Heat, Light and the Properties of Plants

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Chapter published 06 Mar 2006
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Chapter 5 The Mirror of Betrothal

Harry had expected the Mirror of Betrothal to be made of glass, maybe something like the Mirror of Erised that he\'d encountered at Hogwarts. But it turned out to be a stone basin - a bit like a Pensieve - filled nearly to the brim with what looked like clear water.
Sextus Twayblade, a short, bearded wizard wearing a cream coloured robe, made Harry and Ginny stand facing each other across the basin. Mrs Weasley and Remus Lupin sat together on a wooden bench at the back of the room, watching them intently.
\"Hold your right hand over the Mirror,\" Twayblade told Harry. \"And you, my dear,\" turning to Ginny. The pair did as they were told. The surface of the mirror became ruffled as though a strong breeze had passed over it.
\"Hmmm,\" said Twayblade, frowning. \"Now clasp hands.\" Ginny stretched her hand further towards Harry and took his hand in a firm grip. For a moment nothing happened. Then the liquid in the basin turned black, its surface became extremely agitated and what looked like miniature lightning bolts flashed above it. There was a low, ominous rumble of thunder.
Mrs Weasley gasped and put her hand over her mouth. Lupin\'s careworn, kindly face was sombre. Sextus Twayblade raised his wand and pointed it at the surface of the mirror. A clear, cold voice rang out, apparently from the mirror itself, \"Connexio Priori!\"
Twice more Twayblade pointed his wand at the mirror, with the same result. Shaking his head sadly, he said \"Well, there\'s your answer.\"
\"But what does it mean?\" asked Harry.
\"It means that you two cannot marry, because of a prior connection.\"
\"But - \"
\"Come away, Harry,\" said Remus Lupin. \"I was afraid this would happen. You\'d better come home with me. Tonks and I will be delighted to have you.\"
\"But -\" Harry stared at Ginny who glared back. \"I thought you weren\'t being honest with me,\" she snapped. \"I knew there was something wrong!\"
Mrs Weasley hurried forward and took her daughter in her arms. \"Never mind, dear,\" she said, also glaring at Harry. \"You\'re better off without him!\" And without further ado she bustled Ginny out of the door. Harry was left staring blankly at Remus.
\"I don\'t understand.\"
Remus sighed. \"How can I explain it...do you know anything about Muggle marriage customs?\"
\"Vaguely.\"
\"Well, I must admit I don\'t know too much about them myself, but I believe before a Muggle couple can get married in church, the officiating priest has to make a public announcement of their intentions, and, on three separate occasions, recite something like this:
\'If any man knows of any just cause or impediment why these two persons may not be joined in Holy Matrimony, let him speak now, or forever hold his peace.\'
Then if anyone stands up and says, for instance, \'that man\'s already married to me, he can\'t marry her\' well, the whole thing\'s off. This is the wizarding world\'s equivalent, Harry, it recognised the existence of a prior connection, the one you created with Severus Snape with the Essences Potion.\"

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\"More coffee, Harry?\" Tonks smiled encouragingly at him across the breakfast table. \"Yeah, thanks,\" Harry muttered, pushing his cup towards her.
Harry had been staying with Remus and Tonks for a week now; at first shell-shocked after his encounter with the Mirror of Betrothal, he was slowly coming round in the sympathetic atmosphere. And, although he hated to admit it, he did feel a tiny bit relieved.
Tonks splashed coffee into Harry\'s cup and handed it back \"I dunno if Remus told you, Harry, but we\'re all going over to The Burrow this afternoon.\"
Harry spluttered out coffee. \"No way, Tonks! The Weasleys all hate me now, I\'d get lynched!\"
\"Nah, Harry, it\'ll be okay, you\'ll see. Me and Remus\'ll make sure they don\'t give you too much of a hard time.\"
But later that day in the Weasleys\' sitting-room, Harry wasn\'t too confident about that. Mrs Weasley was glaring at him, although her husband was obviously trying to calm her down. Hermione was there too, her arm around Ginny. Harry looked apprehensively at the clock with nine hands on the wall to see where the rest of the family was. He was relieved to see that Percy, Bill and Charlie were at work. However, the hands for Fred, George and Ron all pointed to \'Travelling\' - were they coming to The Burrow?
\"Hermione\'s explained about the potion,\" Ginny said to Harry accusingly. \"Why didn\'t you tell me?\"
Harry looked away. \"I hoped it wasn\'t true,\" he mumbled. \"I wanted my life to just...get back the way it was, I s\'pose.\"
\"How could you be so thoughtless!\" sobbed Mrs Weasley.
\"Harry has lived most of his life among Muggles, Molly,\" said Mr Weasley. \"He can\'t be expected to realise how powerful some wizard lore can be.\"
\"But it\'s just as well it happened really,\" said Hermione. Ginny and Mrs Weasley both looked at her as if they\'d like to murder her. Hermione went pink but continued determinedly \"Professor McGonagall explained to me that the Essences Potion can\'t work unless both parties really want it to, no matter how deep down. And I\'ve spoken to Professor Snape since and he agrees - and he knows more about potions than any of us. Mind you, he didn\'t seem all that happy about it.\"
Harry, who had stiffened at the mention of Snape, gave an unhappy laugh. \"He told me he\'d rather he\'d died,\" he whispered desolately. Remus gave an exclamation and put his hand comfortingly on Harry\'s shoulder, but before he could say anything there was a loud crack! and Ron Apparated in the middle of the sitting-room. \"Fucking hell, Harry, you\'ve really cocked things up now.\" Ron was not happy. \"Language, Ron!!\" exclaimed Mrs Weasley and Hermione simultaneously.
There were another two loud cracks and the twins Fred and George appeared in the room. \"Where\'s the villain who\'s been trifling with our sister\'s affections!\" Fred cried melodramatically. \"Defend yourself, Harry, you have to face our wrath!\" added George.
They both pulled out their wands and pointed them at Harry, who went pale, half expecting an unforgivable curse. But what burst out of the tips of the wands was not the green flash of Avada Kedavra, not the red glare of Sectumsempra, not even the silvery wisp of a Patronus. It was a yellow, dense and nauseatingly smelly fog which wrapped itself lovingly round Harry. \"Stinks for a stinker!\" announced George. \"From our latest range,\" said Fred.
The scene in The Burrow was rapidly developing into a farce. Fred and George were roaring with laughter and their mother was shouting at them angrily. Harry took advantage of the confusion to mutter shamefacedly to Ginny \"I\'m sorry. Can\'t we still be friends?\"
\"Ask me that again in six months,\" said Ginny coldly. \"I might have got over you by then.\" And she marched towards the door.
\"Ginny, wait,\" Harry cried out in desperation, \"maybe we can sort something out between the three of us - I dunno... a menage a trois or something -\"
Ginny slapped his face and stormed out, slamming the door behind her.
\"C\'mon Harry,\" said Tonks who had remained uncharacteristically silent so far. \"We\'d better go home.\" She waved her wand at Harry, holding her nose with her other hand. The smelly yellow smoke thinned and was gone, with its parting shot - the sound of a long, juicy fart. Remus couldn\'t help laughing; Harry glared at him,
As the three of them prepared to Apparate back to the Lupins\', Hermione pressed a small envelope into Harry\'s hand. \"Professor Snape asked me to give you this,\" she whispered. Harry looked stupidly down at it. Ron was staring suspiciously at Hermione. \"What - \" he began.
\"Later,\" said Remus urgently. \"Come on home Harry, we need to talk.\"

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Back at the Lupins\' the three of them sat at the kitchen table with more cups of coffee, Tonks had also provided a deliciously gooey chocolate cake and soon only crumbs were left.
\"Cheer up, Harry,\" said Tonks encouragingly. \"I\'m sure Snape didn\'t really mean he\'d rather be dead.\"
\"Oh, he meant it,\" said Harry, who\'d been replaying that scene with Snape over and over in his head. \"And he said - how did I think he felt, bound for life to the son of that arrogant prick James Potter -\"
\"Well, why\'s he sending you letters, then? C\'mon Harry, open it.\"
Harry looked doubtfully at the envelope, lying beside him on the kitchen table. Then, plucking up his courage, he ripped it open. It contained a piece of parchment covered in Snape\'s small, cramped handwriting, and a wizard photograph of him marching about frowning, his arms hidden in the sleeves of his robe.
Harry quickly scanned the parchment then slowly read it aloud:

\"To Harry James Potter,
Difficult as it may be for both of us we must come to terms with our situation, I fear it is irreversible.
I am now fully recovered and have resumed my post as Potions Master at Hogwarts. This is proving tiresomely time consuming as we attempt to bring the school back to some semblance of normality. I will therefore be unable to leave Hogwarts castle for some time but have no objection to your visiting us should you wish to do so.
Yours, Severus Tobias Snape
PS I enclose a photograph of myself as I believe is customary on these occasions. Please do not trouble to reciprocate with your own photograph. The thought of a James Potter lookalike jeering at me from my own mantlepiece is too repugnant to contemplate.\"

Remus chuckled. \"Coming from Severus Snape, that\'s practically a love letter.\"
\"What! When he\'s so bloody rude about my Dad?\" Harry said indignantly.
\"I was at school with James and Severus, don\'t forget,\" said Remus. \"And believe me, there\'s no way Severus is ever going to forgive him. If only you didn\'t look so much like him...\"
\"Maybe I can do something about that,\" said Tonks, winking at Harry. \"Touch of the old Metamorphmagus magic, eh Harry? I could make you look a bit more like your Mum - Snape didn\'t hate HER.\"
\"I suppose it might be worth a try,\" Harry said slowly.
\"But would you be happy to change your appearance?\" Remus asked seriously. \"I know how proud you are of your father.\"
\"I\'m proud of my Mum, too,\" Harry said. \"And, sometimes, my Dad did things I\'m not proud of...\" He was thinking of the memory of Snape\'s he\'d seen during that ill-starred Occlumency lesson. Remus and Tonks exchanged glances.
\"So would you like me to try it, Harry?\" Tonks asked gently.
\"Yeah, why not,\" said Harry. \"But I thought a Metamorphmagus could only change their own appearance?\"
Tonks tapped a forefinger against her nose and grinned at him. \"Little known fact, Harry. Not many of us can do other people too, but I\'m pretty damn good though I say it myself. C\'mon.\" She led him upstairs and sat him down in front of his dressing table mirror. \"Course, I can\'t make radical changes like I can to myself, but -\" she moved his face from side to side, frowning thoughfully at it in the mirror \"- I can play down your resemblance to your Dad, bring out hidden traits - your hair f\'rinstance...\" Her face contorted painfully and suddenly Harry saw that his hair was no longer completely jet black but contained rich auburn highlights, no longer spiky but smooth, falling in sleek waves to just brush his collar. Tonks\' face contorted again. His eyes remained a bright emerald green, but his cheekbones altered subtly, as did the shape of his mouth. And his scar - already faded after Voldemort\'s final defeat - was gone completely.
\"Wow!\" Harry gasped. \"Thanks, Tonks.\"
\"Want me to do some more?\" asked Tonks. \"I shouldn\'t,\" said Remus, walking in and looking closely at Harry. \"This is just right. Not too different - but definitely more reminiscent of Lily than James. Time to wangle yourself an invitation to Hogwarts, Harry.\"

TBC >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Bit of sex and violence coming up in the next chapter, so watch out...