A/N: Hello there, here you haave another chapter for this story. Sorry for the small delay, but i was on a small vacation and had not much time to write and give it to HowInMadeHowie to betaread and edit it. Thanks once more for your work and i hope you readers like this chapter.
Three days later at breakfast, the family owls delivered the Daily Prophet from yesterday to almost every occupant in the Great Hall with letters from the parents asking what really happened. Harry saw Hedwig flying down to him, also carrying this edition of the Prophet and a small package in brown wrapping paper on her legs. Hedwig landed on his shoulder to not disturb Harry in his breakfast, but her patience was soon used up as Harry continued eating his bacon and giving her none of it. Harry laughed and gave her some, while he read the note in the parcel telling him that it was a book that could help him find more information about the basilisk in the handwriting that was unmistakable from Geralt. Harry looked at the little packet with curiosity, as it was hastily wrapped and with a bit more paper than it was necessary. When he looked back on the note, he saw that Geralt wrote him more.
"Sorry for wrapping it like that Harry, but I was just about to go on a contract I got from the Romanian Ministry. Seemingly, a wyvern is causing trouble in the dragon reserve there. Doctor Halsey came to me just as I was lifting my bag on my shoulder and told me that Callie and Cortana reported that there was a basilisk in the castle responsible for those attacks. So, I ran up to our library and took the book from the shelf that I knew had some information on it and sent it to you. I am hoping that it reaches you in time. Sorry that I cannot come and help you, but I am sure you can handle the basilisk if it is not too old. So, good luck with your task, you will need it. Greetings from Yen, you should remember the medallion she gave you last year, if you need it." Harry placed the parcel in his robes, reading the book inside later when he was alone. He still did not want his friends to find out what was inside the Chamber of Secrets and who controlled it. So, he opened the newspaper that he took from his owl and began to read it.
Gilderoy Lockhart, a fraud?
Dear readers, what may surprise you a great deal, but yesterday we heard from a well secured source that the DMLE arrested Gilderoy Lockhart with the accusation of fraud and illegal oblivation, as some information surfaced that he is not the great wizard as he claimed in his books about his deeds.
Mr. Arthur Lingley, an Armenian Warlock, was seen in the Ministry with anger on his face, telling Madam Bones, the head of the DMLE, that he was the one who fought the werewolf described in Lockhart's book, Wandering with Werewolves. Mr. Lingley even could tell more details that only the one who did the deed for real could know, so she gathered some Aurors and traveled to Hogwarts, where Mr. Lockhart had the position as a defense against the dark arts teacher.
"If this is really true, I do not want to know what Lockhart was teaching our children the last few months." Ms. Finnigan, mother of a student right now at Hogwarts, told us when we asked her on the streets yesterday.
According to our source, Mr. Lockhart did not leave without a fight, but do not fear dear readers, no students were hurt. The fight mentioned was a duel between Mr. Lingley and Mr. Lockhart, which Mr. Lingley won according to a letter that was sent to our editor from his son.
Now you would ask how Mr. Lockhart could have lost a duel if all the stories in his books were true. Well, it is this that caused all the questions now if it all was truly done by him. As far as we know, Mr. Lockhart is now interrogated by the DMLE, as Madam Bones wants to find the truth.
One point remains quite clear. If Lockhart did not, in fact, do any of the deeds he wrote about in his books he only took up the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts to drive up sales of his books. If this is the real reason for Mr. Lockhart taking the teacher position, then we can expect to hear from many angry parents demanding their money back.
When I asked Headmaster Dumbledore on how Mr. Lockhart was hired before the term began, he explained to me that the board of governors suggested him after Mr. Lockhart came to them for this position.
"As there was no such evidence that his stories could be stolen from other witches and wizards, the board was inclined to tell me that I should heed their suggestion and hire him as a teacher. Especially the head of the board was adamant that I follow through with it; in his mind my candidate, Ms. Merigold, who now has taken up the position as the teacher from Mr. Lockhart was not suitable for this post. But I assure you, this woman had her fair share of experience with monsters and dark wizards, as she is also a part of the Witchers companions. Now, I told the board this bit of information of course, but somehow it was ignored. But that is in the past, we have to look at the future." Dumbledore told me how he got a replacement so fast for Mr. Lockhart. I still need an interview with this mysterious Ms. Merigold, but until now I was unable too as she had to prepare all the classes for the rest of the year.
Dear readers, this reporter will stay on this case and deliver the news as soon as possible. Until then please read on the second page about all the books from Mr. Lockhart and how far he has fallen.
For more Information about Witcher, please turn to page 3.
Harry folded the newspaper back up, grinning as this was exactly what they anticipated in Kear Mohen when he had shown the books to Yen and Triss. This story was now distracting the students from the attacks for a while, so they would not fall in panic for the next few days. But he was wondering who would now lead the Dueling Club, as according to the notice on the board the other day it was told that Lockhart would be leading it. As the first meeting this year was by the next weekend, Harry knew that they would find a replacement for him, as according to Callie, the present UNSC detachment had some information about that Professor Flitwick was an established duelist when he was younger, thanks to Professor Dumbledore telling them of course.
Harry looked around and noticed many female students pouting, some even removing things from their bags. They may have hoped that what happened yesterday was just a giant misunderstanding, but this article changed their minds. Hermione was sitting beside him and had a neutral expression on her face, as she also had thought that something was wrong with Lockhart and his books. Ron was just indifferent, as he had not liked the man even a bit from the beginning, or at least he tells that to those who asked him about his mood today.
Harry was glad as had defense against the dark arts later that day, so they would not have to wait long to see how Triss would teach them from now on. He then noticed that Ginny was sitting beside him and Hermione, as Ron was sitting opposite them at the table. Harry felt his medallion vibrate stronger than before when he saw Scabbers, still not sure why the rat caused the reaction. But as it was now stronger than before; he got the proof that Ginny was carrying something in her bag that was strongly saturated with dark magic. She was also even paler now than the beginning of the week, as if she still had trouble sleeping or was otherwise sick. He leaned to the former conclusion, as Ginny was almost falling asleep at the table. Harry looked over to John and Triss, hoping they would see how he nodded towards Ginny to tell them that something was wrong. He saw how Triss was looking over to them from the staff table and that she noticed the state Ginny was in. As the first year had a Defense class today too, she would see what was going on with the youngest Weasley.
Later that day, Triss was sorting her notes in the classroom when the time had come to let the first years in the room. As she opened the door after walking through the room, she saw the students nervously standing outside and looking at her with curiosity. Triss saw the colors of their robes and knew that they were her first class, as the red and gold from the Gryffindor's mixed with the blue and silver from the Ravenclaw students when she told them to enter and sit down on their seats. When Luna walked past her, the young blond girl smiled at her and waved a bit before she walked ahead and sat down in the front of the classroom, right next to Ginny who was now pulling out her books for this class.
When Triss walked back to her desk, she looked over the students and checked if everyone was present. She would not have to make a roll call, as she knew them already, thanks to her time as assistant for Lockhart. After she had made sure that all the students were here, she wrote on the blackboard the lesson for today. "Well, I do not think that introductions are in order, as you know me already. For those who wanted to know how I feel about the events that transpired yesterday, let me tell you that I do not give any comments about that during class, so please save those questions for later or rather do not ask those at all. Of course, some of you are curious and that is admirable, but you must know when you can be that, as more often than not curiosity was the reason a spell was cast towards a person who was following the other. As for today's lesson, as you can hopefully all see on the board, we will go through some basic defense spells, like the one you saw yesterday. First, I will distribute you new books, with all the spells you will need this year. Please open it on page 10 when I have given you your copy." Some hands did rise, but the question was just if they had to pay for these books too like the others. Triss answered with a no, as an exception for this year, also because Lockhart was removed rather suddenly, the school will provide the books for this class for all the students, no matter what year they are in.
As she walked by Luna and Ginny, she saw how Ginny quickly put a small black book back in her bag, and she was sure that she did write something inside it, maybe a note for later? She remembered that Ginny had a small book like this one on the videos, maybe it was even the same? She would have to tell Harry that she had it with her, as now she understood why he was looking at Triss during breakfast. She was proud that he took his responsibility seriously when he carried his now rightfully owned medallion with him. Now that he was a witcher, it was only a matter of time until he could differentiate how it vibrated and what it meant. He surely felt it when she did sit next to him, being this close to a strong magical object, that it had overwritten the other influences to react.
"Now, I am sure you still remember the duel three days ago between Mr. Lingley and Lockhart. Who can tell me what spell was used by Mr. Lingley first?" Triss looked around in the class, as some hands were raised at this question. She pointed at Luna, wondering how she would handle this situation.
Luna was looking at the new teacher before her, putting a finger to her chin to put herself in a thinking pose. Some of her classmates were now snickering, hoping that she would once again talk like she was a bit crazy. But to everyone's surprise, except Triss of course, her voice was clear and serious enough, showing that she took her studies seriously. "The first spell from Mr. Lingley was the shield charm, Protego. It should be enough for most spells to bounce from it, but it would still be better to evade the spells, that was something Mr. Lingley told us too. And I am sure as long the spells would not fly too fast for you, this would be the better option." Luna's eyes shined with pride as Triss gave her 5 points for this correct answer, as those were the first points she ever received. Triss then let them read the section in their new book about the Protego charm and when someone was finished with it, she asked them to come forward and practice the wand movements and spelling for this spell.
Ginny noticed that Triss did not pull out a wand or used magic to give them their books. She asked herself what the reason could be and was compelled to pull her diary out again and ask Tom if he would know something about it. But she was also afraid that she would lose points for not paying attention to the class. So, she left it in there for now, but now she noticed that she was compelled to write in it more and more the longer she had it. Maybe she should really ask Professor Merigold if she would know why that was, as the voice of her father was now telling her a warning that she had heard sometimes. She should not trust it if it could think for itself, and you could not see where the brain was. And being honest with herself, a book did not have one of those. But just as she wanted to ask the Professor, she felt afraid for something she could not explain and kept quiet because of it. She then decided that she would ask the next time she would see her, or even ask her favorite brothers when they would be alone. Then in contrast to popular belief, Fred and George were really intelligent, and she could always write Bill a letter and ask him for his opinion. Maybe she would do that this evening, as her mother always told her that you should not wait with important things to be done.
Triss was proud of herself when she watched all these young students eager to learn from her, even if her kind of magic was different and she tried to make it work somehow. When a student asked her if she could show them the Protego-charm, she had warned them that she used wandless magic, a very complicated branch to master. And if she would show them how she did the spell, it would only confuse them. But after some curious glances from the Ravenclaws, she was persuaded to show it regardless. It could not hurt, if she just said the word and made her magic into a shield for them to see. All the sounds that followed were nice to her ears, but to her surprise she saw how Luna copied her movement a bit clumsily and produced a tiny shield, almost impossible to see for others. But as she knew what to look for, she saw the magic around her hand move. 'Yes, this girl is full of surprises,' Triss thought to herself.
Luna was exhausted after she tried to make the same shield as Professor Merigold showed them, but seemingly she used too much of her own magic for such a little result. She was sure that she could do it when she would practice more, but somehow, she knew that only repeating this movement would never be enough. Maybe she should go more often to the training ground where Chief Wulf is on the weekends. Maybe she could ask him again if she could talk with the blue lady he was with. Something was still pulling her to them, but she could not see what it was. Even if Professor Merigold was calling her a seer, she was still a young girl and could not control this ability to its full potential.
As the class was wrapping up, the first-year students discussed greatly on how much better this class was. They all could not wait for when they could use these spells in a real duel. On their way to the next class, they crossed paths with the second year Gryffindors and Slytherins behind them, who were on their way to their DADA class. Ginny smiled and waved at Harry, but he was engrossed in discussing some thing with Daphne and Hermione. Ginny was still curious how a Slytherin was friends with Harry Potter, as all her attempts to befriend another first year in Daphne's house was rebuffed by them. Only Luna, from whom she knew beforehand, was a friend from another house. Maybe she should talk a bit more with Harry and ask him for some tips. They walked further towards their Charms class, where Professor Flitwick was already waiting outside his classroom.
Harry was talking with Daphne and Hermione about the Potions essay they had to write until the next Potions class, when they arrived before the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom where Triss was already waiting for them with a smile on her lips. She winked at him and told his classmates to hurry up and sit down. When she closed the door after the last student walked through the threshold, she told the students who were still talking to be silent as she wanted to tell them about the new goals for this class. She heard a small snicker from a blond-haired boy and his two friends beside him grinned at her predatorily.
"Something amuses you, Mr. Malfoy? Please, do tell us so we can laugh too." Triss guessed what it was causing Malfoy to laugh at her, ordering them to be silent. According to Cortana's profiles, John has given her access to the Malfoy family liked to brag that they were pureblood and looked down at everyone who wasn't one. And as she had not proved to him that she was a pureblood witch, Malfoy did not respect her even if she could mop the floor with him. That she was a woman was also a reason, as he answered her question.
"Oh, sorry Professor….. Merigold was it? But I am not sure what you could teach us for this topic, as I am sure that a woman cannot fight. But I do not think that I could beat you, as I do not have enough spells mastered for it. But surely, a wizard with the same skillset can defeat you easily; so how would you teach us to defend ourselves?" When Malfoy finished this sentence, almost every Gryffindor and some Slytherins were looking at him angrily, most notably all the girls with them. But Triss just smiled, beginning to have a short laugh afterwards.
"Oh, I did not think that you had a sense of humor, Mr. Malfoy. You know, with the stick up your behind." At this sentence, Malfoy was getting red out of anger, but everyone else listened to what Triss had to tell them. "Now, Mr. Malfoy, according to your assessment between your peers, you would say that you could defeat every girl in here? Please explain how you want to do that if they evaded every spell thrown at them? That is the reason I teach you not to attack another, but to defend yourself. And just for your cheek, I'll take 20 points from Slytherin for telling such sexist things. And believe me, I would take more points from you if you were older. Now, listen as I show you how to cast a spell you saw three days ago, the disarming charm according to those books I will give you now." Unlike with the first year students before, she lifted her hand and pointed to the books. They then lifted off from the desk and floated towards their new owner and landed in front of them. With this show of magical skill, Malfoy shut up since Triss was not using a wand for this spell. That was only heard of the strongest witches and wizards afterall, not that those students would know that all her friends could do that too. One Slytherin student wanted to know if they would learn to do that too, but Triss told her that this would take many years of studying and training to make it work. To sway any suspicion against her, she told them that she could only use some spells without a wand, she grinned when she noticed Harry looking at her with a raised brow.
"I store my wand on my wrist, as you can see here. Now, to show you the spell I need a volunteer." She then pulled a small wand out of a holster on her wrist, as she visited Olivander's last summer to keep up the appearance that she was a normal witch, only a bit stronger in her spell work than others. She was laughing at the antics from the old man, searching almost his whole shop for a wand that would suit her. Even if she just needed one to just work it would not have to be the perfect fit like the ones from the students, as the only reason that she needed one was to keep up the appearance to be a legitimate witch and not causing unnecessary questions. Not that after the little show she did before help, but Malfoy was getting on her nerves a bit and she wanted to put him in his place.
Harry stood up and walked in front of the class, volunteering to show the others how the spell works. He and Triss stood opposite each other and lifted their wands. "Now Mr. Potter, try to attack me with anything you find suitable, while I try to take your wand away with the Expelliarmus spell. Whenever you are ready, you can cast every spell you want." Harry grinned, deciding to show off a bit for calling him Mr. Potter. Of course, he knew that she did that because they were in class and John also called him Mr. Potter, but a small punishment would be right in his mind. And thankfully he had read the books in the library about Defense Against the Dark Arts and knew the spell he would use now.
"EXPELLIARMUS" Harry flicked his wand and pointed it towards Triss, who was only a little surprised at this and evaded the spell while firing her own disarming charm against Harry. Her reaction speed was just a tad too fast for Harry to evade it and his wand flew out of his hand and towards Triss. And as this was not the dueling club, he just left it to land on her hand and did not jump after it, as he would have done otherwise. But he would need some secrets when he would attend this club later this month, as if his opponent would know too much about his style, it would be disadvantageous for him later. Not that this would be a fight about life and death, but he wanted to show them that he had to be taken seriously. And if his opponent then would be Malfoy, that would be the icing on the cake.
"Very well done Harry, here is your wand back. Coincidentally, you have shown your classmates that even if you cast the spell successfully, if the opponent evades it, you would be open for a counterattack. The timing is crucial, but for now we would just practice the spell and wand movement for this spell. I want no one aiming it at another student while casting it, if you want to see that it works, over there are some training dummies. The stick will fly towards you if you cast it successfully." After this explanation, Harry walked over to the spot where the dummies were waiting, together with Hermione who was on the right of him. She grinned at him, challenging him to who would master this charm faster. That was a small game between them, as both of them were competitive when schoolwork was concerned.
He grinned back at his friend and accepted the challenge silently, as two small sticks were flying past them towards Daphne and Neville, who since he got the new wand, became much better in his spell work.
"Well, what did we learn? And if you ask yourself why we can do that already, do not forget who was studying with you both. We read the same books for crying out loud." Neville was laughing at the face Hermione had, as it was one of pure surprise. Harry just laughed with him, congratulating him on the success. Neville and Daphne got 10 points for their houses each for mastering the spell this quickly, but when Harry and Hermione pulled two sticks each at the same time from the dummies, they knew that nothing could stop these two for now. Hermione was glaring at Harry, as this was another tie in their little game.
Malfoy, together with Crabbe and Goyle, was thinking about how he could sabotage this class without anyone noticing, but Professor Merigold was to focused on all the students in this room as that she would not notice him placing a jelly-leg jinx or the tickling hex on Harry or Hermione, so he told the other two to distract her. But just as they did ask her how the wand movement would be correctly done, the bell was ringing and ending this class for now.
"Please write an essay on how you disarm an opponent in a duel and what you would do if you were to be disarmed. Hand this essay in by the next time this class will resume. You are dismissed. Oh, Mr. Potter, can I speak with you for a minute?" Triss was looking at the boy, who nodded and told his friends to go first, he would catch up later. When the classroom was empty, Triss sealed the door from unwanted listeners and told him that Ginny did carry the small black book with her, and asked him if he had a plan to confront her about it. Harry thanked her for this information and confirmed that he had an idea.
"I'll just wait until I see the book for myself and then I would ask her from where she got it, as it does not look like a normal wizarding world book. When she let me look at it, I will check it with my senses if something is strange about it and when it is confirmed that the book is the cause for my medallion to be vibrating like that, I'll tell her that something would not feel right with it. I'll then suggest that we see you or the headmaster about it, as when she did not buy it in Diagon Alley, someone placed it in her possession." Triss was happy with this explanation, as if this plan would succeed, Ginny would see for herself that something was not right with this book. But until then, they would have to wait for the right opportunity to arrive.