AN: I have a pairing in mind for Neville but nothing is set in stone yet so if there's a specific pairing that you want, leave it in the review.
Harry Potter: King of the Amazons
Chapter 21
-Harry-
Walking into the classroom he gazed at his nervous and twitching classmates as they anxiously awaited the day's lesson. It had been almost two months since the new term began and every teacher, bar their new defense professor, had been in a panic about the soon to be arriving guests. They had three days left until the foreign schools would be on campus and the nerves caused by that knowledge were only worsened in his classmates as today their defense instructor would be performing the Imperius Curse upon them. Sitting next to Neville in the back he thought back to their classes' first 'lesson' on the unforgivable curses.
-Flashback-
"You can put those away," their new teacher, Alastor Moody, growled, the scarred man limping into the room just as the class was scheduled to start "those books. You won't be needing them.". "Now," the man began after calling roll, the ex-auror's electric blue eye flitting to each student when they answered while the brown one stayed focused on the parchment "I've gone over the notes from your previous teachers and found that you lot are woefully behind on dealing with curses. Actually, a better statement would be that most of you are behind in general with who you've had teaching for your first few years here.".
And so the Professor had begun to go into a lecture about the various uses and levels of curses, how some were illegal and others weren't, and a bit of the course aims for the term. Finally though the man started drawing the lesson to a close by asking "Now…do any of you know which curses are the most heavily punished by wizarding law?".
The second the words left the teachers mouth several hands shot into the air, every half-blood and pureblood apart from his close group of friends along with Granger raised their hands and the man immediately focused in on Ron Weasley and pointed for the fool to answer, something he noted with more than a little amusement upset Hermione Granger. "Er…" the red haired garbage bin offered hesitantly "I…I remember my dad mentioning one of them…the Imperius Curse.".
"Aye," Moody said, the man's tongue flitting out like a snake's "your father would know all about that one. Caused the ministry quite the problem after the fall of You-Know-Who. Trying to figure out who had followed him willingly and who were being controlled.". With surprisingly fast reflexes the man's arm shot out and grabbed a spider form a jar on the front desk and placed it onto one of the empty tables. "Imperio!" the man intoned, pointing at the spider which frozen in place and remained as still as a statue.
"Complete and utter control," Moody growled "whoever you put under this spell will obey your every wish and feel higher than a cloud while doing so. It takes a great deal of will power to even remember what you were ordered to do and even more to actually resist the spell. For most people they won't be able to resist in the slightest and won't remember a damn thing once it's lifted. Added to that muggles have an even harder time resisting it than magicals due as the spell also has to fight off the power of the magical core in witches and wizards. This spider though has no magical core and no real willpower so it won't be able to resist. I can, for example, order it to leap from desk to desk." At those words the spider sprang into action, scuttling along the wooden surface it stood upon before leaping to the next table and then the next one after that. "I can order it to sit upon one of your heads." the spider leapt up and landed on the head of Ron Weasley who froze, began shaking, and, if the smell was any indication, wet himself.
As this was going on the other students, bar his friends, the shivering Ron Weasley, and Granger, began laughing and clapping "Talented isn't she?" Moody cackled "What shall I have her do next? Bite one of you with her venom?" At those words the room froze as Moody levitated the spider away from them but it was clear it was making biting motions "Jump out the window? Drown herself?". With each sentence the spider tried to carry out the new order before Moody dropped it into a glass jar and ended the curse as it seemed to slump down in relief.
"Scores of witches, wizards, even muggles, magical creatures, and animals, have all done some of the most heinous crimes imaginable while under the influence of the Imperius curse and woke up with no memory of doing so, others claimed the Imperius as an excuse to avoid prison for their crimes. But there's the problem…how do you sort out the liars?" Moody asked, the man's tongue once more flitting out like a snake's. "Another curse, another curse?" Moody demanded, once again pacing along the desks and tables.
"The Cruciatus curse." Draco Malfoy spoke up with a lazy drawl causing him to scowl, despising the brat almost as much as the 'Lord' Malfoy, both having sent a mocking and clearly false letter of condolence about his sister's injuries.
"Yes," Moody said and he could practically feel the man's distaste for Malfoy in that one word "the torture curse. Also unsurprising that you know of that one.". Spinning around the man pointed his wand at the spider and roared "Crucio!" as the spider began to twitch and flail, its mandibles flailing about and he knew, if it could, the creature would be screaming in agony. "This spell," the man continued, not even bothering to lift the curse "affects the pain receptors for the human body and gives each one the feeling of being stabbed with a red hot needle. For every square centimeter of your body there are two hundred pain receptors. This curse is known to drive those held under it to madness if used for too long and most under it wish for death.". Finishing his tirade Moody ended the curse on the spider which collapsed, twitching, to the bottom of the jar, remaining completely still otherwise and he was sure that it suffered the fate Moody had just mentioned.
Glancing over at Neville he saw his Gryffindor friend clenching the desk in anger, the Lion among his Titans clearly struggling not to attack their teacher due to the memories brought up about the elder Longbottoms. He was sure if he and the rest of his friends and family hadn't helped Neville through his problems and offered help in researching a cure Neville may very well have attacked the man in front of them.
"Does anyone know the last curse?" Moody asked, arms open in invitation "Anyone at all?". Hesitantly Hermione Granger raised her hand, the only time he had ever seen her hesitate to answer anything, as Moody rounded on her.
"T-the Killing Curse," she stammered under the man's mismatched gaze "the Avada Kedavera.".
"The Killing Curse," Moody said with a nod, limping back over to the spider "instant death for whoever it touches. It leaves no mark, it causes no damage, to the body or any noticeable sign of death, it simply rips the life out of whoever it hits…AVADA KEDAVERA!". As he knew would happen a jet of green light shot out and struck the twitching spider, rendering it completely still as it collapsed onto the bottom of the jar, although at this point he would deem it a mercy killing. "That is what awaits anyone who gets touched by this curse," Moody continued "only one person has ever been known to survive it and I very much doubt Mr. Potter knows how.".
Spinning around Moody stomped over to the blackboard and wrote out the three curses onto the board, "These curses can't be shielded by any spell," Moody growled "the only way to avoid their affects is to have something solid in between you and the spell or to jump out of the way. Anyone who is found guilty of casting these curses on another witch or wizard is sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban.". The rest of the lesson was spent with Moody leaving the floor open for any questions from his classmates…nobody dared to even open their mouth.
-End Flashback-
As the class progressed he watched each of the students have the curse performed upon them, each of them doing something stupid or embarrassing. A Gryffindor student named Dean Thomas hopped around the room while singing the British National Anthem. A Gryffindor Girl who he knew to be an avid gossip named Lavender Brown imitated a squirrel. Ron Weasley attempted to perform an impressive set of Gymnastic feats but the idiot's body was too weak and collapsed partway through. Granger was told to pick up the book on Moody's desk and set it on fire…it was quite amusing to watch her panic and cry when the curse was lifted and she was told what she had done.
Finally though Moody got to his friends, the teacher's shock growing as, one by one, his friends resisted the curse and threw it off, some showing more signs of a struggle than others, but none gave in to the spell. "Alright Potter," Moody growled "your turn. Imperio!".
The moment the curse hit him he felt its presence within his mind but shoved it aside with ease, having grown used to having to control his temper and actions when dealing with politicians and paperwork day in and day out. "I order you to kiss Hermione Granger!" Moody tried to tell him.
"No," he said simply, showing no signs of any struggle against the curse "I would sooner cut out my own tongue.".
"H-he didn't even seem phased by it." one of the other Gryffindors, Seamus he believed, whispered in awe.
"I spend every day dealing with politicians and paperwork as I lead a country," he deadpanned at the Irishman "I've had to learn to have good control over myself and my emotions…this curse doesn't have a chance of controlling me.".
"Class dismissed," Moody growled, ending the ineffective curse "for homework you all are to read up on the curses and theories about ways to avoid or counter them.".
AN: Next chapter the other schools arrive and then we get to the tournament so be prepared.