Chapter 16 - Expecto Patronum
Noah left the locker room without replying to Jo, although the amused smirk lingered on his face. Powerful lights magically lit up as the two boys dressed in Quidditch robes stepped out onto the grass once more, brooms hanging over their shoulders. Noah stopped in the center of the field, passed a leg over his broom and looked at Jo expectantly.
Jo followed him onto the pitch, blinking into the absurdly bright lights.
"I don't suppose there's a dimmer switch," he quipped, looking over at the other boy. "Might make it a bit more romantic." He grinned, hitching a leg over his borrowed broomstick with some effort. He tried different patterns with his hands, trying to find the most secure grip he could manage. He had never been so painfully aware of how thin a broomstick was.
"If there is one, no one told me," Noah said lightly, happier than he'd felt all day.
He studied Jo. "Here, try it like this," he said, showing Jo how he positioned his hands. "Your dominant hand in front of the other. And remember, having no blood flow in your fingers won't help at all, so you don't hold it too tightly. You'll find your balance after a few moments in the air."
He waited to make sure Jo followed his instructions, then pushed his broom off the ground, only a few inches. He fixed his gaze back on Josiah.
Josiah studied the other boy's hand placement, then dutifully put his right hand first on the broomstick and released his iron grip on the handle. He looked up for approval, looking uncertain. He thought that it was highly unlikely that he would find his balance after 'a few moments.' A few years, maybe.
He took a deep breath, puffing his cheeks out before pushing off of the ground with such hesitation that he was hardly sure it would work. He hovered about two inches off of the grass, looking down at his idly swinging feet.
It was not his favorite sensation, to be sure.
Noah nodded, but waited patiently; Jo looked unsure still.
"Ready?" He asked as he took his wand from the folds of his robes and, with intense concentration, tapped both of the brooms in turn, murmuring a few words. "I'll show you how to do the basic movements first, then you'll try to repeat every movement by yourself."
Noah raised his broom further; Jo's broom followed immediately. Then, patiently, Noah showed Josiah how to maneuver a broomstick. He showed him out to steer without losing balance, how to brake, how to move forward, how to rise and fall. It wasn't very different than riding a bike, but he decided it was best not to mention bikes at the moment.
When he finally stopped, their brooms hovering ten feet above the ground, he looked at Jo solemnly. "Alright, it's your turn. Do you have any questions you want to ask first?"
"Was that a Protean Charm?" Jo called over, slightly impressed. He wasn't impressed for long, though, because he was soon busy trying not to look down too much.
"Um," he murmured in a small voice, trying to think of a question. "How do you do this so often?" It slipped out before he could think about it too hard. "I'm slightly terrified."
He looked up at Noah and offered a shaky smile.
Noah offered a grinning nod. "Why the surprise?" He asked teasingly, pretending to be offended. "I can be really good at something… if I really want to." That and McGonagall's face when he kept failing at it over and over again made him all the more determined to get it right.
He turned his face to the cold wind and took a deep breath. "It grows on you. The wind on your face – although not always this cold –, the rush that comes with the speed…" He said quietly. He looked around at the hundreds of empty seats and his heart ached. "The roar of the crowd when you impress them, or when you just barely succeed in a move; when you win… it's addictive."
He huffed out a sigh, shook his head and looked back at Jo. "Don't think you can distract me; it's your turn. Come on, I know you can do it," he cheered.
"Oh, I don't doubt that," Josiah replied, smirking a little in return.
He sighed, looking down at the handle so intently that his eyes nearly crossed. He was trying not to grip the handle quite so tightly, but he definitely wasn't going to let go.
He leaned forward very gently on the broomstick, which responded so quickly that it surprised him, and he jerked upward. This caused the broom to fly higher, and he leaned back down again, easing into a small dive that was altogether faster than he'd planned.
"Merlin's pants Merlin's pants Merlin's pants Merlin's pants!" He murmured in such a hurry that they didn't even sound like words anymore. "Noah, what do I do?!"
Noah's broom mimicked Jo's sudden movements. He couldn't help but chuckle as he regained control of the brooms, stabilizing them once more. "Alright, alright," he said comfortingly. "It's alright. Not too bad for a first attempt. Honestly, I couldn't brake at all, the first time I flew."
He waited until Jo calmed down a little, then flew closer and reached out to Jo's broom, at his side, covering the Ravenclaw's hand with his own. "Like this," he said, and his fingers pressed Jo's and the broom under them just barely, making them move slowly forward. "Like a gentle caress, if you want to drift forward, or a firm push if you're in a hurry." He gave a small smile before letting go. "Try again."
Josiah's heart was hammering against his chest, but he couldn't tell if it was because of the sudden broom movement or the way Noah corrected his hands and said 'gentle caress.'
He used a minimum amount of pressure to push on the front of the broomstick, and he and Noah both glided easily forward. He took a deep, shaky breath.
"So what's next?" He asked grimly.
Noah applauded, grinning. "Well done!" He studied Jo's face, wondering why he was so flustered. Then, realizing he was getting far too distracted for his own good, he shook himself mentally.
"Every movement follows the same principle." With a slow, wide movement, he gestured to the pitch around them. "The sky is the limit. Take us for a ride."
Josiah wasn't sure whether he wanted to giggle or cry; he had never heard of flying lessons being foreplay, but he was feeling much more vulnerable now than he had been when they began, and it had nothing to do with the height. He gathered up enough courage to swing his feet.
He gave Noah an uncertain look, then leaned forward again, gliding a few meters towards the far end of the pitch. He stopped a bit jerkily, his brow furrowed in concentration, and he made a wide, slightly swerving turn.
The air was bitterly cold, and his nose was a bit numb, but the wind rippling through his hair admittedly felt nice. He did another lap, gradually speeding up, before pulling his broomstick up in front of the Ravenclaw stands. He craned his neck around to look at Noah.
"I love you!" He called over the distance, grinning a little. "This is really kind of fun!"
Noah had been prepared to stop Jo's movements if he lost control, but when the Ravenclaw relaxed enough to enjoy it, he did pretty well for a first timer.
His broom caught up with Jo's a moment after he stopped moving. He brought their brooms as close as he could, then leaned to the side and kissed him lightly. "Outstanding," he graded, smirking.
He looked at Jo's face thoughtfully. It was a risky move, but Jo seemed like he was starting to enjoy himself. Noah simply couldn't resist it.
"Now it's my turn," he whispered, winking. He tapped his wand on Jo's hands, so the Ravenclaw's broomstick would mirror his own movements. "Don't let go," he warned before taking off.
He started with a simple lap around the pitch, increasing the speed progressively.
"There goes Johnston, Ravenclaw's new Chaser!" He raised his voice above the whistling of the wind in their ears, as if he was a Quidditch commentator.
He glanced over at Jo, grinning, and sped. He attempted a couple simple maneuvers, all the while keeping an eye on ther other boy. "They take off, avoiding Slytherin Chaser's attempt at stealing the Quaffle with an impressive move. Oh, there's a Bludger coming, but…" He made them dive suddenly, just enough to make the other boy's stomach give a little jump, "Amazing, they dodged it! Impressive moves by Johnston and Ledger." They approached the rings at the end of the field very quickly now. "Johnston has the Quaffle; he faces Slytherin's Keeper; he throws it…" He made them rise just in front of the rings, and then turned left; Jo's broom went to the right. "JOHNSTON SCORES!" He shouted, slowing their brooms down smoothly, settling to a slow, easy drift along and down the sides of the field, near the stands.
"Look at the crowd!" He continued, grinning at Jo, one hand behind his ear as if to better listen. He wondered if he'd be smacked for that little stunt. "Look how they cheer: Johnston! Johnston!"
Josiah blinked, wide-eyed, and had only a few moments to react properly before Noah began moving again. He gave an involuntary squeak, pressing his lips together so hard they went numb.
His heart had barely had time to stop pounding when he heard Noah's voice, and he couldn't suppress a giggle. He bowed his head slightly, his hair flying everywhere; the warmth of his embarrassment was a decent buffer from the cold wind.
He hadn't been prepared for the sudden side movements or the dive, and he shut his eyes so tightly he saw stars. He realized after the fact that he had been holding his breath, and he released it in one large, overwhelmed sigh. He felt like all of his organs were five centimeters too high.
All attempts at not gripping the broom too hard were long since abandoned, and Josiah's knuckles were cold and white as they neared the ground. Somehow Jo had managed to find himself short of breath, probably because he'd been holding it so long.
Also, he couldn't stop giggling.
"You are so… I can't believe…" he trailed off, unable to form a complete sentence. "You are in so much trouble! Come here right now! Put us down, Noah Ledger."
Noah laughed heartily with Jo's reaction. He continued the slow descent until they both reached the ground level near the center of the pitch. His heart was still on the clouds when their feet touched the ground. He dropped his broom and brushed Jo's wind-ruffled hair back gently.
"What I am is a giant fool, because it took me so long to realize how lucky I was to have someone like you looking my way, believing I was worth anything outside of this field; because I was such a coward I couldn't admit my feelings, not even to myself."
He kissed Jo again, until they were both breathless. "I love you, Josiah. I don't want you to be my secret anymore. I don't care how much it costs."
The lighthearted grin slowly faded from Josiah's face, and he looked up at Noah with such deep, meaningful love that it made his eyes water. He gave his boyfriend a quivering smile.
"I love you too, Noah," he whispered, sniffling a bit from the cold and his suddenly overwhelming state of emotion. "I wish there was some charm that I could use to protect you from idiots and bigotry. I'm so sorry." He ran a hand against the side of Noah's face, where his eye was still a bit bruised, and the tears rimming his eyes threatened to spill over.
He leaned forward into Noah's shoulder, closing his eyes and relishing the moment.
"Thanks for the lesson," he whispered.
Noah held Jo close for a long time, not willing to let go. But it was getting so late, it wouldn't take long before someone came outside to see why the lights were still on on the pitch.
"I'll be fine," he said quietly.
He looked around with a mix of happiness and nostalgia. He didn't know what would happen now, but he didn't believe McGonagall would let the beating go unpunished. Besides, when his teammates found out the reason for it, they'd probably vote him off of the team. Still, he didn't regret his decision. He'd just have to figure out how get over Quidditch… somehow.
"You're welcome," he said, picking up the abandoned brooms and heading to the locker room to get changed. "Maybe I'll start practicing for Quadpot," he said lightly, even though his heart ached. "Or for the Annual Broom Race in the dragon reservations. It would be like the final big achievement of my life," he teased.
"Don't say things like that," Josiah said reproachfully, tagging along behind Noah. He began unbuttoning the snaps on the Quidditch coat, looking stern. "They can't just kick you out. There isn't anyone to replace you; McGonagall would never kick you out if it meant losing the Cup. If she cared that much about discipline, Potter never would have even made the team." He was relatively sure about this. He had spent an entire year as Prefect with James Potter as Head Boy, and sometimes he'd wondered how he hadn't been expelled yet.
He shed the coat, which landed with a thick rustle on the floor. He picked up his school robe, Prefect badge still gleaming proudly on its front, and shrugged into it. His middle was much happier for the change, but Noah was right; the Quidditch robes were a lot thicker.
"I'm glad... I'm really glad that our relationship isn't a secret anymore," he said after a moment. "But I don't want you to just give up on your dreams like that, either. I'm not going to sit here and watch you suffer."
Noah chuckled. "You're right. But every Gryffindor loved him. There would've been a mutiny if he'd been expelled. That might've been equally truth for me until a few days ago, but not anymore."
He started shedding his own robes. He was really looking forward to have a warm shower, but it would have to wait until they got back to the castle. If they took too long, they might not get to the Great Hall in time for dinner. And he was also starving. He found his clothes and slipped back into his trousers.
He stopped while buckling his belt and raised his eyes to give Jo an unsure look at his words. "And how do you suggest we do that?"
Josiah frowned at his question, straightening his badge meticulously. His eyes lingered on Noah's belt buckle, and he sighed. He couldn't get distracted.
"I don't know," he admitted. "But I'll think about it. Oh, and after dinner, you owe me a nice long soak in the Prefect's bath." He smirked, smoothing down his wind-wrecked wavy hair.
-/-/-
Noah was used to being in the spotlight. He was aware of how important it was for his future in Quidditch to be well known and have his skills praised. So, even though he had never really enjoyed most of the… perks of being popular, he'd done his best to nurture that status and rebuild his reputation in Hogwarts – other than being 'the mindless bully'. Besides, he was a natural leader and a very active person.
As a result, despite being an only child, he had never been alone for long periods of time. He made friends fairly easily. Practically since his first day in Hogwarts, he was always surrounded by people, whether it was just a group of fans trying to get his attention after he'd joined the Quidditch team, or his boisterous group of friends.
Today, as he left the 7th year boys' dorm, the silence that suddenly filled the common room was deafening. His Captain badge was heavy on his chest, over his heart. His eye was still a very noticeable shade of purple, but the swelling was mostly gone, thanks to Jo. Shawn hadn't returned from the Hospital Wing last night but, as it always happened in Hogwarts, everyone already knew some version of what had happened, and why.
He stood by the door for a few moments, his hand tightly closed around the straps of his schoolbag as he looked around. Some of students looked away, others turned to comment something with their friends, but no one said a word to him, or offered him more than either a curious or hostile glance. He walked out of the common room, trying not to think about it. Except it got worse the moment he joined the growing crowd in the corridors. By the time he got to the Great Hall, his nerves were so frayed, he couldn't tell what he'd do if someone did address him. His eyes swept the Hall until he found the rest of his team – except Shawn, who was still nowhere in sight – gathered up at the end of Gryffindor's long table. They were all leaning into a close group, discussing something heatedly.
Swallowing hard, he told himself he was still their Captain and walked towards them, slowly but resolutely; if nothing else, he'd find out who was with him and who was against him.
Stevens, the other Beater, saw him first and hushed the others. There was an awfully long moment of silence when all heads turned to Noah; then they looked away and started to leave, the Keeper, Holt, and Stevens first. After a few more tense seconds, the others got up, mumbling some excuse and left too.
Noah looked pointedly at the ground, his expression hardening. He'd lost his team. Rejection had a bitter taste.
"Are you going to eat something or just stand there trying to grow roots?" Asked a usually snarky, lively voice, except it also sounded annoyed this time. Noah's heart skipped a painful, hopeful beat when he looked up to meet Anna's eyes, but he still looked somber when he sat in front of her.
He'd been assigned with Anna's flying training when she joined the Quidditch team a couple years earlier. She'd looked very promising, but lacked some of the necessary flying skills to be a Chaser. They'd become good friends ever since.
Anna was a sixth year student. She had dark brown hair and eyes. She was an easy going girl, extremely determined and as devoted to the team as he was; which was probably why she was looking at him with a mix of annoyance and sympathy as he filled his plate.
"How is he?" Noah asked after a while, picking at the eggs and bacon with his fork.
Anna huffed out a snort. "He spent the night in the Hospital Wing. He looked like he'd been attacked by…" She saw Noah's expression and stopped herself. "Why did you do that to him, Noah?"
Josiah was trying to walk with relative dignity, Prefect badge gleaming on his chest as he walked through the corridors on his way to breakfast. People were definitely staring; news had gotten around somehow, but it was garbled like it had been passed along over a bad Muggle telephone connection (he kept that analogy to himself). All they knew was that he was somehow involved, and as he walked into the Great Hall, several pairs of Gryffindor eyes settled on him critically, silently blaming him for the impending destruction of their Quidditch team.
He sniffed in what he hoped was an infuriatingly nonchalant manner. This was not his first rodeo. When he had been dating Ray Twiddle, the Hufflepuff Prefect who'd graduated last year, rumors had flown around so fast that he could scarcely keep up with what everyone else thought he was doing in one of Hogwarts' many broom cupboards. He had survived another year with his reputation somewhat intact.
He spotted Noah, who was sitting with one of his housemates in the center of a crater of empty bench spaces, and walked over to him with his head held high.
"I knew I should have hexed him harder," he mumbled, sitting backwards on the bench with his legs sticking into the aisle.
Noah had looked up at Anna, a challenging, annoyed look in his eyes. "Haven't you heard yet? Every mop in this school seems to know already," he grumped, putting down his fork with a little too much noise.
"I want to hear your side," Anna said simply.
Noah saw Jo approaching then, the first pleasant sight he'd had that morning. He wasn't sure what he expected, but he tensed when Jo sat down, as if waiting for the crowd to attack them or something. When a few moments passed and nothing happened, he chanced a glance around. The comments and looks had definitely increased, but nothing else for the time being. He looked at Jo, trying to smile.
"It wouldn't have helped," he murmured. "He's incredibly hard-headed." Then he chanced a look at Anna. She was studying Jo with narrowed eyes and a curious look on her face, her fork pending over her breakfast.
"He is why." He told her simply.
Anna looked from him to Jo, then focused her gaze back on Noah, nodding. "Do you know how much trouble you're in, for what happened yesterday?" She stuck out her chin in the direction the rest of the team had disappeared. "They're determined to complain about you to McGonagall and make you leave."
Noah nodded grimly. "I figured. Will you join them?"
Anna sighed, looking back at her plate as if it contained all the answers in the universe. Then, she put the fork down, crossed her arms over the table and looked up at Noah.
"Look, Noah. I don't like what happened one bit. But I don't need to lecture you about it. I'm sure you know it already." She sighed and her expression softened. "But you're my friend. And I know that's not who you really are. So I ask you, is this," she gestured to the pair of them, "worth the fuss?"
Josiah blinked as he was surveyed without so much as a hello, then crossed his ankles and grabbed a buttered roll off of the Gryffindor table. He usually made an effort to appear more prim, but something about being talked about made him want to be willfully rebellious.
"It might've helped me," he murmured, taking another large bite. He had a habit of eating more during times of great stress.
"Professor McGonagall has dealt with far, far worse. If they go to tell on you, she'll want to know exactly what happened - you know she never leaves out any details. Somehow I don't think 'he likes that Ravenclaw bloke and that makes me itchy' will pass for a decent excuse."
Noah looked over Jo, momentarily distracted from his misery. He had never seen him this relaxed; actually, in public, he didn't remember seeing Jo like that at all.
"No, I don't think it will either," he agreed. "But it doesn't change the fact that I beat the crap out of my teammate. I'm team Captain, and we were in a practice. Whether he deserved it or not, I shouldn't have done that," he murmured.
He faced Anna, deciding that he owed her a proper response to her question, since she was willing to give him a chance to explain. "I shouldn't have done what I did. I'm ready to accept the consequences of that. But I don't regret anything else, Anna." He gave Jo a real smile this time, even if brief. "And yes, it is worth it."
Anna raised her eyebrows slightly then nodded, seeming satisfied. "Well, then… It doesn't please me that all this came out right before our game against Ravenclaw, but what can I do?" She shrugged, put down her fork and offered Jo a slightly wicked smile and her hand. "I'm Anna, which you obviously already noticed. Nice to meet you… Josiah, right?"
Josiah straightened up a bit; being slack in front of other people wasn't a very big deal, but under Noah's gaze, he felt a little awkward. He didn't want him to think he didn't take the situation seriously.
"I know that," he said softly, polishing off the dinner roll. "But he coaxed a reaction out of you on purpose." He sighed, thinking back on everything he knew about their Transfiguration professor. Even in his most recent detention, she had always been a fair, relatively understanding woman. He didn't see any reason she would change that now.
Jo took Anna's hand with only the slightest trace of reluctance, smiling more shyly.
"Josiah Johnston," he articulated. "I'm the 7th year Ravenclaw Prefect. I've been to a lot of your games recently."
He noticed that the murmurs had grown stronger when he leaned closer to Noah, and he rolled his eyes reservedly.
Anna smirked. "Well, at least we got a new fan." She brushed her hair behind her ears and picked up her bag.
"Look, Noah… if I had to choose, I'd rather keep you than Shawn, any day. Considering what he's been doing to you in the last few days and what I overheard of your argument, I think anyone would snap. And that's what I'll tell McGonagall, if she asks me. But you should be careful with the rest of them. Shawn has been talking to them a lot," she warned.
"Probably more than he talks to me, because he knows you're my favorite," she added playfully before standing up and planting a kiss on top of Noah's head. "I have to go, now. See you later!
-/-/-
Josiah arrived in the old Divination classroom at around 3 o'clock. It was a bit dusty, but nothing that couldn't be fixed with the flick of a wand; he cleared it up and looked out at the deceptively peaceful winter landscape through the scratched window.
He wasn't sure he'd call himself a good teacher. A tutor, maybe, all things considered, but he was altogether too lenient to be a real teacher.
He checked his watch again, bracing his arms against the nearest table and lifting himself onto it.
Dan and Ezra should arrive any moment. He'd also dropped Noah a note detailing where he'd be for the afternoon; he didn't want to get his hopes up, but he couldn't deny that he was hoping his boyfriend would show up.
Daniella looked at the time and muttered a curse under her breath. She'd gotten distracted. She took out the work gloves, washed her hands, recovered her bag that rested against Hagrid's cabin wall, and hurriedly waved at him before running back to the castle.
She'd never thought of the atmosphere in Slytherin's common room as particularly friendly, but the hostility from Sabrina and her little coven was worse than ever before. She couldn't shake off the feeling that the other girl was up to something. So, she made her best to spend as much time away from the dungeons as she could.
She was flustered and out of breath when she arrived at the dungeon to meet Ezra. "Pureblood," she muttered to the wall.
"Sorry I'm late," she managed to say when she saw him, still trying to catch her breath. "Are you ready? He's waiting."
Ezra snapped his textbook shut with immense relief. He had been getting tired of pretending to read it.
"Thank Merlin," he murmured, sliding the book into his bag and easing it over his shoulder. "I expect she's been trying to cast a Killing Curse on me out of sheer non-verbal, wandless willpower."
He grabbed Daniella's hand, and there was a collective heaviness of shocked, seething rage. He pulled her through the opened space in the wall.
He sighed, inhaling deeply and trying to prepare himself for what was about to happen. It wasn't that he felt particularly threatened by Josiah; he had his own set of near-prodigious skills, and he could put up a fair fight in a duel.
He was loath to admit it, but something about having to be taught magic by a Muggleborn wizard still made his chest flush with embarrassment and anger… even if the Muggleborn wizard was undoubtedly more talented than he was.
"Let's get it over with," he murmured, trudging up the last set of stairs and through the door of the abandoned classroom.
"Bloody hell, I really wish we could request rooms elsewhere in the castle," Daniella murmured, when the wall closed behind her once more. "It's a pretty big castle after all."
She glanced at Ezra, then decided it was best not to push him. Clearly, he wasn't in the best mood today.
She grabbed on to the hope that this opportunity to share knowledge with each other would help Ezra see Jo in a different light and maybe, with time, see Muggleborn wizards differently as well. But, right now, that was really all she could hold on to: sheer hope.
Ezra opened the door and she immediately saw Jo waiting. She entered the room, grinning as she pulled him into a quick hug. "Sorry we're late. Hagrid was telling me a story about a Manticore and…" she shook her head, dismissing the thought, and looked at him intently; like every other soul in that school, she'd heard the rumors as well. "Anyway, how are you?"
Josiah stifled a yawn, turning abruptly as he heard footsteps enter the classroom. He straightened up immediately in an attempt to look alert; he didn't want to admit it, but the rumors had been causing him to get a little less sleep than usual.
"Aye, I'm fine," he lied, squeezing her gently. "I just hope that's not what your Patronus is." He grinned dryly, then looked around the room. He didn't say hello to Ezra, and Ezra didn't say hello to him; they stared at each other for a brief moment before looking away.
Noah was nowhere to be found.
"Anyway, we can start if you like." He cleared his throat. "Um, we should probably just work on casting a corporeal Patronus first."
"Wouldn't it be scary, though?" She asked teasingly, pretending not to notice the tension in the room. She took her wand out of her pocket and dropped her bag next to the table. "Sure. I could use recognizing my own Patronus…" she said sheepishly.
Before she could continue, the door burst open again. She turned on her heels and pointed her wand at the door, startled. Had Sabrina followed them?
Noah stood by the doorframe, looking a little surprised. His expression hardened as he recognized the two Slytherins, and then noticed the wand aimed at him. "You," he said in a low, threatening voice, his eyes flicking between the wand and the boy. He reached for his own wand.
"He's supposed to be here," Josiah murmured, casting a sideways glance at Noah. "And if anybody throws a hex tonight, you can learn to cast a proper Patronus on your own, and see if I care." He folded his legs on the table, trying to find some measure of dignity. They had come to learn from him, after all.
He felt a little guilty for snapping at them, and he sighed.
"I know you guys already know this, but you need a properly happy memory to cast a Patronus. Not a moderately happy memory; an actually, really, truly happy one." He held his wand out, poised to cast. "But more than that, you also have to will your Patronus to appear. That's how it takes form. Expecto Patronum!"
The lightly spotted harp seal exploded from the tip of Jo's crooked wand, did a backflip that was deceptively graceful for its size, and then hovered over the group.
"It doesn't mean you have to be happy when you cast the spell. It means you have to know that you've been happy before; you have to be able to call that memory back in a split second, no matter how crummy you feel. You've been happy before, and you'll be happy again. That's what a Patronus is; the personification of your hope."
Daniella lowered her own wand, her heart still clogged in her throat. She saw Noah glance uncertainly at Jo, then throw Ezra one last suspicious glance before relaxing and easing into the room. He positioned himself between the other two boys.
Now that Jo had succeeded in avoiding a duel, she took the time to look at the two of them. To see the way Noah looked at Jo. She smiled warmly as she got her suspicions confirmed, but didn't interrupt Jo, making her best to focus on what he was saying. They stretched their necks to follow the harp seal around. He made it look easy; made it sound kind of easy too.
She didn't have to think for a long time to find a happy memory. She'd been the happiest in Stonehaven, whenever she went to visit Jo and his family. She thought of the first time she'd stayed over and shared the first meal with all of them. The way they'd made her feel like she was part of the family. The memory brought a dreamy smile to her lips.
"Well, I think we've gathered the perfect conditions, then," she said with sarcasm at his last observation, looking around at how tense the atmosphere was still. She could bet all of them were feeling at least a little crummy at the moment. "I'll go first." She raised her wand, a wrinkle of concentration between her eyebrows, and cleared her throat. "Expecto Patronum!"
A long… elongated, tubular form… of white, bright smoke sipped out of her wand. She squinted at it; with a lot of imagination, she could see ears and paws on it, but then it was gone. "Ah, seriously?"
She wrinkled her nose, then said. "Wait, let me try again. Happy," she said with an expression that looked anything but happy. She took a deep breath, glanced at Jo to better recall the memory, made the hand motion slowly and repeated clearly, "Expecto Patronum!"
Something flickered momentarily on the tip of her wand and then a small shape with a long torso showed up. "Ooooh, I got it! It's… it's…" She squinted at it, as it made a wobbly movement forward and then faded. She looked at Jo, grinning. "I think it was an ermine!"
"It definitely had whiskers," Jo said with a grin, shooting a shower of congratulatory golden sparks over Dan's head. "That was really good; keep trying." He looked at the other two expectantly, smiling tentatively.
"It's really not that hard," he assured them. "Like I said, you don't have to BE happy. Just remember that you've BEEN happy."
Ezra gave a near-silent snort at this, looking down at his wand with contempt. Maybe the other boy had had a happy life, but for Ezra, thinking about his past was an exercise in masochism.
"Expecto Patronum," he said expectantly, and a silvery puff of smoke left his wand in a hurry, spreading into a shape that was triangular on either side. He sighed.
"Your happiest memory," Jo urged, biting a stray fingernail.
Daniella chuckled at the sparks, flushing with pride. She waited to see Ezra's attempt, biting her lip at the look on his face.
She slipped a hand behind him, resting it on the small of his back. "Take your time; you can do it," she murmured encouragingly.
Noah, on the other hand, had decided to wait until the Slytherin boy was distracted for him to make his own attempt. Seriously, what was Jo thinking? Hanging out in abandoned classrooms with Slytherins? He huffed out a breath, pulled away from the wall, unfolded his arms and made his attempt. He knew which memory to use already; he just needed to work on staying focused.
"Expecto Patronum," he pronounced, and once more he saw the long wings he'd seen in Charms class. But he couldn't feel comfortable with those two in there. The rest of the body remained unclear and, after a desperate flap, the wings faded.
He pressed his lips together. At least Greengrass hadn't done it right either.
Josiah grimaced a bit at the sudden tension in the room, sighing and placing both feet on the floor with determination.
"Alright, everyone be still," he murmured, flourishing his wand. He made a wide, sweeping gesture, and a fine, pink dust came sparkling out of his wand. It was a wide-range Cheering Charm.
"Try again?" He said hopefully, after the powder-like light had settled.
Noah relaxed as the tension left his body; he gave Jo a questioning look. "You really like that Charm, don't you?" He asked teasingly, recognizing the feel of it.
Even though he didn't know exactly why, he thought this lesson was important to Jo, that he wanted to succeed, so he made an effort to be as helpful as he could and tried again. It took a few minutes but eventually, he found himself staring at his wide winged albatross-Patronus.
"Congratulations, Noah," Daniella said politely, in an attempt to lighten the mood. He gave her a cautious, tentative nod in aknowledgement, quickly looking away again.
Daniella was succeeding in most of her attempts now, but she realized she had to work until she could do it without Jo having to help her in any way.
Jo gave his boyfriend a teasing smile, stuffing his wand back into his robes and leaning once more against the table. It scraped a bit on the floor.
Josiah stared wide-eyed at the sudden influx of silver vapor in the room, smiling despite himself. Contrary to popular opinion, the Patronus Charm was not overly complex; human emotions were complex, and using them to your advantage was the majority of the hurdle.
"They're amazing," he whispered, firing off a few more brightly colored mini-fireworks. "I'm really, really proud of all of you." He even looked sideways at Ezra then, who shuffled under the realization that everyone had now made a corporeal Patronus except him. He closed his eyes, furrowed his brows, and sighed deeply.
"Expecto Patronum."
A silver bullet whizzed out of the end of the ebony wand, flapping its silver wings and making wide circles in the midst of its quick flight. It was a crow. It disappeared shortly after Ezra had the good sense to study it properly.
After some intense silence, Josiah fired a green firework over his head. Ezra blinked slowly, twice.