NOTE: I don't think they would teach how to make portkeys in school, or at least not until 7th year (there is one special exception mentioned in this chapter). Next while they learn to apparate in sixth year, I doubt the newly licensed apparaters would be comfortable doing side alongs with eleven year olds. And if they did then the oldest would be gone with the youngest and the rest are stuck. Also there are no aurors on the train they were only at the station. Lastly with the train moving it would be difficult to hit it with incoming adults apperating, unsure about elves but I don't think it would be a good idea to try. These are my reasons on why they have to stay on the train. Now on with the story.
Twenty minutes later the group met again. Luna was the one to report, "We put the first and second years in the second car. Everyone else fit into the first and third cars. They're a bit snug but it means we can lose the last two cars if we need to."
"Excellent, both the engineer and the trolley lady are magicals." a few hours later Harry came back from another visit with the engineer, "We have a new problem. The engineer says we have a bridge out in about twenty minutes. He could stretch that out to thirty if we need but any slower and they'll be able to catch us on brooms."
"Has he contacted anyone?" Hermione asked.
"He tried but he hasn't received an answer." Harry replied, "We are both under the assumption that something has happened at that end."
"Well." Ron started but paused.
"What?" Ginny and Hermione asked together.
"We could cut off the back cars and levitate the rest of them over the gap." He suggested.
"I don't want any of us off the train." Harry said, "That will be were the death eaters are waiting."
"If we levitate from inside we can't get it over the gap." He sighed.
"If it has good momentum it could make it over that way." Hermione offered.
"Why not have the quidditch teams fly alongside." Ginny suggested, "We can keep it moving with the momentum that is already there."
"Harry could cast a feather light charm on the train and that would make it much easier." Luna gave the final piece.
"Neville what do you have?" Harry turned to him.
"We have seven plants at varying degrees of danger." He reported, "We have a Devils Snare and Mimbulus Mimbletonia at the back of the third car. Then we have Fanged Geraniums between the other cars. It's not much but it will slow them down a bit."
"Someone brought a Devils snare on the train?" Hermione asked.
"It was just a clipping." Neville grinned, "But I have a way with plants."
"Is it big enough to do anything?" Ron asked.
"It is now." Neville grinned, "I hope if they try to board they start at the back."
"If we cut the last two cars are the plants still in place?" Harry asked.
"Yes we put them just inside the back door. Luna enlarged the space so they wouldn't get into the students." He offered.
"Excellent, Hermione go cut them off. Neville go with her and help with the plants." Harry directed, "Ginny gather the quidditch players and let them know what we're going to do. Luna you and Ron begin using the feather light charm on the cars. I'll stay in the engine and place the charm on it last. We'll remove them in the same order. After that charm is in place and the back cars are cut off Hermione will be in the last car and will levitate the middle. Luna in the middle and levitate the back. Neville, you are on the first car to levitate the coal car while Ron and I will be in the coal car. He'll levitate the first car and I'll get the engine. Ron you will keep your broom in your other hand in case we get knocked off the open car. Any questions?"
No one had any so they set to work. Neville froze the plants so Hermione could get by and sever the coupling. Ginny gathered the flyers and prepared them for their part. Ron returned to the coal car where Harry was waiting.
"Everything is ready but the engine." He yelled to be heard over the wind noise.
"Good I'll wait to hit it last. Where are the flyers?" Harry yelled back.
"One of the seventh year Ravens transfigured two windows in each car to be a door. They'll just fly out the sides and line up." Ron informed him, "I thought it was a good idea."
"Brilliant. Make sure we know who that was so we can thank them properly once we're safe at Hogwarts." Harry nodded, "Here comes the break… wow that's larger than I expected."
"It will still work with the fliers helping us along." Ron encouraged.
"Right, levitate the back car." Harry yelled and the information was passed along and within a few seconds the car was off the tracks, "Now the second."
On it went until they were nearly at the break. Harry threw the feather light charm on the engine and then levitated it. As soon as its wheels were off the tracks several students flew off the train on their brooms. Four on each car with Ginny right beside Harry.
"Looks like more than the teams." Harry yelled at her.
"There are twenty fliers." She explained, "We had to recruit a few new ones."
"I thought you got all the quidditch teams. Even without Slytherin it should have been twenty one." Ron looked confused
"We don't have full teams." Harry explained, "Gryffindor lost four players last year."
Ron looked like he wanted to smack himself in the face, "Wasn't thinking."
"Tracks approaching." Harry interrupted what could have turned into a fight if Ginny had got to say what she had wanted in reply to that, "As soon as the whole train is over we'll begin to lower it."
"Lower slowly so we can make sure it is on the tracks." Ginny yelled.
Harry slowly lowered the engine as the fliers made adjustments to make sure it was over the tracks and would make a smooth landing. Once it was down he cancelled the feather light charm. Ron indicated for Neville to lower the coal car at the same slow rate. On it went until all the cars were on the tracks again. Finally a few larger boys helped to pull the fliers back onto the train. All in all Harry was rather proud of the students and told them so.
"Did anyone see any hints of death eaters or anything?" He asked.
"I looked behind us once and thought I saw someone on the far side of the break." Katie Bell answered, "I couldn't tell anything more and I'm not particularly sure it was even a person as I only had a few seconds to look."
"Everyone keep your eyes open and your wands at the ready." Harry instructed, "I'm going back to visit with the driver."
"I'll go with him and bring back news." Ginny told Hermione before he followed.
Hermione collapsed into a seat near her and was followed by Ron, Luna and Neville. It was Seamus who asked the question, "If you were all levitating the cars and are this tired how is Harry still up and moving?"
"Harry simply has more power." She explained, "While he drained the same or even more magic than we did he still has plenty left."
Ginny returned a few minutes later wide eyed and shaking.
"What's wrong?" Hermione met her at the door.
"The driver is injured." She replied, "Now he is driving but he wants Dean up to the front please."
Dean jumped up and followed Ginny and the two found Harry in the engine with the driver setting on the floor giving directions. Harry was taking notes as quickly as he could and relayed them back to the driver as he went. Luna was just behind Dean and Ginny. When the driver finished Harry handed the notes to Dean and turned to Luna.
"Portkey to St. Mungo's please." He then turned to the driver, "Give them this note. It tells them exactly what bit you."
"Why didn't we portkey the kids off if she can make one?" Dean asked Ginny.
"She couldn't make enough. She'll pass out for a while after this one." Ginny shrugged, "We had to keep that option as a backup in case anyone got hurt."
"What bit him?" Dean asked after the driver was gone.
Harry pointed to a very large and very dead snake in the corner of the engine. Dean refrained from screaming at the sight, but just barely, "Are you going to burn it or something?"
"No I want Dumbledore to look at it." Harry repliled, "Girls go on back I'm sure they're in a panic. We have instruction on how to stop the train and we will have a welcoming committee of healers, teachers and aurors so if the death eaters try to jump us on the platform they'll get a big surprise. We'll begin to slow the train down in about five minutes. We'll reach the depot in ten."
The news that the trip was nearly over was a welcome relief to most of the students. But with more time yet to pass none of them were ready to drop their guard. Dean brought the train into the station at a crawl. Harry had ordered that all doors stayed shut until they could verify that those waiting were the ones they expected to be waiting. Harry made sure Sirius and Dumbledore were who they claimed and he let them verify the rest of the adults present. Soon enough the children were all off the train and moving up to the school. It was about this time that Albus noticed the number of cars.
"Where are the last two cars?" He asked rather shocked.
"About an hour or so back down the tracks." Harry answered as he got on the last carriage, "They were dead weight we couldn't deal with. Since we had emptied them of students and their baggage we simply left them."
The last carriage pulled off and left Dumbledore standing and staring at his much shortened train. A bag full of dead snake lay at his feet. Harry was the last student into the Great Hall and found three of the four tables glaring at the Slytherin table. Albus stood from the head table as Harry found a seat between Neville and Ginny with Ron and Hermione across from him. The room was already completely silent so Albus started his speech right away.
"First I must apologize to the first years. Because of circumstances you did not get to have the traditional boat ride across the lake this evening." None of those that were waiting to be sorted looked like they really cared about the boat ride, "Next please stop glaring at the Slytherin table. They were sent a note that looked to be from their head of house declaring that we thought the train was too dangerous this year and they were instructed to floo to The Three Broomsticks between four thirty and five this afternoon. None of them were aware of the problems the train was having."
The glaring lessened but it didn't stop entirely. The first years were sorted in short order and the feast began. However, the joyous mood that was usually present for the feast was notably absent. Harry watched as Madam Pompfry stood from her seat and made her way first to Snape and then to the headmaster. Once the meal was finished Albus stood up to address the students again.
He gave his normal speech and warnings, before he sent them all off to bed he offered some help, "One last item before I send you all off to bed. Anyone who requires a calming or sleeping draught this evening may go to the infirmary first. Prefects please make sure any of the first years that would like one is escorted to the infirmary and back to their dorm room."
Classes began the next morning and Harry was glad to see the new History professor take up teaching two doors down from Binn's old classroom. While Dumbledore had finally hired someone he refused to have the ghost exercised. Potions class was a definite improvement for most everyone but the man still sneered and growled at Harry. It made it worse when Harry took his abuse without even batting an eye. He was questioned by his friends after they left the room.
"Harry, are you going to suspend him?" Ron whispered with a hopeful look.
"No, I've asked Helena to explain things to him." Harry responded almost as quietly as his friend had asked.
"How much?" Hermione asked.
"Not enough for him to know who they are." He shrugged, "But enough to know they are watching him."
At lunch Dumbledore asked Harry to follow him to his office. Upon arrival he found the snake still in the sack sitting on a table. He followed the headmaster to the table and watched as he opened the bag. The man waved his wand over the snake and a small bit of smoke lifted out.
"She is not dead yet." The headmaster proclaimed, "Her heart beats once every three minutes."
Harry nodded and pulled the sword from his backpack. He quickly sliced the head off the snake and waited while Dumbledore did several spells over the animal. When he was finished he nodded and turned to Harry.
"She is dead now." His expression then turned rather serious, "I don't like you carrying that sword around a school full of children. I will keep it here hidden for you until you need it."
"No." Harry shook his head, "I only carried it today in case we needed it for the snake. I will be putting it in a hiding place with adequate protection this evening."
"Harry, it's too dangerous." He disagreed.
"Dobby." Harry called and handed the sword and scabbard over to the elf when he arrived, "Put this back in its hiding place at the manor."
"Yes Master Harry Sir." He popped away.
"Better?" he turned back to the headmaster.
"Better." Dumbledore nodded.
Defense Against the Dark Arts with Sirius was… different. The door opened and the class began to file in. Harry made sure he was the last through the door because he was expecting a prank of some sort. However the room he entered into was empty of teachers. The lights were on, the windows clear, but no Sirius in sight. Harry and his friends were immediately on the defensive.
"What's wrong Potter?" Draco Malfoy tittered from across the room, "Think they were wrong to clear him, think he's going to kill you on the first day?"
The Slytherins laughed along with him but the rest of Gryffindor quietly pulled their wands and began to look around. The Slytherins were still laughing until all the shutters closed over the windows and all candles and torches were blown out.
"I guess I was right, he is out to kill you." Draco chortled.
Harry began to move. He stayed quiet and felt before he moved so that he wouldn't give his position away by making a sound. Those that had trained with him were doing the same, all going in different directions. They had all gone through what Sirius' idea of a fun exercise was and they were wondering what he was up to now. Someone to the right of Harry gave a small sound like the start of a startled yelp but it was quieted right away. Harry back up a few steps before slowly moving to the side again, he was crouched in a ready position just waiting for something else.
All of the sudden spells were flying through the air. Harry shielded and when his shield was hit he moved and shielded again so that his position was never given away. When the lights came on only six students were standing and they all still had their shields up. The rest of the class was bound, frozen or some other way of being held captive without being unconscious.
"Well done." Sirius was sitting on the desk at the front, "You six take your seats."
As Harry walked across the room to take a seat he was glad he left his shield up. Sirius' hex bounced off and hit Draco turning his hair a lurid pink. Harry chuckled and didn't lower his shield even after he sat down.
"Look around you. Those who do not have any restrictions may survive a battle." Sirius explained what had happened, "This was a test to see how you would react." He didn't let anyone loose until the class was over.
There next exciting class came during History of Magic. Harry wasn't taking the course but he had a free period so he went to see how the first class went. Everyone lined up outside of Binns room but the door was locked. Just after the bell rang a door open up two rooms down.
"Are you all in line for History?" a woman's voice called.
"Yes." Hermione turned to find a younger woman standing in the doorway.
"That would be this classroom unless you just want to hear about goblin and giant wars." She announced, "I am Professor Cartwright. I'm teaching a little different class. I prefer to cover things that are actually interesting."
"I'm in." a male voice called from the crowd as the group moved down the hall.
"Why are we in this room?" Susan Bones asked as they reached the door.
"If you can't get Binns to quit teaching History then just move the students." She explained.
Sound of affirmation followed the group into the class. Harry grinned as he walked away thinking maybe he should have taken History for one more year.
The first Saturday of the year Harry's group spent in the Room of Requirement searching for the Diadem. They left after searching for hours with nothing to show for it. Over the next few weeks Harry's group took as much time as they could to look for the diadem in the room. Luna had suggested that Harry fly her up high in the room so she could draw a rough map. It worked quite well in marking off the areas they had already looked in. It took weeks but Luna was the one to find it on a pile of rubble beside a blistered cabinet in mid-October. Harry pulled the sword out of the bag that they had put an expansion spell on. He hadn't left the sword in his manor as he had told Dumbledore. He wanted it with him in the event that Voldemort showed up. One short chop later and they were down to one Horcrux.
Before they could leave the room the ghost of Helena Ravenclaw floated in, "You have cleansed it?"
"We have." Harry nodded.
"May I see it?" she asked.
"Sorry I had to break it." Harry held out the two pieces, "It was the only way."
"It is of no matter." She smiled, "That it is clean is of far greater importance."
"You are correct." He smiled back at her.
"I Helena Ravenclaw, only daughter and heir of Rowena Ravenclaw hearby take Harry Potter, heir of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff by blood and heir of Slytherin by conquest, as my heir. Though I be only a ghost I am still the spirit of a Ravenclaw and I request that magic herself accept and uphold my decision. So swear I."
A gong reverberated through the room and in fact he was sure all of Hogwarts heard it. Harry bowed to the ghost and replied, "I Harry Potter, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Slytherin do accept magic's decision and will hereby add Ravenclaw to my name and to my responsibilities. So swear I. "
Harry waited for a moment before asking, "I can still come to you for advice can't I?"
"Of course." She replied and drifted off through the wall.
