Hey guys! So, we've finally hit 200 reviews, and I'm now super duper ultra excited. I want to do something special for you guys, but I don't really know what - if you guys have any suggestions, feel free. Until then, here is my thank-you to all of you lovely people: I'm going to post a chapter every day for a week that's over 2000 words (long), I'll try to get to 2500 or 3000 but that'll vary from chapter to chapter. But EVERY DAY FOR THE NEXT WEEK, A LONG CHAPTER FOR A THANK YOU :) 10 words for every review, I figure, so 2000 word chapters (that doesn't mean I'll do 3000 word chapters as a gift for 300 reviews tho...)
I'm still trying to figure out what animals they all will become! I don't want them all to stay the same, for obvious reasons, but it's hard to decide what animal fits each one best. .
Maddie Tonks: The reason I had Flynn say he didn't want to be a rat was for two reasons actually. One, the fact that Fred didn't want his codename to be rodent (like you noticed; I'm pretty impressed actually lol). Two, he was taking Peter's place in the Mauraders, and he didn't want to be a rat like Peter. So, double the fun!
Komal: Can I know on which specific dates you post new chaps?: Well, I don't have all this planned out on a calendar or anything, but there will be one today and then every day for the following six days. After that, we'll see where we stand. As for times, I normally post them between 10 and 11 PM EST (probably 3/4 of my chapters are around then).
Professor Macmillan was the teacher of Defense Against the Dark Arts. He had attended Hogwarts in Harry Potter's time, and was the only Hufflepuff student to do so well that he continued to N.E.W.T-level DADA, despite Umbridge's determination to prevent that. Macmillan had been somewhat proud and arrogant during his teenage years, but he had mellowed over the last decade into a much calmer adult. He had replaced Professor Sprout as Head of Hufflepuff after her retirement four years prior, and developed into a very strong and caring teacher. He had managed to secure the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor for five years, now that Voldemort's curse on the role had been removed.
He was a bit unusual, but he was a Hufflepuff through and through: he was caring, loyal, dedicated, patient, and hard-working. He liked his students to be the same, and loved it when his students showed an interest in his subject outside of the classroom. So, when Tavish, Severin, and Teddy approached him after Third Year DADA had concluded for the day, he smiled at them eagerly.
"Should we wait for the others?" Severin whispered, and Teddy shrugged.
"No, they'll be here soon enough," Tavish said. They walked up to Professor Macmillan, who closed the open book on his desk and walked around so he was on the same side of the desk as they were.
"What can I do for you boys?" he asked, his eyes flickering between Tavish, Severin, and Teddy. The three were all very good at Defense Against the Dark Arts; Tavish was top of the class, and Severin and Teddy were easily in the top tenth of the third years.
"Well, we were wondering if you wouldn't mind teaching us something that isn't necessarily in the curriculum?" Tavish asked, his voice hopeful.
"Not in the curriculum?" Macmillan asked, arching his eyebrow.
"Yes," Teddy said, nodding. "You see, it's not really in any of the years curriculum, but Harry learned it in his third year, so we were thinking we could learn it too..."
"And what would this 'it' be?" Macmillan asked. His interest was peaked now.
"Well, it wouldn't just be us," Severin said quickly, "We have a few friends in their second year who would want to try to learn it too."
"Alright," Macmillan said. "I'm willing to help you boys learn whatever you'd like, but you have to tell me what it is."
"We want to learn how to cast a patronus," Teddy said.
"That is very advanced work; Harry learned it in his third year, certainly, but the rest of us didn't learn it until Dumbledore's Army," Macmillan said, his eyes widening somewhat. "It took us months to master, you know. Why would you ever want to learn it? There isn't much need for it anymore."
"Well, you see," Severin said, stepping forward and gesturing to Tavish, "McGonagall has taken Tavish in as an apprentice, to learn more magic outside of the classroom. And it really inspired us to learn the more complex things we can get our hands on. We figure being able to cast a patronus is a sign we have some mastery over our magic. Besides, if you ever need to cast a Patronus, you really need to cast one, and there won't be time to learn."
"Yeah," Teddy agreed, "And since you were in Dumbledore's Army, you should know - you always have to be prepared, no matter what anyone else says about 'imminent danger'."
McMillan pursed his lips, studying the boys appraisingly. There was a knock at the door, and they looked over to see Jack, Lucy, Rom, Serafin and Flynn in the doorway.
"We came here as quickly as we could," Jack said, "It takes a couple minutes to get here from Potions, though."
"That's quite alright," Macmillan said, "I presume these are the friends you mentioned, Severin?"
"Aye," Severin agreed, nodding at the others as they came to stand by Professor Macmillan's desk.
"Well, you didn't miss much; they had only just told me what they wanted to do," Macmillan said. "Now, Harry did this in his third year. He wasn't necessarily top of the class, but he was pretty close - are you sure you know what you're getting into? We could wait and do this your fourth year, or your fifth..."
"We can try now," Lucy said, smiling brightly, "If it takes us a little longer to get it, that's okay. The worst that can happen is it takes more practice, right?"
"True," Macmillan agreed, returning her smile; he loved eager students. "Well, alright. I am willing to teach you all how to cast a Patronus. It truly is something miraculous once you have it mastered... Expecto Patronum!" He waved his wand away from the children and a boar erupted from the tip of his wand, barreling across the room without interfering with anything. It circled around them, running through the air, before dissolving into light. The children watched, enchanted, their eyes wide and excited. This was an adventure; it might not be the same as their Werewolf endeavor the previous year, but it was an adventure in its own right.
"Wow," Rom breathed, looking at Professor Macmillan with awe. "How do you do that? There has to be more to it than just words..."
"It's more mental than verbal," Macmillan agreed, "And even practice. It takes power, which you can only gain through practicing and honing your magic. Now, there are two ways I've seen someone learn how to cast a Patronus. The first way is how Harry learned; Lupin brought in a boggart which took the shape of a dementor for Harry to practice against. That was a great way to teach it because it had a practical application. However, it will only work if your greatest fear is a dementor... Which I doubt."
The children shook their heads; they had never met a dementor in person, so it was hardly their greatest fear. It was just a black angry bed sheet, as far as they were concerned.
"Alright, then you can practice without being against anything," Macmillan continued. "That's what we did in Dumbledore's Army; we just practiced the charm by itself. It took a little longer that way, but we certainly learned it."
"Great, let's do it!" Flynn said enthusiastically, clapping his hands together.
"We can't do it now," Macmillan said, blinking in surprise, "I have a meeting that I have to get to in..." he paused, looking at the clock, "... Three minutes. I tell you what; we can do this Thursday evenings, after your last class. Will that suit you? You can practice on your own, of course, but I will be here to work with you then."
"Brilliant," Jack said, elbowing Flynn to wipe off his look of disappointment. "Tomorrow evening, then; we'll be here." Macmillan nodded, picking up his coat and his book to leave for his meeting.
"Is there anything we can do before then?" Rom asked. "To prepare?"
"Well," Macmillan said, frowning slightly in concentration, "You need to think of your happiest memories. You know, a time you were well and truly happy, because that is where you draw your power from. Not just some time you were content, but when you were happy. If you had to relive one moment forever, that would be it. Think on it, and have it ready for tomorrow. Five o'clock until dinner, if that works for you..."
He started walking towards the door, and the eight children followed behind him like a trail of ducklings.
"Yes, that works for us," Lucy said, "Classes are over, it gives us a little time to do homework, and then we'll head right on over here."
"Yeah, sounds great," Serafin agreed. "Maybe I'll be better at this than quidditch."
"Let's hope so!" Flynn barked, chuckling.
The group was outside the door now and Professor Macmillan closed it behind him, waving his wand to lock it. "Excellent," he said, tucking his wand back into his sleeve, "Well, I will see you then. And don't get your hopes up too high; you won't get it immediately."
"Yes, sir," Tavish agreed. Macmillan gave them a nod farewell and headed down the corridor to the left. The kids went down the corridor to the right, excitement rising in their chests; they had completed the very first step of becoming an animagi: convincing Professor Macmillan to teach them how to cast a fully corporeal Patronus. In a few weeks or months, they would have a very good idea of what form they would become.
The children headed to the library, as per usual, to do their homework. They were almost there when Professor McGonagall spotted them and stopped them in the hallway, smiling at them as she approached.
"It's been a long time since you lot appeared in my office," she said, "But I see you're all still hanging around together?"
"Yeah," Severin said, blushing; he remembered quite clearly why they had been in her office the last time.
"That's good. It's always important to have close friends around with you. Would you mind too terribly if I borrow Tavish for a while?"
"Oh, sure," Tavish said. He glanced back at his friends and waved them on to the library with the words, "I'll catch up to you later."
"I hope I wasn't interrupting anything," McGonagall said, turning and walking down the hallway in the direction the children had just come from.
"No, not at all," Tavish said, trailing behind her. "We actually just finished talking to Professor Macmillan; we're going to learn how to cast a Patronus."
"That's excellent." McGonagall nodded. "It's a shame there's not much use for that spell anymore; it was a wonderful, beautiful thing. Times are changing... They are still used for communications, admittedly, but dementors are few and far between now a days, as are Lethifolds. It is still worthy of learning, though; even though today the threat of the dark arts is small, that can change in the blink of an eye. Which brings me to why I'm here; I know you only agreed to be my apprentice yesterday, but even so, there is something you should see."
"What is it?" Tavish asked curiously, and McGonagall glanced at him with an unreadable expression.
"A Death Eater," she said.
"What? I thought they were all gone," Tavish said, his brow furrowing.
"No, not quite," she said, "The Auror department has been doing a splendid job, but it's barely been a decade yet; there are many still lurking in the shadows, hiding and living in a way that is barely human."
"Can't they just renounce their allegiance to Voldemort, and live like real people?" Tavish asked. "They might have to spend a little time in Azkaban, but wouldn't that be better?"
"You might think so," she sighed, "But they choose a different life. This is what it is to be a dark wizard in today's age."
"So, where is this Death Eater?" he asked, walking quickly to keep pace with her.
"On the edge of school property," she answered.
"What?!" Tavish spluttered, "That close?!"
"Yes," she said, "He only arrived a few minutes ago, I felt him slam into the protective borders. I called the Auror department; Harry is on his way. We will be heading there to assess the situation. You will not be handling the Death Eater, of course; Harry and I will do that. I want you to see this, though. You said you wanted to become an Auror, so this will be an excellent preview for you."
"Yeah," Tavish said, breathless. He knew he should be afraid, but more than anything else, he was excited. This was what he wanted to do; he wanted to fight dark wizards, and those horrid followers of that god-awful Voldemort. "Do you know who he is?"
"Yes," she said. "Albert Runcorn."