Author's Note: A very late chapter 10 here.
I had this written up in December. But decided to hold off on posting it, then I accidentally started off with the wrong chapter, but just decided to go with the flow. So…sorry. .
In other news, I will be extending my upload schedule from once every three days to once every week. That's right, one chapter a week. The reason is that I can't keep the pace up with only three days between uploads.
The next story to be updated will be Zero no Tsukaima: Saito the Onmyōji one week from today.
Please Read, Review and check out my other stories!
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
"Harry" -Speech
'Ginny' -Thoughts
/Bill\ -Foreign/Non-human Language
Chapter 10: Arithmetic and Buckbeak
Regrettably, Harry was used to falling unconscious. Playing a rough and tumble game like Quidditch tended to do that to a person, more so for someone who played Seeker. Especially if that person was being actively hunted by the wraith of the Dark Lord who had killed his parents.
This, logically, meant he was also very used to waking up from unconsciousness. This was the first time someone had woken him up by slapping him across the face though.
"Harry! Harry!" someone shouted in his ear.
Opening his eyes, he caught sight of Ron's white face as he stared down at him. Over his shoulder, Neville, Ginny and Hermione looked down in fright at him. Professor Lupin was nowhere to be seen. Somehow, he was on the floor. How uncomfortable.
"Ow." he said reflexively, "What…damn. The Dementor…right. I was right in thinking that would happen…"
"What?" Hermione demanded. She looked very shaky, Harry noted. Not that he felt any better.
Harry shakily got to his feet and retook his seat. "Dementors feed on happy emotions and memories, leaving you with only the worst of both. For people with many bad experiences in their life, it can be…overwhelming. At a guess, the worst affected after me was Ginny, followed by Hermione and Neville, right?"
"Ginny did look like she was going to faint." Ron said, still not back to his regular skin colour, "How'd you know?"
"She has the worst experience in her life after me, shortly followed by Hermione." Harry replied. His skin felt all clammy and cold still filled him. "What I want to know is what one of the Dementors of Azkaban is doing on the train."
"Ostensibly, looking for Sirius Black." a hoarse voice replied, making the group jump. Professor Lupin had returned without anyone noticing him.
"Their actual purpose was to get a quick feed before the students were out of their reach." he continued as he took a massive bar of chocolate and started breaking it up before handing some around to everyone.
"According to the book I read, Dementors have to stay on Azkaban unless they're escorting prisoners to the Ministry of Magic." Harry pointed out.
"Perfectly true." Lupin nodded, "Professor Dumbledore will explain things more fully once we get to Hogwarts. Eat your chocolate while I go and speak to the driver. I'll be back after that."
With that, the professor walked out into the carriage and headed up towards the front of the train.
"What's chocolate supposed to do?" Ron asked in mild disbelief as he eyed the confectionary dubiously.
"It does help Ron." Harry replied before biting into and swallowing a piece of his chocolate, feeling the tremors stop and heat filling him again, "Chocolate counters the after-effects of the Dementors pretty quickly, see? I'd eat it if I were you."
Seeing the effect it had on Harry, the rest ate the chocolate.
"I'm going to owl Dad after the feast." Ron scowled, "Dementors! At a school! Whose bloody brilliant idea was that?"
"That's what I want to know too." a voice said from the corridor. Heads swivelled to see Susan Bones standing there, "Aunt Amelia didn't say a word about those foul things being on the train, and she would have been furious if she had known about them!"
"Madame Bones is the Head of the DMLE, isn't she?" Ginny asked in confusion, "I would have thought that the Dementors would be under her jurisdiction."
"Normally they are, but if she didn't know about them being taken off of Azkaban, there's only one person who could have arranged it; Minister Fudge." Susan said grimly as she walked in and leaned against the wall, "It is technically legal for him to issue an Executive Order to command the Dementors without oversight from the DMLE, but no Minister has ever invoked that power since the agreement with the Dementors was struck."
"To look for Sirius Black." Harry guessed. When Susan nodded, he groaned, "Damn it…he's doing it again!"
"Harry?" Hermione asked in concern.
"When he ordered Hagrid arrested for the Chamber of Secrets incidents, he said something like 'The Ministry has got to be seen to be doing something.'" Harry said in disgust, "Typical Fudge. He wants to be seen to act decisively since Black hasn't been caught yet."
"To be fair, nobody has ever escaped from Azkaban." Susan said with a frown, "I've heard that Black isn't affected by the Dementors like other Wizards are too."
"How is that possible?" Harry frowned also, "The book I read, 'A Treatise on the Darkest and Foulest Beings to Walk the Earth', said that Wizards and Witches lose their powers after at least a decade of exposure to the Dementors. For him to be unaffected is…"
"Unbelievable, yes." Susan agreed, "But that seems to be the case."
"Great…" Harry muttered. He had a bad feeling about what Professor Dumbledore was going to be saying at the Feast.
Headmaster's Office, Hogwarts
"Albus!" Minerva cried as she marched into his office, "Remus just sent an owl from the train. The Dementors boarded the train!"
"As we expected them to, Minerva." Dumbledore said placidly, although he was not happy about this.
"Even more than that, one Dementor went after Harry Potter." McGonagall said sharply, "He collapsed unconscious."
This made the elderly man look sharply at his Deputy. "He did regain consciousness, didn't he?"
"Yes, but…" Minerva trailed off. She wanted to protect her Lions, but…
"Then, sadly, we can do nothing." Dumbledore said unhappily, "I will, of course, once again protest this to Cornelius, but I doubt that he will pay any more heed to my protests now than he has in the past few weeks."
"What will we do if those monsters try to attack the students?" Minerva fretted.
"The Dementors are confined to the boundaries of the castle grounds." Dumbledore reminded her, "Aside from when the second year and up students pass through to Hogwarts when they arrive, only those who choose to go to Hogsmeade will encounter them, in passing, and I think we shall roll out the Thestral-drawn carriages for that, to minimise temptation there."
"But…what about Mr Potter? He handed you a consent form, did he not?" Minerva asked with a frown, "Is it really safe to let him wander around with Sirius Black on the prowl?"
"Alas, we are under strict instructions to not inform him." Albus spread his hands helplessly, "If I cannot explain why he isn't allowed to go to Hogsmeade, I cannot ban him in good conscience. I doubt he will go without Miss Granger or Mr Weasley, so he will not be alone. All I can suggest otherwise is a teacher presence during the Hogsmeade trips."
"I can just hear Severus' reaction to that." Minerva said dryly, "Very well Albus. I shall see you at the Feast."
After Minerva left, Albus pondered the situation before hitting upon an idea.
"Fawkes old friend." he said to his phoenix, "Would you care to keep an eye on young Harry while he's in Hogsmeade?"
The splendid bird sang a warm note that never failed to cheer Albus up. Sending Fawkes was an excellent idea. He often hunted in the Forbidden Forest, but sometimes did fly over and around Hogsmeade, so it wouldn't be an odd sight to see him there. Moreover, Fawkes, despite how he stood out with his fiery plumage, could be surprisingly unobtrusive, fading into the background.
"Thank you, old friend." Albus beamed at his phoenix, "Now then…to the Feast!"
One of Albus' favourite sights was the awed look of the new first years as they looked around the Great Hall. As an educator, it was something he never got tired of seeing, each being different than the last.
He only hoped that the current icy downpour didn't harm their spirits. Albus made a note to have Poppy standing by with Pepper-Up Potions just in case.
HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP
The Next Day
Breakfast, the Great Hall
Harry hated being stared at.
Thanks to Neville blabbing to Malfoy, he was now subjected to stares from half the school…again. At least it wasn't accusing stares as it had been last year with the whole 'Heir of Slytherin' business.
"Neville, you owe me a Butterbeer for this." he hissed at the Longbottom Heir as Malfoy yet again performed an impression of him fainting.
"Sorry Harry." Neville apologised.
Fainting from the Dementor on the train was bad enough, but to discover at the Welcoming Feast that the damn things were going to be hovering around Hogwarts for the foreseeable future made the thought of going to Hogsmeade sour slightly. The news about Hagrid being the new Care of Magical Creatures Professor and Lupin being the new DADA teacher had been warmly welcomed by Gryffindor, at least.
"Hermione, what's up with your timetable?" Ron asked in bewilderment, "They must have misprinted it or something."
"What?" the girl snatched her timetable and quickly scanned it, "No they didn't."
"'Mione, you have three classes at nine o'clock…as in, all at the same time!" Ron said in disbelief, "You're good and everything, but you aren't that good!"
"Don't call me 'Mione, Ronald!"
"Don't call me Ronald!"
As the other two started bickering, Harry ate his breakfast and tuned them out with the ease of long practice. Those two bickered every other conversation almost as regularly as clockwork.
"You know, it's almost time for classes." he commented as he finished.
"What?!" Hermione jerked her head up and saw that most people had left the Great Hall, "Ohh…! If we're late, I will hex you Ronald!"
Hurriedly finishing her food, Hermione sped out of the room at quite an impressive pace.
"Mad." Ron shook his head, "Barking, howling mad. I'd better head off to Divination. What've you got first, Harry?"
"Arithmancy." Harry replied, "Ought to be interesting."
"You should have just picked Divination. Percy said it was an easy OWL." Ron replied doubtfully.
Harry parted ways with Ron outside the Great Hall and headed to the Arithmancy Classroom. Taking a seat inside it, he spotted several people he knew in other Houses, including Daphne Greengrass, Susan Bones, Ernie MacMillan and, disappointingly, Pansy Parkinson.
"Not going to faint Potter?" the pug-faced girl sneered.
"Considering the rumour mill says your boy-toy soiled himself when the Dementor came near him, I think I'd rather faint than do that." Harry replied dryly.
Hermione, seated next to him, threw him a look that told him she wasn't impressed, although a corner of her mouth twitched in amusement.
Just then, Professor Septima Vector breezed into the room.
"Welcome to Arithmancy." she said briskly, "Unlike most other classes you will be taking this year, Arithmancy, the study of logically predicting the future using calculations, is one where Muggleborn or Muggle-raised witches and wizards will have something of an advantage due to the greater focus on mathematics that the Muggles have been doing for the last fifty to sixty years."
The Purebloods in the class scoffed in disbelief, but Vector continued undaunted.
"Now, the first things we must explore are the numbers that are used the most often in Arithmancy. Anyone?"
Cautiously, Harry raised a hand, much slower that Hermione and a few others in the class. Predictably, he was the one chosen.
"Yes, Mr Potter?"
"Three is very commonly used." he stated.
"Ten points to Gryffindor." Vector nodded with a smile and waved her wand at the board, where a chalk wrote the number '3' upon it, "Three is indeed one of, if not the, most common number used in Arithmetic calculations. For further points, would you care to guess why that is, Mr Potter?"
"Because it's a very stable number." Harry replied, thankful that he had studied during the time he had been staying at the Leaky Cauldron.
"Ten more points to Gryffindor." Vector smiled, "Three is the most stable number in all of Arithmancy, thus the safest to use. In the Muggle world, their myths and legends are replete with goddesses with three aspects. Examples include Maiden, Mother and Crone, gods and goddesses coming in trinities, such as the Morrígan of Irish legend, monsters appearing in threes, like the Erinyes of Greek Mythology. Even the Christian god has the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Holy Trinity, showing that the Muggles understand that three is a stable number also."
"Why is it so stable?" someone asked from the back.
"One is easily overwhelmed; two are split apart easily while three can support each other." Professor Vector replied, "When you attempt to create a spell using Arithmancy, the first number you will try it with as a base is three, as it is very, very difficult to cause one using that number to backfire badly."
There was the sound of quills on paper as the class copied down this information.
"Anyone else? Ah, Miss Granger." Vector said.
"Seven." Hermione said.
"Ten more points to Gryffindor." Vector said with a nod, making '7' appear on the bard next to '3', "Seven is the most magically powerful number in Arithmancy, with middling stability. Several powerful charms, as well as several powerful Dark Curses, were created using seven as a base. The Muggle mythology again reflects the commonality of using this number as well. In Japan, they have the Seven Lucky Gods…in fact; seven is usually seen as being a lucky number point blank. Other uses include the Seven Deadly Sins, the Seven Cardinal Virtues, the Seven Heavens, the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and so on."
Professor Vector eyes the class seriously, "Using seven for Arithmancy is very, very difficult, that I will tell you from personal experience. Not only from the amount of calculations, but from the greater chance of a backlash if any of it is miscalculated. Until I give you permission, you are not to use this number in calculations except as a theoretical exercise. Understood?"
This got a roomful of nods.
"Anyone else? Anyone…ah, Miss Greengrass."
"Thirteen." Daphne stated coolly.
"Ten points to Slytherin." Vector nodded slowly, "Thirteen is one of the most…unstable magical numbers in Arithmancy. Powerful, yes, but inherently unstable. In old covens, thirteen was the ideal number of witches and wizards to have as it amplified all of the powers of the coven. In Muggle culture and urban legend, thirteen is generally seen as being unlucky for a variety of reasons, such as the thirteenth Apostle, Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus Christ. In Italy, rather conversely, thirteen is seen as a lucky number, with seventeen being unlucky instead."
As the number was drawn on the blackboard, Vector once again eyed the class. "Again, thirteen is THE most unstable magical number in Arithmancy. Do not try to even calculate a spell or predict the future using thirteen until you are in NEWT-level classes. If you do, I'll have you out of this class before you can say Arithmancy. Understood?"
Again, she received a chorus of nods.
"Good. Now, these three numbers, 3,7 and 13, are sometimes called the Great Trinity of Arithmancy, because almost all spells, charms, hexes, curses, wards and enchantments are created using at least one of these numbers as either a base or as a component." Vector continued, "It is in fact very hard to find one that isn't made using one of them. Any such spell is usually a minor spell, such as the Stinging Hex. Why is this?"
"Because while there are other magically powerful numbers, they are not as powerful as the three we have already mentioned." Susan stated when she was picked.
"Correct, ten points to Hufflepuff." Vector nodded, "That does not mean that spells made from other numbers are any less useful; they are merely not as powerful, usually. There are a few exceptions to this rule, but they are few and far between."
For the rest of the lesson, they were made to read the first chapter of Numerology and Grammatica. When the bell rang to signal the end of that class, they were directed to summarise the first chapter briefly as homework.
"Briefly, Hermione." Harry told her with a grin, "So no ten rolls of parchment like you usually do."
"Prat." Hermione huffed, "See you at Transfiguration; I left my book in the dorm."
As Hermione hurried off, Harry had to frown. Hermione almost never left books behind. Something fishy was going on here.
Shrugging, he continued on to class, dodging a madly cackling Peeves the Poltergeist as he did so.
"Potter!" Filch growled as he came up to him, panting, "Where'd Peeves go?!"
Harry pointed him in the general direction.
"Damn that poltergeist!" the man wheezed, "Shut Mrs Norris in a suit of armour will he? I'll show him…!"
Harry shook his head as the man trotted off in pursuit of Peeves. You'd think the man would give up after all these years. You couldn't punish the poltergeist without suffering pranks in return.
Making it to Transfiguration, he saw Hermione and stood next to her.
"Get your book?" he asked her.
"Yeah." Hermione replied distractedly.
"Got any idea why everyone's looking at me like they expect me to keel over?" he asked dryly. Indeed, the entire class was looking at him in a slightly frightened way, as if he was about to have a heart attack or something.
Before Hermione could answer, Professor McGonagall ushered them into her classroom. Inside, Harry still felt the class sending him furtive glances of worry and…was that pity?
He was finding it hard to concentrate on the lesson, which was about Human Transfiguration, especially the wizards capable of transforming into an animal at will, Animagi. Professor McGonagall even transformed into a cat with markings around her eyes that looked like her glasses.
"Might I ask exactly what is the problem?" the professor asked once she returned to her human form, "Not to brag, but that's the first time my Animagus transformation hasn't gotten applause from a class. Mr Potter, as these odd looks are being directed at you, perhaps you could elaborate?"
Harry shrugged. "Not got a clue, professor."
"Professor Trelawney predicted that Ron would lose a close male friend. She saw a grim." Lavender Brown spoke up hesitantly.
"Ah. I see." Professor McGonagall said with a sniff, "Sybill Trelawney has predicted the death of one student a year since she has arrived at school. To date, not one of those students has died while at Hogwarts. Death omens are her way of welcoming a new class. As you seem to be in good health, Mister Potter, I shall expect your homework in on time."
"Good to know." Harry said with a nod.
After class, Ron and Hermione got into yet another argument about whether the grim was a legitimate problem or not. Harry once more ignored them, as he couldn't care less.
"Harry?" Hermione called.
"Mmm?" Harry said, indicating he was listening as he had his mouth full.
"You haven't seen a grim recently, have you?" Ron asked with a worried look on his face.
"I have no idea what a grim even is." Harry replied once he swallowed his mouthful of food.
"A big black dog." Hermione sniffed in a similar manner to Professor McGonagall, "Supposedly, they're the worst death omens of them all."
"I…might have." Harry admitted slowly, "Just before the Knight Bus showed up, I saw something lurking around Magnolia Crescent. No idea what it was though. I didn't even get a good look at it."
Ron looked like someone hit him over the head with a frying pan.
"A stray perhaps." Hermione offered coolly.
This prompted the two of them to once again launch into an argument that continued as the headed to Care of Magical Creatures and ended with the two not speaking to each other and pointedly looking away from one another.
Harry wished they could just declare a truce. He was getting fed up of playing mediator and it was only the first day!
As they approached Hagrid's Hut on the edge of the Forbidden Forest, they saw their larger-than-life friend sitting with Fang as Hagrid practiced the Lumos charm with his new wand.
Harry looked around. They were early.
"How's the wand, Professor Hagrid?" he called cheekily as the trio walked up to them and said hello to Fang as well.
"Bloomin' brilliant!" Hagrid replied with a wide smile as he pocketed his wand, "Jus' gotta work through me old schoolbooks an' get everythin' certified. Perfesser McGonagall and Perfesser Flitwick're helping' out with me spells when they can. Oughta be ready ta test me first year spells soon."
"If you want us to help, you just have to ask." Harry offered.
"Thanks 'Arry, but with them Dementors floatin' around, yeh'd be'er not come outta the school unless yeh need teh." Hagrid said seriously, "Perfesser Lupin was tellin' me that yeh fainted because one of them damned things came too close teh yeh."
"Yeah. Not really a surprise, but not exactly pleasant." Harry said with a scowl, "Malfoy's been acting up about it, pretending to faint and all that."
"Git." Ron said with feeling.
"Oi'll keep an eye on 'im." Hagrid growled, "Last thing I want is fer him at mess up me first lesson."
As the rest of the class arrived, Harry talked with Hermione and Ron whilst simultaneously keeping a weather eye on Malfoy, who looked to be plotting things with Crabbe and Goyle…or rather, he was telling them what to do.
Fortunately, Hagrid also saw them and decided to start thing off.
"All right yeh lot. Everyone here? Good." he said with a grin, "Malfoy! Stop gossipin' and pay attention!"
The look of utter loathing Malfoy shot Hagrid was barely hidden as he reluctantly turned around to face him.
"Right! Good. Now yeh all have yer books?"
"How do we open them?" Malfoy drawled as he took out his struggling book bound shut with a length of rope.
"Like this, Malfoy." Harry replied. He brought out his own book and undid the belt that bound it while keeping a firm grip on the covers to keep the book closed once he freed it. Struggling now that the book only had to deal with Harry's physical strength, the raven-haired boy ran one finger down the spine of the Monster Book of Monsters, making it shiver before falling docile.
"He told you how to do it, didn't he?" Malfoy demanded, his fun spoiled.
"Did you ask the shop assistant at Flourish and Blotts how to open them?" Harry asked, sidestepping the question, "Because he could have told you easily. An alternative strategy is...Ron, hold your book up."
Confused, Ron did so.
"Stupefy!" Harry cast the Stunning spell at the writhing book, making it fall limp.
"Well done, 'Arry!" Hagrid boomed, "Ten points ter Gryffindor fer thinkin' on yer feet!"
Turning to the rest of the class, Hagrid said, "These books're a reminder of what yeh have ta deal with in this here class. Yeh will be dealing wi' some very dangerous creatures here, from Flobberworms ta some o' th' rare breeds o' magical beasts that yeh can find in th' wild or even in an abandoned magical 'ome. Yeh can't let yer guard down against 'em."
Beckoning the class to follow him, Hagrid jogged around the edge of the Forbidden Forest to a large paddock.
"Now once yeh have yer books open, now that 'Arry's told ya what yeah shoulda been told at the bookshop, 'ave a read o' the preface regardin' magical creatures while I get the subject of this lesson." Hagrid said before striding into the forest.
"What an illiterate oaf!" Malfoy said loudly, "When my father-"
"Malfoy, we don't care about your Daddy-complex at the moment." Harry snapped irritably.
"My…what?!" Malfoy squeaked in outrage.
"The way you go on and on about old Lucy, you'd think that you had a crush on him." Harry replied with an eye roll, "I mean seriously, it's getting boring to hear. Any insult, perceived or not, results in you saying the teenaged equivalent to 'I'm telling on you!' How mature."
While Malfoy spluttered in indignation, more than a few people looked at Harry with either surprise and gratitude (Gryffindors), open amusement (Hufflepuff), mild disdain (Ravenclaw) or hidden calculation, amusement and/or shock (Slytherins).
"Potter's really not putting up with Malfoy this time, is he?" Tracy Davis muttered to Daphne.
"Apparently not." Daphne replied quietly, her eyes practically boring into Harry. She hated mysteries and the Boy-Who-Lived had changed somewhat from last term. He didn't seem willing to let Malfoy get away with his usual antics, at least towards Hagrid.
Quite why he was so determined to defend the larger than life man was beyond her. Hagrid was, as loath as she was to agree with Malfoy, an oaf. He was uncultured, barely understandable in speech and she wasn't sure he knew how to write.
'What a paradox…' she thought.
Hagrid came out of the forest with a single beast walking behind him, led by a chain on a thick leather collar around its neck. It was a cross between an eagle and a horse, with the head, front legs and wings of the former and the back legs, body and tail of a horse. The talons on the front legs looked wickedly sharp, as was the beak. The feathers were a stormy grey colour.
"Alright, now gather near th' fence" Hagrid directed them, "Anyway, this here is Buckbeak, a Hippogriff. Half horse an' half eagle. Beu'iful, isn't he?"
Harry had to agree, once you got by the fact that Buckbeak was a supposedly mythological animal. The way the Hippogriff carried himself said that he was proud.
"Now, firs thing teh know about Hippogriffs is that they're very, very proud creatures." Hagrid started the lesson properly, "Never, ever insult 'em. Saw someone insult a wild Hippogriff once and he got his arm shredded by those talons that you see there. As I say, never insult 'em…like as not, it'll be the last thing yeh ever do."
Malfoy, Harry noticed angrily, was ignoring the lesson and whispering to Crabbe and Goyle.
"Hippogriffs are carnivores." Hagrid was saying, so Harry chose to ignore Malfoy, "Their diet tends teh be small mammals…rats, rabbits, stoats, weasels, hares and the like, although they can and do hunt bigger prey if they have th' chance. Not humans though, so don' worry about' that. Now, who wants to give ol' Buckbeak a try?"
Harry stepped forwards, "I'll do it."
"Ohh! Harry, what about-!" Lavender and Parvati whispered.
Ignoring them, Harry climbed over the fence and waited for Hagrid's orders.
"Good man 'Arry." Hagrid rumbled happily and took off Buckbeak's collar, "Now, it's important to let the Hippogriff make th' firs' move. It's polite, y'see. Yeh walk up teh him, maintain eye contact an' bow. If he bows back, yer good. If not, back off sharpish. Got that?"
Harry nodded. He didn't trust himself to talk. No matter how Hagrid talked about the Hippogriff not being a man-eater, those talons were sharper than a kitchen knife.
He walked forwards until he was about a metre away from Buckbeak before the Hippogriff swivelled his head and stared at him with one orange eye.
Stopping there, Harry locked eyes with Buckbeak before giving a short bow, all the while maintaining eye contact as Hagrid said to do. A tense moment passed before Buckbeak bent knee and sank forwards into what was unmistakeably a bow.
"Nicely done, 'Arry!" Hagrid was delighted, "Give Beaky a pat on his beak now, he'll like that."
He really didn't want to put his hand near the sharp-as-a-razor beak, but if Hagrid was confident about it…
Stepping closer, Harry reached out and gave Buckbeak's beak a slow, careful stroke, which the Hippogriff seemed to appreciate judging by how he closed his eyes.
The next part wasn't one of Harry's favourite pastimes…flying atop a Hippogriff. Unlike the smooth ride of his Nimbus 2000, flying a creature was a whole other kettle of fish. It was…oddly exhilarating, in a bowl-clenching, terrifying sort of way.
"Well done 'Arry!" Hagrid called out when Harry landed and dismounted from Buckbeak. The large man was practically doing a jig, he was so happy. "Twenty points ter Gryffindor for a job well done! Now, who's next?"
Since Harry had trailblazer forwards, there were no worries among the students. Hermione, never an adept flyer, had nervously asked if it was absolutely required to fly the Hippogriff.
"Naw, that there was 'Arry's reward fer doin' so well." Hagrid chortled in response.
Unsurprisingly, Hermione was relieved at that.
The line to work with Buckbeak was long as everyone was emboldened by Harry's success.
Everything was going well until Malfoy was up. He was patting Buckbeak's beak before making a derogatory comment about him. Fortunately, Hagrid was nearby and, quicker than people could give the large man credit for, dragged the boy away just in time to avoid Buckbeak's scything talons as he lashed out at him.
"Foolish boy!" Hagrid growled, "Didn't yeh hear me say that insultin' a Hippogriff is the worst thing yeh can do?!"
Malfoy, his face white because of the narrow escape, didn't say anything.
"Twenty points from Slytherin and I'll be havin' a word with Perfesser Snape about' yer attention span." Hagrid growled, "Keep away from Buckbeak otherwise he'll go after yeh again."
Now that Buckbeak was angry, there was nothing for Hagrid to do but take him back to the herd that he belonged to.
"He was too busy talking to Crabbe and Goyle to listen." Harry muttered angrily to Hermione and Ron, "It would have served him right to have his arm hurt."
"But Hagrid wouldn't deserve the fallout from that." Hermione admonished him gently, "As it is, Malfoy might try to complain to his father about Buckbeak."
"No harm, no foul." Ron disagreed, "If Buckbeak had hurt Malfoy it would be a different case. As it is, everyone here can testify that Hagrid gave clear warnings about what would happen if you insulted a Hippogriff. Heck, Harry can legally testify in court to that. Malfoy wouldn't have a legal leg to stand on."
They hung around after the end of class and walked back with Hagrid.
"Can' believe tha' idiot boy." Hagrid shook his head in disbelief, "Good thing Perfesser McGonagall tol' me ta on'y use one Hippogriff fer this, otherwise I'da not bin nearby, belike. Tha' wouldn't have been good."
"So Professor McGonagall helped you make your lesson plans?" Hermione asked curiously.
"An' Perfesser Flitwick. An' Perfesser Dumbledore." Hagrid replied happily, "Great man Dumbledore. Never thought I'd be a teacher. Never thought I'd have meself a new wand. Now lookit me. Me dad would be proud enough ta burst."
As they parted way with Hagrid, Ron said happily, "Well, this is a good first day back. Malfoy in trouble and Gryffindor up a good few points!"
"Couldn't happen to a nicer bloke." Harry agreed with a smirk.
"Boys." Hermione huffed with a shake of her head.
HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP
Next Chapter: Boggarts, Grims and Hats
HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP