Chapter 17: Shifting Hearts and Shadows of the Past
-----
The crisp autumn wind carried the scent of ancient parchment and fallen leaves as the Hogwarts castle bathed in amber light. For most students, the threat of the Chamber of Secrets had faded into memory with the passage of weeks. But for two particular students, life had changed in irreversible ways.
Clarissa Mulbridge, a fourth-year Slytherin known for her sharp tongue and colder disposition, sat beneath a black walnut tree by the Black Lake. Once reviled by many for her attitude and bloodline arrogance, something within her had changed since the exorcism in the Chamber of Secrets. Since he saved her.
Harrison Strange Potter.
She remembered the moment the possession lifted—the weight of a malevolent force departing her mind and soul, only to be replaced by his presence, his magic, his aura. That blazing cosmic power had cradled her mind like warm fire after an endless winter. Harrison had entered her darkness and became her light.
Now, she found herself tracing his name in the margins of her books, her heart fluttering with a feeling she had long believed herself incapable of: hope.
Meanwhile, Penelope Clearwater, the composed and brilliant Ravenclaw prefect, also bore the weight of transformation. Having survived the petrification and emerging from that silent stasis thanks to Harrison's efforts, she found herself watching him in the halls, the classroom, even from afar during mealtimes. He wasn't like the others.
He carried magic like the night carried stars—effortlessly, beautifully. Her analytical mind couldn't make sense of how her heartbeat seemed to speed up whenever he was near.
---
A New Alignment
Clarissa had taken to watching Harrison train from the shadows of the Room of Requirement. She hadn't approached yet—afraid, uncertain. But she felt it. The change. In herself, and in him.
One evening, as he dismissed his friends—Fred, George, Lee, Daphne, Harry, Astoria, Luna—Clarissa finally stepped into the flickering torchlight.
Harrison turned his head slightly. "Clarissa."
She startled, then straightened her back. "I didn't think you'd noticed."
"I notice everything. You okay?"
A soft laugh escaped her, almost bitter. "You tore a dark lord's soul out of me and you're asking me if I'm okay?"
He walked over, his boots echoing on the stone. "That wasn't your fault. Riddle used you because he thought you were vulnerable. But I see strength in you. Real strength."
Her throat tightened as her eyes welled unexpectedly. "No one's ever said that before. Not even my parents."
"Then they were blind."
Her hands trembled at her sides. "Why did you save me? You could've let me die. The school would've rejoiced."
"Because I'm not here to judge who deserves saving. I'm here to change the world. And I need allies who've been to the edge and returned."
Clarissa didn't know what overtook her, but the next moment, she leaned in and kissed his cheek, lingering just long enough to feel the warmth of his skin.
Her breath caught, her eyes searching his, then she turned and walked away—her heart pounding like the beating of war drums.
---
Penelope's Perspective
Penelope watched the exchange from a hidden scrying mirror—Luna had enchanted it for her. She didn't feel jealousy. Not yet. Just an aching curiosity.
Later that week, she approached him in the library.
"Harrison."
He looked up from a stack of books on temporal threads and soul magic. "Penelope. How's your recovery?"
She smiled gently. "More like a resurrection, thanks to you."
He tilted his head. "Still having headaches?"
"Not since last week. Actually, I've been thinking about—us. Not romantically! I mean, about your magic."
He chuckled softly. "Ravenclaw to the core. Go on."
"You've mastered things wizards dream about. Eldritch magic, Egyptian combat forms, even time control. What drives you?"
He paused. Then softly said, "Redemption. For those I couldn't save in past lives. For the mistakes made in this one. And to give Harry and our family a future no one dared dream of."
She tilted her head. "Past lives?"
Harrison gave a rare, open smile. "I've lived before, Penelope. In other realities—heroes, demigods, even beings beyond space. I remember it all. Percy Jackson, Jason Grace, Nico di Angelo, Carter Kane... and finally, someone who read all those lives as fiction from a higher dimension. One of those lives forged a bond with Nyx, Primordial Goddess of Night. We're betrothed."
Her eyes widened in awe, her breath catching in her throat. "And yet here you are. At Hogwarts. With us."
"I chose this life. This world. Nyx understands. She exists beyond linear time. But my heart... it still has room to care here."
She stared at him, emotion swirling in her chest—admiration, disbelief, longing. "You're not just extraordinary. You're impossibly human."
And with no more hesitation, she stepped closer and kissed his lips—a kiss that carried gratitude, wonder, and the promise of something more.
Her cheeks flushed, her heart pounding in her ears, Penelope turned and left without another word, her soul lit by the flame he had ignited.
---
Shadows Over Grimmauld Place
Just as the year began to feel peaceful again, tragedy struck once more. The morning owls dropped a new edition of the Daily Prophet, and headlines screamed the news across the Great Hall:
"SIRIUS BLACK STILL AT LARGE – NEW SIGHTING NEAR HOGSMEADE!"
Harry dropped his toast. Daphne snatched the paper.
Harrison's jaw clenched. He stood up, scanning the article.
Penelope and Clarissa both approached him from opposite ends of the hall.
"You know something," Clarissa said, her voice calm but firm.
"He's been spotted near the school," Penelope added. "Should we be worried?"
Harrison nodded. "Worried for him, not us. Sirius Black is not the threat they claim."
Astoria blinked. "But he betrayed your parents. He escaped Azkaban!"
Harrison looked around and motioned for his circle to follow him out.
---
The Truth of Sirius Black
In the Room of Requirement, transformed into a map room, Harrison pulled up an enchanted illusion of Azkaban, overlaying its history and prison records. With a wave of his wand, files opened in the air.
"Sirius Black was framed. By Peter Pettigrew."
Gasps echoed around the room.
"He didn't betray James and Lily. He was their Secret Keeper for a time, but they changed it to Peter at the last moment. Dumbledore knew—suspected, at least. But he let Sirius rot in Azkaban."
Clarissa leaned forward, anger rising in her voice. "So he's innocent."
"Yes. And I'll prove it. I've already tracked his movements. He's been trying to get into Hogwarts. Not to hurt Harry—but to protect him."
Fred crossed his arms. "Why doesn't he just show up?"
"Because no one would believe him. Except us."
The air grew heavy.
"Our mission is two-fold now," Harrison said. "Track down Peter. Free Sirius. And make sure Harry remains safe."
Lee Jordan whistled. "Sounds like a war."
"It is," Harrison replied. "But it's one I've trained for across lifetimes."
---
Beneath the Stars
That night, Harrison stood atop the Astronomy Tower, his eyes tracing the stars. He felt two presences behind him.
Clarissa and Penelope.
They stood silently on either side.
"You always come here when something's weighing on you," Penelope said.
"I can feel the future shifting," Harrison said. "This year—it won't stay quiet for long."
Clarissa touched his hand, her fingers trembling slightly. "Then let us help. Not just in battle. In life. In whatever comes."
Penelope added, her voice soft but resolute, "We're not asking for promises. Just a chance. To walk beside you. To believe in something greater."
He looked at them—two girls changed by darkness, now reaching for the light.
And in that moment, Harrison Strange Potter, Guardian of Time, allowed himself to hope.