Ancient Runes Classroom, two weeks after the Quidditch match

Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived

"Now class, you have probably noticed that we have a guest in the classroom today. Normally I wouldn't make such a big fuss over a transferring student, we normally get two or three in the first year of electives. But Mr Potter has brought to my attention some interesting books and items that he has been studying in his free time, and has in fact offered to take this class on a bit of an expedition today, after we test your homework of course."

Harry didn't know why, but as he stepped into the Ancient Runes Classroom after Hermione, he felt more nervous than he really had at any other point this year, ignoring anything relating to Dementors of course. The room itself was both more boring and more exciting than he had imagined.

It was about the same size as the Defence Against the Dark Arts Classroom, large enough to fit thirty to forty students if they were using normal seating. Rather than the sets of desks on each side of the room however, like the setup in Charms, the Ancient Runes classroom was shaped like an amphitheatre, except each row of 'seats' was actually a series of workbenches set in an offset pattern. Each workbench was about a metre wide and two metres long wide, though the scorch marks and gouges he could see on the lowest row of workbenches did make him a little concerned.

Each workbench had a series of carving tools on it that Harry recognised from his own delving into Runes, while some runes could be 'engraved' onto a material directly using a wand, some were too powerful or too unstable and required more careful creation. Around the walls of the room were an eclectic spread of items all In the centre of the Amphitheatre was Professor Babbling's desk, where the relatively young teacher Harry had only ever seen at feasts bustled back and forth in front of with a vengeance, though her words were sharp, crisp and at volume that carried well without being overbearing.

Professor Babbling had been remarkably open to Harry transferring across to the Ancient Runes class, though once Harry had shown her some of the 'basic' rune schemes he had found in the Chamber of Secrets, that willingness became the sort of enthusiasm that came from someone who had clearly not lost their love of Magic and learning.

Of course, this enthusiasm had led to almost an hour's discussion about what else Harry had found in the Chamber related to Rune arrays, some of Professor Babbling's questions flying so far over his head that he had only been able to shrug and invite her to see for herself.

"Will we get to see Slytherin's Monster Professor? With all the rumours and attacks last year?" Harry shook his head at the rather insightful question from Tracey, glad that he had spoken to Professor Dumbledore about this beforehand and that his ability to project fake emotions onto his face allowed him a small scowl at the 'Slimy Slytherin's' question.

While he had been working on softening his public 'stance' on the other house, Harry was aiming to try and transition the change over a long enough period that no-one would join the dots about Daphne's Bracer when he did so.

"Professor Dumbledore has already had the Basilisk's corpse removed, though there is a shed skin that should give you some idea about the thing's size and weight." The muttering spread as students 'whispered' to each other, in a manner that would probably be deafening if the entire year were here, even as Professor Babbling moved over to the pile of granite slabs that the students of the different houses had brought in with them at the start of the lesson.

"Indeed, the Headmaster will even be joining us on the trip, given Mr Potter's description of the large number of passages and unknown areas down in the Chamber, I insisted that extra precautions need to be taken. Ms Granger, I understand you have already accompanied Mr Potter down to this chamber before?" Hermione nodded with a little uncertainty at this unexpected question, but Professor Babbling carried on speaking without seemingly noting her response.

"Excellent, that gives us four guides for 12 students, so we will split into groups of six, we have a teacher and a guide for each group. Mr Potter can choose the group allocations." Harry could feel the eyes of every student in the room fix on him, even as Professor Babbling activated the first of the light arrays she had assigned for the homework.

A simple but strong white light popped into existence above the granite slab, pulsing every few seconds as Professor Babbling activated the other runes on the tablet.

"Simple but effective Ms Bones, but you need to start adding your own twists to the assignments if you want to receive a higher grade. Acceptable." The red haired Hufflepuff drew into herself slightly at the kindly admonishment from the teacher, but nodded in understanding a moment later as a determined expression crossed her face.

The next six arrays, including Hermione's, all received Exceeds Expectations. It showed that Professor Babbling was a demanding teacher and given how focussed she'd been with the Chamber, Buckbeak's trial and the training in case Harry was wrong and Sirius Black was after him, Harry wasn't overly surprised that Hermione's work had been considered 'less than her best'.

In that time, Harry had split the class into two groups, purposefully splitting the houses up where possible, leaving him with Sally Anne Perks, Susan Bones, Padma Patil, Terry, Blaise Zabini and Millicent Bulstrode. He thought it best not to let Hermione and her be in the same group, after the Duelling Club debacle last year.

'Ms Bulstrode, while your array is doing as intended, I would advise you to look further at your precision with your carving. There are several lines that aren't quite correct, and this is causing issues with your output flickering so despite the activation drain being so high, I will note the key points when…" Professor Babbling didn't notice the slight sparking that had developed on Millicent's tablet as she gave her feedback, as she was looking the stoic faced Slytherin in the eye as she did so, but Harry was unfortunately rather familiar with the particular 'effect' that occurs with this sparking.

The conversion rune, which Millicent had used to add a colour changing effect to the array Harry presumed, had been rotated to allow for its insertion into the array, but that meant it was right next to the power rune and the containment rune, linked to both in a manner that meant there were effectively two arrays being activated at the same time, which was why the light was fluctuating.

Magic was being converted to energy and then being contained in the tablet…

"Shields!" Harry couldn't target the tablet itself, any extra magic impacting it could cause the stored energy to detonate, so he did the only thing he could think of and banished Professor Babbling away from the tablet.

The fact he'd just sent his new teacher into the blackboard with sufficient force to knock the wind out of her wasn't how he'd intended to start his first lesson, but as four separate shields locked down in front of him it was clear that some of the others were at least prepared to take his warning seriously.

There was silence for a moment, even as Professor Babbling managed to regain her bearings, though to her credit her first action was to raise her own shield rather than kick him out of her class.

"Oi Potter, you made it sound like we were about to have a Longbot…" Blaise's somewhat snarky comment was interrupted as the tablet's containment rune failed spectacularly, turning the stack of tablets into a hail of stone shrapnel.

The shields cracked, two of them shattering even as Harry quickly threw his own up behind them, but the explosive burst only lasted a second, leaving behind a circle of destruction in the middle of the room.

The shocked silence was broken a moment later as the door to the classroom opened, Professor Dumbledore sticking his head in with a look of confusion on his face, something Harry wasn't entirely sure was genuine.

"Oh my. It looks like visiting the Chamber isn't the only fun we will be having today." Professor Babbling was quick to push herself to her feet, her own shield having held the shrapnel directed at her with ease.

"You're late Albus, but I'll deal with you in a minute. Mr Potter." The woman's tone was stern as she looked up at him, but Harry didn't see any anger or condemnation in her facial expression, though it only lasted for a few moments before she suddenly nodded at him approvingly.

"Quick reactions and the correct response for dealing with someone being near a malfunctioning runic array. Your instruction to the others could have been more descriptive, but I am prepared to put that down as uncertainty for dealing with such a reaction for the first time, correct?" Harry nodded quickly, knowing that mentioning the two similar incidents he'd had in the Chamber before mentioning his studies to Hermione would not generate a positive response.

Babbling eyed him for a moment longer, making it clear she didn't quite believe him, before gathering the shrapnel of the tablets into the middle of the room with a couple of waves of her wand. She made no attempt to use the reparo spell, instead just rearranging the largest pieces of the other tablets into groups.

"I admit I have been expecting something like this to happen, though in previous years it has happened before Christmas, so you can take that as a positive sign. However, this kind of risk is inherent in many of the runic structures that we will be studying and you will be creating, and I don't want any of you to be taking this lightly. Albus, if you would." One of the smaller slivers of granite, a piece about the size and length of Harry's index finger with sharp jagged edges, separated itself from the others as Albus transfigured a human-sized goat to his right that proceeded to stand on its hind legs like a human would.

"We've prepared a live demonstration of the dangers of runes after we found an active trap in The Chamber, but there is no better time than the moment to show exactly what would have happened if Mr Potter hadn't been here…" Suddenly, with no hint or warning, the sliver of granite shot forward and caught the goat in the neck, causing an explosive spray of blood that would have hit Professor Dumbledore if not for a silvery-grey shield that appeared in front of him.

"While Professor Babbling has been a little more… visceral in her demonstration than I would prefer, her point is perfectly valid." Gone was the cheery old man doddering from place to place, Dumbledore at that moment radiated a seriousness that drew the complete attention of everyone in the room in spite of the rivulets of blood currently running down the air in front of him as the goat collapsed to the floor.

"I have never, in my time as Headmaster, had the burden of responsibility to deliver the news of a student's death at school to their parents or guardians. However, there have been over 200 cases where we have been forced to transport students to St Mungos for treatment of catastrophic injuries, ones so serious and life-threatening that it required more than just the attention of our own Madam Pomfrey. The highest number of those cases are Quidditch related, especially when students attempt to practice by themselves or without adequate supervision." Dumbledore's eyes met Harry's at this point, but despite all his Quidditch mis-adventures Harry was currently without a St Mungo's visit to his name.

"The second highest cause of injuries is Runes related, though thankfully that was mostly before Professor Babbling's time here. But it is still all too common for a student to try practising on their own, away from help or assistance due to nerves or other such concerns, and only by luck has someone found them before they were beyond help. And one cannot rely on a helpful painting or a House-elf doing some cleaning as a safety net, I will not allow such." The goat at this point had finished twitching on the ground next to the Headmaster, whose eyes hadn't left Harry's as he made his actual point, the blood and the corpse disappearing a moment later as Professor Babbling started speaking again.

"And it is for that reason that I insist on the four rules of study while you are in my class. Number one!" Every other student there spoke almost as one, what would have been a dull droning response edgier and more awake after the scene in front of them.

"Always practice in a suitable environment. Do not practice in dorms or in the library." Professor Babbling nodded and gestured at the classroom they were in.

"A room like this will be sufficient for your third and fourth year studies. In your OWL year and beyond, there will be runic schemes and wards that will affect a larger area. This is practiced outside of Hogwarts grounds, as the warding schemes on the castle do not take kindly to conflicting wards being set up inside. Number two!" Professor Babbling held up two fingers, the class responding without a noticeable pause.

"Never work alone or away from help." Babbling nodded and then to Harry's surprise shifted the neck of her robe to expose a scar on her left shoulder near to her neck, the cut ragged and a dark red that implied it's severity.

"A memento of my OWL year, when I went off and practised by myself because I didn't want anyone copying my 'brilliant' array. The resulting 'miscalculation' knocked me out and I would have bled out if the noise hadn't attracted the attention of a patrolling prefect. Always practise in pairs where possible. In later years as you all know, I offer extra credit for those that volunteer to run revision or practise classes for the lower years. I will introduce the two volunteers we have from the fourth year class later on Mr Potter." Harry nodded, understanding now this was as much aimed at him to learn what had undoubtedly been ingrained into the others from the start of the year, as it was a reminder of why the rules were in place in the first place.

"Number 3!"

"Never use a rune that you don't fully understand, or use an array whose connections are not fully tested in a contained environment." Bulstrode ducked her head at this point as Professor Babbling's gaze rested on her this time, but the Professor didn't linger and merely held up the fourth finger and spoke before the students could.

"And lastly, if you are unsure about something, or you don't understand, ask." While Professor Babbling hadn't seemed to be unapproachable like Professor McGonagol, or simply rude and grouchy like Professor Snape, as she said this she smiled in a way that made her seem both ten years younger and more relatable.

"Ancient Runes is not an easy subject, you can't just memorise a few different arrays and assume that will get you by. If you don't feel comfortable discussing with your classmates, come and talk to me. And if you really feel like punishing yourself, you can always approach the Headmaster, though keep in mind that when he was studying this topic, The class was simply called 'Runes'." It took a moment for Harry to get the joke, though he was the first to make a noise as a laugh escaped him before he could stop himself.

It helped break the tension in the room and several others quickly joined him, especially when Dumbledore started chuckling along as well. While a couple of people were clearly still shaken up, the majority seemed to have shaken off the grisly example's effect, though Harry doubted they would forget it any time soon.

Hopefully the trip to the Chamber wouldn't make things any worse…

The Chamber of Secrets, an hour later

Daphne Greengrass, Heiress of the Greengrass Family and Ice Elemental

"And as you can all see, the runes engraved on the flagstones of the area around the Chamber are pretty much faded to the point they can't activate. The unfortunate issue of having such a large beast as a mature Basilisk moving around the area, their scales and method of movement does a lot of secondary damage to the runic carvings…" Standing with Professor Babbling, as she used several complex spells to highlight the runic patterns that littered the Chamber of Secrets, Daphne had never been more glad of her 'Ice Queen' reputation.

As the others all looked around with undisguised wonder, she could maintain a fairly neutral expression and no-one would question it. After being down here multiple times, it really started to just feel like another part of Hogwarts to her.

"Daphne, look at these old faces!" Tracey, on the other hand, was able to play the part of an awe-struck student remarkably well.

"I saw them the last three times you pointed them out, I'm trying to listen to the Professor…" Her interest in what Professor Babbling was saying was genuine, the older witch passionate about runes in a manner that made it somewhat infectious, and Daphne had seen more than enough of what Harry had been able to do with a very improvised learning regime.

The possibilities of what she could do with such power, which wouldn't rely on her emotional control, was definitely appealing in a way she hadn't really considered when she first picked the class at the start of the year. Given the other class choices that Hogwarts offered, it had boiled down more to eliminating the classes she had heard were useless or didn't interest her than anything else.

"Blaise, don't wander off! Professor Dumbledore warned us, that section hasn't been cleared of traps yet." The dark skinned Slytherin didn't react in an obvious manner to Granger's shrill berating, even as he attempted a nonchalant turn to make it look like he hadn't been about to sneak off down the passage in question as Professor Babbling cast him a disapproving look without pausing her lecture.

Daphne could see the slight tightening of his face, however, a rigidness to his posture that showed that even if he was displeased to have been caught, the warning had its required impact. While Dumbledore's reputation among Slytherin was that of a muggleborn coddling blood-traitor, which was harsher than Daphne's personal view but wasn't as far off the mark as many of his supporters liked to believe, his capability as a wizard of prestigious talent was not in any doubt.

After twenty minutes of getting everyone into the chamber, going down in pairs despite some signs of eagerness to try the slide now that it'd been thoroughly cleaned, Dumbledore had gathered them all together for a serious warning and demonstration of the 'risks' that could be found in the chamber.

Said risk was actually a runic cluster Harry had put together under Professor Dumbledore's watchful eye the night before, when the Headmaster had his first trip to the Chamber, but to the rest of the class it was a trap rune near the entrance the basilisk hadn't destroyed.

Harry had insisted on a live demonstration, rather than just a talk as Dumbledore had originally suggested, the look in his eye as he bemoaned what such a warning would not achieve making clear that if they didn't agree he would create a demonstration regardless. The fact that Dumbledore had looked a little embarrassed as he conceded the point made Daphne wonder exactly what had occurred between the two of them for this to be a point of contention of all things.

So, after 'finding' the runic cluster and determining it was still active, Dumbledore conjured an adult pig and sent it walking into the cluster. For ten seconds after the runes lit up, nothing seemed to happen, and it was only after people started to relax that the pig began to scream. It was only as the pig caught fire, it's skin sloughing off under the heat of the flames which continued to cling to first the muscular structure then even to the bones as the poor beast collapsed, that it became clear what had caused the screaming.

It was mortifyingly graphic, especially for a bunch of teenagers who had probably never encountered such a vicious use of magic before, but given the demonstration Professor Babbling had given after Bulstrode's accident it merely reinforced the same message. And it was something Daphne would speak to Harry about later, as it was more complex rune work than she had seen so far either in class or in their private sessions in the chamber.

"As you can see, here in the floor is the outline of a very complex runic wardline, you can see the combination of Druidic, Aesir and even Roman runes that are focussed on protection and absorption. If you follow the pattern of runes, they clearly repeat in a pattern that lays out in an enclosing line reminiscent of modern duelling arenas. Those arenas are far more advanced of course, but these are a combination I've not encountered before…" Professor Babbling pointed out the particular runes she was talking about as she continued her lecture and Daphne noted down the key rune structures and their advantages as best she could while standing without a solid surface to write on.

Babbling wasn't as organised as McGonagall, but when she got incredibly passionate about particular things like these runes, she'd remember it when setting homework in a couple of weeks time. Or that was the pattern Daphne had been discerning over the first term, she hadn't wasted any potential influence she might have with the upper years on such a simple question after all.

Contrary to her name, Professor Babbling was a very good lecturer, her tone and speed of speech measured and controlled so that it was easy to understand but also fast enough that it didn't dissolve into a monotone drone.

"Now, this rune combination here. Who would like to take an educated guess as to what its function would have been?" The runic array Babbling was referring to was set about half way along the section of the Chamber that seemed set aside for duelling, mostly comprised of the same protection absorption runes that Professor Babbling had been showcasing so far, but there were nearly twenty other runes that Daphne didn't recognise or knew the name of and little else.

After almost a minute's silence, as even Granger didn't seem to have an immediate answer, Professor Babbling's gaze fixed on a spot behind and to the left of Daphne, her eyes gleaming as she spoke once more.

"No-one? Well then, how about you Mr Potter?" Harry's voice, thankfully from far enough away that Daphne didn't immediately panic, was still surprising enough that she spun round along with the rest of the class.

It hadn't been something she'd brought up yet, but it hadn't been hard to notice that Harry was very good at moving around silently and doing his best to stick to the background. That kind of instinctive response wasn't something that happened naturally, it was something that required training, and not in a good way. She'd seen similar in several members of her house, especially those that were second or third siblings of minor Noble Houses whose Primary Heirs realised that they didn't have the money or influence to share around.

"Two Norse runes of passage, on either side of a Rune of Health, inverted to the rest of the array and connected by two lines leading into the duelling area with one going to either side. I don't recognise the three runes surrounding the rune of health, but I think it's something to do with allowing entry to the duelling area while not shutting the entire barrier down, based on the poor health of a duelist?" Professor Babbling clapped her hands together excitedly, though Daphne could see almost the entire class reassessing Harry as he showcased considerably more knowledge than they had picked up so far, her own face shifting into a gaze of mixed interest and frustration for a moment before returning to it's usual passive expression.

"Impressive deductions, Mr Potter, and closer than I thought you'd get based on our initial discussion. Clearly you looked into the areas related to monitoring runes as I suggested?" Harry had noticed the looks he was getting now, and he instinctively shied away from it even as he nodded bashfully at Professor Babbling's question.

"The Runes are actually to allow the entry of the duelists' Seconds, either to continue the match if a duelist is too injured or incapacitated, or in the case of traditional Death Matches to remove the Duelist's body and replace him before continuing. Given the stakes often involved in such matches, the main barrier as much for preventing outside interference as it was for protecting the spectators, that's why you can see the absorption runes are set on either side of the protection runes, rather than just on one side." Professor Babbling paused for breath, the only sounds the scribbling of parchment and quill as half of the class followed Daphne's example in scribbling down what they could.

"But I don't imagine you came over here for the purpose of answering my question. I assume Albus is ready for us to switch groups?" Given they'd lost most of the first hour of this double lesson dealing with the homework and getting down into the Chamber, Professor Babbling had split the two groups with Professor Dumbledore and his students staying near the entrance as the Headmaster covered the more general spellwork and runic workings there.

"Yes Professor, he wanted to know if me and Hermione were switching around as well?" Hermione and I Daphne corrected in her head automatically, as her good mood lessened slightly as Professor Babbling nodded abruptly.

"Yes, you should switch as well so you have a chance to learn from both of us as well. Go back to the Headmaster and let him know we will head back in five minutes, we can switch at the entrance so that I can give the same walk-through." She didn't know how Tracey noticed, but somehow the girl knew judging by the light but firm elbow she got in the side as Harry nodded in understanding and they all turned back to Professor Babbling.

No words were shared, they were too close to the others and she was still under intense scrutiny from the ball incident, but Daphne did cast a single glance that she hoped made her opinion of the implication crystal clear.

Given Tracey wasn't exactly subtle with her own feelings, Daphne let herself give a small smile as she started plotting her revenge. Probably when the furore of this trip had distracted everyone from the Lord Slytherin for a time at least.

"Ms Greengrass, are you paying attention?" At Professor Babbling's admonishment Daphne shelved her evil plans.

Revenge was a dish best served cold anyway…

A/N: An Update? Impossible! Spain has been good for me it seems, if only for getting me away from video games long enough to revive my flagging creativity.

Nothing too exciting in terms of plot development, but Harry's now out of Divination and into Ancient Runes. I've tried to make it a balanced class, with lots of potential but also not exactly a safe or easy subject to learn.

Also, Harry has now invited others down to the Chamber, which will have undoubtedly required Dumbledore to meet with Stheno. We will see how that particular meeting went next time!

Hope you enjoyed it, let me know what you think with a review!

Defias Out!