Harry Potter and the Locket of Trinity: Chapter Three
" 'Back to Cool' "
A/N: Hellooo? Is anyone out there? Is this thing on? Testing, testing, one, two, three. hmm, there's got to be some reason that nobody's reviewing! I hope it's not my story, otherwise I shall go hide under a rock somewhere and cry 'til kingdom come. Or something to that affect...
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The Hogwarts Express squealed it's breaks, coming to a halt in front of the massive lake, the moonlight bouncing off the shimmering water. Harry, Ron, and Hermione heard the familiar sound of Hagrid's gruff but sweet voice shouting, "Firs'years, over 'ere!" Harry saw the shadowy form of Trinny Philips scurry towards the big man and hop in a boat, blending in quite snugly with the other shrimpy first years.
The eerie horseless carriages pulled up to the older students, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione clambered in one along with Neville Longbottom, Lavender Brown, and Parvati Patil. "So, how was your summer?" Lavender asked Hermione.
"Fine, I guess." she answered.
"No, I mean, how was your summer? Come on, details, details!" Lavender pressed, and both her and Pansy began to snicker.
"Does she have to spell it out for you?" Parvati inquired, rolling her eyes. "How did your vacation to Viktor go?"
A look of dread stretched across Hermione's face, and she looked desperately from Harry to Ron, searching for a way out of this. this 'girl talk.' Unfortunately, the two eager faces sat there, waiting for this juicy gossip. "Erm. well, Viktor lives in a small villa near the outskirts of town, near the mountains. His mother is a pediatrician, and his father works for a Supermarket in town."
"And.?" the girls prompted, leaning still forward.
"And he has a little sister that's in the third year, her name's Melva."
'Melva' was clearly not the juicy gossip that the two girls were longing for. They took sidelong glances at each other and began laughing hysterically.
"That is the -"
"Saddest -"
"Most pathetic -"
"Oh you poor dear -"
"Thing I've heard -"
"Yet."
"Ever."
Lavender and Parvati said, finishing each other's sentences mid- laugh. Hermione looked as if she was ready to curse both of them then and there, but she refrained and held her chin up high. "I had a delightful time." she said, but the other two were much too busy whispering excitedly to take notice. Ron patted her on the arm supportively before the carriage door popped open in front of the main doors, and out tumbled the six of them.
But the splendor of the Great Hall soon chased away all Hermione's sullenness. No mater how familiar you were with Hogwarts, no matter how long you had attended, the first glimpse of the hall after a long summer break was always breathtaking. The candles suspended mid-air, the rich maroons rolling with the vibrant yellows, the lush greens flirting with the royal blues; all colors that looked good enough to eat.
"Finally," Harry thought to himself. "I'm home."
Sitting in the Great Hall and catching up with old friends, the loud hum of conversation was silenced when Professor McGonagall entered with the first years to be sorted. Most of them looked terrified, much like they did every year, with the exception of Trinny, who walked at the very end of the line with her face shining so that it looked like it might be her birthday.
The battered hat sat expectantly on a stool in front of the Head Table. After it had commanded a silence from the knowing upperclassmen, and newcomers that soon followed suit, it opened it's brim wide and sang the sorting song:
The Sorting Hat's quite scratched and torn, Dirty, smelly, stained and worn. Haven't your Mummies ever said "Don't judge by looks, but smarts instead!" This old hat you see sittin' here You place it up around your ears And it'll have a peek inside And see which house you're to abide. Gryffindor contains the bold Nerves of steel their hearts do hold. Though Hufflepuff may take the meek, Also justice and faith they seek. In Ravenclaw dwell the wise, Knowledge and learning are their prize. And in crafty Slytherin Power dominates therin. I promise I'll make no mistake And after just a short debate I'll call it out With a great shout Where you will unearth your fate!
After the initial shock of a talking hat wore off, the first years seemed to enjoy the song. Some even bobbed their heads in time to the rhythm. A thunderous applause punctuated the ending, and The Sorting had begun.
"Adelade, Kira" Professor McGonagall barked out, and a tiny blonde scurried over and sat on the stool. Seconds later, in a commanding voice that far rivaled McGonagall's, the hat yelled "RAVENCLAW!" The whole table buried her underneath handshakes and welcoming hugs, and she managed to finally take a seat just as "Babburn, Tony" was named Hufflepuff.
The poor Hufflepuff table. even after all this time, you could still see the solemn looks of sadness on some of their faces about Cedric's death. Professor Sprout had dedicated her best greenhouse to him, being head of Hufflepuff House she had taken the tragedy especially hard.
The announcement of "Boyle, Beauford." as a "SLYTHERIN!" jerked Harry's attention back to the present. He watched the boy being welcomed by the Bloody Baron, a thing he didn't seem to like much. The sorting was much more fun when you got to be a part of it, Harry thought decidedly as "Chestnut, Skylar" was named the first new Gryffindor.
Harry clapped along with the rest of the table nicely, and for the first time noticed the new teacher sitting at the Staff Table. He must have been the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. That would fit, because Professor Snape was favoring him with a particularly nasty look. Poor guy, the Potions Master been ousted from the position for the fifth year running. Harry got the sinking feeling that Potions was going to be even more unbearable this year.
The new professor looked very young, probably not past twenty-five or so, but he was very tall and well built. Already Harry could see that many girls were favoring the man with the seductive glare that he himself only dreamed of attracting. The new teacher had shaggy auburn hair that looked meticulously cared for in a way that was supposed to give the impression that it wasn't, and big, brown eyes that would fall under the category 'puppy dog.' He looked somewhat familiar, but Harry couldn't quite place the face.
As "Zerkmeyer, Wadsworth" joined the Ravenclaw table, Harry was awakened back into the world of the living. At the front of the hall, Headmaster Dumbledore stood up and utter silence followed. "And now, for our, erm, special student. Trinity McGundron-Philips is a fifth year, but was unfortunately detained in her attending Hogwarts up until this year. We are very pleased to have her with us now." Dumbledore explained, once more making Harry's mind whir with mystery. Something about this girl wasn't adding up. what could she be hiding?
Confidently Trinny approached the stool and jammed the hat on her head. There was a moment of silence while the hat made it's decision. It took a long time, but Trinny couldn't look calmer. Harry began to suspect that she might've fallen asleep, but not even a full minute later her eyes popped open and the hat hollered "GRYFFINDOR!" to the whole hall.
Like she had known it all along, Trinny strolled up to the Gryffindor table and took a parked next to Neville, who was sitting right across from Harry. Neville promptly introduced himself and shook her hand, and she smiled warmly at him. She was politely inquisitive, asking about the enchanted ceiling and past Sortings.
"Welcome." Harry greeted, once Trinny's conversation with Neville had ceased.
"Thanks!" she replied brightly, smiling excitedly at him. As she leaned forward to inspect the lace tablecloth, Harry saw a heavy, dark pendant swing from her neck that had previously been disguised within her robes. A searing pain darted across Harry's scar, and his fork clattered to his plate noisily as the boy clasped his hand to his head. Quickly, Trinny caught the pendant with her hand and stuck it back under her shirt, glancing around to check if anyone had seen.
Harry pretended like he hadn't, the pain in his head reduced to just a dull throbbing now.
Now that the sorting was finished, Dumbledore's customary speech was about to begin. The man stood up once again, and the silence came almost immediately. "This year will be one of the toughest, and most memorable, yet. Last year's events," a few daring murmurs broke out at the mention of Harry's scrape with Voldemort. "have caused security around Hogwarts to be upped yet again. We ask that nobody goes anywhere alone, especially at night, and the Forbidden Forest is completely off limits as usual." Dumbledore's eyes sparkled for a second, and Harry thought he saw a smile peep through the massive beard of his as he knew just how many times those rules would be broken.
"Welcome, students both new and old, to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!" he announced grandly, and clapping his hands together, a feast suddenly materialized on their plates. Blood pudding, kidney pie, deviled eggs; Harry ate them all. Twice.
Taking a big swig of pumpkin juice and washing down the last of his dessert, Harry sat back with a contented sigh and surveyed his fellow housemates. The first years looked even smaller this year, even younger and more babyish. Harry wondered, had that actually been him just a few short years ago? Had he ever really been that young, that innocent, that free of the haunting images of Voldemort's terror?
NO! a firm voice in his head shouted, chasing away the dark clouds full of memories that threatened to invade Harry's mind. There was too much hurt there, too much pain and 'what if.' Harry adamantly refused to succumb to it. Defiantly, he took another bite of potatoes and gnawed on it viciously.
In the Gryffindor common room that night, things were the normal party they were on the first day back. Of course Fred and George Weasley planted a few trick candies around, every once and a while people bursting into feathers or sporting rather corpulent tongues. Yes, Harry was even glad to be back to the daily fear of eating a sweet, in case it might be a proud product of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes.
(^*^)
At breakfast the next morning, schedules were distributed to all the students. Monday morning Harry and Ron had the pleasure of Divination with Professor Trelawney, and then after that was Herbology with the Hufflepuffs.
"Oh, not that primadonna again!" Ron groaned.
"At least it's for the last time. Next year we get to pick new elective classes, more specific ones. Like curse breaking, or magical medicine, or advanced magical creatures. I can't wait." Harry explained wistfully.
"To take those classes, or to be rid of Professor Trelawney?" Ron asked.
Harry laughed. "Both."
Ever since Harry's correct prediction of Buckbeak the Hippogriff's escape from death, Professor Trelawney had regarded him as some kind of sage. "Boy, you have the gift." she said for the millionth time, foreseeing his bloody demise to the whole class for the millionth time also. "Watch your back, boy, I see an enemy entering your life." Professor Trelawney predicted, or rather, scientifically guessed. An enemy was always in Harry's life, being who he was. She was just going with the odds. Little did she know, she was quite near becoming his enemy herself.
"You," Professor Trelawney said, pointing a wavering finger at Lavender Brown. "A tall, red-haired man will enter your life and steal your heart." Gasps broke out as Lavender turned and gave a disapproving open- mouthed glare at Ron, who sunk deep down into his pouf, no doubt wishing it would swallow him whole.
"Old fraud." he muttered, glaring at Lavender in such a way that Harry could tell that even if the Professor Trelawney had made a correct prediction (which was as likely as the Slytherins hosting a ballet recital), that the only way something near a romance would happen between Ron and Lavender would involve the Body-Bind Curse and a strong pair of pliers.
"Maybe she meant Fred or George." consoled Parvati, shooting Ron an equally evil look.
After a futile moment of attempting to stay awake and pay attention, Ron and Harry fell asleep. Of course, if Professor Trelawney ever caught them, which she rarely did, they just acted like they were getting a strong prophecy about their deaths and she was sufficiently suckered into it.
After their refreshing nap it was lunchtime. "Oh, awake now are you?" Lavender asked cuttingly when Harry and Ron sat down at the house table. Both her and Parvati were lacking the exact amount of brain cells needed to be level with Professor Trelawney, and the two girls considered her the Mucho Supremo of all teachers. It was the ultimate disrespect to view the woman as she really was: the Mucho Supremo of all cons.
Twenty minutes late, Trinny scurried into the great hall for lunch. "Where have you been?" Harry inquired, looking at how flustered she seemed.
"I got in an argument with my Muggle Studies teacher about how a telephone worked, and then she gave me detention!" Trinny explained, sliding into an empty seat next to Harry.
Ron and Harry burst out laughing, but Hermione looked at Trinny like she was a bad little girl that disobeyed. "What did you say?" Harry asked.
"That a phone sends sound vibrations through wires to whoever you're talking to at such a fast speed that it's like, immediate." Trinny relayed.
Well, Hermione, Harry, and Trinny all began laughing, but the rest of the table just looked as if they just found out that Santa Claus didn't exist. "You mean it's your actual VOICE transmitted over MILLIONS of kilometers IMMEDIATELY?" asked Ron incredulously. "But that would be so HARD!"
"Yeah. haven't you wondered what all the poles and wires were for?" Hermoine answered.
"I just figured muggles did it the same as we did, except without the magic." Fred replied.
"How do you guys do it?" wondered Harry.
George thought about it for a second, then stated simply, "By magic."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "You people are so oblivious, even the teacher had no idea."
"I know, that's why I got in such a big argument with her. Professor Newcastle claimed that a phone was just a microphone shouting something really, really loud."
"What's a microphone?" Fred asked.
"Like a megaphone." Hermione answered irritated.
"What's a megaphone?" George asked, getting frantic from confusion.
Hermione growled menacingly, but Trinny turned to George and explained it slowly and clearly, like he was a foreigner. Which he was, to the muggle world. "It's something that magnifies your voice many times."
"Oh." Fred and George stated in unison, a double epiphany.
"So wait, that's not it? The mecklephone making things louder, and the fellytone shouting them to the other person?" Ron asked, whispering and leaning towards her.
Harry, Hermione, and Trinny exchanged bewildered glances. "Um, no." Trinny answered. "The megaphone makes things louder, but that's totally different than a telephone. A telephone sends signals over wires to another telephone. Comprende?"
"Um, yes?" answered Ron, smiling hopelessly.
"So wait, she gave you detention just for that?" said Harry.
Trinny looked caught between sheepishness and pride. "No, not exactly. you see she wasn't pleased that I was showing her up, so she told me to sit down. So, I sat down and kept on lecturing her. She told me to shut up, so I stopped talking and took my wand and scrawled my complete explanation, in permanent script, around the room."
Harry gasped out loud. "You actually did that!?"
"Of course, I wasn't going to let that fat biddy push me around! I'll be glad to serve a measly detention if it means remembering the look on her face as she watched the golden ribbon of words wind its way around the room, spreading the good news that she was an imbecile. Ah, now that was precious." Trinny described, looking off into the air, presumably recalling Professor Figg's offended face.
"Trinny, you've got character." Harry said, smiling and punching her on the shoulder. She smiled broadly and began wolfing down her sandwich as fast as she could.
As a group, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Trinny, Neville, Lavender, and Parvati trudged out to the greenhouses. Poor Professor Sprout seemed rather deflated that day in Herbology, her bubbly and expressive attitude lacking since Cedric's death. He was her favorite student, so promising, and even though she didn't know the extent of the tragedy, it was still enough to dampen things a bit.
"This unit, you will be learning about different antidotes for curse side- affects. After being under the Imperious Curse, for weeks or even months after a victim might spontaneously go motionless, their muscles relaxed and pupils unfocused, and fall to the floor. This can be avoided by Bubotuber Pus diluted by stagnant water that is hosting Hrangmunt larvae, then combined with Nocturne-Verona Berries," explained the small witch mechanically. "This is just one of the exciting combinations that you will learn to grow, prepare, and eventually, with the aide of Professor Snape, concoct and use."
Harry and Ron didn't look forward to having Professor Snape anywhere near them. Potions was agonizing enough, but ruining a sunny Herbology lesson also? That was downright cruel!
Taking a sidelong glance at Hermione, Harry saw her jotting down the antidote information for the Imperious Curse. After only a brief moment of wondering, a horrible memory floated without permission to the top of Harry's thoughts.
It was that of Viktor Krum standing above Cedric Diggory, inflicting the Crutacious Curse upon the convulsing body at his feet. Cedric's tortured screams and contorted face called repulsion and action into Harry's mind, and Harry quickly knocked the Bulgarian unconscious.. Krum had been acting under the Imperious Curse though, not his own free will, Harry found out later to his immense relief. That was what the antidote was for, Hermione was going to write him about it. Harry presumed that during her vacation to Bulgaria, he'd had a few relapses into the comatose side-affect that Hermione had been forced to endure.
Professor Sprout then dictated some notes on raising Nocturne-Verona Berries, which were a sour cherry-like fruit that made the one who ate it very lightheaded. They could only be exposed to full moonlight, and were a best crop in February, oddly enough. "One essay on the many uses of the berry, then, as homework. Off you go." the teacher assigned as class ended and students flooded out of the Diggory Greenhouse, newly christened at the beginning of the year.
"The first day of classes, and we've already got homework!" griped Ron.
"I can't wait to begin!" Trinny squealed, and everyone glared at her with the goody-two-shoes accusing look usually reserved for Hermione. "Well, this stuff is just so new to me." Trinny added quickly, looking down at her books.
"New? What, are you muggle-born or something?" Ron asked.
Trinny got a deer-in-the-headlights look on her face and opened and closed her mouth several times before she spoke. "Oh, erm, you could say that, yeah.. so, what about that Squid-pitch team, huh?" She diverted the subject, and Harry memorized the mixed expression on her face, filing it away to analyze later.
"It's Quidditch, Trinny." Harry corrected.
"Yes, um, of course!" she giggled, turning bright red and gulping nervously. Harry could tell that she was on the spot, and aided in steering conversation in another direction. He hated seeing her like this; looking like a beautiful and exotic animal backed into a corner and trying desperately to escape. A very beautiful and exotic animal.
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A/N: NOTE: I borrowed lots of paragraphs from my first story, Joke that Killed, like the sorting song and sorting names. actually, just basically the whole sorting part. So. is Harry falling for two girls, both Jacie and Trinny? Hmm, interesting. that is, if you people actually care! REVIEW, for heaven's sake! What does it take, a bribe? Well, I'm not willing to stoop to that level.
Look, if you'll just review my stuff then I'll review yours. How's that??
PWEESE! *gives big sad teary puppy dog eyes*
Love from,
Saranimal
HaloGal5@aol.com
" 'Back to Cool' "
A/N: Hellooo? Is anyone out there? Is this thing on? Testing, testing, one, two, three. hmm, there's got to be some reason that nobody's reviewing! I hope it's not my story, otherwise I shall go hide under a rock somewhere and cry 'til kingdom come. Or something to that affect...
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The Hogwarts Express squealed it's breaks, coming to a halt in front of the massive lake, the moonlight bouncing off the shimmering water. Harry, Ron, and Hermione heard the familiar sound of Hagrid's gruff but sweet voice shouting, "Firs'years, over 'ere!" Harry saw the shadowy form of Trinny Philips scurry towards the big man and hop in a boat, blending in quite snugly with the other shrimpy first years.
The eerie horseless carriages pulled up to the older students, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione clambered in one along with Neville Longbottom, Lavender Brown, and Parvati Patil. "So, how was your summer?" Lavender asked Hermione.
"Fine, I guess." she answered.
"No, I mean, how was your summer? Come on, details, details!" Lavender pressed, and both her and Pansy began to snicker.
"Does she have to spell it out for you?" Parvati inquired, rolling her eyes. "How did your vacation to Viktor go?"
A look of dread stretched across Hermione's face, and she looked desperately from Harry to Ron, searching for a way out of this. this 'girl talk.' Unfortunately, the two eager faces sat there, waiting for this juicy gossip. "Erm. well, Viktor lives in a small villa near the outskirts of town, near the mountains. His mother is a pediatrician, and his father works for a Supermarket in town."
"And.?" the girls prompted, leaning still forward.
"And he has a little sister that's in the third year, her name's Melva."
'Melva' was clearly not the juicy gossip that the two girls were longing for. They took sidelong glances at each other and began laughing hysterically.
"That is the -"
"Saddest -"
"Most pathetic -"
"Oh you poor dear -"
"Thing I've heard -"
"Yet."
"Ever."
Lavender and Parvati said, finishing each other's sentences mid- laugh. Hermione looked as if she was ready to curse both of them then and there, but she refrained and held her chin up high. "I had a delightful time." she said, but the other two were much too busy whispering excitedly to take notice. Ron patted her on the arm supportively before the carriage door popped open in front of the main doors, and out tumbled the six of them.
But the splendor of the Great Hall soon chased away all Hermione's sullenness. No mater how familiar you were with Hogwarts, no matter how long you had attended, the first glimpse of the hall after a long summer break was always breathtaking. The candles suspended mid-air, the rich maroons rolling with the vibrant yellows, the lush greens flirting with the royal blues; all colors that looked good enough to eat.
"Finally," Harry thought to himself. "I'm home."
Sitting in the Great Hall and catching up with old friends, the loud hum of conversation was silenced when Professor McGonagall entered with the first years to be sorted. Most of them looked terrified, much like they did every year, with the exception of Trinny, who walked at the very end of the line with her face shining so that it looked like it might be her birthday.
The battered hat sat expectantly on a stool in front of the Head Table. After it had commanded a silence from the knowing upperclassmen, and newcomers that soon followed suit, it opened it's brim wide and sang the sorting song:
The Sorting Hat's quite scratched and torn, Dirty, smelly, stained and worn. Haven't your Mummies ever said "Don't judge by looks, but smarts instead!" This old hat you see sittin' here You place it up around your ears And it'll have a peek inside And see which house you're to abide. Gryffindor contains the bold Nerves of steel their hearts do hold. Though Hufflepuff may take the meek, Also justice and faith they seek. In Ravenclaw dwell the wise, Knowledge and learning are their prize. And in crafty Slytherin Power dominates therin. I promise I'll make no mistake And after just a short debate I'll call it out With a great shout Where you will unearth your fate!
After the initial shock of a talking hat wore off, the first years seemed to enjoy the song. Some even bobbed their heads in time to the rhythm. A thunderous applause punctuated the ending, and The Sorting had begun.
"Adelade, Kira" Professor McGonagall barked out, and a tiny blonde scurried over and sat on the stool. Seconds later, in a commanding voice that far rivaled McGonagall's, the hat yelled "RAVENCLAW!" The whole table buried her underneath handshakes and welcoming hugs, and she managed to finally take a seat just as "Babburn, Tony" was named Hufflepuff.
The poor Hufflepuff table. even after all this time, you could still see the solemn looks of sadness on some of their faces about Cedric's death. Professor Sprout had dedicated her best greenhouse to him, being head of Hufflepuff House she had taken the tragedy especially hard.
The announcement of "Boyle, Beauford." as a "SLYTHERIN!" jerked Harry's attention back to the present. He watched the boy being welcomed by the Bloody Baron, a thing he didn't seem to like much. The sorting was much more fun when you got to be a part of it, Harry thought decidedly as "Chestnut, Skylar" was named the first new Gryffindor.
Harry clapped along with the rest of the table nicely, and for the first time noticed the new teacher sitting at the Staff Table. He must have been the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. That would fit, because Professor Snape was favoring him with a particularly nasty look. Poor guy, the Potions Master been ousted from the position for the fifth year running. Harry got the sinking feeling that Potions was going to be even more unbearable this year.
The new professor looked very young, probably not past twenty-five or so, but he was very tall and well built. Already Harry could see that many girls were favoring the man with the seductive glare that he himself only dreamed of attracting. The new teacher had shaggy auburn hair that looked meticulously cared for in a way that was supposed to give the impression that it wasn't, and big, brown eyes that would fall under the category 'puppy dog.' He looked somewhat familiar, but Harry couldn't quite place the face.
As "Zerkmeyer, Wadsworth" joined the Ravenclaw table, Harry was awakened back into the world of the living. At the front of the hall, Headmaster Dumbledore stood up and utter silence followed. "And now, for our, erm, special student. Trinity McGundron-Philips is a fifth year, but was unfortunately detained in her attending Hogwarts up until this year. We are very pleased to have her with us now." Dumbledore explained, once more making Harry's mind whir with mystery. Something about this girl wasn't adding up. what could she be hiding?
Confidently Trinny approached the stool and jammed the hat on her head. There was a moment of silence while the hat made it's decision. It took a long time, but Trinny couldn't look calmer. Harry began to suspect that she might've fallen asleep, but not even a full minute later her eyes popped open and the hat hollered "GRYFFINDOR!" to the whole hall.
Like she had known it all along, Trinny strolled up to the Gryffindor table and took a parked next to Neville, who was sitting right across from Harry. Neville promptly introduced himself and shook her hand, and she smiled warmly at him. She was politely inquisitive, asking about the enchanted ceiling and past Sortings.
"Welcome." Harry greeted, once Trinny's conversation with Neville had ceased.
"Thanks!" she replied brightly, smiling excitedly at him. As she leaned forward to inspect the lace tablecloth, Harry saw a heavy, dark pendant swing from her neck that had previously been disguised within her robes. A searing pain darted across Harry's scar, and his fork clattered to his plate noisily as the boy clasped his hand to his head. Quickly, Trinny caught the pendant with her hand and stuck it back under her shirt, glancing around to check if anyone had seen.
Harry pretended like he hadn't, the pain in his head reduced to just a dull throbbing now.
Now that the sorting was finished, Dumbledore's customary speech was about to begin. The man stood up once again, and the silence came almost immediately. "This year will be one of the toughest, and most memorable, yet. Last year's events," a few daring murmurs broke out at the mention of Harry's scrape with Voldemort. "have caused security around Hogwarts to be upped yet again. We ask that nobody goes anywhere alone, especially at night, and the Forbidden Forest is completely off limits as usual." Dumbledore's eyes sparkled for a second, and Harry thought he saw a smile peep through the massive beard of his as he knew just how many times those rules would be broken.
"Welcome, students both new and old, to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!" he announced grandly, and clapping his hands together, a feast suddenly materialized on their plates. Blood pudding, kidney pie, deviled eggs; Harry ate them all. Twice.
Taking a big swig of pumpkin juice and washing down the last of his dessert, Harry sat back with a contented sigh and surveyed his fellow housemates. The first years looked even smaller this year, even younger and more babyish. Harry wondered, had that actually been him just a few short years ago? Had he ever really been that young, that innocent, that free of the haunting images of Voldemort's terror?
NO! a firm voice in his head shouted, chasing away the dark clouds full of memories that threatened to invade Harry's mind. There was too much hurt there, too much pain and 'what if.' Harry adamantly refused to succumb to it. Defiantly, he took another bite of potatoes and gnawed on it viciously.
In the Gryffindor common room that night, things were the normal party they were on the first day back. Of course Fred and George Weasley planted a few trick candies around, every once and a while people bursting into feathers or sporting rather corpulent tongues. Yes, Harry was even glad to be back to the daily fear of eating a sweet, in case it might be a proud product of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes.
(^*^)
At breakfast the next morning, schedules were distributed to all the students. Monday morning Harry and Ron had the pleasure of Divination with Professor Trelawney, and then after that was Herbology with the Hufflepuffs.
"Oh, not that primadonna again!" Ron groaned.
"At least it's for the last time. Next year we get to pick new elective classes, more specific ones. Like curse breaking, or magical medicine, or advanced magical creatures. I can't wait." Harry explained wistfully.
"To take those classes, or to be rid of Professor Trelawney?" Ron asked.
Harry laughed. "Both."
Ever since Harry's correct prediction of Buckbeak the Hippogriff's escape from death, Professor Trelawney had regarded him as some kind of sage. "Boy, you have the gift." she said for the millionth time, foreseeing his bloody demise to the whole class for the millionth time also. "Watch your back, boy, I see an enemy entering your life." Professor Trelawney predicted, or rather, scientifically guessed. An enemy was always in Harry's life, being who he was. She was just going with the odds. Little did she know, she was quite near becoming his enemy herself.
"You," Professor Trelawney said, pointing a wavering finger at Lavender Brown. "A tall, red-haired man will enter your life and steal your heart." Gasps broke out as Lavender turned and gave a disapproving open- mouthed glare at Ron, who sunk deep down into his pouf, no doubt wishing it would swallow him whole.
"Old fraud." he muttered, glaring at Lavender in such a way that Harry could tell that even if the Professor Trelawney had made a correct prediction (which was as likely as the Slytherins hosting a ballet recital), that the only way something near a romance would happen between Ron and Lavender would involve the Body-Bind Curse and a strong pair of pliers.
"Maybe she meant Fred or George." consoled Parvati, shooting Ron an equally evil look.
After a futile moment of attempting to stay awake and pay attention, Ron and Harry fell asleep. Of course, if Professor Trelawney ever caught them, which she rarely did, they just acted like they were getting a strong prophecy about their deaths and she was sufficiently suckered into it.
After their refreshing nap it was lunchtime. "Oh, awake now are you?" Lavender asked cuttingly when Harry and Ron sat down at the house table. Both her and Parvati were lacking the exact amount of brain cells needed to be level with Professor Trelawney, and the two girls considered her the Mucho Supremo of all teachers. It was the ultimate disrespect to view the woman as she really was: the Mucho Supremo of all cons.
Twenty minutes late, Trinny scurried into the great hall for lunch. "Where have you been?" Harry inquired, looking at how flustered she seemed.
"I got in an argument with my Muggle Studies teacher about how a telephone worked, and then she gave me detention!" Trinny explained, sliding into an empty seat next to Harry.
Ron and Harry burst out laughing, but Hermione looked at Trinny like she was a bad little girl that disobeyed. "What did you say?" Harry asked.
"That a phone sends sound vibrations through wires to whoever you're talking to at such a fast speed that it's like, immediate." Trinny relayed.
Well, Hermione, Harry, and Trinny all began laughing, but the rest of the table just looked as if they just found out that Santa Claus didn't exist. "You mean it's your actual VOICE transmitted over MILLIONS of kilometers IMMEDIATELY?" asked Ron incredulously. "But that would be so HARD!"
"Yeah. haven't you wondered what all the poles and wires were for?" Hermoine answered.
"I just figured muggles did it the same as we did, except without the magic." Fred replied.
"How do you guys do it?" wondered Harry.
George thought about it for a second, then stated simply, "By magic."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "You people are so oblivious, even the teacher had no idea."
"I know, that's why I got in such a big argument with her. Professor Newcastle claimed that a phone was just a microphone shouting something really, really loud."
"What's a microphone?" Fred asked.
"Like a megaphone." Hermione answered irritated.
"What's a megaphone?" George asked, getting frantic from confusion.
Hermione growled menacingly, but Trinny turned to George and explained it slowly and clearly, like he was a foreigner. Which he was, to the muggle world. "It's something that magnifies your voice many times."
"Oh." Fred and George stated in unison, a double epiphany.
"So wait, that's not it? The mecklephone making things louder, and the fellytone shouting them to the other person?" Ron asked, whispering and leaning towards her.
Harry, Hermione, and Trinny exchanged bewildered glances. "Um, no." Trinny answered. "The megaphone makes things louder, but that's totally different than a telephone. A telephone sends signals over wires to another telephone. Comprende?"
"Um, yes?" answered Ron, smiling hopelessly.
"So wait, she gave you detention just for that?" said Harry.
Trinny looked caught between sheepishness and pride. "No, not exactly. you see she wasn't pleased that I was showing her up, so she told me to sit down. So, I sat down and kept on lecturing her. She told me to shut up, so I stopped talking and took my wand and scrawled my complete explanation, in permanent script, around the room."
Harry gasped out loud. "You actually did that!?"
"Of course, I wasn't going to let that fat biddy push me around! I'll be glad to serve a measly detention if it means remembering the look on her face as she watched the golden ribbon of words wind its way around the room, spreading the good news that she was an imbecile. Ah, now that was precious." Trinny described, looking off into the air, presumably recalling Professor Figg's offended face.
"Trinny, you've got character." Harry said, smiling and punching her on the shoulder. She smiled broadly and began wolfing down her sandwich as fast as she could.
As a group, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Trinny, Neville, Lavender, and Parvati trudged out to the greenhouses. Poor Professor Sprout seemed rather deflated that day in Herbology, her bubbly and expressive attitude lacking since Cedric's death. He was her favorite student, so promising, and even though she didn't know the extent of the tragedy, it was still enough to dampen things a bit.
"This unit, you will be learning about different antidotes for curse side- affects. After being under the Imperious Curse, for weeks or even months after a victim might spontaneously go motionless, their muscles relaxed and pupils unfocused, and fall to the floor. This can be avoided by Bubotuber Pus diluted by stagnant water that is hosting Hrangmunt larvae, then combined with Nocturne-Verona Berries," explained the small witch mechanically. "This is just one of the exciting combinations that you will learn to grow, prepare, and eventually, with the aide of Professor Snape, concoct and use."
Harry and Ron didn't look forward to having Professor Snape anywhere near them. Potions was agonizing enough, but ruining a sunny Herbology lesson also? That was downright cruel!
Taking a sidelong glance at Hermione, Harry saw her jotting down the antidote information for the Imperious Curse. After only a brief moment of wondering, a horrible memory floated without permission to the top of Harry's thoughts.
It was that of Viktor Krum standing above Cedric Diggory, inflicting the Crutacious Curse upon the convulsing body at his feet. Cedric's tortured screams and contorted face called repulsion and action into Harry's mind, and Harry quickly knocked the Bulgarian unconscious.. Krum had been acting under the Imperious Curse though, not his own free will, Harry found out later to his immense relief. That was what the antidote was for, Hermione was going to write him about it. Harry presumed that during her vacation to Bulgaria, he'd had a few relapses into the comatose side-affect that Hermione had been forced to endure.
Professor Sprout then dictated some notes on raising Nocturne-Verona Berries, which were a sour cherry-like fruit that made the one who ate it very lightheaded. They could only be exposed to full moonlight, and were a best crop in February, oddly enough. "One essay on the many uses of the berry, then, as homework. Off you go." the teacher assigned as class ended and students flooded out of the Diggory Greenhouse, newly christened at the beginning of the year.
"The first day of classes, and we've already got homework!" griped Ron.
"I can't wait to begin!" Trinny squealed, and everyone glared at her with the goody-two-shoes accusing look usually reserved for Hermione. "Well, this stuff is just so new to me." Trinny added quickly, looking down at her books.
"New? What, are you muggle-born or something?" Ron asked.
Trinny got a deer-in-the-headlights look on her face and opened and closed her mouth several times before she spoke. "Oh, erm, you could say that, yeah.. so, what about that Squid-pitch team, huh?" She diverted the subject, and Harry memorized the mixed expression on her face, filing it away to analyze later.
"It's Quidditch, Trinny." Harry corrected.
"Yes, um, of course!" she giggled, turning bright red and gulping nervously. Harry could tell that she was on the spot, and aided in steering conversation in another direction. He hated seeing her like this; looking like a beautiful and exotic animal backed into a corner and trying desperately to escape. A very beautiful and exotic animal.
* * * * *
A/N: NOTE: I borrowed lots of paragraphs from my first story, Joke that Killed, like the sorting song and sorting names. actually, just basically the whole sorting part. So. is Harry falling for two girls, both Jacie and Trinny? Hmm, interesting. that is, if you people actually care! REVIEW, for heaven's sake! What does it take, a bribe? Well, I'm not willing to stoop to that level.
Look, if you'll just review my stuff then I'll review yours. How's that??
PWEESE! *gives big sad teary puppy dog eyes*
Love from,
Saranimal
HaloGal5@aol.com