Mind Trap

Disclaimer: see chapter the first

A/N: thanks to those of you who reviewed. As of right now, I make no promises on slash/no slash or pairings. I\'ll just have to see what Harry wants. Thanks again!

Knockturn Alley 2/?

Harry woke to the sound of quiet knocking. \"Mr. Potter, are you awake?\" The voice was hesitant, feminine, and young. \"I have your breakfast here, Mr. Potter.\"

\"Yes, I\'m up.\" Harry quickly got up and opened the door for her. He saw what seemed to be a pitying smile when she saw his rumpled and obviously slept in clothing. \"Just put it on the desk please. Thank you.\" He ran a hand distrctedly through his hair. She seemed like the type of girl to favour the quiet, gentlemanly, scholar. \"Thank you, Miss...?\"

\"Oh, I\'m sorry. Gladys Servington, at your service Mr. Potter.\" She blushed charmingly and curtsied wobbly.

\'Right on target,\' he thought. \'But ye gods! She can\'t be more than thirteen. The last thing I need is a puppy-eyed girl-child following me around. However, she may be useful later...\' \"Miss Servington. You have no idea how much I appreciate the little luxuries.\" He smiled handsomely at her, with the tiniest hint of suggestion. She blushed for him again, and giggled behind her hand on the way out.

Harry devoured his breakfast before plunging into the task of sorting his recently acquired books. He put them in stacks and piles around the room: battle magic under the window, dark arts by the desk, healing next to the bathroom door, magical theory on the nightstand, and so on. It took him over an hour to go through the seventy-six books. Moving to his trunk, he retrieved his remaining school supplies of parchment, quills, and muliple pots of variously coloured inks: black, blue, green, and red.

Harry started with healing. His thought process reasoned that if something went wrong, he wanted to be able to heal himself. He took notes from the books he had, black ink for the book title and recommended reading, general healing theory in green ink, incantations in red, and use or purpose in blue. He found the concept of healing to be facinating. Usually a Healer fixed whatever was damaged, but occasionally a very powerful and talented Healer could actually reverse what was done to make it as if the patient were never injured or ill. He was so engrossed in his studies that he missed the noon meal, and was only roused by Tom\'s worried voice. \"Mr. Potter, are you alright? It\'s three o\'clock. Would you like some food brought up?\"

\"Tom? Would you come in, please?\" Harry turned to face the man as he entered the room, watching amusedly as shock spread across the other wizards face at the number of books spread about. \"I was so wrapped up in my studies that I completely missed luncheon didn\'t I? If possible, could we arrange to have my meals set on a schedule? I fear that if we don\'t, I shall hardly eat at all.\"

\"Of course Mr. Potter, whatever will make things easier on you.\" Harry emphasised the quiet grief on his face, smiling gratefully at the man.

Excellent, thank you. If I could have breakfast at six-thirty, luncheon at noon, and supper at five-thirty? I appreciate it immensely. For today, I\'ll be going out this evening. I\'ll get a bite to eat while I\'m out.\" After Tom left, Harry spent the remained of his day studying magical theory. He had at least four feet of notes on each subject, all memorized. He placed the papers with their appropriate pile of books before changing his clothing and freshening up. He threw on his hooded cloak and slipped out to Diagon Alley.

It was deserted at nearly nine o\'clock, all the stores closed up and the lights off. Knockturn Alley however was just waking up. Harry slipped into the crowd with ease. He began seaching for a street urchin to do his dirty work for him, when he sensed more then felt a hand slip into his pocket. He whirled in an instant, grasping a dirty boy\'s wrist. He was small and starved, covered in gutter filth. He stared up at Harry defiantly, daring him to do something aout his attempted thievery, but a thread of fear traced its way behind his eyes.

\"What\'s your name, boy?\" The child flinched, as if expecting a blow, reminding Harry of the usurper\'s reaction to Vernon. The memory decided him. He dragged the resisting boy into a tavern and ordered two butterbeers. \"Answer my questions and I\'ll buy you a meal.\" The boy obviously thought very carefully about the proposition, but it was an easy choice. He nodded. \"Your name?\"

\"Jason, m\'lord.\" The child clutched his butterbeer, slowly sipping the hot drink.

\"How old are you Jason?\"

\"I don\'t know sir. I don\'t have any magic, a Squib. I can remember six snow seasons, so I might be about nine or ten, sir.\" Quiet slurp.

\"Well Jason, how would you like to earn a few galleons? And before you ask, no I do not want a catamite. I\'ll pay you five galleons to steal a wand. Any wand will do, so long as it belongs to an adult wizard. Are you agreeable?\"

The boy sat and considered, a calculating look spreading across his face. \"Make it ten and you\'ve got a deal.\"

\"Done. I\'ll give you two galleons now and the rest upon delivery. If you aren\'t back in thirty minutes, my money and I are gone.\" Harry handed over two golden coins.

\"Back in a toad\'s hop.\"

Harry sat and sipped his slowly cooling butterbeer, waiting for Jason to reappear. He needed a wand to practice with, and he couldn\'t rightly use his own with all the detection spells on it from the Ministry. So he sat and waited for the urchin. He was back in thirteen minutes. \"I\'ve got it m\'lord.\" The urchin handed over a six-and-one-half inch wand, looking like it was made from oak. Jason wasn\'t sure why he called the older boy \'m\'lord\'. He just had an aura of... something. And it deserved respect. So he showed it the only way he new how to.

\"Very well done, Jason.\" Harry handed over the remaining eight galleons, and signalled a serving wench over, ordering a meal for his new acquaintence. The younger boy made his way through the meal slowly, his experience with starvation and deprivation evident. When he was done, Harry motioned for Jason to follow him.

They left the tavern and Harry guided them to the entrance to a backalley, unobtrusively drawing the stolen wand. Without warning, he silenced and bound the boy with a Total-Body Bind. Jason\'s frantic eyes were the only things he could move. Harry called upon his recently acquired healing knowledge and did a basic diagnostic scan. \"Aegre acclaro.\" It showed the boy was pregnant with squid. Harry stared at the wand for a moment, flumoxed. He gave it a shake and did the spell again, this time with success. The boy was starved, dehydrated, and speckled with bruises in various stages of healing, but free from major damage. The bruises were easy. \"Subtusus retexo.\" He squinted, then looked at Jason. He appeared to be fine. Harry redid the diagnostic spell and saw that the bruising was gone. The starvation and dehydration could only be cured with either potions, or the old fashioned way of foor and water.

\"Listen to me very carefully, Jason. I have healed your bruises. I immobilized you because you would have run the moment I drew the wand, don\'t deny it. I have another buisness propotion for you. I am teaching myself advanced magic and find myself in need of a test subject. This would mean that you allow me to hurt you, heal you, pay you, and feed you. If you wish, I will pay for a room for you to stay in. I am partially going to release the binding spell and remove the silencing charm. Don\'t scream.\" He levelled a very convincing glare at the younger boy.

\"Sir, you aren\'t giving me much of a choice.\"

\"It is a balance. Let me do some negative, and then balance it with some positive.\" Harry quietly waited, knowing he might have to kill the urchin if he refused, for the boy knew too much. At least he had not seen his face.

\"You\'ll feed me?\" Jason asked tentatively. Harry nodded. \"Pay for a room?\" Nod again. \"Will it hurt?\"

\"Sometimes. When it does, I\'ll heal you and take away the pain, and pay you a little extra. Sound fair?\"

Jason nodded, a timid and slightly scared look on his face, but it was an offer he couldn\'t refuse. Their deal was struck.




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