Harry Potter and the Secret Squib!
Chapter Fourteen:
Harry stood there in the open doorway of the Head Boy and Girl compartment, in front of him sat the one person he had been looking for; Cho.
"Harry!" said Cho as she ran to him and gave him a hug "What – What are you doing here? How did you know?"
"It was a hunch – well, and I checked every other cabin on board!" replied Harry laughing "I can't believe you made Head Girl"
Cho blushed
"I'm so happy to see you Harry" said Cho enthusiastically "I tried to find you earlier, but I couldn't find you anywhere"
"Oh yeah, that was probably when me, Seamus and Ginny were in the loading compartment" said Harry cheerfully, it was apparent that his nervousness had passed
Cho's eyes caught the golden and scarlet glare of his captain's badge
"Oh wow Harry!" said Cho loudly "You made Quidditch Captain!"
"Yeah, I'm just happy that Umbridge's ban got lifted" laughed Harry "Not being able to play Quidditch for the rest of my life – think I'd rather choose a Dementor's kiss"
"So Harry, how did you really find out about me becoming Head Girl?" asked Cho
"well, its like I said, it was when I couldn't find you anywhere on the train, and then Hermione said how you wouldn't miss it, and then it just sorta' – clicked" said Harry coolly
"Oh, so Hermione didn't give it away -"
"What – you knew Hermione knew?!" interrupted Ron
"Well – Yeah, in the letter she wrote me she congratulated me on getting it – it was weird because I hadn't even received the badge yet!" laughed Cho
"But – Hermione, how did you know?" asked Ginny
"Isn't it obvious? She is the top in her year, and she is one of the nicest people I've ever met, I was sure she was going to get it – and well, she did!"
The six friends laughed
"Cho, are you ready to do the rounds?" called the brown haired Hufflepuff boy from the cabin
"Yeah, hold on Dominic, I'm just talking to some friends"
The boy in the cabin got up and walked towards the door; his sky blue eyes glistened in the sunlight and his wavy hazel brown hair flowed in the light breeze (it looked like it had been done by a professional hair stylist); he was quite tall (about six foot six); of medium build and was very attractive (By Hermione's face Ron could tell she thought so too!)
"Who are you talking to anyway -" started Dominic "Oh my – H – Harry Potter"
The young wizard's eyes were transfixed on Harry's lightning bolt scar
"I've always mean'd to talk to you, but never had the chance"
Harry quickly pretended to be scratching his head to cover his scar
"Yeah, it's nice to meet you too" said Harry putting on a fake smile
"Dominic!" said Cho loudly
"W – What?" replied Dominic
"We need to get the passwords!"
"Oh – Oh yeah"
"Hermione, Ron, have you thought of the Gryffindor one yet?" asked Cho
"Oh – whoops!" said Ron embarrassedly "I knew there was something we still had to do"
"Well, I do have an idea, but, I think we should ask Harry first" said Hermione worriedly
"Shoot" said Harry quickly
"Well, how about 'Padfoot'?" asked Hermione
Harry saw Ron mouth 'HERMIONE!' while looking shocked
"Yeah – yeah, he would have – he would have liked that" said Harry mournfully
"So Padfoot it is then?" said Cho cheerily "Dom, go get some parchment so we can write it down"
"What – oh, okay" said Dominic cheerily
As Dominic walked back into the compartment Harry mouthed 'Thank you' to Cho
"Got it!" said Dominic suddenly reappearing at the door
"Well – err – Harry I guess I'll – see you -" started Cho
"Later" finished Harry
"yeah..." said Cho gloomily
"C'mon Cho! The faster we do it the more time you get to talk later!" said Dominic as he pulled Cho away "I'll see you all later"
Harry and Cho waved good bye to each other
"Harry, mate, you're in there!" said Ron quietly when he was sure Cho was out of ears reach
Harry laughed
"Do you guys wanna' come back to the cabin? Play some exploding snap?" asked Seamus
"Yeah! Or Wizard's chess!" said Ron excitedly
The five friends started to make their way back to their cabin
"So, Ron, how exactly did you beat up Malfoy?" asked Ginny
"Oh yeah, well, he pulled out his wand and pointed it at Hermione, so I ran at him and tackled him to the ground, and well, I couldn't resist so I just started punchin' him and then..."
"Then what?!" asked Harry swiftly
"Well, Hermione cursed me"
"What? Did you miss Malfoy?!" said Harry dazed
"No – Ron wouldn't stop, so I used Stupefy to stop him"
"Dunno' why you did though, he deserved it for calling you a 'Mudblood'"
"Well, no point worrying about it now" said Hermione calmly "Where's the cabin again?"
"It's just a bit more up here" said Seamus pointing down the corridor
"Ahh man!" said Ron gloomily
"What? What's happened?" asked Harry
"I just remembered my Wizard chess set is back in my trunk"
"Well, why don't we just go back to the loading -"
"No! If Ron gets caught there he could lose his badge!" said Hermione fearfully
"Don't worry about it guys, I'll take care of it" said Harry calmly
"How? You're not going to go down there again are you?" asked Hermione worryingly
"No, but – well – I'll show you when we get to the cabin" answered Harry
After about another minute the group got to their cabin and went inside to sit down
"So, Harry, what's this idea of yours?" asked Seamus taking a seat
"Well" said Harry pulling out his wand and sitting down "I'm going to transfigure some sweets into chess pieces"
"You what?" said Ron loudly
"Watch" said Harry cheerfully "Seamus, throw me over some of your sweets"
"I better get 'em back afterwards!" laughed Seamus as he tossed Harry a bag of sweets "And without them being able to kill me too"
"Just watch; I'll show you with just one to start off with, this'll be the chessboard" said Harry flicking his wand
The small sherbet lemon started to grow in size and developed black and white spots, then, after a few more moments, it was fully formed as a chessboard
"Bloody hell Harry" said Ron dazed "I know you were good at transfiguration but – bloody hell"
"Harry, I'm amazed, I never knew you were that good" said Hermione happily "You've got to show me more when we get back"
Harry laughed as he laid down six more sweets in a row
"Castle, Knight, Bishop, King, Queen, Bishop, Knight, Castle" said Harry taping all the sweets once
Just like the chess board had, the sweets started to grow bigger and take form, then, after a few more seconds they were completely formed
"Impressive" said Hermione nodding encouragingly
Harry smiled and started to lay down another row of six sweets in front of the newly formed chess pieces
"Pawn, Pawn, Pawn, Pawn, Pawn, Pawn" he said as he once again tapped the sweets
Just like with the main pieces, the small sweets started to form, and seconds later they became the tortoise like Pawn's
"Hey, Ron, can you lay out another two rows of six pieces for me?" asked Harry
"Yeah – Yeah, one sec" said Ron pulling out a handful of sweets
After about a minute Ron had set up his side of the chessboard with a different variety of sweets; Harry taped them all (this time humming and not saying the names out loud)
"Wow Harry but How – err – are we going to play properly?" asked Ron
Harry laughed
"Well, I'll try this, but I've never really done it before"
Harry tapped each of the twenty-four chess pieces; as soon as his wand left their tiny bodies they stood to attention like they were alive
"Whoa – Harry you – you did it!" said Ron astonished
Hermione looked stunned
"Wow – Harry that's – that's really advanced magic! Professor McGonagall said she couldn't do that until she was of age!"
Harry laughed
"I learnt it a few years back, I just never really needed to use it"
"So, are you to going to just sit there or are you going to play?" asked Ginny looking rather bored
"Hey Gin, if they don't wanna' have any fun, fancy a game of exploding snap?" asked Seamus
"Yeah, alright!" said Ginny instantly "Hermione, want to play?"
"Nah, I'm going to finish my Ancient Runes book" said Hermione
"But – Hermione – You haven't got it with you; it was back in the cabin -"
Hermione raised her wand and pointed it towards the door "Accio Book"
"Okay, point taken" laughed Ron as the book soared into the room and laded in Hermione's lap
"So, Ron, you ready?" asked Harry
"Yeah, alright!"
The two boys sat up competitively
"Knight to B3" said Ron cheerfully
"Knight to F6" said Harry quickly
"Hmm – Nice move; you've gotten better" said Ron impressed
"Maybe" said Harry coolly "Hurry up and move"
As Harry and Ron continued to play, Seamus and Ginny got out their Exploding Snap cards, while Hermione finished her book
"Mio – Hermione, you do know that book was meant to last the year right?" asked Ron
"Well, I just couldn't resist, it really is a fascinating book
"I'll take the Daily Prophet any day" laughed Ron
"Hey guys, is, um – well – is Fudge still the minister" asked Harry nervously
"Well – yeah – but everyone wants him out" answered Hermione
"Why?"
"Because – because he lied about V – Voldemort (Ron, Ginny and Seamus shuddered) and he kept bad mouthing you..."
"What? What d'ya mean?"
"Well mate, everyone knew straight away about the fight at the ministry, it was over all the papers within a day" said Ron "They even said how 'six brave Hogwarts students fought him off with a rebel group of anti-death eaters"
"Really?" asked Harry astonished
"Yep, that made a right story about you – how you lead us in to defeat him" said Ron proudly "And they're not calling you names any more"
"Yes, quite the opposite, you've become a hero Harry" laughed Hermione
"You're joking right?"
"Why do you think that Dominic kid was so surprised to see you" laughed Ginny
"Yeah, I mean, you're the kid who has fought off You-Know-Who five times and survived" laughed Ron
Suddenly there came a large bang from their cabin door, like someone had walked into it; Harry, Ron and Hermione instantly pulled out their wands
"W – What d'you think that was?" asked Seamus
"Probably nothing, just clumsy people" replied Ron
Ginny laughed
"Maybe it was Tonks checking up on you"
"Tonks? Whose Tonks?" asked Seamus
"Oh, don't worry, it's someone we know from home" replied Ginny hastily covering who Tonks really was
"Harry, you wanna' continue the game?" asked Ron
"No point" said Harry dully "You've won – look"
"Oh – Oh yeah!" said Ron triumphantly "Checkmate!"
Harry leaned his head against the window and stared out into the dark and murky sky
"Great..." said Harry dismally
"What?" asked Ginny
"It's starting to rain" answered Harry while still leaning glumly against the window
The door slid open slowly with a loud screeching sound; in the doorway stood a girl about medium height for her age. Harry didn't bother to lean off the window and look who was at the door, so he simply surveyed her from the corner of his eye; the young witch had straggly, waist-length dirty-blond hair; very pale eyebrows and protuberant silvery grey eyes that gave her a permanently surprised look, he also noticed she had her wand tucked behind her ear and was wearing radishes as earrings. As Harry's eyes moved down from her face to her chest, he saw that she had a necklace made entirely out of Butterbeer corks and a blue and black badge pinned to her robes; on the badge was an eagle, with a large 'P' in the middle of it.
"Hello Ginny" said the girl as she walked in
"Hi Luna" said Ginny cheerfully "So the rumours are true – you made Prefect!"
Luna blushed
"Hi Harry, Ron, Hermione, Seamas -"
"Seamus" corrected Seamus "Sea – MUS"
"Oh, sorry – well, I just came by to tell you we'll be stopping in a minute or two" said Luna happily, it was clear she loved being a Prefect "I have to be going, I have to tell everyone about the train stopping – bye"
"Bye Luna, I'll see you at the feast later" said Ginny nicely as Luna left and pulled the door closed again
"Merlin, what was Dumbledore thinking when he mad that whacko a Prefect?!" said Ron rudely
"Ron! Don't be so mean!" said Hermione sternly
"But – she – you know – ahh – fine" said Ron with a big sigh
After another minute the train slowed to a standstill at Hogsmeade station; as Harry got up from his chair he heard Hagrid's large voice
"Firs' years! Firs' years this way! Follow me now! Firs' years!
Harry and the rest of the group quickly hurried off the train and into the pouring rain and headed down to the loading bay to pick up their luggage
"Hello 'Arry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Seamus" said Hagrid happily
"Hi Hagrid" said Harry cheerfully "Will you be at the feast?"
"Oh yeah, as soon as I get these firs' years down there I'll take my seat, don't ya worry about that" Hagrid said with a wink "Well, must get back to business! Firs' years! Firs' year this way!"
"Ahh quick, lets get a carriage already, I'm getting' soaked!" shouted Ron
"Yeah, me hands are freezing, lets go already" said Seamus shivering
As Harry walked across to the stagecoach he saw the great black bony wings of the Thestrals; one of the beasts turned to him with its white shining eyes, dragonish face, and skeletal black bodies. Harry instantly recognized what Thestral this was; it was Tenebrus, Hagrid's favourite of all the Thestrals. Harry walked out to its bony head through the pouring rain and stroked it – Harry was no longer afraid of these 'monsters' or worried that he was losing his mind like he was the year previous
"H – Harry, do you mind if we hurry, leave that invisible beast alone and get in" said Ron "its bloody freezing!"
Harry walked away from Tenebrus and climbed into the carriage that was occupied by Ron, Hermione, Seamus and Ginny
"Hey Harry, I thought you ought to know; me mum thinks you're a right little hero now" said Seamus happily "she's dead impressed I know you she is"
Harry laughed
"Harry, I should worn you, there will still be a few people who believe you're not a hero, people like -"
"Malfoy" said Harry dully finishing Hermione's sentence "Well, even if I defeated Voldemort (Ron, Ginny and Seamus gave a little shudder at the sound of his name) Malfoy would still think I'm a pushover and a liar"
"Well I doubt he'll be so smug this year – his whole family have been braded 'Death Eaters'" said Hermione
"Yeah, that's 'cos they all are!" said Ron coldly
Harry didn't want to talk about Lord Voldemort anymore, he was sick of everyone telling him that he was or wasn't going to be a hero, he just wanted to forget what happened the previous year. He leaned his head against the window like he had done on the Hogwarts express and watched the glistening lights of Hogsmeade station slowly fade away and get swallowed up by the darkness.
"I'm glad Hagrid was back again this year" said Ginny excitedly "Last year being welcomed by Professor Grubby-Plank didn't feel right"
"Yeah, I know what ya' mean Gin, it was just the wrong way to start the year" replied Ron "Hagrid's always been there when we've arrived, it just felt, wrong"
Hermione laughed
"Ronald Weasley being deep?" said Hermione in a sarcastic tone of voice
"Oi, I can be deep went I wanna'" he replied defensively
The swaying Thestral manned carriages moved slowly up the road in perfect convoy through the pouring rain. After a few more minutes they passed through the huge stone pillars (which wore stone versions of winged boars on their top like hats) and through the golden and shimmering gates of Hogwarts, even in the pouring rain and darkness they didn't seem to lose their sparkle. Like the year previous Harry leaned forward to see if there were lights on in Hagrid's cabin; there were. He now looked beyond the cabin and into the Forbidden Forest; although he could barely make it out through all the darkness and the rain.
Their carriage was getting closer and closer to the castle itself; the towering mass of turrets and stone steps seemed to be welcoming Harry back.
The carriages came to came to a sudden halt by the stone steps leading up to the huge oak front door. Harry jumped down from the stagecoach and ran to stroke Tenebrus once again. As he stroked the loyal Thestral, his eyes took in what was in front of him; The Hogwarts Castle; Harry felt that he was finally back home.