Chapter 8: Jenks
Following his abysmal defeat Harry had gone straight to bed, noticing that Seamus had also retreated to the relative safety of his curtained bed, almost tempted to go and half-apologise, half-congratulate Harry stopped halfway when dark Irish mutterings emerged from the curtains. There was something about the way Seamus had said 'spoon' that made him think that avoidance was the best policy of the time. Changing quickly, Harry had fallen asleep within minutes, however a rude awakening awaited him. 'NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!' Harry's eyes slammed open as the tortured voice echoed through the room. This time it wasn't a dream, someone had yelled out loud, someone very close by in fact. Drawing back his curtains he found daylight streaming into the rooms through the wall, but that question was pushed aside as the other curtains drew back, except for Ron's. It specialises in targeting friends the remark shot into Harry's head unheeded. Leaping from his bed Harry drew back Ron's curtains dreading what he would see.it was Ron. He was sitting staring at the small object that had been hung above his bed during the night, a shiny badge in the shape of a 'P'. Trying to hide a smile Harry turned to Ron to see the absolute disgust and despair on his friend's face as Dean, Seamus and Neville joined in, all trying to hide the mirth evident in their eyes. 'When I find out which one of you turned it down.' Ron glowered, his tone suggesting that he also could do interesting things with a spoon when provoked.
* * *
Harry arrived down at breakfast to find one Gryffindor Prefect happy, that was until the other sat down beside her and savagely buttered a nearby slice of toast. 'I mean, what the hell is Dumbledore playing at? Me, a Prefect? Fred and George'll never let me forget it! And Mum - has he even considered what she'll put me through?' 'Yeah,' Hermione continued as Ron began splurging jam over the toast, 'Just think of all those unnecessary things she'll have to get, what did Percy have?' 'His own owl first of all,' Harry replied. 'Nice new robes.' 'Not to forget a jumper that wasn't maroon.' 'You two are heading the right way to finding my toast in your faces.' Ron said, his tone back to normal when he realised that maybe it wasn't so bad. In fact he was arguing this more vividly as they headed to their first class, especially after Pig's crash landing in his cereal. 'I hope it can fly, that's all,' he said to Harry, wringing milk out of his timetable. 'Who gets Pig then?' 'Mrs. Norris if I have it my way,' Ron said, glowering at the owl perched on his shoulder. 'Ron!' Hermione exclaimed, 'You'd never do that.' 'Well, what else is he good for?' 'Delivering messages in the rain?' Harry replied, 'That way they're already wet.' 'Ha, ha. But seriously, who could take him?' 'Why doesn't Hermione, she hasn't got an owl, and we know that Crookshanks trusts him, and probably won't eat him.probably.' 'My own owl?' said Hermione, then let out an unexpected laugh and hugged Ron so that his hair turned an even brighter shade of red then usual, 'Thanks so much.' 'It's only an owl,' he muttered as Harry's face threatened to stretch from the grin that erupted over it. 'Anyway, we have to see if I'm getting a new one,' Ron continued as Hermione walked ahead with a new spring to her step, 'Not that it really matters, I can borrow Hedwig or a school owl.' 'You'll need one soon,' Harry said, 'to send a message to Professor Kilmorie telling him why we're late.' Despite Harry's remark they arrived to the classroom just in time to fill in the front row, Professor Kilmorie was absent although a pure white cat sat on the front desks. 'I wonder where he is,' Hermione mused, stroking the cat that was perched in front of her. 'Will you stop that?' 'Stop what?' she asked Harry. 'What?' 'You said 'stop that',' she said, fixing him with an accusing stare. 'No he didn't.' 'Yeah, I didn't, thanks Ron.' 'For what?' 'What?' 'I said it,' said the cat, causing Hermione's hand to fly backwards as it fixed its green eyes on her. 'And now if you've quite finished?' 'Um.yes?' 'Thanks, no really,' he added, leaping onto the front desk, 'Professor Kilmorie is going to be a bit late today so I'm here instead. So, first of we're going to.yes?' 'Um.sorry, but who.what are you?' 'Name's Jenks, anyway, we're going to.yes?' 'You're a cat.' 'Well done, I guess they make anyone a Prefect nowadays with a genius like you,' he said, his eyes focusing on Ron. 'Anyway, Professor Kilmorie is now going to be not so late as before, and so before he gets here let's at least do one thing?' Meeting a wall of silence that cat nodded, his green eyes flashing in the light of the room, 'Now, does anyone know, who.or what,' he added, with a glance at Hermione, 'I am?' immediately her hand shot up. 'Why am I not surprised? Yes Ms. Granger?' 'You failed the Animagus experiment.' 'Well done, I guess some Prefects are still reliable, you're right, I tried to become an Animagus like your Professor McGonagall, only I.well I'm sure you can see it only got half there. The result is me, a talking cat, essentially I'm still an ordinary man, but I'm stuck in a cat's body. This does have advantages though, for instance I can do that see-in-the-dark thing quite well.' He paused as the door swung open and the man Harry had met the day before walked in, his cape still flowing behind him despite his slow and elegant pace. 'Good luck everyone, I'll see you about the place,' Jenks said, and before the door shut he was out, his tail whipping around the doorframe, 'See you at lunch Kilmorie.' 'Will do Jenkins,' the Professor replied, 'sorry to have kept you all, I trust you found it a mild education to speak with him. You headmaster has informed me that you have progressed nicely on all fronts in Defence Against the Dark Arts, dealing with creatures, curses, spells and jinxes, some of you more than others, but all to an adequate level of achievement. This year I will be teaching you about some of the more powerful creatures you may encounter, one of these will be the Dementor, so I warn you now that practical lessons will be forthcoming - work on finding a happy thought for that. I will deal with other daemons which will increase in their threat until you can ably handle each one, then I'll move you onto some of the more advanced spells, for example, to capture a foe without resorting to the use of extreme force. If you'll take out your paper, we'll begin with the Dementor.'
* * *
Even with Double Potions to slow the week down, Harry found his new timetable enjoyable due to the spread of Defence classes, there was one most mornings and 'practicals' in the afternoons, during which they had been learning the use of the Patronus charm - or in his case learning to strengthen it. By the end of the week he was already settled, but the meeting with Dumbledore still stuck in his head, distracting him from his work as the weekend begun. Leaving his Divination homework after being trampled to death by a raging Manticore, Harry ambled down to the Entrance Hall but found neither Ron nor Hermione on the way, not wanting to return to work he decided to go and see Hagrid. Arriving in the Entrance Hall he saw a flash of red hair and jogged down the stairs almost colliding with Ginny at the bottom, accidentally knocking her school books out of her hands. 'Sorry Gin, I thought you were Ron,' Harry said, reaching down to help her pick them up. 'That's okay, although I'd like to think I look somewhat different from my brother,' she said with a grin that he mirrored, 'He's probably in the library with Hermione.' 'What? Already?' 'Hey - not everyone can conjure a Patronus you know,' she said, another teasing grin on her face, 'some of us need to learn the hard way.' Accepting the books she stacked them back up before adjusting them more comfortably, 'Where are you going anyway?' 'Anywhere to avoid my Divination.' 'Is it really that bad?' 'I dunno, what's it like to have a Manticore tap dance on your head?' he asked, provoking a small giggle of laughter from her. 'Anyway, I'm going to see Hagrid, our classes with him don't start until next week and I haven't even said hello yet. Why don't you come? At least this way he can only unload half of his rock cakes onto me.' 'Okay, but you have to carry half of the books,' she said, dumping at least three-quarters of them in his arms then running out the doorway, leaving him to stagger and wobble after her with the books balanced precariously in his hands. 'No fair!' he shouted as she ran down the lawn in front of the school to Hagrid's hut. Catching up with her he tipped some of the books back into her arms, 'I only deal with light flying objects, you need your brothers if you're going to throw Bludgers around!' Walking alongside Ginny, Harry once again found himself more at ease then he had been since arriving back at Hogwarts, as if her very presence was warming his heart again. Knocking on Hagrid's door, Harry certainly wasn't expecting what followed. The door flew open sending Ginny's books flying from their arms and the two of them crashing to the ground. Over their heads blurred a white streak followed by the black and barking Fang, both travelling at high speed. As Hagrid's enormous hand snared Fang's collar, the white streak revolved itself into a slightly dishevelled looking Jenks. 'Next time, he stays outside,' he said, trying to look serious and failing miserably while his fur stuck out at all angles. Noticing Harry and Ginny, he nodded towards them before flattening his fur and heading back up to the school. Grinning sheepishly Hagrid helped Ginny up, passing the struggling Fang's collar onto Harry who had to anchor himself to Hagrid's hut to prevent the boarhound from chasing after Jenks again. 'Sorry about that,' he said, 'I forgot ter tie Fang up an' he came in after the Professor.' 'Jenks is a Professor?' Harry said incredulously as they walked back into Hagrid's hut, 'what does he teach?' 'I thought yeh would have noticed - he does Defence Against the Dark Arts wi' Kilmorie.' 'What's he like?' Ginny asked, sitting down on one of Hagrid's oversized chairs, 'I haven't had a Defence lesson yet this year.' Surprisingly it was Hagrid who answered, 'If Dumbledore trusts him, then I do,' he said but in his face Harry could see some doubt. 'It's jus' that,' and at this point he paused, 'yeh not ter tell anyone else, exceptin' Hermione and Ron.' His soft eyes had hardened for once and the two knew he was serious, 'He let some of us down, long time ago now. He wasn't involved with You-Know-Who, so don't yeh go accusin' him of such, but he hurt one of the staff and that's why we're not all pleased to see him back.' 'What about Jenks? Why is he working with him - because of what happened?' 'Nah, Jenks has known Kilmorie since school, they were good friends even since the.uh.well y'know. They stayed that way, an' I don't mind either - I knew Jenks, was one of my Dad's mates.' Sitting back, Hagrid let silence fill the hut for a few minutes, then he began with the familiar chat that Harry had come to enjoy over the years, moaning about Snape's unfairness, talking about Hagrid's classes and discussing the Gryffindor's chances of winning the Quidditch cup again. Weighed down with Hagrid's cooking, Harry and Ginny left in time to go back up to the castle for dinner, exchanging waves with him in the reddening sky. Once again Harry was too occupied to notice the glowing coming from the Liefgema hanging around his neck as he spoke with Ginny. But neither of them noticed the shadowy figure watching from the Forest's edge, merging with passing shadows as clouds passed over the blood-red sky. In their hand they held a single blade, tapping it against their hip - then with deliberate slowness they turned to face Hagrid's hut. It was time to begin.
Following his abysmal defeat Harry had gone straight to bed, noticing that Seamus had also retreated to the relative safety of his curtained bed, almost tempted to go and half-apologise, half-congratulate Harry stopped halfway when dark Irish mutterings emerged from the curtains. There was something about the way Seamus had said 'spoon' that made him think that avoidance was the best policy of the time. Changing quickly, Harry had fallen asleep within minutes, however a rude awakening awaited him. 'NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!' Harry's eyes slammed open as the tortured voice echoed through the room. This time it wasn't a dream, someone had yelled out loud, someone very close by in fact. Drawing back his curtains he found daylight streaming into the rooms through the wall, but that question was pushed aside as the other curtains drew back, except for Ron's. It specialises in targeting friends the remark shot into Harry's head unheeded. Leaping from his bed Harry drew back Ron's curtains dreading what he would see.it was Ron. He was sitting staring at the small object that had been hung above his bed during the night, a shiny badge in the shape of a 'P'. Trying to hide a smile Harry turned to Ron to see the absolute disgust and despair on his friend's face as Dean, Seamus and Neville joined in, all trying to hide the mirth evident in their eyes. 'When I find out which one of you turned it down.' Ron glowered, his tone suggesting that he also could do interesting things with a spoon when provoked.
* * *
Harry arrived down at breakfast to find one Gryffindor Prefect happy, that was until the other sat down beside her and savagely buttered a nearby slice of toast. 'I mean, what the hell is Dumbledore playing at? Me, a Prefect? Fred and George'll never let me forget it! And Mum - has he even considered what she'll put me through?' 'Yeah,' Hermione continued as Ron began splurging jam over the toast, 'Just think of all those unnecessary things she'll have to get, what did Percy have?' 'His own owl first of all,' Harry replied. 'Nice new robes.' 'Not to forget a jumper that wasn't maroon.' 'You two are heading the right way to finding my toast in your faces.' Ron said, his tone back to normal when he realised that maybe it wasn't so bad. In fact he was arguing this more vividly as they headed to their first class, especially after Pig's crash landing in his cereal. 'I hope it can fly, that's all,' he said to Harry, wringing milk out of his timetable. 'Who gets Pig then?' 'Mrs. Norris if I have it my way,' Ron said, glowering at the owl perched on his shoulder. 'Ron!' Hermione exclaimed, 'You'd never do that.' 'Well, what else is he good for?' 'Delivering messages in the rain?' Harry replied, 'That way they're already wet.' 'Ha, ha. But seriously, who could take him?' 'Why doesn't Hermione, she hasn't got an owl, and we know that Crookshanks trusts him, and probably won't eat him.probably.' 'My own owl?' said Hermione, then let out an unexpected laugh and hugged Ron so that his hair turned an even brighter shade of red then usual, 'Thanks so much.' 'It's only an owl,' he muttered as Harry's face threatened to stretch from the grin that erupted over it. 'Anyway, we have to see if I'm getting a new one,' Ron continued as Hermione walked ahead with a new spring to her step, 'Not that it really matters, I can borrow Hedwig or a school owl.' 'You'll need one soon,' Harry said, 'to send a message to Professor Kilmorie telling him why we're late.' Despite Harry's remark they arrived to the classroom just in time to fill in the front row, Professor Kilmorie was absent although a pure white cat sat on the front desks. 'I wonder where he is,' Hermione mused, stroking the cat that was perched in front of her. 'Will you stop that?' 'Stop what?' she asked Harry. 'What?' 'You said 'stop that',' she said, fixing him with an accusing stare. 'No he didn't.' 'Yeah, I didn't, thanks Ron.' 'For what?' 'What?' 'I said it,' said the cat, causing Hermione's hand to fly backwards as it fixed its green eyes on her. 'And now if you've quite finished?' 'Um.yes?' 'Thanks, no really,' he added, leaping onto the front desk, 'Professor Kilmorie is going to be a bit late today so I'm here instead. So, first of we're going to.yes?' 'Um.sorry, but who.what are you?' 'Name's Jenks, anyway, we're going to.yes?' 'You're a cat.' 'Well done, I guess they make anyone a Prefect nowadays with a genius like you,' he said, his eyes focusing on Ron. 'Anyway, Professor Kilmorie is now going to be not so late as before, and so before he gets here let's at least do one thing?' Meeting a wall of silence that cat nodded, his green eyes flashing in the light of the room, 'Now, does anyone know, who.or what,' he added, with a glance at Hermione, 'I am?' immediately her hand shot up. 'Why am I not surprised? Yes Ms. Granger?' 'You failed the Animagus experiment.' 'Well done, I guess some Prefects are still reliable, you're right, I tried to become an Animagus like your Professor McGonagall, only I.well I'm sure you can see it only got half there. The result is me, a talking cat, essentially I'm still an ordinary man, but I'm stuck in a cat's body. This does have advantages though, for instance I can do that see-in-the-dark thing quite well.' He paused as the door swung open and the man Harry had met the day before walked in, his cape still flowing behind him despite his slow and elegant pace. 'Good luck everyone, I'll see you about the place,' Jenks said, and before the door shut he was out, his tail whipping around the doorframe, 'See you at lunch Kilmorie.' 'Will do Jenkins,' the Professor replied, 'sorry to have kept you all, I trust you found it a mild education to speak with him. You headmaster has informed me that you have progressed nicely on all fronts in Defence Against the Dark Arts, dealing with creatures, curses, spells and jinxes, some of you more than others, but all to an adequate level of achievement. This year I will be teaching you about some of the more powerful creatures you may encounter, one of these will be the Dementor, so I warn you now that practical lessons will be forthcoming - work on finding a happy thought for that. I will deal with other daemons which will increase in their threat until you can ably handle each one, then I'll move you onto some of the more advanced spells, for example, to capture a foe without resorting to the use of extreme force. If you'll take out your paper, we'll begin with the Dementor.'
* * *
Even with Double Potions to slow the week down, Harry found his new timetable enjoyable due to the spread of Defence classes, there was one most mornings and 'practicals' in the afternoons, during which they had been learning the use of the Patronus charm - or in his case learning to strengthen it. By the end of the week he was already settled, but the meeting with Dumbledore still stuck in his head, distracting him from his work as the weekend begun. Leaving his Divination homework after being trampled to death by a raging Manticore, Harry ambled down to the Entrance Hall but found neither Ron nor Hermione on the way, not wanting to return to work he decided to go and see Hagrid. Arriving in the Entrance Hall he saw a flash of red hair and jogged down the stairs almost colliding with Ginny at the bottom, accidentally knocking her school books out of her hands. 'Sorry Gin, I thought you were Ron,' Harry said, reaching down to help her pick them up. 'That's okay, although I'd like to think I look somewhat different from my brother,' she said with a grin that he mirrored, 'He's probably in the library with Hermione.' 'What? Already?' 'Hey - not everyone can conjure a Patronus you know,' she said, another teasing grin on her face, 'some of us need to learn the hard way.' Accepting the books she stacked them back up before adjusting them more comfortably, 'Where are you going anyway?' 'Anywhere to avoid my Divination.' 'Is it really that bad?' 'I dunno, what's it like to have a Manticore tap dance on your head?' he asked, provoking a small giggle of laughter from her. 'Anyway, I'm going to see Hagrid, our classes with him don't start until next week and I haven't even said hello yet. Why don't you come? At least this way he can only unload half of his rock cakes onto me.' 'Okay, but you have to carry half of the books,' she said, dumping at least three-quarters of them in his arms then running out the doorway, leaving him to stagger and wobble after her with the books balanced precariously in his hands. 'No fair!' he shouted as she ran down the lawn in front of the school to Hagrid's hut. Catching up with her he tipped some of the books back into her arms, 'I only deal with light flying objects, you need your brothers if you're going to throw Bludgers around!' Walking alongside Ginny, Harry once again found himself more at ease then he had been since arriving back at Hogwarts, as if her very presence was warming his heart again. Knocking on Hagrid's door, Harry certainly wasn't expecting what followed. The door flew open sending Ginny's books flying from their arms and the two of them crashing to the ground. Over their heads blurred a white streak followed by the black and barking Fang, both travelling at high speed. As Hagrid's enormous hand snared Fang's collar, the white streak revolved itself into a slightly dishevelled looking Jenks. 'Next time, he stays outside,' he said, trying to look serious and failing miserably while his fur stuck out at all angles. Noticing Harry and Ginny, he nodded towards them before flattening his fur and heading back up to the school. Grinning sheepishly Hagrid helped Ginny up, passing the struggling Fang's collar onto Harry who had to anchor himself to Hagrid's hut to prevent the boarhound from chasing after Jenks again. 'Sorry about that,' he said, 'I forgot ter tie Fang up an' he came in after the Professor.' 'Jenks is a Professor?' Harry said incredulously as they walked back into Hagrid's hut, 'what does he teach?' 'I thought yeh would have noticed - he does Defence Against the Dark Arts wi' Kilmorie.' 'What's he like?' Ginny asked, sitting down on one of Hagrid's oversized chairs, 'I haven't had a Defence lesson yet this year.' Surprisingly it was Hagrid who answered, 'If Dumbledore trusts him, then I do,' he said but in his face Harry could see some doubt. 'It's jus' that,' and at this point he paused, 'yeh not ter tell anyone else, exceptin' Hermione and Ron.' His soft eyes had hardened for once and the two knew he was serious, 'He let some of us down, long time ago now. He wasn't involved with You-Know-Who, so don't yeh go accusin' him of such, but he hurt one of the staff and that's why we're not all pleased to see him back.' 'What about Jenks? Why is he working with him - because of what happened?' 'Nah, Jenks has known Kilmorie since school, they were good friends even since the.uh.well y'know. They stayed that way, an' I don't mind either - I knew Jenks, was one of my Dad's mates.' Sitting back, Hagrid let silence fill the hut for a few minutes, then he began with the familiar chat that Harry had come to enjoy over the years, moaning about Snape's unfairness, talking about Hagrid's classes and discussing the Gryffindor's chances of winning the Quidditch cup again. Weighed down with Hagrid's cooking, Harry and Ginny left in time to go back up to the castle for dinner, exchanging waves with him in the reddening sky. Once again Harry was too occupied to notice the glowing coming from the Liefgema hanging around his neck as he spoke with Ginny. But neither of them noticed the shadowy figure watching from the Forest's edge, merging with passing shadows as clouds passed over the blood-red sky. In their hand they held a single blade, tapping it against their hip - then with deliberate slowness they turned to face Hagrid's hut. It was time to begin.
