Chapter Four: The First Week
(Recognizable portions of this chapter taken from Chapter Eight of Harry Potter and the Philosophers/Sorcerers Stone by J.K. Rowling. I do not own Harry Potter or Danny Phantom)
Monday, September 2, 1991, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Danny quickly determined that Monday mornings would be just short of unbearable. While he had first period free, his second period of the day was Defense Against the Dark Arts, where he couldn't shake the sense of wrongness he felt in Quirrell's presence.
It didn't help that he was useless as a teacher, stuttering at every other word he spoke, and acting like his own shadow would jump out and attack him at any moment.
The fact that the first lesson was about defending against snails was another point against it.
Third period was History of Magic, during which Danny caught up on some much needed sleep. Not even the chill he felt around ghosts was able to counter the droning voice of Professor Binns. Thankfully Harry kept Hermione from prodding him awake before class was over.
After lunch in the Great Hall, fourth period Herbology was a breath of fresh air. It was also their first practical exposure to magic, as Professor Sprout demonstrated the Fire-making Charm and Severing Charm to the class, describing them as the basic spells of a Herbologist. She also showed of a Venomous Tentacula and a Dittany plant to demonstrate the danger and rewards of Herbology.
The last period of the day was Transfiguration, where Professor McGonagall gave the class a stern talking-to the moment they had all sat down.
"Transfiguration is some of the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn at Hogwarts," She said. "Anyone messing around in my class will leave and nt come back. You have been warned."
She proceeded to change her desk into a pig and back again. Everyone was impressed and couldn't wait to get started, but soon realized they weren't going to be changing the furniture into animals for a long time. After a half-hour of extensive note-taking, Professor McGonagall had them try to turn matchsticks into needles. Danny was one of two students to succeed, the other being Hermione.
Tuesday, September 3, 1991
Tuesdays they had Charms, followed by Herbology, Defense, and Transfiguration. In Charms, Professor Flitwick fell off the stack of books he was standing on when he got to Harry's name on the roll. The first class was spent going over the Lumos Charm. As one of the simplest spells ever devised, it was no surprise that everyone had the end of their wand lit like a flashlight.
What was surprising was the difficulty Neville had with the spell. Almost every try either failed to make his wand light up, or the resulting light was blinding.
In Herbology, Danny noticed that Neville seemed much more at ease, and indeed appeared to have a knack for the subject.
Defense remained a disappointment, only today Danny noticed a similar look of discomfort on his cousin's face.
Transfiguration was mostly note-taking, but Danny noticed that in the practical portions he had an almost instinctive grasp of turning one object into another.
Wednesday, September 4, 1991
Danny could barely concentrate during class, once he found out that they had Astronomy that night.
Eventually, the class was standing on top of the Astronomy tower at midnight, looking through their telescopes.
Danny had taken to the subject like a fish to water, to the utter lack of surprise from his cousin, who benefitted from the nights spent sneaking out of bed to stargaze on the roof back when they lived in America.
Danny could recite and identify the eighty-eight constellations, as well as the more important stars in each.
That night was the first where Danny didn't suffer a nightmare, and woke up the next day well rested for once.
Friday, September 6, 1991
After Double Charms and Transfiguration on Thursday, everyone was apprehensive about Double Potions with the Slytherins.
That morning, Hedwig arrived with a letter from Hagrid inviting him and his friends for tea that afternoon. Harry had written back yes, so they had their afternoon schedule filled.
Potions lessons took place down in one of the dungeons. It was colder here than up in the main castle, and would have been quite creepy enough without the pickled animal parts floating in glass jars all around the walls. In one corner of the room, a gargoyle sat as a fountain over a stone basin of water.
As Danny was paying attention to the gargoyle, he did not notice that class had started until the door slammed open and Professor Snape stalked in, his black robes billowing in the most dramatic way possible. Turning round at the front, he spoke with a disdainful expression on his face as he took the role, stopping when he reached Harry's name.
"Ah, yes," he said softly,"Harry Potter, Our new - celebrity." This earned stifled snickers from Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, and a subsequent icy glare from Danny. When the Potions Professor finished calling the roll, he spoke again, his voice barely a whisper, but forcing them to hang on every word.
"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making. As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through the human veins, bewitching the minds, ensnaring the senses.… I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, and even stopper death - if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."
His dark eyes focused on Harry.
"Potter!" He barked. "What would I get if I added powdered root of Asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"
Harry looked thoughtful for a moment before answering. "I believe that is the first step in most sleeping draughts."
"So, you at least know the basics." Snape replied after another moment. "Where would you look if I told you to locate a bezoar?"
"My pocket." Harry replied smartly, earning a quirked eyebrow from the hook-nosed teacher. "Seems ridiculous not to have an antidote to most poisons within reach at all times."
"Very well" Snape sneered, but Danny could catch an undercurrent of thoughtfulness in his expression. "Tell me, what is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?"
"They're the same plant, Aconite."
"Indeed, clearly Mister Potter, you are better prepared than I would have expected." Harry couldn't help but look offended as Snape turned his attention to the rest of the class.
"For your information, a bezoar is a stone taken from the stomach of a goat and will cure all but the most destructive poisons. Aconite is a poisonous plant that will also deter creatures such as vampires in its herbal form." He looked around. "Well, why aren't you writing all this down!" He snapped, causing a rustle of parchment to fill the air, with the small pops of ink wells uncorking as the class, mainly the Gryffindors, started hastily jotting down the notes.
Afterwards, Professor Snape had them brew a Boil Cure Potion from the instructions on the blackboard. Soon enough the board was obscured by the thick fumes of around a dozen cauldrons.
Danny turned to his copy of Magical Drafts and Potions. The book was worn but well-cared for, and had notes scribbled in the margins detailing minor alterations to the brew, courtesy of his mother, who was known to experiment. Before taking the potion off the fire, he added a dash of flobberworm mucus to thicken it, which made sense for a potion that was to be applied topically, and a sprinkle of powdered ginger root as a pain-reducer.
The delay this caused was what allowed Danny warn Neville to take his cauldron off the fire before adding the porcupine quills. Just as Neville breathed a sigh of relief, a loud bang sounded across the room. Snape was at the source in an instant, glowering over the now boil-ridden forms of Crabbe and Goyle.
"Idiot boys" The Potions Master sneered. "You forgot to take the cauldron off of the fire before adding the porcupine quills, didn't you?" He asked condescendingly. "Miss Bulstrode, Miss Runcorn, take these two to the Hospital Wing." He ordered a heavy-set girl with a square jaw and a tall, athletic girl with curly black hair. Danny faintly recalled the sorting, where Bulstrode was the first to have been sorted into Slytherin, and Runcorn was the second to last.
While Professor Snape vanished the sludge that was creeping across the floor, Neville gave an audible gulp as he realized the implications of what Danny had prevented.
At the end of class, they bottled their results, and Danny felt that his and Harry's cobalt-colored potion was at the very least passable.
Once out of the stifling dungeon, the cousins had the rest of their day free. In a bout of curiosity, Danny and Harry snuck to the third floor corridor. Harry stood watch, while Danny concentrated. He felt a feeling of weightlessness fill him, and he opened his eyes to see his features translucent. He stuck his head through the solid wood door without a second thought, and the first thing his eyes focused on was the massive, breathing lump in the center of the corridor. Upon a second look, Danny could tell that it was a three-headed dog, or as the Greeks and wizards called it, a cerberus. Thankfully, the guard dog typically associated with the underworld was fast asleep.
Danny decided that it would not be best to linger around in case the cerberus woke up, and pulled his head out just in time for Harry to warn him about the patrol cat, AKA Mrs. Norris. They made their way to the Great Hall for lunch with no one the wiser.
At lunch, Ron asked if he could accompany them to Hagrid's, and Danny decided to bring Neville along as well. The latter seemed very appreciative of being included.
At five to three the quartet left the castle and made their way across the grounds to Hagrid's Hut, a relatively small house made of wood and stone that sat on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. A crossbow and an oversized pair of galoshes stood propped next to the front door.
When Danny knocked they heard a frantic scrabbling from inside and several booming barks. Danny silently hoped there wasn't another cerberus in there. Hagrid's voice rang out over the barking. "Back, Fang - back."
Hagrid's big, hairy face appeared in the crack as he pulled the door open. "Hang on," he said. "Back, Fang."
He let them in, struggling to keep a hold on the collar of an enormous black boarhound. Apparently this was Fang, and Danny wondered what name had been given to the Cerberus, clearly it wouldn't be something like Fluffy, now would it? It was probably something like Cujo or Ripper.
Hagrid's home only had one room inside. Hams and pheasants hung from the ceiling, a copper kettle sat over the open fire, merrily boiling away, and a massive bed with an equally large patchwork quilt stood in the corner.
"Make yerselves at home," said Hagrid, letting go of Fang, who bounded strait at Danny and started licking his ears. Like Hagrid, fang was clearly not as fierce as he looked at first glance.
"This is Ron and Neville" Harry told Hagrid, who was pouring the copper kettles contents into a large teapot and putting rock cakes onto a plate.
"Another Weasley, eh?" said Hagrid, glancing at Ron's freckles. "I spent half me life chasin' yer twin brothers away from the forest."
The rock cakes were shapeless lumps with raisins that could possibly pass as gemstones with their hardness. The quartet pretended to enjoy them as they told Hagrid all about their first lessons. Fang rested his head on Danny's knee and drooled all over his robes, causing him to silently thank his mother for having had the Impervious Charm put on her children's robes.
The quartet was delighted to hear Hagrid call Filch "that old git."
"An' as fer that cat, Mrs. Norris, I'd like ter introduce her to Fang sometime. D'yeh know, every time I go up ter the school, she follows me everywhere? Can't get rid of her - Filch puts her up to it."
Harry told Hagrid how Snape had singled him out in potions class, and Hagrid responded. "Well, he prob'ly thinks yer like yer father. They didn't get along at all at Hogwarts."
Harry looked like he wanted to ask more, but Hagrid changed the subject.
"How's yer brother Charlie?" he asked Ron. "I liked him a lot - great with animals."
While Ron went into detail about Charlie's work with dragons in Romania, Harry found a scrap of paper under the tea cozy. He looked over to it, and covertly slipped it to Danny. The ice-eyed boy eyed the paper, and quickly realized it was a cutting from the Daily Prophet. He remembered his father mentioning the article from the paper the day after their trip to Diagon Alley. It was only now, reading the article for himself, that he realized that the Gringotts vault that had been broken into was the same one Hagrid had emptied while they were there.
Danny decided to keep this information to himself for the moment. Ron had said that only a powerful dark wizard could hope to get past the security of Gringotts. The image of burning red slits made itself known to Danny, who had to shake the thought away.
'He's not anywhere near England, you're being paranoid Fenton.' Danny thought to himself. But even as they made their way back up to the castle, he couldn't shake the feeling that something dangerous was afoot.
