Chapter 15: Changing Opinions
Despite his late-night, Harry woke early and dressed in his exercise gear as quietly as he could so as not to disturb the slumber of his dorm mates. He crept out into the common room, shutting the door gently behind him and was heading toward the exit when he heard someone clearing their throat behind him.
"Morning." said a voice cheerfully. "Heading out early?"
Harry spun on the spot and was struck dumb, unprepared for an encounter with the person who was now rising from the same armchair that Hermione had occupied the night before.
The dark-haired boy walked toward Harry, holding out his hand in greeting. "Hey – I'm Cedric Diggory. Nice to meet you."
"H – Harry Potter." stuttered Harry, taking Cedric's hand and shaking it firmly. Somehow Harry had forgotten that a place in Hufflepuff would mean an early introduction to his fallen Tri-Wizard Co-champion. Seeing Cedric stood there with a grin on his face as he greeted him made Harry even more determined that he would not face the same fate as last time.
"Where you off to at this time?" Cedric enquired in a friendly tone.
"I like to go for a run first thing in the morning. I got into the habit a few years back… I was going to see if I could find my way outside."
Cedric looked at him curiously "Running? There aren't too many wizards that go in for physical exercise."
"From what I've heard there's nothing formally organised at Hogwarts other than Quidditch and climbing 700 staircases a day," Harry shrugged, a smile on his face "and if the food for the rest of the year is anything like last night's feast I'd rather get some exercise in early."
Cedric burst into laughter and clapped a hand onto Harry's shoulder. "Fair enough. Come on – I'll show you the way out." The pair headed for the gently sloping tunnel that led out of Hufflepuff house, chatting companionably as they did so.
"How come you're up so early Cedric?" asked Harry interestedly. "I usually don't see anyone other than the milkman for another hour or two yet."
Cedric didn't know what a 'milkman' was but he brushed it aside as something to ask later. "I've always been an early riser. It gets pretty loud at times in the common room so it's nice to have a bit of quiet time you know?"
As they made their way to the entrance hall, Cedric told Harry all about Hogwarts and the various classes he would be taking. Harry of course, already knew all of this information but he was happy to listen to the third-year Hufflepuff – his friendly, outgoing demeanour make it easy to see why he had been so popular before. Eventually, they reached the huge doors that guarded the entrance to the castle and Cedric gave him a cheerful wave goodbye as Harry set off into a loping run that, whilst not particularly fast, allowed him to cover a decent distance without the loss of too much energy.
Harry enjoyed his early morning runs. The freshness of the morning air would soon cause his breath to fog as he exhaled but for now, even in the Highlands of Scotland, the temperature was just warm enough to avoid this. He picked up the pace slightly as he approached the Black Lake and began to follow a path that edged the shoreline, worn into existence by the thousands of students that had come before him.
His thoughts turned to the previous day and the revelation that Hermione had returned to the past alongside him. Notwithstanding the support of Andi, Ted, Amelia, Sirius and Severus he'd felt overwhelmed at times by the tasks that lay before him. Even the addition of the Goblin Nation had only eased his worries slightly but there was something about the presence of Hermione that made him feel lighter... more confident… more likely to succeed in what was coming.
Following his wedding to Ginny, Harry and Hermione had begun to drift apart. The closeness they'd experienced through their school years tailed off as they both spent more time with their respective partners and eventually their children than with each other. Sure, they still spent time together and saw each other at family functions but they never recaptured what had made their friendship so special to begin with. They moved from speaking to each other every day to once every few weeks and now, with the benefit of hindsight, Harry realised what a hole that lack of connection had left in his life. He'd loved Ginny but now he knew that those feelings had been artificially forced towards her, he pondered what might have been. He wasn't stupid - he knew he'd been emotionally stunted by his childhood experiences with the Dursleys and he couldn't have understood romantic love if it had walked up to him and slapped him in the face, but recognising even the synthetic feelings he'd had for Ginny made him begin to reconsider his emotions towards his best friend. Of course, figuring things out with Sirius constantly and vociferously voicing his opinion that Harry was in love with her wasn't helping matters. Perhaps it was time to enlist Dora's help again to teach the mutt a lesson?
As Harry completed his lap of the lake he realised that time was getting away from him and headed back to the dorm in order to get ready for the day. When he finally made it back to the common room he wasn't surprised at all to find Hermione ensconced in the same chair that he'd found Cedric in that morning. He was fairly sure she would soon claim it as her own as she'd done the same thing when the pair were Gryffindors. As expected she was curled up with a thick book open on her lap.
"Harry!" she said noticing his arrival. "I thought you were still asleep! Where have you been?"
"Just out for a run Hermione. Listen, I've been thinking – we need to start changing people's attitudes right? As much as I don't like my fame I reckon we can use it to help us."
Hermione looked at Harry shrewdly, "What did you have in mind?"
"What do you think of us going on a charm offensive?" Harry grinned.
Minerva McGonagall took her seat at the head table alongside her friends and fellow heads of houses, Pomona Sprout and Filius Flitwick. The three had an annual wager on the first morning of the school year and she had a good feeling that she'd be claiming her colleague's Galleons shortly. The bet was simple, whosever house had the greatest number of their first years present by the time the Headmaster arrived for breakfast took the pot. With a Weasley in amongst her Lions Minerva felt sure her students would be able to make their way down in great enough numbers to ensure her victory. With three brothers in her house already, the newest Gryffindor Weasley would surely know the best route to lead his classmates to the Great Hall.
She settled herself in her chair and began her meal, making idle conversation with the other teachers as all three watched the doors closely for the first signs of approaching students. Soon enough the doors opened and both McGonagall and Flitwick looked on in amazement as the entire contingent of first-year Hufflepuffs arrived together, chatting in a friendly manner with each other and led by Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. Pomona sported a beaming smile as she turned to her colleagues and held out her hand expectantly.
"What…?" Minerva spluttered, quickly counting the number of heads taking their places at the Hufflepuff house table. "All of them?"
"It certainly is!" laughed Pomona, taking the golden coins from the Ravenclaw and Gryffindor heads. "Thank you very much! Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some Badgers to attend to!"
"Unbelievable," muttered Filius "I had a good feeling about my lot this year."
"Your lot? I was sure I was going to win with another Weasley attending."
As she finished speaking the doors opened, admitting said Weasley on his own and they watched as he made a beeline for the Gryffindor tables and the platters piled high with an assortment of breakfast foods. She stood and briskly walked down the hall to where Ron was now busily piling sausages, bacon and black pudding onto the plate in front of him.
"Good morning Mr Weasley. Where are you housemates this morning?"
"Dunno. They were all taking too long so I came down on my own. Fred and George told me about a shortcut. Barely took me any time at all to get here! That'll be handy." Ron began to enthusiastically devour the food in front of him, causing McGonagall to wince at the sight unfolding before her. Before she could reprimand his lack of table manners, however, the door opened once more and a trickle of students from other houses began to make an appearance. Minerva sighed and returned to the head table just as the Headmaster entered and took his seat.
"Good morning Minerva, Filius." He nodded a greeting to his senior staff. "Who won this year?"
"Pomona did, her entire set of first years turned up together just after we sat down. She's already congratulated herself and is down speaking with them now." Flitwick gestured down at the Hufflepuffs who were laughing and joking with each other and their head of house. "They're clearly settling in well."
Dumbledore turned his attention to the scene in front of him. His eyes narrowed slightly at the sight of Harry Potter chatting amiably with all those around him but he quickly schooled his features, set an indulgent smile upon his face and responded to the diminutive Charms Professor. "Ah, the sound of a child's laughter is a balm for the soul." Inwardly his mind was racing at a mile a minute. His plans for the boy had been thrown into chaos – no longer living with his relatives, adopted by his godfather, avoiding the Weasleys at the station and now sorted into Hufflepuff where he was surrounded by children outside the sphere of his control. Dumbledore knew he would have to work hard to regain influence over the Potter heir – there was no chance of keeping his heritage and place in society a secret from him with Lord Black in the picture. He needed to come up with a new plan quickly.
Harry meanwhile had been watching the head table from the corner of his eye when Dumbledore had arrived. He'd turned his head just in time to catch sight of the Headmaster's rapidly changed expression as he conversed with Professor Flitwick and let out a small sigh. He'd hoped to avoid some of the manipulation attempts for a little while but judging from the look that had passed across Dumbledore's face, Harry knew they were going to begin sooner rather than later. Hermione was sat next to him and upon hearing Harry sigh she shot him an enquiring look that Harry answered with a simple shake of his head and a whispered "later" under his breath.
The pair turned their attention to Professor Sprout as she handed out the first year timetables. Harry looked over his schedule and was pleased to see they'd enjoy a fairly pleasant Monday as opposed to some of the horrendous starts to the week he remembered experiencing previously. Double Charms with Professor Flitwick was followed by a free period and lunch, then double Herbology and Transfiguration in the afternoon. His first Potions lesson, and therefore his first legitimate reason to speak with Severus, was a double period on Wednesday afternoon and he allowed himself a small smile as he remembered the sharp interrogation he'd borne the brunt of in his first lesson as a Gryffindor. Without the Slytherins in the class alongside Harry, Severus wouldn't have to be quite so hard on him but there were still appearances to be maintained for the benefit of the Headmaster.
Their first Charms lesson passed quickly with Professor Flitwick talking to the class about what they would be learning in the year and some of the basic theory behind wand-work. Once the double period had drawn to a close, Harry took the opportunity to speak with him.
"Sir, do you have a moment please?"
"Of course Mr Potter, how can I help you?"
"Well Sir," Harry began "my Godfather was telling me that my mum's favourite subject was Charms. I know you taught her – I was just wondering if you'd be able to tell me a bit about her sometime? I'd like to know more about her from the people that knew her."
Flitwick's expression softened. "Of course. Your mother was one of my favourite students. Her Charm work was outstanding - in fact, had she not died she was going to come and be my apprentice so she could work on her Mastery." Flitwick paused for a moment in remembrance. "We were all very saddened by the passing of your parents. I'm sure Professor McGonagall will be happy to speak with you as well – your father should real aptitude for Transfiguration while he was at school. Professor Snape may be able to help too – he was friends with Lily during their early years here, though if I recall correctly they seemed to drift apart after their fifth year for some reason."
Harry knew full well what had caused the rift but couldn't share this knowledge, so nodded his head and thanked the Professor after arranging to speak with him one evening after dinner. Upon exiting the classroom he found Hermione leaning up against the wall.
"Are you OK? I heard what you were asking Professor Flitwick."
"Yeah, thanks, Hermione." Harry lowered his voice to make sure he wasn't overheard. "We were here for six years before and I never once took the opportunity to speak to any of the Professors about my mum and dad – apart from Moony of course. I didn't want to waste the opportunity now I've got it again."
Hermione didn't say a word but instead pulled Harry into a tight hug which he gratefully returned. After a few moments, she released him and stepped back. "As we've got a free period now do you want to go and see Hedwig?"
Harry's eyes lit up and, grasping Hermione's hand, he pulled her toward the entrance hall as she laughed at his reaction. As they walked Harry filled Hermione in about the look on Dumbledore's face at breakfast. In their original first year, they'd had very little contact with the Headmaster and Harry hoped that would be repeated – now Harry knew how his life had been manipulated, he didn't know if he'd be able to stop himself from cursing the wrinkly old fart. He needed time to make sure he wouldn't say or do anything stupid.
A short while later the pair were partaking in the lengthy climb up the stairs of the Owlery. At the top Harry opened the door and looked around, searching for a glimpse of the snow-white feathers of his friend. Suddenly he felt a weight settle on his should and he turned his head to look right into the yellow eyes of the creature that had been his constant companion through years of miserable summers at the Dursley house.
"Hey girl," he said, blinking back tears and reaching out to lightly stroke her soft feathers. Hedwig made the short barking noise Harry had been so familiar with and nibbled gently at his ear. After a few moments, Hermione moved alongside Harry and joined him in providing attention to the snowy owl.
"It's like she recognised you," Hermione whispered so as not to disturb the moment.
"It's weird but we connected from the first time we met. She was always a very clever owl." Hedwig gave a short bark. "And beautiful!" Harry laughed as she preened herself.
Eventually, they said goodbye to Hedwig and climbed down from the tower. When they reached the foot of the stairs it was Harry's turn to initiate a hug as he whispered into Hermione's ear "Thank you so much."
Hermione returned the hug with equal fervour "You're very welcome Harry." After a moment she cleared her throat, stepped back and smiled. "You know, I'm a big fan of a Harry that's comfortable enough to give out hugs…" her smile fell. "The Dursleys really did a number on you last time didn't they?"
"Honestly, yeah… but its ancient history now. I never have to go back there and they got what they deserved in the end." Harry looked out over the Hogwarts grounds. "Hey, why don't we go introduce ourselves to Hagrid?"
"Sure," said Hermione, recognising the change of subject for what it was. She slipped her hand through the crook of his arm and they wandered slowly down to Hagrid's cabin.
Harry and Hermione were the first to enter the Transfiguration classroom for the last lesson of the day, and so were the first to spot Professor McGonagall sat on her desk in her cat animagus form. Harry nudged Hermione and approached the tabby. Leaning in as though he were taking a closer look at the distinctive markings, Harry whispered "Good afternoon Professor. I'll assume you would like me not to say anything to the others." He dropped the cat a cheeky wink and received what could only be described as a feline glare in return, before taking his seat at the front of the class next to Hermione.
Once all the students had arrived McGonagall transformed back into her human state and received the expected gasps of shock and awe from the class, with the exception of Harry who was smirking at her, and Hermione who was rolling her eyes at Harry and shaking her head at his actions. "What you have just seen," Professor McGonagall said "is a branch of Transfiguration that allows a witch or wizard to become an 'animagus'. Learning this is a long and arduous process and is strictly controlled by the Ministry – every animagus must be registered. It is also beyond the abilities of many magical people." The Professor paused and looked at Harry. "Mr Potter here recognised what I was as soon as he walked in. Would you care to explain how you knew?"
"Well Professor, the markings around your eyes in your cat form are very similar to your glasses. I have to admit I also saw your name and description on the animagus register…"
"I'm almost afraid to ask Mr Potter, but why were you looking at the register?"
"Well, my godfather and his friends were all animagi and he needed to register once he was able to."
Professor McGonagall looked at him consideringly. "5 points to Hufflepuff Mr Potter for your observation."
At the end of the lesson, Professor McGonagall advised them that they would begin attempting to transfigure a match into a needle in their next class and gave them all homework to read the relevant chapter in their books. Harry waited until the other students had left the room then repeated the conversation he'd had with Flitwick. "Of course Mr Potter, I'd be more than happy to. I will contact you with a time when things have settled and we'll talk then." McGonagall looked down at Harry kindly and smiled. "Your father was very talented at Transfiguration. I look forward to seeing if you've inherited his ability."
"Thank you, Professor."
Harry left the room to find Hermione waiting for him once more. He spoke in a loud voice as they began to walk away, knowing McGonagall would still be in earshot "Professor McGonagall has said she's happy to talk to me about my parents as well."
"That's great Harry," Hermione replied at a similarly pitched volume. "You're finally getting to hear about your parents." Harry turned his head slightly and saw McGonagall about to exit her classroom."
He pulled Hermione to a stop and turned to face her, increasing his view of the Professor. "I know. My Aunt and Uncle told me they died in a car crash caused by my drunken Dad." From the corner of his eye, Harry realised McGonagall had frozen at his words. "It wasn't until I got away from them that I found out the truth."
As they began walking again, Harry risked a final glance back over his shoulder to see Professor McGonagall staring straight ahead with an expression of fury on her face. Harry hoped that this was an indication that a small seed of doubt about some of Dumbledore's actions had been planted in her mind. He'd truly liked Professor McGonagall the first time around, but with the benefit of hindsight, he could see that she'd had a tendency to follow the Headmaster's lead unquestioningly, not considering the impact his decisions tended to have on those affected.
Dinner that night was once again full of laughter and friendly conversation. Both Harry and Hermione made a point of leaning over to the students at the adjoining Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables to include them in their discussions. Neither of them had any inclination to get friendlier with Ron however. His almost cringe-worthy attempts to ingratiate himself and become the best friend of the Boy-Who-Lived ensured he would have been kept at arm's length anyway. They answered him politely when he spoke to them, but neither of them made any effort to prolong their conversation. Both of them had been struck by how different his character was having not had Harry's almost undivided attention and friendship from their journey between Kings Cross and Hogsmeade. A couple of times Harry glanced up to the head table to see McGonagall, Flitwick and Sprout deep in conversation and, once or twice, caught sight of the trio watching, looking down at the students as they bantered back and forth. He couldn't be sure because of how far they were away, but he had a feeling they had been talking about his request to learn more about his parents and were watching him specifically.
Back in the common room, all the first years grouped together and talked about their classes that day. They decided (somewhat surprisingly without Hermione's prompting) that they would study together and help each other and would happily include friends from other houses. Some of the older students had overheard this and had offered to help them if needed as well. Both Harry and Hermione had been surprised by this as the older Gryffindor students had pretty much ignored the first years and left them to themselves. Being sorted into Hufflepuff this time around was certainly opening their eyes to some of the inconsistencies and problems between houses.
That night, after putting up silencing charms around his bed, Harry used a communication mirror Sirius had given him to contact his godfather and give him a quick rundown of what had happened in his first two days, promising a full accounting at the end of the week. A quick test proved that Kreacher was able to elf pop right to Harry and gave them the perfect way to get the diadem out of the castle once Harry had recovered it.
Sirius was stunned but delighted to hear that Hermione had returned from the future as well and spent a large portion of the remainder of their conversation either mocking Harry for the bookstore debacle or throwing less than subtle suggestions his way as to how he could go about wooing her.
Tuesday's timetable consisted of a double period of History of Magic followed by Defence Against the Dark Arts. The Hufflepuff students did get to enjoy a free afternoon however but they were expected to be in the Astronomy Tower at Midnight for their first lesson with Professor Sinistra.
As their History of Magic class drew to a close, Hermione enacted the next part of their plan. Raising her hand she waited for Professor Binns to realise she had a question. Looking almost surprised that anyone would want to ask something he stopped mid-flow and asked: "Yes Miss…?"
"Granger, Sir. I was hoping I could ask a question about what we'll be learning?"
"Well… yes, I suppose you may."
"Sir – I spoke to some of our older housemates and they said they use the same textbook we have now throughout the first 5 years."
"That's correct Miss Ganger."
"It's Granger, Sir. It's just that I've read through the whole book and there's nothing in here about modern magical history. In Muggle schools, they cover the things that happened during the two World Wars for example, yet there's no mention in the book about the rise and falls of Grindelwald or You-Know-Who." Glancing around the room Harry could see this had caught the interest of his classmates who were now all watching the back and forth between student and teacher in fascination.
Professor Binns though was beginning to look a little irritated. "What's your point, Miss Granger?"
"Sir, there's a Muggle saying; 'Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.' I think it's very important that we learn the things Ms Bagshot has written in this book – not just so we can pass our exams but to help us understand how our society got to where we are today - but I also think the best way to stop another You-Know-Who rising would be for us to learn about how he was able to gain so much power before. If it's well known how it happened last time, I'd hope it would be easier to stop the same thing happening again in the future."
Professor Binns studied the first year Hufflepuff and tried to remember a time when he'd ever been directly challenged about the curriculum. He looked around the room at the engaged faces and a sensation he'd not felt in a long time coursed through his ghostly body – a desire to teach and impart knowledge. "5 points to Hufflepuff Miss Granger for a well-reasoned argument."