Chapter 13 - An Ancient Gryffindor Returns!
By: Zero Star (zrostar)
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Hermione was absolutely breathless before the class began. Her eyes locked on the clock just behind the new Professor's empty desk. But the teacher was no were to be seen.
Ron and Harry looked about the room. Not their standard DADA room at all, or like any other classroom for that matter. It was on the ground floor with a wide window overlooking the lake. It was also much more intimidating. The sun had set casting violet and red streaks across the sky, that reflected into the room coloring the stone.
A large bright fire burned in a shadowy frightening hearth. Strangely carved figures decorated the stone around the fireplace, frightening looking creatures and wicked elven women peaked at the class from the edges of the stonework. Their eyes dancing lively with the burning glow. A large statue of an extremely ugly gargoyle sat above the teachers desk. It was only one of four very strange and remarkably hideous statutes in this room.
The clock ticked on. Five minutes after class time, ten minutes. The class was starting to get restless and impatient. Where was their new professor? Lost? A Gryffindor from the back made a comment about wanting to find a teacher to ask.
Seamus and Neville grew paraniod thinking they heard footsteps in the room and jumped at the slightest sounds. A strange echoing was heard from the halls. The winds off the lake rushed against the old paned glass in the wide window, rattling them eerily.
Draco suddenly kicked the corner of his desk creating a loud screetching against the stone floor, which startled Neville so badly he fell out of his chair and hit the floor with a squishy thud. It also caused a lot of the other to gasp in surprise. Draco snorted and laughed viciously.
"Oh! The poor fat squib is frightened by his own shadow!" He snorted again laughing loudly, pointing garishly at poor Neville who was still on the floor.
"Fifteen points from Slytherin House for harasment of a classmate and disruption of class!" Boomed a strange voice from what sounded to be the front of the classroom. "And if you do that again Mr. Malfoy I believe I'll give you a serious reason for Professor Snape to be very cross with you."
While everyone gasped, wide eyed looking for the source of the voice, Harry closed his eyes, listening as hard as he could. The phantom voice was obviously male, but it sounded a bit rough with age. The voice also echoed, so the speaker must have been close to the ceiling.
Opening his eyes again, Harry looked upwards, above the desk and at the gargoyle sitting on the stone wall above it.
"Up there." He whispered to Ron and pointed between the great stone wings.
"Ten points to Gryffindor!" The same voice repeated. "Very observant Mr. Potter. Most impressive."
Now that the source had been revealed, he had no trouble showing himself to the rest of the class. A brightly red clad form climbed into view and seated himself on the ugly head of the stone creature.
"Good evening class and welcome to Defense Against the Dark Arts!" He spread his hands welcoming them, then jumped lightly from the statue onto the empty desktop. The strange man paced across the desk as he spoke.
"I am returning to Hogwarts after a quite a long retirement," he paused to smile. "and it feels so good to be back. You may address me as professor, teacher, master, whatever suits your fancy, but my name is Laertes Lethe."
Harry could see that the new professor wasn't very tall even while he stood on his desk, five and a half feet at the most. Lethe looked old, perhaps in his 70s, but his apparent age did nothing to dispell an uncanny sense of wildness and vigor within the man. The most notable thing about him was the bright red robes he wore. They looked taylored for a great deal of movement. Shiny golden buttons glittered from the front of his scarlet red vest. Harry's mind flittered back to what Hagrid had said earlier. "Old teachers returning, house heads even!"
Was this a former Gryffindor? Harry smiled at the thought.
"Now, let me tell you a few things... I've heard rumors about this class, but I didn't think that it was all true! You are very far behind in your studies of Dark Arts Defense. Through no fault of your own, of course. It's a dangerous place to be unprepared in this day and age. So I will apologize a head of time for the many things I will do to upset you young students." He paused again to smile. "You know, like burden you with homework or with a subject level that's over your heads. Please, should I become a slave driver, just remind me and I'll back off. I promise." He winked and grinned at them all.
The old form stooped to sit on the edge of the desk where he had previously been walking. "Any questions so far?" His voice was gentle.
Hermione instantly raised her hand.
"Yes?"
"Sir, the majority of our previous professors specailized in various areas of study in the Dark Arts. Remus Lupin, for example, was well versed in creature defense and Moody was good at curses. May I ask if you have a special field of study, yourself?" She seemed pleased with her question.
Lethe's jaw dropped. "That's a mouthful for a girly your age." He smiled again as the class gave a faint chuckle, they were all familair with Ms. Granger's abilities by now. "A very good question, indeed! Yes, I do have my own area of study. I am quiet good with cursed artifacts, hexed items, jinxed jewels, and the occational backfired spell. I'm also good at sensing a dark spell while it is in action. But... my very favorite part of the dark arts is the advanced study of various monsters." The old man's eyes twinkled brightly as he gazed at the class.
There was a pause before Draco raised his hand.
"Yes?" Lethe asked, raising an eye brow. He didn't seem to trust this boy at all.
"If one of us had a cursed item could we bring it to you and have it uncursed?" Drace smirked to himself.
"Of course." Lethe stated flatly. "I'll be happy to undo any curses on your or your belongings, as long as you let me teach you how to do it. Which reminds me..."
Lethe trailed off for a moment, before winking at Hermione. "Young lady three points for you if you will assist me."
She blushed. "Yes, sir!"
"Just take a few notes on some questions I want to ask the class." He smiled at her again. "I want you all to be active participants in this class, as you can see, I'm rather free with points. What you learn here will save your life someday. So if I allow you to help me with my lesson plans, I expect you will be able to learn a bit better. Ms? Yes, I'm going to ask some questions to the class and they are going to ask them back, so please take notes on the suggestions, thank you."
The next hour or so was filled with questions from students about what they could learn and suggested that Lethe teach them. He was very open to suggestions and encouraged each of them to be bold with ideas, even the Slytherins. Except for Draco, which he seemed to hate right away.
"Can we learn about Dragons?" Neville asked excitedly.
"Of course we can!" Lethe nodded for Hermione to note the suggestion.
"What about Werewolves?" Millicent Bulstrode asked, with a nasty glance at Harry.
"An excellent topic, my dear!" He nodded again.
The questions started flying.
"What about zombies?"
"What about mummies?"
"Can we learn about curse illnesses...?"
"Please - ?"
"How about - ?"
Before she knew it, Hermione had a good ten pages of ideas and suggestions from the entire class. She panted breathlessly as the end drew near, her quill in a ragged state.
"Can we learn about Vampires?" A final question from a rather strange looking Slytherin girl.
"We are going to devote a great deal of study to vampires this year." Lethe looked at her deviously. "Oh yes, you will all be experts when I'm finished with you."
The clock chimed and played a strange tune, it sounded like a funeral march. Lethe grinned widely, almost evily, at them all, then relaxed back into his old gentle smile.
"Alright, you are free to go. Enjoy the rest of your night and don't do anything I would do, you'd only get into trouble!"
The class was over and they packed up to leave. Hermione, Ron and Harry stuck around as the others filtered out of the room.
"Here are your notes, sir." Hermione handed the stack of papers to him.
"Why! Thank you my dear." He glanced them over. "Wow, these are excellent notes! You MUST be Hermione Granger. Minerva has told me all about you. Her pride and joy, you are." He winked at her in a boyish way. For a moment Ron's ears turned as red as Lethe's suit.
"Mr. Potter, an excellent job spotting me at the beginning of class." Lethe shook Harry's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my boy. I look forward to a few interesting dicussions with you, later on."
"Sir," Harry had to ask. "Why were you hiding at all?"
Lethe smiled. "I wanted to see how the class would react, and who some of my shining students might be." He placed an encouraging hand on his shoulder.
Ron blushed as the others were praised, feeling left out as always.
"But you, Mr. Weasely, if you are anything like the Weaselys who came before you, will always be welcome in my class and my office. Which reminds me, is right down the hall from McGonagall's. Stop by anytime in the evening, the three of you."
They were then rushed from the strange class room and given their various good nights, the door closing behind them.
"Wow..." The three stated in a bit of shock. Their new Defense teacher was an interesting card, to say the least. But each of them could feel and deep undertone of a power from the man that gave them all a bit of the shivers. Good thing he was a Gryffindor.
"Well," Ron sighed. "At least he didn't give out any homework tonight!"
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"Ready?" Harry asked Ron as he double checked everything they needed.
Lantern, wand, cloak, empty pillow cases for their newly found candy stash, a spare candle and they were set.
"Map?" Ron asked.
"Oh yes, of course!" Harry placed it in his cloak and the two were ready. "But I think we can leave the common room without the cloak, it would be risky to do it in such a crammed space."
Ron paused, "Alright, good. That means I can ask Hermione something before we go."
They passed through the common room, which was very crowded. It was a friday night. Everyone was talking and catching up with their friends from a long summer holiday. Hessitating at the well worn chair Hermione had claimed for the evening.
"We're going, are you sure you don't want to come with us?" Ron wanted Hermione to be there.
She looked at the two of them, especially Ron, worriedly. "I'd love to, but I feel I need to stay and research a few things. They'll come in handy later, if you make it BACK at all!" Then playfully hit Ron in the ribs.
Harry and Ron passed through the crowded common room with out anyone attempting to get their attention. Once they were in the hallway, it was clear sailing. Harry pulled out his father's cloak. Then the two hid beneath it making sure their feet weren't showing. It was getting harder and harder to do as they grew up. The invisibility cloak was only made for one man.
"Let's go to the dungeons and then from the Potions classroom we can look for that hallway. I have a feeling it won't be as easy to find once we are there, as it is on the map."
"Right." Ron breathed... the whole idea of Snape being anywhere close to them was unnerving.
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As they approached the dungeons the air grew colder. It felt as if an evil, unseen force were pressing in around them.
"Fred and George weren't kidding when they said it was out of Gryffindor territory." Ron croaked lightly, feeling the presense too.
In the back of Ron's thoughts, no Gryffindor came to mind that would want to be in this situation.
"Come on!" Harry pushed forward.
Except Harry Potter. Ron sighed to himself.My best friend! If Fred and George could make it, then so can we!
They stepped by the Potions Class room, very carefully. The map read that Snape wasn't far, in his office just around the corner. Now wasn't the time to get caught, with all the sleep he'd missed, he would probably expell them on the spot or rip off pieces from the boys to brew in class the next day.
The two tip-toed closer to the door, closer and closer. They could hear pages turning from the office down the hall, as Snape finished various paperwork.
The told then on the opposite wall was a hidden door to the desired path. The door was bewitched to look like part of the damp stone walls.
Ron and Harry glanced at each other, before ron stuck out hand and very gently prodded the wall. It felt very much like the barrier to Platform Nine and three quarters, which felt like nothing much at all.
What they hadn't thought of, was the extremely nasty polterguiest that might be hiding on the other side of the door. Ron and Harry carefully pushed their way into the darkness beyond the wall, when a powerful groan greeted them. Down the hall a chair moved, presumably Snape's.
"Ah!!" Ron gasped as the pearly white figure hovered somewhere between the walls, blocking it from total view.
"Don't panic." Harry shushed him.
"That's what you always say." Ron's voice had grown weak.
"Quickly!" Harry grabbed Ron and stuffed him in a corner of the hall.
Snape had risen and looked out of his office doorway.
"Master?" He asked softly, looking around the darkness.
"POTTER?!" He shouted, hoping perhaps this was his chance to catch him in the act of raiding the Potion supplies.
Harry pressed Ron into the corner and held him there, a hand over his friends mouth. The invisibility cloak pulled tightly around them. The ghost flitted between rooms and Ssnape crept not far the other direction.
Snape's long shadow fell across the enchanted doorway. He raised an eyebrow. "Master?" He asked again. "Are you awake this evening?"
It sounded like his strength had returned. But Harry knew him to be a fake.
Snape stuck he head through the false wall and glanced about the hall.
"Master Mandragora?" Snape's voice was soft, as if he didn't wish to startle the person he was addressing.
Mandragora! Harry thought to himself and he knew Ron was thinking the same thing.
There was movement from a dark shadow not far from Harry and Ron. Harry felt Ron want to cry out but encouraged his friend to be quiet, by stuffing his hand deeper into his friends face.
Snape noticed it too, he turned his small candle to the spot, slowly. Looking into the darkness with a deep careful gaze. In this part of the dungeon there were no torches to light the way, and Snape's tiny candle flame did little to illuminate the area. He squinted at the small shadowy movement when a loud scretching cry startled all three of them.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!" It shouted and the pearly glowing figure rushed through the wall and bounced around the stone corridor, laughing and giggling.
"Damn you Peeves!!" Snape roared. It was loud enough to echo through the dungeon and startle the polterguiest in return.
"You bastard!! I'd kill you again if I could!" Snape's voice was as strong as it had ever been.
Peeves made an obscene guesture at the Potion's Master and bounced into the hallway and presumably into a the classroom laughing the entire time. Snape chased after him, a murderous gleam in his eyes and his teeth grinding sparks.
Harry finally released his friend and the two could hardly contain their laughter as the sounds of breaking glass reverberated from the Potions classroom. Snape swore and cursed. There was an occational flash of red light, from Snape's wand as he attempted to hex the ghost who was destroying his classroom.
"Oh man! Hermione doesn't know what she's missing!!"
Finally the commotion died down, leaving the pair in total darkness. Save for the occational glimmer of light, thanks to Snape.
The two tried not to laugh as his shouts were still audible.
Harry lit the lantern and consulted his map. "It says that we follow this hallway until a large statue appears on our left. Then we go right and the revolving bookshelf shouldn't be far. It doesn't look like anyone is even close to this part of the castle, except for Snape, but he's busy."
"Remind me to thank Peeves later." Ron nodded.
"Oh don't worry. I'm sure he'll make it up to us." Harry stated.
Peeves wasn't someone to run into, ever, much less when you are in a hurry.
Harry removed the cloak tossing it over his shoulder. It allowed them more freedom of movement. The two began to walk.
The walk seemed to take much longer than it looked on the map. He occationally checked it, to see if anyone was coming. The coast was clear, even Snape had returned to his office.
They walked on.
Starting to get tired, they finally saw a giant statue, that filled every inch from floor to ceiling. It was a statue of the Grim Reaper, drapped in black stone holding his scythe high.
The two stared at it. Unsure of what else to do.
"This way." Ron finally said. His turn to be the bold one.
They followed the map, and crossed under it's legs. Only a few paces ahead was a solitary bookshelf in the midst of an empty hallway.
"That's it!" Harry shouted.
They ran to it and looked over the black wooden case. The titles of the books were things like. "Great Slytherins in History" and "Gothic Art in Magical Places." But Harry's eyes rested on a book removed from the others, he reached for it instictively. The title was "Seek and Ye Shall Find."
There was a quiet squeek as the book was pulled forward. Then it reset itself. A moment later and the whole bookshelf moved sideways slightly, revealing a narrow entrance into a large dark room.
Ron and Harry paused. This was it, take it or leave it. Harry checked the map. It showed that no one was even close to them, Snape was still in his office.
"Here we go mate!" Ron grinned. The excitement built on them.
With a deep breath and lantern held high, the two gryffindors stepped into the Slytherin Portrait Room.
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Greetings readers!!
I must tell you now. You guys really do keep me going.
I love you all. Don't know what I would do without you.
11-17-02