Enjoy!

THE BOGGART

Harry couldn't say he was surprised that Malfoy didn't rejoin classes until Thursday, during double Potions with Gryffindor no less. He wasn't all that surprised either that Malfoy was able to get Professor Snape to force Ron to do all the manual labor for him since his arm was "still wrapped up". He was also not surprised that Neville had a break down and that Hermione had to help him save his Shrinking Potion before it was tested on his toad. He was, however, surprised to hear Ron and Seamus (who were best of friends within the gang) chatting away about Sirius Black being spotted not to far from Hogsmeade.

Noticing Harry paying attention to the conversation, Malfoy leaned over to his fellow Housemate and muttered, "Thinking of trying to catch Black single-handed, Potter?"

Harry raised his head at this, though tried to keep his confusion from his face as he knew Malfoy would use it to his advantage. "Sure."

"Of course, if it was me," The blond whispered. "I'd have done something before now. I wouldn't be staying in school like a good boy. I'd be out there looking for him."

"What are you talking about, Malfoy?" Ron, who had been listening, interrupted their conversation in a hiss, but Malfoy had ignored him, instead focusing on the confusion now clear on Harry's face.

"Don't you KNOW, Potter?" Malfoy flicked up an eyebrow.

"Know what?"

Malfoy snickered at this. "Maybe you'd rather not risk your neck...want to leave it to the dementors, do you? But if it was me, I'd want revenge. I'd hunt him down myself."

"What are you talking about?" Harry hissed, but Professor Snape stopped any further conversation with "You should have finished adding your ingredients by now..."

Harry quickly went to clean up and thought for a moment of asking his professor what Malfoy could have meant by it, but instantly thought better of it. The Potions Master had been insistent to not tell Harry despite all of the begging Harry had tried back in Diagon Alley. Harry doubted the man's feelings on the subject had changed and he was currently enjoying his returning good favor with the man and didn't want to ruin it.

After class (Neville's toad survived and Gryffindor lost five points for Hermione helping the other boy), Harry made his way towards his first D.A.D.A. class of the year, which he had to also suffer through with the Gryffindors.

He, like all others in the room, were surprised Lupin had a practical lesson planned for them outside of the classroom, and had followed the teacher quietly and delighted when he had cast a spell to shove gum up Peeve's nose along the way. They were led to the staff room where only one teacher was inside: Professor Snape who told Lupin to leave the door open for him as he would "rather not witness this" before he strode to the doorway, at which he turned and added "Possibly no one's warned you, Lupin, but this class contains Neville Longbottom. I would advise you not to entrust him with anything difficult. Not unless Miss Granger is hissing instructions in his ear."

This was one characteristic of his dear professor that Harry didn't quite get along with: Professor Snape was a bit of a bully of students he didn't care for and apparently didn't seem the least bit bothered to do so in front of other teachers. Harry did know, though, that the professor also hated cheaters and he also hated liars and he also hated those who disobeyed orders, all three of which Hermione and Neville had done in potions earlier, so really, it was doubtful the man's anger had smoothed down yet.

Lupin, for his part, remained calm and kind as he said "I was hoping that Neville would assist me with the first stage of the operation and I am sure he will perform it admirably."

Snape merely curled his lip at this and left, shutting the door behind himself.

"Now, then," Lupin motioned his class towards the end of the room where an old wardrobe stood. They were almost to it when it began to shake ferociously. "Nothing to worry about. There's a boggart in there."

Harry glanced around the room to find that most people seemed to believe this was a perfectly good reason to be worried.

"Boggarts like dark, enclosed spaces such as wardrobes, the gap beneath beds, the cupboards under sinks...I've even met one that had lodged itself in a grandfather clock. This one moved in yesterday afternoon, and I asked the headmaster if the staff would leave it to give my third years some practice. So the first question we must ask ourselves is, what is a boggart?"

It was no surprise that Hermione raised her hand.

"It's a shape-shifter." She stated. "It can take the shape of whatever it thinks will frighten us most."

"Couldn't have put it better myself." Professor Lupin's words caused Hermione to glow with pride. "So the boggart sitting in the darkness within has not yet assumed a form. He does not yet know what will frighten the person on the other side of the door. Nobody knows what a boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will immediately become whatever each of us most fears. This means that we have a huge advantage over the boggart before we begin."

He turned and looked straight at Harry, at which point he paused, an odd looking entering his eyes. Before Harry had long to ponder this look, Lupin asked, "Have you spotted it, Harry?"

Somewhat surprised and unprepared and apprehensive because Hermione was bouncing up and down with her hand in the air, Harry only managed to lamely answer, "Er...because there are so many of us, it won't know what shape it should be?"

"Precisely." Professor Lupin continued. "It's always best to have company when you're dealing with a boggart. He becomes confused and will sometimes even attempt to take on the shape of two things, which usually ends up looking not even remotely frightening. The charm that repels a boggart is simple, yet it requires force of mind. You see, the thing that really finishes a boggart is laughter. What you need to do is force it to assume the shape that you find amusing. We will practice the charm without wands first. After me, please...riddikulus!"

"Riddikulus!" The class said together, even though Malfoy was muttering some joke about the class being ridiculous.

"Good." Lupin nodded approvingly. "Very good. But that was the easy part. The word alone is not enough. And this is where you come in, Neville."

Malfoy began making jokes about Neville as the professor led the boy away. Harry tried to ignore him, but Ron couldn't. The redhead turned on the blond and began to hiss some pretty nasty threats at him. For this reason, Harry couldn't leave it alone.

"Back off, Weasley." Harry shot, glaring at Ronald.

"You back off, Potter." Ronald snapped and then said rather loudly. "I hope Lupin's smart enough not to let you face the boggart. Would put a huge damper on his record if he has to take you to the infirmary because you fainted."

Roars of laughter filled the classroom, which Professor Lupin had a hard time getting under control before he announced that Neville was ready to face the boggart. Due to the ruckus of Ronald and Harry's spite, no one had heard Lupin's instructions and he had to repeat "Think of what you most fear and try to imagine it as something funny."

Harry quickly tried to think of what he feared, but Ronald's remark had brought the dementor straight to the forefront of his mind. How did one make a dementor less frightening?

He didn't get a chance to ponder this further when the wardrobe opened and Professor Snape stepped out, glaring down at Neville. To be honest, Harry could see a perfectly good reason to be afraid of Professor Snape, especially if he didn't like you. The man was intimidating, black robes billowing, and black eyes glaring from his sallow face.

"R-r-riddikulus!" Neville squeaked.

There was the sound of a whip crack and Snape stumbled only to appear, to the amusement of most everyone in the room, dressed in a long, lace-trimmed dress and a towering hat topped with a moth-eaten vulture, and swinging a huge crimson handbag. Laughs, from Gryffindors and Slytherins, were echoing through the staffroom, but only Harry's mouth dropped in horror. What had Professor Lupin done? This had been his idea! Didn't he know how word would spread through all of the classes? Didn't he know how humiliating this would be for his fellow professor? Didn't he know how angry this would make the Potions Master?

Students were running forward as their names were called and Harry watched a giant bear become hairless, a mummy unravel and trip, a dragon choke on its own tongue, a banshee lose her voice, a giant snake tie itself into a knot, a severed hand get snapped in a mousetrap, a troll turn a brilliant white with pink dots all over it, and Ron's spider losing its legs and rolling around...and then it was in front of Harry and he raised his wand, not sure what to do, but ready to face it...

"Here!" Professor Lupin was suddenly between him and the boggart and it turned into a shining silvery-white orb hanging in front of Lupin who said, "Riddikulus!"

"Forward, Neville, and finish him!" Lupin instructed as the boggart, now a cockroach, landed in front of Neville and turned back into the Potions Master.

Fearlessly, Neville charged forwarded, shouted "Riddikulus!" and for just a moment Professor Snape was in the lacy dress before Neville let out a great laugh and the boggart burst into smoke and was gone.

"Excellent!" Professor Lupin congratulated them as the entire class, even the Slytherins, broke into applause. "Excellent, Neville. Well done, everyone...let me see...five points to every person to tackle the boggart...ten for Neville because he did it twice...and five each to Hermione and Harry."

"But I didn't do anything." Harry objected.

"You and Hermione answered my questions correctly at the start of class, Harry." Lupin didn't miss a beat as he continued, "Very well, everyone, an excellent lesson. Homework, kindly read the chapter on boggarts and summarize it for me...to be handed in on Monday. That will be all."

While the rest of the class exited talking excitedly, Harry slipped off feeling all the more down. Not only had his favorite professor been absolutely humiliated, but it was more than apparent that Professor Lupin didn't believe Harry was capable of handling a boggart as he had deliberately gotten himself in between him and it. Was it because Harry had fainted on the train? Or was it because he had heard Ronald and believed him that Harry would pass out again?

Harry didn't feel like going to dinner and marched himself down to the dungeons and into the potions classroom.

Professor Snape raised an eyebrow at the disgruntled look on Harry's face, but waited until the boy had started on a potion before commenting, "How was your first D.A.D.A. class?"

"It was..." Harry sighed and gave his teacher an apologetic look. "Neville's boggart turned into you and he dressed you in his grandmother's clothes..."

Normally, when the Potions Master heard of something done against him, he'd make a snide remark, but he'd keep his features as emotionless as possible. Today was different however as he spun around so he was staring at the wall behind him. Harry knew it was because the professor was scowling and probably moving his lips through a million curses that he couldn't keep to himself. Respectfully, Harry focused on his potion, knowing that the teacher wouldn't want to see that Harry had noticed his inability to control his emotions.

Eventually, Harry heard the man begin preparing to make his own potion, which was obviously to help him calm down. "And what else, Mr. Potter?"

"I...um..." Harry wanted to say that everyone in the class had been laughing, but then figured the man knew as much anyways. "Professor Lupin wouldn't let me tackle the boggart."

"And?"

Harry's gaze was brought up to the Professor's in shock. He had expected his professor to back him, but instead it sounded as if the Potions Master had agreed with Lupin.

"Don't give me that "feel sorry for me" look, Mr. Potter." Professor Snape spat as he ground an ingredient rather violently with a pestle. "Think, Potter. Why do you think he wouldn't let you face the boggart?"

Harry furrowed his brows and answered the only logical possibility to come to his mind, "Because of the dementor incident."

The Potions Master scoffed at this, which surprised Harry. "You can be as thick as a Gryffindor sometimes, Potter."

"If that's not it then why?" Harry asked, confused.

"Really, Potter?" The man flicked up an eyebrow. "You honestly can't come up with a reason?"

Harry pinched his brows. "Um...give me a hint?"

"What do you think most people would assume is your greatest fear, Potter?"

A gasp left Harry's mouth. "Voldemort."

"Don't say that name!" Professor Snape barked, his eyes revealing a hint of pain mingled in with the rage and surprise. "How many times have I told you that, Potter?"

"Sorry, sir." Harry muttered, forgetting how much his beloved professor hated hearing that name. "Um...so...he thought it'd turn into...You-Know-Who?"

"Clearly, he didn't think it a good idea for the Dark Lord to materialize in the staffroom. People would panic..." The Potions Master gave a heavy sigh. "It was an idea I supported."

"Sir?"

"I told him not to let you face the boggart." Professor Snape admitted, beginning to chop up something. "Though it sounded as if he wasn't going to let you anyways."

"Oh..." Harry frowned, beginning to stir his potion. "I see. Sorry...sir...um...but I didn't think of Vol...er...You-Know-Who. I-I remembered those dementors."

The older wizard's brow raised ever slightly. "Very impressive, Potter. That suggests that what you fear most of all is...fear...which is rather wise."

To hear a compliment from Professor Snape was something even a teacher's pet such as Harry didn't get frequently. Actually, now that he thought about it, this would be the first one he'd ever gotten from his Head of House.

"Thank you." Harry mumbled and set about to quietly working on his potion as his whole heart swelled with happy emotion that washed away the awful feelings from earlier in the day.

It wasn't for several minutes before Harry suddenly remembered his Hogsmeade Permission Slip.

"Oh, um, Professor?"

"Yes, Potter?"

Harry inhaled deeply before spitting out rather hastily, "Professor, my aunt and uncle...um...didn't get to sign my form."

Professor Snape glanced at him, but didn't say anything.

"So...er...d'you think it would be all right...I mean, will it be okay if I...if I go to Hogsmeade?"

Professor Snape continued working on his potion without even looking at Harry. "I'm afraid not, Potter. No form, no visiting the village. That's the rule."

"But...Professor, my aunt and uncle...you know, they're Muggles, they don't really understand about...about Hogwarts forms and stuff...if you said I could go..."

"But I don't say so." Professor Snape cut him off. "The form clearly states that the parent or guardian must give permission and as I am neither..." Harry swore the man shuddered slightly at the very idea of being a parent or guardian. "I clearly cannot. That is my final word. Drop the subject now, Potter."

Harry didn't bother trying to bring it up again and even managed not to sulk until he had left the classroom. It was obvious the professor didn't want Harry put into a situation where Harry would be in danger and Hogwarts was as safe a place as a person could get. Still, this was silly in Harry's mind. There were loads of people in Hogsmeade! Surely, Black wouldn't attack him there? And what would any of the professors have said had Harry come with a signed permission slip? Let him go, obviously, as it was clear his Head of House was only using the lack of signature because it had been made available.

This was a terrible third year...