"Well Potter, you really do have a knack for falling into shit. I won't sugarcoat it; I think your name was put in the cup hoping that you'd be killed, and I intend to prevent that. Since you were chosen to compete on behalf of this 'Ambrosia Academy' that may not even exist, the other professors and I have decided that you will be excused from your regularly scheduled classes. Instead you'll receive specific tutoring from myself, Minerva, Filius, Severus, and Albus." Moody said as he paced in front of his desk. "Now I told you that I'd be tutoring the three of you, and I aim to keep my word. Granger and Longbottom, you'll both still have your regular schedule so Harry's time with me will coincide with your free periods. While you attend your classes, he'll be in his private lessons. We can't tell you what the tasks will be, but we can provide you generalized training that will help not only in the tournament but in the coming war as well."
All three of them nodded their understanding before the desk they were sitting at flipped into them and knocked them across the room. "Constant Vigilance! Always expect the unexpected!"
Before they even had a chance to recover from the desk, all three were scrambling up to avoid spells being fired rapidly at them from Moody's wand. One of the spells caught Neville and he slumped to the ground unconscious. Harry moved towards him but was cut off by a stream of flames that forced both himself and Hermione to the other side of the room before she was finally able to get a shield up and stop them. As soon as the shield was up Moody stopped the fire and sent a reductor at the shield. It cracked and gave out under the stress but it gave them a moment's relief as Harry fired several stunners back at Moody and began to move towards Neville once again. Moody batted a few away before reflecting one back at Harry who wasn't expecting the tactic. He was hit in the chest and slumped over similar to Neville.
Left alone now, Hermione created another shield before it too was blown away. She fired a stunner as she dove away but the movement caused her aim to be far off and Moody didn't even flinch. He fired another volley at her as she dove behind the desk they once sat at. She heard the spells absorbed by the heavy wood and quickly tried to think of a way to get back to Harry. She knew that she couldn't do this alone and Moody wasn't letting up to allow a chance to get back to her comrades. She rolled to one side and peeked her head out to be sure Moody hadn't moved only to quickly jerk it back behind the desk. She narrowly avoided taking the red jet of light to the face. After that she gave another seconds thought before she held her wand up. "I concede."
"You can't just concede to death eaters Granger, whaddya think they'll do with a muggleborn witch if you get captured?" Moody yelled out as he shot her in the chest with a stunner.
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When the three of them awoke they found themselves unable to move, hands bound and wands missing, and they were seated in what appeared to be a jail cell. Harry could make out Moody seated on his own desk across the room. "This is what to expect if you're captured by the death eaters and you're one of the 'lucky ones' that make it through the night. You're bound and trapped like animals, wands gone, unable to think of anything but the pain of a Cruciatus. How do you get out of here?"
Harry thought for a moment but couldn't think of anything and judging by the silence neither could Hermione or Neville.
"Well?" Moody barked after a moment of silence.
"I don't know sir." Harry replied softly.
"Exactly! You're fucked Potter! The best bet is to not get captured in the first place. The way they treat prisoners you'd be begging for death long ago. Words can't begin to describe the feeling of a Cruciatus curse. It hurts to the very core of your being, it hurts your brain, it hurts everything. You can barely think, barely speak, and you'll be shaking so badly that you'd be lucky to get off a first-year charm even if you had a wand."
XXX XXXXX XXXXXXX
After being patched up by Moody, the trio made their way to bed gingerly. Even after being healed they were wracked with aches all over. Harry dreaded the coming months but realized it was a necessary evil; even if one ignored the looming war he had been forced into a tournament which the ministry had decided was too dangerous for someone his age meaning he had at least two years' worth of catching up to do. Tired as he was, he needed to get in bed; he had his first private transfiguration lesson with McGonagall in the morning, and Potions with Snape that evening. He would have a free period the following morning followed by Charms and Dumbledore back to back, then a day off and repeat.
XXX XXXXX XXXXXXX
Harry arrived at the Transfiguration classroom just as the seventh-year students made their way out. Once the room was clear he made his way inside and greeted Professor McGonagall.
"Good morning Mr. Potter." She said as she waved her wand to clean up the remains from her previous lesson. "My session with you this morning will be easy; I simply wish to talk about each of our expectations for these meetings."
With Harry's nod of understanding she continued. "I know that we have a rather limited amount of time to get you prepared for the tournament, therefore I shall be skipping over some things rather quickly. It is my hope you will apply yourself and take this seriously; it is not every day someone is afforded the opportunity to forego their schedule in favor of private tutoring. I know this is meant to prepare you for the competition amongst, err, other things." She paused there for a moment. Harry was aware that she was implying Voldemort without coming out and saying it.
"But," She continued. "It is also an opportunity to further your education beyond the normal scope of Hogwarts. Much of what I, and presumably the other professors as well, will cover in the coming weeks will be beyond O.W.L. level, up to and including N.E.W.T. level material. If you do well enough in this, you may be able to sit your OWLs this summer and your NEWTs after fifth year, leaving you two years to achieve one or more masteries if you so desire."
Harry thought about the implications for a moment. It was all dependent, of course, on him surviving first the tournament and then the constant threat of Voldemort. If he was honest with himself his current goals included simply surviving past his seventh year; he hadn't given much thought to his NEWTs and beyond.
McGonagall started speaking again, bringing him from his thoughts. "Have you given any thought to your plans for after Hogwarts?"
Harry thought on it for a moment. He had just been thinking along those lines, not that she could know that. He didn't think telling her that he planned on dying would sit well with her. "Honestly I haven't put a lot of thought in it. I suppose I could be an Auror like my father and Sirius, though actually now that I think about it, I may be sick of fighting bad guys by then."
"They both made splendid aurors, but you may be right; they didn't grow up fighting dark lords yearly. Don't fret on it too much for now, you still have plenty of time to figure it out. Personally, I didn't realize my desire to be a professor until after I had been gone away from the school a while."
"What did you want to do while you were in school, Professor?" Harry asked her with honest curiosity. He couldn't imagine her as anything else after knowing her for four years now.
"I had a few different paths in mind, actually. I considered being a healer, or possibly working on experimental magics. I actually worked in the Department of Mysteries for a while which is where I discovered my love for education. I obtained my mastery in transfiguration and now here I am." She answered with a fond look etched on her face.
Harry thought it was neat, getting a rare look into the life of one of his teachers before they became one of his teachers. He sort of hoped he would get to know them all better like this during his private sessions.
The pair continued talking about his possibilities for another moment before she finally moved on to the immediate future. "Anyhow, my goal for our lessons in the near future is to prepare you for a more practical application of transfiguration. Much of the theory work I will leave for you to learn in your free time so that we may work on scenarios that you may encounter, and the solutions afforded by transfiguration."
She paused for a moment and picked up a rock from her desk. "Many people think of transfiguration only as a tool to help with otherwise mundane tasks," As she said this she tapped her wand to the rock and it morphed into a quill. "This is basically all we have covered so far and even to the NEWT level it remains the primary focus."
Harry couldn't see where she was going with this. They had learned how to transfigure rocks and various other things into a quill in his second year.
"I know that Professor Moody has covered the unforgivables, correct?" she said with a look his way.
"He has started on them, but we haven't covered them in detail yet." Harry replied, still confused.
"Can you tell me which shield charm is capable of blocking the killing curse then?"
"The unforgivable curses cannot be blocked, Professor."
"Not entirely correct, Potter. They cannot be blocked by any known charm; they can, however, be stopped by contacting solid objects such as stone or wood." As she said this Harry finally understood where she was going with the conversation. She obviously noticed his expression change because she smiled herself.
"You now see where this is headed then?"
"Yes ma'am. Instead of casting a shield charm one could transfigure something into a shield such as a block of wood to take the spell instead."
"Correct Mr. Potter, ten points to Gryff- nevermind that you aren't actually a Gryffindor at the moment I suppose. Erm, anyways, that is correct. As you learn more, you can use better methods as well." She then waved her wand at a small jar of sand on one of her shelves. Harry watched in amazement as a whole flock of birds flew out of the jar and began to circle the room.
"Wow, Professor, I have never seen anything like that before." He said with a smile as he watched the birds for a moment before they made their way back to the jar, reverting to sand as they fell in.
"What you just witnessed is a rather difficult example. As you know, the more difference in the objects before and after, the harder the spell will be. As sand is nonliving and a simple crystalline form, turning them into a living breathing animal is rather difficult. It is actually easier for something like that to conjure the birds, though the conjured variety are much less resilient than the transfigured animals and more taxing because they are made only from magic rather than having a base from a solid object."
"Would the conjured birds be enough to stop a killing curse though, if for instance there isn't anything suitable to transfigure?" Harry asked her as he processed the information. What she had just told him could prove to be infinitely useful if he could apply it. His mind went back for a moment to the flash of green light that had costed him his best friend and he thought that maybe if he had known this level of transfiguration then he may have been able to save him. He quickly pushed the thought out of his head before he got drawn into a depression again.
"That is subjective, Mr. Potter. The strength of the spells along with the intent in the case of most dark magic plays a large part in that. For instance, a first year casting a curse at me would require very little effort on my part, but he-who-must-not-be-named casting the same curse would require all the strength I could put into it to stop."
Harry nodded his understand and was about to ask her another question when the bell rang signaling that this period was over and that she would need to begin preparing for her next class.
"Thank you for today, Professor. I'm actually looking forward to our next lesson." He said as he made his way out into the corridor.
XXX XXXXX XXXXXXX
Lunch and the free period after had went without incident for Harry. He ate with his friends as normal before parting ways as they went to their next class and he made his way to the library. He picked up a couple of books on transfiguration, charms, and potions from the NEWT level selection. He then made his way back to the common room where he looked through the books until time for potions.
He really dreaded the coming hours; he had never got along with Snape and had no idea why the greasy bastard hated him so much. A small part of him hoped that he could ease the tension with these private lessons. That small part was killed almost instantly as he walked into Snape's classroom.
"Sit." Snape said without looking up from his desk. Harry did as instructed without replying.
He sat there for what seemed like forever in the silence but in reality was only about twenty minutes before Snape finally spoke again.
"Don't believe for a single second, Potter," He spat the name like it had a bad taste. "that I am doing this of my own accord. I am firmly against giving you any more special treatment than you already get around here, however I have been persuaded to continue teaching you." He paused there for a moment and looked like he was about to continue before Harry's temper burst to the surface.
"I don't know what I've ever done to you for you to hate me so damn much but we either need to settle it right now or go our separate ways!" Harry nearly screamed as he jumped up and slammed his palms onto the table. "All this hostility is no good for either of us and I won't learn a fucking thing if you refuse to treat me as any more than filth on the bottom of your shoe and I won't waste my time doing it anymore!"
Severus looked like he had been slapped in the face for the briefest of moments before he too jumped up, knocking his chair over and knocking several things off his desk. "I'll tell you the problem you insolent little shit! You strut about this castle acting every day as if the rules do not apply to you; as if you are better than everyone else. You act so much like your Merlin damned father it makes me want to vomit. You are an entitled, spoiled, miserable brat! Since the day you walked into this castle you have disregarded every rule and done as you please and Albus thinks you are Merlin's gift to the world for it."
"Don't you speak ill of my father you greasy son of a bitch! He was a great man!"
"Your father was a fucking swine! He strutted about the school with his band of misfits acting little more than thugs! You walk around this place like the world is made up of sunshine and daisies without a care in the world, while because of that man and his friends every single day of my school years was absolute hell. They pushed me until I broke and ultimately costed me the love of my life and the only true friend I ever had! They forced me right into the Dark Lord's open arms and have fucked up my life even to this very day!"
Harry was as mad as he thought he had ever been but what Snape had just said struck a chord within him. He remembered back to his occlumency training, and though he hadn't completely got it down yet, he was able to force himself to calm down.
"I'm sorry, Professor, that my father may have been awful to you."
Snape looked shocked. He had lost his temper for the first time in he couldn't remember when, and while he expected that kind of behavior from the brats he had to deal with daily, he was better than that. He couldn't believe he had been drawn into a yelling match with a fourteen-year-old and then the boy actually apologized to him. He wasn't even sure how to reply at the moment. They simply stared at each other for a moment while they both calmed down.
Harry was the first to speak again. "I had heard from Sirius that they like to play pranks while they were in school but I never realized they were so bad. I thought it was harmless fun."
"For most, maybe it was just 'harmless fun' but they were not so with me. Lilly Evans was the only friend I ever had and I fucked up and drove her away with one simple word simply because she was friends with your father." Snape had sat back down and subconsciously pulled a bottle of brandy from his desk. He poured a glass full and took a large draw from it before refilling it and with a second thought gave a glance to Harry who simply nodded. Snape poured him a glass as well before putting the bottle away.
"What happened, sir, if you don't mind me asking?"
Snape was very tempted to tell the boy off again, but he was the adult here and the boy had already embarrassed him once tonight. He was right in saying that this 'rivalry' wasn't good for either of them. "I grew up not far from your mother. We met when we were nine and became instant friends. I was devastated knowing that I was a wizard and that I would be forced to part ways with her when I started Hogwarts. Imagine how ecstatic I was when she showed me magic one day, exited to find out that she was a witch. I showed her that I was also a wizard and thanked whatever entity that would listen that we wouldn't be separated. I thought it was a sign that we would always be together."
He stopped for a moment and took another pull from his glass before continuing. "My family life wasn't very pleasant, and Lily was the only thing that made me happy. We were the best of friends until we started to Hogwarts. My father was a drunken muggle and my mother did the best she could, but I had to wear ill-fitting secondhand clothes and the other kids at school made fun of me for it, especially James and Sirius who both came from money."
Harry couldn't help but think of himself for a moment there. Until he went to Hogwarts he had never owned new clothes. Everything he was given was worn-out hand-me-downs from Dudley that were three sizes too large for him. The difference, he reckoned, was that he found friends that supported him in the beginning.
"I distanced myself from Lilly so that she wouldn't be troubled for hanging out with trash like me. We still spoke from time to time but it wasn't the same. She eventually became friends with your father and I was devastated. In our fifth year, while in a confrontation with James, I called her a mudblood and she never spoke to me again until the day she died. She of course was crushed that I insulted her and it hurt me to my very core, but once spoken a word can never be taken back. I had lost my only true friend, and to try and fill the void I began running with the other boys from my house, and we eventually became some of the earliest death-eaters. I never bought into the garbage that the Dark Lord spat, it was just a way to make me feel whole. Because I had nothing else and nothing to lose, I quickly became one of his most trusted. By now your parents had married and you were born. One night I learned of his plan to attack your parents and I begged him to change his mind. As much as I resented your father for how he treated me, I never stopped caring for your mother. He refused to listen and still intended to kill them. I couldn't allow it to happen so I turned to the only person I thought could help me- Albus Dumbledore. He welcomed me and listened to my plea. He agreed to protect Lilly if I would in return spy on the Dark Lord for him. I agreed. I think you basically know the rest. He tried to protect them but that bastard rat Pettigrew betrayed them, and they were killed."
Harry was floored. He never would have guessed that the history between his parents and Snape was so deep. He knew from Sirius that they went to Hogwarts together and had heard of some pranks played on Snape but had no idea how nasty it was.
"I'm truly sorry, Sir." Harry said softly. "I had no idea. I know you think little of me because of my resemblance to my father, but look at my life. Until I got my Hogwarts letter I was treated like a house elf. I had to work around the house to earn a piece of stale bread and water while my fatarse cousin was given everything on a silver platter. If I did better than him on an assignment I would get beat, and if hitting me hurt my uncles hand he would beat me again. If not for the magic I didn't even know I had, I probably would have died. Beyond that I was treated like a disease- if they went out to dinner I had to stay home and go hungry. If they had company over then I wasn't allowed to leave my cupboard or make any noise or else I'd get a beating again."
"Once my letter came addressed to the cupboard under the stairs they allowed me to move into Dudley's second bedroom. Yea he had a second bedroom just to store the things he no longer played with while I lived in a cupboard. I never had a pair of clothes that fit me until I bought my Hogwarts robes; all I ever got were his hand-me-downs and he is three times my size. They constantly reminded me of how much of a burden I was to them, how much I costed them to keep me alive. For lack of better words, I'm filthy rich. I could buy London if I wanted to, yet I wasn't allowed my own underwear. So don't think I'm a rich entitled brat. I understand your situation and on behalf of House Potter I apologize for my father making it worse on you."
Severus just stared at the boy for a moment, gathering his thoughts. He had known that Potter was sent to live with the muggles but he never had a clue that he had it so rough there. "No child should have to live like that. Not even the spawn of Potter." He thought to himself. The thought did honestly make him nauseous. No child should ever be treated like he was- like Harry was. He was interrupted as Harry spoke again.
"How about we start fresh? I never knew my father and so I have no idea if I'm acting like him or not. Honest to Merlin, I never wanted any of this fame. I would trade it all away to have one single day with my parents. And I haven't been seeking glory or anything of the sort, I just have terrible luck and a desire to live to see my 17th birthday. Please believe me when I say that I didn't enter my name into the Goblet of Fire. All I wanted was to play quidditch and now I can't even do that."
Snape was silent for a moment before he spoke. "A fresh start. In private. But understand this, Potter; the Dark Lord is on the rise, and he has eyes everywhere. I can't be seen by the death-eater children being kind to you or they will report it their parents and my position will be compromised. Therefore, in public I shall maintain the cold demeanor as normal; I expect you to do the same."
"Yes, Sir."
"I think that will be enough for today. You may see yourself out, and Merlin help you if you breathe a word of what was said tonight to anybody, the Dark Lord will be the least of your worries.
"Understood, sir." Harry said with a small grin as he made his way out of the classroom.
XXX XXXXX XXXXXXX
His session with Professor Flitwick was the first time he had actually practiced anything on his own. The small man had talked briefly about his mother and to a lesser extent his father. He said that Lilly was one of his favorite students and had a natural talent with charms of all variety.
"For the most part thus far we have covered the basics and theory behind charms. You have been taught charms that are focused on the mundane aspect of life, but for the foreseeable future we shall cover more advanced charms and their more exciting applications. Charms is actually a blanket term; we shall cover hexes, jinxes, and curses as well. Some curses and the such are considered by most to be 'dark', though I personally believe that dark and light are subjective- defined by the intent of the caster. Even the unforgiveable curses were once created with a reasonable purpose in mind. The killing curse, for example, was created as a humane way to euthanize sick or injured animals."
Harry had never given any thought to that side of things. The killing curse, which most considered the darkest of the dark arts, was designed as a veterinary spell to end suffering.
"Now then, one of the more useful spells for both defense and offense is the disillusionment charm. If your enemy can't see you then it becomes exponentially harder to hit you, or avoid being hit if that were the case."
Harry watched as the small statured professor turned himself invisible before reappearing on the opposite side of his desk. He was shown the correct wand movement and practiced it a few times before he actually attempted it. The first try resulted in parts of his body disappearing while other parts were still there.
For the rest of the lesson he practiced the disillusionment charm, as well as the fumos charm which created a smokescreen. According to Flitwick this pair made for excellent opportunity to escape if you found yourself overwhelmed. By the end he had both to an acceptable level, though his disillusionment was still too slow in his opinion to be practical.
He left Flitwick's office feeling accomplished enough as he made his way to the Headmaster's office. He hadn't been perfect today, but it was progress.
XXX XXXXX XXXXXXX
When he arrived at the gargoyle that guarded the Dumbledore's office he stopped and remembered suddenly that he didn't know the current password. He sighed and reached his arm out to knock but never got the opportunity before the gargoyle started sliding out of his way. He then made his way up the stairs to find Dumbledore sitting at his desk reading a parchment.
"Hello Mr. Potter, how goes the day?" he said without looking up.
"Fine sir, I learned the disillusionment charm today. Well, for the most part anyways."
"Ahh yes, a most useful spell indeed. Why back in my youth when I was overcome by a particularly strong sweet tooth, I would use that one to sneak my way into the kitchens and beg the elves out of some sort of sweets." He was looking up a Harry now with a fond smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye. "Though knowing now what I do, I realize I wasn't as sneaky as I believed at the time." He finished with a wink. Harry wasn't entirely sure what he meant; maybe it was referencing the fact that Dumbledore always seemed to know when, where, and what Harry was doing even when under his invisibility cloak.
Dumbledore noticed the confused look and continued. "You see Mr. Potter, there isn't much that happens around the castle that I miss. These wards are ancient and some of the most powerful and sophisticated that have ever been created, and as the current headmaster they are under my control. It is basically like a sixth sense; I cannot necessarily 'see' what happens and not everywhere at once, though if I focus on a particular area or person the wards imprint a fairly clear picture."
Harry nodded in amazement. He knew that there were wards that prevented apparition and the like, but he didn't know much more than that. Knowing that the Headmaster was in tune with them and received feedback from them was an amazing example of how widespread and powerful magic could be.
"Anyways, I didn't bring you here just to bore you with facts about the castle."
"No sir that wasn't boring at all, actually rather fascinating."
"Yes, I believe so too, though so many youngsters such as yourself prefer the flashier aspects of magic. What I intend to teach you though will not be particularly flashy; it will actually focus on the stealthy side of things. Now it will take years to completely master what I will show you, if you can do it all. Most cannot achieve this level of control over their own magic."
Harry nodded for him to continue and he spoke once again. "What I speak about is wandless magic. As I said, most never learn more than the most basic of spells without leaning on their wands. Even myself, after decades of practicing still cannot perform on the same level without my wand as with it. As you learn a spell you are taught in three steps- the intent, the wand movement, and the incantation. Your intent, given a strong enough will and magical core, is the only thing strictly require to cast a spell. The incantation only helps you to focus, while the wand movement makes it easier to release the magic in the required form. When you have become comfortable with casting a spell, such as expelliarmus in your case, you should be familiar enough with it that you no longer require the incantation. Give it a try if you wish."
As Dumbledore finished he waved his hand causing a practice dummy to pop up on the other side of the room. Harry pulled his wand out and focused on the spell and with a flick of his wrist a jet of light was sent into the training dummy.
"Very good Mr. Potter." Dumbledore said with a small clap. "Now I would like to ask a question. What is the correct wand movement that you were taught when you learned the spell?"
Harry slowly moved his wand in the correct pattern, not knowing where this was going. He had after all just performed the spell perfectly and nonverbally.
"And is that the exact movement you used just now?" Dumbledore asked with a raised eyebrow.
Harry thought for a second, waving his wand a couple of times without firing the spell. "I s'pose I just cast it with a flick, sir."
"Yes sir, I noticed that when you performed it the first time. As I said, you have become so familiar with the spell that you no longer require an incantation or the full wand movement to focus on it. I would like you to cast it again, paying particular attention to the feeling of the magic as it forms and exits your body."
Harry did as he was told, firing the spell several times slowly. When he began to think of casting the spell, the intent, he could feel the magic begin to circulate in his core. When he raised his wand and began the flick he felt the magic sort of swirl through his arm, and as he finished the movement the magic quit swirling and shot through the wand like a laser.
"Now I want you to put your wand away and try the spell again.
Harry put his wand into his pocket and held his hand out blankly staring at, willing his magic to move to no avail. He couldn't get anything more than the stirring in his core.
"Remember to focus on the feeling of the magic and will it to perform in that manner. It may help to begin by making the wand movement with your pointer finger.
Harry tried once again. He could feel the magic stir, and he made a swirling motion with his finger. He felt the magic begin to flow through his arm but it didn't release. He tried again and again, lessening the amount of movement each time until he was able to will the magic to the tip with no movement. He then pointed his palm at the dummy and pulled on his core, forcing the magic to swirl into his arm before pushing it out. The swirling stopped and the magic left his palm, though instead of coming as a straight beam it came out as a sort of wave and went wildly off course, causing a bookshelf to explode behind the dummy.
"Err, sorry sir." Harry mumbled.
"It is no problem Harry, good job on your first successful attempt. Just remember that the less you know of a spell the harder this will be, so it is very important to understand the theory of a spell before you attempt this. You shouldn't try anything more strenuous than the disarming charm for now until you have a better understanding." As he said this the bookshelf began to repair itself seemingly of it's own accord.
"Now then, Mr. Potter, we shall call it a day on the training. We have much to discuss, however." Dumbledore said gesturing towards the chair opposite him. Harry nodded and sat, declining the obligatory lemon drop as he did so.
"Alright, Harry, I'll get straight to the point. You know as well as I from your recent endeavors that Voldemort isn't as dead as the world wishes to believe. I know it is unfair to expect a mere 14 year old to bear this burden but there are things at play since before your birth that I'm afraid lead us to this."
"What do you mean sir?"
"A prophecy. Made just before your birth. Voldemort learned of part of it and I'm afraid that is why he targeted you and your family."
"What did it say?" Harry asked with a hint of anxiousness in his voice.
"Another day, my boy, when you are proficient with occlumency." Dumbledore said and paused for a moment. "The real purpose of this chat is to talk about your training. I'm sure you are well aware that I'm the headmaster of Hogwarts." He finished with a chuckle.
Harry returned with his own chuckle before Dumbledore proceeded. "What you may or may not know, is that I am also the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, and the Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards. What that means, is that I must adhere to a certain standard. The things I can teach you must remain within the bounds of the law as befitting my titles."
Harry nodded here once again but elected to remain silent.
"However, I have many contacts throughout the world that are not so inclined to follow these 'guidelines'. Frankly put, Voldemort has 50 years of practice more than you and a great deal of that was spent on less than legal topics. I don't condone the use of the dark arts, but that is a rather subjective topic, is it not? In the coming days some of these 'contacts' will reach out to you and begin to teach you some things that I believe it pertinent for you to know but cannot teach you myself. Please be sure to keep this to yourself."