In Every Darkness
Chapter Thirty Two: The New Defence Teacher
31.8.1996
"Yes, me!" Tonks grinned at Harry. Her hair was bright purple at the moment, and although she was wearing presentable clothing, she didn't seem at all like a Professor.
"Dumbledore's mad," Harry remarked, grabbing his trunk as Grypis changed form into a cat.
"That's what I told him," Tonks agreed, nodding brightly. She peered in the mirror. "Do I look alright?" she added curiously.
"If you want to look a little like a Professor, I'd suggest a … normal … hair colour," Harry replied. "Maybe light brown?"
Tonks wrinkled her nose. "Well, I can always changed it back, I suppose," she remarked, smiling fondly at her purple hair. She screwed up her face and concentrated, and a moment later she had midlength chestnut hair.
"Better," Harry nodded at her, smiling. Tonks, however, glanced into the mirror once more, snorted and stalked towards the fire, still seeming a little peeved.
"Come on then," she said, and her voice revealed that she wasn't actually mad, just acting it out.
Harry strode after her. He knew that Dumbledore had organised for them to come to his office, and that house elves would come for his trunk at a later point in time.
"Where's your trunk?" Harry asked curiously, looking at Tonks' empty hands.
"I brought it over this morning," Tonks replied, shrugging. "Here," she added, thrusting a bowl of Floo powder into Harry's hands, nearly spilling it in the process. "You go first."
Harry smiled and took a pinch of powder, throwing it on the flames. When the went green and he stepped into the fire place, the words "Dumbledore's office," took him where he wanted to go.
When he stepped out of the fire, he was in Hogwarts. He looked around the Headmasters office, smiling slightly as he moved out of the way, and took any breakables out of the immediate vicinity of the fire, in preparation of Tonks coming.
A soft trill behind him, and Harry looked to see Fawkes sitting on his perch. Grypis suddenly jumped down from Harry's shoulder, padding on silent paws over to beside the perch and looking up at the phoenix.
"Gods …" Grypis's whisper in Harry's mind was almost strangled. "He's so … old! And powerful. I've never met anything like him."
"Hello Fawkes," Harry greeted the phoenix quietly. Fawkes trilled a few notes of joyful song, before they were interrupted by a crash from the fire place.
"Dumbledore was insane," Harry muttered under his breath, hurrying over to help Tonks to her feet. Grypis bounded up onto Dumbledore's desk, then leapt from there to Harry's shoulder.
Harry was glad that he'd thought to put a leather pad underneath his robes so that when Grypis landed on him it wouldn't hurt.
"Well come on!" Tonks said, dragging Harry downstairs. "We're late already! No need to miss dinner."
Harry rolled his eyes, waved goodbye to Fawkes and hurried to keep up with Tonks, who seemed to know her way around perfectly.
"I haven't been this way for ages," Tonks remarked, glancing around the halls. "But when I was in Hogwarts I had to come up at least twice a week …"
Harry managed to stifle his laughter – barely.
With Grypis clinging to his shoulder, Harry wove his way through the familiar corridors of Hogwarts. Every breath he took, he seemed to breath in the magic that soaked the place.
He saw the stairs that led down to the entrance hall ahead, and could hear cheers erupting from within the Great Hall – the sorting must be nearly finished now.
He walked towards the door, but Tonks caught his hand, pulling him back. "Albus said we're supposed to wait to be announced," she said, rolling her eyes to show what she thought of this.
Suddenly there was a huge burst of applause from within the hall – now the sorting was over.
Harry heard Dumbledore's voice ring out, now that he was closer to the door. "I have the dubious pleasure of introducing a new Defence Teacher. Maybe this one will finally last more than a year …"
"Now we can go in," Tonks said, striding forward and throwing the doors open. The whole hall turned to look at them, and Harry felt distinctly uncomfortable.
"Ah! Nymphadora, you've arrived!" Dumbledore cried jovially.
"My name," Tonks growled, "is Tonks."
"Professor Tonks," Harry agreed, when she dug him in the ribs. Then he slipped from her side, hurrying over to the Gryffindor table as Tonks glared at Dumbledore.
"As I was saying, Nymphadora Tonks will be your new Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor," Dumbledore continued, ignoring her glare.
Harry slipped into a seat between Ron and Hermione. "Dumbledore's got a death wish," he remarked quietly to his two friends.
Both nodded in complete agreement as Tonks seemed to swell up slightly with anger. She suddenly turned to face the student population. "If any one of you so much as thinks Nymphadora, you'll find yourself on detention for the rest of the year. I'm Tonks."
She nodded firmly and strode to her seat, beside Snape, but managed to get her foot tangled in the legs of his chair, sending them both crashing to the ground.
"Oops! Sorry Sev!" Tonks cried jovially, and headed to her own seat, leaving a fuming Potions Master to pick himself up.
Dumbledore watched these goings on with faint amusement. "Well, now that Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher has come, let's eat!"
"Good idea!" Ron applauded Dumbledore's words quietly. Only Harry and Hermione heard him, as food appeared on all of the platters down the table. Ron immediately began to load his plate, as did most people on all of the tables, but Harry was a little slower, not being all that hungry.
There were a few new faces down the table, most of the new students were watching Harry with awe – even if they were Muggle born someone would have told them about Harry Potter. Either on the way to Hogwarts or when Harry entered the room with Tonks just before.
He wished they wouldn't look at him that way, it was very disconcerting. He was trying to eat here! With a sigh, he tried to ignore them – it wasn't easy.
"How was the train trip?" he asked his friends quietly.
"Pretty uneventful, once we got off the platform," Hermione replied.
"We met up with Malfoy, but then Moody turned up and Malfoy bolted," Ron added. "He didn't give us any trouble for the rest of the trip."
"And how is everyone?"
"The ones we met up with were," Hermione assured him. "I talked to everyone, and they all think that we should continue with DA. That is, if you want to, and Dumbledore lets us."
"I'll ask him later," Harry replied. "I think I'd like to keep going with it. The end of the last year certainly showed that learning to fight was important."
"Yeah," Ron agreed, wholeheartedly.
Harry looked around the Gryffindor table again, seeing so many familiar faces. How many of them would want to join DA? He shook his head slightly – he'd work that out later. He wouldn't be able to teach too many people at once.
Soon enough the feasting was over and Dumbledore was standing up again, commanding silence from everyone.
"Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts. As those of you who come from magical families will know only too well, Lord Voldemort is now actively working against the Light side of the Wizarding World. Those of you who came from Muggle families were warned of this when you received your letters. The wizarding world is not necessarily a safe place at this time.
"I beg you all to obey the rules while you are here. They are for your own safety. There have been some adjustments to the rules which I will notify you of now.
"No student is to be out of their common rooms after seven o'clock at night, unless they are with a prefect of their house, or a teacher. All Quidditch practices will be overseen by Madam Hooch. If there is word of Death Eater activity near the castle, teachers or prefects will escort students to and from classes.
"As always, the Forbidden Forest is, as it's name suggests, strictly forbidden to all students, unless accompanied by a teacher.
"It is my sad duty to inform you that Mr. Filch, our caretaker, resigned last year, for reasons he would rather not have disclosed to you. In his place this year we have Arabella Figg. I trust that you will all respect her wishes and do as she asks of you.
"Now, I think that is all the new announcements, so let us sing the school song and then you may all go to your beds!"
There was a momentary cheer, which subsided when Dumbledore had set up the ribbons that showed the words to the Hogwarts school song.
"Everyone pick a tune, and let's begin!" Dumbledore cried happily, while Harry noted that the other teachers looked as if they'd rather be anywhere else than in a hall full of students all singing different tunes.
"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, hoggy warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please,
Whether we be old and bald,
Or young with scabby knees,
Our heads could do with filling
With some interesting stuff,
For now their bare, and full of air,
Dead flies and bits of fluff,
Oh, teach us things worth knowing,
Bring back what we've forgot,
Just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn till our brains all rot."
"Well done, all of you!" Dumbledore cried out happily as everyone finished the song. The Weasley twins weren't around anymore to sing their slow, funeral march. "Now, prefects, please escort the first years to their dormitories! Harry, could you stay behind for a word please? Everyone else, off you trot!"
The teachers stood up as well, filing out of the hall, even as the students did. Harry walked up to the Staff Table and waiting patiently while everyone else left.
At last, it was just Harry and Professor Dumbledore.
"You wanted to talk to me, Professor?" Harry asked curiously.
"Yes. I didn't get to spend enough time through the summer talking to you, what with Lord Voldemort stepping up his activities and such. Do you still want to continue with your group?"
Harry looked up at his teacher and smiled. "Yes, and most of the students who were a part of it want me to continue also," he replied.
"Very well, but I suggest you take the name back to Defence Association, rather than Dumbledore's Army – while I'm flattered, I don't think it's the best idea," Dumbledore replied.
"Thanks sir!" Harry replied. "I'll let everyone know tomorrow sometime."
"As you like Harry. Also, the life-long ban on Quidditch that Dolores Umbridge imposed last year is lifted. You may resume your place on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, if you like."
"Thanks sir!" Harry was very relieved – Quidditch was one of the things that he liked most about Hogwarts. Flying would always be a passion for him, he thought.
"Now, I'd best let you get off to bed, and let you get some sleep before classes start tomorrow, hm? I'll send you a separate time table at a later date about your classes with Severus. Off you go!"
"Good night sir," Harry replied, a little sullenly because he'd been reminded of his need to spend more time with Snape.
Harry found his way to Gryffindor Tower without paying much attention at all. In fact, he was almost asleep. But Grypis, perched on his shoulder was anything but, so Harry didn't have to worry about anyone sneaking up on him.
When he reached the Fat Lady, he realised that he didn't know what the new password was, but Ron was waiting, yawning, outside of the portrait. "The new password is griffin," he said, grinning.
Harry rolled his eyes and smiled back, giving the Fat Lady the password. Ron, Harry and Grypis stumbled into the common room and headed up to their dormitory.
"So, what did Dumbledore have to say?" Ron asked curiously.
"He said that I could play Quidditch again and that we can continue with DA, if it goes back to being Defence Association," Harry replied sleepily, changing into his pyjamas.
"Good about Filch being gone, isn't it?" Ron remarked brightly, even though he yawned half way through.
"Very. I wonder what Figg'll be like. She was your baby sitter for a while, wasn't she?"
"Yeah, for most of the time I was at the Dursley's," Harry replied. "She's nice enough, but I think the castle is about to be overrun by cats. She's got tons of them."
"More cats?" Ron protested as he climbed into bed.
"Yup, lots more," Harry responded, but Ron was already asleep. Harry followed him there almost immediately, with Grypis curled up beside his head.
Harry awoke early the next morning. Sirius hadn't come the night before, which Harry felt a little disappointed about. He'd wanted to tell his godfather about Tonks.
"Oh well," he muttered to himself, getting up. The movement woke Grypis, who stretched lazily and jumped down from the bed. On Harry's bedside table, a house elf had left a bowl of minced meat. Harry was glad that Dumbledore had remembered to ask the elves for this.
Leaving Grypis happily eating his breakfast, Harry unpacked his things out of his trunk, then went to have a shower before the other boys got up.
When he'd finished getting ready, Harry went down to the common room to read for a while and wait for his friends to come too.
Ron was the first down, after Harry, but Hermione followed soon after. "We have to wait for the first years," Hermione told Ron sternly when the other boy would have walked off immediately.
Ron sighed, but waiting until the new students had assembled themselves. Harry smiled slightly, there were twelve new youngsters, more than usually came to a house.
"Come on then," Ron muttered to Hermione, anxious to get down to the Great Hall and eat before classes.
The three of them led the new students down to the Great Hall, Hermione pointing out various land-marks to the new students so that they – hopefully – wouldn't get too lost.
In the Great Hall, the teachers were handing out time-tables. Harry, Ron and Hermione grabbed there's on the way past McGonagall, and Harry flipped his open.
"Oh, bloody hell!" he said, scanning it.
***
I think I'll leave it there *grins* review and I'll update!
~WolfMoon~