Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. JK Rowling does. I'm just an avid fan.

Word Count: 4243

Today is September 1st, or it is from where I live. Today would've been the day I packed all my supplies, took a plane to London, boarded the Hogwarts Express, and start my fifth year. I think it's my fifth. Not sure if Hogwarts allows any late birthday students to attend a year early. I would be taking my OWLs this school year and hopefully became Prefect. Lol. How about you?

Also thank you to KRM3535 for listing this fanfic under your community KRM's reading list. I am honored.

Chapter 35: Patronus Enhancer

For the next couple of weeks, whenever Cadmus had free time on his hands, he would mirror call Sirius and talk to him about his life. They avoided talking about Cadmus' past life during those conversations, but occasionally Sirius would have a slip-up and accidentally call him Harry. Sirius was not used to the idea that his new name was Cadmus, so Cadmus didn't mind Sirius calling him Harry by mistake.

When Cadmus expressed his worries about Mad-Eye Moody to Sirius, Sirius agreed and told him about his encounters with the old soldier during his Auror career. Cadmus learned a lot more about the retired Auror from Sirius and started to understand why Moody was so paranoid. When Alastor Moody was rounding up death eaters after the first wizarding world, one of his closest Auror partners betrayed him and sold his location to Voldemort to save his own life. It was a perfidious move, but Moody managed to obtain prior warning to Voldemort's attack at his house and escaped unharmed. That led to his overly-cautious behavior towards everyone he interacted with and the paranoia later if he confided and trusted someone too much, they could stab him in the back.

As February passed by, the weather became milder, the sun shone warmly on the slowly-greening Hogwarts grounds, and they went outside more often. There was a large tree that Cadmus and Daphne would sit under, gazing at the clear blue skies and trying to make out cloud shapes. Now that they were well into their school term, their classes became more interesting. They were starting to do more practical work than theory.

In Charms, they were starting to take a go at mastering the Patronus Charm. There was a lot of theory work they had to go through before they were even allowed to start using their wands, but all the eighth year students were not easily discouraged. This was a lesson Cadmus did not want to miss, despite having already learned the charm early in the school year as a sort of self-learned summer project. The main reason why Cadmus wanted to join the class was that Professor Kim had invited him to teach the first Patronus charm lesson.

"Now, before we jump straight into attempting the Patronus Charm, I want everybody to know that this is extremely advanced magic to perform. You will not get it on your first try. Do not be discouraged, it takes a lot of practice. Understood?" Professor Kim lectured his eighth-year class.

"Alright, everybody up!" Professor Kim shouted. She waved her wand, and all the desks and chairs got swept to the side of the class. It wasn't a small classroom, so the eighth year class had enough room to spread out and practice. When everyone found some sort of open space to stand in, Professor Kim gestured at Cadmus to start speaking. Cadmus found that a lump in his throat had formed as he walked over next to Professor Kim. He surveyed the class, familiar faces of the classmates he grew up together with beamed at him. Daphne gave him an encouraging smile from the back of the classroom.

"Well, now that we are well-versed in the theory of the Patronus Charm, we should be ready for the fun part of practicing. Can anyone tell me the driving force behind the Patronus Charm?" Cadmus asked. A dozen hands went up, Cadmus picked on the girl in the front section of the classroom.

"A memory" she responded. Cadmus nodded.

"Not just any memory. A very happy memory. The Patronus Charm is a positive force that the witch or wizard conjures to act as a shield against Dementors. I want you all to think of a memory you have. Make it the most powerful memory, the happiest you can remember," Cadmus corrected. Professor Kim nodded her head approvingly.

Cadmus could see that the class was working very hard to find their happiest memories because it became very silent, and more than half the class kept their eyes shut, concentrating hard on that memory.

"Now focus on that memory, allow it to fill you up. Think of the memory as you prepare to cast the charm. But don't lose focus, the focus is the most crucial part of maintaining a Patronus long enough. Ready? You can start now," Cadmus said. As soon as he allowed them to practice, the room went into a cacophony of voices shouting Expecto Patronum. Cadmus was impressed already, a little less than half the class managed to produce a silver wisp. Now Cadmus and Professor Kim were walking around the room, helping people correct their posture.

"Keep trying, Casper!" Cadmus told his friend as he passed by. Casper nodded at his encouragement and tried to cast the Patronus again, this time his attempt fairly better than his last.

"A full-bodied Patronus is the most difficult to produce but a shield form can be just as useful against a variety of opponents. If you manage to continuously produce a silver wisp for 10 minutes by the end of tomorrow, I can consider you well on your way to succeeding," Cadmus remarked. He ducked under a fellow eighth-year boy's steady stream of silver wisp coming out of his wand. Towards the end of their first practice for the Patronus Charm, Cadmus was happy to see almost the entire eighth-year class be able to produce silver whisps out of their wands.

"Excellent work today, students! This was a great start. I encourage you to continue practicing the Patronus Charm two to three times inside Harvard Tower. Just remember, do not overwork yourself, it takes a great deal of magic to produce a Patronus. Fatigue is a sure sign of needing rest," Professor Kim exclaimed, clapping her hands together happily. At this, the bell rang, and Professor Kim dismissed the class, telling Cadmus to stay behind a little longer.

Professor Kim looked at Cadmus proudly, "Amazing job, Mr. Flamel. I am impressed, you taught well today."

"Thank you, Professor. It was nothing," Cadmus said modestly. He didn't think that helping others was a big achievement because he genuinely enjoyed seeing the triumphant expressions on their faces when they finally accomplished something.

"Nonsense, you had the whole class hanging onto your every word. They look up to you. I'd say you would make an excellent professor if you pursue that career field. So, would you care to be my permanent eighth-year assistant professor for the rest of the Patronus unit?" Professor Kim asked. Cadmus thought about it for a moment, he hadn't considered his future a lot so he had no idea what profession he wanted to take up. This offer was quite rare in Harvard history, so he should grab the chance.

"Sure, I would love to," Cadmus replied after making up his mind. Being an assistant professor sounded much better than sitting aimlessly in the common room with nothing to do. Professor Kim beamed and pulled out her drawer to retrieve something. It was a sort of silver badge of some sort. Professor Kim smiled and pinned the badge on his Harvard robes. Cadmus looked down at the badge to examine the badge closely. It read Teacher Assistant. Cadmus swelled with pride, he was the only one of the two TA's at Harvard, so it was a pretty big deal. The other TA was a ninth-year girl, Cassandra Wagner, easily one of the most sought after girls at Harvard.

Professor Kim smiled brightly, "See you tomorrow, Assistant Flamel." Cadmus beamed and did a sort of salute before he quickly slung his backpack over his shoulders and ran out of the classroom, excited to tell Daphne about everything.

"So, what do you think?" Cadmus asked after he finished telling Daphne.

"I think it's amazing. You are a great teacher, but what about preparing for the third task?" Daphne asked.

"It's just two classes each day until the end of the unit. I'll have the rest of the day to prepare for the third task. Don't worry" Cadmus said. Daphne nodded her head, but Cadmus knew that she had something else in her head.

"So this Wagner, you'll have to meet with her weekly?" Daphne asked hesitantly.

Cadmus nodded his head, "Yes, for some sort of teacher assistant training." Daphne was happy for him, but she couldn't help to be disappointed and worried about the Wagner girl. It was no secret that Cassandra Wagner had a reputation for dating lots of boys at Harvard, so Daphne was worried that Wagner would get her claws around Cadmus and steal him away from her. Cadmus was quite a loyal friend, so Daphne wasn't afraid of it happening, but she still preferred that he stayed as little time with Wagner as possible.

Cadmus continued to help Professor Kim with the Patronus lessons for the whole month. After two weeks since their first lesson, both of the two eighth-year classes managed to produce incorporeal Patronus shields. Honeydukes was profiting a lot from those lessons because Professor Kim had placed a large order of chocolate bars to help alleviate stress. Professor Flitwick, the Hogwarts Charm Professor, also aided in the course by opening his extra help sessions to Harvard students as well. Their studies for the Patronus Charm went into mid-March, but everyone was showing progress. No one had managed to produce a fully-corporeal Patronus yet, but several had come close.

Daphne was the first eighth-year to cast a fully corporeal Patronus, and it was a beautiful one too. It had been unexpected because she had been struggling with her wand work. Cadmus noticed her struggle and walked over to her. Daphne turned around and followed him with her eyes.

"You need to focus hard on a memory, Daphne," Cadmus told her quietly as he corrected her grip on the wand.

"I'm trying, Cadmus," Daphne replied, huffing in frustration. She felt the need to pull all her hair out because the spell was so advanced. Cadmus paused and tried to think of something to help Daphne.

"Daphne, I want you to close your eyes. Can you remember the first special moment we shared? Did you feel like you were in heaven? Whatever you felt, remember that memory. Imagine projecting that feeling into your Patronus. Let that Patronus represent that memory. Go ahead," Cadmus said softly.

"Expecto Patronum!" Daphne had shouted with emotion. Everyone was startled at her outburst and was even more surprised when a silver wisp form and swirled together to take the form of a stallion. It whined and reared its legs at its sudden appearance before it slowly trotted towards a shocked Daphne. She marveled at the stallion's beauty as she gently stroked it.

"Fantastic! Just remember, your Patronus can only protect you for as long as you focus," Cadmus praised Daphne, who was in awe. All the other girls of their eighth-year class excitedly crowded around her, pointing at her beautiful stallion.

"Alright, get back to work, ladies. You still have a long way to go if you plan to master the Patronus Charm," Professor Kim said, shooing everyone back to their spots. Four more students managed to produce corporeal Patronuses by the end of the lesson with Cadmus' help. A tiger, monkey, snake, stallion, and a hawk roamed the classroom that day. By the end of the lesson, one of the boys raised his hand.

"Yes, Mr. McCarthy?" Professor Kim asked.

"I am curious what Cadmus' Patronus is," the boy said. Several heads nodded eagerly; they also wanted to know what animal Cadmus' Patronus was.

"Mr. McCarthy, each Patronus is unique and special to a person. They may not feel inclined to show their corporeal Patronus. However, if Mr. Flamel feels well enough, I have no problem with him showing us," Professor Kim noted, looking over at Cadmus to see if he was amenable.

Cadmus pulled out his wand and almost silently said, "Expecto Patronum." A snow fox leaped out of his wand and bounced around the room happily. It weaved cheerfully between legs, jumped over chairs, and bumped into students before it came to a skidding stop in front of Cadmus. The fox affectionately nuzzled its body against him warmly, which caused Cadmus to laugh and rub its imaginary fur. All the girls melted at the cuteness the fox was emitting before the Patronus slowly started to fade away.

Their reaction to Cadmus' Patronus was cut short when the bell rang unexpectedly. All the eighth-year students vigorously pushed their way out of the room to find their friends and tell them about their Patronus progress. Daphne waited by the door as Cadmus grabbed his backpack and caught up to her. As Cadmus walked with Daphne to their next class, she asked him something that was on her mind.

"Your Patronus. What memory were you thinking of?" Daphne asked as they walked side by side through the active corridor.

"The day I was adopted by mom and dad. I still remember it quite vividly to this day. That day was the happiest I could ever be," Cadmus responded.

Daphne smiled at him, "That's a wonderful memory, Cadmus."

Cadmus beamed, "Thanks, Daphne."

The whole eighth-year managed to master the Patronus Charm after two hard-working months of practice, but it was their proudest and biggest achievement in their education yet. Everyone owed their thanks to Cadmus' helpful presence, but Cadmus tried to point out that it was Professor Kim who taught the curriculum so well. News of the eighth year's success of the Patronus Charm sent a thrill to all the younger Harvard students, who couldn't wait to try out the spell for themselves. Cadmus' excellent tutoring was credited mostly to the eighth-year students' success even though he tried to deny that. That news meant that everyone looked up to him even more, and he was the center of attention among students and staff of Hogwarts.

Professor Dumbledore even congratulated him once, stating that he might be fought over by his staff to get his help in their classes. Dumbledore was right. It was Mad-Eye Moody who reached out to him first. Cadmus, Daphne, Jacob, and Casper were talking near the Great Hall about the third task of the Triwizard Tournament when they heard the clunking of Moody's prosthetic leg approach. They saw Mad-Eye Moody limped towards them.

"Flamel. I would like a word with you, please. In my office. After the last class of the day" Moody gruffly said. Moody surveyed the four of them before he walked through the staff doors.

"What does he want with you?" Jacob asked irritatedly.

"Dunno, I reckon he needs to tell me something," Cadmus supplied, creeped out by Moody's magical eye.

"Are you going to go?" Casper asked as the doors of the Great Hall opened for lunch.

"I guess. I have something to return to him either way," Cadmus answered, ignoring the several googly eyes some of the Gryffindor girls were making at him.

"What?" Jacob questioned.

"Yeah, I borrowed a book from Neville that Professor Moody gave him. I've got to return the book," Cadmus replied as they sat down at the Ravenclaw table.

"That's nice of you," Daphne remarked, "At least you have the decency to be responsible for other people's property unlike someone else." She glared at Jacob, who tried to look innocent.

"Hey don't look at me, someone stole it from me," Jacob defended.

"Then you should have locked it somewhere safe. Like your suitcase," Daphne retorted.

Cadmus amusedly listened to his friends bicker back and forth about safekeeping and trusting each other as he ate lunch. The rest of the day passed by fairly quickly, and before Cadmus knew it, he was in front of Alastor Moody's office. Before he could even raise his fist to knock on the door, Cadmus heard a gruff voice from inside, "Come in, Flamel."

Dazed, Cadmus pushed open the office door and stepped foot inside. He took a good look around the office and saw that it was filled with exceptionally odd objects. There was a sneakoscope on Moody's desk, a golden television aerial, and what Cadmus thought looked like a Foe-Glass. Moody was looking suspiciously comfortable in a rickety wooden chair next to the desk.

"Good evening, sir," Cadmus politely greeted.

"Evening. So I heard a great deal about your excellent defense skills Flamel," Moody said succinctly.

"Thank you, sir," Cadmus responded, unsure where the conversation was going.

"They mastered that Patronus with your help, eh? Unbelievable," Moody remarked. "I'll be having a practical lesson Friday. I may need a hand with those rowdy fifth-years. Are you up for the task, lad?" Cadmus thought about it for a moment; he was no longer assisting Professor Kim's lessons since they moved onto another unit, so he had a free day.

"Um sure, what do I need to do?" Cadmus asked.

"Help me get their bloody interest in their studies. These children are just too damn distracted by the tournament," Moody growled. Cadmus laughed and nodded.

"Of course, Professor. Is that all?"

"Yes for now. Is there something you have to tell me?" Moody inquired. Cadmus pulled out the Languages of the Magical World from his backpack and held it out for Moody to take.

"What's this?" Moody asked as he leaned forward to receive the book.

"Oh I borrowed this from Neville, he said you lent it to him for some light reading. He was going to return it to you, but I decided to make it easier and return the book to you myself. Very informative, thank you," Cadmus explained. Moody looked at the book in sudden comprehension. Cadmus swore he saw a flicker of irritation in his eyes, but the semi-darkness of the office prevented him from seeing clearly.

"Ah yes, thank you, Flamel. I was wondering where this book went," Moody commented as he shoved the book randomly back in his bookshelf. Cadmus noticed that the book was out of place among all the nicely categorized books.

"See you Friday, Flamel," Moody grunted. Cadmus nodded his head and left Moody's office, a lot more creeped out than before. Moody's character did not seem to match Sirius's descriptions, and as far as he knew it, people don't usually have a dramatically changed personality within a year. Cadmus assumed it was something personal that happened, but he was suspicious of this Alastor Moody.

Cadmus should've thought twice before agreeing to Moody's request for assistance because he forgot that Jamie Potter was in his fifth-year and attended defense lessons on Friday. Cadmus wasn't unhappy; he was just not used to being so friendly towards Potter. Defense lessons on Fridays between the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were not what he had expected. They were a bunch of hard-working students, which Cadmus dutifully respected. Unlike the Gryffindors Cadmus had taught a few classes before, the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were adept in studying despite being so easily distracted.

Cadmus sat in the back of the defense classroom, hidden in plain sight. All the students walked right past him, unaware of his presence. Cadmus noticed that Jamie Potter had entered the classroom with his friends. A blonde-haired girl Cadmus recognized as Potter's hostage for the second task and two boys. They all sat close to each other despite the desks only able to fit two students. The whole class was talking quietly to themselves until Moody strode in. They all hushed at the stern presence of their defense professor.

"Today, I will not have you all dawdling around like little idiots. We have a guest, Mr. Flamel has kindly agreed to sit in with the class today and offered his help to any struggling students. He will not be disrespected, am I clear?"

"Yes, Professor Moody," the class chorused, shooting several awed glances over at Cadmus in the back of the room. Cadmus could see Jamie Potter staring at him from the corner of his eyes and turned to send a smirk at Potter.

"Right, it's a practical lesson today. Wands out, clear your stuff. We will be dueling each other. Mr. Flamel and I will be assigning partners," Moody growled. Everyone excitedly gathered today, trying their best to look innocent standing next to their preferred partner.

"Nah you don't, Macmillan you pair with Boot" Moody interjected. Cadmus and Moody spent the two minutes quickly pairing everybody else up. Jamie Potter was the last one standing.

"Why are you standing here, Potter? Pair up with your partner!"

"I don't have a partner, Professor. Hutchinson is absent today," Jamie Potter replied. This meant

that the class had an uneven number of students.

Moody's eyes scanned the room before he broke into a nasty smile, "Flamel! You'll partner with Potter. You can show him a thing or two about paying attention in class." The whole class held their breaths as Cadmus took in the order.

"Of course, sir. I would be glad to do that," Cadmus responded smoothly, his tone dripping with anticipation. Moody grinned. Jamie Potter gulped. Moody paced around the room, making sure that everyone spread out and ready.

"Wands out. Bow to each other," Moody ordered. Cadmus faced Potter and bowed slightly, not showing his lower back. He kept his eyes trained on Potter the entire time, not taking his eyes off for a second. Potter flinched slightly, Cadmus smirked, the whole point of the not breaking eye contact before a duel was to intimidate your opponents.

"Wands at the ready. Non-lethal spells only, I don't want Dumbledore after my back if you severely injure your partner. On my count, three..."

Cadmus gripped his wand tightly and stretched his muscles.

"Two…"

Cadmus bent his knees a bit and got into his fighting position.

"One!"

Cadmus stepped forward and sent a bludgeoning hex at Potter. Jamie Potter was able to create a shield in time to absorb the powerful hex but grunted at the forceful impact.

"Impedimenta!" Jamie Potter shouted. Cadmus easily sidestepped the spell.

"Depulso!" Cadmus yelled. Jamie Potter didn't react in time for the spell that came hurtling at him because a second later, he was crashing into the wall behind him. There was a nasty sound of impact, but Potter was on his feet quickly.

"Stupefy!" Potter yelled. Cadmus created a shield to absorb the weak spell.

"Come on, Potter. You can do better than this!" Cadmus taunted, sending two spells simultaneously at Jamie Potter. Cadmus missed on purpose to rile Potter enough to make him more forceful in his approach.

"Confringo!" Potter spat. Cadmus countered the spell with a powerful Aguamenti that hissed and sizzled the moment it hit the stream of fire. A huge cloud of hot steam appeared, clouding the both of them. Cadmus took this opportune moment to blind Potter temporarily.

"Obscuro!" Cadmus shouted. A large ribbon shot at Potter's eyes and wrapped tightly around his head to block his sense of sight.

"Argh!" Potter growled, clawing at the blindfold. Then he started to blindly shoot spells at Cadmus, which went bouncing off the walls and nearly hitting the nearby students. To prevent further accidental damages, Cadmus placed the body-freezing spell on Potter, causing his body to squeeze together and collapse on the floor. Cadmus was declared the winner of the duel by Moody, who was shaking his head at Potter's abysmal performance.

To Cadmus, Jamie Potter was no challenge. Cadmus had faced far more demanding opponents during his tournament duels. Cadmus had honestly thought that James Potter would at least train the boy to defend himself, but judging by his duel, Jamie Potter wasn't trained. Cadmus shook his head in exasperation, how did Dumbledore think that Potter would defeat Voldemort with such a low-grade performance? Cadmus released Jamie Potter from the spell and threw Potter's wand at him.

"You should pay attention to your studies more if you wish to have a proper demanding duel," Cadmus remarked, smirking triumphantly at his victory. Perhaps after having his ass handed over to him, Jamie Potter would think twice about slacking off his studies. Jamie Potter simply glared at him and fixed his robes without saying a word. Cadmus left Potter alone to help around the classroom, giving pointers. Moody barked at all of them to practice harder if they wanted to survive in the wizarding world. The bell rang, and Moody held Cadmus back for a few moments.

"Bloody good job you did there, Flamel. Let's hope that Potter can wake up after today," Moody growled, collapsing in his chair and rubbing his sore joints. Cadmus nodded and remained stolid.

"Can't thank you enough. If they aspire to be like you, they need to work hard. A few helpful tips from the world's youngest dueling champion should do the trick. Have a good day, Flamel," Moody grunted. Cadmus smiled and thanked Moody for inviting him to his defense lessons before he left the office. Alastor Moody stared at the distant figure of Cadmus Flamel. He pulled out his flask from inside his coat and took a swing of the contents inside. It sent a jolt of energy into him, which he shook off. His last thought before he started to prepare for the next lesson was that Cadmus Flamel was going to be a force to be reckoned with.

A/N: So there's a lot that's going on in this chapter. The whole point of Cadmus assisting Moody in his lesson was to create a moment of time he has with the Defense Professor, so he can start to be suspicious about Mad-Eye Moody. Jamie Potter is lazy, yes, not a trait of a Hufflepuff but I never said that he was going to be a true Hufflepuff from the start. Starting from now, Jamie Potter will realize that all his life he had been wasting away in his fame and should take the proper actions to redeem and fix his life. Cadmus' duel will wake up him to the reality that there are far more greater and powerful people in the world than him, so if he is lazy and arrogant like his father, he won't go far in society. This fact is true in modern society too. You need to work hard to achieve your goals, even if the obstacles in the way are difficult. What do you think of their Patronuses? A fox and a stallion. As always, review, I would love to know what you think.

Stay safe and happy,

mintloveme523

A/N 9/2/2020: OMG, this effing fanfic has 100K words! I am extremely happy right now, thank you all for being so supportive during this journey! I can't believe it's been 6 months since I first uploaded this fanfic. The amount of love and support from you guys is just growing and growing. Couldn't have done it without you! Aight Imma go celebrate this huge milestone now.