Charmed Compartments

Chapter 2 – Charmed Compartments

"Ron, Ron, wake up!" said an exasperated Hermione, Ron just rolled over mumbling about people interfering with his sleep. "Ron, if you don't wake up now then there will be no breakfast left." At this Ron shot up and said, "no breakfast, no breakfast, Merlin's beard I must get up now." He got up immediately and started for the bathroom. Harry turned to Hermione and laughingly said, "Well now we know how to wake Ron up in the morning!"

Hermione, Harry, Ron and Ginny met the rest of the old DA in the entrance hall and they went into the Great hall together. With their entrance everyone who had already sat down at breakfast turned round, including the teachers. With one accord they went and sat down at the Slytherin table because this table had the least people on it. Mutters and snatches of whispering could be heard all around the Great hall. All the DA just ignored the staring and whispering and proceeded to eat their breakfast and make idle conversation. They all tried to make conversation with the lower year Slytherin's as well. None of the Slytherin's responded very well to being talked to by Gryffindor's, most of them just ignored them. However, a few like Pansy Parkinson and Blaise Zabini, followed by Crabbe and Goyle walked over to where they were sitting with malevolent looks on their faces. Harry and his friends turned calmly round to face them, "I'm sorry, do you have a problem, Pansy," asked Harry as it was obvious who was the ringleader of this gang. Ron looked nervously around at the rest of the hall, everyone had turned to stare at the confrontation.

"Yes, we have a very large problem I am afraid, you are sitting in our seats," replied Pansy in a fake polite voice.

"I am sorry, but they didn't have any indication on them that they were saved for someone, so we kind of just thought that it would be ok to sit here," said Hermione in an equally polite voice.

"Mudblood, this is a Slytherin table we don't want any of your lot sitting here, go find a different table to do whatever it is mudbloods do," spat Blaise. The atmosphere in the Great hall thickened noticeably. Many of the students sitting near that table looked furious at Blaise's words, especially calling Hermione a Mudblood, that was unforgivable.

"That is not something that you say to anyone, Blaise, I would challenge you to a duel but we are going on the train soon so there is really no time," said Ron. Harry was amazed at the amount of self restraint that Ron had, although Harry could still see Ron going very, very red. Harry decided to stop the conversation before it got further out of hand.

"I am sorry, Pansy, Blaise, Crabbe, Goyle, but we are sitting here and we do not intend to move until we have finished eating," and with that Harry turned round and proceeded to tuck back into his eggs.

Harry could feel the gaze of McGonagall from the top table and turned round to catch her eye. She gave a small nod and then gestured to the owl that had just landed next to Harry.

Harry,

Congratulations on trying to change the inter-house rivalries! Please can you come see me in my office after breakfast. Please bring Mr Weasley, Miss Weasley and Miss Granger with you. We need to talk.

Professor McGonagall

Harry nodded back at McGonagall on the top table, then turned to Ron, Ginny and Hermione and said: "read this," brandishing the letter. Hermione finished first and asked him "we aren't going to talk about the 'cruxes are we?" Meanwhile Ginny and Ron had finished reading, Ron with a look of comprehension, Ginny with a very confused look. "Hermione, of course that is what she wants to talk to us about," replied Ron talking for Harry.

"But what are 'cruxes?" asked Ginny still very confused and demanding an explanation.

"Um, we can't exactly tell you here, I guess we will probably have to tell McGonagall, right Harry?" Harry nodded "So we will tell you then," said Ron and with a fleeting look at Ginny's face which was slowly turning to anger he added "I'm sorry Gin, we promise to tell you, ok."

"I guess it is ok, lets get on with breakfast then," replied Ginny slightly mollified by his apology.

As soon as Harry saw McGonagall leave the breakfast table he ushered Hermione, Ron and Ginny out of the Great hall. They walked through the corridors and up to her office, again much to the surprise of everyone the gargoyles opened up without a password and let them onto the revolving stairs. Harry vowed that he would ask McGonagall the first moment he could why it didn't require him to give a password. However, that would probably last until after they had told McGonagall about the Horcruxes. Looking up from his thoughts he found they were outside the door to her office and so he knocked and went in. It looked very similar to what it did last night, the only real change being that there was no longer a perch for Fawkes to stand on. Ron, Hermione and Ginny looked around at the office and Hermione gave a little gasp when she saw the new painting. Dumbledore's painting addressed her "Good morning Miss Granger." Hermione still looking startled replied "good morning, sir." The painting then went back to snoozing in its frame. Hermione turned round to find McGonagall looking at all of them.

"Sit down, Mr Potter, Miss Granger, Mr Weasley, Miss Weasley, would any of you like a biscuit?" asked McGonagall proffering a biscuit tin. Harry having had experience of being offered a biscuit by the Transfiguration teacher before accepted immediately as he knew there was no way to get out of having one. The others accepted more slowly, but soon enough they were all eating their biscuits.

"Now, Harry, I know that you would not tell me before what happened in the cave and why you were there, however, I still think it imperative that I must know. Please, please tell me," begged McGonagall. Looking around at Ron, Hermione and Ginny, Harry knew that he would not be able to get out of telling her. Of course as soon as he read Dumbledore's letter he knew he would have to tell her but this was actually reality. He took a deep breath and plunged in.

"Professor, in Dumbledore's letter he told me that I should have to tell you, however, there are some stipulations of me telling you this. You must not tell the Order, you have to let me do this on my own with Ron, Hermione and Ginny."

"Ok, I guess I have no really choice but to agree with the stipulations as I have to know what it is you were doing," replied McGonagall.

"Good, now you know about the prophecy, right? Basically that while one of is living the other cannot survive, so I have to kill him. Anyway Professor Dumbledore started having, I guess you would say lessons, with me this year. He told me how Voldemort had made himself some Horcruxes…"

Harry told the whole story for the benefit of McGonagall and Ginny who had no idea what a Horcrux was or what the prophecy was. By the end of his story they were looking dumbstruck at Harry and Ginny looked as if she wanted to cry, instead she contented herself with hugging Harry. Harry was becoming uncomfortable with all the pity that was filling the room and so he tried to break the silence.

"Professor, I was just wondering why do the gargoyles do not require me to have a password to get in here?" asked Harry.

"That Harry is for the moment a mystery, however, I will look into it over the summer," replied McGonagall. A knock on the door interrupted their conversation. "Come in."

"Ah, Pr'fessor McGonagall, 'ere you are, everyone has left for the train station and there is on'y one carriage left and the train is leavin' soon," said Hagrid peering round the door.

"Ok Hagrid not to worry we will come now and resume this conversation when we are on the train, all but a few teachers are coming on the train just in case, come on lets go," said McGonagall ushering everyone out of her study. "Don't worry about your trunks and animals they have all been sent forward so you are not burdened down so much."

They finally arrived on the train and they found that the compartments had been charmed so that everyone sat with people who lived near them and then when they got close to the general direction their homes were in the train broke up. There would be a teacher in every block of compartments going to a different destination. Professor McGonagall sat in the same compartment as Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny so that they could carry on their conversation.

"Now Harry, can I ask you what you are going to do this summer?" asked McGonagall.

Harry had already decided that he needed to tell McGonagall because he knew that he would probably have to have a guard most of the time. He started stroking Fawkes whom he found on the train waiting for him "well first off I am going to the Burrow for Bill and Fleur's wedding, then I wish to go to Godric's Hollow. Then because I promised Professor Dumbledore that I would go back to Privet Drive this one last time, so I will go there for a week before my 17th birthday. However I believe that Voldemort will probably attack there on my birthday so I need to go the day before and I will try to make the Dursley's leave. I need to get my apparition license and then the hunt for the horcruxes will start," he replied.

"And you Miss Weasley, Mr Weasley, Miss Granger are you going to follow him?" asked McGonagall quite sternly.

"Yes, Professor we are," replied Hermione firmly daring Harry to contradict her.

"I see, and are you planning on coming back next year to Hogwarts?"

There was a lot of awkwardness present in the compartment after that question and so McGonagall didn't really need the answer it was pretty obvious. "Ok, well I don't think that you Ginny should give up school so soon, however you others can do what you want. On the other hand I really want you all to come back in the next year, and I think the only way I can possibly persuade you that you need to go back is by telling you something Professor Dumbledore wrote down for me." Harry remembered something Dumbledore had said in his letter that he would leave it up to McGonagall to persuade them to go back to school. Everyone shifted around and started listening more intently. "Professor Dumbledore told me who the Head Girl and Head Boy are for next year, he named Hermione Granger and Harry Potter respectively with Ginny filling in as a new Gryffindor prefect instead of Hermione." Harry and Hermione looked at each other in shock, they really didn't expect that and didn't know exactly what to say. Suddenly there was a crash and the compartment door opened to reveal Fred and George Weasley also looking very shocked as well.

"Wow Harry, Hermione…"

"we congratulate…"

"you, on such a…"

"high honour, just please…"

"please, do not brag about it…"

"like Bighead Percy did…"

"that was rather.."

"annoying."

Ron, however didn't look surprised at all, in fact he was laughing so hard because of the looks on Harry and Hermione's faces. After a minute or so he found everyone staring at him so he stopped laughing. Hermione then rounded on him "What Ronald Weasley is so funny?" she said menacingly.

"It was the look on your faces, guys it was pretty obvious who Dumbledore would pick to be the Head's," said Ron. There were even more shocked looks from Harry and Hermione. This promoted another bout of laughter from Ron and soon the whole carriage was laughing even Harry and Hermione. Once everyone stopped laughing, Harry turned respectfully to McGonagall and said "Ma'am do you mind if we give you our answer at the end of the train journey?"

"Of course that will be acceptable, oh and Harry, Professor Dumbledore wanted me to give you these two books," with that she handed the books over and strode out of the compartment. Harry glanced at the two books she gave him, on one it had Magical Pets and their upkeep, by Rana Tilup and the other was entitled A guide to clearing your mind, by Mira Vern. He guessed that it meant that Dumbledore wanted him to go back to learning Occlumency again and he sighed, not wanting to go back to that pain.

Harry looked around at the occupants of the compartment, Ginny was resting her head against his shoulder having a nap, Ron and Hermione were talking quietly with Fred and George, while Neville and Luna who he had not even noticed coming in were both reading the Quibbler. He decided to start reading the book on how to look after magical pets so that he would be able to look after Fawkes. There was a lot of information in the book and he found out some things that he realised he needed to share with the group. So he decided to speak up "Guys, um I need to tell you some stuff about Fawkes," he said slightly nervously. Everyone's attention was instantly on him. He carried on "Sometime in the next week Fawkes is going to burn up again and then when he is reborn he will not be Fawkes as we know him. As soon as I see that he is burning up I must take him away from everyone so that it is only him and me. This is so that we can bond, I then should be able to talk to him mind to mind, after a couple of hours we will come out and you can all see him again. Up until his burning he should stay with me on my shoulder for most of the time." He stopped as this was the most pertinent information, then totally out of the blue he asked "Fred, George how come you are here?"

"Well, we were at Dumbledore's funeral…"

"and we overheard you talking to…"

"Ginny, and we wanted to make it…"

"clear to you that you will have to…"

"answer to us if you ever harm her…"

"We were going to threaten…"

"you, but then we realised…"

"that you wouldn't actually need…"

"to be threatened as you…"

"would probably blame yourself…"

"anyway."

"Thanks guys that actually means a lot to me," said Harry.

"To me too," said Ginny giving her two older brothers hugs. They all went back to their former occupations to while away the time.

Suddenly McGonagall's voice could be heard magically amplified, "ALL PASSENGERS PLEASE MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE APPROPRIATE COMPARTMENTS AS THE COMPARTMENTS ARE CHARMED TO SPLIT VERY SOON." Then the compartment door opened and McGonagall herself came through the door. She looked at them all and said "well?" Harry glanced at Hermione, Ron and Ginny, they had a silent conversation that only they understood, with one accord they turned to McGonagall and said "we accept." McGonagall looked relieved while Luna, Neville, Fred and George looked slightly perplexed. Then they felt their compartment stop and they all started clambering out with their trunks and animals. On the platform to meet them were many people as a guard to take them to the Burrow, Tonks, Remus, Mad-eye, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Fleur, Bill, Charlie, Molly and Arthur and many more. They were greeted all round with the adults clutching onto the kids so as to use side-along apparition for those who need it. Harry found himself being gripped by Remus and then he felt the unpleasant squeezing sensation associated with apparition.

When they arrived at the Burrow he looked around in awe, it looked completely and utterly different to what he remembered…