A/N: So, I've been sick the last couple of days, and in bed. That is the only reason that this chapter got posted so quick. Otherwise it would have been a couple of more days. But, I had to have something to occupy my time. I guess there is a bright side to every situation.
Thanks for the reviews, though I don't understand why all but one are anonymous. David, I know it seems rushed. I just really feel that nothing can, nor will, stand in the way of the special bond shared by Dumbledore and Harry. I honestly feel that a conversation like that is sufficient. This may simply be wishful thinking, though. Alchemistgin: I promise Ginny is not too far off. As for when sparks fly between her and the boy-who-lived...I don't quite remember...
CHAPTER 4 – The Meadow
When his meeting with Dumbledore concluded, Harry remained in his seat on the couch in the Drawing room. He sat there for quite some time, playing the previous conversation over and over in his head. He was brought out of his trance-like state when he heard someone clear their throat. He looked up to see Lupin standing in the doorway, with an expression of uncertainty upon his face.
"Is everything okay?" asked Lupin, obviously aware of the conversation that had taken place between Harry and Dumbledore. "Why don't you come down to the kitchen with me? I have some tea ready, and we can talk."
Harry nodded and then rose from his seat. He followed Lupin from the room, and down the stairs. When they passed the covered portrait of Mrs. Black, Harry noticed that they both slowed their pace out of habit, in order to make less noise. When he entered the kitchen, Harry found Kingsley already seated at the table and sipping his tea.
Harry walked over to the table and chose the spot directly across from him.
"Well?" Lupin asked Harry.
"Erm – Well, what?"
Lupin looked to Kingsley, who shook his head. He then turned back and looked him directly in the eyes.
"Well, what do you want to know? I'm sure you have questions that need answering. Since when has Dumbledore ever explained things fully?" Lupin joked.
Harry could see a mixture of excitement and eagerness in the man's eyes. "Well," he started, "I'm not quite sure, actually. It's all a bit overwhelming, really."
"I can imagine it would be. But, you aren't disappointed, are you?" he asked.
"No. Well, not really."
Figuring out what was wrong, Kingsley piped in, "You were hoping your friends would be able to join up with you, weren't you?"
"Er...yes."
"Trust me, Harry," said Lupin more seriously. "If you care about your friends, then don't try to get them more heavily involved than they already are. The less they know, the safer they will be."
"Of course I don't want anything to happen to them. But, you don't understand. They won't just give up. I can beg them to trust me and tell them that nothing is wrong as much as I want, but they still won't listen. They'll figure out what ever secrets I hide from them. So, I figure I may as well save them the trouble, and just keep them informed. At least that way they will be satisfied, and feel like they are helping."
"I understand. You father and Sirius were both the same way," he said in a more resigned voice. "They could always tell if I was hiding something from them. Your mother was the same way. I can't tell you what to do. All I can tell you is to trust Dumbledore."
"So, Potter," said Kingsley, eager to change the subject, "You must, at least, be excited to begin your training. It will be interesting to see how you turn out."
"What do you mean?" he asked curiously.
"Well, I'm not sure how much detail Dumbledore went into, but you will be learning some very advanced techniques and spells. Many of them aren't even taught in school, for one reason or another." said Lupin, slightly regaining the eagerness in his voice.
"Yes. Some of them are even too advanced for aurors. We shall see what you are truly made of Potter." said Kingsley.
"When will my training start?"
"Tomorrow morning, bright and early." answered Lupin. "We will begin with the physical aspects and then move on to the other areas in the afternoon. We're going to be sure not to over exert you tomorrow, though."
"Why, professor?" he asked.
"Because your first Occlumency lesson will be in the evening, and as you know, you'll want to have plenty of energy left. The first week or so of your training won't be quite as intense, since you will have lessons with Dumbledore every other night. Plus, we also want to ease you into things. However, sometime next week we will step things up a notch, and the days will be quite grueling," replied Lupin with an evil grin.
"Sounds wonderful," he chortled.
"Oh, and by the way, Harry. There is no longer any need to refer to me as your professor. I haven't been that for over two years now. I may be training you, but there is no need for formality. I am your friend, first and foremost. Please call me Remus or Lupin –"
"Or a dirty werewolf!" Kingsley added with a chuckle. They all laughed. "But you may refer to me as Mr. Shacklebolt, extraordinaire." With this they all burst out into laughter again. Once they had recovered, and were somewhat short of breath, Harry spoke again to Lupin.
"Umm, thank you. I was wondering, though...Would I call you Moony sometimes...Like my father and Sirius did?"
A delicate smile eased on to Lupin's face. "Of course you may. I would be honored." A moment passed. Finally, breaking the silence, Kingsley spoke again.
"Lupin, could you pass me a tissue? I think I may cry." Both Harry and Lupin turned their head towards the bald auror, who had a large smirk on his face, and yet again, burst into fits of laughter.
The door creaked open, and Lupin tip-toed over to where Harry lay asleep in his bed. To Lupin's surprise, Harry had slept silently the entire night. He had placed a spell on the room to alert him if Harry began to have a nightmare, or if anything else went awry. Lupin had not been woken the entire night. He had assumed that Harry would have major problems. Fortunately, he had been wrong. Now, as he hovered over the sleeping boy, Lupin thought about how hard Harry's short life had been. Growing up without your parents, and instead in a terrible home; it is a wonder he turned out so well. And now, as he neared his sixteenth birthday, Harry was about to learn how to survive in battle, as well as how to take a life. The thought that Harry would eventually be faced with the decision of whether to kill or be killed, deeply saddened him. He didn't deserve this life.
Just then, Harry shifted in his sleep. Abandoning his thoughts, Lupin rejoined the present. He slowly pulled out his wand and pointed it at the Boy-who-lived. No matter what lay ahead of him in the future, Harry still had to try and continue to live a semi-normal life. It was this thought that prodded Lupin's mind in a very different direction. Looking down at Harry, he wondered what kind of a note the boy's day should start on. Then, he had his answer, as a grin spread out across his face. He quietly muttered something to himself, and then watched as a stream of cold water shot straight out of the tip of his wand and on to Harry. Immediately, Harry shot straight up, hand clenched to his wand, yelling.
"AHH! Wha da hell isagoinon?!?!"
Lupin stood laughing at the scene, wand now lowered to his side. Harry was visibly shaking and looked furious and confused at the same time.
Harry, who had yet to realize what had happened, noticed the other man laughing. His eyes narrowed in on the wand at Lupin's side, and then shot straight up to meet the eyes of his assailant. "Why did you do that?" he barked.
"It is 6:45...time to wake up. Your training begins in fifteen minutes. You had better hurry up and get dressed if you want to eat anything." With that, he turned and left the room, still smiling.
Harry was left soaked and angry, standing beside his bed. He wasn't sure if he wanted to sprint after the man and beat him to the ground, or start screaming at the top of his lungs. Finally, he snapped out of his rage. Using his wand, he quickly dried himself and his bed off. After changing into some more comfortable clothes, as Lupin had instructed him the previous night to do, Harry made his way don to the kitchen. He found the room empty, with the exception of a glass of juice and some toast and fruit on the table. This definitely helped his mood, as he discovered he was pretty hungry. He sat down and began to eat in peace, and made sure not to waste any of the food. A few minutes later, as he was cramming the last slice of toast into his mouth, Lupin entered the room. Harry turned and gave him a nasty look.
"There was no need to douse me in cold water. All you have to do is say my name a couple of times and I'll wake," He said.
"I know," he replied brazenly.
Finally, a grin began to appear upon Harry's face. "You'll get yours."
Lupin's left eyebrow raised. "Oh?"
"You just wait." said Harry, who had every intention of returning the favor. "Two of my closest friends happen to be the Weasley twins. Wait until they hear about this. You're crazy if you don't think they would be more than happy to aide me in a little retaliation."
"How unfortunate it is that you cannot yet tell them about your living arrangements." Lupin replied, even though the thought of the twins plotting against him had definitely got him thinking.
"Fine. I'll just wait until the right time, when you least expect it. "
"Okay. Whatever you say. Now," said Lupin, his voice becoming all business, "We must get started. Are you ready to begin the next chapter of your life, Harry?"
"Sure, I guess."
"Good. Follow me," he said as he headed out the door and into the hallway. Harry obediently followed. Instead of exiting through the front door, though, Lupin proceeded up the stairs. Slightly bewildered, Harry continued to follow. Finally, upon reaching the top floor, Lupin found a doorway to his liking, and entered. Harry followed, and once inside, realized they were standing in Sirius' room. A lump developed inside Harry's throat. There were still all sorts of items scattered about, as if he had just been there moments before. The bed was unmade, and the desk contained bits of parchment and other random items on its surface. But, before Harry's emotions got the best of him, Lupin spoke.
"Harry, I want to show you something. Please follow me." Then, he walked to the far side of the room. He went straight up to a picture of a grassy meadow that hung on the wall next to what was unmistakably a closet. There was something different about this particular picture, though. There was a Hippogriff in the distance, chasing after a small animal. Only, the Hippogriff looked oddly familiar. When Lupin took out his wand and tapped it on the frame, while muttering an incantation under his breath, Harry realized that he was looking at a picture of Buckbeak. However, once Lupin's spell began to take effect, Harry realized it wasn't a picture at all.
The frame began expand vertically until it was the same length as the door to the closet. Suddenly Harry felt a cool breeze. He watched as Lupin stepped through the opening and onto the grass on the other side. Harry couldn't believe his eyes. Instead, he put his trust in the rest of his body, and walked himself out into the beautiful meadow. He could now see that it was fairly expansive. Turning in a circle, he could see that it stretched as far as his eyes could see in each direction. He had an odd feeling about the place, but his mind was stripped of any further thought, when out of the corner of his eye he saw a large, feathery figure making its way towards him at a rapid pace. Harry turned to see Buckbeak galloping towards him. Somewhat startled by this, Harry took a step back. But, as it got closer, the hippogriff slowed its pace, and finally halted about five meters from him. Remembering what he learned in his third year, Harry bowed. This was immediately returned by the animal, and so Harry walked up and began to pet him affectionately.
"It's good to see you, old friend." Harry said.
"Sirius built this just after you returned to school last Christmas. He thought Buckbeak needed somewhere more spacious to live. You know how he felt about confinement. He figured that Buckbeak didn't deserve to be cooped up inside a house."
Harry had become so enamored with his surroundings and his feathered friend that he had completely forgotten about Lupin, who was still standing by the entrance. He turned to look at the man and could see now that on this side, the entrance was a free-floating picture of the dusty old room that they had just come from.
Noticing what Harry was staring at, Lupin continued, "Everything past this frame is just an illusion." He raised his hand and knocked it against something solid, which was obviously the wall the picture hung on. "You cannot move past it."
Harry noticed that it was similar to the rest of the meadow, except that it contained the only tree in sight.
"Are there any other boundaries that I should know about, so I don't run straight into them and kill myself?" he asked.
"I don't think that you have to worry about going to far in the other directions. I'm not exactly sure where they are, but I know that you won't travel that far. I'm not sure how high the sky goes, either. But, I know I've seen Buckbeak soar around the place. You'll find out though, when it comes time to work on some flying techniques on your broom. We will mainly be working in this general area, though." Lupin indicated the general area in which they were standing. "Buckbeak, come here," he prodded.
The Hippogriff swept away from Harry, without so much as a second glance, and made its way straight to Lupin. It was obvious that these two had gotten to know one another, because Lupin didn't even have to be formal and bow. The animal completely trusted him. Harry wondered if that maybe had something to do with the fact that Lupin was also an animal, essentially. He made a mental note to ask him at a later date.
"Okay, my friend," he said to the animal, "I need you to leave us now, so that we can work without interruption." It was as if Buckbeak understood exactly what he had been told, because he immediately turned and shot up into the sky. Harry watched him rise through the air, and then finally land at a spot that seemed to be at least a half a mile away.
"How did you–" he began, but was cutoff.
"Never mind that now. Your questions can wait. We must get started. Lupin then pointed his wand out at the meadow and uttered a spell which then turned a block of the grass white. Harry didn't understand. But as he stepped forward to investigate further, he realized that the white grass, which was about 5 feet wide, actually extended forward about twenty feet. He looked to Lupin.
"It is a trail. I want you to begin jogging. Once you begin moving on it, it will continue to grow in length. You will only have about a twenty foot notice of where you will be going, though; so make sure you pay attention and you will eventually be led back here. The distance can easily be reset, which I will do almost every day. The first few days, I won't make you go too far. But, eventually, your stamina will begin to increase, and you will find yourself going further. Now, you best get going. I will be here, waiting and preparing some things."
"So, I just start walking?"
"No," Lupin laughed. "You start jogging. Now, go."
With that, Harry slowly turned and started jogging down the path of white grass.
A/N: Well, I'm exhausted. Hope everyone likes the chapter. Please review!!! I'm happy to answer any questions. The rough draft of the next chapter is close to finished. Once that is done, it'll only be a day or so until I have it posted. So, we're probably looking at two to three days, at most. However, the more reviews I get, the more motivated I will be to get it posted. wink wink
