23. Training and the Daily Routine
The first week completed, Harry had something else to look forward during his second week: his first training session with Dumbledore. They had agreed to meet every Wednesday night. Although it was another thing in addition to Quidditch that took time away from studying, Harry knew that the training would be invaluable. After dinner on Wednesday, Harry went to the Room of Requirements. He found the door already visible, so he pulled on the handle and walked inside. Harry was pleased to see the room looking very much like it had during Harry's DA meetings. Dumbledore was already there, waiting in the center of the room.
"Ah, hello there Mr. Harrington," Dumbledore said. "How has your first week been?"
"Er, Ok, I guess. It's a little harder than I thought being someone else. A couple times I mentioned things that happened last year or the year before that I shouldn't know about," Harry said. "I was able to make an excuse, but I know I'll mess up sooner or later."
Dumbledore nodded. "I imagine it will be difficult for you. I know you believe in what you're doing, but please consider telling a few of your closest friends. The spell I gave you over the summer would come in handy."
"I'll think about it, Professor Dumbledore."
"That is all I can ask," Dumbledore said. "Now, shall we begin? First, let's find out how much you've progressed."
Without warning, Dumbledore sent a Tickling Charm at Harry. Harry reacted immediately, ducking to the side and drawing his wand in one swift motion. Pointing it at Dumbledore, he sent back a stunning spell. Dumbledore deflected it easily with a shielding charm, and then fired back a brilliant blue light. Harry quickly conjured a small bronze shield, but the shield shattered when Dumbledore's spell made contact, forcing Harry to twist around to avoid the pieces.
"Very good, Mr. Harrington! Very good indeed!" Dumbledore cried happily. "Your reactions are still excellent, and I was most impressed by the shield you conjured."
Harry felt his body relaxing as he realized that the impromptu duel was over. "It wasn't that impressive. The shield broke right away."
"True, but I didn't expect you to be able to conjure anything yet."
Harry gave Dumbledore a thin smile. "I spent months working on it. After I saw Voldemort use it, I though it would come in handy."
Dumbledore nodded. "Then we shall work to increase the toughness of your shields. Let's begin."
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Soon, October rolled its way around, and Harry's days were filled with classes, homework, training with Dumbledore, and Quidditch practice. In fact, it was very much like years past (except for the sessions with Dumbledore), but Harry didn't have his two best friends to really talk with. Although he spent a lot of his time in the library, Harry had been able to bond quite well with his fellow Gryffindors. Harry knew it was because of their shared past; even though they didn't know it was Harry, he knew them and felt comfortable, and he was able to blend right in. Also, his position as Seeker on the House team gave him a sort of popularity, and he was able to stay friendly with Ron through their Quidditch practices. Harry noticed a subtle difference in Ron. Harry observed Ron as he talked to girls, formerly a harrowing prospect for the red head. But now, Ron's confidence on the Quidditch pitch seemed to carryover to his regular routine, and he was his usual self, whether it was with Dean and Seamus or Lavender and Pavarti. Although Harry was very happy for Ron, he felt a little discouraged by it; he attributed Ron's positive change to the fact that he was no longer under Harry's shadow, and Harry felt a little guilty for holding him back for so long.
Like Ron, Hermione had seemingly changed considerably as well, even ignoring her uncharacteristic dislike of him. Of course, she was Head Girl, but that was to be expected. What Harry did not expect was the easy way she interacted with other girls; she seemed much closer to Lavender and Pavarti then before, as well as the other girls of different Houses. The Hermione he remembered was always a little uncomfortable around the other girls in the school, and she preferred to spend her time with himself or Ron. But now, she seemed to split her free time equally (what there was of it, between studying for NEWTs and Head Girl duties) between Ron and the other girls. And like Ron, she seemed to exude a new confidence. Once again, Harry felt a little guilty, wondering why his best friends had changed for the better without him, suspecting that his absence had a positive affect on them both.
Hermione still wouldn't talk or make eye contact with Harry. At first, it didn't bother him. He didn't feel ready to act like he didn't know every little thing about her, pretend that they hadn't gone through so much together. But as her icy treatment continued, Harry felt a little lost. He longed to talk to his other best friend again, but she continually ignored him, apparently not forgiving him for his mistake at the breakfast table the first day of classes. Harry also privately thought Hermione was mad at him for being the new Seeker, taking his own place from himself. He missed Hermione.
All these thoughts were in Harry's head as he watched Hermione talk animatedly to Lavender and Pavarti before their Defense Against the Dark Arts class. It was Halloween, and most of the class looked forward to the Halloween feast. Ron, whose two favorite subjects were food and Quidditch, filled Harry's mind full of images of the Halloween feast. They chatted awhile until Professor Clarke entered the room to begin class. Harry eased out his Potions textbook and hid it in his Defense textbook. Defense Against the Dark Arts had always been his best class, and with his training over the summer, it was even easier. Harry chose to spend his time on Potions, with one ear listening in case his name was called. As Harry began looking through the index for kappas scales, he heard Professor Clarke mention the Patronus charm. He looked up quickly.
"…Patronus Charm will be on your NEWTs. You should have no problems in producing the charm under controlled circumstances, as the NEWTs will be. However, keep in mind that most adult wizards cannot produce a Patronus when facing live Dementers, so I wouldn't go off and try and find a Dementer just yet," he said with a wink. "Now, let's go around and practice. The incantation is Expecto Patronum, and you must think of your happiest memories as you say it. Miss Granger, would you like to start?"
Hermione nodded eagerly, then stood. "Expecto Patronum!" she cried, and a silver mist emitted from her wand, coalescing into the shape of an otter that padded around her. Hermione smiled warmly at it.
"Excellent!" cried Clarke. "Next," he said, pointing to the next student in line.
Harry felt a moment of panic. He couldn't produce his Patronus, or more accurately, he shouldn't; Ron, Hermione, and the other former DA members would recognize his stag. Harry didn't know if each Patronus was unique or if was possible for two people to have the same Patronus, but he didn't want to risk it. He knew what he had to do: he had to fail. Harry waited his turn, noting with satisfaction that every former DA member could produce a Patronus; Clarke was practically jumping up and down in happiness at the skill of his class. When his turn came, Harry stood and thought of living at the Dursley's; of his parents being murdered; and of Cedric, Sirius, and Hagrid dying before his eyes.
"Expecto Patronum!" Harry cried, and a silver mist briefly escaped his wand tip before disappearing.
Clarke looked surprised. "Again Mr. Harrington. And remember, happy thoughts."
Harry pictured Hagrid's bound form before him, being hit by Lestrange's killing curse. He remembered his own torture, something he hadn't thought about since he left the hospital ward last year. "Expecto Patronum!" he said, in a slightly shaky voice, and again, only a wisp of silver came from his wand. Twice more he tried, Professor Clarke clearly at a loss as to why his best student couldn't cast the spell. Finally, Clarke moved on to the next student as Harry took his seat. Harry was especially depressed after reliving those horrible moments; he spent the rest of the class sullenly staring out of the window, ignoring the looks of the other students.
Once the bell rang signifying the end of class, Ron gave Harry a grin. "Cheer up, Harrington, you'll master it in no time," he said, thinking Harry's gloominess was caused by his inability to cast the spell. "C'mon, let's get to the Great Hall before all the good food is taken." Harry smiled and didn't see the point in mentioning that the House Elves always made sure they never ran out of food during a Feast.
Harry sat near Ron while they waited for the Feast to begin, discussing Quidditch. Hermione took her usual seat, giving Harry an icy stare.
"Hi Hermione," he said.
"Sean."
"Erm, that was a nice Patronus you made in class."
"Hmm."
Harry looked at Ron, who only shrugged in response. Harry was grateful for the start of the feast as the food magically appeared on the serving plates. As always, it was excellent, and Harry especially missed the wide variety of desserts that he couldn't find in Boroughbridge or Harrogate. Finally, dinner wore to a close, and Harry and Hermione simultaneously reached for the last slice of pumpkin pie.
"Er, you take it Hermione," Harry said, graciously.
"No thanks," she said.
"Please I insist," Harry said, hoping to somehow get on her good side. Instead, he got an impatient look.
"Just take it Sean. Once you do, another pie will appear and then we'll both have a slice," she said, irritation clear in her voice.
Harry blushed slightly. It seemed like a lost cause - she would never speak to him again. Depressed more than when he was in Defense class, Harry took the slice and put it on his plate. To both of their surprises, another pie did not emerge on the serving plate. Ron looked on, fascinated. "Wow, I guess they really do run out of food. Thank goodness we got here early!"
Harry and Hermione looked at Ron, and then shared an eye-roll with each other. "Here, Hermione," Harry said, cutting his slice in half and offering it to Hermione. "Let's share. Please."
Hermione looked at him, and after a long moment she gave him a smile. It was a small smile, but a smile nonetheless, the first since the term started. As they ate their slices of pumpkin pie together, Harry felt that maybe there was hope, after all.
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November arrived and brought with it the first Quidditch match of the year. Because of Gryffindor's second-place finish last year, Gryffindor would not be playing a match until the end of November. Instead, the first match of the year pitted Ravenclaw against Hufflepuff. Although most of the school attends the matches anyways, Ron required attendance of his team; he said it would give them a chance to scout their opponent.
As Harry walked with the rest of the school towards the stadium, he could hear snippets of Ron's conversation to whoever would listen.
"…they lost several positions, and I saw Hufflepuff practice. They looked pretty good, and if they can keep the match close and then Slytherin's team…"
Harry looked at Ginny as they walked, and they shared an eye-roll. "Is he always like this?" Harry asked, not remembering Ron being this enthusiastic before.
Ginny shook her head. "It's gotten worse after he made Captain. I'm amazed he manages to fit anything other than Quidditch in his brain," she said with a smile.
Harry chuckled, then felt someone bump into his shoulder as they walked by. Looking up, he recognized Hermione ahead of him. He expected to see her walk without acknowledging him, but to his surprise, Hermione turned her head slightly and mouthed "sorry," as she ran to catch up to Ron. A grin lit up Harry's face. Ginny noticed as well. "Looks like she's starting to come around," she said happily; Hermione's dislike of Sean made for some uncomfortable moments during practice.
Harry nodded hopefully. "I sure hope so."
They reached the stadium and Harry sat next to Ginny and Natalie MacDonald, and they talked Seeker things while they watched. Hermione was there as well, filling parchment after parchment with notes on the performance of each team. Ron mostly spent his time screaming; Harry couldn't see how he was planning any strategies or scouting with all his jumping up and down. It was a close and exciting match: Hufflepuff was definitely improved this year, and Ravenclaw was hurting after the graduation of their Seeker (Cho Chang, Harry remembered idly) and two other positions. Finally, after two hours of nail-biting action, the match ended with Ravenclaw suffering an enormous upset, losing by ten points to Hufflepuff. Ron was as excited as Hufflepuff House because he felt that a Ravenclaw loss would only help Gryffindor's chances of reclaiming the Quidditch Cup. After the match, Harry participated in the mini-celebration for a few minutes before retreating back to the library; he had two parchments of Potions to fill, and he had very little idea what he would write.