Year Six: Harry Potter and the Secret Letters

Chapter Six: Toadseye on the Express

Warnings: Minor Ginny-bashing, as always (Can you not tell that I dislike her?). And Enter OC Toadseye. Don't worry; you'll like him!

The rest of the summer break passed by with no commotion or mention of Judas. Bill went back to the ministry as a code breaker, Fred and George returned to the shop shortly after the party, and Arthur received a promotion at work in the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects. He had to take extra long hours due to the uncommon activity that the dark Lord's revival had brought on. Meanwhile, as the four teens and Mrs. Weasley stayed at home, it was a miracle that they found ways to entertain themselves. Sometimes they would chase gnomes out of the garden, or practice flying their brooms (1), or play games such as Exploding Snaps and Wizard's Chess. But mostly, while the boy's were participating in some foolishness or other, Hermione and Ginny would be up in their room chatting about the two downstairs.

"It's not that Harry's oblivious," reasoned the redhead. "It's just that, I think, he doesn't want to see me."

"Tell me about it," Hermione agreed, rolling her eyes. "Now that Ron's finally noticed, he has lost any shred of tact that he may have once possessed. Now we act the same as we did in Second Year. He purposely disagrees with me just to get on my nerves. It is exceedingly childish."

"But at least Ron has always been a pain. Harry's usually somewhat decent. He used to really care for others."

"He still does."

"I suppose. I guess it just seems that he is waiting for someone else to appear… like he has no interest in anyone but that person. And yet, he doesn't seem to know who that person is."

It would always be right about this point in their conversations that Hermione would invite the other downstairs so that they may retrieve a snack or a glass of water from the kitchen. She was always afraid of telling about Judas where it wasn't her place and cause who-knows-how-much pandemonium for Harry. For now, she would simply wait and see what happens with this secret admirer.

Harry, on the other hand, never sent a return letter to said boy. He deemed it unnecessary now that he had the globe (he still didn't know what the heck that thing was actually called). Every once in a while, he and Ron would speak to the mysterious boy just to stay in contact until they reached Hogwarts. Once they got to school, Harry wasn't quite sure how or if things would change. He, too, would have to just wait.

Now, finally, it was the day to board the Hogwarts Express and return to his home-away-from-home. Arthur was able to get his hands on another set of ministry cars which Bill and Arthur were driving to the Burrow from Headquarters. Mrs. Weasley and the four students were scurrying about, trying to retrieve last minutes items before they arrived. It wasn't long before Molly's yell rang through the house announcing that the cars were there and that the four needed to hurry up if they didn't want to be late for the train. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny loaded their trunks into the back of the cars and took the cages carrying Hedwig, Pig, Crookshanks, and Arnold (Ginny's new pigmy puff) with them into the seats. The Gryffindor trio climbed into one car with Bill, while Ginny rode with her parents in the other.

The ride there was mostly quiet for Harry and his friends. They didn't speak much except for wondering about the feast and the awe-struck faces of the first-years.

"I wonder how many will be sorted into Gryffindor house," Hermione mused.

"I'm more worried about how many will be sorted into Slytherin," countered the redhead practically, earning a chuckle from the Golden Boy.

No one spoke of topics such as Judas, Voldemort, Sirius, or the prophecy. Some of those were in the process of being forgotten while others were pushed away until it was truly necessary to think about them. After all, one of those was something that the trio couldn't even agree on. It was best to avoid redundant conflict.

Arriving at the station, everyone reclaimed their trunks from the cars, placed them on trolleys, and made their way to stand in front of the column between platforms nine and ten. Mrs. Weasley ushered Harry through the barrier first and was shortly followed by the rest of the party. Naturally, and mostly out of habit, he motioned for Ron and Hermione to come along.

"We can't, Harry," reminded the girl apologetically. "Ronald and I have to go to the prefects' carriage and patrol the corridors for a bit."

"Oh yeah, I forgot." Damn Prefect duties…

"No matter. I'm sure you will find each other once you are all on the train. Which, by the way, you should board. It will be leaving in only a few minutes," Molly advised, consulting her watch.

"Right," agreed the students as they said their goodbyes and headed toward the Hogwarts Express. Harry turned to the redhead girl walking beside him. "Would you mind if I sat with you until Ron and Hermione are finished?"

Ginny was, needless to say, a little surprised and quickly answered. "Yes, of course! Uh, I mean, no, I don't mind," she stumbled with a small smile before she remembered a not-so-pleasant fact. "Though, I did say I'd meet Dean." Damn boyfriend…

The idea of sitting with his best friend's little sister and her boyfriend for an undetermined amount of time did not strike Harry as a very bright idea. He shrugged off the offer with a nonchalant attitude. "Never mind; forget I asked." Harry then scanned the platform for a familiar face among the crowd, while Ginny mentally cursed at herself for having a stupid boyfriend at the one time that the other made even a hint at a move.

Harry's emerald eyes almost instantly pulled out a certain face from the rest: blonde hair, a green tee, and book-ended by boulders… "Malfoy…" The whispered name escaped his lips and before he even realized it, he was turning tail and heading straight for Arthur.

"Mr. Weasley, may I have a quick word?"

"Of course," was his natural reply, paying no mind to his wife's sour expression.

"Arthur, the train," she warned.

"It won't take long," he reassured, lightly taking hold of Harry's shoulder and guiding him away from Molly and Bill.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Harry began. "When we were in Diagon Alley—"

"Am I about to discover where you, Ron, and Hermione really went when you were supposedly in the back room of Fred and George's shop?" he interrupted with a slightly weary voice, as if he should have known better than to deny his first instincts about their disappearance.

"How did you—?"

"Harry, please. You're talking to the man who raised Fred and George."

"Oh, right… Well, we weren't in the back room."

Arthur sighed. "Very well, let's hear the worst."

"Well, we followed Draco Malfoy. We used my invisibility cloak."

"Did you have any particular reason for doing so, or was it a mere whim?"

"Because I thought Malfoy was up to something," explained Harry, ignoring Arthur's mild look of exasperation and amusement. "He'd given his mother the slip and I wanted to know why."

"Of course you did," said Mr. Weasley, sounded resigned. "Well, did you find out why?"

"He went to Borgin and Burkes and started to bully the bloke in there, Borgin, to help him fix something. And he wanted Borgin to keep something else there at the shop for him. He made it sound like they were the same thing, like they were a pair or something."

"Sounds like a lot of 'some things,'" the man mumbled humorously, but Harry continued on.

"And there's something else. We saw Malfoy jump about a mile when Madame Malkin tried to touch his left arm. I think he's been branded with the Dark Mark. I think he has joined his father as a Death Eater."

Arthur appeared slightly taken aback and didn't speak for a moment. "That's a rather serious accusation, Harry. I doubt whether You-Know-Who would allow a sixteen-year-old—"

"Does anyone really know what Voldemort would or wouldn't do?" shot Harry, anger beginning to taint his voice. "Mr. Weasley, I'm sorry, but isn't it worth investigating? If Malfoy wants something fixed, and he has to threaten Borgin to get it done, it's probably something Dark or dangerous, isn't it?"

"I doubt it, to be honest, Harry," was Arthur's cautious reply. He wanted to heed the boy's instincts, but the evidence was against him. "You see, we raided his home after the unpleasantness at the ministry earlier this year and removed anything that may have been dangerous."

"I think you missed something." Arthur seemed to have forgotten just how stubborn Harry was.

"Well, maybe," he said, mostly just to humor him.

"Arthur, the train!" Molly cried from behind them. Mostly everyone had boarded the Hogwarts Express, the doors were closing, and the whistle sounded.

"You better hurry, Harry. Quickly!" ushered both Mr. and Mrs. Weasley as they helped him load his trunk onto the train. The door was slammed shut, but Harry kept his head out of the window in order to hear Molly's last words as the train began to move.

"We fixed it all up with Dumbledore, so you are welcome to come home to us for Christmas." Molly was trotting alongside the train by then. "So look after yourself, be good, and stay safe!"

The train turned the corner and Molly was out of sight.

Reality sank in and Harry slowly began to feel alone as he walked down the aisle trying to find an empty compartment. It wasn't long, however, until he came across one with only Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood. Sure, they weren't his closest friends, but they were certainly ones of quality.

He quietly opened the door and smiled at the two inside. "Do you mind if I join you?"

"Harry!" exclaimed Neville, grinning broadly at the other boy. "No, not at all. Sit."

He tried to ignore that Neville had just given him a dog command, and obeyed it, first loading his trunk in the overhead compartment.

Luna was too busy trying to detach a pair of paper spectacles from one of her father's Quibbler issues to greet Harry with as much enthusiasm as Neville. Instead, she whispered in her mysterious way. "How was your summer, Harry?"

"Alright, I suppose," he answered, getting comfortable in his seat and absentmindedly putting a hand in his pocket to finger the glass sphere. His mind was still mostly focused on Draco Malfoy and he didn't really feel like talking much. To make up for it, he pretended to listen patiently as his mind wandered off aimlessly.

Perhaps it had been an hour, maybe two, but soon the door was slid open, and there stood a bright, older woman (perhaps in her thirties or forties) pushing a cart full of goodies. "Anything off the trolley, Dears?"

Neville's face again lit up. His Gran had been kind enough to give him some money for snacks, and he hungrily ordered many sugary substances. Luna bought some Crazy Cauldrons, which simply fizzed and popped in your mouth, and Harry claimed the classic Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. It wasn't until after she had been gone for quite some time that Neville reached for one of his chocolate frogs, and it reminded Harry of something from a month previous.

Ron was the one who had figured out how to work the crystal ball that Judas had given Harry for his birthday, and he had told himself that he would treat the redhead to a Chocolate Frog because of it. It wasn't like he had told Ron this, and it was a bit overdue, but reward or not, he was sure that the boy would appreciate one after his prefect duties.

As he stood from his seat, Neville peered at him questioningly. "Where are you going, Harry?"

"To get something else from the trolley," was his honest reply, and he left the compartment, closing the door softly behind him.

The woman and her cart had already progressed quite a ways down the corridor to Harry's right, so he continued along briskly to catch up to her. "Um, three chocolate frogs, please?"

"Of course, dear." They exchanged candy and sickles, and then Harry turned on his heel only to bump into a broad chest. He looked up to see musky-hazel eyes, a slightly surprised yet kind smile, and a smooth, clean-shaven face.

"Oh, my apologies," the man said through his cheery demeanor. "That was entirely my fault, however…" He peered at the three boxes that Harry was holding. "Those chocolate frogs do sound tasty. Mrs. Maple," he said, looking back to the woman. "if you could spare a few please?" (2)

"Of course, Professor."

"Professor?" Harry mumbled to himself. If this man was a teacher at Hogwarts, Harry had certainly never seen him before, or perhaps he had just never noticed him. Unless… this was the man that Judas had been talking about. His questions must have been evident on his face because when the man turned back to Harry, he too looked curiously at the boy before smiling again. "May I introduce myself? My name is Toadseye. Darnay Toadseye," he said, sticking out his hand for Harry.

So, Judas had been right about their new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. "Potter. Harry Potter." He accepted the proffered hand.

"Well, that seems to be a popular name in today's society. I'm sure I'll be able to remember it," was his casual reply. He paused a moment. "Are you in a hurry to get back to your friends, or would you mind visiting me? We could talk over a few chocolate frogs," he smiled, indicating the hexagonal boxes.

Harry smiled and shrugged.

"Splendid! Do follow me. My compartment is close by." Toadseye turned, short brown ponytail arcing as he did so, and led the way down the train. Only a good six compartments down did the man slide open the door and step inside. Harry followed, closing the door and sitting opposite the man.

"So…" Harry began hesitantly. "You're the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?"

"Defense Against the Dark Arts?!" he asked surprised. "No, not at all. I only teach potions."

Harry went dumb for a moment. "Potions? But Snape…"

"Oh," Toadseye nibbled his bottom lip in thought. "I suppose they don't inform the students of such things until the feast, do they? Well then, let me explain. When no one would fill the DADA position, Professor Snape nearly jumped at the opportunity. Once I came and offered to fill his spot as potions master, Dumbledore finally agreed. Does that make sense to you?"

Harry fiddled with the sphere in his pocket as the thought of Snape controlling DADA lessons registered in his mind. Perhaps Dumbledore's Army would live on through another year…

At the lack of response, Toadseye smiled. "Hmm, I agree. It is a rather discomforting thought. Although, Snape is a very intelligent man and takes that subject especially seriously. I would not worry about it if I were you," he nodded. "Now, I will have you in my class this year, won't I?"

Harry shook his head. "I only earned an Exceeds Expectations in my Potions class last year and I need an Outstanding to continue."

"Ah-ah-ah," chimed the man, ticking a single finger at eyelevel. "Snape may have needed an O, but I'll take anyone with and E and up," he smiled. "That means you, too."

Harry looked at the man strangely for a second, then chuckled.

"Does that mean I should ask McGonagall to enlist you still?'

"Sure. Thank you, Professor," the teen smiled. If he was able to continue to N.E.W.T. in Potions, perhaps he could still become an auror.

Toadseye began to unwrap a chocolate frog as he spoke. "Now, I asked Snape to give me an overview of his students for me, seeing as he has known them all for five years now and they will only be new to me." He exchanged a smirk with the boy, who all of a sudden seemed both nervous and angered. "Oh yes," Darnay continued. "He had a few choice words about you."

Harry couldn't help but scowl down at the floor, earning a laugh from the man. The hearty sound rang through the compartment and the boy couldn't help but feel more cheerful when it met his ears. "May I ask what he said?" Harry questioned.

"You may."

Harry paused a moment as he realized that the smiling man was going to make him repeat himself. "What did he say?" he asked again.

"He said that you were exceedingly stubborn and ignorant, unwilling to do anything except for what pleases or benefits yourself, and seeming to always befuddle your own work due to peer rivalry."

Harry was about to protest everything that must have come out of that git's mouth, until it mentioned his enemy. "Malfoy…" he whispered through gritted teeth,

"Ah, so I see that not all of what he said was a lie. I'll be honest; I thought you would deny it all," he said, amusement bubbling through his voice. "So, do tell me about this Malfoy. Snape had a few good words for him, as well."

"Let me guess. Snape said he was a perfect student; a child prodigy; the embodiment of what it means to be a Slytherin" was the teen's sour remark.

The man shrugged as he recalled what he was told. "For the most part, yes. Why? What is your view on him?"

"A slimy, cowardice git you can't even stand up to Snape, let alone his own father. He bullies the younger Years just because he can, and is always surrounded by tough-looking morons because he is too much of a weakling to fight his own battles."

"Sounds like you have a growing detestation for this boy."

"Ever since First Year," Harry reassured. "Before I even learned his name on the train that year, I had met him in Madame Malkin's Robe Shop and was able to tell the moment he started to speak to me that he was a spoiled rotten jerk. Once I was sorted into Gryffindor and became immediate friends with Ron, he began to hate me. So I hated him back."

"Sounds petty," the man noted to himself. "Now who's Ron?"

"Ronald Weasley, my best friend."

"Oh, Snape told me about him, as well. His report was nearly as bad as yours, so I'll be sure to revaluate all of my students myself as soon as term begins. "

Harry smirked although the topic of Malfoy had begun to anger him. He then realized he had been squeezing the sphere in his frustration, and suddenly released it in fear that it might break. His abrupt movement caught the professor's eye. "What is that in your pocket, if I may be so bold as to ask?"

"You may," the teen retorted, mocking the man's previous remark. It took him a second to notice that he had not only released his irritation on a third party, but that he had talked back to his teacher. He cringed and sent the man an apologetic look, yet the other seemed completely unfazed. "Um, I-I honestly don't know what it's called," he answered, retrieving the gizmo from his pocket.

"You may not know what its name is, but do you know what it does?"

Harry paused as he thought, wondering if telling his new teacher what the object did would lead to its being confiscated. So far, however, the man had been quite agreeable, so he dared to continue. "It lets me speak with whoever has its pair."

"Speaks? Are you sure?" the man smirked.

The teen frowned at the other. Of course I'm sure, he thought. I speak to Judas through it… or more, write to Judas… "Well, I suppose it's more like writing to the person…" Who is this guy…?

"Ah, in that case, I am familiar with the item. It's called a Transport Sphere. Simple title, isn't it? What really controls what it is that it transfers is what spell you put on it. So… I'm assuming that this was given to you, seeing as you barely even knew what it was… the other person you speak of has set a charm on it relaying words. I could charm it now to transfer this chocolate frog," he explained, taking his first bite of the candy he had unwrapped some time ago.

"So it can transport anything?"

"Pretty much. As long as you have the correct charm…"

Harry wasn't exactly sure why this man seemed so… normal, but it was his nonchalance, chipper attitude, and studied knowledge that made him seem like a good ally to have. "Do you know those charms? Can you teach them to me?"

The man frowned to himself in remembrance. "No, I do not know them off of the top of my head, however I may look into them if you would like."

The boy smiled. "Yes, thanks!" Harry agreed with himself that he definitely liked this guy.

Just then, two people walked by their compartment, peeking in tiredly as if they had been doing so for quite some time. When they saw Harry though, they perked up and entered. "Harry! We were looking for you. Prefect duties are over, thank goodness. I thought Ron was going to fall asleep during the meeting in the Prefect Car."

"I was not!" the redhead protested.

"Hey, Ron, Hermione. This is Professor Toadseye, our new Potions teacher," Harry introduced as he scooted over so that his friends had a place to sit beside him.

"Potions?" Ron asked. "What about Snape?"

"Don't tell me…" Hermione began remorsefully.

"Got the DADA job," Harry explained shortly.

"Damn," Ron cursed, flopping down next to his best friend. "I thought Dumbledore agreed with the ministry that Snape was never to get that placement due to his past as a Death Eater."

"Obviously the fact that no one else would dare to take the position due to the past few years has forced Dumbledore to take such actions," Hermione noted logically.

"I guess that's one good thing about it," Ron said. "The job is jinxed, so I'm not expecting to see Snape at school next year." Harry chuckled, for he was thinking along the same lines.

Darnay smiled as he watched the three interact so naturally. "You must be the infamous Ron Weasley," he guessed, holding out his hand to the boy, which was soon taken up and shaken. "And Hermione…? Is that as in Hermione… Granger?" he asked.

"That's right," the girl agreed, also shaking the professor's hand after Ron.

"Harry here had not yet gotten to you, my dear, but I'm sure that you were right on the tip of his tongue next," he joked, sending Harry a smirk.

The black-haired boy looked at Hermione sheepishly. "I was just getting there," he lied, and the girl shook her head at him.

"So, Ms. Granger," he began with faux formality. "Professor Snape told me you were quite the… oh, what was the phrase he used… know-it-all, I believe it was. In that case, I look forward to having you in my class. I do enjoy having a student every now and then who truly tries to know what it is that they are doing," he played.

The girl first grimaced at the horrid nickname, but brightened when he went on to compliment her reputation. "Thank you, Sir," she smiled, and Ron grinned at her for finally being acknowledged in an appropriate way.

The man looked between the two, bit his lip in realization, and then chuckled to himself. "I'll be sure to set the two of you together during paired experiments. I believe you would probably work well together.

"Sometimes…" Harry mumbled to himself, earning sour looks from his friends which he laughed at.

These interactions went on for quite some time as it began to get darker outside and rain began to hit the windows. Quite some time later, the door to the compartment suddenly opened and there stood Ginny, appearing flustered and out of sorts.

"I swear," she started, looking between Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "If Zacharias Smith says one more word about the Ministry last year, I'm going to hex him into next week!" It wasn't until then that she noticed the full grown man sitting across from them. "Uh, um, I mean, not that would actually hex him. I would only threaten. I mean, no, um—"

The man laughed that hearty laugh again and shook his head at her. "Never you mind, my dear. Do join us," he offered.

She half-smiled, half-sighed in relief as she stepped into the compartment and began to close the door. Just about then, Malfoy himself walked past the door and on down the corridor. Instinctively, Harry jumped up out of his seat and left the compartment, followed by the voices of many inquiries. "I'll be right back," was his only reply, and as soon as he was in the hallway, he took his invisibility cloak out of the inside of his jacket and threw it over himself, instantly disappearing. The heads of his friends popped out to call back to him, but he was no where in sight. Ron cursed lightly under his breath when he saw Malfoy at the end of the hall.

"Merlin," Toadseye whispered as he too looked outside for him. "He's faster than I was told."

TBC…

(1) This excludes Hermione, of course, because is afraid of heights. She simply watched and cheered for Harry and Ginny from the sidelines. (Sorry Ron…)

(2) I took the liberty of naming the poor trolley lady. Did you ever notice that she did not have a name? How sad is that???

AN// Firstly, I know that the lateness of my post is absolutely inexcusable. I will not go into details about the sorrows that have recently occurred that has delayed this, however note that my next post might take just as long. I took my Spring break (the three days that I had) to write this up for you all, so I hope that you enjoy it. It is much longer than my normal chapters and I was tempted to keep going. Instead I'll hold it off until Number Seven. I will try desperately to continue this story. I love it and its concept just as much as the rest of you. Thank you for your past reviews, and you must let me know if you like Mr. Darnay Toadseye. If not, tell me what to change, because I want him to be a friend to all of you. Thank you again for your dedication. I love you all!!!

Oh, by the way, tell me if you are or are not a Snape-fan. If a lot of you are, I'll try to cast him in a better light (Not as good as Draco's, but what do you expect? I'm a Draco-fan… XP)