The Tangibility of Magic
by Jolly Rancher
Chapter 6: Back To Hogwarts We Go
A/N: Sorry for the long wait…I'll try not to let that happen again. I just had this writers block with the Hogwarts part of this chapter. Thanks for the reviews. Chapter 6!
They thanked Sandra once again and left to go to the London Underground. They were finished with shopping…finally.
Harry watched with a little trepidation as the ministry owl left his room. He held his OWL results in his hand, and he really did not want to open it. Ah, what the hell. The grades are going to be the same if I open it now or later. He tucked his finger under the ministry seal and pulled. The envelope tore open and he took out the sheet of parchment that held his grades.
Dear Mr. Potter,
We congratulate you for passing your fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Enclosed are your results for your OWL tests. The grading procedure is as follows: Grades of O through A are passing. Grades below A, P and T, are failing. You will not receive any credits for those courses which you have failed. Grades marked with an asterisk is a beyond perfect score.
Transfiguration:
Theory: EE
Practical: EE
Overall: EE
Potions:
Theory: A
Practical: EE
Overall: EE
Divination:
Theory: A
Practical: T
Overall: P
Herbology:
Theory: EE
Practical: EE
Overall: EE
Charms:
Theory: EE
Practical: O
Overall: O
Defense Against the Dark Arts
Theory: O
Practical: O
Overall: O
History:
Theory: T
Overall: T
Astronomy:
Theory: EE
Practical: T
Overall: P
Care of Magical Creatures:
Theory: EE
Practical: O
Overall: O
Note: Because of extenuating circumstances during the OWL Practical for Astronomy, the Ministry of Magic has decided to let anyone who wishes to retake the test do so. You will take the test the first Saturday of the school year.
Congratulations Mr. Potter, you have earned eight OWLS. You are eligible to take the following classes:
-NEWT Transfiguration
-NEWT Charms
-NEWT Defense Against the Dark Arts
-NEWT Care of Magical Creatures
-NEWT Astronomy (pending)
-NEWT Herbology
Sincerely,
Griselda Marchbanks
Head of the Wizarding Examinations Authority
Harry was ecstatic. He had only failed three classes! Well, four, if he counted Astronomy, but he was pretty sure that he could do well on the retake. He glanced at the paper again and smiled ruefully. I guess that means that I can't become an Auror. Oh well, not a big loss. There are still a lot more jobs available. At least last year was the last with Snape.
Harry looked at the time and sighed. He had to go to Hogwarts to get the basilisk for Ollivander. He didn't mind going to Hogwarts, but he didn't like the idea of sneaking around, avoiding the teachers.
Harry stepped into Hogsmeade out of the Knight Bus, giving Stan the extra galleon to keep quiet. He walked to the Shrieking Shack and quickly went down the passage that led to Hogwarts. Prodding the knot in the trunk with a stick, he stared at Hogwarts. He could never get enough of the castle. It was so awe-inspiring.
Snapping out of his reverie, he quickly walked into Hogwarts.
Snape snarled as he walked the hallways of Hogwarts. Why Dumbledore had to make the teachers patrol the grounds was beyond him. Voldemort wasn't likely to attack during summer, but the old man insisted on this fool's errand.
He was passing by the Great Hall when he heard a sniffle to his right. He immediately whipped his wand out from his robes and pointed to the offending area. "Show yourself!" he snarled.
Harry cursed as he watched Snape whirl around. He knew that he couldn't allow Snape to see him, since he would no doubt tell Dumbledore that he had been here. He brightened, thinking that he could use one of the Dark Arts curses that he had recently learned. He needed practice, after all. He had the perfect one.
"Caecus!" he whispered from the shadows. A billowing black gas escaped from the tip of his wand and fled towards his Potions professor. Snape never had a chance. The greasy git was staring at a point at least 10 meters from him.
Snape cried out in pain as the gas encompassed his body. His eyes then seemed to suck the gaseous substance in, causing them to glow an ethereal black. He looked around wildly, but all he could see was darkness, darkness all around him, smothering him. He knew the curse well; Voldemort had used this curse many a time on his followers. Unfortunately, the curse lasted for an hour, and there was no counter-curse. There was a way for him to bypass it however.
"Absens Acerb Accendo Acerb!"
The black in his eyes slowly gave way to white, and he sighed in relief. He had not gained his full vision, but he could see the outlines of objects. "Accio Invisibility Cloak!"
He had deduced that the other man must be wearing an Invisibility Cloak, since only a few wizards could cast an Invisibility Charm and actually hold it.
"Stupefy!" shouted Snape. He watched as a white jet of light, in his distorted vision, sped towards his foe. A dome of light appeared over the intruder as he shouted a shielding spell, blocking his blurry form from view.
"Petrificus Totalus!" shouted his opponent. Snape ducked and responded with a Banishing Hex, capable of hurling his foe up to twenty feet away. His opponent dodged, but not fast enough. The hex hit the intruder's arm, causing him to whirl around in a circle quite comically. He smirked as the man fell to the floor. His smirk faltered when the man drunkenly staggered a few meters to the left then suddenly disappeared.
"Accio Invisibility," He was cut off suddenly by a stunning hex hitting him straight in the chest, knocking him unconscious.
Harry groaned as Snape fell to the ground. He hated to use the Invisibility Cloak, but somehow Snape had bypassed his curse. He doubled over and vomited all over the floor. Urgh, I don't think I'll ever recover from that ordeal.
Wiping his mouth he stared at Snape's unconscious form. He thought that he could easily best Snape in a duel, but he had barely beaten him, and that was with using underhanded tactics. The duel had certainly taken him down a few pegs. He was only a sixth year, just because he was better than his classmates in defense didn't mean that he could beat a fully grown wizard. How am I supposed to beat Voldemort if I can't even face Snape in a duel?
He sighed in defeat, resolving to train harder than ever. He then set off towards Myrtle's bathroom.
Harry brushed himself off, rolled his eyes, and did a quick, "Scourgify!" to rid himself of all the dirt and grime he had accumulated sliding down the tunnel. He looked around at his surroundings, and realized finally how huge the Chamber of Secrets really was. I think it runs beneath the entire castle!
He shook his head and set off towards the main hall, where he had slain the basilisk, taking a moment to blast away the stones with a Reductor Hex. He reached the huge doors and muttered, "Open." The doors swung in admittance and he walked in, wrinkling his nose as the foul and mangy stench he smelt. I guess after three years, a decaying snake would smell. He conjured up gloves for himself, and set to work, gathering all the suitable pieces. This is so disgusting…
Harry sat idly upon the playground swings, swinging his legs back and forth reminiscent of his childhood, when he used to come here to escape the Dursley's. Fortunately, his relatives weren't being too bad this summer, thanks to his show of power before.
He watched, from the corner of his eye, Dudley and his gang corner a jogger. He didn't get up; it wasn't like he could do anything. Then he noticed the red highlights, and his blood started to boil.
He quickly got up off the swing and walked over to his obese cousin. "Hey, Dudders. What exactly do you think you're doing?" He said casually, but with a cold glint in his eyes.
Dudley froze at Harry's voice, but Piers Polkiss placed a sneer upon his rat-like face and said, "Why, if it isn't our old plaything. Do you want to join in the fun, Potter?" The two other members of the group stepped forward and flexed their bulging muscles. Ah, well. Guess there has to be a Crabbe and Goyle in every "gang."
Harry chose to ignore him, instead settling his eyes on a severely annoyed (albeit a bit frightened) Cathy. "Are you all right, Cathy?"
Cathy, without taking her glare off Piers, said, "Harry. What are you doing here? I don't need your help."
Harry quirked an eyebrow and said, "Oh, sorry. I didn't realize that you could get rid of these four by yourself. I'll just leave you to your little gathering then."
Cathy sighed and said, "Wait. I'm sorry,"
"Aww, well, isn't that sweet? The kids are having a moment." sneered Piers. He looked at Dudley, as if expecting him to chortle, but was surprised to see him frozen. "D? What's the matter?"
"Oh!" Dudley said as he broke out of his fear induced state. "Just imagining what we can do to these two."
Harry rolled his eyes. Shit, what am I going to do? Dudley can't risk his reputation and I can't risk showing off my magic. He brightened, thinking of how he used to get away from them before. He gave a quick wink to Cathy, and turned towards Dudley and Piers, then kicked them in the shins.
They howled with pain and rage and Harry took off like a madman, running across the playground with neck-breaking speed. He laughed as the four bastards took off after him, making his plan work perfectly – which was to draw them away from Cathy. Dudley and the other two bulky individuals gradually started to lag behind, but they continued to run after Harry.
He went into an alleyway between two warehouses, and dodged the trashcans and such.
"Avada Kedavra!"
Harry froze as he heard the words and a sudden thud behind him.
"Why, hello there, Potter. Fancy meeting you here." drawled the voice of Lucius Malfoy. "I do believe that you're outside you're protective wards. What a pity."
"Aww, is ickle Potty scawed?"
Harry's heart started to beat faster, and he began to see red. How DARE that bitch! I'll kill her!
He whipped his wand around and saw the two Death Eaters smirking at him. He felt a hand on his shoulder and saw Remus Lupin staring at Voldemort's cronies as well. His knuckles were white as they gripped Harry's shoulder, but Harry just turned back to see Piers, lying on the ground with a maniacal smile still in place. Harry felt sad for the loss of life, but not for the loss of that particular individual.
"Ahh! You killed him, Harry! You killed him!"
Harry glanced towards the alleyway entrance, where Dudley stood stock-still as he stared at his best friend's corpse.
With a final scream, Dudley ran off to what Harry thought had to be the police. He thought, No matter, the Ministry will give out the Memory Charms, it's not like he's going to remember this anyways.
"Malfoy." Harry greeted his arch-rivals father with a nod. "How did you get out of Azkaban?"
Malfoy smirked, and Harry swore that he was preening, even if his face was covered with a mask. "Money comes in handy sometimes, Potter." Malfoy said. "As does being friends with the current Minister of Magic."
"What! You were right there in the same robes you're wearing now!"
"I'm sorry, Harry. We should have told you sooner that he was released." said Remus.
Harry sighed and locked gazes with Bellatrix and quickly drew his wand, getting ready to duel. Remus fell into stance beside him. Harry mused idly that the scene would have looked comical if he was looking from an outsider's perspective. It was like one of those old American Western films, except without the dust balls and wind.
Remus decided to attack first with a simple Stunner. Malfoy retaliated with a quick Shielding Charm and they were off in their own little world. Harry continued to lock eyes with Bellatrix until he could no longer take it.
"Expelliarmus!" cried Harry.
Bellatrix eyes simply became merrier beneath her white mask as she stepped out of the way. "Is that all you have, Potter? Come now, even a dog can do better than that."
Harry quietly seethed at the veiled insult, but kept his face impassive. You want more, huh? Let's see how you like a taste of your own medicine. He looked at Remus, to make sure the man had everything under control and was surprised to see him relaxed, as though he wasn't really in battle.
He ran towards her, kicking trashcans out of his way and dodging various curses sent his way.
He saw Bellatrix's eyes widen in surprise, and smirked in triumph. He thought that she had never faced this tactic before, and he was right. He rushed forward, avoiding a Cutting Hex, and kneed her in the stomach as hard as he could. The Death Eater's eyes bulged open, and he felt her deflating as all the air was displaced quite rapidly out of her lungs. She stumbled a few feet back and fell to one knee, gasping for breath.
Harry grinned maliciously and brought his wand out. He concentrated on the anger he felt at the world for treating him like crap and quietly uttered a single word. "Crucio!"
Bellatrix let out a horrific half-scream, trying unsuccessfully to draw in air and expel it at the same time. Harry just stared, letting the curse go on, strangely getting no satisfaction from seeing her scream. She started to writhe on the ground, but still Harry kept going, wanting to feel pleasure, wanting to feel happiness in her pain. She started to scratch at her face, drawing blood but Harry doggedly kept on.
He was staring at her bleeding face when the world suddenly went dark and he collapsed.
Remus smiled as Harry kicked the shins of the bullies. With his werewolf enhanced speed, he easily kept up with Harry as he ran away. He was glad to see that Harry's hero-complex was still in place, it meant that he hadn't changed that much.
He ran alongside Harry in the alleyway, stopping short when he heard the Killing Curse being uttered. He whirled around just in time to see the boy's body skidding to the ground, due to his relatively high velocity. He watched as Malfoy and Lestrange came from a niche in the wall. He whipped off his Invisibility Cloak, as it would just be a hindrance in the following battle. He pressed one of the buttons on his beaten down coat, giving the Red Alert in Headquarters, as well as in the Headmaster's office. He reached for Harry, wanting to tell him that he was not alone. As he watched Malfoy speak he did an old dueling technique his father taught him once. He imagined a flame inside his head and fed all his emotions into it. He was a void, now, he could feel nothing. He slid into dueling stance, next to his almost-son and prepared to fight.
"Stupefy!" yelled Remus. The spell speeded towards his opponent, but Malfoy simply put up a shield, effectively fizzling out the hex.
He narrowed his eyes, silently gauging his opponent. They commenced dueling, and found themselves to be on par with one another. He felt a Cutting Hex strike his face, but the pain was no matter. He could barely feel it due to the Void. He growled and let loose a stream of curses and hexes, a fraction of which hit his opponent. He swiftly apparated behind Malfoy, but the veteran Death Eater didn't look around as expected. He instead immediately disappeared with a loud crack and reappeared a few meters in front of Remus, wand at ready. They both let off a barrage of curses, but neither hit his target.
Finally, Remus began to have the upper hand by banishing Malfoy straight across the alley into a trash bin. He let off a extremely powerful Explosion Hex, causing the trash bin to splinter, cutting into the dazed Malfoy.
He quickly cast a stunner and sighed in relief as the other man slumped against the wall, unconscious. He turned back to Harry and his eyes bulged as he saw his surrogate godson staring impassively at a writhing Bellatrix Lestrange.
"Harry! Stop!" he cried out. Harry, however, didn't seem to hear him. Remus cursed, and cast another stunner. He rushed towards Harry's form, and cradled his head in his hands. "Oh, Harry." Remus murmured. "What's gotten in to you?"
He stared as Bellatrix convulsed uncontrollably. He stunned her, putting her out of her misery for the time being. He looked up as a series of cracks sounded off near the entrance. Tonks rushed towards him and gasped. "Is he," she said, "Is he all right?"
"Yes – he was just hit with a stunner." He neglected to inform her that it was he that cast the spell; he didn't want anyone to know what Harry had done. He sighed and said, "Get the Ministry down here. We need some Memory Charms."
A/N: There's chapter six. Again, sorry for the long wait. Oh, and if any of you read the Wheel of Time series you'll recognize what Remus did before he started dueling. I take no credit for that idea. See you next time. Oh, and Harry Potter and the Power of Time was reinstated, but A Year Like None Other was not. She has her own website now, though, and she's writing there.