Title: New Beginnings: The Seventh Year
Summary: Harry begins his seventh year, having to deal with the dangers and joys of life in school. He also notices that a certain someone is quite good-looking… (Slash) Harry/Draco, Ron/Herm, Dean/Seamus
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Chapter 4: Meeting Sirius
As soon as the whole group stepped into the common room, Professor Lupin turned to them, "Can all the seventh year boys please follow me? Miss Granger, Miss Weasley, please follow me as well." He then turned towards the staircase of the boys dorms and went up the steps with Snuffles following behind him. Hermione and Ginny looked at the boys and shrugged, following the whole group up the stairs.
Past experience told the Gryffindor students that the rooms are labeled along the passageway as the first and second years nearest to the common room, their doors facing each other, and the seventh years all the way at the end. Counting the doors, the seventh year dorm room should be after the third pair of oppositely facing doors they come to. However, as they came to the third pair of doors, they realized that there is no other door beyond it. Professor Lupin was waiting in front of a portrait of a boy seated on a lion and playing a charm to a snake using his flute. All the Gryffindors looked at the painting with surprise as the portrait wasn't there the previous year.
The boy in the portrait realized that they are in front of his portrait and said, "Hi, I'm Marcus. Password?"
"Protection" Professor Lupin replied.
"Okay. See you guys around. You too Snuffles." He cheerfully waved at the group as the panel swung open, opening to a small common room. This common room was different from the one downstairs as it seemed to be supposed to function as a study room. It was circular and along the walls were tables for studying. Chairs were tucked into the tables and the centre of the room was four one-person couches surrounding a small coffee table. The whole group followed Professor Lupin as he settled himself in one of couches in the centre, Harry, Draco and Snuffles settled into the other couches as the others went to the tables to pull the chairs towards the centre to surround the four of them. When everyone settled down, Harry spoke up.
"Professor Lupin, I told everyone here about Snuffles in my fifth year. Unless Draco doesn't know about Snuffles…" Harry looked at Professor Lupin, not wishing to say more in case Draco really did not know the true identity of Snuffles.
Draco grinned at the dog sitting opposite him. "What he means is, Sirius, you can change back now."
Everyone was staring intently at the dog as it started to become bigger and bigger, finally a human being was seated on the couch the dog previously was on. "This is so much easier to communicate, isn't it? Hi Harry. Merlin! You have grown so tall," Sirius Black commented at he gave Harry a hug, "Hi Ron. Hi Herm. Hi um… I didn't catch the names of the rest."
Harry looked at the black-haired man who, after four years, was still on the run, after escaping from Azkaban in his third year. Since his godfather started following Professor Lupin around as his pet dog, he seemed more rested and healthy, being less pale as he was no longer being locked up. Harry hoped that Sirius knew what he was doing by being at Hogwarts but knowing Professor Dumbledore, he would try his best to protect Sirius.
"Okay, we'll have enough time to catch up in the next few weeks. First things first. Professor Dumbledore felt that since we are placing Draco together with Harry, then we should try our best to protect the two of them. Thus we took the seventh year dorm room and convert it to what you see here. There are two doors there, as you have noticed. One is a smaller room than the other. The smaller room only has two beds. We would like to ask Miss Granger and Miss Weasley to shift up here. Is it okay?" Both Ginny and Hermione nodded, as Ron grinned happily. "Even though we have two girls up here, no funny business is allowed, Mr Weasley and Mr Longbottom?" Ron and Neville blushed and nodded. "Okay. Obviously the other room is for the guys. As there are six of you, we made the room slightly bigger. The password for the portrait of the Fat Lady is changed every week. But the portrait outside here will be different. The password for Marcus to open the panel will be changed on every Wednesday and Sunday. I know that the additional password may be tedious for you all, but it will be necessary. The password for tonight is Protection. Later before you all sleep, one of you go out to Marcus and settle with him the password for tomorrow till Wednesday. The only other people who are allowed in here are the professors and the Headmaster. You have to make sure that you don't let anyone in here. Minerva would have made the announcement to all the other students of Gryffindor just now regarding the fact that it is prohibited for all students other then yourself to enter this room. Get it?" Professor Lupin made sure that everyone nodded. Neville was frowning because he had the tendency to forget passwords.
"Okay. Everyone get up. I need to show you something." Sirius got up from his seat and led everyone into the room on the left. There were six beds in the rectangular room, with two rows of three. Everyone's trunks were left in a pile in front of the first bed. When everyone saw the arrangement, Ron, Dean, Seamus and Neville hurriedly claimed their trunks and move it to put on the beds they chose. Draco and Harry were left staring at the arrangement the other four boys made. Another protection arrangement in place. Draco marveled to himself. They didn't even need to think. Neville and Seamus were nearest to the door and restrooms. Dean was beside Seamus and Ron was beside Neville. Harry picked up his things and moved it to the inter-most bed beside Ron and Draco moved his things to the inter-most bed beside Dean's.
"Another thing you need to note is that should anyone attack from the door, the girls are to make their way here. Everyone, look here," Sirius said, as he went to the wall Draco's and Harry's beds were leaning against and used his wand to tap a brick right in the centre of the wall, opening a panel that is large enough for one person to pass though at a time. "When you pass through this panel, just make sure that the last person pull the panel close. Just walk along the passageway and it will open to one of the secret rooms of this castle. Only Professor Dumbledore knows the location of that room. Once you reach there, stay there. When the attack is over Professor Dumbledore will go and fetch you. In that room, a map similar to the Marauders' Map is on one of the walls. Use that to monitor the situation within the castle. Should the map show that the castle has been taken under control of Voldemort, use the fireplace in the room to get out of the castle completely. That fireplace is well stocked with Floo Powder. Floo to somewhere neutral, like the Leaky Cauldron. Do NOT Floo to the Burrow. It's too obvious. If you choose the Leaky Cauldron there is the chance that Voldemort can't find you once you get into muggle London. Attempt to lose yourself in the crowd so that the Death-eaters can't find you. If you reach that stage, do not trust anyone anymore other than the eight of you here. You need to know how to protect yourself. Understand?" When Sirius finished his instructions, everyone slowly nodded, digesting his instructions. Many of them, like Neville, Seamus and Dean were very pale as they realized the seriousness of the matter.
"It means that should Hogwarts really fall into Voldemort's hands, the eight of us will most likely be the only people who will survive the attack?" Harry asked in an emotionless voice that Draco had never heard before.
Professor Lupin looked at Harry and nodded. "The rest of us will be involved in the defense of the attack. Voldemort will have to get through the entire first sixth years of the Gryffindor boys to get to Marcus. Then he had to get through Marcus. Marcus was told that should his portrait be destroyed, he is to trigger the system such that all of you inside will hear an alarm to know that outside is being attacked and to lock the panel against opening at all cost. Hopefully that will allow you all enough time to escape through this panel before the death-eaters destroy the panel that Marcus locked."
Everyone was then led out to the common room. "Even though this is like your own common room, make sure you go down to the Gryffindor common room too. It's not good to be cooped up here. Join those weekend parties. Socialize with you fellow housemates. Enjoy your last year at Hogwarts. Those precautions are only for the attacks, which may not even happen. Are you all going to be alright here?" Sirius asked. Everyone nodded and then after reminding them to change the password, Sirius changed back into his animagus form and both of them left the dorm.
When the door closed behind them, Ron collapsed into one of the chairs. "Does anyone feel like puking?" Ginny nodded to his question, leaning against Neville, who seemed to be quivering. Hermione moved behind Ron's chair and gently massaged the back of his neck.
"I'm sorry. If I never came to Hogwarts, then you all would be having a normal seven-year education in here, instead of living in fear. Maybe I should go to Professor Dumbledore and just tell him to take me out of the dorms and…" Harry leant against one of the tables, not wanting to look at anyone's face.
"Harry, that's nonsense. Don't make me beat you up. We are here because you are our friend and we are willing to do anything for you. That's why we are in Gryffindor. Friends and family matter a lot to us. After six years in the same dorm room, YOU matter to us. So don't let me hear this nonsense coming out from your mouth again." Seamus cut Harry off in a very serious and annoyed tone. Everyone in the room was very surprised as they had never seen Seamus so serious before. Harry looked at Seamus, knowing at that precise moment that Seamus had just pledged his loyalty to do anything to protect him. Looking around the room, he saw similar looks on everyone's faces. Until he came to Draco's face, whose emotionless face showed nothing, but his eyes blazed with a tint of… envy?
"Draco?" Harry asked questioning.
Draco lifted one of his eyebrows but the envy was still in his eyes. "Harry, let me ask you something. Did every Gryffindor get a prep talk when they were sorted into the house? Did the students of your house have the obligation to take note of where you are at all times? When you walk from class to class, did your friends have to surround you so that you are protected from attack? Why did they surround you when having meals? Did they let you choose the bed you want in the new dorm room or did they do what they just exhibited in front of us just now by stationing themselves near the door? Did they do it subconsciously or was the 'protection' deliberately set up by Dumbledore?" It was then that Draco saw the look of astonishment on Harry's face when he finally understood what was Draco was talking about and had been in front of him for the past six years. Looking around at all the others in the room, Draco saw similar astonished looks on the others' faces. He mockingly sighed at himself and realized that it really was subconscious on the part of Harry's friends to protect him. He turned to walk towards the boys' room to take care of his luggage, saying softly, "Now you know why I have to be taken out of Slytherin."
Harry stared at the back of Draco's figure as he disappeared into their room. He looked so lonely. As an 'outsider' it took Draco less then three hours to see what had been in front of him for six years. He recalled that since as a first year, after the welcoming feast, he would subconsciously let everyone enter the dorm room before him. His experience with his relatives made him used to walking behind everyone when entering a room. When they chose their beds, he had just accepted the only bed left, happy to at least GET a bed, never wondering why he had always got the bed furthest from the door. He never noticed that his friends in the recent two years had persistently waited for him outside the classroom to walk with him to the next class no matter how late he was detained by the professor. He just accepted it as house spirit. Then he remembered an incident when he was in the infirmary the previous year. Draco was also injured from the same Quidditch match. When he woke up, he was greeted by the numerous get-well cards on the table beside his bed, some of them even from students whom he never knew. When he glanced at Draco's bed, his table was empty, as if no one cared that he was lying in the infirmary. However Harry just shrugged it off at that moment. Then he recalled offering friendship to Draco in the Great Hall just now and briefly wondered how Draco had survived the six years in Slytherin.
Looking at Ron, he could tell that his best friend also came to the same conclusion as him, when Ron turned from staring at the door of their room to him and gave a small smile. Harry returned the smile. At that moment, Harry felt very content, as he looked around at all his good friends beaming at him.
"Harry, what do you think is Draco's sexual preference? We need to get YOU a boyfriend." Seamus grinned impishly at Harry, as Harry blushed.
"Well, he IS hot." Dean commented.
"Dean! Were you checking Draco out? How could you! You don't even check ME out, how could you check HIM out!" Seamus pouted, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
"Um… I…" Dean shot a pleading look at Harry and Harry decided to step in before Dean blurt out anything he might regret.
"Seam, Dean was just trying to help you with YOUR argument, why are you trying to bite his head off? Unless… you want Dean to check YOU out? Is there something you should tell Dean?" Harry cheekily asked, trying to help Dean test the waters. Seamus refused to meet Harry's eyes and to the amazement of everyone present in the room, he blushed.
"I… no… just that I thought… Dean is straight." He frowned and quickly walked towards their room. "I'm going to unpack." He said as he went through the door.
Everyone was staring at the doorway again.
"Um, was there something I missed? Did I just see our dear Seamus blush? Dean, why are you grinning madly?" Ron exclaimed, confused.
"So was that the hint you were looking for? How are you going to thank me?" Harry mischievously nudged Dean who was beside him. Dean just couldn't stop grinning as he felt so relieved. It was quite obvious that Seamus did feel an attraction towards him. So all he had to do now was to make sure that he had to approach Seamus carefully.
"He does look cute when he pouts huh?" He softly said as he also walked towards the door.
"Finally. I thought they are never going to take the hint that they like each other." Neville said sitting down, pulling Ginny down onto his lap. Harry, Ron and Hermione turned to Neville in shock. Neville continued on. "Maybe we should add on the bet that Seamus ends up with Dean. Since everyone betted that he will end up with Harry, because they are both gay. No one took into the account that Dean may be bisexual." Ginny nodded. "Harry, can I choose the password for the first two weeks? I need to get use to the system." Harry nodded, still speechless with shock. "Come on, Ginny, let's go add on the bet. Something tells me that we'll win very soon. We'll tell you guys the password later." He got up with Ginny and went out of the panel together.
The only people that left in the room were Harry, Ron and Hermione. The first one who spoke first was Hermione. "Umm… maybe Neville is not as… clueless as we thought. I'm… going to go unpack. Night, Ron." She gave Ron a peck on his cheek and headed towards her room.
Ron and Harry were left staring at each other. Then both of them suddenly burst into laughter.
"Did I hear Neville say that there is a wager on my love life?" Harry finally said, after they finished laughing.
"As usual. You are THE Harry Patter. But maybe it's time you get someone. Everyone seemed to be pairing up. And… Malfoy didn't seem that bad now."
"Are my ears kidding me? Did I just hear Ron Weasley suggest that?"
"Don't think I didn't notice you checking him out in the Great Hall. For your information, I saw him check you out too. And I do think that it's time YOU settle down. And don't give me that crap about not wanting to endanger anyone. And if Draco Malfoy is anymore endangered, he'll be dead. But the main thing is… what do you feel about him?" Ron asked, crossing his legs and placing his hands in front of him. He had been in this position of a 'psychiatrist' for Harry before, waiting patiently while Harry sort out his thoughts and bounce ideas off him.
Harry remembered the Draco Malfoy he knew for the past six years. Then he remembered that when he heard Pansy order Crabbe and Goyle to beat Draco, there was a sense of protectiveness that he was not sure if it was due to the fact that he was attracted to Draco or that Draco was a fellow human being. I am attracted to him, that's for sure, Harry thought, but I don't want one-night-stands. I want something that lasts.
So all he replied Ron was "I don't know, Ron, I really don't know."
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A/N: Is this working? hope you like it. Review!