Desperate Measures

Chapter 2 - Day One

The student body glanced up when the Monday morning owls came with the post and then returned to eating. There were more owls than usual but not so many as to inspire neglect of breakfast. Several people, however, watched attentively as Harry Potter received four dozen or so pieces of mail. The watchers were disappointed when, instead of opening and reading the missives, the boy simply gathered all his letters calmly and placed them into a brown leather bag.

Despite his outward appearance, Harry was actually rather surprised. He hadn't expected to receive so many letters quite so quickly, but a quick perusal of the wax seals showed that a number of his schoolmates had been most efficient in getting the word out to their families. He wondered just how many he would receive tomorrow. He knew the interview he was giving today would start a deluge of courtship offers, but since it wouldn't be printed until tomorrow he hadn't expected any appreciable amount of mail until Wednesday. Now he wasn't so sure he would have that reprieve.

He picked up all the letters and put them in the second compartment of the bag that he had procured especially for this purpose. The bag was rather plain and an unremarkable medium brown, but he hadn't been looking for fancy when he'd purchased it. He had wanted something practical that would help him manage all the mail he knew he would be receiving and the multiple compartments designed specifically to hold papers, books, scrolls, writing implements, and other items useful for creating multiple files was exactly what was needed. The outermost compartment that could be used for holding larger objects and other purchases so that a second bag needn't be carried had been the cincher for him. The bag was technically called a scholar's purse (Scholar's Purse Plus! - catering to all your needs!) and was one of the most expensive models available because of the plethora of security and preservation spells that had been incorporated into the design as well as the "filing cabinet" functionality of the main compartment. Harry considered it fifty galleons well spent. He knew he was going to need it.

"Aren't you going to open them?" asked Hermione primly. "Don't you want to know why you're getting so much mail? It's not as if there's been an article in the paper recently."

Harry glanced at the young woman he didn't think would remain one of his best friends for much longer. He knew she was badly hurt by the fact that he hadn't confided his heritage to her and he didn't believe that she would ever understand just why he had kept his silence. She was going to be even more hurt when she found out that he had kept his silence for years and not just the last few days they had been together at Grimmauld Place. Her trust in authority was still absolute, as well, and she was appalled at his behavior towards the headmaster. One day she was going to berate him one too many times about having kept his heritage secret or about his unwillingness to trust the headmaster farther than he could throw a hippogriff or about the courting process itself and why he was willingly participating in it and when that happened... well, the frustration with her and the stress of an extended courtship was quite likely going to cause him to lay into her and rip strips out of her hide. It would be the beginning of the end of their close friendship. Still, he was going to delay that as long as possible.

Harry swallowed his bite of scrambled eggs and said, "The letters are probably all about the same thing – wanting to start a formal courtship with me. I'll open them all after breakfast, or, rather, after my interview with Mr. Lovegood, and respond to them then."

"A formal courtship?" Hermione said in surprise. "Why? Are you actually going to allow that? And what does that mean, exactly? What's involved?"

Ah, there was good old Hermione, forgetting her anger in the wake of new information. Harry smiled fondly and was about to reply when Ron interrupted.

"It means that everyone will be sending him fancy presents to get his attention," Ron said angrily.

Harry clenched his hand around his fork and resolutely kept the smile on his face. It seemed his prediction that the schism between him and Ron would start almost immediately was right. "It does mean that," he said mildly. "The type of presents they send me will help me determine whether or not they are worthy of my attention and, therefore, whether or not I'll be willing to actually meet with them. The presents can be fancy but actually don't have to be. Still, a crappy present will get a potential suitor summarily dismissed."