Title: Harry Potter and the Staff of Merlin
Author: Legolas-gurl88
Disclaimer: I'm about 85% sure that I'm not J.K. Rowling… oh wait… takes paper from fax… nope, it says that my name is Legolas-gurl88, not J.K. Rowling… okay…
Author Note: I'm Baaaaack!
4. Dumbledore's Meeting
After an hour of sitting alone in the kitchen, the sun appeared in the window. The rays were hot on the side of Harry's face and made beads of sweat run down his face. Hedwig had left to find a cooler place to rest. No one had made themselves present at the table yet, so Harry decided to leave. He stood up from the table and left the room, tiptoeing across the hall where he could hear Sirius's mum snoring from behind the curtain, then walked back up the stairs to his and Ron's room. When he walked in the room, he saw Ron sitting on the edge of his bed, putting his socks on.
"Morning," Ron said when he saw Harry enter.
"Morning," Harry answered, walking to his bed and lying back on it, his pillow making him feel drowsy.
"You okay?" asked Ron, looking at Harry in concern, "You look ready to keel over."
"I'm fine." Harry said, his voice becoming slightly bitter and defending. He closed his eyes and felt sleep overtake him.
"Harry?" he heard Ron ask and his eyes snap open again. He sat up in fear of falling asleep again. "Are you sure?"
"Yes!" Harry yelled. Just then, there was a knock at the door.
"C'min." Ron called out. Hermione entered the room, looking between the boys.
"Good morning." she said brightly. "You feeling better Ron?"
"Yeah. That potion Mum gave me last night was probably the strongest she'd given me. I think the cold was scared of it." he joked.
"Ha ha," Hermione said sarcastically, walking to Harry's bed and settling herself on his trunk. "Are you alright, Harry? You look really tired."
"For the last time!" Harry yelled, "Yes! I'm fine!"
Hermione looked at Harry for a second as if to determine whether or not he was telling the truth. He summoned up the most innocent face he could. She seemed satisfied, because she turned away from him and looked at Ron.
"Your mum told us to stay upstairs for a while. Dumbledore's just arrived. He's holding a council."
It hit Harry that he needed to talk to Dumbledore.
"Did he say anything about me?" Harry asked as if it were a throwaway question. Hermione, once again, stared at him as though she were trying to find out whether or not he was lying.
"Yes, as a matter of fact, he did. He said he wanted to talk to you after the council was done. That will be a few hours still."
"Okay." Harry said.
"Why does Dumbledore need to talk to you?" Ron asked, standing up and walking to Hermione and Harry, hands in his pockets. Harry didn't know how to answer. He didn't want to tell Ron and Hermione about his offer from Dumbledore, because Ron would laugh and think he were joking and Hermione would start recommending ideas of things to teach and he was still on vacation and literally exhausted.
"Erm-- it's about my O.W.L.s." Harry said.
"Did you not get them?" Hermione asked.
"No, I got them. But he just wanted to talk to me about them. That's all."
"What were your scores anyway?" Hermione asked, interested.
"Move and I'll get them out." Harry answered. Hermione stood up, off of the trunk and Harry opened the trunk upside-down. Once he had rummaged around in his trunk for a good minute, he pulled his O.W.L. scores out from the bottom. He handed the papers to Hermione.
"Harry-- these are really good!" Hermione said, her eyes scanning the words. Ron looked over her shoulder.
"You got a better grade in Division than I did." he announced. Harry shrugged.
"Does it matter? Trelawney and Firenze were oddballs in their own little worlds."
"Too true. Still… Mum wasn't too happy."
"Harry," Hermione said, handing his O.W.L. test scores back to him, "I think they're good enough to be an Auror!"
"Yeah, that's what Dumbledore told me in a letter." said Harry, thinking quickly about what to say next. "I think that's what he wants to talk to me about."
Hermione checked her watch.
"We have time to go visit Buckbeak, Ron, before Harry has to talk to Dumbledore."
"Yeah," Ron said walking to the door and putting his hand on the doorknob, then turned back to the other two, "Coming?"
"In a minute," answered Harry as Hermione started walking to the door, "I just have to put these away." He indicated to his O.W.L. test scores. Once they were locked saftley in his trunk, Harry stood up and followed his friends. They led the way to Buckbeak's room. Harry looked at the walls of hundreds and hundreds of House-Elf heads on plaques, the gold letters telling what year they had been beheaded.
"Hermione," Harry said, "you said in your letter that Kreature had been beheaded." Hermione's face darkened and she frowned.
"Now, you've done it, mate," Ron said, backing away from Hermione.
"Yes," she started, "I couldn't believe it either. And under Dumbledore's orders! I thought he-- of all people-- would show a little mercy towards a poor defenseless creature--"
"Hermione, are you blind?" Ron said, "Kreature was nothing but evil. Poor and defenseless are words that don't even describe even the toenail of his little toe."
"Ron!" Hermione said, "Kreature did not have an easy life! He was locked away up here by himself for over ten years! He was lonely and just couldn't handle so many people moving in here at once!"
"He told Harry that Sirius had left for the Department of Mysteries when he had only been upstairs with Buckbeak!" Ron yelled. Harry's heart gave a jolt. Once Ron looked at him, he glared back. When Ron realized what he'd said, he gave a quiet "Sorry" and then shut his mouth until they made it to Buckbeak's room. Once inside, Harry's eyes met the great sight of the Hippogriff whom he had saved in his third year. Without waiting for a bow, surprisingly, he bowed at Harry to allow Harry to approach him.
"That's odd," Hermione whispered.
"What?" Ron asked as Harry approached Buckbeak and patted his feathery neck.
"Normally, Hippogriffs don't make the first move. Buckbeak hasn't seen Harry for over a year and he bowed to him right away. He must really like you Harry!"
Harry didn't answer, only continued to pet Buckbeak.
"I'll get the food." Ron said, walking to the corner of the room and grabbing a bloody bag that was obviously filled with dead rats. He opened the bag and grabbed a handful, tossing them to Buckbeak, who caught a few in his mouth and biting down hard, spraying Harry with droplets of rat's blood.
"You might want to get out of the way, Harry," another familiar voice said and Harry heard the door slam shut.
"Yeah, he might feel like giving you a shower one day." Another voice said. Harry turned around to see Fred and George Weasly walking inside."Fred! George!" Ron said, walking to them, "I didn't hear you arrive!"
"Well, you wouldn't, would you?" Fred said with the air of explaining to someone completely stupid, "We Apparated. Let's all say it together until Ron keeps that piece of information in his ickle prefect head."
"Shut up." Ron said.
"Did you get the Bouncing Birthday Box, Harry?" George asked excitedly.
"Yeah." Harry said.
"What?" Ron and Hermione asked.
"Bouncing Birthday Box," Fred explained, "We invented it just a short while ago and we sent one to Harry. How did it go?"
"Well, it is a box, I got it on my birthday," Harry said, ticking off his fingers, "And it bounced all over my room really late at night. I was afraid the Dursleys were going to hear."
"Sorry mate." George grinned apologetically, "But it worked and that's the main thing, right?"
"If you say so," Harry sighed.
"Oh, Ron," George said, turning to his little brother, "Bill's also here. He came just a little bit after we did. So did Charlie."
"Excellent!" Ron said happily, "I can show Charlie my broomstick!"
"You do that, Ickle Prefect." Fred grinned. "He's on his way to stardom, this one, George. We'd better watch ourselves."
"What's the wager! Head Boy!" George yelled and he and Fred exited the room.
"I hate them sometimes." Ron mumbled. There was a sickening crunch as Buckbeak chewed on the rat's bones. The three friends winced. Yet, there they remained for another two hours, chatting about Quidditch (Hermione instantly became uninterested), until Mrs. Weasley came up.
"Oh, there you are! We were wondering where you'd… well, no matter," she said, "Harry, Dumbledore wants to talk to you down in the kitchen now, dear." She left the room, leaving the door ajar a bit. Harry stood up from his spot on the floor, brushing the back of his pants off, to rid himself of any straw that had stuck on. Then, with a farewell to Ron and Hermione, he made his way to the kitchen.
Harry entered the kitchen. Dumbledore was sitting at the table, his hands folded together and his long beard gleaming white. His half-moon glasses were at the tip of his nose and, although it was probably eighty degrees in the room, he was wearing long, sweeping robes, more or less looking just as he had the last time Harry had spoken with him personally… not a happy memory in Harry's mind.
"Hello, Harry," Dumbledore said simply as Harry stared at him, not speaking and not moving. He gestured to the chair across from him with his long fingers. "Please, sit." Harry did as he was told, still watching Dumbledore.
"You received my letter, correct?" asked Dumbledore.
"Yes," Harry answered awkwardly.
"Excellent. And, as I said in it, your grades and all those that participated in your D.A. lessons' grades were exceptionally high for the average O.W.L. taker." Dumbledore said, pulling some papers (which must have been copies of the O.W.L. scores) and looking at them, occasionally moving to the next one.
"Yes, Mr. Longbottom's grade raised very high. He achieved an 'Outstanding.' You've thought about my proposal?"
"Er-- yeah." Harry said.
"And?" Dumbledore raised and eyebrow.
"Well," Harry said uneasily, "I could try. I mean, you said that the other Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher could take over if I changed my mind later."
"Indeed, she can." Dumbledore said."Alright. I'll try."
"Excellent." said Dumbledore again, happily, "Now, I've made a list of things I want you to have the students learn for the first term…" He handed Harry a long piece of parchment. Harry glanced at it. There were a few things that looked difficult like Giants and Zombies, but there were also things that he'd had some experience with some of the things such as Patronuses, various hexes and curses and some animals; Three-Headed-Dogs, Trolls, Centaurs, Sphinxes, Werewolves, and Dragons.
"Dragons?" Harry asked.
"Yes. What I am trying to do this year is train my students up to be prepared to defend themselves and Voldemort would most likely have a few dragons along with him." explained Dumbledore. Harry looked back at the list. There were a few more things on there.
"Obviously, you will have to do some research of your own, but remember, if it becomes too much for you to handle, you don't have to teach."
"Yeah-- yeah I know." Harry said.
"And that book that Remus sent you for your birthday is to help your research to be easier. I have already taken the liberty of asking all the students to buy the book 'Difficult Defenses for Beginners Book 6' by Matilda Markshaw. I would advise you to do the same. And I also have your schedule. Here--" He handed Harry another paper. "Due to all your classes, you will miss one class of History of Magic and another of Transfiguration a week. And you will only have one Divinations class a week. The rest of the optional classes are a break for you to correct papers and catch up on your own homework if need be."
Harry nodded. He was feeling nervous. How was he going to keep up with school work, teaching, Quidditch and friends at the same time?
"Er-- Professor?"
"Yes, Harry?" said Dumbledore.
"Er-- who's the Quidditch Captain? Angelina graduated, didn't she?"
"Quite right, Harry. I was sure Mr. Weasley would have told you so far, but apparently, he didn't. I appointed him Quidditch Captain for the Gryffindor team."
"You did?" Harry said, stunned. Why hadn't Ron told him?
"I promise, it would have been you, but I decided, what with your new job, you wouldn't have time."
"Yeah…" Harry said. Then, he cleared his throat. "And who's the other Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?""You haven't seen her yet?" Dumbledore asked, half a frown forming along his old face.
"I haven't been here for very long."
"Well," Dumbledore said, "she joined the Order of the Phoenix to be closer to her husband, Bill Weasley."
"Who is she?" asked Harry.
"Fleur Delacour."
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Hey all! I'm back and growing more nervous at the prospect of having my teeth yanked out! Most of you wished me good luck on that for which I am thankful for. So, thanks guys! And also, thanks to those of you who reviewed! I don't think I've gotten so many reviews for one chapter ever in my life! That made me really happy! And if you didn't notice, I changed Harry's grades in chapter 1 and I explain at the bottom of that chapter (which I encourage you all to read) that it was an accident and I didn't just give Harry EE's for some crazy reason. So, for his actual grades, see chappie 1. It shouldn't take as long to post the next chapter, so keep you eyes open! But I must warn you guys that I am not happy with the way Harry is acting. I'm a few chapters ahead and he's not as angry as I think he should be under the circumstances. So, if he gives a strange burst of anger, then becomes happy all of a sudden or something like that, I'm just experimenting with his mood. And it's really hard to remember all the stuff I need to for the story, so for a while, it may sound a bit choppy. I will attempt to get that fixed! Luv ya all! Review time!
Starsmiles- Hey, thanks a bunch! For some reason, the little star on your name doesn't show up… that makes me mad! And thanks for the good luck wishes! I'll need them! Talk to you next chappie!
HPreviewer- It's great to know that my writing style is like J.K. Rowling's, cause that's what I was trying to accomplish! Thanks a bunch for your review! Can't wait for more!
Mistopurr- Hey, hey, hey! That's fine that it's taken you a while! Thanks so much for your review! Yeah, I kinda liked the stiffness between Lupin and Harry, but I need to add a bit more about that later, because I don't mention it after this. So, I have to find a good place in the story for more on them. BUTY THANKS!
Ellen- Thanks a bunch for the review! Yeah, I get it now, Ellen the Blizzard. So, enjoying the time off from Trin? I'll bet you are, but I'm sure you miss her a TINY bit, don't you? Right? Right? Huh? Umm… actually… never mind. Well, I have to go! Talk to you later!
Black Sentinel- I don't mind long reviews! Then, you get longer responses (most of the time)! Thanks so much on your compliments for my writing style. It makes me fell like I have done my job to help people enjoy my story! No, I'm sorry, 'socks' isn't the right answer. Nor are the mirrors : ) I don't think Harry cracked it, but he could have. Anyway, their present is MUCH more expensive! Yeah, I do okay at the fight scenes, but I'm better at other scenes. Thanks for the sympathy! Like I said above, I really need sympathy for my wisdom teeth thing. The sad thing is, I just got a job and I only have 2 days to recover before I start my job, so I will still have the chipmunk cheeks on my FIRST DAY! Yeah, that makes me feel better. I'm not really nervous about the operation part, because I'm gonna be under the whole time, I'm just nervous about the aftermath and pain and agony and suffering… okay, that's enough! Talk to you later!
Persephone Darkness- No problem! I enjoy reviewing to stories! Yeah, Cho bugs me too, but I think that she's fun to write. I think that she and Harry are going to get together in the end, because if you notice, their relationship is sort of like what Lily and James Potter's relationship was like at their age. Who knows? Dun, dun, dunnnnn!
ThreeToedSloth- I love T.A. Barron's books as well! I couldn't put them down when I started reading them! I'm not sure if you're and Orlando Bloom fan or not, but I think he'd be a good Merlin, were it to be made into a move. Wow, you put the finger right on the nose on all of your guesses! 'Finger right on the nose…' odd, I've never said something like that before… lol, talk to you later : )
Sirius1Fan- I think, in the actual books, Harry and Cho are going to get together, because Lily and James (Harry's parents) had the almost exact sort of fights and relationship at their age. Those dang hormones! Anyway, each to his own, eh?
Shedoc10- I hope the dentist is kind to me too! Thanks!
Fern12- Personally, I think Aunt Petunia's outburst was right on character, because she's always saying stuff like that to Harry. How do you think it was out of character? MUST KNOW! Lol!
MalusMagus- I had a dream about righting a broomstick in a small room, trying to catch the stupid snitch and I hit the wall, woke up and was dizzy for about five minutes before I could get back to sleep! Those dreams are fun, but odd, especially when they affect you in the actual world! Thanks a bunch and I'm glad I could clear that up for you. If you have any more questions, let me know!
Lady Aioria- You know, it would have been really annoying if one of my reviewers used the word 'really' all the time! No, I'M JUST KIDDING! Lol? I hope you found that funny instead of insulting. That's what my family does. If something annoys them, they say it would be really annoying if someone was doing this… and they name the thing that was annoying him! Sorry, that was confusing! Thanks so much for the review! I started cracking up when you said that you would sic your 3rd, 6th, and 2nd personalities on me and your fluffy pink bunnies! Thanks for the moment of laughter!
WinterBliss- No, thank YOU!
Facil Glow- Thank you so much! I'm glad that I can match J.K. Rowling! Sorry for keeping you waiting! Sorry, but I can't tell you which state I go to school in. It's not that I don't trust you, but there are weirdoes out there that I DON'T trust. Otherwise, I would probably tell you, so sorry. I'll tell you this; it's on the left side of the U.S. See, that's weird. I know you were talking about Molly Weasley (thinking she was the new DADA teacher)… she wasn't, of course, but the OTHER Mrs. Weasley… Mrs. Fleur Weasley, is the new DADA teacher! CLOSE, but no cigar!
Draddog- Thanks for everything that you put in your review! I'll let you know how the teeth thing went… that is if I'm not dead! Ha, ha, ha! Lol! : )
Snow-angel222- Thanks for telling your friend about me! I love publicity! poses for camera pictures Yeah, we DO have a lot in common! I hope your friend freaked out in a good way, 'cause some girls freak out in the way that is 'She likes Orlando Bloom… SHE MUST DIE!!!!' kinda way… ya'know? I'm glad someone liked my corny hobbit joke… ha, ha, ha! I'm glad you liked my story and thanks a bunch for reviewing and wishing me luck on my teeth! Gettin' nervous!
WOW! That was a lot of reviews! That took me almost an hour to respond to all the reviews! Once again, thank you all so much and I can't wait to hear from you again!
And thanks for the good luck wishes on my teeth! Sorry, had to say that! Bye!
May broomsticks be in your dreams!
Luv,
Legolas-gurl88