Chapter 8

Harry went through his standard routine for the following days until it the 10^th. There were only a few things that stood out in any way. First was the huge pile of letters he received that Sunday. He couldn't remember why he got them until he recalled that all of the letters not on his approved list were now being collected and then sent to him on this day. Harry went through the letters and discarded about four-fifths of them as they were marriage proposals and hate mail. He wrote down all of the people who sent out the hate mail and sent that list to Samuel Greengrass-Davis for seeing into. If those people ever carried out their threats Harry would now be able to show that they had a history of threatening him. He decided to start a scrapbook collection of the photos that were sent with the marriage proposals. The rest of the letters were sent by people either sending him gifts or asking for help. He sent the letters asking for help on to Samuel Greengrass-Davis as well along with directions to see if they were real or not. He put the gifts to the side and went through them. Some of the gifts were books which he then compared to the ones already in his library. The ones that he either didn't have or were more recent editions he kept and sent back letters to the senders thanking them for their gift. He then took all of the books that were either wrong or ludicrous (like one book that told a young wizard how to please a witch) and stored them away out of sight. He then sorted the various foe glasses, omnioculars and the like to one side and had the elves store them away. The one gift that he really liked was a Cleansweep 7 broomstick. He put that away into the same storage compartment that the hoops were stored in. He sent a letter to all these people as well thanking them for their gifts.

The second thing that interrupted his routine was the letter from Samuel listing all of the votes that Wizengamot members had made for the past twenty years. Harry perused this list with extreme care and finally picked out Brian Abbott. He apparently was tough on criminals and voted consistently against measures that would restrict muggleborns or halfbloods. He also voted rather consistently in approval for measures that would preserve wizarding society. He sent a letter to Samuel Greengrass-Davis telling him he had tentatively decided on Brian Abbott to vote his seat on the Wizengamot. He also stated a desire to meet Brian and asked if Samuel could arrange a meeting on the 27th of this month.

The next letter he received was from Knifebiter that informed him he had just now acquired a 51% interest in the Daily Prophet as the ministry had sold shares equaling to 10% of the total and he had acquired the rest from various sources. The cost for picking this up was 10,000 galleons. Knifebiter assured him that he would be able to make this money back within a year as the stock market was proving extremely fruitful. He then went on to say that the manager and editors of The Daily Prophet have been informed that Harry Potter was now the majority owner and to be treated with facts and not speculation. Harry read this and sent back a letter to Knifebiter to direct the managers of the Daily Prophet to fire and never again employ Rita Skeeter in any capacity. Chuckling at this Harry relished the feeling of removing one of the worst reporters he had ever heard of.

Also contained in the letter was an update concerning Vernon Dursley. Apparently the investigation had turned up him not only pilfering money from the company but had also turned up evidence that he had either pressured or blackmailed several secretaries into having sex with him. The police had already been informed and his trial would start in about 3 months. The bank had also foreclosed the house he had been living in as he could no longer afford any payments on it as his accounts had been seized for re-compensation. Apparently Petunia and Dudley had been forced to move in with Marge. Dudley had also been caught vandalizing and stealing and without Vernon's connections Dudley had been put into reform school. Petunia had suffered a mental breakdown and was now in a psychiatric ward and there was almost no hope of her recovering. Thinking about this for a few seconds Harry had a warm glow in his stomach as he thought about all of the misery that the Dursley's had put him through being paid back so thoroughly. Deciding that he had enough revenge Harry decided to put out of his mind all that they had done and no longer dwell on it or let it affect him in any way.

The last thing that changed for him was that he decided to stop his apparition practice as he could now apparate without making any sound. He decided this on the ninth so from now on he would be able to devote more time to studying. He was starting to see some of the benefits of his Occlumency as he was sleeping for only about six hours a night now and that amount was dropping steadily. He could also now instantly recall any of his memories. He also discovered quite by accident that he could now set a mental reminder about any questions he might have while he was working on something else.

Harry and Patricia grew somewhat closer and their relationship developed into a mentor-student type. Harry of course was somewhat attracted to her, but it was almost entirely mental as his hormones hadn't shown up quite yet.

August 10, 1991

Harry finished his lunch and immediately went into the library and summoned the Book of Shadows as tonight was the night of the new moon. The Book had mentioned that the dedication should take place on the night of the new moon as this was the time that the moon's effects were at its lowest. It also symbolized the birth or emergence of powers as the moon would grow in size from this night until the full moon. Harry read the ritual once more and noted down the things he needed to bring with him: a bowl of sea salt, a bowl of pure water, a bowl of peat, an incense censer, a knife made of copper and his wand. He called out "Venty" and said to him when he appeared "do you know if there is a copper knife on the premises?"

"There is being one knife made of copper master. It is the room of ritual things."

"The room of ritual things, could you show me the way to it?" Following the elf Harry went down into the first level basement and opened the door that Venty pointed out. Harry opened the door and saw that the room was constructed in a circular manner and was about 30 feet across. On the far end he saw a table holding several items; there were white cords, black cords, red cords, a knife made out of copper, a statue of a horned being, a statue made up of three images which depicted a woman holding a baby, a woman old and withered but possessing an inner vitality that would never be quenched and a blossoming young woman. There was also an incense censer and various incenses stored next to it. The table was covered in white silk that had on the side facing the door a pentacle. Harry looked in wonder and surmised that this was where his ancestors stored various things they used in practicing their religion. He went inside and took the knife and the incense censer after refilling the compartment inside it with a charcoal briquette and incense. He took the items with him back to the library. Once there he called for Venty once more. He then asked "do we have some sea salt and peat on the property?"

Venty replied "we be having sea salt master, but we not be having peat here. We could be getting some rather quickly if you'se be wanting us to."

Harry nodded and replied "yes I would appreciate that. I only need a handful though. When you bring back the peat also bring me three bowls as well as three handfuls of sea salt please."

Venty nodded and popped away. Harry sat back down and re-read the details of what he needed to do before during and after this rite. His alarm went off at 1555 and he sent the Book away. He then made his way outside and completed his exercises. He thought back to how winded he was the first time he did this and here he was now able to run four laps without stopping. His sit-ups, push-ups and pull-ups had all drastically increased as well. He then started the speed exercises that Patricia had commanded him to do, his time for this had increased by only five minutes but he was now running faster than he had before. When the time period had finished he went inside to shower and eat his supper. Everyday there was a new dish that came from all over the world, though Harry had nixed the French food, and he never knew from day to day what he would have for supper. When he had finished eating he said to Patricia "I will be holding a ritual tonight so I may be late getting up tomorrow alright?"

"What do you mean you are doing a ritual tonight? What kind of ritual is it?"

"Probably not the kind that you're thinking of, this ritual is a dedication to the God and Goddess as well as to magic itself. No sacrifices, nothing like what Voldemort has done in any way shape or form. There is a slight downside to doing the ritual however in that I will no longer be able to use transportation that relies on coal, nuclear energy or oil distillates as a fuel source."

"Interesting, what do you receive in turn?"

"From what I have been told I should receive a connection to the magic field and perhaps a power boost as well. Once the connection to the magic field is established it will allow me to cast spells different than everyone uses. You see there are two ways to cast spells; the standard way is to use the magical energy that resides in all magical beings, the second way is to use energy drawn from the magical field. Spells whose energy is drawn from the magical field are slightly stronger than the equivalent spells whose energy is drawn directly from the caster. It should also allow me to recharge my own magical power quicker than I would normally do so, as the magical core in a magical person is recharged by the magical field automatically."

"Very cool. May I do this with you as well? I have never used muggle transportation in my life so I would not miss it in the least. As for my dedicating myself to magic it sounds like something I would like to formally state as I have always been dedicated to magic my entire life."

Harry thought for a few seconds then said "I don't really have a problem if you want to join me, however you do realize that this will also serve as a dedication to the Goddess and God?"

"I along with almost my entire family have always worshipped the old gods. We never prescribed to the beliefs of Christianity. Unfortunately while we venerate and believe in them we don't have any ways of expressing that in rituals as almost everyone lost that knowledge during the Church inspired burning times and Inquisition, not to mention the Roman invasion that killed off almost all of the priests and priestess's living at that time as well as Merlin's betrayal of our religion."

"Wait Merlin betrayed the old religion?"

"Yeah, you know the stories right about Merlin, Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table?" Seeing Harry nod she continued on with "well he abandoned the old ways when he made a pact with Arthur to convert for protection of magicals. When Morganna and her followers refused to convert he tried to have them killed. Well that started the war and Morganna and her followers became known as evil when the histories were written because Merlin's followers were victorious after Morganna and her son died."

"Damn. Now that is a disturbing tale no two ways about it." Harry thought for a few seconds then said "well since you won't have any problems swearing to the God and Goddess you are more than welcome to join me. I need to copy out the ritual for you as the only place it is described is in my family Book of Shadows."

"Say no more as I can't see myself marrying an eleven year old boy no matter how cute" she replied smirking.

"Yeah that would be awkward wouldn't it? I'll copy it down shortly." Harry then left to his library and copied the information on the dedication ritual. He then brought it back to Patricia and handed it over for her to peruse.

She read it rapidly and then said "how do you pronounce these words?"

Harry thought about this for a few seconds then slapped his head as he had no clue. He suggested "we could ask the painting of my ancestor Hywel. He might know of a way around this problem." With Patricia following him he went to this library and addressed Hywel "sir as you know I am doing the dedication to the God and Goddess as well as magic tonight. I mentioned that I would e doing this to Patricia earlier and she has decided to do it as well. Now when she looked over a copy of the ritual I made she brought up and interesting question on how we are to pronounce the words required as we don't speak the language there in."

Hywel nodded and said "I was wondering if you would bring this up. Now the language the words are spoken in are not as important as the words themselves as well as the intent behind those words. It is the same with spells because you can cast a stunning spell with stupefy or you can cast a stunning spell with atontar and get the exact same results. Ms. O'shanery will be able to introduce you to wordless casting in the future where you don't need to even say the words only have the intent and the spell will work the same. Now there is a reason it is written down in that language and not translated is when you are beginning with magic you need the words to help you utilize your intent easier than if you didn't use them. Now on to solving your problem you need to use the language capsules stored here and then study the two dictionaries to make sure you get it right. Take the ones under Welsh as that is the language you will be using tonight."

Harry nodded and gathered two of the capsules under the marking of Welsh and went back to the ledger. He then wrote retrieve two Welsh dictionaries. Harry handed one of the dictionaries and one of the capsules to Patricia and took the remaining ones with him to his desk. He then sat down and popped the capsule into his mouth. The capsule dissolved completely within two seconds and Harry's mind felt as if it was being filled almost to the bursting point with the torrent of information it received. Then he spent the next four hours studying the dictionary. Closing it he looked over and saw that Patricia had a little ways to go so Harry decided to go into his mindscape and review and deeply impress the information in his memories so he wouldn't have to repeat this again. Once he had done so he left his mindscape and looked over at Patricia and saw that she was just finishing.

After about five minutes she looked up then looked around and musingly said "I really need to spend more time in here. I never quite realized how extensive the library here was."

Harry nodded and replied "you can come here anytime you want, just don't leave here with more than one book at a time alright?"

"No problem. Well are you ready?"

Harry nodded and said "I am. I was wondering something though. Do you know of a spell that would allow a globe of light to be placed overhead when we get there? The night is complete out there as there is no moonlight and there is no city close enough for a spillover glow to affect the darkness here."

Patricia nodded and replied "yes I do know of one spell. The globes will only last for an hour before it will have to be recast."

She then showed him the spell and Harry was able to reliably cast it after five minutes of effort. Once he had done so Harry cast locomotor on the items he had prepared earlier and made his way with Patricia lighting the way to the henge located halfway along the trail to the rear of the property. When they got there they cast seven globes and placed them so that they surrounded the henge. Harry placed the items at the cardinal points of the compass, with the torch (symbolizing fire) to the east, the bowl of peat (symbolizing earth) to the south, the bowl of pure water (symbolizing water) to the west and the censer of incense (symbolizing air) to the north. Once he had placed the items Harry and Patricia disrobed (to the great discomfort of Harry) and made his way into the center of the items while Patricia stood near the torch.

Holding the copper knife out and making a circle Harry around the items and Patricia Harry said (all the language in bold is Welsh) I make this circle of power tonight that forbids all entry of harmful things. One his second pass he said I cleanse this circle of all harmful things. On his third circle he said I conjure this circle and invite the blessings of the Gods and Goddesses on all that happens here tonight. Standing in the center of the circle Harry said I Harry James Potter son of James Charlus Potter come before the God and Goddess this night to dedicate my body, mind, soul and magic to them. From this night forward I dedicate my life to them and shall never waver from their service. I swear to carry out the tasks they have given me. I swear to give succor to those in need and promise destruction to my enemies. I swear this for now and all time.

When these last words left his mouth Harry felt two presences enter his body, one of them felt gentle and nurturing while at the same time carrying a strength that would allow them to bend before the winds of change yet remain behind. The second presence held a majesty and splendor that would awe the haughtiest Emperor's and dictator's, coupled with the wisdom to know that once battle commenced to fight with every fiber of your being with the wisdom to know when the battle is over. The presences searched him and exposed all of his flaws and also at the same time revealed his strengths. Once they were apparently satisfied they left and Harry felt two localized pains on his back underneath his shoulder blades. When the pain left Harry stood silent for two to three minutes as he processed his feelings. When he had gained control of his emotions he then sat down cross legged.

He then spoke in Welsh once more I Harry James Potter call to magic and ask it to grant me a greater understanding of magic. I swear by Fire, Earth, Water and Air that I will remain forever faithful to it and never forsake it. I swear to listen to its wisdom and nurture it all of my life. When my time comes for me to die I grant all of my power to the magic field that it may be strengthened in turn as it has strengthened me. As soon as he finished the bowls surrounding him lifted and swirled in a clockwise fashion around him. Harry felt a presence touch him, he could not feel an intelligence directing it, but it had more wisdom than any non magical animal he had ever come across. He felt his magical core respond to the presence, it poured forth from him and Harry began emitting a full aura. This went on for about ten minutes then the connection was stabilized and the bowls settled down in the same positions they had been lifted from. Harry could feel the connection to the magic field and he felt slightly more powerful than before.

Harry had no idea how much his core had expanded and would never know for certain. His core did not immediately expand, but the limits to which it COULD expand had been enlarged. In addition his core had gained a texture and depth to it that he previously lacked. It would allow Harry to cast wordless spells without them losing as much power as they would have. In addition he gained a slight increase to his wandless abilities. He could now (very far in the future after much practicing) probably cast a weak wandless stunner. Where before he connected to the magic field he would be able to summon something but not cast anything except a lumos.