I don't own Harry Potter.
…
Harry decided to hold the first DA meeting that Friday, in two days. They would be meetings in "the usual place." In other words, the Room of Requirement. His notice was a little shady.
DA
Will be starting again. First meeting: Friday. The usual place. Spread the word to the Claws and the Puffs. No strangers.
Harry once again got up and used a sticking charm to place the notice on the board. Again, a group of people gathered around to see what he had posted. Most seemed downright confused, as they should be. No one knew what "DA" stood for, except for the members. No one knew what "the usual place" was, except the members. As a result, you could easily see who the members of the DA were by the lack of confusion on their faces. Harry even saw a few grins.
Harry began to pack up his parchment, ink bottle, and quills. He had finished what he needed to do for now; now it was getting late and he needed to get some sleep.
He summoned his school satchel and packed up all of his wizarding writing supplies into it. He kept out his notebook and pen though, in case someone approached him and he needed to write a message.
Hermione looked up from her book, which she had immersed herself in after speaking to the first years and had not yet emerged from.
"Are you going up to the dorm now?" She asked, and he nodded.
"I'll be down here for a little while more. I want to read another chapter." Hermione informed him, and he smiled and rolled his eyes as if to say, of course.
"Good night." He said to Hermione, and then tapped Ron, who was nearby hurriedly writing out his final essay for potions, on the shoulder.
"I'm going up to the dorms. See you later." Ron nodded.
"I have to stay and finished this bloody essay. I'll see you tomorrow, if you're already asleep by the time I get up there." Ron looked morosely down at his parchment, which was filled with ink blots because of Ron's haste. Harry just smiled, shouldered his satchel, and vanished up the stairs to the dormitory.
…
The next morning Harry went down to the common room with Ron to wait for Hermione, so they could go to breakfast together. Several other Gryffindors were already there, waiting for the main rush of students trying to get to breakfast before going down for their meal.
"Did you see that I've posted the notice for Quidditch try-outs and the first DA meeting?" Harry asked Ron.
"No I didn't. When did you post them, last night? I was too busy with that bloody essay to look at the notice board."
"The quidditch try-outs are set for next Monday, and the first DA meeting is going to be on Friday, in the Room of Requirement."
"Oh, alright then. You'll probably have to make sure that I actually get to those…" Ron said, and then they spotted Hermione coming down from her dorm.
"Morning, Hermione." Ron greeted.
"Let's go get breakfast."
"Yeah. I've been waiting long enough." Ron grumbled.
"Oh Ron, you don't have to be eating something every minute." Hermione said.
"Easy for you to say." Ron muttered as they exited the common room and began to walk to the Great Hall.
"Hermione, D-A meeting is this Friday."
"Oh, you've already planned it? I was thinking about it last night. What are you going to cover?" Hermione asked.
"I'll probably start out with an assessment of everyone's skills so that I can figure out what most people don't know. If I have to, I'll split us up so that I can teach different skill levels separately."
"Wow, Harry. You've actually thought about this quite a bit already, haven't you?" Hermione said, sounding impressed. Harry put on a hurt expression.
"Why are you so surprised?"
Hermione stuttered as she tried to find an answer, and Harry and Ron grinned.
"It's going to be focused on offensive spells. Cutting spells, petrifying spells, stunners, explosive spells, fire spells, binding spells, you get the gist. I may get into a few darker spells too." Harry continued.
"We really are being taught how to be an army this time." Ron said.
"We have to know how to fight, Ron. Everyone is going to have to do their part in this."
"I know. It's just sort of depressing."
…
After breakfast, Hagrid began handing out class timetables. When he reached Harry, Hagrid paused.
"Oh, Harry. I'm sorry abou'…wha' happened. How've you been gettin' on, eh?"
"I'm alright, Hagrid. It's good to see you again." Harry wrote on his notepad and then showed it to the half giant. A tear formed in the corner of Hagrid's eye, and then Hagrid hurriedly wiped it away.
"You too. Here are yer timetables; I'll see you three later. I've got these schedules ter hand out."
Hagrid gave them a small wave and a wan smile, and then moved off down the table, handing out the timetables.
"What made him so sad all of a sudden?" Harry asked.
"You didn't realize, Harry? Hagrid was upset because he just saw up close the proof you are mute. I guess that deep down inside him he was hoping that it was all some elaborate story." Hermione explained.
"He's sad…because of me?"
"He's sad because he thinks you are suffering." Hermione replied.
"But I'm not. Not really, anyway."
"I know, but Hagrid is probably imagining what life is like for you now, and painting a sad picture for himself."
"I'll have to talk to him again later."
"That's probably a good idea." Hermione agreed.
"What do you have first?" Ron asked, peering at Harry's timetable. Harry looked at it too.
"Looks like I have potions first off, then a double period of defense, transfiguration, care of magical creatures, a free period, and charms. Astronomy isn't until tomorrow night. Hopefully it won't interfere with the DA meeting."
"It shouldn't, as long as we have the meeting immediately after the last period of classes." Hermione pointed out.
"I forgot to mention the time for the meeting on my notice!" Harry smacked a hand to his forehead dramatically, although it truly was a big mistake. He'd have to post another notice in the common room tonight, again with the message for the Gryffindors to spread the word to the Ravenclaws and the Hufflepuffs.
"Post another notice…" Hermione began.
"I've already concluded that."
"Oh. Alright then." Hermione said, startled.
"All students excluding first years please remain in the Great Hall so that the staff may check that you can perform our alarm spell." McGonagall said, the sonorous charm causing her voice to echo above the students' babble. "First years, please be prepared to go to your first class."
A new wave of conversation began as the students began talking about the safety of Hogwarts.
"I hope the death eaters don't attack again." Dean commented.
"I wouldn't be surprised if they did. Hogwarts is still a prime target." Hermione reasoned, doing nothing to allay her peers' fears. Neville shivered.
"I'm glad Harry is starting the DA up again. I felt much more competent in fifth year because of those meetings." Neville said.
"Yeah, they really were a help." Ron agreed. Harry didn't join in the conversation, preferring to listen to what people were saying.
"First years, go to your classes! Second years and above, please line up at the edges of the room while the tables and benches are vanished." McGonagall announced.
Harry stood and, with Hermione and Ron by his side, pushed his way through the crowds of students to the edges of the room. They ended up standing near to the Slytherins.
"Hey! Potter! You'd better watch your back, not that it will do you any good!" Pansy Parkinson said loudly, and several of the others Slytherins snickered.
"Yeah, even if you did see us coming, you couldn't do anything about it, squib!" Blaise Zabini added.
"Why are you even here, Potter? Shouldn't you be with the first years?" Parkinson said, grinning at her wit.
Harry clenched his fists, feeling like growling. He hated that he couldn't shoot back his own retorts. He so wanted to point out that he'd beaten Zabini soundly in a sixth-year mock duel. He could now do more magic silently than he ever had vocally, while Parkinson had resorted to whispering the incantations last year in order to not appear like a failure in silent magic.
"Harry, ignore them. You'll show them soon enough." Hermione said, laying a hand on his arm and shooting a glare at the guffawing Slytherins.
Suddenly loud pops were heard, and when Harry peered over the heads of the students in front of him he realized that the tables and benches, along with the food they had carried, had vanished from the room.
"Please form eight lines, two per house, ordered by year." McGonagall instructed, her voice once again amplified by the sonorous charm.
It took several minutes for the students to form the organized lines the McGonagall had asked for, but they eventually did accomplish it. Harry was right at the end of his respective line, with Hermione beside him and Ron beside her, followed by the other seventh year Gryffindors, then the sixth and fifth years. In the line in front of his were the second, third, and fourth year Gryffindors. The Slytherin lines were behind him, while the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff lines were on the other side of the hall.
Staff members began to move up the lines, starting with the second years. They had each student attempt to shoot a flare of red sparks up into the air, a feat which few of the second years had accomplished. Harry was surprised at how few students knew the spell, and the few that did didn't produce sparks that flew very high. He heard the teachers telling most students to report to the Great Hall before or after dinner for instruction in the spell.
Half an hour passed before the teachers had gotten to the fifth years. Harry let out a heavy breath, tired of waiting. He knew the spell; after all, hadn't he saved Fleur Delacour in fourth year during the third task by sending up red sparks? He guessed that the reason he was here was because the teachers needed to know that he could still perform magic. It was frustrating for him, but it made sense. And he would produce the largest, brightest flare he could, just to show those petty Slytherins who could take care of himself.
Another twenty minutes passed. More students knew the spell as the teachers reached the older years, but still very few could make the sparks go high enough to actually be of any use. Hermione sighed and began to tap her foot. Harry wasn't the only one getting impatient.
Finally, a teacher reached the Gryffindor seventh years. It was McGonagall.
Lavender was first, and she managed a ten-foot high fountain of dull red sparks. McGonagall eyed the sparks critically.
"You still need to work on the height. That won't do you much good, especially with how dull the sparks are. Remain in the Great Hall after dinner. We'll help you produce an adequate flare." McGonagall said, and then moved on to the next student: Neville.
Neville said the spell and punched his wand into the air, looking nervous. But his flare was one of the best so far, reached nearly twenty feet high and casting a red glow over the Great Hall. He ended the spell and grinned at McGonagall, who spared him a smile.
"Very good, Mr. Longbottom. That was quite satisfactory."
She slowly came down the line until she reached Ron, only having cleared, out of the seventh years, Neville, Parvati, and Dean, who had all been in the DA. Harry felt an odd sense of pride.
Ron also passed McGonagall's test, his sparks reaching just a little lower than Neville's but just as bright. Hermione's were the tallest yet, but weren't quite as bright. McGonagall pursed her lips.
"Try again, Ms. Granger. That was a good height, but it would be useless unless someone sees the glow."
Frowning, Hermione again shot sparks into the air. This time they weren't as high, but they were sparkling brightly. McGonagall gave her a curt nod and finally reached Harry.
"What about you, Mr. Potter? I know you could do this in your fourth year, but can you now?" She spoke kindly, not at all taunting. Harry nodded.
"Go on, then." McGonagall said somberly, as if expecting Harry to fail. Pursing his lips with determination, Harry punched his wand into the air while focusing on the image of a jet of neon red sparks reaching high into the air.
He felt his magic rush through him and could feel when it entered his wand. Then the sparks burst from the tip of his wand and shot up into the air in a steady stream, hitting the hidden ceiling and raining back down. People covered their eyes from the brightness of the flare, and Lavender shrieked as sparks landed on her shoulders. Harry could see the Slytherins staring slack-jawed. Harry smiled grimly, and then pictured the sparks reaching the ceiling and swirling around the Great Hall. His magic conformed to his thoughts, and the sparks began to reach high up and then turn to swirl around the Great Hall in a bright red rushing stream. The glowing river smashed into a few other students' weak flares, breaking up the other weaker groups of sparks. People stared mutely at the stream, their mouths hanging open.
After holding the spell for a few seconds, he ended his stream of magic and watched the sparks sink to the floor, where they disintegrated into nothing. Students from all houses were staring at him in complete awe.
"Well…I'd say you passed with more than flying colors!" McGonagall said, barely keeping her excitement restrained. Then she let herself grin, a decidedly un-McGonagall expression.
"It's so good to see you're doing well, Harry." She said, and then she gave him a small nod and turned to face the other students.
"Dismissed! Go to your classes!" She shouted, and the students slowly began to flow from the Great Hall, all talking about Harry.
"Harry…that was amazing! I've never heard of something like that!" Hermione gushed, her cheeks flushed with excitement.
"I told you, it's like he turned into bloody Merlin. I reckon he could do anything now!" Ron said to Hermione.
"What do the two of you have first?" Harry signed to Hermione and Ron, trying to break up the talk about him.
"Potions." They both responded, looking a little put out. So they had their first class of the year together.
"We're paired with the Slytherins still. Pity." Hermione commented, taking another glance at her timetable. Harry would have groaned, if he could have. As it was, he let out a heavy sigh and hung his head dramatically as they started trudging down to the potions classroom.
Slytherins. Oh joy.
…
Horace Slughorn greeted Harry as he entered the potions classroom with Ron and Hermione.
"Harry! Harry! Do come in, boy. Good to see you. Terrible, of course, what happened…absolutely terrible. But it appears as if you are getting on well, despite things. I've already heard about your flare in the Great Hall. Brilliant! It seems you shan't disappoint…here, here, sit down."
Harry gave the old rambling professor a small smile and took the desk indicated, Ron sitting next to him. Hermione took one of the seats at the desk behind Harry and Ron, and they all began to unpack their potions equipment.
Harry had expected Professor's favoritism to have ended when he heard that Harry couldn't perform magic. But, Slughorn was a potions master. Potions did not require a voice, so Harry's grades shouldn't even waver in this subject. That probably contributed to Slughorn's unchanged attitude, but the gossip about Harry's flare was what probably did it. If Slughorn hadn't heard about that he would probably be ignoring Harry along with the majority of his other students.
"Ah, and Ms. Granger, of course. Had a good summer?"
"Yes, sir, thank you." Hermione replied. Ron snorted, knowing that Slughorn was ignoring him, as per usual.
"Hello, Professor Slughorn." Dean said, entering the classroom.
"Ah, hello…David, was it? Excuse me; I need to write the lesson on the board…" Slughorn said as he turned to the chalkboard and began to write out a complex potion recipe.
Harry watched Pansy Parkinson along with Blaise Zabini and Millicent Bulstrode swagger into the classroom and take seats on the "Slytherin" side of the room. They sent sneers at Harry, but none of them taunted him. They probably couldn't think of anything to say, after Harry's display in the Great Hall.
"Very well, is everyone here? Yes, it appears so…" Slughorn said as he began the lesson. "Today we will be doing a bit of a review from last year's lessons. On the board I have written the recipe for a calming potion, which you have half of the period to brew and bottle. The next half of the period will be spent brewing the 'Liquid Luck' potion, Felix Felicis. Do not forget to clean your cauldrons between brewing each potion. I trust you all know scourgify? Very good, now begin!"
