Harry Potter and the Prince of Slytherin

Chapter 10: On the Importance of Emotion

PANDEMONIUM AT POTTER MANOR!

BOY-WHO-LIVED NEARLY MURDERED AT BIRTHDAY BASH!

DEATH EATER SYMPATHIZERS AT LARGE?

by Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent to the Evening Prophet (July 31, 1992)

Earlier this afternoon, one of the most anticipated annual events of Wizarding Britain was marred by horrific violence as a deadly cursed artifact was unleashed at stately Potter Manor during the afternoon fete celebrating the twelfth birthday of James Potter, Jr., "The Boy-Who-Lived." While in the process of opening presents sent by well-wishers – indeed, presents intended for charitable donations to the underprivileged! – our young Jim was tricked into unwittingly releasing the artifact which took the form of a model copy of the Hogwarts Express, a cruel mockery of a cherished memory from our collective childhood. The model train came to life and went on a rampage, killing two aurors and a party guest before it and the various replicas of itself generated during the course of its killing spree were neutralized by the swift actions of Chief Warlock and Hogwarts Headmaster Albus P.W.B. Dumbledore. At a press conference, Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, revealed that the cursed artifact bears the markings of the infamous and long-deceased Death Eater Erasmus "Mr. Toymaker" Wilkes, one of the most notorious servants of You-Know-Who. [See page 3 for an article about the so-called Toymaker's reign of terror that ended with his death in 1980.]

Director Bones was unwilling to speculate as to how a gift sent to the Boy-Who-Lived by Peter Pettigrew, a longtime confidante of the Potter Family, was replaced by the cursed item, though she assured reporters that Pettigrew himself was not a suspect. Interestingly, this year's birthday fete also marks the first time ever that a significant number of school-aged Slytherin students were in attendance at Potter Manor, invited one and all by the twin brother of the Boy-Who-Lived: Hadrian Remus Potter. Faithful readers may recall that it was this same Potter sibling's unprecedented Sorting into Slytherin House last September which provoked a public reprimand in the form of a Howler from his father, Lord Potter, over concerns that young Harry might follow "the Dark Path." True, Harry Potter did speak to this reporter of his strong opposition to the ideology of the Death Eater movement, stating that "Slytherin House has more to offer Wizarding Britain than just the bigoted lackeys of a failed dark lord who was destroyed by my brother more than a decade ago." But it is striking that the first public appearance of Harry Potter alongside his famous twin should be accompanied by the first major Death Eater attack in nearly ten years. This reporter can only hope Harry Potter was sincere in his assertions that he harbors no ill will towards his family over his decade-long exile from Wizarding Society.

1 August 1992

Neville and Lady Augusta watched Harry uneasily from across the breakfast table, but neither felt comfortable saying anything to him. So far, Harry himself gave no sign of anger or offense over Rita Skeeter's remarks about him in the special edition of The Prophet rushed out the night before. Neville was furious on his behalf over the thinly-veiled suggestion that he might have had anything to do with the attack on Potter Manor. Augusta, who was older and wiser, saw that the article was a two-pronged attack: Insinuate on one hand that Harry was a budding dark wizard while at the same time quote him directly on the subject of "the bigoted lackeys of a failed dark lord," a provocative statement which was certain to brand him as a blood traitor in the eyes of the more reactionary Slytherins. Both of them, however, were more worried at the moment by the fact that Harry was reading the offending article without any apparent reaction at all beyond calmly munching on a scone. Neville was reminded of the unearthly calm and poise Harry showed on his first day at Hogwarts after James Potter had sent him the Howler mentioned in Skeeter's report. Augusta, however, was more concerned about Harry's forays into Occlumency, a discipline sometimes abused by the unwary as a crutch to avoid dealing with painful emotions. Sometimes, a young Occlumens would go too far in suppressing such unpleasant feelings and, as a result, unwittingly turn himself into a heartless sociopath rather than deal with the pain of living.