I would also like to once again thank my wife and my mom for proof reading for me and my wife and a couple of friends for helping me work through my various boughts of writers block.
Thanks to all those who reviewed. Sorry for the delay in getting this chapter finished. I ran into some issues that I had not foreseen and had difficulty coming up with what I felt were acceptable ways to solve my dilemma.Chapter 13 – Welcomings
The usual feeling of home Harry felt when arriving at the front steps of Hogwarts was not as strong this year. Last year had not been a particularly happy one in the school and those thoughts were beginning to return to Harry's mind once again. Dealing with the pain of everyone at school thinking he was an attention-seeking lunatic while being ignored by his mentor for the majority of the school year had been very difficult indeed. Throw-in an inept Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor, who was out to make his life a living hell, and it truly was a miracle that he made it through the last year at all.
But that was last year. This year was going to be very different. The wizarding world now knew that he and Dumbledore had been telling the truth all along. The new Defense instructor was actually a competent teacher, mysterious but effective. He was much better prepared this year than any year he had had in the past due to his hard work both physically and mentally over the summer. Most importantly, he finally knew why his life was like it is. He finally knew about the prophecy and why he had been a target for death since before he was even born.
Thinking about the prophecy caused Harry to realize that he owed it to Neville and Luna to let them know too. After all, they had risked their lives at the end of last year to protect it as well; they should at least have an idea of what it said. Yes, as soon as Harry could find a private moment alone with the two of them he would tell them about it. Especially Neville, since he was the only other boy that the prophecy could have been referring to.
"Hey, you awake in there?" Harry found himself being shaken from his thoughts by Ron. "Come on, Harry. We're here. It's time to go in."
"I'm coming, I'm coming," Harry replied. "Don't get your knickers in a twist."
The six friends climbed out of the carriage and made their way up the steps into the entrance hall. Harry was moving toward the great hall when he sensed something was wrong. He started looking around quickly, scanning the entire hall for what he sensed. It didn't take long to locate the source of his unease. Floating silently up near the chandelier was Peeves the Poltergeist with what looked like a straw and a handful of ink pellets in his hands preparing for an assault upon the students. Peeves quickly raised the straw up to his mouth and blew into it sending one of his projectiles speedily toward an unsuspecting second year Hufflepuff. Acting so quickly that he was not much more than a blur, Harry whipped out his wand and sent a banishing charm at the pellet, sending it straight back at Peeves. The projectile ended up going up Peeves' nose causing him to screech and fly away at top speed, much like the gum Remus removed from a lock back at Peeves in Harry's third year. The combination of Harry's quick movements and spell casting with Peeves' screeching caught everyone's attention and brought gales of laughter to the entrance hall.
"Blimey, Harry," exclaimed Neville, "I didn't even notice anything was going on until you cast your spell. You have got to teach me how you do that."
Many of the students around Harry were nodding their agreement with Neville's comment. "Well," said Harry, "We'll see what we can do about that. Let's just wait to see what the new Defense professor is like before we start making plans to train on our own, OK?"
Nodding in agreement, they continued toward the great hall for the start of term feast. Upon walking through the open double doors, Harry looked up to see the overcast sky in the enchanted ceiling of the great hall, matching the weather outside to perfection once again. The group bid farewell to Luna, who headed over to the Ravenclaw table, before finding themselves some seats at the Gryffindor table. Ginny saw some of her friends from her own year and headed down the table to sit with them, leaving Ron, Hermione, Neville, and a now empty-feeling Harry sitting alone at one end of the table. Harry had become used to having Ginny nearby at mealtimes and was now feeling somewhat empty with her sitting farther away.
The tables quickly filled with students chatting noisily about various topics. Ron was starting to complain about his stomach and wanting everyone to hurry up so they could start the feast. Harry was quickly tuning everything out. He was finding it difficult to concentrate, as his attention had been captured by the sound of laughter further down the table. This, combined with the glint of candlelight off of Ginny's red hair, was most entrancing. He couldn't help but watch her. He was finally realizing that he really cared about her a lot. She was beautiful in his eyes, especially in the dim light of the candles in the hall. Soon he had no knowledge of anything else going on. He was lost in his own little world, where he and Ginny were the only inhabitants. Time meant nothing, infact the next thing Harry knew he was being shaken out of his oblivion.
"Oy, wake up, mate." Ron was shaking Harry's shoulder. "You feeling alright?"
"What?" Harry was quickly remembering where he was, "Sorry, I was just thinking."
Ron just looked at this friend and shrugged, "Whatever. Hey, would you pass me the potatoes?"
Harry was surprised to see that the food had already magically appeared on the plates on the table, "Yeah, sure, here." He quickly realized that while he was musing he had missed the sorting all together. He filled his plate with food and began eating and joining in the conversations with his friends. Every now and then, though, he found his
attention wandering down the table to a certain redhead.
Soon the plates were all cleared away, and Professor Dumbledore stood up to speak. "Well, now that we have all had a chance to quell our rumbling stomachs," he began with a look toward Ron, "I beg a few more moments of your attention for some start of term notices. First of all, the Forbidden Forest is named that for a reason, so all first years should stay away from it, as should a few of our older students." The headmaster looked directly at Harry as he said that.
"Next, Mr. Filch, our caretaker, has asked me to remind the students that magic is not to be performed in the hallways between classes and that the list of banned items has been expanded to include the entire line of products produced at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. For anyone who wishes to check the list personally, it is hanging on Mr. Filch's office door."
"Now, I would like to take this opportunity to announce some staffing changes. First, I would like to announce that Professor Trelawney will be returning as the Divination teacher while Professor Firenze has taken over the vacant post of Astronomy teacher." There was a round of polite applause, "And I would also like to introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Smith. Professor Smith will also be the faculty advisor to the defense group that was formed last year and run by Mr. Harry Potter. That defense group will be a sanctioned group this year and open to all years and houses. Seeing as how the Ministry is now admitting that Voldemort is truly back, I highly recommend that everyone seriously think about attending this group. The students who were part of this group last year all scored Outstanding on their OWLs or NEWTs. For more information, please see either Mr. Potter or Professor Smith."
"Lastly, Quidditch tryouts will be held the second week of term. Those interested in trying out for your house teams, please see Madam Hooch for more information. Now, I am afraid that the hour is late and it is time for bed."
Everyone in the great hall began standing and heading for their respective dormitories. Ginny and Colin Creevey, being the fifth year prefects for Gryffindor, were leading the first years up to the dorm. Harry told the others that he wanted to speak to Professor Smith for a moment before heading up, so they told him the password to the common room and then headed off. Harry made his way quickly to the head table and caught up to the professor before he had made his exit.
"Professor Smith, could I have a word with you for a moment?"
"Certainly, Mr. Potter," the professor replied. "What would you like to discuss?"
Harry was caught off guard for a moment by being addressed so formally, but quickly realized that he was supposedly meeting this professor for the first time so there had to be some formality in their interactions. "I was just wondering if we could discuss the particulars of the defense club. Since it seems that the headmaster has just informed the entire school about the club, I thought we should be on the same page about what's going to happen in it."
"Well, Mr. Potter, I think it would be best if you would meet me in my office before breakfast tomorrow and we could discuss it in depth there. Would 7:30 be too early for you?"
"No, Professor, that should be fine, sir. I'll see you then. Goodnight."
Harry made his way up to the seventh floor and soon found himself facing the portrait of the fat lady, which hid the entrance to the Gryffindor common room. After muttering the password, Fortitudo Macto, he entered and had some short discussions with the various students. After only a few minutes he made his way up to the sixth year boys' dorm which he shared with Ron, Neville, Seamus, and Dean and found his bed. After a little more general conversation while they were all changing for bed, all five boys were soon falling asleep and preparing to truly start the new year.
Harry found himself waking quite easily the next morning. It seems that another benefit of his mental organizing was that if he told himself that he wanted to be up at a specific time his body would simply wake up at that time. He wasn't exactly happy to be up this early, but he knew that he wasn't going to have much choice in the matter. He remembered Professor Smith telling him earlier in the summer about how his physical training regimen was going to be much more extensive once he got to school. He figured that this would be something that would take place first thing in the mornings since that would be the least noticeable time of day to do something like that.
Harry quickly got ready for the day and headed off to the defense classroom to meet his professor. The classroom looked the same as it had in the previous years. Harry paused for a moment as he recalled his unfortunate dealings with Umbridge the previous year. He quickly shook those thoughts from his head and made his way over to the steps leading to the professor's office. He knocked and heard a somewhat spry "Enter" from the other side of the door and headed inside.
"Good morning, Mr. Potter. I'm glad to see you made it on time. Please, come in and have a seat."
Harry nodded, "Good morning to you too, sir." The office looked much like it did in Harry's third year with Professor Lupin. The bookshelves were full of books and there were several containers around the room, some with various creatures in them and some looking like they would be filled later.
"Now, you said you wanted to discuss the particulars of the defense club," the professor began. "Exactly what questions do you have? I thought I made my expectations quite clear over the summer."
"Yes, sir, you did. I was just wondering when we should start having our meetings and where. Since Professor Dumbledore made the existence of the club known and open to everyone in the school, I wasn't sure how we would accomplish our goal of not teaching the Death-Eater wannabees."
Professor Smith was nodding, "Yes, it would seem that way, but he was also allowing you the chance to decide who exactly would be allowed in the group. You did notice that he told the students to speak to me or you about getting in didn't you?"
"Yes, but he made it seem like it was expected that anyone who wanted in could be in."
"Of course he did, because he had to. He knows of our plan and we do have his approval. I have a way of keeping out those who we do not want in. You don't need to be worried about that. To answer your question about when we should meet, I think that our first meeting should be this Friday in the great hall. That should give me plenty of time to let all of the students know why they should seriously look into joining this group."
Harry was looking perplexedly at his professor, "Why would we need to use the great hall for the first meeting? Do you really think we are going to have so many people that we couldn't just use a classroom? What are you planning to do, sir?"
"Mr. Potter, I believe that it will become quite clear after our first defense class why I think your club will be quite popular this year. You will just have to trust me on this. Don't worry, you won't have to wait long to find out what I'm planning. The sixth years are my first class today. Now, I also seem to remember telling you we would be raising the level of your physical training once we got here. I will hold off on that until next week to give you a chance to get used to being back in school before starting. I don't know about you but I am getting hungry, I think we should be on our way to breakfast."
Harry was extremely curious now but knew he would just have to wait until class to find his answers. He headed off to breakfast. His meeting hadn't been too long but when he got to the hall it was already quite full and there was a lot of somewhat excited conversation. Harry found all of his friends already eating and joined them.
"Where've you been, Harry?" Hermione asked.
"I just had to speak with Professor Smith this morning about the DA."
There were a few more questions about the meeting, but Harry just told them they would have to wait to find out more. The conversations turned to other subjects and before long there was the familiar sound of the post owls making their morning deliveries. Hermione received her copy of the Daily Prophet and quickly opened it and began to read. Before long she was staring at the paper and softly muttering, "Oh my!"
"What is it this time?" Harry was only mildly interested, since he didn't put much stock in that publication any more.
Ron was looking over her shoulder and soon his eyes grew wide and exclaimed, "Bloody Hell! Did you really say that, Harry?"
"What am I being accused of now?" asked Harry as Hermione turned the paper around and laid it out on the table for everyone to see. Harry scanned the front page and his eyes grew as big as Ron's had.
The Boy-Who-Lived throws support to Arthur Weasley for next Minister of Magic.
That was the headline at the top of the paper. The article went on to quote his conversation on platform 9 ¾ yesterday with the reporters. It mentioned how he also said he thought that Amelia Bones and Amos Diggory would be good as well, but that upon further questioning neither wanted to leave their present position. Apparently Mr. Weasley had been surprised by the question but would not rule out the possibility of running for the office if it seemed like a popular thought.
Needless to say, everyone at the table was extremely surprised by the article. Harry glanced up to the staff table to see Professor Dumbledore smiling back at him with the twinkle in his eyes going on overdrive. Looking around the hall, many of the students could be seen whispering to each other and shooting looks over at the Gryffindor table. Some people were smiling while others, most noticeably Slytherins, were scowling at the thought of the next Minister being a Weasley.
Soon, Professor McGonagall was walking along the table handing out schedules. When she got to Harry and his friends, she not only handed them their schedules but leaned close to Harry to speak with him. "Mr. Potter, the headmaster wishes to speak with you, Mr. Weasley, Mr. Longbottom, and Miss Granger after dinner this evening about your schedules. He has some suggestions he would like you to think about."
Harry and his friends shared a glance before nodding in agreement and allowing their Head of House to move on. They all began checking their schedules and comparing them. Harry noticed that they all mostly had the same schedule. Double Defense Against the Dark Arts Monday mornings, double Herbology on Wednesdays mornings, double Transfiguration on Thursday mornings, and double Charms on Friday mornings. Hermione and Harry both had double Potions on Tuesday mornings where Ron and Neville, who hadn't gotten the scores needed for Potions, had a free period. On Mondays and Thursdays after lunch, they all had Care of Magical Creatures. That was the extent of Harry's schedule where the other three had Astronomy on Wednesday nights after dinner. Hermione also had Arithmancy and Ancient Runes on Tuesday and Friday afternoons.
The most interesting thing the boys noticed about their schedules was the lack of classes. It seemed that there was a lot of empty space on Harry, Ron, and Neville's schedules. There was nothing in the afternoons except for Care of Magical Creatures. They continued to compare for a while then decided to head off to defense class.
Harry and company made their way to the defense classroom. Since the door was already open, they all went inside and took seats near the front. The class slowly started to fill up, and Harry began to notice that there were students from all four houses present. All of the sixth years were there from Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff. The only Slytherins in attendance were Draco Malfoy, Millicent Bulstrode, Theodore Nott, and Blaise Zabini.
Everyone took their seats and soon Professor Smith arrived and went directly to the front of the class. "Welcome, to NEWT level Defense Against the Dark Arts. You are all here because you performed sufficiently on your OWLs and chose to continue taking this class. This year, you will be learning higher level spells and how to properly perform them in a controlled environment, because that is what the Ministry requires. I will make sure that you can perform everything that I teach you in my class to the letter. What I will NOT be teaching you to do, however, is master the use of these spells in a real life situation, such as a duel."
There was an immediate explosion of protests from the class. Terry Boot from Ravenclaw asked, "How come you're not going to teach us to use them in a real life situation?"
Professor Smith looked stonily around the room, "Because, I am not required to." There were many shocked expressions around the room, which the professor decided to ignore before continuing. "You see, there are some students in this school who have shown themselves to be, shall we say, less trustworthy of knowledge than others. If I were to teach any one of you, I would have to teach all of you. Since that is the case, I choose to teach none of you." When he was finished, he was looking directly at Draco Malfoy.
There was another outburst. This time Padma Patil spoke up, "So just because you don't want to teach a few students to be better able to protect themselves, you won't teach any of us? How is that fair to the rest of us?"
Professor Smith brought his gaze back to the rest of the class, "Miss Patil, just because I refuse to teach you does NOT mean you won't have the chance to learn." There was a questioning silence in the air as he looked around and continued, "I believe that Professor Dumbledore made it clear last night that there is another opportunity for students to learn to defend themselves. Were you not paying attention when he spoke of the defense club? Anyone who is interested in learning how to defend themselves in a real life situation should meet in the great hall on Friday night after dinner for the first meeting of the defense club. At that point, the plan for future meetings and membership will be determined. Now if that is all of the questions, open your books to page…"
The class moved on with very little fanfare after that. All of the former DA members kept glancing at Harry throughout the class to see what he wanted to do. Once the class was over and the homework given out, Malfoy and the other Slytherins were the first to storm out of the room. Harry shared a quick and unnoticeable smile with the professor before heading off to lunch.
"So, that's his plan." Harry spoke as they were entering the great hall. "No wonder he thinks there are going to be a lot of students in the defense club. He's going to tell everyone in the school that he won't teach them practical use of their spells. Now we just have to figure out how to keep the 'less than trustworthy' students out of the club."
They were all discussing the events of the day so far, when a very disgruntled Ginny came up and sat with them. Hermione asked, "What's wrong Ginny?"
"Snape! I swear he's worse this year than ever. He was brutal. I'd be careful if I were you, Harry. I think he's out for blood this year."
"Well, Hermione and I don't have him until tomorrow so I guess we'll see then just how bad he is."
They continued chatting throughout lunch and soon found themselves making the trek to Hagrid's cabin for Care of Magical Creatures. Once again, Harry noticed that this class contained students from every house. It wasn't as full as the defense class but it was a complete cross section of the school. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville were joined by Dean and Seamus from Gryffindor. There were only a couple of Ravenclaws, and Millicent Bulstrode was the only Slytherin. The Hufflepuffs were represented almost as well as the Gryffindors in numbers.
Once everyone was assembled, Hagrid's booming voice began, "Welcome to NEWT level Care o' Magical Creatures. Got some excitin' lessons planned fer ya this year." There was a barely audible groan from the majority of the students at this announcement; it was common knowledge that usually if Hagrid thought something was "exciting" that to anyone else it was terrifying. "Right then, before we get to the interestin stuff we'll be startin off with these." He motioned to a corner of the paddock beside his cabin where a small tree stood with a tear-shaped nest residing in the low branches. Inside the nest was a thin greenish bird that looked like a small underfed vulture. "Can anyone tell me what animal this is?" Hermione, as usual, was the first one with a hand in the air. "Go on, Hermione."
"That's an Augurey."
"Right you are! Five points to Gryffindor. Now what can you tell me 'bout Augureys?"
Hermione continued, "The Augurey is also known as the Irish Phoenix. It has a low throbbing cry that was once thought to foretell death, but in actuality it only sings at the approach of rain."
Hagrid smiled, "Another five points to Gryffindor."
The rest of class was spent learning about the strange bird and was quite a good lesson by Hagrid's standards. While the rest of the class began to break up and head back to the castle, Harry and his friends stayed to visit with Hagrid. They all sat in Hagrid's cabin for tea and some visiting, trying to figure out what other types of creatures they would be learning about this year. They also spent a short amount of time discussing their various summers. Neville was stunned to hear about what the others had been up to all summer. They assured him that they would do everything they could to bring him up to speed.
Soon, the rumbling of Ron's stomach informed the group that it was time to head back to the castle for dinner. They made their way back to the great hall and found their usual seats near the end of the table. Dinner was a relatively quiet affair and was over before long. Harry looked up to the head table to see Professor Dumbledore standing up and heading out of the hall. Harry looked at his friends and they all acknowledged him together and decided to make their way to the headmaster's office for their meeting.
They made their way up to the stone gargoyle that guards the headmaster's office and spoke the password, Canary Creams. The gargoyle sprang to life and jumped out of the way to reveal the moving staircase up to the office door. They rode the staircase up and before they had the chance to knock, heard the headmaster say "Enter" from inside the office. They all entered and took the offered seats across the desk from the headmaster.
Once they were settled, Professor Dumbledore began, "Thank you for coming. Lemon drop, anyone?" After everyone politely declined, he continued, "Well, let's get to the point, shall we? I called you four here to ask you if you would be willing to take a few more classes to fill up your schedules. Miss Granger, I know that you are taking more classes than the others, but I believe that you all would benefit from some extra lessons. I am only offering these lessons to the four of you because you have proven yourselves worthy of the extra training."
Seeing the questioning looks on the students' faces, the professor continued, "I believe that your adventure last June is proof that you are ready to learn some things that are not normally taught to students. I would like to suggest that all of you begin to spend Wednesday afternoons working with Madam Pomfrey in the hospital wing learning about basic healing. Mr. Weasley and Mr. Longbottom, I would also like it if you two were to spend Tuesday mornings working with Alastor Moody on Strategy and Tactics. Then on Tuesday and Friday afternoons I would like to suggest that all three of you young men join me to learn some more advanced spells that you would be able to teach in your defense club meetings."
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were mildly surprised by this conversation, while Neville was dumbfounded. Harry, seeing Neville's reaction, spoke up, "We told you we've had a busy summer, Neville." Looking back at the headmaster he continued, "Would this be a sort of continuation of this summer, sir?"
The twinkle was once again in Professor Dumbledore's eyes, "Yes, Mr. Potter, it would. I take it you have informed Mr. Longbottom about your summer?" Seeing his nod in agreement, the headmaster continued, "Have you enlightened Miss Lovegood as well, and have you or do you intend to explain everything about your summer to them?"
"I haven't yet, sir." Harry replied, "I do, however intend to fill them in completely. They deserve to know just as the others did. They did, after all, risk their lives to go with me and help. I owe it to them to keep them informed as well."
Neville looked confused while the headmaster simply nodded, "If you would like, I could ask Professor Flitwick to bring Miss Lovegood up here now so you would be able to inform her in the privacy of my office."
Harry thought about it for a moment, "I wasn't prepared to do it right now, but it is a good idea." He took a deep breath and decided, "Yes, please have Luna join us. Now is as good a time as any to explain."
Professor Dumbledore moved over to the fireplace, threw a handful of floo powder in, and then called Professor Flitwick. After a short conversation, he returned to his seat. "Miss Lovegood should be along shortly. While we are waiting, do any of you have any questions about my request?"
Hermione responded, "What types of things would we be learning, sir? You gave us some very broad subjects. Could you be a little more specific?"
"Well, Miss Granger, in basic healing you would be learning basic spells to detect what injuries a person may have sustained and how to stabilize and begin the healing process. The advanced spells would be both offensive and defensive in nature and some new ways to use to your advantage simple spells that you already know. The strategy and tactics would be learning about fighting in groups in a conflict. Alas, we are at war and as much as I do not want to admit it, you young people are going to need to know how to fight. I do not believe that it will be long before Voldemort brings this war to the doors of Hogwarts and when that happens the student body will need to know how to defend themselves and each other."
The mood in the room was very somber as the students pondered those last comments. "Do you really think he'll bring the fight here, sir?" Harry was unsure as he spoke, "Do you really think he'll try soon?"
"It would not surprise me if he were to try something at least in Hogsmeade by the end of next year. I believe that he is doing his best to recruit more followers and once he feels his forces are strong enough he will come. After all, the only two wizards whom he feels are standing in his way are both in this school. If he could get us out of the way, he is sure the rest of the world would soon follow." The twinkle was once again gone from the headmaster's eyes as he spoke.
There was then a knock at the door, "Ah, Miss Lovegood has arrived. Come in, Miss Lovegood. Would you care for a lemon drop?"
"No thank you, Professor." Came the airy reply from the fifth year Ravenclaw.
"Very well. I suppose you are wondering why you have been summoned here this evening? Mr. Potter has something very important he would like to share with you and Mr. Longbottom. I must impress upon both of you that what you are about to hear needs to be kept in the utmost confidence. Can you both give me a wizard's oath that what you are about to witness will not be spoken of to any others?"
Neville and Luna both looked questioningly at the headmaster before nodding in agreement. "Excellent, would I be correct in assuming you would like the use of my pensive again Mr. Potter?"
"Yes, sir, that would be the easiest way to do this."
With that Professor Dumbledore stood up and retrieved his pensive from its cabinet. He set it down in the middle of his desk and gathered Neville and Luna close so they could see and hear the image clearly. Once the image of Professor Trelawney faded back into the pensive, Neville's face was pale and he couldn't bring himself to speak, while Luna seemed to lose her airy façade for a few moments.
Luna spoke first, "Was that the prophecy we got from the Ministry?"
"Yes, it was. That's why he tried to get me to go there. He had only been informed of the first part of the prophecy and he wanted to know the rest. Since the only people who can pick up a prophecy are the people it is about, either he or I had to get it. He tricked me into going there so that I could get it for him."
Neville finally found his voice, "That could have been about me too, couldn't it?"
"Yes, Neville, it could have." Harry replied, "Right up until the part where it said 'The Dark Lord will mark him as his equal,' that's where it could only be me. I wanted you guys to know what it said since you risked your lives to help me. I figured you had a right to know." Harry gave them a few more moments to think before he continued, "If you don't want to be around me any more, I understand. I only ask that you remember your oath not to tell anyone about this."
"Harry," Neville answered, "I figure you're going to need all of the help you can get, and even if I'm not as skilled as you are, you're my friend and I won't let you do this alone."
"Harry, you can't expect to do this without your friends." Luna's airy voice was back, "We're with you until the end."
"Thanks." Harry felt as if another huge weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. With the help of his friends he felt he could take on the world.
"Very well," the twinkle was back in the aged headmaster's eyes, "The hour is getting late and you all have classes tomorrow, so I think it is time to be off to bed." With that they all left the headmaster's office and headed back to their respective dormitories and then off to bed.