A Tribute to Dumbledore's Senior Alumnus

Harry's scar suddenly began to throb with searing pain.

Instinctively, he raised a hand to his forehead, and memories from a century ago resurfaced in his mind.

Today, a hundred years ago, was September 6, 1891.

It had been during the Fifth year holiday. He and several classmates had casually put down the Goblin Rebellion, then faced the Goblin leader Runcorn on September 6 and defeated him.

It had truly been a grueling battle. Even the Avada Kedavra Sebastian had fired in desperation had been unable to harm Runcorn in the slightest...

"Urgh..." Harry groaned instinctively as pain flared through his scar.

"Harry, what's wrong?" Ron hurried over in concern.

"I'm fine." Harry quickly covered his cheek with his small hand. "Toothache. You know, inflamed gums."

Memories flooded back like a tide, and he finally recalled exactly how he had returned to 1991.

The instant Runcorn, transformed into a giant dragon, crashed to the ground, Harry had only managed to cast a Shield Charm before he felt himself struck by a flash of red light.

When he opened his eyes again, he was already back in the cupboard beneath Aunt's stairs.

At the very end of his memories, he had clearly seen the panicked, helpless looks in Verathea and Cassandra's eyes.

"Harry!"

He finally remembered. Those two cries had not been Aunt's voice, but the voices of the two girls.

"Harry Potter." Seeing that Harry was not seriously hurt, Hagrid curled his great beard as he explained to the little ones, "Perhaps you've heard his name—I mean that Mr. Potter from a hundred years ago."

"No." Hermione frowned. "I've read plenty of books, such as A History of Modern Magic, The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts, and Major Magical Events of the Twentieth Century. They only mentioned our Harry—the Savior who defeated Voldemort, the one standing right in front of us."

At the mention of Voldemort's name, Hagrid, Ron, and Neville all shuddered in unison.

"Oh, good girl." Hagrid bit his lip. "Don't say that name directly. Besides, that Mr. Potter was a figure from the nineteenth century, part of modern history. Naturally, you wouldn't find his deeds in A History of Modern Magic or Major Magical Events of the Twentieth Century."

"In fact," Hagrid continued in a lowered voice, "because he crushed the Goblin Rebellion with an iron fist back then and perished together with the Goblin leader Runcorn, the Goblins of Gringotts spent a great deal of money bribing people everywhere to bury that name as thoroughly as possible—or at least keep people from mentioning it. For a time, before The Dark Lord appeared, that title belonged to that Mr. Potter."

All right, Voldemort, Harry thought. That's another score we have to settle!

"Not even the school history mentions him?" Hermione asked with a frown.

"Then why do you think it's called Hogwarts, A History?" Hagrid spread his enormous hands.

So even the school history had been edited... Hermione nodded in understanding.

"Then how do you know about his deeds?" Seamus spotted the flaw.

Hagrid scratched his head and let out an oh. "Of course Dumbledore told me. Come to think of it, that Mr. Potter was also his senior alumnus. If Mr. Potter hadn't perished together with Runcorn, he would have witnessed Dumbledore's Sorting in his Seventh year. Of course, Dumbledore also said that even he couldn't have done better than that Mr. Potter."

Oh, this damned generation gap, Harry thought to himself.

"He... he was really that amazing?" Ron asked in astonishment.

"Oh, he certainly was." Hagrid spoke mysteriously. "There's even a legend among the Goblins that says The Dark Lord once went to Azkaban, and the Dementors there desperately tried to remember happy things..."

Harry was a little speechless. Was I really that terrifying back then?

Merlin's beard, I never used Avada Kedavra on the Goblins!

He had merely disarmed them, then flung their weapons at their necks; or turned rocks into barrels of gunpowder and hurled them into their faces.

Hagrid went on, "Still, his name being the same as Harry's is quite a coincidence, isn't it?"

"Yeah." Harry smiled at Hagrid.

"But it actually isn't a coincidence." Hagrid suddenly turned serious.

"Huh?" the little ones cried out together.

Harry's heart skipped a beat as well. Could it be... Hagrid had discovered something?

"It isn't a coincidence?" Seamus asked in surprise. "Come off it, Hagrid. Could that Harry possibly be our Harry?"

"Oh, don't be silly, Seamus." Hagrid spread his hands. "That Mr. Potter already perished together with Runcorn. In the Magical World at the time, wizards called him 'The Savior,' because he not only put down the Goblin Rebellion, but also destroyed The Ashwinder Party with several good friends."

"During the days when The Ashwinder Party ran rampant, life wasn't easy for Muggles either, let alone wizards," Hagrid added.

"So," Hermione raised her head, "a hundred years ago, there was a Harry Potter who was the Savior and saved the Magical World; and a hundred years later, there was another Savior named Harry Potter who saved the Magical World too?"

"That's right." Hagrid nodded. "As for why it wasn't a coincidence, that starts with James. Back then, The Dark Lord—I mean that Dark Lord from Slytherin—was slaughtering innocents throughout the Magical World, while Death Eaters ran rampant everywhere. Those days were truly unimaginably dark."

"After giving it some thought, James Potter decided to name his son Harry Potter," Hagrid recounted. "On one hand, it was to commemorate that great Savior from a hundred years ago. On the other, he placed his hopes in his child, hoping that he too could be like that namesake predecessor from a century ago—defeat The Dark Lord and help the Magical World emerge from the shadows. And as you can see, Harry did not disappoint his Father."

Harry opened his mouth. He truly had not expected his name to have come from himself.

It felt a little like a closed loop...

"Wasn't he part of the Potter Family?" Ron asked curiously.

"Of course not. They say he came from a Muggle family." Hagrid smiled at Ron. "But the Dark Lord whose name starts with V didn't believe it. He said that man must have been pure-blood."

"I never expected the Magical World to be saved by two Harry Potters in succession within a hundred years." Seamus clicked his tongue in amazement.

"What's so strange about that?" Hermione tossed her Puffy Hair, placed one hand on Harry's shoulder, and began to recite, "Sometimes, in our great island nation, responsibility falls upon a single person. He will lead the people out of the valley of shadows and toward the sunlit heights of peace and prosperity..."

"Cool. Where did you learn that?" Ron looked impressed.

"Yes, Prime Minister," Hermione said. "My Father loves that television series."

After thinking for a moment, Harry asked Hagrid again, "Then, Hagrid, where did Mr. Potter's friends go? I mean, the people who once fought alongside him?"