Chapter 24

Harry walked around with a pleased grin on his face the day after his late night encounter with Marlene. Things had become pretty heated between the two on top of the Astronomy Tower, and he would be lying to himself if he tried to say he wasn't pleased with how it had all happened. The only question he really had now was whether Marlene and himself were a couple now, or if that had just been a night of fun.

Harry was not usually the type to just snog random girls that weren't his significant other, but in his own defense he had not pursued the girl until she practically kicked down his metaphorical front door.

Harry had not come to Hogwarts seeking out a relationship, but for as long as he was not yet a target in the coming conflict, he saw no reason not to enjoy himself for the time being. It did not seem as if there was some huge connection between himself, and his beautiful Ravenclaw friend, but he'd enjoyed his evening with the young woman. He certainly wouldn't complain if they had a repeat either.

Putting thoughts of Marlene aside for now, Harry considered the event to be held later today. Hogwarts would be holding the first night of dueling club for the new school year. It was the talk of the hall as people discussed who they thought would be this year's top duelists, and Harry observed the whole thing with disinterest. At lunch he was sitting with his housemates, and Andromeda was discussing the club with Nate and Pandora, while Elaina was looking quite bored with it. Deciding an escape for both of them was an option Harry grinned at the girl, "Elaina, did you still want to talk about the wards for your room?"

The girl's blue and green eyes went to him with a brief look of confusion, and his wink seemed to indicate she should play along, "Oh yeah, that would be great. Can we go now?"

Harry was already rising to his feet when Andromeda seemed to realize they were leaving, "What's this about wards?"

Waving off the girl he shrugged, "I told Elaina I would walk her through some of the defenses I have in my room. I was going to teach her some new things so she could practice."

Andi rolled her eyes, muttering something about nerds, causing Pandora to giggle and Nate to chuckle as Elaina and Harry ignored them to depart the hall. As soon as they exited, the girl frowned, "What was that all about?"

"We start tonight." Harry said seriously as he continued walking back towards the dungeons.

Elaina paused for a moment with wide eyes, and then asked, "Seriously?"

"No better time to do it. With everyone at the dueling club tonight we should be undisturbed. If you are serious about wanting to learn more about dueling like me or my family, we should get started. There are tons of things I can give you that you can work on in your own time, but I will want to assess your progress every so often. If you are still serious about this?"

The girl straightened up instantly as they crossed into the dungeons, "Absolutely."

"Good then let-"

"Well, well, look what we have here boys." A voice interrupted Harry from behind.

A group of over half a dozen Slytherins were all gathered around what looked like an abandoned game of exploding snap. The voice that had called out belonged to a fifth year Harry instantly recognized as Barty Crouch Jr, along with his four previous attackers, Snape, and Regulus Black.

"Looks like Potter is out walking his pet Mudblood." Avery said with a grin.

Elaina looked furious at his words, and she immediately went for her wand, but Harry calmly grabbed her wrist to stop her from escalating the situation. She looked at him with fury in her eyes, but Harry kept his eyes on the seven boys, "Apologize."

This made all seven boys laugh, and Harry's eyes narrowed in on Snape. If this turned into a fight, Snape could be the most dangerous opponent in this group. He had never had an opportunity to see Crouch Jr fight, but considering who his father was, Harry knew the teenager was likely no slouch, "I don't know why you think what I said was funny. You insulted my friend after I had previously warned you against using that phrase around me. You are as stupid as you are ugly, Avery."

Some of the Slytherins snickered at his words, and Avery turned red with embarrassed rage going for his wand, "Say that again, Potter, I dare you."

In that time Harry had drawn his own wand, but still held on to Elaina's to prevent her from starting the fight, "Amazing how brave you all get when there are seven of you. I assure you though, that if it comes to blows, Miss Essex and I would have all of you in Saint Mungo's by the end of the day."

Snape took a smirk at his words, and drew his wand, while the others followed suit. Elaina began pulling at her wrist to prepare to fight, but Harry held fast. Yaxley came forward now to be nearly nose to nose with Harry as he said, "You don't know who you are messing with, Potter. We won't be forgetting you embarrassing us in our common room. We have powerful friends outside these walls. Friends with power you wouldn't believe."

"I am as scared of them as I am as scared of you, Yaxley. That is to say I'm not." Harry said gently, pulling Elaina behind him, and releasing her wrist so she was actually able to get to her wand, "Do you really want a repeat? Do you really want to go down this path, Yaxley? Your powerful friends aren't here right now, and no one is going to come to your aid by the time I'm done decorating the hall with you and your friends here. It won't end there either. My family would have a blood feud declared against yours by the end of the day, even if by some miracle you do put me down here. The Potters would wipe any of your families off the face of the Earth. Are you sure that is the route you want to take?"

Yaxley flinched at the words, and Harry shook his head, "You all want to play the big bad pureblood cards, but you don't have what it takes to fight someone face to face. If you do, I invite you to take your best shot. Right now."

Harry held his arms out with his wand lazily in his right hand. The tension in the hallway was palpable, and just as Harry thought Avery was going to start throwing curses a new voice entered the hallway, "Everything alright here?"

Professor Slughorn came walking down the hallway as fast as his portly legs would carry him, and Harry smirked in the direction of his adversaries, "Yeah, Yaxley, is everything alright?"

The blond was still staring at Harry's face, and it was clear the smirk was really grating on his nerves as he gritted his teeth saying, "No problems here, professor. We were just heading back to the common room."

The boys mumbled as Professor Slughorn watched each of them cautiously, and before they could leave Harry called out, "Avery, you forgot your apology to Miss Essex."

The boy whipped his head back in Harry's direction with fury still on his countenance. Avery's scraggly facial hair made him look older than he was, and the opponent Harry had in his mind was much more dangerous than the one that he was in front of. Avery in his time had risen to be in Voldemort's inner circle, and had likely received training from the Dark Lord himself, this teenager was nothing in the face of what he would become. The two held each other's gaze before Avery shook his head, "I didn't forget anything. I won't apologize to the likes of either of you."

"What's this?" Slughorn demanded.

"Avery here suggested that I was walking my pet mudblood when Miss Essex and I were passing through. He seemed to think such a disgusting term was funny." Harry said calmly.

Slughorn gasped, "Thomas! What would your father think if he heard you speaking that way? Do you deny such an accusation?"

Before the teen could speak Harry said, "This was after I warned Mister Avery that there would be consequences if he used such a term in my presence again. Professor, I am afraid I have to trust you to handle this, or we will end up crossing wands over the matter."

"It shall not come to that, my boy." Slughorn assured him, "Mister Avery. Your apology."

The other Slytherin boys all looked annoyed, and Avery looked like he might burst a blood vessel in his head with how red he was, "I apologize."

The words seemed to physically pain him, and Harry smirked at the boy while Elaina scoffed. Slughorn merely shook his head, "I would take points from you, Mister Avery if it would not affect the victim of your language. You will have detention with me tomorrow evening, and I will be writing to your father about this."

Avery didn't waste another moment before he stormed off, and before they could all leave Harry called out, "Mister Black?"

Regulus twitched at his name as he turned back to look at Harry who was still grinning, "I would like to try out for the Slytherin Quidditch team. I assure you I am as good as my cousin on a broom, and I think I will be a great asset to your team in beating Gryffindor this year."

Slughorn clapped his hands, "Now that I would love to see. Minerva has been hogging the Quidditch Cup in her office for the last five years. I would like to see it returned to Slytherin."

Regulus looked immensely irritated by his professor's excitement, and through gritted teeth he said, "Tryouts will be this weekend at noon. We will see if you are any good, Potter. Don't be late."

Nodding to the boy, Harry offered a bow of his head to Slughorn before putting an arm through Elaina's, and guided her in the opposite direction. Harry heard the head of Slytherin House muttering something about disrespectful students, and headed off in the direction of his classroom. When Harry rounded the corner Elaina removed her arm from his, and shook her head, "That was intense. Do you really think we could have taken all seven of them?"

"Snape was my main concern." Harry said honestly, "The other six I have no doubt we could've taken down.

"Why didn't you let me draw my wand right away?" She asked with a tint of anger in her voice.

"Had you pulled your wand too fast it would've turned into a fight for sure." Harry explained, "You need to be very careful though. They will be looking for a way to get at you."

"They've always been trying to get at me." Elaina said with a frown.

"It's not the same anymore." Harry said with a shake of his head, "They are becoming bolder by this pureblood movement happening outside the castle. Did you hear what Yaxley said about his friends on the outside? What do you want to bet he was referring to the Death Eaters?"

The young woman gasped as her thoughts whirled. Harry could see the realization in her eyes settling in, and grimly he nodded, "I know. I suspected them of being sympathizers obviously, but that pretty much confirms it. If they aren't involved they will be as soon as we graduate or sooner. If they wanted a way to prove themselves, taking you out would be a good way to do it."

Harry expected to see a flash of fear go through the girl, but instead her eyes steeled over, "It's a good thing I will have you teaching me then."

Nodding in acceptance to her words he responded, "It is, but I am afraid I have made the target on your back even bigger…I need you to learn the Patronus charm."

The girl's eyes widened in surprise, "I had heard rumors that you could cast it."

"Expecto Patronum." Harry casted with a simple flick of his wrist.

The ethereal stag appeared immediately offering a bow to Harry as the creation that resembled James' animagus form. Elaina was clearly awed by his magic, and went to touch the creature, "A stag?"

"Another secret I'm afraid." Harry said with a grin.

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised." She said quietly as her hand passed through the creature.

With nothing for it to do, Harry released the spell, "Repelling dementors is not the only use for this charm. It can also carry messages. Something I will be attempting to teach you to do."

"Tonight then." The girl said looking more determined than before.

"Tonight." Harry agreed, "We will have to sneak out onto the grounds, and ward an area in the Dark Forest."

Frowning, the girl looked over at him, "Why can't we use a classroom?"

"What I plan to teach you is suited for a battlefield not a classroom. What I plan to teach you is the type of magic that you will use in a life or death situation." Harry explained, "Not a schoolyard brawl. I already have faith in your ability to win those. This is for the day we may have to fight under that symbol in the sky."

Straightening up immediately she offered him a nod, "I understand…and thanks Harry."

"Don't thank me yet. You may not like me much after we are through with this evening." He answered with a grim look upon his countenance.

.o.

Slipping onto the grounds had been elementary. There were so few people walking the halls, even most of the Professors were at the Dueling Club for the evening. Harry and Elaina had used disillusionment charms to escape, but it proved to be unnecessary. When they crossed into the Dark Forest, Harry could tell that his friend was nervous. He couldn't help, but notice how similar the start of his friendship with Elaina was to how he became friends with Hermione. A necessity in a way. Already she was proving to be someone he trusted, but he knew he had to be careful. These were dark times, and trusting the wrong person could be a fatal mistake.

Glancing at the nervous girl, he knew that she would never be a Death Eater. The odds they would even take her were astronomically low. Voldemort was not like his followers though. Harry had seen it throughout the war. The man did not truly believe in the pureblood agenda, but he did believe in power. Something Elaina had in spades. Harry grimaced as he imagined the kind of offer the Dark Lord could make to someone like Elaina Essex. Power, stability, safety, and a place in the society that Voldemort would build if Harry was unsuccessful in defeating the monster.

"What's wrong?" Elaina asked as they went deeper into the forest.

"Unpleasant thought. Nothing to worry about." Harry answered easily, but to put her mind at ease he offered her an easy grin, "There is nothing in this forest we couldn't beat together. I wouldn't really care to fight the entire Acromantula horde, but they are far in the opposite direction of where we are heading now. I would say it is rather unlikely we would encounter something we wouldn't know how to handle. Besides, we are almost far enough to set up our little camp."

Elaina said nothing further, but by the way her eyes were darting around the forest, Harry could tell she did not believe in his confidence. Harry stopped them after another minute, and began surveying the area. The ground was mostly flat, and there was sufficient space between the trees that they could fight in without leveling too much of the surroundings to the ground. Harry figured Hagrid would notice if a section of the forest was destroyed on his next walkabout.

"Do you know how to cast protection charms around us? The basic wards to allow us to remain unseen?" Harry asked, curious about the girl's knowledge.

Her eyes drifted around the area as if she were calculating a math problem before sighing, "I admit I have never been taught to cast wards over an area like this. I learned some very basic ones to protect my room, a small space, but never over an outdoor area, like this."

Nodding Harry drew his own wand, "This is a good lesson to start with then. Something simple. What wards do you have on your room?"

A cautious expression flickered across her face, and Harry chuckled, "I hardly agreed to come out into the Dark Forest, at night, with you just so I could learn what wards you have protecting your room. Besides you are keyed into my wards now. If anyone should be worried, it's me."

Reluctantly she seemed to agree with him, and murmured, "Fianto Duri, and Salvio Hexia."

Raising his eyebrows at the girl he waited for her to go on, and when she didn't continue he frowned, "I don't mean to sound condescending, but that's it? No one has ever broken into your room?"

"Two sixth years tried on our first night here." She said with a dangerous gleam in her eyes, "The wards held, and alerted me of what was happening. Needless to say, I stepped out, and taught them to never try and invade my room again."

Nodding in understanding, Harry considered her words. She didn't need to repel the enemy at school. She just needed a chance to get to her wand, and fight them. Harry had little doubt she could decimate any that stood against her if she had a few moments to prepare, and with what she had it would be enough, but not by much, "Let's start with Fianto Duri. You are no longer protecting a room, or a door. Now you must think of it as a dome. In this case a large dome. You will need to point your wand at the sky, and slowly slash it towards the ground. I will cast it tonight, but next time I will want you to do it."

"I can do it." She said confidently as she readied her wand pointing it towards the sky, "Fianto Duri."

To Harry's surprise a small golden light came out of her wand, went about fifteen feet in the air, and slowly began descending the perimeter of the area they had discovered. Walking over to the edge of wards to inspect them, Harry slowly twirled his wand, and once again was surprised to learn they were fully operational. Turning curiously back to his Muggleborn friend he couldn't stop the frown that formed over his face. Dorea seemed so certain that it was nearly impossible for a Muggleborn to have this kind of power. For someone who had never cast wards in an open area this was incredible. It was not at the level Harry himself, or his parents could cast, but it was impressive, especially for a first attempt. It's unnatural, his mother had told him.

"Did I do it wrong?" Elaina asked with furrowed brows.

Looking at the girl he shook his head, and was surprised to see her eyes were slightly glowing. It was a beautiful sight, and Harry couldn't stop the comparison that formed in his eyes to Marlene, but shook his head of the thought before it could fully form, "It's perfect."

This made the girl smile widely, and eagerly asked, "What else?"

"Repello Inimicum." Harry said offering the girl an encouraging smile in return, "This one is dangerous in combination with other wards. On its own, or with Fianto Duri, it merely repels and conceals curses. This will prevent anyone in the castle from seeing the destruction we are about to cause. I once saw this ward combined with Protego Diabolica, and Maxima, and its effects were…severe."

"How severe?" She inquired carefully.

"It incinerated several people at once that were attempting to break through." Harry said recalling the moment when the snatchers tried to charge through the wards during the defense of Hogwarts.

Gasping the girl shook her head, "Noted. I don't suppose you will share the story with me?"

"Not a chance." He answered cheekily, "Now the key to this ward is focusing on the thought of remaining hidden. This is also a very precise wand movement. Hold your wand at shoulder level and draw a line to your hip, and then do the same for the opposite side creating an x. This will need to be cast four separate times to cover the whole area."

The young woman was clearly excited to be learning such advanced magic, and Harry watched as she attempted to do exactly as he said, but this time nothing happened, except the original ward flaring warningly. Harry frowned at the result, "That wasn't quite right. Let me cast it the first time, and maybe feeling the result will show you the way. Come closer to me."

Elaina tentatively stepped within arms range of him, and Harry continued his instruction, "Close your eyes, and try to feel what I am about to cast."

Nodding, she did as she was told, and Harry took a deep breath, as he tried to push some power into his spell, "Repello Inimicum."

The air shimmered around the barriers of their area, and Harry could tell his spell casting was very effective on top of Elaina's. When Elaina opened her eyes she looked at him with interest, "I did feel that. It felt…safe, warm even."

"That was the magic of the first ward, your magic, accepting my own, and making it stronger." Harry explained, "Now close your eyes, and let's try again. Really feel the protection you want us to have. Think about fusing the two wards together. Think about blocking the world out from what we are going to do down here. We don't want to be discovered in the Dark Forest this late in the evening. People would ask questions we don't want to answer. Protect us."

"Repello Inimicum!" She spoke with confidence in her voice as she finished her X.

This time Harry felt the magic respond to her call. The ward reinforced this time, and it was very effective. Her smile indicated to him that she knew of her success. His curiosity took the better of him when he started speaking, "Your instinctual magic is quite amazing. I think it would be safe to add this ward to your own defenses on your room. Have you always been this good at picking up new magic?"

"Yes, actually." She admitted, "Anything that required a wand I was always good at. I am not very good at Herbology, History of Magic, Potions, Astronomy, or Arithmancy either. Runes I was always good at though. I have a hand for art, so drawing the runes was never an issue, and they have always fascinated me, so I studied them extensively. I was always afraid to try and cast wards though without proper supervision."

Smiling, Harry responded with, "I am honored you think I am proper supervision."

"Don't flatter yourself too much, Potter." She commented with a soft smile, "You have proven sufficient in the magical arts so far. Don't get a big head."

She was a lot like him in some ways. Had it not been for Snape's textbook he would be as bad at potions as he had always been. The wand subjects had always been his strengths as well. All the brilliant Muggleborn students he knew growing up were stunning in their intellect. Elaina, while no slouch academically, seemed to like a hands-on approach.

Deciding it was time to move on he instructed her to cast the spell one more time, while he would do the same to complete their defenses. In a matter of moments the two were face to face, and Harry watched as she took off her outer robes, placing them on a nearby stump. It was chilly in the Scottish Highlands in September, but she seemed unbothered, and completely prepared to fight.

Her will was quite impressive. Her wand was clenched tightly in her hand held at her side, her white shirt had the sleeves rolled up, and her green tie was still straight. Her eyes surveyed him as if she was already looking for weak points, and he gave her a stern look, "My parents have had me on a training regimen since last year. In that time I have worked much more than just my magic, but my body as well. Cardio, strength, speed, and endurance, are all fundamentals to becoming a better fighter. These are things I cannot teach you. Do you understand?"

With a nod of her head she continued to watch him carefully as he began pacing, "This is no longer about winning a duel. A duel is honorable. What we face out there is anything but. You saw what Avery tried to do to me that night. You saw how they ganged up on us seven against two. You've seen their cowardice."

Harry watched as the girl took a deep breath in understanding, and Harry nodded doing the same. This time he spoke softer, "We can't fight fair against an enemy that will not give us the same courtesy. What I may teach you may seem cruel, but in a situation where your life depends on it, you will be glad to have trained this way. Do you understand?"

"I do." She answered so quietly he barely heard her.

"Then let us begin."

With a whip of his wand he initiated the duel with a knockback jinx. Just as Professor Black had done to him. Elaina proved to have the nerve however as she easily batted the spell off to the side, and returned her own stunner with impressive speed. Harry however knew this was going to be a different scenario. Out here in the open he could duel like Charlus had trained him to.

In a matter of moments the duel shifted as Harry bent the world to his will. Elaina's eyes widened at what she was witnessing as he began uprooting stems from the ground, and turned brush along with branches into humanoid like figures that were advancing on her in a hurry. With a blast of fire she attempted to incinerate his creations, but just as quickly he was conjuring others to absorb any spell she attempted to hit him with. She was on the ropes in seconds, and was disarmed with a look of awe etched onto her face. Catching her wand he twirled it in his fingers. This was the first time he had held it, and studied the silver wand. The wand had a curve at the end of it, and was pointed at the end almost like a knife.

Harry was surprised to feel the magic in the wand reacting positively to him instead of showing hostility. He had only felt one other wand do that, and it was the wand of Draco Malfoy. The wand had changed its allegiance that night, and Harry could not imagine he had stolen the allegiance from Elaina just like that. Regardless, he felt as if he could perform a normal level of his magic with this wand, but instead he walked it over to her.

"You panicked." He said quietly, still inspecting the wand before handing it back to her.

If there was any sign the wand had changed she didn't show it. In fact she still just watched him with a bit of trepidation now, "When you said we would've beaten those seven Slytherin's earlier I wasn't sure I believed your confidence was justified. I thought I had seen, at least close to your best, that night in the dungeons, but this was…this was humbling."

Taking the compliment for what it was, Harry sighed, "It is not enough. My father still wipes the floor with me. My mother and I fight much better duels, but she is still the better fighter. Her speed is amazing for her age, but it's her fluidity that makes her dangerous. My Uncle, Lord Black, is devastating with a wand as well. His curses are terrifying, and you just know if you are hit by one it will be deeply unpleasant."

"You're the most powerful student at Hogwarts." Elaina said, surprised that he was being modest, "You have to be."

"The students of Hogwarts are not my enemy, Elaina. They are children. Despite how stupid some of them are." Harry explained carefully.

"What about Avery?" She asked with curiosity in her eyes, "He could've killed you."

"Avery, Yaxley, Mulciber, and Lestrange, are on their final leg with me." Harry answered with certainty, "Their next strike against me will be their last."

"You would kill them?" She asked with wide eyes.

"It is the same they would do to me." Harry replied, "I would not want to take their lives, but how many times should I spare them before it becomes a mistake that could cost me my life? Or cost me a friend?"

"I understand." Elaina said carefully.

"Good." Harry said evenly, "Because the line can become blurred. Especially in a moment of righteous anger. We must be better than who we plan to fight. Now let's go again."

The two dueled over and over again. Each time Harry offered her little suggestions. Be more aggressive. Disable the conjurations instead of destroying them. Speed over power. Dodge instead of shield. Play to your strengths. Transfigure like your life depends on it. Each piece of advice seemed to push the girl, and at the end of their training she took a seat, exhausted.

"You were great. That's some willpower." Harry complimented.

"I'm not sure I can walk back to the castle on my own." She joked as Harry helped her to her feet.

"You will make it." Harry chuckled.

"When can we do this again?" Elaina asked as Harry began dismantling the wards with ease.

"Maybe the next dueling club. I am supposed to be tutoring James as well, but thankfully his training can be done in a classroom. He isn't ready for what you are." Harry said with a small smile.

"So, I am good?" She teased softly.

"You are definitely talented." Harry admitted, "But give me a few more sessions before I commit to my answer."

This made the girl huff in indignation as she attempted to shove him, but Harry swiftly jumped out of the way, causing him to laugh as she whined from being sore. Making their way back to the castle was all too easy, and as they entered the castle they could hear the dueling club coming to an end, and Elaina shook her head, "I can see now why you didn't want to participate."

"It would only reveal my strengths to potential enemies." Harry agreed.

Arriving back at the Slytherin common room, Elaina offered Harry a look of gratitude, "I really can't thank you enough for teaching me all this."

Offering a nod of his head Harry just returned her look with a small smile. As he was about to return to his dormitory Elaina called out, "We aren't even anymore. You have gone above and beyond what was fair in return. Is there anything I can do for you?"

Harry raised his eyebrows as he turned to face the girl, and she immediately turned red, "That's not what I meant."

A grin crossed his features, "I know. Just train hard. Every bit of work we do is beneficial to both of us."

In acceptance the girl merely shook her head, "You confuse me more every day, Harry."

With no other words to be said between the two she headed off in the direction of her dormitory. Harry sighed as he turned back to his own room. He was accomplishing what he set out to do when joining this timeline. He was preparing this generation of fighters for what was to come. Elaina was a willing participant as well. She wanted this. She wanted the ability to protect herself. If that was true then why did guilt gnaw at his insides with how hard he had pushed her?

Frowning for a moment, Harry shook his head as he snuffed the lights in his room. Elaina had seemed thrilled by their training. Perhaps no one had ever pushed her before like he had tonight. He knew he would have to be mindful when he trained with James. Something told him his cousin was not going to be ready for what he would throw at him, but he would learn to be.

(A/N) A lot of fun interactions between Harry and Elaina. The training has begun. If you have not figured it out yet, there is a lot to unpack about Elaina's character. If you want the truth you can follow me on pat(reon) today for 1$ OrionB15, and learn all about her. If you want a big glimpse into the future you can read 10 free chapters ahead by following my page on Discord The Hunters Lounge. If not, I will see you all in two weeks! Cheers everyone, and for my American friends, happy Thanksgiving.

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