A God's Apprenticeship

Marek (Harry the Traveler) and Flue arrived invisibly with a room that Marek recognized. One of his analogs was laying on the bed, eyes closed, tears coming from his eyes.

Flute was unhappy. "He's so sad."

Marek immediately noticed something. "He can't hear us."

Flute rolled his eyes. "Silly! You're a god! There is a difference between mortal magic and divine magic. Since we are using divine magic, no one will notice unless we want them to."

Marek shrugged. "I'm not used to doing it this way. I tend to show up in flashy lights and then use wizarding magic to hide if I need to."

Flute giggled. "That's doing it the hard way."

Marek looked at her. "Isn't it kind of callous to be amused considering what we are looking at?"

Flute looked at Harry and then back to him. "You have to remember that we are gods – well you are a god and I am a goddess. If you take the hurt of everyone you deal with it will eat away at you. Yes, he is in pain. But we're going to fix that. We don't have to suffer too."

Marek considered that. He decided that he was not so detached as a god that he could ever do that. He saw her point, but he couldn't do it that way and keep his sense of self.

He observed his analogue and then asked, "So, how do I do this? Normally, I use legilemency – which is mortal magic."

Aphrael shook her head. "I've felt you for a while. It isn't mortal magic anymore, even if it started that way. Yes, you were using the same techniques that you were subjected to as a mortal, but those of us who are divine can read much more. Go ahead and try it but be careful not to use legilemency as he might feel that."

She stopped him a couple of times before she let him actually do it. And she was right – this was far different than seeing memories. He could sense the varying emotions, memories, worries, various attempted decisions, and much more.

It was far more complex than legilemency.

And he immediately saw the problem: In this universe, Dumbledore had not gone the same route. Harry had already defeated Voldemort. The only reason he was here was because Dumbledore told everyone that "it still wasn't safe."

After a long moment, he disappeared from the room with the little girl and appeared in the nearby park, which was empty.

He set Flute down and they sat on a bench. "Okay. I can see why he is crying out for the ability to choose for himself. From what he can see, Dumbledore is micromanaging his life and forcing him to consort with particular people. And his friends are all going along with it. He is feeling like none of them were really his friends."

"Is it true?" Flute asked him.

He was about to answer and then stopped himself. "Honestly? I don't know. I'd have to check them all out and see what they are thinking."

Flute nodded. "That's the thing about being a god. Only Great-Grandma is omniscient – and she keeps out of things. For the rest of us, we have to look at a lot more to really understand what is happening. You can't start acting until you get the whole picture – unless you want to make what could be costly mistakes."

He sighed. "So there's no easy fix?"

"Nope! Now, we'll go and look at the ones he was thinking about but first I want you to push me!" She jumped down from the bench and ran over to the swing. He laughed and spent a little time playing with her.

Once she was satisfied, they decided to move on. "Who should I look at next then?"

"Well, Dumbledore is an obvious choice. Let's go there."

He shrugged and then, instead of picking her up, he willed the two of them into the Headmaster's office. The Headmaster was not there, but Fawkes was. Fawkes trilled in greeting.

"Ooooh!" Flue cried. She rushed over and began petting the large bird.

"I thought we were hidden?" he asked as he also went over to greet another version of his old friend.

"Animals – especially familiars – can see through a lot of what we do." She smirked. "It always upsets Mmrr when I appear as both Flute and Danae together. I just think it keeps her from getting complacent."

He laughed. "Okay. So what now?"

"Well, let's see if Fawkes can help us?" She turned to the bird and asked, "While it's fun meeting you, I need to ask: Where is your human?"

With that, both of them observed the mental ping which Harry immediately recognized: Number 12 Grimmauld Place. Fawkes then trilled something. Harry replied, "No, but thank you. I could get a ride but this trip is about practicing using divine power. Maybe another time?" He paused. "By the way – what do you think of Harry Potter?"

With that Fawkes let out a few trills and a little bit of song as he sent mental images of what Fawkes saw as the most important moments that he knew of. Marek could see that Fawkes like Harry but had no real opinion other than that.

"Thanks, Fawkes. Just to let you know, Harry is really unhappy. He feels like your human is being too controlling – and that maybe true or not. That's what we are trying to learn. So if Harry runs off, I'd appreciate it if you didn't help your human return him. I will let Harry decide what is best for himself and then help him achieve that – once we learn all the details. Okay?"

Fawkes trilled in agreement and then settled back to sleep.

Marek and Flute disappeared again. All that the portraits could see was Fawkes singing randomly but nothing else.

Marek and Flute arrived in the foyer of Number 12 Grimmauld Place. Kreacher had been sent to Hogwarts by Harry at Dumbledore's suggestion. And so there were no house elves. The Order of the Phoenix used the house sparingly.

Flute looked at the house and gave a disgusted look. "This is horrible!"

"I know. It belonged to a family that tended to be Dark – though experience has taught me it wasn't as Dark as my godfather Sirius thought it was. Really, the only truly evil one of the last generation was Bellatrix – and she was just insane. Narcissa was more concerned with her son, Anddromeda was disowned for being too liberal, Regulus was forces into following the Dark wizard and Sirius ran off as soon as he could. Even Bellatrix is sometimes evil by education rather than personal bent. It truly was only two or three real evil bastards – who happened to have a lot of power."

The two walked into a meeting of the Order. One of the Ministry employees were speaking. "That's all that we could find out."

Flute spoke to Marek. "Okay. How are you going to approach this?"

Marek shrugged. "Look into their minds, one after the other?"

Flute rolled her eyes. "You're thinking like a Wizard again! You're a god. Why would you do it one at a time?"

Marek considered that. "Because that will be easier to sort out?"

Flute sighed. "So you will make assumptions based on what one knows – and then that might have to change. Why not collect all of their thoughts and then sort it out?"

"Okay. How do I do that?"

"Watch me," she ordered him. He turned on that "otherness" (it was becoming more "his own" as he worked with it) and tied his mind to hers, which she allowed. He then watched her "capture" all of their minds at once.

"Woah!"

Flute crowed! "This is wonderful!"

"What's wonderful?" he asked.

"Back home, magic users can sense when we do things. But that's because magic use at home is dependent on a god – always. And while the magic here was originally more directly monitored by gods and goddesses, this world was built with magic as an active force which accounts for why there are so many magical creatures. This means that unless a mortal specifically is tying his magic into prayer – which most of these people are too egotistical to do – they can't see when a god or goddess is actually around them doing things." She gave what Marek would term an evil laugh. "We can get away with sooooomuch here that we can't at home."

She turned to him. "Okay. So what did you learn?"

He considered for a moment. "Let's move away from here and let me sort through it with you."

She nodded. Marek concentrated and moved the two of them to the back area at the Leaky Cauldron and then willed them to be observable. He looked down at Flute's bare feet and then conjured a pair of flip flops. "Put those on – they'll leave your feet mostly bare but will satisfy propriety. In this day and age, letting a child run around barefoot is considered abuse."

She sighed but stepped into them. "This defeats the whole reason for going barefoot. I still can't feel grass."

"Where we are going it's all stone. You can go barefoot on grass all you like – I would rather not attract too much attention."

She nodded, her face with a small pout.

He picked her up and put her on his shoulders as though he was entertaining a younger sister. With his hand, he tapped the proper bricks and the opening to the Alley appeared.

Aphrael looked at that speculatively. "That looks really impressive. I think that I'll teach Sephrenia how to create that."

Marek chuckled and walked into the Alley, destination Fortescue's. He asked Florean, who was serving, "Do you have any ice creams made from other milks? My cousin Aphrael here is from Egypt. She thinks cow's milk is too bland. She prefers goat or sheep."

Florean smiled. "Actually, you are in luck. I had a recent request and so started stocking some. I have goat milk ice cream in vanilla, chocolate, and mint."

He looked up and in Styric asked, "Which one?"

"I'll take the mint. That sounds yummy!"

Florean didn't understand the language but could see the girl's enthusiasm and he chuckled at it. With a smile Marek said, "Give us two mint goat."

Very soon, they were seated at a table and conversed in Styric – after each had tasted the ice cream.

"Okay. So what did you learn from the goat?"

Marek chuckled. "Is it funny that almost everyone calls him a goat? His name actually means bumblebee. And it was his brother who was convicted of inappropriate charms on a goat."

She gave him a comical smile. "I just think he looks like one."

Marek laughed. "It is as you say. But let's start with what I learned from everyone about actual facts. In this world, the idiot only had one item he put his soul into, the Diary. Harry's connection was from two rituals conflicting: A power ritual on Tom's part and a protection ritual by Lily. And while Harry destroyed the diary, that connection was remaining which kept Tom from fading once the Diary was destroyed. Tom actually blundered by using Harry's blood during the ritual. It removed the dichotomy which is what make it act like a horcrux. It wasn't a soul shard though. When the met in the Ministry, Tom attempted to possess him, which actually cut that last link.

"When he attacked last year, Harry just overpowered him because Tom no longer was being fed Magic by the link. No one noticed that His magic was actually failing as he was a very powerful wizard. Tom was hoping that he could create a new link – but Harry used the sword rather than a spell to kill him, preventing a new connection. No more Dark lord.

"Dumbledore originally thought Harry was going to die – but that ended up being negated by what happened. As a result, he was pretty free is misusing the resources that Harry was to inherit. Also, Harry does not have the same attitude of forgiveness of crimes committed against him. He has been using his influence to convince his friends that he must be controlled. He hasn't even made any attempt to return the resources. His friends are all convinced that Albus has Harry's best interests.

"Dumbledore is also trying to ensure that Harry marry a pureblood girl. As soon as Harry is 'properly reeducated' Dumbledore plans on promoting his own views. He expects Harry to forgive him when he finds out. But Harry, not being brainwashed yet, cannot be allowed to communicate freely. And so Dumbledore is forcing him to stay with his non-magical relatives to keep him separated.

"He plans on getting the Ministry to endorse his control by playing to their fears of Harry taking revenge against the guilty."

Flute nodded. "And his friends?"

"Too easily led. The adults are all taking the goat's words on faith, despite their doubts. I don't know about the teenagers."

"So, what will you do?"

Marek considered for a long moment. "Well, I think that first he should be told exactly why things are happening. He can't make an honest decision without knowing why Dumbledore is acting the way he is." He paused. "I do think I should find out exactly what his friends' reasons are for not contacting him."

Flute nodded. "What first?"

"Let's check out the Burrow and then see if we can find Hermione and Luna."

Flute and Marek finished their ice cream and then Marek took them to the Burrow. The first thing that they saw were Ginny and Ron playing on brooms. They went inside the Burrow and looked around.

Marek was immediately offended, however, when he found Hedwig in a large cage. "Hello, Girl. Why are you here?"

The owl was both extremely angry and extremely sad. Flute had to teach Harry to listen to animals first. Although he could understand phoenixes and snakes, other animals he had only a sense of what they communicated. Finally, he got it.

"*Red Menace said that Harry Human is unsafe if I am seen. I have been with Harry Human since he was a hatchling. I would not make Harry Human unsafe!*"

"Well, I quite agree with that. Were they upset about caging you?" Marek asked.

Hedwig considered that. "*Red Female said something about Whiskered Elder requiring it. Red Menace and Red Female are not mean except they keep me from Harry Human.*"

"What about Hermione?" Marek asked.

Hedwig was sad. "*I have felt Nest-Haired Female desiring to write to Harry Human. Harry Human is sad without hearing from nest mates.*" She got angry. "*I want to peck Whiskered Elder's hair out for keeping me from Harry Human!*"

Flute looked at Marek. "Why not speak in Owl?"

Marek was taken aback. "Speak in Owl? How does one do that?"

Flute rolled her eyes. "You're a god. You can speak to any creature. You can even speak the original language of the gods if you concentrate. Listen." The small girl goddess turned to Hedwig. "*We will help free you. I also am teaching Harry God to be a god and not a wizard.*" She turned back to Marek. "*Do you understand?*"

Marek realized that this took a shift in his mental approach to language very similar to how he communicated as a phoenix. "*Hedwig. Do you understand me?*"

Hedwing started moving enthusiastically. "*Can you teach Harry Human to do this?*"

Marek thought for a moment and then turned to Flute. "*Can I teach Harry Human to speak Owl?*"

Flute considered that. She asked Hedwig, "*Has Harry Human ever said out loud that he wished he could understand you?*"

Hedwing bobbed her head. "*When Toad Woman tried to stop me from delivering mail, Harry Human said he wished he could understand when I tried to tell him.*"

Flute nodded and then grinned at Marek. "*You're a god of free will. You can be as generous as you wish to be. Do wizards learn languages using magic?*"

Marek thought about it. In English he said, "Not in all worlds. In some worlds I've seen Language Lozenges which teach different languages. I've not paid attention because I can understand and speak any language now. At first I used a universal translator. Now it's a part of me. I actually lost the translator when I first burned as a phoenix but didn't notice – I thought I still had it because I could still understand any language if I concentrated."

Since Marek was still speaking in a way that was universally understood, Hedwig had actually understood that. She asked, "*Can you make this human treat to teach Harry Human to speak Owl?*"

Flute giggled. "*I will teach him.*"

Hedwig bobbed enthusiastically. "*Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease …*"

"*Yes. Yes. You can stop asking.*" Marek said.

Flute looked at Marek. "Go bring one of these Language Lozenges."

Marek concentrated and disappeared. He returned within four minutes, by which time Hedwig had been released from the cage and was bow being caressed by the young-seeming goddess.

"Okay. What now?" he asked.

"Now, look at the candy and examine it for how it's made. Look at the ingredients and the magic."

Marek nodded and then said, "We can do this – but let's move elsewhere." He paused and then waved his hand toward the cage. He turned and said, "They won't notice the cage is empty until they get reminded. I don't want it to seem like they were memory-charmed so I made it seem more like a natural response."

Flute smiled and nodded. "You're learning!"

"Okay. Come on Hedwig, land on my shoulder."

Hedwig flapped her wing and glided over, landing on his shoulder. She hooted enthusiastically, "*Let us leave this place!*"

He held his hand out to Flute and then they disappeared from the Burrow and reappeared in a forested area.

Flute looked around. "What is this place?"

"Forbidden Forest. If you look over there, you'll see Hogwarts." Flute did so and nodded. "Since it's summer, no one is looking. It's far enough from the large spiders that they won't bother us – and neither will the Centaurs."

Flute dropped her flip-flops and ran through the grass in the clearing they were in. "I love grass! And this is quite magical – I can feel it!"

Marek laughed and then conjured a rock which would be fairly comfortable to sit on. It had a protuberance which served as a perch. Hedwig moved to it so she could watch him work.

He took the candy and inspected it in detail. He noted that there seemed to be a memory built into it, as though it was used as an element in the potion used to make it.

"That's weird!"

Flute ran back and looked at it. "That's just like that memory strand you showed me when you used your bowl."

"Pensieve if you please," he grinned. He then turned serious. "Yes." With a wave, he made a stone pensieve, something he was used to conjuring and then carefully pulled the memory strand from it. "Let's see what it is."

After coaxing the memory from the candy, he dropped it in the bowl and then entered it. With that he saw that it seemed to be a partial memory. It used a technique that was rarely used: Using an innocuous memory which one could afford to lose as a framework to hold a copy of a memory that one wanted to keep.

A copied memory would degrade eventually. A real memory had more permanence. However, if one used a rare spell, the essence of the memory could be put into a "bleached out" memory. Instead of disappearing, the "copy" disintegrate into parts and be absorbed rather than just disappear.

It was a tricky bit of magic but it could be done.

"Okay." He pulled a second lozenge from his pocket, banishing the one he had deconstructed. "*I need a memory, Hedwig. Something which includes using Owl with human. Such as a time that you really tried to talk to Harry Human for a long time. I need the essence of the Owl words and a sense of how it is spoken.*"

"*How do I give a memory? And will it stay with me? I do not want to lose my Human from my mind.*"

"*I will make another from it and return it. A Human wizard could not do this – they cannot talk to Owls to get the right memory. But I need you to remember it and it only before I pull it from you. Do not resist me pulling it. I promise to return it.*"

Hedwig bobbed and then sat there. "*Now.*"

Marek conjured a vial and using his wand pulled the memory from Hedwig and dropped it in. He pulled an innocuous memory from himself – one from his early days at Hogwarts. He dropped this in the bowl and "scrubbed it" of its content. He then put the vial next to the bowl and cast the spell. A very pale copy of Hedwig's memory showed up which he then cast another spell to insert into the memory in the bowl. He paused and then, getting permission, repeated the process with two other lozenges (he had bought several and stockpiled them).

He carefully returned the memory to Hedwig. Once done, Hedwig ruffled her feathers. "*I do not want to do this again. It was not pleasant.*"

"*But at least this will allow Harry Human to understand you. And I made a second so that he can pick. And then another so that you can pick a Human to teach to understand you."

Hedwig actually looked surprised at that. "*I pick the Female with Hair Like Straw. She is always nice to me. Harry Human will pick Nest Hair. She is his favorite female.*"

"*Mate?*"

Hedwig paused, looking thoughtful. "*Not Mate now. Maybe Mate later. It is for Harry Human to choose.*"

Marek paused. "*Are you certain Harry Human will pick Nest Hair?*"

Hedwig huffed. "*I know my Human.*"

He looked at Flute and sighed. "I can either do it as fait accompli or I can let Harry choose. But I can personally vouch for Harry's love of Hedwig and his trust."

Flute looked at him. "You have to decide. You are the god. I know you champion Free Will. What have you learned of Harry's free will?"

Marek considered that. "He's had too many people making too many decisions for him. I won't choose for him even if I am certain of what his choice will be. I'm already making decisions which will affect him. And even if they are in his best interest, I really need to leave as much room as possible for him to decide – and know that he got to decide."

Flute nodded and then jumped into his arms and kissed his face a few times. "You have learned so much!"

Marek grinned. He then paused. "*Would Nest Hair like to learn to speak to bent-legged cat?*" Hedwig bobbed several times in agreement. "This might take a few minutes."

Marek left Hedwig and Flute to play together as he sneaked into Hermione's house. Through sheer chance, Hermione was on her way out with her mother. He captured her mind and then quickly sorted through it.

She was becoming disenchanted with the Headmaster's vision and was a true friend. Her fault was being easily led – which he understood as soon as he viewed what he had captured. He would give her some forgiveness – but would let Harry choose if he would as well.

However, with Hermione out Crookshanks was easily found. It took a conversation but Crookshanks agreed to come with Marek and allow his memories to be used as a basis for teaching Hermione and, if she decided, Harry. He thought it amusing that Crookshanks picked the Straw-Haired female as well.

Luna was, apparently, popular with animals of all types.

Crookshanks and Flute got along quite well. Crookshanks, however, had to learn a little humility as he was a bit more opinionated than even a normal cat. It occurred even as Harry was in the midst of making the lozenges.

He heard Flute say in response to Crookshanks making a declarative remark as regards his superior understanding of Humans, "~You know what you need? A lesson in cat-paddling!~"

Harry looked up to see Crookshanks in a large pool that Aphrael had pulled from nowhere.

Crookshanks complained loudly, but Aphrael was implacable. Finally, Crookshanks capitulated and begged forgiveness. With a happy, Flute pulled the half-kneazle out and even dried him with a thought. "~One hopes that you understand that goddesses are not to be treated like Human underlings?~"

Trying to maintain his dignity Crookshanks replied, "~One admits that Female Gods are to be better respected.~"

Harry called out, "~What about Male gods?~"

Crookshanks said haughtily, "~Male gods are minions who must listen to,~" the cat paused and continued, "~Female gods and others who are their betters.~"

Harry rolled his eyes. Crookshanks was, after all, a typical cat in his attitude.

He finally completed the process and returned Crookshanks home.

He stood up. Conjuring a parchment, he willed words onto it and then folded the two lozenges into it. "Okay. In order to save time, I will take us near Luna and allow Hedwig to deliver the message before flying back. I will then take us near Hermione to allow her to send the letter she's been writing." He conjured a second note which told her what the lozenge was and what the extra was for – mentioning that Harry could use a present for his soon-to-be birthday. He ensured it was anonymous.

They quickly delivered Luna's gift. It commented that her gift was thanks to a friend of Harry's who had decided on her specifically. She was to take them one after the other, not both at once. Luna, who was waiting for her father to return from asking for information, thanked Hedwig for the note. She was wide-eyed at the message that she was given and, trusting Hedwig, popped one in her mouth immediately.

The group then moved near Hermione's house. As Hermione was out, they took a nap waiting for her. As soon as they sensed her returned, Aphrael and Marek disappeared from mortal view, leaving Hedwig in Hermione's room.

Hermione was overjoyed at her presence and was amazed at what Hedwig was delivering. She immediately amended the note, put the extra lozenge into the note, and asked Hedwig to deliver it to Harry.

Hedwig, having groomed Hermione's hair while she was adding to the letter to show her affection, hooted and immediately took off. Flute and Marek got ahead of her and got her to land.

"*We must hurry! Harry Human needs me!*" she protested at the delay.

"But first we want to make it so that anyone who doesn't want you to succeed cannot see you. Can I put that magic on you?" Marek asked.

Hedwig bobbed her head. "*Quickly.*"

Marek did so. He also gave the message with the Owl lozenges which would allow Harry to take one and then send the other back – which his message suggested but explicitly stated was up to him. He then transported Hedwig a bit closer – but not right to Privet Drive. Hedwig was too prideful to accept that much help. Flute and Marek then transported themselves to Harry's room – seeing he was where he had been earlier, still moping.

That changed quickly as Hedwig soared into the open window. "Hedwig!" he cried.

Marek was relieved that he had already ensured the invisible guard did not hear Harry. But both Flute and Marek were immediately relieved at the change in Harry's demeanour at seeing his true first friend.