The Half Blood Prince Revealed
Summary :
Harry's summer before sixth year is no different from the others. Around every corner surprises, good and bad, and adventure of all kind await. And it looks like the gods have finally granted Harry a possibility for a nicer life. What will this mean for his 6th year at Hogwarts ?
General Disclaimer :
I am just playing in the sand of JKRowling's literary produced beach and am attempting to build my own sandcastle for others to enjoy.
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32 Rediscovery
Despite his interrupted sleep Harry woke up early next morning still feeling refreshed. Putting the idea of a nice morning swim out of his mind he got up anyway, took a leisurely shower and got ready for the day. By the time he made it out of the bathroom the others in his dorm were slowly showing the first signs of waking up.
Since he had no idea what his new schedule would be Harry decided not to take his schoolbag just yet. He would be able to come and get any books he needed for the day after breakfast. So he left the dorm for the Gryffindor Common Room to wait for the others. He had just taken a seat on the same sofa as last night when Ginny, mere moments later followed by Hermione came down the stairs. The two girls joined him in the seats and they sat and talked for a while until both Ron and Neville came down from the dormitory. They decided to continue on to the Great Hall and have breakfast a little earlier than usual.
When they arrived downstairs they found the Great Hall almost deserted. Most likely a lot of students had trouble to get back in the swing of things. As they were tucking into a hearty meal more and more students were arriving and they had nearly finished by the time Professor McGonagall handed them their schedules.
Harry was really happy with his list. At least he only had one of those horrible one-period gaps in his planning. They were awful as they left you with a full free period but at the same time it wasn't very useful for doing homework or research in the library.
NEWT level classes were different in that aspect that the classes were mainly given over three consecutive periods rather than the previous arrangement of double periods and a second sitting of one period per subject. Comparing his schedule with the others he saw he shared Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday mornings with Ron, Hermione and Neville in Transfiguration, Herbology and Charms and on Thursday they had DADA in the afternoon. On Monday afternoon he shared Basic Healing with Hermione and on Wednesday after lunch he had Wizard Society class together with Hermione and Neville. That left him on his own on Monday immediately after lunch in a double Ancient Runes, and a double Arithmancy on Tuesday afternoon. The single periods for Ancient Runes and Arithmancy were both on Thursday morning – with the free period in between. Much to Harry's surprise the second period of Basic Healing was to be a solo class and timing for that was to be discussed with the teacher. A similar arrangement had to be made for his single period of Care of Magical Creatures.
With a little luck he would be able to take all his classes on the first four days of the week, leaving him with a whole Friday without classes. And he was the only one of the six of them with a full day free. That should help him in studying.
Ron's schedule looked surprisingly full and Harry was amazed to see his friend had signed on to take OWL level History of Magic again and would start with OWL level Muggle Studies. Hermione's schedule looked impossibly full with nine NEWT level classes and Harry wondered if she might not have taken on too much.
Neville on the other hand had decided to really go for the Advanced Healing and had limited his other courses. Of his seven subjects he shared five with Harry, the two other ones were Advanced Herbology and Advanced Healing. Ginny, still on the 2+1 period sessions of pre-OWL schooling had a more fractured timetable and especially her Thursday looked very busy.
Of course although it wasn't noted on their class schedules they all also had the Saturday morning Potions class with Elijah who would be introduced as Harry's private tutor in Estate Management.
The first owls had started to arrive with mail and a haughty looking grey one delivered Hermione's copy of the newspaper when in came Hedwig strangely looking delighted at having a note to deliver to Harry. Harry petted her before removing the note. While he was reading the short message Hedwig had taken place on Harry's shoulder taking the opportunity to pet him right back, ruffling through his hair.
The note was from Professor Dumbledore to invite him for a spot of tea after his afternoon class so he could have a look at Harry's dream.
Harry turned slightly in his seat to ask Hermione to borrow a quill when he saw a first year stare reverently at Hedwig.
"When that man came to our house and told us … he never said they were this beautiful …" managed the clearly over awed youngster.
"Would you like to pet her ? Hedwig likes that." encouraged Harry. The boy must be muggleborn and obviously still slightly in shock from the new world he was discovering. And after all, Hedwig was a beautiful and special owl.
"She does ? I can ?" the boy looked up with wonder and anticipation clearly written on his face.
"Sure, I'll introduce you to her. So what's your name ? I'm Harry."
"I'm Harry Weedon."
"Well," chuckled Harry, "that'll be easy for Hedwig then."
"Hedwig, this Harry Weedon a first year Gryffindor and he thinks you are beautiful too. And Harry, this is Hedwig, my very first magical friend and the prettiest owl I know."
Hedwig ruffled her feathers, looking all important and happy with Harry's praise. When the younger Harry gently stroked her feathers she gave a soft hoot of pleasure and his face beamed.
"Hey, Hedwig, will you hop on young Harry's shoulder for a moment so I can answer that note ? And then I'll need to be off right quick to pick up my books. I don't want to be late for class."
Borrowing Neville's quill, Harry quickly confirmed he'd come to Professor Dumbledore's office after Basic Healing and then sent Hedwig off with the note after offering her a piece of his bacon and a last few strokes from the first year.
He wished young Harry a good day, told his friends he'd meet them in class and then sprinted off to his dorm to pick up his course books for Transfiguration, Ancient Runes and Basic Healing. Despite having to retrace his steps when he found out his usual route up to Gryffindor Tower was blocked he still made it to the class with plenty of time to spare.
The door to the classroom stood wide open and Professor McGonagall was already seated at her desk. Wishing his professor a good morning he went to the back of the classroom and took a seat. After all, he didn't know which house they would be sharing the class with and he didn't particularly want to have his back turned to the likes of Malfoy. He needn't have worried. Along with Hermione, Neville and Ron in came Hannah Abbott and Susan Bones from Hufflepuff, but he was surprised when next to enter were three Ravenclaw boys and two Slytherins. Harry had no time to wonder about this as mere moments later the bell rang to indicate the start of the new school year.
"Good morning class, and welcome to 6th year NEWT Transfiguration.
As a teacher of a NEWT subject I'll start with some general information that you will be hearing a few times this week as it is valid for all your NEWT subjects and for both 6th and 7th year classes.
First I'll start with the more practical side of the changes. You will have noticed the new set up of your dorm rooms. These private study areas will give you the peace and quiet that most students require for the individual studying you will need to conduct. Also changed is that the 3-period NEWT level classes are no longer split up over two separate sittings but come in complete blocks of three consecutive periods. This means that class breaks will vary from session to session depending on the subject at hand. This could result in several short breaks throughout the session, or a longer one somewhere along the way, or even no break at all, but finishing class early.
As you have now passed your OWL exams you enter into a different stage of your education. Gone are the days that your teachers were handing out the lessons you needed to learn. From now on you are expected to study the subject prior to the lesson. My colleagues and I will not so much teach you the subject at hand but rather offer you more detailed explanations on what you've learned on your own. You can expect large research-and-report essays from us that will enable us teachers to keep an eye on your progress.
Unlike the OWL system of grading where any of the three passing grades returns you one OWL, the NEWT scores are variable upon each student's knowledge and test results. Per subject a maximum of seven NEWTs can be scored. A minimum of four NEWTs is required for anyone going for a Mastery in any one subject. This flexible scoring system is the reason why we put such emphasis on the solo studying.
As a consequence of this new way of learning there will be far less demonstrations in the classes themselves, so you will be required to practice outside of our sessions and to this end practice rooms have been set up on the sixth floor.
Previously these practice rooms were limited to be used by sixth and seventh year students only but with the large classes in first year, a decision was made to grant all classes access. Where previously only the North wing on the sixth floor was blocked off, you will now find nearly the entire sixth floor dedicated to the practice rooms. You will be asked to attend a short meeting tonight where Professor Dumbledore will give you a more detailed explanation but in the mean time know that practice rooms can only be accessed through the portrait of Bob Cratchit in the west wing stairs on the sixth floor.
Although exams toward your NEWT score are not until the end of your 7th year, the preliminary tests in June will play a major role in your future. The result of these end-of-6th-year tests will determine what happens in your seventh year and even your further academic career. If your score should be too low, you might be advised to drop the subject, be banned from actually taking a Mastery or advised to postpone that Mastery until after your Hogwarts education. You might be given summer work, additional research and essays, or even get recommendations for extra reading material.
For those of you with a mind on a Mastery, full details of the entire Mastery process along with previous Mastery Manuscripts will be at your disposal in the Library. You need to hand in your chosen Mastery subject by mid September of your 7th year and will receive confirmation or rejection of the subject within the next two weeks.
During the final two weeks before Halloween you'll each be given an hour of one-on-one time with all your professors. These sessions will allow both student and teacher to talk about progress made and discuss any problems or questions.
To finish off this introduction I'll give you an overview of what NEWT Transfiguration has to offer over the next two years and what I'm expecting you to study by next week but first, are there any questions so far ?"
Harry raised his hand along with several others.
"Yes, Mr Potter."
"Professor, I understand why there is such an emphasis on individual work. But are students allowed to work together at all ? Can I, if I'm stuck, ask assistance from the other students ? If something from the beginning of the chapter is unclear and stops me from understanding the following theory wouldn't it be beneficial to work together ?"
"That is indeed a good question and a valid point you have, Mr Potter. However, what if the person you ask assistance from has the wrong explanation for you ? However inconceivable it might sound to you Ms Granger might just be incorrect in her assumption at some stage ? Up to a certain point working together would prove beneficial but it could also become a hindrance. Although we do not forbid you to work together we do strongly advice you to at least try the individual route as a test."
Hermione, sitting in the row before Harry, was sporting a fair blush and the others had been chuckling lightly at Professor McGonagall's words.
"Everyone will have different ways to study and these first six weeks of sixth year will give each of you the opportunity to find the best way suited especially for you. If you are confronted with a problem or don't understand what the course books tell you, try one of the books on the additional reading list, check in the library, or, what could work also, just put it to the side, do something different, take a break, and revisit the chapter the next day. Should the problem persist at least you'll have encountered it before classes giving you the foresight as to what aspect of the lecture you need to pay closer attention to. And if even that fails, don't hesitate to contact your teacher. You'll find our schedule is tighter than any of the previous years but we are all still willing to help out."
Professor McGonagall continued to explain that the reason for the stress of solo studying lay in the fact that ultimately each student had a different goal to achieve despite the seemingly same NEWT exams come seventh year final exams.
"Those of you considering a Mastery in one of their NEWT subjects will have to dig much deeper into their course books and other reading materials and trace connections that often go far beyond the subject at hand. Studying along side someone else, even sharing a similar goal could therefore be restricting. The staff realise of course that these changes can appear daunting now you are only at the start of the process which is why you are given the opportunity for a one on one meeting with all your teachers in six weeks. By then you'll be in a much better position to judge your progress and problem areas."
By the time their first ever NEWT class was over Harry decided he would need to readjust his earlier opinion that this year was going to be hard work. Sixth year as well as seventh most likely were going to be extremely hard work !
With both Ron and himself having a class at one the four of them were having an early lunch. Ron was teasing Hermione a little over Professor McGonagall's remark earlier that morning but in true Hermione style she took the subject to heart and read him the riot act instead over how he now would have to do all the work on his own, which shut him up nicely.
After the two boys had a confirmation on the location of their respective classrooms the two of them set off agreeing to meet up around five in the Gryffindor common room.
Leaving Ron behind on the first floor where the Muggle Studies classroom was located, Harry continued on to the only part now freely accessible of the sixth floor where he would have his first lesson from Professor Vitkarsdottir. As he was the first to arrive in the room Harry was once again able to choose a desk in the back row. Until he knew who else would be taking the class along with him he would take no risks or allow the possibility of Malfoy taking a seat behind him.
It wasn't long before the first of the other students showed up. Susan Bones and her housemate Megan Jones were first and gladly took up seats on either side of Harry. The two girls were closely followed by Padma Patil, Lisa Turpin and Morag McDougal to enter and Harry saw a trace of disappointment on Lisa's face as she saw someone occupying the seats next to him. Harry became a bit uncomfortable at the entry of two more girls, Sally-Ann Perks and Chandra Moon. With only a minute before start of class he remained the only male student and it wasn't until Dean Thomas showed up in the nick of time before class started that Harry sighed a breath of relief.
Professor Vitkarsdottir was quick to introduce herself and invite them to call her Professor Freija. After asking after their previous experience in Ancient Runes, during which Harry found out that Chandra, Morag and Lisa had previously taken Ancient Runes but had either not done the exam or failed it, Harry didn't expect to hear anything too life changing so he was pleasantly surprised to find that OWL courses taken after 5th year offered the albeit hard option to still obtain a NEWT in the subject at the end of 7th year. In fact there were several options open to those taking the course. The easy option and the one Harry thought was the only one was to simply take the course and sit for OWL exams at the end of 7th year. For those with a little more ambition or for those with a prior knowledge of the subject there was the option to take the OWL exams at the end of 6th year with the additional possibility of continuing through with the subject on NEWT level in 7th year. And, although rare, it was even possible to obtain a mastery in the new subject, but that had been someone who'd done very few other NEWT level subjects.
Fortunately the decision on what you wanted to do regarding the subject could be made later as for these subjects too an individual session with the teacher would take place somewhere in the last two weeks of October.
Also new was the fact that the students were under no obligation to actually attend the solo period for the class, Harry had seen it was scheduled Thursday morning. The reason was the scheduling conflicts of many students with few teachers, and priority was given to NEWT level classes. So for instance this year anyone taking NEWT Potions – scheduled on Thursday morning – would automatically not be able to take that solo period of Ancient Runes. The students who were free to attend were under no obligation to do so but some notice would be appreciated.
The result of all these various options made that the only difference between NEWT and 6th year OWL classes was the fact that the OWL classes still came in the classic two sittings of one double and one solo period.
With twenty minutes before the start of the next class Harry had plenty of time to make his way to the classroom and unavoidable he arrived as first student. Madame Pomfrey was already present and contrary to Professor McGonagall who'd only wished him a good morning in return, the school nurse started up a conversation.
"Hello Mr Potter, I don't have to ask if you've had a good summer holiday, I can see that you did."
"How's that, Madame Pomfrey ?"
"This is the first time, Mr Potter, that you arrive in Hogwarts with colour on your cheeks, you've acquired some muscles and if my eyes don't deceive me you've had a growth-spurt and put on some much needed weight. "
Harry sported a slight blush as he confirmed her observations.
"You are quite correct Madame Pomfrey in that my summer was brilliant. I spent all but one week of it with Remus, four house elves, a ghost, a portrait-uncle and a magical house looking out for me. My friends were around and we spent most of our time having fun."
By now Hermione had arrived with Daphne Greengrass following close behind her and Madame Pomfrey, stating that the class was complete, started on giving them an overview of what the course would entail and what they could expect.
The room itself was split in two, one side had a classical classroom set up with desks for both teacher and students, the other side on the other hand was set up as a mini-version of the Hospital Wing.
This particular sitting of the subject, on Mondays and with the three students present, would be dedicated to the theoretical side of the course. The second sitting, different for each student, would be the practical application of that theory with the aid of a Patient Dummy. This dummy was a life size doll that could be spelled to be any age and display any symptom imaginable to allow the students to practice both the diagnostic and the healing spells out without running the risk to hurt anyone.
For the remainder of the class Madame Pomfrey showed them a few important spells, demonstrated the possibilities of the dummy and finally discussed their second sitting. With so few students all three of them were able to get the most advantageous times sorted, Harry simply filling up the gap period on Thursday morning.
After class Harry walked Hermione to the library, as she wanted to legitimately explore the restricted section, which was a perk of being a NEWT student.
Continuing along the fourth floor south wing and the east wing stairs up to the seventh floor he approached the entry of the Gryffindor tower when he heard the young and slightly panicky voices of what turned out to be a large group of first years. They were silent the moment they saw him coming, but one of them called out his name in obvious relief.
Harry recognised his namesake he'd met that morning.
"Hey young Harry, how's your first day been ?"
The Gryffindor first year started to talk about all the wonderful things he'd already experienced that day. A second boy, a Slytherin, sidled up next to the young Harry and nudged him in the arm. In a stage whisper that the whole group could hear loud and clear he said "That's not important right now, ask him if it's true ?"
"Is what true ?" queried both Harry's simultaneously.
"Is he, ehm, are you really Harry Potter ?" came the question, now in a far more subdued tone.
"Ah, yes," confirmed Harry, "my name is indeed Harry Potter and I would ask you all of your names, except that we'd be here until morning, there's so many of you. So are you guys and gals exploring the castle ?"
"No," wailed one scared looking girl, "we're lost and we'll be late and we'll be expelled …"
"Oh, don't worry, the teachers understand that you can be a little late these first days. The castle is complicated and most have been first years here too. So where do you need to go ?"
"Astronomy Tower"
"Ah yes, this is where Hogwarts teases us a little, see. You were going in the right direction, but on this floor you cannot get through the South-East passage. OK, so quick orientation for you all. Walk with me to the stairs."
Harry led the group back to the stairs and showed them how to orientate themselves in future.
"See through the windows, and you can just about spot the greenhouses to the south and more on the north side there's Hagrid's hut and beyond the grounds you can see the Forbidden Forrest. That means you are in the East Wing. Now you need to get down to fifth floor, and walk along the east wing hall, towards the greenhouses, and then along the south wing hall to the main stairs. Take those stairs back up to the seventh floor and then along the south wing hall to the astronomy tower, that's in the direction of the front drive."
As he was explaining Harry gestured the correct route with his hand, and, as if by magic, a ghostly looking map appeared with one miniature puppet-like figure walking the route Harry described. The majority of the group was right impressed with the display and Harry was quick to give credit where credit was due.
"See, if you're ever lost again, all you need to do is ask Hogwarts herself for help just like she did now. Off you go then or you'll be really late."
The group chorused their thank-you's and goodbye's as they started down the stairs and Harry watched their progress until he lost sight of the last of them.
Harry decided to send a quick message off to Professor Sinistra and then retraced his steps back into the direction of the stone gargoyle. With his password accepted Harry made it up the stairs and into Professor Dumbledore's office in record time and was soon sitting in a comfy seat sipping tea while Mad-Eye and the headmaster were exploring his dream in the pensieve.
The two men came out of the pensieve and Mad-Eye started asking Harry questions about how truthful Harry felt the dream to be.
"It's hard to say, really. This is a new experience for me." started Harry only to be interrupted by another question from the not-so-retired auror.
"Albus said you've had these before though ?"
"Well, yes, but it's different from before, isn't it ? Now it feels just like going into a pensieve, before I was seeing things from Voldemort's point of view, and I felt the pain he caused from casting the crucio's or other spells."
Mad-Eye nodded seemingly not all that interested in what Harry had to say. The man turned to the headmaster and asked about Snape's account of the evening and Professor Dumbledore was able to verify that things had happened just as they came to pass in Harry's dream.
"With that difference Harry, that Professor Snape was aware of the ruse when he arrived along with the suspects. Voldemort has had to accept Severus as his right hand man what with most of his inner circle in prison or of little use."
"The real question we have, Albus, is where to leave the prisoners. Obviously the Ministry itself is no longer an option if some of the workers are helping Voldemort. And Azkaban is out as well."
"Yes Alastor, a new prison is our first priority. And preferably one that's fool proof."
"I might have a solution for you." Harry intervened.
The two men immediately turned to him with a question clear in their eyes.
"It's one of the Black properties that has in a very distant past already served as a prison. I could hand over temporary guardianship like I did with Grimmauld Place. That should keep it very secure."
The two men kept looking at him and secure in the knowledge they wouldn't be able to look in his head Harry stared right back, a small smile on his face. It wasn't too often he could surprise these two !
After a few moments of staring Harry continued.
"If you want I could show you around the place in half an hour or so. I would need to check some details with Dobby beforehand. Maybe you could invite one or two trusted aurors and Madame Bones along ?"
"That's fine by me, lad." answered Mad-Eye. "Why don't you ask Shack and Jones ? We know those two can be trusted, Albus."
"Alright. We'll meet back here at five, that should give everyone plenty of time to get here." agreed the headmaster, after another long look at Harry.
With his trunk-study room the best location to call for Dobby Harry was on his way to the Gryffindor tower but he'd barely made it to the hallway when he received a patronus message from Mad-Eye.
The man made it to Harry's side surprisingly quick and immediately he set up a privacy shield.
"OK laddie, now we can talk."
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Author's Note :
Hello everybody,
After what feels like a lifetime ago I'm returning - albeit tentatively - to the world of fanfiction. As a reminder, my eldest sister passed away mid May and those first months were hard on the entire family. But life does go on and slowly but surely things do go back to the way they were before.
In the past month or so I've been reading other fanfics again and I've reread HBPR too. That felt really weird at times, as if I was reading someone else's work … I'm posting this chapter here now, the next one on my yahoo group (chapter 34) should go up – if not today – in the next two to three days.
Thanks for your continued reading. Would love some feedback from you though. If you have any questions about the story, please don't hesitate.
Have you enjoyed this (and previous) chapter(s) ? You might be interested to know the story is a few chapters further along and offers a little extra info and pictures on my yahoo group (for link see profile page).
cheers
kadedeetje