Author's note!!

I'm planning on writing this chapter in 2 different POVs. From the marauders' view and Harry's view later on. I just want to show everybody how Harry seems to the outside world instead of in his own head.

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Chapter 4- First Encounters

Marauders' POV

The Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom began to fill up quickly with Gryffindor and Slytherin seventh years, and, as usual, both sides were divided down the middle. The Slytherins on the left and Gryffindors on the right. The students began talking amongst themselves and after fifteen minutes of chatter, they realized that their teacher was late, as well as the marauders (although this wasn't highly unusual).

It was at that precise moment that the four mischief makers bolted through the door and landed in a heap of arms and limbs on the classroom floor. Sirius was the first to shoot up and yelling apologies to an invisible teacher. "Sorry we're late, Professor but—," then he realized that there was in fact no teacher in the classroom. He looked around confused.

Once the rest of them dusted themselves off Remus went over to Lily. "Hey, Lily. Do you know where Dumbledore is?"

She looked at him biting her lip. "No, I hope something didn't come up to make him forget about us. If he wasn't going to show he would have at least assigned another substitute," she said worriedly.

"Wicked! If we don't have a teacher then I'm leaving. I'm not wasting my time in a boring classroom when we have pranks to plan," Sirius said turning to leave.

It was at that moment when Professor Turner strode into the room saying, "If I'm wasting your time, Mr. Black, then please feel free to leave. I don't want to feel like I'm wasting anyone's time, because in turn, you'll be wasting mine. Now, for everyone who wants to learn, please take your seats."

Sirius turned a light shade of pink and hurriedly sat down next to James who looked like he was trying to hold in his laughter. Remus and Peter, who sat in the seats behind them, had to problem of hiding their hysterics from the short-tempered dog in front of them.

"Quiet, please. Ok, now before we get started, can anyone tell me what your headmaster taught you in my absence?" Professor Turner said looking around on his desk, as if searching for a hint of what they might have went over.

Everyone in the classroom gave bewildered looks. When Turner saw them raised a brow, and when he saw who was raising their hand, he seemed to pale quite a bit before stammering out, "Yes, Miss Evans?"

Lily lowered her hand and said, "Well, the headmaster was a bit…umm…vague."

Turner furrowed his brows together after he seemed to have gathered himself together. "What do you mean? Come on, Miss Evans spit it out."

While Lily was trying to phrase her words carefully a brunette Slytherin from the other side of the classroom shouted out. "Professor, the old man basically told us how the Boggart was the descendent from the Bogeyman, how the Basilisk came to be, and how survive with being in love with a Banshee. In my opinion all of it was absolute rubbish!" the boy sneered.

Everyone held their breath. Usually a student would get punished for insulting a teacher, especially the headmaster, but Turner didn't seem bothered by it and said, "I don't believe I was talking to you Mr.…Thompson…is it? From now on raise your hand before speaking in my classroom. I find it unbearably rude when someone interrupts without being excused first."

Eric Thompson didn't know whether to glare or be shocked. He got away with insulting the headmaster but was lectured to raise his hand, so in response he just gave a quick nod and turned his gaze back to the window.

"Good." Turner turned his attention back to the class. "This year is your last and final year at Hogwarts. I questioned the headmaster on your past professors and I have to say, I am not very impressed. They seemed to try and protect you and keep you in the dark about most subjects that you indeed need to learn before you walk out into the real world, because, frankly, it isn't very pretty. Within these walls and within the walls of your own home, you are confined to a safe and protected life by your parents and teachers, but let me tell you that there is a war going on outside these walls and you need to be prepared or you can very well get yourselves killed. Your parents want to protect you but this will not always be the case. Sooner or later you need to learn to stand on your own. And I do not going to say this to frighten you, but to prepare you.

"This year, I'm going to teach you about the darkest creatures known to man and how to defeat them if you should come across them. You're going to learn about the most powerful wizards in history and how they came about their downfalls or triumphs. I'm going to teach you about the darkest curses known to even the most horrible wizards and how to defend yourselves against them, so that when you do get out of here, you won't be completely useless, and will actually have knowledge in those minds that your past professors failed to do. Now that you've heard a brief summery on what we are going to do in here, does anyone have any questions?" Professor Turner said gazing at them all with a stern and serious gaze.

Something in his speech confused Remus and he slowly raised his hand. "Professor Turner? You're going to actually teach us how to cast dark spells?" he asked skeptically. Many of the Slytherins' and even some of the Gryffindors', faces seemed to grow with excitement.

"What? Absolutely not! I'm going to teach you about the harmful dark curses that are out there and then I will eventually teach you how the cast the defensive spells you need to know in order to shield yourselves against them. There is no way I am going to teach any kind of destructive spell within this classroom, is that understood? And if I see or hear any of my students at least try to attempt any of these spells, I will make sure you are not allowed in this classroom or any defense classroom in this school. Do I make myself clear?" Turner said darkly. His expression was a difficult one to place. Sure, it had anger, but it also had a grave look about it. Wisdom lay in the depths of his green eyes, and that they would be prudent as to obey it.

Everyone slowly nodded their heads, yet many of the Slytherins glared darkly at their teacher.

"Good. Anymore questions?" he asked, his mood lightening a bit.

James hesitantly raised his hand. He wasn't sure he wanted to get lectured like Remus had only moments before.

"You have a question, Mr.….Potter?"

"You said earlier, that you were going to tell us about the harmful dark curses? Why the emphasis? Aren't all dark curses harmful?" James asked confused.

"Ah, good catch, Mr. Potter. Two points to Gryffindor," Professor Turner said with a smile. "Generally, most dark spells are harmful, but others are just called 'dark' because if said improperly, the spell can leave disastrous results. You see, there are quite a few so-called 'dark spells' that can be dead useful," Turner explained.

"Sir, my father works in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the Ministry and he said that any witch or wizard who uses a dark spell is automatically said to be a dark wizard in the Ministry's book," James argued. He didn't care if they were useful as the Professor called it they were dark curses and were illegal for a reason. They were used for hurting people, nothing else.

Seeing James' skeptical look Turner said, "Alright let me give you an example…Say, you and your friend are lost in the Forbidden Forest, for some strange reason. All of a sudden, you're both attacked by say… a manticore. Your friend has been poisoned by its tail and you surprisingly took the beast down. You are far away from any building or potion shop, and your friend is lying at your feet, dying. Each second you waste, your friend steps closer to death. You know a spell that can save his life but you do not want to perform it because it's what you call a 'dark spell'. Tell me Mr. Potter, what would you do in this situation? Say a dark spell that can save his life, consequences be damned? Or would you watch your best friend die, all because of your selfish pride?"

At this point James was fuming. Like that could actually happen! He's just trying to make you look like an asshole for not saying a dark curse! He's such a –

"I'm not trying to pressure you, Mr. Potter. I wouldn't even use these spells in emergency situations. That particular spell happens to kill anyone and any living thing within a twenty foot radius if said wrong, including the caster. I'm saying that I would use this spell when I had no other options whatsoever. Do you see my point? Many of these spells are illegal by the Ministry for good reason, so many don't hurt themselves or others. A person may, however, get a permit to use these curses if they are indeed skillful enough, although those people are very rare. I'm not saying to change your opinion, Mr. Potter, but I am trying to make you see my side of things as well. It's better to see all sides of a situation instead of just listening to one side and agreeing with it," the professor said with sense of understanding in his voice.

James just tightened his jaw and said, "Yeah." He didn't agree with this teacher's views one bit. His father taught him any witch or wizard caught performing any dark magic was capable of spending a sentence in Azkaban.

The other three marauders were watching this debate with interest. Sirius was looking at their teacher with a hint of dislike, which was no surprise. He hated anything and anyone to do with any kind of Dark Arts. Peter was looking on, a bit fearful, especially at their teacher. He didn't want him to set a dark curse on him just because he couldn't get a spell right, which was pretty often. Remus looked at their teacher with some sort of respect. The man obviously went through some troubling times and that's probably why his views are the way they are. He probably didn't agree with many of the views posted by the Ministry. Remus wasn't too fond of the Ministry either because of their discrimination against his…eh…furry little problem, which seemed to pop up every month. But it didn't mean he trusted him one bit. This man had something he was hiding, and by the way he was talking about the Dark Arts, it was something big.

The marauders looked at each other and came to a clear understanding. Professor Turner was hiding something and they were for sure going to figure out exactly what.

"Any other questions?" they heard the teacher's voice ring out.

Lily raised her hand, but not quite as high as she did before.

"Yes? Miss Evans?"

"Umm, this might be a rather personal question, and not related to the topic in anyway, but it caught my eye. I've read about it some, and I was wondering…" she rambled but stopped and bit her lip, deciding if she should go forward with her question or not.

"Go ahead, Miss Evans," their professor said, urging her to finish her question. He looked annoyed when people mentioned something and then told them to forget about it.

"What's that around your neck?" she blurted out. They saw Professor Turner stiffen. The color of Lily's face nearly matched her hair.

James looked at her with a puzzled expression on his face.

Most of the class rolled their eyes. "It's a ring. What else do you think it is, Gryffindork?" Lucius Malfoy said with a sneer.

She glared at him. "I know it's a ring, idiot. I'm asking how he got it. Those rings are extremely rare. It's a sort of spell that binds two people to each other, body and soul. They feel each other's pain, happiness, sorrow…well, you get the idea. There're protection spells weaved into them as well, so each person will always know if the other is in danger or not. To say this spell, you have to be absolutely, one hundred percent sure that the two casters are soul mates, if not…well… the two who do perform the spell would meet fatal ends. They're called Adligare Amatoris. It's Latin for The Binding of Lovers," Lily explained.

When the students looked at their professor, they saw he had gone chalk-white and he was trembling. "Professor Turner, are you alright?" Lily asked worriedly.

"I—I'm fine, Miss Evans. I—I have to say. You hit the nail on the head," he stuttered giving ghostly smile, but the pain on his face was quite clear. He looked at Lily with a deep sadness and longing. A look that made James's insides twist and made him clench his fists.

Turner looked away and said, "It—it was my late wife's. We performed the spell a few months after our marriage."

Lily's eyes widened. "I'm so sorry, Professor Turner. That must have been so painful for you."

"Well, he did just lose his wife, but I suppose you wouldn't hurt so much after your husband's death, Evans. After all, you probably just married for the money," Malfoy smirked.

Lily's face became red with anger. "You don't read at all do you, Malfoy?" she spat. "Once two soul mates say this spell, their very souls are merged together. If one is killed, then the survivor feels half of their soul is ripped out. The few others that actually performed this spell died within days of each other. The pain they felt was so great that they ending up committing suicide." When Lily realized what she was saying and in front of whom she blushed even redder and let her eyes fall downcast. "I'm—I'm so sorry, Professor. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories."

"It's quite alright, Miss Evans. I shouldn't bring anything to class that might bring up uncomfortable situations. Since you all are students you are probably bursting with curiosity. So let me settle your imaginations before I start hearing false rumors going about the school. Right before I arrived here, my wife and I came into a minor skirmish, one that she failed to make it out of…or I should say that I failed to get her out of," the professor said sadly while twisting the ring on his finger. "And Miss Evans is right. The pain is almost unbearable. It feels like a whole half of you is missing, like you feel like you can't move on any further. It's like a knife is being stabbed through your chest every time you think about it…" he trailed off.

There was a moment of silence in the classroom. The marauders looked at each other. Was that the secret that seemed to make them so suspicious of their professor? He felt guilty about not being able to save his soul mate? Is that why he had all that talk about using a dark spell to save a loved one? Everything made sense now except…

Remus asked quietly, "What was her name?"

Turner winced as if he had been slapped. "G—Ginny…" he choked out. There were tears in his eyes. He blinked a couple of times while looking out the window. Abruptly he said, "That's enough for today, you are all dismissed."

No one dared contradict him, even if they did have a half an hour left to spare. Everyone left quickly and quietly, so as not to disturb their heartbroken professor.

When the marauders looked back, they saw haunted, dark green eyes staring back at them. Almost as if they were trying to get a message across to them, but thought twice of it and turned away.

Harry's POV

When he first saw her, he thought she was Ginny. He felt his heart break once more, like a hot burning flame tearing apart his insides. Then he realized that the girl before him had bright green eyes instead of those sparkling brown. He shook his head to gather himself together before he spoke.

He thought the beginning of the class went rather well. It only started to down spiral when he had to get into that debate with James. He knew for sure that both he and Sirius would be cold towards him from then on. He knew of Sirius's encounters with the Dark Arts while he lived with his parents, and James's father's Ministry opinions, so he had no reason to blame them, but he hoped they would warm up to him throughout the school year.

What shocked him most was Lily's keen eye to details and her vast knowledge. Just like Hermione, he thought with a pang in his chest. When she said 'ring' his heart dropped to his stomach. His very being was being torn to shreds by an invisible force that proceeded to rip open his heart and burning it with white hot flames. He grew deathly pale, and knew he was going to lose control, so he dismissed them all after giving them a brief story of what happened. He didn't want there to be false rumors going around the student network, especially about Ginny. He would probably let his magic run free in anger again, and now that he was a in school full of students who shaped his future, he couldn't take that chance again.

When he thought they left, he turned towards the door and saw the marauders looking forlornly at him. He met their eyes and saw innocence and recklessness in them. They didn't know what horrible times fate had in store for them. They had no idea that, in just a few short years, fate was going to rip everything they ever cared for away from them. He wanted to –no needed to tell them everything. He needed to warn them of their fates. Keep anything from happening, but he stifled the urge to do so and quickly turned away.

You're such an weakling, Potter. One more second and you would have been sent to St. Mungo's for insanity and what good could you possibly do for the world from a soft padded cell? You need to stop Voldemort in this time before he has the chance to kill everyone a second time around. You know where all the Horcruxes are, so you can get rid of ol' snake face before he even knows you exist. And this time around it'll be showdown between Lord Voldemort and Harry Turner, not Harry Potter.

He looked at his watch, the one that Mrs. Weasley gave him as a birthday present. He finally got the damned thing fixed after a few years. Better late than never. Hmm, a half an hour to spare. Well might as well get it over with now… and off he went on his first mission which lay hidden deep in the Room of Requirements.

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