Title: Harry Potter and the Rise of the Dark Legacy
Author: enchanted nightingale
Beta Reader: pussycatadamah
Pairs: Harry/Lucius (eventually), Ron/Hermione, Neville/Ginny, Remus/Tonks
Disclaimer: The characters belong to J.K. Rowling. I merely use them in my plot for fun.
Chapter 3
The figure of the new comer brought a lot of tension at dinner. While for most of the school population it was just another notch to the gossip mill, for a certain Gryffindor it was putting a lot of strain on his patience. And since he never was particularly gifted in that aspect he kept shifting in his seat, playing with his food and generally grating on his friends' nerves.
Harry kept stealing glances at the Head table so he was unable to concentrate for the duration of dinner and through the long hours he spent up at the Astronomy tower for their midnight lessons with Sinistra. His friends realized how tense he was the moment he snapped for no apparent reason at Dean and at how he spaced off whenever someone addressed him. That was the reason Hermione kept shoving her elbow at his ribs to get him to pay attention at Professor Sinistra and had yet to berate him for it, though knowing her she would be twice as strict the next time he dozed off at any other lesson.
"Just a few more hours," she whispered to him. "Until then please stay calm."
"I can't! I'm just so excited!" Harry told her. He paused. "You don't understand Hermione."
She opened her mouth to reply but Ron beat her to it.
"Come on. Let him be, Mione," he urged her. "It's the first person like him he meets, like a family reunion or something. He is bound to be nervous and excited Mione. It's just tonight." He sounded convincing and it help that what he said held the obvious truth. Hermione bit her lip as she considered the validity of that statement and then finally she nodded grudgingly. It was obvious she disliked it when Ron said something that she had not thought herself but she admired him as well. Harry was grateful for Ron's input and went back to worrying over tonight's meeting with the Elf.
Dungeons, Snape's Lab:
As a Potions Master Severus Snape valued calm and quiet when working and as a person enjoyed the friendship of very few people in the world. So while he had been unaffected by Lucius' proposal to keep him company while he worked, he was seriously starting to get annoyed that Malfoy kept distracting him from his task and was close to growling at his long time friend.
When he could finally no longer take the nervous cloud around the blond he turned around and glared him for good measure.
"Will you just shut up and let me work?" he snapped at Lucius. "This hour is the only one I have to spare on this task."
Lucius had been in a foul mood ever since dinner time earlier in the evening where Harry had started eyeing at the new comer that sat near Dumbledore. He had been sneaking looks and then shifting in his seat while his friends tried to calm him down. Those green eyes spared him no further glance then and instead worshipped the newcomer. He did not know what had him so bothered, not really. It was just that the Potter boy had given him that same look during that night at summer.
'Maybe he found out he was wrong,' he thought, not sounding hopeful in the least. 'He looked at him like he looks at me. No, he seemed to be excited.' He almost grimaced at the thought. It was not his right to be worried or disturbed by this. Harry Potter was free to fancy whomever he wanted. 'I'll be glad to have him off my back. Really, it was getting annoying and I was tired of running around, afraid someone would see us…'
A deep tenor voice cut through what was going to be another rant; he was prone to them lately.
"You looked ferocious," Snape told him. "Did you lose a vault?" He smirked at the grey glare that was sent his way.
"Don't be ridiculous," Lucius scoffed.
"Ah, then you found grey hair on your pillow?" Severus continued on. He ignored the poisonous look he was given and went on about what would annoy the blond aristocrat. He was dead on the point but what irritated Lucius mostly was the arrogance in his speech and his already confused mind so when he yelled at him to shut up Severus was rather taken aback.
Dark eyes narrowed and he abandoned his potion. "Alright, what's wrong with you?"
"What are you yammering about?"
"Lucius…" the dark haired man warned.
The blonde gave up almost immediately. There really was no point in lying to the man. He had a nose for it and he knew that since their school years. So he swallowed his pride and admitted it. It would save him the nagging and the additional teasing.
"Who is the man that Dumbledore spoke with at dinner?" he asked, inwardly cursing his own weakness of will.
Severus was puzzled, whatever he expected that was not it. He frowned in concentration. "I honestly have no idea. I saw him at dinner and then he and the old man disappeared. Why are you asking?"
The blond stood and paced over to the fireplace. "Nothing…Just curiosity, I guess."
"Of course," Severus said, not believing him for a moment.
Lucius busied himself by staring at the flames. He was being an idiot with snapping at Severus and asking about that man. Severus was not brainless, far from it. He was bound to find out, although he would bet his life his fellow Slytherin already knew, he was jealous and then Lucius would not be able to live it down. The blonde knew he was being irrational and possibly crazy for acting like that.
Ignoring his smirking friend, Lucius tried to find reason within his actions. It was a familiar pass time since summer and he delved in it whether people were near him or not. What he felt towards the teen had to be madness. There was no other explanation for it.
'I cannot be jealous of that man. What does it matter if Harry has his eyes on another man? It's obvious I'm not his mate so I should be happy, right?'
It meant he could get out of this 'soul mate' nonsense and save his own neck and his family's. Sure, he was in Hogwarts now 'teaching', with Voldemort's knowledge. To the Dark Lord he had presented a plan to infiltrate the school, but he had not originally thought he would be recommended. But to be fairly honest, since Severus was already inside and the only other option was his 'dear' sister in law, Bellatrix. Bartemious Crouch Jr. had been as insane as one gets, but still Bellatrix was leading the race. She would not have been patient enough to maintain her cover and to be honest, she would probably attack Potter on sight. To Dumbledore he had played the card of repentance and Severus helped a lot, thus alerting the aristocrat of the double traitor in the Dark Lord's ranks. It also had a lot to do with the fact that the old man and his turkey club were aware of a tiny detail the Dark Lord was unaware of, meaning the situation with the Chosen One. Still, Severus Snape was in a way family to him and that meant Lucius added another secret in his crowded mind. The fact that all these things happened while the matter with Potter existed confused him because deep down he was unsure of whether he wanted to be with the boy or not.
Lucius was a wizard of reason. He had a wife, an heir to continue the family name, wealth and power. Finding his fated other half had not been one of his life's goals. Purebloods married for status and blood, not for the 'happy ever after' light wizards were so hung up on. On the other hand he knew that when soul mates were aware of the bond between them it was impossible to ignore it; their inner magic dictated so. Even the Ministry had special laws that annulled previous marriage contracts or official bonds when a soul mate was found so he had little to fear in case his own marriage was cancelled.
He felt uneasiness in his chest but chose to ignore it. He felt his thoughts turn over in his head and turned to the only distraction in the room.
"So what is that potion you're making?"
"This?" Severus asked. "It's the base for the ancestry potion for Potter. Dumbledore requested it and I'm almost done with the first step."
"Do you need any help?" Lucius offered.
"As long as you actually help me some and stop mooning over Potter."
Lucius glared him but stood to help non-the-less, grateful for the distraction.
Dumbledore's office:
Harry stood outside the gargoyle having a staring contest with the piece of granite for the last five minutes.
'This is it,' he realized. He took a deep breath. "Black forest."
He walked past the statue and on the winding staircase. Outside the office he paused once again before swallowing and knocking on the door.
He found Dumbledore behind his desk with a friendly smile on his face and his blue eyes holding their usual sparkle. In front of him, in all his glory sat Ailill Frideswide
"Good evening Harry," the Headmaster said warmly.
"Sir," Harry nodded at him, never taking his eyes off the Elf.
"Could you be kind enough to remove the glamour?" Dumbledore asked of him.
Harry waved a hand in front of him, dispelling the glamour he used every day.
Ailill was rather surprised at the result. He studied Harry's elfin features with reverence and something else. The Gryffindor knew that look. Hermione had that on her face whenever something interesting got her attention.
"Truly amazing," the Elf said. His voice was deep and lyrical, reminding Harry of rivers and summer. The Elf stood with grace and walked over to Harry. He walked a circle around him, studying him with obvious interest. Then his eyes dimmed.
"He truly is a Dark Elf," he said to Dumbledore.
The wizard inclined his head. Harry was certain that had it been anyone else he would have said 'I told you so'.
The Elf retrieved his seat and spared no other look at Harry, who was a bit lost at the reaction he received and the sudden dismissal. He took a seat in front of the desk and waited.
"How could he be a Dark Elf?" the older Elf admitted. "I know he is the Potter boy. We do not interact with human much but even we know of Harry Potter and the war the wizarding world has with the current Dark Lord Voldemort. We make it a point since that arrogant man tried to take us to his side."
He said the last part with disdain that reminded Harry of the famous Malfoy sneer.
"That kind of Dark Elves do not interact with other kinds of Elves, much less humans and wizards," Ailill told the headmaster. "It is the first time I have seen something like that. He is not even like most half bloods, which have only the luminous eyes and pointy ears but not like a normal Elf would have, certainly not the life expectancy and only half the power. He looks like a full blooded Dark Elf, but the Potter lineage has no creature blood that I know of, certainly not Elfin kind, and his Muggleborn mother is also less possible to contribute to the traits. Unless he was adopted then I have no possible answer for you. If he does have it must be too far back to be trailed or someone might have had an affair at one point. I hear it is not so unusual in your society."
Harry was quiet and paid close attention as the older Elf spoke, his brain storing the valuable information to be passed later on to Hermione.
"We are at a loss ourselves. Young Harry came into his inheritance over the summer. None of us expected the change," the old wizard explained. "It also came to a right time; Voldemort had breached the wards and wanted to attack."
The Elf nodded, deep in thought. "Do you know which of his ancestors has Elf blood?" Ailill asked the wizard.
"Regrettably not yet, but our Potion Master is currently working in that direction," Dumbledore informed him. "The potion should be ready in a week."
Harry found himself again under the scrutinizing, ageless blue eyes and this time he stared back defiantly. He would not back down no matter what. Just because he felt awe for the man, or Elf, he would not be stared down.
Dumbledore cleared his throat, to avoid any unnecessary incidents. "Also Harry has another problem. It seems he has also found his mate earlier this summer."
Ailill actually grimaced and looked somewhat sympathetic. "This is bad."
Harry was alarmed. How could it be bad? Finding a soul mate was a wonderful thing, someone he could count on no matter what, someone to love and cherish him, someone like Lucius. 'At least the moment I catch him,' the teen thought. 'He keeps slipping away from me. Stubborn Slytherin Death Eater,' he sulked in his mind. Then he realized what exactly he had thought and cursed the compulsion from the Elfin blood than run through his veins.
"Usually we learn of our mates well after we have reached the age of maturity," Ailill told Dumbledore. "This could be dangerous for someone so young and ignorant of his nature and the Elfin ways. There is nothing worse than a mating bond done wrongly."
"Dangerous?" Harry gasped. How could finding your soul's other half could be dangerous? Granted Lucius Malfoy was not the most amicable wizard in Britain, or Europe, but certainly not the worst. And he was hot as hell.
"You have yet to bond with your mate, am I correct?" the other Elf asked him.
Harry nodded reluctantly, growing a bit red in the face. It was not a matter he wanted to discuss in front of the Headmaster or anyone else.
"Then you shall have no trouble."
Harry breathed in relief. 'So not everything is lost. Good,' the teen thought.
He looked up and found the Elf studying him once again, as if measuring him u, judging to see his worth. Though how one could tell just by looking at him, Harry could not fathom.
"I will train him," Ailill decided. "But I would also like the results of the blood tests soon. Certain families have traits like Clairvoyance and the like, which demand delicate handling. As it is I've never worked with a dark Elf before. It will be challenging."
"Of course," Dumbledore agreed.
Ailill faced Harry, and this time his face was less stern.
"I can see you have potential, young one," he told Harry with confidence. "You will make an interesting pupil."
The Gryffindor fought a smile at this and sincerely thanked him. As it was that was the first compliment the Elf had given him so far, breaking the frosty atmosphere between them.
Dumbledore's blue eyes followed the scene with acceptance, twinkling like the sun at the good turn of events.
Gryffindor Dormitory:
Harry was cornered by his best friends the moment he stepped inside the common room.
"So?" Ron asked.
"Didyouseehim?Howwashewithoutaglamour?WasheadarkElftoo?" Hermione gushed.
Harry smiled at her. "You could try to breathe somewhere in there Mione. I don't think even I heard every word you said."
The Gryffindor girl blushed but that did not deter her one bit. "Come on! Tell us!"
"I could wait until morning," Ron offered.
His girlfriend glared him and he shut up. Harry smiled. They always made him smile.
"Well, he is beautiful, not just handsome," Harry began. He entered into a lengthy description of the Elf's appearance, the discussion that followed and by Hermione's special request he described Ailill again.
It was near dawn that they left him go to sleep and admittedly only after Ron's insistence that he was dead on his feet and needed sleep. Only then he managed to escape to his bed and sleep what few hours were left of the night.
Great Hall:
The room was only half full as some of the younger years were still asleep. Most of it was quiet though still Gryffindor table was the loudest of them even though most upper years were still half asleep. It was also true in Harry's case. The teen was seriously regretting sneaking inside the Tower to be questioned all night long by his friends.
'No matter how fun the idea is at the time,' he emphasized in his head.
The young Longbottom took one look at the trio parting with Charlie Weasley at the doors to the Great Hall and shook his head at them. It was obvious those three had been up to something again. He trusted them, he truly did. After the events at the Ministry the year before he knew they could take care of each other even against Dark Wizards. The only thing that calmed Neville's fears was that Dumbledore was not likely to let those three pull a stunt like the previous one. That and Harry had sworn to take Neville with him whenever he went up against Voldemort or his followers. So the shy teen reasoned that it probably had to do with Harry's new nature and that they would let him know when they had more on how his friend turned out to be an Elf. Still, it would not hurt to ask them, just to make sure and satisfy his own curiosity.
"You returned late in the dorm last night," Neville told Ron.
The youngest Weasley boy was in the process of chewing his food so he shrugged. Neville waited and almost laughed when he saw the red haired teen eye Hermione discretely. It seemed that all her threats and reprimands had worked and Ron was starting to learn he should not talk and eat at the same time.
"We were with Harry," Ron told them after swallowing his bite.
"What's Harry doing, holding your hand?" Seamus teased.
"Or maybe he joins you," Dean joined his Irish friend.
The two boys started snickering while Neville coloured bright red from head to toe.
Next to him, the red haired Gryffindor was engrossed in his plate so the crude remarks went over his head. As Neville was too embarrassed to speak up, he missed the lioness that actually did hear the two rude teens.
"Do you want to say that again to my face guys?" Hermione demanded, her wand dangling from her fingers dangerously.
Dean and Seamus chocked on their saliva and hurriedly spluttered several apologies to the angry girl, eyeing her wand with fear.
Hermione huffed at the two of them and went to sit at her boyfriend's side, all the while glaring the crude duo. Neville had watched the scene with growing amusement and watched as his dorm mates run away from the breakfast table like wet cats.
"What got you so worked up?" Ron asked his girlfriend.
She rolled her eyes at him. "Honestly Ron, how thick can you get?" she said as she buttered her toast. "Is that blueberry?"
"I think so," Neville told her, passing the jam. "Where's Harry?"
"He probably slept in," Hermione replied. "We should have broken it up sooner."
"Someone I won't name kept asking new questions and kept us all up," Ron said to the air.
Neville laughed as Hermione smacked Ron's head. Then he sobered and turned to Hermione for answers.
"Is something wrong?" Neville asked worriedly.
"Not necessarily," Hermione told him cryptically.
Neville frowned. "As long as it is nothing serious or life threatening with Harry."
"It's not. It is still new but Harry might tell you soon enough," Hermione told him.
A red head swooped down and landed a kiss to Neville's cheek. The timid Gryffindor blushed, eliciting smiles from the nearest Gryffindor's.
"Good morning Ginny, Luna," Hermione said kindly. Next to her Ron had stopped eating and he was glaring his year mate and scowling at his sister. Hermione, noticing this connected her elbow to his side and muttered a 'behave or else' before smiling at the two younger friends.
Ginny winked at her, thankful for the input. No matter how Ron had matured he still acted odd whenever she was affectionate with a guy, never mind the fact that he knew she was dating Neville seriously.
"It is," the Ravenclaw girl replied.
"Have you eaten breakfast?" Neville asked his girlfriend.
She smiled at him and nodded. "I ate with Luna at Ravenclaw table, don't worry about me." She then looked around the table.
"Where's Harry?" she asked.
"Slept in," Hermione replied.
"Oh, I wanted to talk to him," Luna said a bit put upon. But she shrugged it off soon, as she did with most things that disappointed her.
"What about?" Ron asked curiously. Hermione and Neville looked expectantly at the fifth year Ravenclaw.
"About the DA," Luna replied.
"What about the DA?" Hermione asked with a frown. There had been no new notices about new students or a re-scheduling of their session as far as she was aware. Harry had managed to get them a day off for free practice and testing but he was so cryptic it drove her mad.
"You have seen the new announcement, haven't you?" Luna frowned.
The three Gryffindor's were confused.
"What new announcement?" Ron demanded.
"About a duelling session," Luna replied. "To see the progress we made so far."
The Ravenclaw girl handed them the announcement in what appeared to be colour changing ink:
ANNOUNCEMENT FOR THE DEFENCE ASSOCIATION
There is a special lesson to be held on the 15th of October in the Great Hall where a lecture will be held on Duelling. Pointers will be given, tips and advice on proper stance as well as a practical demonstration.
The honoured guest will be a surprise!
"Harry hasn't told us much," Hermione replied. "He said he had everything under control. I guess I should have pestered him more about it."
"What haven't I told you?" Harry arrived that moment and snatched a piece of toasted bread before even sitting down at the table.
"Luna said something about the duelling session you planned in secrecy," Hermione told him. "Care to share Harry?"
"Ah, that," Harry remembered and continued chewing. He carefully swallowed before washing it down with pumpkin juice. "I asked help from Professor Flitwick and he agreed to a demonstration and to giving us a few pointers during a duel," he finished with a shrug before buttering a second toast.
The rest were left staring at him with awe and anticipation.
"Flitwick will show us? Our Flitwick? Our Charms professor Flitwick?" Hermione hissed in disbelief.
Harry chuckled and nodded.
"Wasn't he a champion in his younger days?" Ginny remembered hearing.
Luna nodded. "I heard that too. In our common room there is a display with one of his trophies in a prominent position."
Hermione and Ginny grew excited and Harry had to calm them down.
"Well, just don't tell anyone guys! It's supposed to be a surprise!" he told them.
Hermione and Ron's sister nodded but it was obvious that they were excited and the other four of his friends as well.
Harry munched on the second toast happily and changed the subject. He indulged a talk about Quidditch with Ron and heard the latest news in the wizarding world from the 'Prophet' edited by Hermione. The one thing that did not change was that his friends kept giving him awed looks throughout breakfast.
'It's gonna be a long day,' Harry thought with a mental sigh.
Herbology:
It was the last lesson of the day and Harry had already been questioned by almost half of the students participating in the DA sessions, no matter which House or year they were in. He had been ready to bite a few heads off but Hermione and Ron restrained him last minute. Before that he had never though the Hufflepuff's to be so annoying as on a par with the Slytherin's and that was saying a lot in Harry's books.
On their way back from the greenhouses the three Gryffindor friends were engrossed in a discussion about the latest essay Sprout had assigned them when Hermione and Ron both had horrified faces when they glanced at Harry.
"What? Is there something wrong?" he asked them.
Moving as one Hermione and Ron pulled him to the nearest alcove and Hermione at the same time used his scarf to tie it over his head.
"Guys? Wha-?"
"The glamour is down," Ron told him.
Harry's eyes widened and he quickened his pace to an almost run as he was shoved in the nearest broom shed as his friends also got in and spelled the door locked. The three teens collapsed on the floor, the adrenaline having consumed most of their energy.
"We made it!" Ron gasped.
"Did you really have to enter both in here?" Harry demanded. "I can barely move!" To prove this he tried to shift only to but only banged his hand on the spare brooms.
Hermione laughed nervously. "How do we always get into these situations?" she asked her friends. Then she tripped over a metal bucket and winced.
"You okay there Mione?" Ron asked her.
"Lumos!" she muttered. The wand light almost blinded them in the confined space. As it was they briefly covered their eyes from it but as they adjusted they could not help but start laughing. Harry was pressed to the far wall, covered in mops and rugs, Hermione with one foot in the bucket and Ron trying not to bang his head on the low ceiling.
"Just hurry up and put the glamour on," Ron told his not so human friend. "I feel like I'm gonna break my neck."
"Teaches you to be so tall," Harry muttered sullenly. He was still shorter than his friend, even after all the changes he went through the previous summer and Ron was still lording it over him, all in good heart.
"You can 'punish' the bean pole later," Hermione cut in. "Right now I really want to get out of here. We're not second years anymore."
Harry nodded and tried to concentrate. He struggled for some time as he fought to pull his magic over his skin. He screwed his eyes shut and tried to picture his former, human looks. He was sweating and about ready to give up when Ron spoke.
"You did it mate!"
Harry opened his eyes and sagged.
"Harry?" Hermione grew worried. "Are you feeling alright?"
"Fine!" Harry gasped out. "It's just…That took a lot out of me."
His friends frowned.
"This is not the first time your glamour fails," Ron observed.
Harry nodded. He felt as his whole body was drenched in cold sweat. He could feel his magic flicker over his skin, the tendrils that created the glamour foreign against his body.
"Harry?" Hermione asked.
The Dark Elf saw his friends and sighed. "I'm fine for now guys. I know this is not normal, you know it too, so I'll ask for help. I've got someone to teach me now. Don't worry."
"If you say so buddy," Ron told him.
Hermione gave him a last piercing glance before nodding at him.
"Good, now let's all get out of here before Finigan and Thomas get it in their mind we are really having a three way relationship," Hermione muttered.
Both boys choked and she opened the door, escaping them while laughing.
The next day...
DADA:
Lucius was nervous. It was not showing on his face in the slightest bit. He was the cool and collected like a Malfoy always should be. He wore red coloured robes with black under robes, his hair caught low at the base of his head.
He had endured a couple of difficult days since he had talked with Severus and his friend kept teasing him in the most inopportune moments. That and the strange man that had been with Dumbledore had not appeared at dinner or any other meal from then on. No one on the staff knew who that man was. Not having control frustrated him to no end.
The door opened and Harry walked in.
'I meant to think Potter!' he said in his mind.
The young Gryffindor paused at the door.
"Lucius," he sighed.
The blond felt his chest constrict.
"It's Professor Malfoy," he replied automatically.
The teen laughed. He walked in, left his books on his usual seat and then he walked up to Lucius. He smirked at him before standing on his toes and kissing the man heatedly.
'Damn,' was the last conscious thought in Lucius' mind before he took control of the kiss and pressed closer to the youthful body. He moved his hands one around Harry's waist the other in his hair. For a moment it seemed odd that it felt longer than it looked, like long strands of silk between his fingers. Harry moaned and arched under him, enjoying the feel of his future mate's weight hovering above him but not crashing him, yet close enough to feel the warmth of his body.
Lucius plunged his tongue in Harry's mouth, enjoying the sweetness of him and the whining noises he made deep in his throat. Harry's tongue came to meet his, caressing it before fighting back until he could taste the blonde's unique taste. The blonde smiled against his mouth, enjoying the aggressiveness. His grey eyes widened when the young Elf pulled back slightly, just enough to playfully nip his lips before Harry's hands pulled his face back down for another heated kiss. Lucius complied easily and kissed back hard. Harry moaned into the kiss but this time a deeper moan followed his.
They continued kissing until they had to breathe and they broke apart.
Harry was pleased to see that Lucius did not pull away from him. He kept staring straight into those silvery eyes as he tried to regulate his erratic breathing. He felt Lucius' warm breath and smiled.
"You are impossible to resist Mr. Potter."
The teen gave him a sweet smile. "Call me Harry."
Lucius hesitated. If he agreed that meant he accepted the situation between the two of them and any future advances the minx under him made. On the other hand, he really could not see himself not agreeing. The attraction, or fascination, even obsession, he felt for Harry Potter could not be denied any longer. So that decided everything.
"My name is Lucius."
The teen could only stare. Sure, he had called him by his first name and other intimacies but it was the first time the Slytherin gave his permission to do so and that meant a lot to the young Elf. Harry shook off his surprise and smiled widely before pecking his partner's lips. Lucius caught them again and the chaste kiss Harry intended turned into another snogging session between the two of them.
They both pulled back reluctantly, chests heaving.
"We should continue this after class," Lucius told Harry as he helped the teen to his feet.
Harry's face was flushed from the kisses and his lips bore obvious evidence of being very thoroughly kissed, not that Lucius looked any better.
"I ruined your hair," Harry told his professor.
As a reply Lucius used his wand to straighten both their appearances.
Harry had just sat in his seat when the door to the classroom opened and his two friends walked in followed by the rest of the class.
"Alright there mate?" Ron asked him as he took the seat to his left.
"Couldn't be better," Harry replied.
Great Hall, DA Session
The Great Hall was redone especially for that particular session and most of the school was there, including professors like Hooch, McGonagall, Snape and Malfoy as well as the Headmaster himself. Hermione had organized the seating arrangements and most of the students were sitting on pillows or beanbags of various colours and shapes, while the adults in normal chairs. There was a platform raised a bit so that the demonstrators were seen by everyone. The rest of the room, like books, foe glasses and such were just as they used to be when normal sessions were in place.
Everyone was obviously excited. It was a unique opportunity to see a Duellist of Flitwick's calibre give it his all and many were curious as to what the DA had learned. Pomona Pomfrey had said she had taught some of them basic first aid spells but that was it.
Hermione was standing near the platform, her shirt wrinkled from being twisted in her fingers so much.
"Give it a rest Mione," Ron told her.
"I'm just curious how this happened," she admitted. "And I'm nervous until I see what happens next."
"Relax Granger," the young Malfoy sauntered up to her free side. He was one of the few Slytherin's present, never mind the year. She herself had never asked Harry exactly which Slytherin's were participating in his classes and he never volunteered.
"Not everyone is here," Draco told her. "Some of them cannot afford to be seen in here."
'Politics,' her mind provided and she simply nodded.
"Will you three sit down with the rest of us and just wait?" Ginny told them. She received three glares for her trouble but shrugged them off. "Harry has just come in with the honoured guest."
That made the three nod their heads at her and conjure a seat, each for themselves.
Harry knew he had the attention of every person within the room. He offered a small, somewhat nervous smile to his audience.
"Welcome everyone! As you see we have several guests with us today, both students and professors of this school and our Headmaster as well. I know most of you are divided in groups but today the lesson is planned to include all of you, no matter year or ability." He paused. "I heard some wild rumours earlier that included a battle to the death between myself and professor Snape-"
The man sneered and several people blushed.
"- but that will not happen today, sorry," Harry finished. Some people chuckled.
"Can't we guess?" Lisa Turpin yelled from the crowd.
Harry blinked and smiled.
"Three chances; think carefully and those who I know they know cannot offer hints," he replied with a smirk.
His friends pouted and many chuckled.
"The Headmaster!" Turpin said.
Harry shook his head.
"I'm afraid I'm here as a spectator Miss Turpin," Dumbledore replied.
The Ravenclaw looked sad at her missed chance.
"Next?" Harry called out with amusement. He could see everyone consulting the person next to them. To his amusement he saw one of the Slytherin's take a guess and suggest Malfoy senior. Harry had been tempted to look back and wink at his intended but caught himself and announced they only had one last chance.
"What do we get if we guess right?" Draco Malfoy asked from somewhere to his left side.
Harry chuckled. "If you guess right I'll do whatever you want, within reason."
Ron spluttered while most non Slytherin's looked shocked and scared of the 'prize'.
"But that of course means you have to guess correctly first," Harry told him.
From the sideline Lucius looked intrigued at the workings of his son's mind and at the same time wary for Harry in case his offspring did guess correctly.
Draco looked like Christmas had come early and Santa gave him all the presents of the world. The expression made Harry somewhat wary.
"Then…Could it be Professor Flitwick?"
He heard Ron Weasley groan and got his answer.
"You can reward me later Potter," the blond said smugly. He never saw his father tense or Snape tease the elder blonde but Harry did and hid a small smirk that wanted to show on his face.
Harry rolled his eyes at Draco, but nodded anyway to show he would not back out now that everyone knew, and then turned and decided to finally start the session, calling the tiny Charms Professor on the stage.
The little professor was smiling at the awed looks of the crowd and especially at his Ravenclaw's.
"Now this will be fun," Dumbledore told Harry when the teen moved back to give the Charms Professor the floor.
"Would you go up against him, sir?" Harry asked him.
"Our bones are not what they used to be I'm afraid," the older wizard replied with a chuckle.
Room of Requirement:
Harry arrived in the room feeling a bit nervous as to how it would go. It was his first lesson with Ailill Frideswide the Sage. If that alone was not enough, his excitement at actually meeting an Elf was also quite distracting.
"Good evening Mr. Potter," a musical voice greeted him.
Harry paused as he closed the door. The room was transformed into a clearing, trees all around him and a small waterfall to the far side. He had no idea why it was that way, but it was relaxing.
"Good evening sir," Harry replied.
Ailill nodded. "The correct greeting would be to call me Elder Frideswide, but as you were never educated in our ways I won't hold it against you."
Harry nodded, committing that little fact to memory.
"Yes Elder Frideswide," he replied.
The red haired Elf nodded approvingly.
"We shall start from the beginning then. Your first lesson today will be on your legacy. How our kind and then your tribe came to be. Anything before we start?"
Harry nodded. "Yes Elder Frideswide. I had trouble holding my glamour up today. My friends noticed and pulled me aside. It has happened before."
Ailill frowned. "Then we shall also address that problem today."
Harry thanked him and sat down on the grass the Room had provided.
"It all began before wizards and humans had the power and numbers they have today, when Magic was a force with no classifications and restrictions. There was only Nature and Magic that ruled. Many creatures that you seldom see today roamed free. Dragons, Phoenixes, Centaurs, Merpeople, Goblins and many others. Few humanoid creatures walked then. Vampires, Veela and Incubi or Succubae were among the few cases of intelligent beings and the only ones surviving till today, our kind included of course.
"They lived in communities much like today, in the thickest parts of a forest. It is said that we, Elves, came from the Shadow world. It is not something widely known, but the source from where magic generates was named thus by us. To my knowledge no other species has looked into the matter so not many know."
Harry nodded.
"We are pure magic, that is why Elves can manipulate the Elements; earth, water, fire, wind, all of them. It is natural that no one can excel in controlling all of them, thus the divisions of our kind in tribes. The most common are the Wood Elves, that can command fire and earth, then the Water Elves that control mostly water and air," Ailill said. To display, he formed a ball of flame in his palm.
Harry blinked. "But…What about Dark Elves?"
His teacher nodded. "They are a whole different matter," he replied. "While the others command the elements, Dark Elves are the exception. They have no control over them."
Harry felt disappointed.
"But it hardly matters to them," Ailill continued.
"Why is that? Doesn't controlling the elements give Elves the advantage or something?"
"Or something," Ailill said patiently. He had been around teens before and the curiosity and incredulity of the one before him was not foreign to him. "But for my cousins, you and your kind that is, the Elements do not matter. You can do something far better, which is access the pure magic itself."
Harry frowned. "But the Elves are that magic."
"Yes, but we do not have direct access to it like you do. Dark Elves could be considered multi-elemental, though they are not. You are much like the wizards of today, but with greater power reserves and more abilities. The sheer advantage you have is that you can do things at will."
"Will?"
"I once met a Dark Elf when I was a child," Ailill admitted. "Annwn the Beautiful. She had hair darker than coal, pearl like skin and honey gold eyes. She was beautiful even for an Elf but what was more important, she was powerful."
"Was?" Harry asked with a frown.
"She was older than us. Her looks remained after her death, but her mate had died and she was getting ready to follow him."
Harry felt sorrow in his heart.
"There is no point in mourning for her," his teacher told him. "Once an Elf loses a mate life as you know it is over. If the death is in times of peace, they merge back with nature, together. In times of war it takes longer."
The teen went quiet.
"You don't need to worry about this yet," Ailill told him. "What matters is that you realize I will teach you the Elvin ways but most we will learn together as so little is known about Dark Elves. The last time your kind walked among us was something over a millennium ago."
Harry's eyes bulged. "What!"
Ailill smirked at him. "Don't be so surprised. To me you are an infant and Dumbledore a mere toddler."
"I bet he'd enjoy hearing you say it."
"Yes, he might."
The rest of their time was spent with Harry learning the casts in Elvin society and by a quick crash course of constructing glamour's, before Ailill sent him to bed.
End of chapter
A/N: Another chapter edited.