Disclaimer: Like I already stated before, all characters and places related to the Harry Potter books are the creation of Mrs. J.K.Rowling. If they were mine, I'd be too busy writing the sixth book to write fanfiction ;) !
A/N: Beta-read by Luinthoron and *~* Dy *~*. My thanks to you both. And just to remind you all - this is (presumably) the penultimate chapter of The Spy. Makes me somehow sad... :(
--Altair
Chapter Fourteen: Remember the Dreams
The days were passing in a hurry. The exams were only a month away and Harry was having 'dreams' almost every night. He couldn't concentrate and Hermione made him study even harder than she had in the previous years.
The teachers too seemed to be getting more and touchier, much to the students' disappointment. It had only been yesterday, that Professor McGonagall had given Hermione (!) a detention because she had dared to ask a Voldemort-related question in her class. That much for Hermione being her favourite student. Hermione had been in a shock-like state the whole day. No wonder, as she had never received a detention before.
Harry still couldn't understand what had made their Head of House to lose her temper like that. Especially considered, that Professor McGonagall had always stayed on top of the things, even back in his second year with the Chamber of Secrets opened and the basilisk loose on the school. Even then she had never lost her temper. And the fact that she had done it meant that things were really bad. There was also the fact that Death Eaters had been unusually quiet for the last... how long had it been anyway?
The Dark Lord had haunted Harry's dreams almost every night now, but he still hadn't been able to provide much information for the Resistance. Somehow, he seemed to be forgetting most of the dreams very quickly in these last days. Remus tried to ensure him that it wasn't his fault, but he still felt like he'd been letting everybody down. They relied upon him and he, he couldn't even do such a small task as to remember his own dreams.
Every night he woke up from nightmares, he walked down to Remus' office to speak with him. He was easier to find than the Headmaster, and somehow, Remus was like a second father having been one of his father's best friends. He told Remus all he remembered and he really tried to remember more - somehow he knew, that there had to be more, but he never succeeded. It was as if he had been Obliviated somewhere between waking and speaking to Remus. But he never met anyone on his way to Remus. Or did he just not remember? But they didn't learn Memory Charms in school, did they? Maybe in sixth or seventh year. A Slytherin perhaps? Could there be a Slytherin waiting for him every night, waiting to erase his dreams? Harry shook his head. That was too far-fetched, even for the wizarding world. No, it was him. He was the one forgetting significant details of his dreams, trying to find someone to blame where there was no-one to blame. He just had to try harder.
He looked down over the school grounds, covered in the darkness of night. He shivered. From the back of his mind a talk he and the Headmaster had had only three days ago came back to haunt him. There had been attack on Smeltings; the Muggle-school Dudley attended to. All teachers and students had been killed. Had Harry dreamt of the plan and forgotten the dream? Could he have done something to save his cousin and he just let him die? Something was nagging in the back of his mind, telling him that it was his fault. And still, he didn't remember.
The voice of reason told him that he couldn't be possible for all the deaths of last months. That Voldemort didn't wait until it was time for Harry to sleep, to plan his killings. A part of Harry didn't want to go to sleep. Didn't want to wake covered in sweat, panting, not even remembering what had been so horrible to wake him. He was exhausted from sleepless nights. He needed the sleep, but wasn't allowed any. He wanted to sleep, to dream and remember, but he didn't remember much of his dreams of the last months. He couldn't fight the feeling that something was wrong here. He just couldn't put his finger on it. Giving one last glance on the grounds, he walked over to his bed and climbed in.
Professor Dumbledore was getting troubled as well. He knew he shouldn't have used Harry as a source of information to that extend, but still. The boy had given very important leads in the years past. But he wasn't able to do so, lately, even though his visions of Voldemort became more frequent, daily, one could even call them. And for once, the Headmaster was having exactly the same thoughts as Harry. Was someone altering the boy's memories of what he had dreamt? He knew that Harry only remembered talking to Remus about the dreams. But could there be another party working right here inside Hogwarts' walls?
In spite of the popular belief, he was all but omniscient. He put on a good enough show to mislead everyone, but still, even he could be deceived by powerful enough dark magic. And recovering memories wasn't a simple task. It could be achieved, if the loss of memories had been brought upon by some mundane means, like a blow on the head, a severe accident or was psychological like blocking out painful memories. But there were also memories that couldn't be brought back. Ever. These were the ones caused by severe brain damage or - and the Headmaster hoped against hope this would not be the cause at hand - magic.
Harry had already been through more than a boy of his age ever should have been. Ever since his birth he had been in the midst of the action. He had been a child of war, as had been many of his schoolmates. The children had been the fuel that had kept their parents going, resisting Voldemort, and fighting for a better world for them. Every child of that era had somehow given strength to their parents, given them hope, a reason not to give in. Little Harry had been something special, even back then. A smile crawled over the old Professor's lips. He had already given Harry a hint on that, but the boy hadn't used the moment to ask and somehow, the old man was more than sure, that he wouldn't remember to ask now.
He had told Harry on the morning after Peter's escape. Sibyll had made two real predictions by now. Harry hadn't thought about asking what the first prediction had been.
The first one had been made on the day on Harry's birth. The one stating, that the Son of the Flower and the Stag will banish the Dark Lord. This prophecy had caused said Flower - Lily, and Stag - James, to go into hiding to protect their son, as Severus had informed the Headmaster, that the Dark Lord had somehow learned about the prophecy and he hadn't been happy. By now, Dumbledore suspected who could have told the Dark Lord about the prediction, but back then, he had been as much in the dark as everybody else. How he could have let himself be fooled by the little man, he'd never understand.
Peter hadn't been what one would call an outstanding student. He hadn't been the slowest to learn, but nothing supreme. The only class he had had better results than the average student had been Transfiguration. All of the Marauders had been good at it. Now to think of it, it was no wonder they had been able to master the Animagus transformation by themselves, as skilled as they were on the subject...
But his mind was wandering again. That was all in the past now and the matter at hand was Harry. Could it be that he was blocking the memories of his dreams unconsciously by himself? That was another theory to be controlled. Harry was blaming himself for not being able to provide any significant information, everyone who knew the boy could see that. The fact that he kept forgetting his dreams was eating him up from inside, but he yet had to confess this to an adult. And as long as he didn't come looking for help himself, no one would be able to help him.
The silence was deafening. There was no better way to describe this. The Dark Lord entered the room that was filled with anticipation. You could have heard a pin drop, had someone been foolish enough to bring a pin and drop it. Slowly, he made his way up to the front and looked on the gathered people. The room they were in had been magically extended from the inside. Had this not been done, it never would have been big enough for this gathering. He let his eyes wander over the gathered army. A devilish smile appeared on his face for a moment. Then, he addressed the crowd.
"My friends, my allies. Late is the hour that we gather here, hidden from the eyes of the world to celebrate our alliance. This will not be for always. Most of us have fought together before and we all know what we are standing up against. We all welcome the new addition in our midst, the race of veelas, who also have been depressed by the wizarding world for too long.
The Muggle-loving wizarding government has too long discriminated the magical beings, just to keep the Muggles safe. Muggles, who don't even show gratitude for being kept safe by them. Most of them don't know, of course, but there are also these who know and who think that this is the way it always should be. Muggles, who in their selfishness never think, that the 'creatures' they are protected from, are intelligent beings on their own, whose freedom is bounded only to keep them away from the Muggles' eyes. Who have been driven away from their original homelands into reservations to make way for Muggle cities or whose homes are magicked and who are prohibited to cross the boundaries set by the wizarding government. Where does the Ministry take the right to regulate the lives of giants, werewolves or veelas? Who has given them the right to tell where a vampire or dragon can go to or not?
My friends, my allies, not every wizard thinks that this is the way things were meant to be. The Muggles have showed hostility towards the wizards, too, all through the history. Why should we offer them protection then? They have tried to extinguish our kind and driven us into hiding, but for no longer. For we will no longer tolerate the way our Ministry is crouching before the Muggles. We will show them, that the wizarding world needs to be freed from the reign of Mudbloods. That we the mages, and you, our friends and allies, can share a world even though the Muggles aren't willing to share the world with us. And for that, my friends, my allies, we will fight. And as others will know what we are fighting for, they will join our cause.
There is already a war going on, as you all know. But tomorrow, my friends and allies will be a day worth remembering. All around the world, our allies are gathering for a simultaneous attack on the most important wizarding institutions of their region. And so will we tomorrow at sundown, bring Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry into our hands. All of you who have children at Hogwarts your offspring have nothing to fear when they know where their loyalties should lie. But do not show any mercy against those who fight against you.
There is one more issue that needs to be taken care of. Many of you might not know this, but one of the reasons I barely existed for over a decade was the fact that we had a spy in our midst. A spy who was working for Dumbledore. Many of you knew Severus Snape as a young and promising wizard. None of us suspected him to betray us. But he did and betrayal we cannot forgive, can we? Many of us who fell during the last war were killed on his account. We need to avenge our fallen friends. Severus Snape shall not be let survive the night!
But for now, my friends and my allies, we all need rest. You all are familiar with our strategy and you all know what to do. For you all know that tomorrow we will have a very draining night."
With that he Disapparated leaving his army to prepare. The speech had had the intended effect on his allies, he had seen it mirrored in their faces. If all went well, Hogwarts would fall before dawn the day after tomorrow.
There was also another person who had Disapparated as soon as his Lord was gone. Just a moment later he found himself in the shrieking shack and after transfiguring his clothes, made his way through the old tunnel. He had to hurry. Should Harry have been observing the gathering in his dreams he would certainly want to talk to him any minute now. And he didn't want to be spotted sneaking into the school by night.
He was luckier than he'd imagined.
He reached his locked up office, unlocked it and grabbed the first book in his reach - "Lycanthropy - curse of the wolf" - and opened it somewhere in the middle. Seating himself by the fire, he let his eyes wander over the pages of parchment. This book looked familiar. As if he'd had read it over and over again for many times. He dismissed the feeling. Of course he would have read a book about his... condition... He made a mental note to read the book sometimes later, after Hogwarts' fall. He'd have plenty of time then, he'd reckoned.
The flames in the fireplace turned green for an instant and something flew out of it and settled down in front of the fireplace. A black envelope tied with a black ribbon. He stood up and took the letter. Placing it between the book he opened the letter. The instructions given were very short and clear.
"Make sure Dumbledore hears about the attack. We will bring down all his operatives with this attack."
There was no signature. The letter didn't need one. There was only one person in the whole world who could have written this. He stood up and threw the letter in the flames. He had his instructions, now all he had to do was act.
He had just seated himself behind the desk, as he heard a knocking sound on the door. Smiling to himself, he asked the knocker to enter.
He hadn't been mistaken. It was Harry. And a very frightened Harry too. Remus stood up; closing the book and covered the space between them with a speed he hadn't thought to be possible. Placing a hand on the boy's shoulder, he guided Harry to the chair opposite to his desk and helped him sit down. Only after making sure, the boy was sitting comfortable enough, he opened his mouth.
"Harry, what happened?"
The boy just stared in space.
"Would you want anything? Maybe a hot cocoa to calm you down?"
Harry still didn't open his mouth, but he nodded. Not very enthusiastically, but Remus still spotted the nod and acted accordingly giving orders to the kitchen over the fireplace to bring two hot cocoas up to his office.
As the mugs appeared, Harry needed to have the mug placed in his hands before he would even start to sip on his drink. But as soon as he had swallowed the first hot mouthful, he seemed to be pulled out of his almost catatonic state.
"They... they're gonna attack Hogwarts!" he said, his eyes still filled with horror.
Remus choked on his cocoa, so that Harry had to slap him on the back a few times. Never to be said he wasn't a good actor! When he was able to breathe again normally he looked the boy in the eyes.
"Tell me, what did you see?"
Harry told him all about the Death Eater meeting. About the speech Lord Voldemort had held and who had been gathered as his allies. When he ended his tale he looked at his teacher.
Remus had stood up halfway through the story and went to stand by the fireplace. Now, he was muttering something Harry did not hear. He didn't notice the wand either. He had reached a hypnosis-like stadium, after the spell had hit him. Remus lowered the wand and went over to the boy.
"You will forget whom you saw on the Death Eaters gathering. You will forget all about the strength of his army and his speech. You will forget everything that was said in this room. You came to me to tell me about your latest dream of Lord Voldemort. You saw him talking to masked Death Eaters. You do not know how many there were but there couldn't have been more than twenty. He plans to attack Hogwarts tomorrow at sundown.
You awoke after hearing this and you came to see me. I made you sit down and summoned two hot cocoas from the kitchen, as you weren't in shape to talk before. You took one sip and told me that Lord Voldemort is going to attack Hogwarts."
He made sure Harry sat on his chair, holding his mug in hands. Then, he sat back behind his desk and directed his wand at Harry under the desk.
"Enervate!" he muttered, bringing his own mug of cocoa to his lips and taking a sip.
As Harry awakened from the trance, Remus started coughing again, choking on his cocoa. And after being slapped on the back, he turned towards the boy, again.
"Tell me, what did you see?"
"There was a gathering. Voldemort was talking to his Death Eaters. They are going to attack the school at sundown tomorrow!" Harry told him.
He looked at the boy sympathetically. "Drink your cocoa," he told him. "It will help you calm down. I have to tell the Headmaster…"
A/N: Please, I know, I'm annoying and all, but please, review. Especially, as there won't be that much chapters coming up... Oh... and the thing about Peter having been good at least at Transfiguration, I wouldn't have thought about it myself, but we had a conversation about this with my older brother (you know him as Luinthoron) and he came up with the idea that he couldn't have been that stupid (at least in this class!) as everyone always makes him out to be, as he WAS able to master the Animagus transformation. Credits to Luinthoron for that!
--Altair
A/N: Beta-read by Luinthoron and *~* Dy *~*. My thanks to you both. And just to remind you all - this is (presumably) the penultimate chapter of The Spy. Makes me somehow sad... :(
--Altair
Chapter Fourteen: Remember the Dreams
The days were passing in a hurry. The exams were only a month away and Harry was having 'dreams' almost every night. He couldn't concentrate and Hermione made him study even harder than she had in the previous years.
The teachers too seemed to be getting more and touchier, much to the students' disappointment. It had only been yesterday, that Professor McGonagall had given Hermione (!) a detention because she had dared to ask a Voldemort-related question in her class. That much for Hermione being her favourite student. Hermione had been in a shock-like state the whole day. No wonder, as she had never received a detention before.
Harry still couldn't understand what had made their Head of House to lose her temper like that. Especially considered, that Professor McGonagall had always stayed on top of the things, even back in his second year with the Chamber of Secrets opened and the basilisk loose on the school. Even then she had never lost her temper. And the fact that she had done it meant that things were really bad. There was also the fact that Death Eaters had been unusually quiet for the last... how long had it been anyway?
The Dark Lord had haunted Harry's dreams almost every night now, but he still hadn't been able to provide much information for the Resistance. Somehow, he seemed to be forgetting most of the dreams very quickly in these last days. Remus tried to ensure him that it wasn't his fault, but he still felt like he'd been letting everybody down. They relied upon him and he, he couldn't even do such a small task as to remember his own dreams.
Every night he woke up from nightmares, he walked down to Remus' office to speak with him. He was easier to find than the Headmaster, and somehow, Remus was like a second father having been one of his father's best friends. He told Remus all he remembered and he really tried to remember more - somehow he knew, that there had to be more, but he never succeeded. It was as if he had been Obliviated somewhere between waking and speaking to Remus. But he never met anyone on his way to Remus. Or did he just not remember? But they didn't learn Memory Charms in school, did they? Maybe in sixth or seventh year. A Slytherin perhaps? Could there be a Slytherin waiting for him every night, waiting to erase his dreams? Harry shook his head. That was too far-fetched, even for the wizarding world. No, it was him. He was the one forgetting significant details of his dreams, trying to find someone to blame where there was no-one to blame. He just had to try harder.
He looked down over the school grounds, covered in the darkness of night. He shivered. From the back of his mind a talk he and the Headmaster had had only three days ago came back to haunt him. There had been attack on Smeltings; the Muggle-school Dudley attended to. All teachers and students had been killed. Had Harry dreamt of the plan and forgotten the dream? Could he have done something to save his cousin and he just let him die? Something was nagging in the back of his mind, telling him that it was his fault. And still, he didn't remember.
The voice of reason told him that he couldn't be possible for all the deaths of last months. That Voldemort didn't wait until it was time for Harry to sleep, to plan his killings. A part of Harry didn't want to go to sleep. Didn't want to wake covered in sweat, panting, not even remembering what had been so horrible to wake him. He was exhausted from sleepless nights. He needed the sleep, but wasn't allowed any. He wanted to sleep, to dream and remember, but he didn't remember much of his dreams of the last months. He couldn't fight the feeling that something was wrong here. He just couldn't put his finger on it. Giving one last glance on the grounds, he walked over to his bed and climbed in.
Professor Dumbledore was getting troubled as well. He knew he shouldn't have used Harry as a source of information to that extend, but still. The boy had given very important leads in the years past. But he wasn't able to do so, lately, even though his visions of Voldemort became more frequent, daily, one could even call them. And for once, the Headmaster was having exactly the same thoughts as Harry. Was someone altering the boy's memories of what he had dreamt? He knew that Harry only remembered talking to Remus about the dreams. But could there be another party working right here inside Hogwarts' walls?
In spite of the popular belief, he was all but omniscient. He put on a good enough show to mislead everyone, but still, even he could be deceived by powerful enough dark magic. And recovering memories wasn't a simple task. It could be achieved, if the loss of memories had been brought upon by some mundane means, like a blow on the head, a severe accident or was psychological like blocking out painful memories. But there were also memories that couldn't be brought back. Ever. These were the ones caused by severe brain damage or - and the Headmaster hoped against hope this would not be the cause at hand - magic.
Harry had already been through more than a boy of his age ever should have been. Ever since his birth he had been in the midst of the action. He had been a child of war, as had been many of his schoolmates. The children had been the fuel that had kept their parents going, resisting Voldemort, and fighting for a better world for them. Every child of that era had somehow given strength to their parents, given them hope, a reason not to give in. Little Harry had been something special, even back then. A smile crawled over the old Professor's lips. He had already given Harry a hint on that, but the boy hadn't used the moment to ask and somehow, the old man was more than sure, that he wouldn't remember to ask now.
He had told Harry on the morning after Peter's escape. Sibyll had made two real predictions by now. Harry hadn't thought about asking what the first prediction had been.
The first one had been made on the day on Harry's birth. The one stating, that the Son of the Flower and the Stag will banish the Dark Lord. This prophecy had caused said Flower - Lily, and Stag - James, to go into hiding to protect their son, as Severus had informed the Headmaster, that the Dark Lord had somehow learned about the prophecy and he hadn't been happy. By now, Dumbledore suspected who could have told the Dark Lord about the prediction, but back then, he had been as much in the dark as everybody else. How he could have let himself be fooled by the little man, he'd never understand.
Peter hadn't been what one would call an outstanding student. He hadn't been the slowest to learn, but nothing supreme. The only class he had had better results than the average student had been Transfiguration. All of the Marauders had been good at it. Now to think of it, it was no wonder they had been able to master the Animagus transformation by themselves, as skilled as they were on the subject...
But his mind was wandering again. That was all in the past now and the matter at hand was Harry. Could it be that he was blocking the memories of his dreams unconsciously by himself? That was another theory to be controlled. Harry was blaming himself for not being able to provide any significant information, everyone who knew the boy could see that. The fact that he kept forgetting his dreams was eating him up from inside, but he yet had to confess this to an adult. And as long as he didn't come looking for help himself, no one would be able to help him.
The silence was deafening. There was no better way to describe this. The Dark Lord entered the room that was filled with anticipation. You could have heard a pin drop, had someone been foolish enough to bring a pin and drop it. Slowly, he made his way up to the front and looked on the gathered people. The room they were in had been magically extended from the inside. Had this not been done, it never would have been big enough for this gathering. He let his eyes wander over the gathered army. A devilish smile appeared on his face for a moment. Then, he addressed the crowd.
"My friends, my allies. Late is the hour that we gather here, hidden from the eyes of the world to celebrate our alliance. This will not be for always. Most of us have fought together before and we all know what we are standing up against. We all welcome the new addition in our midst, the race of veelas, who also have been depressed by the wizarding world for too long.
The Muggle-loving wizarding government has too long discriminated the magical beings, just to keep the Muggles safe. Muggles, who don't even show gratitude for being kept safe by them. Most of them don't know, of course, but there are also these who know and who think that this is the way it always should be. Muggles, who in their selfishness never think, that the 'creatures' they are protected from, are intelligent beings on their own, whose freedom is bounded only to keep them away from the Muggles' eyes. Who have been driven away from their original homelands into reservations to make way for Muggle cities or whose homes are magicked and who are prohibited to cross the boundaries set by the wizarding government. Where does the Ministry take the right to regulate the lives of giants, werewolves or veelas? Who has given them the right to tell where a vampire or dragon can go to or not?
My friends, my allies, not every wizard thinks that this is the way things were meant to be. The Muggles have showed hostility towards the wizards, too, all through the history. Why should we offer them protection then? They have tried to extinguish our kind and driven us into hiding, but for no longer. For we will no longer tolerate the way our Ministry is crouching before the Muggles. We will show them, that the wizarding world needs to be freed from the reign of Mudbloods. That we the mages, and you, our friends and allies, can share a world even though the Muggles aren't willing to share the world with us. And for that, my friends, my allies, we will fight. And as others will know what we are fighting for, they will join our cause.
There is already a war going on, as you all know. But tomorrow, my friends and allies will be a day worth remembering. All around the world, our allies are gathering for a simultaneous attack on the most important wizarding institutions of their region. And so will we tomorrow at sundown, bring Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry into our hands. All of you who have children at Hogwarts your offspring have nothing to fear when they know where their loyalties should lie. But do not show any mercy against those who fight against you.
There is one more issue that needs to be taken care of. Many of you might not know this, but one of the reasons I barely existed for over a decade was the fact that we had a spy in our midst. A spy who was working for Dumbledore. Many of you knew Severus Snape as a young and promising wizard. None of us suspected him to betray us. But he did and betrayal we cannot forgive, can we? Many of us who fell during the last war were killed on his account. We need to avenge our fallen friends. Severus Snape shall not be let survive the night!
But for now, my friends and my allies, we all need rest. You all are familiar with our strategy and you all know what to do. For you all know that tomorrow we will have a very draining night."
With that he Disapparated leaving his army to prepare. The speech had had the intended effect on his allies, he had seen it mirrored in their faces. If all went well, Hogwarts would fall before dawn the day after tomorrow.
There was also another person who had Disapparated as soon as his Lord was gone. Just a moment later he found himself in the shrieking shack and after transfiguring his clothes, made his way through the old tunnel. He had to hurry. Should Harry have been observing the gathering in his dreams he would certainly want to talk to him any minute now. And he didn't want to be spotted sneaking into the school by night.
He was luckier than he'd imagined.
He reached his locked up office, unlocked it and grabbed the first book in his reach - "Lycanthropy - curse of the wolf" - and opened it somewhere in the middle. Seating himself by the fire, he let his eyes wander over the pages of parchment. This book looked familiar. As if he'd had read it over and over again for many times. He dismissed the feeling. Of course he would have read a book about his... condition... He made a mental note to read the book sometimes later, after Hogwarts' fall. He'd have plenty of time then, he'd reckoned.
The flames in the fireplace turned green for an instant and something flew out of it and settled down in front of the fireplace. A black envelope tied with a black ribbon. He stood up and took the letter. Placing it between the book he opened the letter. The instructions given were very short and clear.
"Make sure Dumbledore hears about the attack. We will bring down all his operatives with this attack."
There was no signature. The letter didn't need one. There was only one person in the whole world who could have written this. He stood up and threw the letter in the flames. He had his instructions, now all he had to do was act.
He had just seated himself behind the desk, as he heard a knocking sound on the door. Smiling to himself, he asked the knocker to enter.
He hadn't been mistaken. It was Harry. And a very frightened Harry too. Remus stood up; closing the book and covered the space between them with a speed he hadn't thought to be possible. Placing a hand on the boy's shoulder, he guided Harry to the chair opposite to his desk and helped him sit down. Only after making sure, the boy was sitting comfortable enough, he opened his mouth.
"Harry, what happened?"
The boy just stared in space.
"Would you want anything? Maybe a hot cocoa to calm you down?"
Harry still didn't open his mouth, but he nodded. Not very enthusiastically, but Remus still spotted the nod and acted accordingly giving orders to the kitchen over the fireplace to bring two hot cocoas up to his office.
As the mugs appeared, Harry needed to have the mug placed in his hands before he would even start to sip on his drink. But as soon as he had swallowed the first hot mouthful, he seemed to be pulled out of his almost catatonic state.
"They... they're gonna attack Hogwarts!" he said, his eyes still filled with horror.
Remus choked on his cocoa, so that Harry had to slap him on the back a few times. Never to be said he wasn't a good actor! When he was able to breathe again normally he looked the boy in the eyes.
"Tell me, what did you see?"
Harry told him all about the Death Eater meeting. About the speech Lord Voldemort had held and who had been gathered as his allies. When he ended his tale he looked at his teacher.
Remus had stood up halfway through the story and went to stand by the fireplace. Now, he was muttering something Harry did not hear. He didn't notice the wand either. He had reached a hypnosis-like stadium, after the spell had hit him. Remus lowered the wand and went over to the boy.
"You will forget whom you saw on the Death Eaters gathering. You will forget all about the strength of his army and his speech. You will forget everything that was said in this room. You came to me to tell me about your latest dream of Lord Voldemort. You saw him talking to masked Death Eaters. You do not know how many there were but there couldn't have been more than twenty. He plans to attack Hogwarts tomorrow at sundown.
You awoke after hearing this and you came to see me. I made you sit down and summoned two hot cocoas from the kitchen, as you weren't in shape to talk before. You took one sip and told me that Lord Voldemort is going to attack Hogwarts."
He made sure Harry sat on his chair, holding his mug in hands. Then, he sat back behind his desk and directed his wand at Harry under the desk.
"Enervate!" he muttered, bringing his own mug of cocoa to his lips and taking a sip.
As Harry awakened from the trance, Remus started coughing again, choking on his cocoa. And after being slapped on the back, he turned towards the boy, again.
"Tell me, what did you see?"
"There was a gathering. Voldemort was talking to his Death Eaters. They are going to attack the school at sundown tomorrow!" Harry told him.
He looked at the boy sympathetically. "Drink your cocoa," he told him. "It will help you calm down. I have to tell the Headmaster…"
A/N: Please, I know, I'm annoying and all, but please, review. Especially, as there won't be that much chapters coming up... Oh... and the thing about Peter having been good at least at Transfiguration, I wouldn't have thought about it myself, but we had a conversation about this with my older brother (you know him as Luinthoron) and he came up with the idea that he couldn't have been that stupid (at least in this class!) as everyone always makes him out to be, as he WAS able to master the Animagus transformation. Credits to Luinthoron for that!
--Altair