I am so sorry about the long wait! I have two major projects going on at school right now, so I'm extremely short on time. It's finally Thanksgiving Break! If nothing else, I can at least get this chapter posted.
Disclaimer: As much as I hate being reminded of this fact, I do not own Harry Potter.
"Speech"
XXXXXXXX scene change
//Parseltongue//
The rest of the week continued in a similar fashion. While Draco and Harry still didn't talk too often, it was obvious to anyone who paid attention that their rivalry was crumbling. Finally, it was the first day of the activities.
"Hopefully, Zabini won't screw us up too badly."
"Well, at least Zabini has half a brain on him. I'm stuck with the airhead!"
Ron and Hermione stared at Harry, awaiting his complaint.
"Sorry guys. I got nothing."
They gaped at him while Ginny chuckled to herself.
"It figures that the one partnered with his bitter rival of six years is the only person not complaining."
Harry shrugged. "There's nothing to complain about. Dr-Malfoy knows what he's doing."
"Did you just almost call him Draco?"
This question caused Ron to spit out his mouthful of Pumpkin Juice, much to the disgust of Lavender Brown. Ginny was laughing hysterically by this point. The small group was now the center of attention at the Gryffindor table.
"So what if I did?"
Ron's ears turned red, clashing horribly with his hair. "He's bloody M-" Harry quickly cast a wordless Silencing Charm, successfully cutting off the remainder of the redhead's exclamation.
"I'll remove it once you've calmed down a little."
Ron glared at his friend, then resolutely returned his attention to breakfast.
"So you really have no complaints?"
"None other than his being a stubborn git. I'm used to that, though." He grinned as Ron slapped him on the back of the head. "Besides, he got Aurum's approval. Zabini and Parkinson did too, by the way. They're smart, but they're also Slytherins to the core. You have to earn their trust before they shed their masks."
Hermione, Ron, and Ginny stared at Harry in shock.
"And you know this…how?" Ginny asked skeptically.
Harry rolled his eyes. "I did say that I wasn't repressing my Slytherin side anymore. Besides, what Aurum told me of their personalities convinced me that they are acting when in public."
Ron began gesticulating furiously. After being assured that he wouldn't start yelling again, Harry cast the counter charm.
"What were some of the things that snake told you, then?"
Harry shook his head. "Sorry, Ron. I'm not telling."
"And why not?"
"That would break what little trust I've been able to gain."
"But Harry-"
//Enough!// Aurum hissed viscously as she poked her head out of Harry's sleeve, extending her fangs. //I may not have venom, but I can still bite!//
Harry stroked the serpent's head soothingly. //He can't understand you, Aurum. Now please hide again before you call attention to yourself.//
As the snake complied, Harry turned back to his friend. "Ron, please don't make me fight with you over this."
Said boy visibly deflated, causing Hermione and Ginny to sigh in relief.
"All right, Harry."
XXXXXXXX
The rest of breakfast was relatively uneventful. As the Golden Trio stood to walk to Transfiguration, Ginny remained firmly seated.
"You coming, Gin?"
She shook her head. "You guys go ahead. I want to avoid the dungeons as long as possible."
They chuckled and nodded understandingly before walking away. As the threesome reached the top of the first floor corridor, a voice called out to them.
"Have fun ratting us out Potter?" Draco spat out, his voice containing more venom than it'd had all year.
No more words were exchanged until the three Slytherins were level with the Gryffindors.
"I revealed nothing of importance," Harry replied in what sounded like a scathing tone, though there was a buried note of hurt within it.
"Then what were the Gryffindors paying so much attention to this morning?" Blaise asked accusingly.
Harry sighed, realizing he'd have to use yet another ability he'd gained over the summer.
"You had best follow me if you want answers."
That said, he walked away, the rest of the group following. He pulled back a tapestry of Gondoline Oliphant sketching a group of trolls, revealing a small hidden room. Harry glanced quickly at his friends and looked at Draco in askance. The fair boy sighed in defeat.
"If they must be here, then so be it."
Harry nodded gratefully and gestured for Ron and Hermione to follow the Slytherins. They glanced at their friend apprehensively, but did as they were bidden. Harry followed the others inside and allowed the tapestry to fall shut behind him.
"Lumos," Hermione muttered. The light from her wand revealed that the room was designed in a similar fashion to the Common Rooms, though there was no fireplace present. Portraits of various people hung upon the walls, though most were faded with age. Against the far wall was a large bookshelf that was covered with faded tomes. A dull gray carpet, formerly silver, covered the floor. Two couches were present. These couches, which used to be midnight blue, were covered in a thick layer of dust that dulled their color.
"I only plan to do what I'm about to do to Malfoy, though I will also do it to Zabini and Parkinson if he deems it necessary."
"We'll see," Draco replied slowly. "Now, what exactly are you going to do to me?"
"I'm going to temporarily invade your mind." Harry held up a hand to stop the angry retorts. "I will not go through your memories. Instead, I will allow you to see a portion of mine; more specifically, the conversation I had with Ron, Hermione, and Ginny this morning. As I'm sure you already know, it takes time to drastically alter memories, time I have not had. It's up to you whether or not to believe me. Before I proceed, I need your permission."
Draco bowed his head in thought for a few minutes. When he looked up, his eyes were set in determination.
"You may proceed. However, if any harm comes to me, you will allow Blaise and Pansy to attack you, and Weasley and Granger are not to intervene."
Harry nodded his assent to these conditions and locked eyes with the blond. After a few minutes of awkward staring, they seemed to fall into a trance. A thin golden strand of light extended from Harry's temple to Draco's, connecting them. This light remained for five minutes, during which time Hermione continuously glanced nervously at her watch.
"We're gonna be-" she was shushed by the others in the room before she could finish. Hermione huffed and crossed her arms in annoyance, tapping her foot impatiently. The light began to recede right after she did this. When it was completely gone, the boys snapped out of their trance simultaneously. Draco shook his head and watched as the other boy began to sway. He ran forward and caught him as he fell, causing Harry to chuckle.
"Déjà vu," he muttered under his breath, causing the fair boy holding him to grin slightly.
"You're not gonna start shivering this time, right?" Draco joked.
"Shivering…Harry, you showed them Dark Magic last week, didn't you?"
Harry nodded as he sat up slowly, wanting to give his head a minute to adjust.
"So…what kind of magic was that?" Pansy asked curiously. Blaise rolled his eyes at the girl's predictable behavior, though she pretended not to notice.
"Gray. It's considered Dark to invade the mind of another, but Light to share memories that could benefit other people. When magic has traits that could be used both for the harm and benefit of others, it is considered Gray."
This explanation given, Harry tentatively tested his legs. When they held firm, he shook away the last of the fog clouding his mind and looked up.
"Now that that's taken care of, let's get going before we're too late."
Everyone else present nodded, and the group left.
XXXXXXXX
Despite their best efforts, they were five minutes late for class. Hermione was close to tears because of this fact, terrified of the disapproval of her mentor.
"And what is you're explanation for being late to my class?"
Harry stared McGonagall in the eye. "We apologize, Professor. We were working out a misunderstanding that could have influenced our participation in this program for the worst, not to mention potentially distracting the entire class."
McGonagall appeared to be thinking through his words, trying to find a lie. "Well, did you sort everything out?" she finally asked.
Harry nodded. "Yes, ma'am."
She pursed her lips and turned away. Taking that as their dismissal, the group sat at a table with their respective partners. When he felt eyes on him, Harry turned in his seat. The class was openly staring at him in shock and resentment. Harry knew the reason behind their actions; no one had ever managed to talk their way out of trouble with this particular teacher before.
"In my class, you will hopefully learn to trust your partner. You will transfigure one partner into their animagus form. The transfigured person will then be in the care of their human partner for one week at which point the roles will be switched. Before we do this, though, you will practice transfiguring inanimate objects into various animals. Now, any questions?"
Hermione raised her hand. "Yes, Miss Granger?"
"What will we do about our other classes? I mean, it'll be a bit difficult to hold a wand or stir a potion if half the class doesn't have opposable thumbs."
"The curriculums for your other classes have been arranged to accommodate for this. Now, if there are no more questions, you may begin. You are to transfigure the dolls in front of you into ferrets."
Harry glanced sideways at Draco just in time to see his face drain of all color. He turned to Harry worriedly, apparently not concerned about his reputation at the moment.
"What happens if someone loses control of the spell? What if I get hit? What if-"
"Malfoy!" Harry interrupted before the rant could continue. "Calm down. The odds of that happening are slim to none. And if it does happen, I'll be able to sense it and put up a shield before you get hit with it."
Draco stared at him. "Summer?"
"Summer," Harry confirmed.
As the blonde returned his attention to the doll in front of him, Harry sighed in exasperation.
'I guess some traumas never go away,' he thought to himself, after which he turned to his own doll.
Author's Notes: There's chapter six! Long wait, relatively short chapter. But don't despair! I have chapters seven and eight pre-written (chapter eight was a monster!). All I have to do is type them up and post. So far the most popular animagus choices are as follows:
Harry: Panther
Ron: Weasel
Hermione: Owl
Draco: Snow leopard
Blaise: Eagle
Pansy: Dog
So, who's happy that they finally know what I plan to do with the animagus suggestions? I know I am! I'll also post the songs that have been suggested for each person so far.
Harry: "Buttons" by The Pussycat Dolls
Ron: "Gimme That" by Chris Brown
Hermione: "Another Sad Love Song" by Toni Braxton; "Hero" by Mariah Carey
Draco: "Smooth Criminal" by Michael Jackson; "24/7" by Kevon Edmonds
Pansy: "Thug Style" by Ciara
Below are songs that I thought would suit some of the characters. Let me know what you think!
Harry: "World We Live In" by Stricken; "The Kill" by 30 Seconds to Mars
Draco: "What I've Done" by Linkin Park
Hermione: "Who Knew?" by Pink
Okay, time to wrap up this ridiculously long AN! I'm still taking both song and animagus suggestions, and will also take comments about the songs listed above. I'll try to post chapter 7 before the week's out, but I'm not making any guarantees.
Thanks to the Chapter 5 reviewers:
koorimechick
dgpolo
whisper in the wind33
GreenEyedCatDragon
CryptoSquirrel
Gwaeren
cyiusblack
Xylia Luna Orion
SwarmOfFangirls
T.Felton
PaddyWaddy
amber v
LiLY
scintillating