AN: This is literally my first fanfiction. Don't expect high quality content because I certainly don't. In the future I will probably read this and think it is a piece of garbage. But right now, I am proud of it. Therefore, advice is not only allowed but encouraged. I shall also warn you, I am going to change most canon events, so don't expect the timeline to be precise.
On a happier note, please join the Haphne server! Link: discord dot gg/pKSdvJQvhU
We do several weekly activities such as a discussion club, Care of Magical Creatures lessons and our own movie/anime club!
1st of September 1993, King's Cross Station
Harry was entering the Hogwarts' Express. He had managed to get there an hour before departure, and he had quickly stored his trunk and Hedwig's cage. (Hedwig herself was flying all the way to Hogwarts).
Realising he was one of the first ones there, Harry decided to claim a compartment for him and his friends. Since he was able to choose almost freely, Harry went all the way back to the last compartment of the last car.
Entering the compartment, Harry realised he wasn't the only occupant. There was a man in shabby clothes sleeping in it, and he seemed to be exhausted. Looking closely at the suitcase, Harry noticed it read Professor R. J. Lupin on it. 'This must be the new DADA professor' Harry thought. He instantly moved away, remembering his past experiences with the previous DADA teachers.
Making the least amount of sound possible, Harry sat down and started reading the Monster Book of Monsters (Turns out that once it was tamed, it made both an interesting read and a loyal pet).
Immersed in his lecture, Harry didn't realise it was time to leave until Ron and Hermione entered the compartment. At that point they started the usual conversation about Weasley tardiness, and how had they managed to always get to Hogwarts on time somehow.
After a while, Harry and Ron decided to start a chess game (Harry wanted to try to not make an embarrassment out of himself) while Hermione started reading her new Arithmancy textbook (probably for the third time).
Meanwhile, the sky had become clouded. The temperature outside dropped significantly, and suddenly; the first lightning appeared. That marked the beginning of a thunderstorm, with the rain hitting the window mercilessly.
At one point, when they were around halfway across the trip, the train came to a sudden halt.
The air seemed to become a lot colder, and sad thoughts started filling Harry's mind. Looking around, he noticed that the glass at the window was slowly freezing, and everyone else was shivering.
Suddenly, Neville barged into the compartment, accompanied by Ginny:
"Do you feel it too? What is happening here?" Neville asked.
"Sit down please. We will figure it out soon." Professor Lupin was finally awake, and he intervened for the first time.
Just after those words were said, it happened. A figure appeared all of a sudden and opened the compartment.
The cold feeling and the hopelessness intensified. Harry began hearing a woman yelling. Who was she?
He wasn't able to think much about it, because he was busy fainting.
…
…
….
"What happened?" Harry asked.
"You fainted after being exposed to a dementor Harry." Lupin answered.
"A dementor? You mean that cloaked figure that seemed to freeze everything?"
"Exactly. It tries to suck all the happiness from the people around it, until they only have their most horrible memories…" Neville answered shivering.
"Harry, are you alright?" Professor Lupin asked.
"Yeah, I believe so… How is she?" He countered.
"We are fine, thanks Harry." Hermione and Ginny replied.
"I am glad to hear that, but I was not referring to you, Hermione. How is the woman?"
"Woman? Hermione and Ginny are the only girls in here mate." Ron answered.
"But I heard a voice? She was screaming…"
"Maybe you just imagined it?" Hermione suggested. "Unless there is a snake of some sort around here?"
Professor Lupin's interest piqued at this last question, he seemed eager to ask, but he was holding back for some reason.
"Believe me Hermione, if I knew there was one here, I would have already told you."
Professor Lupin cleared his throat, interrupting them:
"If you will excuse me, I have to go and speak with the driver about this." He then unwrapped a piece of chocolate, and handed it to Harry:
"Eat it. It will make you feel better." With that, he left the compartment.
"What do you think about him?" Ron asked.
"I don't know, I get the feeling as if I knew him from somewhere…" Harry replied. "But he seems a lot more competent than Lockhart, does he?"
Hogsmeade station, a couple of hours later…
As soon as Harry stepped on the platform, he was greeted by the figure of Professor McGonagall. She seemed quite worried, until she looked him in the eyes.
"I am glad to see that you are fine Mister Potter. I received news about what happened at the Express, and I was worried about you."
Before she could say anything else, Ron and Hermione joined them.
"Well, that is perfect. Miss Granger, I will need you to join me and Mr. Potter on our way to the castle. There are important things we need to discuss. Don't worry Mr. Weasley. Both of them will be able to join you for the sorting and the following feast."
Harry had just gone through one of Madame Pomfrey's evaluations.
After deeming him 'in adequate health' he had been freed from her care, just after hearing her praising Professor Lupin for 'knowing the correct procedures'.
Harry was on his way to the Great Hall, when he was joined by Hermione:
"Everything is good? Madame Pomfrey set you free right?" she asked.
Harry was not paying a lot of attention though. He was busy looking at the golden chain hanging from Hermione's neck. 'Has she always had a pendant and I never noticed? Maybe it was a present from her parents, and she has only worn it for a while?'
She noticed his look, and she hid said pendant. "Harry, are you alright? Is everything okay?"
"Sorry Hermione. I just distracted myself."
"To all of our first-year students, welcome to Hogwarts!" Dumbledore announced. "And to everyone else, I welcome you again!" Dumbledore was in the middle of his inauguration speech, and Harry didn't want to miss anything. He hadn't been able to pay full attention to the Sorting, but fortunately, there wasn't anyone Harry needed to pay full attention to.
"I am very glad to have you here, for what is going to be a special year!" Dumbledore didn't seem to be very cheerful saying that though.
"Unfortunately, I have to give a very important warning. This year, due to the Minister's orders, some of Azkaban's dementors will be patrolling around the castle grounds. Sirius Black is on the loose, and they are here in order to capture him." Students started muttering between them, and some of them shivered, remembering what happened at the train.
"I must warn you to stay as far away from them as possible, and most importantly, to never anger them. Dementors don't understand reasoning, and they can see through misguided attempts such as disguise, even invisibility cloaks. I would recommend most of your time inside these walls, especially at night."
The students started commenting on that as well. It was a very similar warning to the one they received the previous year… Would they have a regular year at Hogwarts?
"Moving on to happier news, this year we will be having two new incorporations at our staff table!"
This was an important piece of information. They already knew about Professor Lupin, but who was the other one? Looking at the staff table, Harry noticed an anomaly. 'How did he manage that?'
"Once again, we have a new face teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts. Due to unfortunate circumstances, Professor Lockhart won't be able to join us anytime soon."
There was a big celebration at that statement, specially from the male population. Even amongst the teachers, signs of relief could be seen around the staff table.
"For this reason, I am glad to present to you Professor Remus Lupin, who will be joining us for the upcoming year!"
A polite applause was heard around the Hall. Malfoy was laughing at something with his goons, while the other Slytherins seemed intrigued. Dumbledore continued:
"But he is not the only one to join us. After decades of service, Professor Kettleburn retired this summer, to enjoy the limbs he still has. For that reason, I am proud to present to you Professor Rubeus Hagrid, who will take over Care of Magical Creatures from now on!"
There was a huge applause at the hall, mainly in the Gryffindor section.
"We should have seen it coming." Ron said. "Who else would order a book that bites?"
Harry was very happy for his big friend. He knew Hagrid had a talent for creatures (even if it was the lethal ones) and he was pretty sure there would be a lot to learn.
After that, they were finally able to eat, and Harry couldn't stop himself thinking about what this year would have for him.
2nd of September 1993, Divination classroom
Harry and his friends had found their way to the divination class. It had been a bit of a struggle, but with some help of Sir Cadogan (the crazy knight knew the castle quite well) they were able to make it on time.
Professor Trelawney had begun an introductory speech about her subject, and she had been received with mixed reactions. On the one hand, there was the 'believers' led by Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil. On the other hand, there were the 'sceptical' led by Hermione, to the surprise of no one.
Professor Trelawney had them started by doing some predictions with tea leaves. Harry was doing it with Ron, and each of them had to try and read the other one's cup. (Professor Trelawney had already predicted that Neville would drop his cup somehow.)
Ron seemed to be struggling with Harry's cup, so Harry decided he should go first:
"Let's see what we have here…" The room's smell didn't allow him to concentrate easily.
"This looks like a distorted cross." Harry looked at the book, and found the definition:
"Looks like will go through several struggles and suffering… Sorry about that." He glanced at the cup again, and continued:
"On the bright side though, you have a sun, that means happiness… So, you are going to struggle for a while, but everything will turn out well in the end?" Harry tried.
"That could have gone better." Ron said. "Let's check yours!" Harry was a little bit scared. If Ron's was like that, what would his cup have?
"This right here looks like an acorn… You will receive unexpected gold, as if fallen from heaven… That is quite good!" Harry didn't need much gold, but he wasn't going to complain.
"This is different… It looks like an eagle. You have a mortal enemy. But that is not really surprising, is it? Everyone knows about You-Know-Who." Harry had to agree with Ron. Divination seemed to be going alright, but it was nothing too useful. He should have to try and dissuade his friends from saying You-Know-Who though.
At this point though, they were interrupted by Professor Trelawney, who seemed very intrigued by Harry's cup.
"Could you give me that to me dear?" She asked Ron. He complied instantly, and the Professor started interpreting.
"There is a club… Meaning an attack. And a skull… There's danger awaiting in your path, Mr. Potter…"
"Everyone knows that!" Hermione said. Ron and Harry were quite surprised by her intervention, considering her respect towards the faculty.
"He was attacked yesterday, and the dementors are hanging out outside! They are not at Harry's path; they are at everyone's path!"
Professor Trelawney refused to answer to Hermione's statement. Instead, she decided to continue interpreting Harry's cup. Something wasn't good in it, because she paled suddenly.
"My boy… You have the Grim."
Harry didn't know what that was, but it didn't seem to be anything good. Dean Thomas was looking at him sadly, and Lavender Brown seemed distressed as well. Ron was very pale, and refused to meet his eyes.
"What is it, Professor?" Harry asked.
"What is the Grim?" She spoke. "It is a giant black dog, who hangs around the cemeteries! It is an omen, the worst omen possible… It is the omen of death!"
Half an hour later, at the Transfiguration classroom
Professor McGonagall was evaluating her students. Something was bothering them, and it had to be something BIG. She hadn't even gotten a reaction after transforming from cat to human! She needed to get to the bottom of this situation.
"Alright students, can someone stand up and say what happened?"
To no one's surprise it was Miss Granger who decided to speak up.
"Well Professor, we have just arrived from the Divination class…"
Minerva didn't need to know anything else.
"That is all right Miss Granger. Who is going to die this year?"
Unsurprisingly, it was Mr. Potter who stood up.
"It is supposed to be me Professor." Seeing everyone's faces, Minerva decided to calm them down.
"Do not worry Mr. Potter. Professor Trelawney has predicted a student's death every year since she joined us more than a decade ago. And I can verify that all of them are alive and well.
So are you, in fact. And that's why I will also expect your essay for next week. If you actually die, you won't have to hand it in."
That got a laugh from her students. Hopefully today they could still learn something.
That afternoon, at the Hogwarts Grounds…
The third-year students studying Care of Magical Creatures moved towards Hagrid's Hut, at the edge of the forbidden forest. They had been ordered to go there by their Heads of House due to the Professor's desire to have 'an interesting first lesson'.
Once they were all there, they were received by a jubilant Hagrid:
"Good afternoon, everyone! I am glad to welcome you to Care of Magical Creatures! If you can follow me now, please, we will have our first lesson!"
Harry and his friends looked at each other nervously. They weren't going to the Forbidden Forest again, were they? They had already visited more than enough for a lifetime…
They weren't able to see the other students muttering amongst themselves, nor Draco Malfoy's face, even paler than usual.
Fortunately, they were just going around the forest, not into it. They eventually made it to a field, with a fence around it.
"Get close and open your books! Make sure to have a nice view!"
"How are we even supposed to do that? I almost lost a nail fighting my book!" Malfoy complained.
"Maybe you should try harder. The rest of your classmates don't seem to have that issue." Hagrid answered.
And looking around, Harry realised it was true. Only Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle had been unable to do so. Daphne seemed very smug after realising that as well…
"That was supposed to be your first lesson in the subject." Hagrid continued.
"As long as you approach them with caution, and treat them with respect, you should have no problem with magical creatures, unless they are truly dangerous. There is no danger of finding a dragon or something like that here though…" This last statement had a little bit of sadness in it. He hadn't been able to forget Norbert…
"Students: go to page 43, since today we will be studying Hippogriffs! While you do that, I will bring one of the tame ones here, so we can have a first contact with them." With that, Hagrid left, not before picking a couple of dead ferrets he had hanging outside.
"You are happy about the hippogriffs aren't you, Potter? It would be a different matter if it were dementors…" Malfoy said.
Harry was about to retort, but he was stopped by Hermione, who was tugging at his arm.
"But again, it does not surprise me… We all know how scared of them you are!" Malfoy exclaimed.
"Yeah, but you are no better!" Ron intervened. "After all, you are scared of Harry!"
"Me, scared of Potter? That's the first good joke you've ever said Weasley!" The blonde boy replied.
"Then why didn't you turn up? If you weren't scared of Harry, you would have duelled him in first year right?" Ron asked.
Malfoy began turning to an interesting shade of red. Whispering could also be heard around the other students. But before anyone else could say anything, Hagrid arrived:
"I am finally back. Say hi to Buckbeak!"
Harry was greeted by the most bizarre creature he had ever encountered. It looked as if someone had gotten all the pieces of a horse and an eagle, and just started picking random parts.
"This may be a little advanced for you, but you should be able to handle it. Remember to show the respect and caution required. Hippogriffs are very proud creatures. You should never, NEVER insult them, or offend them in any form. They will take offense easily and attack you. If you look at their talons, an attack with those could make you lose a limb or kill you!"
Harry was very glad he hadn't voiced his thoughts out loud. Last thing he needed was to be killed by a creature on his first day. Unfortunately, Malfoy didn't seem to think the same. Harry heard him whispering about 'giant idiotic chickens' and 'brainless creatures'. Buckbeak seemed to hear it too…
Hagrid continued with his explanation:
"Now that you know the most important bits, let's see how we approach one. It is vital to always look at them in the eyes. Try not to blink, and most importantly NEVER give your back to them. This is a sign of weakness for them. While looking at them, you will bow to them bending your spine. When they bow back to you, you will be able to touch them. If they don't… It's better to walk backwards and stay away… Who wants to give it a try?"
No one seemed brave enough to try it at first. In fact, all of them gave a step backwards. All except for Harry, who could now see what was going on:
"Nice lad Harry! Come here with Buckbeak! Let's see how you do it!"
Harry approached Buckbeak slowly, never missing his eyes. Once the hippogriff's attention was finally on him, Harry bowed. He waited, and waited, and waited…
And just as Harry was beginning to think about walking away, Buckbeak bowed back to him. Hagrid then encouraged Harry to get closer, and Harry was allowed to pet Buckbeak on the head. 'He seems to appreciate it. What if I try petting him like Hedwig?' Harry then started to pet Buckbeak's feathers, and considering his gurgling noises, Harry thought he was doing alright.
"Well done, Harry!" Hagrid cheered. "Since he seems to have taken a liking to you, he will surely allow you to fly with him!"
"Wait what?!" But Harry was not able to say anything else, because before he could react, he had been dropped on Buckbeak's back, and the hippogriff began sprinting to take flight.
'Flying on a hippogriff is a completely different experience' Harry thought. It was not as fast nor comfortable as his Nimbus, but it had a very nice feeling to it. It was much more relaxing, and the wing movement gave a soothing feeling…
Unfortunately for Harry, his flight was ended just as he was finally enjoying it fully. Hagrid then proceeded to bring some more hippogriffs, and the students seemed to be enticed by Harry's success. Soon enough, the hippogriffs were receiving lots of attention by the students, and despite some tense rejections, the class seemed to be going quite well.
However, this changed very quickly. Draco Malfoy was rapidly approaching Buckbeak, and he didn't bother applying Hagrid's advice. Sensing trouble, Harry started rushing to them, with Hagrid chasing him.
"You cannot hurt anyone can you, you great ugly brute?! You are way too dumb to even think about it!"
Buckbeak didn't appreciate Malfoy's comment, and he quickly rose his talons. Seeing what was coming, Harry quickly pushed the idiot away. He wasn't able to get away from Buckbeak though. He hit Harry's arm, and Harry fell to the floor in pain. Hagrid rapidly calmed down Buckbeak, and he began tearing Malfoy a new one:
"MALFOY! What do you think you were doing? I gave very specific orders about approaching a hippogriff! But you believed yourself better, didn't you?! If it weren't for Harry here, you could have been badly hurt! You could have gotten someone else hurt as well!"
Malfoy seemed to be stuttering nonsense, and Hagrid continued with his tirade:
"You will lose a hundred points to Slytherin, and you will spend an entire month of detention with Filch! All of this for not obeying a teacher's orders!"
"But… my father…" Malfoy tried.
"Don't even go there Malfoy! He tried to send me to Azkaban last year… Didn't work out well for him, did it? Dumbledore is back in the castle, I have been promoted, and he no longer has influence here! So, stop mumbling and leave on your own!"
The rest of the students were now openly gaping at Hagrid. Despite his friendly character, they had always felt a little bit intimidated by his size. This was the first time they had seen him truly angry at someone, and it was quite frightening. In fact, all of them would agree to listen well and behave properly, if only to avoid another outburst from him.
Hagrid changed his focus from the retreating Malfoy to Harry.
"Harry are you alright? Can you hear me well?"
"Oomph. Yeah, I am mostly okay, but my arm hurts quite a bit. I believe it might be broken…"
Hagrid examined him quickly, and soon realised it was true.
"You may be right. Ron, Hermione. Can I trust you to accompany Harry to the hospital wing? There are a few things I have to arrange here…"
They looked at each other, and they answered positively at Hagrid. Soon enough, Harry was being dragged by his friends towards the castle. Meanwhile, Hagrid was busy dismissing the class.
A few minutes later, at the hospital wing…
"What have you done Mr. Potter?"
"I have been hit by a hippogriff Madame Pomfrey."
"And you have been hit on your right arm I guess?"
"That is correct Madame Pomfrey."
"Good, good. Now if you could stand up, please, I am going to do a full medical check-up on you."
"Wait, what? But I've only been hit on my arm!" Harry pleaded.
"That may be true, but you've managed to come here twice the first two days of the term, and I don't trust you to hide something from me. You will not be escaping from the potions Mr. Potter."
She then glanced at Ron and Hermione, and said:
"You can leave if you want, I can take care of him. Good job bringing him here so fast. Make sure to do that again in the future, if necessary."
Ron looked as if he wanted to stay, but a look from Hermione was enough persuasion to make him leave. They were closing the door, when Harry overheard part of an argument:
"Come on Ron. You may get an early start on homework this year. Merlin knows I already have a lot of work from Arithmancy…"
"What are you talking about? You haven't even been to Arithmancy yet!"
Closing the door, Madame Pomfrey gave her full attention to Harry once again. After doing her full check-up, she determined that the only thing wrong with Harry was his right arm (again). Much to Harry's relief, he wouldn't need any skele gro …
Just as soon as she had healed his arm, the door of the infirmary was opened again:
"Excuse me Madame, but where is the idiot?" Daphne had just entered the room and was openly glaring at him. Pansy and Tracey were standing behind her, with an amused look in their eyes. 'Traitors'.
"You must be referring to Mr. Potter I suppose? I am already finished with him. Just make sure I don't need to patch him up again today." 'Another traitor' Harry thought.
"What did I tell you?" Daphne asked.
"To think before I act?" Harry countered.
"Good. And what the hell were you actually thinking?!"
"That I didn't want Hagrid fired?" Harry tried.
"AND YOU THOUGHT PUTTING YOURSELF IN FRONT OF A HIPPOGRIFF WAS A GOOD IDEA?"
And before Harry was able to react, she smacked him on the left arm.
"Ouch! That was my good arm, woman!" Harry protested.
"Good. This time you thought before you acted, but you should act less and think more!"
She then proceeded to leave, while Pansy and Tracey winked at him. Madame Pomfrey was glaring at him though.
"Can I at least get some bruise balm for that one?" Harry said, with his best puppy eyes.
"No. I think you actually deserved that one."
A long care of magical creatures' class, I know. But I wanted to make a point. Do you believe Hagrid would be so careless around creatures after second year? He got arrested because of one after all (even if Aragog didn't attack anyone). Even then, after his stint in Azkaban, and dealing with the Dementors, I believe Hagrid would realise that some creatures are not 'misunderstood', and they can be dangerous even to the strongest individuals.
So yeah, I will have a more 'aware' Hagrid in this story. I believe not much is done with him in fanfiction anyway… So might as well have him as a good teacher.
Sorry for the tirade. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and don't forget to follow for more!