AN: HI! Wow, this went up fast! See I was motivated. This is a nice long chapter, about 15 pages I think, and that was before my author's notes. So how did you all like my Cho bashing last chapter? Sorry, Cho fans, but the girl is getting on my nerves. For all of you who thought there might be a little more to Lola Palm then meets the eye, you were right and here's where you'll finally get to find out about her involvement in the Weasley family. I plan to actually write her story one of these days. It'll be called Carrot's Girl, but that will only make sense after reading this chapter. Did anyone besides Sarah the Goblin Queen notice that she and Relena were both female beaters? I'm sure you did.
Lola Palm and Ginny Weasley snuck quietly into the library, Ginny's wand giving them only the faintest light.
"Lola what are we doing her at three in the morning?" Ginny wined. She was wearing a pair of black school robes over a set of Chudley Cannon pajamas.
"We're looking for something important, Red," replied the seventh year as she tousled Ginny's already wild hair.
"Lola, why are you persisting in this search? I'm sure Professor Darkhunter isn't hiding any secrets?"
"Ginny, Relena and I are kindred spirits. Believe me she's hiding something," Lola replied as she began to shuffle through a gigantic card catalogue. Se looked through for a minute before the one she was looking for jumped out of the drawer to her right and into her hand.
"Hmm, system must be acting up," she stated as she walked to the opposite side of the library with Ginny in tow.
"Lola, I think Ron's right," Ginny sighed, "since George left you do have to much time on your hands."
"Listen up, Red," Lola turned to face the younger girl, "yes I miss George, but that is entirely beside the point! I keep noticing the way Professor Darkhunter looks at Harry and at you and at you two when you're together. It takes her back to something, I'm just not sure what, so essentially you could say that I'm doing this for Harry's benefit, and not just to stay my own curiosity."
"But Lola, she seems perfectly nice. Why don't you just ask her what you want to ask her?"
"Because, Ginny, if she is who I think she is she is not going to admit it to me unless I have some kind of proof," Lola replied as she began to climb up a ladder by one of the bookshelves.
"What do you mean? Who is she?" Ginny was starting to get nervous.
"Think about it, Ginny. Her name is Relena Darkhunter, she played as a beater for the Gryffindor team when James Potter came to school."
"I still don't see what you're getting at, Lola," Ginny yawned.
"Haven't any of you read Hogwarts: A History? I mean I know Hermione has and I am a bit unnerved by the fact that she hasn't already reached this conclusion." Lola pulled a book out of its place on the shelf before shaking her head and putting it back. "Didn't any of you even think about the possibility that Relena's last name isn't Darkhunter? The first female beater ever to play for Gryffindor team was named Relena."
"All right, so you are now going to have classes conducted by your hero. What's wrong with that?"
"My "hero" as you so delightfully put it did not have the last name Darkhunter. Ah ha. Here it is," Lola said as she pulled out what looked to be a large yearbook. She jumped off the ladder and hit the ground with a resounding thud. For a moment she stood next to Ginny listening for someone to enter the room.
"I think we're okay. Nobody heard us," she whispered to a nervous looking Ginny. Quietly she carried the book over to one of the tables in the back of the library. Filliping it open she began to look through the index.
"Wh-what are you looking for?" Ginny yawned.
"I'm looking for a picture of the Gryffindor Quidditch team from James Potter's seventh year."
"Oh," Ginny replied, still just as confused as ever. "Why?"
"She said she played with James Potter, so I'm looking for her picture. Here she is." Lola pointed to a girl standing in between Harry's father and Sirius Black. Ginny looked down on the page to see the team member's names.
"But, look, Lola she isn't here. It's Weasley, Wood, Douglas, Black, Potter, and…. Potter?" Ginny's eyes widened in surprise.
"Yeah, Potter, Relena Potter." Suddenly there was a loud crack as the door to the library door closed. "Quick! Hide!" Lola hissed as she and Ginny dove under the table.
"Stupid kids. Always sneaking about after curfew," muttered Filch as he entered the room. "Do you smell anyone precious?" he asked his cat Mrs. Norris. Norris stared at him as if she thought he was insane. "All right then. We better be off. I just know someone is sneaking around here tonight." He turned to leave, but Mrs. Norris kept staring at the table. "Come along, precious!" he called, and with that Mrs. Norris removed her eyes from the girls hiding place and followed the caretaker out the door. When it slammed shut again, the girls poked their heads out from beyond their hiding place.
"That was close," Ginny sighed.
"Filch gives me the creeps," Lola commented as she continued staring at the book. Ginny looked at the older girl waiting for her to say something.
"We should tell Harry," Ginny supplied.
"No, I want to talk to Darkhunter first. I want her to explain a few things to us. When I have her for class on Monday, I'm going to ask her to have a chat with us before dinner. Okay?"
"Lola, why do I always get pulled into your messes?"
"Just lucky Red. Besides do you want to help your boyfriend or not?"
"All right fine," Ginny sighed to tired to blush she snapped the book shut and watched as Lola put it back up on a high self. The two girls left the library in silence. As they were walking back to the common room a question popped into Ginny's head.
"Lola?"
"Yeah, Red."
"If you call me Red, then what on earth do you call my brother?' Lola blushed for a minute before answering.
"Carrots."
"What?" Ginny laughed, "But that name almost kept him from speaking to you for your entire time at the school."
"Shh. Yeah I know, but it was the only name that Fred refused to respond to, besides I like carrots."
The young witch walked up the sidewalk in the early afternoon sun humming "The Street Where You Live". She would see her brother, sister-in-law and nephew in just a few more minutes. She had missed them. America had been fun to visit, but Godric's Hallow was always home. The sunshine was warm, and Relena was glad that she had decided to where her new muggle jeans instead of her robes. Casey had bought them for her as a going away present, and for some reason the sent Casey and Roin's Washington D.C. home stayed with them.
Relena felt something in the pit of her stomach as she approached the street on which her home sat. It was an ominous feeling. She knew something was wrong. Quickening her steps, Relena walked down the street. She broke into a full run when she saw the crumbled form of her childhood home. She didn't stop running until she reached the house.
She stopped only ten feet from where the doorway had once stood, and there she broke down. She screamed. She screamed like she had never screamed before. It came from the bottom of her feet, up through her spine, and out of her mouth before there was anything she could do to quiet it. With all of her energy depleted, Relena feel to the ground and began sobbing. Memories came rushing back to her; her brother talking about Voldemort, Lily saying that they might go into hiding, Sirius swearing that he would protect them until she came back, and Peter, poor little Peter, saying that he'd send her word if anything happened.
Suddenly, someone grabbed her. Already in hysterics Relena began to kick at the person. She tried with all her might to pull away, but they wouldn't let her go. Oh God, it was a Death Eater, was all she could think. They had come to kill her just like they had killed James and Lily and…Harry. Oh God, they killed Harry! Suddenly, her bitter tears turned into unrefined rage. Relena clawed and slapped at her captor, but they still wouldn't let go. She kicked, and heard the Death Eater give a yelp of pain as her foot connected with his stomach.
"Relena!" her captor shouted. "Relena, stop this!" He grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to look up at him. To Relena's surprise, he wasn't a Death Eater. It was Remus!
"Remus?" she questioned. He nodded his head somberly. "Oh, Remus, they're dead!" Relena wailed, "My family is dead!" She collapsed against his chest and cried.
"Shh, Relena, shh. Everything's going to be all right," he soothed. He held her to him in a hug with one hand, and stroked her hair with the other. They sat there for a while like that, her tears staining the front of his robes. Eventually, she quieted and began breathing slowly.
"What happened Remus?" she asked, her voice thick with emotion. Slowly, Remus told her of how her family went into hiding, how Sirius had betrayed them, and how Voldemort found them. He told her about James and Lily's murders and Harry's placement with the Dursleys.
"But, Remus, why? Why didn't they find me?"
"They thought that you had helped Sirius. They thought that you were working for Voldemort. That's why they sent Harry to the Dursleys."
"I'LL KILL THEM! I'L FUCKING KILL ALL OF THEM!" she screeched as she tried to stand up.
"Relena!" Remus gasped as he grabbed on to her hand. She tried to pull away, but Remus chose that exact moment to stand up. Relena lost her balance and fell backward. Remus threw his arms under her just in time to keep her from falling. She collapsed in his arms, and began her sobbing.
"I'll kill them Remus! First, I'll find Black in that hellhole and I'll make him wish he'd never been born. Then, I'll find Voldemort or whatever's left of him and chop him into little bits and pieces. I'll find Fudge and make him give me custody of Harry who I will kidnap right after I murder Vernon Dursley, the fat pig," she growled menacingly. Not wishing to upset her further, Remus shushed her as he carried her away from the house. She felt like such a small child in his arms. She felt safe and protected, but the anger blocked all of these emotions away from her while she continued to stain his robes with her bitter sobs.
"That's all well and good Relena," he whispered softly, "but for now perhaps we best go to see Dumbledore." With those words the couple disappeared from the street they were standing on. Only the town drunkard saw them, but as far as everyone was concerned, he was a complete lunatic. He was always spreading stories about evil wizards blowing up the home of that nice Potter family who had actually died when a gas pipe exploded. If he told anyone that he had seen the younger Potter sister return to the house, they would have all known he was mad, for in their minds she had been murdered in Paris by a serial killer who went by the name Tim Puzzle, or that's what Officer Fudge had told them.
Relena sat bolt upright in her bed. She was drenched in sweet, and the leather bound book she had been reading lay in a heap on the floor. Her sheets and blankets were twisted around her in a web of fabric. She was breathing heavily.
What a beautiful way to start my first day of school, she thought as she looked over at her alarm clock. It was too early to wake up, but to late to bother trying to go back to sleep. Slowly, Relena pulled herself out of the bed. She walked into her bathroom, and looked in the mirror. She definitely looked the part of a werewolf. Her body showed the signs of aging common to many of them. For a moment she wondered how Remus had survived it for the past 32 years. She had only been a werewolf for a little over ten now, and she could already feel the transformations sapping her of strength. Her hair, once a dark chocolate brown, had lightened slightly and was speckled with gray. Her body wasn't really as athletic as it looked. She remembered the way she had barely been able to move after her encounter with that vampire on the way here. Her face was lined with small fine lines, and under her eyes were dark circles. Yes, she thought, all and all I am very plain if not flat out ugly.
Relena turned around to face the shower. "Thank god they didn't give me a bathtub," she muttered out loud as she turned on the tap. Relena loved to take showers in the morning. They helped her to wake up and feel like she could actually do the job she was supposed to be doing. If they had given her a tub the affect would not have been as good. Quickly, she unbuttoned the top of her pajamas and slipped off her pants before switching on the shower. She climbed in and let the water run over her. It felt good to be living in a place where she could get a frequent shower. She loved the feeling of warm water on her skin, and had even stopped flinching when it ran down her leg to touch the scar, which was the only obvious sign that she was a werewolf. It was easy enough to conceal since it had been on her upper thigh, and she had never been comfortable wearing shorts anyway.
After washing her body, she grabbed a bottle of shampoo from the shelf above her head. As she began to wash through her long thick hair she swore, not for the first time, that she would cut it all off as soon as she got the nerve. After her shower the young werewolf dressed in her DCU uniform. She and Miguel had agreed that it would be best to cover the dark creatures briefly, but spend most of the class answering any questions the class might have about the secret organization. Relena had received a letter from their boss, Cee Polk, announcing that the DCU had finally decided to openly joining the rebellion against Lord Voldemort, and so there was no need for them to hide from the students that they meant to protect.
Relena liked the uniform. It was a black loose fitting bodysuit. It was pulled in at the waist by her stake belt, where she kept her wooden stakes and other things she might need to get to quickly. She pulled her long hair into to bun at the back of her head, and put her gun holster on her ankle underneath the suit. She looked at her desk on which sat a note from the librarian. Relena read it, seemed puzzled by it for a minute, and when realization dawned she angrily crumpled it up and threw it in the trashcan. Looking at the alarm clock and deciding she better hurry, she slid on a pair of tennis shoes and walked out of her room.
Since she seemed to be all alone in the halls at this early in the morning, Relena decided that she should get a morning workout by jogging to the Great Hall. She took a moment to stretch, but was interrupted.
"STAND BACK, OH EVIL WENCH!" cried a knight from one of the portraits. "DON'T GIVE ME A REASON TO DUEL WITH YOU!" At these words Relena turned around to find herself facing a portrait of a short armored knight and his gray fat pony. "Oh, um, excuse me fair maiden," the knight stuttered. All right, he's insane, Relena thought to herself. Me a fair maiden, please.
"Good day to you, sir," Relena replied sarcastically before running off. She jogged for what felt like only a few minutes before reaching the Great Hall. She walked in and was surprised to find it already half full. She had expected to be the only one there, but instead it appeared that most of the faculty was already there and at least half of the student population. As Relena walked in, she glanced over at the Gryffindor table. She saw Ginny and Lola talking about something in hushed tones. They looked up and saw her. Ginny looked a bit shaken, but Lola just smiled and waved. Relena noticed that Hermione was already up and speaking to a tall boy with blond hair, who she remembered as being Neville Longbottom. Harry and his friend Ron were not there, but Relena hadn't expected them to be. She remembered how hard it had been to get James out of bed in the morning when he was 16.
Relena turned her attention to the other house tables. The Hufflepuffs gave her no notice as she entered. The only Ravenclaws that seemed to care about her presence were Cho Chang and Core Rim who were pointing at her even as she turned to glare at them. They stopped as soon as they noticed her gaze and Relena had no doubt that in that instant she looked very much like Severus himself.
To Relena's surprise, she seemed to be getting the most attention from the Slytherin students. The girls were pointing at her and whispering from behind their hands, not even bothering to stop as she looked at them. The boys on the other hand were starring at her. This shocked her a bit since she had never considered herself pretty and since she was old enough to have been any of their mothers. Still it was Draco Malfoy who caught her attention the most. He was watching, but not the same way the other boys were. He seemed to be trying to she through her instead of just her outfit, and that caused the young witch to feel most unsettled. If Draco mentioned anything to his father about a new teacher in Hogwarts named Relena Darkhunter, Lucius would piece together the puzzle eventually.
"Relena! Hey, Relena!" called a rough Australian voice. Relena turned her eyes up to look at Miguel. He sat toward the end of the teacher's table. To his left on the very end sat Remus who deftly avoided Relena's gaze when she looked over at him, to his right there was an empty chair in which Relena supposed she was meant to sit, and to the right of that chair sat Severus who was in an animated conversation with Professor Dumbledore. Returning Miguel's wave, Relena bounded up onto the platform on which the teacher's table sat.
"Excuse me, Remus," she said as she slipped behind him to reach her seat. She was a little embarrassed when her stomach accidentally rubbed against the back of Remus' head, but he made no mention of it. Taking her seat, Relena reached to grab a cheese Danish off of a large plate filled with pastries. She looked over at Miguel and caught Remus starring at her with what looked like a smile playing on his lips, but he made no comment. Relena returned her attention to the other Professor Darkhunter.
"Did you sleep well?" asked Miguel through a mouthful of waffles. He looked like a young teenage boy as he stuffed food into his mouth.
"Yes, actually I did. You know Miguel, I found out one of the most interesting things about you right after the Quidditch game," Relena commented innocently. Miguel stopped chewing and suddenly turned pale white. He knew Relena had found out, now the only question was how was he going to keep her from killing him.
"Really?" he swallowed nervously.
"Yes, one of the students mentioned to me that they heard you making a bet with Remus. Is that true?" Relena had to repress a giggle when she saw the other werewolf stiffen out of the corner of her eye. Naughty Remus you shouldn't eavesdrop. Perhaps he also feared her wrath.
"Um, yes," Miguel replied feeling his stomach drop out from underneath him.
"Now tell me they were incorrect when they told me that you were foolish enough to bet against my Harry," she hissed menacingly.
"Now, Relena, listen. I had no idea how good he was on broomstick, and it was just in fun. I even lost money on it," Miguel stammered.
"Come on, Miguel," Relena ordered as she stood up. Grabbing a piece of toast she said goodbye to Severus and Remus before walking out the door of the Great Hall knowing that Miguel was following her. They walked in silence. Relena munched silently on her toast while Miguel walked a few feet behind her afraid she might snap like a rubber band that had been wound too tight. They passed the lake where the giant squid raised one lazy tentacle out of the water in greeting, and reached the Quidditch pitch in record time. This had been the decided sight for their classroom, at least for the first few days. Lethifolds were creatures that required warmth to function so it was impossible to teach the class indoors while working with them. They would take two weeks to cover the Vampires with the seventh years, but since the "creatures of the night" were so shrouded in rumor it couldn't be done any other way.
"Now listen, Relena, violence is not the answer. I'm sorry I bet against Harry I really am, but please, I don't want to hurt you," Miguel whined, more afraid for his own safety then for her's. Relena gave a short laugh.
"Miguel, don't be silly. I'm not going to fight with you."
"You're not?" Miguel raised an eyebrow in suspicion.
"Of course not. It wouldn't due for the students to see us fighting each other, and I would hate for one of us to have to teach a class in pain, but I've decided something."
"Which would be?"
"I'm going to let you teach the first lesson all by yourself," Relena announced as she walked over to the stadium bleachers.
"NO! Come on Relena. Don't make me do this," the larger man whined in a way that would have been comical if it weren't so pathetic.
"Don't worry about it Miguel. I'll be watching from right here incase one of the students attack you," Relena giggled.
"That's not funny," Miguel grumbled as he went over to a small shed to pull out the things they would need for the class.
"This should be interesting," Spridal sighed. Unconsciously she poked at her oatmeal in disgust not even looking down at it.
"What's wrong Spridal?" asked Hermione as she shoved a mouthful of the same gloppy mess that Spridal had into her mouth.
"Today is the day Relena and Miguel start teaching. I hope they don't fight. That would really slow the learning experience," she stated as Harry and Ron sat down. Ron took his customary place to the left of Hermione and Harry sat to Spridal's right.
"They don't look like they're fighting to me," Ron said as he dipped his finger into Hermione's breakfast. Hermione slapped him lightly on the hand in return. "I mean look they're even leaving together," Ron continued as he licked the remaining oatmeal off of his fingers.
"Yeah, Spridal relax," Harry said calmly. "Guys," Harry lowered his voice to a whisper and they all leaned in to hear, "Sirius was at the match on Saturday. I saw him talking to Professor Lupin, but," Harry stopped talking.
"But what?" Ron asked impatiently.
"But he didn't come to talk to me. What if he only came to tell Dumbledore some bad news? I mean it's bad enough that I don't have a family, but it's even worse when I can't talk to Sirius even though he's here." Inwardly, Spridal cringed. She was going to have a hard time keeping her mouth shut if Harry kept moping like this.
"Harry, I'm sure he's going to talk to you soon. Maybe he's just trying to lay low for a while," Hermione reassured.
"Yeah," Ron whispered enthusiastically, "he might be taking a kind of… you know…. vacation. Charlie told me about the scrap he got into with a couple of Death Eaters in Romania about a month ago."
"Maybe you're right. I hope so. It would be really nice to celebrate the holidays with some family you know. Come on we'd better get to class," Harry added as he and the others stood up and headed for the Quidditch pitch. As they walked out the doors someone called Harry's name.
"Harry! Hey, Harry! Potter!" cried out an annoyed looking Lola Palm.
"What Lola?"
"Do me a favor and ask Relena if Ginny can sit in on her vampire classes with the seventh years. She really wants to see it and she has free period then since Sprout canceled her Herbology class. I think she said something about it being time to pull up the Mandrakes, but I couldn't make it out through my earmuffs." A skittish Ginny stood behind Lola though whether she shared Lola's excitement over the vampires or not, Harry couldn't tell. Harry made a mental note as to how cute Ginny looked when she was being shy, but quickly tried to clear the thought from his mind, focusing on Lola instead. She looked at him with a knowing smirk.
"Why do I have to ask her?"
"Because she's more likely to say yes to you."
"What are you talking about?" Harry replied. For a moment Lola stood there looking confused then her eyes narrowed into slits as if she had just remembered something. "Listen," Harry sighed, "I'll ask her, but Ginny I don't know if she'll say yes." Ginny blushed furiously.
"Thanks, Potter," Lola replied before taking Ginny by the hand and leaving the doorway. Ron gave Harry a puzzled look, but Hermione looked at Spridal who was watching Lola leave with a look of confused annoyance on her face.
"Come on. We'd better hurry!" Ron called as he ran out the door. The group of four walked to the Quidditch pitch, but before they reached it they were greeted by a cowering Neville Longbottom. It was an almost comical sight since Neville, who had had a major growth spurt between their fifth and sixth years, seemed much to large to be scared of anything. In fact, with a different haircut and a few more scars, one could almost mistake him for a relative Miguel Darkhunter.
"What's wrong Neville?" asked Spridal with an uncharacteristic amount of concern. Neville looked down at her, he obviously hadn't noticed the other Gryffindors standing so close to him. He tried to straighten himself out, but for all his effort he still looked shaken.
"Wehavethisclasswiththebiggestgitsontheplanet,' he mumbled through gritted teeth. The other four looked at him curiously. "We have this class with the biggest gits on the planet," he repeated slowly, putting emphasis on the words class, biggest, and gits. Ron stared at him looking horrified. Hermione seemed to be shocked as well.
"They wouldn't!" Harry gawked.
"Wouldn't what?" Spridal asked.
"They couldn't!" Ron seemed outraged.
"Couldn't what?" Spridal demanded, stomping her foot for effect.
"Spridal," Neville replied as if he were talking to a confused first year, "there is a rivalry in this school between our house, the noble Gryffindors, and the slimy skunkweed Slytherins. It is a long-standing tradition that these two houses do not get along. If you haven't noticed there are a few students who you probably wouldn't want to share classes with in the latter."
"Oh, you mean Draco," Spridal replied. How could Relena do this to her? Making her take classes with Draco Malfoy.
"Yeah basically, but it gets worse."
"How could it possibly get any worse?" Ron practically shouted.
"Professor Snape is sitting in Gryffindor bleachers talking to one of the professors. I think he's planning to watch the class!"
"He'll probably find something wrong with it, so that he can take it over," Ron mumbled vehemently.
"Well, there's no use standing over here muttering about it. Let's go," Hermione said as she grabbed Ron's hand and dragged him onto the pitch. Harry, Neville, and Spridal followed at a safe distance. True to Neville's words there sat Professor Darkhunter in conversation with Professor Snape. Surprisingly, he was laughing. Harry didn't think he'd ever seen the potions master laugh before and it scared him on some level. With a wave to Professor Darkhunter, Professor Snape descended the bleachers he was sitting on and passed the group of three.
"You Gryffindors better behave. She's not a teacher you want to get mad," he said staring coldly at Harry. Harry felt the blood in his veins chill, but returned Snape's stare with an even colder one. "and she doesn't play favorites to heroes," Snape hissed.
"All right, everybody!" called Professor Darkhunter in his thick Australian accent. "Gather round! We've got a class to start!" Snape broke his stare with Harry and walked away without another word. Harry stood there dazed for a minute, but was pulled almost violently out of it by Spridal who had grabbed his sleeve and was now pulling him down to where the other students were gathered.
"Good morning kids," Miguel stammered sending Relena into a fit of giggles. "I'm Professor Darkhunter, and I'll be instructing you for the rest of the year in Combating the Dark Arts. This will be a new class for all of you, and will probably be a lot more physically draining, but I'm sure you can manage," the professor continued to stammer. He seemed abnormally nervous to Harry, like he wasn't sure of what he was doing. Harry looked out of the corner of his eye to see Draco Malfoy smirk.
"Oh, great," Malfoy said in a mocking tone, "it seems we have another Hagrid. Hey Spridal," he called, "does your brother even know what he's doing?" Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville all looked at Spridal. She was turning bright red with anger, but her face seemed far away like she was trying to say something to someone on the other side of the field. Harry looked up at Relena Darkhunter who was no longer sitting on the bench, but had now stood to her full height. Her eyes were narrowed in anger, and like Spridal she to seemed to be concentrating on something far away from herself. Harry could see her lips moving as she mumbled the words to a curse. He returned his gaze to Spridal who now stood there with a satisfied smirk on her face.
"Now that'll be enough out of you Malfoy!" she called from across the field. Draco looked at her perplexed for a moment before tossing his head back in laughter. Meanwhile, Professor Darkhunter had pulled a large wicker crate up onto the one of the bleachers that stood behind him.
"Now," he stumbled, his confidence obviously shaken, "you'll have to use an extreme amount of care while we work with these little devils."
"I was right just like Hagrid!" Draco called from the other side of the field.
Suddenly, the crate shot open, and out flew what looked like a huge black blob. It flew over the heads of the other students and landed directly on Draco's leg. Professor Darkhunter's eyes had widened in shock. He looked panicked beyond all belief.
"Get it off me! Get if off me!" Draco screamed as he kicked his legs wildly. The creature obviously didn't speak English since it refused to let go of Draco's leg, and instead began moving up his side.
"I told you to be quiet Malfoy!" Spridal giggled. Harry looked up at Relena who now stood on the bottom bleacher behind the crowd. She was obviously enjoying watching the spectacle.
"Relena! What ever you did, undo it!" Miguel shouted.
"Oh really, Miguel," she sighed, "He was being such a pain, but all right. Draco Malfoy please step out towards me," she requested as she hopped off the bench. Draco complied, all though he looked like he was about to cry. Harry had to admit that it was an amusing sight.
"Now, Mr. Malfoy, I need you to be as quiet as humanly possible when I make the Lethifold let go of you. Do you understand?" Draco nodded yes. "Good. Expecto Patronum!" the professor cried, and the blob was thrown off of Draco and across the field. "Finite Incantrum!" she said pointing her wand at Draco.
She then returned her attention to the blob, which was inching closer and closer to Pansy Parkinson's shoe. "Expecto Patronum! Expecto Patronum! EXPECTO PATRONUM!" she yelled. This time Harry was able to see that they form of her Patronus was that of a large white wolf which bared its teeth viciously at the creature before snatching it up and throwing it back towards the wicker crate that Miguel was holding open.
As soon as the Lethifold landed it the wicker crate, Miguel snapped it shut. Malfoy looked as though he was about to faint. Miguel looked relieved. Spridal was shaking with silent laughter, and the eyes of all the other students had suddenly turned to look at Relena Darkhunter who stood with a slightly amused look about her.
"Thank you, Mr. Malfoy for showing the class exactly what not to do if they are ever attacked by that particular creature. Do you need to go to the infirmary?" she asked looking genuinely concerned. Draco shook his head no. "Very well then. On with the lesson," She said as she walked to stand next to Miguel whose features seemed to fill with a sudden relief. "Now, if you all don't mind, please sit down on the grass," she said as she conjured up a set of blankets for the students to sit on. Neville moved to sit next to Lavender Brown who blushed when he asked to sit next to her. Ron and Hermione shared one blanket, and Harry and Spridal shared another.
"The creature that you just saw before you was a? Does anyone know? You've already started learning about them." Ron raised his hand causing Hermione to look a bit shocked. "Yes Ron," the professor said pointing to the red-haired boy.
"Well, that was a Lethifold. Wasn't it?"
"Very good Mr. Weasley."
"So, why, if we've already studied this thing with Professor Loopy are we studying it with you?" Draco drawled from his seat next to Pansy.
"For the very reason that you demonstrated only a moment ago. This class will serve to put into practice the defense techniques that you have learned from Professor Lupin. It will also serve to familiarize you with the lifestyles of dark creatures and a special organization known as the DCU, but we will come to that later."
"Miguel since you did such a…um…creative job at introducing today's lesson, I think I'll lecture for a few minutes," Relena smirked as Miguel sat down on the bleacher behind her. He checked the straps on his case one more time before turning to face the class. Relena did the same.
"Now, as you already know, Lethifolds are only found in tropical climates, so chances are that you won't ever meet one unless you go to South America. This particular Lethifold has been domesticated for use by young witches and wizards, which is why it can survive up here. Don't worry. I will not endanger you by forcing you to face potentially dangerous creatures that have not been trained for your use, so no writing letters home saying that Dumbledore has a teacher that is trying to kill you."
"Detection of a Lethifold is difficult since they only appear as dark black shadows. They can only be seen if they move into light, and even then a witch or wizard would have to be completely aware of their surroundings so that they could see that the Lethifold was more than a mere shadow. A Lethifold cannot be heard, and anyone who as ever tasted a Lethifold has not lived to tell the tale. They can be felt, but they will cause you no more pressure than that of your clothing on your skin, and they have no texture. There are really only two reliable ways to sense a Lethifold. First, you can smell it. This is a method that can be preformed by any witch or wizard. The Lethifold tends to give off a smell of either decaying flesh or a sweet smelling flower depending upon whether or not it has just eaten."
"The second way very few of you will be able to comprehend. It is what many witches and wizards call Bolt, because that is generally what you feel like doing when you have this feeling. The feeling varies among people blessed with the gift."
"Some say it is a sick feeling at the pit of their stomach, others say it feels like a dry throat, and still others insist that it feels like all the hairs on their neck stand up at once. You will discover if you have that gift throughout the course of this class. If you do you will feel it whenever you approach a dark creature, and it's severity will be determined by how dangerous the creature is. If you think for any reason that you might show signs of Bolt I urge you to talk to either your head of house or I, so that you can decide what you want to do with this gift."
"The only way to defend yourself against a Lethifold is through the use of a Patronus. By the end of this year you will all be able to perform a successful Patronus. I am willing to help any of you who need it after classes, but the important thing is that you try. I think I'm going to end my lesson on Lethifolds there for the day, since there really isn't a lot to teach about them, and we have a few more important things to cover."
"Now, I know for a fact that there are at least two students in here that know about the DCU. The most obvious would be my sister, Spridal. The other student may not wish to come forward, which is understandable. DCU stands for Dark Creature Underground. We are an elite group of wizards, witches, muggles, and "dark creatures" who are working together to bring cooperation and understanding among the wizarding community about good dark creatures. That is the key thing for you to understand. Not all "dark creatures" are evil. The majority of werewolves, for example, wish to protect others from their own infliction and will go to great lengths to achieve that goal. The efforts of some of these brave men and women helped us to develop the first effective Wolfsbane potion only a short while ago."
"Oh, so you're the reason that Lupin can teach us without eating us. Thank god for small miracles," Draco drawled. Relena looked at him coldly.
"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry hissed menacingly, "At least he didn't to turn you into a ferret!" At this all of the Gryffindors began laughing. Relena looked on watching as if she thought they might go for each other's throats.
"Oh really, Potter," Draco said standing up, "Well at least my favorite teacher isn't friends with a convicted murderer. I mean Sirius Black was your godfather wasn't he." A gasp escaped the lips of all the students, and from the look in Harry's eyes it was obvious that Malfoy had crossed the line this time, bringing up Sirius Black's betrayal of his parents had come to be one of the things that Harry wouldn't tolerate ever since the end of his third year.
Harry lunged at Draco and punched him in the eye. "Take that back you sick son of a...!"
"Harry get off of him!" Miguel yelled. Hermione tried to grab Harry's arms, but only managed to get kicked in the stomach by Draco who was squirming beneath Harry. Draco swung an arm out and managed to hit Harry in the stomach. The rest of the students gathered around them in a circle.
"Fight! Fight! Fight!" all of the students, Gryffindor and Slytherin, cheered.
"Let us through!" Relena yelled trying to get through the mob of students. "DRACO MALFOY! HARLOD JAMES POTTER! STOP THIS NOW!" Relena bellowed as she approached the two boys. She grabbed Harry around the waist. Harry was almost as tall as she was and had a lot more rage, but Relena still managed to pull him up off of the wounded Slytherin. "HARRY! HARRY! HARLOD JAMES POTTER STOP THAT THIS INTSANT!" she yelled as Harry continued to thrash in her arms. Realizing that he was now in a rather embarrassing situation with Professor Darkhunter lifting him slightly off the ground, Harry stopped.
Miguel was now helping Draco up, and of the two of them he did look the worst. He ran a hand through his silver-blond hair, and when he pulled it out it was covered in blood. Rage filled Draco's eyes as he stared at his hand. Suddenly, he lunged at Harry. Harry who was no longer being restrained by Relena took a step back in surprise. Luckily, Miguel had anticipated that Draco might try something like this, and had grabbed the skinny boy around his waist. Also coming to the realization that he was in deep trouble Draco stopped trying to hit Harry, and instead turned to face Relena. She looked furious.
"WOULD EITHER OF YOU TWO LIKE TO TELL ME WHAT THE HELL YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE DOING? WE DON'T FIGHT EACH OTHER IN THIS CLASS! WE FIGHT EVIL DARK CREATURES!"
"But Draco is an evil dark creature," Harry mumbled just loud enough to be heard. Draco glared at him menacingly, but did not reply.
"I do not…I repeat…. I do not want to ever hear about you two fighting each other again, and if I ever see it again you two will find out which Darkhunter is more dangerous when provoked, and I can guarantee you that it isn't Miguel. If either of you move a muscle while I tend to Hermione you'll wish you had never found out you were a wizard. Hermione," she said turning to the other girl, "are you all right dear? Do you need to go to Madame Pomfrey's office?"
"Oh, no Ms. Darkhunter. I'll be fine really. Ahhh, it just stings a little," Hermione said flinching as she stood up.
"Hermione why don't you go see her anyway. You were hit pretty hard."
"No really Professor, I don't want…. Ahhh!"
"Miss. Granger I must insist that you go see Madame Pomfrey. Don't worry. I'll make sure you get my class notes to study from." Since Professor Darkhunter was quiet insistent, and since she was in a great deal of pain Hermione began walking back to the castle. "Spridal, go see that she gets there all right," Relena requested, and the sprite got up to help the other girl.
"Now," Relena said rounding on Harry and Draco, "you two are going to sit here through the rest of the class, broken and bruised as you are. If either of you begin to feel dizzy please inform either myself or Miguel, so that we can send you to the infirmary before you pass out." Relena turned her back to them.
"You can't do this!" Draco shouted. Relena stopped walking and turned back to face him. "Do you know who my father is? He could make Dumbledore fire you!"
"Mr. Malfoy, I'll have to ask that both you and Mr. Potter sit down. I know exactly who your father is. I was here when he went to school. Please give him my regards when you make your complaint." Then she turned from them again, and the bell rang. "Damn!" Relena hissed. "All right. Class dismissed. I'll see you all tomorrow and you might want to bring a notebook of some sort so that you can take notes. We'll be discussing more about the DCU tomorrow. Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Potter please hold back after the rest of the class." Harry watched nervously as the rest of his house left. He looked over at Draco who seemed about ready to yell again. Miguel walked over to Relena and put his hand on her shoulder. He whispered something in her ear, and she nodded. He then went over to pick up the crate with the Lethifold in it, and walked back into the shed.
"Now," Relena turned back to them, "I am going to report this to both of your heads of house, but I will ask them that I be allowed to decide upon your punishment. You have both lost your houses fifty points today."
"That's not fair!"
"But Professor…."
"Both of you hush. You're lucky the bell rang. I was of the mind to make you both sit there until class was over since both of you are obviously not seriously injured." She was right of course they were both dirty and bruised, but neither one of them was bleeding anymore. "In the future I will warn you two not to fight in my presence, and Mr. Malfoy if you are going to offend teachers I do suggest that you do not do it in front of other teachers. You Draco Malfoy are going to help Mr. Filch clean the owlrey two days from now, and Harry Potter you are going to help me with some work I have to do on Saturday night. If either of you fail to show up, I will be sure to see that you don't play Quidditch for the rest of the year. Good day gentlemen." She turned away from them and once again mounted the high bleachers. Draco wasted no time in storming off to catch up with the rest of the Slytherins, but Harry stayed behind. He still had to ask about Ginny, and come hell, high water, or Relena Darkhunter he was going to.
"Um, Professor," Harry mumbled.
"What is it now Harry?" Relena turned back to face him with a look of annoyance. Harry must have flinched because her face softened. "I'm sorry. What do you need?"
"I just wanted to ask if a friend of mine could sit in on your seventh year class this afternoon," Harry gulped.
"Which friend?"
"Ginny Weasley." Relena slimed at him as if she saw something that he didn't.
"Harry I should say no. The way you acted today was inexcusable…."
"But Professor you don't understand…"
"Harry I don't want to hear it. What you did was just not right. Your father would have been ashamed of you." Harry felt his face fall. "Don't worry. He would have understood. He did the same thing to Severus hundreds of times and for much less noble reasons. Gods, I'm starting to sound like Remus. Listen to me scolding you like some little child. All right, Miss. Weasley is welcome to attend my class. I'll see you later Harry. We're going to meet in the Great Hall for tomorrow's class." Harry felt suddenly happier; even if he was in trouble at least he had gotten permission for Ginny to attend the class.
"Thank you Professor. Good Bye," he said as he began to walk away.
"Good Bye, my little one," she said, the last part barely above a whisper.
Severus stalked silently through the cold dungeon hallways to see Relena. He was egger to find out how her first class had gone. They had placed her office behind a painting of a yeti near the Great Hall, and Severus could all ready feel the tension that hung in the air. It held his attention even more fiercely then the shouts of young witches and wizards eating lunch down the hall. He stopped in front of the painting.
"Turf nock Tock key," the yeti warned.
"Yes, I know. She's in a foul mood," Severus nodded to the yeti whose portrait immediately flew open to reveal Relena's office. As Severus stepped in and the door closed behind him, he was surprised as a knife came flying at him. He ducked just in time to keep from being decapitated.
"Oh Severus! Are you all right?" Relena cried as she rushed to his side.
"Yes, but I would prefer that you not try to murder me the next time I come to see you?" he snapped coldly. Relena let go of his arm once he was off the floor, and the look in her eyes seemed sad, angry, and frustrated. "Relena, I'm sorry. I just put a great value on my life that's all."
"Yeah well, I need to be more careful with those knives anyway."
"Yes, where did you get that aim?"
"Years of practice, Severus," she said pulling three copper handled daggers out of the wall. "Actually, I only practice when I'm frustrated. It's probably not the best combination, you know, letting an angry witch have sharp objects that she's skilled in the use off, but it helps calm me down anyway."
"So, I'm assuming that your first class did not go very well?"
"That," she said throwing another dagger into a vampire shaped dummy on the other side of the room, "is an understatement."
"Let me guess. This involves Harry?" She nodded. "And I'm sure that Draco Malfoy was involved as well."
"So they're always like that?" she asked sounding even more frustrated. Severus nodded as he sat down in a chair behind her desk, well out of the way of the daggers she was throwing.
"Dammit!" she hissed and threw another dagger. "They're worse than you and James were. At least you two had the sense to try not to fight in front of the professors!" Severus gave her a hurt look. "Now don't you start pouting on me Severus Snape! Both you and my brother were the two biggest jerks in the entire school!"
"Actually, I think Black held that title," Severus commented. Relena threw another dagger, which missed the vampire completely and hit the wall instead.
"Now would be a really great time for Voldemort to show up, you know? I'm so angry with Harry that I might just rip Voldemort's slimy face off with my own bare hands!" She threw her third dagger, this time managing to land it straight in the center of the vampire's chest. She stalked back over to the dummy and yanked out the two that had hit it before going over to the wall to pull the other one out. She took the three daggers and stuffed them into a purple velvet sack that she threw into her closet.
"Wait a second," Severus requested before she shut the doors. He walked up to the closest and looked inside. It was filled with Hunting and Researching equipment. There were crossbows, daggers, steaks, and hundreds of jars of different potions lining the cabinet walls. In the draws that were set on the bottom there were labels that said "Zombie Dust" and "Vampire Fangs" all written in a large masculine scrawl that Severus guessed to be Miguel's.
"Relena some of these things are illegal," Severus commented indicating a particularly crude looking mace. "Any ordinary witch or wizard would be arrested for having them in their own private collections, make no mention of actually using it!"
"Ahh, but Severus that is the key word, ordinary. I am not an ordinary witch though you must suspect that there are some days I wish I were. I have license to have all of those implements of violence, yes, even the mace."
"Where did you get some of these potions ingredients?" Severus stood amazed by the array of nearly illegal substances she had.
"Oh, those. That's just a little bit. I can refill them whenever I need to," she said taking the chair that he had previously sat in. "You can borrow some if you like," she added with a casual wave of her hand. Severus looked back at her and almost didn't catch the comparison between her and Lupin before it passed his lips. He knew that the comparison of they're two familiar gestures would not please her at all.
"Ook Tal Not ta!" the yeti on the other side of the painting called.
"Relena! Would you mind telling this bloke to move? We've got a class to teach in ten minutes!" Miguel called from the other side.
"I'm coming!" Relena called back. "Sorry Severus, but I have to go. I'll talk to you later. I'm sure you can let yourself out!" she called as she lifted up a load of books and left the room.
For a few minutes afterward Severus sat there, puzzling at his friend. Her strange moods indicated something, and he had to wonder why her own Bolt sense hadn't gone off when the shape shifters had been near. The only person who had ever escaped her Bolt sense had been Lupin, but that had been because-
Severus' thoughts were suddenly interrupted as an owl flew in the window with a letter on its leg. Severus removed the letter without a second glance assuming it was for Relena. The owl flew away without a word. Sighing, he stood up and placed the letter on her desk before leaving the room completely. Had he stopped to actually look at the letter he may have noticed the green snake seal on the letter's underside or the way his name had been delicately written in a very feminine scrawl.
AN: I just saw the movie by the way. It wasn't bad, but I don't think it was as good as it could have been. Ten Galleons to whoever realizes which Hobbit character Filch is based on! I would love reviews from those of you who actually read this. I want to know what you think about anything at all. Thanks, until we meet again.
Morgan