

Harry took the feather...red and orange lights shone over its surface.

"Thank you, Fawkes. I'll put it to good use," Harry glanced at the Phoenix on his perch. He looked completely recovered now.

Fawkes gave a cry that Harry interpreted as "You are welcome".

Dumbledore smiled for a moment. "Yes, we are expecting great things from you, Mister Potter, however…" his smile faded. "I do have a less pleasant topic to speak with you about."

"Let me guess… is this about my duel with Mister Malfoy? You think I went too far with my methods," Harry could easily guess.

"I do admit… that was on my mind. I felt very concerned when I heard what happened during that duel. If it was a normal student, I would not intervene and just let the Professors decide on the punishment, but it's you we are talking about… I may not know what you are fully capable of doing but I'm sure you could have defeated a second-year boy without harming him."

"So you want to know why… it's simple, I wanted him away from me, and I know how stubborn he can be. A slap on the wrist would not be enough, I had to do something that would really scare him," Harry explained.

"I still don't understand what reason you have to… is it perhaps something he did in your future? After all, his family alliances are well on his side."

"Let's just say… I know what he is capable of. And no, I'm not judging him for what he did in my time. Otherwise, he would already be dead. Along with a dozen more students in the school."

Dumbledore frowned deeply. He knew Harry was not giving an idle threat and he really meant his words. "You shouldn't judge them for things they haven't done yet and they may never do…"

"And I'm not. In fact, by keeping him away from me, I may be protecting him. But I would not hold my hopes up with that one. From what I have seen… this Draco Malfoy seems to be on a much darker path than the one I knew."

"Then let us hope that doesn't happen… as Headmaster, I must believe that all my students are capable of accomplishing good things and making the world a better place."

"I think those lemon candies are affecting your head."

Dumbledore didn't look pleased with his comment, but Harry ignored him.

"Now, can you take me to Diagon Alley? I have a wand maker to visit."

"I will open the Floo Network for you… I trust you can manage by yourself," Dumbledore stood up, walked to the fireplace, and tapped on it. He then took some Floo powder and threw it inside. "Leaky Cauldron."

Green flames erupted inside the fireplace.

"To return, just say 'Hogwarts Headmaster', I'll keep the way open until you come back."

"Very well," Harry stood up from the chair and walked into the flames.

"And Mister Potter… I'll trust that you will behave yourself," Dumbledore said in a way that sounded more like a warning.

"Of course, I always behave," Harry disappeared into the flames.

<><><><><><><>

"Are you looking forward to going back home?" Ginny asked Lyra.

The two of them, plus Luna, had stayed in the Great Hall after finishing their breakfast.

Most students had left, so the hall was a nice place to hang out.

"To be honest, I do miss my home… I can't believe it's only been three months since we started school," Lyra admitted.

"I know what you mean… it has felt like a lot longer. A lot has happened." Ginny gave her a weary smile.

Luna didn't know what they meant. The time had passed very fast for her, so she went back to enjoying her pudding.

"I'm looking forward to Mum's cooking. Not that there is anything bad with Hogwarts, but…" Ginny said.

"Yeah, your mum is an amazing cook!" Lyra then recalled something. "Did you know that Harry can cook too?"

"He does?" Ginny looked incredulous.

"Totally!, he makes some amazing breakfast. You and Luna have to come visit during the break. I'm sure that he'll… wait, what is that?" Lyra pointed up as something flew into the hall.

"A delivery owl… someone is getting a present. How nice!" Luna exclaimed.

Lyra looked around, trying to guess where the owl was going… there were only around four or five groups of people left in the entire hall.

The owl appeared to fly around in circles for a bit before deciding where it had to go.

"Wait! It's coming this way!" Lyra said.

The owl was flying straight at them.

"No way! Is something for us?" Ginny said.

The owl landed right in front of Ginny and dropped a small package in front of her.

"Huh? Is it for me?" Ginny found it hard to believe. Her parents wouldn't send her a present now. She was going home in a week. "Who could have sent me something?"

"There is one way to find out, you know?" Luna pointed out the obvious.

"She is right, open it up!" Lyra said with excitement.