SEQ CHAPTER \h \r 1Disclaimer: I don't own the whole concept of Harry Potter, or any of the characters. They belong to the talented Ms. Rowling. Only the plot is my own.
Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and a big thank you to my beta, your efforts are greatly appreciated. J
CHAPTER 7
Christmas Day dawned bright and clear. Harry was, by habit, an early riser and this morning he had woken in time to enjoy watching the sunrise. He loved the sense of peace and calm that watching the morning's rays, pushing back the dark night sky and covering the frosted landscape, gave him.
This would be Harry's first Christmas without Greg in many years. He smiled as he sat cross-legged on his bed, cradling his mug of coffee in his hands and losing himself in his own private remembrances. Harry was strong, and was now usually able to look upon his memories of his life with his lover as a source of comfort and pleasure, and not as a source of pain and grief. Greg's memory didn't deserve to be treated like that.
Harry sat in quiet reverie for so long that if his stomach hadn't growled loudly, he wouldn't have realised that it was time for breakfast. With a sigh, he sent his coffee mug back to the kitchen with a small gesture of his hand and some softly spoken words and leaned over to pick up the picture of Greg and himself, which resided permanently on the left side bedside chest of drawers. With a small smile, he whispered "Merry Christmas, Greg" before putting the picture back and moving toward his wardrobe to start getting dressed for breakfast.
They had always worn loud and cheesy Christmas clothing on this day every year. He saw no reason to abandon the tradition so he thought he'd dress up a little today. He rummaged in his wardrobe until he found the shirt that Greg had given him for Christmas last year. It was bright red with a picture of two reindeer dancing the tango, one with a rose between its teeth. Santa was standing off to the side playing a violin. The whole shirt was set off by the fact that both of the reindeers' noses and all of Santa's buttons flashed on and off when a tiny button inside the collar line was pressed. It was an absolutely ridiculous shirt, so it would do very nicely for today. Albus will appreciate it, if no else does, Harry thought wryly.
*****
The kneeling figure dared not lift his gaze from the floor as he delivered the news to his Lord and Master. His Master would not be pleased.
"My Lord, we were seen."
There was a brief silence before his Master's voice replied in deceptively soft and even tones, "How? I stressed the need for concealment and discretion, did I not?"
The kneeling wizard tensed. His Master rarely received bad news so calmly, and he braced himself to feel the consequences of displeasing his Lord. "You did, my Lord. But a woman simply came upon us as she walked by... she..." he faltered for a moment, dreading presenting his master with the next bit of information. "I believe she was a Hogwarts professor."
"How could you have allowed a Hogwarts professor to come upon you?!" His Master bellowed, stirring angrily behind his screen. The kneeling figure on the ground winced as the room reverberated in response to his Master's anger and the robed figure who stood by his side raised his wand at his master's silent command:
"Crucio!" The bearer of the bad news was thrown onto his back and lay screaming as his body spasmed in pain. Once the pain subsided, the wizard shakily scrambled back into a kneeling position before the screen and bowed his head in appropriate subservience.
The form behind the screen was shaking in anger and the room continued to reverberate and tremble in response to its master's moods. After a moment the figure calmed its movements somewhat and observed to the robed witches and wizard before him, "The professor will surely have alerted that meddling old fool of a Headmaster. No doubt they will now be looking for us. But we have come too far to disrupt our activities. Continue as planned. If it happens again, I want to know immediately."
"Yes, my Lord," replied the kneeling figure, relieved that his meeting with his Lord had gone so well.
*****
Ron and Hermione were absent from the staff table when Harry arrived. He had bought a small gift for each of them – a book on quidditch for Ron and a book on Defensive Magic for Hermione – during his last trip to Diagon Alley, and had hoped to be able to give them to them first thing in the morning. Noticing their absence, he shrank the books and put them in one of his pockets to give to them when he caught up with the pair later. As he looked around the hall and along the staff table, he noticed Albus staring at him. Assuming that he was staring at his shirt, he stood and allowed him a good look at it.
"My apologies for flashing you Headmaster!" Harry called out loudly, with a cheeky grin at his lame joke.
"Not at all, Professor Green, I was simply admiring your wardrobe. I only wish mine were as outstanding as yours." Albus was chuckling by now. He rose and twirled to give Harry a good look at his own shirt which sported a picture of a picket line of several angry female reindeer who carried signs reading "We'll work for more bucks!". The back of the shirt had a picture of Santa getting stuck while trying to fit down a chimney, under a sign which read "Santa won't be needing his cookies, so I'll eat them instead."
Harry laughed at this. He had missed Albus' rather... quirky sense of humour. "Your own shirt is quite impressive, Headmaster."
The festive pair had attracted the attention of the rest of the hall by now and several people were laughing along with them. Professor Snape rolled his eyes, a look of sheer repugnance on his face at the idiotic display before him. Minerva announced loudly that she would be buying a comical shirt to wear next year and that hers would outdo both of theirs, and she insisted that Harry "flash" her one more time. Once the frivolity of the moment had ended, he sat back down to his breakfast, idly reminiscing to himself about the numerous Christmas holidays he had spent at Hogwarts as a boy. The Dursleys had never wanted him to return to them for the holidays and Harry had never wished to do so. Albus had always made sure that Hogwarts was a place of good cheer for those who stayed for the holiday, and he could see that this had not changed in so many years. Crackers and Christmas treats filled both tables.
Harry was lost in his own private reflections and didn't notice that Theresa Chan was waving her arms trying to get his attention.
"Jason, I think young Miss Chan would like a word with you." Minerva leaned over and whispered to him, abruptly snapping him out of his daze.
"Oh, thank you Minerva."
Minerva only raised an eyebrow at Harry. Students were not permitted to approach the staff table, so he picked up the rest of his breakfast and moved over to sit with her at the student table. He turned the flashy lights on his shirt off before he reached her because he wasn't sure whether it would trigger one of her episodes, and he didn't want to take any chances.
Theresa sat on her own at the end of the student table and Harry took a seat opposite her. Normally, professors wouldn't sit with students this way, but it wasn't unusual for Harry to be seen sitting with some of his students at their tables, explaining something from one of his lessons, or even just chatting about general things, like the outcome of an inter-house quidditch match, or the next Hogsmeade trip.
"I'm sorry Professor, I didn't mean to interrupt your breakfast. I was just going to sort of indicate to you that before you left after breakfast that I wanted to talk to you. Um, now that I think about it, I don't know how I was going to do that, maybe wave my arms around a bit and point outside… I thought about holding up a note, but that would be a big note, I guess… But you were already coming over here and then it was too late…" Theresa apologised, somewhat embarrassed and stared down at the table, mentally kicking herself for rambling at her professor.
Harry smiled. "It's o.k. Miss Chan. You weren't interrupting anything, aside from my "flashing" various members of staff with my shirt."
"I like your shirt, Professor," The young student said with a small smile.
"Thank you. I'm rather fond of it myself."
Theresa was still recovering from her embarrassment at her incoherent ramblings, and now that she had her professor's attention focussed solely on her, she completely forgot what she wanted to say. Harry decided to fill in the gaps in the conversation while waiting for her to tell him what she wanted to speak to him about.
"So, you're not spending Christmas at home?" he inquired.
Theresa's gaze shifted across the table. "Um, no. My parents died a couple of years ago and I live with my older brother, but his girlfriend doesn't like me very much, so I decided to stay here for the holiday," she said quietly.
Harry could have kicked himself. He of all people knew that a student's decision to spend Christmas at Hogwarts was not usually a happy one. He should have realised that it might be a sensitive topic of conversation. Way to go, Potter. Remove both feet from your mouth before you speak again!
"I'm sorry to hear... "
"It's o.k, Professor. I don't mind. Actually, that's sort of the reason I wanted to talk to you. I was wondering – and I know it's a lot to ask because you probably have plans for the day, I mean, who doesn't – but if you had some free time, would you mind giving me a lesson in Defence Against the Dark Arts?"
"Oh, well– "
"You did say that you'd help me to catch up, and we haven't actually had a lesson yet. Today would be as good a day as any to start, right?"
Harry had to admit that he didn't have any real plans for the day. He had turned down Tony's invitation to spend the day with his family and was planning to spend the day continuing his research and experimentation on how to develop a medication that Theresa could take for her condition.
"I have no plans for the day, but surely you don't want to spend Christmas Day doing school work, do you?"
"Sir, Christmas Day is like any other day to me, and I really would like to start catching up."
She looked absolutely genuine, so Harry agreed. "Of course. How about we finish breakfast and then head over to my class room and begin from there?" he suggested.
"Sure." Theresa brightened and returned to her breakfast while Harry sipped his orange juice and looked at Theresa for a moment before politely asking;
"Can I talk to you about your medicine?"
"Of course, Professor."
"Do you find that it's working?"
"Yes. I haven't had an episode since I started taking it. Mind you, it's only been a few days so I guess I can't really know for sure if it's working properly or not."
"Well, bear in mind that it's only a general medication. To get the best results, you really need to see a muggle doctor so that he can prescribe the specific medicine and dosage that will be right for you. If you've never been to a muggle doctor before, you should go with someone from the staff. I'll ask the Headmaster for permission to make your medicine for you. Strictly speaking, I'm not actually supposed to do it since I'm not working in my capacity as a pharmacist, but if the Headmaster will allow it, it will save you having to go into the muggle pharmacies and having to buy the medication yourself. I've got certain ingredients in my room that I use for my research that I can use to make your medicine, but you'll need to pick the medicine up from a pharmacy at first because they'll have the medicine pre-packaged and on hand, whereas I'll need a little while to look up the proper directions and ingredients and put it all together."
Harry took a small bottle of pills out of his pocket and put it on the table between himself and Theresa. "Shortly after you were taken to the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey and I spoke to the Headmaster. I told him about the medication I gave to you and he's happy to let you continue taking it for the time being. This should be enough for about a month. So, just take them once a day and make sure you keep them safe."
"Of course, Professor. And thank you so much."
"There are a few things you'll need to know though…" Harry and Theresa continued to talk while they continued their breakfast.
*****
"Sorry we're late Headmaster, we only just got back," said Hermione, slightly out of breath as they entered the Great Hall via the side staff-only entrance.
"Not at all, how is your brother?" inquired Albus.
"Fine. He'll be sore for a few days. He took a pretty nasty burn," answered Ron, removing his scarf and taking his seat. He noticed the empty seat by Hermione. "Incidentally, where's Jason?"
"He's sitting with one of the students. A young Miss Chan," answered Minerva, pointing to the professor and the student at the far end of the student table.
"It's unseemly. Professors should not dine with their students," commented Professor Snape sharply. "None of the rest of us do it. The distinction of rank should be preserved."
"Severus, Professor Green often helps his students at their tables. I can see nothing harmful, or unseemly, about the arrangement," observed Albus gently.
"I also assist my students, Albus, but I don't do it at the dining table." Snape sniffed.
"To each his own, Severus," rebuked the Headmaster.
By chance, Harry chose this moment to give the bottle of medication to Theresa. Professor Snape, having no experience with muggle medication nor trusting professor Green, became outraged at what he was witnessing.
"Headmaster, he goes too far. He is giving that student drugs! That sort of thing should not be tolerated. Who knows what sort of substance he's offering that girl," he spluttered.
"Severus, calm down. I believe Poppy can explain the situation," offered Albus.
Poppy explained the circumstances surrounding the student's last episode and how Harry had explained how muggle medication could provide relief for her illness where the potions could not. The staff were shocked that they had been so artfully deceived and were filled with concern for their student. Most of them supported Harry's offer to provide her medication for her.
"How kind of him," approved Hermione. "Of course he'd offer to help. It's the right thing to do."
"Headmaster, none of us have any experience in the area of muggle medications. Can we be sure that he is providing the student with a preventative?" Professor Snape asked cautiously, seeming to struggle over how to phrase the question.
"Professor, I was there when she took the first dose of medicine and it had no adverse effect on her whatsoever. I believe that Professor Green was, and still is, genuine in his offer of help," defended Poppy.
"Poppy, he has given her a new bottle. Perhaps this bottle might not contain the same medication as she took under your supervision," the Potions Master countered.
"Severus, the professor has constantly demonstrated that he has a genuine interest in his students' well being, as do we all. And as such, I do not believe that he would put any one of them in danger. I am very grateful to him for his offer of assistance and I will be happy to support any effort of bringing relief to her." The Headmaster's word brooked no argument. He turned to Poppy and inquired, "Did you say that she needed to consult with a muggle doctor?"
"Yes, Albus."
"I shall make the arrangements myself, I know of some excellent doctors. Now if you will excuse me." He left the hall with a purposeful stride, casting a compassionate eye toward the young girl and the professor, who were, by this time, ready to leave the hall themselves to begin their lesson.
From his position at the staff table, Professor Snape watched Harry and Theresa leave, and suddenly decided to follow them. To ensure that he didn't look suspicious, he let them have a small head start and then he followed them, curious as to why a professor and a student would be breakfasting and leaving a hall together on Christmas Day.
*****
"My Lord, we were discovered again."
"How can this be?! I specifically instructed you to hide yourselves!" their master yelled, causing the room to shake and dust to fall from the roof. The air suddenly became decidedly chilly and the figures kneeling before their Lord trembled in anticipation of their master's wrath.
"M-my Lord, it was not our fault. It seemed as though he was searching for us."
A tall figure, standing to the left of his master, raised his wand and pointed it at the kneeling figure before them. "Crucio!" Screams filled the air and four men collapsed to the ground, shaking and exhausted.
"Was it a Hogwarts Professor?"
"Yes, my Lord, there were a group of them."
"All is not lost. Capture one of them. Find out what they know, and how they found out about us."
"How will we capture one, my Lord if they are in groups."
"You are a disgrace," their master hissed in soft chilly tones, "If you cannot single out one witch or wizard for capture, you have no business being here!" The shapeless form nodded to the robed figure standing beside him, who automatically pointed his wand at the cowering figures before them.
"Crucio!"
"It will be done, my Lord." Four soft and pain laden voices responded.
"As for our more immediate plan..."
"Yes, my Lord?"
"I have changed my mind. I want you to find a way to have it sent to Hogwarts."
*****
Harry had been throwing spells at Theresa for the last hour while she tried to defend herself against them. So far, she hadn't deflected a single one and was becoming more and more frustrated. Harry was only casting mild warming charms, so his student wouldn't be hurt if she failed to defend herself.
"O.k. I think I know where you're going wrong. The 'protego' is a shielding spell. It creates a general shield in front of your body. You seem to be trying to use your wand like a bat to try and deflect the spell. It won't work that way. Try to visualise a shield, and then concentrate that intent through your wand-"
They were interrupted by a knock on the door. "Excuse me, can you tell me where I can find the Headmaster? We were told by a really short fellow that he was down here." Two men appeared in the doorway of the classroom levitating a large painting between them.
"He was in the Great Hall when I last saw him. The Deputy Headmistress will know where he is. Her office is the next floor up, third door on the right. Knock on the door, she'll know you're there."
"Thank you. Merry Christmas to you both."
"Merry Christmas." Harry bid them farewell. He turned back to his student.
"Let's have another goes," suggested Harry, and he threw another charm in Theresa's direction.
"Protego!" she cried, actually managing to deflect that one. "I did it!" she squealed.
Finally, thought Professor Snape, who had been watching from the hallway the entire time, ducking out of sight when the two men carrying the painting had appeared. He had followed the professor and the student and had stayed to watch them to reassure himself that nothing untoward and unprofessional would occur between the two of them. After all, one did not expect a professor and a student to be doing school work on Christmas Day, so their leaving the hall together had aroused his suspicion. In fact, if he had to be honest with himself, he would have to admit that his suspicion of Professor Green in general had been the motivating factor behind following him in the first place.
But he would have to admit that he felt reassured by this time that the lesson between Harry and Theresa was completely above board. He continued to watch them now, long after the need was over, because of his professional curiosity. He had applied for the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts professor this year and his application had, once again, been rejected. He had felt cheated when the position was given to the idiot that had previously occupied the professorship; who, he privately suspected, couldn't even tell the difference between Crucio and Imperio if his life depended on it. He had simply assumed that Albus would give the position to the first moron who applied before he would give it to him, and wanted to know if this was the case here. His professional integrity and dignity would not suffer such a severe a blow this year if Professor Green actually deserved the position. So he waited, and watched.
"Excellent," Harry encouraged his student. "Again." They repeated the same exercise again and again and at one point, Theresa dropped her wand after executing her spell. Oh my God, I think I might be rubbing off on her. I thought I was the only one who did that, Harry thought with a grimace. As she bent forward to retrieve it, Harry was reminded of his fight with the four wizards in the alley in muggle London.
"Don't pick it up. If you drop your wand in front of your opponent, the easiest way to get yourself injured, or killed is to bend down to pick it up. For a start, you've taken your eyes off your opponent. Secondly, you've put yourself at a convenient height for your opponent to kick you in the head."
"What should I do? I can't just leave it down there."
"No, you can't. Though sometimes, you might not have a choice. The easiest way to get your wand back is to pick up something around you, anything, the lid of a bin, a stick, your shoe, and throw it at your opponent. They'll need to dodge it, or deflect it, or block it and this might give you time to pick up your wand. But if you do have an opening to pick your wand up, don't ever take your eyes off your opponent. Ever. You won't be able to defend yourself if you can't see what they're doing."
"What if I don't have anything around me that I can throw? Or what if it doesn't work?"
"Well, the best thing you can do then is to dodge the next curse or attack that comes at you, and as you're doing this, pick up your wand."
Theresa looked confused, so Harry tried to explain himself. "For instance, if you're ducking an attack, you can drop low enough to the ground to pick up your wand, or drop to the ground and roll over to your wand and retrieve it that way. You're combining two movements into one, so you've cut down the time it would normally take to execute them. Your opponent probably won't have recovered from throwing his last attack to react quickly enough to prevent you from recovering your wand."
Hmm... perhaps he can teach the subject after all, granted Professor Snape, not without some chagrin, as he listened very intently from his position in the hallway. This made him feel a little better. His professional dignity remained somewhat in tact this year. But he had still been refused the position, and nothing could salvage him from the indignity of that. He continued to watch while Harry patiently instructed his student.
They practiced until about lunch time, when Harry called the lesson over. He was pleased with Theresa's progress. She had learned to deflect, shield and even dodge. The strength of her shield had also improved throughout the lesson. She wasn't a strong student, but she tried hard, which is all anyone could ask for.
"Professor," Theresa began carefully, while she was helping Harry to return the room to its normal state. They had moved all of the desks and chairs to the sides of the room so they could have a reasonable space to work in. "I've got this subject that I'm really behind in. I'm actually in danger of failing. Miserably. I wanted to ask you whether you thought that the professor in that subject would consider giving me extra help outside of class hours. If you don't think he would, I won't ask."
Harry stopped what he was doing to look at his student. "What subject are you failing?"
There was a short pause before Theresa said in a subdued voice, "Potions."
This caught Professor Snape's attention. He was aware that he wasn't a very popular teacher, but if a student had a problem in his subject, they should come to him about it. He would be very annoyed if Professor Green offered to tutor her in his subject.
Harry almost burst out laughing. He could perfectly understand why she wouldn't want to ask Professor Snape for extra help. But Harry knew from his own days at Hogwarts that the Potions Master would provide extra help to anyone if they did ask. Not many people ever did though. He wasn't universally thought of as… approachable. He carried on with what he was doing and simply asked, "Why wouldn't he help you?"
"Well, Snape doesn't seem very nice. He might yell at me for failing in the first place, or yell at me for even asking," Theresa replied nervously.
"Professor Snape, Miss Chan." Harry corrected before adding, "He'll help you. Just ask him." Harry might not like the Potions Master, but before the students and the other staff, he would give him the respect due to a Hogwarts professor. He would not be called to fault for that.
"But…"
"Look, just pluck up your courage and ask him. I promise he won't yell at you." His student still looked dubious.
"Are you sure? He doesn't seem very… well… nice."
Harry had to admit that she made a very good point, but if she really needed the extra help, he had to convince her to ask him. "Maybe he just has so many good qualities that there wasn't room for anymore, and 'nice' had to be left out." Harry suggested good naturedly. Yeah, right. Pull the other one Potter!! He snorted to himself.
"Other good qualities?" Theresa repeated with raised eyebrows.
"Well, he's very intelligent. I'd say that was a good quality, wouldn't you?"
"Well, yes, but it's obvious that he's not very nice to you, sir, so I don't see why you're being so generous. I mean, we all see him glaring at you all the time and once, in class, someone told Professor Snape something of what you said in one of your lessons on the
sorts of potions that were developed during the war. He just sort of ground his teeth and said "Well, he must be right then" in this really sarcastic tone of voice."
Harry was laughing by now. "I have to admit that I do seem to have a talent for being able to get on the wrong side of Professor Snape. But, since he manages to be able to get on the wrong side of me, I think it would be rude not to return the favour, wouldn't you agree? Listen, whether or not I'm his favourite person should have nothing to do with your decision to ask him for help."
"What if he says 'no'?"
"I'll speak to him if that happens, but it won't, so go and ask him. As soon as you can. Everyone's in a good mood at Christmas, try asking him after lunch."
"O.k." she replied nervously, before adding in a much brighter tone, "Thank you for the lesson today, Professor. Can we have another lesson tomorrow?"
"Sure. Same time, same place Miss Chan. Enjoy your day."
With that, his student turned to leave. She didn't see Professor Snape on her way out because he had concealed himself in the shadows of the hallway.
Harry left the room shortly after his student. He stood in the doorway and thought about her question. He shook his head and smiled "Boy, she must be really desperate if she wants extra lessons with him," he muttered to himself, as he walked towards his rooms, unaware that the subject of his discussion was standing close enough to be able to hear him.
Professor Snape made his way to the Great Hall. He managed to keep the peace without actually defending me. Clever, very clever, thought Snape as he walked away.
*****
"I have done it, my Lord." The robed and kneeling figure was pleased to report from his position at the back of the damp and darkened room.
"Excellent. I want to know what vehicle you used," his Master said in emotionless flat tones.
"My Lord, I was given a Hogwarts painting to restore. I have used that as the vehicle. Do you have a target in mind or will anyone do?" the robed figure asked, anxious to please his Lord.
A thoughtful silence followed the question. "Yes." The shapeless form silently communicated with the robed wizard standing by his side who simply nodded his head and quietly recited a simple incantation, waving his wand in the direction of the wizard kneeling before them. A hazy image was created in the room.
"This is the target," his Master hissed.
"It will be my pleasure, my Lord. When do you want it to happen, my Lord?"
"Christmas Day will do very nicely, I think. After all, I should have something to celebrate at Christmas too, don't you think?" the master replied in a wickedly cheerful tone.
"Of course, my Lord. When?
The undefined form paused momentarily in contemplation. "In the evening. Arrange for it to proceed after dinner. They should be well fed and thoroughly relaxed by then."
"It will be done, my Lord."
"Do not fail me. I want this to happen very much," his Master warned.
The robed and kneeling figure paled at the implications of his instructions. "Of course, my Lord," he mumbled as he bowed and retreated from the room.
*****
By chance, Ron and Hermione met up with Harry on his way back to his quarters.
"Jason, we were just going to see if you were in your rooms," said Ron when he caught up with him.
"Oh? What's up? When did you both get back? I looked for you this morning but I thought you might have just spent the day with Ron's brother and his family," Harry greeted cheerfully.
"We got back in time to have some breakfast in the Great Hall, and my brother will just spend the day with his family. The rest of my family is overseas so we called in to see Hermione's mum and dad earlier this morning. My sister and her husband will be coming up this evening for a visit though. They used to be students here, so they'll join us in the Great Hall so that they can talk to Albus and the other staff," responded Ron.
"We just wanted to ask you if you would join us in our rooms for lunch," Hermione offered. Sometime in the past week, Harry had mentioned to Hermione that he had no real plans for Christmas and that he was hoping to be able to spend a quiet day catching up with his reading and his research. Hermione had other plans for Jason. She knew that he had lost someone very special to him and she didn't want him to be alone for Christmas. Ron felt the same way, and it was his idea to invite Harry to join them for lunch instead of having lunch in the Great Hall.
The invitation came as a pleasant surprise for Harry. He had simply assumed that his friends would be spending the day with their families, and if that wasn't the case, that he might catch up with them in the Great Hall. Ron and Hermione weren't such good friends with Jason that he would have expected an invitation to have a private Christmas lunch. He looked closely at both of them. Ron looked keen on the offer and Hermione's eyes were so full of feeling and gentle concern that he thought he had a pretty good idea of what motivated them to make the offer. He was reminded sharply of his days as a student, when Ron and Hermione would arrange to spend the Christmas holidays with him wherever possible so that he wouldn't be alone at that special time of the year. It brought home to Harry how much he'd missed their steadfast friendship and support.
"That sounds really nice. Thank you."
"We're so glad you'll join us," smiled Hermione.
"We'll just need to duck into the kitchens on the way to pick up the food. We asked the house elves if they wouldn't mind packing some lunch in a basket for us," explained Ron, as he led the way to the kitchens. Jason could see that the house elves seemed very fond of Ron and Hermione, and he was very pleased to see that Dobby still worked here, though he couldn't see Winky anywhere. Looks like Hermione has finally stopped trying to set all the Hogwarts house elves free. I wonder if she's given up on the S.P.E.W thing altogether. That might be too much to hope for though, Harry thought, with a fond smile as he remembered the cause that had become Hermione's obsession during her fourth and fifth years at school.
As they walked out of the kitchen and headed toward the couple's rooms, Hermione closed her eyes and gave a sad sigh. Without even looking at her, Ron spoke.
"No, Hermione."
"They work so hard, if they would only accept a wage," Hermione said sadly.
Ron shook his head. He turned to Harry to explain. "It doesn't matter how often people – and even house elves – say otherwise, she honestly thinks that wizards hold their house elves in some sort of bonded slavery, and she keeps trying to free them."
"They're not all happy with their lot though, are they Ron? Remember Dobby? He was treated appallingly until he was set free," Hermione responded hotly.
Experience had taught Ron that he would never be victorious in this argument. He and Hermione had already had this discussion enough times for him to know how it would end. Nevertheless, he remained foolishly optimistic that Hermione would one day give in a little on this topic.
"Not all of them want to be free."
"Then I'll just have to find the ones that do," Hermione stated in a tone that brooked no arguments.
"Jason?" pleaded Ron. "Some help?"
Ron and Hermione stopped walking and looked expectantly at him. Harry had never wanted to be part of these heated discussions between his two best friends during their days as students, and he wasn't about to start now.
"Oh… well... I really – Oh Albus, hello!" called Harry a little too enthusiastically, as he caught sight of the Headmaster and tried to steer the conversation to another topic.
Albus paused in the middle of what he was doing to greet his professors. "Ron, Hermione, Jason, hello. Er, correct me if I am mistaken, but doesn't the Great Hall lie in the other direction?"
"We were planning to have lunch in our rooms, Albus, but we'll still be joining you in the Hall for dinner. Ginny and Draco will be joining us as well," explained Hermione.
"Yes, I'm looking forward to it."
"Er, Albus, can we help you with that?" asked Ron.
Albus looked as though he were in the middle of redecorating one of the large walls of the castle. A large painting was leaning against the wall, and the Headmaster appeared to be in the process of shifting all of the other paintings to make room for it on the wall.
"No, no, but I thank you for the thought. It shouldn't take very long to do this." He continued to work while he was speaking to his Professors.
"Wouldn't it be easier to put it on another wall where there's actually some space for it, Albus?" Harry suggested politely, as he watched the Headmaster's efforts.
"Yes, it would, but this painting actually belongs on this wall. I had it sent away recently to be restored, and it just came back this morning. When I took it off the wall it was necessary to move the other paintings to cover the bare spot, but now that I have it back, I'll need to rearrange the paintings so it can go back to its proper place. I don't really have too much more to do, actually."
While Albus was speaking to Jason, Hermione was looking at the painting. It depicted a very arrogant looking Salazar Slytherin, standing upright with his hands in his robe pockets, and a scared looking house elf half stood, half bent in a bow by his side, meekly handing him a hat.
"I've never actually noticed this painting before. I hope you don't mind me saying this, but the painting certainly is…well…it's definitely…er…imposing." She finally managed, for lack of a better word. It was a Hogwarts painting, so she couldn't very well come right out and say that she thought it was the most appalling painting she'd ever seen. "And it certainly sends the wrong message to students about the way they should treat house elves!" she commented more strongly.
Ron groaned. "Oh, not the bloody house elves again!"
"Have you even looked at the painting, Ron?"
Ron and Harry both turned their attention to the painting. "Oh, good point," Ron conceded. "The fellow looks awfully proud, doesn't he?"
"Salazar Slytherin was a very proud man." Albus informed them.
"That's Salazar Slytherin?" asked Ron, incredulously. "Well, that explains the sour look, doesn't it?" Ron observed.
"Yes," he calmly answered Ron.
"Honestly Ron, if you'd every read Hogwarts: A History, you would have known that." Hermione chastised her husband in her 'teacher's voice', tossing her head to emphasise her point.
In actuality, Harry had also recognised the man in the painting, but it wasn't from reading a book as pleasant as Hogwarts: A History. He had seen pictures of him during the lessons he received in the dark arts during his years of isolated training. He had been required to read a number of illegal books in an effort to understand his lessons.
"You must be the only person alive who's ever read that book," Ron muttered.
"Actually, I've also read it. In fact, I have my own copy of it," Albus replied, trying to suppress a smile before turning to Hermione and adding "and I quite agree with your assessment of the painting. Which is why, you'll notice, it resides in the most inconspicuous corner of this wall."
"If you don't approve of the painting, why put it up at all, Albus?" asked Hermione, puzzled as to why this painting deserved such attention.
"Phineas Nigellus commissioned a very well known artist to have this painting done for him, and he donated the work to the school during his time as headmaster here. He hung it in the very centre of this wall, I believe," he gestured, turning back to the wall, "and the headmaster who took over from him moved it along a bit until it ended up in this corner here, which is where it has resided since, and which is where I intend to return it." As if on cue, the Headmaster levitated the painting to its place on the wall and cast a sticking charm to keep it there. He turned back to face Hermione. "So you see, it wouldn't be right to simply dispose of the painting. For one thing, it would be a mark of disrespect toward one of our former Headmasters. For another, Salazar Slytherin was a founding wizard of the school, so it would be dreadfully disrespectful to him as well." Albus looked back at the painting. "He doesn't always reside here though," he said as he raised his wand again. "He sometimes visits his other paintings, in other places and institutions."
Albus wove a rejuvenation spell to "wake" the painting up. It had been placed under a standard non-animation spell when it was taken down so that the occupants of the painting would not move while the restoration was being carried out. Now that the painting was fully restored, Salazar and his house elf were free to move again.
"Thank you, Headmaster," Salazar said coldly, but politely.
"You're looking much better," commented Albus.
"I feel much better."
"By your leave." Albus excused himself politely from the painting.
"Come on Jason," called Ron as the rest of the small group had started to move away. Harry was examining the painting with a frown.
"There's something about this painting… I don't like it. It just…gives me a chill," he muttered as Hermione came to take his arm.
"You and me both, Jason. But Albus said that's just the way Salazar was. Arrogant and proud. Hopefully not too many people will see it," replied Hermione quietly, completely misunderstanding his point.
Harry shrugged and walked down the hallway with the others. They were in the next hallway discussing ideas for more inter-house competitions when Harry tripped over nothing in particular and fell face-first onto the hard stone ground, barely managing to put his hands out to save himself from injury. Good work Potter, it's a good thing you didn't actually hit your head on the ground. The castle doesn't need any more cracks in the stone work.
Albus assumed that Harry's perpetual limp had been the cause of the accident and said in exasperation, "Jason, that ankle really is more trouble than it's worth. I'm sure Madam Pomfrey would be able to heal that for you."
"I'm fine, Albus, thank you. I just wasn't watching where I was going." Harry sighed and picked himself up off the ground, dusting himself off and checking to see if he'd dropped anything. Albus took this opportunity to turn so that his back was facing Harry and quickly drew Ron and Hermione off to one side, speaking urgently in quiet tones.
"On their last visit to London, Minerva and Severus contained a large scale assault, and wizards were found in an alley near the incident in question." Ron and Hermione's eyes widened in turn. They didn't think that Harry had lied to them when he had told them that he'd seen a wizard pull a muggle into an alley in a London mall and cast a spell on them, but they were hoping he was mistaken as to what he saw. "It is important that you try and find out if our friend saw, or knows, anything more. I needn't tell you to be discreet."
Harry, for all of his skills, didn't hear any of this because another voice had caught his attention. It was cold and commanding:
"You there! I cannot see you, but I can feel your presence. You don't belong here. Leave at once!"
"And if I refuse? You are hardly in a position to do anything, now, are you?" a harsh and raspy voice replied.
"I shall notify the headmaster. I don't think he's too far away."
The owner of the harsh and raspy voice paused, as if contemplating those words, before it answered. "This will not be forgotten. I shall be back to lecture you – at length – about your lack of hospitality."
When he was back on his feet again, Harry moved quickly toward the source of the voices, unsure of what he might find. Who doesn't belong here? And how did they get in? Harry thought.
"Jason, where are you going?" Hermione called out as he moved away from them. Harry didn't respond. He arrived quickly to the area where he thought the voices had come from and was surprised to find no one there. Albus, Ron and Hermione caught up to him and found him looking around in confusion.
"If you like the painting so much, maybe Albus will let you hang it in your rooms," Ron teased in cheek as he, Albus and Hermione found that they had followed Jason back to the hallway where Albus had just re-hung the painting of Salazar Slytherin.
"I thought I heard something, but maybe I just imagined it." Harry said, almost to himself, as he turned to follow them back down the corridor. "Maybe I hit my head when I fell and knocked something loose," joked Harry. He knew he didn't imagine the conversation that he heard, but he couldn't for the life of him, make any sense of it.
He noticed that Albus was giving him a piercing look, so he smiled impishly to emphasise the humour of his last observation. At that, Albus' gaze softened and he addressed the trio.
"I must beg your pardon. I didn't realise the time. I'm expected in the Great Hall for lunch but I will see you all at dinner." With that, he turned down the corridor, chatting to some of the paintings as he passed them.
Harry, Ron and Hermione turned in the other direction and headed towards the couple's rooms.
"Hey Jason, I know we haven't known each other for very long, but we got you a present, and we hope you won't feel funny accepting it." Ron was rushing his words, as if he didn't quite know what to say.
You guys never let me go without presents when we were at school, and you saved me again this year. You haven't changed at all. Harry mused to himself. "You know, I was going to say the same thing to both of you because I got you each a present as well."
The all stopped to stare at each other, chuckling at how identical their thoughts were, continuing down the hallways of the castle in good cheer.
*****
The creature of shadows hid itself in the dark places and shadows that the many Christmas decorations in the Great Hall provided. It had followed its intended victim into the hall and had watched him take his seat. He watched as he spoke occasionally with the professors near him and he watched as he slowly ate his meal, head lowered to the table, absorbed in a book laid open before him.
"Yes... soon... very soon... you will die, and I will be rewarded. Master will be pleased. Master may even keep me as his pet," the shadow creature whispered.
'Jason' had been introduced to Draco and Ginny at the staff table just before they took their seats and he spent the rest of the meal chatting freely to them. Draco had changed considerably since their days as students. Harry had lost contact with him when he was taken to be trained, but he had learned that Draco had followed Professor Snape's lead and had become a spy for Albus after he had been forced to take the dark mark, and since that time he had felt an enormous respect for his one time enemy.
"Albus has given us our own rooms for a few days. If you have no other plans, come and join us for after-dinner drinks. You too, Hermione, Ron," invited Draco, who had found himself enjoying the company of Professor Green very much. There was something about him that made him feel like he was talking to a long lost friend. The professor's easy wit and ready intelligence ensured that their conversations were always animated and lively.
"I wouldn't want to impose. Besides, it wouldn't be much of a reunion of family if I was there."
"Please, I insist."
"Yes, please Jason, join us after dinner. We'd love to chat with you some more, and dinner hasn't felt like it's been nearly long enough to get to know you properly," agreed Ginny.
"In that case, I'd be happy to join you all. Thank you."
"Excellent," said Draco.
A shriek erupted from Minerva and everybody in the hall turned in her direction to find a yellow canary seated where Minerva was, not half a minute before.
"Oh, your brothers' excellent canary creams, Ginny. How ever did you manage to sneak it in front of Minerva?" asked Albus through tears of mirth.
"Albus, I learned from the best. Fred and George taught me well," she replied, laughing.
Minerva reappeared quite suddenly with a small 'pop', blinking a few times, before joining them in their laughter. During this distraction, Harry noticed Theresa Chan waving her arms at him. Before he could rise, she held up a big sign that said "HE SAID YES!!!" Harry laughed, and Theresa joined in. He was in a playful mood, so he created a sign with his wand that said "TOLD YOU!". The pair quickly attracted the attention of everyone in the room.
"Er, Jason, what was that about? Who said yes?" asked Ron, immediately getting the wrong idea. Harry knew that Ron thought that the student was referring to something that was far more romantic than what actually happened – and he did nothing whatsoever to disabuse Ron of that notion.
"Professor Snape said 'yes.' But it's not my place to say anything, so I'll let you ask him yourself," Harry replied with his best innocent expression, trying to suppress a laugh as this information was passed down the staff table and every head turned toward the unsuspecting professor.
"What?!" exclaimed Ron in shock, choking on his juice. It took some minutes for Professor Snape to explain that he had only 'consented' to giving Miss Chan extra classes in potions because she was in danger of failing the subject.
"Extra classes," said Draco lightly, "is that what they're calling it now, Severus? Fairly daring for a student to ask the professor though. In my day, that just wasn't done. The girls didn't proposition the authority figures. It was the other way around." Draco grinned at his former professor and good friend.
"Draco, I have plenty of things in my cupboards that will permanently glue that smart mouth of yours shut," Professor Snape said as he glared at his friend. "Though you might be second in line to get a dose of them," he said as he shifted his glare to Harry, who simply looked back through big, innocent eyes.
Draco looked at Harry and shook his hand firmly. "You and I are going to get along very well."
"Oh man, watch out," muttered Ginny as she rolled her eyes.
*****
The professors were the last to leave the Great Hall, unaware they were being followed. Well, with the exception of one. Harry felt a prickling sensation as the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end, but couldn't place the reason for it. He didn't shrug the feeling off though. Experience had taught him to trust his instincts, so he instantly assumed a defensive mindset, never changing his outward demeanour.
As they moved off down the hallway, no one had any inkling that something was moving into position right beside them. It moved along the wall with the other shadows. But this creature was more than just a shadow. It wasn't confined to appearing along surfaces which reflected the light, but it moved around independent of light, and it wasn't confined to simply moving along surfaces. It could raise itself off the surfaces where the shadows resided and move about freely in the open.
Ginny, Draco and the professors were saying their 'good evenings' and 'Merry Christmas's. The creature raised itself, much like a cobra preparing to attack. Its intended victim was standing right in front of him, his back to the wall, exactly where it wanted him. Slowly it slithered higher up the wall, stretching its arms, slowly….slowly…slowly…
...and then pounced.
It moved so quickly that nobody saw what happened. One moment, they were talking together, preparing to go their separate ways to their own rooms. The next moment, they saw Professor Snape being held against the wall by something that they couldn't really see. Quick as a flash, the creature had seized the opportunity and had reached out his arms, grabbing the professor by the neck, dragging him back and pinning him with his back against the wall – one clawed hand holding him in place by his neck, the other hand pulling his head back by his hair to further expose his neck. The creature's legs had wrapped themselves around the top of the professor's arms and chest from behind to keep him still. Oddly enough, it seemed that only the creature's arms, legs and head had pried itself from the wall. The rest of it was effectively still a part of the wall, just as a shadow would be. This meant that the professor could not simply move forward a little and slam the creature back against the wall to shake it loose. He was effectively pinned.
"Prepare to receive your punishment for your disloyalty!" a gravelly voice snarled.
The rest of the group was shocked and stunned. Snape was grabbed so quickly that they barely had time to register what had happened. They could do nothing but look at the Professor who had a stunned but steely expression in his eyes. He was struggling in the grip of the creature but to no avail. He couldn't move. The creature was his superior in strength and its crushing grip had managed to mark him with more than a few bruises. He was also suffering some damage to his ribs, with the pressure being exerted on his chest.
Most of the group recovered quickly and some of the professors had pulled their wands out and were trying to stun and hex the creature, but they ceased their efforts when they realised that their spells were having no effect.
Rather surprisingly, in all of the activity, not one of the spells hit Professor Snape.
Harry's mind had been prepared for the possibility of action almost as soon as he had left the Great Hall, and this meant that his reaction and recovery time were faster than that of the rest of the group, who had been perfectly relaxed at the time of the attack. Though he could see Professor Snape, he couldn't really see the creature, and if he couldn't see it, he couldn't destroy it, so Harry grabbed a torch off the wall and shone it toward the Professor. It dispelled all shadows but the one holding him, and Harry was able to get a proper look at the creature holding the professor.
He noticed that it was very small and had the profile of a goblin, though it couldn't have been a goblin. It's legs, while short, weren't stumpy, and it was simply much too thin. The shape looked very familiar to Harry. His mind was working very quickly and the others were only just beginning to cease casting their spells when the pieces of this particular puzzle finally fell into place.
The creature looked like a shadow that a house elf would cast. It was just the right size and shape for it. More specifically, Harry had reason to believe that it was the shadow of the house elf on the painting of Salazar Slytherin that he saw earlier in the day. He remembered that when he fell over on the way to Ron and Hermione's rooms he had heard voices in the hallway where the painting was hanging. At the time he had thought it strange that someone would be telling someone else that they could 'feel them' even if they couldn't 'see them', and that they should leave because they didn't belong here. It made sense now, but he only hoped that he would be able to act in time.
During his training, he had studied various sorts of dark creatures, and one such creature was the shadow creature. These creatures were not naturally formed, rather they were the result of a very powerful and very evil spell. Things that wouldn't normally cast a shadow could be given one, and the shadow caster could give it any manner of characteristics that they wanted it to have. Shadow creatures were dangerous because they were so hard to see, meaning they could hide among darkness and shadows. They could also hide within the object from which they were cast and remain out of sight, since they were, effectively, a part of the object itself. And they were very difficult to destroy.
He had wondered why the other professors' spells were not harming the creature, even Albus' powerful spells and hexes which were intended to stun and maim were ineffective against the monster. Now he realised that it was not that their spells lacked the necessary power, but that they were simply drawing on the wrong sort of spells - and they were aiming their spells at the wrong object. Curses and hexes, regardless of how powerful or how complicated they are, simply cannot destroy a shadow creature.
His time was running out. The creature had yanked the Professor Snape's hair back so that his head leaned back, with his face looking directly at the ceiling, exposing his neck fully. The creature removed his hand from around the neck and held one sharp claw to the side of his neck, preparing to slit the Professor's throat from one ear to the other.
Harry caught the look on the Professor's face. He wore a look of acceptance, mingled with a look of fierce determination, pride and dignity. He would not beg for his life. He would die with honour.
Spurring himself into action, he drew his wand and cast a spell to summon the painting to him, While waiting for the painting to arrive, he threw a quick succession of spells to bind the dark creature.
The creature had already begun to cut deeply into Professor Snape's throat, when its head was thrown back and bound against the wall behind it by a glowing ring of light. The shadow was caught completely by surprise. Its hands flew up to try and remove the restraint but Harry seized the opportunity to bind its hands with the same restraints, now that they were free of the professor's head and neck. The creature kicked its legs against the wall behind it, trying to use its leverage to pull itself free of the bindings, but Harry used the same spells to bind its legs. Professor Snape's eyes, which had shut when he had felt the creature's claw begin to open his throat, flew open when he realised that he had been released from the creature's grasp. Severus slumped against the wall in relief but Minerva quickly grabbed his arm and dragged him back to the group, holding him allowing him to lean on her for support.
Harry had to cast two spells, to succeed in binding the creature. They had to be cast almost simultaneously, so it would look like he was casting only one spell. But Harry had a small problem: he had never cast these spells with his wand before, and he didn't think now was the time to experiment with a different technique. He couldn't very well not use his wand either, because Harry Potter had been highly visible during at least the final battle and certain people, like Albus and Professor Snape, knew that he could perform wandless magic. Harry Potter did not want to come out of hiding, so he did the only thing he could think of doing. He drew everyone's attention to his wand, pointing it at the creature purely for show, while keeping his hand low down and by his side, releasing a powerful binding spell with a tiny, barely perceptible, gesture.
He chose to bind the creature with light, because contact with light is painful for a creature created from evil and malevolence. It was lucky that Professor Snape had his eyes closed, not opening them until the creature was fully bound. Otherwise, he might have been rendered temporarily blind from having looked directly into such a bright light.
A binding spell in itself would not have been enough to restrain the creature. It was a creature born of magic and as such, couldn't easily be affected by magic. It would have easily removed the trappings, if it hadn't deflected them first. In this instance, Harry had caught the creature off guard, and it didn't have time to deflect the magic being directed at it. A second spell was required to strengthen the first one, and a split second after Harry had cast each binding spell, he cast a spell of purification and cleansing at the binding.
Since the creature was created from evil, it would not be possible to purify it, but the combination of spells would not permit any increase in the creature's level of dark magic. This meant that it could not expend any energy, because as a creature born of malevolence, its energy was solely dark energy. The creature had, effectively, been restrained and bound.
The group followed the direction of the spells back to its caster and stared at Harry in incredulity before parting before him and allowing him clear access to the shadow, which was writhing against the wall and screaming in pain and frustration. Harry was thankful that Minerva had cast a silencing charm around the hallway some moments before so that the rest of the occupants of the castle would not be alerted to what was happening. Harry didn't move from his spot, but he caught the painting as it finally arrived next to him and cast a levitating spell upon it, so it stayed conveniently at wand height. The creature seemed to realise what Harry was going to do, because its eyes widened in terror. The wizard presented a perfectly calm face to the world and fixed a cold glare on the creature, settling his icy mask into place.
"NO!" it screamed. "You musn't!"
The only way to kill a creature of shadows is to either destroy the object from which it was cast, or to purify and cleanse it, almost in imitation of muggle exorcisms. The creature is linked to its object and any purification and removal of evil will inevitably sever its link and it will cease to exist.
"Sir, you and your house elf should visit one of your other paintings for a while," Harry said calmly to the painting's occupants, never taking his eyes off the shadow.
"I shall be very displeased if you destroy my painting, young man. I quite like this one," Salazar responded coldly before disappearing.
"Who sent you?" asked Harry, in a steely voice. The creature didn't respond. It continued to writhe against its chains.
Harry's eyes narrowed. "If you cooperate, I'll make this quick. Tell me who sent you." Still the creature said nothing.
"Why are you here?" asked Harry. He knew that the other members of the group would assume that he was asking why Professor Snape had been targeted for the attack, because Jason wouldn't know that Professor Snape was a former Death Eater turned spy for Albus. But he was really asking the creature why he attacked the professor in such a public place, where there was the possibility, however small, of rescue. And he wanted to know whether this was in any way linked to the odd happenings that were occurring across London.
Still the creature remained silent.
Harry looked at the monster for some moments before he shook his head and sighed. "We are getting nowhere." He pointed his wand at the painting next to him and set it aflame. This was no ordinary fire though. It was a special fire, all heat and only the illusion of flames. The important part of the spell was the purification charm that was directed at the painting almost immediately after the first spell.
At first glance, it might have seemed that Harry could have just cast the purification spell at the painting and not have bothered with the first spell. But Harry had learned, the hard way, that the second spell needed the first spell as a focus point. Harry watched as the creature screamed in pain and begged him to stop, but he only looked on icily as the creature suffered. To all outward appearances, he remained unaffected by what he was doing and what he was seeing. Privately, he felt like he was drowning in a renewed sense of self loathing and pain. No one would have suspected this though, because he wore his mask of indifference so well.
"There will be no mercy," Harry said, as coldly as he could. "Your master should never have tried to kill a Hogwarts Professor. If you take one of us on, you take all of us on. I hope they learn their lesson. If it happens again, we won't be so nice."
"My master will kill you! He will kill you all!" it cried as it disappeared from existence, its bindings vanishing as well.
"Well they'll have to do a lot better than this," muttered Harry, seemingly to himself as he ended the spells which were purifying the painting. He sent the painting back to its place on its wall and turned back to face the other professors. They looked at him with a mixture of shock, fear and awe in their eyes. Even Albus was speechless. He knew that they'd have a lot of questions, which he just couldn't answer, so he spoke before anyone else had the chance, in an effort to stave off the interrogation which he knew would occur eventually.
"I am the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor. It wouldn't be right if I didn't know anything about dark creatures, would it?" he asked, trying to down play the situation.
"Where did you…how did you learn…to do that?" asked Hermione, timidly.
Harry heaved a big sigh. "I read it in a book. I can give you the name of it if you really want it." He looked at the group and rolled his eyes. "And stop looking at me like that. It wasn't anything spectacular. If you had read that book, you would have known what to do as well." But you'd have to train for quite a while to get it right. Believe me, thought Harry, with all the tones of someone who had learned from experience.
"Thank you, Professor Green. And if you don't mind, I would very much like the name of the book you mentioned," said Albus, taking the young man's hand and shaking it firmly.
"It's called Malefic Forces of the Dark Arts by Errol Fetherstone, Harry recited off the top of his head.
"That felt like very powerful magic to me," the Astronomy Professor noted quietly.
"It wasn't actually. There was nothing extraordinarily powerful about it. It was only unfamiliar." He sighed and looked at her, running his hands through his hair. "I'm not dangerous, if that's what you're thinking. You'll notice that I directed all of my spells at that...thing…and not at any of you, or the students. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I have no intention of doing anything to endanger anybody here. I'm only here to teach Defence Against The Dark Arts, and that's it." He knew that he'd have to leave them alone for a while, so he tucked his wand back into the waistband of his pants and moved to leave the group. He stopped when he heard someone calling him.
"Professor Green," Professor Snape began, his voice barely above a ragged whisper as he was now standing upright on his own. Draco had moved to Professor Snape's side to make sure his good friend and fellow former spy was alright. He had stayed by, one hand on his arm, in an offer of support. When Harry turned around, Snape continued. "I want to… thank you… for your help. I would have been very… unfortunate… had you not been here." Harry absorbed these words. He had never actually heard Professor Snape thank anyone before, and he imagined it must be difficult for him to do so. He knew it must have been particularly difficult for the professor to thank Harry, since they had not been on good terms since his arrival.
He looked gravely at Snape and nodded his head once in acknowledgment. Casting a critical eye over his wound he said, "You might want to have that looked at Professor. You'll ruin your clothes if you keep bleeding like that," as he turned to leave again.
Draco left Severus in Madam Pomfrey's capable hands and then moved quickly to stop Harry before he could go any further. "Hey, where are you going? Listen, I want to add my thanks to Severus'. And you're definitely going to have to come and have drinks with me now. I want to write down the name of that book you just mentioned, and any other books you've ever read, for that matter," cried Draco. "Do you drink firewhiskey..." Draco continued to chat to Harry as he led the way to his rooms. Ron, Hermione and Ginny followed behind them. Hermione was still troubled. She couldn't seem to get Harry's cold and detached look out of her head. It chilled her to the bone and she was all of a sudden afraid of what this man might be capable of doing if he was pushed far enough.
Albus stared after them. "Minerva, have you ever heard of the name of that book?"
"No, Albus."
"I'll make enquiries right away. What kind of school teaches their students something like that? What kind of teacher, would do that?"