Harry Potter, Heir of Gryffindor

First Signs

Ginny was already eating lunch when they entered the Great Hall. Harry slid his book bag underneath the bench and sat down beside her as Ron and Hermione took the two vacant seats opposite them. Ginny smiled and teasingly whispered, "Good afternoon, Professor Potter."

Harry groaned. "Oh, no. Not you too."

Ginny laughed and smiled. "I'm only kidding," she said leaning into his shoulder. "I know you don't like all the attention, Harry," she said reassuringly which somehow had the added effect of soothing his nerves, "but it really is quite an honor."

"Yeah, right," Harry grumbled. "I wish they would bestow that honor on someone else."

"I'm sure they would if they could, Harry," Ginny said sympathetically. "But right now you're the best man for the job."

Ron glanced up from his plate and smiled mischievously. "I'll bet you say that to all the boys," he grinned with an expectant twinkle in his eyes.

Ginny quickly loaded her spoon with a heaping consignment of mashed potatoes and launched them into Ron's face, expertly aiming it at the center of his forehead. Harry's eyebrows shot up in surprise at this startling revelation of Ginny's ferocity. "You'd better be careful, mate," Ron laughed, wiping the mashed potatoes off of his face and out of his hair. "I have it on good authority - namely from Charlie - that her temper is comparable to a Chinese Fireball's and that her bite is worse than a Norwegian Ridgeback's."

Hermoine scowled and said, "Give him one for me, Ginny."

Ginny was starting to load her spoon again when Ron leaned back from the table and held his hands up defensively. "No, no. No more, Gin," he pleaded laughingly, "I was only kidding."

After things had settled down a bit Harry once again found himself at a loss for what he should be doing. He looked up and down the table at all of the deliciously prepared foods and beverages but couldn't bring himself choose any of it for himself. After several seconds of confusion he nudged Ginny and mumbled, "Uh, Ginny?"

"Yes, Harry?"

"Help," he squeaked.

"What?" she asked. Then noticing that his plate and goblet were empty, said, "Oh." Pulling out her wand she tapped the center of his plate and said, in a surprisingly confident and commanding voice, "This is Harry Potter's plate!"

A moment later Dobby's reflection once again appeared in his plate. "Hello, Harry," Dobby squeaked. "What would you like for lunch?"

"Er, . . . what are my choices?" Harry asked hesitantly then immediately regretted it as the excitable house elf began listing a variety of dishes. Harry smiled to himself then held his hands up, interrupting Dobby's recitation of the meals on his "special diet." "I'll tell you what, Dobby," he said as a friendly grin spread across his face. "I'm free Tuesday afternoon. If you have some time we can meet in the seventh chamber of my trunk and go over the menu. Until then why don't you just surprise me. You know my tastes and I trust you. But I must say that those bagels are really quite good."

Dobby smiled up at Harry and said, "Yes, Harry! Lunch will be ready in a few minutes."

Harry looked back at Ginny, the confusion in his eyes communicating a desire to understand. "Dobby has been given a list of recipes and a special meal plan to help you adjust, get your appetite back and, according to Professor Dumbledore, provide you with the extra energy you will need while you are learning about your new abilities. Like I started to explain at breakfast," she said after a brief pause, "Professor Dumbledore was sure that you would survive and come back to us. With the help of some of the Unspeakables from the Department of Mysteries and the Dieticians at St, Mungo's he and Doctor Stone developed a special diet for you and made sure that both Dobby and Winky could prepare all of the meals on every menu."

"Both Dobby and Winky?" Harry asked.

"Mm Hmm," Ginny nodded. "Winky insisted that she be allowed to help. She may technically be my house elf but she is also my friend and I want her to be happy so, when she asked to be allowed to help . . ."

"I get the picture," Harry smirked. "So how do I go about placing an order?"

"All you have to do is tap the center of your plate and say, 'This is Harry Potter's plate,' and either Winky or Dobby will prepare your meals for you."

Harry sighed deeply and bowed his head. "Why me?" he asked softly. "Why can't I be just like everyone else for a change?"

Ginny squeezed his hand and looked up into his eyes. "You already know why, Mister Maturo Auctus," she said softly

Harry groaned. "Yeah, I know. That doesn't mean I have to like it though."

Before Ginny could respond Ron looked up and uncomfortably and asked, "Erm, Harry? How much of this past summer do you remember?"

Harry looked down at his plate and began picking at the salad that had just appeared. It was several seconds before he responded but when he did he looked tiredly into his friend's eyes and saw the concern written on his face. "I don't know. Most of it I guess, why?"

"What do you remember about the attack?" Hermoine asked hesitantly.

Harry looked into her eyes and could feel her nervousness and apprehension. He knew that she did not want to be the one to have to ask this question. But at the same time he knew that she felt that it was her duty and obligation to him as a friend.

He sighed and put his fork down. "Hermoine," he began gently, "what can I tell you. I remember seeing the wards coming down and hearing the pops as the Death Eaters apparareted into the Dursley's garden. I remember jumping over the wall and running down the street. I remember being surrounded, activating the charm and feeling the curses as they were cast and the effects they had on their casters. I also remember most of what happened afterwards, on a spiritual, level but that is still kind of private so I would really rather not go into that just now."

Ron nodded meaningfully. "Dumbledore said something like that might have happened," he said earnestly. "You, my friend, have had what the muggles call a Near Death Experience. He said that we might be noticing some changes in your personality, which we have by the way. He also said you will need us now more than ever to help you come to terms with who and/or what you have become."

Harry looked around at his friends and could feel their unease. After several painstakingly silent seconds he squeezed Ginny's hand and smiled across at Ron and Hermione and said, "Thanks, guys. You don't know how much that means to me."

For the rest of the meal Harry ate in silence as he contentedly listened to Ron, Hermione and Ginny recount their holiday adventures, which weren't really all that exciting as they had spent most of their time cooped up at Order of the Phoenix headquarters redecorating. He learned from Ron that the headquarters had, indeed, been transformed into a major command post from which Dumbledore could easily manage the entire war if need be. From Ginny, he learned that the entire headquarters had been redecorated, in accordance with Sirius' wishes, in Gryffindor colors and that Phineus' portrait had been moved into the Situation Room so that Dumbledore could more easily communicate with Order members in times of crisis. And from Hermione he learned that Buckbeak had been renamed Witherwings and returned to the Forbidden Forest and Hagrid's care.

As the meal ended they retrieved their book bags from beneath the benches and Harry and Ginny walked side-by-side down one side of the long table while Ron and Hermione did the same along the other. At the entrance to the Great Hall Harry, Ron and Hermione bid farewell to Ginny who smiled and headed off for her first Defense against the Dark Arts class of the year while they shouldered their bags and proceeded to Professor McGonagall's classroom and Transfiguration. On their way to class Harry noticed that while Ron was reluctantly trudging through the corridors Hermione was quietly encouraging him and patiently explaining some of the finer points of Transfiguration. He also noticed that her voice was unusually soft and gentle. He wondered at this and was about to say something when Colin Creevye's camera flashed in his face.

"Hi, Harry!" the excitable fifth year Gryffindor boy chirped.

Blinking his eyes as he struggled to regain his sight Harry groaned. "Hi, Colin," he said, smiling weakly.

"I'm really glad you're alright," Colin said excitedly. "I understand you are going to be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts this year, Harry! Sounds like fun!"

Harry frowned and looked to Ron and Hermione for support. Ron just rolled his eyes and shook his head while Hermione smiled weakly and looked sympathetic. "Yeah," Harry mumbled sarcastically. "Loads of fun."

Professor McGonagall was pacing nervously in front of her desk when they entered the Transfiguration classroom and looked up as the last of her students found their seats. "These are not normal times," she said tersely, the strain clearly showing on her face. "We are at war. As such," she continued, "we will be spending a great deal of time this year learning some of the most advanced transfigurations that can be used to disguise both yourselves and your equipment as well as a number of conjuring techniques and transfiguration's place in the dueling environment. We will begin by reviewing some of the transfigurations you have already learned and then move on from there." For the next several minutes she listed some of the transfigurations they had to look forward to over the coming months. Then, looking seriously into their eyes, said, "The last thing we will study this year is the animagus transformation. It is a very complicated combination of spells and I do not expect many of you to be able to achieve its levels of proficiency. However, Professor Dumbledore has asked me to give you the benefit of my experience and to teach as many of you as I can so that if you should ever need to use it you will have the ability."

Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at each other in surprise. "This must really be serious if they are going to be teaching the animagus transformation in sixth year," Ron whispered to Harry.

"I assure you, Mister Weasley," Professor McGonagall said sternly, "that this is very serious. And I expect you all to apply yourselves to the learning of these transformations," she said, turning back to address the entire class, "because someday your lives may very well depend upon your ability to use them."

Walking back up to the front of the room Professor McGonagall approached a black sheet that seemed to be draped over a large crate in a corner of the room behind her desk. Lifting the sheet she revealed a series of stacked cages, each of which contained a single guinea fowl. "Mister Weasley and Mister Potter," she said, turning back to face the class, "Since you have so kindly volunteered your services, could you please come forward and distribute these birds amongst your classmates."

Harry and Ron grudgingly got to their feet and walked to the front of the room. A few minutes later, after everyone had a bird and Ron and Harry had returned to their seats, Professor McGonagall's expression softened slightly and she said, "Today we are going to begin by reviewing the transfiguration of guinea fowl into guinea pigs."

After a quick, five-minute lecture, during which she reminded them of some of the things they had learned the previous year, she turned them loose and told them to begin. Harry looked at the bird in front of him and started thinking about what he was supposed to be doing when he felt himself sip into a kind of hypnotic stupor. He remembered what he had learned about magic during his Maturo Auctus and wondered if any of it could be applied to transfiguration. As he mentally reviewed his notes and thought about the transformation he was supposed to be working on he heard a soft popping sound.

"Harry!" Hermione gasped. "Your wand!"

"Huh?" Harry asked, shaking his head to clear his mind of the seemingly impenetrable fog that was clouding his conscious thoughts.

"Your wand. You didn't use your wand," she whispered in shocked surprise.

Professor McGonagall, who was across the room helping a Ravenclaw girl, looked up and quickly strode over to stand in front of Harry's desk. She glanced down at the perfectly transfigured guinea pig in the cage in front of him and noticed that his wand was lying quietly on the table. "What did you say, Miss Granger?" She asked.

Hermione looked up at her favorite professor with a confused expression on her face and said, "I was just picking up my wand to begin the transfiguration when I heard a soft pop. When I looked up I saw that Harry had already finished it. Then I saw his wand and realized that he hadn't used it."

Professor McGonagall cocked her eyebrows and looked inquisitively at Harry for several seconds. Finally, after what seemed an eternity to Harry, she looked at him even more sternly than she had before and said, "Can you perform the reverse transfiguration, Mister Potter?" she asked.

"Er . . .," Harry began and reached for his wand.

"No," she said, quickly placing her hand over his wand so that he couldn't retrieve it. "I want you to do it without your wand."

"Er . . ."

"Just do what you did before," she said more softly. "Only this time transfigure the guinea pig into a guinea fowl."

Harry had the uncomfortable feeling that every one in the room was watching him but he did as he was told and, closing his eyes, allowed himself to fall back into the trance he had experienced before. He had no sooner closed his eyes than he heard a soft pop which was immediately followed by Ron's awestruck voice saying, "Wicked!"

Harry opened his eyes and saw that the guinea fowl had been returned to its original state. It was looking at him a little reproachfully but for all intents and purposes seemed to be fine.

"Very well, Mister Potter," Professor McGonagall said. "It would seem that you are able to perform wandless and wordless magic, which usually takes years to master. I will suggest that you keep it under wraps for now. We will discuss this development with Professor Dumbledore this evening. And for the rest of you," she said, turning to address the class, "what you have just seen does not leave this room." As an added precaution she waved her wand while muttering something under her breath and a moment later everyone in the room, except for Harry and herself, had vaguely pleased expressions on their faces. While the others were recovering from the effects of her memory charm she handed Harry his wand and said, as if nothing extraordinary had happened, "Alright, Mister Potter, let's see what you can do?" Catching his eye she mouthed the words, "with your wand."

For the rest of the period Harry used his wand and performed the rest of the review transfigurations Professor McGonagal had planned for them that day. What none of the others realized - except, perhaps, for Professor McGonagall - was that he was using wandless magic, only channeling the energy through his wand and only halfheartedly saying the words so that the others would not realize what was happening.

Looking past Ron as they left the Transfiguration classroom and headed for the dungeons for Potions and Professor Snape Hermione looked admiringly over at Harry . "I'm impressed, Harry," she said with a smile. "You got all of the transfigurations right on the first try."

Harry smiled weakly. "Yeah, well . . ." Harry stumbled over his words, remembering McGonagall's warning about keeping quiet about his wandless magic abilities. "I got lucky."

As they passed through the Entrance Hall Ginny stopped them, smiling happily. "This is going to be so much fun!" she said, bubbling over with excitement. "Tonks and Kingsley and Mad Eye are teaching Defense! And Professor Lupin is back! This is gong to be a fun year!" Harry could not help but smile at Ginny's excitement. She was happy and that's all that really mattered right now.

The line outside the Potions classroom was an odd mixture of students. There were four Slytherins, three Ravenclaws, two Hufflepuffs and, including themselves, four Gryffindors. The fourth Gryffindor was, of course, Neville.

As they lined up outside the door Harry seemed to be the only one who was not surprised to see Neville. "Hey, Neville!" he said. "Are you ready for this?"

Neville looked up and said, "Oh, hi, Harry," then sighed. "Yeah, I guess. I'll need it if I'm going to become an auror. So, we've got two more years of Professor Snape. I'm glad you guys are going to be taking it with me, though, because I don't know if I could handle it on my own."

Harry chuckled. "Oh, I don't know, Neville. After this summer I don't think there is much you couldn't handle on your own. Some of those duels were pretty intense and you've got to remember that we were outnumbered more often than not."

Neville smiled wistfully at the memory of their dueling practice then said, "Yeah but this is Snape."

Harry chuckled as a mischievous glint came into his eye then said, "I'll tell you what, Neville. Do you remember what we did to Tonks after our first run through Moody's Maze?"

"Yeah," Neville said as an irrepressible smile spread across his fate. "Why?"

"Well, I was just thinking that the next time Snape starts giving you a hard time just try to imagine what he would look like in that outfit."

Harry and Neville burst out laughing at the image of their beloved Potions Master dressed in a frilly pink tutu and wooden clogs. "And if that isn't enough," Harry laughed, "imagine him running around like a chicken with his hair spinning and his ears flapping!"

Harry and Neville were so consumed with laughter that they almost didn't hear the Potions classroom door slam open and almost missed the greasy haired visage of Professor Snape, black eyes blazing from an encounter with a particularly rebellious student in his previous class, appearing in the opening. Glaring furiously at this class of sixth years he nodded curtly and stepped aside to let them enter. As Harry and Neville made their way past their Potions Master, barely able to suppress their laughter, Snape scowled and barked for them to be quiet.

When they had all taken their seats and gotten out their quills, ink and parchment Snape stepped in front of his desk and scowled before calling roll. Harry noticed that Snape's perpetually dark, yet pallid, features did not change much as he called the roll and glared at each student in turn.

When he had finished taking attendance Snape laid the parchment aside and glared at his students as if daring them to breathe. The nostrils of his overlarge nose flared in contempt as he stared angrily into their faces. "For the past five years," he began silkily, "you have been learning the basics of the fine art and exact science which is potion making. The potions you have brewed thus far have been little more than childish games. Over the next two years, however, you will be learning some of the most advanced potions ever created. You will be learning several medicinal potions, several restorative drafts and several healing compounds. In addition you will be learning to brew the Wolfsbane Potion as well as the Polyjuice Potion. You will be learning these potions because you are being prepared for war."

He paused dramatically for several seconds before continuing. "You will also be learning how to tailor a potion to a specific individual, as no two people and no two situations are identical and you must be prepared to deal with any eventuality. In conjunction with your Herbology Professor, if you are taking Herbology this year, I will be teaching you to identify and harvest the plants you will be using in the field and you will be learning how to make substitutions when necessary. This is no longer a game and I suggest you learn your lessons well because your lives may very well depend upon what you are able to learn in this class."

He paused again, but only briefly this time. "Since some of the potions you will be learning this year take several weeks, if not months, to brew I thought we would begin with those and let you work on them independently - and I do mean independently - while you are practicing and preparing many of the less complicated potions."

Glaring menacingly at the four Gryffindors he said, "Let us begin with the Polyjuice Potion, shall we? Tell me, Mister Potter," he spat, "what do you know of this potion, its uses and its preparation?"

Harry gulped as he tried to remember the potion they had brewed in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom in their second year. Then, as he was about to open his mouth, he felt a calm wash over him as he remembered everything Salizar Slytherin had taught him about the Polyjuice Potion. For the next fifteen minutes he delivered an impromptu lecture on the origins and history of the potion as well as its ingredients and their properties. He described the brewing process and even mentioned several possible substitutions and their effects. When he was finished almost everyone in the class was looking at him as though he had grown a second head.

"Very good," Professor Snape seethed resentfully when Harry had finished with his presentation. "Tell me, Miss Granger, how long does it last and what kinds of transformations should it be used for?" Snape sneered.

To his amazement, which only served to increase Harry's respect for her, Hernione let Snapes obvious reference to her mishap with Millicent Bulstrode's cat slide. "The Polyjuice Potion is to be used for human transformations only and, when properly brewed, each dose should last one hour."

"Anything else to add, Mister Weasley"" Snape snarled.

Ron smiled mischievously and then launched into a lecture, similar to Harry's except that he focused primarily upon the transformation process and the various ways of knowing when it was beginning to wear off. Needless to say, Professor Snape was furious. Two of his students had just lectured him on aspects of the Polyjuice Potion that only Master Potions Masters should have access to. Fuming, he turned back to the rest of the class and hissed, "Copies of this potion's instructions have been placed on reserve for you in the library. Madam Pince is expecting you so I suggest you pick them up after class today and begin working on them immediately. You will be testing your Polyjuice Potions on Halloween."

For the next hour and a half Professor Snape lectured them on the intricacies of the Polyjuice Potion, its preparation and the things that could go wrong if any mistakes were made, essentially repeating everything Harry and Ron had already said. He described the history and development of the potion and its proper, ethical uses. He also mentioned some of its more illegitimate uses. Before releasing the class he said, "We will begin work on other potions and projects on Wednesday. I want three feet on the Polyjuice Potion, its preparation and use by next Friday."

The four Gryffindors held back, as the other students left the room, and hovered uneasily around Professor Snape's desk awaiting his acknowledgement. After several tense minutes, when they hadn't left, Snape looked up and glared at them as if hoping his gaze would frighten them away. "Well," he growled when they refused to leave, "What do you want?"

Hermione, looking nervously about, stepped forward. "Er . . ." she began, "is there any possibility I could get a pass from you so I could check some books out of the Restricted Section in the library?"

Snape scowled but wrote a pass for her and thrust it into her hand then turned to Ron and said, "Mister Weasley?"

"Er . . . Nothing," Ron said as he stumbled back from the professor's desk.

Stammering slightly, Neville stepped forward and said, "I . . . I want to thank you, sir."

Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at their friend with surprised expressions on their faces as Professor Snape raised an inquisitive eyebrow and curled his lip. "For?" the snarling Potions Master asked.

"For helping me see the connection between plants and potions," Neville said confidently.

Snape glared at Neville for a few seconds and then grudgingly said, "You're welcome."

As Neville left Harry looked at Ron and Hermione, nodding his head toward the door, silently telling them to leave because what he was about to say was between himself and Professor Snape and he didn't want them to hear it.

When they were alone Harry walked over, closed the door and returned to stand in front of the Potions Master's desk. Snape looked up and glared into Harry's eyes for several seconds. Harry could feel Snape striving to gain access his mind but calmly held him off. Finally, after realizing that Harry no longer feared him and that Harry could easly block any intrusion into his mind, Professor Snape quickly lowered his eyes. "What do you want, Potter?" he asked sharply.

"I wanted to say I'm sorry," Harry said softly. "I know how cruel some children can be and I know how painful those experiences can be and the devastating effects some of our youthful experiences can have on our lives. But, sir, if you must hate me, all I can do is ask that you hate me for myself and not for the sins of my father."

Snape slowly raised his head and looked up at Harry. When their eyes met again Harry reached out and easily broke through Snape's defenses but stopped himself from going any further. Snape seemed to realize that Harry was at least honorable enough to respect his privacy and did not look away. "I don't know what happened to you while you were dead, Potter," he grudgingly mumbled, "but I thank you."

"Let's just say that I understand things a little more clearly now," Harry said. Then, as he broke eye contact and headed for the door, stopped and said, "And you are welcome, sir."