Chapter Eleven



Band Session





Harry and Ron finished up their lunch to head for band, which was held outside until winter began. They'd heard band was a load of fun, but getting out of Divination had been the main temptation on Harry's part; Harry guessed it had been on Ron's part, too.

The sky was bright and sunny again today, without a cloud in sight. A gentle breeze was blowing once more, ruffling Harry's hair among the leaves of trees and such. Harry and Ron walked down towards the lake, where they could see about twenty chairs set up in an arch-like pattern around a podium. Stands were in front of the chairs, lowered and flipped backwards.

A few students were already there; it appeared that this class was fifth years only, however. Harry recognized Lavender Brown sitting in the first row with a small slender case in her hand, and Dean Thomas was sitting a few rows back with a larger case. And of course, just because Harry's life wasn't miserable enough as it was, Draco Malfoy was walking down from the castle to Harry's right. Harry groaned.

A bell echoed in the distance, and Professor Trinsinitioff gestured for them to take a seat. Professor Tarifina was standing a few feet behind the podium, while the other professor sat on a stool on the podium. Once everyone was sitting, the professor cleared his throat.

"Well, we've got a few new students today, don't we?" he said, looking at something on a stand before him. "I'm gonna call roll now, so listen up. Brown, Lavender."

"Here," said Lavender.

"Malfoy, Draco?"

"Here," drawled Malfoy, somehow making the simple word "here" very long and boring.

"Potter, Harry?"

"Here," said Harry. He'd had to speak a little louder because he and Ron had sat in the back, far away from Malfoy.

"Thomas, Dean?"

"Here."

"And Weasley, Ronald?"

"Here," said Ron.

"Well, good," said Professor Trinsinitioff. "I didn't think we'd have much of a band here, but we've actually got quite a few first years and now five fifth years. My name's Professor Trinsinitioff, but you can call my Professor Trins for short, 'cause I know how hard my name is to pronounce. Okay, for the new kids, here's a little about me. Tari'll go in a minute.

"I'm from America. I worked with our Marine Drum Core and Marching Band. I also taught at a small high school in Tennessee. I was inspired to be a band director by my old band director, Robert Wills. He was a good director, and I hope you'll think the same of me. I'll work with the marching band in general, but my lovely assistant will work with our Drum Core. That's the brass players and percussionists. On to Tari."

The stern looking woman stepped forward and tried to push Trins off his stool, but he relented, grinning playfully at her. She glared at him and stepped in front of him.

"My name is Professor Tarifina, but, as you may have noticed, you can call me Professor Tari. As my annoying assistant said" - Trins poked his head out from behind her and grinned at them - "I will work with the Drum Core. I played percussion in junior high through college, and majored in music.

"We will also have a Woodwind Ensemble from six o'clock to seven o'clock in the morning. Only woodwind players are allowed. Woodwind instruments include the flute, which Professor Trins played throughout junior high, high school, and college; the clarinet, an instrument played to the front using a single reed; the alto, tenor, and baritone saxaphones, all single reed instruments that most of you are probably familiar with; the oboe, a double reed instrument that is used mainly for Irish songs; and the bassoon, a large double reed instrument that is very deep in range. There is also the alto and bass flutes, tenor and bass clarinets."

"And I'll cover the brass instruments," said Trins, and Tari stepped behind him once more. "First there's the trumpet. Played forward, three valves. Most brass instruments are three valved, with the exception of one. Trumpets include the cornet, Bb trumpet, a Bb piccolo trumpet. I always liked the piccolo trumpet, and I'll play one for you in a moment. Another brass instrument is the trombone. It's a slide instrument; instead of valves, there's a slide that you move to change notes. There are two trombones: the bass and C trombone. Then there's the horn, once called the French horn. The horn is a middle-range, three valve instrument with a melodic sound. Horns are keyed in F.

"Then there's the tuba and baritone. Marching tubas are called sousaphones. Baritonists can march themselves, though. Tubas are the lowest member of a band. Tubas are C keyed, and so are baritones. Any questions?"

Harry didn't understand what he meant by "keyed in C" but kept quiet anyway. Lavender Brown raised her hand.

"Yes, Lavender?" Trins said, gesturing to Lavender.

"What do you mean by 'keyed in C' or 'keyed in F'?" Lavender asked, frowning.

"Okay, keyed in C means if I tell a flutist to play C concert, they play their C. For Bb, if I tell a Clarinetist to play C, they play Db. And there are a few instruments keyed in Eb; the saxes are the main ones. You'll learn more later. Now we've gotta get you assigned to instruments."

Lavender and Dean already had their instruments; Lavender's was a silvery flute, and Dean's was a trumpet like Kirk's had been. Both were very shiny. Harry wondered what Trins would put him on.

"Boys line up in front of me and girls..." said Trins, then he frowned. "There aren't any new girls are there? Well, Harry, Ron, over here, and Draco go to Tari."

Harry got up from his seat with Ron and they walked over to where Trins was sitting.

"Well, any ideas on what you'd like to play, boys?" Trins asked.

"How about...trumpet," said Ron.

"You, Harry?"

"I think I'll try the trumpet, too," said Harry.

"Okay, here's a trumpet mouthpiece," said Trins. "Trumpeteers make sounds by buzzing into one of these. Pucker your lips like you're kissing - that's it - and do this." He made a 'buzzing' sound into his silver mouthpiece. A very odd noise came out of it.

Harry and Ron tried. Harry managed to make a sort of strangled sound into his, while Ron couldn't make a sound at all. Harry kept trying, and finally his sounded halfway decent for a mouthpiece only.

"Ron, we'll try you on a flute, then a clarinet, then an oboe if those fail," said Trins. "Oh don't worry, Ron, you'll be good with one of those," he added, seeing Ron's look. "Harry - you have the potential of a good trumpet player, which is a rare thing indeed, a good trumpet player. It's cheap, too, a trumpet. Cheap to rent. A Galleon from now till Christmas, then a Galleon from then till the end of the year. Or you can pay in advance, if you want."

Harry agreed to pay on Christmas day, so he could see if he'd like the trumpet or not. He could definately afford two Galleons a year if it meant no Divination. He agreed to try the trumpet. Ron ended up on clarinet, which was only half a Galleon a year. Ron agreed.

Much to Harry's and Ron's pleasure, Malfoy ended up on the flute, the instrument he'd swore never to touch. Flutes were also usually considered girl instruments as well, so Harry and Ron had it in for Malfoy. (A/N: I do not mean to offend any male flutists our there; I'm one myself, and I love the flute. It's not a girlie instrument, just idiots think that for the most part. But hey, Draco IS an idiot. Thanks)

"All right," said Tari, "assemble your instruments. If you need help, call on myself or Professor Trins."

Harry sat next to Dean, so Dean helped him assemble his trumpet. It turned out to be a rather easy task; all he had to do was pop a mouthpiece into the bronze-like body of the trumpet.

"Let me hear a Bb concert in unison," said Trins, now standing up and raising his hands before him. "Flutes here's your fingering." He put each of his pointer fingers on his thumb. "Clarinets, it's a C." He put his first three fingers down on his left hand. "And trumpets, it's also a C." (A/N: If there are any trumpet players out there, please email me with a few fingerings for trumpet, 'cause I have no clue what they are). "When my hand levels out, blow into your instrument."

He brought his right hand up once more, and then brought it down. Harry buzzed into the mouthpiece, and a strangled sort of noise came out. It grew more powerful as he buzzed harder, until it finally sounded pretty decent. Trins made a cutoff sign, and Harry stopped. A few people kept playing, but finally stopped.

"Okay, flutes alone," said Trins. Malfoy wasn't very good, it appeared, as Lavender's flute was the only flute that made any sound. Lavender, however, made a nice, soft sound on her flute.

Chuckling softly, Trins cut them off.

"Clarinet," he said. Ron sounded very good on the clarinet to Harry. The sound was rather low but melodic. Trins cut Ron off. "And trumpeteers." Harry and Dean played their trumpets rather loudly until Trins cut them off. "Very good all of you. Now - " He was cut off by the bell ringing in the distance. "Practice. That's all I ask. And don't hurt anyone's ears. Practice OUTSIDE! Have a nice day!"

Harry packed his trumpet into its black case, then headed off towards Hogwarts with Ron.

"So, you like the clarinet?" Harry asked Ron as they walked back up the pathway. Ron nodded.

"It's an interesting instrument," he said. "I've heard bands play before, but all of them sound a lot..."

"Better?" Harry offered.

"Yes, better than ours," said Ron, nodding once more.

"Well," said Harry slowly as they ascended the steps to the Entrance Hall, "we can't be perfect yet. It was only our first day."

"Yeah."

The rest of the way to Gryffindor tower they walked in silence, until Hermione greeted them at the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Did you like band?" she asked.

"Yeah," said Ron, and Harry watched in disgust as he stared at her until he blushed and looked away.

"What instruments are you going to play?" Hermione asked, her eyes drifting to their cases.

"Trumpet," said Harry, grinning.

"Clari...clarin...clarinet," Ron spluttered as Hermione smiled warmly at him.

Harry grinned in spite of himself.

"C'mon, you two lovers, let's go on into the common room," he said, grin broadening as they both blushed and glared at him. "Quidditch practice starts tonight. I want to be rested for it."

He walked into the common room, Ron and Hermione behind him, and plopped down on the couch in front of the fire. He was drifting in and out of consciouness when a voice woke him.

"C'mon, Harry, time for practice."

It was Fred.

"George is already down on the field," said Fred, grabbing Harry's arm and jerking him upward. Harry followed, rubbing his eyes until he was wide awake once more.

"I've got to get my - "

"Your Firebolt's already down here; we sent all the brooms down there by spell if they weren't already," Fred said. "George and me can't wait to give you your new robes. We got Ron some new dress robes, too. But the Quidditch robes were our favorite."

"What color are they?" Harry asked as they neared the Quidditch pitch.

"You'll see."

They finally reached the pitch. The rest of the team was already there, a few flying around. Fred called everyone down, and they landed softly in front of Harry, Fred, and George.

"All right," said Fred, "before we begin practice, we've got to have a chat first."

"We need a Keeper," said George. "So start spreading the word to our fellow Gryffindors. If anyone, ANYone, can fly good or has any experience as a Keeper, tell the to try out."

"Hey," said Harry suddenly, "one of the first years said he was a Keeper. Kirk Joseph."

"If we could convince McGonagall to bend the rules a bit..." said Fred thoughtfully.

"Tell him to come here on Friday and try out," said George. "We'll do what we can with McGonagall if he's good."

Harry nodded.

"All right, let's start practice!" said Fred and George in unison.


Four hours later, Harry was flying around in the air, taking his mind off things.

"Sure you don't want to come with us, Harry?" Fred asked again. He'd asked the same question for the last five minutes, and Harry had answered the same way.

"No," Harry repeated. "I just want to fly around a little more."

"Suit yourself," said George.

They walked on up to the castle. Harry did a few loop-the-loops to clear his mind, then took to flying in large circles around the pitch. As he neared the Forbidden Forest once, he heard a stick snap. He abruptly stopped his broomstick and turned slowly to face the forest.

Another stick snapped. Someone was walking.

Harry landed his broom with a dull thud, then got off and glanced around. The sun had gone down, and the flickering lights of candles had now spluttered out, only a few lights from Hogwarts making shadows across the pitch. Another stick snapped, and this time the sound echoed across the grounds eerily. Harry felt around for his wand, then realized he'd left it in his Hogwarts robes, which he'd laid in the stands for safekeeping. He was wearing Fred and George's team robes; scarlet with a Gryffindor lion sewn on.

Harry thought for a moment, then turned back around and went to grab his wand. He had just reached the stands when a dull thud sounded from behind him. He whirled around.

The figure he'd seen in the woods was standing before him. The figure was cowled with black, and shadows were now covering the entire field; Harry looked up at Hogwarts to see all the lights had spluttered off. Harry turned back around to see the figure taking a few steps forward. Harry scrambled for his wand.

The figure let him do grab his wand without interference. Harry took it out and pointed it at the figure.

To his surprise, a low laugh filled the pitch. The figure simply stood there, not moving, just laughing. Then, just to shock him even more, a loud scream came from behind him: "SHIT!"

He whirled around once more. Professor Trins was standing right there, wand outstretched.

"INFERNOBOLUS!" he shouted. Harry jumped out of the way as a ribbon of blue fire whipped from Trins's wand and towards him. It missed Harry and hit the ground near him. Smoke flew up everywhere, and Harry waved his arms around, trying to clear it. When it did clear, the figure was gone, but Trins stood there, which reminded Harry of something: wasn't Dumbledore supposed to be watching his practices.

"Harry, are you okay?" Trins asked as he walked briskly over to Harry.

"Yeah," said Harry. "What...what was that?"

"Not sure," said Trins. "I think...I think it was an..."

"Harry? Are you there?" Dumbledore's concerned voice drifted through the hazy grounds. He suddenly began to slowly appear next to them, appearing as though he'd been wearing an Invisibility Cloak.

"Yes," said Harry. "What was that spell?"

"Invisibility Charm," said Dumbledore. "I've been here for the past four hours, watching practice. I had walked off because I thought you were going in with the others. Obviously you didn't.... Murry, what was it?"

Professor Trins glanced around uneasily.

"Not in front of the boy, Albus," he said softly. "I can only say what I think it was, nothing more. The idea is...well it's proposterous, really...they couldn't be back...could they?"

"Harry, straight up to bed," said Dumbledore sternly. "As soon as Samantha arrives, she will escort you up to Gryffindor tower. Stay there. Do not go anywhere else. Murry, come with me. We need to investigate the forest carefully. We'll wait with you, Harry, until Samantha arrives."

Harry nodded. An attack the second week into school.... The same figure from the mountains.... Odd.

Professor Tari ran up to the pitch a moment later, panting.

"Murry said to come..." she said breathlessly.

"Please escort Harry to the Gryffindor tower, Samantha," said Dumbledore. "Then contact Severus and the other teachers. Thank you."

Tari nodded, then turned to walk away, beckoning for Harry to follow. Harry grabbed his school robes and broomstick, then followed after her.

"Are you all right, Harry?" she asked without glancing back at him.

"Yes," said Harry.

"What was it?" she asked, leading him up the steps to the Entrance Hall.

"I don't know..." he said softly. He hesitated for a moment, then added in a rush, "but I saw it before in the summer in the Swiss Alps."

Tari stopped dead in her tracks.

"The Alps?" she repeated. "You're sure of it?"

"Yes," said Harry.

"How sure?" Tari pressed.

"Very."

"Oh God," said Tari, clapping a hand to her head, then realizing what she was doing and continued leading Harry onward. "I'll have to tell Albus about this. This could be...this could be bad..."

Harry thought of pressing further, but decided against it. Instead he walked silently along after her until they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Don't leave the castle unless a teacher is with you, Mr. Potter," said Tari. "Filepina," she said to the Fat Lady, who swung open. "Be careful. And actually, if you need to practice your instrument, just bring Murry along with you, and tell him to bring his trumpet. No one - or thing - in its right mind will come near you."