Soon after the day of their common heist, Ember decided to spend her evening in the seclusion of her room. After the hectic few days performing small tasks for the eccentric prince, she was totally down for some 'me' time. Ember was getting winded up from all that running around. Danny had tasked her with asking the familiar ghosts if they wanted to cause the stir alongside the newly fledged "Lord Phantom". Since Ember spent more time with them than the half ghost ever did, it was only natural that she received that request/order. Not many chose to answer the prince's call, but those who did, like Ember's close friends, were eager for the future chaos. Phantom had contemplated asking his own acquaintances, but they all were on the other side of the dimensional wall. So he had to scrap the idea, and honestly, Ember saw little reason to bring up the furballs from FarFrozen. Those yeti-like creatures hated everyone but the future king. People said that he was their prophesied champion, but Ember never bothered to ask the half ghost.

Ember still wasn't sure why she was even doing it. Yes, there had been an explanation even before she signed up for it. The ghost loved the rebellion, it was her theme. And yet, she found herself doubting if that really was the case. Or, rather, if it was the only reason. That white-haired bastard must have been manipulating her somehow, she was sure of it. Phantom only looked innocent and incapable of that feat. He had proven many times that he had brains and strength to boot. At that thought the memories of her past attempts to take over the world started rushing in. Sadly, each of her following attempts saw less and less success, because the ever-smiling ghost boy was always there to stop her. With his power not having hit its ceiling even by the time they last spoke, it was only a matter of time he walked all over those who he used to fight against. Although her first try almost brought the world to its knees, but it ended in the most embarrassing way possible. Remembering the outcome always made Ember flustered and angry even to that day.

Shifting her thought process to the situation at hand, she had to admit that it was something to shake off the rust. It was a good thing she traveled by herself, accompanied only by her mindless puppets. Nobody was there to give her a reprimanding talk for going wherever she liked. Or where she was forced to go by that same white-haired manipulator. Danny appeared to be right in one thing, music wasn't her only passion, and she had hit a stump by that point. Her main song may have become an undying classic, but she didn't want to be known only for that. Working with the prince of their entire world to ignite the flame of revolution was, admittedly, a curious endeavour. It could just be the inspiration she had sought for so long.

Unfortunately, her quality time alone in the hotel was going to be interrupted soon enough. She stayed there as a part of her concert trip, and some human pleasures, like resting in a hot jacuzzi, were not foreign to her, made all the more pleasant with scorching hot plasma for a core that she had. As she was resting, deep in thought, downstairs on the first floor two men in dark clothes, but with no masks, approached the registry.

"We have a visit arranged," one of them said.

The woman behind the desk looked confused. "Are you having a costume party? Well, who are you looking for?"

"Amycus, you tell her."

His companion looked a bit hesitant, but still obliged. "We are looking for Ms. McLain."

"McLain, huh? One moment," the woman typed on a strange piece of machinery the wizards had no idea of. "We have only one guest under this last name. But she is a part of a concert band, and they clearly said that they accept no visitors."

"What floor is she on? And what apartment?" The second Death Eater asked, growling.

"I am not allowed to tell, sir," the lady was now feeling threatened. "Please leave, or I will call secu..."

"Imperio," Amycus whispered the spell, sneakily pointing the wand from under the huge sleeves.

The lady's look became distant and empty. "The 20th floor, apartment 2012."

"Go on with your work," Amycus ordered as he and his comrade went towards the elevator.

Ember lowered her head, and her face up until her nose was submerged in water. She was seeing bubbles pop at the surface of the water as she blew the air from her mouth. Chuckling slightly at her childish antic, she closed her eyes and rested, becoming all ears. The audio system in the bathroom was loud, blasting rock at the full volume. That was her idea of relaxation. However, because of that she didn't hear the ruckus in the corridors, oblivious to the security staff being knocked out one by one by a series of spells. After all, it wasn't their job to keep the wizards a secret, they could allow themselves to go all out.

What she did hear thanks to her greater hearing, however, was someone opening the front door with a characteristic click. This snapped the singer out of her trance, alarming her greatly. Nobody had the key card but her. And whoever was out there, they were quickly approaching the bathroom. Since they used the card, she figured that those were not ghosts. Few spectres actually used doors. Dipstick was probably the only one. And if it was Dipstick, she would annihilate him on the spot for barging in uninvited. After she had specifically said that she was having a day off. Those could be freaky fanboys or fangirls, but if so, she was going to burn them to ashes just as well and throw them onto the wind. A moment later, into her small kingdom of heat and good music barged two gruffly looking men. That wasn't exactly what she had expected.

"Ever heard of knocking, dum-dums?" She was quick to dispel the assumptions of her fearing the foreign presence.

"McLain?"

"Yep, that's me. If you want an autograph," she put her hands behind her head, happy that her bath was bubbly. "Get it the normal way."

"I don't think you understand the position you are in," the Death Eater said, "You assisted Phantom, did you not?"

A look of realisation crossed Ember's face. "Oh, you are those Death Eaters guys. Great. So, what are you here for?"

Amycus seemed to look where he wasn't supposed to. At the spots covered by soap bubbles.

"I may just be underage, you pervert ass," the ghost threatened.

She most certainly wasn't, but appearance-wise that was the case.

"We need to know... where your boss hides."

"Boss? Dipstick ain't my boss."

"A... A dipstick?" Amycus stretched his temple. He still remembered the encounter with the ghost. For her to call that powerful monster so casually...

"Yeah, 'cause he is one. I ain't telling you guys where he stays. And its not like you shitheads can do anything, he can kill you with a single look."

"That is none of your concern," Amycus's companion pointed his wand at her. "Now. The location. Be happy that we are keeping you alive."

"A bit late for that," she mumbled.

"Imperio!"

Ember kept staring at the dark wizard without any amusement.

"You done waving your small thing around? Or should I show you the way out?"

"What the..." the Death Eaters took a step back. "You know how to resist it."

"In a way."

She flicked her hand, and a small gust of flames flew right at the wizards. Their robes were set on fire, causing brief panic. The Death Eaters pushed each other out of the bathroom, as they tried to quickly take off their robes. Ember waved her palm and shut the door. Sighing dejectedly, the ghost diva got out of her bath, drying herself with the power of intangibility and increased body heat. Her core was an orb of fire, after all. Ember put on a bathrobe and faced the Death Eaters again, nonchalantly combing her long blue hair.

"You still here?"

The wizards quickly got up and pointed their wands at her.

"Oh, Merlin, are you like him?" Amycus mumbled, and his body betrayed him. He was shaking like a leaf.

Confused, Ember turned towards the Death Eater and away from the mirror.

"Like Phantom? Nah, this guy is one of a kind. Well, only two of their kind exist, the shmucks," she rolled her eyes, which started to glow brighter. The girl picked up her guitar.

"Only two ghosts like him? Who is the second?"

"He ain't a ghost. He is a mistake of nature that found true immortality. But that's not something you should concern your little mortal heads with."

A vicious smirk crossed the girl's features as she finished attuning her guitar. The wizards saw this perfectly.

-Linebreak-

"How are you doing, Chiara?" Asked Danny, taking a gulp from his mug. The newest waitress of the Leaking Cauldron shrugged.

"Pretty nice. It beats having to pickpocket."

"You aren't really good at the thieving stuff."

The young woman narrowed her eyes. "If it was someone normal," she picked up his plate. "I would have got away with it. But you are anything but, aren't you, Fenton?" The young woman smiled.

Danny chuckled as Chiara carried away the empty dishes. His weekend trip to London was proceeding as usual. He would have lunch in the Cauldron and then go buy some more ectoplasm for his research. The young man was satisfied with the pace he and Severus had. Eventually there must have been something that got ectoplasm the way he wanted. And they were steadily burning through the materials, crossing out more and more ingredients. His students also showed good results during the test, which was a reassurance to the young professor that he taught them well. He would continue being an educator till the end of the year with the same vigour and pride. Danny also started receiving enough publicity to be recognised. Here and there he heard rumours and whispers as he passed. People were confused as to how a man as young as him could defeat an established auror. The professor only hoped that he didn't ruin the man's reputation. Columbo didn't stand a chance to begin with.

His other enterprise was steadily growing, too. Phantom planned to make a proper team before January, when he planned to make a grand statement at Voldemort's expense. He got several ghosts under his command, as well as several more or less capable wizards from the Welsh ghetto. That was hardly enough to start a proper revolution. The Ministry of Magic was well defended, and to avoid bloodshed, he needed to be at an advantage. To be superior in terms of numbers, strength, whilst having an element of surprise. Danny needed to think that plan through. And for that he could use a map of the Ministry's long-spanning corridors, its twists and turns. Sadly, it was not something one could casually buy. Nobody needed them but the workers and the visitors of the place, and the maps were plastered there, not just given away in a form of brochures. There would be a time to cover that aspect. As long as he knew what was located at that one room, his plan was destined for a success. He just needed a way to find it quick enough.

Paying for the bill, Danny turned to leave for the Alley, but then he got called out by Chiara.

"Wait, Danny!"

The werewolf quickly approached him and smirked.

"I'm tagging along. I'm going on the lunch break myself."

Danny blinked. "Alright... but why?"

Chiara shrugged. "Dunno. Guess I just want to know what our brooding professor is up to."

"I am not brooding," he rolled his ice-blue eyes. "I just have a lot on my mind, is all."

"Yes, you are," she poked him on the cheek and started to whisper. "In any case, you said you were gonna buy some ingredients, right? The same place, I assume?"

"Yep. That guy is the only one who sells ectoplasm as cheap," Danny responded as they exited the tavern. "Since you decided to tag along, mind moving away this wall?"

"What happened to the powerful wizard-professor?"

"Flash news, I don't have a wand. Now please, do me a kindness."

Chiara stared at him in surprise. To pull all of that off without a wand he must have been extremely talented. Dangerous, too. The werewolf tapped on the wall with her wand in several key places, making it move away on its own and once again revealing the wizarding equivalent of Westfield. Danny thanked Chiara and went forward, with her following close behind. The man now was extremely cautious of the crowds, since his face was now recognisable. Still, with the sneakiness he had mastered over the years, he eventually slipped into the Nockturn alley, Chiara following close second, a bit amused by the professor's attempts to remain out of sight. If only his students were there to see it. Still, they both missed a small, insignificant man that was right behind them the whole time. Mundungus had that aura that seemed to make everyone forget that he exists.

Once in the shadowy part of the area, Danny dropped his attempt to hide, for everyone present was probably in the same position as him. Under all circumstances he would stick out in his shirt and jeans. Chiara too, wasn't the most discreet person, wearing her gray sweater and pants. As the two were nearing the shop, Danny started getting suspicious. It was awfully quiet even for a Nockturn alley, the observation of which he inevitably shared with the werewolf.

"Why do you think it is so?" She asked.

"I have that nasty feeling of being watched," Danny responded, his eyes darting around. Finding nobody near, the young man had to force himself to go further.

"Maybe you are just paranoid? I mean, this is Knockturn alley."

"Which I visited multiple times without getting this feeling. My instincts don't fail me. Usually. Saved my butt in a pinch, too. Anyways, we are here. Now make a serious face. We are shady people, too."

Chiara rolled her eyes. "I take it you brought a creepy robe, too..."

When the werewolf turned to the professor, he was already putting one on. "Where did you even hide it?"

"Ha! Hiding big objects within our reach is a Fenton family secret. Now hush."

When Danny and Chiara entered the store, something immediately felt amiss, and it wasn't just the owner. The half ghost remained on guard, wondering what exactly was going on ever since he entered the alley. As usual, the teen rang the bell in hopes of Borgin coming out of whatever hiding hole he had been occupying. When nobody even bothered to respond, Danny's concern was multiplied. Borgin of all people would not leave his shop without locking the door first. His metaphorical spider sense tingled loudly when he finally heard the movement behind the stacked shelves. And then there was the click of a locked door. Both visitors looked that way, and the unmistakable appearance of a Death Eater put everything into place.

"What was that about my paranoia?" Asked Danny.

"Mr. Fenton, I presume?" The Death Eater asked.

At the same time, two other dark wizards showed up in another end of the shop.

"Yep," Danny responded without missing a heartbeat. "What did you to Borgin, I wonder? He wouldn't have let his shop get destroyed during the fight."

"Maybe he is out of commission," another Death Eater hissed.

"Borgin? Please, all that guy needs is a couple of coins. Surely you must have picked the easier approach."

"Fenton," Chiara whispered. "What's the plan? They got the exit."

"We'll get to ya, little werewolf. Even though you aren't a part of our plan, we take no witnesses."

Danny glared at the man. "Your problem is with me, right? What even is the point of attacking me in broad daylight?"

"The Dark Lord wishes to chat with you."

"Is it about the Horcrux? Yeah, I crushed it, end of story. If that's all he needed to know, then both sides must be satisfied."

"Hor... the hell are you on about?"

"Oh? So is there any other reason?"

"Enough! We are taking you with us, brats."

Danny smirked. "You didn't do your homework, did you? Normally I would punish for that," he whispered, before his blue eyes started to glow.

Mundungus was nervously pacing around right outside the store. He had seen the Death Eater come in whilst he was hiding behind a corner. His job was to observe the professor, not get involved in a fight. But what if something happened? Of course they would blame the stupid 'Dungus. But the boy was supposedly strong, he probably wouldn't have to get involved. The boy was on guard this whole time, right? He still walked into that trap. Mundungus needed to come in and assist. But the door was locked, wasn't it? Yeah, he wasn't supposed to enter. There was Alohomora, though. He could open that lock whenever he wanted, unlike the wandless boy-professor. But there was that werewolf girl with him, she must have had her wand...

Before the wizard's train of thoughts could make another circle, he heard the ground shaking. And then, right after this, from inside the shop burst an enormous glacier. Mundungus jumped away in fright. The wall of ice completely blocked the passage, and the small wizard could see a Death Eater pinned down by the colossal structure, frozen all over.

"What in Merlin's name..."

Chiara jumped behind the counter, as Danny held up his shield against a barrage of spells.

"You people are the same whenever I go," the professor complained. "Your stance is all over the place, henchman number two!"

"Don't call me that! Stupefy!"

As the spell bounced off the barrier, Danny rolled his eyes.

"No, pal. You are number one, your stance is okay. Your pal, however..."

While he was talking, Chiara peeked from under the counter and fired a spell at the ignorant wizard. The spell hit the henchman number one who presumed to be number two dead on and petrified him. Danny noticed this and smirked.

"Paying attention is the second lesson."

The half ghost removed the barrier and focused on the second wizard. Dodging several spells with astonishing speed, he narrowed the distance between them, swiped his leg to throw the man off balance, before hitting the falling wizard on his way down. The force behind the hit pinned the Death Eater to the ground and caused several planks to break.

"All in all, you get a 'T', gentlemen," he concluded.

"I never signed up for this, Fenton!" Chiara raised her voice, adrenaline still in her veins.

"It's you who chose to tag along," Danny shrugged, crouching near the unconscious enemy. He removed the mask broken after his punch and examined the man's bloody face. "I don't recognise this one."

"What do you mean, 'recognise'?"

"I have done MY homework," The professor smirked. "I chose to keep tabs on the Death Eaters that are still at large," he explained. "But all I have to go by are the Dark Lord's old accomplices, so the profile list is incomplete. Sorry for bringing you into this mess, they were probably on the hunt for me in particular."

"So you are actually working with Dumbledore now?"

"Not exactly. I already gave this rundown, but basically, I don't agree with how slow Dumbledore is. I act without his knowledge and am thus more effective..."

Suddenly, a tune sounded from inside Danny's pocket, saying something along the lines of 'I hate the world today'. Chiara watched how the teen took his small phone out and answered.

"'Ello," Ember's voice sounded from the receiving end.

"Em. What did you do."

"Alright, I'll tell you... but you can't be mad at me."

"What. Did you do," Danny's voice turned serious.

"Okay, first of all. I was minding my own business..."

"Bullshit!"

"I waaaas!" Ember moaned. "So here I was, chillaxing in my bathtub like a baller. And then a couple of those Death Eaters shmucks break my door, saying 'Duh, you McLain?'" She made the dumbest voice possible. "I politely asked them to go away, but those neanderthals didn't leave...  They were like 'On your knees!' And I was like 'I am not your momma last night!'... And they took exception to that. But you know how this song goes, I captured one of them."

"And the other?"

"Pussed out like a bitch! He just ran off in that little cloud! And I shot that fucker down! He fell down and probably died. I dunno."

"Language, please," Phantom sighed and rubbed his temples. "Funnily enough, I was attacked just now by the guys, too," he turned to his companion, "Chiara, check up on the third one, I'll melt the ice."

He moved his palm, and to the werewolf girl's shock, the glacier melted in an instant, becoming a single puddle. The way out was now free. It was also obviously a request for her to give the man some privacy.

"Who is that?" Ember asked.

"Oh, it's just a girl that tagged along for my shopping trip. Don't mind her, she has left."

"Just a girl?"

"Why are you so interested all of a sudden?"

"N-nothing! So," Ember laughed nervously, "Did they find out about you?"

"No, I think they hunted me as a teacher. They only addressed me by my last name. You were probably attacked before you are popular and you partook in our party-pooping expedition."

"Don't pretend like it's a-okay. I never planned to be pestered by some stupid cult or whatever those are."

"More like nazi with magical sticks," Danny snorted. "Don't worry. We won't be seeing much of them in the future."

"Why?"

"Because Voldemort will realise that a small capture party won't suffice at all. He can't spare more goons at the moment, because he has Dumbledore to worry about, too. Death Eaters are about influence and money, not numbers. That's why they are trying to enlist more people to their aid. Despite their obvious distaste. Just throwing soldiers at us in hopes of a different result will be pointless and only will dwindle their numbers. By the way, what about the second one who attacked you?"

"He is sitting still, drooling at me."

"Oh, you brainwashed him."

"Yep. Same stuff I almost did to you."

"Need I remind you how it ended?"

"Th-that was stupid even for you!"

"Come now. Didn't you expect your fan to kiss his object of adoration?" Danny switched on his bantering mode. "I broke the hearts of so many."

"Shut up or I'll tune up the fire so much your own damn core melts into a puddle."

"You have already melted it with your kindness," Danny whispered dramatically. "In any case. We don't detract from our plans. Since that Death Eater is your puppet now, you can send him back. Having a spy in their midst will be pretty useful. He won't be behaving strangely, will he?"

"I can order him to keep quiet about me. Although I can't guarantee that that Dark Lord won't spray the dude's brains over the wall for failing."

"That is a possibility. But we still got to try, since we obviously don't lose anything anyhow. I'll be in touch. Oh, and Ember. Good job."

"I don't need your compliments, dipstick."

And then the diva hang up. Danny sighed and grabbed the two Death Eaters, dragging them out to the street by the collars of their cloaks. Chiara was already standing there over the third one. The half ghost worriedly looked over the man covered in frostbites.

"Is he still alive?" He asked.

"Yeah. Still kicking," Chiara responded. "So, do we call the aurors or..."

"I believe they will show up eventually. I don't like extra publicity, so we should probably leave."

"Good idea," the werewolf nodded.

As the two were leaving the scene of crime, the conversation soon resumed.

"Chiara..."

"What?"

"Sorry again for dragging you into this. I told it by phone already, but I don't think they will go after you. If they multiplied that chain of vengeances, they would have nothing done."

"If you say so. What's your game, Fenton?"

The young professor smirked. "I don't think you are up for a lecture. All you need to know is that I will do my best to rid the world of this menace."

"And how exactly are you planning to do this?"

"Well... for that I will need to finish my little project first. As well as to find where Voldemort hides his little artefacts."

"That's easier said than done."

"I have my trail, though. His previous Horcrux was inside the diadem of Ravenclaw."

"A what now?"

"Something very important to defeating the Dark Lord."

"So you found that... thing... inside the diadem you found in Hogwarts?"

"The news travels fast," Danny smirked. "That's it. So, I naturally assumed that this man's ego was so high that he would aim for other artefacts of the Hogwarts founders. Which are, by coincidence, also considered lost. Since Gryffindor's sword keeps being summoned by people other than Voldemort, then it must have been untrustworthy. So I put it out of the equation. That leaves two more."

"One of them must be Hufflepuff's cup. I used to hear a lot of stories about it when I was at Hogwarts."

"I figured as much. Hm... there must have been descendants of hers that owned the cup. Anything you can remember?"

"I... can try and ask the people I know."

"I can't ask you to risk more than you need to, Chiara."

"The Dark Lord already attacked me. The least I can do is to help you on your insane quest, Fenton."

Danny smiled at this. Badgers always were known to be empathetic folk.

-Linebreak-

Being a member of the staff at Hogwarts had certain obligations as one might have seen. Aside from the normal duties, such as guiding the kids on their Hogsmeade trips and stalking the nightly hallways for rule breakers, there were also things that were not obligatory, but highly encouraged, such as establishing a cooperative bond between the teachers. Snape obviously was an example of how not to do this. Danny, however, wanted to be on friendly terms with every member of the staff, despite the latter's suspicious nature. He simply remembered the advice Flitwick gave him. As long as he did his best and kept smiling, it did not matter what others thought of him. Could be a manipulation, could be not, but the young man was willing to do just that. He may have jested at the expense of Severus or Filch, but it was all in good nature.

So, when Grubbly-Plank left, only to be replaced by the guy who was supposed to be there from the start, Danny decided to pay a visit to the rock shack inhabited by a half-giant Hagrid. That was his name, as others told him. It was a cold Sunday morning. Furthermore, it appeared that in Scotland the snow fell pretty early. The young man didn't bother putting on many proper clothes as usual. He only donned a black sweater and taller boots, so that the snow didn't get inside. The hut where Hagrid lived was rather unsightly, but the young man could see the lights inside, and a thin trail of smoke coming from the chimney. It looked cozy in the dim autumn morning. Danny approached the front door and knocked on it lightly.

"Comin', comin'," a low voice sounded from behind.

Soon the door was opened, and Danny then was greeted by a man worthy of his giant heritage. The burly person dressed in a fur overcoat towered over the professor. The long shaggy raven hair, coupled with the density of his bear, almost hid the man's face. Danny assumed there was a smile.

"Oh, 'ello there. Never seen yeh before."

Danny smiled in return. "Good morning! I am Danny Fenton, the Defence professor," he outstretched his hand.

Hagrid eagerly enveloped Fenton's palm in his gigantic one and shook it.

"Pleasure to know yeh. I'm Rubeus Hagrid, teh local Caretaker."

"And the professor of Creatures Care," Danny nodded. "The pleasure is all mine."

"Come on in, I 'ave some tea ready," the man invited the guest inside, obviously happy to receive a visitor.

The young professor decided to take the man on his offer, especially since he hadn't had breakfast that morning. On the inside the place was homy and warm, but the young man could see that the giant had a bit of trouble moving around, even if the shack was spacier than most Hogwarts rooms. He just sat on a chair and watched the caretaker fuss around the kettle. Suddenly, a huge black dog approached Danny and nudged his knee lightly. The young man smiled and scratched behind the dog's ears, earning a satisfied whine.

"Ha, Fang seems to like yeh," Hagrid commented, putting two cups on the table. He sat on an armchair nearby and started pouring the tea.

"Well, I was called a dog person a lot," Danny chuckled.

"Pretty youn', aren' yeh?"

Danny took a sip of tea. It had a strange taste, but he had worse.

"I am twenty. But I've seen no complaints about my teaching methods."

"Lucky. I still get some thin's wrong," Hagrid mumbled, drinking the tea from his giant cup. "Yer pretty brave, takin' a job like that. Nobody else did."

"I wouldn't say that," Danny rubbed the back of his neck. "I mean, it's not that dangerous. And I was desperate for some income. All these things combined and I am here..."

The young man then noticed something odd about the caretaker. On what could be seen of his face, the professor observed a network of small bruises. Small, but no less ghastly looking.

"Ancients, your face looks like a cat scratch toy, man. What happened?"

"I...fell."

That was the most blatant and obvious lie he had ever heard. Hagrid coughed and straightened up.

"Fancy rock cakes?" He asked.

"That will be nice," Danny smiled slightly.

The caretaker removed a tissue that was over a plate in the middle of the table. There the half-ghost saw the rock cakes. More 'rock' than 'cakes'. Not wishing to offend the man, Danny tried to take a bite, but unsurprisingly his teeth were hitting something very solid. Still, he decided to just dip the cake in the tea like he had seen the Brits do with hard biscuits. It softened up somewhat, and became edible. Despite being hard as nails, the cakes were still tasty.

"Anyways, I'm sure this is a matter of practice," The young man continued. "I guess I'm not the one to talk, though. You had this job longer than me."

"Yer right, but yeh got it on the firs' try, didn' yeh?"

"I wouldn't say that... I may have hid it, but I was quite nervous. I just did what I always do when I'm nervous or scared — laugh about it. My sister used to say that this is my coping mechanism."

"I don' think 'tis will work for me," Hagrid sighed.

Danny decided not to press. "So, you were absent when the year began, and Dumbledore never told me why. Is this too personal to ask?"

"Oh, I, eh... I was seein' my family."

"Which side? The giant or human one?"

"It was my momma's... I probably shouldn't have said it," Hagrid whispered.

"What was that?" Danny asked, despite hearing it perfectly.

"Nuthin', nuthin'. Ehm... I heard there is that Ministry lady."

"An Inquisitor in pink? What about her?" The half ghost decided to take the bait and follow the flow of the misdirected conversation.

To the half-ghost it was obvious that the man was an agent of Dumbledore's. He didn't expect to fish out anything of substance, neither was it his intention. The old man and him were on the same side. Well, more like they had a common enemy in the face of Voldemort. There was not any need for them to act against each other. However, Dumbledore didn't know that, and the teen couldn't just come and explain everything. Besides, there was still a grudge for suspecting the young man of something vile.

"She is checkin' the teachers, right? I was meanin' to ask ya, 'cause I heard people talkin'."

"Yep," Danny was snapped out of his thoughts. "This stickler won't miss the party, so I guess you should be ready for it."

"I reckon you aren't on good terms."

"You kidding?" Fenton snorted. "Everyone here know that she hates my guts, and I hate hers. But you shouldn't worry too much. I mean, I am still around despite this, right? She has no reason to sack you if you simply teach."

"How's it like?"

"Well, this woman has no understanding of personal space or courtesy. She usually tries to dig up some dirt and ruin the lesson by distracting you."

"Oh, that's bad..."

"Just keep your cool, pal," Danny leaned back in his seat. "And you will be fine. Umbridge won't be as picky with your subject, because you didn't take it from her, it  also does not pose threat to her posh cabinet in the Ministry. It's me who supposedly trains a secret army of kids."

He purposefully omitted her bigotry and obvious distaste to anything but pure and wizardly. There was no point in scaring the welcoming half-giant. He might have needed some heads-up in this regard, but the half-ghost still decided against it. The conversation between two not-so-much-humans lasted for another half an hour, and Danny supposed that the deed was done and he managed to properly acquaint himself with the caretaker. It wasn't difficult, since Hagrid was a very approachable person. Phantom himself enjoyed the company and free rock cakes, a bit stale they may have been. His stomach had dissolved much worser things. In the end Danny agreed to help the caretaker with his duty later that evening, since Hagrid had also come to learn about Thestrals liking him a lot. Phantom was surprised that the man was going to touch upon the subject so early on, but he wasn't the one to judge someone's methods.

Satisfied with himself, the professor was slowly returning to the castle, oh so anxious to grade another set of homework. He liked that job, but it was still a pain to grade the students. Danny didn't like the prospect of being hated by some students who deemed his grading biased or unjust. Then again, with his supplier of ectoplasm out of business for some time, there was little Danny could do at the moment. The experiments hit their dead end for a time, until he found a new seller. Danny didn't exactly have any hobbies to speak of, almost all his spare time was spent on tireless experiments, because Phantom wanted to finish his project. When the catalyst was finished, he could finally leave that world for the one that was supposedly his to reign over. At least there he would have a home of his own.

As the professor was crossing the wooden bridge, he came across a person with whom he had already met on a morning like that. Danny was surprised to see Potter of all the people, standing alone near the bridge railing, looking exceptionally dour. Curious, the half-ghost approached the teen.

"Good morning, Harry," Danny smiled. "Up so early on Sunday?"

"Professor... I was just going to watch a Quidditch practice."

Danny raised an eyebrow at that. "Just watch?"

"Right, you probably didn't hear that. I was forbidden from being a seeker for my team."

"Forbidden? For what?"

"It's Malfoy. The git provoked me, Fred and George. And then out of nowhere that toad appeared!"

Fenton sighed. Every piece of news like that was the fault of only one person around.

"Nothing we can do about it, I suppose," he crossed his hands. "But you probably should have known better. You've known the guy for five years by now, right?"

"Yes," Harry muttered. Danny realised that he would interpret everything he was going to say into a moralising lecture.

"Well, I don't think that it will last forever..."

"The toad specifically said that it was a lifetime ban," the teen growled.

"She still has all the charm of an amphibia," Danny whispered. "But as I said, I don't think it will last forever. Umbridge will leave eventually."

"Yeah, and how long will it take? I may graduate, and she would still be there."

"These are the times when things happen too quickly. I mean, a year ago Voldemort was still kinda dead."

"Kinda?"

"People don't come back from the dead, Harry. He was put out of commission, but the vile rituals helped him recover."

"You are now talking with confidence, sir."

"Yeah. I have my reasons to believe this without any doubt."

"Did you speak to Dumbledore about that?"

"You sound surprised."

Harry lowered his gaze. "He just... I've been feeling like he is avoiding me since Voldemort came back."

He didn't know why, but the teen felt like sharing this with the professor. Danny nodded slowly and looked around.

"Well, you won't be surprised to know that he doesn't trust me enough, either," he crossed his hands. "The old man thinks he is so sneaky, while he is sitting on his ass doing nothing but spying on me."

"Spying on you?" Harry asked in surprise.

"Yep. Severus works with me and then reports to Dumbledore. It's almost like they take me for an idiot," he said, sounding like he was actually wondering if that was true. "I pretty much got over it, it's not like their prying will hurt anyone. But I can see that you are angry about the lack of this attention. I hope I am not at fault."

"No, it started in the beginning of the summer. It's not your fault, sir."

Danny chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. Harry and every other student knew that it was his habit. "Jeez, I still feel old when someone calls me that. I now wonder myself why the Headmaster would ignore you. Any ideas?"

"No clue. He even told Ron and Hermione not to write letters to me."

"You guys could use phones. Surely Hermione knows how to use it, and the Dark Lord won't be eavesdropping."

"I never thought about it that way," Harry slowly responded, earning himself another snicker.

"You guys get used to magic so much, you start to forget the normal tools. Soon we will enter a new millennium, the newest devices can be of use."

"Only that they don't work here," the teen pointed out.

"Dumbledore probably wanted to keep some things a secret. What made you so special that you are not allowed to know, I wonder?"

"I don't know sir," Harry shrugged. "I only know that it still pisses me off."

Danny was genuinely curious now. If anyone was eligible for knowing the truth, it was Potter, the supposed number one target. And Phantom had expected that the boy would be more knowledgeable than most because of it. Yet, Dumbledore chose to keep Harry in the dark for whatever reason. That wasn't a proper approach in his opinion. Danny preferred to share the knowledge with his subordinates, lest they did something foolish or got trapped. Something told the half-ghost that all of the Harry's exploits were also due to that. The old man did nothing when there was a Basilisk. The professor knew not of any other cases, but that alone was enough to undermine the man's trust of what Dumbledore was doing.

"This isn't the first time he is hiding things from you, is it?"

"I suppose. He never told me about Si..."

The boy quickly shut up. "Nevermind."

Danny's look softened, "Well, let's not dwell on it too much. Thank you for sharing this with me, Harry."

"Thanks for listening, I guess."

"That's my job. If you are feeling down, feel free to come by, as I won't stop telling all of you, kids. Few actually came so far. They probably still don't think I can give a proper life advice," he said dramatically. "They don't know what they are missing. I cannot grace you with Hagrid's rock cakes, but I got some tea," the professor chuckled. "I am not my sister, but there are things I can tell."

Harry nodded. "I'll keep that in mind, sir... could I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"How are you able to stand this cold? You are only wearing a sweater."

"Magic, boyo," Danny smirked. "I am cold resistant."

"How can you know and do so much? You are barely older than me, yet you did all these things. And you also know so much about the subject you teach."

"Seems obvious, doesn't it? And I am sure your nosy self knows more about me than you let on," the professor teased. "I used to fight a lot. My town was infested with poltergeists of all sorts, hence my parents moved there before I was born. They were interested in learning this stuff. And, being at a metaphorical gunpoint for several years sure helps you with survivability. We are the same in this regard, and we are in this for about the same amount of years, too. You had a head start on this one."

"Lucky me. But this isn't normal magic, too. How is this possible to know it without even finishing the school?"

"Practice makes perfect, Harry. That, and a good source of information. In my case it was either win or die, so not many options but to endure. You have an advantage here, because there is a school that actually teaches you. AND this is a question of survival, too. You have my strongpoints while none of the negative ones in this regard. Yes, none of you kids will ever reach my level," Danny mocked half-jokingly. "But you can become a powerful wizard in your own right as long as you set your mind to it."

Harry sighed. "It just... sometimes it feels like there is always not enough time. Voldemort is back doing God knows what, and I don't even know how much of this time I have. You understand what I mean, right?"

"We come back to the topic of Dumbledore's distrust. I get it... So, you are afraid that you won't be strong enough when needed. Can't say I don't relate. I felt that way on more than one occasion. And you so conveniently have a wealth of free time on your hands, too. Now that you are prohibited from your position on the Quidditch team."

"What are you getting at, sir?"

"If you wish..." Danny turned to the teen and smirked, "I can spare some time, too."

"You are offering to teach me?"

"Some extra knowledge and skills won't hurt you, I suppose. And it also will help you perform better during your OWL."

Harry's eyes widened. The last time he got extra studies with a professor of DADA it was with Lupin. And he came to learn Patronus at the end of it all. Thus, the teen could appreciate the chance at something similar, for he had a level of respect for professor Fenton, too. He was understanding, approachable and he knew the stuff even Lupin probably had no idea of. All of that at an age barely higher than Potter's. What was in it for Danny himself? Well, the professor was doing it for the boy's safety first, because Harry was Voldemort's priority target. And since he was the target of someone Phantom considered an enemy, he supposed that it would only be useful. Again, Danny was dying from boredom at the moment.

"I...Thank you, sir. I'll be glad to start at any time!"

"You won't be thanking me when we get into it."

Harry could only gulp at seeing the man's smirk and glowing eyes.