Harry's test flight of the Firebolt had gone off without a hitch and soon after, Ron had taken a turn on it as well. The two of them came back into the Common Room practically drooling over it. Ron walked up to their dormitory to put it away, holding it as though the slightest amount of pressure may snap it as Harry turned to the duo.

'Thanks Y/N. The teachers were nervous at first, but once I was soaring around the pitch, they all seemed to relax. McGonagall looked as though she could cry, then she made me promise that we'd beat Slytherin.'

'Haven't lost to them yet, certainly don't intend to now. But I appreciate you listening to my precautions, Harry. You know we're just trying to keep you safe.'

'Yeah, of course,' said Harry, 'I appreciate you both looking out for me.' He then leant forward and spoke in a whisper, glancing towards the dormitory door. 'Should have heard Ron the moment we started heading down. Couldn't believe you two would just do that in the Great Hall. He still hasn't got a clue.'

'Let him stay that way,' said Y/N, hooking an arm around Hermione so her head fell down to rest on his shoulder. 'If he's too dense to put two and two together, then I'm not going to do it for him.'

Following the quiet Christmas evening spent by the fire, the duo retired to their rooms and Y/N felt elated. It had been his favourite Christmas ever.

The rest of the Christmas holidays passed by quietly for Y/N and Hermione. They spent most of their time in the library either revising for classes or attempting to dig up more to help Hagrid's case for Buckbeak. Y/N had finished his list of students to ask for testimonies and Hermione had uncovered some old cases of Hippogriffs who were declared innocent owing to the stupidity of those who crossed them.

It was so relaxing to both of them that it wasn't until the red- and blonde-haired girls dropped into the seats across from them that they realised it was nearing the start of term.

'Hiya Gin,' said Y/N brightly, 'Hiya Luna. Did you both have a good Christmas?'

'It was wonderful,' said Luna in her usual dreamy voice. 'Daddy invited a lot of the long-distance family around and it was wonderful seeing everyone again.'

'And you'd be surprised how much louder Fred and George seem when it's pretty much just you and them all holidays,' said Ginny. 'They did show me the sweater mum made for Hermione though.'

Hermione blushed, but smirked.

'I'm sure they thought it would embarrass me.'

'And did it?' asked Ginny, eyebrows raised.

'She wore it through all of Christmas dinner and kissed me under Mistletoe in front of Harry, your brother, a couple of first years and several of the teachers. So no, not really,' said Y/N.

'Awww, that's sweet,' said Luna whilst Ginny stuffed her fist in her mouth to smother her laughter.

'It suits you,' said Y/N, nodding to the necklace of a ruby red lion emblazoned on a backdrop of gold hung around Ginny's neck. 'I was hoping it would.'

'It's beautiful. I almost cried when I unwrapped it,' she said, looking down at it fondly. 'Thank you Y/N.'

But Y/N simply waved his hand in a non-committal way.

'How about you two?' asked Luna. 'How were your holidays?'

'Quiet,' said Y/N, 'Almost killed your brother a couple of times. Swear if he has a go at 'Mione one more time, I'm going to snap. And Harry got a Firebolt off an anonymous sender. I checked it over for curses and jinxes before he rode it, but all seems okay. He's been fawning over it ever since.'

'I swear, if it wasn't for you two, they'd have gotten themselves killed,' sighed Ginny as she pulled one of the pieces of parchment towards her. 'What's all this anyway?'

Y/N gave them a quick rundown of the Care of Magical Creatures lesson for Hippogriffs and the resulting incident with Malfoy, then of the conversation with Hagrid in his hut.

'Those Malfoy's will get what's coming to them eventually,' snarled Ginny. She'd become quite good friends with Hagrid the year prior, having gone to visit him on several occasions. Even if it had simply been the heir using it as an excuse to get near the roosters.

'I just hope I'm the one to do it,' said Y/N with a sigh, 'But yeah, we're basically trying to gather up what information we can to help Hagrid's case for Buckbeak.'

'I may be able to ask some people from my house what they think,' said Luna airily. 'I know a few of them have been speaking about Professor Hagrid's classes.'

'So weird hearing him called Professor Hagrid,' said Y/N, 'But anything you can supply would be wonderful Luna, thank you.'

Luna smiled happily and began drifting slowly side to side with her eyes closed, quite in her own world. The other three all exchanged looks with vague smiles on their faces. She was an oddity, Luna, but it was an endearing quality. You couldn't help but be relaxed around her.

'If people are coming back, we should probably head back up to the Common Room soon,' said Hermione, checking her watch. 'Madam Pince will be around to kick us out in a minute.'

'She hasn't the last couple of times,' said Y/N, but still beginning to gather up his notes.

'That's because there's been about 20 people total in the entire castle. She'll be back to her old ways now that everyone's back. Besides, I think she likes you because you were nice to Filch.'

'What's that got to do with anything?' asked Y/N.

Hermione simply raised her eyebrows at him, he looked around to Ginny who was staring at him with exactly the same expression.

'No….' said Y/N, cottoning on. 'Pince and Filch?'

'Not here,' hissed Hermione as the librarian prowled past one of the nearby aisles.

The three of them bid goodbye to Luna who drifted away and made their way back up to Gryffindor tower. Y/N was barely through the portrait hole when there was a hooting and Ves came soaring into view. He saw Alicia looking longingly after the owl, but then her face turned to a smile and she waved upon seeing Y/N.

'She loves you,' called Y/N, pointing at Ves.

'She's the best!' called back Alicia, beaming.

The three of them moved over to settle themselves on one of the sofas near the fire. Ginny pulled out her homework that she'd done over the Christmas break and began asking them questions about what she'd put. Y/N knew she was basically trying to get them to mark her work for her, but he didn't care.

A few minutes later and he realised Crookshanks had slunk out from somewhere and was now resting on Hermione's lap.

'Hang on,' he said before gently lifting the owl from her resting place on his shoulder and holding her in front of Crookshanks. Crookshanks lazily opened an eye and raised his head to sniff inquisitively at the bird before lowering himself again and drifting back off into his doze. 'So he doesn't care about owls.'

'It is weird,' said Ginny. 'Why does he want Scabbers so badly? Cats go for birds and mice, but he only seems to care about Scabbers. Never seen him even go after other things.'

'He's caught a spider once or twice,' said Y/N, 'but that's the Kneazle in him I expect. They enjoy hunting. The cat side is probably perfectly content to just let 'Mione feed him. He just hunts for fun.'

'Is that a thing Kneazle's do?' asked Hermione looking shocked. Y/N nodded and withdrew 'The Bestial Bestiary of Magical Beasts across the globe' before flicking to the page about them.

'They act essentially like guards,' said Y/N, pointing to the paragraph in question. 'They've got an amazing ability to sense untrustworthy people and are very intelligent. It's probably why he loves you so much. But yeah, they hunt and stuff for sport 'cause it's what they enjoy doing. Normally it's more for surviving, but I imagine it's how he likes to spend his free time whilst we're out and about.'

'It's impressive how much you know about animals, Y/N,' said Hermione.

'Well…' said Y/N, fighting off a blush, 'I've always been interested in the subject. And Hagrid's only been showing us Flobberworms since the incident with Buckbeak so. He actually sent me a full book on Hippogriffs for Christmas. I've been meaning to read it, it may have something to help us with the case.'

The three of them settled back in, still helping Ginny along with her work. In between, Y/N gazed lazily around the Common Room. He saw Wood at one point begin speaking to Harry quietly and watched as his face set alight. It seemed as though Harry had told him about the Firebolt. A few moments later and he came wandering over to where Y/N was sitting.

'Hey Y/N, good Christmas?'

'Not bad Wood, and yours?'

'Yeah yeah,' said Wood, sounding a million miles away. 'Listen. Katie is trying to drop out of the Ravenclaw match so I'm going to need you to-'

'Nope,' said Y/N. 'Force her in. I don't care if I take Slytherin but don't let her last match be against Hufflepuff. She'll beat herself up if we win, blame the last loss on herself. Make her play.'

'But what if we lose?' implored Wood.

'Then don't,' said Y/N. 'Wood, you said yourself that this year is your last chance to win. Katie is a better chaser than I am and that's just the truth, she's been doing it for longer and knows the team better. Give her my Nimbus for the match if you need to, but she's playing Ravenclaw. Tell her if she does that then I'll play Slytherin.'

Wood gave a deep sigh and then nodded. 'Hopefully her having the Nimbus and Harry's new Firebolt will give her the courage. Guessing he's told you?'

'I was there when he got it,' said Y/N, but Wood wasn't listening again.

'I'll catch you later, Y/N,' he said before moving off.

'He's quite self-centred Wood, isn't he?' said Hermione off-handedly.

'I wouldn't say self-centred,' said Y/N, 'But it definitely feels like he cares about Quidditch a little bit too much sometimes. But he's also the best captain we could ask for. Just don't invite me to his birthday party.'

Classes began in earnest over the following days, and it all began for Hermione and Y/N with a return to Professor Lupin's office. Y/N spent the hour trying his absolutely best to smash through Remus' protective barrier but to no avail.

'You're getting better,' said Remus as they began to wrap up.

'Doesn't feel like it,' said Y/N moodily.

'You're applying pressure Y/N, and that's what matters. I believe you have it in you to defeat Protego Duo, but you have to remember. You're still new to this and still a 3rd year. Where I am a fully grown Wizard. I should hope that I can give you pause. If you were doing this against someone closer to your skill level, I have no doubt that you'd be smashing the shields.'

This was immediately followed by an extremely fun lesson of Care of Magical Creatures. Hagrid had managed to procure some Salamanders and they spent the lesson gathering up dried wood and leaves for the creatures to scamper over whilst Hermione, Y/N and Hagrid spoke in hushed tones about Buckbeak's trial, in between Hagrid's teaching.

After Thursday's one on one class with Remus, Y/N and Hermione sped off to Double Potions then returned to Lupin's office for Defence Against the Dark Arts. The class was just coming to an end when Harry beckoned to Y/N and he stepped forward, a little bit confused.

'Professor Lupin,' said Harry cautiously, 'I just wanted to remind you about the anti-Dementor lessons for me and Y/N.'

'Oh right yeah,' said Y/N. 'I'd completely forgotten about those.'

'Ah yes,' said Remus 'How about eight o'clock next Thursday evening? The History of Magic Classroom should be large enough. I'll need time to think about how we're going to do this, we can't bring a real dementor into the castle to practice on…'

The next week blazed by and at eight o'clock the following Thursday, Harry and Y/N met up outside the History of Magic Classroom.

'No Hermione?' asked Harry.

'Nah, left her in the library to sort her work. She's getting overwhelmed. She doesn't want to take on anymore.'

'I thought you two had the same amount of lessons?'

'Not after dropping Divination, and my one-on-one lessons with Professor Lupin don't exactly have homework. I technically only have one extra than you.'

The two of them stepped inside to the dark classroom and waved their wands. The torches along the wall sputtered to life and they glanced around.

'Feels weird without Professor Binns being in here,' said Y/N. 'I keep expecting him to float through the chalkboard.'

'I hope he doesn't,' said Harry darkly. 'I don't need a lecture on where Dementors came from.'

'It's actually quite an interesting story-' began Y/N, but he was interrupted as the door pushed open and Professor Lupin came in, carrying a large packing case which he dropped onto the desk at the front. It was shaking slightly.

'A boggart?' asked Y/N

'Indeed. I've been combing the castle looking for one and luckily managed to catch this one inside one of Filch's filing cabinets. It's the closest we'll get to a real Dementor as Harry once told me that his Boggart will become a Dementor once it sees him. I can store him in my office whilst we're not using him.'

'Then how's this going to work for me?' asked Y/N as Harry gulped.

'I'm afraid Harry will need to stand front and centre whilst it is your turn,' said Remus as he rolled up his sleeves. 'Luckily, without the use of Riddikulus, the Boggart should not change targets. So,' he added as he withdrew his wand and indicated for them to do the same, 'the magic I'm about to teach you boys is very advanced. Well beyond OWL's. It is called the Patronus Charm.'

'I've heard mum mention it before,' said Y/N. 'Apparently it can be used to send messages?'

'That is one use of it, yes,' said Remus, 'however its primary function is to conjure up a Patronus. That acts as a kind of anti-Dementor, a guardian that stands between you and them. The Patronus is a kind of positive force, a projection of the very things a Dementor feeds upon. Hope, happiness, the desire to survive. However, it cannot feel fear or sadness as humans can, so the Dementors can't hurt it. I must warn you both however, the charm is ridiculously advanced. Many qualified Wizards have difficulty with it.'

'Do you believe I can, Professor?' asked Y/N.

'Based on what I've seen, I believe you'll be able to one day Y/N. I just do not know whether that will be this year.'

'What does a Patronus look like?' asked Harry.

'Each one is unique to the Wizard that conjures it.'

'And how do you conjure it?' pressed on Harry.

'With an incantation, which will only work if you are concentrating with all of your might on a single, very happy memory.'

It didn't take long for Y/N to remember the feeling of elation when Hermione had sprang out of her bed in the Hospital Wing the year before and sprinted into his arms.

'Right,' said Harry, looking unsure but hopeful.

'The incantation is Expecto Patronum.'

Y/N heard Harry begin repeating it under his breath and he readied his own wand.

'Right then, concentrate hard on your happy memory. Either of you volunteer to go first?'

'I can,' said Harry and he raised his wand. 'Expecto Patrono, no wait, Patronum! Expecto Patronum, Expecto Patronum-' something silvery drifted out of the end of Harry's wand.

'Did you see that?' asked Harry, looking around at the pair of them. 'Something happened!'

'Very good,' said Remus. 'Your turn Y/N.'

Y/N focused his mind, concentrating only on the feeling of Hermione collapsing into his arms.

'Expecto Patronum!'

A silvery barrier spread from his wand and appeared in front of him. It hovered there for a moment before dispersing. Harry was staring open mouthed, but Lupin gave him a small round of applause.

'Brilliant, Y/N. A strong memory and a good application of our other lessons. Do not worry if Y/N is ahead of you, Harry,' he added as Harry looked nervous 'He has already been receiving lessons from me about placing your emotions behind a spell. This is just another example for him.'

'You'll get it, mate,' said Y/N bracingly. 'If I can do it, so can you.'

'Ready to give it a go Harry?' asked Remus. Harry still looked nervous, but he nodded and took a couple of steps forward.

Lupin grabbed the lid of the case and pulled.

A Dementor rose from the box, it's hooded face swept the room and then turned on Harry, one of it's black, scabbed hands gripping its cloak. The lights around the classroom flickered and went out.

Both Remus and Y/N lit their own wands. The Dementor smothered the light but did not extinguish it. It luckily did not hold the same power of a real Dementor, though it was not far off.

'Expecto Patronum!' yelled Harry. 'Expecto Patronum! Expecto-' but Y/N could hear the conviction and determination leaving his voice as the creature drew closer. He fell backwards and Y/N swooped in, catching him just before he hit the floor. Lupin meanwhile yelled:

'Riddikulus!'

The familiar glowing full moon appeared where the Dementor had previously been, and Lupin forced it back into the case. Y/N snapped a piece off the bar of chocolate that Hermione had forced into his hand before he left her in the library and pointed his wand at Harry.

'Rennervate.'

Harry's eyes drifted open and he looked blearily around as Y/N pushed the bit of chocolate into his hand.

'Is he okay?' asked Remus.

'Seems to be, just winded I think. Up you get Harry,' said Y/N as he heaved Harry to his feet.

'Sorry,' muttered Harry as he allowed Y/N to lift him up and then hook himself under one of his arms for support.

'Don't be daft,' said Y/N, 'and eat the chocolate.'

'It's getting worse,' said Harry. 'I could hear her louder that time, and Voldemort.'

Remus had gone a pale white, but Y/N was confused.

''Her'?' he asked, 'What do you mean?'

'When the Dementors get too close to me. I hear my mother screaming, begging for me to be spared and for her to die instead. That's why I thought someone was screaming on the train. And this time, I heard Voldemort telling her to get out of the way.'

Y/N felt his stomach lurch. Now he knew why the Dementors affected Harry so badly. And why his boggart became one.

'Eat the chocolate before we try again,' said Remus, who had somewhat composed himself. 'I didn't expect you to do it on your first time. I would have been more surprised if you had. But if you don't want to continue then I will understand-'

'No,' said Harry fiercely, stuffing the piece of chocolate into his mouth. Colour flooded back to his face and he heaved himself onto his feet alone. 'I can go again.'

'Well not yet. Y/N, I believe you are capable of a disillusionment charm, are you not?'

'Um, yes, how do you know that?'

'I was asking Hermione what level you were up to in your spellcasting. She said you'd mastered some top end magic. I'd like you to use it. It'll be safer if you are between Harry and the Boggart, but it needs to not see you.'

'But won't it still feel me?'

'It will, but initially it will target Harry. That should buy you enough time to cast the spell before it rounds on you. You have to remember it will not gain the abilities of a Dementor until it becomes one, before then it is simply a Boggart. And afterwards, its powers are still weaker than that of a fully-fledged Dementor.'

Y/N nodded and twirled his wand around his head before tapping himself. He felt the feeling of something cold running down his back and watched as he faded from view.

'Very impressive Y/N,' said Remus. 'I can barely even see you. Are you ready?'

'Ready.'

Lupin seized the trunk and pulled the lid open. The Dementor soared out of the top, its gaze locked on Harry. But no sooner had it begun to swoop towards him, it stopped, its gaze wandering in Y/N's direction. The memory of him and Hermione collapsing together clear in his mind, he raised his wand.

'Expecto Patronum!'

The faint silver shield sprang up between him and the Dementor. The Dementor waved its hand through it as though trying to disperse it and Y/N felt a high cold laugh wrack through his head.

'It's very boring, having to listen to the silly troubles of an eleven-year-old-girl.'

'Not Ginny,' growled Y/N. 'Expecto Patronum!' but the shield did not grow. Instead, it fizzled out and the Dementor began to morph and shift as it drifted towards him.

Then with a crack, it changed into the moon once again and was forced back into the case by Remus.

'Are you okay Y/N?' he asked, looking a little to Y/N's right.

'Yeah,' he breathed as he reversed the disillusionment charm and snapped off a piece of his chocolate. 'Why didn't it work?'

'It did,' said Remus, 'when you were thinking of a happy memory. I heard you mutter something. Was it perhaps about Ginny Weasley?'

'Yeah,' said Y/N. 'The Dementor made me think of facing Riddle in the Chamber. Of her lying face down by the statue-' his voice caught and Harry stepped forward to grip his shoulder.

'It's been and done, mate.'

Y/N took a shaky sigh and nodded.

'You turned it into anger, Y/N. You let go of your happy memory and let anger take over. Your first attempt was incredibly good, it was a very happy memory and you managed to put the effort behind the spell. That's how you even managed it in the first place. But you let it turn into anger. That will most likely be the fault of our other lessons as they use anger and fear over happiness. But you need to learn to separate them Y/N, or else you won't get the desired effect.'

'I'll go again,' said Harry. He seemed mostly recovered from his first attempt and now had a steely look in his eye.

'Very well,' said Remus, 'but you may want to pick a happier memory, Harry. That one doesn't seem to have been strong enough.'

Harry closed his eyes for a few moments before opening them again and raising his wand.

'Ready?' asked Remus.

'Ready,' replied Harry.

Y/N shifted around behind him to ensure he caught him should the same happen again.

'Go!' said Lupin and he threw open the box. The lights dimmed, the temperature fled from the room, and the hooded figure rose from the case.

'Expecto Patronum!' bellowed Harry. 'Expecto Patronum! Expecto-' but again his voice was faltering and this time seemed to be shaking. He staggered backwards and fell into Y/N's awaiting grip just as Remus called the Dementor back. Y/N lowered him so he was on his back, and this time saw tears pouring down Harry's face. He raised his wand quickly and pointed it at him.

'Rennervate.'

Harry came to but didn't seem to be able to figure out where he was. He was staring between Y/N and Remus as though he didn't recognise them. Then after a few moments, his vision clarified.

'I heard my dad…' Harry mumbled. 'That's the first time I've ever heard him. He tried to take on Voldemort himself, to give my mum time to run.' And Y/N felt his stomach turn over. Harry tried to pretend he was getting to his feet, but Y/N watched him subtly wipe away the tears that had been trailing down his face.

'You heard James?' said Lupin in an oddly tight voice. The look on his face was difficult to read, but it looked strained.

'Yeah…' said Harry, looking up. 'Why? You didn't know my dad, did you?'

'I- I did as a matter of fact,' said Remus, 'We were friends at Hogwarts. Look Harry perhaps you should leave it there for tonight. It's a lot of stress and this spells very advanced-'

'No!' said Harry. 'Let Y/N have one more go and I'll watch him, then I'll give it another shot.'

'Right,' said Remus, forcing his face to be impassive. 'Remember Y/N. No anger. Just a happy memory. Try something stronger if you can.'

Y/N cast his mind around and his head swam with the image of Hermione's face outside the Shrieking shack, inches away from his own, their first kiss. He disillusioned himself and waited.

Lupin threw open the trunk and Y/N raised his wand.

'Expecto Patronum!'

This time, instead of a barrier, a thin blast of silvery mist shot out of the end of Y/N's wand and flew at the Dementor that had been slowly turning its gaze off Harry. The Dementor fell backwards and seemed to trip over its own cloak and Professor Lupin stepped forward. With a crack, the moon was drifting backwards into the case. Y/N reversed his own disillusionment charm.

'Excellent, Y/N!' called Remus. 'That's exactly what we've been practicing. And you picked a good memory. I'd recommend using that one in future for our classes.'

'Wonder if I know what it is,' smirked Harry.

'Unless you were in Hogsmeade during the trip on Halloween, I'd certainly hope not,' said Y/N, smirking back.

'So it had nothing to do with Hermione?'

'Did I say that?'

The two boys laughed, and Y/N saw what looked like a sad smile cross Lupin's face. A moment later however and his face was back to stony whilst Harry prepared himself.

'All right then,' said Lupin, who looked as though he'd rather be doing anything else than setting the Dementor on Harry again. 'Ready?'

'Ready,' said Harry and Y/N watched a look cross his face. A look he knew all too well.

'EXPECTO PATRONUM!' bellowed Harry. He'd staggered a little bit but was holding his ground. The Dementor came to a halt, and then a silvery mist soared from his wand and hovered between him and the Dementor. Y/N watched his legs begin to shake, but just as he went to move forward, the moon was back.

Harry collapsed backwards into one of the nearby chairs whilst Y/N applauded him. Remus joined in once he'd forced the boggart away.

'Excellent boys. Both of you did amazingly,' he pulled out two large bars of chocolate. 'Eat all of those or Madam Pomfrey will have my head, and I dare say Hermione would too' he added whilst throwing a careful look at Y/N 'Same time next week?'

'Of course,' said Y/N happily and he moved towards the door. 'You coming?' he asked Harry.

'Maybe after. I want to ask Professor Lupin something first.'

Y/N nodded and swept from the room, moving off up towards Gryffindor tower where he found Ginny and Hermione giggling about something. Both went very pink when he sat down.

'What have you done?' he asked suspiciously.

'Nothing!' trilled Hermione as she wrapped herself around his arm. 'Just girl things.'

Y/N raised his eyebrows at Ginny who giggled and said, 'You'll see soon enough, Y/N. It's for your birthday.'

'Oh sweet Merlin save me,' he said as he pulled out his Runes homework.

The following week, Slytherin crushed Ravenclaw in their match which was very good for Gryffindor. This meant that they were still in with a chance at the cup and it was because of this that Wood upped the number of Quidditch practices to five a week. Y/N refused to attend all bar one. He would not be needed for the match and nothing short of a player being taken out would make him play. But he didn't want to get rusty.

This in turn meant that most of his evenings were spent in the Common Room with Hermione and Ginny. Whilst Ginny didn't have anywhere near as much work as they did, she enjoyed looking into them and seeing what the new subjects may hold for her as she was picking her Electives that year. And she often managed to weasel Y/N or Hermione into doing some of her work for her.

Y/N was grateful to have Hermione there. Together the two of them achieved what would have been a near impossible workload for one. Whilst Hermione was getting bogged down, Y/N having mostly all the same subjects meant that they could put their heads together for essays without worrying about getting in each other's way.

It was only the beginning. As January bled into February, workloads mounted and Hermione was getting increasingly frustrated with both Divination and Muggle Studies.

'It's just a load of rubbish!' she whispered angrily one afternoon in the library. Luna had joined them to work with Ginny on a Transfiguration essay. This obviously entailed quizzing Y/N every time he was half paying attention so he didn't realise he was giving them an answer.

'The lines on my palms don't mean any of this rubbish. Poor love life… I'm in a relationship!'

'Are your hands calling me a bad boyfriend?' hissed Y/N, glaring at them. 'They don't seem to care when you're clutching my arm or hand.'

'Because it's a load of rubbish,' snapped Hermione. 'If it was true they'd say about how happy I am being with you and-' but she cut off going bright red and hid behind her book.

Y/N looked around confused at Ginny, who was biting her quill to stop herself from laughing.

Y/N's lessons with Remus were also going well. His spells were now contesting Protego Duo and Remus was beginning to bring Hermione in to fight back once again.

'Very soon there won't be much more I can teach you on the matter, Y/N,' said Remus matter-of factly after one of their sessions. 'You know the basics. You're mastering them. Soon it'll just be about constant implementation.'

Y/N felt his stomach sink at this a little bit. He'd enjoyed his one-on-one sessions with Remus, but knew that it would have had to come to an end eventually.

And at the very least, he still had the Patronus charm lessons with Harry. These were going a lot better for Y/N than they were for Harry.

Harry was succeeding in sending silvery mist or vapour at the Dementor regularly, but he'd lost the same conviction he'd had in his voice the first time. Almost as though he wasn't quite putting his all into it.

'You're expecting too much of yourself,' said Remus after their fourth practice. 'For a thirteen-year-old wizard, even an indistinct Patronus is a huge achievement.'

'What about Y/N?' said Harry grumpily. 'His is a lot stronger than mine.'

'I've also been training for something similar for months, mate. I'm used to using emotions in spellcasting now. It's becoming easier every time because of my practice.'

'Y/N is a very special case, Harry. The fact that you're even keeping up is its own achievement. I would not be surprised to see both your Patronus' become corporeal sometime soon. Speaking of, I want one more go out of you, Y/N. Without the Dementor.'

Y/N sent his mind back to the sight of Hermione's face inching closer to his own.

'Expecto Patronum!'

Something long and silver burst from the end of his wand. But it seemed odd, deformed. It began as what looked like a bird, but its tail seemed almost rounded. Its wings seemed to have long claws and instead of a beak it had a snout. It circled the room with a faint echoing chime and then faded.

'Woah…' said Y/N. Harry was staring open mouthed, but Remus wore a look of furious pride.

'That. Is a corporeal Patronus,' he said.

'It looked like a bird, but it was weird,' said Y/N.

'So, my belief is that your Patronus may be changing before you even fully know what it is, Y/N,' said Remus. 'You see, a Patronus is an echo of ourselves. Most take the form of animals, and that animal is the best representation of us. For you, it is either the bird or the creature it was turning into. However, your memory is so intertwined with yourself that it's also taking on the feel of the other person from your memory.'

'It was an otter!' said Y/N, suddenly realising. 'My memory was about Hermione and an Otter is her favourite animal!'

'Which makes the bird your initial Patronus, Y/N. And based off the call and the ring on your finger, I'd say it was a Phoenix.'

'So the Patronus was a mashup of a Phoenix and an Otter?' asked Y/N and Remus nodded.

'With time, your Patronus may take on the form of the Otter as Hermione's will the Phoenix. Or perhaps they will blend together to form one. Perhaps both retain their original form to show the solidarity. However, your memory and ability to cast that spell are so intertwined with your memories of Hermione, it is taking on that shape whilst still attempting to embody you.'

'What would it mean if they both remained as our own?' asked Y/N, suddenly worried.

'Nothing,' said Remus. 'It does not show incompatibility. However, the memory you're associating with the spell is of just her, your feeling and memory towards her, so it is changing. Patronus' only usually take on an entirely new form through powerful emotional events. It would take something incredible for your Patronus to permanently swap to the Otter. However, a blend is not uncommon.'

Y/N looked around at Harry, who had his mouth half open.

'Weird stuff this, isn't it?' he asked, and Harry chuckled.

'Here,' said Remus, moving over to his desk and withdrawing several bottles. 'You've earned a drink, something from the Three Broomsticks. Doubt you'd have tried it before, Harry-'

'Butterbeer!' called Harry. 'Yeah I like that stuff!'

Y/N threw him a warning look and Harry's face dropped as he realised what he'd done.

'Oh. Y/N gave me some before.'

'Mum gave it to me last year for my Birthday,' said Y/N quickly. 'Well. I found out afterwards that it was for my birthday. I let Harry have some 'cause he couldn't go to Hogsmeade.'

'I see,' said Remus. He didn't look like he believed them, but Y/N knew at least that McGonagall could back up his butterbeer for his birthday story. 'Well, let's drink to a Gryffindor victory against Ravenclaw. Not that I'm supposed to take sides as a teacher.'

'Were you a Gryffindor by any chance, sir?' asked Y/N with a smirk and Remus merely chuckled.

They drank in silence for a while before Harry spoke a question that made Y/N shiver.

'What's under a Dementor's hood?'

Professor Lupin lowered his bottle slowly, looking thoughtful.

'Hmmm... well, the only people who really know are in no condition to tell us. You see, the Dementor lowers its hood only to use its last and worst weapon.'

Worse than draining your personality and everything you are?' asked Y/N.

'They call it the Dementor's Kiss,' said Lupin, with a slightly twisted smile. 'It's what Dementors do to those they wish to destroy utterly. I suppose there must be some kind of mouth under there, because they clamp their jaws upon the mouth of the victim and… and suck out his soul.'

Harry spat out a bit of butterbeer and Y/N felt his body go icy cold.

'What— they kill—?' began Harry.

'Oh no,' said Lupin. 'Much worse than that. You can exist without your soul, you know, as long as your brain and heart are still working. But you'll have no sense of self anymore, no memory, no... anything. There's no chance at all of recovery. You'll just exist. As an empty shell. And your soul is gone forever...lost.'

Lupin drank a little more butterbeer, then said, 'It's the fate that awaits Sirius Black. It was in the Daily Prophet this morning. The Ministry have given the Dementors permission to perform it if they find him.'

'It sounds horrible,' said Y/N. 'No sense of who you are. I think I'd rather just die.'

'He deserves it,' said Harry suddenly.

'You think so?' said Lupin lightly. 'Do you really think anyone deserves that?'

'They're vile creatures,' said Y/N quietly. 'Twisted and evil. I agree with mum. They should be outlawed.'

'Then you agree with many of the wizarding world, Y/N,' said Remus as he got to his feet. 'But most would rather see them quietly guarding the impenetrable fortress. People worry that the alternative is to have them roaming the streets.'

The two of them made their way out of the History of Magic Classroom and back up to the Common Room. Y/N slid straight over to Hermione and Ginny as Harry moved off to sit with Ron, who was playing chess against George with Fred, whispering in his ear.

Ginny looked half asleep whereas Hermione looked as though she was ready to tear her own hair out. It looked bushier than usual no doubt from all the times she'd ruffled it in frustration. It was an adorable trait of hers. Y/N sat down next to her and pulled her Arithmancy homework towards him. He read through what she'd done and then continued adding to her calculations as she closed her eyes and sighed.

'Thanks Y/N. It just wasn't going in.'

'Think it's time to take a break for tonight,' said Y/N without looking up. 'You should probably be heading off to sleep soon.'

'I've still got Snape's essay to do,' she said sadly.

'That sounds like tomorrow morning's problem,' said Y/N. 'You need rest.'

'Ugh… fine… not yet though,' she said, letting her head fall onto his shoulder. 'I just need to relax for a little bit first.'

This, however, was apparently not on the cards for this evening. There came a strangled yell from the boys' dormitory and the three of them span around. The whole Common Room went silent. There came the sound of footsteps and then Ron came bursting into the room looking around wildly. He spied the three of them and came marching over with a bedsheet in his hand.

'LOOK!' He bellowed as he shook it in Hermione's face. Y/N was on his feet at once.

'Ron, what-?' began Hermione.

'SCABBERS! LOOK! SCABBERS!'

Hermione was leaning away from Ron and Y/N stepped between them. As he did, he glanced down at the bedsheet. It was covered in a couple of small ginger hairs and what looked like-

'BLOOD!' he yelled. 'HE'S GONE!'

'THAT'S ENOUGH, RON!' bellowed Y/N. 'Crookshanks has been locked up in Ginny's dormitory all day. We asked her to look after him because of the amount of work we had.'

Whilst it was partially true. Ginny was holding Crookshanks for a different reason. One of the girls in her year had recently been sent a couple of pet mice. And Crookshanks had not made even one move towards them. He simply ignored them and had been doing so for the past two days.

'THEN HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THIS?' yelled Ron, shaking the sheet at them.

'I don't know! But if you actually talk to us instead of yelling-' began Y/N, but Ron interrupted him.

'THIS IS ALL THAT STINKING CATS FAULT. IF SHE HADN'T BOUGHT IT, IF YOU TWO HADN'T BEEN SO STUPID AS TO BELIEVE IT WASN'T AFTER SCABBERS, HE'D STILL BE HERE!'

'Ron! Crookshanks hasn't left my room all day! I locked it after I left!' yelled Ginny, getting to her feet as well.

'If you maybe stopped and listened instead of being so quick to blame others-!' tried Y/N, but Ron cut across him again.

'IT'S HER FAULT, HAS BEEN SINCE DIAGON ALLEY. SCABBERS WAS GETTING WORSE BECAUSE OF THAT CAT!'

'UNLESS YOU'VE FORGOTTEN,' yelled Y/N, his own temper now rising, 'THE REASON WE WERE EVEN IN THAT PET SHOP WAS BECAUSE SCABBERS WAS LOOKING ILL. WE NEEDED HIS TONIC.'

'SHE STILL DIDN'T HAVE TO-'

'Diffindo.'

Y/N had spoken without meaning to. He hadn't even realised his wand was in his hand. Ron staggered as a gash opened across his cheek. His hand flew to the wound, and he felt the blood now beginning to slowly ooze from it.

'Do not speak to Hermione that way,' said Y/N coldly. 'I have been giving you the benefit of the doubt all year. Trying my best to ignore your slights and hypocrisy. Your downright bullying of those who are meant to be your friends. You treat us like dirt because we made the mistake of deciding to speak to you. I should have done that after the troll incident,' he added the last part with a snarl.

Ron was standing there, looking thunderstruck. His face a mix of resentment, anger and… was that regret?

'Let that mark be a lesson to you, Weasley. You treat your own sister so badly that I probably know more about her than you do. You treat your own friends so badly that you think it's acceptable to yell in our faces when we have concrete proof against what you're showing us. And then you dare to stand there and bellow in my face about the rat that you never cared about? If you loved him that much, maybe you should have shown it. Because between treating your friends and pets like dirt, I don't think you know what caring is.'

The two stared at each other for a long while. Y/N was half expecting Ron to punch him, and he was ready for it if it came. But it never did. After what felt like an eternity Harry stepped forward and placed a hand on Ron's shoulder. Ron held Y/N's gaze for another half a second, then allowed Harry to steer him away.

Y/N took a deep, shaky breath and then collapsed back into his chair, his head in his hands.

'That's enough staring!' yelled Ginny. 'Go about your business.'

The Common Room filled with quiet murmurings and eventually the noise began to rise, but it was definitely more subdued than it had been before.

'Y/N…' said Hermione gently.

Y/N raised his head, but it wasn't Hermione he looked at.

'Sorry. I let you down.'

'No you didn't,' said Ginny. 'He let me down. I think that was a harsh reality check for him. You basically spelt it all out for him. I hope that drives him to become better, to actually take an interest in other people for once and to not treat all of us like dirt.'

'He was alright last year,' said Y/N. 'He annoyed me occasionally but nothing major, mostly 'cause I was just stressed. But this year it's just all built up. Then just the way he was ignoring me, and kept saying "she"…' he stopped himself and felt Hermione grip his hand tightly.

'You gave him enough warnings, Y/N,' said Ginny consolingly. 'I don't blame you for losing your temper. I almost did as well. What's done is done, we need to move on. But I appreciate what you did, and for using it to bring him back to reality.'

'And I really appreciate it as well, Y/N' said Hermione. 'I don't know what I'd have done if not for you and Ginny. Your plan to shut Crookshanks in with the mice worked better than expected.'

'I'll never let anyone speak to you like that and get away with it again, 'Mione. And it was originally just a test,' said Y/N, 'but now it's evidence. Which brings us onto the new question.'

'What did actually happen to Scabbers?' said Ginny, now staring at the bloodied and abandoned bedsheet lying on the floor near Y/N's chair.