Chapter 22: Latvian Gambit Trap, Part 1

7 January 1993

It was Thursday.

Harry woke up early that morning, preparing himself for Charms, Transfiguration, and Astronomy. He knew that McGonagall viewed most of the Slytherins with skepticism, and he wanted to prove her wrong.

Harry went over his notes as the other Slytherin second-year boys were asleep in the Slytherin Common Room. Draco tossed and turned for a few seconds.

Harry knew that he would have to be cautious. With the heir of Slytherin still attacking students, he knew he would have to approach the situation he was in with caution and trepidation. He couldn't allow himself to get distracted. He knew there would be a lot of warnings to keep he and his friends in line.

A few minutes later, Draco and Theodore woke up. Theodore grinned at Harry.

"Looking forward to Transfiguration today?", Theodore asked.

"Not really, Theo", Harry said. "McGonagall is still going to be on our cases. She still thinks that all of us Slytherins are untrustworthy. It honestly is irritating."

"Well, we'll see what happens today", Theodore said.

Crabbe, Goyle, and Blaise woke up just minutes later. The six Slytherin second-year boys walked to the Great Hall with the Slytherin second-year girls.

At breakfast, while eating his toast, Harry noticed the conversations around him. Sixth-year Slytherin students Gemma Farley and Cleo Rowle were having a conversation, laughing. Gaius Avery and Caleb Holland were discussing something. Percy Weasley nodded at the two boys politely before heading off to the Gryffindor table. Ginny Weasley and Luna Lovegood were sitting together, talking.

Eventually, Harry and the other Slytherin second-years headed to Charms. There, Professor Flitwick and the Hufflepuff second-years were waiting for them.

"Good morning, class. Today we will be going over the Skurge Charm. Can anyone tell me its attributes?"

Theodore raised his hand.

"The Skurge Charm is a charm that could be used to clean up the sticky green ectoplasm created by passing ghosts. It can also be used to frighten spirits such as ghosts, as well as poltergeists."

"Excellent, Nott. Ten points to Slytherin. Now, can anyone tell me the history of the Skurge Charm?"

Harry then raised his hand.

"Yes, Potter?"

Harry then said, "The Skurge Charm was invented sometime after 1492. This spell's invention and creation proved to be convenient, as before its invention, wizards and witches had to use shovels to get rid of ectoplasm."

"Excellent, Potter. Another ten points to Slytherin. Now two ghosts have agreed to volunteer for this demonstration. The Fat Friar, from Hufflepuff, and the Bloody Baron, from Slytherin. Who would like to demonstrate the Skurge Charm first?"

Harry then raised his hand.

"Okay then, Mister Potter. Show us how it's done."

Harry pointed his wand at the ectoplasm that had apparently been created by the Bloody Baron. Harry then shouted, "Skurge!"

The ectoplasm that Harry had pointed his wand was cleaned up.

"Excellent, Mister Potter. Ten points to Slytherin."

Draco and Pansy smiled at Harry.

"Okay, now who else wants to demonstrate?"

Theodore then raised his hand.

"Okay, Mister Nott. Go ahead and cast the incantation."

Theodore pointed his wand at the ectoplasm and shouted, "Skurge!"

The ectoplasm that Theodore had pointed his wand at also vanished.

"Ten points to Slytherin, Nott."

The other students in the class tried to cast the skurge charm but were not able to cast it as well as Harry and Theodore could. Wayne Hopkins, in particular, was struggling with casting this charm.

Finally, after a few failed attempts, Draco and Pansy managed to cast the Skurge Charm well and were each awarded five points in Slytherin's favor by Professor Flitwick.

After class ended, Harry walked with Draco and Pansy to Transfiguration. They had reached the end of the corridor when suddenly, Susan Bones approached them.

"Hi, Harry", Susan said, smiling.

"Hello, Susan", Harry said. He couldn't recall having a full conversation with this girl before. They were in several classes together, but they never had an actual conversation with each other.

"You cast the Skurge Charm pretty well today", Susan said.

"Thank you", Harry said. "I was able to perform that charm thanks to the help of my fellow Slytherins." He then motioned to Draco and Pansy to indicate to Susan whom he was talking about.

"Oh. Well, that's great", Susan said. "Well, we should talk later. Great speaking to you."

"Thank you."

Susan then walked off to join Hannah Abbott, Ernie Macmillan, and Wayne Hopkins. Harry noticed that Hopkins shot him a dirty look.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say Bones has a crush on you", Draco said, grinning.

"I don't have time for romance, Draco", Harry said. "I've got other things on my mind. Like whoever is behind the attacks here at Hogwarts."

"Absolutely", Draco said. "But it would be nice to have Bones as an ally. I hear her aunt is in the ministry."

"That sounds good", Harry said.

Harry, Draco, and Pansy walked with the other Slytherin second-years to Transfiguration. There, McGonagall was waiting for them, and she was all business.

"Today we will work on the Softening Charm", McGonagall said. "Let's see if you can correctly demonstrate this spell."

Most of the Slytherin second-years were having trouble with this spell. But Harry pointed his wand at the bar of soap that was on the spongify tile and shouted, "Spongify!"

The bar of soap immediately became rubbery and bouncy.

"Well done, Potter. Ten points to Slytherin."

Theodore, Draco, and Tracey then managed to cast the Softening Charm on their bars of soap as well. McGonagall awarded them ten points each in Slytherin's favor.

At the end of the class, McGonagall got their attention.

"Well, overall, most of you did well as a whole. Crabbe, Goyle, the two of you need to practice your transfiguration skills more."

Harry had to admit McGonagall had a point there.

After classes, Harry and the other second-year Slytherins were studying their notes. Cassius Warrington and Linus Urquhart were studying with them as well.

"Harry, you want to play a game of Wizard's Chess?", Draco asked.

"Sure", Harry said. The other Slytherin second-years gathered around the chessboard as Harry and Draco picked their sides. Harry had the white pieces and Draco had the black pieces.

"Pawn to e4", Harry said. The white pawn on e2 moved to e4.

"Pawn to e5", Draco said. The black pawn on e7 moved to e5.

"Knight to f3", Harry said. The white knight on g1 moved to f3.

"Pawn to f5", Draco said. The black pawn on f7 moved to f5. Harry noticed this move left the black pawn on e5 undefended. Should Harry take it? He decided it would be best if he did.

"Knight to e5", Harry said. The white knight on f3 moved to e5, pouncing on the black pawn on e5 and crushing it into numerous pieces.

"Bishop to c5", Draco said. The black bishop on f8 moved to c5. Harry was surprised by this move, as it left the black pawn on f5 undefended. Harry decided to capture this pawn as well.

"Pawn to f5", Harry said. The white pawn on e4 pulled out its sword and obliterated the black pawn on f5.

"Bishop to f2", Draco said. The black bishop on c5 moved to f2, capturing the white pawn on the f2 square. This move put the white king on e1 in check. Harry was stunned by this move, as the black bishop on f2 was undefended and Harry could simply capture it with his white king.

"King to f2", Harry said. The white king on e1 moved to f2, crushing the black bishop on the f2 square before replacing it.

"Queen to h4", Draco said. The black queen on d8 moved to h4. This move gave check to the white king on f2.

"King to g1", Harry said. The white king on f2 moved to g1.

Draco smiled as he said, "Queen to d4".

The black queen on h4 moved to d4.

"Checkmate", Draco said.

Harry was shocked. It was true. The white king on g1 was attacked and had no way to escape the check. No piece could block the check, the white king had no safe squares to move to, and the black queen could not be captured. Overall, the game lasted 6 moves.

Harry shook hands with Draco, slightly disappointed that he had lost.

Draco then decided to explain what had happened.

"The opening that was played is known as the Latvian Gambit. It is an opening that occurs fairly often in competitive play. On your fourth move, your best move would have been to play the white bishop on f1 to c4. On your sixth move, a better move would have been to play the white pawn on g2 to g3."

"Thanks, Draco. I appreciate the help."

"That's what I'm here for."