Chapter 4 – From Bad to Worse
The next morning James woke up wishing the day before had all been a bad dream. Unfortunate it hadn't been. It was bad enough that all of Slytherin had been laughing about how bad he had been doing but he was pretty sure a lot of Gryffindor were commenting on how poorly the son of the 'great' Harry Potter was doing at Hogwarts. He was putting his failure yesterday down to first day nerves and was determined to have a better day today as he headed down for breakfast before attending his first class of the day. He got to the Transfiguration classroom and was relieved to see they were sharing the class with Ravenclaw and not Slytherin. Last thing he needed was more jibes from Greta. He took a seat with Noah and waited for their teacher to arrive.
"Good morning class," Professor Sinclair said jovially as she entered the classroom, seeming almost as excited as the students were for their first Transfiguration lesson.
Professor Sinclair had short black curly hair, a round face and thick rimmed glasses. She wore a mismatch of clothes that didn't seem to go. She had a tweed green jacket, purple checked trousers, a yellow cravat and a maroon cloak. It was only her second year teaching at Hogwarts but she'd already established herself as one of the students favourite teachers mainly due to her enthusiasm and encouraging teaching style.
"Now for anyone who's not familiar with Transfiguration it's principally the art of changing the form and appearance of an object or a person and it's one of the most complex areas of magic so I hope everyone has their learning caps on today."
James was already feeling despondent about this class now on hearing how hard it was going to be. He just hoped he could at least keep up with the rest of the students and not lag behind like he did in Charms yesterday.
"Today we will be attempting a simple transfiguration – a match into a needle," Professor Sinclair announced but James had a feeling it wasn't going to be all that easy.
After the professor had demonstrated just how the transfiguration was done it was the class's turn to have a go as Professor Sinclair wandered amongst them offering advice. She hadn't reached James yet but he was really struggling. So far he hadn't managed to make his match do anything. But he felt a bit better by the fact that Noah hadn't had much luck either and the only thing he had managed was to make his match light and nearly set the desk on fire.
"This is a lot harder than it looks," Noah said as he beat the small flame away with his cloak.
James looked around and was pleased to see everyone was struggling and felt a little better about his own efforts, that was until Professor Sinclair reached Polly.
"Spiffing work there I say," Sinclair called out. "Usually it takes a student a few attempts but you did it first time. Five points to Gryffindor."
Polly now had an incredibly smug smile on her face and took pleasure in looking straight at James to show off the fact he wouldn't be able to take credit for her work this time, not that he had ever intended to in Potions.
By the time Professor Sinclair reached James and Noah, neither had managed to change their match. Sinclair gave them a few words of advice and Noah had another go and this time managed to change his match into a needle and even though it was rather bent, Sinclair commended him on a strong effort. James tried the spell again but still his match was just a match.
"Never mind Potter," Professor Sinclair said. "I'm sure you'll get the hang of it soon. As I said Transfiguration is rather a tricky business."
"Thanks," James half-heartedly replied but didn't feel any better about it.
"I know it can't be easy following in your father's footsteps. He was quite the wizard and I know there must be quite the pressure on you to follow suit. But don't get downhearted. Just focus on what you're doing and you'll get there, you'll see."
Professor Sinclair gave James a reassuring smile before she moved onto the next students and James really hoped what she said was true because at this rate he felt he'd be flunking every class.
James' next class was History of Magic and lucky there wasn't any chance for him to show himself up here as the whole lesson was spent listening to the teacher Professor Binns drone on about the Gargoyle strike of 1911. Within ten minutes of the class beginning everyone, except Polly, were thoroughly bored. And by the end of the lesson everyone, except Polly, were barely able to stay awake. James hadn't really enjoyed any of his lessons so far but he felt History of Magic was going to be his least favourite.
As James headed to lunch he had to watch Polly gloat to the rest of the Gryffindor first years about how well she had done in her classes and that she had earnt them house points.
"Big deal," James commented in a hushed voice to Noah who was walking next to him. "I earnt double that in Potions."
"Yeah but you only got those points because Slughorn thought Polly's work was yours," Noah replied back but James didn't appreciate the comment.
"Just who's side are you on?"
"No one's. I just don't think it's a good idea to get on the bad side of the smartest student in class. She could help a lot when we're struggling."
James knew Noah was right but there was no way he'd ever ask Polly for help. He knew she would be so big headed and smug about it and he'd never hear the last of it. He'd rather fail his classes and be thrown out of Hogwarts than ask her for help.
As he was walking along the corridor towards the Great Hall James suddenly tripped and fell to the floor. As he landed on the cold stone slabs he turned just in time to see a foot sticking out from the crowd, a foot which belonged to Greta Payne who had deliberately tripped him.
"Seems you're making a habit of falling face first to the ground Potter," Greta jibed and began laughing with her Slytherin friends. "But I guess we all knew with you being the son of Harry Potter you were destined for a big fall."
James was furious and rejected Noah's hand as he offered to help him up. He got back on to his feet and was about to storm over to Greta and confront her and had his hand in his robes and tightly around his wand when Noah held him back.
"Don't, you'll only make it worse for yourself," Noah whispered in James' ear but James still drew his wand.
"Let him try his best. It's not like he'd be able to cast any spells," taunted Greta as the rest of the students started to step back revealing a horde of Slytherins stood in front of James and Noah.
James was seething now and Noah wasn't sure if he would be able to hold his friend back much longer when through the crowd appeared Leo, Anwar and Zander, the rest of James' dormmates, who came and stood beside him.
"Trust a Slytherin to be picking on someone else to make up for how pathetic they are," mocked Leo.
"What's this Potter? Getting the posh boy to fight your battles?" Greta sneered back.
"I can fight my own battles. What about you?" James asked angrily. "I bet you're not so tough without the rest of Slytherin at your side."
"Well why don't we take this to the courtyard and find out. Just me and you and our wands?"
"I don't think so," a voice called out and James turned to see a very tall, blond haired boy making his way through the crowd. And from the badge on his robes he could see he was a Gryffindor prefect.
The rest of the students started to scatter leaving just James and his dormmates and Greta and a few of her Slytherin friends stood in the corridor.
"If it isn't posh boy's brother," Greta said snidely.
Though they hadn't been introduced yet, James could see the family resemblance between Leo and his older brother.
"That's enough from you. Now I suggest you all get to lunch unless you want to take a visit to the headmistress' office?" Leo's brother asked, though it was more a rhetorical question and the threat seemed to wipe the smug look off Greta's face and she trudged along to the hall with her friends. "Leo if I see you getting into any more trouble I'll be telling mum and dad," his brother said with a disappointed look.
"Sorry Henry, but she was the one who started it. She was picking on James."
"I don't care who started it. You should rise above petty things," Henry stated. "You're all Gryffindors after all."
James was beginning to wonder if he had been sorted into the wrong house. He certainly wasn't feeling confident and he was beginning to feel his actions were letting his house down. And this was only affirmed when he sat near Polly at the Gryffindor table.
"I can't believe you almost got into a fight. You could have lost us house points," Polly fumed from across the table. "Just because you're Harry Potter's son doesn't mean you can do what you like. You need to grow up."
James was about to argue back but then thought better of it. He didn't want to make another scene and get a reputation as a trouble maker as well as an incompetent wizard. Plus Polly already hated him enough, he didn't need to give her any more reason to despise him.
After lunch James put the incident with Greta behind him and felt a bit more positive as he had Herbology with Professor Longbottom next. With Neville being a close family friend and knowing him very well, he knew he was bound to enjoy this lesson.
He made his way down to the greenhouses and with it being a hot sunny day outside, the greenhouses were even warmer. He took off his jumper and loosened his tie and waited for the lesson to begin as Neville seemed to be lost in some rather dense shrubs at the back of the greenhouse that were moving rather furiously and seemed to be making a laughing noise.
"Be with you in a minute," Professor Longbottom shouted out from within the foliage but it almost seemed like it had been the bushes that had spoken as he was so well hidden.
Eventually he emerged with a few leaves in his hair and his clothes were rather unkept and covered in mud but he seemed pretty pleased with himself. Behind him the shrubs continued to make a laughing noise.
"Cackle Furze," Longbottom said to the class, some of whom looked very bewildered as he pointed to the bushes behind him. "Guaranteed to bring joy to any garden."
Professor Longbottom brushed some of the mud off him as he walked around the large table in the middle of the greenhouse that all the students were standing around and then stood at the end of it ready to address them. "Welcome to Herbology where you will learn how to care for plants and fungi and how to use them in spells, potions and medicines. Today we are going to begin with Orchis Amare. Does anyone know what that's better known as?"
There was only one hand that went up in the class – Polly's.
"Yes?" the professor said, addressing her.
"The Love plant Sir," Polly replied looking smug.
"That's correct and why is that?" Longbottom asked and looked around the class but again only Polly's hand was up so eventually his gaze settled on her and he nodded his head in her direction.
"Because it can fall in love with a person if it's attracted to their scent Sir."
"Excellent. Five points to Gryffindor. Once a plant catches your scent it will do all it can to be close to you even attaching itself to you and refusing to let go. In one extreme case it has even been known to have killed a wizard because it was clinging to them so tight it restricted their airway and they suffocated."
Suddenly the class looked a little apprehensive about dealing with a plant that could potentially kill them. But Professor Longbottom continued to reassure them.
"It's perfectly safe though. In front of you are some spray bottles with a solution of lemon juice and Blue Grass extract. Just spray yourself with this and the scent will put off the plant. Make sure you give yourself a good dousing and then get into pairs and I will start to bring the plants round."
James teamed up with Noah and they sprayed each other to make sure they were fully covered as James glanced over to Polly who was still looking incredibly pleased with herself.
"Do you think she'll ever get bored of being an insufferable know it all?" James asked jokingly and Noah just rolled his eyes, not wanting to get involved in James' feud.
As the students were spraying Professor Longbottom placed a rather large plant with a bright red flower and multiple leaves and vines coming off of it on the desk in front of each pair.
"Now the parts of the plant that is most useful are the leaves and the pollen. Simply pick a few leaves from your plant and then these need to be left to dry out. With the pollen simply take a swab and wipe around the inside of the flower then place the swab in the saline solution in the vials in front of you, swirl it around a few times, remove the swab and then stopper the vial," Longbottom said as he demonstrated the process on a plant in front of him. "Everyone got that? Any questions?"
Nobody did so he instructed them to begin. As James and Noah started to pick a few leaves from their plant they noticed the vines start to move closer to them. The vines were now almost touching their hands and they seemed to be inspecting them before suddenly pulling back, obviously having been put off by the scent they had sprayed themselves with. Once they had collected enough leaves they moved on to the pollen sample which was easy enough to collect. After that they moved their plants into the centre of the table and Professor Longbottom began teaching them about the various uses of the samples they had collected.
By the time the lesson had ended James was pleased he had managed to survive without making a fool of himself as they began to pack away and students started to leave. As Polly left the greenhouse she walked right past James and seemed to give him a rather snooty look.
"She's so up herself that one," James said once Polly was out of ear shot and the rest of the class had left.
Noah turned away from the desk and looked out at Polly who was now heading back up towards the castle. "She's not that bad. Maybe you should try and make an effort with her."
"I'd rather spend a night trapped in a cave with a Hungarian Horntail than have to spend one minute with her," James replied as he also turned and took a step towards the greenhouse door and watched Polly. "See her trouble is she's probably been spoilt as a kid. I bet she's an only child, always use to getting her own way," he continued to vent.
Noah was beginning to get a bit bored of listening to James always putting Polly down and was about to say something but he had failed to notice one of the Orchis Amare had moved closer to him on the desk. It's vines were rising up behind him and suddenly before he knew what was happening the vines were round his neck. Noah tried to shout out but the vines were so tight he couldn't make a sound.
"I can't wait till she gets a question wrong. Then that will wipe the smug look off her face," James continued, obliviously to what was happening behind him. It was only when Noah started to bang his fist on the desk that James turned around.
"Noah!" James shouted as he rushed to his friend and furiously grabbed at the vines around his neck. But the vines were so tightly clinging to Noah that he couldn't prise them off.
Just then Professor Longbottom returned having left to attend to some other plants in the next greenhouse and was aghast at what he saw. "Stand back!" he shouted and pulled his wand from his pocket.
James immediately stepped away.
"Finis!" Longbottom roared and a streak of yellow light emitted from his wand and hit the vines and they instantly let go of Noah's neck. Noah fell to the floor and desperately gasped for breath.
"Are you alright?" Longbottom said as he and James crouched down beside Noah.
"I think so," Noah eventually managed to say once he had got his breath back.
"I think maybe we should take you to see Madam Pomfrey just to be on the safe side," Longbottom suggested.
"I'm sorry Noah I must have missed a bit when I was spraying you," James said, feeling genuinely sorry, but relieved that Noah was OK.
"Maybe if you had been concentrating on what you were doing and weren't so busy moaning about Polly you would have done a better job," Noah fumed as Professor Longbottom helped him to his feet.
"I'm really sorry," James pleaded but Noah didn't reply as Professor Longbottom started to lead him back up to the castle and to the hospital wing.
Neville turned and gave James a sympathetic smile but it was of no consolation as he stood alone in the greenhouse. That was another class he had managed to mess up.