Temporal Flux

Chapter Four: Dumbledore's Army

The following morning, Jared got up before the boys in his dorm and came down to the common room.  He had his Transfiguration essay to edit and he wanted to do that before Hermione found him in the chair again.  It was his favorite place to study, too.  As soon as he was finished, he went back and got ready for the day.  Everyone else was already awake.

"You slept a long time," commented Seamus.

"Um…yeah, jetlag," explained Jared lamely.  "It's common when you travel like a Muggle."

"Are you a Muggle-born?" asked Dean.  Harry, Ron, and Neville looked busy, but it was fairly obvious that they were listening to what they were saying.

Jared shrugged his shoulders.  "I don't see how it's important."  The tension rose from him, causing the others to seize up a bit.  He pressed his lips together, and then parted them.  He sighed, "My mother is Muggle-born, while my father comes from one of the oldest pureblood lines in the world.  So, what do you think that makes me?"

"It's not a problem.  My parents were the same way, too," said Harry.  "No one's going to bother you about that here."

"Yeah, right," said Jared as he picked up his toiletry kit and towel.  He added as he went to the bathroom.  "But then again, I'm not Harry Potter."

The rest of the boys went about getting ready for the day quietly.  Ron broke the uncomfortable silence.  "Harry, do people ever ask about your parents like that?" he asked softly.

"Not really," replied Harry easily without as much as a blink.  "They don't think about where my mother came from, only what she did."

Ron shook his head and finished tying his tie.  He didn't know why he was thinking so hard about Jared's reaction towards Dean's seemingly harmless question.  It was something that Ron had never been asked because as a Weasley, almost everyone knew where he came from.  Harry didn't have such a problem because he had bigger things to deal with.  Ron barely knew anything about the world that Harry and Hermione talked about from time to time.  Ron felt left out at those moments.

Seamus and Dean went to the Great Hall ahead of them, while the others waited for Jared.  He came out with his hair damped, tying his tie.  Ron said, "Come on.  We need to get breakfast."  Jared looked little taken back by his invitation, but nodded and went along with them.  He let Neville, Harry, and Ron go down the stairs first.  He followed closely behind them and saw that Ginny and Hermione were waiting for them.

"Let's go and get something to eat.  I'm starving," said Ginny.  Spotting Jared, she went on, "You didn't get anything to eat last night, Jared.  You must be really starved."

Jared had stowed the pumpkin pasties in his stash of candy that he got when he was in Diagon Alley.  "But, I'm well rested," he countered with a slight smirk on his face.  There was something distinctly familiar with that smirk as he walked ahead.  "I woke up early to finish editing my essay."

Ron and Harry turned their heads to look at Hermione, waiting for her reaction.  She was very still as she kept her composure.  "So, what did you end up writing about?" she asked brightly.  "I finished it last night.  I even did the essay for Arithmancy.  What about you?"

"Oh, I finished that yesterday afternoon before doing the Transfiguration essay," revealed Jared, stunning Hermione as he continued to walk ahead of them.  She was frozen in place for a moment as Harry urged her forward.  "Come on, Hermione," he whispered.  She walked forward, but Harry and Ron went passed her.  They were hungry.

"Ginny, do you know anything about him?  You were talking to him on the train.  You had more time than I did," said Hermione, staring at the backs of Harry, Ron and Neville as they pulled away.

"Not much else," admitted Ginny.  "He's really a puzzle, isn't he?"  She didn't know why she didn't tell Hermione about seeing Jared coming into the common room with food in his hands.  She was going to confront him herself and ask him how he knew his way to the kitchens without a guide.  No one knew him well enough to tell him where they were.  "Do you think he might be interested in Harry?"  Ginny and Hermione's voices were low and the boys were long gone.

"You think he's here for Harry?" whispered Hermione.  She shook her head, feeling a vein throbbing as rubbed her temples.  Something in her was screaming at her, telling her that there's nothing wrong with Jared.  A wave of protectiveness came over her.  Something kicked in, but she couldn't identify it.  "He's not here to do anything to Harry," she concluded firmly.

"I thought you'd say that," said Ginny.  "By the way, did you ever get Crookshanks back from him?"

Hermione's cheeks turned rosy.  She turned her head and strolled faster through the hall.  "Hermione!  Wait!  What happened?" called Ginny after her.

They all caught up with Jared for breakfast.  The house elves always served every kind of breakfast food imaginable as long as it was of wizarding fare.  He already part way through his breakfast as Harry and Ron joined him.  Hermione and Ginny came a few minutes later.  Actually, Ginny was trailing after Hermione.

"Professor De Luca says that DA will have its first meeting tonight," announced Harry.

"DA?" asked Jared.  "What's that?"

"Dumbledore's Army.  It's the Defense Against the Dark Arts Club," answered Hermione.

"Oh, that's what Professor De Luca was talking about yesterday.  My attention span varies from time to time," said Jared, causing Hermione's eyes to widen.  He ignored it.  "So, what about it?"

"Everyone who wants to join will come, which means that three out of the four houses are coming.  Harry's in charge, so the Slytherin aren't going to come.  If they could start a Dark Arts club, they probably would.  If they haven't already, but a lot of their relatives were exposed last year," Ron informed him.  "Are you coming?"

"I don't know," answered Jared.  "There's a lot of homework that I have to get through."

"You did a bunch of the assignments already, haven't you?" pointed out Ginny.

"That was just the essays.  I have to study," answered Jared. 

Neville shook his head.  "You're worse than Hermione," he muttered. 

"What's that supposed to mean?" demanded Hermione without looking at Jared who wore small stunned look on his face.

"I'm not like her, am I?" asked Jared with shock.  Hermione glared at him.  "Not that it's a bad thing.  I'm sure.  I'll shut up now."  He turned his head to avert her gaze.  Ron started laughing at them, which got Hermione's glare redirected at him.  "What's so funny?" she asked calmly.

"You guys.  I'm happy I'm not the only one who you're fighting with," answered Ron as he continued laughing.  Hermione was going to say something until someone from the Ravenclaw table walked up to them.

"Are you talking about DA?" asked a girl.  She wasn't Luna or Cho.  She was another Ravenclaw all together.  She had honey blonde hair and blue-green eyes.  In fact, she was very sweet looking.  "I saw the noticed that Luna posted in our common room.  I was wondering if you had to say if you were going to come or not."

Harry answered, "No.  It's open to anyone who wants to come.  It will be in classroom that we use for DADA class."  It was decided that the Room of Requirements was too good of a secret to completely expose to the school and Professor De Luca preferred the classroom because it as easier to find.  "Just come after dinner."

"Thanks," said the girl as she smiled and went back to the Ravenclaw table.  Jared noticed that she was looking at Ron before returning to her seat.  No one else noticed.  He remembered that he was there for a specific purpose and he had to remind himself that things had to play out.  He couldn't just stop them, even if he could protect Hermione's feelings in the process. 

"You were saying, Hermione?" asked Ron.  She just shook her head and dug into her breakfast.  Jared had lost his appetite because he remembered that he had to find out where the dark wizard was before he or she could strike.  Jared still didn't have a clue as to who was going to get hit.  He was sitting next to Hermione, feeling the warmth of her body.  Her smell was familiar.  Jared could recognize it anywhere because from his very first days that were the only way he knew she was near. 

In the middle of day, during lunch, Jared went off by himself to go back to the dorm and look through his trunk for the clues that he had.  He dug to the false bottom and pulled out the boards.  The Marauders' Map was the first thing he pulled out.  Setting that aside for later, Jared pulled out a book.  It was Hermione's diary, but the main difference that this one had with the one in her room was that it was complete.  It chronicled the seven years that she had spent at Hogwarts.  No one else knew about it but him and her.  Jared flipped through it.  It had been enchanted to carry as much pages as Hermione required.  He didn't have to flip very long because it had been bookmarked to the current date with an old photograph.

The photograph was taken at the doorway of a house that had an unusual door knocker.  Hermione was years older, beaming at a newborn infant in her arms.  It was a wizarding picture, so the baby and she were moving.  She was waving his little fist towards the camera and the picture taker.  The baby was wrapped in a cashmere blanket, a combined effort from his grandmothers.  One grandmother bought the expensive material, but she didn't know how to knit.  The other grandmother could knit better than a spider.  The picture was colored, showing that the baby had a thatch of brown hair. 

Jared stared at it for a moment and placed it face down on top of the map.  To his relief, nothing hadn't really changed in it.  The spell that was weaved over Jared was in place.  When he would leave, everything would go on as if he was never there.  He read the entry, which talked about how the first DA meeting turned out.  There was nothing for that day that Hermione logged as unusual, so Jared closed it and placed it back inside with the picture as the bookmark.  Jared knew that he should read ahead more, but he had to get back and he felt like he was invading Hermione's privacy.  He didn't put the map back, but instead tucked it into his pocket.  He threw everything back into the trunk and slammed it shut.

Jared grabbed his things and went to the next class.  The rest of the day didn't ease him at all as he managed to stay out of trouble.  The meeting was going to start another thing all together as Jared thought about that girl who came to the table.  His parents never really talked about past suitors.  He did know about Viktor Krum, who he met when he was younger.  His father didn't seem too happy about it, but was absolutely smug when Viktor said that Jared looked like both his parents.  But this girl spelled trouble, Jared knew that his mother wouldn't bring up any of his father's old girlfriends.  His parents were too much in love with each other.  He was an only child and partly the reason was because his father loved his mother too much to risk her life on having another baby. 

During dinner, Jared had decided to go to the DA meeting.  He really didn't want to go because he already knew everything Harry was going to say and that wasn't in Hermione's diary.  He already experienced it before in his time.  By the end of dinner, he agreed to go to the meeting. 

He came with the others and noticed that the other two houses had joined them as predicted.  The girls from the other houses remembered him from the first night.  They were whispering among themselves as Jared tired to keep an eye on everyone from Gryffindor.

"Jared," called Lavender, "I was wondering if you were coming or not."

"It's pretty crowded, isn't it?" he observed.  This was a time when everyone wanted to learn how to defend themselves.  It was when Fudge was still in power in the Ministry of Magic, but was losing support fast.  Jared knew the rest of the story and that was probably the only reason why he wasn't very anxious.

"What kind of defensive magic have you learned?" inquired Ginny.

"The institute is cutting edge with their techniques.  Hogwarts is more traditional.  The institute actually has research by the faculty at almost university level.  So, I've picked up a few things from my DADA teacher back where I come from," answered Jared.

"I bet you haven't changed teachers as often as we have," said Neville.

Jared shook his head.  "Nope.  My DADA teacher started the year I started.  He's been there ever since.  He used to be in magical law enforcement, but decided to go into teaching instead."  He stopped talking and saw that Harry was at the front of the DADA classroom.  They had moved all the desks to the sides of the room to clear the middle.  Professor De Luca was leaning against one of the desk, looking very inconspicuous.  In fact, most of the students didn't notice he was there.  The girls had lost interest him after the first day of classes.

"Welcome back everyone," said Harry in a soft voice.  "I see there are lots of new people here, too.  So, I don't think we'll be wasting any time.  Time is something we may not have.  So, pair off everyone.  We'll just go over what we did last year.  Start practicing with disarming wands.  At the end, we'll talk about what we'll be doing this year."  He went on to explain the Disarming Spell, using Ron's help with a demonstration.  Jared watched the way that Ron did the spell because he had never seen him do it before.  After Harry was done explaining, he told everyone to pair off.

Jared looked around for a partner and found most everyone pairing off because they knew each other.  Obviously there were an odd number of people, leaving Jared the odd man out.  Feeling some embarrassment at the situation, he continued looking around for a partner after almost everyone had paired off.  He felt a tap at his shoulder.  "Yes, Harry?" he asked.

"I'm supposed to be practicing, too, but Ron and Hermione paired off without me, so it looks like we'll be working together," answered Harry.  "Do you mind?"

"No," replied Jared.  They stepped farther apart from each other and before Jared could even raise his wand in a battle stance, Harry shouted, "Expelliarmus!"  Jared watched helplessly as his wand flew out his hand.  And here he thought he would have an advantage over Harry who grinned and tossed back his wand.

"You should pay attention better," pointed out Harry.  "Don't waste time."  Jared fought the urge to smack his own forehead because that was one of the first things his professor taught him.  As soon as he had his bearings, he shouted, "Expelliarmus!"  Harry's wand immediately came to him. 

"That's good," complimented Harry.  "You seem to have it.  Want to—"He was interrupted by the sounds of people not doing the spell right.  It was the sound of a few people crashing into desks.  "Um…I should check that.  I'll be back."  Harry rushed off to see what happened in the other side of the room.  Professor De Luca hadn't moved from the desk.  He was now watching with keen interest and a smirk was tugging at his lips.  Jared figured that he was only there to make sure that things didn't get out of control and had confidence that Harry could handle it.

"What did you do?" asked Harry to a first year who was trembling.  He had knocked down three older students.  The first year explained without saying the incantation and flicking his wand.  "You're overdoing it.  If you put too much power into the spell you're going to knock the person out.  In fact, if more than one person aims the spell at a person, you will knock them out.  All of you should be targeting the spell at your partner, not anyone else's."

Ron and Hermoine glanced at each other with small grins as they remembered something that they had done before.  Harry knew what he was talking about from experience.  Jared didn't know that what they had done would eventually make him one of Snape's least favorite students by association.

They moved onto another set of spells to work on and Jared did them without any trouble, giving Harry a chance to walk around and see how everyone else was doing.  These spells were very easy for Jared because he had a better foundation in defensive magic and credit was due to his teacher.  Jared seemed to have a natural aptitude for everything he was doing.

"All right, I don't know when our next meeting is going to be because Quidditch is opening up for the season.  The Quidditch teams need to train, so we'll have to coordinate something.  Hermione will be the one to set up the next meeting, so keep an eye on your coins for it."  That was the very last announcement that Harry made at the end of the meeting. 

By this time, the girl who had come to the Gryffindor table earlier in the morning was making her way towards Ron.  Hermione was distracted by the Quidditch captain from the Hufflepuff team, while someone from the Ravenclaw team was also giving her the schedule.  Cho Chang was the team captain for Ravenclaw, but she no longer attended the DA meetings.  There were fewer Ravenclaws present than last year.  The Hufflepuff were the same in number, while the Gryffindors had increased by a couple of students.

"Hello, Ron," said the girl shyly.

Ron turned and faced her.  "Do I know I you?"

"No, you don't.  My name is Cassandra Levy," she replied.  "Casey for short.  I watched you all of last year when you were the keeper for the Gryffindor Quidditch team.  Are you going to be on the team again this year?"

Ron looked a little confused but at the same time he cheeks were red.  "Um…yeah, I think so.  Harry's back, too, this year.  He's going to be team captain."

"Really?" asked Casey.  "I thought that he wouldn't be playing this year considering that he spent most of last year not playing.  I mean he was on your house team for what?  Two years before your house won the cup, while you did it in your first year on the team."

"It's not Harry's fault.  It was the Chamber of Secrets that one year, and last year it was Umbridge's fault," defended Ron as he craned his neck looking for help.  He caught Jared's eye, but Jared didn't come to his assistance.  Harry finished first and walked up to Ron, relieving him.  Most people in Hogwarts were awry of Harry, so Casey backed off for the time being. 

Jared went off to Gryffindor Tower, not wanting to see anymore.  He just had to finish what he had come for and go back to where he belonged.  Crookshanks greeted him when he came into the common room.  The part-Kneazle rubbed up against Jared's slacks, prompting him to pick up Crookshanks.  Jared didn't sit in the chair that Hermione normally sat at.

Instead, he sat in front of the fireplace.  Crookshanks comforted Jared by purring as he gently stroked his fur.  Jared closed his eyes as he remembered what happened to Crookshanks.  Kneazles were long lived creatures and very loyal to their owners.  Jared remembered following Crookshanks around his parents' house until he got too slow, then they would take naps together.  Crookshanks had been there for the first five years of Jared's life and had died of old age.  It was estimated that Crookshanks was thirty years old in human years when he had died.  It was heartbreaking for Jared at the time.

Jared was very much like his father.  He was sensitive when things got to him, but like his mother he couldn't ignore others' pain.  Some said that he looked like his father, except softer and with different coloring.  But when people saw him with his father, there was no denying it.  The older Jared got, the more he resembled his father.  Although, his father insisted that he looked like his mother.

Staring at the fire, he was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't hear someone come in.  "Jared," called Ginny, startling him slightly.  Jared turned his head.  "I see you're with Crookshanks again.  You know, Hermione doesn't like you playing with him."

"Oh," said Jared as he set Crookshanks on the floor, but the part-Kneazle refused to leave his side.  The animal obviously knew who Jared was, or at least had a sense that he was someone familiar.  Crookshanks continued to nuzzle against Jared's shins.  "She doesn't like me very much does she?"

Ginny suddenly felt bad.  She was going to confront him about his trip to the kitchens the night before, but couldn't bring herself to do it.  There was something on his face that immediately made her want to make him feel better.  "She's just shocked that's all.  She's used to being the best because she feels like she's got a lot to prove.  I mean being Muggle-born and all," explained Ginny.

"It's harder when some people tell you that your father contaminated his bloodlines by marrying your mother," whispered Jared.  He sounded both angry and sad at the same time.  "When I first started school, I had a really hard time.  I got into a lot of fights that first year."

Ginny was appalled at the idea of someone telling that to anyone face to face.  Her mouth was opened with disgust as she said fiercely, "You shouldn't let a few people let you think you're not good enough just because you've got a Muggle blood in you.  I've heard what Neville, Harry, and the others say about you in class.  You're too brilliant.  Don't let anyone get to you like that."

"It's hard sometimes," whispered Jared with a sigh.  "My mother is beautiful.  Inside and out.  No one deserves to be told they're inferior.  Either to their faces or behind their backs.  I can't stand it.  I have my father's temper, so when I go off sometimes I just can't stop."

"Your mother must be something, if you're willing to fight for her like that," said Ginny softly with an appreciative smile.  "What about your dad?"

Jared faced her and smiled lopsidedly, trying to think of an answer for her.  After a few seconds, he replied, "My father is the most amazing man I have ever met.  If I could be half the man he is, then I'd be something.  He fights for what he believes in and is loyal to his friends and family, especially to my mother and me.  I mean he's got one Hell of a temper and does shoot off his mouth, but he's the fun parent.  He gets in trouble with my mother more often than I do.  He lets me get away with a lot more than he should, but he can't bring himself to really say no to me."

"You must miss them," said Ginny.

"Not really," admitted Jared without hesitation.  "I don't feel like I'm far from them at all."  Ginny gave him a questioning look, but before she could ask further, the portal opened.  Harry, Hermione, and Ron came in.

"That was a lot of people," said Harry with a sigh as he dropped into one of the soft chairs.

"Yeah, too many people," agreed Ron as he glanced over at Ginny and Jared.  They were sitting too close for his taste.  "What are you two doing?" he demanded, eyeing them suspiciously.  Ginny rolled her eyes and got to her feet.

"We were just talking," said Ginny.  "You know having a conversation.  It's an art, you know."

"Don't quote your Muggle Studies class at me.  What were you talking about before we came in?" snapped Ron.

"I don't have to give you an answer.  I'm going to bed," declared Ginny as hurried to the stairs.  Ron wasn't going to drop it, but he turned his attention to Jared.

"What are you doing with my sister?" accosted Ron.

Jared regarded him without blinking.  To think, he was actually saying nice things about him.  "You're a freak, aren't you?" concluded Jared.  Normally, he knew better than to push Ron's buttons like that, but Jared didn't know what came over him.

Ron looked at him with his mouth agape in shock.  He snapped his jaw closed as his ears reddened.  Jared realized he might have gone one step too far this time.  "A freak?!" exclaimed Ron.  "That's it!  Five points off Gryffindor!"

"Ron!  You can't take points off just because he insulted you!" shouted Hermione.

"Why are you defending him?!" shouted back Ron.

Hermione looked flustered because she didn't know the answer to that question.  She didn't know why she was defending Jared, and it wasn't as simple as her agreeing with him or wanting to disagree with Ron.  She felt torn as she glanced at Jared briefly who rose to his feet.  He looked pale.  "I-I'm sorry.  Just stop fighting.  Please stop fighting," he whispered in a shaky voice, sounding very wounded.

There was something about his reaction that shocked Ron and Hermione into silence.  Jared noticed it, too.  He clutched his jaw and stalked out of the room without saying anything else.  He changed his clothes quickly and didn't bother to brush his teeth, even if he knew he should.  He just didn't want to face either Ron or Harry when they came up.  He drew his curtains closed and laid there, staring at the canopy until he fell asleep.


AN: Jared has some issues that happened to him when he first started school, even with the war over by the time he starts racism would remain an issue (if JK Rowling is modeling her world after ours, it's true).  So, he's a little defensive and perhaps overly sensitive.  And the plot has thicken.  It takes me a while to get to things because I have a need to describe things.  Studies show that babies, who lack a lot of visual acuity as newborns, can smell the difference between their mother's milk and another's.  So, that should be a hint as to why Jared is so familiar with Hermione.  Hmm…why is Hermione so determine to defend Jared?  She's done it twice here.

Furthermore, I have a few ideas as to what Harry will do for a living.  Remember, the Aurors are under the Ministry of Magic and chances are he may not want work for them.  After what happened in the fifth book, it's sort of a good hint as to what Harry might end up as when he finishes school.  And I will assume that Snape will survive to the end.

By the way, who should find out about Jared's identity first?  I was between Harry and Ginny, but who?  I'm leaning towards Ginny, but in the later chapter that I wrote Harry has got as much of a chance of figuring out who Jared.

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Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.  This story belongs to me and cannot be posted anywhere else without my permission.