Disclaimer: Nope.

Author's Note: Hello folks. Thank you so much to everyone who wished me well. I'm doing pretty good now, and have just gotten back from spending a lovely few days with my parents at their house in Maryland. They have an apartment in Philly too, which is usually where they stay, but their house in Maryland is like a retreat. We are all incredibly lucky to get to stay there sometimes. Ryan and I had a wonderful time with my parents, and it was amazing to finish my recuperation there.

Thank you all so much for the amazing reviews. Yellow 14, you're very welcome. I'm really glad you liked what I did with your original characters. They're definitely going to have a big part in the story. Also, the fact that you looked at some of my older fics and want to do a sequel to one of them ... that is COMPLETELY awesome and thank you so much! I'm also sorry you've had some off days too. I really hope you're doing okay now.

Some of the comments I have received are really interesting, and things I honestly never thought of. It's very true that Sirius could have said he didn't register as an Animagus for security reasons, since he, being part of the Order, was a target of Voldemort during the First War. That is definitely something that could have been the case. I also like the thoughts about what the Hogwarts staff could have done to fight against the governors - it's all true, and I certainly could have taken the story in that direction.

I'm really glad that the last chapter went over well. The whole thing with Hestia's accidental magic going haywire was actually inspired by the fact that I have had panic attacks my whole life. I honestly think that if I were a witch, it would set off my accidental magic. It's something I've deeply thought about in regards to witches and wizards, and I'm honestly surprised I don't see that in fanfic more often. I'm very happy to say that, in my own case, I had a breakthrough in December and have had far fewer panic attacks since then.

To the reviewer who corrected me about Harry being in the staffroom during the Chamber of Secrets debacle - you're absolutely right, and I'm so embarrassed. I hate when I forget little things like that from canon. I've corrected the chapter to include it.

Okay, here comes this chapter, one that I've been yearning to write. I actually struggled with this one, because Sturgis is so important and I need to do him justice. The person he's based on is a big reason why I've come so far in my own emotional journey. This is Harry's first Defense Against the Dark Arts and History of Magic tutoring lesson. I will cover some of Harry's lessons with his different tutors, but obviously not all of them, otherwise the plot would never move along. In the next chapter, we'll be going back to Hogwarts to discover what Professor Giddens, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher there, is like.

I really hope you enjoy this chapter. I honestly hope you think it came out well.

xxxxxxxxxx

Nervous. Apprehensive. Worried.

That was exactly how Harry felt on Monday morning when he awoke and got ready for his first day with his tutors. For him, it had been a long weekend of recuperation - the brutal attacks he had seen on Thursday night into Friday morning had cost him a great deal of energy. It had been three days' worth of flashbacks to those gruesome scenes, three days' worth of remembering all the faces of those who had been mercilessly slaughtered.

But it had been three days of being taken care of, three days of Sirius providing Harry with everything he needed. Not that it hadn't been like that with Sirius already - Merlin knew, there were so many memories to choose from - but Harry could see that what had happened to him had hit Sirius especially hard.

Hope. Sirius had given him hope, too. Hope in the form of a mind art called Occlumency, something that Moody was willing to teach him. Harry would have his first Defense Against the Dark Arts and History of Magic lessons with Sturgis this morning, and Moody would give him his first Occlumency lesson this afternoon. Luckily, there had been no more horrific attacks since Thursday night, but Harry knew it would only be a matter of time before another one came.

As Harry sat down at the breakfast table, his thoughts strayed to his friends at Hogwarts. How were they doing? What classes did they have today? They'd owled him about the new teachers - Harry was interested about the new Defense teacher who had come all the way from America.

It felt so odd to be here at Grimmauld Place while he knew his friends were currently sitting in the Great Hall eating breakfast. He could just imagine the huge meal the house-elves had put out, the delicious smells permeating the room. He still remembered the taste of the crispy potatoes, and how he had joked with Ron about leaving some for him. "They're not all yours, you know," he'd scowled good-naturedly, receiving a similar expression from Ron.

"Kiddo?" Sirius's gentle voice pulled Harry out of his thoughts. "You're thinking about Hogwarts again, aren't you?"

"Er ... yeah. Sorry," Harry mumbled embarrassedly.

"Why on Earth are you sorry?" Sirius gazed at him with eyes full of empathy. "Of course you're thinking about it. It's their first day of classes today, too."

"It's just ... you've been so amazing letting me stay here, and ..."

"Harry." Sirius laid a hand on his shoulder. "Why would you honestly think that you missing Hogwarts means you're somehow ungrateful for all this?" He suddenly looked angry as he muttered under his breath, "It's those damned Muggles, isn't it? Let me guess. They were always calling you ungrateful."

Harry always despised when people brought up the Dursleys, but he could see the sadness and rage in Sirius's eyes whenever he thought something from Harry's time with them was showing itself. Visions of Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon flitted through Harry's head then - "Spoiled brat. You're lucky we put a roof over your head. You should have died that night with your parents."

It had taken Harry a long time to accept how much he was really loved, and in some ways, he still hadn't accepted it. In some ways, he was still waiting for the other shoe to drop, still somehow expecting Sirius to reject him. The last two months had helped him tremendously in realizing that this would not happen, but the doubts still somewhat remained, niggling at the back of his mind.

But he had to be brave. Something inside him was yearning to reach out to someone, yearning to tell them just what his life had been like with his so-called family. He remembered the trial, the hunger on John Dawlish's face, the anger of Sturgis as he defended Harry. Pushing those memories to the back of his mind and knowing that Sirius wouldn't tell anyone, he admitted softly, "Yeah, they were always calling me ungrateful. Selfish, too."

Sirius looked incredibly sad. "Two things that you're not," he said, his grip tightening on Harry's shoulder. "Look, I know there are things that happened between you and that ... that family of yours." He spat the word "family", and his tone was just as venomous as when he talked about his own. "And I know you don't like talking about them. I don't particularly like talking about mine, either." He sighed. "But if you ever feel like you can open up to me, please do. I'm not going to force you, and I know it won't be easy. But I do think it will help you if you face it."

Harry had been taught to reject everything that Sirius was saying, but then again, he never thought he'd have someone like Sirius in his life. Slowly, he reached out and squeezed Sirius's hand. "Thanks, Sirius," he said quietly. "One day, I just might."

xxx

It was time.

Harry and Sirius were sitting in the drawing room when the fireplace roared to life, and Sturgis Podmore spun out of it. He was immaculately dressed this morning, and he smiled at both Sirius and Harry. "Good morning," he said jovially.

"Good morning," Harry replied, a little apprehensive of what to expect. Sturgis had definitely shown himself to be someone Harry could be comfortable with, and last night had proven it even more.

The night before had been the first Order meeting at Sturgis's home in London. Since Harry wasn't officially a member of the Order and had only gone to that one meeting so that his education could be discussed, he understood that he wasn't allowed to be part of this one, though he did get the feeling that many of the Order members accepted that he wanted to be part of the fight despite their misgivings. But he was willing to compromise with them, as he was going to be trained for battle by three of its renowned members.

However, he had been able to go to the house, and Sturgis allowed him to use all the rooms downstairs except the kitchen. Harry had been very grateful, and had settled in the comfortable living room with his textbooks. It gave him time to get some reading done, but he couldn't help but wonder what the Order members were discussing in the kitchen.

However, after the meeting was over, Sturgis had invited him to come into the kitchen and join any Order members who wanted to stay. Much to his surprise, the man had cooked them all a delicious meal - chicken, mashed potatoes, and broccoli, and an apple pie for dessert. Over dinner, he did something that was rather unexpected, but something that Harry actually found rather intriguing, and he could tell that some of the Order members did, too. Not all of them had said yes to Sturgis's invitation, but those who did paid rapt attention as he went through the latest edition of the Daily Prophet, explaining that even the articles that were written correctly still made everything look worse than it really was.

"What do you mean?" Mrs. Weasley had asked rather incredulously. "Of course things are bad! You-Know-Who just attacked a whole bunch of people! I mean, I don't think much of the Prophet either, especially the garbage they've said about Harry. But really!"

"That's not what I mean, Molly." Sturgis's voice was calm. "We're all too aware of what Voldemort has done. What I'm saying is that even the articles that contain good news are written in such a way that it brings the reader down. I've noticed that many newspaper articles, especially the headlines, are written in such a way, and that's not going to keep up morale."

He had then turned to an article that was all about spell invention and how, over the centuries, witches and wizards had come up with the many incantations that were used today, and where they were derived from. Sturgis proceeded to read the article out loud, line by line, pointing out exactly when something was said that didn't need to be. He did it with a humor, wit, and intelligence that Harry had never seen anyone put into action before, and he realized he was right. As well as commenting on how ingenious some of the spells were, the article would also say something along the lines of how, in hindsight, it was a surprise that the inventor had taken so long to come up with it. Harry couldn't count the number of times he'd seen newspaper articles written like this.

Then, after dinner was over, Sturgis led his guests to another room in his home. Upon seeing it, Harry's eyes widened - it was an exercise room, complete with different kinds of equipment that one might see in a Muggle gym. There were treadmills, exercise bikes, and weights you could lift. Unlike a Muggle gym, however, there was also a duelling platform with dummies on it.

"Are you telling me that you duel these things in your spare time?" Mundungus Fletcher stared at Sturgis like he was insane. "Blimey, mate, don't you already have enough practice duelling?"

For a moment, Sturgis's face was fierce. "There's never enough practice duelling," he said with conviction before his face relaxed again.

Harry got the feeling that the duelling platform had more of a meaning for Sturgis than he was letting on, and the other Order members realized the same thing. They said no more on the subject, only asking him why he had shown them this room and what they were meant to use it for.

"So that we can keep ourselves fit," Sturgis answered simply. "Because this will keep up morale as much as anything else we do. It will also increase our chances of surviving what is to come physically as well."

"So what are you saying?" Bill asked. "That you're perfectly okay with us barging into your home and using this stuff whenever we want to?"

Sturgis smiled. "First of all, you won't be barging in. I'm inviting you. And yes, we will be using these things. It's not something you have to do - it's here only if you want to use it. But I am extending an invitation to all of you, and please let those who are currently not here know about it. Starting tomorrow, my home will be open on Monday through Saturday evenings from seven until nine o'clock. If you choose to come, I will be happy to see you."

"Six nights a week?" Molly stared at Sturgis in awe. "You mean, you're willing to have us in your home six nights a week? But what about you? What about time to yourself?"

"What about other things you might want to do?" Emmeline Vance asked. "And also, you know, resting, so you don't get burned out?"

"That's what Sundays are for," Sturgis said with a grin. "I did say six nights a week, not seven, you know."

Sirius's mouth was gaping open, and Harry knew his was, too. "Why are you doing this?" Remus asked in wonder. "Why are you doing all this for us?"

Sturgis's expression grew very serious at this. "Because I remember what happened last time. I already said this, during the Order meeting in the staffroom at Hogwarts. I told you I would be doing something to boost morale when my home became available for Order meetings. In the weeks before Voldemort's downfall, we were giving up. We were letting him win. And that's not going to happen again." He stared at all of them, his eyes two blazing balls of intensity. "And I want to see as many of you still here at the end of this as possible."

"What about when there ARE Order meetings?" Arthur asked.

"Most of the time, those are earlier in the evening, so I'll make everyone dinner after it's over, just like tonight, and our schedule will proceed as usual," Sturgis said easily. He turned to Harry then, and smiled at him. "You're more than welcome to come along, too, Harry," he said quietly. "I know that the time will come when you will go back to Hogwarts, but until that time comes, you're free to join me any time you want."

Needless to say, Harry still didn't quite know what to say to Sturgis this morning. The fact that he was not only Harry's tutor, an Auror, an Order member, and now was willing to devote so much of his time to helping those in the Order survive the coming battles ... Harry was honestly floored by it.

"I'm surprised, too, but I really shouldn't be," Sirius had admitted when they'd gotten home. "He's always been like that. Works himself way too hard and constantly takes care of others with not enough time for himself. Try to talk him out of it, and you won't succeed."

And now, as Harry and Sturgis headed to the kitchen for their first lesson, Harry knew he shouldn't be so nervous. Before he had left the drawing room, he'd wished Sirius luck - in half an hour, it would be his first session with Healer Dixon and Harry knew he wasn't looking forward to it. But he was determined to keep his end of the bargain - he had agreed to do anything to be able to take care of Harry. It never ceased to amaze the boy what his godfather was willing to face for him. Harry could only hope that, in the long run, Healer Dixon would be able to help him conquer the demons he had lived with for so long.

"Take a seat, Harry," Sturgis said with a smile as he poured two large glasses of water for himself and Harry, and brought them over to the kitchen table before sitting down himself.

"Er, thanks," said Harry as he accepted the water. "Er ..."

Sturgis grinned. "Go ahead and ask your question. I think I know what you want to ask me."

"Why are we having our session in the kitchen?" Harry blurted out. "I know Sirius and Healer Dixon are having theirs in the drawing room, but there are plenty of other rooms in the house."

Sturgis only laughed. "A perfectly reasonable question, Harry. It's because today, I'll be asking YOU some questions about what you've covered in your previous Defense Against the Dark Arts and History of Magic lessons, and I can also see how nervous you are. I think it very important that you stay hydrated and eat some healthy foods while we discuss this. I think it'll make you feel better."

"Sorry," Harry apologized immediately. "I didn't mean to ..."

"Do you honestly think you're insulting me by being nervous, Harry?" Sturgis asked. "Of course you're nervous - I'd be shocked if you weren't. This is an entirely new situation. You have gone through some ... extremely difficult things this summer, to say the least."

Harry felt himself relax marginally. "How will hydrating and eating healthy foods make me feel better?" he asked curiously.

"I see that Hogwarts is no better at teaching about health than it ever was," Sturgis said. "I didn't think so, somehow. I'm just glad I taught Ben about some of it before he left - although I know I can't control what he eats there."

Harry couldn't help but chuckle at that. "The constant feasts don't make it easy to eat healthily."

Sturgis laughed too. "I'd go into a lecture about how hydration and diet can help you handle things better emotionally, but I know that if I did that, we'd run out of time without having any class today."

Harry appreciated Sturgis's willingness to be honest about how much he could talk. He felt that not enough adults were honest about their own character traits. This was something that had struck Harry about Sturgis right from the beginning, and after what he'd found out about his past with Sirius and about how he had been the one to start his godfather on his journey to Azkaban, it had been Sturgis's blunt honesty and the guilt that he obviously still hadn't let go of that caused Harry to still trust him.

"We have apples, if you want one," Harry offered, getting up from the table.

"Yes, please. I would like that very much," Sturgis replied while Harry went to retrieve one for each of them. "Thank you," he said as Harry sat back down again. "Now, are there any more questions you'd like to ask me before we get started?"

Harry couldn't help himself. "Er ... you honestly didn't stop going to the Ministry every day for my sake, did you?" he asked quietly. "I thought about it, and you said during the week before Sirius's trial that you went in every day. You were always coming to the Burrow after your shift. Then, at the Order meeting at Hogwarts, you said you don't have to go in every day."

Sturgis smiled. "Another fair question. No, Harry. Honestly, the week before Sirius's trial, I did have to go in every day because there was so much happening. Because of the information your memory of Voldemort's return showed us, we had several Death Eater trials to prepare for and interrogations to conduct. It was a week where I was needed there every day."

"Oh." Harry nodded in acceptance. "I understand."

"I can see that you're wondering what would happen with your tutoring sessions if something like that happened again," Sturgis said. "I'm not saying it isn't a possibility. But Kingsley is currently head of the Aurors, and he's also an Order member. He's aware that I'm tutoring you, so he understands if scheduling conflicts come up. He may have other Aurors be in charge of things I normally do, so I can keep tutoring you."

"But I wouldn't want you to give up your job for me!" Harry exclaimed. "That wouldn't be fair!"

"Harry, I need you to understand something before we start our lesson today. My work with you is just as important as my work with the Aurors," Sturgis said fiercely. "You may not think so, but it is. By tutoring you, I'm helping the war effort just as much. We in the Order are aware of what's at stake, and you have shown that you are just as aware of it. Therefore, I need you to accept that my helping you is no less important than my work for the Aurors. Is that understood?"

Touched in a way that Harry couldn't quite describe, he nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Good." Sturgis smiled at him. "Now, let's begin. You might find my first question rather ... odd, but I'll ask it anyway. What is Defense Against the Dark Arts?"

Harry did indeed find the question extremely odd. Why would Sturgis ask him what Defense was? "Er ..." he hemmed and hawed over the answer, honestly tongue-tied.

"Again, I know the question is weird. This is your fifth year of magical education, so you obviously must think it ridiculous of me to ask such a thing," Sturgis said easily. "But please answer the question, the best you can. What is Defense Against the Dark Arts?"

"Er, it's how to defend yourself against, er, enemies like dark creatures. It's also defending yourself against curses, and learning how to duel," Harry replied, feeling like it was a trick question.

"Those are good answers, Harry, and they're not wrong. All those things are Dark Arts that one needs to defend themselves against." Sturgis nodded. "But I find that there is much more to Dark Arts than boggarts and grindylows and vampires. There's more to the Dark Arts than even the Unforgivables. Dark Arts are, simply, the negative thoughts and feelings we need to combat. I said I wouldn't go into a lecture about a healthy diet, and I won't. But even something like that will help defend yourself against the bad feelings that will try to bombard us.

"During peacetime, there are still dark forces in our lives that try to bring us down. Even the most put-together human being can have an extremely bad day. It's nothing to be ashamed of, but it's up to you to find healthy ways of coping with the situation. Even something as simple as taking one day for self-care can do you the world of good."

"But isn't that being selfish?" Harry asked, honestly curious. He couldn't help but hear Aunt Petunia's voice inside his head - "Do you think I care that you're feeling bad? Get up, you ungrateful, selfish brat. Do your chores, before I MAKE you."

But he also heard Sirius's voice, Sirius who had been his rock this summer and who had told him, only this morning, that he wasn't selfish or ungrateful. Maybe it was about bloody time that he forgot just about everything the Dursleys had ever told him.

"No. It's not being selfish," Sturgis replied. "If anything, you're helping others by taking care of yourself. You might end up doing something you'll regret otherwise."

Harry saw a lot of sense in that line of thinking, and Sturgis smiled. "In wartime, things are even more difficult," he continued quietly. "Defending oneself against the Dark Arts can honestly seem impossible at times like that."

"You seem to know how to do it," Harry blurted out. "I ..." He stopped, not knowing how to ask his next question without coming off as rude or demanding.

"What's my secret?" Sturgis asked, instantly understanding where Harry's mind had gone. "Like I said before - a healthy diet helps. But there are many other things, too. Knowing I can help others. My work at the Ministry. My work as an Order member. My plans for keeping up morale during this time. Knowing that there are others I care about, and who care about me. My beloved son, Benjamin. My parents. And, honestly ... what keeps me going are hope and optimism."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked. "If everything's going wrong, how can you feel those things?"

"Ah." Sturgis nodded at the question. "That leads me to my next point. What is History of Magic?"

Harry was rather surprised by the sudden change in topic. "Er, it's ... it's studying what happened in the past," he said slowly. "But what does this have to do with ..."

Sturgis smiled again. "Once again, a good answer, Harry. History of Magic is studying what has happened in wizarding culture, through the many struggles and triumphs we have faced. Unfortunately, you had Professor Binns as your teacher. I had the distinct ... displeasure of having him, too."

The way Sturgis's mouth turned down at the corners made Harry chuckle a little. "Did you fall asleep in his class too?" he dared to ask.

"No." Sturgis shook his head. "It's understandable that you and many other students do. And I suppose you can consider what I did worse. I questioned him. I challenged him at every turn. I yelled out in class. I couldn't understand why he continued to drone on and on and on about the same thing over and over and over again."

Harry was very interested. "How did he react?" he asked curiously.

"At first, he answered my questions, but not in a fashion I appreciated," Sturgis replied. "He'd speak about whatever I asked for several minutes, and then he'd start going on about goblin rebellions again."

"It was goblin rebellions for you too?" Harry asked. "I know those are important, but Merlin, doesn't he ever talk about anything else?"

"Not unless you force him, and after the first couple of times, he started ignoring me," Sturgis said. "Either that, or he'd call me by the wrong name while telling me to be quiet and pay attention in his class. I always wanted to learn about History of Magic. Binns completely ruined it for me. What a bore."

Harry's comfort level around Sturgis was growing by the second. He completely understood the man's vexation with the monotonous ghost teacher. "There was one time when Hermione asked him a question, and he answered it," he explained. "It was right after the Chamber of Secrets was opened again. It's the only time he's really engaged with us."

"He is no teacher," Sturgis said with a dejected sigh. "Minerva really, really needs to do something about him. As I explained during the Order meeting you attended, we need History of Magic to help us defend ourselves against the dark forces that are coming at us now. And that is precisely what this topic has to do with hope and optimism. Over the centuries, many a Dark Lord has tried to take over the wizarding world, but they have never been able to win, because people have always stood against them and what they stand for. Tyrants never learn that the people they want to rule over will always rise up in revolt. There are always more of us than there are of whoever the Dark Lord and their supporters are."

"But doesn't that mean that if Voldemort is defeated, there'll just be another Dark Lord, then?" Harry asked. "If you're saying that there's been Dark Lord after Dark Lord ..."

Sturgis looked very sad at that question. "That, Harry, is a question that probably has an unfortunate answer. There is not a Dark Lord in every generation - sometimes, there are those who try to be Dark Lords and do not succeed, because they make too many ridiculous mistakes. No, Harry. I cannot say that there will not be another Dark Lord after Voldemort has been defeated, much to my regret. But one thing I can say is that I have absolutely no doubt that the man formerly known as Tom Marvolo Riddle, who was once a young, promising student at Hogwarts, will be defeated. It breaks my heart when I think about what he did with his knowledge. He could have truly been great, but chose to use what he learned against others."

Harry did his best not to shudder at the words. Completely by coincidence, Sturgis's statement almost echoed Professor Maradith Crewer's as she stood in front of Voldemort, making her last stand. Harry could remember the pleasure oozing off the monster at her defiance.

Obviously, Harry didn't do a good enough job of hiding his feelings, because Sturgis noticed. "Harry? Are you all right?" he asked, concerned.

"He ... he's done horrible things with his knowledge," said Harry, trying to recover himself. "And ... and what if the Dark Lord after him does even worse? What's it all worth if every few generations, there's a new Dark Lord out there that has to be defeated?"

"That, Harry, is why it's on us to provide the hope and optimism that will carry those generations through, too. Years down the road, we will be gone. We will, unfortunately, have no control over what happens in the future. But one thing we can do now is give future generations the guidance and support they will need, so they can learn from us. Humans are known for repeating history, and that's why the subject is so important. A teacher like Binns is only making it more possible for those mistakes to be repeated."

Harry was riveted by the passion in Sturgis's words. "The way you talk about History and Defense like they're one and the same ... are you going to be combining them or something?"

"We will study them both separately, but there will also be lessons where we will be studying them together. Use the past to create a better future." Sturgis said it like a mantra.

xxx

It seemed as though Harry had sat down at the table, blinked, and two hours had passed. Throughout that time, Sturgis had asked Harry to tell him everything he had studied in Defense - there was no point really talking about what he'd studied in History of Magic. Sturgis listened attentively as Harry explained about all of his Defense teachers, causing him to let out a whistle.

"I knew most of that to be true, but hearing it from the horse's mouth ... it sounds like the only good teachers you had in Defense were Remus and Crouch, but obviously, Crouch was good for all the wrong reasons."

"Do you know anything about Professor Fiona Giddens?" Harry asked. "Ron and Hermione owled me and told me that she's the new teacher, and she's come all the way from America."

Sturgis shook his head. "Ben owled me the same thing. No, I've never heard of her. But I trust Minerva to know what she's doing."

Harry picked up on the subtlety of that statement. "Don't you trust Professor Dumbledore?" he asked, instantly feeling guilty for asking such a personal question.

Sturgis noticed his embarrassed flush. "That's okay, Harry. Honestly? If he was leading the Order again, I would be fighting with him, because the cause is more important than anything. But I trust Professor McGonagall to have the school's best interests at heart." He sighed. "I think what happened to him is horrific," he whispered.

Harry simply nodded - it seemed as though there were several people, other than Sirius, who had misgivings about how Dumbledore ran Hogwarts. Knowing that to ask more would be rude and that it was none of his business, Harry left the subject alone.

The rest of the lesson involved Harry showing Sturgis all the spells he could perform, and he conjured his Patronus for him as well. He could tell that his tutor was very impressed by the stag form as it galloped around the kitchen - in fact, he seemed very emotionally overwhelmed by it. "It's probably not the first time you've heard this, but a fully-formed Patronus at your age is rare, Harry," he said quietly. "And what a beautiful form. Sirius told me about ... about how you saved him from the Dementors." He couldn't quite meet Harry's eyes then.

"Look, Sturgis. It's okay. Sirius told me he's already forgiven you. And I do, too. You just said that humans are known for repeating history, and that's why it's so important to learn from it. Humans hold grudges all the time. I don't want to do that. Sirius said that's something he's learning not to do anymore, and he's the one you hurt. But you helped him, too. And you kept your word to me about no harm coming to him while he was at the Ministry."

"I always keep my promises, Harry." Sturgis looked touched beyond belief. "And that ... that means the world to me."

Harry knew that their lesson was at an end for today, but he suddenly felt the overwhelming urge to tell Sturgis about the flashback he had had earlier. McGonagall had said that only Bill and Moody knew about his scar connection with Voldemort, since they knew the most about dark magic and were looking into it. Obviously, Arthur knew as well, since Harry had told him about it when Voldemort had shown him the false memory of Cedric's murder. But now, Harry inexplicably felt that he could trust Sturgis with this information as well.

Realizing there was something weighing on Harry's mind, Sturgis asked, "Is there something else, Harry? You know you can tell me."

Slowly, Harry explained all about the awful connection he had with Voldemort, and how, the summer after his third year, he'd begun having awful dreams. He explained how he had been just a spectator at first, but then, that had all changed after Voldemort's return.

"I ... I was Voldemort, during the attacks on Thursday night," Harry said, shuddering as the memories washed over him again. "I felt his joy, his pleasure, his satisfaction while he was torturing and killing those people. Sirius had to convince me that it wasn't actually me who did any of it. Professor Maradith Crewer ... she'd apparently been a teacher at Hogwarts during the First War. I ... I read her obituary in the Prophet. She was the last person Voldemort killed that night. What you said about him using his knowledge to hurt people ... it was what she said, before he tortured and killed her."

Sturgis's face had gone white, and he closed his eyes. There were several seconds of profound silence before the man opened them again, and when he did, they were filled with tears. "You saw all of that, and yet you're sitting here today, ready to learn how to defend yourself against the darkness," he croaked. "You, Harry, are going to be an easier student than I ever could have imagined." He rose to his feet, and Harry rose with him. "And I think that this will conclude our first lesson," he remarked, obviously still trying to come to terms with all that Harry had just told him.

"Thanks, Sturgis. I really enjoyed it," Harry said truthfully. "I think we'll work well together."

"Yes." Sturgis nodded. "I think so, too."