A/N: Hello and welcome back to another chapter in this story.
This chapter is not as long as the last few ones, sorry about that. But for tha sake of pacing the story, i decided to cut it at the end and then go from there in the next chapter.
Also, once again, HowInMadeHowie helped me adding some more details and corrected some mistakes i made or did not describe it well enough.
Now, off with you and have fun reading this chapter. Until next time
The next day, Dumbledore addressed all the students during breakfast. "Students, I have an announcement to make. After some discussions with Professor Lupin, I decided to grant him his wish and let him teach, to those who are willing to do so, the Patronus charm. It would do you well in your OWL or NEWT exams if you could cast this charm, but also if something like in the last Quidditch match happens again, you could protect yourself and others by producing a shield. Now. I do not order any of you to take that optional class, and I would understand if you wanted to think about it. If you are interested, please ask Professor Lupin directly when the next lesson would be. Now, enjoy the rest of the breakfast." Dumbledore sat back down on his chair, causing the students to talk with each other about this news.
Harry could hear how Ron was almost complaining about those added lessons, while Neville openly wondered how his Patronus would look like. Hermione, who sat next to Harry, was fumbling with her hands and twirling something on her robe and Harry could almost hear her thoughts about what this charm would need to work.
He had already talked with her, Daphne and Susan the night before after they came into the office where he had successfully cast the charm and the dragon had just vanished. After explaining to the girls what he had done.
Hermione wanted to know what memory he had used and how much magic he had used. It almost sounded like she wanted to repeat his success and almost had her wand out. After calming her down, Lupin offered to teach her as soon as possible, like the next Saturday when there was no Hogsmeade visit.
Harry still remembered how much Hermione smiled and when he felt lightheaded again like every time he had seen her smile like that, he finally decided to go to Madam Pomfrey and ask her if something was wrong with him.
*Flashback*
Harry laid on the bed Madam Pomfrey had told him to lay down. After casting some spells Harry still felt no difference, but Madam Pomfrey told him that he was in perfect health. "Just some hormones running rampant in your system, nothing special in your age. Well, that would be the medical term, so maybe ask Miss Yen what that means. Now, off you go, I have other patients to tend to."
Harry was ushered back out the hospital wing, being more confused than before. He saw how Callie had her body zoomed out so he could see her holding her stomach while laughing. Now even more confused, he was just glad that there were no classes today.
*Flashback end*
As they had a Defense Against the Dark Arts today, Harry could see firsthand how much the announcement this morning made Lupin popular. All those students who wanted to learn the Patronus lined up before his office to write up their name on the list for the special class next Saturday. It seemed that if the other students had a similar success as he had, the staff would be at ease at the next Quidditch match. Harry also put his name on the list, just to make sure that there would not be any rumors that he felt to be above them all.
The next weekend, the students who signed up to learn the charm gathered in the dueling club room. Harry looked around to see if his friends were already here, but except for Ron Hermione and Neville, Harry did not see the others yet. He knew that Lavender and Parvati also signed up for the class, as Padme had told her sister that it would be good to learn that spell. So the only third year Gryffindor's that were not here are Seamus, Dean and Ron, as they all thought that it was a waste of time.
In a way, Harry was somewhat relieved Ron was not here. Ron would have a hard time holding back his prejudice against Daphne and Tracey simply for being sorted into Slytherin. Harry had to wonder why Ron was the only Weasely who had this blind hatred of Slytherin, not even the twins were as intolerant of Daphne's presence and that is why Harry still respected them even more.
Neville soon found Hannah after he had arrived in the Dueling club room. He excused himself and walked over to her, smiling the whole way there. "Good morning, Hannah. I do hope you slept well. I think we will need the energy today if we want to cast the Patronus today." He saw his betrothed smiling up to him, she stepped closer to him and grabbed his hand.
Looking over to Harry, Hannah's smile only grew when she saw that Harry still was not the wiser on the feelings from the girl next to him.
Neville said quietly to Hannah not wanting others to hear his thoughts. "How long do you think it will take Harry to finally realize that the girls have a crush on him?" Neville turned back and looked at his friend's expression, as if Neville wanted to read it thoroughly.
Harry's face was still looking normal, but Neville could feel that his friend was beginning to understand that there were some feelings that he could not explain as rational as he used to. Somedays Neville had to wonder if Harry looked up to Mr Wulf to try to emulate his mannerisms sometimes. Yes, Harry can smile and laugh with his friends but other times he can be very serious and his tone is meant to be taken seriously. Harry had the same air of command as Chief. But seeing him now, Neville was glad that Harry was just a human being who was just thinking a bit more than others. He had Ron for the opposite to compare with after all.
A few minutes later Susan and Daphne arrived with Tracey just next to her friend, both of the Slytherin were glad that Malfoy and his goons did not sign up to try disrupting that class, Lupin greeted them surveyed the group of students In the room, Triss and McGonagall stood close by, trying to help when necessary.
After he closed the door, Lupin addressed the students. "Good morning, I am happy that you decided to take this extra class to learn the Patronus charm. Now, to start I will tell you how the charm works. First, I need you all to think about the happiest memory you have, as it is necessary for the spell to draw the power needed. When you think you have the memory, lift your wand and repeat the incantation: Expecto Patronum, and concentrate on this memory. If it is strong enough after the incantation, there should be a light on the end of the wand. If you need any help, you can ask me or the other professors. So, please begin and think. Oh, and a bit of advice about happiest memories, the best memories that produce a Patronus are ones where a strong feeling of love is felt in that memory." Lupin smiled wryly at seeing some blushing students. "It does not have to be romantic love, it can be familial love as well."
Harry looked around to see how far the others could go before he would cast his Patronus with the least amount of magical power as he could get away with , so it would look like that it was his first time casting the charm. Before he could think about it too much, he saw a bright light from where Hermione was standing. When he turned to look at her, he saw her smile and how happy she was bouncing after dispelling the charm.
"I did it, I did it!" Hermione was laughing with all the happiness her memory gave her.
Harry felt the light headedness again, he really had to find out what that meant. And as soon as he noticed how Daphne's and Susan's wands lit up, he turned towards them and the feeling he had before looking at Hermione only became stronger after seeing them smile too. Somehow, seeing them like that, he felt a power surge through him that almost told him that if he would cast the charm right now, his Patronus would become even stronger than it was the last time. Was that really the power of love, he wondered.
Callie watched Harry's hormone levels, as it was obvious that Harry finally noticed that something was changing. She also had prepared her speech if he would ask her if she would know what was going on with him. Callie sighed internally, 'Well, it took him long enough, but I'm not out of the woods yet, I think.'
Harry noticed Neville was struggling to come up with the charm, but he was on a good way according to Lupin at least. In the end, Hermione was able to produce a corporeal otter that was swimming in the air. Daphne smiled as she watched, to Harry's surprise, an eagle flying after the otter and chasing it. But Callie pointed out it was a golden eagle, a special kind of eagle and one of the greatest birds of prey in North America. Turning towards another bright light, Harry wasn't sure whether to be amused or not to see that Susan's patronus was a border collie. What surprised the group the most was Neville. They watched on as a large bear that, if Harry was not mistaken, was close to a grizzly burst out of his wand.
Weeks flew by, and before Harry could look, the next Hogsmeade visit was upon them. He was happy that he could leave the school for a while, as after some time the walls of the castle became monotonous. And with the Dementors still patrolling the school borders, it seemed that even some color was missing inside the castle. So, seeing Hogsmeade made everyone smile, as the Dementors kept away from here after the villagers had asked the handlers to keep the visit at night to a minimum in search of Black.
That was something Harry had investigated with Callie. According to the databases there really was never an official trial for his godfather, so he was never sentenced for the crime he was accused of. That was nothing new for Harry, as he had known the fact of the missing trial for a while, but thinking about Pettigrew being an Animagus, his thoughts wandered off if Sirius was also an Animagus. He had looked at the register, but even Pettigrew was not registered Animagus. It would not surprise Harry if Sirius also did not register himself to be one. Now the question was, where is Sirius right now. The possibility of him being in his dog form to hide was very high after all, so he could just sit around the corner and no one would know that it is indeed him..
Walking next to Ron and Neville, as the girls had asked them to be left alone until lunch, Harry looked up and down the street with his eyes moving over every possible hiding place with Callie's sensors helping him to keep cover his back so to speak.
Ron, not noticing that Harry was a bit on edge, walked in front of the small group towards Honeyduke's and wondered what they should buy today. "Or we could go to Zonko's. Maybe I'll find something to prank Fred and George for once."
Harry just nodded while listening with one ear.
Neville noticed that Harry was not fully here right now, as if he was distracted by something close by. He wondered if it had something to do with Black still being out there.
While the boys were doing their thing, the girls were looking at the items displayed in Spintwitches Sporting Needs. They all had decided that the best gift for Harry the upcoming Christmas was something that had to do with Quidditch. But looking at all the things around here, only Daphne had an inkling on what Harry could use in a future match. Daphne gave Susan and Hermione some pointers on what to buy, and soon the girls had all a gift for Harry.
Hermione was looking over the books on display about different strategies for the different positions on a team, and wondered if Oliver had one of each as he almost told everyone every evening before a match what would be the best way to play. Finding something that triggered her interest, she asked the shopkeeper if he could help her. "Can you tell me if this book is the newest edition? I want to give it to my friend, who is the seeker in the house team."
The shopkeeper came over and looked at the title and smiled. "Yes, young miss, it is the newest edition of `Techniques for a Seeker: Performed by Professionals'. But I would suggest getting a book with less difficulty to perform the techniques themselves. Yes, everyone can buy one and read it, but to use all those moves in this book, he has to be almost the best flier in the world, and please forgive me my judgment without knowing who you mean, but a student can not fly as good as a professional. Here, these are the advanced techniques for a seeker with the skill level suited for a student." The shopkeeper then gave Hermione a book with the title 'Advanced Broom flying: Seeker techniques' and smiled widely as Hermione thanked him and gave him the money for it at the register.
Susan was looking over the protective robes, wondering how it would benefit Harry. But looking over the offerings in this shop, she could not help to wonder if her Aunt could not find something even better that Harry could use every day for a similar price. She would ask her in a letter when they would be back in Hogwarts.
Daphne was also looking through the shop, but she found anything that would please Harry. She knew that he would not mind if she would give him just something for Christmas, but she wanted the present to be of use for him. Seeing that the shopkeeper was free again after Hermione had paid her present, she asked him what kinds of brooms he had to offer.
The shopkeeper nodded and showed her the prospect that he had on his table with the register. "Lets see here, I could offer you a Comet 360 or a Cleansweep, but I have an inkling that it is for the same boy as the girl before you mentioned. So for a seeker, there are only two kinds of brooms that would be good in that position, a Nimbus 2000, I do not suggest the 2001 as those have a steep learning curve to become used to the speed, or a Comet 260, as those are really reliable. What do you think?"
Daphne was thinking, but shook her head. "I don't think he'd want another 2000 as he lost his to the Whomping Willow." Daphne saw the shopkeeper's horrified look and hastened to add. "He wasn't on it at the time; the Demenetors decided to crash the game and they caused him to fall off his broom." Daphne shook her head amused. "Even if he already caught the snitch of course. Sorry, but I do not think that the brooms you suggested would be enough for his skills to shine. I did read about the Firebolt, care to tell me how much they cost?"
After some back and forth, Daphne thanked the shopkeeper and wished them a nice day as the three girls left the store.
Daphne, looking down the street while walking, taking in a deep breath. "I asked my father if he could ask the manufacturer of the Firebolts how much they would cost. After receiving the estimated price, I saw that I would just have enough with me to pay the reservation for the next 3 months before I had to pay it fully. So, I talked with the owner of the shop if he could take the reservation, but I was told by him that he already had one for Harry Potter and could not take another, until some issues with the resources were handled. I asked him how he would know that there was already a reservation, and he showed me the book that was linked with the different manufacturers and showed me his name. I wonder if Harry had ordered it as soon as his old broom was destroyed, as it was also written that he had ordered it through the owl post. Let's see when he gets it, shall we?"
The girls discussed that matter a bit further, when Hermione noticed a black dog following them. When she stopped to look at it, the dog sat down and looked at her with a curious look. Daphne and Susan now also stopped and looked at the dog just sitting there.
Hermione walked closer to the dog offering her hand so the dog could sniff it before petting it when she was in reach, causing the dog to wag its tail. "Who is a good boy, yes you are. Even if I like cats more, you are rather cute. I wonder how old you are. Is your owner around?" The question did pop up in her mind when she noticed that the dog looked a bit malnourished, but he tended to it seemed.
At that moment, the door to the building right next to them opened and Madam Rosmerta came out of it, holding a small bowl with meat on it. Looking at the three girls, she smiled and placed it on the ground, the sound making the dog whip around his head and then darted towards the bowl. "Hello there. I guess not that you are the owner of that dog. He has been wandering around here since the end of September, but no one in this village knows him. So, I keep feeding him, still wondering when his owner comes looking for him. But after all that time, I do ask myself if I just should adopt him myself."
Hearing this sentence, the dog stopped eating and looked at Madam Rosmerta, letting out a small whimper while looking at her. She smiled down at the dog and patted his head.
In another shop, Ron was groaning in annoyance that they were looking at books and writing supplies. "Really, we should have enough for the rest of this year back in school, why are we here again?"
Neville answered him, as they had discussed this earlier and everyone around them could hear his annoyed mood that Neville had to repeat himself. "We want to buy some presents, and as you know for sure, the best gift for Hermione would be a book she had not read before. Or if we do not find something like that, because, let's be honest, if the book is not here, it is possible that she had read it, some nice writing supplies would also be good. And Hannah likes her novels, so I am looking for something similar. Harry and I offered you that you could go ahead to the Three Broomsticks and wait for us there. And before you tell me to get Hannah some jewelry, she does not like that. So, either be quiet or go to the pub." Neville turned back around to the display of novels for sale, reading the summaries on the back. Harry had told him that most novels in this shop were from Muggle authors, as they had found out that many magical things like the stories that muggles thought were fantasy.
Ron, soon losing his temper, just huffed and shrugged his shoulders while looking for Harry, maybe he could convince him to go now and not later. But Ron did not find him after 5 minutes of searching, Ron just left the book shop and walked over to the Three Broomsticks. He would talk with Harry later, maybe Ron could convince him to take it easy for a while and play some chess with him when they get back to the common room.
Meanwhile, Harry was intrigued with a book he had found about the leylines they had heard once in the Ancient Runes class. But this book had much more information about them, so he bought one for Hermione and one for himself, so Callie could scan it for future references. His book he would send to Kear Morhen, so Catherine could read about it for references as Callie had told him that she was also interested in such things. After a small discussion with Neville about where Ron was, both teenagers left the bookshop and walked towards the next shop, since Harry also wanted to buy some jewelry for Daphne and Susan as Christmas presents. Neville smiled as they walked down the street to the accessory shop in Hogsmeade.
An hour later, Harry and Neville entered the Three Broomsticks, with their presents already being sent back to their respective homes thanks to a small detour to the post office and paying for a big owl for Neville. Harry had called Dobby and asked him if he could bring those presents back to Kear Morhen, because Harry knew that Hedwig would never forgive him if he had used another owl for that journey, but he still was curious about the post office and had accompanied Neville.
In the pub, Harry looked around and soon found his friends sitting on a big table with a big, black dog laying underneath it. Harry froze as he recognized the dog from the security footage from Halloween, when Sirius had tried to break into the Gryffindor common room.
Callie also saw the dog and reported to John and Cortana that Black was in the Three Broomsticks, but the order still stood that Harry should not show any signs of recognition, and his freezing up was almost too much to blow that cover.
Thankfully, Harry immediately began to move again, with a big smile showing as he looked at his friends.
Callie grinned in his glasses, as she sent the report away. "I must give you credit Harry, that was almost a formidable reaction from you to Black being here in his dog form. Please follow the order to remain calm, it seems that Black is not out to hurt you or your friends, or else he had enough time to do that." Internally Callie did have to wonder how long Black has been lying under the table or how long the girls have been around him.
Harry thanked Callie for the compliment as he sat down next to Daphne, while Hermione seemed to have taken out another book to read. Glancing at the title, Harry did let out his breath as it was not the same as he had bought her for Christmas. That would have been awkward.
Ron was talking with Susan, who sat next beside him, about Quidditch as he had found out that she also liked to watch other games than that inside the school. But he was not so happy with her choice of team to support. "The Chudley Cannons will be coming back to the big league, just you wait. I mean they had just won a game recently."
Susan chuckled, looking at Harry in the corner of her eye. "Well, Ron, I must agree that the Cannons had won their last game, but just because their opponent had not shown up in full strength. And to be honest, to win with 10 points difference after having 3 people more in the air is rather embarrassing." That shut Ron up, as Susan then turned towards the two other boys and asked them why they had taken so long.
Neville smiled, looking around for Hannah before telling them what kind of novel he had bought her. "She likes her romance novels, as I am sure Susan can testify. When she visited the Longbottom hall last summer, she was a bit disappointed that our library did not have as many books as that of her family. When she then began to tell me what kind of books they had, I wanted something similar for her next visit, so I brought that muggle novel the shop had. I hope she will like that." Neville began to squirm a bit, now getting nervous on the prospect that his betrothed would not like his present.
Susan calmed him down, but she could not suppress a giggle at the nervous bundle in front of her. Soon Hannah joined them, as she was also shopping with Megan Jones, another Hufflepuff in their year. As they were eating their lunch, they enjoyed the time they had before they had to return to the castle.
Before they knew it, Harry and his friends were on their way back to London on the Hogwarts Express, with the Weasley's once again opting to stay in the castle over the holiday break. Harry really asked himself if he should help them with money for a bit so Mr. and Mrs. Weasley could afford having the children over Christmas in their own home, but he knew that they would never accept it when they knew where it came from. He would ask Yen and Catherine if they could make an anonymous donation to them, he just needed to find a reason for it.
Hermione and Daphne were discussing their own holiday, as they had convinced their respective parents to travel together to the ski resort in Switzerland. Hermione was eager to see a magical home on the continent, as they had to have different styles and maybe were even more modern to the muggle standards. She had heard from Daphne that they even had a television in their holiday home.
Daphne explained for Harry's benefit as this was news to him as well as Neville, who was also a pureblood and never had seen a television. Hannah was laughing next to him while Susan watched Daphne with great interest. "Father had seen the TV when we visited a muggle restaurant for dinner and was fascinated by the technology. But back home, we need to keep up a certain image to keep the business running, so we only have a TV in our holiday home. But now that my father has sold the business to Wolf Incorporated, we may buy one for our home in England as soon as we have electricity there too. Oh, that reminds me Harry, how does Kear Morhen have electricity? I have never seen something that looks like a wire leading to the castle." She was not afraid of someone listening in to them, as all the teenagers in the compartment already knew where Harry lived.
Harry leaned back in his seat, having passed the perimeter from the Dementors and relaxing visibly for everyone to notice. "We have solar panels on the roof, so Kear Morhen is self-sufficient, and we have everything we need covered. If we could have flown over the castle, you would have seen them there. Maybe next time? I will see that we have some brooms to fly with."
Hermione shuddered, still not being comfortable flying on a broom. After the initial lesson in their first year, she had tried it a few more times, but never overcoming her fear to fly and only having a broom to hold on to. How Harry could do it so casually that it looked natural fascinated her from the beginning. She had no problems with planes, as they had enough space around her to feel safe, and compared to the travels done by plane, the numbers of incidents were almost insignificant.
As the day came to an end, the train arrived at its destination and the occupants began to get their bags to walk off the train. Harry and his friends waited for a bit before standing up from their seats, as they did not want to be in the thick of things. Hearing all the students leaving the train, Harry looked out the window to look at the platform and wondered who would take him back home today. He was surprised when he saw Keira standing next to the entrance, where the muggleborn students and their parents entered this enchanted space.
Grabbing his bag, Harry followed Daphne and Hermione out the compartment and left the train soon afterwards. Saying his goodbye when he noticed their parents, he walked over to Keira with a small smile. "Oh, what an honor for Keira Metz to come and get me. If you do not mind me asking, where is Yen?"
Keira's smile faltered just a bit, but she told him that he would see soon enough. Walking behind a pillar to hide the portal from curious glances, Harry waited for Keira to open their way home.
When they walked through the portal, the first thing Harry saw was a defeated looking Geralt sitting at the table outside the main hall and Lambert sitting next to him with a cup of coffee. As soon as Harry wanted to ask what was wrong, Dobby appeared in front of him and asked him to wait just a bit longer before entering the main hall.
Harry looked down at his friend with a questioning look, but it was soon answered when he heard Yen coming into the great hall with a wheezing breath and holding her big, pregnant stomach. "Geralt, I told you to bring me something to eat. I cannot ask Dobby every time I crave something. Oh, hello Harry." Looking down at her stomach, her eyes widened when she looked back at Harry, who had his mouth wide open in shock. "Erm, Surprise! You will get an honorary sibling very soon."
Harry, looking between Geralt and Yen back and forth, could only mutter one sentence that could be understood. "When did that happen?"