Running up the stairs, Harry and Ron finally arrived at painting that hide the Gryffindor common room. Saying the password both entered into the room, eager to tell Hermione about the things they learned about the professor. They scanned the room as they entered and found Hermione sitting off to the side, reading the Daily Prophet. They both jogged over to her, causing the brunette to look up from her paper.
"Oh you're back! So what did the professor have you do?" she asked, folding her paper up and placing it next to her.
"Nothing, actually. We sat there as he basically just told us everything about him, his curse and his past! All for letting him smoke!" Harry whispered in an excited tone.
Hermione looked at the two, stunned. "You're kidding!" she exclaimed in shock, leaning forward.
"Nope! We're telling the truth." Ron responded, grinning proudly.
"Well, don't just stand! Sit down and tell me." She said, motioning quickly for the boys to sit down in the chairs around her.
Both sitting down, they told Hermione in a hushed tone what they learned from their professor. About what the curse did to him, who Ganondorf really was, and what the Triforce truly was. Hermione leaned back, mostly in shock, astonished on how much information the two had gathered in such a short time.
"So the curse makes him transform into a werewolf?" she whispered, making sure she heard it correctly.
Harry nodded. "Yeah that's what he said." He whispered back.
She crossed her arms, thinking. "Then that means it's a very powerful curse for him to be transformed into a full werewolf…" she mumbled, pondering the thought.
Just then, Ron shot up, surprising his two friends.
"Wait! What time is it?" He exclaimed, looking around.
Harry gave him an odd look, raising his eyebrow slightly. "Uh… around 7 I think." He responded.
"Come on guys we'll talk later! Its dinner now!" Ron exclaimed, bolting to the entrance of the room.
Hermione shook her head and smiled at Harry. "Like I said before, all he thinks about is food…" she said as the two followed the red head out of the room.
Catching up with Ron, the three made their way down to the Great Hall. When they entered, Ron was first to notice dinner had yet to be served, making him slightly depressed as they sat down.
"Come onnn when is the food coming?" Ron whined, laying his head down on the wooden table.
Harry patted his back, soothing his friend. "Calm down Ron it comes at the same time every time." He said, having to remind Ron of that fact very often.
"I know but today feels like its taking longer…" He grumbled, hitting his head on the table lightly.
At this Hermione had to roll her eyes. "Patience is a virtue Ron…" she said, shaking her head.
He turned and looked at her, "So is food." He said, smiling at his own statement.
Ron's prays were finally answered when the food was presented, appearing always right before his eyes. He quickly grabbed anything he could, put it on his plate and eating as much as it as he could.
"Ah, now that was good!" Ron exclaimed, finishing up a portion of his dinner.
"Good I'm glad you stuffed yourself like a savage beas.t" Hermione said in a sarcastic tone, earning a glare from Ron.
While the two bickered about pointless matters, Harry noticed from the corner of his eye Dumbledore and a man he didn't know approaching him.
"Harry I'm sorry to interrupt your dinner but I need you to come with me for a few minutes, it's something important" Dumbledore said when he got to Harry.
Harry nodded and got up from his seat. "It's no problem sir." He said, telling his friends he be back in a few minutes.
Harry followed Dumbledore and the mysterious out of the Great Hall into a nearby corridor. He took this tie to glance over at the man, noticing that he had a few scars on his face. He was taller than Harry and had brown hair. He wore a muggle type of suit, which was different from what all the other wizards he saw wore. They stopped in the hal and the two men stood in front of Harry.
"Harry I want you to meet Remus Lupin," Dumbledore said, gesturing to the man next to him, "He will be helping you in protecting yourself from the Dementors."
Harry looked up to the man and held out his hand. "Nice to meet you." He said, shaking Lupin's hand when he outstretched it.
"Like wise Mr. Potter." Lupin responded, nodding his head towards Harry.
"Remus will be teaching you spells that you wouldn't be learning in class. So you will miss around 4 of your classes, but you will be excused from them." Dumbledore explained to the black haired boy who nodded.
"Sir not to be rude but is it necessary? The Dementors haven't attacked since the quidditch match…" Harry asked, looking a bit skeptical at the headmaster.
"Harry the Dementors for some reason keep attacking you and it worriers me. Remus knows the perfect spell for your protection and look at it this way, your going to miss most of your class." Dumbledore explained in a concerned tone, but gave Harry a reassuring smile.
Lupin nodded at the headmaster and looked down at Harry. "We will be meeting everyday after breakfast in room 128, it hasn't been used in years and it's out of the way. You'll miss periods 1-3 and you should get to 4th period a little late." He explained.
Harry frowned at that statement. That was when DADA was and he had a feeling Link hated people being late even with an excuse. He shivered at the thought of his professor glaring at him throughout the class.
He shook it off and nodded. "Alright when do we start?" He asked.
"On Monday." Lupin answered simply,
"Alright Harry, that's all we needed to discus. You may go back to dinner now, Remus and I have some business to discuss." The headmaster said, motioning for the boy to leave.
Harry nodded and left the two behind, walking back into the Great Hall to join Hermione and Ron.
That weekend nothing truly eventful happened, from studying to homework, it was pretty normal. On Monday morning, Harry could only think what Lupin would teach him to fight Dementors as he entered the Great Hall for breakfast with Ron and Hermione
"So what's his name again?" Ron asked as they sat the table.
"Remus Lupin." Harry responded, grabbing something from a nearby bowl of fruit.
"And why are you being taught this instead of going to regular classes?" He asked, confused why a specialist had to come in.
Harry shrugged. "Not sure, Dumbledore doesn't like how the Dementors have attacked me and I guess he's just looking after my wellbeing."
"It is nice of Dumbledore to bring in a specialist for Harry but it's also kind of odd. Usually he would just take care of the problem himself." Hermione added, glancing up at the headmaster.
"Dementors are searching for Black and that's the Ministries top priority. So he probably doesn't want to interfere in the Ministries plans…" Ron said, throwing the idea out there.
Harry shrugged again and took a bite of his food. "Still I don't mind it. I get to miss a good portion of the day." He added in a happy tone.
"Whatever," Ron huffed in a bit of jealousy, "you still have to come to DADA late and who knows what the professor does to kids who are late."
Harry but down his food and frowned a bit at that. "Yeah that's the only thing I'm worried about…" He mumbled, hoping that all went well that day.
Harry finished up his fruit just as Lupin walked into the hall and came up to Harry with a smile on his face.
"Mr. Potter are you ready to go?" He asked.
Harry turned around and looked up at the man and nodded. "Yes I am." He responded, getting up from the table and grabbing his things.
Harry turned to his friends and nodded at them. "I'll see you guys later." He said, and then followed Lupin as they both walked out of the hall.
Ron watched them walk out and turned to Hermione. "So where do you think they're going?" He asked.
The brunette shrugged. "No idea." She responded, turning back to her food.
"Who's that with Mr. Potter?"
Ron and Hermione whipped around and looked up to the source of the voice, Professor Link. From what Hermione could see he was watching Lupin and Harry walk out with an annoyed and suspicious look on his face. He then turned his attention on two and motioned for them to answer.
"We're not really sure professor…" Ron said nervously, not liking the look on the professor's face.
Link turned his head and glared at the man's back as he and Harry finally disappeared from his line of sight. The moment that man came into the room, Link took noticed something was off; something about that scared face man didn't feel right to him. Hermione took notice of the glare and became concerned.
"Everything alright professor?" She asked, staring up at him.
He blinked, glancing down at her and nodding a bit. "I'm fine, enjoy breakfast and don't be late for today's class you two." He said, walking out of the hall, leaving the two students confused.
Lupin lead Harry down a series of halls, finally arrive at a room that Harry himself couldn't remember seeing before. It was in a very obscure part of the castle he supposed. Lupin pushed open the door and walked in, Harry following behind him. It was a very spacious room, desks and chairs pushed to the sides and dust seemingly on every inch of the room. Lupin stopped in the middle of the room and turned to Harry, causing Harry to quickly stop to not walk into him.
Lupin chuckled a bit and put his hands in his pockets, smiling at the boy. "Alright Harry, so what do you know about Dementors?"
Harry thought for a long moment, nothing really coming to mind. "Uh… nothing at all really…" He said.
Lupin blinked in surprise, shaking his head in disbelief. "Well no wonder Dumbledore contacted me! A dementor is a creature who feeds on the horrible memories of their victims."
"So that's why I heard that scream." Harry mumbled to himself, the memory of the screaming still prevalent in his mind.
"What was that you said?" Lupin said, leaning towards Harry, starling him a bit.
Harry stood slightly star-struck, had he said that out loud? Cursing himself in his head, he looked down at the ground and didn't meet the man's eyes. He had just met him, could he trust Lupin with this information?
He looked up at him and saw Lupin patiently standing there, watching Harry, and waiting for an answer. He seemed nice enough, and if Dumbledore trusted him, Harry could too.
"Well…on the train ride to Hogwarts when I was attacked by a dementor, I heard a scream in my head. I sounded like a woman's screaming, but… I don't know who's… " Harry explained.
Lupin tilted his head to the side slightly, confused. "The dementor just left after it attacked?" He questioned, "That's odd…or did something happen to chase it away?"
Harry again thought for a moment, trying to remember what Hermione had told him. "Well…Hermione mentioned that Professor Link drove it away after it attacked me." He responded. He was kind of shocked when a dark expression went over Lupin's face, but it quickly disappeared and was replaced with a smile.
"Interesting…let's get on with the lesson, shall we?" Lupin said, pulling out his wand from the inside of his jacket.
"I will be teaching you a defensive spell which is perfect for fighting Dementors." He explained, flicking his wrist a bit, "It's called the patronus charm and in order for it to work, a happy memory is needed. But not just any memory, it has to be a very powerful one.
He turned away from Harry and pointed his wand to the end of the room, motioning Harry to watch. "To cast the patronus, simply hold your wand in front of you and say 'Especto Patronum'." Instantly, light flew out of the man's wand, blinding Harry slightly in the process.
Lupin turned to him and smiled, "Now let's get working shall we?"
With that Harry began practicing, not even being able to get a light out of his wand. He tried over and over, but nothing would come out. He began to get frustrated and took a break, letting himself breathe a little.
Lupin would ask Harry what he was thinking of and each time he shot it down, telling him that those types of memories just weren't strong enough. It had to be something that would bring complete joy even at the slight thought of it.
Harry finally gave up, glaring down at his wand and he sighed in frustration. He turned to Lupin, who was leaning on one of the chairs, and gave him an exhausted look. "Sir we've been at this for hours. Can we continue this tomorrow?"
Lupin looked Harry over, taking note on how tired he looked. He nodded, getting up from the chair and walking over to the boy with a smile. "Guess you're right and you're supposed to go back to class anyway. So I'll accompany you there so there is no misunderstanding." He walked towards the door, with Harry behind, and left the class room back to its former silence.
The two walked down the hallway, through a set of stairs and then another hallway, finally arriving at the DADA room. Lupin opened the door, walking into the room with Harry behind. The students seemed to be working on a paper, some turning their heads to see who had entered while others kept themselves at work.
Link's head shot up when the door opened, seeing Harry and that man walk into the room. A frown immediately formed on his face as he got up quickly and walked over to the pair, glaring at Lupin, than turning his attention to Harry.
"Alright Potter, out with it." He said in a commanding tone, his hands going to his hips.
Before Harry could answer, Lupin had stepped forward toward the professor, cutting Harry off. "I'm sorry Professor, but Mr. Potter was with me under direct orders from Dumbledore. I'm sure you understand." He shot back in a calm tone, standing meeting the eyes of the Hylian.
Darting his eyes to match the brown that were staring him down, Link glared fiercely at the scared man. Harry stood there, not sure what to do. He could tell that there was some sort of mind battle going on between the two and he didn't really want any part of it.
"Potter." Harry yelped slightly, brought back by Link's deep tone. The professor was still glaring at Lupin as he spoke, "Go take a seat and turn to page 105, Mr. Weasley will fill you in."
Harry complied, nodding a little too quickly, and made his escape to where the red head sat. He glanced back at the two men and saw that Lupin had broken off the gazing battle and left the room. Link went and closed the doors, a dark expression on his face as he passed by the students, going back to his desk and working back on whatever he was doing before.
Harry brought out his book and opened it to the page the professor told him to go to when Ron leaned over to him. "So what did you learn?" he whispered, curiosity getting the best of him.
Harry hushed him a bit, worried that the professor would hear him thanks to his sensitive hearing. "It was very interesting but I'll tell you later," he whispered back, "What are we working on?"
Ron frowned disappointedly and pointed to a specific paragraph on the page. "Something about skeletons, mostly just taking notes."
As Harry took notes, he glanced up and noticed that the professor had gotten up and began closing the shades in the room. He quickly left up the projector and told the class to close their books. The slide showed a picture a skeleton in armor holding a shield and sword which the professor called a Stalfos. Link directed the students do quick sketches of the creatures and then ended the class early.
The trio walked out of the room and headed back towards the Gryffindor tower. Hermione looked over at Harry, who was looking slightly tired, and asked him what he had learned with Lupin, eager to know what happened.
Harry yawned, looking over at the girl. "It's called a patronus charm and it is very hard to master. Lupin can do it easily but I can barely get an ounce of magic energy out of my wand." He explained in a frustrated tone, still upset with himself.
"A patronus charm?" She exclaimed in astonishment, surprising Harry, "You're right Harry that is a very complicated spell! Something that is usual not taught to 3rd years."
Ron, lost on the subject, asked a question of his own. "What does a patronus charm do exactly?"
"Lupin said it's used against dark creatures like Dementors, it using a positive memory and it sends out a barrier of positive energy to protect you from the creature." Harry explained, earning a confused look from Ron.
They made it back to the tower and the month past without any incident, brining yet another out of character peaceful moment to the school. Soon, snow began to fall and the air turned from a crisp fall chill to a winter freeze.
During this month, Harry had improved his ability in the patronus charm, making him and Lupin proud. One morning, Harry had awoken earlier then all the other boys in the room. He put on his glasses and looked out the window, watching the sun slowly coming over the mountains.
He quickly got dressed, warmly of course, and headed out of the tower through the halls of the school. He made his way to the bridge that led out to Hagrid's hut and leaned on the railing, watching the sun rising, taking in the scene in awe. The sun was peeking over the mountains now and it added a soft pink color to the clouds; it almost looked like something out of a painting.
"Beautiful isn't it?"
Eyes widening, Harry turned around startled at the voice then sighed, seeing it was Lupin walking up to him, staring over the sun rise. He smiled at Harry and stood next to him, leaning up against the railing.
Harry turned his gaze back to the sunrise, for some odd reason feeling uncomfortable around the man. "Uh… yes sir it is." He replied, bothered by the feeling.
They both stayed silent for a few moments before Harry heard Lupin sigh, causing him to turn his head and look at him. The professor look to be thinking about something before he also turned to look at Harry.
"Harry I need to ask you something," he said, locking his hands together on the railing, "I feel like the professor for DADA is hiding something and I know you know something about him."
Harry eyes widen slightly and quickly broke his gaze with the man, looking down at the rocks beneath the bridge. What did Lupin want to know about the professor? And how did he know that he knew something about him?
"I don't know anything about him sir," He said in the calmest voice possible, still looking away from Lupin, "All I know is he is from another country."
Lupin frowned at the answer knowing that the boy was lying to him. "Harry its ok for you to tell me, he won't hurt you. I'll make sure of it." He assured the boy, the end of his sentence also adding a very protective tone.
That got Harry to look back up at him and saw that Lupin had a genuine look of concern on his face. "I mean sir," he said, "I don't really understand why you want to know."
Lupin sighed; the boy seemed very protective of this teacher. He had no idea why, from what he saw this Link fellow seemed to an angry fellow. Something about the look in his eye and the aura he gave off made Lupin suspicious. "He's hiding something Harry and it could endanger you and the entire school." He explained, his voice getting riled up out of sheer concern for the boy than anything else.
Harry saw that and thought for a moment that maybe he should tell Lupin. After all he was concerned for Harry, which was something that Harry was still getting used to. Against his better judgment, he decided he would tell Lupin. "Well…" he started, earning a small smile from Lupin, "He did mention-" But Harry cut himself short and he paled slightly, looking past Lupin at the figure coming towards them.
Confused by the sudden, Lupin followed the boys gaze and turned around, seeing that cause of Harry's fear. Link, donning his usual wear plus a scarf under the cloak, slowly walked up the two, a fierce glare in his eyes. He stopped a few feet away from then and for the next few moments, the only thing that was heard was the sound of the wind.