The Professor to Top All Professors
"Expecto Patronum"
by V. C. (Velvet Curtain)
Words: approx. 2900
Microsoft Word Web Pages (Verdana, 9): 2
Rating: PG, but possibly PG-13 in later chapters.
Reasons: Serious romantic relationships, drama, tragedy, violence
Relationships: Harry/Ginny, Ron/Hermione, James/Lily
Summary: The Purity War is over. A long time ago, Minerva McGonagall (now Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry) and Albus Dumbledore (deceased, former Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry) agreed and arranged for Harry Potter (The-Boy-Who-Lived and The-Man-Who-Conquered) to take a break from the disaster that is their world. Together, they created a device that will send Harry back in time to not only educate and mentor his parents, but to discover things about the past and insure that the future remains in tact.
Disclaimer: If I owned this, I would not be writing this.
xoxoxo
Harry's second lesson with the seventh years was no less interesting than the first. However, as many personal questions as he answered that day, he discussed his past no more than he possibly could. All of the talk of his past was beginning to give him the shivers, and only persisted in making himself more homesick. The students seemed to sense that and backed off after the first few questions, allowing Harry to start the lesson.
"Well, I believe you already know the importance of N.E.W.T.s, as I'm assuming that all of your other teachers have lectured you on it, I don't feel that I need to be quite so redundant," he began, leaning forward on his desk and staring down the class, who were completely silent and seemed to be in awe of their professor. Harry bit back a resigned sigh and continued, uncomfortably aware of their admiring attention. "To be quite honest, I don't care about getting you past your N.E.W.T.s, though I'm afraid that will be part of the course. There are many, many dangers that await you once you leave Hogwarts, and my job is to make sure that you can defend yourself from them. Your work and diligence in this class could very well save your life when you don't have the safe walls of Hogwarts to protect you anymore." The class stared at him, every one of them deathly still and deadly serious. "Now, most of my lessons will be practical, because I think that's what matters. Practicing what you learn implants it firmly into your mind. You need to be able to remember instances in which you used a certain spell or maneuver. I want you to be able to associate what you learn in this class with what you will face outside of school, so that when you need to use it, you will be able to recall how to do so and when it is effective. That's far too abstract for now, though, so let's stick with today's lesson, shall we?"
Harry stepped out from behind his desk to face the class, pulling his wand out of his back pocket. He grinned as he did this, remembering what Moody had said the summer before his fifth year about never doing that. That was one thing that Harry ignored when it came to the paranoid Auror.
"Now, today we will be covering patronuses," he announced calmly, holding back his laughter at their excited faces. "Don't get too excited now. The Patronus Charm is very challenging, and many skilled wizards have difficulty with producing one, much less a corporeal one. I do not expect any of you to be able to get anything more than smoke in the the length of this class- possibly never a corporeal one, so I beg of you not to get your hopes up. Now, the incantation is expecto patronum. Remember that: expecto patronum. Be sure to pronounce it correctly and say it clearly. Can anyone tell me how the Patronus Charm works? Miss Evans?"
"The Patronus Charm is very complex. You have to concentrate on the happiest memory you have, but it has to be strong- really strong, or else it won't work. A patronus is a positive force that you can summon by the incantation and it acts a defender and guard against things like dementors," said Lily knowingly, an excited smile on her face. Harry grinned at his mother's anticipation and nodded.
"Correct, Miss Evans. Five points to Gryffindor," said Harry. Lily beamed, and so did James, making Harry smirk. "Now, I'll ask you all to stand up and take out your wands." They did so, and Harry quickly stacked the desks along one wall of the room, with all of their bags along another wall. The students grouped in the middle of the room, but Harry quickly shook his head. "No, no, no. Spread out, please. I want all of you to select the happiest, strongest memory you can possibly think of and concentrate solely on that one memory. Though I would suggest repeating the incantation until you can say it correctly. We'll spend the rest of the class period working on our patronuses, and I'll walk around and give you pointers. Any questions before we get started? Yes, Miss Parks?"
"Sir, would you show us your patronus? Please?" she requested earnestly. Harry looked over the sea of faces and smiled.
"Of course, Miss Parks," he agreed. He closed his eyes for a second, remembering the happiest memory he could find: the first time he kissed Ginny. With a ridiculous grin on his face, Harry opened his eyes and murmered, "Expecto Patronum." A silvery stag slid regally from the end of his wand and immediately turned to Harry, sensing no harm. Harry smiled and ran his hand down the neck of his guardian, trying not to laugh at the looks of intense awe on the faces of his students. "Mind," he said, sensing the hopeful fascination, "it takes a very, very strong memory to produce a patronus such as my own, not to mention practice and skill. There are few wizards who can produce a corporeal patronus for more than a second, me being one of those lucky few. A patronus comes only to people who have passionate feelings about the memory that they choose, whether it be a particularly abnormal event or not. My happiest memory used to be that of my parents, even though I didn't remember them. I had memories from when I was a baby, even though I wasn't sure they were real, and for a long time, that was how my patronus arrived. I had no particular memory about them- just images, thoughts, pictures, emotions, and that was all I needed."
"Sir," said Lily, raising her hand hesitantly, "if that used to be your memory, which memory did you replace it with? How did you know that it was stronger?"
Harry grinned wryly at the question. He should have been expecting that one.
"Well, Miss Evans, the memory I replaced with that of my parents was the very first time I kissed Ginny, my girlfriend, as you all know. As of yet, that remains the strongest, most passionate, positive moment of my life. How did I know it was stronger? The image in my mind was much clearer, and when I thought about the kiss I could feel the exact same emotions that I had on that day. I could remember every small detail of that day- down to which shoes I was wearing- which happened to be these- and whenever I thought about it all I wanted was for it to happen all over again. It is sometimes hard to discern between what it a great memory and what is your best memory, but I assure you, you'll get better at it. The first time I tried the patronus, in third year, the first happy memory I thought of was my first ride on a broomstick. That wasn't nearly strong enough, and the boggart dementor I was up against made me pass out. When I was near dementors, I could hear Voldemort murdering my parents, their screams, them pleading for each other's lives, and since I had never met them, I rather wanted to hear their voices. I had doubt as to whether or not I really wanted to get rid of the dementor, because I wanted to hear my parents. I advise you to have absolutely no doubts about what you are doing. It is a difficult spell as it is, but doubting yourself only makes it a hundred times harder. Remember that. It is true in every situation. Any other questions? Mr. Lupin?"
"Will we be able to try it against a dementor? If we can get it, that is?" he questioned anxiously, his face pale and his eyes worried.
"It is a possibility," replied Harry softly, running a hand through his hair that he had let out of its ponytail. "However, I may limit it to only a few, excellent students who have already shown that they can handle such a thing. It is one thing to be able to produce a patronus; all of the Defense Association could produce a corporeal patronus when I taught them, but facing a dementor is another matter completely. That, however, is a good idea, Mr. Lupin. Two points to Gryffindor for the suggestion. Any others? You sure? Alright then, let's get started! Remember, that's expecto patronum. Off you go."
The class stood silently for a moment, many closing their eyes and others staring off into space, trying to think of their happiest memory. While they did so, Harry took this time to observe his students whilst they were unaware of his gaze. Most specifically, his parents and their friends.
Lily, in all of her radiancy, was staring out the window unseeingly, her emerald eyes unfocused and searching. The sunlight was shining on her red hair, causing it to light up as though on fire, and somewhat reminding him of Ginny. A small smile crossed her face as she remembered something, and her gaze drifted across the room and landed on….James?
/ "She started going out with him in seventh year, once he deflated his head a little."/
Ah, so he was about to see the beginning of his parents' relationship. How delightful. Harry took a moment to study his father. His father, who had been staring at Lily, turned his head away in obvious embarrassment when she looked at him, blushing a little and running a hand through his hair. It seemed he had already found his happy memory, and was letting his mind wander, obviously not wanting to be the first one to try the spell.
Sirius, Remus and Peter were all deep in thought, brows furrowed and eyes closed, an occasional smile flitting across their faces. Harry could tell that they were holding back laughter a few times, as they obviously remembered a prank or something likewise. But Harry found his gaze returning to his parents again, smiling to himself. Using his Auror skills in sneaking, Harry approached the two and gently laid a hand on each of their shoudlers, causing them to jump.
"I see that you two already have your memories," he murmered quietly to them, so as not to disturb the others. "How about giving it a shot, eh?"
James nodded, as did Lily, and both of them blushed heavily. Harry only smiled endearingly as he watched them prepare, taking deep breaths in harmony and raising their wands to the exact same level, murmering the incantation under their breath in unison, and both with their eyes closed. Then, at the same time, James and Lily opened their eyes, raised their wand higher, and proclaimed in clear, loud voices at the same time, "Expecto Patronum!" The silver light from their wands mixed when the beams hit each other, melting into the other's light and rather suddenly forming a big, shaggy dog that looked rather like the grim. Its form was very clear, and it sat down between the two Head students, eagerly wagging its tail and panting at them, obviously begging for attention. Lily and James obliged, both kneeling beside the silver animal and petting it until it faded away into nothingness. Harry watched them, his eyes wide. The other students were watching as well.
"You two, see me after class," he whispered softly, unable to hold back the touch of awe in his voice. They exchanged confused glances but nodded and set back to doing their separate patronuses, occasionally sneaking glances at the other one and helping the other students produce their guardians.
When class dismissed, Lily and James made their excuses to their friends and approached Harry's desk, where he was sitting with his face buried his hands, elbows resting on the desk.
"Sit down, please," instructed Harry distractedly, conjuring up chairs for the two of them with a wave of his wand. They sat, as told, and waited patiently for Professor Patterson to speak, both looking rather nervous, but neither wanting to interrupt his thoughts. Finally, Harry sighed, leaning back in his chair and studying his parents carefully.
"I don't think that either of you realize the amount of power that you displayed in class today," he told them, leaning forward on his desk to look both of them in the eye seriously. "You are both very talented and very powerful, one of the reasons Professor Dumbledore chose the two of you as Head Boy and Head Girl respectively. Separate, you are both very magical, but together, you could be perhaps even greater than Merlin himself. I have never upon my life heard of patroni connecting like that. It has been written of in a few old scribes, long since forgotten by many wizards, but according to those scripts, the combination of your patroni should have created a mixed version of your patroni- rather like a centaur, if, say, one of yours was a horse and the other a man. Do you see what I'm trying to say? James, Lily, you have the same patronus. I don't know if you realized it, but before you actually called your patroni, you were doing exactly the same thing at exactly the same time in exactly the same manner. It was like a mirror image. I will tell Professor Dumbledore about this, as well as Professor McGonagall, as they are in the best position to make any moves right now towards developing your powers. However, I would like to impress upon you the importance of spending time together, honing your skills. I'd like you to do your homework together, practice dueling with each other, challenge each other in your work, as well as get to know each other on a personal level. The connection between you two is strong- stronger than I've ever seen, and I have seen many things. Will you do this for me?"
James and Lily were gaping at Harry in disbelief, but they both nodded their heads slowly. Ironically, in unison as well.
"Yes, sir," they chorused, eyes wide, but obviously excited about this new prospect.
"Good, good," Harry grinned, standing and motioning for them to do so as well. "What's your next class?"
"Transfiguration," replied Lily instantly. Harry groaned and winced.
"Lovely. McGonagall will have my hide for keeping you two. Come on, then," he decided. He followed his students out the door, shutting it carefully behind him. "Lily, would you mind running ahead a ways and checking the corridor? I overheard something the other day about Peeves and a chandelier that I'd rather not risk."
"Of course, Professor," she agreed hastily, dashing down the corridor ahead of them. Once she was out of ear-shot, Harry spoke to James.
"She's falling for you," he stated clearly and as directly as though he was telling him that McGonagall would be angry with them for being late. "She looks at you in class when she thinks no one notices. You work well together, James. Don't let this opportunity go to waste."
"All clear!" Lily called down the hall, cutting off whatever James was about to say. Harry grinned and quickly caught up with the girl.
"Thank you, Lily," he thanked her with a grin. Then he leaned down and whispered in her ear, "And do take advantage of this opportunity. If he asks you out again, please say yes, or else all my observing will have been for nothing."
Before Lily or James had a change to respond to the professor's matchmaking attempts, they were being ushered in McGonagall's room. Harry whispered the story in her ear, earning himself a calculating but approving look.
"Very well, then," she replied tightly, her thin lips pursed tightly. "I shall speak with you later. Thank you, Harry."
"Thank you, Professor McGonagall," Harry smiled, though it didn't quite reach his eyes. He strode out of the room, winking at James and Lily, who were sitting next to each other, as he left. He shut the doors behind himself and leaned against them, eyes closed in thought. With a long and heavy sigh, Harry stood up straight and set off down the hall, hoping that Albus was in his office.
xoxoxo
"You acted well, Harry, very well. Your judgement was best. I do believe that the advice you gave them is the only way for them to … realize their powers and … their … connections."
"Is there nothing we can do to help them along, Albus?"
"All we can do is keep them together as much as we can and encourage them. I am afraid that is all."
"Very well, then. I have a class to attend to in ten minutes. Good afternoon, Albus, Harry."
"Good afternoon, Minerva."
"See you at supper."
"Do you know when your girlfriend is coming, Harry?"
"I haven't got a clue, Albus. She was still at her father's home with Hermione when I left- she said she'd come within the hour, or in our view, the month."
"Very well then. Shall I see you at supper?"
"Possibly. I was intending upon practising my swordplay tonight, so that I don't get rusty, but I might stop by for a quick snack."
"Of course, of course. Until then, Harry."
"Until then, Albus."
xoxoxo
A/N: Hey guys! I know it's a pretty bad chapter compared to the last one (Harry's a bit OOC and there's too much dialogue), but it's just a filler. This is just the beginning of many other things. Any predictions?
Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed! It was honestly really encouraging. I hope I can get a better chapter up before I leave on vacation, but I make no guaruntees.
I did pass Biology AND Geometry (barely), so I am going on to tenth grade! Also, the catscan came back normal so I went to a neurologist and I have more medicine (though it hasn't started working yet) and an appointment with an opthemologist to see if there's something wrong with some disc behind my eye. Thanks for all your prayers! Hopefully I can beat this and give you guys better quality writing and longer chapters. Thanks again!
VC
