Chapter 4: Learning
*Harry, we're gonna have to skip class. We have to go to the library and find out what in Merlin's name is going on!*
Harry started devising the plan in his head.
*Ok, our next class is Double Charms, Right?*
*Right.*
*Flitwick should be easy enough to get by. This is the thing, you are going to have to fake one of my scar-ache things in the middle of class. Then I, pretending to be the worried best friend, will volunteer to escort you to Pomfrey. After this, we will just sneak off to the library and work for the rest of the day.*
*I don't like that plan, how or we going to be in the library without getting caught by Mrs. Pince?*
*Invisibility Cloak. Then we'll hide in the back, in the desks not viewable by her so she won't be alarmed by floating books or pages that flip themselves. I think there are books that do that as it is so she shouldn't be too fright-.*
*Nope. What if Flitwick inquires with Pomfrey?*
Harry grew silent.
*We can't run that risk Harry.*
*All right then, you think of something!*
Hermione thought for a moment.
*What if we just stay and not go?*
*Herm, I don't think that…*
*Shh…listen first. I'll stage one of your "My Scar hurts, its danger," things and faint. Then I'll tell Ron to tell Flitwick I won't be going to class. Then, when you and Ron are leaving to go to class, I'll call you back. And then you'll stay with me. Then off we go to the library under the Invisibility Cloak!*
Hermione beamed with what she believed to be a brilliant plan.
*Herm, what if Flitwick tells Ron to send me to Madame Pomfrey? And why would I ask specifically for you to stay with me when I could always have Ron?*
Hermione's smile faded. *Well, Ron probably knows that you wouldn't want to be fussed over during you Scar-Attacks so he'll just tell Flitwick you don't want to be bothered, a quick lie-in will do. That still doesn't answer the Ron's suspicions question…*
*Wait I have it! If it really were a Scar Attack, I'd probably want you with me because you could always bore me to sleep with your incessant drawl about Hogwarts, a History.* Harry finished brilliantly.
Hermione feigned offense and gave Harry a playful punch.
"Hmmm…Harry. I don't know about you, but I always thought it was wrong to hit a girl."
It was Neville Longbottom.
Hermione tried to hide the giggles from rising "Oh Neville," she said "Herm knows I mean nothing by it, right Herm?" Hermione turned her head toward Harry, so that Neville wouldn't see, and rolled her eyes.
"Right Harry!" Harry said, unable to stop the grin from coming over him.
Neville accepted this little reply with some consternation and walked away to view Dean beating Ron.
*~*~*~*~*~*
*Ready?* thought Harry to Hermione as the Trio was sitting in the Gryffindor 5th years male dorm. (The boys stopped minding Hermione was in the room, she was always there anyways!)
*Ready.* Hermione answered back. And with that….
"Ahhh! Ohh! Oww!"
"Harry what is it?" a concerned Ron asked.
"Its my scar! My scar! It hurts!"
"Wait a sec. I'll go tell someone."
"NO!" He heard Harry and Hermione scream in unison.
"No? Why? Harry's scar hurts and…"
"Don't you see? You could get people panicked if you go off telling everyone Harry's Scar hurts!" Harry said.
"Right…so what do you wanna do? Do you think you could make it to Charms?" Ron asked, with a worried glint in his eye.
Both Harry and Hermione felt a pang of guilt as they saw his concern.
*We have to go through with it.* Harry heard Hermione think to him.
*Right.* He thought back to her.
"Ummm no. I don't think I could sit through Double Charms today. All I feel like doing is falling asleep on my bed."
"Right." Ron said. "So what should Herm and I tell Flitwick?"
"Actually," Hermione told Ron, "I want Herm to stay with me."
"Why?" Ron asked curiously.
"Well, who else better to put you to sleep? We have fallen asleep listening to her talking about what she's read in Hogwarts, a History…"
"Ohh!" Ron giggled, before Harry reached over and slapped him playfully.
*You hit me!* Harry thought to Hermione.
"Ok, I'm off to Charms." Ron said.
"Wait!" Hermione yelled out. "Hermione, don't you have something to tell him?"
*What?* Harry asked her.
*Tell him that I promise professor Flitwick to make up twice as much work missed today with a little extra credit on the side.*
*Huh! That better be when we switch back…*
*Harry!*
*All right!*
"Umm Ron," Harry started, "Please tell Professor Flitwick that.."
"Yeah I know, you'll make up twice as much work missed today and some extra on the side, gotcha. And you Harry, I know you won't make up any work so why should I bother? See ya'll in Herbology!" And with that Ron left.
*He knows us so well!* Harry thought, pleased that he had such close friends. *And we just lied to him.*
*~*~*~*~*~*
Ron arrived late to class, just in time to hear the very end of roll call.
"Ah! Mister Weasley, come and sit down. Now where are the other 2 of your third?" the tiny wizard asked with smile.
"Sorry Professor Flitwick, but Harry's head hurt, and Hermione volunteered to stay with him while he had a lie in. Hermione promised to make it up to you with…"
"Why didn't Mr. Potter go to Madame Pomfrey?"
Ron was silent.
"Mr. Weasley, will you please step out onto the hall with me for a moment. Class, begin reading your lesson on Glamours."
Ron followed the tiny wizard out onto the hall.
"Mr. Weasley, tell me, does this 'headache' have anything to do with Harry's Scar?"
Ron was taken aback. "I'm n-n-not sure." He stammered.
Flitwick sighed. "Of course, you don't have to tell me, its just that…" he sighed, and the very serious look he had worn to talk with Ron suddenly turned into a nostalgic type smile. "You know Miss Granger doesn't have to make up any work with me. She is at the top of her class, probably the best student Hogwarts has seen. Why, she has better marks than Professor McGonagall. Maybe that is why McGonagall favors her so."
Ron wasn't surprised, but he was curious all the same. Are you allowed to share student's grades with others? Or even a teacher's preference? But his train of thought stopped as he heard the little wizard begin to speak again.
"Miss Granger's grades are good enough to rival those of one Lily Evans, or should I say, Potter."
*~*~*~*~*~*
Seeing that the coast was clear, Harry and Hermione, under the Invisibility Cloak, rounded another hall.
*Hey! What is Ron doing talking outside of class with Flitwick?* Hermione asked Harry.
*I don't know. I know it must be about why we're absent however. Maybe we should go check it ou-*
*I don't think so Harry Potter! We have to find a way to reverse this bloody spell and we only have an two hours to do so!
Harry finally gave in and they went on their way.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Ron was stunned for the millionth time that day. "Umm…Lily Evans? Lily Potter? As in Harry's mum?"
Professor Flitwick gave a tired smile. "Yes, Harry's mum. You know, the three of you remind me of the three of them sometimes."
"Three of them?" I thought there were four, weren't they? Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs, the Marauders.
"I know what you're thinking, but no, I am not referring to the Marauders as Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, Mr. Lupin, and Mr. Pettigrew used to refer to themselves, I am talking about another group within the group."
There was a long pause. Ron could have sworn he heard crickets chirping.
"You see Mr. Weasley, before the Marauders there was only one Mr. Potter and one Mr. Black. James and Sirius were friends before Hogwarts. They came together on their first Train ride to Hogwarts and it is there that they met they met Mr. Remus Lupin and Mr. Peter Pettigrew, and the lovely Lilian Evans. Mr. Potter and Mr. Black were in their compartment when Miss Evans came upon them with Mr. Pettigrew, asking them if they had seen Mr. Pettigrew's lost pet rat."
At this Ron coughed loudly. Okay, that is just too weird.
Seeing the young boy was fine, Flitwick continued on with the story. "In the process of replying to their question in the negative, they heard a loud scuffle coming from outside. Inquiring, they found who was then the young Severus Snape taunting a young Remus Lupin about his condition, he was of course, a werewolf. (
No surprise here, thought Ron.
But of course, I'm sure you know all about that. Now Mr. Potter and Mr. Black, seeing him in trouble, came to his rescue and performed a couple of well thrown hexes on Mr. Snape that let him go on his way. His face was completely red for at least a week!" (The latter said with a grin on his face.)
Ron kept quiet, hoping Professor Flitwick would continue his quiet reverie, and making a mental note to keep this all in mind to relate to Harry and Hermione later on.
Flitwick continued. "From then on the five of them became really good friends. They were all delighted to be sorted into Griffyndor. The first couple of years were great, Lily was treated as one of the guys, which was ok with her since she cared very little for frivolous things (which most of the girls in her year were into.) She was the one that would mother the boys and scold them when they did one of their many antics, but she always supported them and laughed along with them in the end. Within the group of five however, you could always see the division. Mr. Lupin was wary of having friends, fearing that that in the end they would turn away from him because of who he was. Mr. Pettigrew, being a solitary boy for most of his life, understood where Remus was coming from and was his most constant companion, (Ron wondered why they turned out so different from each other) this left Mr. Potter, Miss Evans, and Mr. Black. When it was just the three of them they were the unstoppable trio. James and Sirius were the 'real' mischief-makers of their group and Lily was never far behind when they went off larking about. Of course they never did any of the saving the world stuff you Harry and Hermione tend to do, but they did cause their own trouble. The three of them had a kingship, one that Mr. Remus and Mr. Peter couldn't touch. In fifth year, things between the three of them seemed to change. The change was slightly evident during their fourth year, but it all unraveled in their fifth."
Ron gave an unintentional gulp.
"Lily was always treated like one of the guys, and she liked that to an extent. In fifth year, Lily came back to Hogwarts looking well, less like a guy and more like a girl. James and Sirius saw that change immediately, Sirius more so than James. James didn't want to destroy the kingship the three of them seemed to have, what better way then to destroy a friendship then by dating one of your best friends? So he tended to stay away from Lily. Sirius got the message soon enough, and slowly they backed away from her as well. Ironically, they were unintentionally destroying something they were trying to save. Sirius and James threw themselves into the process of becoming Animagii to accompany Remus on full moons, the ingenious idea thrown to them by Peter."
That was Wormtail's idea? Ron thought.
"I know what you're thinking Ron and yes, it was Wormatail's idea. The Marauder's map however was James' idea, he being the second biggest prankster, but also the second biggest most cautious one (Remus beat him to it). Does that answer your next question?"
Ron's jaw dropped. Can he read minds?
"Unfortunately Mr. Weasley, I can't read minds."
Then how is he-"Then how can I tell exactly what you're thinking? Its written all over your face. Some of us don't have the power to read minds. May I continue?"
Ron nodded.
"Very well, as I was saying. It was Wormtail's idea to become Animagii. Sirius, the biggest prankster, loved the idea and so they became. When they developed the Marauder's Map they ruled the school in their Animagus forms. That was, until Lily found their map. No Mr. Weasley, Lily didn't rat them out."
Ron felt a wave of nausea overwhelm him, but saw a twinkle in Flitwick's eye.
"Lily felt very miserable about not being as close to James and Sirius as she once had been. When she found the map she gave it to James. And she and James had a long talk, and they made up. After that James vowed to include her in all their capers as they once had. It didn't take long however, for the subject of Lily's new found 'femininity' began to surface. I believe Sirius fancied himself in love with her until he realized something that he had been blind to see along. Lily Evans had fallen for James Potter since the first moment she saw him, and vice-versa. James and Lily however, didn't want to admit their feelings for one another. I believe Sirius had it in mind to help them along by asking Lily out and starting a fight with the jealous James. His plan worked apparently and as compensation he ended up with a purple eye for a week. After that the two of them where inseparable and married right after graduation."
"How do you know all this?" Ron finally asked.
Flitwick smiled, "When Lily was despondent over her trials with James and Sirius, she came and talked with me about it. So much alike she and Miss Granger…"
As Flitwick mused to himself, Ron did as well. Is he trying to tell me something?
Flitwick suddenly gasped, as if just realizing where he was and what he was doing. "Oh my! I have a class to teach and it's half over!"
Ron and Flitwick turned to enter the class, just in time to see Dean and Seamus making Neville's toad fly across the room.
*~*~*~*~*~*
*This is it! I give up!* Hermione thought to Harry, as she angrily closed the book shut.
Never mind the racket. Harry and Hermione had levitated about a million book over to them and made so much noise you'd think a deaf person would hear. But, Madame Pince hadn't budged from her position, unless it was turn the page of a book a she was reading, Lockhart's latest, "Memoirs of a Devilishly Handsome Adventurer!"
Harry and Hermione spent the first ten minutes of their free 2 hours giggling over Madam Pince's reading material.
*She always seemed like a sensible one!* Hermione thought to him between silent giggles.
So far Harry and Hermione had gotten nowhere. They felt like they looked through every book in the library. Then again why did they bother, they couldn't even find anything in "7,892 Most Erroneously Common Potion Mix-ups."
*Guess our mix-up isn't that common!* Harry said, trying to lighten the mood.
*Harry, shut up! What are we going to do? I can't be you forever, I wanna be me again!*
Harry felt panic rising in him.
*Harry, can you teach me how to block you out of my mind?*
Harry thought for a second.
*Hermione, it isn't like I can block you completely from my mind, its just certain thoughts that I don't want you to hear badly enough that seem to not get to you, otherwise I would have heard you react to them. During the course of the day have you thought anything you didn't want me to hear, and I didn't react to those thoughts?*
Hermione thought back to her day, nothing came to her mind.
*Nope.*
*Ok, now think of something you really wouldn't want me to know.*
Ok, Hermione thought, here it goes…Ummm, Harry looks real good naked….As Hermione silently smiled to herself at the thought, she was interrupted by Harry's yell.
*Hermione Granger! How dare you think that?!!!*
Hermione flushed a pretty shade of pink. *Harry you…you heard me? Great Scott this will never work!*
*Hermione, I'm just kidding. I didn't hear anything. I just wanted to see how bad your thoughts were by seeing your reaction.* Harry said, with a grin of satisfaction in his face.
Hermione lunged at him and they fell to the floor. Their feet now sticking out under the Invisibility Cloak, but luckily hidden from Pince's view by a bookshelf, Harry and Hermione silently wrestled each other.
*Harry Potter! You are most the inconsiderate, uncouth, selfish, annoying person I have ever met!* Hermione yelled at him in her mind between smacks. *To think I actually thought you looked good naked!*
At this, Harry pinned her arms to her sides and calmed her down. *You thought I looked good naked?*
Hermione tensed, feeling the blush from the root of her hair to the tips of her toes. She stayed silent. Suddenly, she was aware of Harry being on top of her.
*Oh, sorry.* Harry muttered as he picked himself up, pulling Hermione up as well to keep her both under the cloak as well.
Hermione wouldn't look Harry in the eye.
*Hermione, I think you look good, um, naked too.*
Hermione looked at him, and laughed.
Harry hugged her, relieved that she wasn't upset anymore.
*I think we should go back to the tower.* Hermione said, feeling slightly uncomfortable.
*Right.* Harry agreed.
