Saturday - 7 September – 6:00 AM - Hogwarts
At six Harry met Hermione at the front door. The rain from the night before had ended, leaving the ground damp. They walked down the front lawn past Hogsmede station. "I learned to apparate going from that side of the station to the other," said Harry, pointing as they walked by, hand in hand.
"Was it hard?"
"I was pretty noisy when I started."
"Show me." Harry walked twenty feet away from her. He disappeared. The next thing she knew he was standing in front of her kissing her.
"Wow Harry. That was fantastic."
"Thanks."
"No silly, your kiss. Now show me again without snogging me until I'm weak-kneed."
"Wow. I didn't hear a thing. You really have that down. I missed you so much Harry. Tell me about your week."
"OK, but don't tell anyone. On Monday mornings, Sir Nicolas Flamel is tutoring me. He's teaching me Occlumency. He's really cool."
"But I thought…"
"So did I. I guess that he had enough elixir stored to last a few years. Monday evening I work with Minerva. Tuesday morning I spend with Professor Dumbledore. After dinner, I work with Professor Flitwick. On Wednesday morning, I have finance lessons with the Gringotts goblins. After dinner Dr. Chang is helping me. Thursday or Friday mornings the Aurors work with me. Thursday evening I have self-study topics. On Friday evenings, I have healing and first aid with Poppy. She showed me how to fix arteries and heal cuts."
Harry continued. "The DA is going to be on Sunday mornings. That leaves me all day on Saturday to devote to you."
"I see. Exactly what did you have in mind?"
"Anything that would make you happy."
"Thanks Harry."
"How are Ron and Luna doing?"
"They're…OK. I think he really misses you."
"That will change when Quidditch season starts. I think he'll be worse than Oliver Wood was."
"Seriously Harry, try to spend some time with him."
"Okay. How about if we have Ron and Luna, Ginny and Neville over tonight? I could make pizza, and we could listen to the WWW. I can have you five over when I want."
"That would be great. Is it Christmas yet?"
"No. Not yet. Soon."
"So what do we need to do for the Order?"
"The first Hogsmeade weekend will be early this year. The teachers are worried about a massive dementor attack. I am supposed to look for look out spots, defensive positions and escape routes."
"How far away could they be seen?"
"They can't apparate. Amelia is asking the Unspeakables for any information, regarding how fast that they can travel, and the like. My concern is that somehow all two hundred surround the town, and panic sets in."
"How many of the teachers know the Patronus charm?"
"About half. Less than a handful of students can do it so far. Not as many as will know it. Knowing it and being able to call a good Patronus when surrounded by a bunch of dementors are two very different things. I had trouble with two on me a year ago. Maybe we could get portkeys made, or have flyers on brooms."
"What about a combined attack? What if he sends his Death Eaters along too?"
"That would be really bad. I think a lot of people would get killed if that happened."
"What about escape routes?"
"There is the trapdoor under Honeydukes. My concern is that he secretly sets up anti portkey wards in a building like the Three Broomsticks, gets a bunch of people trapped in it, and starts it on fire. He probably is still cheesed off over Riddle Manor being torched. Speaking of the Three Broomsticks, can I buy you breakfast, my love?"
"I thought you'd never ask." They walked in. It was nearly empty, still being early. Rosmerta saw them there and greeted them.
"Ah Mr. Potter. You're back. What can I get you two?"
"Two pub special breakfasts, two coffees, and two orange juices please," replied Harry as he noticed Hermione giving him a questioning look.
"I took Professor McGonagall here after she showed me how to apparate."
"How did you get your license? You're not seventeen."
"Director Bones signed both my Magical Practice License and my Apparation Certificate. I think she feels sorry for me."
"I'll be Seventeen in a week and a half. Do you suppose one of the professors would show me how to Apparate? She lightly ran her hand along his knee. I could ask professor Flitwick to give me lessons, I suppose…"
"Hermione Jane. You know I'll help you."
"I know, but I love to tease my favorite professor."
Harry winked at her and asked, "Am I your favorite professor?"
She tormented him with silence for a few seconds. "I suppose." She tickled him until the food came. They had a great breakfast together, like the ones at the Black Dog. Harry paid the bill and ordered another two cases of butterbeer. Dobby appeared and brought them back for Harry.
They walked through each shop. Harry kept trying to find out of there was anything special that Hermione would like for her birthday.
"Harry, if I asked you for a million galleons would you give them to me?"
"Yes."
"If I asked you for an engagement ring would you give it to me?"
"Yes."
"If I asked you for an owl, would you buy me one?"
"Yes."
If I asked for an autographed Harry Potter poster would you give it to me?"
"I suppose so."
If I asked for a birthday hug and kiss, would you give them to me?"
"Yes."
"If I asked you for a red BMW convertible, would you buy me one?"
"Yes."
"If I asked you for a cell phone, would you buy me one?"
"Yes."
"If I asked you to hold my hand, and take me for a walk on my birthday, would you?"
"Yes."
She smiled at his honesty and replied, "Okay. You choose. I don't need 'stuff' Harry. I just want to be with you."
"I know, but you would look great driving a red BMW."
"Thanks, but we don't have a place to park yet."
"Shall we walk back? I need to get a few things ready for tonight."
"Only if I can help you."
"Okay. Can I meet you in the Three Broomsticks in fifteen minutes? I need to do something for a minute."
Fifteen minutes later he appeared by her side. "Are you ready?"
As they walked back, Hermione asked, "Am I your favorite student?"
"Yes."
"If I was naughty, would you give me detention?"
"I'm not going there."
"I heard that Ginny's mum got really mad when she said that at the hospital." They both laughed.
At five, Harry heard a knock on his door. Ron, Ginny, Luna, Neville, and Hermione came in.
"Where's the food? I'm starved. Ouch." Ginny kicked him, and Luna gave him a poke in the side.
"I'm shocked that food would be on your mind, Ron."
"Harry this is really cool," said Neville.
"Come in."
Ginny asked, "Harry, what is this? It was Flamel's manuscript on Occlumency.
"Just some old papers. Please don't touch…"
"Practical Techniques for Blocking Mind Attacks – Written for Mr. Harry Potter by Sir Nicolas Flamel. Merlin Harry! When you said you were being tutored, I was thinking Flitwick, or Sinistra, not Merlin himself." She looked surprised, and a bit nervous.
"He's not Merlin. Please don't say anything to anyone."
Ron carelessly picked up the shrunken sword. "What's this? Godric Gryffindor. Ouch, it's sharp. Harry is this Gryffindor's sword? What are you doing with it?"
"Dumbledore gave it to me. Please don't to…"
Ginny read, "Account Management for the Wealthy by Ragnott – Head Goblin, Gringotts."
"Enough!" Hermione had her "I'm really serious, don't mess with me look" that would scare any rational person into submission. "Harry invited you into his home for dinner and a visit, not the inquisition. Put everything down. His business is his. Can we agree on that?" The others nodded. "Okay. Sit!"
Harry conjured six comfortable wooden kitchen chairs and everyone sat down. "I'm sorry. I should have put that stuff away before you came. It's not your fault. That stuff was out. You were just being curious."
He continued. "I'm being tutored in Occlumency so Voldemort can't try and possess me again. Dumbledore gave me the sword as one way to help fight dementors. You probably read that the dementors went over to Voldemort's side about a month ago. The Gringotts business is kind of personal. I am involved with a trust fund, and need to learn about that kind of stuff. The Auror books are mostly techniques on killing people. The Healing books contain techniques on saving people. My lessons with Dumbledore focus on when to use one or the other. I just wanted to have my friends over tonight." It would be impossible to miss the stress in his voice.
Neville spoke. "No worries Harry. Let's start over. Nice prints that you have on the walls."
"Do you have any beverages? Ouch. Stop that, you two."
Harry smiled again. He conjured an oak rectangular table that comfortably sat six. Hermione recognized it as a smaller version of his own kitchen table. Plates, and flatware appeared, followed by three steaming pizzas – one cheese, one pepperoni, one half green olive, half everything. Twenty ice cold butterbeers floated onto the center of the table. "Let's eat."
Five minutes later, Harry conjured four more pizzas. Ron was eating himself into an imminent case of serious indigestion. Ginny and Luna were amusing themselves watching his extreme gluttony. Neville was asking if there was any progress with the potions research, and Hermione was looking carefully at the submarine print.
Fifteen minutes later, things were back to normal. Harry brought out his Wizards camera. Dobby appeared and asked if he could help. He stood on the table and took several photos of the six of them standing together. Harry asked Neville to take a few photos of Hermione, Dobby, and himself. Harry thanked Dobby who disappeared back to the kitchens.
Too soon it was time for everyone to leave. Luna asked to stay for a moment, and asked Ron to wait outside. Ginny, Neville, and Hermione had left to go back to Gryffindor tower. "Harry, I wanted to thank you. I don't know what you did, but everyone in Ravenclaw is treating me properly this year."
"I don't think I did anything, Luna. Maybe people just started seeing what a great person that you are."
She hugged him. "Well then, thank you again for a great dinner and an evening of wonderful conversation."
"Good night Luna. Goodnight Ron. Did you want to bring that last piece of pepperoni back with you for a snack?"
They left. Harry left his door open, and began cleaning up his living area. "May I come in, Mr. Potter?" It was Poppy. "I was just visiting Minerva, and saw that your door was open."
"Please come in."
"I like your artwork, Harry. Is that a Russell?"
"Yes. I liked the colors. I think that was a Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman, but I have no idea what the Native Americans had done to deserve that treatment."
Looking at another of the prints, she commented, "If I heard right, you have a motorcycle much like that one?"
"Yes. Sirius left it to me. Hermione and I rode it a few times over the holidays. It's a lot of fun."
She nodded and remarked, "Of course, the last print is quite familiar to me. Tell me, how deep is your boat these days?"
"It is nowhere near as deep, thanks to yourself and some of my other good friends."
"Thank you. I am honored, and happy to be included in your circle of good friends. Speaking of friends, I would expect that your young friends were quite interested to see you tonight. I'm certain that they were curious about you. Being curious is not the same as being nosey. Though you would do well to keep sensitive materials away from casually curious eyes. I really should go now. Thank you for having me in Harry."
"Thanks for coming to visit Poppy. Good night."
… - …
Harry's second week was similar to the first. His own class with Flamel progressed at an astounding rate. The manuscript that Flamel had written was clear, easy to understand, and quite complete. In 670 years, he obviously had perfected his writing skill. He brought several more manuscripts for Harry to have – Wandless Magics, Maximizing Spell Strength, Legilimency, and An Introduction to Alchemy. Harry thanked him profusely, knowing that these were, in fact, priceless works. Monday night, he had his session with McGonagall. She showed him how to cast two spells at the same time. "I hope that you never have the need to use this technique, but if you need to, you will have it." A lot of the lessons that he would receive in the coming weeks would contain those words.
On Tuesday, he received an envelope from Griphook, indicating that Harry's instructions had been followed exactly. Inside the envelope were six keys. He took three out of the envelope and put them on his key ring. The others he left in the envelope, which he put in his dresser drawer.
Tuesday morning he spent alone with Dumbledore. He was looking concerned, and handed Harry the Auror report on a dementor attack in Cornwall County in the southwest corner of England. Dumbledore spoke. "Tom has had enough time to disburse them all around Britain if he wanted to."
Harry saw the concern in the old wizard's face." Sir, I'm more concerned about a concentrated strike. Fifty or a hundred dementors at a time would be almost unstoppable."
"Harry, which of the students can cast a solid Patronus?"
"Hermione and Cho."
"Which others could within a week?"
"Ginny, Susan, Luna and Lavender."
Dumbledore winked. "Have you provided all of these women with a happy memory?" They both laughed.
"Seamus probably could cast one too. Don't say a word."
Dumbledore liked having someone to laugh with. "Harry, thank you. Never forget to laugh, and enjoy your life. Laughter, music, and the company of a spirited…Ah, but back to business. I would like you to pick an extra session time to have with those seven. I will make their excuses with their respective professors. If you think of any others, please let me know."
"Wednesday from ten until one will work best. I've already received my materials from Gringotts for the week."
Dumbledore vanished the dementor report after Harry handed it back to him. "Harry, I believe that there is at least an even chance that there will be a dementor attack on the Hogsmeade weekend. I realize that the date has not been announced, and I have no concerns about a staff person leaking the information. I do believe that Voldemort has found a place to hide the dementors and stage an attack from. What did you conclude after your visit on Saturday?"
"The secret tunnel from Honeydukes is still intact. I checked it personally. We could station staff members at your brother's pub, by the shrieking shack, by Honeydukes and by the south side of the road. If they are hiding, I don't think they would come from the west or south side. The surrounding farm land is too open. That leaves the forest to the east, or the hills to the north. We could have a few flyers on broomsticks. Cho and Ginny fly well. They could keep a lookout and cast a Patronus without fear of being surrounded. Did Amelia get any information from the Unspeakables that would confirm the belief that dementors glide, but not really fly?"
"Not yet. I will contact her again today."
"What about making some portkeys that would transport someone to the front lawn, by Hagrid's?"
"I no longer possess the stamina to create 350 port keys in the course of a week."
"What about a dozen? We could use golf clubs. We could put several in each building. A bunch of people could hold on to it. They would have to be wand activated. Adding the stress of giving everyone an emergency escape device for when the dementors attack sort of defeats the purpose of going to Hogsmeade the first place."
"Harry in the event of an attack, letting all of the dementors get away and getting all 350 children back safely would not be a loss. Killing 90 dementors and losing 3 students would be a tragedy. Our responsibility is to the students. We can go after them when we don't carry those defensive responsibilities."
"Mr. Granger had the same conversation with me regarding keeping Hermione safe."
"That would make him a highly responsible parent."
"I will not let anyone be abandoned."
"I know. Our time this morning has drawn to a close. This is a good plan Harry. Enjoy the rest of your day. I will talk with the students as I see them."
… - …
Wednesday morning came. Harry finished his Gringotts session as soon as he could, and was only a few minutes late for the class with the seven.
"I'm sorry that I am late. Professor Dumbledore wants to rapidly increase the quantity of students who can reliably cast a Patronus if needed. Before you start, I would like you please to write down three to five of the happiest memories that you might select from."
As he handed them each a parchment to write on he said, "It's possible that using one of your memories will produce a stronger Patronus than another one might. Please take ten minutes to do this.
Cho started to whine. "I already know how to cast a Patronus."
"I know. Your form is quite a remarkable swan if I recall. Please hear me out. A year ago, I had to cast a Patronus in front of two dementors that were attacking my cousin. It was a lot harder than during practice. It took me three tries to remember my happy thought. Professor Lupin has lent me his class boggart. I can get it to turn into a dementor to practice with later."
Harry continued, "Let's try with each of your first memories. You can do them at the same time if you want. On three. One, two…three."
An otter, a swan, several wisps of vapor, a beagle and an owl appeared.
"Susan, is that your beagle?"
She beamed at him. "I remembered hugging my Mum after the attack last summer."
"That's a great memory to use. Luna was that your owl?" She nodded. Harry was very happy for her.
"Great. Let's try it again with your second memory. One, two, three."
A much brighter otter, a rabbit and several wisps came out.
"Lavender, was that your rabbit?"
"Yes. I did it!"
"I knew that you could. You're a good witch." They did it a few times until they each had their strongest memory.
"Now we're going to try it with the lights out a few times. Use your strongest memory. Nox. One, two, three."
A fox, beagle, otter, owl, cat, rabbit, and swan appeared, and wandered around for a few seconds. "Great fox Ginny. Seamus, you have a great looking cat. It's kind of a skinny cat, but I am very pleased for each of you." Harry put the lights up. "I have a bracelet for your wrist for your happy memory. Think about your memory. It will be inscribed on your bracelet. Only you will be able to read it. Everyone else will only see your name."
"Cool. Thanks Harry," said Lavender.
"Are you ready to try it in front of a dementor? What we are going to do is to let it have its way, scaring you for a minute. You will each relive your worst memory. It's only a memory. It's not real. After that we will take a break for a few minutes and try casting in front of it."
Harry thought about being afraid of a dementor. The boggart was just practicing a form of Legilimency. He would force a dementor to come out of the box. "Ready? One, two, three." Harry tapped his wand on the trunk to open it. The dementor slid out and stood a full twelve feet tall. Harry felt himself reliving the memory of Tonks bleeding out in his arms. A minute passed. 'She lived,' he thought, "Ridicculous," crack. Harry pushed the boggart back into the box. "I would like you to think for a minute about how that bad memory got resolved. You do not have to tell anyone what it was. It did get resolved. You are here. You are alive. Please have as much of this chocolate bar as you can eat." He gave them each a large Honeydukes bar.
He continued. "The next part is going to be the most important step." Harry avoided saying the hardest part. When the dementor comes this time, I want you to force the happy memory back into your mind, and cast your Patronus. Read your bracelet if you need to. Ready? One, two, three."
The dementor slid out. It's rattling breath causing unhappy thoughts to come to mind. Several wisps of silver vapor came out. "Try again," Harry said in a loud voice. An Otter leaped out of Hermione's wand, followed by a skinny cat, followed by an owl. "Try again." Another otter came out, followed by a fox, and a beagle. "Come on Cho," he said. "Try again." On her fifth try a swan came out. Harry chased the dementor back into the box.
"Well done. You all did it. More importantly, you all know that you can do it in front of a dementor. Please keep your bracelet on at all times when you are out of the castle. It might save your life." Harry gave each of them a butterbeer and another chocolate bar. Dobby appeared with a tray of sandwiches. "Your afternoon teachers know that you will each be a few minutes late. I'm so proud of each of you."
Professor Dumbledore appeared. "As am I. Well done Mr. Finnegan, Miss Chang. Miss Lovegood, that was a lovely owl. Well done, Miss Bones. I especially liked the rabbit, Miss Brown. Well done Miss Granger. Thank you Professor Potter. I would ask each of you to try your Patronus a few times before dinner this evening. Ten points for each of you.
If you will all excuse me, I need to speak with Professor Potter for a moment." The others thanked Harry and filed out. Dumbledore sealed the door. "Harry, I wanted to give you the opportunity to try this yourself. Do you have your sword?"
"Yes. I would like to try it a few different ways." Harry thought of his getting his picture taken with his new family. "Expecto Patronum." Out of the tip of his finger emerged a very bright stag. "Expecto Patronum." Holding both hands out emerged two stags. He let them disappear. Holding Godric's sword, he called "Expecto Patronum." From it emerged the whitest brightest largest stag that Harry had ever produced.
"Fantastic Harry. If you can identify any candidates in your defense classes this week, you might schedule another session like this. Perhaps we could get one more person able to produce a form by the outing. Thank you again."
Harry nodded. "Amelia will be very pleased to hear of Susan's accomplishment."
"She is growing to be quite a capable young witch. Much of the credit belongs to you."
"You're too generous Professor. She's very tough mentally. She seems to have Amelia's sense of self-discipline."
"Be that as it may, Harry. Currently there are more students in this school that can cast a corporeal Patronus than staff members, including ourselves."
"I would be happy to help, Professor."
"I will see what I can arrange. Thank you for your very generous offer."
… - …
Harry's lesson with Dr. Chang that evening was a continuation of the previous lesson. "A longsword like yours was originally designed to pierce plated armor in a stab. That is the reason for the straight design, and the pointed tip. However, yours is an extraordinary sharp weapon, among the sharpest that I have seen, so you can also do a slice." Harry had brought his broom. Chang conjured some practice mannequins similar to what Poppy had used, only taller. Harry found that he could maintain his balance best with a front on stab.
Wednesday evening after Chang's class, Harry had Remus over for a late dinner and a dozen butterbeers. Harry told him of his lessons and tutoring sessions that he had been receiving as well as his classes. Remus had been tracking down the source of the wands that Voldemort had acquired. To no one's surprise, the Malfoys had paid for them.
Harry started thinking out loud, "What if their home was torched, their vault emptied, and Narcissa encouraged to disappear, all in a day? We don't know how much cash they have. Was the 350 thousand galleons that she paid a month ago a big hit, or petty cash? Suppose her key is found. Could Tonks go and make a withdrawal or a transfer? Left homeless and without her gigantic golden cushion, could Mrs. Malfoy be encouraged to take a long, long vacation in Tasmania? What we don't know is how diverse their holdings are. Do they have one vault, or twenty? Are they an old blood family, or an old money family? Who could help us do some research?"
They looked at each other and began laughing. Remus smiled. "Actually, I was thinking Bill Weasley. Bank balances wouldn't be found in text books, and most wizarding transactions aren't widely published."
"Define widely."
"Assuming that they are reported, someone in the ministry would have a record. Someone at Gringotts might have a record, and someone at the Prophet might have heard about it."
"Good. There's more than one possible source of a leak. Would Dumbledore go for it? Their money is an enemy now, more capable of inflicting damage than Crabbe or Goyle were."
Remus smiled. "An almost greater question, is, would Amos? Stay clear of this Harry. I will run with it, and see what the reaction is."
"You need to be absolutely certain of who is told. Otherwise, all we may have is a case of arson on a well-insured house, and a key that doesn't fit anything. I would stay clear of Amelia if Percy is around."
"That sounds like a story for next week. I should go now. It's good to spend time with you again. I miss our evening chats."
"Me too. Good night." Harry was sore from the sword handling lessons that Chang had given him earlier that evening. Two hours of waving even the wooden swords around left him with aching muscles. He hadn't said anything to Remus, but he could barely lift either arm.
… - …
Thursday morning arrived, and Harry was still wearing his robes from the night before.
He showered and got dressed. His classes that afternoon were promising. In the Slytherin / Ravenclaw fifth year class, Luna's Owl Patronus impressed everyone. Where an outcast had stood a year ago was now an interesting young woman with obvious talent. The subscription rate to the Quibbler would grow five fold, as her father had moved his outlook a notch more mainstream, and featured occasional interviews with Harry in his role as a first year teacher. Harry let Luna explain the process that she had used to identify her happy memories. Several students had produced wisps of vapor by the end of the class. In the Hufflepuff / Gryffindor class, Ginny dazzled the class with her fox Patronus.
Colin Creevey showed real promise. A wisp of silver vapor appeared on his first try. Harry borrowed Colin's camera and asked Ginny to take a picture of Harry and Colin in class together. "Give it another try Colin. Whoosh. A huge cloud of vapor appeared. Flash. Ginny had taken another photo. Harry had an idea. "Colin, I suppose that I could get Rita Skeeter to publish a picture of you in class with your Patronus. You could send it to your mum and dad. Let's try again." Whoosh. Out tumbled a bear cub! Flash. "You did it, Colin! You did it."
The class applauded Colin. He had been at best an average student in his previous classes, badly intimidated by both Snape and the Slytherins. His worship of Harry had been a source of constant ridicule within Gryffindor tower. This year had been different. Harry seemed to bring the best out in his students. His kick arse exploits over the summer were a lot easier for students to relate to than the fifteen year old boy-who-lived story. Invariably they did their best for him. The virtual removal of the sixth year Slytherin class, along with the departure of Snape and Umbridge had created a brighter, more tolerant atmosphere within the school. Colin was the sort of student that thrived under the change.
In the sixth year class, Lavender's bunny, Hermione's otter, Shamus's skinny cat, and Susan's beagle were well received. Harry went through the process again, helping people identify various happy memories. He asked the others to help him so the instruction was more personal. Whoosh, Neville had produced a vulture. "Well done, Neville."
Neville was obviously pleased with himself. "It was my memory of my Gran telling me how proud she was of me."
"Try it again." Whoosh. Out came the vulture again. Flash. Harry had brought his camera. Neville beamed. The class applauded him.
"Please try to identify some more memories for your homework. I'll see you next week. Neville, please wait after class for a moment." For a moment some of Neville's old fear of teachers returned. Harry smiled at him erasing that thought. "I have something for you. Think of your happiest memory. It will appear on your bracelet. Only you will be able to see it."
"Thanks Harry. It was of today's class."
"You are getting to be a really good wizard, Neville. Your mum and dad will be proud of you too. Real soon I expect."
"Yes they will Neville." It was Professor Dumbledore. "Frank and Alice are beginning to respond to the new potions that Severus Snape are developing. I believe that there is good reason to hope that they will continue to improve. You did a fantastic job in class today. Ten points to Gryffindor for your efforts. I have also awarded Colin Creevey ten points for his bear cub. Unfortunately I saw it was chasing Mr. Filch's cat down the hall, so I was required to take one point back. Well done, Neville."
"Could I speak with you for a moment Harry? Enjoy your evening, Mr. Longbottom."
He sealed the door after Neville left. "Congratulations to you Harry. Your results far exceeded my hopes. Was anyone else close?"
"Padma had a lot of vapor."
"I talked with a few members of the staff. Pomona Sprout and Rolanda Hooch would like to try. Could you meet with them sometime over the weekend? Please let me know of another day next week. Could Wednesday morning work again?"
"Yes to both questions."
"On another matter, Remus related your idea. I will present it to Amelia, Amos, Mundungus, and Tonks over the weekend. Please avoid any personal involvement in this. It may be the right thing to do, but without knowing where their funds came from, it is hard to judge the fairness of taking them away illegally. Narcissa is Belatrix's sister, and is a very capable witch in her own right, though I would say quite a bit more rational. Enjoy your evening, Professor Potter."
… - …
Friday at dinner, the first year defense class had queued up to sit with Harry. Out of respect, they left a seat for Hermione, leaving several unhappy students who were left out. Walking down the stairs to the hall, Hermione saw Ericka Smith in tears, guessed the reason, and told her to go sit next to Harry. Little Ericka beamed as Hermione brought her next to Harry. She gave Harry a kiss on the forehead, and asked Ericka to keep an eye on him at dinner for her. The little witch was positively ecstatic. Hermione winked at Harry, and sat by Flitwick, Luna, Ginny, Neville, Susan, Seamus, Lavender and Ron.
Professor McGonagall had dinner with her third year Slytherin Transfiguration class. Professor Chang was telling his table stories of growing up and visiting the Chinese Fireball dragons with his parents. There wasn't a single table that was filled by a single house. Dumbledore wondered why he hadn't thought of this idea fifty years ago.
The weekend was about as good as it could get. Harry took Hermione out for breakfast at the Three Broomsticks. They spent the rest of the morning working on apparating from one part of town to the other. It took Hermione a while longer to learn than Harry had. She could do it, but always with a champaign bottle POP sound while reappearing. They walked back to the school, got permission to call Amelia Bones for a test, walked back to the station, called and set up an appointment for one in the afternoon. To keep legal, Dumbledore had made her a portkey that would take her to the Ministry lobby. They took it together, and walked to her office. Harry said hello and waited outside. Thirty minutes later they both walked out the door, Hermione beaming. Harry was invited in for a moment. Amelia closed the door, leaving Hermione waiting in the lobby. Ten minutes later, Harry walked out the door, and shook Bone's hand. She waved to both of them as they walked off, wishing them a good day.
"Congratulations my love. According to wizarding law, you are now a fully qualified witch. When will you get your License?"
"She said that she would send it to me on my birthday."
"Dumbledore would ask that you not mention having taken and passed your test today. Do we need to get anything before we go back?"
"Harry, do you realize that we could go have lunch in Paris? We could still be back at Hogsmeade by 3:30."
Harry hugged her and brushed her hair with his fingers. "We could, but not today. Neither of us has apparated across water yet, and we both need more practice. I don't want to violate Dumbledore's trust. If you want to have lunch in Paris or Rome, we will over the Christmas holidays. I promise you, Hermione."
"Okay, but I want to get us something. Can we go shopping at Harrods for half an hour?"
"Let's go."
They took a taxi to Harrods. Hermione bought them both black leather motorcycle jackets. Hermione couldn't really afford them, but thought that they looked good together in them. They took a taxi back to the Leaky Cauldron. They had lunch at Tom's and apparated back to the Hogsmeade station.
… - …
On Wednesday Professors Hooch and Sprout arrived in Harry's classroom. Each had an apple in hand for Harry. They all laughed. Harry followed the same process that he had with his regular students. They ran down the various memories that they had written, and tried with each. Hooch produced a nearly formed Patronus on her fourth try. Each of Sprouts memories produced varying amounts of silver vapor. Harry gave them a butterbeer and they took a break for a few minutes.
They tried again with their strongest memories. Hooch produced an eagle. It soared around the room for a few seconds and disappeared. She asked him if that was the expected result. Harry replied, "If there are no dementors present, they will disappear after about ten seconds. I had one last two minutes once, chasing dementors." He had them try again. Professor Sprout produced more vapor this time, but no form yet. "It took me over a month to get a form when I was learning it. Keep trying it with different memories. He gave Hooch a charmed bracelet to record her memory. He told Sprout to come back next week, and they would work on it some more. Harry let Dumbledore know of Hooch's success.
… - …
On Thursday Harry had received permission to use the Room of Requirement for the evening. He invited everyone at school who were friends with Hermione, along with Tonks, the Grangers, Diane, and the teachers, promising them fun and an evening to remember. Dobby had "helped him" decorate the room. It was set so that it had an open window and a large open space. The walls were decorated with streamers of every color. Winky had made Hermione a fancy decorated cake.
Harry had conjured high tables and stools like he had seen in the Black Dog. He conjured quite a few pizzas for Ron and enough for everyone else. Not surprisingly, most people had found books of some sort for gifts. Ron found her a history of the Chudley Canons volume. He would borrow it within a week. Lavender got her a book on setting up a proper wizarding household. Her parents got her several photo albums for her wizarding camera. Luna got her a subscription to the Quibbler. Minerva gave her a pearl strand necklace from the teachers. They had a great time visiting and seeing her family again.
Emma was a hero for conking Crabbe on the head with a wine bottle. She was asked to tell that story a half dozen times. Poppy had fun visiting with Diane talking kindly about their favorite patient. Amelia Bones had personally sent Hermione her Magical Practice License then signed her Apparition License before giving it to her. Tonks got her a skinny Weird Sisters top with spaghetti straps. It was totally out of character for Tonks to get someone a mainstream clothing gift. Harry cut the cake and began passing pieces around.
Two snowy owls flew in through the window carrying a long package. One everyone recognized as Hedwig. The other owl was a young male unknown to them. Everyone looked around. Lavender looked at the box and said, "Hermione, it has your name on it." Hermione untied the string that held the package to the young owl's leg. The owl hooted at her. She looked at Harry, who nodded and smiled at her. "You are a very handsome owl. Can I call you Sir Nicolas?" The owl hooted proudly. Everyone laughed, and smiled. Harry just happened to have a package of owl treats in his robe pocket, and gave it to Hermione. She offered each of the owls a treat. They hooted again, and flew off together. "Thanks Harry. He's a beautiful owl."
She gave him a kiss on the cheek. Hermione opened the package that her owl had brought her. Everyone began laughing. She unrolled a Harry Potter – The boy-who-lived poster from when Harry was barely eleven. It was signed, To Hermione, Love Harry. There were hundreds of Harry Potter posters hung up in the witches dormitories at Hogwarts. This was the only one that had ever been signed.
"Lockhart would be quite proud of you Harry," kidded Ron.
"They wouldn't have been bad books if they had just been labeled fiction to begin with," said Seamus.
"Or fantasy," muttered Minerva.
Hermione looked in the box. Another small box was inside. It contained a cellular telephone. Harry told her that the phone was charged, but she would have to go to Hogsmeade to get a signal. There also was an envelope in the box. She opened it. Out came a set of keys with a BMW insignia on them, a Gringotts key, a car park receipt, and a diamond ring! Harry got down on one knee in front of her and asked in a voice loud enough for those close to him to hear, "Hermione Jane Granger, after you graduate from the Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry, would you do me the honor of being Mrs. Harry Potter?"
Hermione got big eyes for a second, and then beamed. "Oh Harry. Yes. Yes. Yes, I will."
She gave Harry a very serious kiss. Everyone clapped.
Harry floated several cases of butterbeer around for everyone to take. Harry toasted her. "To Hermione, the love of my life."
It was Hermione's moment. Everyone came up and congratulated her. The ring that Harry had made was a reflection of the two of them – understated elegance. It had the two carrot diamond that Mundungus had saved for him to use set in a platinum band. Diane, Dan, and Emma congratulated both of them. Harry got hugs and kisses from both of them. Dan shook Harry's hand. "Thank you for inviting us to share this very special moment."
"I'm really glad that you came. Thank you so much."
Dan nodded. "Thanks for making the arrangements. I could really get used to this portkey travel."
Emma came up and kissed him again. "Can Hermione really call us once a week?"
"Yes. Saturday mornings would probably work. She can go to Hogsmeade village with me any Saturday that she wishes. I'll remind her to call."
"Thanks Harry. We really miss talking with you. I do like the letters delivered by owl though. You found a very handsome companion for your Hedwig. It looked like there were some other things in the package. I didn't see what they were."
Harry wasn't sure how they would react to the other gifts that he had giver their daughter, and decide to put off finding out. "They were just some other stuff that she asked for. She'll probably show you over Christmas break."
Emma didn't press him for details. "Keep her safe, Harry. That's your main job. We love you both."
"Thanks mum."
Harry spent several hours with Cho, Ginny, Neville, and Hooch practicing flying over the forest on Wednesday. They tried casting a Patronus while hovering. Their forms glided down to the ground, searched for a minute, and then disappeared. Then they flew around the hills to the north of Hogsmeade. Again Harry had them cast a Patronus. They glided down to the ground and disappeared. When they got back to the castle, Dumbledore was waiting for them. "Did you have any success?"
"We didn't find anything. Everyone was able to cast a spell from their broom."
"I'll tell Miss Weasley, Miss Chang and Mr. Longbottom that we require their services on Saturday. Can you fly the hills in the morning? I'll ask Rolanda Hooch and Miss Chang to cover the forest, and Miss Tonks and Mr. Longbottom to cover the south and west side of the village respectively. I'll station Minerva at the Three Broomsticks, with Miss Granger. I'll station Filius at Alberforth's. I'll ask Miss Bones, Mr. Finnigan, Miss Brown, Miss Weasley, Miss Lovegood and Pomona Sprout to walk the students to the station."
It was as good of a plan as they could get.
… - …
On Friday, the queue to sit with Harry at dinner had lengthened considerably. Harry picked the largest table to sit at. It immediately filled up with students. Several brought posters with them. Harry welcomed the students. The posters were banished back to their dormitories, rolled up, unsigned. Hermione saw his predicament, smiled, and waved at him. They would have desert together in a half hour.
… - …
The first Hogsmeade weekend came early, on Saturday the twenty eighth of September. It was a date that none of them would ever forget. The morning started out sunny, but by midday the clouds had drifted in, leaving a chill in the air.
Remus and Tonks had been asked to watch the east and south ends of town respectively
Dumbledore had given each of the flying or Patronus casting students and the staff one of Fred and George's "No BS Really Loud Firecrackers" to sound off in the event that they found something. The students had been told that in the event of any problem to immediately get into the Three Broomsticks, the Hogs Head, Honeydukes, or Zonkos.
It was cold flying. Harry was wearing the motorcycle jacket that Hermione had bought him the day she got her Apparation license His arms felt frozen and his face felt numb. The weather started drizzling. Harry flew back and forth hour after hour looking for people, dementors, or rats. By one, he was seriously chilled. He put a warming spell on himself, but it didn't seem to help. He was soaked.
At one thirty, he heard it. Bang! Harry looked around one more time and flew into town. Out of the forest came a seemingly endless wave of Dementors. Harry used the Sonorus charm to magnify his voice. "Everyone get into one of the buildings." The streets cleared. Harry pulled the sword, and shouted "Expecto Patronum." A huge stag emerged. He cast the charm over and over. A moment later, a very strange thing happened. Two stags hit the same dementor at once. The dementor sizzled and vanished leaving only a black cloak on the ground and a very foul odor in the air! He cast the charm over and over looking for students who might be out. He saw little Ericka Smith running down the street. A half dozen Dementors were circling her. She was scared witless. "Expecto Patronum. Expecto Patronum." The Dementors had reached her. Harry flew by and stabbed one of the Dementors through the head. It fell, and sizzled, like the other one. He hit another, and another. He grabbed Ericka, and apparated into the three broomsticks.
Setting Ericka down in the pub, Harry apparated back onto the street, and called for his Firebolt. He got back on it, and kept calling the charm. Stag after stag appeared. He flew around the town again, calling the charm over and over. After a few minutes, he saw Remus on the ground. His left arm had been severed by a curse. No dementor had done that to him. "Expecto Patronum." Harry called two stags to give them cover. He picked up Remus and Apparated back into the three broomsticks. By then most of the students had port keyed back to Hogwarts. Harry spent a few minutes using the healing charms that Poppy had taught him to stop Remus from bleeding out. Harry asked Hermione to portkey Lupin back to Hogwarts. He went out a third time, soaked in his friend's blood, with murder on his mind. He killed ten or twelve more dementors, all the while looking for students and Death Eaters. He found Cho who had fallen off of her broomstick and was unconscious. He cast several more stags and apparated her back to the Three Broomsticks. He apparated back to his broomstick. He cast several more stags, each chasing or goring more dementors. Then he saw him. Peter Pettigrew was running behind one of the buildings! Harry cast another Patronus. As he flew by, Harry expanded and swung the razor sharp sword. Peter's head dropped to the ground and rolled as his body ran for a few more steps. Harry stabbed another ten or twelve Dementors before they scattered. Harry checked the town one more time and landed. Zonkos was deserted. The Hogs Head pub was deserted. He went to Honeydukes. It was deserted. Finally he went to the Three Broomsticks. Minerva was waiting for him inside. She hugged him, handed him the portkey, tapped her wand and they both found themselves back on Hogwarts front lawn.
The heads of houses did a count as quickly as they could. All of the students were accounted for. All of the staff had been accounted for.
Dumbledore surveyed the chaos and closed his eyes for a moment to think. A moment later, he asked, "Harry, where is Tonks?"
End, Part III