CHAPTER 5
During the next week, the four teenagers trained as hard as they could. As Harry lay in his bed waiting for Nathaniel to wake up, he thought back to the recent events. Since the day Harry had learned about his best friends relationship, they had dedicated all their time to training. In the morning, Nathaniel would take Hermione and Harry out on the grounds and make them run for an hour or so. Then, they would make their way back to the school and eat breakfast with Ron and the other adults in the Great Hall. Then, Nathaniel would take Hermione and Ron to the Room of Requirements to train them at dueling while Harry went to Dumbledore's office to have his daily Occlumency lesson. When he would finish, he would go to the Great Hall and have lunch with his friends. At noon, very few adults were in the Great Hall, most of them on a mission for the order. After lunch, Nathaniel would take Ron and Harry back to the common room for their meditation period.
When their meditation session would be over, Ron would leave Harry and Nathaniel to spend some time alone with Hermione. During that time, Harry and Nathaniel would leave the school and go swim in the lake with the giant squid or simply lay down in the grass and let the sun tan their skin. Most of the time, Nathaniel would be tired and fall asleep which was understandable since he was present for meditation, jogging and dueling. Harry had often asked the other boy how he managed not to drop dead from exhaustion, but Nathaniel would simply smile at him and chuckle.
Harry thought Nathaniel had integrated the group pretty well. He had earned Hermione's respect the day he had told everyone he would be taking seven classes. They would sometimes talk during the evening about some academic subject or another. The druid however didn't get along with Ron that well. They didn't hate each other, but they had nothing in common and Harry knew that Ron felt threatened by the other boy. Before Nathaniel arrived into their lives, Harry had always been the heart of the group while Hermione was the head and Ron the muscles. Now however, Nathaniel could fill Ron's position better than him. To make matters worse for Ron, Nathaniel understood Harry in a way Ron never would be able to and he could debate on a subject Ron knew nothing about with Hermione for hours. That's why Ron was always a bit cold to the other boy.
Harry knew all of this. After all, he had known Ron for five years now. If he wanted, Harry could have reassured Ron easily. An extra praise here and there would have made Ron more confident in himself, but Harry still remembered the betrayal he had felt when he had walked in on them kissing. Harry couldn't help it but feel a bit satisfied when Ron felt left apart when Nathaniel was having a discussion with Hermione. After all, the sorting hat had almost placed him in Slytherin. That wasn't for nothing, but under the satisfaction, Harry felt guilt. He was still Gryffindor so that's why he would congratulate Ron for something he had done. Not enough to reassure Ron completely, but enough to dampen the guilt. Harry felt bad for his behavior, but he was human above anything else. Not only a Gryffindor or a Slytherin, but a human with emotions.
***
The day passed quickly and before he knew it, Harry was lying down on the grass, shirtless, with Nathaniel beside him. The sun shone brightly on them and Harry could almost feel the sun tanning his unprotected chest. Nathaniel was sleeping on his stomach, leaving his unprotected back at the mercy of the sun. Harry lazily took his wand and performed a quick protection spell on Nathaniel to prevent him from having a sun burn. That done, he closed his eyes and went back to his sunbath.
At first, Harry had been reluctant to take his shirt off, ashamed of his pathetic built compared to Nathaniel's perfect muscles, but then, his training had started to show its effect on his body. Harry had started to eat more and better so he had soon lost his skinny features and had entered his growth spurt. He had developed some muscles, nothing compared to Nathaniel, but Harry's arms had grown bigger, his shoulders stockier, his torso more solid and pronounced and his legs had become more rigid and strong although Harry tried not to get too stocky. As a seeker, he had to be swift. Most of his old clothes didn't fit him any more so he went to buy new ones, both muggle and wizard with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Tonks, Remus and his three best friends in Diagon Alley. He bought bigger clothes that were a bit more flattering.
He also realized Hermione and Ron had changed too. Because of the physical training, Hermione had become an amazingly beautiful young woman. Her curves would have made Fleur Delacour proud. She had grown in height as well as in beauty. Her lips had changed from the flat lines to full, red lips. Her nose had passed from the baby round to the dignified pointy. Her cheeks had gained a pinkish color. During their trip to Diagon Alley, she had bought tighter clothes and had disappeared with Tonks to a female underwear shop which was understandable seeing as her breast had greatly developed.
Ron had continued growing which was starting to alarm his friends. They often joked that if he continued, he would be as tall as Hagrid. While Harry and Hermione were off running around the grounds with Nathaniel, Ron had been training on the Quidditch pitch. Hermione had charmed a Quaffle to try and get passed Ron and into one of the rings. From that training, he had developed his muscles and had started to eat more so he could be stockier and be able to cover more space.
Harry looked around to see if anyone was around. When he was certain no one was near, he took out a snitch from his discarded shirt. The golden ball spread its wing and flew toward the sky. Harry waited until the ball was almost out of his reach before grabbing it at lightning speed. Harry practiced this routine for several minutes. Most of the times, he would be able to grab the Snitch, but sometimes he missed. He knew that with practice, he would catch the ball every time.
"You know, your father used to do that." Said a voice.
Harry looked toward the source and noticed Remus, Dumbledore, McGonagall and Tonks looking at him.
"Yeah, I know. That's what gave me the idea. It's quite a challenge." Replied Harry, sitting up.
"From what I saw, you were doing fine." Said Dumbledore.
"I don't catch it every time." Explained Harry.
"If I remember correctly, your father didn't catch it every time either when he started." Putted McGonagall.
"That's right. In fact, James had more difficulty than Harry at first. He caught the Snitch only half the time." Revealed Remus.
Harry beamed at that. His performance suddenly seemed more satisfactory.
"Harry, I've been wondering what had caused the sudden change in attitude from all of you. The ghosts are telling us you've been running, meditating and dueling each day. What for ?" asked Tonks.
"Tonks, Voldemort and me are going to face off in a duel someday. I think I need to be as ready as possible for that day. Hermione and Ron are known to be my best friends, I don't want Voldemort to use them to blackmail me or something. That's why they've been training too. Nathaniel's been helping us out."
Harry and his friends had decided that that would be their excuse if someone asked about their training. It made perfect sense and in some way, it was true.
"That's quite sensible of you, but Harry, I don't want you to train too hard. You're all still very young. Children your age shouldn't be bothering about saving the world. You need to enjoy your childhood as much as you can. Don't let Voldemort deprive you of your carefree days." Added Dumbledore.
"Professor, I don't want to worry you or anything, but I'm afraid my carefree days have already ended if I had any. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't forget about Voldemort. His presence is ever present in my mind. If it was only about me, I would probably take it day by day, but there's the entire world who's depending on me. It's my duty to be ready when the time comes." "I'm afraid you're right, Harry, but I'll still ask you. Please try and take it easy." Pleaded Dumbledore with a sad smile on his face.
"I will, Professor." Promised Harry.
With that, the adults left, leaving Harry alone with a sleepy Nathaniel. Harry resumed his practice with the Snitch until Nathaniel finally woke up. They talked quietly together until the air started to cool a bit. Then, they headed straight for the common room to prepare for dinner.
"Hey, guys, Dumbledore came and talked to me today. What he said made me think. All that training were doing, we told ourselves it's for the animagus transformation, but underneath it all, we're training in case of an attack. I realized we're letting Voldemort take over our lives. He's winning some kind of war against us. He's already started to conquer us by making us fear and dread him."
"What are you getting at ?" asked Ron.
"I say we do something for ourselves. Something completely pointless that won't have anything to do with Voldemort . Something we selfishly want."
"That's a brilliant idea, Harry and I have just the thing we need." Replied Hermione as she grabbed a book in the pile she had placed in the common room so she could reach for books more easily.
"Gentlemen, I propose a make-over." Announced Hermione as she handed the opened book to Harry.
"What ?" asked Ron as he craned his neck to look behind Harry's shoulder.
"It's a potion that allows you to permanently change some physical features. You only have to think about what you want to change while drinking the potion to make it happen."
"How long does it take to prepare it ?" asked Nathaniel with a smile.
"I can have it ready before dinner. The ingredients will be easy to find. All of them are in Snape's office and since he's under-cover for the order, he won't have trouble breaking in."
"That's perfect. Most of the order are coming here to eat. I think they have a huge meeting later tonight. We can make our entrance when they're all there."
"What are we waiting for ?" asked Ron.
They headed directly to the dungeons. In there, Ron and Hermione headed in the potions class to get the potion started while Harry and Nathaniel broke into Snape's office to get the ingredients that weren't available in the potions class. When the two boys entered the potions class with the ingredients, Hermione and Ron were concentrated over a fuming cauldron.
"Right on time. Harry, drop a scale of multi-colored chameleon in the potion fast. We need to add the ingredients at some precise moments."
As Harry obeyed, the potions passed from fluorescent green to blood red. For the next fifteen minutes, the teens continued making the potion under the orders of Hermione and the occasional intervention of Nathaniel. Harry found himself enjoying immensely making the potion which made him realize he only hated the class because of the teacher. If it wasn't for Snape, maybe Harry would be looking forward to potions class. Harry made a promise to himself not to let Snape get to him anymore and to enrage him more, he vowed to enjoy potions as much as possible.
Finally, as Nathaniel dropped the last ingredient in the potion, it changed from dark purple to sky blue. Hermione filled four goblets with the potions and handed them to her friends.
"Remember to think very strongly about what you want to change. Now, on the count of three. One, two three."
They all drank the entire content in the goblet in one gulp. Then, they closed their eyes and concentrated.
Since they started meditating, concentration and focus was something they achieved far more easily than usual. Harry's control over his emotions was starting to improve too.
Harry was concentrating as hard as he could. Suddenly he felt a tingling sensation all over his face. When the feeling stopped, Harry opened his eyes and looked at his reflection in one of the mirrors they had brought with them. He grinned as he took in his new appearance. His messy black hair were gone, replaced by straight black hair that stopped right at the tip of his nose. He had decided to change style as a tribute to Sirius. Harry had remembered the memory he had witnessed in Snape's pensive. In it, Sirius had long black hair that he elegantly pushed out from before his eyes. Also, Harry had concentrated on his sight. He didn't need his glasses anymore. The fact that there was no more glasses to hide his eyes revealed magnificent green eyes. Harry was really proud of the result. As he turned toward his friends, he gaped at what he saw.
Hermione had lost the bushy hair he was so familiar with. Now, her brown hair fell to her shoulder blades in delicate waves. The change her hair had gone through was the last ingredient to Hermione's beauty. She was now the most beautiful woman Harry had ever seen.
Ron had lost his freckles and gained a light tan, but the most significant change was his hair. They weren't bright orange anymore. They were of a very dark red, almost bronze and they didn't fall flat on his head anymore, they were cut short and spiky. Also, all sign of Ron's usual round face disappeared. Now, Ron had a definitely pronounced jaw and a more rectangular face.
Nathaniel had grown his hair so they were as long as Hermione's if not longer. They fell straight down without a single curl. Their color had changed too. They weren't sandy-blond anymore, they were of a very metallic silver. The change was stunning. Harry noticed his purple eyes were brighter than before giving a mysterious look to him.
"Wow, this is wicked." Exclaimed Ron as he looked at his reflection in the mirror.
"Well, I guess the potion is a success." Added Nathaniel as he attached his hair in a loose ponytail much like the way Bill attached his long hair.
"What time is it ?" wondered Harry.
"It's time for the showdown." Replied Ron with a smile on his face.
"Now, people, when we'll enter the Great Hall, everyone will be looking at us, but to make it really spectacular you have to act very naturally, as if we always looked like this."
"Understood. Now, let's go."
The four teenagers ran excitedly toward the Great Hall, pushing each other, messing around like normal teenagers, but when they reached the door, they suddenly stopped. They fixed their clothing, their hair and when they were sure everything was perfect, they pushed the doors open and entered.
During the next week, the four teenagers trained as hard as they could. As Harry lay in his bed waiting for Nathaniel to wake up, he thought back to the recent events. Since the day Harry had learned about his best friends relationship, they had dedicated all their time to training. In the morning, Nathaniel would take Hermione and Harry out on the grounds and make them run for an hour or so. Then, they would make their way back to the school and eat breakfast with Ron and the other adults in the Great Hall. Then, Nathaniel would take Hermione and Ron to the Room of Requirements to train them at dueling while Harry went to Dumbledore's office to have his daily Occlumency lesson. When he would finish, he would go to the Great Hall and have lunch with his friends. At noon, very few adults were in the Great Hall, most of them on a mission for the order. After lunch, Nathaniel would take Ron and Harry back to the common room for their meditation period.
When their meditation session would be over, Ron would leave Harry and Nathaniel to spend some time alone with Hermione. During that time, Harry and Nathaniel would leave the school and go swim in the lake with the giant squid or simply lay down in the grass and let the sun tan their skin. Most of the time, Nathaniel would be tired and fall asleep which was understandable since he was present for meditation, jogging and dueling. Harry had often asked the other boy how he managed not to drop dead from exhaustion, but Nathaniel would simply smile at him and chuckle.
Harry thought Nathaniel had integrated the group pretty well. He had earned Hermione's respect the day he had told everyone he would be taking seven classes. They would sometimes talk during the evening about some academic subject or another. The druid however didn't get along with Ron that well. They didn't hate each other, but they had nothing in common and Harry knew that Ron felt threatened by the other boy. Before Nathaniel arrived into their lives, Harry had always been the heart of the group while Hermione was the head and Ron the muscles. Now however, Nathaniel could fill Ron's position better than him. To make matters worse for Ron, Nathaniel understood Harry in a way Ron never would be able to and he could debate on a subject Ron knew nothing about with Hermione for hours. That's why Ron was always a bit cold to the other boy.
Harry knew all of this. After all, he had known Ron for five years now. If he wanted, Harry could have reassured Ron easily. An extra praise here and there would have made Ron more confident in himself, but Harry still remembered the betrayal he had felt when he had walked in on them kissing. Harry couldn't help it but feel a bit satisfied when Ron felt left apart when Nathaniel was having a discussion with Hermione. After all, the sorting hat had almost placed him in Slytherin. That wasn't for nothing, but under the satisfaction, Harry felt guilt. He was still Gryffindor so that's why he would congratulate Ron for something he had done. Not enough to reassure Ron completely, but enough to dampen the guilt. Harry felt bad for his behavior, but he was human above anything else. Not only a Gryffindor or a Slytherin, but a human with emotions.
***
The day passed quickly and before he knew it, Harry was lying down on the grass, shirtless, with Nathaniel beside him. The sun shone brightly on them and Harry could almost feel the sun tanning his unprotected chest. Nathaniel was sleeping on his stomach, leaving his unprotected back at the mercy of the sun. Harry lazily took his wand and performed a quick protection spell on Nathaniel to prevent him from having a sun burn. That done, he closed his eyes and went back to his sunbath.
At first, Harry had been reluctant to take his shirt off, ashamed of his pathetic built compared to Nathaniel's perfect muscles, but then, his training had started to show its effect on his body. Harry had started to eat more and better so he had soon lost his skinny features and had entered his growth spurt. He had developed some muscles, nothing compared to Nathaniel, but Harry's arms had grown bigger, his shoulders stockier, his torso more solid and pronounced and his legs had become more rigid and strong although Harry tried not to get too stocky. As a seeker, he had to be swift. Most of his old clothes didn't fit him any more so he went to buy new ones, both muggle and wizard with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Tonks, Remus and his three best friends in Diagon Alley. He bought bigger clothes that were a bit more flattering.
He also realized Hermione and Ron had changed too. Because of the physical training, Hermione had become an amazingly beautiful young woman. Her curves would have made Fleur Delacour proud. She had grown in height as well as in beauty. Her lips had changed from the flat lines to full, red lips. Her nose had passed from the baby round to the dignified pointy. Her cheeks had gained a pinkish color. During their trip to Diagon Alley, she had bought tighter clothes and had disappeared with Tonks to a female underwear shop which was understandable seeing as her breast had greatly developed.
Ron had continued growing which was starting to alarm his friends. They often joked that if he continued, he would be as tall as Hagrid. While Harry and Hermione were off running around the grounds with Nathaniel, Ron had been training on the Quidditch pitch. Hermione had charmed a Quaffle to try and get passed Ron and into one of the rings. From that training, he had developed his muscles and had started to eat more so he could be stockier and be able to cover more space.
Harry looked around to see if anyone was around. When he was certain no one was near, he took out a snitch from his discarded shirt. The golden ball spread its wing and flew toward the sky. Harry waited until the ball was almost out of his reach before grabbing it at lightning speed. Harry practiced this routine for several minutes. Most of the times, he would be able to grab the Snitch, but sometimes he missed. He knew that with practice, he would catch the ball every time.
"You know, your father used to do that." Said a voice.
Harry looked toward the source and noticed Remus, Dumbledore, McGonagall and Tonks looking at him.
"Yeah, I know. That's what gave me the idea. It's quite a challenge." Replied Harry, sitting up.
"From what I saw, you were doing fine." Said Dumbledore.
"I don't catch it every time." Explained Harry.
"If I remember correctly, your father didn't catch it every time either when he started." Putted McGonagall.
"That's right. In fact, James had more difficulty than Harry at first. He caught the Snitch only half the time." Revealed Remus.
Harry beamed at that. His performance suddenly seemed more satisfactory.
"Harry, I've been wondering what had caused the sudden change in attitude from all of you. The ghosts are telling us you've been running, meditating and dueling each day. What for ?" asked Tonks.
"Tonks, Voldemort and me are going to face off in a duel someday. I think I need to be as ready as possible for that day. Hermione and Ron are known to be my best friends, I don't want Voldemort to use them to blackmail me or something. That's why they've been training too. Nathaniel's been helping us out."
Harry and his friends had decided that that would be their excuse if someone asked about their training. It made perfect sense and in some way, it was true.
"That's quite sensible of you, but Harry, I don't want you to train too hard. You're all still very young. Children your age shouldn't be bothering about saving the world. You need to enjoy your childhood as much as you can. Don't let Voldemort deprive you of your carefree days." Added Dumbledore.
"Professor, I don't want to worry you or anything, but I'm afraid my carefree days have already ended if I had any. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't forget about Voldemort. His presence is ever present in my mind. If it was only about me, I would probably take it day by day, but there's the entire world who's depending on me. It's my duty to be ready when the time comes." "I'm afraid you're right, Harry, but I'll still ask you. Please try and take it easy." Pleaded Dumbledore with a sad smile on his face.
"I will, Professor." Promised Harry.
With that, the adults left, leaving Harry alone with a sleepy Nathaniel. Harry resumed his practice with the Snitch until Nathaniel finally woke up. They talked quietly together until the air started to cool a bit. Then, they headed straight for the common room to prepare for dinner.
"Hey, guys, Dumbledore came and talked to me today. What he said made me think. All that training were doing, we told ourselves it's for the animagus transformation, but underneath it all, we're training in case of an attack. I realized we're letting Voldemort take over our lives. He's winning some kind of war against us. He's already started to conquer us by making us fear and dread him."
"What are you getting at ?" asked Ron.
"I say we do something for ourselves. Something completely pointless that won't have anything to do with Voldemort . Something we selfishly want."
"That's a brilliant idea, Harry and I have just the thing we need." Replied Hermione as she grabbed a book in the pile she had placed in the common room so she could reach for books more easily.
"Gentlemen, I propose a make-over." Announced Hermione as she handed the opened book to Harry.
"What ?" asked Ron as he craned his neck to look behind Harry's shoulder.
"It's a potion that allows you to permanently change some physical features. You only have to think about what you want to change while drinking the potion to make it happen."
"How long does it take to prepare it ?" asked Nathaniel with a smile.
"I can have it ready before dinner. The ingredients will be easy to find. All of them are in Snape's office and since he's under-cover for the order, he won't have trouble breaking in."
"That's perfect. Most of the order are coming here to eat. I think they have a huge meeting later tonight. We can make our entrance when they're all there."
"What are we waiting for ?" asked Ron.
They headed directly to the dungeons. In there, Ron and Hermione headed in the potions class to get the potion started while Harry and Nathaniel broke into Snape's office to get the ingredients that weren't available in the potions class. When the two boys entered the potions class with the ingredients, Hermione and Ron were concentrated over a fuming cauldron.
"Right on time. Harry, drop a scale of multi-colored chameleon in the potion fast. We need to add the ingredients at some precise moments."
As Harry obeyed, the potions passed from fluorescent green to blood red. For the next fifteen minutes, the teens continued making the potion under the orders of Hermione and the occasional intervention of Nathaniel. Harry found himself enjoying immensely making the potion which made him realize he only hated the class because of the teacher. If it wasn't for Snape, maybe Harry would be looking forward to potions class. Harry made a promise to himself not to let Snape get to him anymore and to enrage him more, he vowed to enjoy potions as much as possible.
Finally, as Nathaniel dropped the last ingredient in the potion, it changed from dark purple to sky blue. Hermione filled four goblets with the potions and handed them to her friends.
"Remember to think very strongly about what you want to change. Now, on the count of three. One, two three."
They all drank the entire content in the goblet in one gulp. Then, they closed their eyes and concentrated.
Since they started meditating, concentration and focus was something they achieved far more easily than usual. Harry's control over his emotions was starting to improve too.
Harry was concentrating as hard as he could. Suddenly he felt a tingling sensation all over his face. When the feeling stopped, Harry opened his eyes and looked at his reflection in one of the mirrors they had brought with them. He grinned as he took in his new appearance. His messy black hair were gone, replaced by straight black hair that stopped right at the tip of his nose. He had decided to change style as a tribute to Sirius. Harry had remembered the memory he had witnessed in Snape's pensive. In it, Sirius had long black hair that he elegantly pushed out from before his eyes. Also, Harry had concentrated on his sight. He didn't need his glasses anymore. The fact that there was no more glasses to hide his eyes revealed magnificent green eyes. Harry was really proud of the result. As he turned toward his friends, he gaped at what he saw.
Hermione had lost the bushy hair he was so familiar with. Now, her brown hair fell to her shoulder blades in delicate waves. The change her hair had gone through was the last ingredient to Hermione's beauty. She was now the most beautiful woman Harry had ever seen.
Ron had lost his freckles and gained a light tan, but the most significant change was his hair. They weren't bright orange anymore. They were of a very dark red, almost bronze and they didn't fall flat on his head anymore, they were cut short and spiky. Also, all sign of Ron's usual round face disappeared. Now, Ron had a definitely pronounced jaw and a more rectangular face.
Nathaniel had grown his hair so they were as long as Hermione's if not longer. They fell straight down without a single curl. Their color had changed too. They weren't sandy-blond anymore, they were of a very metallic silver. The change was stunning. Harry noticed his purple eyes were brighter than before giving a mysterious look to him.
"Wow, this is wicked." Exclaimed Ron as he looked at his reflection in the mirror.
"Well, I guess the potion is a success." Added Nathaniel as he attached his hair in a loose ponytail much like the way Bill attached his long hair.
"What time is it ?" wondered Harry.
"It's time for the showdown." Replied Ron with a smile on his face.
"Now, people, when we'll enter the Great Hall, everyone will be looking at us, but to make it really spectacular you have to act very naturally, as if we always looked like this."
"Understood. Now, let's go."
The four teenagers ran excitedly toward the Great Hall, pushing each other, messing around like normal teenagers, but when they reached the door, they suddenly stopped. They fixed their clothing, their hair and when they were sure everything was perfect, they pushed the doors open and entered.