| Puffskein
Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Florida
Posts: 1,415
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Janet Lynn Gordon
Fifth Year |  Werecats are people too! Reader of Fan Fictions
Hey everyone, I hope all is going well with you one and all. Christmas is almost upon us; so I'd like to take this opportunity to wish all a Merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates this day of joy, and a wonderful day for those who don't. Thanks to you all for reading and I hope you enjoy this chapter. We're coming close to the end of this ff; only 2 more chapters after this one. Next week chapter is Chapter 22, "Zombies In North America" 
narnia_potter;  Thanks Rachel, yeah I think you're right; trouble everywhere Harry goes. I think Luna's dad feels like he is indebted to Harry, plus he really was a good man, strange but good. It's fun writing little lines of humor for Ginny and Luna, you can read over them not enough to make you break out laughing that would distract from the story, but put a smile on your face just the same. If I said that right. The kangaroos play a big part in the next story. Thanks for reading and commenting Rachel.
Droo; Thanks for reading and I'm glad you liked the chapter.
Harita; Hey Harita, thanks for reading and commenting. It's good to see you again. I'm glad you liked the chapters. Take it easy and don't over extend yourself when you get back to the rugged studies. I'm really enjoying your ff, "In The Shadows Of The Trio" and I will get on commenting it as soon as I can. It's a great story. Chapter 21
A Delay In The Story
“Our last night in South Africa…” Harry looked to where he had put the paintings. “Where are the Professors at?” he asked suddenly alarmed when he noticed they were not where they had been placed.
“Oh dear,” exclaimed Molly fretfully. “I’m so sorry Harry, but we had a bit of destruction in the house before the roo’s were caught, and I’m afraid the portraits got damaged. I was going to take them in to be repaired in the morning.”
“They’re still here then?” he asked quietly.
“Yes Dear. Here they are.” Molly brought them in to show him. The easels and the portraits were busted and ripped badly, and the occupants were not in the pictures, with the exception of Fawkes. “I’m very sorry, and we’ll pay for them to be repaired.” She said earnestly, and more than just a little embarrassed.
He smiled slightly and said everything would be ok. “Ginny? Could you sit here and hold them steady for me? He pulled out some bars of chocolate from his pouch. “Does anyone want some chocolate?” he offered. Nobody accepted the chocolate offer, but gathered around to watch him repair the damage. He repaired Fawkes first, and made that a gage to see how much it would drain his energy. He popped a chunk of chocolate in his mouth and just held it between his cheek and tongue. He took the next portrait, examined it, and repaired the canvas.
“Poppa? Are you able to come to me?” he spoke through his teeth. Professor Snape peeked around the frame. He came in full view saying, I see you‘re painting with your mouth full again.” Harry afforded him a slight grin then he rested Snape in Ginny’s hands. He closed his eyes and blue, yellow, red, white, and black paint appeared on his fingertips. He held his hand inches from the portrait, and the paint started going on the destroyed places, mixing the colors as needed. When he was finished, he kept his eyes closed and asked Snape if it was all better. Snape assured him he was one hundred percent once again. Harry then caused a cold wind to blow on the fresh paint. After a few minutes, Snape said, “Dry” and Harry stopped blowing it.
He asked Ron who happened to be standing closest to him, to put the portrait on the easel. Lastly, he picked up the last canvas and repeated the same process, including popping another chunk of chocolate in his mouth. After the professor declared he was dry, he opened his eyes, and touched the face of the professor.
“I wanted to take the three of you to the wedding if you could be there. Professor Dumbledore thanked him for thinking of them. “We did want very much to come, and now we can.”
“I’m about to tell this lot about Zombies. Could I ask you to be here to keep me straight on the details?”
They nodded their heads not saying anything. They would like to have suggested that he tell them all later, but they knew his determination so remained silent.
“Luna, Neville, everyone who wasn’t here last night when I got home, I took these portraits with me. They have been with me every step of the way, but for the first month and a half. So, if I refer to, “we or us” more than likely you know it to be them and me, unless of course I’ve been speaking about the people. You won’t have trouble discerning I don’t think. And something else,” he put in. This took thirteen and a half pages for me to write the report. Just giving you fair warning. It might get boring, so if you fall asleep, just don’t snore too loudly.”
Everyone chuckled. They too felt badly that they had been so insistent on hearing the story. Especially after Harry had repaired the portraits, and was visibly worn out.
“Where was I? Oh yeah, at the beginning. “The last evening before we left South Africa, I spun my wand, and it stopped on a mountain in the USA. Early the next morning after breakfast and saying good-bye, we traveled to Washington State and set up camp in the shadows of a mountain called, Mt St. Helens. The first thing I did was to update my passport I made to include the United States of America, and legal documents as to who I was and my purpose for being there. I claimed I was on a private expedition to study the mountain and its inhabitants. After I was done, I flew on my broom close to town, and then hiked in the rest of the way.
I found a very nice little café, and had my lunch observing the local people. This was going to take some getting used to, being in a civilized and modern part of the world. Technology had advanced even more than before I left. Hermione and George know what I’m talking about." Seeing the surprise on some of the faces at the mention of George's awareness of Muggle technology, he explained.
When I came home yesterday, I stopped in at Hogsmeade to have a message delivered to Hogwarts for Professor McGonagall to meet me at the Burrow. I also sent an owl to Kingsley with the same message. Then, I stopped in at the joke shop, but the proprietor was out to lunch. I saw your advertisement for your new and improved dream enhancement charms. It was a picture of Tarzan in the Jungle swinging on a vine, “Fantasize a life of romance and adventure.” I figured that he must have watched movies and or T.V. to know about Tarzan. So, anyway I came on out here when I couldn't find anyone there.”
“So, there I was in the café and this big guy wearing a trench coat despite the hot weather, came in and sat down and had a cup of coffee. I’m not talking big as in fat, but big as in tall, and very muscular. He was reading the paper, but I noticed he was watching me with his peripheral vision.”
“Harry… you’re so suspicious of everyone. Why do you always think someone is out to get you?” asked Percy with sympathy in his voice.
“Because they are Percy, I don’t know why, but they are. The man read the paper, page by page. He didn’t follow a story that started on the first page and continued on page three or whatever. He read the first page, then the second page, and then the next page. When I got up and paid for my meal, he folded his newspaper and paid for his coffee and left. I had ducked in an alleyway while he was paying for his coffee, and put on my invisibility cloak. He came out, looked around, and went on up the street, looking in each building. I didn’t sense any magic about him, so I just put it off as someone curious about a new face in town.”
“I went to the Library and focused on my task at hand. I looked up on their machine there, every newspaper article written about Zombies. At first, there were just isolated sightings. Then it became obvious that there were creatures stealing small farm animals and crops from gardens during the nights of bad weather, making it hard to catch them at it.” I found out the area that most of these reports were coming from, and I went to a realtor, and bought the farm that was for sell. It was the very farm with all the sightings. I got it at a very good price, because of the, “Zombie Curse.”
“After I made my farm purchase, I was headed to the hardware store for some maps and camping supplies. The man I had given the slip, walked out of the barbershop and pulled out the pipe weapon I told you about earlier. It looks like a Blowpipe but anyway, he shot me with it. He laughed and said, “I’ve come to kill you Harry Potter.” I rolled over to a car and used it to shelter myself. I sent my Patronus to the country’s Ministry of Magic, telling them who I was and I was in a Muggle community where I might have to use magic to save myself from a man who just shot me, and wasn’t going to stop till he killed me.”
The man just stood there in the middle of the street laughing. He shot a police officer who arrived on the scene. I looked out not believing my eyes. He was randomly pointing this pipe weapon and shooting. He ran out of the pellets he used and to my horror, he pulled out another pipe that used lazers. That would supply him with enough time to shoot up the area and everyone trapped there. He laughed as a small boy got loose from his mother and ran after his dog that was about to attack the man. I ran at the man while he was distracted and knocked him to the ground. We fought with our fists. I knew he was just having fun beating on me to wear me down. I was afraid I’d have to resort to magic, because I was losing blood, nearly spent, and the Auror’s weren’t there yet. The man pointed to me and told me I was doing very well for a little runt. It was the last thing he ever said. When he pointed to me, I grabbed his wrist and used his arm as I would use a grape vine in the Jungle, and swung around to his back. I clamped my legs around his waist and locked my arm around his throat, and choked him to death. The Auror’s and different agencies from the Ministry arrived just as I was choking the man. They put a freezing charm on the crowd and prevented anyone from leaving or coming onto the scene. A healer came to the scene with the aurors' and took care of my wound. The pellet had gone clear through, so they just disinfected the wound and cleaned out the lead contaminants, left from it passing through. I gave my report to the authorities as the healer tended to me. They said they would let me talk to the Muggle police since I didn‘t do anything illegal and they would not have to create a cover story. The man I killed was a Muggle, so they figured he was just some nut. They instructed me to just tell them what happened. When they finished everything they had to do they all left. I told the Police what happened and an ambulance took away the body. I made a slight adjustment on the officer taking my statement. He was insistent that I go to the hospital and have my wound taken care of. I knew I looked like a piece of carcass from a butcher shop, but I would be able to take care of myself when I got back to camp. I caused him to change his mind saying he thought I‘d be ok. The officer that was shot made a full recovery, and miraculously, nobody died.”
“After the police were done with me, I told them that I had just bought the McGreevy Farm, but was going to be spending time in the mountains, and did they know of anyone needing a place to stay for a while till I was able to get back to the farm.”
“They told me of a family that was down on their luck. The husband fought in the Korean War, and had six children still at home. They’ve been staying in a shelter for the time being since the bank foreclosed on their home. They gave me his name and I said I would speak to them about them staying at the farm, and running it for me until I was able to. I explained that I really didn’t know how long I would be on the mountain, but I would be back in town from time to time for supplies. I purchased some dynamite in case I had need of it, of course I had to convince the authorities I had permits to purchase and use it. The little boy that ran after his dog gave me a puppy from a litter of pups his dog had a few days after the incident. It lives on my farm with the family I hired to take care of the farm while I was on the mountain.”
Harry looked around at the group who was staring at him aghast of the story they just heard. He was irritated that he let himself get into all that. He tried to think how he got side tracked. He was so tired and just wanted to sleep. Then he remembered and scowled at Percy. “No more stupid questions.”
Last edited by Connie; 03-20-2014 at 07:47 AM.
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