Chapter 19: Legal
April passed quickly, and soon May was upon them, and everyone was studying more than ever before. Even Harry and Ron had study groups in the library, inviting along as many people as possible, and they had one large study session a week, discussing all the things they were sure would be on the test. Madam Pince, however, finally threw them all out of the library on account of them making too much noise, and as a result, they ended up downstairs in the great hall at Gryffindor table, all of them babbling about things they feared would be on the tests.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were sitting down for breakfast that Monday, talking about the tests, which were only weeks away, when Hedwig showed up with a letter for Harry. Not used to get mail, Harry plucked it from Hedwig's beak and gave her some of his toast, which she nibbled gratefully, then flew off to the Owlery. He read the letter quickly, then grinned. "What's that?" asked Ron, and Harry handed the letter to him.
Harry Potter King Cobra 6'0" 1'6" 160 lbs. 1 lb. Green Eyes Green Eyes, Black Glasses
Registered with the Ministry of Magic
Supervising Animagus Wizard: Professor Severus Christopher Snape
Minister of Magic: Cornelius Achilles Fudge
Lifetime License
"Cool!" exclaimed Ron, then kept his voice down, "So this is your license? As in, you keep this with you or something?" "Yeah," said Harry off-handedly, "I keep it with me so if they ask for my license I've always got it. Apparently the Ministry has lots of problems with illegal Animagi, or so Snape was saying." "You have no idea," said Hermione, thinking of Rita Skeeter with a nasty smile. The three of them laughed as they headed off to Herbology, and Harry put his license in his wallet, feeling proud, and he enjoyed that feeling all the way through Herbology and even through Care of Magical Creatures.
At dinner, Harry was almost gulping down his food, eager to show Snape that he had done it; he was a legal Animagus now, no matter how much Snape insisted that he wasn't. Plus he was feeling good about his exams; and he had practiced hard on his Legilimency. Harry felt like he was on top of the world, and especially with the Quidditch game against Hufflepuff at the end of the week. No one could stop him at this rate.
Their lesson, as much as Harry wished it had gone better, did not; Snape was not at all impressed with his license and merely reminded Harry that just because he was licensed did not make him a complete Animagus yet. He still had to get faster and better at it before Snape would even acknowledge that he was halfway decent. "I debated signing that parchment, Potter, believe me," he said silkily, "but since I figured that eventually you might be good at it, I had might as well make sure you're doing it legally."
This angered Harry, and his Legilimency lesson did not go at all well as he could not concentrate. "If you can't concentrate then leave Potter! That's what these lessons are based around! Concentration and speed!"
By the end of the lesson, Harry was almost grumbling beneath his breath, and when he got up to the common room he was muttering about "Stupid overgrown bat" and "greasy hook-nosed jerk".
Ron and Hermione need not ask what had happened.
Harry, however, got lucky the next day when Snape did not show up for Potions. 'I hope he hexed himself off the planet,' he thought morosely. Dumbledore showed up a minute later, and everyone's spirits were lifted, "I'll be teaching today, if you don't mind," added Dumbledore. No one voiced a concern, and their Potions lesson was one of the best ever. "Oh very good Mr. Longbottom, take ten points to Gryffindor," said Dumbledore over his half-moon spectacles as he observed Neville's potion. Neville looked as if he might burst with happiness; never had he earned points for Gryffindor in his dreaded Potions class.
No one could really say why Snape had been absent for the one time in their six years of attending Hogwarts, but when Harry, Ron, and Hermione saw him at the High Table that evening they guessed what had happened. One side of his jaw was puffy, and he was clutching it in an ill manner, and a minute later they saw him taking a pill. "I think mom and dad removed one of his teeth," said Hermione with a grin, "I'll bet it was killing him." "Too bad it didn't," said Ron; Harry noticed that Snape was watching them, and he hit Ron, "Shut up, shhh!" "What? Why? He can't hear us from all the way up there!" said Ron angrily. Harry turned away so that Snape could not read his lips, "Ron, he doesn't have to hear us. All he needs is to see us. He can read lips!"
Ron and Hermione dropped their forks in unison, and Ron stuttered, "You mean...every time...every time I've called him a greasy git...he could tell?!" he whispered. Harry nodded, and now the three of them were all facing away from Snape so he could not read their lips, "He learned how to read lips so he could hear when he's in his snake form. Snakes can't hear so he has to know what people are saying somehow." Hermione put her face in her hands, "That explains so much now. Why didn't I think of that before?!"
Harry and Ron, from then on, seemed to be paranoid whenever they were in Potions class; at their next class, they only spoke if Snape was not looking at them, and consequently, they did not notice something different about him until the end of class. "He looks different," said Ron quietly, "I can't figure it out." After a long minute of trying to decipher the mystery, all three of them realized in unison what was different; his teeth were pearly white. Hermione almost giggled, "Mum and dad must have done it; look at his teeth! That's hilarious!" A few others in class seemed to notice this as well, and eventually Snape figured out the source of humor and from then on refused to bare his teeth at any student. They laughed about it for days afterward.
April passed quickly, and soon May was upon them, and everyone was studying more than ever before. Even Harry and Ron had study groups in the library, inviting along as many people as possible, and they had one large study session a week, discussing all the things they were sure would be on the test. Madam Pince, however, finally threw them all out of the library on account of them making too much noise, and as a result, they ended up downstairs in the great hall at Gryffindor table, all of them babbling about things they feared would be on the tests.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were sitting down for breakfast that Monday, talking about the tests, which were only weeks away, when Hedwig showed up with a letter for Harry. Not used to get mail, Harry plucked it from Hedwig's beak and gave her some of his toast, which she nibbled gratefully, then flew off to the Owlery. He read the letter quickly, then grinned. "What's that?" asked Ron, and Harry handed the letter to him.
Harry Potter King Cobra 6'0" 1'6" 160 lbs. 1 lb. Green Eyes Green Eyes, Black Glasses
Registered with the Ministry of Magic
Supervising Animagus Wizard: Professor Severus Christopher Snape
Minister of Magic: Cornelius Achilles Fudge
Lifetime License
"Cool!" exclaimed Ron, then kept his voice down, "So this is your license? As in, you keep this with you or something?" "Yeah," said Harry off-handedly, "I keep it with me so if they ask for my license I've always got it. Apparently the Ministry has lots of problems with illegal Animagi, or so Snape was saying." "You have no idea," said Hermione, thinking of Rita Skeeter with a nasty smile. The three of them laughed as they headed off to Herbology, and Harry put his license in his wallet, feeling proud, and he enjoyed that feeling all the way through Herbology and even through Care of Magical Creatures.
At dinner, Harry was almost gulping down his food, eager to show Snape that he had done it; he was a legal Animagus now, no matter how much Snape insisted that he wasn't. Plus he was feeling good about his exams; and he had practiced hard on his Legilimency. Harry felt like he was on top of the world, and especially with the Quidditch game against Hufflepuff at the end of the week. No one could stop him at this rate.
Their lesson, as much as Harry wished it had gone better, did not; Snape was not at all impressed with his license and merely reminded Harry that just because he was licensed did not make him a complete Animagus yet. He still had to get faster and better at it before Snape would even acknowledge that he was halfway decent. "I debated signing that parchment, Potter, believe me," he said silkily, "but since I figured that eventually you might be good at it, I had might as well make sure you're doing it legally."
This angered Harry, and his Legilimency lesson did not go at all well as he could not concentrate. "If you can't concentrate then leave Potter! That's what these lessons are based around! Concentration and speed!"
By the end of the lesson, Harry was almost grumbling beneath his breath, and when he got up to the common room he was muttering about "Stupid overgrown bat" and "greasy hook-nosed jerk".
Ron and Hermione need not ask what had happened.
Harry, however, got lucky the next day when Snape did not show up for Potions. 'I hope he hexed himself off the planet,' he thought morosely. Dumbledore showed up a minute later, and everyone's spirits were lifted, "I'll be teaching today, if you don't mind," added Dumbledore. No one voiced a concern, and their Potions lesson was one of the best ever. "Oh very good Mr. Longbottom, take ten points to Gryffindor," said Dumbledore over his half-moon spectacles as he observed Neville's potion. Neville looked as if he might burst with happiness; never had he earned points for Gryffindor in his dreaded Potions class.
No one could really say why Snape had been absent for the one time in their six years of attending Hogwarts, but when Harry, Ron, and Hermione saw him at the High Table that evening they guessed what had happened. One side of his jaw was puffy, and he was clutching it in an ill manner, and a minute later they saw him taking a pill. "I think mom and dad removed one of his teeth," said Hermione with a grin, "I'll bet it was killing him." "Too bad it didn't," said Ron; Harry noticed that Snape was watching them, and he hit Ron, "Shut up, shhh!" "What? Why? He can't hear us from all the way up there!" said Ron angrily. Harry turned away so that Snape could not read his lips, "Ron, he doesn't have to hear us. All he needs is to see us. He can read lips!"
Ron and Hermione dropped their forks in unison, and Ron stuttered, "You mean...every time...every time I've called him a greasy git...he could tell?!" he whispered. Harry nodded, and now the three of them were all facing away from Snape so he could not read their lips, "He learned how to read lips so he could hear when he's in his snake form. Snakes can't hear so he has to know what people are saying somehow." Hermione put her face in her hands, "That explains so much now. Why didn't I think of that before?!"
Harry and Ron, from then on, seemed to be paranoid whenever they were in Potions class; at their next class, they only spoke if Snape was not looking at them, and consequently, they did not notice something different about him until the end of class. "He looks different," said Ron quietly, "I can't figure it out." After a long minute of trying to decipher the mystery, all three of them realized in unison what was different; his teeth were pearly white. Hermione almost giggled, "Mum and dad must have done it; look at his teeth! That's hilarious!" A few others in class seemed to notice this as well, and eventually Snape figured out the source of humor and from then on refused to bare his teeth at any student. They laughed about it for days afterward.