Well, I was a little disappointed with the amount of reviews I got from the last chapter. I've seen worse with more. Come on, with over 600 hits from the last chapter, it can't be all of you looking at it, going meh and then leaving!!

Book 2

Chapter 15

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The quiet before the storm

… … … … … … … … … … … … …

Arthur Weasley didn't quite know what to say. First, there had been his little chat with Harry at the bank and then not one but two confrontations, one with Gilderoy Lockhart and the other with Lucius Malfoy. The latter had caused such a ruckus that they had needed to leave Diagon Alley very quickly.

The child, for that was really all he was, had been very quiet on the way back. He didn't look hurt, more angry. The others in his family seemed to sense this and left him mostly to his own devices.

At one point, Arthur had popped his head into the living room and had seen the boy simply sitting and staring into space with a completely vacant look on his face. He'd queried Ron about it and had been told not to worry about it. 'He does that often' had been Ron's reply.

Arthur had shrugged his shoulders and had gone back to his chores.

Xander opened his eyes with a grimace. That had been a cock-up of massive proportions; he'd spent the better part of a year trying to avoid the spotlight, and then in one fell swoop, bang! There it was, hanging over his head.

What was it with fate? Was it deliberately trying to screw him?

He sighed and went back to meditating; it helped calm his thoughts.

The rest of the summer he spent revising with Hermione, practicing Quidditch with Ron and the twins and exploring the household and the neighbouring forest. He went to Molly every morning to learn how to perform the odd cleaning, cooking and mending spell. While he couldn't perform them, he could at least get a general idea of how to use them; she was delighted, naturally, to have some company in the kitchen. Xander kept a discreet eye on the smallest redhead knowing that she was already scribbling in the jinxed diary and that Riddle was filling her head full of crap; a much better job than TV was ever able to do.

On the last week, Xander had Ron and the twins organised, their bags were packed and they were ready to go. This, in the end, proved useful, so much so that even Ron could see the logic behind getting ready early, and not an hour before they were supposed to leave.

They boarded the car, and made once more for the train station, although unfortunately, this time there was no limousine to pick them up.

The journey to the station was not eventful at all, Dobby didn't try to stop them and they were able to board the train in peace. The train journey was also relatively uneventful. They all sat together in a carriage with Ginny, chatting amongst themselves about trivial things. Ginny appeared a lot quieter than usual; Xander knew why – she was under the influence of that damned diary, thinking about Tom Riddle and his exploits.

Upon arrival at Hogwarts, they made their way to the Great Hall for the Sorting and the start of term feast. Xander took his usual seat at the Gryffindor table, making sure to leave a space for Ginny. The crowds clapped heartedly when each student was Sorted into their respective Houses.

This time there was no dire warning about the third-floor corridor, only the usual one about the forest. He guessed Fluffy had been found a good home. Xander shivered at how expensive it would be to feed him.

"You alright mate?" Ron asked as the food appeared.

"Yeah, I was just wondering what size the dog bone would be for Fluffy," he chuckled.

Ron shivered at the mention of the enormous three-headed dog. Although he and Hermione had not actually seen Fluffy, Xander's descriptions of him were more than adequate to send chills down Ron's spine. He seemed as scared of three-headed dogs as he did spiders. An introduction of Gilderoy Lockhart followed, and practically every female in the room sighed as he stood up and flashed his teeth. Xander leaned in to Hermione.

"I wonder if he does his hair in his teeth," Xander chuckled. Hermione scoffed, choking on her drink as she did so.

After the feast, Percy led them to the Gryffindor Common Room. The Fat Lady pretended to look insulted and refused to open when Percy presented her with the new password, "Wattlebird," but she gave in eventually after much pleading from the weary, full-stomached students.

… … … … … … … … … … … … …

Apparently, in Hogwarts, things were capable of being quiet after all, much to Xander's amusement. He woke the next morning after having a good night's sleep, and he got up feeling considerably refreshed. He woke Ron who moaned profusely at being disturbed, and then the two of them went to find Hermione. She was already up, and was curled in a chair by the fire in the Common Room, absorbed in a book; Voyages With Vampires by Gilderoy Lockhart was today's selection.

Xander rolled his eyes but said nothing, naturally he'd read all of them already, but in this one he'd found a considerable amount of continuity errors. Not mention the vampires, jeez! He was about to launch into a spiel on how false Lockhart was and how the vast majority of what was contained in that book was merely him taking credit for others' work, when Neville walked in, sleepy-eyed.

"Mornin'," he said, stifling a yawn. "Post's due any minute, I think Gran's sending a few things I forgot."

Hermione looked up.

"You know, I was researching Occlumency and Legilimency; did you know that it's a great way to help improve memory and attention span."

"Sorry, what?" Neville said with a blink. "I wasn't paying attention."

The three of them looked at him and Neville blushed. Ron barked out a laugh. "Neville, was that a joke?"

He nodded with a grin; Xander snorted with laughter.

They made their way towards the greenhouses where Xander saw a very annoyed looking Professor Sprout being lectured by Lockhart over the proper care of the Whomping Willow. The teacher looked pissed off, but nodded politely enough.

"Oh, hello there!"

Xander groaned.

"Just been showing Professor Sprout the right way to doctor a Whomping Willow! But I don't want you running away with the idea that I'm better at Herbology than she is! I just happen to have met

several of these exotic plants on my travels..."

Xander held up his hand.

"Ah, Harry Potter, my good fellow. You have a question?"

"Yes. I thought the Whomping Willow was a one of a kind; it says so in Hogwarts: A History."

And right he was; Hermione raised her eyebrows in shock while a few students tittered at Lockhart's stunned look, stuttering at being caught out in his own lie.

The squat teacher had a very nasty smile on her face.

"Yes, well, uhm…" He made a quiet excuse and left.

"Greenhouse three today, chaps!" said Professor Sprout with a grateful look and a thumbs-up.

"I read it while I was at Ron's house," Xander explained in reply to the curious look he received from Hermione; she knew that he was hardly the bookworm.

"We'll be repotting Mandrakes today. Now, who can tell me the properties of the Mandrake?"

Hermione's hand shot up into the air.

"Mandrake, or Mandragora, is a powerful restorative," she started. Xander was certain that she was Willow's long lost sister; he couldn't wait to see the two get together sometime. "It is used to return people who have been Transfigured or Cursed to their original state."

Well, that's convenient isn't?

"Excellent. Ten points to Gryffindor," said Professor Sprout. "The Mandrake forms an essential part of most antidotes. It is also, however, dangerous. Who can tell me why?"

Hermione's hand shot up again. "The cry of the Mandrake is fatal to anyone who hears it," she said

promptly.

"Precisely. Take another ten points," said Professor Sprout. "Now, the Mandrakes we have here are still very young."

Xander smirked at Ron's eyes and Hermione's beaming face. Xander arched an eyebrow at the very fluffy earmuffs and imagined one of the teachers somewhere was cracking up laughing; he put up his hand.

"Yes, Mr Potter?"

"Is the Headmaster having a good laugh at our expense?"

There were a few snorts of laughter.

"No Mr Potter, why do you ask that?"

Xander held up the earmuffs with a grimace. "I know I would be…"

He put them on and made a peace sign strange, he was able to hear the teacher through the earmuffs, which made things a lot easier, it was probably how they got around the teaching, while the damn things screamed at the top of their lungs. Professor Sprout ignored his comment and carried on with the lesson. "As our Mandrakes are only seedlings, their cries won't kill yet," she said calmly as though she'd just done nothing more exciting than water a begonia. "However, they will knock you out for several hours, and as I'm sure none of you want to miss your first day back, make sure your earmuffs are securely in place while you work. I will attract your attention when it is time to pack up."

Xander and the group pulled out the little crying babies; he grimaced again as he did so, trying to hold the little plant in place.

Xander grabbed the large pot of soil and plunged his into it and the crying ceased. Ron saw what he did and followed suit, as did Hermione and Neville. When every one was put into place, Sprout gave the thumbs up once again.

Xander jerked upwards to see a curly-haired Hufflepuff trying to catch his attention. "I know you; quite a move you pulled off last year," the boy said.

"No idea what you're talking about," Xander replied casually.

The boy flashed a smile. "But of course. From what I've heard you've also been battling it out with Hermione Granger for the top of the class; the Gryffindor three as I'm told. I'm Justin Finch-Fletchley, by the way."

Xander chuckled and shook hands with him. "A pleasure."

"That Lockhart's something, isn't he?" Justin said enthusiastically. Hearing no enthusiastic reply from anyone, he continued. "Awfully brave chap. Have you read his books? I'd have died of fear if I'd been cornered in a telephone booth by a werewolf, but he stayed cool and – zap! - just fantastic. My name was down for Eton, you know. I can't tell you how glad I am I came here instead. Of course, Mother was slightly disappointed, but since I made her read Lockhart's books I think she's begun to see how useful it'll be to have a fully-trained wizard in the family."

Xander had been formulating a plan on how to get rid of the Professor, but now he had a different idea: something that could help out him and a few of his allies. He grinned. "Elementary my dear Watson."

Ron frowned but remained quiet.

They made their way back to the castle after Herbology and made their way to Professor McGonagall's Transfiguration class which ran smoothly, as usual..

Later on came the crunch moment: Gilderoy Lockhart's Defence against the Dark Arts class.

"All right, Harry?" came a small voice running up to him. "I'm… I'm Colin Creevey." Xander shook his hand and smiled at the first-year. "I'm in Gryffindor, too," Colin went on. "D'you think… would it be all right if… can I have a picture?"

A big grin spread across Xander's face. "No."

Colin's face dropped.

"But," he carried on, "I'll go one better. Walk with me."

Colin did so, and Xander led the smaller boy away from the Slytherin crowd who were roaring with laughter. He smiled. "Look I'm just a normal kid, and I'm a little camera shy, but maybe you can help me."

Colin blinked in surprise. "How?"

"Well, I figured I'm pretty famous, right?" Colin nodded. "Okay. I'm going to write an autobiography and it'll need to have pictures in it. Once I get a publicist, I'll key you in."

Colin looked on in awe.

"Not only will it give you a chance to take pictures of myself but you'll be able to use them professionally and make some money." Colin was quiet but nodded anyway. "Now, I'm not going to ask again and I'd appreciate it if you'd have a word with your brother about taking my photos."

It never occurred to Colin to ask Xander how he knew about his smaller brother, as it was, he'd been given the opportunity of a lifetime. Fortunately, this time, Xander had managed to diffuse a potential situation by calmly talking about it. At least this time, Ron wouldn't be eating slugs, per say.

"An autobiography?"

Xander nodded at Hermione's question. "Yes. Everybody's constantly asking about what I know, who I am etcetera; this kills it all with one stone."

"A good idea, mate," Ron said with a hint of green eye.

"Don't worry, Ron," Xander said, the grin returning, "I'll be kind."

Ron flipped him the finger.