I do not own anything. I'm just translating. The characters belong to the great J.K. Rowling. The story belongs to the amazing Brigi. Her e-mail: tbwtpbe et hotmail .com
Sorry for the wait but school got in the way. I try to upload a few chapters now, because I'll be home in January.
One more thing… My Beta can not continue helping me, so I'm looking for a Beta Reader again. If someone can help me… please send a message. Or even if you can recommend someone. If you want the story to approve (grammatically) then please help. Thanks.
Please review! Pretty please!
Enjoy
THE BOY WITH THE PIERCING BLUE EYES
Chapter 18 – Potions, Snakes and Quidditch
Snape came out of the cupboard with a variety of ingredients. He put a bowl on the table. It contained a plant: its yellow fruit vaporized if touched.
"Everybody take some." He said without looking up and moved to the next cupboard.
The students lined up and to follow the teacher's order. A few of the Slytherin boys started to push the others.
Harry rolled his eyes when he was pressed against Parvati. Last year was so much better: he did not have to attend to this class with these idiots. But the Huffelpuff and Ravenclaw students complained about the new arrangements saying that they were more familiar with each other and wanted to do to classes together again. Of course no one asked the Gryffindors and the Slytherins did not care.
Harry looked at his professor. The man was looking at the jars and boxes in a cabinet. He opened the glass door and reached for a box on the highest self. He took the lid off, sniffed the contain and turned away with a grimace. With one movement he poured it into the trash.
Draco raised his hand.
"Yes, Mr. Malfoy."
"Did the ingredients go bad, sir?"
"Yes, Mr. Malfoy."
"How can that be? Why didn't we use it to prepare a potion?"
"The reason is, Mr. Malfoy." The teacher sighed, surprising many of them. "That the Ministry does not allow teaching the potions this ingredient is used in."
"The Ministry does not allow everything to be taught?" Crabbe growled.
Pity could be seen in Snape's eyes as he looked at the boy.
"Yes, Mr. Crabbe. And this is right. Otherwise unauthorized hands would make dangerous potions." He looked at Neville who was grinning. Ever since he got his OWL result he was sitting proudly at class. Snape shuddered a little.
"What about love potions? Are they banned?"
A few students giggled but they stopped when Snape looked at the class again.
"The A and B category potions are banned, and you could not achieve anything with the C category ones, Mr. Crabbe. Their effect is only temporary."
He accidentally caught Harry's eyes that smiled at him and looked towards Malfoy. The man understood the hint so he lowered his head to hide a smile.
"Mr. Crabbe." Ron whispered to Harry. "It sounds so stupid…"
Harry smiled and turned back to the teacher.
"On the first few lessons we are going to be making healing potions. Do any of you wish to start with one of them in particular?"
Hermione looked at Harry and whispered a 'What did you do to him this summer?' but she suspected that the boy will only shrug.
"Professor." Malfoy's other gorilla raised his hand. "Can we start with the potion for blisters?"
"Why would Goyle need that one?" Dean whispered to Ron but froze when he realized that his teacher probably heard this too. The professor however had a very similar grimace on his face.
"Because the Gryffindor girls have so many ugly blisters."
The Slytherin boys laughed but the others did not find this funny. Snape sighed.
"I appreciate your attentiveness, Mr. Goyle, but in the future refrain from such statements."
"I'm sure if someone from our house said the Slytherin girls are ugly… he would take a hundred points from us."
Harry just smiled hearing Seamus' angry words.
Their teacher continued.
"You probably wonder why start with these usefully potions in just the sixth year. Well, these potions are used in the everyday life, but making them is not easy. If you use a little too much leech secretion… the potion for mosquito bites will burn a hole into the table.
Ron shivered while thinking how big of a hole it would burn into his skin.
"Therefore, Mr. Goyle, these home-made products are strictly forbidden to test on yourself or your fellow students. If you need anything, please ask Madame Pomfrey." Goyle looked at Crabbe with a grin. Hermione shook her head.
"Adult wizards and witches can create and use these potions but it is recommended to purchase them in pharmacies. Well, what are you waiting for?" He looked at them questioningly.
Everybody lit the fire under their cauldron and started chopping their ingredients. Harry rolled up his sleeve and with precise movements started to cut the leech's belly.
"Strain it with the thumb and index fingers, then from the head…" He muttered the instructions he learnt in the summer.
Ron tried to mimic his movements while trying to figure out why his friend learnt Potions during the holiday. However Harry was less talkative than ever.
The world faded around him, his vision blurred and the room wavered a little. He rubbed his eyes, put the knife down which caught Ron's attention. He covered his eyes with his hand because he felt like he will vomit if the world doesn't stop spinning around him.
"Harry…?" Ron asked quietly. "Is everything…"
However, Malfoy noticed this and yelled.
"Professor! Professor! Potter is delirious again!"
Snape put down the measuring cup and went to Harry.
"Sit down, Potter, I don't want you to faint here!"
"I'm fine." Harry muttered. "I'm sure I just got dizzy because of the steam."
He could clearly see again but felt a little hot. His muscles were limp and numb. Snape was not really convinced by the answer.
"Weasley, watch Potter and if he looks sick again, accompany him to the Hospital Wing. You don't need to ask for permission. And if I catch you simulating Potter, you go to the Headmaster!" He added just for show.
Everyone worked in silence. Ron kept looking at Harry, but the boy did not look sick. He finished before the others, though Neville, encouraged by his results, almost caught up to him. Hermione looked envy. Despair shown on Snape's face when he saw the two boy's potions were fine and had to give them good marks, though he did not give extra points to the Gryffindor house. Harry was cleaning the knife when the professor checked the others' potions. The liquid in Ron's cauldron was a little too strong. It would have been suitable to treat serious anthraxes instead of blisters. Hermione waited proudly for her turn and smiled when Snape reluctantly wrote the best mark on the parchment. Seamus did not think it was possible to ruin the potion so much as to make it burn a hole into the table, but somehow he managed to.
He leaned forward while packing. He felt like it was worth the risk after getting a terrible mark and minus five points.
"Do you think the potency-enhancing potions are prohibited too?"
"If you dare to ask him, I'll give you five butterbeers." Ron chuckled.
"Come on, boys, stop being such jerks." Hermione scolded them.
They picked their cauldrons, ready to leave when:
"Potter! You're staying here!" A voice came from behind them.
They all stopped first. Ron and Hermione, however, holding hands walked out of the classroom without looking back. Harry was a little sad and didn't even notice the encouraging wink Seamus gave him. His eyes met Neville's who asked if he should wait for him. He was happy that at least somebody thought about him and told him to go ahead.
"Yes, professor?" He turned around.
"What was that during class?" He frowned. "Did you feel him…"
"No." Harry lowered his head. "It was different… I just felt dizzy. And…weak. It must be…"
"Yes?"
"It must be because I didn't get to rest much after yesterday… We were running around a lot today… Maybe I shouldn't have been."
"Yes, you shouldn't have been." Snape repeated. "Your body is weakened due to the attack and your illness. It needs a lot more than sweets…"
"I thought chocolate in the world of wizards is like a medicine." Harry grinned.
"It just improves your well-being. Spend a lot of time outside!" Severus said seriously.
"Yes, professor." He lowered his head submissively. "Can I ask you something?"
Snape shrugged, while starting to pack his parchments away.
"If one needs the best mark to get into the course your teaching, whom the others will learn from? Because… Professor McGonagall said that I have to take NEWT from Potions if I want to be an Auror…"
"Since you got an 'Exceeded Expectation' I think I'll teach you."
"Hm? How can that be?"
"The Ministry appoints someone for those who can't get into my course but still needs to take the exam. But there were so much of them the last couple of years that the teacher couldn't handle them. They asked me to make a test to decide who is good enough to study with my students. Since you got an 'EE' you have a pretty good chance to get into my group…"
Harry looked at him skeptically with a little smile. Did they look into Snape's teaching techniques or the summer made him like that?
"How come you did not shout at Neville or me today?"
"Why would I yell at you?" The teacher looked at him blankly. "I think Longbottom was motivated by the good mark he received. I wanted to see if it was just a coincidence, or…" He stopped.
Harry thought it would not be right to continue talk about this. It must be hard to face the fact that you're a bad teacher. He nodded understanding. The man looked over his shoulder. Harry turned around to see what was so interesting.
Ginny was standing in the doorway waiting for him with a tentative smile on her face.
"You may go."
The two students nodded as a goodbye then went to the Gryffindor tower.
"How did you know I was still in the classroom?" Harry asked.
"Ron mentioned when he went out to fly with Hermione."
"To fly?"
"Yeah. Guess they wanted to be alone." Ginny shrugged.
"But… the quidditch meeting is supposed to be today, right?"
"That's why he asked it to be cancelled. They wanted to fly before the weather turns bad…"
"They…" Harry said quietly. "…seem to have changed… Sometimes I feel like I'm disturbing, when Hermione is there too…"
"Just because he does not dare to kiss her in front of you don't think you're a bother to them! They are far from the things you can disturb them in." She winked.
Harry hugged Ginny tightly. She liked it too.
"Harry, can we speak now? It is important… to me…" She looked at him with pleading eyes.
"Sure." The boy smiled, and they continued their journey to the bedchambers.
Harry stroked Ginny's legs which were on his. They were alone in the boy's room, lying on his bed.
"Oh God." He said. "How can you go to a Muggle house for a summer to fall in love in the end?"
"I don't know!" Ginny groaned and covered her face with her hands, then looked playfully at the boy next to her. "So this is the case."
"What's his name?"
"Graham. Graham Wilkins."
"Then you two are…"
"Yes, it looks like we're together. But now that we both are in school…"
"He's still in school?"
"Of course! He goes to some kind of all boys school… Otown… or Heatin…
"Eton? He goes to the Eton?" Harry's eyes widened.
"Yes, that's the one."
"That is one of the greatest schools in the country. For Muggles of course."
"I told you he's very smart and all." Ginny smiled proudly.
"So…" Harry tried to summarize everything. "…you went to their house, his parents liked you, asked you to spend a few days there and you got together with their son?"
"Well… in short, yeah… You know, since Dad saved their son's life, they wanted to do something for us in return."
"Right… And your parents just let you go? After all, they are strangers…"
"Dad didn't say anything against it. I think he planned to question me about what I saw, what they did in the Muggle house… Mom was a little worried… But she agreed to let me go finally."
"Does anyone else know that… you and Graham…?"
"No, no, just Mom. Don't tell Ron! You know him! He would freak out!"
"I won't tell!" Harry stretched out lazily.
The girl sighed.
"Can you help me then? Please help me learn about the Muggle world! I don't want to look stupid when we next meet. Last time… he came to me happily to go to the cinema with him and I didn't even know what that is… I need to know what Muggle boys your age do. I want to stay together with him…"
"Oh, come here." He pulled the girl closer to him. "You love him, right?"
"I think I do… It's so good that you understand me… that I can talk to you about this…"
"We are in a similar situation." Harry said sadly.
"You miss her too, right?"
"You can't imagine how much…"
"What is her name again, Marie?"
"Yes. At least you can meet him on weekends… or something… But we…"
"Don't worry. You'll meet her again."
"I hope we will."
"Do you miss… being with her?" Ginny asked with a mischievous smile.
"Hey, Miss." Harry looked up. "What kind of speech is this?"
The girl did not say anything. She began playing with her hair but gave a revealing look to the boy.
"What?" Harry yelled.
'Sss!" Ginny put a hand on his mouth when the door opened. "Not a word, Harry, for God's sake!"
"Ginny?" Ron asked when he heard his sister's voice. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"We were…" Harry mysteriously started. "…talking." He pulled the curtains around his bed apart to let his friend see them.
Ron winced when he saw them lying on the bed tangled into each other and looked suspicious.
"What the hell… were you two doing?"
"Oh, Ron!" Ginny sighed. She sat up, climbed over Harry and plopped down on the other side. "I knew you'll freak out! I'm going now!" She put her shoes on and left.
Harry sat up too and upon seeing his friend's doubtful face grinned. He pretended to pull his zipper up, making his friend angry. He slipped into his shoes.
"So… are you two together?"
"No." Harry said with a smile.
"Oh come on! Are you?"
"No."
"Stop it already!" He said angrily when they descended the stairs.
"Nope!" Harry said.
"I'll keep my eyes on you!"
"Oh, Ron!" Harry chuckled.
Down there everyone was waiting so they began talking about the Quidditch things…
"Well, boys, girls" Harry sighed in front of the small audience. "The sad situation is that five of our players finished school last year. Angelica, Alicia and Katie were wonderful chasers. The absence of Fred and George will be noticed too, but I hope our new players will be just as good as they were." He smiled at two boys. "Andrew, Jack, can I count on you this year too?"
All eyes fixed on the two fourth years. They grinned and nodded. Natalie McDonald wrote their name on the blackboard.
"Good." Harry smiled. "Since I am no longer banned to play… I play as a seeker again. Last year's seeker, Ginny asked to be a chaser. No objections, right?" No one said anything. "Ron will be the keeper this year too…"
"Wait a minute!" Geoffrey Hooper popped up from his seat. "Why aren't you recruiting new members? Ron got into the team last year because Angelina got pissed at me when I said that she is bitchy. Though I was better than Ron! I want to be part of the team too! We all saw how bad Ron was last year because he panicked!"
"But Ron proved himself after that." Harry said.
"Once! What is the guarantee that he will not panic again if Malfoy makes a new poem about him?"
"He won't!" Ron stood up with his hands clenched in anger. "I am not a coward!"
"Ron, sit down!" His friend said when he felt the tension in the air. "Geoffrey, I think Ron deserves to be given one more chance to prove himself and…"
"And I don't?" The boy cried.
"Look." Harry began to feel uncomfortable. "Why don't you try another post? We still need two more chasers and…"
"Chaser? A totally different position? You can't be serious!"
"I'm sorry Geoffrey, I can't do anything else… you can be a spare and if Ron is injured…"
"Spare? No way! Your problem is that you chose your close friends to give benefit to! You let them play instead of looking out for what's best for the team! Granger will be the next chaser?"
Hermione gasped.
"Geoffrey, I just became the captain and until now I had no word in who gets into the team or not." Harry said firmly. "But now I want to make a team who plays fair and good to win the Quidditch cup. I want people whose talent I can trust. I trust Ron, but if I find that he does not play good enough, I will replace him."
"But Harry!" Ron gasped.
"I'm sorry that you doubt my fairness. I hope I'll have the chance to prove that you're wrong. Believe me…" He reached a hand out."…we welcome you in the team."
Geoffrey tossed his hand aside and ran up to his room.
The silence was filled with awkward glances and whispering. Harry sighed, rubbed his forehead and tried to look hopeful.
"I'm sorry." He apologized. "Where were we? Oh yeah, thanks Natalie. So, we are looking for two more chasers. I see there are some candidates already." He smiled faintly when some hands swung into the air…
While Dean Thomas made photos of the Gryffindor students after the meeting Ron and Harry were eating chocolate in their room.
"So how was it?"
"Unbelievably good." Harry stretched out on the bed. "I've never felt something like that… I miss it so much…"
"Good for you" Ron said.
"And what about you two?"
"What do you mean?"
"You and Hermione? What about you?"
"Well… we are together…"
"I could figure that out myself." Harry winked. "And?"
"And what?"
"Well… you know…" His friend grinned mysteriously. "Have you done something other than kissing and holding hands?"
Ron straightened up and turned red.
"Of course not! Hermione and I… we are… at the very beginning of our relationship…" he stammered.
"I just thought I ask." Harry chuckled and ate a candy that made his tongue to be like a snake's and it was hanging out of his nose. "Wow! Sred and Cheorge are grazy…"
Ron laughed.
"Wait, I'll check out how to make it disappear. Let's see… That's it. Drink a glass of warm water."
A few minutes later when Harry's tongue turned back to its original form, Ron asked.
"Why did you say that you'd replace me?"
"What do you mean 'why'? It's only fair this way. If there is someone who is better than you then why not give him a chance?"
"But… I thought…" His friend muttered.
"Ron, what's wrong?"
"Nothing…"
Ron climbed back on his bed, slipped under the covers and did not say anything else that night…
Next morning Harry was walking alone to the Great Hall to have something to eat before Herbology. He met the Huffelpuff prefect on the way.
"Hello Ernie!" He greeted with a faint smile.
"Hello Harry. Why are you so down?"
Harry sighed.
"The Quidditch meeting yesterday didn't really go as I planned… I never thought that being a captain is this hard…"
"Why?"
"Do you think it's not fair to let my close friends play?"
Ernie smiled lightly.
"You're thinking about Ron? Listen, Harry! There will always be someone who thinks it is unfair if you do this or that. You won't be able to meet everybody's expectations, and I don't think that you should. The most important is that your conscience is clear. If you think that Ron deserves to be in the team because he is talented then it's okay. But if not then don't look over it because you are friends. Your honesty will mean more to everyone, even to him."
Ernie's words somewhat reassured Harry and thanks to that he barely noticed the first week passing by. Snape announced the ministry's decision to the class and successfully scared everybody with the upcoming test. The other teachers didn't have to do this so after the Potion exam the plus classes can all start – at least that's what professor McGonagall promised.
On Wednesday, the new Defense teacher made everyone nervous. Harry wondered how the woman will treat him, but Hermione couldn't be convinced: after the first day and the meaningless point-giving actions she looked at the woman strangely.
"Come on, Hermione. You should be glad that we have such a young and cool teacher." Ron ate one more biscuit before the class.
"Who's sitting with whom?" Neville asked, but when he saw the usual Ron-Hermione and Dean-Seamus pairing he sat down next to Harry.
"See how the Slytherins all sat in the first line?" He whispered to Harry. "Guess they hope she'll wear a mini skirt. Typical… Hey, Harry… will there be DA trainings this year?"
"I don't know. It depends on how Dareling professor will teach. If she gives us enough practice then I think it will be fine. But I would appreciate a little extra too." He winked.
They did not hear the professor arriving, only the closing of the door.
"Good morning everybody." She greeted and walked to the table.
The woman took off her butter-colored robes and hang them in the corner, and step in front of the class in her similar colored dress. Draco gave a naughty grin.
"I'm Professor Rowena Dareling the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. For those who don't already know I was a Ravenclaw student here once. I was glad when Professor Dumbledore asked me to take this job because I got a lot experience about dark arts in my previous work place."
Goyle's hand swung up.
"Is it true that you were teaching in Durmstang?"
"Yes, it is."
"And why did you leave that school?" Draco asked frowning.
"It's been chaotic over there since the disappearance of the Headmaster…" Rowena said. "I thought it would be better to come back. But… it's enough. Let's see your names!" She reached for a parchment.
She called their names and stopped from time to time if she had something nice to say to the person. She told Parvati that she could find the differences between her and her twin sister. When she reached Ron she told him how clever Ginny is and that she hopes her brother is just the same as she is. She looked meaningfully at Neville when she read the name 'Longbotton' and laughed when she saw the grin Seamus and Dean made and at Harry's smiling eyes. She was amazed at Blaise Zabini's name saying she'd never heard a unique name like that. But when she read the names of Draco Malfoy, Nott, Crabbe and Goyle she did not say anything. Harry couldn't imagine this fragile woman fight against dark magic. And how could a polite and nice woman fall in love with an adventure-loving, crazy man like Sirius?
"Harry?" He heard his name coming from the teacher. "Harry, what's wrong?" The professor asked curiously. Harry jumped up from his seat.
"Y-yes?"
"The lesson hasn't even started yet and you're not paying attention." A kind reprimand. "Are you not able to concentrate because of something?"
"It must be the voices again, right Potter?" Nott laughed.
"But Theodore." Rowena shook her head. "One point from Slytherin. Are you not feeling well, Harry? If you want somebody to escort you to the Hospital Wing…"
"I-I'm fine, I was just… daydreaming…" He said blushing. He heard giggling from the others.
"Well." The teacher sighed. "Then you will put the chairs up after class. There'll be no more classes here today."
"Yes, professor."
"You can sit down now."
Harry sat down and cursed himself for creating such a bad image of him in front of the woman. What will she think of him now? And he managed to catch Malfoy's gloating eyes. But one good thing came out of this: the others won't think that the woman is treating him different.
"I got the result of your OWLs from the Headmaster. I'm glad to see how many talented students I will have this year. I studied Professor Moody and Lupin's notes. And I noticed that thanks to Professor Umbridge you could not practice last year, but we will make up for that this year. But I have to mention that the theory is just as important as practice. I see Professor Moody has taught you something from this year's book too… the…ah, got it, the Unforgivable Curses.
"Will we learn about them this year too?" Draco asked.
"No, Draco. These are banned curses. You have to know the basic theories but using them is prohibited by law." She looked up. Draco's eyes flashed.
"Will we learn how to defend ourselves against werewolves?" Pansy Parkinson asked.
Hermione rolled her eyes but Harry clenched his fists. He was waiting for the Slytherins saying something rude about Remus.
"You mean… oh, right. I can assure you that Professor Lupin is not dangerous to the people around him. And if I'm right the Ministerhimself said he can come here. Professor Lupin really is a werewolf but that means he loses only a few days of a month. He is human like you or me, Pansy, and he deserves to be treated like one. And now let's see what we have to learn today. We will talk about some simple things which are related to the care of magical creatures. We will talk about snakes and reptiles which are owned by witches or wizards."
The students opened their books and started to make notes of what the professor was saying.
"…snakes are the rarest. Keeping one is difficult and dangerous because they don't understand humans. Only the ones with the magical ability called parseltongue can command them."
She went to the terrarium and pulled the veil for everyone to see.
"This one was caught by Hagrid as I requested, but it's only temporarily, of course. It does not have its fangs, so don't be afraid of it. Can everybody see it? Good. What do we have to do if we meet one? Yes, Hermione?"
"We have to move carefully, barely noticeably, so we won't upset the animal, otherwise it will attack in the blink of an eye."
"Thank you." She interrupted to let others talk too. "And how can we catch one? Not one this big, of course." She smiled.
Parvati raised her hand.
"Yes?"
"With a V-shaped stick we keep its head down to get closer to it. Then we grab its head and keep it so it can't attack… I think."
"Correct." The professor smiled. "Two points to Gryffindor. Well, we can't really do anything else to a snake… Yes, Seamus?"
"Professor, Harry is a parsetongue. Can't we watch him talking to it?"
Harry swallowed hard and felt uncomfortable as every eye was fixed on him.
"Oh… I didn't know that, Harry. Come here and show the others since they want to see it that much… Only if you wish to, of course."
"I-It's not a problem." Harry sighed. "What should I say to it?" He looked at the others.
"Well… to get out of the terrarium." Seamus said.
"And what if it coils around someone?" Pansy cried out. "It can kill us!"
"It won't! I'm here to help if it tries to hurt anyone… But it won't."
"And what if it attacks you?"
Rowena stopped and looked at the children.
"Well… then I hope someone will be clever enough to send a petrifying curse on it…" She shrugged. "Those afraid can sit on the benches."
She didn't have to say it twice, because almost everyone did as told.
"Well, Harry, it's all up to you now." Rowena urged the boy with a smile.
Harry cleared his throat and looked into the snake's dark eyes. He made a hissing sound which the others could not understand, though he only asked the animal if it could hear and understand him. The lazy reptile lifted its head and nodded which made a few students scream. The teacher motioned for them to remain silent. She watched Harry just as curiously as Sirius, who was sitting on the teacher's desk with James and Lily.
Harry opened the terrarium and hissed to the snake to get out, make a circle in the room and stop on the teacher's desk. The animal thanked the boy for letting it move a little and did everything as Harry asked. Without any problems the snake got back into the terrarium. After Harry closed it everyone felt relieved.
"Bravo!" Rowena smiled and applauded him. "Five point to Gryffindor. Sit down, sit down. Let's see…" She looked at her watch. "The lesson is almost over so you can start packing. Homework: read the third, fourth, sixth and eight chapter of the book. See you at the next lesson."
A few students were packing enthusiastically, talking about how much they liked the lesson and how good the professor is. Seamus offered to create a fun club for her. The girls only smiled at the idea. Harry was the last one in the classroom and started putting up the chairs.
"Thank you." The woman said. "Harry, are you sure you're okay? I heard from Professor Snape that you were not feeling well on Monday…"
"Oh, there is nothing wrong!" Harry reassured her. "Everything's been all right since then. It was just momentary and it did not last long."
"Well… okay." Rowena shrugged. "You were great during the lesson… except the daydreaming part."
"I'm sorry…" The boy muttered.
"I didn't know you can speak to snakes…"
"It could be read in a lot of newspapers last year… for weeks…Everyone said I was a dark wizard and insane… that's why Malfoy and his gang make fun of me being insane…"
The professor put her arm around his shoulder and smiled.
"Don't even think about this childish nonsense. It's a rare ability but it might come in handy someday. Come, let's go and have dinner. I'm sure your friends are waiting for you."
The fencing course was not what Harry expected at all. Remus gathered the candidates, and a few assistants from Madame Malkin's shop came and measured everybody and promised to send the clothes within a week.
In addition, Remus gave a small speech about the history of swordsmanship. Dean drew the knives and swords that appeared on the blackboard but the others gave up and decided to copy Thomas' parchment later.
"So we won't even touch a sword today?" Seamus asked. He and Justin were not very enthusiastic anymore. The Patil twins were disappointed too: they wanted to fight against each other.
"I'm sorry, but the answer is no." The man smiled. "You must be patient until next week. By then everything will be ready to begin learning."
The children left the room feeling disappointed and Harry could barely believe that he has to wait another week…
Over the weekend the first workout of the Quidditch team went well. While Ron, Ginny, Andrew and Jack warmed up above the pitch, Harry gave instructions to the new potential members.
"I'm glad that everyone could come today. Don't think that you have a disadvantage to the others. I think we should join the others and fly a little to feel what it's like when you're on the quidditch pitch."
They sat on their brooms. Harry went up first and waited for everyone to follow. The first years were a little unstable so Harry decided not to go so high. They made slow circles around the pitch, then zigzags. He didn't know whether the first year Julia Stolpins was screaming because she enjoyed it or was afraid, but they could only hear her voice.
"Now we accelerate a little!" Harry shouted and leaned forward on his beloved Firebolt. The others watched him but only the older students dared to imitate his movements. Out of the six first year students only Mark Zamberg was good. He gripped tightly the broom but when Julia almost hit him he dodged it quickly. Harry kept his eyes on him and thought he found one of his chasers. Later he couldn't make McGonagall lift the rule that banned first years to play. So when Harry could talk to him privately he told the boy that he was very good and he should watch the others during games and practice and he will be really good next year. The boy was so happy he almost fell over the broom he carried in his hands.
The third year Wilbur, who hated if people called him this and asked everybody call him Will, was really good too. He followed Harry without making any mistakes. The fourth year Veronica Morgenstern was great too. Harry accepted her into the team at once. The girl jumped on him happily and thanked him a thousand times. Harry thanked the others and let them go. A while later Harry noticed that Ron was always glancing towards Hermione. He missed a quaffle because he was waving. Harry frowned. This won't do it…
Below Hermione was reading a book when a shadow came over.
"Hello Luna." She greeted the girl.
"Hello."
"You? What are you doing here?" She asked with a smile.
"I'm spying." The other girl shrugged and sat down. Hermione hated that she never knew if Luna was serious or not. "But I see I'm not the only one." She pointed left.
Hermione turned and saw Cho with her friend Marietta looking at the sky… more precisely at Harry.
"What is she doing here?" She asked angrily.
"Since Roger Davies left school Harry is the quidditch star here."
"I can see some teachers too." Hermione muttered.
Lupin explained something to Rowena pointing at the sky, but Snape was there too with Dumbledore.
"So much about the secret weapon…Now every team will know about our new members…"
"Secret weapon? They just got into the team. The other teams are no better, don't worry…
So it's ready. I don't know when I will update… I want to do a lot of things in my 'holiday' so… I'll try to translate at least one more chapter. I don't know how long the next is… or how exciting.
Please review.
Bye
Hermina