G. Lippert - James Potter and the Curse of the Gatekeeper

The first days of school passed in a blur. James attended his classes and made a concerted effort to take notes and tackle his homework. His diligence sprang partly from his own resolve not to get behind early in the year, but was also partly due to the presence of Rose in many of his classes. She served as a constant, disgruntled source of competition since James was determined not to allow his first-year cousin to outperform him despite her natural braininess.

One class Rose didn't share with James was Care of Magical Creatures, which was still taught by Hagrid. Hagrid embarrassed James by greeting him with a gigantic, bone-cracking bear hug at the beginning of class.

"I didn't have th' chance to say so at th' service, James," Hagrid said in what he thought was a confidential voice, "but I'm so sorry about your Granddad. Arthur was a great man, 'e was."

James nodded, a little annoyed at having been reminded of his granddad's death. It had been a few days since he'd thought about it. Hagrid invited the class to sit on the multitude of pumpkins maturing in his garden. He spent the period explaining what the class was about and describing the animals he'd introduce the students to over the course of the year. James didn't listen particularly closely, gazing instead out over the lake, his thoughts far away and melancholy.

During his Wednesday free period, James sat with Ralph and Rose at a table in the library. He took the opportunity to write a short letter to his parents. When he was finished, it occurred to him to write a note to his Cousin Lucy as well, as he'd promised. He dipped his quill and jotted the first things that came to his mind.

Dear Lucy,

Hi! I hope Uncle P. and Aunt A. aren't dragging you all over the place too much, but if

they are, I hope you are having some fun and seeing some cool stuff. The school year is starting all

right. The new Defence teacher is Kendrick Debellows, the famous Harrier. Ask your dad if you

don't know who he is. He's pretty hardcore, and he doesn't have much good to say about Aurors,

so that class looks to be a bust. Al would say hi if he knew I was writing you. He ended up in

Slyth after all! I promised I would let him tell Mum and Dad, but he didn't say I couldn't tell

you. Rose is sitting right here and she says hi and get a picture of anything cool you see if you are

anyplace interesting, even if you're sick of seeing it all. Tell Mol we all said hello. Send a letter

and any pics back with Nobby, all right?

Sincerely,

James

James let Rose sign the letter to Lucy as well. When they were done, he took the letter back and reread it. Then, thoughtfully, he added:

P.S. If you get bored, you could do me a little favor. Look up anything you can find about something called the Gatekeeper or the Sentinel of Worlds. It might be a bit hard to dig up, but I know you like figuring stuff out, and it'd be a great help to me. But don't say anything to anyone else about it. I promised to keep it a secret. Thanks.

James finished writing, then quickly sealed both letters and stuffed them into his satchel. That afternoon, after their last classes, Rose and Ralph accompanied James to the Owlery. There, James attached the letters to Nobby's leg whilst Rose and Ralph stood near the door.

"I'm glad I brought a cat," Rose said, wrinkling her nose. "This place is right rancid."

"Cats can't deliver post," James replied.

"Well, an owl can't snuggle up on your lap by the fireplace."

Ralph nodded. "Or cough a hairball on your shoe."

Rose elbowed him. James finished attaching the letters to Nobby and stood back.

"Take Mum and Dad's letter first, Nobby. Lucy might send some stuff back."

Nobby screeched agreement. He spread his wings, balanced on the perch for a moment, and then launched. James craned his head as Nobby thrust upward, past the ranks of his fellow owls, and disappeared through a window at the top of the Owlery.

As the three students made their way back through the castle to dinner, James asked Rose pointedly, "So how was your first Defence Against the Dark Arts class?"

Rose pressed her lips together and hefted her satchel. "He wouldn't let me run the Gauntlet."

Ralph glanced at her. "Well, that's a good thing, right?"

"No, Ralph, it isn't. The boys all had to run it. Debellows says girls are 'too delicate' for it. He set us up doing one-on-one drills with each other. None of the other girls take it seriously, either. It was a complete waste of time."

"I hadn't really noticed it," James said, "but now that you mention it, he doesn't have any girls run the Gauntlet in our class either."

"Or face the clockwork ogre," Ralph added. "That club may be padded, but it packs a wallop."

"You should be glad you're a girl, then, Rose," James said fervently. "It's your free pass out of that bruise factory."

Rose shook her head, annoyed. "You're both completely missing the point! Girls aren't any less capable than boys. I bet I could beat most of you through the Gauntlet if I had a chance."

James stared incredulously at her. "You want to go through that thing?"

"Well," she replied, hedging a bit, "not really. I mean, it does look pretty brutal. But it's the principle of the matter."

Ralph shook his head. "This is the first time in my life I wish I'd been born a girl."

"I'm going to write Mum and Dad about it," Rose declared firmly. "When Mum hears that…"

Rose's voice trailed away as a cold push of air suddenly rippled her robes. James and Ralph felt it as well. The three stopped in the corridor, glancing around.

James frowned. "What was that?"

Neither of the others responded. There didn't appear to be any obvious source of the breeze. There were no windows in this section of the castle. Closed doors lined the walls, lit by a series of lanterns hung on chains. As James looked, the lantern at the end of the corridor winked out. James nudged Ralph and pointed.

Ralph's voice wavered. "Was that already burnt out, or did it just—"

The lantern next to it flickered and died, as if someone had blown the flame out.

"Maybe it's just the wind," Rose said uncertainly. "Come on, let's—"

Two more lanterns blinked out in quick succession. James glanced at Rose, then Ralph, his eyes wide. Suddenly, much stronger than before, a cold wind tore down the corridor, streaming through their robes and whipping their hair. It blew the rest of the lanterns out, throwing the corridor into murky darkness.

"Look!" Rose cried breathlessly, her voice unnaturally high. James and Ralph followed her shaking, pointing hand. There was a figure moving down the corridor. It floated above the floor, its head lowered, obscuring the face. It drifted toward them swiftly and silently. James grabbed Ralph and Rose's sleeves, pulling them as he attempted to back away, but his legs felt frozen. The figure was moving too quickly. It was nearly upon them. Suddenly, just as it heaved directly in front of them, it raised its head.

Ralph gasped. Rose uttered a little scream. James blinked.

"Cedric?" he exclaimed, his heart pounding. "What are you doing?!"

The ghost of Cedric Diggory straightened and grinned at them. "I've been practicing," he said in his distant, ghostly voice.

"Y-you know him?" Rose stammered, recovering a little.

"Yeah, we know him," Ralph replied. "That wasn't right, Ced. What was that all about anyway?"

Cedric looked taken aback. "I'm the 'Specter of Silence'. I've been practicing over the summer, trying to create a little mystique. What, was it too much?"

James nodded, his eyes wide. "Yeah, I'd say it was a bit much! Can you, you know, fix the lights?"