Chapter 2: Fame for lions.

(Harry's voice)

It was seven to eight when I was wake up by what looked as a paper bird that was trying to wake me up by hitting me with its paper beck.

"What are those things?" I asked realising Ron had also one.

"Ginny managed to charm some paper figures to wake people up…" Ron answered me as he stood from the floor after having fallen down from his bed.

Six minutes later we were both down going to the great hall to have breakfast while Hermione told us about the new bedroom she shared with other female extra-years.

"I still wonder who the bed is missing." She said. "It was the twins, me and the empty bed."

Anyway, the previous night letter for McGonagall and the empty bed where nothing compared to what was about happening.

We were having breakfast and copying down the timetables for the term when suddenly a lot of owls came through the windows dropping a packet identical for everyone.

"What can it be?" we asked one to another.

Then there was a chaos of joy screams as people opened their packets to see identical containing of a Spanish Quiddich National Team full pack: scarf, t-shirt, cap, cheering flags and a team autographed photo tied to one of each player.

Anyway, there was no much time of checking all because the fireplace behind the teacher's table lighted with green flames making the teachers stand up ready to attack, anyway, McGonagall made them lower their wands as if she had allowed the entrance.

Then a man came through the flames while after about ten seconds another one came. Suddenly confusion ruled among the two new men and McGonagall who asked everyone to leave for their lessons and Lupin and the other house heads to begin looking for something or someone.

"Sorry Harry." Lupin said taking the time table from the extra-years from my hands. "I'll take this, everything is right?"

"Yep, I'm happy you're our new house head." I said smiling.

"Me too." He said smiling back. "Specially now we have such special extra-years."

Special extra-years. I wouldn't have said such about us; anyway, everyone still had to reach our lessons. And this year lessons could be some fun cause we would share lessons with eight years, and we had lot of time between some lessons and others.

We were free first hour, mainly cause transformations' teacher was dismissed and it seemed a new one had still not came, and McGonagall seemed a bit busy with the two outsiders now.

Then we saw someone wearing black robes but not from school, a girl showing her belly and with a tight summer top and really short skirt, also a sport bracelet in arm, those were red and yellow.

She seemed a bit lost.

"Hello." I said smiling. "Need help?"

She then looked at me and for first time I noticed how beautiful face she had. Her eyes were bright red yet seemed blood injected, and her skin was a bit too suntanned.

"I was looking for…" she began saying softly, but then she changed her mind. "Got lost my mates."

"Oh, you are… you are…" Ron began babbling.

Then she went pink and lowered her face again, covered with a hood as she tried to run away, but Hermione was faster.

"Excuse us." She said. "He is not used to…"

"Harry, Ron, Hermione!" Lupin said coming round a corner with McGonagall, Flinch and the three estrangers who immediately ran to the girl and began speaking fast to her.

"Thanks good you found her." Lupin told us.

"Excuse us." I then said. "She seemed… a bit lost."

"Of course." He said smiling mild. "Isabelle is new here."

"I should recommend you to wear the school uniform." McGonagall told her. "I thought I sent you a letter with the things you should buy yourself."

"Sorry aunty." She then muttered making us go astonished.

"Please, Ma'am, try to understand her." The elder of the foreigners told her while the white haired one and the black haired one spoke fast with the girl. "Party gone on all the night so she has had no time of changing robes. She came flying straight from the disco to here."

Suddenly we saw how McGonagall tried to understand what the man meant.

"No!" the girl said angrily to the two young men. "¡Tenéis que iros! ¡Ya es bastante con ser la sobrina de la directora, la nueva, la pobrecita huérfana como para que vosotros os quedéis aquí!"

"What are they speaking about?" I asked fast.

"They are Spaniards!" Hermione told me cause Ron kept on being too astonished for speaking.

"Please." McGonagall said then. "This is a school; so don't shout here. And now, gentlemen, if you have ended I would thank you left the sooner the best cause we have lot of things to do. Mr. Potter, Weasley and Miss Granger, to your matters. And Mss McGonagall, this way, to my department, now." She added addressing first to the men, then to us and finally to her niece.

"Yes, ma'am." We all said.

So, the men seemed to leave though the fire again but for the two younger that took a bit longer cause they chatted with both elder and younger McGonagall to check something.

(Isabelle's voice)

After having had to stand aunt Minerva to tell me all the rules in the school, and to tell her everything I needed to tell family, no mattering the time, I was left to leave down after having made me change robes into my uniform.

So I left down again and I managed to find my way to the gardens where the day was wonderful as it was sunny.

Then I found a lake and I went there to sink my feet.

However, I was not alone for much time; the same two guys and girl that I found on the corridors appear on my back soon after I sat down.

"I hope your aunt was not too hard to you." The black haired with glasses told me.

"She just remembered me the rules I had never been told you had here." I answered them. "It's ok if she counts my past."

"I think we have not begin well." The girl said smiling. "Hi, my name is Hermione Granger."

"Hello, Hermione Granger, Mr. Weasley and Harry Potter." I said shaking hands with all of them. "My name is Isabelle Alexandra McGonagall. But I suppose you can call me Isa as my friends used to do, it's shorter."

"Ron, you can call me Ron." The red haired one said pink on his cheeks.

"Oh, no." I said as I noticed the bags they had on their backs. "Tell me the Mister had not sent them…"

"This?" Harry told me. "We got them this morning. Oh, thanks by the way."

"Don't thank me for that, please." I said. "My manager sent it with not even telling me… I suppose he wanted to buy all of you."

"Buy?" Hermione said. "I don't think you need to buy anyone's friendship with this."

"But it helps." Harry told me smiling. "Ah, you also signed it?"

"Yes, he makes us sign some things for fans so…" I said then. "I hate when he does that kind of things on my back."

(Harry's voice)

"And if he knew you would be angry with it then why he sent it?" I said.

"I suppose he went too happy." Isa said. "As we won and all that…"

"Wait a moment." Ron said. "You won? Against Bulgaria?"

"Well, yes." She said. "That's why I have no slept tonight. All night at festivities, with my team, Bulgarian one, the V.I.P. tiers… a madness."

I then imagined how it could be to play for the national team. I imagined myself riding the last model of broom, flying around the stadium with the snitch at my hands after having won the mundials; people cheering for me and my team mates… It was too pleasant so I suppose I wore a silly face because Hermione hit my stomach to make me go back earth.

"I was trying to image how it was." I said.

"I suppose the twins would have hang it all at the wizard-net." She said.

"The what?" the three of us said.

"The Wizard-net." She repeated, then she took something from her bag and pointed her finger to it making it grow till it became a laptop she laid at her lap beginning to type fast till she clicked on the internet icon, yet it had a wand over the blue "e" one. "This." She added showing us.

Then we noticed she had opened not the internet but a different one internet-like but just for wizards. She then typed something fast and she opened a window where she read the things and fast clicked on a link.

"As I said, the twins have hung the whole video." She said showing us. "Here, you can see it. Or if you have a Wizi-pod I could manage to send it to you and you could see it when you want."

"I have heard speak about them." Hermione said. "But they are expensive and… weren't them on develop process?"

"OK, I lend you mine." She added taking another dot from her pockets and making it enlarge at her hand till it was what looked as contact lenses with an ear thread. "Here." She added after sending the file to the thing somehow. "You have to put the lenses on and the thread on your ear. Perfect for lessons and boring meetings because they are nearly undetectable cause as she said, they are still under developing process."

It was amazing; she seemed to have lot of other secrets hidden apart of being a star. Anyway I decided it was not too risky and it was worth of trying and I put the one of the lenses on an eye and the thread on an ear while Ron put on the other cause Hermione didn't thought it was fair to use those on lessons.

The truth was that it was amazing; if I closed an eye I could see the match as if I was there instead of at the lake surroundings.

"I don't want to bother." Hermione then said. "But we have a lesson to take."

"Also me." She said softly. "D.A.D.A.?"

"Yes, know the way there?" I told her. "If not I suppose you could come with us. It seems you are on the extra-year."

"Yep." She said smiling. "I don't know this place, as you could have guessed."

"Hey." Hermione said looking at her face as all of us. "You don't look much elder than Ginny."

She had really beautiful face when she smiled. Really the kind of natural beauty some girls had.

"I'm… 17 years old." She muttered softly going red and covering her face as she saw we were staring at it when she smiled.

Just 17 years old?! And she was on our year!! Incredible!!

"You must be… really clever." I muttered.

"I'd not say so…" she muttered then.

"How many O.W.L.s did you got?" Hermione asked her curious. "We just dropped Divination. And Harry even got top marks on D.A.D.A."

"I got… 11 over 11 O.W.L.s" she muttered then. "Translating into an A to E scale where D would be Fail, I just got a C on divination. A on D.A.D.A, Care of magical creatures, Potions, Transformations, Charms, Gardening, Muggle Studies and Astronomy; B on Ancient Runes and History of Magic. I managed to pass Divination cause of my tea leaves, quiromancy and stars omens reading."

By then we were completely astonished and our jaws were menacing to sweep the ground. So young and she managed to achieve more O.W.L.s than even Hermione; and higher marks too! Now she had told us that we had no doubt on why she was on a higher course than the rest of people of her age.

Finally we had arrived the classroom where Lupin was waiting for us. He ordered us to stand on a half circle around what looked as a big jailed area where he was standing.

"Now, could anyone tell me what do we have here?" He asked when the cloth over a littler mountain like thing trembled and then a shout could be heard. "Ah, Isabelle."

"Perhaps I'm mistaken but… could it be a harpy?" she asked then.

"Ten points for Gryffindor." Lupin said smiling. "I must admit I didn't expect anyone to guess it, not even Miss Granger. But I was mistaken, obviously."

Then we began congratulating her while Lupin removed the cloth covering the harpy that was chained to the ground, as soon as the cloth was removed, the half bird lady tried to break free but with no result. She was tied her wings at her back so she couldn't fly, and her legs and hands to the ground so as her not to ran away.

Then Lupin began explaining about that dark creature, not realising on the fact that she seemed eager to ran way till suddenly we saw how the woman jumped away free and hit Lupin's wand holding arm making his wand fall.

We then shout in fear and girls seemed to panic.

"Please, don't panic!" Isa said high for everyone to hear her while a protective shield appeared over Lupin covering him fully.

Then she pointed her hand to the fence and a hole opened allowing her in and closing behind her.

"Everyone low your wands." She said while the creature ran away to the opposite corner as Isa held her sight.

Then she outstretched her hand at her side while she looked for something at her robes she then took some marbles and raised her hand slowly as asking for attention.

"Please, everyone cover your noses." She said on a soft voice so as not to frighten the creature.

Immediately we all began making bubble-head charms on ourselves and those who had problems with it till we were all with a bubble covering our head. She on the other hand had made a cloth cover her nose to neck and then I made a bubble appear on Lupin's head.

"Done!" Ginny shouted then. "Need help?!"

"no." she said on the soft voice. "But please, do not move your voice levels, high tones seem to make her frightened and nervous and now it's two people risking our necks here…"

Then she cracked something on her free hand and blew it to the creature to fast begin moving her wand, out of nowhere, as if it was a wand ballet.

We saw how the creature fell down and began twisting as if it was trying to break free, but apparently all the spells sent by Isa hit the harpy.

Some minutes later, the harpy was laying down apparently unconscious while Isa kneeled down breathing hard. We were now all silent in shock, but then she made the shield protecting Lupin who also had his wand pointed to the harpy with his not hurt hand to what he had pointed it then to try healing the cuts that seemed not to be healed.

Then Isa stood up while someone unlocked the door of the cage. She seemed to look for something at her robes and then we saw another marble turning into a glass bottle with drop form filled with something shinny she dropped two drops at each of the cuts the harpy made on Lupin's arm. The wounds began boiling and Lupin held his breath, but then we saw how the cuts turned into nothing more than scratches.

Lupin then held her up on his arms while she was about falling again.

"Lesson is over!" He then said. "Harry, Ron, Hermione; please run down and tell Madam Pomfrey I'm taking her a pupil."

"Going." The three of us said at once.

Then we literally flew down the stairs to the infirmary where Madam Pomfrey was taking care of some minor wounds and a broken finger a first year got when he fell from his broom.

When we told her about the accident she gave out a little worry shout and began moving fast to reach some medicines and products while Lupin got in the room carrying Isa on his arms as if she was a feather.

He then made her lay on a bed while Madam Pomfrey asked him about the whole matter.

"Professor." I asked him when we left the infirmary wing. "How is she was able to… well, to see it and then control the harpy?"

"Don't know." He said after thinking a second. "But I must suppose it would be not the first time she has faced one of those. Her charms level seems to be pretty high so I must say she sent no verbal charms to the Harpy. Anyway, we were lucky she reacted so fast. That thing had something weird that made her go… well, stronger and more dangerous."

We were all a bit worried about our new mate, but after a couple of hours, she was down again, with her arms and hands hand wrapped on a weird kind of fingerless neoprene gloves.

However she was chatting with someone when we saw her: Malfoy.

"Really?" she asked him. "That's brave thing to do."

"Well, I was lucky." Draco said rubbing his back hair. "It's a pity you ended up at those losers of Gryffindors."

"What to say, it's on my blood." She said smiling, and then she noticed us and waved at us.

Malfoy then looked and saw us, so he said bye to her and left.

"What do you know that rat of Malfoy of?" Ron asked her faster than me.

"He is not a rat!" she said confused. "He is a guy. I met him on some games, and I didn't remember him till I found him on the infirmary cause he got hurt by something. Anyway, I don't trust much on people that doesn't show their right arm."

Then I realised she was referring to the Dark Mark all Deatheaters had on their right arm. Perhaps she knew it after all.

"He told me he was able to avoid him-who-must-not-be-named, but I think he was just lucky." She kept on. "After all, it was you who ended with him." She added smiling at me while Slughorn got in the class to teach us potions.

"Ok, as it's tradition, we will begin by identifying some potions and then…" the man said.

Typical from him; and again the prize was a bottle of Felicis Felix for the best potion.

While we were cooking them he began wandering around having a look at the potions. The last ones having a look at were ours.

"Ah, I see Harry have not lost his touch." He said smiling as he saw how I began cooking an easy morphing potion. "Good one Miss Granger." And when he reached Ron's he twisted his lips as Ron's potion who was supposed to be blue was purple.

Before he could reach Isa's he asked us all to give the last touch to our potions and to remove our hands from the cauldrons.

One by one he began looking to the potions, till he reached us again.

"Ah, well done Mr. Potter." He then told me. "It's going to be hard to improve it. And what is supposed to be this, Miss McGonagall?"

"With my respects, sir." She said softly. "This is a Veritaserum. It would take more time to end it but…"

"And what are that ciammon and the peppermint for?"

"Ciammon would give a better connexion between the extra ingredients and peppermint is for giving it the undetectable taste back. With my respects sir, I have a sample here." She said looking for more marbles at her school bag pockets and taking some out to make them enlarge at her hand to make them shrink again till she found a little thin orb, as all she took out, containing what looked as water; when she looked back up to the teacher, she saw him with the jaw nearly sweeping the ground.

"Sorry, it's a bit hard to find anything at that size." She apologized looking a bit pink as she handed the potion.

"How many potions are you carrying?" he asked making her red. "Filters, Felicis Felix, antidotes… and what is this?"

"This Veritaserum." She said. "You could try to check the effects."

"I'll do right now. Cause if you have truly managed to create a new one… that would not just deserver our prize but also a good punctuation for your house."

Then he made a toad to appear.

"Sir." She said raising her hand politely. "Effects would be better saw on a speaking life."

"Oh, certainly." He said smiling as he called for a house elf.

When it came he put a drop at his mouth and when the elf swallowed it Slughorn began asking him things till after a couple of minutes he fainted a second immediately standing up.

"Are you ok?" Slughorn asked him.

"Yes." The elf said.

"Excuse me." Isa then asked him. "Can you repeat what was the menu for today's meal? I'm afraid I have not understand it."

"I have not told you anything about it." He said after sneezing twice.

"Ok… You can leave…" Slughorn said surprised.

When the elf left he went out of his surprise a bit.

"We have a winner." He said taking the little orb. "Here is the prize, miss. A clap for her cause she performed an astonishing new potion for Veritaserum. And twenty points for Gryffindor."

Then we all clapped for her while she went red. The truth was that she seemed as a surprise full box. Pretty, brave, extremely sharp and clever… and she managed to get 30 points for the house on our first day. Really amazing.

"What was that thing supposed to do?" Ron asked.

"Same than Veritaserum, but for the fact that the one swallowing it will not remember having speak all he or she will speak under the effects. The problem is I have still not managed to avoid the sneezing, yet it seems the claw powder managed to stop the nose bleeding."

"It was something too dangerous to do!!" Hermione said shocked. "What could have happened if that elf had died?!"

"I invent potions, but I'm not fool enough for testing them before checking they are not lethal, ok?" she asked as offended.

"Time up for both, please." I said.

"Hey, is there anything I can use for making a prat to regret annoying people?" Ron asked her when we saw Malfoy bothering a second year Hufflepuff.

"Apart from a little joke, not." She said.

"What do you call a little joke?" Ron asked. "Making him hang upside down?"

"No, you would get caught!" she said. "I meant, for example, put something at his meal so he would turn into a different colour, or perhaps changing his bath stuff for joke products so he would die his hair on a funny colour, have his teeth brown… something like that."

"That is little joke?" I asked.

"I think we have a good successor for my brothers…" Ron said Hermione and me on a whispering voice so as the new not to know.

"Ah, I forgot." She then said. "Where is Quiddich pitch?"

"Oh, sure." I said "You play Quiddich."

"Yep, you have guessed." She said smiling.

"Oh, I think I'll do the tryouts." Ron said. "For keeper, Harry you could try being seeker again!"

"Yep, Ginny was good chaser too." I said remembering it from my times there. "I just wonder who the captain is. You Isa what position are you playing at?"

"Seeker and doing aunt a great favour. Anyway, I can play any position so I will begin by calling tryouts for every post, but I must say seeker must compete against me. So… do you know where should I put an announce for calling the tryouts?"

"Common room." We all said.

"I think I have nothing to do against her." I said while we were having dinner. "She is a national player!"

"I'm not perfect." She said. "I can be won, just ask Krum. Obviously not last time. Ah, tryouts will be the day after tomorrow and the list will be held till that morning so I can make lists before the tryouts. If you want to note down your names…" she said handing us a piece of parchment where she noted a board for names and positions we preferred playing at.

Immediately we wrote down our names.

"I'll be willing to play against you." I confessed.