AN: Well, my upload schedule seems to be stabilising, let's hope it stays that way. As always, thanks for all the reviews!
Chapter 36 - Suggestions and Requests
"Remember people," said Professor Flitwick. "This is an OWL spell, in my decades of teaching, it has always come up in the practical segment. So practice is essential, and trust me, you never know when this spell will become useful later in life."
"Colovaria," Ron muttered, pointing his wand at a piece of green cloth they were supposed to turn red. "You know, I think the smarter thing to do would be to choose the right colour when buying something before having to resort to this."
"And you would know which colour to choose all the time?" Harry asked.
"Simple," Ron shrugged. "If all else fails, Chudley Cannons' orange. You can't go wrong with that."
Harry bit back the snort of amusement, brandishing his own wand and saying the incantation.
"Colovaria."
It was his third attempt and the cloth finally turned red. He grinned, the time learning the Fire Serpent Spell was well spent. It was only after he perfected it that he had found out in the library that spell derivatives were NEWT level, sometimes even beyond. It was more than just learning a new spell, it was learning how to manipulate magic in its components to yield an expected result. Why a spell worked rather than what was needed for a spell to work.
Essentially, it was a wizard's first foray into understanding the intricacies of magic and spell creation, a mindset that gave birth to history's greatest wizards. It was a mindset that Harry found exceedingly useful in classes like Charms and Transfiguration. Although it was a rough track applying the concepts and techniques he learned in mastering the Fire Serpent Spell into everyday spellwork, once he got the gist of it - with some help from the Hogwarts library - practical classes had never been easier.
"Third attempt and you've already got it," Ron stared in wonder.
"Harry, how did you do that?" Hermione asked.
"Don't ask me," Harry raised his hands in mock surrender. "Practical spellwork has always been my thing, I just learn from feeling it so I can't put it into words."
He was not lying, the time he spent with Anne learning had been trying to feel how magic should work. It was something he was sure he could not achieve if Anne had not been there guiding him. At this point, he could only conclude that Anne was magically sensitive, being able to seemingly pick out his faults when there was nothing to see. When alone, he experimented with altering what a basic Incendio could do when he shifted the spell sequences himself.
The moment he turned an Incendio from a simple jet of flame into a fissure of fire that burst from every crack and gap on the stone floor by himself - essentially creating his own derivative - the whole concept of spell derivatives clicked. Harry assumed that his mother was watching him with pride from the afterlife, Sirius had told Harry about Lily's penchant for spell invention. And with that came a better understanding of how magic worked. It was as though an obsession was born, he spent much of his free time cooped up in one of the many abandoned classrooms, relently practicing for not just Incendio derivative, but other spells as well. Anne had said that he ought to take his own action if no one else would.
"Well, you've learned to feel spells real fast in that case," Ron chuckled, raising his wand for another attempt.
"You have been improving in Transfiguration as well," Hermione noted. "Are you sure you can't share anything."
Harry sighed. "Fine, can't guarantee anything but let's work on the basics. First, state the non-physical variables for general spell casting."
As the class ended, the three of them made their way back to the common room, they had a free period before dinner. Upon Hermione's insistence, they began on the homework that had been piling up.
The itch on the back of his hand was gone though the flesh still felt tender. Speaking out against Umbridge had been pointless and with Anne rubbing off on him, it became easier to ignore the hag. However, there were moments when he could not hold in his ire, earning him another detention with a Blood Quill. Frankly, Umbridge's lesson felt more atrocious with each passing day, something even Hermione found agreeable. Evidently so when she cooked up the idea of secret lessons.
"So... Harry, have you given any thought about it? Teaching us?" Hermione asked gently, passing Harry her notes on the Vanishing Spell for reference.
Harry signed, remembering the mild argument they had days ago.
"Not really something I want to discuss," Harry groaned.
"But Harry, you were born to be a teacher," Hermione exclaimed. "Look at how you taught me back in Charms."
"That was... I was kind of just parroting Anne," Harry muttered.
"What?" Hermione yelped. "Seryy taught you that?"
"Makes sense," Ron nodded, reaching for a textbook.
It took two seconds for Ron to realise Harry and Hermione's combined stare, one suspicious and one shocked.
"What?" said Ron defensively. "Oh, come off it Hermione, we have both seen Harry disappear for the better part of the day on many occasions. Of course he's going to be spending time with her. Ginny and I may not have much in common but if I hadn't seen her in years, you bet I'll be spending some time with her."
Hermione blinked in astonishment. "She has been teaching you?"
"Not really, we've just been learning some spells together. Just spending time together."
"What kind of spells?" Hermione asked suspiciously.
"Uhh... just one spell actually," Harry said lamely. "The Fire Serpent Spell."
"Serpent? Is that you appealing to her with dark Slytherin magic?" Ron snickered. "Cheers mate, that's one way to go at it."
"Dark Magic?" Hermione echoed in disbelief.
"It's not... you know? The name doesn't really..." Harry fumbled to explain. "The incantation is Incendio, it can't be that bad."
"The incantation is Incendio?" Hermione asked in bewilderment. "How is that- oh! Spell derivatives!?"
"Yeah," Harry cringed, fearing the worst.
"If you could learn something as complex as spell derivatives, then all the more you should teach," Hermione argued passionately, just as Harry feared.
"The two of you should teach, you and your sister," Ron said jokingly. "Remember her dueling in the Triwizard Tournament?"
"Yeah, that'll never happen," Harry said flatly. "You'd think she would join?"
As the words left his lips, Harry did not find the idea so bad. It seemed an insane idea when Hermione first proposed it, but there were occasions - which grew increasingly frequent - where he started planning out lessons in his mind. Furthermore, it gave him an opportunity to spend time with Anne. She was definitely never going to teach but still, it was something to have her around. She had seemed to genuinely enjoy learning the Fire Serpent Spell together. As Anne had said, if others were not taking action, it was down to an individual's initiative.
"Yeah, it seems like it's for the better," said Ron, breaking Harry's line of thoughts. "No offense mate, but your sister's creepy."
"I'll do it," Harry sighed.
"You would?" Hermione's eyes lit up. "That's great! We can start trying to gather people who are interested."
"One condition," Harry raised a finger. "I want Anne to be part of this."
"Her? Well sure, of course," Hermione nodded. "I understand."
"But you're going to be the one inviting her," Ron pointed at Harry. "There's no way she'll respond to us."
"Point taken," Harry conceded. "When will you gather those who are interested?"
"The next Hogsmeade weekend," Hermione answered. "Hog's Head."
"You certainly have this planned out," Harry remarked, setting aside his homework and getting ready to head for dinner.
"Outside school?" Ron asked, keeping his textbooks as well. "A little inconvenient don't you think?"
"It's a precaution," Hermione explained as they left the common room. "Because I doubt Umbridge will be pleased if she learns of this."
It turned out that Anne was nowhere to be found in the Great Hall for dinner. In fact, Harry had not seen her for the whole day. Despite their infrequent chances of passing by each other between classes, she had never failed to turn up for a meal, saying once during their summertime meetings that food was essential for a body to function.
Harry could have chosen to wait for the next time they were together to inform her of this Defence Against the Dark Arts study group. However, his gut told him something was off, that Anne should be in the Great Hall.
"Just what are you staring at the Slytherin table for?" Hermione asked.
"His sister, most likely," Ron answered as he heaped another scoop of mashed potatoes onto his plate. "That's the exact face Percy has whenever he looks for Fred and George."
"Not sure if I should be insulted by that," Harry shot Ron an unamused look before turning back. "She's not there."
"Well, go find her, now or later, inviting her was your idea," Hermione prompted. "In the meantime I'll need to find Ginny later to spread the word."
Harry nodded mutely, helping himself to some chicken. He was not sure where Anne could be, but he did find a way to figure out. But first, he had to wait for dinner to be over.
It was half an hour before he saw a certain third year Slytherin leave the Great Hall, the fact that she did so alone confirmed Harry's suspicion. Muttering a hasty excuse to Ron and Hermione he stood up and left the table. He followed her from a distance, passing by several corridors before the girl finally came to a stop.
"You know, Potter?" the girl said, turning around. "It's slightly disconcerting that you've followed me for several minutes."
Harry stopped in his tracks, slightly surprised. His years of sneaking around Hogwarts did not get past this girl. She might be Anne's friend, but the many experiences he had with Slytherins placed him on guard. Shifting slightly, he reached for his wand.
"Drawing your wand? Rude, is that how you treat a lady?" Astoria remarked amusedly with a grin, walking towards Harry with her hands clasped behind her back.
Harry froze, unsure of his next action. The girl's words lacked any bite, sounding rather whimsical.
"I expect an apology," Astoria brought up a hand and snapped her fingers casually, raising an eyebrow in expectation.
"Oh, uh... right. Sorry for creeping up on you," said Harry, completely disarmed.
"See? Not too difficult," Astoria declared, smiling as she extended her hand. "We have met but I don't believe we have been properly introduced, Astoria Greengrass."
Harry eyed the hand wearily but took it nonetheless. "I'm-"
"Harry Potter," Astoria finished his reply, giving a polite shake. "Britain's most famous, or infamous, depending on your point of view."
She appraised Harry for a moment before finally tucking her hands in her skirt pockets. Turning around, she continued on her path unperturbed, only pausing halfway to raise an eyebrow at Harry, tilting her head slightly. Harry took the silent cue and walked briskly to catch up with her, slack-jawed at her overbearing demeanour.
"Merlin, you're slow," Astoria rolled her eyes as Harry caught up.
Harry was not sure if that meant his walking speed or him not picking up her cue when she first walked off, he felt completely wrong-footed by her behaviour.
"So, was there anything you wanted?" Astoria asked.
"Yeah, I just wanted to know if you had any clue where Anya was," Harry replied.
"So you are dating Anya," Astoria grinned. "It seems I was not misinformed after all."
"What? No!" Harry said hotly, glaring at the girl. "What gave you that idea?"
"The Hogwarts' rumour mill, the greatest source of information, or misinformation, depending on one's point of view," Astoria shrugged, unaffected by Harry's simmering annoyance. "But they're not wrong. You see, when a Gryffindor decides to approach a Slytherin of the opposite gender and no one comes out unoffended, a natural conclusion is that they are dating."
"That's stupid," Harry retorted. "I approached you just minutes ago and we're not dating."
"Ah... but you came out offended," Astoria smiled winningly, aiming a finger at Harry.
Harry groaned, unable to find a reply, choosing to press his question instead. "So do you know where Anya is?"
"We are currently heading to where she is now," Astoria explained.
Harry nodded, still looking at the girl with suspicion. She was nice and polite enough, even if she had a weird way of showing it.
"So if the two of you aren't dating, what exactly is your relationship with Anya?" Astoria asked, her eyes widening with curiosity.
"Just good friends," Harry replied gruffly.
"Are you sure there's nothing you could tell me?" Astoria pouted, giving Harry a doe-eyed look.
Harry did not budge, but he had to admit that she pulled off the innocent girl look way too well. At least he assumed it was a calculated look.
"Just good friends," Harry insisted, meeting her doe-eyed look stubbornly.
"Just?" Astoria snickered, giving Harry a sly look. "That word implies simplicity, Potter. And if you spend time with Anya, then you would know that there is absolutely nothing simple about Anya."
Harry glared at the girl, wondering what she knew about Anne. She was simply so weird, Not in a Luna Lovegood way, but in a way where you could not pin down her intentions and her next move. In the span of a few minutes, she had gone from whimsical yet overbearing to curious and innocent and finally to a kind of sly that implied she knew as much secrets about Anne as he did.
"So you do know something," Astoria pointed at his face fearlessly. "Your face is an open book."
Harry looked away at those words, cursing under his breath.
"Come on Potter, spill the beans," Astoria smiled. "Or... we could trade secrets about her."
Harry grimaced, he had decided; screw Malfoy, Parkinson and especially Crabbe and Goyle, people like Astoria Greengrass are true Slytherins. Trying to sieve out information and cut deals, all without drawing any hostility. He had to be careful around her.
"No," Harry said flatly.
"Are you sure? Are you not curious about the things you don't know?" Astoria asked.
Harry bit his tongue to prevent himself from speaking. Yes, he was infinitely curious but he knew Astoria was playing a game where she was likely moves ahead. It was best to keep his mouth shut.
"Just walk," Harry said bluntly.
Astoria smiled but complied nonetheless, facing forward once more. Suddenly, the awkwardness of the silence caught up with that of the initial conversation. Harry cast a glance at Astoria who seemed perfectly content, grinning at Harry when she caught him glancing at her. She was amiable but Harry wondered if it was a facade put up by a true blue Slytherin. Then again, Astoria was friends with Anne, so some benefit of doubt would be given.
Comparing Astoria Greengrass to the other company he had seen Anne kept, Zabini and Nott, Harry would prefer the younger Slytherin girl. He had no issue with Nott - it was hard to make a judgement on someone he had never seen speak - but Zabini's arrogance could sometimes contest with people like Malfoy. If this girl's sunshine and smiles around Anne was genuine, then Harry would rather Anne spend more time around a happy Slytherin rather than the nasty ones.
It was five minutes of mute walking before Astoria broke the silence.
"You know, I've decided," said Astoria, causing Harry to sigh.
"What?"
"Let's not talk about Anya, let's talk about you."
"Me?" said Harry, surprised by the sudden change.
"Of course," said Astoria. "The Boy-Who-Lived, there's definitely something to talk about, rumours surround your very being after all."
"I don't like that name," Harry muttered.
"The Boy-Who-Lied then?" Astoria asked. "The Daily Prophet does seem fond of that name."
"So you think I'm a liar too?" Harry gritted out.
"No, no," Astoria shook her head. "I am simply very curious. Is You-Know-Who truly back, just appearing from nowhere?"
Harry released a breath of anger, he was sick of all those questions from his housemates. The doubt, the skepticism and the ignorance, no he had to deal with it again. Harry stopped in his track, his eyes trying to burn a hole in Astoria's face.
"Isn't that what Dumbledore and I have been saying for months!?" Harry yelled. "What more do you want? Yes! He's back!"
"And if I don't believe you?" Astoria raised an eyebrow, completely unbothered by Harry's ire.
"Then don't!" Harry fumed.
Astoria met Harry's gaze, staring for a few seconds. Finally she spoke calmly. "If you want to show you are telling the truth, change your tune, Potter."
"What do you mean?" said Harry, not expecting such a reply.
"In the past fifteen minutes I spent with you, you have shown yourself to be temperamental, quick to anger," Astoria explained.
"What-"
"It certainly does paint the picture of a madman. That is not how you convince people you are telling the truth."
"Then how-"
"Evidence. Objective, irrefutable evidence. Not words from your mouth."
Harry glared at her, not knowing how to react. She did not call him a liar nor did she believe in him, she kept herself perfectly neutral.
"If there are different mouths from different parties singing the same song, I'd be more inclined to believe it," Astoria continued. "But if it's only one person, that's too many unknown variables for me."
"Dumbledore 'sings the same song'," Harry retorted.
"And the two of you are best friends," Astoria countered with a grin.
"Absolutely not," Harry muttered, thinking about what Dumbledore did to Anne. Thinking of Anne, Harry thought of a way to finally throw the girl off guard. "You can ask Anya, she believes Voldemort is back as well, that's a different party."
"She does?" said Astoria, showing surprise for the first time, a look that was quickly overtaken by a satisfied smile. "Noted with thanks, Potter."
Astoria took a left turn and opened the door to an abandoned room, they were in one of the more isolated corners of the castle. Anya was sitting on a table, reading off a piece of paper. Paper, not parchment, that drew Harry's curiosity. Next to her lay a plate of sandwiches, cluing Harry in that she must have visited the kitchens ever since he showed her where it was.
"Hello Anya, I've brought a visitor," Astoria declared, gesturing to Harry. "Your absence during lunch must have been noted. Also, you are going to owe me an explanation."
"I do?" Anya raised an eyebrow, folding the piece of paper in her hand and tucking it away in her robes.
"Of course," said Astoria nonchalantly, walking towards Anya. "Potter here talked a lot about You-Know-Who, but that's a conversation for another time. Besides, are you done?"
"Yes, I am," Anya replied, passing a book to Astoria as she raised an eyebrow at Harry. "Talked about You-Know-Who?"
Harry cringed slightly at her stare, glaring at Astoria who waved cheerily at him before leaving the room with the book tucked under her arm.
"Let's not talk about it," Harry dodged the question. "It was Greengrass."
"That's how Astoria is," Anya shrugged. "You were looking for me?"
"Yeah... what was that book you passed to Greengrass?" Harry asked. "Sorry, just curious."
"She was curious about Wizarding Russia, so I gave her a book rather than waste time on a lengthy talk," said Anya. "That can't possibly be your intention for finding me."
"No, it's something else," Harry looked at Anya, knowing that her explanation was possibly a lie. If anything, it made Astoria's offer much more tempting. "I wanted to tell you about something."
Harry sat himself down and laid out the idea of a study group for Defence Against the Dark Arts. He explained all the details, from what the group would be likely learning to the somewhat illicit nature of the group. He tried his best to make the group seem like an interesting and entertaining idea in an effort to convince Anne to join. After all, he only agreed on the condition she was involved.
"So what do you think?" Harry asked. "We are gathering those interested at the Hog's Head during the next Hogsmeade weekend."
"Hmmm... it sounds alright, I guess," Anya shrugged. "It's basically like what we've been doing, but with others, am I right?"
"Yes."
"In case you haven't noticed, I'm a Slytherin," said Anya.
"What?" Harry stumbled. "I didn't think you would care."
"Normally, I won't," Anya agreed. "But how many Slytherins are you planning on inviting?" Anya took his silence as an answer and continued. "I don't really want to waste my time and effort dealing with an opposition."
"Okay," Harry grimaced. "If it comes to that, I'll do the talking."
"I don't know," Anya sighed. "Seems troublesome. I... kind of preferred it when it's just the two of us. It feels... nicer, I guess."
"Oh, we could still do that as well," Harry responded immediately, smiling widely as he did. "But don't you should help others learn as well?"
"Now that's your agenda, not mine," Anya chuckled, hopping off the table she sat on. "Hog's Head, next Hogsmeade weekend?"
"Yes," Harry replied hopefully.
"If I'm there then I'm interested, if not... then I'm not," said Anya, drawing her wand. "When's your next class?"
"I've got a free period," Harry grinned.
"So do I," Anya smirked. "What do you want to do? You've nailed the Fire Serpent Spell already."
"Let's test how far we can go with spell derivatives," Harry suggested. "Come up with our own spells while we're at it."
Harry had long accepted the fact he would never have the time to master hundreds of various combat spells. Simply mastering a few good spells along with a versatile skill set such as spell derivatives was more time-efficient.
"Fine by me."
There was that smile on Anya's face, one that was much closer to the one she had shown during the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament where they were surrounded by acromantulas. A smile that seemed much more genuine.
XXXXX
Astoria made her way down the Hogwarts corridors, away from the room where Anya and Potter were. She would not deny that she was curious about Potter's relationship with Anya, her instincts were telling her it was something important. No doubt it was a big secret, Anya was filled with them. It took an ambush in the streets of London for Astoria to discover a side to Anya she never knew, as well as a side to the Russian intervention she never expected. Astoria could only guess what Anya and Potter had, a friendship that came from being champions together in the Triwizard Tournament was too simple.
Sighing to herself, Astoria headed in the direction of the dungeons, towards the common room. If she wanted to find out anything, it would have to be from Potter, Anya was too good at deflecting questions and keeping her guard up. Potter, on the other hand, was an open book.
Shoving the thoughts to the back of her head, Astoria entered the common room and headed straight to her dorm. History of Magic was in five minutes and she could not be bothered to attend, the book that Anya had passed her grabbed all of her attention. Glad that all the other girls in her dorm were in class, Astoria sat on her bed and turned the book open. The contents were that of its title, Portkey to the East: A Wizard's Guide to Russia, but Astoria knew it to be more.
Hands slightly trembling with anticipation, she tapped her wand on the open book and muttered a set of numbers Anya had told her. The book responded by moving alphabets all over the pages, shifting and rearranging to form new sentences. Gibberish were shoved to the sides of the pages, but at the centre words were joined to form a report of some sort. Astoria read the new contents eagerly, devouring each line on the page.
A raid all the way in England, galleons and a scattered paper trail. Based on the date, it was clearly fresh news. The report was very vague in much of what Astoria would deem as the 'juicy details' but it stated clearly what Anya had allowed her to know. Someone was funnelling funds around Britain, shifting galleons in the tens of thousands from obscure untraceable or anonymous estates and accounts.
The thought drew Astoria back to an old summer news, Rowlan, Stanning and their seizure of the Black Mark shipment that involved galleons. It had to be related, the shipment was important to someone. Astoria had made the deduction that there were at least three parties. First, there was the party Anya was part of. Second, the party that was moving all these funds. And lastly, the party that was wrapping its fingers around the Aurors by tipping them off.
Looking back at the book, Astoria could see vast numbers of galleons jotted down under a ledger of some sort. Many of them were being transferred under codenames and thus was impossible to learn much from just looking through. Anya's task for her was simple, help trace where all the money came from and were moving. Astoria was sure there were special people already doing that but Anya was tight-lipped about it. Nonetheless, she was glad for the opportunity to prove herself, either that, or the Russians did not have as much access to information in Britain as she had expected.
Astoria sat on her bed, thinking of a plan. It did not take long before her mind tugged on a string of conclusions, pulling out a plan in her head. Astoria went over to her table and drew out a fresh piece of parchment, grabbing her quill and ink. She had made a strong impression on Cyrus Greengrass that she was a curious and ambitious daughter willing to take over major responsibilities of the family business, which meant that the request she was about to write would not rouse suspicion from her father.
Dad,
How are you? It feels great to be back at Hogwarts though I will miss mom's jam tarts, Hogwarts never serve anything as good as that. Daphne would not be likely to write to you, seeing as she is going through what mom has called 'that phase', so I will say in her stead that she is fine though I expect that to change when the OWLs come nearer. I swear, all the Fifth Years and especially the Seventh Years have something stuck up into them as the weeks go by.
Third Year has been vastly different from Second Year. You were right dad, electives are something else. But I am fine, despite the new subjects, I find them so interesting. There are a hundred new things I learned that I can't wait to share with you, but I think that would be best reserved for Christmas during our dinners.
Astoria paused and read through her letter, nodding in satisfaction as she mentally ticked off the requirement of putting nice words in her letter. The nice words were genuine though, she will never admit it but she always cherished the moments a loved one sent her a letter.
What's more, I know it seems too much while I still have studies going on, but I would like to know much more about our family business. You know, the companies we work with, compete against and all the nooks and crannies about one of our biggest customers, the Ministry.
Daphne would take up the title as Head of the family when we grow up, which I have nothing against, in fact, thank Merlin for that actually. However, I know she would never, as she would say, 'stoop down to counting galleons' despite all her capacity to be a shrewd Head of family. And honestly dad, I don't mind picking up that role, but I know it would be a big big responsibility.
That is why I want to get a head start, so is it possible for you to send these things for me to study and look over? You probably have a folder of these things waiting to be passed to Daphne in the future so that I can watch her suffer as she tries to learn, and I know our family gets a good peek at the inside transactions of many businesses, even Ministry transactions.
P.S. Before you say I should focus on my studies, do remember the grades I got in my Second Year. I have no intention of slacking off on my studies.
With lots of love,
Astoria Greengrass
Sealing the parchment in a letter, Astoria picked up her belongings and headed for class. It was one thing to skip Professor Binns' class, but it was another thing to skip Professor Umbridge, she had no reason to cross a Ministry person and a trip to the Owlery could always wait.
Timing herself, Astoria made it to class with the rest of her housemates. Settling herself down, Astoria took out her textbook and waited, she had been in enough Defence classes to know the routine. It was a waste of time but Astoria did not care, her training with Anya more than made up for it.
"There you are, Astoria," a fellow second-year Slytherin sat next to her. "Where were you?"
"Ella, does it even matter if I turn up for History?" Astoria rolled her eyes at her friend.
"Point," Ella giggled. "Binns is quite useless."
Watching as Professor Umbridge entered the classroom, Astoria looked at her friend and an idea came across her.
"Ella, you're in the Bridge Club, right?"
"Yes, why?" Ella asked. "Don't tell me you're thinking of joining, you said you didn't like politics many times."
"Still don't," Astoria snorted. "But getting in this new professor's good books seems like an idea."
Astoria had already seen Daphne happily exchanging correspondence with Wizengamot members, courtesy of Umbridge. If Umbridge had as many connections as she appeared to have, it would not be too demanding to glean Ministry information from the Minister's Undersecretary.
"All things considered, she most likely won't last the year, with Defence being jinxed," said Ella. "But sure, I'll bring you along for one of her tea parties. Honestly, I was surprised you weren't invited, maybe she was just more interested in your sister."
Saying her thanks, their conversation was cut off by the saccharine voice of Professor Umbridge, telling them to open up their textbooks. Soon, everyone in class fell into the bland flow that had become Defence Against the Dark Arts.